JP5058740B2 - Sheet feeding apparatus and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet feeding apparatus and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to a configuration for positioning a regulating member that regulates the position of a sheet.

  2. Description of the Related Art Today, image forming apparatuses such as printers and copiers are widely used in which an image is formed by feeding a sheet to an image forming unit. As such an image forming apparatus, a sheet feeding cassette is detachably attached to the main body of the image forming apparatus, and sheets stored in the sheet feeding cassette are automatically fed to the image forming unit by the sheet feeding apparatus. It is common to make it.

  As a sheet feeding cassette used in such an image forming apparatus, there is a universal cassette that can store sheets of various sizes in the same cassette. A rear end regulating member that regulates the rear end of the sheet in the sheet feeding direction accommodated in the sheet accommodating portion is movably provided in the sheet accommodating portion of the universal cassette.

  Further, a side end regulating member that regulates the side end of the sheet in the width direction orthogonal to the sheet feeding direction is movably provided. Then, the sheets having different sizes can be accommodated by moving the trailing edge regulating member and the side edge regulating member in accordance with the trailing edge and the side edge of the sheet to be accommodated to regulate the positions of the side edge and the trailing edge of the sheet. it can.

  In such a universal cassette, the side edge of the sheet is regulated by the side edge regulating member and the trailing edge is regulated by the trailing edge regulating member so that the leading edge position of the sheet is always set to a predetermined position. As a result, the sheet can be stably fed regardless of the sheet size.

  By the way, when the universal cassette is attached to or detached from the image forming apparatus main body, these restricting members may move from the normal sheet restricting position due to the inertial force or impact of the sheet generated by the attaching / detaching operation. When the restricting member moves in this manner, a state in which the sheet cannot be held in a normal position occurs, and problems such as sheet feeding failure, skew feeding, and double feeding occur during the feeding operation.

  Therefore, for example, there is a universal cassette in which, for example, a rack is provided on the cassette body, a stopper is provided on the restriction member, and the restriction member is fixed by locking the stopper to the rack. In this universal cassette, the fixing of the restriction member is released by releasing the engagement of the stopper with a release lever that is arranged to protrude from the outer wall of the restriction member (see Patent Document 1).

  By the way, in such a conventional universal cassette, when a regulating member is fixed with a rack and a stopper, it is effective against a collision when attaching / detaching the cassette, an impact at the time of physical distribution, or the like. Further, since the release lever for releasing the engagement of the stopper is arranged so as to protrude from the outer wall of the restricting member, the position of the restricting member can be adjusted even when sheets are stacked on the cassette, so that the operability is good.

JP 2001-88948 A

  By the way, for example, when the release member is moved in a direction for restricting a small-sized sheet (hereinafter referred to as a small size restriction direction), the release lever is engaged with the stopper when the release lever is pressed in the small size restriction direction. The match is released. On the other hand, when the restricting member is moved in a direction for restricting a large-sized sheet (hereinafter referred to as a large-size restricting direction), it is necessary to pick up the release lever and release the stopper from the rack. .

  That is, conventionally, when the restricting member is moved in the small size restricting direction, when the release lever is pressed in the small size restricting direction, the engagement of the stopper is automatically released. However, in the case of moving in the large size regulating direction, an operation of picking the release lever is required to release the engagement of the stopper, and the operability is impaired.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object thereof is to provide a sheet feeding apparatus and an image forming apparatus that can improve the movement operability of the regulating member. .

