JP6500966B2 - Manual feed device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a manual sheet feeding device and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to a manual sheet feeding device in which a manual feeding tray is provided on an opening / closing member of an apparatus main body so as to be openable and closable.

  An image forming apparatus such as a printer or a copying machine includes a manual sheet feeding device for supplying a sheet such as a recording sheet or an OHP film stacked on a manual feed tray in a sheet conveyance path of an image forming apparatus main body. Among such manual sheet feeding apparatuses, there is known one in which a sheet feeding tray is provided to an opening and closing member for opening a sheet conveyance path of an image forming apparatus main body. The opening and closing member is configured such that the upper part is opened and closed with the rotation fulcrum at the lower part with respect to the image forming apparatus main body, and the sheet conveying path is opened by changing the opening and closing member from the closed state of upright posture By doing this, it is possible to easily remove jams and sheets jammed in the sheet conveyance path. The manual feed tray is structured such that the upper portion is opened and closed by holding the pivot at the lower part with respect to the opening and closing member, and the manual feed tray is loaded from the closed state in the upright position to the open state in the inclined position. Thus, the sheet can be supplied to the sheet conveyance path.

  In this type of manual sheet feeding device, if the open / close member is opened while the sheets are stacked on the open manual feed tray, the upper portion on the open / close side of the manual feed tray is lowered below the lower portion on the rotation fulcrum side , Sheets may slip off the manual feed tray.

  Thus, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for preventing such slippage of the sheet. According to the technology disclosed in this patent document 1, by connecting the image forming apparatus main body and the manual feed tray by the connecting member, the open tilt angle of the manual feed tray is regulated so as not to be too large, and the sheets stacked on the manual feed tray are I try not to fall.

The present invention aims at providing a picture image forming apparatus is Ru possible to prevent a problem from the manual feed tray sheet slides down with a simple configuration.

In order to solve the above problems, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes an apparatus body, an opening and closing member for opening and closing the apparatus body, a manual feed tray for opening and closing the opening and closing member, and the opening and closing of the apparatus body. The wire includes a link member that connects the members so as to be openable and closable, a wire whose one end is supported by the link member and whose other end is supported by the manual tray, and a stopper portion provided on the manual tray. When the open / close member is closed and the manual feed tray is closed and the open / close member is closed and the manual feed tray is opened, the abutted portion is separated from the stopper portion. state cage, the state where the closing member is the manual feed tray open is open, the abutted portion is abutted on the stopper portion, wherein the closing member is the manual feed tray closed open When the manual feed tray is opened with the open / close member open, the manual feed tray is in the horizontal state, the swinging end of the manual feed tray is inclined upward than the horizontal state, or the swinging end is so that configured kept tilted at an angle of less than 10 degrees downward from the horizontal state.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a manual sheet feeding device and an image forming apparatus capable of preventing a problem in which the sheet slides down from the manual sheet feeding tray with a simple configuration.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a copying machine according to an embodiment of a manual sheet feeding device and an image forming apparatus of the present invention as viewed from the front direction. FIG. 6 is a side view showing a state in which the opening / closing member and the manual feed tray of the manual sheet feeding device are closed in the copying machine according to the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a side view showing the state in which the opening and closing member of the manual sheet feeding device is closed and the manual tray is opened in the copying machine according to the embodiment; FIG. 6 is a side view showing a state in which the opening and closing member of the manual sheet feeding device is opened and the manual tray is closed in the copying machine according to the embodiment; FIG. 6 is a side view showing a state in which the opening and closing member and the manual feed tray of the manual sheet feeding device are opened in the copying machine according to the embodiment. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a manual feed tray of a manual sheet feeding device is opened in a copying machine according to an embodiment. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the opening member in a state in which the manual feed tray of the manual sheet feeding device is opened in the copying machine according to the embodiment. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a manual feed tray of a manual sheet feeding device in a copying machine according to one embodiment. It is a perspective view which expands and shows a part of FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an internal structure of a manual feed tray of a manual sheet feeder in a copying machine according to an embodiment. FIG. 6 is a view showing a relationship between the inclination angle of the manual feed tray with respect to the horizontal direction and the drop of the sheet in the copying machine according to the embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment in which a manual sheet feeding device and an image forming apparatus according to the present invention are applied to a copying machine will be described with reference to FIGS. In order to make the drawings easy to see in FIGS. 4 and 5, the illustration of the sheets stacked on a manual feed tray, which will be described later, is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the copying machine 1 includes an image forming apparatus body 2, an image reading apparatus 3 disposed on the image forming apparatus body 2, and a table disposed below the image forming apparatus body 2. And an automatic document feeder 5 disposed openably and closably on the image reading device 3. The copying machine 1 further includes a switchback device 42 and a manual sheet feeding device 70.

