JP5163671B2 - LIGHTING DEVICE, IMAGE READING DEVICE, AND IMAGE FORMING DEVICE - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus having a plurality of point light sources arranged in a straight line and an image forming apparatus including the image reading apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an image reading apparatus used in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, an apparatus in which a plurality of LEDs (point light sources) that illuminate a document are arranged in a straight line is known (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). ). Further, when a plurality of LEDs are used as a light source, a transparent resin is provided between the illumination object and the point light source in order to suppress the occurrence of illuminance ripple (irradiance unevenness in the illuminance distribution) in the LED arrangement direction in the illumination object (original). A light guide member made of glass or glass is disposed. This light guide member suppresses the generation of illuminance ripple by guiding light emitted from a plurality of point light sources and diffusing in a circular shape toward the document surface along the main scanning direction during document reading. Yes.

  However, in the inventions disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 described above, when the positional relationship between the plurality of LEDs and the light guide member varies, the document surface can be illuminated evenly along the main scanning direction. Disappear.

  The manner in which the positional relationship between the plurality of LEDs and the light guide member varies and the original surface cannot be illuminated uniformly along the main scanning direction will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 20, the illuminating device in this optical reading apparatus includes an LED array substrate 102 in which a plurality of LEDs (point light sources) 100 are linearly arranged and fixed on a substrate 101, and an emission direction of light emitted from the LEDs 100. The LED array substrate 102 and the light guide member 103 are attached to the housing member 104.

  Light emitted from the plurality of LEDs 100 is guided by the light guide member 103 and irradiated along the main scanning direction of the document D on the contact glass 105. Reflected light from the document D is read by a CCD (photoelectric conversion element) via a mirror 106 and a lens (not shown), and image information corresponding to the image of the document D is obtained.

  FIG. 21 shows a case where the positional relationship between the light guide member 103 and the LED array substrate 102 is deviated from an appropriate position, and the direction of the deviation is the direction in which the distance between each LED 100 and the light guide member 103 varies. This is the case. In this case, the amount of light incident on the light guide member 103 after being emitted from each LED 100 is increased where the distance between the light guide member 103 and the LED 100 is small, and the distance between the light guide member 103 and the LED 100 is large. By the way, it will be less. For this reason, the amount of light emitted from the light guide member 103 after being guided by the light guide member 103 and applied to the document D increases on the side where the distance between the LED 100 and the light guide member 103 is small. It becomes smaller on the side where the distance from the member 103 is larger. The arrows shown in FIG. 21 indicate the light emitted from the LED 100 and then guided by the light guide member 103 and applied to the document D. The lengths of the arrows indicate the amount of light applied to the document D. Yes.

  FIG. 22 shows a case where the positional relationship between the light guide member 103 and the LED array substrate 102 is deviated from an appropriate position. The displacement direction is twisted between the arrangement direction of the LEDs 100 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 103. This is the case of the direction of the positional relationship. In this case, the light emitted from the LED 100 located at the center in the arrangement direction is incident on the light guide member 103, guided by the light guide member 103, and irradiated on the document D. However, light emitted from the LEDs 100 positioned on both ends in the arrangement direction is not incident on the light guide member 103, and the document D is not illuminated on both ends in the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 103.

  An object of the present invention is to cause a plurality of point light sources to be evenly opposed to a light guide member, and to illuminate a document by light guided by the light guide member after being emitted from the point light source along the main scanning direction of the document. It is done uniformly.

The illuminating device of the present invention is positioned in front of a point light source array substrate in which a plurality of point light sources are linearly arranged in the longitudinal direction of the substrate, and in the emission direction of light emitted from the point light sources. A light guide member that guides the emitted light to illuminate the document along the longitudinal direction of the substrate, and the exit surfaces of the plurality of point light sources are along the incident surface and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member, respectively. A holding unit that holds the point light source array substrate so as to face the fixing unit, and a fixing screw that fixes the point light source array substrate to the holding unit, and the light guide member is formed on the point light source array substrate. The abutting surface is positioned so that the arrangement direction of the plurality of point light sources arranged linearly on the point light source array substrate is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member by abutting the abutting surface. has a reference plane, the A screw hole for attaching the fixing screw is formed in the holding portion, and a plurality of positioning holes through which the fixing screw is inserted are formed in the substrate so as to face each of the screw holes, and the longitudinal direction of the substrate One positioning hole located at the center of the substrate is formed in a round hole shape substantially equal to the outer diameter of the fixing screw, and the other positioning hole is longer in the longitudinal direction of the substrate than the diameter of the fixing screw. The point light source array substrate is formed so that the dimension along the short direction of the substrate is substantially equal to the diameter of the fixing screw, and the positioning hole of the substrate and the screw hole of the holding portion overlap. By placing the fixing screw in the positioning hole and attaching it to the screw hole by placing on the holding part, the intervals between the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member are constant, and the arrangement direction of the point light sources is Light guide To match the longitudinal direction of wood, the point light source array substrate is characterized in that it is positioned.
In the illumination device according to the present invention, preferably, in the illumination device, the light guide member includes an insertion recess into the surface facing the point light source array substrate that extends parallel to a longitudinal direction and into which the point light source array substrate is inserted. The insertion recess has a height dimension slightly larger than the thickness of the substrate, and the abutting reference surface is formed at the back of the insertion recess .
The illuminating device of the present invention is preferably such that, in the illuminating device, the light emitting surfaces of the point light sources arranged in a straight line project against the incident surface of the light guide member by inserting the substrate into the insertion recess. By inserting the abutted substrate into the insertion recess, the light emitting surfaces of the point light sources arranged in a straight line are abutted against the incident surface of the light guide member .
The illuminating device of the present invention is preferably characterized in that, in the illuminating device, the holding portion and the light guide member are separately formed and fixed.
An image reading apparatus according to the present invention includes any one of the illumination devices described above and a photoelectric conversion element that receives reflected light from a document.
An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes the image reading device and a printer engine that forms an image on a recording medium in accordance with image data read by the image reading device.
An image reading apparatus according to a reference invention is arranged in a straight line, a plurality of point light sources arranged in a line shape for emitting light for illuminating a document on a contact glass from below the contact glass, and the point light source A light guide member that is positioned in front of the light emission direction and guides the light emitted from the point light source so as to illuminate the original on the contact glass along the main scanning direction; A photoelectric conversion element that receives reflected light, and the light guide member is positioned so that a distance between each of the point light sources arranged in a line and the light guide member is constant, and Positioning means is provided for positioning so that the arrangement direction of the point light sources coincides with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, further comprising a point light source array substrate in which a plurality of the point light sources are attached to the substrate in a line shape, provided on the light guide member and parallel to a longitudinal direction of the light guide member. And a holding portion having a mounting surface on which the point light source array substrate is mounted and an abutting surface formed on the substrate by mounting the point light source array substrate on the mounting surface. The positioning means is formed by an abutting reference surface formed on the light guide member so as to be abutted.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, further comprising: a point light source array substrate in which a plurality of the point light sources are attached to the substrate in a line, and the light guide member is provided in a longitudinal direction of the light guide member. An insertion recess that extends in parallel and into which the substrate is inserted, and an abutting surface formed on the substrate by inserting the substrate into the insertion recess are formed at the back of the insertion recess. The positioning means is formed by the abutting reference surface.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, further comprising a point light source array substrate in which a plurality of the point light sources are attached to the substrate in a line shape, provided on the light guide member and parallel to a longitudinal direction of the light guide member. The positioning means is formed by an insertion recess that extends into the insertion portion and into which the substrate is inserted, and an incident surface of the light guide member that contacts the light emitting surface of the point light source by inserting the substrate into the insertion recess. Has been.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, further comprising a point light source array substrate in which a plurality of the point light sources are attached to the substrate in a line shape, provided on the light guide member and parallel to a longitudinal direction of the light guide member. And a plurality of positioning holes formed in the substrate by placing the point light source array substrate on the placement surface described above, and a holding portion having a placement surface on which the point light source array substrate is placed. The positioning means is formed by a plurality of mounting screw holes formed in the holding portion so that fixing screws inserted through these positioning holes are opposed to each other.