The present invention provides a sheet feeding apparatus including a restricting member movable to restrict the position of a sheet accommodated in the accommodating portion main body, and is provided on the engaging portion provided on the restricting member side and on the accommodating portion main body side. A holding mechanism that includes an engaged portion that can be engaged with the engaging portion, and holds the restricting member in a restricting position according to a sheet size by engaging the engaging portion and the engaged portion. And when the control member is swingably provided on the control member and moves the control member in one direction, the operation unit for releasing the holding of the control member by the holding mechanism, the engagement unit, and the control member. The first pressing part that can be pressed by the operating part that swings by the pressing operation, and the operating part that swings by the pressing operation when the restricting member is moved in another direction opposite to one direction are pressed. Bei a holding member, a having a second pressing part capable, the The be pressed by one is the operation of the first and second pressing portion the regulating member so as to swing in the same direction and supporting the holding member, either to the one direction and said other direction The holding member is also swung in the same direction even in the pressing operation of the operation portion in the direction of, and the engagement between the engagement portion and the engaged portion is released . The present invention also provides an engaging portion provided on the regulating member side and a housing portion main body side in a sheet feeding device provided with a movable regulating member for regulating the position of the sheet accommodated in the housing portion main body. A holding portion that can be engaged with the engaging portion and holds the restricting member in a restricting position according to a sheet size by engaging the engaging portion and the engaged portion. A mechanism, an operating portion that is swingably provided on the restricting member, and that performs an operation of releasing the holding of the restricting member by the holding mechanism; the engaging portion; and the restricting member is moved in the one direction. The first contact portion that can contact the operation portion that swings by the pressing operation at the time, and the operation portion that swings by the pressing operation when the restricting member is moved in the other direction are in contact with each other A holding member having a possible second contact portion, and The restricting member supports the holding member in a slidable manner so that it moves in the same direction regardless of which of the first and second contact portions is pressed by the operating portion, and the one direction and the other direction. In either of the directions, the holding member is moved in the same direction to release the engagement between the engaging portion and the engaged portion.

  According to the present invention, when the restricting member that restricts the position of the sheet is moved, the restricting member is released by holding the restricting member by the holding mechanism by pressing the operating portion in the direction in which the restricting member is moved. Can be moved. Thereby, the operativity for moving a control member according to the magnitude | size of a sheet | seat can be improved.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a laser beam printer 100 which is an example of an image forming apparatus including a universal cassette 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The universal cassette 1 is a main body of the laser beam printer 100. 2 to be detachable.

  In FIG. 1, an image forming unit 102 is provided in a main body (hereinafter referred to as an apparatus main body) 2 of a laser beam printer 100 and forms an image by an electrophotographic method, and 103 is a sheet S for feeding the image forming unit 102. This is a sheet feeding apparatus.

  Here, the image forming unit 102 includes a photosensitive drum 107 that forms a toner image, a transfer roller 106 that transfers the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 107 to the sheet S, and a charging that uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum. A roller 109, a developing device 110, and the like are provided. Reference numeral 111 denotes a process cartridge including a photosensitive drum 107, a developing device 110, a charging roller 106, and the like.

  Further, the sheet feeding device 103 is a universal cassette 1 that is a storage unit that can store a large number of sheets S, and a paper feed that is provided above the universal cassette 1 and that feeds the sheets S stored in the universal cassette 1. A roller 103A is provided. The sheet feeding roller 103A, which is the sheet feeding unit, is formed of a high friction member.

  The universal cassette 1 has a cassette body 1A for storing sheets S, and stacks the sheets S, and is held on the cassette body 1A so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction about a shaft 50a. An intermediate plate 6 urged toward is provided. The intermediate plate 6 is pushed up by the coil spring 51 in the direction of the paper feed roller 103A, so that the sheets S stacked on the intermediate plate 6 are pressed against the paper feed roller 103A.

  Further, the universal cassette 1 is provided with a separation pad 101 which is a separation means for separating the sheets S sent out by the paper feed roller 103A one by one.

  Next, an image forming operation of the laser beam printer 100 configured as described above will be described.

  First, based on an image signal from a host computer (not shown), a laser beam from a laser scanner 122 provided in the apparatus main body 2 is uniformly charged on the surface by a charging roller 109 in advance, and rotates clockwise. Irradiated onto the body drum 107. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 107. Next, the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 107 is developed by the toner on the developing device 110, and a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 107.

  On the other hand, the sheet feeding roller 103A starts to rotate at a predetermined timing, and in conjunction with this, the middle plate 6 urged toward the sheet feeding roller by the force of the coil spring 51 rotates upward. As a result, the middle plate 6 is pressed against the sheet feeding roller 103A with a predetermined force. Here, the sheet feeding roller 103A is controlled to rotate counterclockwise only during sheet feeding, and feeds the pressed sheet S by a frictional force. When a plurality of sheets S on the intermediate plate 6 are sent out simultaneously, only the uppermost sheet S is separated by the action of the separation pad 101 and conveyed downstream.

