JPH0640186Y2 - Automatic paper feeder - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial field of application] The present invention is a stacker that feeds printing sheets stacked in a hopper one by one and feeds them to a printing position of a printing device. The present invention relates to an automatic sheet feeder configured to be stacked and stored in a sheet.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, print sheets handled by an automatic sheet feeder are initially stacked in a non-printed state on a hopper, and sequentially picked up one by one by a pickup roller and fed to the printer. Then, in the printing apparatus, printing is performed at the printing position while the paper is fed by the feeding roller appropriately, and when a series of printing is completed, the sheet is ejected to the stacker by the eject roller of the automatic sheet feeding device and its pinch roller. It was common.

Further, in the conventional automatic paper feeder, one or both of the eject roller and the pinch roller are gear-like toothed rollers in order to ensure the discharge of the print paper to the stacker.

[Problems to be solved by the invention] However, the print paper discharged on the stacker is warped or bent and floats from the stacker wall, or the print paper stored in the stacker is a specified amount. When the printing paper is approached to, the printing paper may not be completely ejected and the lower end of the paper may remain on the eject roller or the pinch roller, which is especially the case above the printing position. It was more likely to happen where the rollers and pinch rollers were arranged. Then, when the next print sheet is discharged in this state, there is a problem that the previous print sheet interferes and normal discharge is not performed. Further, in the type in which the power of the eject roller is taken from the drive source of the feed roller of the printing apparatus, both rollers rotate in synchronization in the same direction, and therefore the feed roller is rotated in reverse because of necessity for printing operation. Thus, the eject roller is also rotated in the reverse direction, and the once ejected printing paper may run in the reverse direction and be drawn into the printing apparatus again.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an automatic printing method in which printing paper discharged from a printing device by an eject roller is reliably stored in a stacker regardless of its thickness. An object is to provide a paper feeding device.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, the printing is flexible, the base end is fixed to the frame, and the free end is pulled out by the eject roller. Located on the path of the paper, arranged so as to elastically press the print paper toward the stacker side, and a flexible portion having better flexibility than the free end near the base end. The pressing member provided on the frame and the pressing member, which is provided on the frame and is bent at a predetermined angle in the good-flexible portion along with the ejection of the print sheet by the eject roller, contacts the press member at the free end side of the good-flexible portion. The contact part which contacts.

[Operation] With the above configuration, the printing paper discharged from the printing device by the eject roller is elastically pressed toward the stacker by the operation of the pressing member. Then, when the trailing edge of the sheet passes through the eject roller and the regulation by the eject roller is released, the pressing member elastically restores and the print sheet is reliably discharged to the stacker.

At this time, with respect to thin print paper, the pressing member is swung with a good flexible portion provided on the pressing member as a fulcrum, and the printing paper is pressed toward the stacker side by its restoring force. When ejecting thick print paper, the press member is first bent at a predetermined angle by the print paper, and the press member comes into contact with the contact portion, and then is further bent around the contact portion as a fulcrum. The printing paper is pressed to the stacker side with a restoring force stronger than that of.

[Embodiment] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a portable type Japanese word processor 1 in which a paper feeder 5 which is an automatic paper feeder is mounted. As shown in the figure, the Japanese word processor 1 is composed of a keyboard section 2, a display section 3, and a printer section 4, which are arranged in this order from the front side.
The paper feeder 5, which will be described later in detail, is detachably attached.

Character keys for inputting letters, numbers, etc. on the keyboard unit 2
10, various conversion keys that are used in general Japanese word processors, such as a conversion key 12 that gives a kana-kanji conversion command, a print key 14 that inputs a print command in the print mode, a paper feed key 15, a paper return key 16, etc. It is arranged.

The display unit 3 is provided with a liquid crystal display (LCD) 18 capable of displaying characters of 40 characters x 6 lines, and it is possible to input characters, edited documents, messages to the operator, etc.
Displayed on LCD18.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a paper feeder 5 is attached to the printer unit 4. The printer unit 4 and the paper feeder 5 will be described mainly with reference to the same drawing.