Preferred reference for invention, in the image reading apparatus, one of the positioning hole located at the center portion in the longitudinal direction of the substrate is formed in a substantially same circular hole shape as the outer diameter of the fixing screw, the other of the positioning The hole is formed such that the dimension along the longitudinal direction of the substrate is longer than the diameter of the fixing screw, and the dimension along the short direction of the substrate is substantially equal to the diameter of the fixing screw.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, wherein the holding portion is provided on the light guide member and has a placement surface that extends parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member, and is formed on the placement surface. The positioning means is formed by a wiring pattern to which the point light source is connected.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, further comprising: a holding member having a plurality of point light source press-fitting recesses into which the point light source is lightly press-fitted. The light guide member is provided with the holding member. A holding portion having a mounting surface extending parallel to the longitudinal direction and having a wiring pattern formed on the mounting surface, and the holding member lightly press-fitted with the point light source into the press-fitting recess for the point light source An abutting reference surface formed on the light guide member so that an abutting surface formed on the holding member is abutted by placing the point light source on the wiring surface and connecting the point light source to the wiring pattern; Thus, the positioning means is formed.

Preferred reference for invention, in the image reading apparatus, press-fitting recess for the peripheral circuit element where the peripheral circuit element is lightly press-fitted is formed in the holding member, by the holding member is placed on the mounting surface The peripheral circuit element lightly press-fitted into the peripheral circuit element press-fitting recess is connected to the wiring pattern.

In a preferred reference invention, in the image reading apparatus, the holding member is made of metal.

In a preferred reference invention, in the image reading apparatus, the holding member has a heat radiating portion.

A preferred reference invention is the image reading apparatus, further comprising: a holding member having a plurality of point light source press-fitting recesses into which the point light source is lightly press-fitted, and a substrate on which a wiring pattern is formed. A holding portion provided on the member and extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member and having a mounting surface on which the substrate and the holding member are stacked and placed on the press-fitting recess for the point light source; The point light source that is press-fitted is positioned so as to be connected to the wiring pattern, and is fixed to the holding portion so as to pass through and fix the substrate and the holding member placed on the placement surface. The positioning means is formed by the positioning pins.

In a preferred reference invention, in the image reading apparatus, the positioning pin is formed integrally with the holding portion.

An image forming apparatus according to a reference invention includes any one of the image reading apparatuses described above, and a printer engine that forms an image on a recording medium according to image data read by the image reading apparatus.

According to the illuminating device of the present invention, each of the point light sources arranged linearly and the light guide member are positioned so that the distance between them is constant, and the arrangement direction of the point light sources is in the longitudinal direction of the light guide member. Therefore, the light emitted from each point light source can be evenly incident on the light guide member, and the original by the light guided by the light guide member after being emitted from the point light source. The illumination can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document.
According to the image reading apparatus of the present invention, since the illumination device is provided, the illumination of the document by the light emitted from the point light source can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document, and a stable image can be obtained. Can read.
According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, since the image reading apparatus is provided, image formation can be performed according to a stable image reading result by the image reading apparatus, and the quality of the formed image can be improved. Can be planned.
According to the image reading apparatus of the reference invention, the light guide member has the positioning means, and the positioning means positions the light sources so that the distance between each of the point light sources arranged in a line and the light guide member is constant. In addition, since the arrangement direction of the point light sources is positioned so as to coincide with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member. Illumination of the original with the light emitted from the light source and then guided by the light guide member can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the original.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, the point light source array substrate is placed on the placement surface of the holding unit, so that the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member are guided in the arrangement direction of the point light sources and the light guide. It can position so that the longitudinal direction of a member may correspond. Further, by abutting the abutting surface of the substrate against the abutting reference surface of the light guide member, positioning can be performed so that the distance between each point light source and the light guide member is constant. For this reason, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from each point light source and then guided by the light guide member is used for main scanning of the document. It can be performed uniformly along the direction.

According to the image reading device of the preferred reference invention, by inserting the substrate of the point light source array substrate into the insertion recess of the light guide member, the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member are guided in the arrangement direction of the point light sources and the light guide. It can position so that the longitudinal direction of a member may correspond. Further, the abutting surface of the substrate is abutted against an abutting reference surface formed at the back of the insertion recess, so that the distance between each point light source and the light guide member can be fixed. For this reason, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from each point light source and then guided by the light guide member is used for main scanning of the document. It can be performed uniformly along the direction. Furthermore, according to the present invention, the warpage of the substrate can be corrected by inserting the substrate into the insertion recess, and the positional deviation between the point light source and the light guide member caused by the warpage of the substrate is prevented. Therefore, the original can be illuminated more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the original.

