JPH0124032Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Technical Field) The present invention relates to a sheet storage device, and more specifically, to an electrophotographic copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, a printing machine, etc. The present invention relates to a sheet storage device in which a unit including a developing device and a latent image carrier is pulled out from the top surface of a cover of a tray that stores a sheet.

(Prior Art) The operation of an electrophotographic printer incorporating a conventional sheet storage device will be described. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 indicates an electrophotographic printer main body (hereinafter abbreviated as the machine), and an opening 1a of the machine 1
The seat storage device 2 is inserted and mounted through the. The sheet storage device 2 includes a tray 3, a movable bottom plate 4, a push-up member 5, a cover 6, and the like. The sheets S stored in the tray are stacked, and the topmost sheet of the sheets S is fed by a paper feed roller 10.
Since it is brought into pressure contact with the push-up member 5, it is conveyed to the left in the figure. The conveyed sheet passes through a pair of conveyance rollers 12 and 14 and reaches a transfer device 16.

On the other hand, the photoreceptor belt 20, which is stretched around the driving roller 16 and the driven roller 18, is rotated in the direction of arrow A, and a static eliminator 22, a cleaner 24, a charger 26, an exposure device 28, a developing device 30, and the transfer device 16 are arranged. That is, the photoreceptor belt 2 is uniformly charged by the charger 26.
A latent image corresponding to the optical image of the document is formed on the surface of the document 0 via the exposure device 28, and the latent image is made visible by the developing device 30.

Therefore, when the sheet S enters between the photoreceptor belt 20 and the transfer device 16, the visible image is transferred to the sheet, and when the sheet is further conveyed, the transferred image is fixed through the fixing device 32. The sheet is discharged onto a paper discharge table 36 via a pair of discharge rollers 34.

By the way, the developing device 30 forms the upper part of the machine opening 1a, and there is a gap G between the sheet storage device cover 6 and the lower part of the developing device 30. In the drawings, G is exaggerated and shown to be large, but even if it is not so large, it is easy for paper (referring to sheets other than the stored sheets; the same shall apply hereinafter) to accidentally enter. If paper or the like enters the machine through an unauthorized route, problems such as jamming and reprinting of already printed sheets occur. Therefore, in order to prevent foreign matter such as paper from entering, it is conceivable to provide the front edge 6a of the cover 6 with a projection (not shown) that projects upward. However, as shown in Figure 2,
A horizontally long protrusion 3b is formed at the end of the side wall 3a of the tray 3 in the insertion direction (left side in the figure), while a guide block 100 fixed to the machine engages with the protrusion 3b when the tray is inserted and mounted. Furthermore, in order to position the tray 3, a locking groove 3c formed on the lower surface of the side wall 3a is provided with a locking pin 1 implanted on the side surface of the guide block 100 during installation.
02, in order to pull out the tray 3 from the machine, the tray 3 must be lifted until the locking groove 3c is disengaged from the locking pin 102. Therefore, if a protrusion is provided on the front edge 6a of the cover, a problem arises in that the protrusion collides with the lower part of the developing device 30 (see FIG. 1), making it impossible to pull out the tray 3.

(Purpose of the invention) The present invention was made in order to solve the problems of the prior art described above, and its purpose is to provide a sheet storage device that can prevent foreign objects such as paper from entering without interfering with attachment and removal to a machine. It's about doing.

(Structure of the invention) The above purpose is to provide a tray in which a laminated sheet is stored and whose front part is inserted into a machine to be supported;
a cover provided on the tray so that it can be opened and closed using a fulcrum near the machine opening when the tray is inserted;
a swing shaft swingably provided on both side plates of the tray located forward of the fulcrum in the tray insertion direction; and has a bent portion formed on its head at a position further forward in the tray insertion direction from the swing shaft to prevent intruders from entering from the machine opening; a receiver in which the head is always biased in a direction to abut against the uppermost sheet, and in conjunction with this when the cover is opened, the bending part is swung in a direction in which the bending part approaches the machine opening; This is achieved by a seat storage device characterized by the following.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in detail with reference to an illustrated embodiment.

3 and 4 are a cross-sectional view and a partially cutaway plan view showing the seat storage device according to the present invention, and structures equivalent to those of the conventional example shown in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals. In these figures, the sheet storage device 40 includes a tray 41, a movable bottom plate 4, a push-up member 5, a receiver 42, a cover 44, and the like.

