JP4206976B2 - Image recording device - Google Patents

Description

  According to the present invention, recording media (cut sheets, paper) stacked almost horizontally on a paper feed cassette are separated one by one and fed to a recording unit such as an ink jet type positioned above the paper feed cassette. The present invention relates to a configuration of an image recording apparatus having a U-turn path (U-turn path).

In conventional image recording apparatuses such as various printers and facsimiles, for example, in Patent Document 1, a large number of sheets of paper (recording medium, cut) are placed in a paper feeding cassette that can be moved back and forth on the lower side of the main body (housing). Sheets are stacked and stored in a substantially horizontal state, and a paper feed roller is disposed on the main body side on the upper surface side of the paper feed cassette and in the vicinity of the inclined separation portion at the tip of the paper feed cassette. After the sheet fed by the sheet feeding roller is guided upward by the inclined separation unit, a reversing roller and a substantially U-shaped conveyance guide plate (conveyance path plate) arranged facing the outer periphery thereof, In this configuration, a sheet is conveyed to the lower surface of the recording head via a conveyance path and is recorded, and then discharged to the front side of the main body of the image recording apparatus.
JP 2002-249248 A (see FIG. 1)

  However, as in the configuration of Patent Document 1, in order to drive the reverse roller, a power transmission system such as a gear group from the drive motor to the reverse roller is required, and the reverse roller is arranged along the curved inner surface of the conveyance guide plate. However, there is a problem that the structure of the image recording apparatus becomes complicated and the entire apparatus becomes bulky.

  In addition, when a large amount of recording medium is deposited on the paper feed cassette and when the recording medium deposition height decreases as the image recording operation progresses, or the strength of the recording medium is low. Due to the strength, there has been a problem that the separation performance of the recording medium one by one at the position of the inclined separation plate at the tip of the paper feed cassette varies (is not stable).

  The present invention has been made to solve these problems, and by adopting a relatively simple configuration, image recording that can be reliably and stably fed to the recording unit up to the last sheet of the recording medium. The object is to provide an apparatus.

In order to achieve the object, an image recording apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes an image recording unit that records an image on a recording medium, and a paper feed conveyance path that feeds the recording medium to the image recording unit. Is provided in the apparatus main body, and a paper feed cassette capable of accumulating and storing a large number of recording media is disposed below the image recording unit in the lower part of the apparatus main body so as to be movable forward and backward. The recording medium is fed by the sheet feeding means, and is separated one by one by an inclined separation plate provided at the end of the sheet feeding cassette and conveyed upward with respect to the sheet feeding conveyance path. In the image recording apparatus, the sheet feeding conveyance path is formed by a horizontally U-shaped plate-shaped conveyance path body in a side view, and a rotating roller that freely rotates in the conveyance path body, Recorded at least perpendicular to the transport direction of the recording medium Multiple provided at widthwise central part of the body, and the rotating roller, the a plurality disposed at appropriate intervals along the conveyance direction of the recording medium, the rotation roller disposed upstream of the transport direction The diameter of is formed larger than the diameter of the rotating roller arranged on the downstream side .

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the image recording apparatus according to claim 1, the diameter of each rotating rollers, which are formed so as to sequentially increase toward the central portion from the end portion of the rotating roller It is.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the fillet at the intersecting corner portion between the rotating peripheral surface and the end surface of each rotating roller is deleted.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, each of the rotating rollers and its support toward the surface through which the recording medium passes are provided on the conveyance path body. A storage portion that exposes the shaft is provided, and at least a part of each rotary roller is exposed on a surface of the transport path body through which the recording medium passes, and the shaft support portion of each support shaft is covered. The cover body is detachably arranged.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the surface of the transport path member that is in sliding contact with the recording medium is upstream in the transport direction of the recording medium. Further, it is formed in a convex curved surface that protrudes at the center side in the width direction of the recording medium and recedes toward both ends in the width direction of the recording medium.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the transport path projects toward a surface through which the recording medium passes, and the recording medium A plurality of long ribs that are long in the conveying direction are arranged at appropriate intervals on the outer side in the width direction of the recording medium with respect to the arrangement position of the rotary rollers. The cross section in the width direction of the medium is formed so as to be inclined at an obtuse angle toward the outside in the width direction.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the surface of the conveyance path body and the protruding rib on which the recording medium comes into sliding contact is upstream in the conveyance direction of the recording medium. Further, it is formed in a convex curved surface that protrudes at the center side in the width direction of the recording medium and recedes toward both ends in the width direction of the recording medium.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, the inclined separation plate in the paper feed cassette is a recording medium fed by the paper feeding means. Separating means for contacting and separating the leading edge of the central portion in the width direction is provided, and the inclined separating plate approaches the leading edge in the width direction of the recording medium in the vicinity of the position where the separating means is arranged, and It is formed in a convex curved surface that is separated from the leading edge of the recording medium as it goes to both ends in the width direction of the recording medium.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to the eighth aspect, the inclined separation plate is formed in a convex curved surface between the bottom plate of the paper feed cassette and the base of the inclined separation plate. The rib which fills the clearance gap which generate | occur | produces by this is integrally formed in the base of the said inclination separation plate.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to the eighth or ninth aspect , the bottom plate of the paper feed cassette is provided with a high friction coefficient member at a position facing the paper feeding means. It is on the downstream side in the transport direction of the recording medium with respect to the high friction coefficient member, and between the base portion of the inclined separation plate, it is lower on the high friction coefficient member side and higher on the base side of the inclined separation plate A guide portion is provided on the bottom plate.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, an upper end edge of the inclined separation plate in the paper feed cassette is a lower end edge on the surface side of the transport path body It is formed so as to partially overlap to a higher position.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the image recording apparatus according to any one of the first to eleventh aspects, the paper feeding cassette is pushed into the main body of the image recording apparatus on the lower surface side of the front end portion of the paper feeding cassette. An engagement claw that engages with an engagement portion provided on the main body when it is completed is provided, while the paper feed cassette is drawn from the main body between the lower surface of the bottom plate of the paper feed cassette and the main body. Next, cam means is provided to guide the ascending of the sheet cassette so that the engaging claw promotes the disengagement from the engaging portion.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of small-diameter rotating rollers that freely rotate are provided in the central portion in the width direction of the recording medium on the surface of the U-shaped conveying path that is laterally viewed from the side. Therefore, there is an effect that the recording medium can be smoothly and reliably conveyed to the recording unit while the configuration is compact.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the diameter of the rotary roller on the upstream side of the conveyance is increased, and the diameter of the rotary roller on the downstream side of the conveyance is sequentially reduced, so that the circumferential surface of the rotary roller becomes the conveyance path The resistance when the leading edge of the recording medium that moves along the surface of the body and protrudes from the surface of the body and moves upward from the inclined separation plate contacts the circumferential surface of the rotating roller This is extremely effective in preventing the occurrence of paper jam, and can smoothly and lightly transport the recording medium to the downstream side in the U-shaped curved path.