  Next, the uppermost sheet S thus separated by the separation pad 101 is sent to the registration unit 105 and skew correction is performed. Thereafter, the registration unit 105 includes the photosensitive drum 107 and the transfer roller 106. Is transferred to the transfer unit 108. In the transfer unit 108, as described above, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 107 is electrically attracted by the transfer roller 106 and transferred to the sheet S.

  The sheet S on which the toner image has been transferred is then conveyed to the fixing unit 115 including the heating unit 113 and the pressure roller 114 by the conveying belt 104, and the toner image is heated and heated in the fixing unit 115. Is established. Thereafter, the sheet is discharged onto the sheet discharge tray 121 on the upper surface of the apparatus main body by the intermediate sheet discharge roller pair 118 and the sheet discharge roller pair 119.

  FIG. 2 is a view showing the inside of the universal cassette 1. The universal cassette 1 includes a cassette body 1A that accommodates sheets of various sizes, a pair of side end regulating members (side end regulating plates) 3a and 3b that regulate the side end position of the sheet, and the rear end position of the sheet. The rear end regulating member (rear end regulating plate) 5 is provided. The side end regulating members 3a and 3b and the rear end regulating member 5 are arranged so as not to affect the turning operation of the intermediate plate 6.

  When accommodating sheets of various sizes in the cassette body, which is the housing body, the side edge regulating members 3a and 3b are brought into contact with the side edges of the sheet to define the side edge position of the sheet, and The end regulating member 5 is brought into contact with the rear end of the sheet to define the rear end position of the sheet. Thereby, it can accommodate in the state which positioned the sheet | seat.

  When feeding sheets, the universal cassette 1 is mounted in the apparatus main body 2 from the direction of arrow A. Here, when the universal cassette 1 is mounted, the intermediate plate 6 is pushed upward about the support shaft 7 by the coil spring 51. As a result, the sheet positioned by the side end regulating members 3a and 3b and the rear end regulating member 5 is pressed against the paper feed roller 103A. The sheets pressed against the paper feed roller 103A in this manner are fed out one by one by the feeding action of the paper feed roller 103A and fed to the image forming unit 102.

  By the way, the pair of side end regulating members 3a and 3b are provided with rack portions 31a and 31b extending in the same direction (arrow B direction) as the movement direction of the side end regulating members 3a and 3b, respectively. . The rack portions 31a and 31b are guided by guide grooves (not shown) provided in the arrow B direction on the bottom plate of the cassette body 1A, and are movable in the width direction.

  Reference numeral 4 denotes a pinion that is rotatably provided at the center of the bottom surface of the cassette body 1A. The rack teeth formed on the rack portions 31a and 31b are engaged with the pinion 4, respectively. Accordingly, when any one of the side end regulating members is moved in the width direction, the other side end regulating member is interlocked with the one side end regulating member by the action of the pinion 4 and the rack portions 31a and 31b. Move in the direction.

  Then, by moving one side end regulating member in this way, both side end regulating members 3a, 3b are simultaneously moved in the width direction and brought into contact with the side edges of the sheets stacked on the intermediate plate 6, Positioning in the width direction of the sheet can be easily performed.

  The rear end regulating member 5 is guided by a guide groove (not shown) provided in the direction of arrow C on the bottom plate of the cassette body 1A and is movable in the feeding direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the rear end is engaged with the cassette main body 1A by a main body 5A that abuts against the rear end of the sheet, a slide part 5B that is suspended from the main body 5A, and an engaging portion that will be described later. And a holding member 9 that holds the regulating member 5 in a predetermined position.