  The image forming apparatus main body 2 internally includes a drum-shaped photosensitive member 10 as an image bearing member. The charging device 11 is disposed on the left side in the drawing around the photosensitive member 10, and the developing device 12, the transfer device 13, and the cleaning device 14 are arranged along the rotational direction of the photosensitive member 10 (counterclockwise direction: arrow A in the drawing). Is arranged. The transfer device 13 is configured by winding a transfer belt 17 between upper and lower rollers 15 and 16, and is configured to press the transfer belt 17 against the circumferential surface of the photosensitive member 10 at a transfer position B.

  On the left side of the charging device 11 and the cleaning device 14, a toner replenishing device 20 that replenishes the developing device 12 with new toner is disposed. Further, inside the image forming apparatus main body 2, there is disposed a sheet conveying apparatus C which feeds sheets such as sheets and OHP sheets from a supply position described later, and conveys the sheet to a stack position through a transfer position B. The sheet conveying apparatus C includes a supply path R1 described later, a manual feed path R2, and a sheet conveyance path R. The sheet conveyance path R has a substantially L shape extending between the photosensitive member 10 and the transfer device 13 and extending upward from the bottom of the figure and then turning to the left.

  In the sheet conveyance path R, a registration roller 21 is disposed at the upstream position of the photosensitive member 10. Further, a fixing device 22 is disposed at a downstream position of the photosensitive member 10. The fixing device 22 includes a pair of fixing rollers (fixing roller rotating bodies) 31 and 32. A fixing heater (not shown) is disposed inside one fixing roller 31, and a pressure spring and a pressure arm are arranged around the other fixing roller 32. The other fixing roller 32 is pressed against the one fixing roller 31 by the pressure spring and the pressure arm. Further, a thermistor and a thermostat are disposed on one fixing roller 31.

  The fixing heater measures the temperature of the fixing roller 31 with a thermistor, and turns on or off the fixing heater with a thermostat to keep one of the fixing rollers 31 at a predetermined temperature.

  Further downstream of the fixing device 22, a discharge bifurcating claw 34, a discharge roller 35, a first pressure roller 36, a second pressure roller 37, and a waisted roller 38 are disposed, and the sheet on which the image is formed is A discharge stack unit (discharge position) 39 to be stacked is disposed.

  A laser writing device 47 is disposed on the left side of the developing device 12 in the drawing. The laser writing device 47 includes a laser light source (not shown), a rotating polygon mirror 48 for scanning, a polygon motor 49, and a scanning optical system 50 such as an fθ lens.

  The image reading device 3 includes a light source 53, a plurality of mirrors 54, an imaging optical lens 55, an image sensor 56 such as a CCD, and the like, and a contact glass 57 is disposed on the upper surface.

  The automatic document feeder 5 is connected to one end of the upper surface of the image reading device 3 by a connector having a hinge structure. The automatic document feeder 5 has a state in which the inclination angle with the upper surface of the contact glass 57 is, for example, 90 degrees at the maximum from the horizontal state where the lower surface presses the original sheet placed on the upper surface of the contact glass 57 from above. It is provided so that it can be opened and closed freely. The automatic document feeder 5 includes a mounting table (not shown) at the document loading position, and a discharge table (not shown) at the discharge position, and also transmits a sheet such as a document from the mounting table onto the contact glass 57 of the image reading device 3. The apparatus has a sheet conveying apparatus having a document conveying path (not shown) which conveys the document to the discharge table through the reading position. The sheet conveying apparatus includes a plurality of sheet conveying rollers (sheet conveying rotating bodies) (not shown) for conveying a sheet such as a document.