According to the image reading device of the preferred reference invention, by inserting the substrate of the point light source array substrate into the insertion recess of the light guide member, the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member are guided in the arrangement direction of the point light sources and the light guide. It can position so that the longitudinal direction of a member may correspond. Moreover, it can position so that the space | interval of each of a point light source and a light guide member may become fixed by abutting the light emission surface of a point light source to the entrance plane of a light guide member. For this reason, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from each point light source and then guided by the light guide member is used for main scanning of the document. It can be performed uniformly along the direction. Furthermore, according to the present invention, the warpage of the substrate can be corrected by inserting the substrate into the insertion recess, and the positional deviation between the point light source and the light guide member caused by the warpage of the substrate is prevented. Therefore, the original can be illuminated more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the original.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, the point light source array substrate is placed on the placement surface of the holding unit, so that the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member are guided in the arrangement direction of the point light sources and the light guide. It can position so that the longitudinal direction of a member may correspond. Further, the mounting screw hole formed in the holding portion and the positioning hole formed in the substrate are opposed to each other, and the fixing screw inserted through the positioning hole is screwed into the mounting screw hole, whereby each of the point light sources and the light guide member Positioning can be performed so that the interval is constant. For this reason, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from each point light source and then guided by the light guide member is used for main scanning of the document. It can be performed uniformly along the direction.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, one positioning hole located at the center in the longitudinal direction of the substrate is formed in a round hole shape substantially equal to the outer diameter of the fixing screw, and the other positioning holes are formed on the substrate. Since the dimension along the longitudinal direction is longer than the diameter of the fixing screw and the dimension along the short direction of the substrate is formed substantially the same as the diameter of the fixing screw, the holding portion and the substrate Even if a difference in thermal expansion occurs, it is possible to prevent the warp of the holding part or the substrate caused by the difference in thermal expansion, and the point light source generated due to the warp due to the difference in thermal expansion Misalignment with the light guide member can be prevented, and illumination of the original can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the original.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, the wiring pattern is formed on the mounting surface provided on the light guide member and extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member, and a plurality of points are formed on the wiring pattern. By connecting the light sources, the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the point light sources matches the longitudinal direction of the light guide member, and each of the point light sources and the light guide member Can be positioned so that the distance between them is constant. For this reason, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from each point light source and then guided by the light guide member is used for main scanning of the document. It can be performed uniformly along the direction.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, by placing the holding member in which the point light source is lightly pressed into the point light source press-fitting concave portion on the mounting surface of the holding unit and connecting the point light source to the wiring pattern, The point light source can be energized, and the plurality of point light sources and the light guide member can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the point light sources matches the longitudinal direction of the light guide member. Further, by abutting the abutting surface of the holding member against the abutting reference surface of the light guide member, positioning can be performed such that the distance between each of the point light sources and the light guide member is constant. Therefore, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from the point light source and guided by the light guide member can be performed in the main scanning direction of the document. Can be performed uniformly. Furthermore, according to the present invention, since the point light source is only lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fitting recess of the holding member, when a certain point light source fails, only the failed point light source can be replaced, There is no need to replace a plurality of point light sources as a whole or a plurality of point light sources including a light guide member as a whole, and maintenance when a point light source fails can be performed at low cost.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, the point light source is lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fitting concave portion, and the holding member in which the peripheral circuit element is lightly press-fitted into the peripheral circuit element press-fitting concave portion is mounted on the holding portion. By placing the point light source and the peripheral circuit element on the wiring pattern while being placed thereon, the point light source and the peripheral circuit element can be energized, and the same effect as that of the eighth aspect of the invention can be achieved. Further, according to the present invention, since the peripheral circuit element is only lightly press-fitted into the peripheral circuit element press-fitting recess of the holding member, when a certain peripheral circuit element fails, only the failed peripheral circuit element is replaced. be able to. Furthermore, according to the present invention, only the wiring pattern is formed on the mounting surface of the holding portion of the light guide member, and the work of soldering the peripheral circuit elements can be made unnecessary.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, since the holding member is made of metal, it is possible to improve the heat transfer and heat dissipation of the heat generated from the point light source and the peripheral circuit element, and due to the influence of heat. It is possible to prevent the performance degradation of the point light source and peripheral circuit elements.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, since the holding member has the heat radiating portion, the heat radiation of the heat generated from the point light source and the peripheral circuit element can be improved, and the point light source and the peripheral circuit due to the influence of heat. It is possible to prevent deterioration of the performance of the element.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, the plurality of point light sources and the light guides are guided by placing the holding member and the substrate, which are lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fitting recess, on the mounting surface of the holding unit. The optical member can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the point light sources coincides with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member. In addition, by positioning the holding member and the substrate placed on the placement surface with a positioning pin fixed to the holding unit, the distance between each point light source and the light guide member is fixed. it can. Therefore, the light emitted from each point light source can be uniformly incident on the light guide member, and the illumination of the document by the light emitted from the point light source and guided by the light guide member can be performed in the main scanning direction of the document. Can be performed uniformly. Furthermore, according to the present invention, since the wiring pattern is formed on the dedicated substrate, the special processing of forming the wiring pattern on the mounting surface of the holding portion is unnecessary, and the productivity can be improved.

According to the image reading apparatus of the preferred reference invention, since the positioning pin is formed integrally with the holding portion, the positioning accuracy of the holding member and the holding portion by the positioning pin can be increased, and the illumination of the original is made to be the original. This can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction.

According to the image forming apparatus of the reference invention, since any one of the image reading apparatuses is provided, image formation can be performed according to a stable image reading result by the image reading apparatus, and the formed image quality Can be improved.

1 is a schematic front view showing an internal structure of a full-color copying machine which is an image forming apparatus according to a first reference embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 2nd reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 3rd reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is a vertical side view which shows a part of positioning means. It is a vertical side view which shows the other part of a positioning means. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 5th reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 6th reference form of invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 7th reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of an illuminating device. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 8th reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 9th reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of the illuminating device in the 10th reference form of this invention. It is a vertical front view which shows the structure of the illuminating device of a prior art example. In the illumination device of the conventional example, the light guide member and the LED array substrate are perspective views showing a case where the distance between the LED and the light guide member is shifted in the direction in which the variation occurs. In the illumination device of the conventional example, the light guide member and the LED array substrate are perspective views showing a case where a deviation occurs in the direction in which the LED arrangement direction and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member are twisted.

A first reference embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing the internal structure of a full-color copying machine 1 which is an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lighting device, and FIG. 3 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

  A printer engine 3 for forming a color image is provided at the center of the apparatus main body 2 of the copying machine 1. The printer engine 3 includes four drum-shaped photoconductors 4 that are spaced apart at equal intervals and arranged in parallel in the horizontal direction, a charging roller 5 that uniformly charges the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor 4, and a charging roller 5. An exposure device 6 that forms an electrostatic latent image by exposing the outer peripheral surface of each charged photoconductor 4 according to image data, and supplying the toner to the electrostatic latent image to convert the electrostatic latent image into a toner image Developing device 7 for visualizing, intermediate transfer belt 8 onto which toner images on photoreceptor 4 are sequentially transferred, and cleaning device for removing toner remaining on photoreceptor 4 after transfer of toner images onto intermediate transfer belt 8 9 and a transfer roller 10 for transferring the toner image transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 8 to the recording medium S. Note that toner images of different colors (Y: yellow, M: magenta, C: cyan, K: black) are formed on the four photoconductors 4, and the toner images of these colors are formed on the intermediate transfer belt 8. By sequentially transferring, a color toner image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 8, and the color toner image is transferred to the recording medium S.

  On the upper part of the apparatus main body 2, an ADF 11 that automatically feeds a document D that is an illumination target illuminated by an illumination device described later, a contact glass 12 on which the document D illuminated by the illumination device described later is placed, An image reading device 13 that reads the document D automatically fed by the ADF 11 or the document D placed on the contact glass 12 is disposed.

  The image reading device 13 includes first and second traveling bodies 14 and 15 that can travel at a speed of 2: 1 in parallel with the contact glass 12, a lens 16, a CCD (photoelectric conversion element) 17, and the like. The first traveling body 14 has an illumination device 18 for illuminating the document D placed on the contact glass 12 or the document D conveyed by the ADF 11 and passing through the contact glass 12 from below the contact glass 12. And a first mirror 19 that reflects the reading light reflected by the document D and traveling along the reading optical axis. The second traveling body 15 is equipped with a second mirror 20 and a third mirror 21 that further reflect the light reflected by the first mirror 19. A lens 16 and a CCD 17 are arranged in front of the traveling direction of the reading light sequentially reflected by the first to third mirrors 19, 20, and 21. The CCD 17 receives reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illumination device 18 and applied to the document D and then reflected by the document D.

  A plurality of stages, for example, four stages of paper cassettes 22 for storing the recording medium S are provided in the lower part of the apparatus main body 2. The recording media S stored in these paper cassettes 22 are separated and fed one by one by the pickup roller 23 and the feed roller 24, and the separated and fed recording media S are conveyed by the paper provided in the apparatus main body 2. It is conveyed along the path 25. On the sheet conveyance path 25, a registration roller 26, a transfer roller 10, a fixing device 27, a paper discharge roller 28, and the like are arranged.