A flat plate-shaped platen 20 provided inside the printer unit 4
The guide shaft 22 is installed at the platen at the lower front of the
A carriage 24 is horizontally mounted so as to be parallel to 20, and a carriage 24 driven by a carriage drive motor 23 (not shown in FIG. 1) is slidably disposed on a guide shaft 22 thereof. . Further, a thermal head 26 having a printing element 25 at a position facing the platen 20 is provided on the carriage 24 so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the platen 20, and a ribbon cassette 30 for accommodating a thermal ribbon 28 is detachably attached. It is placed in. And this thermal ribbon 28,
A portion partially exposed from the ribbon cassette 30 is pressed toward the platen 20 side by the thermal head 26, and the carriage 24 is moved as it is, so that the ribbon is fed sequentially by the action of a ribbon feeding mechanism (not shown). Accordingly, when the printing element 25 is selectively driven, the printing position PR at which the thermal head 26 and the platen 20 face each other.
Printing is performed on the printing paper fed to the.

A feed roller shaft 32 parallel to the platen 20 is pivotally supported on the lower rear portion of the platen 20 so as to be rotationally driven by a feed roller drive motor 33 (not shown in FIG. 1) which is a pulse motor. On the feed roller shaft 32, a plurality of feed rollers 34, which are divided and arranged at appropriate intervals in the axial direction, are integrally rotatable.

Below the feed roller shaft 32, a curved guide path 40 is formed in a gap between an upper bay wall 36 and a lower bay wall 38 forming a part of the frame of the printer unit 4, and a paper feeder is provided at one rear end thereof. The printing paper PC fed out from the 5 is the printer unit 4
An opening 42 for receiving the inside is formed, and the other front end communicates with the printing position PR. Further, a notch is provided in the upper bay wall 36 facing the feed roller 34, and the outer peripheral surface of the feed roller 34 penetrates the upper bay wall 36 due to the notch, and a single printing paper PC finally passes. It is close to the upper surface of the lower bay wall 38 leaving a gap as much as possible. On the other hand, in the vicinity of the front and rear ends of the lower bay wall 38, notches are formed to allow the rotatable first pressing roller 44 and the second pressing roller 46, which are arranged to face the feed rollers 34, to move in and out. Has been done. The first and second pressing rollers 44 and 46 are the release levers 48 shown in FIG.
By the action of a pressing mechanism (not shown) which is interlocked with, the pressure roller is selectively held at either one of the pressure contact position where it is in pressure contact with the feed roller 34 and the retracted position where it is separated from the feed roller 34 and retracted outside the guide path 40. Therefore, the print sheet passing through the guide path 40 is reliably brought into close contact with the feed roller 34 in the state where the first and second pressing rollers 44, 46 are held at the pressure contact position, and is held at the retracted position. In the state, the close contact is released.

Further, the printing paper inserted from a position slightly rearward of the position facing the first and second pressing rollers 44 and 46, that is, the printing paper inserted from the opening 42 is transferred to the first and second pressing rollers 44 and 46. The first and second photosensors 50a and 50b as position detection sensors 50 are provided through the openings in the upper bay wall 36 at a position facing the printing paper shortly before reaching each of them.

The paper feeder 5, which can handle not only normal thickness printing paper but also thick postcards, is roughly divided into a hopper 52 that stores printing paper PC before printing and a stacker that stores printing paper PC after printing. 54, and a transfer mechanism unit 56 that is located between them and transfers the printing paper PC from the hopper 52 to the stacker 54. The transfer mechanism unit 56 functions by cooperating with the feed roller 34 with the paper feeder 5 mounted on the printer unit 4.

