JPH10119388A - Cover structure for printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simplify an operation for integrally opening a top cover and a printed sheet receive tray in a cover structure for a printer having the cover and the tray. SOLUTION: A printed sheet receive tray 70 is superposed on an upper surface of a container 65 of a top cover 61 at the time of fully closed position. Further, since an engaging part 81 provided at an end of the tray 70 is disposed at an introducing opening of a locking guide 85 provided at the cover 61, only the tray 70 can be opened. Since a rotating center of the cover 61 is decentered from that of the tray 70 even if only the cover 61 is grasped and opened due to paper jam or the like, the part 81 is relatively moved to the guide 85 and locked. Hence, the tray 70 is not independently rotated, and the cover 61 and the tray 70 can be integrally opened to a fully opening position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cover structure of a printer, and more particularly, to a first cover body pivotally attached to a main body case so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis, and a main body case near the horizontal axis. And a second cover body that can be freely opened and closed around a parallel horizontal axis.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various printers such as a laser printer and an ink-jet printer have a structure in which a print mechanism is provided in a main body case. A top cover that covers the upper side of the print mechanism is openably and closably provided to clear jams and replace parts such as toner boxes and ink cartridges. Paper is fed to the outside of the main body case. A tray and a paper discharge tray for receiving printed paper discharged from the main body case are provided.

Some printers of this type are configured so that printed paper is discharged to the front side of a main body case, and a paper discharge tray is provided on the front side of the main body case. become longer. Therefore, conventionally, in a cover structure of a printer having a top cover and a paper output tray, the top cover is pivotally attached to the main body case so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis, and the paper output tray is overlapped with the upper surface of the top cover. It can be configured so that it can be pivotally attached to the top cover and can be set to open the paper output tray to receive printed paper on its back side when printing, and to discharge paper when not printing. 2. Description of the Related Art There has been proposed a cover structure of a printer in which a paper tray can be closed and stacked on an upper surface of a main body case in an orderly manner.

[0004]

However, in the cover structure of the printer, since the top cover and the discharge tray are not connected to each other, it is necessary to maintain the print mechanism, remove jams when a paper jam occurs, replace parts, and the like. To open the top cover, it is necessary to open the paper discharge tray and then open the top cover, or hold both the paper discharge tray and the top cover and open them integrally. That is, the operation for opening the top cover becomes very complicated.

[0005] Assuming that the paper discharge tray is closed,
When only the top cover is gripped and opened to the fully open position, the paper output tray is also opened partway through the top cover, but then the paper output tray is rapidly rotated independently of the top cover by its own weight. Therefore, there is a risk that the paper discharge tray may be damaged or the paper discharge tray may come off from the main body case.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a cover structure for a printer having a first cover body (top cover) and a second cover body (discharge tray), in which the first cover body and the second cover body are integrally opened. Simplification, etc.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cover structure of a printer, wherein the first cover body is rotatably mounted on a main body case of the printer so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis, and a main body case of the printer. And a second cover body that is open and closeable and rotatably pivoted about a parallel horizontal axis near the horizontal axis, wherein the second cover body is completely closed. When it is in the position, it is configured so as to overlap with most of the upper surface of the first cover body.
An engagement portion is provided at a tip portion opposite to the rotation center of the cover body, and a portion near the tip end opposite to the rotation center of the first cover body is provided when the second cover body is in the fully closed position. The engaging portion is detachable, and a locking guide portion is provided to allow the relative movement while locking the engaging portion when the first and second cover bodies are integrally opened to the fully opened position.

[0008] The second cover body is configured so as to overlap most of the upper surface of the first cover body when in the fully closed position, so that it can be housed neatly over the upper surface of the first cover body. When the second cover body is in the fully closed position, the engaging portion of the second cover body is removably fitted to the locking guide portion of the first cover body. When only the second cover body is opened, the second cover body is set so as to be able to receive a printed sheet on its back surface.

When the first and second cover members are integrally opened, the center of rotation of the first cover member and the center of rotation of the second cover member are eccentric. The engaging portion at the opposite end and the locking guide near the end opposite to the center of rotation of the second cover body move relative to each other.
And when the second cover body is integrally opened to the fully open position,
Since the locking guide allows relative movement while locking the engaging part,
When only the first cover body is gripped and opened, the second cover body can also be opened integrally with the first cover body to the fully open position without independently rotating.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the first cover body is a top cover that covers an upper side of a print mechanism in a main body case of the printer. It is a discharge tray for receiving printed sheets at the fully opened position.