  In addition, an operation unit 8 is provided that operates the rear end regulating member 5 and releases the engagement (holding) of the holding member 9 with the cassette body 1A by a later-described interlocking unit so as to be movable. When the engagement (holding) of the holding member 9 with the cassette body 1A is released by the release operation of the operation unit 8, the rear end regulating member 5 becomes movable and the set position can be changed. . In addition, after the rear end regulating member 5 is moved, the holding member 9 can be re-engaged with the cassette body 1A to hold the position.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the rear end regulating member 5 moves integrally with the rear end regulating member 5 and is pressed by the elastic member 10 in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the rear end regulating member 5. A click pin 11 is provided.

  When the trailing edge regulating member 5 is moved to a position that regulates the trailing edge position of the standard size sheet, the click pin 11 is provided at a position corresponding to the standard size position of the sheet of the cassette body 1A. To be elastically locked. Thereby, a click feeling is generated. As described above, when the rear end regulating member 5 is set at the standard size position of the sheet, the click feeling is generated, so that the operability when the user operates the rear end regulating member 5 is improved.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the holding member 9 is provided with a tooth row 9a which is an engaging portion composed of a plurality of triangular teeth on the side surface, and this tooth row 9a is provided on the bottom surface of the cassette body 1A. And is engaged with a rack tooth row 1a which is an engaged portion constituted by triangular teeth. The tooth row 9a thus provided on the holding member side (regulating member side) is provided on the cassette main body side (accommodating portion main body side) and is horizontally oriented to the rack tooth row 1a that can be engaged with the tooth row 9a. The rear end regulating member 5 is held (fixed) at a set position corresponding to the sheet size. A holding mechanism is constituted by the tooth row 9a of the holding member 9 and the rack tooth row 1a of the cassette body 1A.

  Here, as in the present embodiment, the teeth of the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a are triangular teeth, so that a high holding strength can be ensured mechanically. As a result, since the pitch between the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a can be reduced, the setting position of the rear end regulating member 5 can be finely adjusted.

  Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the tooth shape of the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a generates a large resistance force when the rear end regulating member 5 is moved in the large size regulating direction. Thus, a substantially vertical surface is provided on the large size regulating direction side. When the rear end regulating member 5 receives a force in the large size regulating direction, the substantially vertical surfaces of the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a are pressed against each other.

  In this way, when the rear end regulating member 5 receives a force in the large size regulating direction, the substantially vertical surfaces of the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a can be pressed to receive this force, Thereby, a high holding force of the rear end regulating member 5 can be ensured.

  The holding member 9 is supported by a slide portion 5B (see FIG. 3) of the rear end regulating member 5 so as to be swingable in the direction of arrow E about the pivot shaft 9b, and one swinging end portion of the holding member 9 is supported. The tooth row 9a is provided. The pivot shaft 9b is provided at a position where a force is applied in a direction in which the tooth row 9a engages the rack teeth 1a when the rear end regulating member 5 receives a force in the direction of increasing the size.

  Further, the holding member 9 is urged toward the rack tooth 1a by an elastic member 10 for urging the click pin 11, whereby the holding member 9 is held in a state where the tooth row 9a is engaged with the rack tooth 1a. As a result, the rear end regulating member 5 is engaged with and held by the cassette body 1A.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the operation portion 8 is provided on the upper portion of the main body portion 5 </ b> A of the rear end regulating member 5 so as to be swingable in the direction of arrow D about the support shaft 8 a. On the bottom surface of the operation portion 8, a shaft 8b is provided which is provided on the holding member 9 and loosely fits in a V-shaped groove 9c which expands in the direction of arrow D as a contact portion. In this embodiment, the shaft 8b of the operation portion 8 and the V-shaped groove 9c formed on the other swinging end portion of the holding member 9 are used in conjunction with the operation of the operation portion 8. An interlocking portion 5C for releasing the engagement between the holding member 9 of the end regulating member 5 and the cassette body 1A is configured.

  FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a state of the interlocking unit 5C when the operation unit 8 is operated according to the sheet size.

