JPH0249241Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a paper feed cassette device that can be widely applied to image forming apparatuses, and whose lid also serves as a paper ejection tray. The present invention relates to a paper feed cassette device which also serves as a paper discharge tray and whose drawer length can be easily set to suit the paper to be discharged.

[Prior art and its problems] Conventionally, in order to reduce costs, etc., a method has been adopted in which a lid provided for light-shielding, dust-proofing, or moisture-proofing of paper sheets is also used as a paper discharge tray. Specific methods include splitting the lid into two parts, connecting them with a hinge, etc. and rotating one half 180 degrees to use it as a paper output tray, or installing the lid so that it can slide freely on the top of the cassette body and adjusting the required length. A known method is to pull out only the tray and use it as a paper output tray.

Of the above two methods, the latter method has the advantage of having fewer parts and being easier to share, which can greatly reduce costs, compared to the former method, but it has the disadvantage of poor operability. be. That is, when a user pulls out the lid as a paper ejection tray, it is difficult to know how far to pull it out, and the user usually pulls it out forcefully to the maximum length. If the length of the tray is longer than the sheets to be ejected, it is inconvenient to remove the ejected and stacked sheets, and it also becomes a hindrance to traffic in the surrounding area. In addition, the fact that the length to be pulled out cannot be determined gives the operator a sense of uneasiness, and psychologically this significantly impairs the product's appeal.

[Purpose of the invention] The present invention was devised in view of the above-mentioned problems of the conventional technology, and is an inexpensive paper feeder that can also be used as a paper ejection tray and allows the optimal tray length to be accurately and easily set to the length of the ejected paper. The purpose is to provide a cassette device.

[Main points of the invention] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a paper cassette device that also serves as a paper ejection tray, in which the lid of the paper cassette can also be used as a paper ejection tray. An end regulating plate is erected for regulating the position of the rear end surface with respect to the paper feeding direction in accordance with the stacked and stored paper, the lid is movably mounted along the upper part of the main body, and A stopper is provided at a predetermined position on the back surface of the lid, and is capable of engaging with the end regulating plate, and when engaged, restricts the movement of the lid in accordance with the stacked and stored sheets. .

[Embodiments of the invention] Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the entire structure of an optical writing printer equipped with a paper feed cassette as an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, a printer 1 includes a drum-shaped photoreceptor 2 that rotates in the direction indicated by an arrow X, an image forming section 3 that forms recorded information as an image on the surface of the photoreceptor 2, and A paper feed section 5 that feeds the paper 4 in accordance with the timing of the image formed on the surface, a discharge section 6 that transports the paper 4 and discharges it to the outside, and the like are arranged at appropriate locations.

The image forming section 3 is disposed close to the circumferential surface of the photoreceptor 2, and includes a charger 7 that uniformly charges the photoreceptor 2, and a charger 7 that records recorded information on the photoreceptor 2 to form an electrostatic latent image. A printing head 8 for forming a print head, a developing device 9 for developing the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 2, and a transfer device 10 for transferring the developed recorded information onto the fed paper 4. , a cleaner 1 for removing residual toner on the photoreceptor 2 that has not been transferred by the transfer device 10;
Consists of 1st prize. The print head 8 uses, for example, a liquid crystal light shutter array (not shown) in which a large number of microshutters are assembled in the main scanning direction (the width direction of the photoconductor), and opens and closes the light shutter array according to input information to emit light from a light source (not shown). The projection of emitted light onto the surface of the photoreceptor 2 is controlled to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photoreceptor 2.

The paper feed unit 5 includes a paper feed cassette 12 that stores sheets cut into predetermined sizes in a stacked manner and is detachably attached to the main body of the printer 1, and a paper feed cassette 12 that stores sheets of paper 4 one by one. A paper feed roller 13 that takes out the paper 4 from the top and feeds it, a transport roll 14 that transports the paper 4 along a predetermined path, and a paper feed roller 13 that transports the paper 4 along a predetermined path.
It is composed of standby rolls 15 and the like for conveying.

The discharge section 6 includes a guide plate 16 that receives the paper 4 on which the recorded information formed as a toner image on the photoreceptor 2 has been transferred by the transfer device 10, a fixing device 17 that fixes the recorded information toner image after the transfer, and a paper 4 to the outside.

The motor 19 is for rotationally driving each of the above-mentioned rotating parts that constitute the printer 1 .