  The sheet feeding device 4 internally includes sheet separating devices 61 at multiple sheet feeding positions. Each sheet separation device 61 is provided with a pick-up roller (feed roller) 62, a feed roller (feed roller) 63, and a reverse roller (separation roller) 64 corresponding to each other. A supply path R1 communicating with the sheet conveyance path R of the image forming apparatus main body 2 is formed on the right side of the sheet separation device 61 arranged in multiple stages in the drawing. The supply path R1 includes a number of sheet conveying rollers (sheet conveying rotating bodies) 66 for conveying a sheet.

  The switchback device 42 is disposed on the right side of the image forming apparatus main body 2 in the figure. The switchback device 42 includes a sheet conveying device D that branches from the position of the discharge branch claw 34 of the sheet conveying path R. The sheet conveying apparatus D includes a reverse path R3 for guiding to the switchback position 44 where the pair of switchback rollers 43 is disposed, and a re-conveying path R4 for guiding the switchback position 44 to the resist roller 21 of the sheet conveying path R again. Have. The sheet conveying device D also has a plurality of sheet conveying rollers (sheet conveying rotating bodies) 66 for conveying a sheet. In the present embodiment, the switchback device 42 is configured to be attached to an opening and closing member 71 described later.

  The manual sheet feeding device 70 is disposed on the right side of the image forming apparatus main body 2 in the figure. The manual sheet feeding device 70 includes a pickup roller (feed roller) 67A, a feed roller (feed roller) 67B, and a reverse roller (feed roller) 67C, and the sheet S stacked on the manual tray 72 is an image forming apparatus main body. The sheet is fed to the second sheet conveyance path R.

  Next, the operation of the copying machine 1 will be described. First, in order to generate a copy using this copying machine 1, the main switch (not shown) is turned on, and an original is set in the automatic document feeder 5. Alternatively, the automatic document feeder 5 is opened, the document is set directly on the contact glass 57 of the image reading device 3, and the automatic document feeder 5 is closed and pressed.

  Then, when the original is set on the automatic document feeder 5 when the start switch (not shown) is pressed, the document is moved by the sheet feeding roller through the document feeding path onto the contact glass 57 and then the image reading device 3 is set. Drive to read the contents of the document and discharge it onto the discharge tray. On the other hand, when the original is set directly on the contact glass 57, the image reader 3 is driven immediately.

  When the image reading device 3 starts driving, the light source 53 moves along the contact glass 57 while emitting light, and irradiates light onto the document surface on the contact glass 57. The plurality of mirrors 54 receive reflected light from the document surface and reflect the light toward the imaging optical lens 55. The imaging optical lens 55 forms an image of the reflected light on the image sensor 56. Thereby, the image sensor 56 reads the document content.

  At the same time, the photosensitive member 10 is rotated by a photosensitive member driving motor (not shown), and the surface of the photosensitive member is uniformly charged by the charging device 11 using a charging roller, and then the laser writing device 47 By irradiating the surface of the photosensitive member with a laser beam in accordance with the contents of the document read by the above-described image reading device 3, writing is performed on the surface of the photosensitive member, whereby an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive member 10. It is formed. Thereafter, when the electrostatic latent image portion formed on the surface of the photosensitive member corresponds to the developing device 12, the toner is attracted to the surface of the photosensitive member, and the electrostatic latent image is visualized.

  Further, when the start switch is pressed, the corresponding sheet separation device 61 is selected among the plurality of sheet separation devices 61 provided in multiple stages in the sheet feeding device 4 based on the sheet size selection signal. Then, the pickup roller 62 corresponding to the sheet separation device 61 sends out one sheet S in the sheet separation device 61. The reverse roller 64 separates the uppermost sheet S when feeding a plurality of sheets S, and blocks the conveyance of the remaining sheets S. Subsequently, the feed roller 63 inserts the sheet S into the supply path R1 while conveying the sheet S, and the sheet conveyance roller 66 successively conveys the sheet S and guides it to the sheet conveyance path R, and the registration roller 21 abuts on the sheet S. Stop the transport. Then, the registration roller 21 rotates in synchronization with the rotation of the photosensitive member 10 described above, and feeds the sheet S to the right side of the photosensitive member 10.