  For example, in order to accommodate a large size sheet, the operation unit 8 is moved in the moving direction of the rear end regulating member 5 so as to move the rear end regulating member 5 in the large size regulating direction indicated by the arrow F in FIG. When the same arrow F is pressed, the operation unit 8 swings around the support shaft 8a (see FIGS. 4 and 5). Along with this, the shaft 8b loosely fitted in the V-shaped groove 9c moves in the direction opposite to the arrow F direction, and one pressing surface 9c1 of the V-shaped groove 9c constituting the first pressing portion. Press.

  As a result, the holding member 9 swings around the pivot shaft 9b in the direction of arrow H, which is the direction in which the engagement with the cassette body 1A is released, and the engagement between the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a is released. Is done. By releasing the engagement between the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a in this way, the rear end restriction member 5 is moved when the rear end restriction member 5 is moved in the large size restriction direction so as to change the setting position. Can be moved easily.

  After the movement is finished, when the pressing of the operation portion 8 is released, the operation portion 8 returns to the original state where the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a are engaged by the action of the elastic member 10, and the rear end The restricting member 5 can be held at the set position.

  Further, in order to accommodate the small-size sheet, the operation unit 8 is moved in the moving direction of the rear end regulating member 5 so as to move the rear end regulating member 5 in the small size regulating direction indicated by the arrow G in FIG. When the same arrow G is pressed, the operation unit 8 swings about the support shaft 8a. Accordingly, the shaft 8b loosely fitted in the V-shaped groove 9c moves in the direction opposite to the arrow G direction, and the other pressing surface 9c2 of the V-shaped groove 9c constituting the second pressing portion. Press.

  As a result, the holding member 9 swings in the direction of arrow H about the pivot shaft 9b, the engagement between the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a is released, and the rear end regulating member 5 is moved so as to change the set position. It can move in the direction of small size restriction. After the movement is finished, when the pressing of the operation portion 8 is released, the operation portion 8 returns to the original state where the tooth row 9a and the rack tooth row 1a are engaged by the action of the elastic member 10, and the rear end The restricting member 5 can be held at the set position.

  Thus, according to the interlocking part 5C of the present embodiment, the holding member 9 is in the arrow H direction (same direction) when the operation part 8 is pressed in either direction (arrow F and G directions). Since the engagement between the tooth row 9a and the rack teeth 1a is released, the rear end regulating member 5 is movable. In other words, when the rear end regulating member 5 is moved in one direction or the other direction opposite thereto, the holding by the holding mechanism is released by pressing the operating portion 8 in the moving direction, and the rear end regulating is released. The member 5 becomes movable.

  That is, in the present embodiment, when operating the operating unit 8 to move the rear end regulating member 5, the operating unit 8 is pressed and swung in the same direction as the rear end regulating member 5 is moved. Only the holding member 9 can be disengaged. Thus, the rear end regulating member 5 can be moved by a series of operations of pushing the rear end regulating member 5 in the same direction as the swinging direction of the operating unit 8 while the operating unit 8 is swung. The movement operability of the regulating member 5 can be improved. That is, the rear end regulating member 5 can be moved simply by pushing the operating portion 8 in the direction in which the rear end regulating member 5 is desired to be moved.

  In this embodiment, the shaft 8b capable of pressing the V-shaped groove 9c constituting the interlocking portion 5C is provided in the operating portion 8 and the V-shaped groove 9c is provided in the holding member 9, but the shaft 8b May be provided in the holding member 9 and a V-shaped groove 9 c may be provided in the operation portion 8. Moreover, in this Embodiment, although the example which applied this invention to the rear-end control member 5 was shown, the same structure is applicable also to the side-end control members 3a and 3b. Thereby, the effect that movement operability can be improved also in the side end regulating members 3a and 3b can be obtained.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a universal cassette that is an example of a sheet feeding cassette provided in the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present embodiment. 7, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 2 indicate the same or corresponding parts.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, in the pair of side end regulating members 3a and 3b, the rack teeth formed in the rack portions 31a and 31b mesh with the pinion 4, respectively. When either one of the side end regulating members is moved in the width direction, the other side end regulating member is interlocked to move in the opposite direction to the one side end regulating member. Of the pair of side end regulating members 3a and 3b guided in a guide groove (not shown) provided in the arrow B direction on the cassette body bottom plate, one side end regulating member 3a is inserted into the cassette by an engaging portion described later. A holding member 13 that engages with the main body 1A and holds a predetermined position is provided.