The paper feed cassette 12 is composed of a lower cassette main body 20 and a lid 21 that covers an upper opening of the cassette main body 20, and is inserted in the direction shown by arrow A from the cassette insertion opening 1a formed in the main body of the printer 1. When the cassette is inserted into a predetermined position, it is detected by a cassette insertion detection means (not shown), and the main body of the printer 1 becomes operational. The paper feed cassette 12 is equipped with a lid 21 that can be moved back and forth along the paper feeding direction shown by the arrow Y. After the lid 21 is inserted into the insertion slot 1a, the lid 21 is moved along the direction of the arrow B. It can be pulled out and used as a paper output tray. At a predetermined position on the back side of the upper frame 1b of the insertion slot 1a, a lid stopper 22 projects downward, and when inserting the cassette 12, a projection 21h protruding from the top surface of the lid 21 is inserted.
comes into contact with the lid stopper 22, and prevents the lid 21 from entering deeper than that. As a result, lid 2
This prevents the lid 2 from coming into contact with the paper feeding roller 13 and interfering with the paper feeding operation, and when the cassette insertion is completed, the lid 2
1 protrudes a predetermined length outside the machine, making it easy to pull it out.

Here, regarding the paper feed cassette 12 of this example, the second
This will be explained based on the diagram and FIG.

First, as shown in FIG. 2, the paper feed cassette main body 20 includes a bottom portion 20a and a pair of long side walls 20b, 20b and short side walls 20c, 2 erected around the bottom portion 20a.
The guide portion 20d is formed to protrude from the upper part of the outer surface of each long side wall 20b so as to extend along the longitudinal direction thereof. Further, at both ends of each long side wall 20b, guide stop portions 2 are provided along the short direction (up and down direction).
0e and 20f are respectively formed, and furthermore, in this example, two guide grooves 20g and 20h are respectively recessed at a predetermined distance apart from each other on the back side of each guide portion 20d.

An end regulating plate 23 is mounted inside the cassette main body 20 to regulate the rear end surface position of the sheets 4 to be loaded and stored at a predetermined position on the bottom portion 20a. The end regulating plate 23 of this example has a regulating part 23a and a mounting part 23b.
It is fixed in a predetermined position by fixing the mounting part 23b to the bottom part 20a with screws 24, 24 using an L-shaped cross-sectional member. On the front side of the cassette main body 20 in the paper feeding direction Y, a bottom plate 25 (see FIG. 5) on which the paper 4 is placed is connected to both long side walls 20b, 20.
It is rotatably mounted via shafts 26, 26 implanted in b. Bottom plate 25 and cassette bottom 20a
A spring or the like is interposed between them, and urges the bottom plate 25 to rotate upward against the gravity of the stacked sheets. On one side of the bottom plate 25 of this example,
A side regulating plate 25a that regulates the position of one side end surface of the stacked sheets 4 is bent. A separating claw 26a is rotatably attached to the front end of the side regulating plate 25a to hold one end corner of the stacked sheets in cooperation with the bottom plate 25 and to separate the sheets one by one during feeding. There is. Note that the separation claw 26b that holds the other end corner of the stacked paper 4 is rotatably attached to the long side wall 20b.

The lid 21 that is attached to the cassette main body 20 configured as described above is arranged in
It is formed into a housing shape similar to the cassette main body 20 without a side wall on the front end side. That is, the upper part 21
a and a pair of long side walls 21b erected at its side ends,
21b and a short side wall 21c erected at the rear end with respect to the paper feeding direction Y. As shown in FIG. 4, on the surface of the upper part 21a which also serves as a paper ejection tray, four paper ejection guides 21d in this example are provided in parallel in a protruding manner at the front end in the paper ejection direction Z. Each paper ejection guide 2
1d is formed such that its upper surface forms an inclined surface that gradually rises toward the front end of the paper ejection, and as shown in FIG. 1, it smoothly guides the leading edge of the paper 4 to be ejected, and When removing the stacked sheets, it is possible to insert a finger into the bottom of the discharge tip side of the sheets, making it easy to remove them all at once.

The guide grooves 20g, 20 of the cassette body 20 described above are formed on the inner surfaces of both long side walls 21b, 21b of the lid 21.
Guide protrusions 21e and 21f are provided at positions corresponding to h.
are protruding from each other. As shown in FIG. 4, the lid 21 can be normally mounted on the cassette body 20 without any gaps by fitting the guide protrusions 21e and 21f into the corresponding guide grooves 20g and 20h, respectively. When pulling out the lid 21 after it has been properly fitted, the guide protrusions 21e,
A guide portion 20d on the cassette main body side is slidably fitted between 21f and the back surface of the upper part 21a, and is configured to prevent the lid 21 from being removed when the lid 21 is pulled out of the machine and to guide the direction in which the lid 21 is pulled out.

