JPH0553697B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field] The present invention relates to the structure of a cut sheet feeding device,
In particular, the present invention relates to a structure for easily and accurately guiding a cut sheet to a predetermined loading position even when the cut sheet is warped and deformed when loading the cut sheet into a cut sheet supply device.

[Prior art]

A cut sheet feeding device is a device that loads sheets of paper cut into predetermined dimensions in a stacked state and feeds them one by one to a recording unit, etc., and is widely used in various recording devices such as printers and copiers.

As this cut sheet feeding device, a paper feed roller is installed in a paper storage space surrounded by a pair of covers consisting of an opening/closing cover (usually an upper cover or a front cover) and a fixed cover (usually a lower cover or a rear cover). and the fixed cover, an intermediate plate for holding the cut sheet is provided which is biased by a spring toward the paper feed roller, and a separating claw is provided in front of the intermediate plate to come into contact with the front end of the cut sheet,
A type of apparatus has been proposed in which cut sheets are separated one by one by the separation claw by rotating the paper feed roller and fed out.

When reloading cut sheets into this type of cut sheet supply device, open the opening/closing cover and
Push the middle plate down toward the fixed cover to separate it from the paper feed roller, insert a cut sheet (bundle of cut sheets) between them, position its tip under the separating claw, and then press the middle plate away from the paper feed roller. A cut sheet is loaded by releasing the push-down and closing the opening/closing cover.

However, in the conventional cut sheet feeding device of this type, if the cut sheet to be loaded is not flat but deformed, for example, if the peripheral edge is curved upward, the peripheral edge will collide with the separating claw. There has been a problem in that if the cut sheet gets stuck or gets caught, it becomes difficult or impossible to insert the cut sheet into a predetermined position.

〔the purpose〕

An object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art, and to easily place the cut sheet in a predetermined position while reliably guiding the tip of the cut sheet to the inside of the separation claw even when the cut sheet is deformed such as warping. An object of the present invention is to provide a cut sheet feeding device that can be loaded into a cut sheet.

[Summary]

The present invention provides a cut sheet supply device provided in a recording apparatus main body for supplying cut sheets to a recording section of the recording apparatus main body, including a cut sheet support disposed in a case attached to the recording apparatus main body for stacking and supporting cut sheets. feeding means disposed within the case and feeding the cut sheet by contacting the cut sheet supported by the cut sheet support means; a separating claw for separating the cut sheets one by one sent out by the feeding means; a separating means for separating the cut sheet supporting means and the separating claw; and the cut sheet supporting means and feeding means in the case. an opening/closing cover that is attached to the case so as to be openable and closable in order to open the rear end on the upstream side and load the cut sheet into the cut sheet support means; and a guide member that guides the front end side of the cut sheet to be inserted when loading the cut sheet into the cut sheet support means, and the guide member is supported by the cut sheet support means when the opening/closing cover is closed. The cut sheet is located at a position where it does not come into contact with the cut sheet that has been inserted, and when the opening/closing cover is opened, the cut sheet to be inserted is guided between the cut sheet supporting means separated by the separating means and the separating claw. The above object is achieved by a cut sheet feeding device.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the usage state of a cut sheet supply device according to an embodiment, in which a fixed cover 2 is attached to a main body 1 of a recording device (such as a printer), and the fixed cover swings (opens and closes) around a fulcrum 3. An opening/closing cover 4 is attached thereto, and a paper feed roller 5 is installed in a space formed between the fixed cover and the opening/closing cover.

Two of the paper feed rollers 5 are installed at a predetermined interval as shown in FIG. 3, and are rotationally driven via a roller shaft 6 supported on the fixed cover 2.