  The registration roller 26 is driven to rotate intermittently according to the conveyance timing of the recording medium S and the image formation timing to the intermediate transfer belt 8. Then, by stopping the rotation, the recording medium S conveyed through the paper conveyance path 25 is temporarily stopped, and the recording medium S is sent out by rotating. The recording medium S sent out by the rotation of the registration roller 26 is sent to a transfer position sandwiched between the intermediate transfer belt 8 and the transfer roller 10.

  The fixing device 27 fixes the toner image on the recording medium S by applying heat and pressure to the recording medium S on which the toner image is transferred, and melting the toner.

  In such a configuration, the image forming operation in the copying machine 1 is performed as follows.

  First, toner image formation is started in the printer engine 3. When the toner image is formed, first, the image reading device 13 reads an image of the document D placed on the contact glass 12 or automatically fed by the ADF 11. According to the read result, laser light corresponding to the image data of each color (yellow Y, magenta M, cyan C, black K) is emitted from the four semiconductor lasers of the exposure device 6, and these laser lights are emitted by the charging roller 5. An electrostatic latent image is formed on the outer peripheral surface of each photoconductor 4 by exposing the outer peripheral surface of each photoconductor 4 that is uniformly charged. Each color toner is supplied from each developing device 7 to these electrostatic latent images, and a different color toner image is formed for each photoconductor 4. The toner images on the photoconductors 4 are sequentially transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 8 that moves in synchronization with the rotation of the photoconductors 4, and a color toner image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 8.

  On the other hand, before and after the start of the toner image forming operation by the printer engine 3, the separation and feeding of the recording medium S is started from within the sheet cassette 22, and the recording that is separated and fed and conveyed on the sheet conveyance path 25. The medium S is fed to a transfer position between the intermediate transfer belt 8 and the transfer roller 10 at a timing by a registration roller 26 that is rotationally driven intermittently.

  By feeding the recording medium S to the transfer position between the intermediate transfer belt 8 and the transfer roller 10, the color toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 8 is transferred onto the recording medium S. The recording medium S to which the color toner image is transferred is continuously conveyed on the paper conveyance path 25, and the color toner image is fixed to the recording medium S in the process in which the recording medium S passes through the fixing device 27. The recording medium S on which the color toner image is fixed is discharged onto a discharge tray 29 by a discharge roller 28.

Under such basic configuration, the lighting apparatus 18 according to this reference embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the LED array substrate 30 is a point light source array substrate, and a light guide member 31 Yes. The LED array substrate 30 includes a plurality of LED 32 that are point light sources and a long substrate 33 in which the plurality of LEDs 32 are linearly arranged and fixed at a predetermined equal pitch. The plurality of LEDs 32 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33, and this arrangement direction is the same as the main scanning direction of the document D when the illumination device 18 is incorporated in the image reading device 13 and image reading is performed. Has been. The substrate 33 is formed with a wiring pattern (not shown) that connects the fixed LEDs 32 so that they can be energized. Further, although not shown, peripheral circuit elements including a current limiting resistor are connected and fixed to the LED array substrate 30 with a wiring pattern. In this embodiment, a case where one line of LEDs 32 is provided is described as an example, but a plurality of lines of LEDs along a direction that coincides with the main scanning direction of the document D during image reading is described. It may be provided.

  The light guide member 31 is formed of a transparent resin (acrylic, polycarbonate, or the like) or glass as a material, and is positioned in front of the emission direction of light emitted from the LED 32 toward the document D. The light guide member 31 has an incident surface 31a on which the light emitted from the LED 32 is incident, and an emission surface 31b that emits the incident light toward the document D along the main scanning direction of the document D. It is formed in a long shape extending along the arrangement direction.

  A holding portion 34 is integrally formed on the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31. The holding portion 34 is a portion that holds the LED array substrate 30, is formed in a shape extending along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, and is incident on the incident surface 31 a. On the other hand, a mounting surface 34a that intersects at a right angle is formed. The LED array substrate 30 is attached to the holding unit 34 in such a direction that the bottom surface of the substrate 33 is placed on the placement surface 34a. The LED array substrate 30 is fixed to the holding portion 34 by bonding the bottom surface of the substrate 33 and the mounting surface 34 a with an adhesive or by adhering them with a double-sided tape.

  A region that is a part of the incident surface 31 a of the light guide member 31 and is close to the placement surface 34 a is used as the abutting reference surface 35. One surface of the substrate 33 along the longitudinal direction that faces the abutting reference surface 35 by placing the LED array substrate 30 on the placing surface 34 a is abutted against the abutting reference surface 35. The surface 36 is used. The light guide member 31 has a holding portion 34 having a placement surface 34a and an abutting reference surface 35 so that the distance between each of the LEDs 32 arranged in a line and the light guide member 31 is constant. And positioning means 37 for positioning the LED 32 so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 coincides with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 is formed.

  2 and 3, the LED array substrate 30 is mounted on the mounting surface 34a of the holding unit 34, and the LED array substrate 30 is fixed to the holding unit 34 with an adhesive or a double-sided tape. Yes. At this time, the bottom surface of the substrate 33 is placed on the placement surface 34 a of the holding portion 34, and the abutting surface 36 of the substrate 33 is abutted against the abutting reference surface 35 of the light guide member 31.

  Here, since the mounting surface 34a is a surface extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, by placing the LED array substrate 30 on the mounting surface 34a, a plurality of LEDs 32 and a light guide are provided. The member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide. Further, by abutting the abutting surface 36 of the substrate 33 against the abutting reference surface 35 of the light guide member 31, each LED 32 and the incident surface 31 a of the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the distance between them is constant. For this reason, the light emitted from each LED 32 is uniformly incident on the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31, and after being emitted from the LED 32, is guided by the light guide member 31 and emitted from the output surface 31b. The illumination of D can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

In this reference embodiment, when the width dimension in the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the light exit surface 31b of the light guide member 31 (sub-scanning direction at the time of image reading) is “A”, the approximate center of the width dimension “A” is It is preferable to position the fixed position of the LED array substrate 30 so that the LED 32 faces the incident surface 31a at the position.

In the present reference embodiment, although the holding portion 34 has been described as an example where integrally formed with the light guide member 31, to form the holding portion to the light guide member and another member, guiding the holding portion It is good also as a structure fixed to a member.

A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Note that, in each reference embodiment and embodiment described later in this reference embodiment, the same parts as those in the previously described reference embodiment or embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is also omitted. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lighting device, and FIG. 5 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 40 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) is formed by the illuminating device 40 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that reads the reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illuminating device 40 and irradiated on the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

  The lighting device 40 includes an LED array substrate 30 and a light guide member 31. The LED array substrate 30 includes a plurality of LEDs 32 and a long substrate 33 in which the plurality of LEDs 32 are linearly arranged and fixed at a predetermined equal pitch. The plurality of LEDs 32 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33, and this arrangement direction is the same as the main scanning direction of the document D when the illumination device 40 is incorporated in the image reading device 13 and image reading is performed. Has been.

  The light guide member 31 is formed of a transparent resin (acrylic, polycarbonate, or the like) or glass as a material, and is positioned in front of the emission direction of light emitted from the LED 32 toward the document D. The light guide member 31 has an incident surface 31a on which the light emitted from the LED 32 is incident, and an emission surface 31b that emits the incident light toward the document D along the main scanning direction of the document D. It is formed in a long shape extending along the arrangement direction.

  A holding portion 34 is integrally formed on the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31. The holding portion 34 is a portion that holds the LED array substrate 30, is formed in a shape extending along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, and is incident on the incident surface 31 a. On the other hand, a mounting surface 34a that intersects at a right angle is formed. The LED array substrate 30 is attached to the holding unit 34 in such a direction that the bottom surface of the substrate 33 is placed on the placement surface 34a.