On the hopper frame 52a of the hopper 52, a receiving plate 58 for stacking and placing the printing papers PC is supported swingably around a support shaft 60, and the left end of the receiving plate 58 is spaced from the receiving plate 58 by a predetermined number. Left regulation piece set to correspond to the thickness of printing paper PC
62 is integrally bent. Further, on the receiving plate 58, a slide body 66 in which a right regulating piece 64 forming a pair with the left regulating piece 62 is integrally bent and formed is provided so as to be frictionally slidable. The left and right edges of the printing paper PC set in the vertical or horizontal direction are regulated by appropriately adjusting the interval of 64.

Further, the receiving plate 58 is constantly urged upward from its lower surface by a leaf spring 68 provided on the hopper frame 52a, but its right end is brought about by a cam mechanism (not shown) interlocking with a set lever 72 in FIG. The lower portion is pushed down and can be pushed down and held at the lower position against the leaf spring 68. Further, a substantially U-shaped link bar 70 extending in the left-right direction is swingably supported on the hopper frame 52a, and its left and right free ends are provided with engaging pieces 58a projecting from the left and right lower surfaces of the receiving plate 58. Because of the lever action of the link bar 70, the pressing force of the cam mechanism acts on the receiving plate 58 substantially evenly on the left and right sides.

Below the hopper frame 52a, the height when the receiving plate 58 is used as a reference surface is low and is substantially parallel to the normal line of the receiving plate 58 (that is, substantially perpendicular to the feeding direction of the printing paper PC). First
A first rib 74 having a restricting portion 74a, which is located slightly on the feeding direction side of the first rib 74, and whose height is higher than that of the first rib 74 by the thickness of a few printing sheets, On the other hand, the second ribs 76 having the second restricting portions 76a that are slightly inclined forward are provided alternately at a plurality of positions in the left-right direction of the sheet feeder 5 and integrally with the hopper frame 52a. ing.

Further, a printing paper supply port 77 is provided at the lowermost end of the hopper frame 52a, and when the paper feeder 5 is attached to the printer unit 4, the printing paper supply port 77 and the opening 42 communicate with each other.

At a position facing the vicinity of the lower end of the printing paper PC, which is biased upward by the leaf spring 68 via the receiving plate 58, it is located at substantially the center in the left-right direction and has a wide width made of rubber having a high friction coefficient. The pickup roller 78 of the pickup roller shaft 80
3 is rotatably supported by the pickup roller shaft 80. As shown in FIG. 3, the left end of the pickup roller shaft 80 is drivingly connected to a pickup roller drive motor 81 including a step motor via a one-way clutch 83 and a gear group 85. There is. The one-way clutch 83 is provided with a pickup roller shaft 80 and a gear group 85 when the pickup roller 78 shown in FIG. 1 is driven to rotate in a clockwise direction by friction with the print sheet PC drawn into the printer unit 4. It functions so that a slip occurs between and. Then, the pickup roller drive motor 81 is connected to the Japanese word processor 1 via the connection cord 87.
The rotation is controlled based on the control signal sent from the.
Further, the paper feeder 5 is configured so as to be capable of feeding a postcard having a standard size, and the distance L1 from the second pressing roller 46 to the pickup roller 78 is equal to that of a standard size postcard that is set horizontally. It is smaller than the length L2 in the feeding direction (that is, the length of the short side of a standard postcard).

On the path of the printing paper PC that has passed the printing position PR, the receiving plate
Three eject rollers 82, which are arranged at appropriate intervals so that the left and right ends of the printing paper PC can be evenly pressed with the left end of the 58 as a reference, are rotatably provided. The roller shaft 84 is used for the paper feeder 5
It is drivingly connected to the feed roller shaft 32 via a gear mechanism (not shown) that can be engaged and disengaged with the attachment and detachment of the. Therefore, the eject roller 82 is rotationally driven synchronously in the same direction as the feed roller 34 based on the power of the feed roller drive motor 33.

Toothed pinch rollers 86 facing the respective eject rollers 82 are rotatably supported and urging springs 88 are provided at the tips of the bottom ribs 54b provided under the stacker frame 54a of the stacker 54 at intervals. The action of the eject roller
Pressed on 82. This toothed pinch roller 86 has a fourth
As shown in an excerpted main part in the drawing, a gear having a cylindrical portion 86a that abuts the eject roller 82 and a locking rib that is adjacent to the cylindrical portion 86a and that projects slightly outward from the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 86a. It is composed of a shape portion 86b.