According to the second and third aspects of the present invention, no streaks occur on the surface (recording surface) of the recording medium conveyed while contacting the circumferential surface of the rotating roller, and the quality of the recorded image at the recording unit Can be eliminated.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, there is a remarkable effect that a plurality of rotating rollers can be arranged, and the trouble of mounting and dismounting the support shaft can be simply achieved by mounting the cover body.

According to the fifth and seventh aspects of the present invention, both ends in the width direction of the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path curved in a U shape when viewed from the side are slid on the surfaces of the conveyance path body and the ribs. There is no contact, the transport resistance is reduced, and it is possible to transport lightly and reliably.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the ribs arranged at appropriate intervals on the outer side in the width direction of the recording medium with respect to the arrangement position of the rotary roller are cross sections in the width direction of the recording medium. Is formed so as to be inclined at an obtuse angle toward the outside in the width direction, and therefore, the side edge in the width direction of the recording medium is conveyed while resting on the gentle slope of the ribs. This prevents the occurrence of paper jams.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the leading edge in the width direction of the recording medium collides first by the separating means provided in the central portion of the inclined separation plate in the width direction of the recording medium. Therefore, it is possible to surely achieve each separation action and to reliably prevent double feeding of the recording medium.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the rib that fills a gap generated by forming the inclined separating plate on the convex curved surface between the bottom plate of the sheet feeding cassette and the base of the inclined separating plate. Is formed integrally with the base of the inclined separation plate, and when the recording medium having a reduced deposition amount is fed close to the bottom plate due to the presence of the rib, the recording target There is an effect that the leading edge of the medium can be reliably guided above the inclined separation plate without being fitted into the gap.

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, the bottom plate of the sheet feeding cassette is provided with a high friction coefficient member at a position facing the sheet feeding means, and the recording medium is more than the high friction coefficient member. The bottom plate is provided with a high upward guide portion on the downstream side in the conveying direction and between the base portion of the inclined separation plate and a low high friction coefficient member side toward the base side of the inclined separation plate. Therefore, when the recording medium with a reduced deposition amount is fed close to the bottom plate, the leading edge of the recording medium is reliably guided upward along the upward guide portion, and as a result, the gap There is an effect that it can be surely guided to the upper side of the inclined separation plate without being fitted into the.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, there is an effect that the recording medium to be fed can be smoothly transferred from the inclined separation plate to the lower end portion of the conveying path even in the vicinity of the maximum deposition time.

According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, as the paper feeding cassette is pushed into the main body of the image recording apparatus, the paper feeding cassette is raised by the cam means, and in this state, the engaging claw is lightly applied to the upper surface of the engaging portion. It is pushed in while sliding. Since the engaging claw can be engaged with the engaging portion at substantially the same timing when the paper feeding cassette is pushed in, the paper feeding cassette is lowered in a substantially horizontal state, and the set state of the paper feeding cassette with respect to the main body can be maintained.

  When the paper cassette is pulled out, the front end side of the paper cassette is lifted by a distance by the cam means, so that the engaging claw lightly contacts the upper surface of the engaging portion at that timing. Therefore, it is possible to promote the action of releasing the engagement with the engaging portion of the engaging claw. In addition, it is possible to reduce resin deformation, wear, and whitening due to a violent collision of the lower end edge of the engaging claw with the engaging portion by repeating forward / backward (removing) operation of the paper feeding cassette, and paper feeding. A click feeling can be imparted when the cassette is pushed in and pulled out.

  Next, the best mode for embodying the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image recording apparatus equipped with an ink jet recording head of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side sectional view, and FIG. 3 is an image recording apparatus outer cover and an image reading apparatus with a lid cover body removed. 4 is a perspective view of the image recording apparatus without the image reading apparatus, FIG. 5 is an enlarged side sectional view taken along the line VV in FIG. 3, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the paper feed cassette and paper feed means, FIG. 8 is a perspective view of only the paper feed cassette, FIG. 9 is a plan view of the paper feed cassette, and FIG. FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line XI-XI in FIG. 9 and FIG. 12 is an enlarged side cross-sectional view for explaining the operation. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XIII-XIII in FIG. 12, and FIG. 14 shows the inner surface (front surface) side of the U-turn path conveying path body from below. 15 is a perspective view showing the outer surface side, FIG. 16 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line XVI-XVI in FIGS. 14 and 15, and FIG. 17A is a sectional view taken along line XVIIa-XVIIa in FIG. 17B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XVIIb-XVIIb in FIG. 10, FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XVIII-XVIII in FIG. 10, and FIG. FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing the engaging means and the cam means on the lower surface side of the paper cassette, and FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing the reinforcing bar portion at the bottom of the opening of the paper cassette housing portion. FIG. 22 is a side view for explaining the pulled-out state from the engaged state of the paper feed cassette.

  An image recording apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is an application of the present invention to a multi-function device (MFD) having a printer function, a copy function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function. As shown, the bottom of the housing 2 made of a synthetic resin injection molded product as a synthetic resin recording device main body in the image recording apparatus 1 can be inserted from an opening 2a on the front side (left side in FIG. 2). A paper feed cassette 3 is arranged.

  An image reading device 12 for reading a document in a copy function or a facsimile function is disposed on the housing 2. The bottom wall 11 of the image reading device 12 is configured to be superimposed from above the upper cover body 30 with almost no gap. The image reading device 12 is configured to be vertically openable and closable with respect to one side end of the housing 2 via a pivot portion (not shown). Further, the rear end of the document cover body 13 covering the upper surface of the image reading device 12 is an image. A rear end of the reader 12 is mounted so as to be pivotable up and down about a pivot 12a.

  On the upper side of the housing 2, an operation panel unit 14 including various operation buttons, a liquid crystal display unit, and the like is provided in front of the image reading device 12. On the upper surface of the image reading device 12, there is provided a placement glass plate 16 on which the document cover body 13 can be opened and a document can be placed. A CIS (Contact Image Sensor) 17 reciprocates along a guide shaft 44 extending in a direction (main scanning direction, Y-axis direction in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4) orthogonal to the paper surface of FIGS. 2, 5, and 6. It is provided as possible.

  Below the image reading device 12 and the operation panel unit 14, the recording unit 7, the paper discharge unit 10, and the ink storage unit 15 provided on one side of the paper discharge unit 10 are located within the planar projection area. Are arranged to be.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, the recording unit 7 is supported by a box-shaped main frame 21 and a pair of left and right side plates, and has a horizontally long first plate shape extending in the Y-axis direction (main scanning direction). It is formed between the second guide members 22 and 23. The carriage 5 on which the recording head 4 is mounted in the recording unit 7 is slidably supported (mounted) across the first guide member 22 on the upstream side and the second guide member 23 on the downstream side in the paper transport direction. Can be moved back and forth.