  Here, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the one side end regulating member 3 a includes an operation unit 12 that is movable by releasing the engagement of the holding member 13 by an interlocking unit that will be described later. ing.

  Then, by operating the operation unit 12 to release the engagement of the holding member 13 with the cassette body 1A, the one side end regulating member 3a can be moved to change the set position. Further, after the moving operation, the holding member 13 is again engaged with the cassette body 1A, whereby the set position of the pair of side end regulating members 3a and 3b can be held.

  In the present embodiment, a triangular tooth row 13a constituting an engaging portion is provided on the bottom surface of the holding member 13 as shown in FIG. 9, and this tooth row 13a is provided on the bottom surface of the cassette body 1A. And is engaged with a rack tooth row 1b which is an engaged portion constituted by triangular teeth. The holding member 13 is provided on the side end regulating member 3a so as to be slidable in the vertical direction indicated by the arrow M, and is biased toward the rack tooth 1b by the elastic member 14 shown in FIG.

  Therefore, when the tooth row 13a is engaged with the corresponding rack tooth 1b and is urged toward the rack tooth side by the elastic member 14, one side end regulating member 3a is engaged with the cassette body 1A. . Accordingly, the pair of side end regulating members 3a and 3b are held at a set position corresponding to the sheet size. A holding mechanism capable of holding the pair of side end regulating members 3a and 3b is configured by the tooth row 13a of the holding member 13 and the rack tooth row 1b of the cassette body 1A.

  Here, as in the present embodiment, the teeth of the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b are triangular teeth, so that a high holding strength can be ensured mechanically. As a result, since the pitch between the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b can be reduced, the set positions of the side end regulating members 3a and 3b can be finely adjusted.

  Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the tooth shape of the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b has a large resistance force when the side end regulating members 3a and 3b are moved in the large size regulating direction. A surface that is substantially perpendicular to the large size regulating direction is provided. When the side end regulating members 3a and 3b receive a force in the large size regulating direction, the substantially vertical surfaces of the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b are pressed against each other.

  As described above, when the side end regulating members 3a and 3b receive a force in the large size regulating direction, the substantially vertical surfaces of the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b are pressed against each other, so that the force can be received. it can. Thereby, the high holding force of the side end regulating members 3a and 3b can be ensured.

  In the present embodiment, the operation unit 12 includes two support shafts 12a and 12b. When the operation unit 12 is pressed, the operation unit 12 supports one of the two support shafts 12a and 12b according to the pressing direction. The side end regulating member main body 3A swings in the direction of arrow L.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when the operating portion 12 is pressed, the operating portion 12 swings with one of the support shafts 12 a and 12 b as a fulcrum, and the other of the support shafts 12 a and 12 b is provided above the holding member 13. The pressed portions 13c and 13d are pressed upward. As a result, the holding member 13 slides upward, the teeth of the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b are separated, the engagement between the holding member 13 and the cassette body 1A is released, and the one side end regulating member 3a moves. Is possible.

  That is, the holding member of one side end regulating member 3 a is interlocked with the operation of the operation unit 12 by the two support shafts 12 a and 12 b of the operation unit 12 and the pressing units 13 c and 13 d provided on the upper part of the holding member 13. An interlocking portion 5C for releasing the engagement between the cassette 13 and the cassette body 1A is configured.

  Next, the state of the interlocking unit 5C when the operation unit 8 is operated according to the sheet size will be described with reference to FIGS.

  For example, in order to accommodate a large size sheet, the operation unit 12 moves the one side end regulating member 3a from the state of FIG. 9A in the large size regulating direction indicated by the arrow N in FIG. 9B. Is pressed in the same direction as the arrow N, the operation unit 12 swings about the support shaft 12a. When the operating portion 12 swings in this way, the support shaft 12b provided so as to be able to contact the pressing portion 13c constituting the first contact portion contacts the pressing portion 13c and moves the holding member 13 upward ( Push up in the direction of arrow P).