The tray 41, on which the stacked sheets S are placed, is inclined slightly downward in the feeding direction of the sheets S (toward the left in the figure), and has a sheet front end restraining plate 41a erected at its tip. Side plates 41b are erected at both ends of the tray 41 in the sheet width direction.
The upper end forms a horizontal portion 41c that is bent toward the center. A cover 44 is provided approximately in the center of the side plate 41b.
A hole 43 is drilled into which a pivot shaft serving as a fulcrum is inserted. Further, a hole 144 into which the swing shaft of the receiver 42 is inserted is bored in front of the hole 43 in the same side plate in the tray insertion direction. A notch 45 is formed at the lower front end of the tray 41, through which the free end 5a of the push-up member 5 fixed to the rotating shaft 46 disposed in the machine 1 can be freely moved in and out. ing. A hole 47 is formed in the rear bottom surface of the tray 41, and the rear end protrusion 4a of the movable bottom plate 4 is engaged with the hole 47. The movable bottom plate 4 is placed on the upper surface of the tray 41 and is swingable around the hole 47 in the bottom of the tray. Further, a notch 4b is formed near the front end of the movable bottom plate 4, and functions to detect the presence or absence of a seat, as will be described later.

The cover 44 extends from near the machine opening 48 when the tray 41 is inserted into the machine 1 to the rear end of the tray 41, and is at the same height as the horizontal portion 41c of the side plate when inserted. In this case machine 1
includes the developing device 30 (see FIG. 1). A lever 49 is provided vertically at the lower front end of the cover 44, and a lever 49 is provided at the base end of the lever 49.
4. A support shaft 50 that serves as a support for opening and closing is fixedly mounted.
The end of the support shaft 50 is fitted into a hole 43 formed in the side plate 41b, so that the cover 44 can swing around the support shaft 50. A roller 51 is attached to the free end of the lever 49 and engages with a groove 52a of a stopper 52 fixed to the bottom of the tray 41. To explain in more detail,
The stopper 52 has a V-shape with an upward opening, and its central base is fixed to the bottom surface of the tray 41 with a screw or the like, and its free end is formed with opposing arcuate portions that allow the cover 44 to be placed in a sealed position. and the rollers 51 are gripped and engaged in accordance with the door opening position.

A swing shaft 53 is rotatably fitted into a hole 144 formed in a side plate of the tray 41 and supported. At approximately the center of the swing shaft 53, a receiver 42, which is approximately U-shaped when viewed from the side as shown in FIG. 3 and T-shaped when viewed from above as shown in FIG. 4, is fixed by welding or the like. That is, in FIG. 3, the swing shaft 53
The head 54 at the front in the tray insertion direction is once bent toward the front edge 44a of the cover and then bent again upward in the figure to form a bent portion. Swing axis 5
a tail 55 located on the opposite side of the head 54 with respect to 3;
is once raised and then bent along the cover 44. Further, the lower end of the head 54 of the receiver 42 is always urged by gravity or a spring (not shown) in a direction in which it comes into pressure contact with the uppermost sheet. Tail part 55
The tip 55a is always positioned below the front end of the cover 44, and when the cover 44 is opened with the support shaft 50 as a pivot point, the tip 55a is located at the front end 4 of the cover 44.
4a, and the receiver 42 is moved to the swing shaft 5.
3 in the clockwise direction in the figure, and turn the head 5.
4 is lifted upward in the figure in a direction approaching the machine opening 48. It is also important that the head 54 of the receiver 42 does not protrude from the top surface of the cover 44 when the cover 44 is in the closed position. Therefore, since the receiver head 54 is disposed further forward than the front edge 44a of the cover 44, foreign objects such as paper are captured by the receiver head 54, and the cover 44
When the receiver head 54 is opened, the receiver head 54 is lifted upward in the figure, approaches the opening 48, and assumes a position where it can easily catch foreign objects, thereby reliably achieving the function of preventing foreign objects from entering. Moreover, since the receiver head 54 is located below the top surface of the cover when the tray is being pulled out, it does not get in the way of the tray being pulled out.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described.
First, the case to which this embodiment is directed will be explained by returning to FIG. 1. In response to recent demands for downsizing, the assembly of the photoreceptor belt 20 and the developing device 30
A system has been proposed in which a unit that integrates the above is removably inserted into the machine 1. This unit is designed to be able to slide on the upper surface of the cover 6 of the sheet storage device 2 to the position shown by the two-dot chain line by holding the handle 30a. As clearly shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, protrusions 61 are arranged in a U-shape on both left and right sides of the upper surface of the cover 44 along the tray insertion direction. A thin strip 62 is formed inside the U-shaped protrusion 61 along the protrusion 61, and the leg portion 31 of the unit (only one side is shown) is guided by the U-shaped protrusion 61, It is adapted to be stopped by colliding with the base 61a of the protrusion. The strips 62 are intended to reduce frictional resistance with the unit legs and to make wear marks less noticeable.