  In order to reciprocate the carriage 5, a timing belt 24 disposed on the upper surface of the guide member 23 disposed on the downstream side in the paper transport direction (arrow A direction) is disposed so as to extend in the main scanning direction (Y-axis direction). Is wound around a pulley, and a CR (cage) motor 25 (shown in FIG. 4) for driving the timing belt 24 is fixed to the lower surface of the second guide member 23. The motor 25 is a DC motor in the embodiment, but may be another motor such as a stepping motor. The second guide member 23 includes an encoder strip 47 that is arranged so as to extend along the main scanning direction and detects the position of the carriage 5 in the Y-axis direction (main scanning direction). The strip-shaped encoder strip 47 is arranged such that the inspection surface (the surface on which slits are arranged at regular intervals in the Y-axis direction) is along the vertical direction.

  A flat platen 26 extending in the Y-axis direction so as to face the lower surface of the recording head 4 in the carriage 5 is fixed between the guide members 22 and 23 and above the bottom plate 21 a of the main frame 21. Yes.

  The space from the lower surface of the guide member 23 on the downstream side in the paper conveyance direction to the paper discharge port 10a at the front end of the housing 2 is covered at the same height as the bottom plate 21b of the main frame 21 so as to cover the upper part of the paper discharge unit 10. A synthetic resin partition plate (lower cover body) 29 is formed integrally with the housing 2 (see FIGS. 2 and 4).

  Further, an upper cover body 30 is arranged above the partition plate (lower cover body) 29 so as to cover the carriage 5 and the reciprocating path of the carriage 5 appropriately. A rectangular window hole 31 is formed in the middle of the upper cover body 30 so that the reciprocating path of the carriage 5 can be seen from above (see FIG. 3). When the paper P causes a paper jam in the recording unit 7, the user can take out the paper P from the window hole 31 by rotating the image reading device 12 from the housing 2.

  Next, an arrangement structure of the flexible ink supply pipe 20 that always connects each ink cartridge 19 accommodated in the ink storage unit 15 and the recording head 4 in the recording unit 7 will be described.

  The ink storage unit 15 is opened upward of the housing 2, and the ink storage unit 15 has a small area in plan view that accommodates four colors of ink for full-color recording and has a height dimension. Ink cartridges 19 having a substantially rectangular box shape (reference numerals 19a to 19d are assigned to ink cartridges for individual colors, that is, black (BK), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y)). , FIG. 3 and FIG. 4) can be stored in a line along the X-axis direction, and is configured to be detachable from above.

  Then, a plurality (four in the embodiment) of ink supply pipes (ink tubes) 20 (individually denoted by reference numerals 20a to 20d) from the respective ink cartridges 19 (individually denoted by reference numerals 19a to 19d) to the ink jet type recording head 4. The ink is supplied via the reference numeral 20d (see FIG. 5). In addition, when using a larger number of ink colors than four colors (six colors to eight colors, etc.), an ink cartridge corresponding to the number of ink colors may be configured to be stored in the ink storage unit 15, The number of ink supply tubes 20 may be increased according to the number of ink cartridges.

  In the embodiment, each of the ink supply pipes 20a to 20d is a tube body independent from each other, and all the ink supply pipes 20b to 20d are used with the same length.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the root portions of a plurality (four in the embodiment) of the ink supply pipes 20 are bundled at one end portion 15 a of the ink storage portion 15 and are formed on the upper surface of the lower cover body 29. From the one side end portion (right end portion in FIG. 4), it extends in the direction of the other end portion (left end portion in FIG. 4) along the Y-axis direction. At this time, the base portions of all the ink supply pipes 20 a to 20 d are arranged in a horizontal row along the upper surface of the substantially horizontal lower cover body 29. At least a part of the ink supply pipe 20 (such as an intermediate part) is supported on the upper surface of the lower cover body 29.

  Next, all the ink supply pipes 20 a to 20 d are twisted so that the middle portion thereof is along one longitudinal surface (substantially vertical surface) of the horizontally long longitudinal partition plate 32 in the lower cover body 29, and this longitudinal partition plate 32. The middle portions of all the ink supply pipes 20a to 20d are arranged in a vertical line and fixed between a vertical plate-like fixing body 33 made of a synthetic resin that is fixed with screws or the like so as to face one of the vertical surfaces. (Hug or pinch). A portion where all the ink supply pipes 20a to 20d are fixed (embraced) by the fixed body 33 and one vertical surface of the vertical partition plate 32 is an intermediate fixing portion.

  The carriage 5 is provided with a connecting piece extending substantially horizontally in the paper conveyance downstream direction (arrow A direction), and the tip portions of all the ink supply pipes 20a to 20d are provided at the left end in FIG. Are connected in a substantially horizontal horizontal array. Then, the direction of the middle part of all the ink supply pipes 20a to 20d is changed from the left side to the right side from the position of the intermediate fixing part (fixed body 33) to the connection part, and all the ink supplies are supplied. The pipes 20a to 20d are twisted and drawn so that the phase of the row (arrangement) of the tubes 20a to 20d is changed from the substantially vertical direction on the fixed body 33 side to the substantially horizontal direction on the connecting portion side. As a result, all the ink supply tubes 20a to 20d are easily bundled while the ink supply tubes 20a to 20d are curved independently of each other. Of course, all the ink supply pipes 20a to 20d are separated from each other independently from the position of the fixing body 33 (intermediate fixing portion) to the connecting portion.

  Outside the width of the conveyed paper P (the short side of the paper P), an ink receiving portion is provided on one end side (in the embodiment, the right end portion in FIG. 4), and the other end side (left end portion in FIG. 4). ) Are respectively arranged as maintenance means (not shown). As a result, the recording head 4 periodically discharges ink to prevent nozzle clogging during a recording operation at a flushing position provided in the ink receiving portion, and receives ink at the ink receiving portion. In the maintenance unit portion, the carriage 5 is in a standby position, and a cap portion in the maintenance unit covers the nozzle surface of the recording head 4 from below and selectively sucks ink for each color or is not shown on the recording head 4. A recovery process is performed to remove bubbles in the buffer tank. When the carriage 5 moves laterally closer to the maintenance unit portion, cleaning is performed by wiping the nozzle surface with a cleaner (wiper blade) (not shown).

  In this embodiment, a flexible flat cable 40 for transmitting a command signal for selectively ejecting ink droplets from the nozzles of the recording head 4 mounted on the carriage 5 from a control unit (not shown) provided on the housing 2 side is When the ink supply tube 5 reciprocates in the Y-axis direction (main scanning direction), the region through which the ink supply tubes 20a to 20d pass (movable region, non-binding or non-binding region) is substantially parallel to the direction in which the ink supply tube 20 extends. (See FIG. 4).

