JP6214165B2 - Feeding device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a feeding device, and more particularly, to a feeding device provided with a stopper member that comes into contact with a sheet placed on a sheet placing table and prevents the sheet from entering a separation unit.

  A conventional image reading apparatus includes a document feeding device that feeds a document placed on a document placing table by a document feeding unit, and then separates the documents one by one by a separation unit and feeds them to the image reading unit. There is something. Patent Document 1 discloses a conventional document feeder. In this apparatus, the sheet placed on the sheet placing table is sent out by the sheet feeding means. Thereafter, the apparatus separates and feeds the sheets one by one by the separation unit. The apparatus includes a holding member that is pivotally supported above the sheet placement table and holds the sheet feeding unit detachably from the sheet placed on the sheet placement table. Furthermore, this apparatus is provided in a sheet feeding path through which the sheet fed by the sheet feeding means passes, and is a stopper that abuts on the sheet placed on the sheet placing table and prevents the sheet from entering the separation unit. A member is provided. In this apparatus, when the holding member rotates downward, the stopper member is pressed by the holding member and is lowered with respect to the sheet feeding path. And after the stopper member descends, when the sheet fed by the sheet feeding means passes, it is pressed against the sheet and descends. According to this apparatus, it is possible to keep the sheet separating performance in the separating unit by preventing the sheet fed by the sheet feeding means from entering the separating unit in a large amount by the stopper member.

Japanese Patent No. 4422929

  However, in the invention described in Patent Document 1, the holding member comes into contact with the stopper member and directly presses the stopper member. Therefore, the lowering movement distance (lowering stroke) of the holding member until the sheet feeding unit comes into contact with the uppermost sheet placed on the sheet placing table corresponds to the distance that the holding member presses the stopper member. That is, the downward movement distance of the holding member and the downward movement distance of the stopper member are the same. In the invention described in Patent Document 1, when the stopper member is lowered, the sheet regulating surface of the stopper member is lowered (retracted) with respect to the sheet feeding path so that the uppermost sheet can pass through the sheet feeding path. ) Is required. Therefore, the height of the sheet regulating surface needs to be equal to or less than the downward movement distance of the stopper member.

  In order to increase the number of sheets stacked, it is necessary to have a configuration in which the sheet regulating surface of the stopper member is high and the moving distance of the stopper member is large. Further, in order to reduce the size of the sheet feeding device while maintaining the number of stacked sheets, a configuration in which the moving distance of the holding member is small is necessary. Therefore, in the invention described in Patent Document 1, an attempt to increase the number of stacked sheets causes a problem that the apparatus becomes large.

  In view of such circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a feeding device capable of increasing the number of stacked sheets without increasing the size of the device.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a feeding roller that feeds a sheet placed on a sheet placing table, a separation unit that separates a sheet fed by the feeding roller, and the feeding roller. And a holding member that moves the feeding roller to a contact position that contacts the sheet placed on the sheet placing table and a spaced position that is spaced apart from the sheet, and a feed to which the sheet is fed In order to regulate the position of the leading edge of the sheet placed on the sheet placing table in the feeding direction on the upstream side of the separation unit, and retracted below the entry position for entering the sheet feeding path and below the sheet feeding path And a stopper member that moves to the retracted position. The feeder includes an operation member that is rotatably supported by the holding member and presses the stopper member, and the holding member separates the feeding roller from the separation roller. From position Serial in response to an operation that swings to move to the contact position, the actuating member is characterized in that to move downward to the retracted position the stopper member from the entry position.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a feeding device that can increase the number of sheets stacked without increasing the size of the device.

1 is a perspective view of an image reading apparatus provided with a feeding device of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a state where a feeding device is opened with respect to the image reading device. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of a feeding apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the state which open | released the cover unit provided in the feeder. It is sectional drawing which shows one Embodiment of a feeder. It is a perspective view of a stopper member. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which the pickup arm lowered | hung. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state where a pickup arm roller rotates and feeds a sheet. It is the figure which looked at the feeding apparatus from the loading tray side. It is the figure which looked at the state where the pickup arm descended from the loading tray side.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image reading apparatus provided with a feeding device of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the feeding device is opened with respect to the image reading device. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of the feeding device. FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which a cover unit provided in the feeding device is opened. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an embodiment of the feeding device.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the feeding device 20 is attached to the upper part of the image reading device 60. The feeding device 20 is attached to a contact glass 61 provided on the upper part of the image reading device 60 so as to be opened and closed. The feeding device 20 feeds a document (sheet) toward the reading unit and presses the document (sheet) placed on the contact glass 61.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a substantially U-shaped U-turn path 21 is provided inside the feeding device 20. A loading tray 22 is provided on the upstream end side of the U-turn path 21 in the sheet feeding direction. The mounting tray 22 is a sheet mounting table on which a plurality of sheets can be stacked. Further, a feeding unit 10 is provided at the upper part of the upstream end of the U-turn path 21.