  When performing manual sheet feeding, the manual sheet feeding device 70 transfers the manual sheet feeding tray 72 of the manual sheet feeding device 70 from the closed state in the upright position to the open state in the inclined position. Set the sheet on top. When the start switch is pressed, the pickup roller 67A delivers a sheet, and subsequently, the feed roller 67B takes over the delivery of the sheet. The reverse roller 67C separates the topmost sheet when feeding a plurality of sheets, and blocks the conveyance of the remaining sheets. The sheet transport roller 66 continues to transport the sheet supplied to the manual feed path R2 and guides the sheet to the sheet transport path R. Thereafter, similarly to the sheet feeding device 4 described above, the registration roller 21 feeds the light to the right side of the photosensitive member 10 in synchronization with the rotation of the photosensitive member 10.

  Next, when the sheet S fed to the right side of the photosensitive member 10 comes to the transfer position B, the transfer device 13 transfers the toner image on the photosensitive member 10 onto the sheet S to form an image. The cleaning device 14 removes and cleans the residual toner on the photosensitive member 10 after the image transfer, and then a charge removing device (not shown) removes the residual potential on the photosensitive member 10 and the next image starting from the charging device 11 Prepare for formation.

  Next, the fixing device 22 conveys the sheet S on which the toner image is transferred by the transfer belt 17 through the pair of fixing rollers 31 and 32, applies heat and pressure at the fixing position to fix the transferred image. . Thereafter, the sheet S on which the fixing has been performed is put on a flat surface in the process of passing through the first pressure roller 36, the discharge roller 35, the second pressure roller 37, and the waisted roller 38, and is sheeted. Ejected on top of 39 and stacked there.

  When transferring an image to both sides of the sheet S, the discharge branch claw 34 is switched. Then, the sheet S having the image transferred to the surface is put from the sheet conveyance path R into the reverse path R3, conveyed by the sheet conveyance roller 66 and put into the switchback position 44, and switchback is performed at the switchback position 44. Thereafter, the sheet is put into the re-conveying path R4, inverted, conveyed by the sheet conveying roller 66, guided to the sheet conveying path R again, and the image is transferred also to the back side of the sheet in the same manner as described above.

  In FIGS. 2 to 5, the manual sheet feeding device 70 has an opening / closing member 71 (see FIG. 3) whose upper portion is opened and closed by holding a pivot fulcrum 71A at the lower part with respect to the image forming apparatus main body 2; And a manual feed tray 72 (see FIG. 4) whose upper portion is opened and closed by holding a pivot fulcrum 72A at the lower portion.

  The manual sheet feeding device 70 has a link member 73 connecting the opening / closing member 71 to the image forming apparatus main body 2 in an openable / closable manner, one end side thereof fixed to the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73, and the other side side a manual feed tray And 72 a flexible linear member 81 fixed thereto. The flexible linear member 81 uses a wire here.

  In order to easily remove jams and sheets jammed in the sheet conveyance path R and the re-conveyance path R4 and maintain the inside of the image forming apparatus main body 2 etc., the open / close member 71 is in the inclined open state (see FIG. 3) Thus, the sheet conveyance path R and the re-conveyance path R4 are opened. That is, the manual sheet feeding device 70 changes the open / close member 71 from the closed state in the upright posture (see FIG. 2) to the open state in the inclined posture (see FIG. 3) to open the sheet conveyance path R and the re-conveyance path R4. , Removal of jams and sheets, maintenance, etc. can be easily performed.

  In addition, the manual sheet feeding device 70 stacks sheets on the sheet stacking surface 72B of the manual feed tray 72 with the manual feed tray 72 from the closed state in the upright posture (see FIG. 2) to the open state in the inclined posture (see FIG. 4). Thus, the sheet for manual feeding can be supplied to the sheet conveyance path R.

  The link member 73 is configured in an open leg link structure including two arms 74. One end of each of the two arms 74 is openably connected at the pivot fulcrum 74A, and the other end of one arm 74 is pivotably connected to the image forming apparatus main body 2 at the pivot fulcrum 74B. The other end of the arm 74 is rotatably connected to the opening and closing member 71 at a rotation fulcrum 74C.