  The convex curve directions of the midway curve portion of the ink supply tube 20 and the midway curve portion of the flexible flat cable 40 are set to be opposite to the reciprocating direction of the carriage 5. With this configuration, the ink supply tube 20 and the flexible flat cable 40 can be arranged at substantially the same height (substantially in the same horizontal plane) in the vertical direction, and as a result, the entire image recording apparatus 1 can be thinned.

  Further, a registration roller (conveyance roller) pair 27 for sending the paper P to the lower surface of the recording head 4 is disposed on the upstream side of the platen 26 with respect to the platen 26. A paper discharge roller 28 for conveying the recorded paper P to the paper discharge unit 10 is disposed on the downstream side (see FIGS. 2, 5, and 6).

  Next, the configuration of the paper feeding device will be described in detail. In the present embodiment, the paper feed cassette 3 is a paper P that has been cut into, for example, A4 size, letter size, legal size, postcard size or the like as a recording medium, and its short side is in the paper transport direction (sub-scanning direction, X axis). A direction in which a plurality of sheets are stacked (stacked) and stored so as to extend in a direction orthogonal to the direction (direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. 2, main scanning direction, Y-axis direction). An auxiliary support member 3a that supports the rear end of a long sheet P of a legal size or the like is attached to the front end (corresponding to the front side of the housing 2) of the paper feed cassette 3 so as to be movable in the X-axis direction. (See FIGS. 7, 8, 9 and 10). 2 shows a state in which the auxiliary support member 3a is disposed at a position protruding from the housing 2 to the outside. However, the auxiliary support member 3a is housed in a paper feed cassette 3 such as an A4 size (from the opening 2a to the housing 2). In the case of using paper P that does not protrude to the outside, the auxiliary support member 3a can be stored in the storage portion 3b so as not to interfere with paper feeding.

  Next, the configuration of the paper feeding unit 6 will be described. A drive shaft 50 made of synthetic resin shown in FIG. 7 is rotatably supported by a shaft hole formed in each of a side plate and a pair of shaft support plates (both not shown) in the main frame 21. The leading end is inserted so as to protrude laterally at the base of the paper feeding arm 6 a in the paper feeding means 6. The feed roller 6b is rotated in a certain direction (counterclockwise in FIG. 6) via a gear transmission mechanism 6c provided in the feed arm 6a by the rotational drive of the drive shaft 50. Further, the feeding roller 6b side is always biased downward from the bottom plate 21b by a biasing means (not shown) (for example, a torsion spring).

  Further, a separation inclined plate 8 for separating paper, which will be described in detail later, is disposed at the rear end (right side in FIGS. 2, 7, and 10 and left side in FIGS. 8 and 9). Further, a base end portion of a paper feeding arm 6a in the paper feeding means 6 is mounted on the bottom plate 21b of the metal plate box-shaped main frame 21 so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction. A paper feed roller 6b provided at the lower end of the paper feed arm 6a and an elastic separation pad 8a (separation means provided on the inner surface (front surface) side of the central portion in the width direction (Y direction) of the separation inclined plate 8 ( In the embodiment, it is made of a leaf spring), and the paper P, which is a recording medium deposited in the paper feed cassette 3, is separated and conveyed one by one. The separated paper P is a recording unit provided on the upper side (high position) behind the paper feed cassette 3 via a transport path body 9 for an upside-down U-turn path (paper feed transport path) configured as described below. 7 is fed.

  The paper discharge unit 10 from which the paper P recorded by the recording unit 7 is discharged with its recording surface facing upward is formed on the upper side of the paper feed cassette 3, and is a paper discharge port 10a communicating with the paper discharge unit 10. Is opened in common with the opening 2 a on the front surface of the housing 2.

  Further, in a state where the auxiliary support member 3a in the sheet cassette 3 is stored in the storage unit 3b, the length in the X-axis direction of the sheet cassette 3 and the length in the X-axis direction of the image reading device 12 and the operation panel unit 14 are as follows. It is almost equal. Accordingly, since the image recording apparatus 1 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape in plan view, the packaging is facilitated even when packaging as a product, and the packaging box can be downsized.

  The double feed preventing means 51 is configured to convey a large number of sheets P (about 100 sheets in the embodiment) of paper P stacked horizontally on the bottom plate 3c of the synthetic resin sheet feeding cassette 3 by the sheet feeding roller 6b for a U-turn path. This is for keeping the paper P to be fed last in the paper feed cassette 3 while feeding in the direction of the body 9. The multifeed preventing means 51 includes a base pad 52 such as a cork as a high friction coefficient member disposed on the bottom plate 3c of the paper feed cassette 3 facing the paper feed roller 6b, and stainless steel as a low friction coefficient member. It consists of a base plate 53 made of a metal plate.

  In the embodiment, the base pad 52 and the base plate 53 are arranged in parallel in a direction orthogonal to the feeding (conveying) direction of the paper P (indicated by the arrow in FIG. 12), and preferably the bottom plate Base plates 53 are arranged on both sides of one base pad 52 so as to be close to the feed downstream end of the high jump stand 54 on the feed downstream side formed integrally with 3c (FIG. 8). , FIG. 9, FIG. 12, FIG. 13). The two base plates 53 are fixed to the upper surface of the bottom plate 3c with an adhesive or the like. A through hole 55 is formed in the bottom plate 3c between the arrangement positions of the pair of base plates 53 in the up and down direction, and a base spring 56 as a support member in which the base pad 52 is fixedly supported by an adhesive on the upper surface passes therethrough. It is disposed at the hole 55.

  The cylindrical outermost peripheral member 6b1 of the paper feed roller 6b is made of a material such as synthetic rubber, and when the paper feed roller 6b is rotationally pressed against the paper P, the paper feed roller 6b and the paper P with which it contacts. The material and the surface shape (that is, the friction coefficient) are determined so that the frictional force generated during the period exceeds the frictional force generated between the sheet P in contact with the sheet feeding roller 6b and the sheet P immediately below the sheet P. ing. In this embodiment, an elastomer or EPDM (ethylene / propylene rubber) is used as the material, and knurls are formed on the surface in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction.

  Similarly, when the paper feeding roller 6b is in rotational pressure contact with the paper P, the frictional force generated between the base pad 52 and the paper P in contact with the paper P is the paper P in contact with the base pad 52 and the paper immediately above it. The material of the base pad 52 and the surface shape (that is, the friction coefficient) are determined so as to exceed the frictional force generated between the P and the P. In the present embodiment, cork is used as the material.