That is, when the printer is not used, the paper discharge tray can be stored neatly on the upper surface side of the top cover, and at the time of printing, when only the paper discharge tray is opened to the full open position, the printed paper is set to receive the printed paper. be able to. Also, when opening the top cover for maintenance of the print mechanism, jam clearance at the time of paper jam, replacement of parts, etc., if only the top cover is gripped and opened, the output tray will not rotate independently. It can be opened to the fully open position integrally with the top cover.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the cover structure of the printer according to the second aspect of the present invention, the engagement portion includes an engagement piece projecting vertically from a back surface of an upper wall portion of the second cover body, and And an engagement pin protruding from the piece in a horizontal posture. That is, since the engaging portion can be configured with a simple structure having the engaging piece and the engaging pin portion, it is very advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost. Other effects are the same as those of the second aspect.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the cover structure of the printer according to the third aspect of the present invention, wherein the locking guide portion is formed on an upper wall portion of the first cover body and is capable of introducing an engaging portion; It has a slit connected to the introduction opening to allow the engagement piece to move, and a locking portion for locking the engagement pin when the engagement piece moves along the slit. That is, since the engagement guide portion can be configured to have a simple structure having the introduction opening, the slit, and the locking portion, it is very advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost. Other effects are the same as those of the third aspect.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The present embodiment is an example in which the present invention is applied to a cover structure of a laser printer. However, the cover structure of the printer of the present embodiment is not limited to a laser printer and can be applied to cover structures of various other printers.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the laser printer 1 includes a main body case 2, first and second paper feed tray units 3 and 4 provided on a rear upper surface side of the main body case 2, and a main body case 2. 2, paper transport mechanism 15, scanner unit 20, process unit 30, fixing unit 5
A drive unit (not shown) for driving the paper transport mechanism 15, the process unit 30, the fixing unit 50, and the like.
1 and printer cover structure 60 having paper output tray 70
Is provided.

The scanner unit 20, the process unit 30, the fixing unit 50 and the like correspond to a printing mechanism, and the upper side of the printing mechanism is closed by a top cover 61 so as to be openable and closable. The process unit 30
The photosensitive drum 32 and the transfer roller 3
3, a toner box 37, and the like are built in, and are configured in a cartridge structure that can be attached to and detached from a predetermined portion in the main body case 2.

The first paper feed tray unit 3 includes a tray body 5, a tray cover 6 removably connected to the tray body 5, a sheet receiving plate 7 pivotally supported by the tray body 5, It has a paper feed roller 8 rotatably supported at the lower end, a spring 9 for urging the paper receiving plate 7 toward the paper feed roller 8, and the like. When the tray cover 6 is opened, a release mechanism (not shown) is provided. As a result, the sheet receiving plate 7 is released against the urging force of the spring 9, and the sheet can be set on the sheet receiving plate 7.

Although not shown, an intermittent gear meshing with the paper feed drive gear of the drive unit is mounted on the shaft end of the paper feed roller 8, and when the tray cover 6 is closed, the drive unit When the paper feed roller 8 is rotated via the intermittent gear, the set paper is fed. The second paper feed tray unit 4 has substantially the same structure as the first paper feed tray unit 3 except for the tray cover 10, so the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. The second paper feed tray unit 4 is detachably attached to the case main body 2, and the paper is manually fed from the guide surface 10 a of the tray cover 10 to the insertion port 1.
0b to feed paper.

The paper transport mechanism 15 is for transporting the paper fed from the first and second paper feed tray units 3 and 4 to the process unit 30. A pair of transport rollers 16 and 17 provided
And a pair of registration rollers 18 and 19 provided in front of the lower end of the second paper feed tray unit 4. Second
The paper fed from the paper feed tray unit 4 is directly conveyed to the registration rollers 18 and 19, while the paper fed from the first paper feed tray unit 3 is
6 and 17, the sheet is conveyed to the registration rollers 18 and 19 through the conveyance path 15a on the lower surface side of the second paper feed tray unit 4, and after the sheet is deflected to some extent by the registration rollers 18 and 19, the sheet is conveyed. It is transported into the process unit 30 via the path 15b.

The scanner unit 20 is provided substantially below the process unit 30 and has a laser emitting unit (not shown), a polygon mirror 21, reflecting mirrors 22, 24, a lens 23, and the like. The emitted laser beam is represented by a polygon mirror 21 as indicated by a chain line.
By irradiating and exposing the outer periphery of the rotating photosensitive drum 32 of the process unit 30 at high speed via the reflecting mirror 22, the lens 23, and the reflecting mirror 24, an electrostatic latent image is formed.

The process unit 30 includes a casing 31
Inside, the photosensitive drum 32, the transfer roller 33, the developing roller 34, the cleaning roller 35, the toner supply roller 3
6, a toner box 37, a scorotron-type charged body 40, and the like are built in. The cartridge box is configured to be detachable from the main body case 2 so that the toner box 37 can be replaced while being removed from the printer main body 2. . After the toner in the toner box 37 is agitated by the agitator 38 and released, the toner is supplied to the developing roller 34 via the toner supply roller 36, and is carried by the developing roller 34 as a toner layer having a constant thickness by the blade 39. And is supplied to the photosensitive drum 32.

The electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 32 is visualized by toner adhered from the developing roller 34, transferred to a sheet passing between the photosensitive drum 32 and the transfer roller 33, and Body drum 32 and transfer roller 33
Thus, the transferred sheet is discharged from the process unit 30 and is conveyed into the fixing unit 50. After the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 32 is temporarily collected by the cleaning roller 35, the photosensitive drum 3
The toner is collected by the developing roller 34 via the second roller 2.

The fixing unit 50 includes the process unit 3
0, for fixing the toner adhered to the sheet, a heating roller 51, a pressing roller 52 pressed by the heating roller 51, and a downstream side of the rollers 51, 52. And has a pair of discharge rollers 53 and 54 for discharging to the outside.

Next, the cover structure 60 of the printer will be described. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the cover structure 60 of the printer includes a top cover 61 pivotally attached to the main body case 2 so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis 62, and the horizontal shaft An openable and closable paper discharge tray 70 which is rotatably pivoted about a parallel horizontal axis 71 near a center 62, and a tip end of the top cover 61 and the paper discharge tray 70 opposite to the rotation center. Has a connection mechanism 80 for releasably connecting.

A pair of left and right connecting pieces 63 extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface are integrally formed on the top cover 61, and a pair of pins 64 projecting from the pair of connecting pieces 63 is It is pivotally supported by the inner side wall 2a at the front end. Most of the upper surface of the top cover 61 is formed in a housing portion 65 capable of stacking and storing the paper discharge trays 70 in the fully closed position, and both end portions of the housing portion 65 are formed in a stepped portion 66.
Opposite side walls of the pair of stepped-up portions 66 are formed on the paper discharge tray 7.
A guide surface 66a that guides both left and right end surfaces of the zero point is formed. A pair of left and right locking guide portions 85 of the coupling mechanism 80 are provided at both ends of the housing portion 65 near the tip of the top cover 61 on the side opposite to the center of rotation.

On the other hand, the back surface of the paper discharge tray 70 is formed so as to overlap the upper surface of the storage portion 65 of the top cover 61 when in the fully closed position. A pair of left and right connecting pieces 72 extending in a direction substantially orthogonal to the surface are integrally formed on the paper discharge tray 70, and a pair of pin portions 73 protruding from the pair of connecting pieces 72 are connected to the front end of the main body case 2. Is pivotally supported by the inner side wall 2a. A connecting mechanism 80 is attached to both ends of the sheet discharge tray 70 near the end opposite to the rotation center.
And a pair of left and right engaging portions 81 are provided.

The connection mechanism 80 will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 10, the engaging portion 81 includes an engaging piece 82 vertically protruding from the back surface of the upper wall of the paper discharge tray 70, and an engaging piece protruding from the engaging piece 82 in a horizontal posture. The engagement guide portion 85 includes an introduction opening 86 formed in the upper wall portion of the top cover 61 and into which the engagement portion 81 can be introduced, and an engagement piece 82 connected to the introduction opening 86. And a locking portion 88 for locking the engaging pin portion 83 when the engaging piece 82 moves along the slit 87.

The operation of the cover structure 60 of the printer will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, the paper discharge tray 70 is configured to overlap the upper surface of the storage portion 65 of the top cover 61 when in the fully closed position. Paper tray 7
0 can be housed in an orderly manner on the upper surface side of the top cover 61. At this time, in the connecting mechanism 80, as shown in FIGS.
, And the engaging portion 81 is detachable from the locking guide portion 85. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, only the discharge tray 70 is opened with the top cover 61 closed. Can be. When the paper discharge tray 70 is opened, the paper tray 70 is set so as to receive printed paper discharged from the main body case 2.

The top cover 61 and the discharge tray 7 from the state shown in FIG. 3 are used for maintenance of the print mechanism, jam clearance at the time of paper jam, replacement of parts of the process unit 30 and the like.
0 are integrally opened, the center of rotation of the top cover 61 and the center of rotation of the paper discharge tray 70 are eccentric.
When the top cover 61 and the paper discharge tray 70 rotate integrally, the front end portion opposite to the rotation center of the top cover 61 and the front end portion opposite to the rotation center of the paper discharge tray 70 move relatively. However, when only the top cover 61 is gripped and opened, the engaging portion 81 is moved by the connecting mechanism 80 to the locking guide portion 8.
5, the top cover 61 and the discharge tray 70 can be integrally opened to the fully opened position without the discharge tray 70 rotating independently.