  On the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31, there is formed an insertion recess 41 having a bottom surface that is flush with the placement surface 34 a and extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31. The insertion recess 41 is formed such that the height dimension “B” is slightly larger than the thickness dimension of the substrate 33, and one side along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 is inserted into the insertion recess 41, whereby the LED to the light guide member 31. The array substrate 30 is fixed.

  The back surface of the insertion recess 41 is an abutting reference surface 42 and is a surface extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31. One surface along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 and the surface that is inserted into the insertion recess 41 is the abutment surface 43 that abuts against the abutment reference surface 42 by inserting the substrate 33 into the insertion recess 41. ing. Then, the insertion recess 41 and the abutting reference surface 42 are positioned so that the distance between each of the LEDs 32 arranged in a line and the light guide member 31 is constant, and the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 is guided. Positioning means 44 is formed for positioning so as to coincide with the longitudinal direction of the member 31.

  4 and 5, the substrate 33 is inserted into the insertion recess 41, and the abutment surface 43 of the substrate 33 is abutted against the abutment reference surface 42 formed at the back of the insertion recess 41. Thus, the LED array substrate 30 is fixed to the light guide member 31. In this state, the bottom surface of the substrate 33 is in contact with the mounting surface 34 a of the holding unit 34.

  Here, since the insertion recess 41 is formed to extend in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, by inserting the substrate 33 of the LED array substrate 30 into the insertion recess 41, the plurality of LEDs 32 and the light guide are formed. The member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide. Further, the abutting surface 43 of the substrate 33 is abutted against the abutting reference surface 42 formed in the inner part of the insertion recess 41, so that the distance between each LED 32 and the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31 is constant. Can be positioned as follows. For this reason, the light emitted from each LED 32 is uniformly incident on the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31, and after being emitted from the LED 32, is guided by the light guide member 31 and emitted from the output surface 31b. The illumination of D can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

Further, according to this reference embodiment, it is possible to correct the warpage of the substrate 33 by inserting the substrate 33 into the insertion concave portion 41, the LED32 and the light guide member 31 that warp occurs causing the substrate 33 Can be prevented from being displaced. Thereby, the illumination of the document D can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D.

A third reference embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lighting device, and FIG. 7 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 50 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illuminating device 50 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) emitted from the illuminating device 50 and irradiated on the original D and then reflected by the original D. 1) is formed.

  The lighting device 50 includes an LED array substrate 30 and a light guide member 31. The LED array substrate 30 includes a plurality of LEDs 32 and a long substrate 33 in which the plurality of LEDs 32 are linearly arranged and fixed at a predetermined equal pitch. The plurality of LEDs 32 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33, and this arrangement direction is the same as the main scanning direction of the document D when the illumination device 50 is incorporated in the image reading device 13 and image reading is performed. Has been.

  The light guide member 31 has an entrance surface 31a and an exit surface 31b, and is formed in a long shape extending along the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32. The light guide member 31 has a holding portion 34 and an insertion recess 41. The insertion recess 41 is formed such that the height dimension “B” is slightly larger than the thickness dimension of the substrate 33, and one side along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 is inserted into the insertion recess 41, whereby the LED to the light guide member 31. The array substrate 30 is fixed.

  By inserting the substrate 33 into the insertion recess 41 and fixing the LED array substrate 30 to the light guide member 31, the LED 32 is placed on the incident surface 31 a of the light guide member 31 positioned at the entrance edge of the insertion recess 41. The light emitting surface 32a is abutted. And the space | interval of each of LED32 arranged in a line form and the light guide member 31 is constant by the insertion recessed part 41 and the entrance plane 31a of the light guide member 31 located in the entrance side edge part of the insertion recessed part 41 Positioning means 51 is formed for positioning so that the alignment direction of the LEDs 32 is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31.

  6 and 7, the substrate 33 is inserted into the insertion recess 41, and the light-emitting surface 32 a of the LED 32 is positioned on the entrance side edge of the insertion recess 41. In this state, the LED array substrate 30 is fixed to the light guide member 31. In this state, the bottom surface of the substrate 33 is in contact with the mounting surface 34 a of the holding unit 34.

  Here, since the insertion recess 41 is formed to extend in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, by inserting the substrate 33 of the LED array substrate 30 into the insertion recess 41, the plurality of LEDs 32 and the light guide are formed. The member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide. Further, the light emitting surface 32a of the LED 32 is abutted against the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31, so that the distance between the light emitting surface 32a of each LED 32 and the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31 is constant (the separation dimension is "0"). ) Can be positioned. Therefore, the light emitted from each LED 32 is equally incident on the light guide member 31, and the illumination of the document D by the light guided by the light guide member 31 after being emitted from the LED 32 is directed in the main scanning direction of the document D. Along the line. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

Further, according to this reference embodiment, it is possible to correct the warpage of the substrate 33 by inserting the substrate 33 into the insertion concave portion 41, the LED32 and the light guide member 31 that warp occurs causing the substrate 33 Can be prevented from being displaced. Thereby, the illumination of the document D can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D.

  A fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 is a perspective view showing the structure of the illumination device, FIG. 9 is a longitudinal side view showing a part of the positioning means, and FIG. 10 is a longitudinal side view showing a part of the other part of the positioning means.

  In the present embodiment, an illumination device 55 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from below the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) is received by the illuminating device 55 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illuminating device 55 and irradiated on the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

  The lighting device 55 includes the LED array substrate 30 and the light guide member 31. The LED array substrate 30 includes a plurality of LEDs 32 and a long substrate 33 in which the plurality of LEDs 32 are linearly arranged and fixed at a predetermined equal pitch. The plurality of LEDs 32 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33, and this arrangement direction is a direction that coincides with the main scanning direction of the document D when the illumination device 55 is incorporated in the image reading device 13 and image reading is performed. Has been.

  A holding portion 34 is integrally formed on the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31. The holding portion 34 is a portion that holds the LED array substrate 30, is formed in a shape extending along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, and is incident on the incident surface 31 a. On the other hand, a mounting surface 34a that intersects at a right angle is formed. The LED array substrate 30 is attached to the holding unit 34 in such a direction that the bottom surface of the substrate 33 is placed on the placement surface 34a.

  A plurality of mounting screw holes 56 are formed in the holding portion 34 along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31. The substrate 33 is formed with a plurality of positioning holes 57 (57a, 57b) that are positioned so as to face the mounting screw holes 56 by holding the LED array substrate 30 with the holding portion. The LED array substrate 30 is mounted on the mounting surface 34 a, the positioning hole 57 and the mounting screw hole 56 are aligned in the vertical direction, and the fixing screw 58 inserted through the positioning hole 57 is screwed into the mounting screw hole 56. By doing so, the LED array substrate 30 is fixed to the holding portion 34. Each of the LEDs 32 arranged in a line, the light guide member 31, and the holding portion 34 having the mounting surface 34a and the mounting screw hole 56 into which the fixing screw 58 inserted through the mounting screw hole 56 is screwed. Positioning means 51 is formed to position the LED 32 so as to be constant, and to position the LEDs 32 so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 coincides with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31.

