JPH05155119A - Sheet-feeding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make a sheet-feeding device applicable to a various recording apparatuses in different thicknesses, and to save installation space when using the apparatus. CONSTITUTION:Width-changing mechanisms 30 and 40 for making the width of an opening provided between a sheet-feeding part 21 and a sheet delivery part 41 for connection with a recording apparatus variable are provided. Then, the width of the opening is changed in accordance with the recording apparatus to be connected, and thereby the recording apparatuses in various sizes can be connected.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet feeding device which is used by being connected to a recording device such as a printer or a facsimile and which separates and feeds sheets one by one to this recording device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a paper feeding device has been used which is connected to a printing device such as a printer, and which feeds a plurality of papers loaded in a paper feeding stacker one by one separately. ing.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of an essential part of an example of a conventional paper feeding device of this type connected to a printer. The paper feeding device 1 is connected to the printer 10 and is connected to the printer 10. Sheets are separated and supplied one by one to the sheet feeding port 11.

The sheet feeding stacker 2 for accommodating the sheets of the sheet feeding device 1 is urged upward by a leaf spring 3 arranged on the lower surface of the sheet feeding stacker 2 and presses the stored uppermost sheet against a sheet feeding roller 4. It is supposed to do. In this state, the feed roller 4 is driven by a drive source (not shown), and the rotation of the feed roller 4 automatically separates the sheets stacked on the feed stacker 2 one by one by the action of the separating claw 8. And is supplied to the paper feed port 11 of the printer 10. This paper is further fed to the paper feed roller 1 of the printer 10.
3 and a small roller 14 that comes into pressure contact with the paper feed roller 13,
It is sent to the printing unit 12 by the function of 15, and the printing unit 12
The sheet printed in (1) is guided into the sheet discharge tray 7 by the action of the sheet discharge roller 5 through the gap between the sheet discharge guide 5 and the sheet discharge guide 6 pressed against the sheet discharge roller 5.

By the way, in the paper feeding apparatus 1 as described above, the paper is conveyed in a substantially arcuate direction through the paper feed roller 13 of the printer 10 in a curved shape. become.

When the paper is conveyed in a curved state as described above, in a printer which has recently been downsized, it is required that the outer diameter of the paper feed roller 13 is also small. When paper is used, it can be fed, but when thick paper such as a postcard is used, paper feeding failure occurs due to the stiffness of the waist, or the paper cannot be fed at all. Is occurring. For this reason, not only cannot the outer diameter of the paper feed roller 10 of the printer be reduced, but also a large force is required as a drive source thereof, which makes it difficult to downsize the printer.

In order to solve such a problem, the paper tray, the printer (printer) and the paper discharge device are configured so that the movement path of the paper is substantially linear, and a strong paper such as a postcard is used. A paper feeding device that can be easily and reliably fed with a small force even in the case of
It has already been proposed in Japanese Patent No. 29363 or Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-29364.

[0008]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention
In the paper feeding device disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 9363 or Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-29364, a part of the printer is fitted in a fastening recess formed in the paper feeding device so that the paper movement path is substantially linear. However, since the width of this fastening recess is fixed, the printer that can be used is determined, and it depends on the thickness of the printer (height of the paper feed path). However, there is a problem that it is necessary to prepare a sheet feeding device having a fastening recess having an appropriate width. Further, since the paper is conveyed in the horizontal direction, a wide width from the paper feed tray to the paper discharge tray is required, which makes it difficult to downsize the paper feed device.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and can be used for various recording apparatuses having different thicknesses (height of the paper feed path), and the installation place at the time of use is narrow. An object is to provide a small-sized sheet feeding device.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a paper feeding apparatus of the present invention includes a paper feeding section for accommodating a plurality of sheets and separately feeding the accommodated sheets one by one. A paper feeding device having a paper ejection unit for ejecting and storing printed paper, and an opening formed between the paper feeding unit and the paper ejection unit for connecting to a recording device, It is characterized in that a width variable mechanism that can change the width of is provided.

[0011]

According to the present invention, a width varying mechanism capable of changing the width of the opening for connecting the recording device is provided between the paper feeding portion and the paper discharging portion. Recording devices of various sizes can be connected by changing the width.

[0012]

1 to 4 show an embodiment of a sheet feeding device according to the present invention, FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the entire schematic structure, and FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view of the schematic structure. 3 and 4 are side views from the direction A in a state where the cover of FIG. 2 is removed.