  As a result, the engagement between the tooth row 13a provided on the holding member 13 and the rack tooth row 1b provided on the cassette body 1A is released, and the one side end regulating member 3a becomes movable, and the setting position is changed. Thus, the one side end regulating member 3a can be moved in the large size regulating direction. With this movement, the other side end regulating member 3b is also interlocked and moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the one side end regulating member 3a. When the operation portion 12 is released after the movement is finished, the operation portion 12 returns to the original state in which the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b are engaged by the action of the elastic member 14, and the side end. The regulating members 3a and 3b can be held (fixed) at the set positions.

  Similarly, in order to accommodate a small-size sheet, the operation unit 12 moves the side end regulating member 3a from the state shown in FIG. 10A to the small size regulating direction indicated by the arrow R in FIG. Is pressed in the direction of the arrow R, which is the same as the moving direction, the operation unit 12 swings about the support shaft 12b. When the operation portion 12 swings in this way, the support shaft 12a provided so as to be able to contact the pressing portion 13d constituting the second contact portion comes into contact with the pressing portion 13d and moves the holding member 13 upward ( Push up in the direction of arrow P).

  As a result, the engagement between the tooth row 13a provided on the holding member 13 and the rack tooth row 1b provided on the cassette body 1A is released, and the side end regulating member 3a becomes movable and changes the setting position. One side end regulating member 3a can be moved in the small size regulating direction. With this movement, the other side end regulating member 3b is also interlocked and moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the one side end regulating member 3a. After the movement is completed, when the pressing of the operation unit 12 is released, the operation unit 12 returns to the original state in which the tooth row 13a and the rack tooth row 1b are engaged by the action of the elastic member 14 (arrow P). The direction) side end regulating member 3b can be held (fixed) at the set position.

  As described above, according to the interlocking portion 5C of the present embodiment, the operation portion 12 is pressed in either direction (arrow N and R directions), which is the direction in which the side end regulating member 3a can move. The holding member 13 moves in the arrow P direction. Since the engagement of the tooth row 13a and the rack teeth 1b is released by the movement of the holding member 13 in the direction of the arrow P, one side end regulating member 3a is movable.

  That is, when the side end regulating members 3a and 3b are moved, it is possible to release the engagement of the one side end regulating member 3a with the cassette body 1A only by pressing and swinging the operation portion 12. . Accordingly, by simply pressing the operating portion 12 in the same direction as the movement direction of the one side end regulating member 3a, the other side end regulating member 3b can be released and moved simultaneously. The movement operability of the regulating members 3a and 3b can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to the side end regulating members 3 a and 3 b has been shown, but the same configuration can be applied to the rear end regulating member 5. Thereby, the same effect that the operativity of the rear end regulating member 5 can be improved can be obtained.

  In each of the above embodiments, the restriction member is engaged by engaging the tooth row of the holding member that is the engaging portion and the rack tooth row of the cassette body that is the engaged portion. The joining portion and the engaged portion are not limited to the configuration of meshing teeth. For example, the restricting member can be restricted to a predetermined position by making the engaging portion a convex shape, the engaged portion being a concave shape, and the convex portion engaging the concave portion.

  In the present embodiment, the example in which the present invention is applied to the rear end regulating member or the side end regulating member provided in the universal cassette is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention may be applied to a side edge regulating member provided on a manual feed tray of an image forming apparatus or a document tray for placing a document of a document transport device.