  Of the plurality of positioning holes 57 (57a, 57b), one positioning hole 57a located at the center in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 is formed in a round hole shape substantially equal to the outer diameter of the fixing screw 58. The other positioning hole 57b is formed such that the dimension along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 is longer than the diameter of the fixing screw 58, and the dimension along the short direction (direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction) of the substrate 33 is the dimension of the fixing screw 58. It is formed approximately the same as the diameter.

  In such a configuration, FIG. 8 shows that the LED array substrate 30 is mounted on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding portion 34, the mounting screw hole 56 and the positioning hole 57 are opposed, and the fixing screw inserted through the positioning hole 57. The LED array substrate 30 is fixed to the holding portion 34 by screwing 58 into the mounting screw hole 56.

  Here, since the mounting surface 34a is a surface extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, by placing the LED array substrate 30 on the mounting surface 34a, a plurality of LEDs 32 and a light guide are provided. The member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide. Further, the mounting screw hole 56 formed in the holding portion 34 and the positioning hole 57 formed in the substrate 33 are opposed to each other, and the fixing screw 58 inserted through the positioning hole 57 is screwed into the mounting screw hole 56, thereby The incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the distance between them is constant. Therefore, the light emitted from each LED 32 is equally incident on the light guide member 31, and the illumination of the document D by the light guided by the light guide member 31 after being emitted from the LED 32 is directed in the main scanning direction of the document D. Along the line. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, one positioning hole 57a located at the center in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 is formed in a round hole shape substantially equal to the outer diameter of the fixing screw 58, and the other positioning holes 57b are The dimension along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 is longer than the diameter of the fixing screw 58, and the dimension along the short direction of the substrate 33 is formed to be substantially the same as the diameter of the fixing screw 58. For this reason, even if a thermal expansion difference (a thermal expansion difference in the direction along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 and the holding unit 34) occurs between the holding unit 34 and the substrate 33 due to a temperature change, the thermal expansion difference Can be absorbed by a gap existing between the inner peripheral surface of the positioning hole 57b and the outer peripheral surface of the fixing screw 58 (a gap existing along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 33 and the holding portion 34). Then, it is possible to prevent the warp of the holding part 34 or the substrate 33 caused by the difference in thermal expansion between the holding part 34 and the substrate 33, and the LED 32 generated due to the warp due to the difference in thermal expansion A positional shift with the light guide member 31 can be prevented. Thereby, the illumination of the document D can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D.

  Note that the fixing screw 58 and the substrate 33 move relatively when a difference in thermal expansion occurs between the head of the fixing screw 58 inserted through the positioning hole 57b and the upper surface of the substrate 33. It is preferable to provide a minute gap G (see FIG. 10) for easy.

A fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lighting device, and FIG. 12 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 60 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illuminating device 60 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illuminating device 60 and applied to the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

  The illumination device 60 has a plurality of LEDs 32 and a light guide member 31. A holding portion 34 is integrally formed on the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31. The holding portion 34 is formed in a shape that extends along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, and a mounting surface 34 a that is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 and intersects the incident surface 31 a at a right angle. Is formed.

  A wiring pattern 61 is formed on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding unit 34, and a plurality of LEDs 32 and a plurality of peripheral circuit elements 62 such as current limiting resistors are connected to the wiring pattern 61. The LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 are positioned at predetermined positions on the wiring pattern 61, soldered, and mounted on the holding unit 34. Each of the LEDs 32 arranged in a line is guided by the holding portion 34 having the placement surface 34a and the wiring pattern 61 formed on the placement surface 34a to which the LEDs 32 and the peripheral circuit elements 62 are connected. Positioning means 63 is formed for positioning so that the distance from the member 31 is constant, and positioning so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31.

Holding In such a configuration, in the present reference embodiment, the wiring pattern 61 is formed in the holding portion 34 formed integrally with the light guide member 31, the LED32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 connected to the wiring pattern 61 It is mounted on the part 34.

  Here, a wiring pattern 61 is formed on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding portion 34 that is formed integrally with the light guide member 31 and extends in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31. The plurality of LEDs 32 and the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide with each other, and each LED 32 and the light guide member are connected. The incident surface 31a of 31 can be positioned so that the space | interval may become fixed. For this reason, the light emitted from each LED 32 is uniformly incident on the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31, and after being emitted from the LED 32, is guided by the light guide member 31 and emitted from the output surface 31b. The illumination of D can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

A sixth reference embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 13 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the lighting device, and FIG. 14 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 65 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. The image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illumination device 65 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illumination device 65 and irradiated on the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

  The lighting device 65 includes a plurality of LEDs 32, a light guide member 31, and a holding member 66 that holds the LEDs 32. A holding portion 34 is integrally formed on the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31. The holding portion 34 is formed in a shape that extends along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, and a mounting surface 34 a that is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 and intersects the incident surface 31 a at a right angle. Is formed.

  A wiring pattern 61 is formed on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding unit 34, and a plurality of peripheral circuit elements 62 such as current limiting resistors are connected to the wiring pattern 61, and these peripheral circuit elements 62 are on the wiring pattern 61. It is positioned at a predetermined position, soldered and mounted on the holding portion 34. The holding portion 34 is formed with a plurality of screw holes 67 at positions along the longitudinal direction of the holding portion 34.

  A plurality of point light source press-fit recesses 68, a plurality of screw insertion holes 69, and a plurality of escape holes 70 are formed in the holding member 66. Each of the plurality of point light source press-fit recesses 68, the screw insertion holes 69, and the escape holes 70 is arranged linearly along the longitudinal direction of the holding member 66. The LED 32 is lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fit recess 68. The peripheral circuit element 62 enters the escape hole 70 by fixing the holding member 66 to the holding portion 34.

  The holding member 66 in which the LED 32 is lightly press-fitted into each point light source press-fit recess 68 makes the LED 32 face the connection position on the wiring pattern 61, makes the escape hole 70 face the peripheral circuit element 62, and inserts the screw. The hole 69 faces the screw hole 67 and is placed on the placement surface 34 a of the holding portion 34. The holding member 66 is fixed to the holding portion 34 by screwing the fixing screw 71 inserted into the screw insertion hole 69 into the screw hole 67. With this fixing, the LED 32 is pressed and connected to a predetermined position on the wiring pattern 61. The arrangement direction of the point light source press-fit recesses 68 is set to coincide with the main scanning direction of the document D when the illumination device 65 is incorporated in the image reading device 13 and image reading is performed.

  A region that is a part of the incident surface 31 a of the light guide member 31 and that is close to the placement surface 34 a is used as an abutting reference surface 72. A surface of the holding member 66 that extends along the longitudinal direction and faces the abutting reference surface 72 by mounting and fixing the holding member 66 on the holding portion 34 is abutted against the abutting reference surface 72. The contact surface 73 is used. Each of the LEDs 32 arranged in a line and the light guide member by the holding portion 34 having the placement surface 34 a and the wiring pattern 61 formed on the placement surface 34 a and the abutting reference surface 72. Positioning means 74 is formed to position the LED 32 so that the distance between the LED 32 and the LED 31 is constant, and to align the LED 32 so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 coincides with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31.

  The holding member 66 is made of a metal such as aluminum, copper, an aluminum alloy, or a copper alloy. As a method for forming the holding member 66 with metal, a die casting method, an extrusion method, a sintering method, or the like is used to easily form the holding member 66 having a large number of fine point light source press-fit recesses 68 and relief holes 70. can do.