  When the paper feed roller 6b is in rotational pressure contact with the last sheet of paper P, the frictional force generated between the paper feed roller 6b and the paper P in contact with the paper roll 6b is applied to both the base pad 52 and the base plate 53. The material and the surface shape (ie, the friction coefficient) of the base plate 53 are determined so as to exceed the frictional force generated between the base plate 53 and the paper P in contact with them. In the present embodiment, a stainless steel plate having a reduced surface roughness is employed as the base plate 53, but a nickel-plated steel plate or the like may be used.

  The width dimension W1 of the outermost peripheral member 6b1 (dimension in the direction orthogonal to the feeding direction) is set so as to straddle at least the middle part in the width direction of the base plates 53 on both sides with the base pad 52 interposed therebetween. (See FIG. 13).

  A base spring 56 made of a metal leaf spring having spring elasticity has a locking hole 56a drilled in the base thereof and is locked to a locking claw 54a formed integrally on the lower surface side of the jumping base 54 so as not to fall off. It is attached (see FIG. 12). In addition, a positioning hole 56b such as a round hole formed in the vicinity of the locking hole 56a at the base of the base spring 56 is fitted into the protrusion 54b protruding from the lower surface of the jump base 54, and the base spring 56 The projecting direction of the is not shifted left and right. In this way, the base spring 56 is cantilevered and supported by the bottom plate 3 c, and the distal end side (free end side) of the base spring 56 is elastically biased toward the upper side of the through hole 55.

  On the distal end side (free end side, feeding downstream side) of the base spring 56, a regulating piece 57 for preventing lifting is provided by bending it into a U-shaped section. Thus, in a state where the outermost peripheral member 6b1 of the paper feed roller 6b does not press the base pad 52 downward (including a state where the outer peripheral member 6b1 does not press the paper P on the bottom plate 3c, these are referred to as no load). The leading edge (upper edge) of the regulating piece 57 comes into contact with the lower surface of the bottom plate 3c in the vicinity of the through hole 55, and the surface (upper surface) of the base pad 52 on the base spring 56 contacts the paper feed roller 6b. The surface corresponding to the point is regulated so as not to protrude upward by a certain value (about 0.5 mm in the embodiment) from the surface (upper surface) of the base plate 53 whose height position is fixed at the corresponding position. ing. This constant value varies depending on the plate thickness, material, shape in plan view, and the like of the base spring 56. When the second sheet P is fed from the last, the base spring 56 loses the pressure contact force of the sheet feeding roller 6b. It suffices if the pad 52 is designed not to be the same height as the base plate 53. Further, the height position of the surface of the base pad 52 on the upstream side of feeding is set to be substantially the same as the height position of the surface (upper surface) of the base plate 53 at the corresponding position, and is pushed by the paper feed roller 6b. The base pad 52 and the base plate 53 are set to be substantially parallel when the base pad 52 and the base plate 53 are at the same height.

  In the embodiment, the base spring 56 is formed in a substantially trapezoidal shape in plan view with a width dimension on the base side larger than a width dimension on the free end side, and the base plate 53 is opposite to the base spring 56 in the feeding direction. The upstream width dimension is smaller than the downstream width dimension, and is formed in a substantially trapezoidal shape in plan view (see FIGS. 8 and 9).

  In this way, the width dimension required when the base plate 53 is disposed on both the left and right sides of the base spring 56 can be reduced as much as possible, and the bending sectional area of the base spring 56 can be increased. Can be relaxed.

  Further, when the base plate 53 as a low friction coefficient member is made of a metal plate material such as stainless steel, the wear resistance is high and the friction coefficient of the surface is low. Therefore, the surface of the bottom plate 3c made of synthetic resin is used as the low friction coefficient member. Compared to the case of using, the last one sheet feeding operation can be ensured. Further, a slope on the surface of the bottom plate 3c between the base pad 52 and the base of the inclined separation plate 8 is low on the upstream side of the sheet P feeding and becomes higher toward the downstream side of feeding. The upward guide part 3e which has is integrally formed (refer FIG.9 and FIG.12). As a result, in a state where the amount of the paper P accumulated in the paper feed cassette 3 is reduced, the leading edge of the paper P sent out by the paper feed roller 6b comes into contact with a position higher than the base of the inclined separation plate 8, and the paper P Can smoothly feed upward. In the upward guide portion, a flat portion that is substantially parallel to the surface of the bottom plate 3 c at the high portion may extend to the base side of the inclined separation plate 8.

  Further, the surface of the inclined separation plate 8 is sawtooth-shaped as a separating means located on the center side in the width direction of the paper P in the direction (Y direction, width direction of the paper P) perpendicular to the feeding direction of the paper P. A convex portion that approaches the leading edge on the center side in the width direction of the paper P at a portion close to the separation pad 8a and moves away from the leading edge of the paper P as it goes to both ends in the width direction of the paper P. As shown in FIG. 9, since the surface of the inclined separation plate 8 is a convex curved surface, both ends in the width direction of the fed paper P are on the surface of the inclined separation plate 8. Before the contact, the leading edge on the center side in the width direction of the paper P can reliably come into sliding contact with the separation pad 8a to receive the separation action of the paper P.

  In addition, on the left and right sides of the separation pad 8a, freely rotating rollers 60 for smoothly guiding the paper P in the direction of the conveyance path body 9 are attached in the vicinity of the upper end of the inclined separation plate 8 (FIGS. 8 and 9). (See FIG. 18). The inclined separation plate 8 is formed as a separate body so that it can be detachably attached to the front end of the paper feed cassette 3 (see FIG. 19).

  Next, a configuration in which the paper feed arm 6a automatically moves up and down when the paper feed cassette 3 is inserted into and removed from the bottom of the housing 2 will be described. A substantially flat cam follower member 58 that is parallel to the drive shaft 50 and integrally protrudes from the sheet feeding arm 6 a made of synthetic resin is disposed on the lower surface side of the bottom plate 21 b of the main frame 21, and the sheet feeding cassette 3. Is extended to above the cam portion 59 on the upper surface of the side plate 3d (see FIG. 7). In a state where most of the sheet feeding arm 6a and the sheet feeding roller 6b rotated and raised are stored on the upper surface side from the opening 21c (see FIG. 6) of the bottom plate 21b, the cam follower member 58 is disposed on the lower surface of the bottom plate 21b. It is set so that it may become a parallel shape substantially close to.

  The upper and lower left and right side plate portions 3d, which are both ends in the Y-axis direction, sandwich the bottom plate 3c of the storage portion of the paper P in the synthetic resin-made paper feed cassette 3, and the forward and backward movement of the paper feed cassette 3 (X-axis direction) The cam portion 59 is integrally formed to slidably contact the cam follower member 58 in accordance with the movement of the paper feed arm 6a and the paper feed roller 6b in accordance with the movement (FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 9). reference).