In this example, a stopper 21g for preventing the lid from being pulled out is provided on the back surface of the lid upper part 21a, at the center of the front end of the paper feed. As shown in FIG. 1, this stopper 21g is formed in a size that allows it to engage with the tip of the regulating portion 23a of the end regulating plate 23 erected on the bottom 20a of the cassette main body 20, and The protruding position is set so that the pull-out length L is appropriate for stacking the sheets 4 to be discharged. Therefore, the operator must open the lid 2 to set the paper output tray.
1, if the lid 21 is pulled out until it is prevented from sliding in the direction B, the optimum length L can be secured, and the work of properly pulling out and setting the paper output tray can be carried out extremely easily and accurately. can. or,
Even if the paper feed cassette is a universal cassette, just by providing the stopper 21g as described above,
Paper output tray length L depending on the size of loaded storage paper
It becomes possible to optimally set the That is, as shown by the double chain line in FIG.
1 (drawer length) L also changes by the movement length l of the end regulating plate 23, and becomes the optimal sheet discharge tray length L' for the storage paper 4'. In addition, as in this example, when changing the size of stored paper, the bottom plate 25 is replaced and the fixing position of the end regulating plate 23 is changed.For a semi-universal type paper feed cassette that also serves as a paper output tray, the lid 2
1 can be shared by all paper sizes, making it possible to further promote cost reduction.

Next, a method of using the paper feed cassette 12 which also serves as a paper discharge tray and is configured as described above will be explained.

When storing paper in the paper feed cassette 12, use the guide protrusions 2 on both long side walls 21b, 21b of the lid 21.
1e and 21f in each guide groove 2 of the cassette body 20.
After positioning the lid 21 below 0g and 20h (after covering the lid 21 in its proper position), lift the lid 21 upward and remove it. Paper sheets 4 are stacked on a bottom plate 25 in a cassette main body 20 while aligning each end surface, and the storing position is determined by bringing the rear end surface into contact with an end regulating plate 23 fixed at a predetermined position corresponding to the paper size. Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the lid 21 is placed over the corresponding guide protrusions 21e, 21f and the guide grooves 20g, 20h, and inserted into the printer's cassette insertion opening 1a in the direction indicated by arrow A. do. When inserted halfway, the lid stopper 2 provided on the upper frame 1b of the insertion port shown in FIG.
A pair of protrusions 21h provided at the front end of the surface of the lid 21 come into contact with the cassette 2, and only the lid 21 is prevented from entering, and only the cassette body 20 is inserted to a predetermined position in the back. Therefore, the lid 21 protrudes forward from the cassette main body 20 by a predetermined length.

Next, the above-mentioned protruding lid 21 is pulled out in the direction of arrow B along the sheet discharge direction (counter-sheet feeding direction) until the stopper 21g on the back side contacts the end regulating plate 23. This completes the setting of the paper ejection tray having the optimum length L for the paper size stored in the cassette main body 20. Therefore, the paper sheets 4 stored in the cassette main body 20 are fed one by one toward the transfer position by the paper feed roller 13, and after the toner image of the recorded information is transferred and fixed, the paper feed roller 18 The paper is ejected onto the paper ejection tray 21 by
In this case, the ejected sheets 4 are stacked in an orderly manner at an appropriate position where their leading ends are supported on the four guide protrusions 21d.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described specific embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the technical scope of the present invention. For example, a plurality of stoppers 21g protruding from the back of the lid may be provided.
Further, the present invention can be applied not only to printers but also to various other image forming apparatuses such as copying machines.

[Effects of the invention] As detailed above, according to the invention, by providing a stopper that can engage with the end regulating plate on the back of the cassette lid, the length of the drawer as a paper ejection tray can be adjusted to the paper size used. It becomes extremely easy to set the optimum setting. Furthermore, the cassette lid according to the present invention can be applied not only to a universal cassette, but also to a shared lid of a dedicated cassette for which the paper size to be stored is specified, and can also be used as a paper output tray to improve the performance of the intended image forming apparatus. Cost reduction can be further promoted. Furthermore, since the length at which the lid should be pulled out is reliably determined, the operation feel is improved, and the paper ejection tray (lid) does not protrude unnecessarily from the machine body, contributing to effective use of the space surrounding the operation.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of main parts showing the configuration of a paper feed cassette that also serves as a paper output tray as an embodiment of the present invention when it is set in the paper feed section of a printer, and FIGS. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the cassette insertion procedure, and FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an optical writing printer to which the present invention is applied. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Optical writing printer, 12... Cassette that also serves as a paper output tray, 20... Paper feed cassette body, 21... Lid,
21g...stopper, 23...end regulation plate.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] In a paper feed cassette device that can also be used as a paper ejection tray, the lid of the paper cassette can also be used as a paper ejection tray. An end regulating plate is erected to regulate the position of the sheets according to the stacked and stored sheets, the lid is movably mounted along the upper part of the main body, and the end regulating plate is placed at a predetermined position on the back side of the lid. A paper feed cassette device that also serves as a paper discharge tray, characterized in that a stopper is provided that protrudes and is engageable with an end regulating plate and that, when engaged, regulates movement of the lid in accordance with the sheets to be loaded and stored.