A print sheet PC that has passed above the portion where the eject roller 82 and the toothed pinch roller 86 contact each other, that is, the print position PR.
In the frame on the path, the reverse curving ribs 90 that form a paper guide path that is curved in the direction opposite to the curving direction of the guide path 40 are provided at appropriate intervals in the left-right direction of the paper feeder 5.

As shown in the sectional view of FIG. 6, a flexible pressing member 92 made of polyester is provided on the frame 94 near the upper end of the reverse curved rib 90. The pressing member 92 has a base end portion.
92a is fixed to the frame 94, and the free end 92b side is located on the path of the print sheet PC drawn out by the eject roller 82 and the toothed pinch roller 86, and the print sheet PC is elastically pressed against the stacker 54 side. It is arranged to urge.

FIG. 9 is a front view of the pressing member 92. The pressing member 92 has a slit on the free end 92b side in the vicinity of the base end portion 92a as a good flexible portion for the pressing member 92 to have sufficient flexibility even for printing paper of ordinary thickness. 96 are provided.

As shown in FIG. 6, the frame 94, which fixes the base end portion 92a of the pressing member 92, comes into contact with the pressing member 92 when the pressing member 92 is bent at a predetermined angle in the slit 96 by the printing paper PC. A section 98 is provided. The contact portion 98 has a free end 92b from the slit 96 when the pressing member 92 is bent.
It comes to abut on the side.

Next, the configuration of the control system will be described based on the block diagram shown in FIG.

A CPU (central processing unit) 100 as a control unit is connected to a keyboard unit 2 having various keys, and is also connected to a ROM (read only memory) 102 and a RAM (random access memory) 104.

The ROM 102 includes a program memory that stores programs for controlling various operations of the Japanese word processor 1 to which the paper feeder 5 is attached, a character generator, and the like.

On the other hand, the RAM 104 includes an input buffer for temporarily storing character data input from the keyboard unit 2, a text memory for storing an edited document, and the like.

The CPU 100 is connected to the position detection sensor 50 including the first and second photosensors 50a and 50b, the feed roller drive circuit 106, the feed roller drive motor 33, and the carriage drive circuit 108. Carriage drive motor 23
And are connected to the printing elements 25 via the printing element driving circuit 110, respectively.

Further, the CPU 100 is connected to the pickup roller drive circuit 112, and is connected to the pickup roller drive motor 81 via the connection cord 87 when the paper feeder 5 is attached.

It should be noted that, with the above-described configuration, an address and a document containing mixed kanji are created based on the data input from the keyboard unit 2, and these are stored in the text memory of the RAM 104. The description is omitted because it may be the same as the word processor.

Here, the operation and operation when printing is performed using the paper feeder 5 will be described.

When setting the print paper PC in the hopper 52,
The slide body 66 is positioned in accordance with the width of the plate, and the set lever 72 is operated to push down and hold the receiving plate 58.
Then, the desired number of print sheets PC are stacked and placed on the receiving plate 58 within a range up to being regulated by the left and right regulating pieces 62, 64. Then, the lower end of the printing paper PC abuts on the first restricting portion 74a of the first rib 74 and is aligned.

When the set lever 72 is operated in the opposite direction, the holding is released and the receiving plate 58 is swung upward by the urging of the plate spring 68,
Along with this, the vicinity of the lower end of the printing paper PC which has been prepared in advance is pressed against the pickup roller 78. At this time, some of the upper layers of the stacked printing sheets PC are not regulated by the first regulation section 74a.

It should be noted that the release lever 48 is operated at an appropriate time before printing is started to hold the first and second pressing rollers 44, 46 at the pressure contact position.