  In such a configuration, the LED 32 is formed on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding part 34 by fixing the holding member 66 holding the LED 32 to the holding part 34 on which the wiring pattern 61 is formed using the fixing screw 71. By being pressed and connected to the wiring pattern 61, the LED 32 can be energized.

  Here, since the placement surface 34a is a surface extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, a holding member 66 in which the LED 32 is lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fit recess 68 is placed on the placement surface 34a. By positioning, the plurality of LEDs 32 and the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide with each other. Further, by abutting the abutting surface 73 of the holding member 66 against the abutting reference surface 72 of the light guide member 31, each LED 32 and the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the distance between them is constant. . For this reason, the light emitted from each LED 32 is uniformly incident on the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31, and after being emitted from the LED 32, is guided by the light guide member 31 and emitted from the output surface 31b. The illumination of D can be performed uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the reflected light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

Further, according to this reference embodiment, LED 32 since only are lightly press-fitted to the light source for press-fitting recess 68 in terms of the holding member 66, when there LED 32 fails can exchange only the failed LED 32 It is not necessary to replace the plurality of LEDs 32 as a whole or to replace the entire plurality of LEDs 32 including the light guide member 31, and maintenance can be performed at a low cost when the LEDs 32 break down.

  Further, by forming the holding member 66 with metal, the heat transfer and heat dissipation of the heat generated from the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 can be improved, and the performance of the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 due to the influence of heat is reduced. Can be prevented.

In the present embodiment, the shape of the screw insertion hole 69 is positioned at the central portion in the longitudinal direction of the holding member 66 as in the positioning hole 57 described in the fourth embodiment (FIGS. 8 to 10). One screw insertion hole 69 is formed in a round hole shape substantially equal to the outer diameter dimension of the fixing screw 71, and the other screw insertion hole 69 has a dimension along the longitudinal direction of the holding member 66 longer than the diameter of the fixing screw 71. It may be formed. In that case, even if a thermal expansion difference (thermal expansion difference in the direction along the longitudinal direction of the holding part 34 and the holding member 66) occurs between the holding part 34 and the holding member 66 due to a temperature change, The warpage of the holding portion 34 and the holding member 66 due to the difference in thermal expansion can be prevented, and the positional deviation between the LED 32 and the light guide member 31 caused by the warpage due to the difference in thermal expansion can be prevented. can do. Thereby, the illumination of the document D can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D.

A seventh reference embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 15 and 16. FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the lighting device, and FIG. 16 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 75 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. The image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illumination device 75 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) emitted from the illumination device 75 and irradiated on the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

The basic structure of the lighting device 75 is the same as the illumination device 65 of the sixth reference embodiment, the portion where the illumination device 75 according to this reference embodiment is different from the illumination device 65 of the reference to the sixth embodiment, the reference In addition to a plurality of point light source press-fit recesses 68, a plurality of peripheral circuit element press-fit recesses 76 are formed in the holding member 66 of the illumination device 75 of the form. The LED 32 is lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fit recess 68, and the peripheral circuit element 62 such as a current limiting resistor is light-pressed into the peripheral circuit element press-fit recess 76. Thereby, the element is not soldered onto the wiring pattern 61 formed on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding portion 34.

Also in the present reference embodiment, as in the sixth reference embodiment, the holding portion 34 having the mounting surface 34a and the wiring pattern 61 formed on the mounting surface 34a, the abutting reference surface 72, Thus, the positioning means 74 is formed.

  In such a configuration, the holding member 66 holding the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 is fixed to the holding portion 34 in which the wiring pattern 61 is formed on the mounting surface 34 a by using the fixing screw 71. And the peripheral circuit element 62 are pressed and connected to the wiring pattern 61 formed in the holding portion 34, and the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 can be energized.

  Here, since the placement surface 34a is a surface extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, a holding member 66 in which the LED 32 is lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fit recess 68 is placed on the placement surface 34a. By positioning, the plurality of LEDs 32 and the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide with each other. Further, by abutting the abutting surface 73 of the holding member 66 against the abutting reference surface 72 of the light guide member 31, each LED 32 and the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the distance between them is constant. . Thereby, the light emitted from each LED 32 is equally incident on the incident surface 31 a of the light guide member 31.

Further, according to this reference embodiment, the on mounting surface 34a of the holding portion 34 becomes unnecessary soldering of elements connected to the wiring pattern 61 merely forms only the wiring pattern 61, the working process The number is reduced. Moreover, the influence of the heat with respect to the light guide member 31 at the time of soldering can be eliminated, and the light guide performance of the light guide member 31 can be maintained satisfactorily.

  Further, since the peripheral circuit element 62 is only lightly press-fitted into the peripheral circuit element press-fitting recess 76 of the holding member 66, when a certain peripheral circuit element 62 fails, only the failed peripheral circuit element 62 is replaced. Therefore, maintenance when the peripheral circuit element 62 fails can be performed at low cost.

An eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 17 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 80 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illuminating device 80 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) emitted from the illuminating device 80 and irradiated on the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

The basic structure of the lighting device 80 to the sixth reference embodiment (FIGS. 13 and 14) are the same as the seventh illumination device of Reference Embodiment (FIGS. 15 and 16) 65 and 75, of this reference The difference between the lighting device 80 of the embodiment and the lighting devices 65 and 75 of the sixth and seventh reference embodiments is that the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 in the holding member 66 are lightly press-fitted in the lighting device 80 of the reference embodiment. The heat dissipation part 81 is formed on the back side of the surface. The heat radiating portion 81 is formed in a fin shape, and is formed in a direction extending obliquely upward at a position where the illumination device 80 is incorporated in the image reading device 13.

  In such a configuration, by forming the heat radiation portion 81 in the holding member 66, it is possible to improve the heat dissipation of the heat generated from the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62, and the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 due to the influence of heat. Performance degradation can be prevented.

A ninth reference embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 18 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 85 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illuminating device 85 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illuminating device 85 and applied to the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

  The illumination device 85 includes a light guide member 31, a substrate 86 on which a wiring pattern 61 is formed, a plurality of LEDs 32, a plurality of peripheral circuit elements 62, a plurality of point light source press-fit recesses 68, and a plurality of peripheral circuit element press-fit recesses 76. The holding member 66 is formed. The LED 32 is lightly press-fitted and held in the point light source press-fit recess 68, and the peripheral circuit element 62 is lightly press-fitted and held in the peripheral circuit element press-fit recess 76.

  A holding portion 34 is integrally formed on the incident surface 31 a side of the light guide member 31. The holding portion 34 is a portion that holds the substrate 86 and the holding member 66 in an overlapped state, is formed in a shape extending along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, and is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31. Thus, a mounting surface 34a that intersects the incident surface 31a at a right angle is formed. The holding portion 34 is formed with a plurality of screw holes 87 at positions along the longitudinal direction of the holding portion 34.

  The substrate 86 is formed into a rectangular shape extending in the direction along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 by assembling the lighting device 85 using the substrate 86, and a plurality of substrates 86 are disposed at positions along the longitudinal direction. The insertion hole 88 is formed. A plurality of insertion holes 89 are formed in the holding member 66 at positions that are in the direction along the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 by assembling the lighting device 85 using the holding member 66. A positioning pin 90 is inserted into the insertion holes 88 and 89, and a screw portion is formed at the tip of the positioning pin 90, and the screw portion is screwed into the screw hole 87 of the holding portion 34. Then, the holding portion 34 having the mounting surface 34a and the positioning pin 90 are used to position the LED 32 arranged in a line and the light guide member 31 so that the distance between the light guide members 31 is constant, and the arrangement of the LEDs 32. Positioning means 91 for positioning the direction so as to coincide with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 is formed.