  The link member 73 is disposed on the side of the opening / closing member 71 when the opening / closing member 71 is in the closed state, and the other end of the other arm 74 is on the side of the opening / closing member 71 as shown in FIG. It is connected rotatably.

  The link member 73 can open and close the opening and closing member 71 by opening and closing the two arms 74. The position and inclination angle in the open state shown in FIG. 3 are maintained by opening and closing the two arms 74 of the opening and closing member 71.

  The linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 is provided at an intermediate portion of one of the two arms 74. In the present embodiment, a linear member fixing portion 80 is provided at an intermediate portion of the other arm 74 whose other end is pivotally connected to the opening and closing member 71.

  The manual sheet feeding device 70 shifts from the closed state (see FIG. 4) in the upright attitude to the open state (see FIG. 5) in the inclined attitude in the open state (see FIG. 4) in which the manual feed tray 72 is in the inclined attitude. At this time, the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 moves in the direction in which the linear member 81 is pulled, and the sheet stacked on the sheet stacking surface 72B of the manual tray 72 with respect to the horizontal is horizontal. It is configured to keep the tilt angle not to slide out from 72. The amount of movement of the linear member fixing portion 80 can be adjusted by the position where the one end side of the linear member 81 is fixed to the link member 73.

  The opening / closing member 71 has a through hole 71B through which the linear member 81 passes, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The linear member 81 passes through the through hole 71 </ b> B and is fixed to the link member 73 at one end side.

  In the manual feed tray 72, a spring member 82 for pulling the linear member 81 is connected to the other end side of the linear member 81. The spring member 82 has one end fixed to the other end of the linear member 81 and the other end fixed to the manual feed tray 72. As the spring member 82, for example, a coil spring that expands and contracts is used.

  At the other end side of the linear member 81, a position fixing portion 83 is provided. Further, the manual feed tray 72 is provided with a stopper portion 84. Further, the manual feed tray 72 is provided with a pulley 85 which changes the extending direction of the linear member 81. The manual sheet feeding device 70 is configured to hold the inclination angle of the manual feed tray 72 with respect to the horizontal when the position fixing portion 83 abuts on the stopper portion 84.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the manual feed tray 72 is formed to have a rectangular flat surface. In the manual feed tray 72, through holes 86 are provided as shown in FIG. 9 on either side of two sides separated from each other in the direction orthogonal to the supply direction of the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking surface 72B. There is. The through holes 86 are for extending the linear members 81 from the inside to the outside of the manual feed tray 72, and the linear members 81 pass through.

  The spring member 82, the position fixing portion 83, the stopper portion 84 and the pulley 85 are disposed along one side of the manual feed tray 72 along the one side, as in the through hole 86, as shown in FIG. ing.

  Next, the relationship between the open / close state of the open / close member 71 and the manual feed tray 72 and the linear member 81, the spring member 82 and the position fixing portion 83 will be described.

  In FIG. 2, the opening and closing member 71 is in the closed state in the upright posture with respect to the image forming apparatus main body 2, and the manual feed tray 72 is in the closed state in the upright posture with respect to the opening and closing member 71. At this time, the linear member 81 is in a slack state, and the spring member 82 is in a contracted state. In addition, the position fixing portion 83 of the linear member 81 is separated from the stopper portion 84 of the manual feed tray 72.

  In FIG. 3, the opening / closing member 71 is in the open state in the inclined posture with respect to the image forming apparatus main body 2, and the manual feed tray 72 is in the closed state in the upright posture with respect to the opening / closing member 71. At this time, the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 moves in the direction in which the linear member 81 is pulled from the position when the open / close member 71 is in a closed state. It is a state. Also, the spring member 82 is in a contracted state. In addition, the position fixing portion 83 of the linear member 81 is separated from the stopper portion 84 of the manual feed tray 72. Further, the position and inclination angle of the open / close member 71 in the open state with respect to the image forming apparatus main body 2 are held by the two arms 74 of the link member 73 being opened and stretched.