When the print key 14 is operated in this state to input a print command, the control based on the print program is started, the CPU 100 controls the pickup roller drive motor 81, and the pickup roller 78 is set to the clock in FIG. Is rotated in the direction. Then, the strongest friction with the pick-up roller 78 pulls out the uppermost printing paper PC, and the weak friction between the printing papers PC causes the first restricting portion.
Several upper layers that are not regulated by 74a are pulled out until they hit the second regulation portion 76a. And these several printing paper PC
Is sequentially regulated from the lower side according to the inclination of the second regulation portion 76a, so that the upper layer of the printing paper PC is displaced toward the feeding direction side and is easily fed. When the pickup roller 78 continues to rotate further, only the uppermost one sheet gets over the slope of the second restriction portion 76a and is fed out due to the strong friction. Therefore, the printing paper PC is adjusted by the action of the first regulating portion 74a when stacked and placed, and only a few sheets of the upper layer are regulated by the action of the second regulating portion 76a in the state of being easily fed out when being fed out. Even if it is the printing paper or thick paper such as a postcard, it is surely delivered one by one.

The print sheet PC pulled out by the pickup roller 78 is guided to the opening 42 through the print sheet supply port 77 in a substantially straight line, and eventually reaches a position facing the first photo sensor 50A. Then, the first photo sensor 50a detects this and outputs a detection signal, so that the CPU 100 starts control of the feed roller drive motor 33 based on this detection signal, and the feed roller 34 is rotated clockwise in FIG. Rotate to. Then printing paper
The PC is pressed against the feed roller 34 by the first pressing roller 44, and the feeding is continued by the cooperation of the feed roller 34 and the pickup roller 78. Therefore, the printing paper PC can be reliably fed even if the feeding force of the feeding roller 34, which is generated only by the pressing action of the first pressing roller 44, is slightly weak.

When the second photo sensor 50b detects the arrival of the print paper PC and outputs a detection signal, the CPU 100 calculates the number of pulses to the feed roller drive motor 33, which is counted from the time when this detection signal is output. The counting of the number of pulses required to reach the position where the feeding-side end of the printing paper PC is reliably pressed by the second pressing roller 46 is started after counting, and then the pickup roller drive motor 81 Stop driving. In this state, the printing paper PC is the first pressing roller.
Since it is pressed by 44 and the second pressing roller 46, sufficient feeding force by the feeding roller 34 can be obtained, and stable and reliable feeding can be achieved without the assistance of the pickup roller 78. At this time, the pickup roller 78 idles by the action of the one-way clutch 83, and the load on the feed roller 34 is reduced.

After that, the printing paper PC reaches the printing position PR, and the CPU100 is in RAM1.
Printing on the printing paper PC is performed by appropriately controlling the carriage driving motor 23, the printing element 25, the feed roller driving motor 33, and the like based on the data stored in the text memory 04 or the like.

When a series of printing operations is completed, the printing paper PC is discharged to the outside of the printer unit 4 by the action of the feed roller 34 and the eject roller 82 which are rotated in synchronization, and is regulated by the reverse curved rib 90 and pressed by the pressing member 92. While receiving it, it is guided to the stacker 54. By the way, since the printing paper PC is forcibly curved when passing through the guide path 40, curling occurs as it is, but the curving is corrected because the curving rib 90 curls in the opposite direction this time. In this state, it is guided to the stacker 54.

The print sheet PC after the end of the sheet passes the second pressing roller 46 is continuously ejected by the feeding force of only the eject roller 84. This print sheet PC is a toothed pinch roller 86.
Since both the cylindrical portion 86a and the eject roller 82 are held by the surface having no unevenness, constant feeding is performed.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the ejecting roller 84 feeds the printing paper PC and the leading end of the printing paper PC passes the reverse curved rib 90, the leading end of the printing paper PC and the pressing member 92 are engaged with each other. At this time, when the thickness of the printing paper PC is thin, as shown in FIG. 7, the pressing member 92 causes the printing paper PC to be sent to the eject roller 84 and engages with the printing paper PC, so that the flexible member is flexible. The slit 96 is bent as a fulcrum. However, since the printing paper PC is thin, the pressing member 92 is bent to some extent, but before the contact with the contact portion 98 of the frame 94, the restoring force due to the bending of the pressing member and the restoring force due to the bending of the printing paper PC are generated. The equilibrium state is reached and the pressing member 92 is not bent any more. Then, in this state, when the end of the print sheet PC is sent out by the eject roller 84, the pressing member 92 elastically restores, so that the restoring force does not leave the print sheet PC on the eject roller 84 or the toothed pinch roller 86. It is reliably discharged to the stacker 54 side.

