JPH0353197Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Technical Field This invention relates to a locking device for an opening/closing body that covers a functional component in, for example, an office machine.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, in office machines, etc., one end of an opening/closing body that covers the upper opening of the housing is attached to one end of a housing that holds functional parts using a hinge so as to be able to move up and down.
There is one in which a lock lever and a locking part are provided on both sides of the other end of the casing and on both sides of the free rotation end of the opening/closing body, which elastically engage with each other. Then, the release mechanism is operated to release the engagement between the lock lever and the locking part and open the opening/closing body upward, but generally the opening/closing body is constructed so that it naturally floats when the release mechanism is operated. There is. For this reason, the lock lever and the locking portion engage with each other under the force of the opening/closing body attempting to float, and a large frictional resistance is generated between the two, resulting in an unsmooth operation of the release mechanism and a large operating force. The moment the lock lever is released from the locking part, the opening/closing body suddenly opens upward, which is dangerous. Also, when pressing the opening/closing body downward to close it, the opening/closing body may become distorted.
The engagement between the lock lever and the locking portion may occur only on one side, resulting in instability.

Purpose This invention was developed in view of the above points, and it is possible to easily open the opening/closing body with a small force, and furthermore, the opening/closing body can be reliably locked. The purpose is to provide a locking device.

composition An embodiment of this invention will be explained based on the drawings.

Lower housing 1 as a housing and upper housing 2 as an opening/closing body
are connected by hinges 3 at one end and both sides. The upper housing 2 is urged upward by a spring (not shown). A photosensitive unit 5 having a photosensitive belt 4, a charging section 6, an imaging element 7, and a light source 8 are attached to the upper housing 2, and a developing unit 9 and a paper feed roller 11 for feeding transfer paper 10 are attached to the lower housing 1. and a conveyance roller 12, a registration roller 13, a transfer section 14, a conveyance roller 15, and a fixing unit 16.
and a discharge tray 17 are attached.

Next, a support shaft 18 is provided on the free rotation end side of the upper housing 2.
is rotatably mounted, and lock levers 19 and 20 are screwed to both ends of this support shaft 18. One lock lever 19 is biased by a torsion spring 21. Furthermore, locking holes 22, which are locking portions that engage the lower ends of the lock levers 19, 20, are formed on both sides of the lower housing 1.

Further, a release mechanism 23 is attached to the upper housing 2 for retracting the lock levers 19 and 20 from the locking hole 22 against the force of the torsion spring 21. The release mechanism 23 includes an arm 24 screwed to the support shaft 18, a plate 26 serving as an operating body that engages with a pin 25 erected on the upper part of the arm 24, and an operation button 27. The operation button 27 is a protrusion 2 that is slidably inserted into a slit 28 formed in the center of the upper surface of the free rotation end of the upper housing 2.
9, and by passing a retaining pin 30 through this protrusion 29, the operation button 27 is prevented from floating upward. The portion where this operation button 27 is located is a position where a pressing load acts equally on both sides of the upper housing 2, and this position is determined as the pressing portion 2a when pressing down the open upper housing 2. Furthermore, the base of a fulcrum stand 31 is rotatably held on the support shaft 18 . This fulcrum stand 31 has a plate 2
A fulcrum shaft 32 that rotatably holds one end of the shaft 6 is provided upright. A flange 33 is formed on the fulcrum shaft 32 and the pin 25 to prevent the plate 26 from floating. A window 36 is formed in the upper housing 2 so that a detection piece 35 bent upward from the end of the fulcrum stand 31 projects therefrom. Further, a document table 37 is slidably held on the upper surface of the upper housing 2. The leading edge 38 of the document table 37 is the operation button 2.
The resting position is determined to be substantially closer to the hinge 3 than 7 and to press the detection piece 35.

In this configuration, when a jam occurs in the paper path from the paper feed roller 11 to the fixing unit 16, the upper housing 2 is opened upward about the hinge 3. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the operation button 27 is slid toward the front (to the right) while the document table 37 is kept stationary at the normal position. When the document table 37 is stationary at the normal position, the clockwise movement of the fulcrum table 31 is restricted by the contact between the detection piece 35 and the document table 37, and the operation button 2 is pressed.
7, the movement of the fulcrum stand 31 in the counterclockwise direction is also restricted, and therefore the position of the fulcrum shaft 32 does not move. Therefore, when the operation button 27 is moved to the right, as shown by the imaginary line in FIG.
The plate 26 rotates around the fulcrum shaft 32 and the pin 2
5, thereby causing the arm 24, the support shaft 18, and the lock levers 19, 20 to rotate against the force of the torsion spring 21, as shown in FIG. At this moment, the lock levers 19 and 20 are disengaged from the locking hole 22, and the upper housing 2 rotates upward about the hinge 3.