  In FIG. 4, the open / close member 71 is in the closed state in the upright posture with respect to the image forming apparatus main body 2, and the manual feed tray 72 is in the open state in the inclined posture with respect to the open / close member 71. At this time, the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 has not moved from the position when the open / close member 71 is in the closed state, but the spring member 82 pulls the linear member 81 and the slack of the linear member 81 It has been eliminated. In addition, the position fixing portion 83 of the linear member 81 is separated from the stopper portion 84 of the manual feed tray 72. Also, the manual feed tray 72 is held in the open position and at the tilt angle by a positioning mechanism other than the linear member 81.

  In FIG. 5, the open / close member 71 is in the open state in the inclined posture with respect to the image forming apparatus main body 2, and the manual feed tray 72 is in the open state in the inclined posture with respect to the open / close member 71. At this time, the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 is moved in the direction in which the linear member 81 is pulled from the position when the open / close member 71 is in the closed state. Further, the position fixing portion 83 of the linear member 81 abuts against the stopper portion 84 of the manual feed tray 72 by moving in the direction in which the linear member 81 is pulled. By the abutment of the position fixing portion 83, the manual feed tray 72 is maintained in the open position and the tilt angle with respect to the horizontal.

  Essentially, the manual feed tray 72 can be opened to a predetermined inclination angle with respect to the opening / closing member 71 by a positioning mechanism different from the linear member 81. However, the manual feed tray 72 is configured to be supported on the link member 74 by the linear member 81, and the manual feed tray is up to the inclination angle at which the position fixing portion 83 of the linear member 81 abuts the stopper portion 84 of the manual feed tray 72. As the linear member 72 pivots, the linear member 81 stretches and the pivoting of the manual feed tray 72 stops. Therefore, the manual feed tray 72 is stopped at an intermediate position instead of the original stop position when only the manual feed tray 72 is opened.

  At this time, since the manual sheet feeding device 70 is configured to keep the manual feed tray 72 at the inclination angle described later to the extent that the sheet does not slip, the sheet does not slip from the manual feed tray 72.

  That is, when the open / close member 71 shifts from the closed state (see FIG. 4) to the open state (see FIG. 5) while the manual feed tray 72 is in the open state (see FIG. 4), the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 The rod 81 is moved in the pulling direction. As a result, the linear member 81 is configured to keep the manual feed tray 72 in a horizontal state or in a state where the manual feed tray 72 is inclined to the limit where the sheet does not slide, and to prevent the sheet from sliding off the manual feed tray 72.

  Here, the inclination angle of the manual feed tray 72 with respect to the horizontal will be described with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 11, the positive inclination angle is the case where the swinging end of the manual feed tray 72 is positioned above the lower portion on the rotation fulcrum side with respect to the horizontal. The negative inclination angle is a case where the swinging end of the manual feed tray 72 is positioned lower than the lower portion on the rotation fulcrum side with respect to the horizontal.

  The reason why the inclination angle of the manual feed tray 72 is allowed to be -10 ° to the horizontal is that the frictional force is exerted between the manual feed tray 72 and the sheet and between the sheet and the sheet, so that the sheet acts as a manual feed tray by gravity. It is because it does not slide off from 72.

  In the data of FIG. 11, when the negative inclination angle is −12.5 ° or more, the sheet slips because the sliding force by gravity is larger than the stationary force by friction. Therefore, it is preferable to set the manual feed tray 72 horizontally to −10 ° or less as an inclination angle at which the sheets stacked on the manual feed tray 72 do not slide out of the sheet stacking surface 72 B of the manual feed tray 72.

  In the present embodiment, in the manual sheet feeding device 70, one end side of the linear member 81 is fixed to the middle of the arm 74 on the projecting side of the two arms 74 of the link member 73. Therefore, in the manual sheet feeding device 70, various parts of the image forming apparatus main body do not exist in the middle of the connection path between the link member 73 and the manual feeding tray 72.