1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus including a sheet feeding device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of a universal cassette that is an example of a sheet feeding cassette provided in the sheet feeding apparatus. The perspective view which shows the structure of the rear-end control member of the said universal cassette. The perspective view explaining the holding member and operation part of the said rear end regulating member. The top view explaining the interlocking | linkage part of the said rear-end control member. The top view which shows the state of an interlocking | linkage part when operating the operation part of the said rear end regulating member. FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a universal cassette that is an example of a sheet feeding cassette provided in a sheet feeding apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The figure explaining the structure of the side end control member of the said universal cassette. JJ sectional drawing of FIG. 8 which shows the state of an interlocking | linkage part when operating the operation part of the said side end control member. KK sectional drawing of FIG. 8 which shows the state of an interlocking | linkage part when operating the operation part of the said side end control member.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Universal cassette 1A Cassette main body 1a Rack tooth row 1b Rack tooth row 2 Image forming apparatus main body 3a, 3b Side end regulating member 5 Rear end regulating member 5A Main body portion 5B Slide portion 5C Interlocking portion 6 Middle plate 8 Operation portion 8b Shaft 9 Holding Member 9a tooth row 9c V-shaped groove 9c1, 9c2 groove pressing surface 10 elastic member 12 operation portion 12a, 12b support shaft 13 holding member 13a tooth row 13c, 13d pressing portion 100 laser beam printer 102 image forming portion 103 sheet feeding Feeder S sheet

Claims (8)

In the sheet feeding apparatus provided with a restricting member movable to restrict the position of the sheet accommodated in the accommodating portion main body,
An engagement portion provided on the regulation member side and an engagement portion provided on the housing portion main body side, engageable with the engagement portion, and the engagement portion and the engagement portion engage with each other. a holding mechanism for holding the regulating member restricting position corresponding to the sheet size by,
An operation portion provided on the restriction member so as to be swingable, and performing an operation of releasing the holding of the restriction member by the holding mechanism;
The engaging portion, a first pressing portion that can be pressed by the operation portion that is swung by the pressing operation when the restricting member is moved in one direction, and the restricting member in another direction opposite to the one direction. A holding member having a second pressing part that can be pressed by the operating part that swings by the pressing operation when moving to
The restricting member supports the holding member so that it swings in the same direction regardless of which of the first and second pressing portions is pressed by the operating portion, and whichever direction is in the one direction or the other direction. The sheet feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the holding member is swung in the same direction even when the operation unit is pressed in a direction to release the engagement between the engagement portion and the engaged portion . The regulating member is swingably supported on the holding member in a horizontal direction, Rukoto the engaging portion of the holding member and the engaged portions of the front Symbol retainer body is disengaged and engagement in the horizontal direction The sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1 . In the sheet feeding apparatus provided with a restricting member movable to restrict the position of the sheet accommodated in the accommodating portion main body,
An engagement portion provided on the regulation member side and an engagement portion provided on the housing portion main body side, engageable with the engagement portion, and the engagement portion and the engagement portion engage with each other. A holding mechanism for holding the restriction member at a restriction position according to a sheet size;
An operation portion provided on the restriction member so as to be swingable, and performing an operation of releasing the holding of the restriction member by the holding mechanism ;
The engaging portion, a first abutting portion capable of abutting on the operating portion that is swung by the pressing operation when the restricting member is moved in the one direction, and the restricting member is moved in the other direction. and a holding member having a second contact portion and the operation portion for swinging capable abutment, a by the pressing operation during which,
Before SL said regulating member wherein the holding member to move in the same direction be pressed slidably supported by one said operating portion of the first and second contact portions, the one direction and the other features and to Resid over that to release the engagement between the engaged portion and the engagement portion also moving the holding member in the same direction by a pressing operation of the operating portion of either direction in the direction G feeding device. The regulating member is slidably supported moving the holding member in the vertical direction, the engaging portion of the holding member, and the engaged portion of the retainer body is Ru is engage and disengage in the vertical direction The sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 3 . The holding mechanism is capable of holding the restriction member at a restriction position by meshing teeth, and even if the operation portion is pressed toward the one direction or the other direction in which the restriction member is moved , The sheet feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the meshing of the teeth is released and the regulating member is moved in a pressing direction of the pressing operation. The regulating member, the sheet feeding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that a rear end regulating member for regulating a rear end position of the sheet to be accommodated. The regulating member, the sheet feeding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that a side edge regulating member for regulating the side edge position of the sheet to be accommodated. A sheet feeding device provided with a regulating member movable to regulate the position of the sheet accommodated in the accommodation unit main body, an image forming unit that forms an image on the sheet fed from the sheet feeding device, In an image forming apparatus having
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet feeding apparatus is the sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1 .

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