In FIG. 1, the paper feed roller 5 and the fixed cover 2
An intermediate plate 7 for holding cut sheets is provided between the cut sheet and the cut sheet. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, this middle plate 7 has a tab 8 formed at its rear end that is inserted into a slot 9 in the rear center of the fixed cover 2 so that the tab 8 protrudes outside. , is attached so as to be swingable about the slot 9 as a fulcrum. However, this middle plate 7 has a spring 10 installed between its front part and the fixed cover 2.
Therefore, it is constantly urged toward the paper feed roller 5. On the other hand, on the outside of the rear part of the fixed cover 2, as shown in FIGS.
By rotating the lever by operating the lever, the middle plate 7 can be pushed down using the slot 9 as a fulcrum.
That is, by rotating the cam 11,
The middle plate 7 can be pushed down in a direction away from the paper feed roller 5 against the force of the spring 10, and the state shown in FIG. 2 can be achieved.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, width regulating plates 13 for adjusting the paper width of the cut sheet are provided on both sides of the fixed cover 2, and each width regulating plate has a separating claw support member 15 swinging through a fulcrum 14. It is mounted so that it can move freely. At the tip of each separation claw support member 15, there is a separation claw 1 that comes into contact with the front end of the loaded cut sheet.
6 is integrally formed. Further, each separating claw support member 15 is provided with an ear portion 17 that extends inward and can engage with the middle plate 7, and pushes down the middle plate 7 to
When in the state shown in the figure, the middle plate engages with the ear portion 17, allowing the separating claw 16 to swing upward as shown in FIG.

The paper feed roller 5 is driven only in the paper feed direction via a one-way clutch by a step motor 18 mounted at a desired position of the recording apparatus.

In FIG. 1, reference number 19 indicates a cut sheet (a stack of multiple cut sheets);
This is loaded by being pressed between the paper feed roller 5 and the intermediate plate 7 by the force of a spring 10. Furthermore, the separating claws 16 are in contact with both sides of the upper surface of the front end of the cut sheet 19 due to their own weight.

When feeding the cut sheet 18, when the paper feed roller 5 is driven in the direction of the arrow, a driving force is applied to the uppermost layer of the cut sheet, and the leading end of the cut sheet is moved to the separation claw 1.
6 and is separated to the outside of the separating claw while forming a loop. The cut sheet 19 thus separated is fed through the supply port 20 between the paper feed roller 21 and the pinch roller 22.
Reference number 23 indicates a paper feed guide.

The cut sheet thus fed into the paper feed mechanism is fed by the paper feed roller 21 to a printing section between the platen 24 and the print head 25, and printing (recording) is performed on the cut sheet 19 while feeding the paper line by line.

The printed cut sheet 19 is delivered to the paper ejection roller 26
The paper is sent into a paper discharge tray 27 having a paper discharge tray 27.

When the cut sheet 19 is consumed and needs to be replenished, the opening/closing cover 4 is moved to the fulcrum 3 as shown in FIG.
At the same time, rotate the cam 11 to push the middle plate 7 down toward the fixed cover 2 against the spring 10, separate the middle plate from the paper feed roller 5, and insert the cut sheet 19 through the space. . At this time, the separation claw 16 is moved to the fulcrum 14 by the middle plate 7.
It is being rotated around and moving upwards.

According to the present invention, guide members 28 are protrudingly provided on both sides of the inner surface of the opening/closing cover 4 and at positions near the rear of the separating claws 16. This guide member 28
is provided at a position to guide the front end of the cut sheet 19 to the inside of the separating claw 16 (towards the middle plate 7) when the opening/closing cover 4 is opened and the cut sheet 19 is loaded. These guide members 2 provided on both sides
The position of 8 on the plane is indicated by a chain double-dashed line in FIG.

Furthermore, a second
A guide member 29 is provided protrudingly. This second guide member 29 is provided at a position to guide the front end of the cut sheet 19 to the contact side of the paper feed roller 5, that is, to the middle plate 7 side when the open/close cover 4 is opened and the cut sheet 19 is loaded. . The positions of these second guide members 29 on the plane are shown by two-dot chain lines in FIG.

The guide member 28 and the second guide member 29 can be integrally molded with the opening/closing cover 4, which is usually a plastic molded product, or can be fixed as a single plastic or metal part.