  On the other hand, a discharge tray 23 is provided on the downstream end side of the U-turn path 21. A discharge roller pair 24 for discharging the sheet to the discharge tray 23 is provided between the U-turn path 21 and the discharge tray 23. In the middle of the U-turn path 21, a conveyance roller pair 25 for conveying the sheet is provided. In the vicinity of the conveying roller pair 25, a document edge sensor (not shown) for detecting the leading edge and the trailing edge of the sheet is provided.

  The reading unit 62 is a unit that reads an image of a sheet (original) conveyed on the contact glass 61. The reading unit 62 includes a contact image sensor provided below the contact glass 61. The contact image sensor includes an LED (Light Emitting Diode) array (not shown), a SELFOC (registered trademark) lens (not shown), and an image receiving element (not shown). An LED (Light Emitting Diode) array is a light source that irradiates light on a sheet surface. The SELFOC (registered trademark) lens forms an image of the reflected light reflected from the sheet surface on the image receiving element. In this way, the reading unit 62 reads an image on a sheet (original).

  In FIG. 4, reference numeral 30 denotes a cover unit (cover member) attached to the feeding device 20 so as to be openable and closable. When the sheet is jammed (paper jam), the jammed sheet can be removed by opening the cover unit 30.

  In FIG. 5, the feeding unit 10 is provided with a pickup roller (feeding roller) 2. The pickup roller 2 is a sheet feeding unit that abuts on the uppermost sheet placed on the placement tray 22 and feeds the sheet downstream. The feeding unit 10 is further provided with a separation roller 4 and a separation pad 3 that is in pressure contact with the separation roller 4. The separation pad 3 and the separation roller 4 constitute a separation unit that separates the sheets fed by the pickup roller 2 one by one. Further, the feeding unit 10 is provided with a document presence / absence detection sensor 5 (see FIG. 7) that detects the presence or absence of a sheet (document) on the loading tray 22.

  Further, the feeding unit 10 is provided with a stopper member 11 that prevents the sheet from being in contact with the leading end of the sheet placed on the loading tray 22 and entering the separation unit (separation pad 3 and separation roller 4). ing. The stopper member 11 is configured to be able to retract below the sheet feeding path when the sheet fed by the pickup roller 2 passes through the sheet feeding path.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the stopper member. The stopper member 11 is provided with a regulating surface 11d that abuts the front end of the sheet placed on the placement tray 22 and prevents the sheet from entering. An inclined portion 11a inclined in the sheet feeding direction is provided at the upper end (tip) of the regulating surface 11d. A pressing portion 11c is provided at the upper end (tip) of the inclined portion 11a. The stopper member 11 is configured to be swingable about the swing shaft 11b. When the pressing portion 11c is pressed by a pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 to be described later, the stopper member 11 swings in a direction intersecting the sheet feeding direction with the swing shaft 11b as a center. Accordingly, the stopper member 11 moves between a state where the stopper member 11 enters the sheet feeding path and a state where the stopper member 11 is retracted below the sheet feeding path. A torsion coil spring 14 biases the stopper member 11. Therefore, when the pressing portion 11c is not pressed by the pressing piece 13c, the stopper member 11 enters the sheet feeding path and prevents the sheet from entering the separation portion (separation pad 3, separation roller 4). Held in position.

  The pickup arm 12 is swingably supported by a cover unit 30 that is a cover member. The pickup arm 12 is rotatably supported on the shaft 12 a (first shaft) of the separation roller 4. The pickup arm 12 is a holding member that holds the pickup roller 2 so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the sheet placed on the placement tray 22 by rotating about the shaft 12a. That is, the pickup arm 12 as a holding member holds the pickup roller 2 and the separation unit (separation pad 3 and separation roller 4). Further, the pickup arm 12 moves the pickup roller 2 to a position where it abuts on the sheet placed on the placement tray 22 and a position away from the sheet. When the sheet placed on the loading tray 22 is sent downstream, the pickup roller 12 is rotated in the direction of arrow E (see FIG. 5) in the drawing to bring the pickup roller 2 into contact with the sheet. A stopper lever 13 is engaged with the pickup arm 12. The stopper lever 13 is an operating member that presses the stopper member 11 in conjunction with the rotation of the pickup arm 12. When the pickup arm 12 is rotated downward, the pressing piece 13 c of the stopper lever 13 presses the pressing portion 11 c of the stopper member 11 and pushes down the stopper member 11.

  Hereinafter, a series of operation contents of sheet feeding, image reading, and sheet discharge performed by the image reading device 60 shown in FIG. 1 will be described.