  Further, the manual sheet feeding device 70 has a configuration in which the link member 73 and the manual sheet feeding tray 72 are connected by a simple connecting mechanism called a linear member 81. Thereby, when the open / close member 71 is shifted from the closed state (see FIG. 4) to the open state (see FIG. 5) in the open state (see FIG. 4) of the manual feed tray 72, the linear member fixing portion 80 is a linear member Move in the direction to pull 81. Then, the linear member 81 keeps the manual feed tray 72 in a horizontal state or the plus or minus inclination angle described above.

  As described above, according to the copying machine 1 according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) In the manual sheet feeding device 70, the linear member fixing portion 80 of the link member 73 pulls the linear member 81 when the open / close member 71 shifts from the closed state to the open state with the manual feed tray 72 open. It is configured to move and keep the manual feed tray 72 at an inclination angle at which the sheets stacked on the manual feed tray 72 do not slide out of the manual feed tray 72 with respect to the horizontal. Therefore, even if the manual feed tray 72 is in the open state, even if the open / close member 71 shifts from the closed state to the open state, the sheet stacked on the sheet stacking surface 72B of the manual feed tray 72 does not slide off the manual feed tray 72.

  Further, in the manual sheet feeding device 70, various parts of the image forming apparatus main body 2 do not exist in the middle of the connection path connecting the link member 73 and the manual feed tray 72 by the linear members 81. Therefore, when the open / close member 71 shifts from the closed state to the open state in the open state of the manual feed tray 72, the sheet can be maintained at an inclination angle at which the sheet does not slide off the manual feed tray 72. This holding mechanism can be realized by a simple configuration as compared with the case where the image forming apparatus main body and the manual feed tray are connected by the conventional connecting member.

  As a result, it is possible to provide the manual sheet feeding device 70 and the copying machine 1 as the image forming apparatus, which can prevent the problem that the sheet slides down from the sheet stacking surface 72B of the manual tray 72 with a simple configuration.

  Further, in the manual sheet feeding device 70, since one end side of the linear member 81 is fixed to the link member 73, the line is compared with the case where one end side of the connecting member is fixed to the image forming apparatus main body as in the prior art. The length of the rod-like member 81 can be shortened. As a result, it is possible to reduce the cost of the manual sheet feeding device 70 and the copying machine 1 on which it is mounted.

(2) In the manual sheet feeding device 70, the link member 73 pulls the linear member 81 in a direction in which the linear member fixing portion 80 pulls the linear member 81 when the open / close member 71 shifts from the closed state to the open state. The manual feed tray 72 is open to the open / close member 71 in the open state more than the inclination angle of the manual feed tray 72 in the open state to the open / close member 71 in the closed state. The inclination angle can be reduced. As a result, the inclination angle formed by the manual feed tray 72 with respect to the horizontal can be maintained at an inclination angle at which the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking surface 72 B of the manual feed tray 72 do not slip out of the manual feed tray 72.

(3) In the manual sheet feeding device 70, since the opening and closing member 71 has a through hole 71B through which the linear member 81 passes, the manual feeding tray 72 is closed in the upright posture with respect to the opening and closing member 71. When it does, the linear member 81 can be stored between the opening and closing member 71 and the manual feed tray 72. As a result, the manual sheet feeding device 70 and the copying machine 1 equipped with the manual sheet feeding device 70 can be made compact.

(4) In the manual sheet feeding device 70, since the spring member 82 for pulling the linear member 81 is connected to the other end side of the linear member 81, the slack of the linear member 81 is reduced. Can.

(5) In the manual sheet feeding device 70, the position fixing portion 83 is provided on the other end side of the linear member 81, and the manual feeding tray 72 is provided with the stopper portion 84. Furthermore, when the position fixing portion 83 abuts on the stopper portion 84, the inclination angle of the manual feed tray 72 is controlled. Therefore, the inclination angle of the manual feed tray 72 with respect to the opening and closing member 71 can be controlled.

  In the embodiment described above, the configuration is described in which the other end side of the linear member 81 is fixed to the manual feed tray 72 via the spring member 82. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the other end side of the linear member 81 may be directly fixed to the manual feed tray 72. Also in this case, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment can be obtained, but when the open / close member 71 is closed and the manual feed tray 72 is open, the linear member 81 may be slackened.

  In the embodiment described above, the example in which the present invention is applied to the copying machine 1 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to, for example, a printer.