In the figure, the paper feeding unit 21 is configured to accommodate a plurality of sheets, and the accommodated sheets are separately conveyed one by one. The paper feeding unit 21 is composed of a pair of left and right hoppers 22 and 22, and a supporting member 23 arranged between the hoppers 22 and 22 to support the accommodated paper.

Of these, each of the hoppers 22 and 22 has a shaft 26 suspended in a supporting hole 38 of a lower frame 30 described later and shafts 27a and 27b suspended in frames on both sides (not shown) in the width direction thereof. It is held slidably on. The support member 23 is also slidably held in the width direction of the shafts 27a and 27b.

The hoppers 22 and 22 are provided with sheet placement tables 24 and 24 on which sheets are placed, guide members 25 and 25 for guiding the side portions of the sheet 2, and sheet feeding rollers 28 for separating and feeding the sheet 2. 28, and hopper wires 29, 29 that support the back surface of the sheet 2.

Of these, the paper trays 24, 24 are
A spring (not shown) disposed on the lower surface thereof urges the paper feed rollers 28, 28. Further, the paper feed rollers 28, 28 are coupled to the shaft 26 via a one-way clutch (not shown), and are configured to rotate together with the shaft 26 only when the drive motor rotates forward as will be described later. There is. Further, the paper feeding unit 2
1 is supported so that it can rotate a predetermined angle with this shaft 26 as a fulcrum. Furthermore, the hopper wires 29, 29 are rotatably mounted on the backs of the hoppers 22, 22 with their ends 27a, 28a as fulcrums, and when in use, as shown in FIG. It is used to extend and is folded (not shown) when not in use.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a paper guide 34 having a large curvature is provided on the bottom surface of the lower frame 30.
The paper guide 34 and 0.4 to 0.5 are provided.
A plurality of paper feed sub-rollers 32 are formed at predetermined intervals on a shaft 33 suspended from the lower frame 30 so as to have a gap of mm. The paper feed sub roller 32 is made of rubber having a hardness of 30 to 40 degrees,
On its surface, a large number of fine grooves are formed parallel to the width direction so that the coefficient of friction with the paper 2 becomes large.
The surface of the paper guide 34 has a Beck smoothness of 30 in order to minimize the coefficient of friction with the paper 2.
Surface treatment is performed so that the smoothness is not more than a second, or a film made of a fluororesin is laminated. Further, a transmission mechanism such as a drive motor 58 and a gear group is provided on the side surface 30a of the lower frame 30.

On the upper frame 40 facing the lower frame 30, the paper 2 recorded by the printer described later is recorded.
A sheet discharge stacker 41 for storing the sheets and a sheet discharge roller 12 for conveying the sheet 2 to the sheet discharge stacker 41 are provided. A hole 44 is formed in the upper frame 40, and a projection 45 a formed on a side portion of the paper discharge guide 45 is engaged with the hole 44 to support the paper discharge guide 45. The paper ejection guide 45 includes a paper ejection roller 4
A pinch roller 46 is provided that is pressed against the sheet 2 and holds the sheet 2 together with the sheet discharge roller 42 and conveys the sheet 2 to the sheet discharge stacker 41 by the rotation of the sheet discharge roller 42.

Further, the discharge stacker 41 is provided with two stacker wires 43, 43 formed by bending a wire for holding the discharged sheets 2.
The lower ends 43a, 43 of these stacker wires 43, 43
The a is rotatably mounted on the upper frame 40 with its lower ends 43a and 43a as fulcrums, and when used, as shown in FIG. 1, the sheet 2 can be held so as to extend obliquely upward. The storage space can be reduced by folding (not shown) when not in use.

The paper feed sub-roller 32 of the paper feeding device 20
And discharge rollers 42 (lower frame 30 and upper frame 40)
An opening 50 is formed in the middle of the printer, and a printer to be described later is attached to the opening 50. On the lower frame 30 on both sides of the opening 50,
Positioning bosses 51, 51 for positioning the printer mounted in the opening 50 are provided in a protruding manner.