However, if the unit is repeatedly inserted and removed, there is a risk that the developer will scatter and fall into the tray, and if the developer falls onto the uppermost sheet, the problem of image staining will occur. Furthermore, when the cover 6 is in the open position as shown by the dashed line in FIG. Of course, the intrusion of small objects and other objects is also a possibility.

Therefore, as shown in FIG.
includes a generally U-shaped member 71 with an upward opening and a width W approximately equal to that of the cover 44 (see FIG. 4), and a tongue piece 72.
It is made up of. That is, the U-shaped member 71
The head 71b is erected at the front end of the bottom plate 71a, and the tail 71c is erected at the rear end, and the tip 7 of the tail 71c is
1d is bent outward. This tip 71d is always positioned below the front end of the cover 44, and the receiver 70 is always positioned below the head 71.
It goes without saying that the lower end of b is given a tendency to press into contact with the uppermost sheet (not shown). Furthermore, a tongue piece 7 is shaped to extend forward in the tray insertion direction and rise upward from the lower surface at the substantially center of the bottom plate 71a.
2 is fixed to the bottom plate 71a by welding or the like. Further, the swing shafts 73 extend from both left and right sides of the bottom plate 71a and are fitted into holes 144 bored in the side plates 41b of the fixed bottom plate 41 (see FIG. 4).

In this way, fine foreign matter is removed from the U-shaped member 71.
Paper and the like are captured by the tongue piece 72. Providing a magnet in the U-shaped member 71 is extremely preferable because it further ensures the capture of magnetic foreign matter.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. That is, in the first and second embodiments described above, by applying the fact that the receiver is given a habit in which the lower end of its head is in pressure contact with the uppermost seat, the seat storage device detects the presence or absence of a seat. This is an additional device.

That is, in FIG. 4, one side 80a of an L-shaped member 80 is fixed to one end of the swing shaft 53 by welding or the like, and the other side 80b is attached to a sensor Se fixed to an immovable board inside the machine. They are forced to confront each other freely. Therefore, when the number of sheets decreases during sheet feeding until there is no more sheet left, the lower part of the head 54 of the receiver 42 falls into the notch 4b (see FIG. 3) of the movable bottom plate, forming an L-shape. The other side 80b of the member 80 is spaced apart from the sensor Se and can display "no paper". This embodiment can be similarly applied to the receiver 70 shown in FIG. 6 by allowing the lower end of the tongue piece 72 to fall into the movable bottom plate notch.

(Effects of the invention) As is clear from the above explanation, in the present invention, the receiver is placed below the front edge of the cover, which is the lowest part when the cover is lifted, so that it can be smoothly attached to and removed from the machine, and from the top surface of the cover. It has the effect of reliably preventing the intrusion of foreign substances such as paper.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an example of an electrophotographic printer to which the present invention is applied, Fig. 2 is a diagram for explaining the tray mounting state, and Figs. 3 and 4 show an embodiment of the present invention. Cross-sectional view and partially cutaway plan view,
FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view showing the top surface of the cover, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the present invention. 4...Movable bottom plate, 6...Cover, 41...Tray, 42, 70...Receiver, 44...Cover,
50... Support shaft, 53, 73... Swing axis, 54, 7
1...head, 55,71c...tail.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] A tray that stores a laminated sheet and is supported by inserting the front part into a machine, and a tray that can be opened and closed using a fulcrum near the machine opening when the tray is inserted. a swing shaft swingably provided on both side plates of the tray located forward of the fulcrum in the tray insertion direction; A folding member is positioned below the edge so as to be able to engage with the front edge, and the head portion thereof stands up at a position further forward in the tray insertion direction than the swing shaft to prevent intruders from entering from the machine opening. A bent portion is formed, the head of which is always biased in a direction to contact the uppermost sheet, and when the cover is opened, the bent portion swings in a direction toward the machine opening in conjunction with this. A seat storage device characterized by comprising a receiver that can be moved.