  In the embodiment described above, the case where the reversing path R3 and the re-transporting path R4 are provided in the opening and closing member 71 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to the case where the reversing path R3 is provided in the image forming apparatus main body 2, for example.

  As described above, the manual sheet feeding device and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention have an effect of preventing the problem that the sheet slides down from the manual feeding tray with a simple configuration, and an image forming apparatus such as a printer and a copier It is useful for a manual sheet feeder mounted on it.

1 Copy machine (image forming device)
2 Image forming apparatus main body (apparatus main body)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 image reading apparatus 4 paper feeding apparatus 5 document automatic conveyance apparatus 70 manual paper feeding apparatus 71 opening / closing member 71A rotation fulcrum 71B through hole 72 manual feed tray 72A rotation fulcrum 72B sheet stacking surface 73 link member 80 linear member fixing portion 81 -Like member 82 spring member R sheet conveyance path

JP 2008-308329 A

Claims (19)

The device body,
An opening and closing member for opening and closing the device body;
A manual feed tray that opens and closes with respect to the opening and closing member;
A link member that connects the opening / closing member to the device body so as to be able to open and close;
A wire of which one end is supported by the link member and the other end is supported by the manual feed tray;
And a stopper portion provided on the manual feed tray,
The wire has an abutted portion,
The abutted portion is separated from the stopper portion when the open / close member is closed to close the manual feed tray and when the open / close member is closed to open the manual feed tray.
The state where the closing member is the manual feed tray open is open, the abutted portion is abutted on the stopper portion,
With the open / close member closed and the manual feed tray open and the open / close member open, the manual feed tray is in the horizontal state, and the swing end of the manual feed tray is in the horizontal state state also inclined upward or kept in a state the oscillating end is inclined at an angle of 10 degrees or less downward from the horizontal state image forming apparatus according to claim Rukoto.   When the open / close member is open and the manual feed tray is in the open state, the wire holds the manual feed tray at a predetermined inclination when the abutted portion abuts against the stopper portion. An image forming apparatus according to claim 1.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the abutted portion is spherical.   The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the other end side of the wire is supported by the manual feed tray via a spring.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the spring is a coil spring that expands and contracts.   The spring according to claim 4 or 5, wherein when the opening and closing member is opened and the manual feed tray is opened, the spring is extended compared to a state where the opening and closing member is closed and the manual feed tray is opened. Image forming apparatus.   The spring according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein when the opening and closing member is closed and the manual feed tray is opened, the spring is extended compared to a state where the opening and closing member is closed and the manual feed tray is closed. An image forming apparatus according to any one of the above.   8. The wire according to any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein when the open / close member is closed and the manual feed tray is in an open state, the wire is pulled by the spring and slack is eliminated. Image forming apparatus as described.   The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein the spring is compressed when the open / close member is closed and the manual feed tray is closed.   The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 9, wherein the wire is loosened when the open / close member is closed and the manual feed tray is closed. The opening and closing member has a through hole through which the wire passes;
The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the wire passes through the through hole between one end side of the wire and the other end side of the wire.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the wire is bent at a position of the through hole. The link member has a first arm and a second arm,
One end side of the first arm and one end side of the second arm are rotatably connected at a pivot point,
The other end of the first arm is fixed to the device body,
The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the other end side of the second arm is fixed to the opening / closing member.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the one end side of the wire is fixed to the second arm.   The manual feed tray is characterized in that when the open / close member is closed and the manual feed tray is in the open state, the position and the tilt angle of the open state are maintained by a positioning mechanism different from the wire. 14. The image forming apparatus according to any one of 14. The opening / closing member opens / closes at an upper portion centering on a lower first pivot point relative to the device body,
The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 15 , wherein the upper part of the manual feed tray opens and closes around the lower second rotation fulcrum with respect to the opening and closing member. The image forming apparatus according to claim 16 , wherein the second pivot point is positioned above the first pivot point. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 17 , wherein the sheet stacked on the manual feed tray is supplied to a sheet conveyance path of the apparatus main body. The image forming apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the sheet conveyance path is opened when the opening and closing member is in an open state.

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