  In such a configuration, the substrate 86 and the holding member 66 are overlapped and placed on the placement surface 34 a of the holding portion 34, and the positioning pin 90 is inserted into the insertion hole 89 of the holding member 66 and the insertion hole 88 of the substrate 86. The holding member 66 and the substrate 86 are fixed to the holding portion 34 by inserting the screw portion and screwing the screw portion at the tip end portion of the positioning pin 90 into the screw hole 87. Further, the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 are pressed and connected to the wiring pattern 61 on the substrate 86, and the LED 32 and the peripheral circuit element 62 can be energized.

  Here, since the mounting surface 34 a is a surface extending in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31, the holding member 66 and the substrate 86 are mounted on the mounting surface 34 a, thereby holding the holding member 66. The LED 32 and the light guide member 31 that are lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fit recess 68 can be positioned so that the arrangement direction of the LEDs 32 and the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 coincide with each other. In addition, the positioning member 90 inserted through the insertion hole 89 of the holding member 66 and the insertion hole 88 of the substrate 86 placed on the placement surface 34 a is screwed into the screw hole 87 of the holding portion 34, thereby holding the holding member. Each LED 32 lightly press-fitted into the point light source press-fit recess 68 of 66 and the incident surface 31a of the light guide member 31 can be positioned so that the distance between them is constant. Therefore, the light emitted from each LED 32 is equally incident on the light guide member 31, and the illumination of the document D by the light guided by the light guide member 31 after being emitted from the LED 32 is directed in the main scanning direction of the document D. Along the line. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

Further, according to this reference embodiment, since the formation of the wiring pattern 61 on a dedicated substrate 86, it becomes unnecessary special process of forming a wiring pattern on the mounting surface 34a of the holding portion 34, improving the productivity Can be made.

A tenth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 19 is a longitudinal front view showing the structure of the lighting device.

In this reference embodiment, the illumination device 95 for illuminating the document D on the contact glass 12 from a lower side of the contact glass 12 is provided. Then, the image reading device 13 (see FIG. 1) includes the illuminating device 95 and the CCD 17 (see FIG. 1) that receives the reflected light (reading light) that is emitted from the illuminating device 95 and applied to the document D and then reflected by the document D. 1) is formed.

The basic structure of the lighting device 95 is the same as the illumination device 85 of the ninth reference forms, portions lighting apparatus 95 according to this reference embodiment is different from the illumination device 85 of the ninth reference embodiment, the reference In the illumination device 95 of the form, the positioning pin 96 is formed integrally with the holding portion 34.

  A screw part is formed at the tip of the positioning pin 96. By inserting the insertion hole 88 of the substrate 86 and the insertion hole 88 of the holding member 66 through the positioning pin 96, the substrate 86 and the holding member 66 are placed on the mounting surface 34 a of the holding portion 34 so as to overlap each other. . A nut 97 is screwed into a screw portion at the tip of the positioning pin 96, and the substrate 86 and the holding member 66 are fixed to the holding portion 34 by the screwing of the nut 97. Then, the holding portion 34 having the mounting surface 34a and the positioning pins 96 are used to position the LED 32 arranged in a line and the light guide member 31 so that the distance between the light guide members 31 is constant. Positioning means 98 for positioning the direction so as to coincide with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member 31 is formed.

  In such a configuration, since the positioning pin 96 is formed integrally with the holding portion 34, when the substrate 86 and the holding member 66 are fixed to the holding portion 34 by the positioning pin 96, the holding member 66 and the holding portion are held. The positioning accuracy with the unit 34 can be improved, and the illumination of the document D can be performed more uniformly along the main scanning direction of the document D. Thereby, the light receiving performance of the light received by the CCD 17 is further improved, and the quality of the image formed by the printer engine 3 can be further improved based on the reading result by the image reading device 13.

3 Printer Engine 12 Contact Glass 13 Image Reading Device 17 Photoelectric Conversion Element 30 Point Light Source Array Substrate 31 Light Guide Member 31a Incident Surface 32a Light Emitting Surface 32 Point Light Source 33 Substrate 34 Holding Unit 34a Placement Surface 35 Abutting Reference Surface 36 Abutting Surface 37 Positioning means 41 Insertion recess 42 Abutting reference surface 43 Abutting surface 44 Positioning means 51 Positioning means 56 Mounting screw holes 57a, 57b Positioning hole 58 Fixing screw 59 Positioning means 61 Wiring pattern 62 Peripheral circuit element 63 Positioning means 66 Holding member 69 Point light source press-fit recess 72 Abutment reference surface 73 Abutment surface 74 Positioning means 76 Peripheral circuit element press-fit recess 81 Heat radiation part 86 Substrate 90 Positioning pin 91 Positioning means 96 Positioning pin 98 Positioning means D Document

JP-A-7-162586 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-322521

Claims (6)

A point light source array substrate in which a plurality of point light sources are arranged linearly in the longitudinal direction of the substrate;
A light guide member that is positioned forward in the emission direction of the light emitted from the point light source and guides the light emitted from the plurality of point light sources so as to illuminate the original along the longitudinal direction of the substrate;
A holding unit for holding the point light source array substrate so that the emission surfaces of the plurality of point light sources respectively face the incident surface of the light guide member along the longitudinal direction;
A fixing screw for fixing the point light source array substrate to the holding portion,
The light guide member has an abutting surface abutted on the point light source array substrate so that the arrangement direction of a plurality of point light sources arranged linearly on the point light source array substrate is the light guide member. An abutment reference surface positioned to coincide along the longitudinal direction of
A screw hole for attaching the fixing screw is formed in the holding portion,
In the substrate, a plurality of positioning holes are formed through which the fixing screws are inserted at positions facing the respective screw holes,
One positioning hole located at the center in the longitudinal direction of the substrate is formed in a round hole shape substantially equal to the outer diameter size of the fixing screw, and the other positioning holes have the dimension along the longitudinal direction of the substrate fixed. Formed longer than the diameter of the screw, the dimension along the short direction of the substrate is formed substantially equal to the diameter of the fixing screw,
By placing the point light source array substrate on the holding portion so that the positioning hole of the substrate and the screw hole of the holding portion overlap, and inserting the fixing screw into the positioning hole and attaching to the screw hole,
And wherein the distance between the light guide member and the plurality of point light sources is constant, and as the arrangement direction of the point light source is coincident with the longitudinal direction of the light guide member, wherein the point light source array substrate is positioned Lighting device. The light guide member has an insertion recess that extends parallel to a longitudinal direction on a surface facing the point light source array substrate and into which the point light source array substrate is inserted, and the insertion recess has a height dimension of the substrate. Slightly larger than the thickness,
The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the abutting reference surface is formed in a back portion of the insertion recess . By inserting the substrate into the insertion recess, according to claim 2 in which each of the light emitting surface of the point light sources arranged in a linear shape, characterized in that it abuts against the incident surface of the light guide member Lighting equipment. Wherein the holding portion and the light guide member is formed separately, the lighting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it is fixed. The lighting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
An image reading apparatus comprising: a photoelectric conversion element that receives reflected light from a document. An image reading apparatus according to claim 5 ;
An image forming apparatus comprising: a printer engine that forms an image on a recording medium in accordance with image data read by the image reading apparatus.

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