  The operator places the sheet on the placing tray 22 so that the original surface (read surface) of the sheet is on the upper side. At this time, the front end position of the sheet is regulated by the stopper member 11. Further, the document presence / absence detection sensor 5 detects that a sheet is placed on the placement tray 22.

  Subsequently, when the operator gives an instruction to start reading from an operation unit (not shown), the drive unit (not shown) first rotates the pickup arm 12 in the direction of arrow E (FIG. 5). Then, in conjunction with the rotation of the pickup arm 12, the stopper lever 13 is rotated in the direction of arrow F in the figure around the rotation shaft 13a (second shaft). When the stopper lever 13 is rotated downward, the stopper member 11 is pushed down by the stopper lever 13.

  FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the pickup arm is lowered. FIG. 7 shows a state in which the pickup roller 2 contacts the uppermost sheet placed on the placement tray 22 and the stopper member 11 is pushed down by the stopper lever 13. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the pickup roller rotates and feeds out the sheet. As shown in FIG. 8, the pickup roller 2 rotates to feed the sheet downstream. At this time, the restricting surface 11d of the stopper member 11 is retracted below the sheet feeding path. Therefore, the leading edge of the sheet enters the separation portion (separation pad 3 and separation roller 4) while pushing down the inclined portion 11a of the stopper member 11. The leading edge of the sheet passes through the stopper member 11, is separated into one sheet by the separation roller 4 and the separation pad 3, and is sent to the U-turn path 21.

  The sheet sent to the U-turn path 21 is conveyed along the U-turn path 21 by the conveyance roller 25. Then, when the leading edge of the sheet is detected by a document edge sensor (not shown), after a predetermined time has elapsed from the detection timing, reading is performed by the reading unit 62 provided at a reading position provided at a position away from the detection position by a predetermined amount. Operation starts. At this time, the sheet is pressed against the reading unit 62 by the reading white background plate 26 (see FIG. 3).

  Thereafter, when the trailing edge of the sheet is detected by a document edge sensor (not shown), the reading operation by the reading unit 62 is finished after a predetermined time has elapsed from the detection timing. The sheet that has been read is discharged to the discharge tray 23 by the discharge roller pair 24.

  When the trailing end of the sheet that has finished the reading operation passes through the discharge roller pair 24, the sheet freely falls and is accommodated in the discharge tray 23 with the trailing end of the sheet held on the holding surface 23a (see FIG. 3). The image reading device 60 repeats the above-described operation until the document presence / absence detection sensor 5 detects that no sheet is placed on the placement tray 22.

  FIG. 9 is a view of the feeding device as seen from the loading tray side. As shown in FIG. 9, a stopper lever 13 is disposed on the side of the pickup arm 12. The stopper member 11 is movable between a state of entering the sheet feeding path and a state of being retracted below the sheet feeding path. Reference numeral 31 denotes a guide member that guides the sheet to the U-turn path 21.

  Hereinafter, a more detailed configuration of the feeding unit 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 9. The stopper lever 13 rotates about the rotation shaft 13a. A fulcrum 13 b of the stopper lever 13 is a part that engages with the pickup arm 12. The stopper lever 13 is provided with a pressing piece 13c on the side opposite to the rotation shaft 13a with the fulcrum 13b interposed therebetween. Accordingly, the stopper lever 13 is also rotated downward in conjunction with the operation of the pickup arm 12 being rotated downward. Thereby, the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 presses the pressing portion 11c of the stopper member 11, and the stopper member 11 moves below the sheet feeding path. In the present embodiment, the pressing piece 13c is disposed on the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction with respect to the rotating shaft 13a. Note that a cam surface may be formed at a position in contact with the fulcrum 13b of the pickup arm 12, and the fulcrum 13b may be moved along the cam surface. In this configuration, the stopper lever 13 presses the stopper member 11 at a position where the fulcrum 13b is in contact with the tip (protrusion) of the cam surface.

  In the present embodiment, the stopper lever 13 is engaged with the pickup arm 12 so as to satisfy the following expression (1).

(B / a) × (C / D)> 1 (1)
In the above formula (1), as shown in FIG. 5, the symbol a is the distance from the shaft 12 a of the pickup arm 12 to the pressing piece 13 c of the stopper lever 13. The symbol b is the distance from the shaft 12 a of the pickup arm 12 to the fulcrum 13 b of the stopper lever 13. Symbol C is a distance from the rotation shaft 13a of the stopper lever 13 to the pressing piece 13c. Symbol D is the distance from the rotation shaft 13a of the stopper lever 13 to the fulcrum 13b.

  By satisfying the above expression (1), the downward movement distance Zd of the stopper lever 13 becomes longer than the downward movement distance Zp of the pickup arm 12. Here, the downward movement distance of the stopper lever 13 indicates the downward movement distance of the pressing piece 13c. On the other hand, the downward movement distance of the pickup arm 12 is a downward movement distance of the pickup arm 12 at a position corresponding to the stopper member 11 in the sheet feeding direction. For example, when a = 10.2 mm, b = 16 mm, C = 33.3 mm, and D = 21.1 mm, the movement distance Zd of the pickup arm 12 is 3.5 mm, while the movement distance Zp of the stopper lever 13 is It was 5.6 mm.