According to the embodiment described above, since the guide member 28 is provided protruding near the rear of the separating claw 16, the cut sheet 19 can be loaded at a predetermined position inside the separating claw 16 with an extremely simple structure. It can be inserted easily and reliably.
In particular, when the peripheral edge of the cut sheet 19 is deformed such as bowing upward, loading the cut sheet would require a great deal of effort or be impossible with the conventional structure, but according to the structure of the embodiment, such This makes it possible to load easily and reliably.

Furthermore, according to the above embodiment, since the second guide member 29 is provided protrudingly near the rear of the paper feed roller 5, the structure is extremely simple, and the tip of the cut sheet does not collide with the paper feed roller 5 when the cut sheet is loaded. Inconveniences such as those caused by incorrect insertion through the opposite side of the paper feed roller can be prevented, and from this point of view as well, loading of cut sheets can be made easy and reliable.

〔effect〕

As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, in a cut sheet supply device provided in a recording apparatus main body for supplying cut sheets to a recording section of the recording apparatus main body, the cut sheet supply device includes: a cut sheet supporting means arranged to load and support cut sheets; a feeding means arranged in the case and feeding the cut sheets by contacting the cut sheets supported by the cut sheet supporting means; and a feeding means supported by the cut sheet supporting means. a separating claw that engages with a leading end corner of the cut sheet to separate the cut sheets fed out by the feeding means one by one; a separating means that separates the cut sheet supporting means from the separating claw; and the case. an opening/closing cover provided to cover the cut sheet supporting means and the feeding means in the case, and attached to the case so as to be openable and closable in order to open the rear end on the upstream side and load the cut sheet into the cut sheet supporting means; a guide member provided on the upstream side of the separating claw in the cover and guiding the front end side of the cut sheet to be inserted when loading the cut sheet into the cut sheet support means, the guide member closing the opening/closing cover. When the opening/closing cover is opened, the inserted cut sheet is placed between the cut sheet support means separated by the separation means and the separating claw. Since the structure is such that even if the cut sheet is warped or otherwise deformed, the leading end of the cut sheet may not be inserted inside the separating claw, or it may take a lot of effort to insert it. To provide a cut sheet feeding device which can be easily loaded by eliminating inconveniences, and which can smoothly feed sheets because a guide member is separated from the cut sheets when in a sheet feeding state.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the main part of a cut sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention when it is in use, and FIG.
A vertical sectional view of the main part of the device shown in the figure when loading a cut sheet,
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the device shown in FIG. 1 with the opening/closing cover removed. 2...Fixed cover, 4...Opening/closing cover, 5...
Paper feed roller, 7... middle plate, 10... spring, 15...
...Separation claw support member, 16...Separation claw, 19...Cut sheet, 28...Guide member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A cut sheet supply device provided in a recording apparatus main body for supplying cut sheets to a recording section of the recording apparatus main body, the cut sheet supplying device being disposed within a case attached to the recording apparatus main body, and configured to load and support cut sheets. a cut sheet support means arranged in the case and feeding the cut sheet by contacting the cut sheet supported by the cut sheet support means; a separation claw that engages to separate the cut sheets sent out by the feeding means one by one; a separation means that separates the cut sheet support means and the separation claw; the cut sheet support means in the case; an opening/closing cover provided to cover the feeding means and attached to the case so as to be openable and closable in order to open the rear end on the upstream side and load the cut sheet into the cut sheet supporting means; a guide member that is provided on the side and guides the front end side of the cut sheet to be inserted when loading the cut sheet into the cut sheet support means; the guide member is configured to guide the cut sheet support means when the opening/closing cover is closed; The cut sheet is in a position where it does not come into contact with the cut sheet supported by the opening/closing cover, and is in a position to guide the cut sheet to be inserted between the cut sheet support means separated by the separation means and the separating claw when the opening/closing cover is opened. A cut sheet feeding device featuring: