JPH08157086A - Feed roller - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To practically improve the life of a rubber by facilitating the discrimination between the rubber and a resin member when the rubber of a feed roller is assembled, replaced, or discarded, minimizing the strain applied to the rubber, improving the paper feed performance, and using an unabraded rubber of the other portion because the rubber used for the feed roller is abraded at part of the surface of the rubber. CONSTITUTION: This feed roller 2 is provided with a rubber 3 (circular flexible member) to be brought into contact with a sheet material, a holding member 20 holding the rubber 3, a drive shaft 1 fitted with the holding member 20 to drive it, and a tension applying member 9 applying tension to the rubber 3 to fix the rubber 3 to the holding member 20 of the feed roller 2.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a feeding roller for feeding a sheet material.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional feeding roller of a feeding device in an image forming apparatus or the like is shown in FIG. The feeding roller is a drive shaft 101, a feeding roller 102, a rubber 103 attached to the paper feeding roller 102 with an adhesive or the like, and the feeding roller 1.
It is constituted by a pin groove 104 for fixing 02 to the drive shaft and transmitting the drive. The rotation of the drive shaft 101 also rotates the feeding roller 102, and the rubber 103 fixed to the feeding roller 102 comes into contact with the sheet material to be fed,
The sheet material is fed by the frictional force with the sheet material.

Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the annular rubber 105 is extended to the feeding roller 106 having a flange having a diameter slightly larger than that of the annular rubber 105, and the annular rubber 105 is extended and fitted into the feeding roller 106. There are also things that are fixed by frictional force.

[0004]

However, in the conventional example shown in FIG. 11, even if a part of the rubber 103 is worn due to use, the rubber 103 will not be worn by the feeding roller 10.
Since it is fixed to No. 2 with an adhesive, it is not possible to replace only the rubber 103, and the entire feeding roller 102 must be replaced. Further, in the case of the configuration of FIG. 12, when the rubber 105 is attached to the feeding roller 106, the rubber 105 has to be largely stretched and attached to the feeding roller 106, so that the assembling property is poor and the replacement is troublesome. Also rubber 105
Strains in the rubber 105,
The performance of the rubber 105 is deteriorated, which causes a paper feed failure and a decrease in durability performance.

Further, there is a drawback that it is difficult to separate the rubber and the resin member when the product is discarded.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an object thereof is to facilitate the assembly and replacement of the rubber of the feeding roller, the separation of the rubber and the resin member at the time of disposal, and It is to improve the paper feeding performance by minimizing the strain on the rubber.

Further, it is only a part of the surface of the rubber that the rubber is worn due to the use of the feeding roller. Therefore, by using the rubber which is not worn in the other part, the life of the rubber is substantially improved. That is.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, a friction member that comes into contact with a sheet material, a holding member that holds the friction member, and a drive shaft that drives the holding member attached thereto are provided. And a friction member is an annular flexible member whose inner peripheral surface is in contact with the holding member and whose outer peripheral surface is in contact with the sheet material, and tension is applied to the annular flexible member. By providing a tension applying member for fixing the annular flexible member to the holding member.

The holding member and the drive shaft are configured to be movable relative to each other, and when the holding member is arranged at a position driven by the drive shaft, the tension applying member becomes the annular flexible member. Give tension.

Further, the tension applying member is a drive shaft for attaching the holding member, an engaging member provided on the drive shaft for attaching the holding member, a position at which tension is not applied to the holding member, and a tension. It is also preferable that the engaging member is provided so as to be movable to a position for giving.

Further, in a feeding roller provided with a friction member that comes into contact with a sheet material, a holding member that holds the friction member, and a drive shaft that attaches and drives the holding member, the friction member has an inner peripheral surface. An annular flexible member that abuts the holding member and an outer peripheral surface thereof abuts the sheet material, and the annular flexible member forms one of a plurality of different surface regions of the inner peripheral surface or the outer peripheral surface of the sheet material. The holding member is engageable with the holding member.

The annular flexible member is provided with positioning means for determining the position of the surface contacting the sheet material by engaging with the holding member, and display means for displaying the surface contacting the sheet material. Is characterized by.

[0013]

In the present invention constructed as described above, after the annular flexible member is attached to the holding portion of the holding member in a free state in which tension is not generated, the tension applying member is annularly flexible. Tension is applied to the flexible member to fix it to the holding member.

By making the holding member and the drive shaft movable relative to each other, when the holding member is arranged at a position driven by the drive shaft, the tension applying member becomes the annular flexible member. Give tension.

Further, by using the tension applying member as the driving shaft itself, the holding member can be attached to the driving shaft, or the holding member and the driving shaft can be moved relative to each other so that the holding member can be driven. By disposing the drive shaft, the drive shaft comes into contact with the annular flexible member and applies tension to the annular flexible member.

Further, the engagement member provided on the drive shaft or the holding member contacts the annular flexible member to apply tension to the annular flexible member.

Further, the surface of the annular flexible member that comes into contact with the sheet material is one of a plurality of different surface regions of the inner peripheral surface or the outer peripheral surface, so that the other surface is replaced with another surface. Can be used.

Further, the flexible member is provided with positioning means for determining the position of the surface contacting the sheet material by engaging with the holding member, and display means for displaying the surface contacting the sheet material. It is possible to surely change the contact surface used up to another contact surface, and to identify the old and new contact surfaces.

[0019]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to illustrated embodiments.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a diagram of a first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, 1 is a drive shaft driven by a motor (not shown) through a gear (not shown), 2 is a feeding roller that is rotated by being driven by the drive shaft 1, and 3 is a sheet attached to the feeding roller 2. Rubber as an annular flexible member for picking up a material (not shown), 4 is a flange that prevents the rubber 3 attached to the roller 2 from shifting in the thrust direction, and 5 determines the position of the rubber 3. For fitting, 6 is a snap-fit portion fitted to the drive shaft, 7 is a pin for transmitting the drive of the drive shaft 1 to the feeding roller 2, 8 is a positioning protrusion as a positioning means for the rubber 3, and 9 is a feeding member. A tension providing member that presses the rubber 3 mounted on the feeding roller 2 to apply tension to the rubber 3 and fix the rubber 3 to the feeding roller 2.
Is a fitting hole that fits into the pin 7 that transmits the drive, and 20 is a holding member that holds the rubber 3 to abut the sheet material.

In the above structure, the rubber 3 is fed to the feeding roller 2
Of the rubber 3 to the holding member 20 and the holding member 2
0 is fitted so as to fit into the fitting recess 5 and the feeding roller 2 is attached to the driving shaft 1 so that the pin 7 of the feeding roller 2 fits into the fitting hole 10 of the driving shaft 1. .

By attaching the feeding roller 2 to the drive shaft 1 as described above, the rubber 3 is pushed by the tension applying member 9 and tension is applied to the rubber 3 as shown in FIG. 2, and the rubber 3 is fixed to the feeding roller 2. To be done.

In this state, the drive shaft 1 is driven by a motor (not shown) via a gear (not shown), and the rotation of the drive shaft 1 also rotates the feeding roller 2 to which the rubber 3 is fixed.
The sheet material is fed and sent to an image forming unit or an image reading unit of an image forming apparatus (not shown), and a subsequent processing process is performed.

In the feeding roller 2 having the above-mentioned structure, it is possible to easily attach the rubber 3 to the holding member 20 of the feeding roller 2 at the time of assembling without pulling the rubber 3 and the efficiency of assembling is improved. Moreover, the rubber 3 is not excessively strained. Therefore, the durability of the rubber 3 can be improved without lowering its performance.

Further, even when the rubber 3 is replaced, if the feeding roller 2 is removed from the drive shaft 1, the tension applied to the rubber 3 is released, so that the rubber 3 can be easily removed and the rubber 3 is replaced. Will be easier.

Further, when the apparatus is discarded, the rubber 3 and the resin-made feeding roller 2 can be easily separated, which is suitable for recycling.

Further, the inner peripheral surface or the outer peripheral surface of the rubber 3 is set as a plurality of different surface areas, and when the surface contacting with a certain sheet material is worn or deformed, the surface contacting with the sheet material of the rubber 3 is changed. Therefore, if the unused portion is set at the sheet feeding position, the life of the rubber becomes substantially longer by the number of different surface regions. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the rubber 3 has two locating projections 8 and one rubber 3 can use two surface areas.

These are also effective from the viewpoint of ecology.

(Second Embodiment) FIGS. 3 and 4 are a second embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 3, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are designated by the same reference numerals and their description is omitted. To do.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, 11 is a shaft hole in which the drive shaft 1 can slide, and 12 is a slit which allows the drive shaft 1 to move smoothly.

In the above structure, the drive shaft 1 is the feeding roller 2
It passes through the shaft hole 11 of A, and the feeding roller 2 is held by the drive shaft 1 at any one of two left and right hole positions of the shaft hole 11.

When mounting the feeding roller 2A, first, the fitting recess 5 of the rubber 3 and the positioning projection 8 of the holding member 20 are placed in the state where the drive shaft 1 is located on the right side of the shaft hole 11 as shown in FIG. Adjust to the mating position. Then, move the feeding roller 2 to the arrow A
When the rubber 3 is moved in the direction of 1, the tension is applied by the rubber 3 being pushed by the tension applying member 9, and the rubber 3 is fed by the feeding roller 2
It is fixed to A and brought into the state shown in FIG. 4, and it is driven by the drive shaft 1 to rotate and pick up the sheet material.

When the rubber 3 is replaced or the feeding surface of the rubber 3 is changed, when the feeding roller 2A is moved in the direction of arrow A2 from the state shown in FIG. 4, the tension applied to the rubber 3 is released. The state shown in FIG. In this state, the rubber 3 is replaced or the surface of the rubber 3 that contacts the sheet material is changed, and when the feeding roller 2A is moved in the direction of arrow A1 in FIG. 3, the surface of the sheet material that contacts the unused sheet material is changed. Delivery can be done.

With the above structure, the feeding roller 2A
Even if the drive shaft 1 is not removed from the drive shaft 1,
At the time of assembly, the rubber 3 can be easily attached without pulling it out, and the efficiency of assembly is improved. Further, since the rubber 3 is not excessively strained, the durability of the rubber 3 can be improved without deteriorating the performance of the rubber 3.

When the rubber 3 is replaced or the surface contacting the sheet material is changed, sliding the feeding roller 2A releases the tension of the rubber 3 so that the rubber 3 can be easily removed and replaced by the user. make it easier. Also, when the device is discarded, the rubber 3 and the resin feeding roller 2 are also used.
It can be easily separated from A and is suitable for cycles.

(Third Embodiment) FIGS. 5 and 6 show a third embodiment of the present invention, in which the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are designated by the same reference numerals and their description is omitted.

Reference numeral 13 is a display number as a display means for displaying the engagement position of the rubber 3a, and the feed roller 2B can see the display number. In this configuration, the sheet material of the rubber 3a initially used. However, if the friction coefficient is reduced due to wear or deformation, the rubber 3a is fed to the feeding roller 2B.
Remove it and rotate it 180 ° to make the part that was not used until now contact the sheet material.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6, the rubber 3b is turned upside down and the unused portion is used as the paper feeding surface. This makes rubber 3
It is possible to substantially double the life of the rubber b, and the indication number 13 attached to the rubber 3b allows the rubber 3b to be installed without any mistake when re-installing the rubber.

(Fourth Embodiment) FIG. 7 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 7, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

Reference numeral 14 in FIG. 7 denotes an axis which is not driven by itself, 1
Reference numeral 5 denotes a gear which is fixed to the shaft 14 and which is driven by another gear (not shown) to rotate the shaft 14 and the feeding roller 2C, and 16 is a tension applying member for applying a tension to the rubber 3 at a part of the gear 15.

In the above structure, the feeding roller 2 is attached to the shaft 14
When fixed to (or may be the gear 15), tension is applied to the rubber 3 by the tension applying member 16 which is a part of the gear 15, and the rubber 3 is fixed to the holding member 20 of the feeding roller 2C, and the other gear (not shown). The feeding roller 2 is rotated by the gear 15 which is driven more to feed the sheet material. As described above, even when the feeding roller 2C is attached to the shaft 14 which is not driven by itself, the tension of the rubber 3 can be easily adjusted.

(Fifth Embodiment) FIG. 8 shows a fifth embodiment of the present invention, in which the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are designated by the same reference numerals and their description is omitted. To do.

Generally, the portion where the rubber is worn by feeding the sheet material is the portion where the sheet material first hits, and the other portions are hardly worn.

Therefore, the fitting groove 5 is formed toward the feeding roller 2D so that the engaging positions of the feeding roller 2D and the rubber 3C can be set at six positions.
The groove 4 is provided in the flange 4 of the holding member 20 so that the three numbers and the display number can be seen, and the positioning protrusions 8 are provided in the rubber 3C at six places.

In the state shown in FIG. 8A, the portion of the rubber 3C is initially in a position where it comes into contact with the sheet material, and when the portion of the rubber 3C is worn, the tension applied to the rubber 3C is loosened and removed. As shown in (b), rotate the rubber 3C by 60 ° so that the part of becomes the part of, and then, as shown in FIG. 8 (c).
Attach it so that the part shown in (1) comes to the position where it comes into contact with the sheet material.

As a result, the life of the rubber 3C is substantially increased by 6 times, and the rubber 3C can be easily attached and detached as described in the first embodiment, so that it can be replaced by the user. Further, the user can distinguish the used portion and the unused portion by the display number 13 on the side portion of the positioning protrusion 8. As a result, the life of the rubber is almost 6 times that of the conventional rubber, which is effective from the viewpoint of ecology.

(Sixth Embodiment) FIG. 9 is a sixth embodiment showing the feature of the present invention. In FIG. 9, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 3 are designated by the same reference numerals and their description is omitted. To do.

In FIG. 9A, the drive shaft 1 passes through the hole 11 of the feed roller 2E, and the feed roller 2E is held by the drive shaft 1 at either one of the left and right positions. When mounting the feeding roller 2E, first, with the drive shaft 1 at the position on the left side of the hole 11, the rubber 3 is aligned with the position where the fitting recess 5 and the positioning protrusion 8 are engaged, and the feeding roller 2E is fixed. Arrow A
When pulled in the direction of 3, the shaft 1 is held at the position on the right side of the hole 11, the rubber 3 is pulled by the shaft 1 and is tensioned and fixed to the feeding roller 2E, and the feeding roller 2E is driven by the driving shaft 1. It rotates to pick up the sheet material (FIG. 9B).

When changing the surface of the rubber 3 that comes into contact with the sheet material, if the shaft 1 is returned to the position on the left side of the hole 11, the tension applied to the rubber 3 is released, and the position of the rubber 3 can be changed easily. Can be done. In the above configuration, since it is the drive shaft 1 that applies the tension to the rubber 3, it is not necessary to separately provide a tension member, which leads to a reduction in the number of parts.

(Seventh Embodiment) FIG. 10 shows a seventh embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 10, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 3 are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the figure, reference numeral 17 is a slit in which the tension applying member 15 is movable, and 18 is a locking portion for fixing the tension applying member 15 at two positions on both ends of the slit 17 in a snap fit configuration.

In the above structure, when the tension applying member 15 is on the right side of the slit 17, the rubber 3 is in a state where the tension is released (FIG. 10 (b)), and the rubber 3 is assembled, replaced, and changed in position in the above state. After engaging the rubber 3 with the feeding roller 2, the tension applying member 15 is pinched and moved in the direction of the arrow A4, and moved to the left side of the slit 17, the tension applying member 15 is fixed at that position, and the rubber 3 is fixed. Is pushed by the tension applying member 15 and the tension thereof causes the holding member 20 of the feeding roller 20.
Fixed to.

In the above structure, the feeding roller 1 and the rubber 3
The rubber 3 can be attached and detached only by itself, and the rubber 3 can be attached and detached easily even when the rubber 3 is separated from the shaft.

Further, although the feeding of the sheet material has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the sheet material and can be applied to all members that need to be conveyed. Further, although the feeding roller using the rubber member has been described, the material is not limited to rubber, and it is sufficient that the material has a coefficient of friction and flexibility required to convey a sheet material such as an elastomer.

Further, although it has been described that the feeding roller is driven to rotate, the feeding roller is not limited to the rotation operation as long as it is a movement to convey the sheet material, and includes linear movement and elliptical driving. Be done.

[0056]

The present invention has the above-described structure and operation. The tension applying member applies tension to the annular flexible member so that the annular flexible member is fixed on the holding member of the feeding roller. As a result, the assemblability when mounting the annular flexible member on the feeding roller, the replaceability, and the separability and separation of the rubber and resin members at the time of disposal are improved.

Further, during assembly and replacement, unnecessary stress is not applied to the annular flexible member, and the deterioration of the performance of the feeding roller is prevented.

Since the holding member and the drive shaft are configured to be movable relative to each other, the drive shaft itself or the holding member provided on the drive shaft moves to a position where tension is applied to the annular flexible member. With such a configuration, it is possible to generate tension.

Further, the surface of the annular flexible member that comes into contact with the sheet material is one of a plurality of different surface areas of the inner peripheral surface or the outer peripheral surface, so that the other surface is replaced with another surface. It can be used and will substantially extend the life of the feed roller.

Further, the flexible member is provided with positioning means for determining the position of the surface contacting the sheet material by engaging with the holding member and display means for displaying the surface contacting the sheet material. It is possible to reliably change the contact surface used up to another contact surface, and to easily identify the old and new contact surfaces.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a feeding roller according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a feeding roller according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a feeding roller according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram of a feeding roller according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a conventional feeding roller.

FIG. 12 is a diagram of a conventional feeding roller.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Drive shaft 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F Feeding roller 3, 3a, 3b, 3c Rubber (annular flexible member) 5 Fitting recess 6 Snap fit part 7 Pin 8 Positioning protrusion (positioning) Means) 9, 15, 16 Tension providing member 10 Fitting hole 11 Shaft hole 12 Slit 13 Display means 17 Slit 18 Locking member 20 Holding member

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A feeding roller comprising a friction member that comes into contact with a sheet material, a holding member that holds the friction member, and a drive shaft that mounts and drives the holding member, wherein the friction member has an inner peripheral surface. An annular flexible member that abuts the holding member and has an outer peripheral surface abutting the sheet material. By applying tension to the annular flexible member, the annular flexible member is fixed to the holding member. A feeding roller characterized by comprising a tension applying member for 2. The holding member and the drive shaft are configured to be movable relative to each other, and when the holding member is arranged at a position driven by the drive shaft, the tension applying member has the annular flexibility. The feeding roller according to claim 1, wherein tension is applied to the member. 3. The tension applying member is a drive shaft for mounting the holding member.
The feeding roller described in 1. 4. The feeding roller according to claim 1, wherein the tension applying member is an engaging member provided on a drive shaft to which the holding member is attached. 5. The tension applying member is an engaging member movably provided between a position where tension is not applied to the annular flexible member and a position where tension is applied to the holding member. The feeding roller according to item 1. 6. A feeding roller comprising a friction member that comes into contact with a sheet material, a holding member that holds the friction member, and a drive shaft that mounts and drives the holding member, wherein the friction member has an inner peripheral surface. The annular flexible member is in contact with the holding member and has an outer peripheral surface in contact with the sheet material, and the annular flexible member has one of a plurality of different surface regions of the inner peripheral surface or the outer peripheral surface. A feeding roller which is engageable with the holding member as a surface that comes into contact with the feeding roller. 7. The annular flexible member is provided with positioning means for determining the position of the surface contacting the sheet material by engaging with the holding member, and display means for displaying the surface contacting the sheet material. The feeding roller according to claim 6, wherein the feeding roller is a roller. 8. A feeding roller comprising a friction member that comes into contact with a sheet material, a holding member that holds the friction member, and a drive shaft that mounts and drives the holding member, wherein the friction member has an inner peripheral surface. The annular flexible member is in contact with the holding member and has an outer peripheral surface in contact with the sheet material, and the annular flexible member has one of a plurality of different surface regions of the inner peripheral surface or the outer peripheral surface. A positioning means that is engageable with the holding member as a surface that comes into contact with the sheet material, and that determines the position of the surface that comes into contact with the sheet material by engaging with the holding member, and display means that displays the surface that comes into contact with the sheet material The feeding roller according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5.