  According to the above configuration, the paper feed cassette 3 is inserted from the opening 2 a on the front surface of the housing 2, and the lower surface of the cam follower member 58 is on the start end side of the cam portion 59 (side closer to the inclined separation plate 8, which is a bank member). When abutting, the cam follower member 58 is pushed up in accordance with the forward movement of the sheet feeding cassette 3, and the sheet feeding arm 6a and the sheet feeding roller 6b rotate upward integrally therewith, and the sheet feeding roller 6b and the sheet feeding arm 6a. Exceeds the upper side of the inclined separating plate 8. In a state where the paper feed arm 6a and the paper feed roller 6b are raised, these members are accommodated in the space above the bottom plate 21b (in the main frame 21) from the opening 21c. At that time, the flat cam follower member 58 is also in contact with or close to the lower surface of the bottom plate 21b. Accordingly, it is possible to ensure the vertical rotation operation of the paper feed arm 6a and the paper feed roller 6b without increasing the height of the vertical space between the bottom plate 21b of the main frame 21 and the paper feed cassette 3. In other words, the height from the paper feed cassette 3 to the bottom plate 21b of the main frame 21 can be reduced, and a compact product in which the overall height of the image recording apparatus 1 is reduced can be provided.

  When the cam follower member 58 is positioned at the descending portion beyond the uppermost position of the cam portion 59, the sheet feeding arm 6a and the sheet feeding roller 6b, which are biased downward accordingly, also rotate downward. The paper feed roller 6b can come into contact with the uppermost layer of the paper P accumulated in the storage portion 3b.

  When the paper feed cassette 3 is advanced to the innermost position in the housing 2 (set state), one end (lower end) of the cam follower member 58 in the paper feed arm 6a in the downward direction comes into contact with the lowest height position of the cam portion 59. The paper feed roller 6b can come into contact with the double feed preventing means 51 at the bottom of the paper feed cassette 3 (see FIGS. 7 and 12).

  In this way, the paper feed means 6 is provided with the cam follower member 58 positioned below the bottom plate 21b of the main frame 21, and the paper feed cassette 3 has the paper feed cassette 3 for the housing 2 (main body case). Since the cam portion 59 for at least temporarily rotating the sheet feeding means 6 together with the cam follower member 58 is provided together with the cam follower member 58, the sheet feeding means 6 according to the loading / unloading operation of the sheet feeding cassette 3 is provided. Can move up and down automatically, and operation becomes easy.

  A transport path body 9 as a U-turn path (paper feed transport path) that transports the paper P from the upper end of the inclined separation plate 8 to the recording unit 7 is made of a synthetic resin material so as to have a U-shaped plate portion 9a that is laterally viewed from the side. Injection molded. Engaging portions 62 and knobs 63 having elasticity are formed integrally with the plate portion 9a on the left and right back surfaces (back surfaces) of the conveyance path body 9 (see FIG. 15). The conveyance path body 9 is formed so as to be insertable into an opening portion at the rear end of the housing 2 at the upper end of the inclined separation plate 8 in the sheet feeding cassette 3 pushed into the bottom of the housing 2, and is conveyed in a predetermined posture. 9 can be attached to the housing 2 and is detachable.

  As shown in FIGS. 6, 10, 14 to 18, the plurality of protruding ribs 61 extending in parallel with the transport direction of the paper P are appropriately spaced in the width direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the transport direction. And so as to project integrally from the plate portion 9a. In this case, the cross-sectional shape of each protruding rib 61 is symmetrical with respect to the center in the width direction of the paper P, and has a gentle slope 61a having an obtuse angle θ1 toward the outer side in the width direction of the paper P. It is formed (see FIG. 20). The obtuse angle θ1 is an angle formed by the surface of the plate portion 9a and the gentle slope 61a, and is preferably 130 ° to 140 °. When formed in this way, when the paper P having a width dimension substantially equal to the distance between the pair of left and right protruding ribs 61, 61 is transported, even if the transport position of the paper P is slightly shifted in the width direction of the paper P, The side edge along the conveyance direction of the paper P is placed so that the sliding resistance is small with respect to the gentle slope 61a having the obtuse angle θ1. Therefore, as in the case of the prior art in which the ridge ribs are provided upright from the surface of the plate portion, the side edge of the sheet P to be conveyed hits the upright side surface of the ridge rib and is restrained as a result. Further, it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of a paper jam by causing the paper P to skew and the occurrence of a wavy weak line (called corrugation) in which the surface of the paper P extends along the transport direction.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the envelope connecting the inner surface of the plate portion 9 a of the conveyance path body 9 and the tips of the plurality of protruding ribs 61 is located on the center side in the width direction of the paper P as in the case of the inclined separation plate 8. A convex curved surface is formed so as to move away from the leading edge in the width direction of the paper P as it approaches the leading edge and toward both ends in the width direction of the paper P. Therefore, the inner left and right side portions of the leading edge in the width direction of the sheet P conveyed along the inner surface (surface) of the conveyance path body 9 are difficult to touch (easily escape) the inner surface (surface) of the plate portion 9a. The conveyance resistance can be reduced.

  A plurality of rotating rollers 64 that freely rotate are provided at least in the central portion of the conveyance path body 9 in the width direction of the paper P (see FIGS. 14, 16, and 17B). A plurality of these rotating rollers 64 are arranged at appropriate intervals along the conveyance direction of the paper P. Subscripts a, b, c, and d are attached to each rotating roller 64 in order from the upstream side of conveyance. The diameter of the rotary roller 64 arranged on the upstream side in the transport direction is formed larger than the diameter of the rotary roller 64 arranged on the downstream side.

  However, in the embodiment, the diameters of the rotary rollers 64c and 64d on the most downstream side and the upstream side adjacent to the most downstream side are formed to be substantially equal. In the embodiment, two rotating rollers 64 having the same diameter are provided at appropriate intervals in the width direction of the paper P.

  The plate portion 9a in the transport path body 9 is integrally formed with a storage portion 66 that can expose each of the rotary rollers 64a to 64d and its support shaft 65 toward the surface through which the paper P passes (FIG. 14, FIG. 15, FIG. 16 and FIG. 17 (a)). A shaft support portion 67 for supporting a support shaft 65 projecting from both ends of each of the rotary rollers 64a to 64d is formed in the storage portion 66 as a recess as a substantially semicircular arc-shaped open groove.