  As shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 9, when the pickup arm 12 rotates in the direction of arrow E with the start of the reading operation, the stopper lever 13 presses the stopper member 11. At this time, the downward movement distance of the stopper lever 13 is amplified with respect to the downward movement distance of the pickup arm 12. Thereafter, the pickup arm 12 is lowered until the pickup roller 2 comes into contact with the sheet S. As the pickup roller 2 is lowered, the stopper lever 13 is rotated downward. Further, the stopper member 11 pressed by the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 swings in a direction G (direction intersecting with the sheet feeding direction) shown in FIG. Then, the regulating surface 11d of the stopper member 11 is retracted downward from the sheet feeding path. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, the pressing piece 13 c of the stopper lever 13 is positioned above the pickup arm 12. Therefore, when the sheet is fed out, there is no trouble such as the sheet being caught by the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13.

  After the stopper member 11 is lowered to a predetermined position, the pickup roller 2 rotates. Then, the sheet is sent out, and the sheet passes over the lowered stopper member 11.

  Then, the above-described operation is repeated until the document presence / absence detection sensor 5 detects that the sheet S is not placed on the placement tray 22.

  The pickup arm 12 rotates upward when the pickup roller 2 finishes feeding the sheet. As the pickup arm 12 rotates, the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 also rotates upward. As a result, since the pressing by the pressing piece 13c is released, the stopper member 11 is rotated upward by the biasing force of the torsion coil spring 14.

  FIG. 10 is a view of the state where the pickup arm 12 is lowered as viewed from the loading tray side. As shown in FIG. 10, the width of the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 is such that the pressing portion 11c can be reliably pressed while the stopper member 11 moves from the raised position to the lowered position.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to amplify the downward movement distance of the stopper member 11 with respect to the downward movement distance of the pickup arm 12. Thereby, even if the height of the regulating surface 11d of the stopper member 11 is increased, the downward movement distance of the pickup arm 12 can be suppressed. As a result, it is possible to increase the number of sheets (documents) stacked without increasing the size of the feeding device. If the number of sheets (documents) stacked is the same, the height of the feeding device can be made lower than that of the conventional configuration.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the stopper member 11 is swung in a direction intersecting with the sheet feeding direction. Therefore, a space for swinging the stopper member 11 in the sheet feeding direction is unnecessary.

  In the present embodiment, the stopper member 11 and the stopper lever 13 are arranged only on one side of the pickup arm 12 in the sheet width direction. However, the stopper member 11 and the stopper lever 13 may be provided on both sides of the pickup arm 12 in the sheet width direction.

  In the present embodiment, the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 is arranged downstream of the rotation shaft 13a in the sheet feeding direction. However, the pressing piece 13c of the stopper lever 13 may be arranged on the upstream side of the rotation shaft 13a in the sheet feeding direction.

2 Feeding roller (Pickup roller)
3 Separation pad 4 Separation roller 11 Stopper member 12 Pickup arm 13 Stopper lever

Claims (7)

A feeding roller that feeds the sheet placed on the sheet placing table; a separation unit that separates the sheet fed by the feeding roller; and the feeding roller that rotatably holds the feeding roller. A holding member that moves to a contact position that contacts the sheet placed on the sheet placement table and a separation position that is separated from the sheet; and a upstream side of the separation unit in the feeding direction in which the sheet is fed. A stopper member that moves between an entry position that enters the sheet feeding path and a retreat position that is retracted below the sheet feeding path in order to regulate the position of the leading edge of the sheet placed on the sheet placement table; In a feeding device comprising:
An operation member that is rotatably supported by the holding member and presses the stopper member, and the holding member swings to move the feeding roller from the separated position to the contact position. The feeding member moves the stopper member downward from the entry position to the retracted position.   The feeding apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a cover member capable of opening and closing the sheet feeding path, wherein the holding member is swingably supported by the cover member.   The feeding device according to claim 2, wherein the holding member is swingably supported by the cover member at a position downstream of the feeding roller in the feeding direction.   The operating member is swingably supported by the holding member at a position upstream of the position in which the holding member is swingably supported by the cover member in the feeding direction. Item 4. The feeding device according to Item 3.   The feeding device according to claim 4, wherein the actuating member presses the stopper member at a position downstream in the feeding direction with respect to a position supported by the holding member so as to be swingable. The stopper member, the feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that in a direction intersecting the feeding direction is swingable. A feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, the reading, characterized in that it comprises a reading unit to read an image of the sheet fed from the feeder device.

Images