When the document table 37 is moving forward, the operation button 27 is covered, so the operation to open the upper housing 2 cannot be performed. In addition, when the document table 37 is deviated rearward as shown in FIG. 7, the fulcrum table 31 is free to move clockwise, and when it receives the force of the operation button 27, it rotates clockwise. As shown in FIG. 8, the arm 24 cannot be rotated against the force of the torsion spring 21 simply by shifting the position of the fulcrum shaft 32. Therefore, the lock lever 19,
20 and the locking hole 22 cannot be disengaged.

Therefore, the state in which the upper housing 2 opens upward is limited to when the document table 37 is stationary at the normal position. This prevents the document table 37 from interfering with and damaging the output tray 17 when the upper case 2 is opened while the document table 37 is sliding backward, and also prevents the document table 37 from interfering with the output tray 17 and being damaged. 2 is not opened, it is possible to prevent the document table 37 from being damaged by downward pressure.
Furthermore, when closing the upper housing 2 that has been opened by operating the operation button 27, the operation of pressing the operation button 27 downward is naturally performed. Therefore, since the operation button 27 is located near the pressing portion 2a at the center of the upper surface of the free rotation end of the upper housing 2, the upper housing 2
The left and right lock levers 19 and 20 can be reliably engaged with the locking hole 22 without being distorted by receiving an uneven load. Even when opening the upper housing 2, the hand that operates the operation button 27 will press down on the top surface of the upper housing 2. Therefore, the frictional resistance between the lock lever 19 and the locking hole 22 will be reduced and both can be easily removed with a small operating force, and the danger of the upper housing 2 opening too quickly can be prevented. Note that the document table 37 is attached to the upper housing 2.
When the upper housing 2 is opened upward, it is tilted, but the sliding movement is locked by a locking device (not shown), and this locked state is released when the upper housing 2 is closed downward.

Although the present embodiment has been described using an electrostatic photographic device as an example, this invention can also be applied to other devices in which the opening/closing body is simply a cover.

Effects: Since this device is configured as described above, when operating the operating button to release the lock lever and the locking portion, the opening/closing body can be pressed downward by the hand operating the operating button, and therefore, By reducing the frictional resistance between the lock lever and the engaging part, the opening/closing body can be easily opened with a small operating force, and the danger of the opening/closing body being opened forcefully at the moment the lock lever and the engaging part are disengaged is prevented. Furthermore, when closing an opened opening/closing body, the opening/closing body is pushed downward by the hand operating the operating button, but since the operating button is located near the pressing part of the opening/closing body, the opening/closing body is subjected to an unbalanced load. Therefore, the left and right lock levers can be reliably engaged with the locking portions.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawing shows one embodiment of this invention.
The figure is a vertical sectional side view showing a reduced outline of the overall configuration.
Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the lock lever, release mechanism, and fulcrum; Fig. 3 is a partially sectional plan view showing the relationship between the lock lever, release mechanism, and fulcrum; Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the lock lever, release mechanism, and fulcrum; Figure 5 is a vertical side view of the line A-A in the figure, Figure 5 is a side view of the line B-B in Figure 3, Figure 6 is a side view of the lock lever, and Figure 7 is a side view of the fulcrum. FIG. 8 is a longitudinal side view showing the deflection operation, and FIG. 8 is a partially sectional plan view showing the deflection operation of the fulcrum. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Lower housing (housing), 2... Upper housing (opening/closing body), 2a... Pressing part, 3... Hinge, 11...
...Paper feed roller (functional part), 12...Transport roller (functional part), 13...Registration roller (functional part), 14...Transfer section (functional part), 15...Transport roller (functional part), 16 ...Fusing unit (functional parts), 19, 20...Lock lever, 22...
...Latching hole (locking part), 23...Release mechanism, 27...
...Operation button.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] One end of the opening/closing body that covers the upper opening surface of the housing is attached to one end of the housing holding the functional component so as to be movable up and down with a binge, and both sides of the other end of the housing and the free rotation end side of the opening/closing body A lock lever and a locking portion are provided on both sides of the lock lever and a locking portion that elastically engage with each other, and an actuating body integrally connected to these lock levers and an actuating body that moves in contact with the actuating body engages the lock lever and the locking portion. A release mechanism is formed by an operation button for releasing the engagement with the stop portion, and the operation button of the release mechanism is located near the upper surface pressing portion on the free rotation end side of the opening/closing body. A locking device for the opening and closing body.