Fixing legs 52 and 53 for supporting and fixing the printer mounted in the opening 50 are provided,
Each tip 52a, 53a is formed with a recess for supporting a protrusion formed on the printer. Also,
The fixing legs 52, 53 have the other ends 52b, 5 respectively.
3b is a fulcrum and is rotatably supported by convex portions 31 and 31 formed on the lower portion of the lower frame 30,
When not in use, the opening 50 is similar to the fixing leg 52 of FIG.
It is designed to be rotated and stored in the direction. Further, these fixing legs 52 and 53 are connected by a shaft 54 so that they can move integrally.

The lower frame 30 and the upper frame 40
Guides 39, 39 are provided on both sides of the lower frame 30 so that and can be moved relative to each other in the vertical direction.
Further, guide portions 47, 47 are formed on both sides of the upper frame 40, respectively, and these guide portions 39 and 47 are engaged with each other.

That is, the guide pins 38 are formed on the guide portions 39 of the lower frame 30, respectively.
Notches 49 are formed in the respective guide portions 47 of the upper frame 40, and the guide pins 48 are inserted into the notches 49, whereby the lower frame 30
The upper frame 40 and the upper frame 40 are guided by the guide pins 38 and the notches 49.

Then, according to the height of the printer 60 to be used, the width of the opening 50 is determined by vertically moving the upper frame 40 relative to the lower frame 30, and the upper portion 40 is positioned at an appropriate position. After the frame 40 is locked by screws (not shown) or the like, the printer 60 can be mounted in the opening 50 using the positioning boss 51 and the fixing legs 52, 52. The printer 60 mounted in the opening 50 is of a commonly used type such as wire dot, thermal, or ink jet.
It may be a serial printer or a line printer. In addition,
Since the configurations of these printers are well known, detailed description will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 3, an opening 61 into which the paper 2 is inserted is formed in the bottom portion 60a of the printer 60, and a printed paper 2 is discharged into the upper portion 60b of the printer 60. The opening 62 is formed.
The opening 61 of the bottom portion 60 a faces the paper feed sub-roller 32 and the paper guide 34, and the upper portion 60 a.
The opening 62 of b is mounted so as to face the paper discharge roller 42 and the paper discharge guide 45.

Further, inside the printer 60, a paper feed roller 64 and a pinch roller 65 that sandwich the paper 2 and supply it to the printing unit 63, a print head 63a and a platen 63b that perform printing on the supplied paper. And the paper 2 fed from the paper feed sub-roller 32.
Is sent in a substantially straight line into the printer 60, and the printed paper 2 is discharged from the upper opening 62 toward the paper discharge roller 42.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the paper feed rollers 28, 28, the paper feed sub-roller 32, and the paper discharge roller 42 are connected by a drive motor 58 and a gear group, respectively.

The paper feed rollers 28, 28 are connected to the shaft 26 via a one-way clutch (not shown) so that the drive motor 58 performs the paper feed operation when the drive motor 58 rotates forward and does not operate when the drive motor 58 rotates reversely. Further, the paper feed sub-roller 32 is connected via a swing gear (not shown) so as to always rotate in the paper feed direction regardless of the rotation direction of the drive motor 58. Further, the paper discharge roller 42 is rotated in the direction opposite to the paper feed direction when the drive motor 58 rotates forward, and the gear group 59 is rotated so as to rotate in the paper feed direction during the paper discharge operation when the drive motor reversely rotates. Are connected through.

Even if the height relationship between the upper frame 40 and the lower frame 30 is changed, the gear group 59 connecting the drive motor 51 and the paper discharge roller 42 is supported by the link mechanism, and the side surface of the lower frame 30 is supported. Guide member 30b
Since it is guided by, it is always held in a connected state. 3 shows a state where the width of the opening 50 is narrowed, and FIG. 4 shows a state where the width of the opening 50 is widened.

Further, the upper frame 40 and the lower frame 3
Both side surfaces of 0 are covered with covers 55 and 56, respectively, so that the drive motor 58, the gear group, and the like are protected. Then, the cover 56 moves relative to the upper frame 40 and the lower frame 30, and as shown in detail in FIG. 1, the first cover portion 56a and the second cover portion 56b are separated from each other.
It is composed of Tsuto.

Next, the opening 5 of the paper feeding device 20 described above.
The paper feeding operation when the printer 60 is attached to the printer will be described.

The hoppers 22 and 22 are fixed at predetermined positions according to the width of the sheet 2 to be used.
The sheets 2 stored in the sheets 2 and 22 are separated and conveyed one by one by the rotation of the sheet feeding rollers 28 and 28 by the forward rotation of the drive motor 58. The paper 2 separated by the paper feed rollers 28, 28 is further conveyed by the paper feed sub-roller 32 along the paper guide 34.

At this time, as described above, the gap between the paper feed sub-roller 32 and the paper guide 34 is 0.4 to 0.5 mm.
The paper feed sub-roller 32 is made of rubber having a hardness of 30 to 40 degrees, and its surface is formed with a number of fine grooves parallel to the width direction so that the coefficient of friction with the paper is large. Is placed on the bottom of the paper feeding device with a large curvature, and its surface is surface-treated or fluororesin to have a Bekk smoothness of 30 seconds or less in order to minimize the coefficient of friction with the paper. Since the film made of is laminated, it is possible to easily feed a strong paper such as a postcard even if the outer diameter of the paper feed sub-roller 32 is reduced.

When the leading edge of the sheet 2 sent to the printer 60 through the sheet feeding sub-roller 32 is detected by a sheet detecting sensor (not shown), a control signal is given to the drive motor 58 to rotate the sheet in the reverse direction. As a result, the rotation of the paper feed roller 28 is stopped and the paper discharge roller 42 is rotated in the paper feed direction, as described above. Then, desired printing is performed by the printing unit 63 of the printer 60, and the printed paper 2 is ejected to the paper ejection stacker 41 by the action of the paper ejection roller 42.

At this time, the paper 2 receives a force in the direction opposite to the curled direction by the action of the paper discharge guide 45, so that the curled state can be largely eliminated. Further, as described above, the drive motor 58 rotates in the reverse direction until the paper 2 is completely discharged, so that the paper feed roller 28 remains stopped and new paper feed is not performed. When the discharge of the paper is completely completed, a control signal is again applied to the drive motor 58 to rotate the drive motor 58 in the forward direction so that the paper is newly fed and the above-described operation can be repeated.

According to this embodiment, the printer 60 used
Since the printers 60 of various sizes can be connected by changing the width of the opening 50 according to the size of the printer, one device can be used for the printers 60 having a plurality of widths.

The paper feeding unit 21 is supported so as to be rotatable around the shaft 26 as a fulcrum, while the hopper wire 29, the stacker wire 43, and the fixing legs 52 and 53 are also rotated around their respective one ends as a fulcrum. Since it is configured to be possible, the paper feeding unit 21, the hopper wire 29, the stacker wire 43, or the fixing legs 52, 5
When 3 is not used, it can be folded to make it compact and does not occupy a storage space.

Further, the surface of the paper guide 34 is surface-treated or made of fluororesin so as to have a Bekk smoothness of 30 seconds or less in order to minimize the coefficient of friction with the paper 2. Since the film is laminated, paper 2 such as strong postcards
However, it can be transported with a small force.

Although a printer has been described as an example of the recording device in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and it goes without saying that a facsimile or the like may be used.

[0040]

As described above, according to the present invention, since recording devices of various sizes can be connected by changing the width of the opening in accordance with the size of the recording device to be used, 1
It is possible to achieve a remarkable effect that a single device can be applied to a recording device having a plurality of widths.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall exploded perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a sheet feeding device of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a sheet feeding device of the present invention.

3 is a right side view with the cover of FIG. 2 removed, showing a state in which the width of the opening is narrowed. FIG.

FIG. 4 is a right side view with the cover shown in FIG. 2 removed, showing a state where the width of the opening is widened.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing an example of a conventional paper feeding device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 20 Paper Feeding Device 21 Paper Feeding Unit 22 Hopper 28 Paper Feeding Roller 30 Lower Frame 32 Paper Feeding Sub-Roller 34 Paper Guide 39 Guide Section 40 Upper Frame 41 Paper Ejection Tray 42 Paper Ejection Roller 45 Paper Ejection Guide 47 Guide Section 50 Opening 58 Drive Motor 60 printer

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁵ Identification code Internal reference number FI technical display location B65H 29/52 9147-3F 29/70 9147-3F

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A paper feeding unit for storing a plurality of sheets of paper and separating and feeding the stored sheets one by one; a paper ejection unit for ejecting and containing printed paper; and the paper feeding unit. A sheet feeding device having an opening formed between the sheet discharging unit and a recording device, wherein a width varying mechanism for varying the width of the opening is provided.