  On the surface side of the storage portion 66, a synthetic resin cover body 68 is formed so that at least a part of the circumferential surface of each of the rotary rollers 64a to 64d is exposed and covers the shaft support portion 67 of each support shaft 65. It is arrange | positioned so that attachment or detachment is possible (refer FIG. 14, FIG. 16 and FIG. 17 (a)). This cover body 68 is also curved and formed in a U-shape that is laterally viewed from the side so as to follow the surface of the plate portion 9 a, and a part of the circumferential surface of each of the rotating rollers 64 a to 64 d is exposed on the wide surface of the cover body 68. A possible window hole 68a is formed in a predetermined corresponding portion. A recess 70 that engages with a protrusion 69 protruding from the plate portion 9a is formed in the lower portion of the cover body 68, and a locking step formed at the upper end portion of the plate portion 9a is formed at the upper end of the cover body 68. A locking claw 72 that locks to the portion 71 is formed (see FIG. 16). With this configuration, the configuration of the shaft support portion 67 of the rotating roller is simplified, and the assembling and exchanging operations of the rotating rollers 64a to 64d can be extremely easily performed.

  As described above, the diameter of the rotary roller 64a on the upstream side of the conveyance is increased, and the height at which the circumferential surface of the rotary roller 64a protrudes from the surface of the cover body 68 is reduced. The depression angle with the circumferential surface of the rotating roller 64a becomes an obtuse angle shape close to 180 degrees, and the resistance when the leading edge of the paper P moving upward from the inclined separation plate 8 contacts the circumferential surface of the rotating roller 64a is extremely high. Therefore, it is possible to smoothly and lightly transport the paper P to the downstream side of the U-shaped curved plate portion 9a, which is effective in preventing the occurrence of paper jam.

  The diameter of each of the rotating rollers 64a to 64d increases sequentially from the end of the rotating roller toward the center. Preferably, the maximum diameter portion of the rotating rollers is a cylindrical surface, or the rotating roller is rotated. By forming the entire rotation peripheral surface of the sheet as a convex curved surface, no streaks are formed on the recording surface of the conveyed paper P (the side facing the surface of the plate portion 9a), and the image in the subsequent recording unit 7 is formed. The recording quality does not deteriorate. Further, by removing the fillet at the intersection corner between the rotation peripheral surface and the end face of each of the rotating rollers 64a to 64d (making the intersection corner round), the generation of the streaks on the recording surface of the paper P is ensured. The image recording quality can be further stabilized.

  In the embodiment, the maximum accumulation amount of the paper P in the paper feed cassette 3 is about 100 sheets of plain paper, and the accumulation height (H1) is about 10 mm. Correspondingly, the height dimension of the inclined separation plate 8 (of the bottom plate 3c) is set so that the paper P to be fed in the vicinity of the maximum accumulation can be smoothly transferred to the lower end portion of the plate portion 9a of the conveyance path body 9. The vertical height dimension from the upper surface to the upper end of the inclined separation plate 8 is increased. Preferably, the upper end edge 8b of the inclined separating plate 8 extends upward from the lower end of the plate portion 9a, and the inclined separating plate 8 covers the surface side of the plate portion 9a so as to partially overlap both (see FIG. 17 (a) and FIG. 18).

  9, 10, 11, 17 (b), 18 and 19, between the rear edge of the bottom plate 3c and the base of the inclined separation plate 8 in the sheet feeding cassette 3, In order to fill the gap generated when the inclined separating plate 8 is formed in the convex curved shape, the base of the inclined separating plate 8 is integrally provided with a supplementary rib 73 having a substantially triangular cross section with an appropriate length in the Y direction. Is formed. Due to the presence of the replenishment rib 73, when the paper P with a reduced accumulation amount is fed close to the bottom plate 3c, the leading edge of the paper P does not fit into the gap, and the inclined separation plate 8 It can be reliably guided upward.

  FIG. 21 to FIG. 23 can engage and hold the state in which the paper feed cassette 3 is inserted almost horizontally from the opening 2a of the lower housing portion of the housing 2, and the engagement state when the paper feed cassette 3 is pulled out. The structure which makes easy to cancel | release is shown. That is, a long reinforcing rib 76 is integrally provided on the lower surface of the sheet cassette 3 made of synthetic resin along the direction of insertion into the opening 2a. The reinforcing rib 76 is integrally formed with a cam portion 77 having a substantially trapezoidal shape in a downward side view. The reinforcing ribs 76 and the cam portions 77 are provided at a plurality (two in the embodiment) with appropriate separation in the Y direction. On the other hand, a connecting piece 79 is integrally provided on the bottom surface of the synthetic resin housing 2 to be connected in a direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the insertion direction (X direction) of the paper feed cassette 3 (FIG. 22 and FIG. 22). (See FIG. 23).

  When the paper feed cassette 3 is pushed into the housing 2 almost horizontally, the lower end edge of the cam portion 77 is in sliding contact with the upper surface of the connecting piece 79, and the rear end of the connecting piece 79 is at the position where the pushing of the paper feeding cassette 3 is completed. The cam portion 77 is located in the space on the back side of the edge 79a, and the lower end edge of the cam portion 77 falls below the upper surface of the connecting piece 79 (see the solid line state in FIG. 23). Conversely, as the paper feed cassette 3 is pulled out, the front end edge of the cam portion 77 comes into contact with the rear end edge 79a of the connecting piece 79, and then the lower end edge of the cam portion 77 rides on the upper surface of the connecting piece 79. The cam portion 77 and the connecting piece 79 constitute a cam means so as to move horizontally to the front side of the housing 2 (see the two-dot chain line state in FIG. 23).

  Further, between the front end reinforcing plate 78 and the cam portion 77 of the sheet feeding cassette 3, a plate-like engagement claw 80 and a pair of left and right guide plates 81 are integrally projected downward. (See FIGS. 21 to 23). The engaging claw 80 is long in the Y direction and flat in the X direction, and both guide plates 81 are long in the X direction and flat in the Y direction. On the other hand, an engaging portion 82 corresponding to the positions of the engaging claw 80 and the pair of guide plates 81 is formed at the front end portion of the connecting piece 79. The engaging portion 82 includes a protruding portion 83 that holds the pushing state of the engaging claw 80, and a guide groove (invitation groove) 84 that is long in the X direction and open at the front end on both the left and right sides of the protruding portion 83. (See FIGS. 22 and 23).

  In the above configuration, as the paper feeding cassette 3 is pushed into the housing 2, the lower end edge of the cam portion 77 rides on the upper surface of the connecting piece 79. In this state, the lower end edge of the engaging claw 80 is also the protrusion 83. It is pushed in while sliding lightly on the top surface. The lower end edge of the engaging claw 80 also exceeds the rear end of the projection 83 at substantially the same timing (when the push-in is completed) when the front end edge of the cam portion 77 moves beyond the rear end edge 79a of the connecting piece 79. Therefore, the sheet feeding cassette 3 is lowered in a substantially horizontal state, and the engaging claw 80 is obstructed by the rear end surface of the projection 83, so that the set state of the sheet feeding cassette 3 with respect to the housing 2 can be maintained.