On the other hand, when the printing paper PC is thick like a postcard, as shown in FIG. 8, the pressing member 92 is bent around the slit 96 as a fulcrum by engagement with the printing paper PC. However, the printing paper PC is thick and the slit of the pressing member 92
Since 96 has good flexibility, the pressing member 92 is further bent around the slit 96 as a fulcrum, and contacts the contact portion 98 of the frame 94 on the free end 92b side of the slit 96 of the pressing member 92. When the print paper PC is further fed by the eject roller 84, the pressing member 92 bends around the contact portion as a fulcrum. The restoring force due to the bending of the pressing member 92 at that time is very strong as compared with the restoring force in the case of the thin print paper, because the fulcrum of bending is not the slit 96 which is a flexible portion but the abutting portion 98. The thick printing paper PC can be pressed and urged to the stacker 54. Then, when the end of the print sheet PC is sent out by the eject roller 84, the pressing member 92 elastically restores, so that the restoring force ensures that the print sheet PC does not remain on the eject roller 84 or the toothed pinch roller 86, and is securely stacked. It is discharged to the 54 side.

Further, since the pressing member 92 extends from the vicinity of the terminal end of the reverse-curving rib 90, the curving correction action of the reverse-curving rib 90 is promoted.

Then, the discharged print sheets PC are arranged on the bottom ribs 54b and stacked on the stacker 54, and a series of discharge operations is completed.

Next, when the execution key 14 is operated to input a print command, the next print sheet PC is fed out and the same operation as described above is repeated.

In the present embodiment, the good flexible part of the pressing member 92 is
Although the slit 96 is formed as shown in the drawing, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment can be obtained when the pressing member 192 is used as the good flexible portion of the thin portion 196 as shown in FIG.

[Advantages of the Invention] As described in detail above, in the present invention, the printing paper ejected from the printing device by the eject roller is surely ejected to the stacker by the pressing member regardless of its thickness, so that the ejection paper is ejected first. It is possible to prevent the generated printing paper from interfering with the ejection of the next printing paper and to prevent the printing paper from running in the reverse direction, so that the normal ejection operation can be ensured.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an automatic paper feeder is installed in a printer unit, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a Japanese word processor in which the automatic paper feeder is installed, and FIG. 3 is a configuration around a pickup roller drive motor. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the configuration around the eject roller, FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system, and FIGS. 6 to 8 are sectional views showing the configuration around the pressing member. 9 is a plan view of the pressing member, FIG.
The drawing is a side view of a pressing member according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 52 is a hopper, 54 is a stacker, 78 is a pickup roller, 82 is an eject roller, 92 is a pressing member, 92a is a base end of the pressing member, 92b is a free end of the pressing member, 94 is a frame, and 96 is Slit as a flexible part, 98 is a contact part, PR
Is the print position and PC is the print paper.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. An automatic paper feeding device for feeding printing paper stored in a hopper to a printing device and then ejecting it to a stacker by an eject roller, which has flexibility and whose base end is fixed to a frame. The free end is located on the path of the print paper pulled out by the eject roller, is arranged so as to elastically press and urge the print paper toward the stacker, and the free end is provided near the base end. A pressing member provided with a flexible portion that is more flexible than the free end portion, and a pressing member that is provided in the frame and bends at a predetermined angle in the flexible portion as the ejecting roller ejects the print sheet. And a contact portion that contacts the pressing member on the free end side of the non-flexible portion.