  When pulling out the sheet cassette 3, as described above, the lower end edge of the cam portion 77 rides on the upper surface of the connecting piece 79, so that the front end side of the sheet cassette 3 is lifted appropriately (from the solid line state in FIG. 23 to the two-dot chain line). Therefore, the lower end edge of the engaging claw 80 is also lightly slidably contacted with the upper surface of the projection 83 at that timing. Therefore, the action of releasing the engagement of the engagement claw 80 with respect to the engagement portion 82 can be promoted. Further, it is possible to reduce the deformation, wear, and whitening phenomenon of the resin due to the collision of the lower end edge of the engaging claw 80 with the protrusion 83 by repeating the forward / backward (removal) operation of the paper feed cassette 3, and A click feeling can be imparted when the paper feed cassette 3 is pushed in and pulled out.

1 is a perspective view of an image recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side sectional view of an image recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a recording apparatus main body. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the recording apparatus main body with an upper cover body removed. FIG. 4 is an enlarged side sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 3. FIG. 6 is an enlarged side sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG. 4. It is a perspective view of a paper feed cassette and paper feed means. It is a perspective view of a paper feed cassette. It is a top view of a paper feed cassette. It is a perspective view of a paper feed cassette and a conveyance path. FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line XI-XI in FIG. 9. It is a partial enlarged side sectional view for explanation at the time of feeding the last sheet of paper. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIII-XIII in FIG. 12. It is a perspective view which shows the surface side of a conveyance path body. It is a perspective view which shows the back surface side of a conveyance path body. FIG. 15 is an enlarged side sectional view taken along line XVI-XVI in FIG. 14. (A) is the XVIIa-XVIIa arrow directional cross-sectional view of FIG. 10, (b) is the XVIIb-XVIIb directional cross-sectional view of FIG. It is XVIII-XVIII sectional view taken on the line of FIG. FIG. 6 is a partial side view of the state in which the inclined separation plate is removed from the front end portion of the paper feed cassette. FIG. 15 is a partially cutaway cross-sectional view taken along the line XX-XX in FIG. 14. It is a perspective view which shows the engaging means and cam means of the lower surface side of a paper feed cassette. It is a perspective view showing a portion of a reinforcing bar at the bottom of an opening of a paper feed cassette storage location. FIG. 4 is a side view for explaining a pulled-out state from an engaged state of the paper feed cassette.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image recording apparatus 2 Recording apparatus main body 3 Paper feed cassette 3b Bottom plate 4 Recording head 5 Carriage 6 Paper feed means 6a Paper feed arm 6b Paper feed roller 7 Recording part 8 Inclination separation plate 8a Separation pad 8b Upper end 61 Projection ribs 64a-64d Rotating roller 65 Support shaft 68 Cover body 77 Cam portion 78 Front end reinforcing plate 79 Connecting piece 80 Engaging claw 81 Guide plate 82 Engaging portion 83 Protruding portion 84 Guide groove

Claims (12)

An image recording unit for recording an image on a recording medium and a paper feed conveyance path for feeding the recording medium to the image recording unit are provided in the apparatus main body. A sheet feeding cassette capable of accumulating and storing a large number of recording media is disposed below the recording cassette so that the recording medium can be moved forward and backward. In an image recording apparatus configured to be separated one by one by an inclined separation plate provided on the sheet and conveyed upward with respect to the sheet feeding conveyance path,
The sheet feeding conveyance path is formed of a U-shaped plate-shaped conveyance path body in a side view,
In the transport path body, a plurality of rotating rollers that freely rotate are provided at least at a central portion in the width direction of the recording medium perpendicular to the transport direction of the recording medium,
A plurality of the rotating rollers are arranged at appropriate intervals along the conveyance direction of the recording medium,
2. An image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a diameter of the rotary roller arranged on the upstream side in the conveying direction is formed larger than a diameter of the rotary roller arranged on the downstream side . 2. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the diameter of each of the rotating rollers is formed so as to increase sequentially from the end of the rotating roller to the center. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein a fillet at an intersecting corner portion between a rotating peripheral surface and an end surface of each rotating roller is deleted. The transport path body includes a storage portion in which the rotary rollers and their support shafts are exposed toward the surface through which the recording medium passes,
A cover body that at least a part of each rotating roller is exposed and covers the shaft support portion of each support shaft is detachably disposed on the surface of the transport path body through which the recording medium passes. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:   The surface of the transport path that is in sliding contact with the recording medium protrudes on the upstream side in the transport direction of the recording medium, on the center side in the width direction of the recording medium, and goes to both ends in the width direction of the recording medium. 5. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image recording apparatus is formed on a convex curved surface that recedes according to the above. The transport path body has a plurality of protruding ribs that protrude toward the surface through which the recording medium passes and that are long in the transport direction of the recording medium. Arranged at appropriate intervals outside the width direction of the recording medium,
Each protrusion rib to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the width direction of the cross section of the recording medium is formed to be inclined at an obtuse angle shape toward the outside of the width direction The image recording apparatus described. The surface of the conveyance path body and the protruding rib that is in sliding contact with the recording medium protrudes at the center side in the width direction of the recording medium on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the recording medium, and extends in the width direction of the recording medium. The image recording apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the image recording apparatus is formed to have a convex curved surface that recedes toward both ends. The inclined separating plate in the paper feed cassette is provided with a separating means for contacting and separating the leading edge of the central portion in the width direction of the recording medium fed by the paper feeding means,
The inclined separating plate approaches the leading edge in the width direction of the recording medium in the vicinity of the disposing portion of the separating means, and approaches the leading end of the recording medium as it goes to both ends in the width direction of the recording medium. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image recording apparatus is formed on a convex curved surface that is separated from an edge. Between the bottom plate of the sheet feeding cassette and the base of the inclined separation plate, a rib that fills a gap generated when the inclined separation plate is formed on a convex curved surface is integrated with the base of the inclined separation plate. The image recording apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the image recording apparatus is formed. The bottom plate of the paper feeding cassette is provided with a high friction coefficient member at a position facing the paper feeding means, and is further on the downstream side in the transport direction of the recording medium than the high friction coefficient member, and the inclined separation. between the base plate, according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that a high upward guiding portion towards the base side of the inclined separation plate lower in high friction coefficient member side is provided on the bottom plate Image recording device. Claims 1 to 10, characterized in that it is rolled formed to the upper edge of the inclined separation plate in the sheet feeding cassette partially overlaps to a position higher than the lower edge at the surface side of the conveyance path member An image recording apparatus according to any one of the above. On the lower surface side of the front end portion of the paper feed cassette, an engaging claw that engages with an engaging portion provided in the main body when the paper feeding cassette is pushed into the main body of the image recording apparatus is provided,
Between the lower surface of the bottom plate of the paper feed cassette and the main body, as the paper cassette is pulled out from the main body, the paper feed cassette is raised and guided, and the engaging claw is moved from the engaging portion. 12. An image recording apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising cam means for facilitating release of engagement.

Images