That is, according to the cover structure 60 of the printer, when the paper discharge tray 70 is in the fully closed position, it can be stored neatly on the upper surface side of the top cover 61, and the maintenance of the print mechanism and the paper jam can be performed. When it is desired to open the top cover 61 for the jam processing and the process unit 30, the top cover 6 is opened after the discharge tray 70 is opened.
If the top cover 61 is only gripped and opened without opening the sheet tray 1 or holding both the paper discharge tray 70 and the top cover 61 and opening them integrally,
By the coupling mechanism 80, the discharge tray 70 is moved to the top cover 6
Since the top cover 61 and the discharge tray 70 can be opened integrally while holding the connection state with the tray 1, the work of integrally opening the top cover 61 and the discharge tray 70 can be greatly simplified.

Therefore, when the top cover 61 is gripped and opened, the paper discharge tray 70 does not rotate independently, so that the paper discharge tray 70 is reliably prevented from being damaged or coming off the main body case. can do. Further, the engaging portion 80
Is constituted by a simple structure having an engagement piece 81 and an engagement pin portion 82, and a locking guide portion 85 is also formed by a simple structure having an introduction opening 86, a slit 87 and a locking portion 88. 80 can be configured with a very simple mechanism, which is very advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost.

[0032]

According to the cover structure of the first aspect of the present invention, the second cover body is formed so as to overlap most of the upper surface of the first cover body when in the fully closed position. The second cover body can be stored neatly on the upper surface side of the first cover body. Further, an engaging portion is provided at a tip portion opposite to the rotation center of the second cover body, and the second cover body is in a fully closed position near a tip portion opposite to the rotation center of the first cover body. The engaging guide is provided so as to allow the relative movement while retaining the engaging portion when the first and second cover members are integrally opened to the fully open position. When only the cover body is held and opened, the second cover body is opened integrally with the first cover body, so that the work of opening the first cover can be greatly simplified. Moreover, since the second cover body does not rotate independently, it is possible to reliably prevent the second cover body from being damaged or coming off the main body case.

According to the printer cover structure of the second aspect, the same effect as that of the first aspect is obtained, but the first cover body is a top cover that covers the upper side of the printing mechanism in the main body case of the printer. The second cover body is a discharge tray for receiving printed sheets when the printer is in the fully open position. Therefore, when the printer is not used, the discharge tray can be stored neatly on the upper side of the top cover, and when the printer is used. When only the paper discharge tray is opened to the fully open position, it can be set to receive printed paper. Also, when the top cover is opened for maintenance of the print mechanism, jam clearance at the time of paper jam, replacement of parts, etc., when the paper output tray is in the fully closed position, if only the top cover is gripped and opened, the paper is discharged. Since the paper tray can also be opened integrally with the top cover, the work for opening the top cover can be greatly simplified, and since the paper output tray does not rotate independently, the paper output tray may be damaged. Or detached from the main body case.

According to the cover structure of the printer of the third aspect, the same effect as that of the second aspect is obtained, but the engagement portion is provided with the second
An engagement piece vertically projecting from the back surface of the upper wall of the cover body;
Since the engaging piece has the engaging pin portion projecting in a horizontal posture, the engaging portion can be structured, which is very advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost.

According to the printer cover structure of the fourth aspect, the same effect as that of the third aspect is obtained, but the locking guide portion is
An introduction opening formed in the upper wall portion of the first cover body into which the engagement portion can be introduced, a slit connected to the introduction opening to allow movement of the engagement piece, and when the engagement piece moves along the slit. And a locking portion for locking the engaging pin portion, so that the engaging guide portion can be structured, which is very advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a laser printer having a printer cover structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the laser printer.

FIG. 3 is a right side view, partially in section, of the laser printer.

FIG. 4 is a right side view, partially in section, of the laser printer.

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional right side view of the laser printer.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a main part of a cover structure (state in FIG. 3) of the printer.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line VII-VII in FIG. 6;

8 is a sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.

9 is a plan view of an essential part of a cover structure (state in FIG. 5) of the printer.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 9;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Laser printer 2 Main body case 60 Printer cover structure 61 Top cover (first cover body) 62, 71 Horizontal axis 70 Tray cover (second cover body) 80 Engagement part 81 Engagement piece 82 Engagement pin part 85 Stop guide part 86 Introducing opening 87 Slit 88 Lock part

Claims (4)

[Claims] An openable and closable first cover body pivotally attached to a main body case of a printer so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis, and a horizontal axis parallel to the main body case of the printer near the horizontal axis. A cover structure of a printer, comprising: a second cover body rotatably pivoted around a center; wherein the second cover body is substantially the upper surface of the first cover body when in the fully closed position. The second cover body is provided with an engagement portion at a tip end opposite to the center of rotation, and near an end opposite to the center of rotation of the first cover body. When the second cover body is in the fully closed position, the engaging portion is removably attached to the portion, and when the first and second cover bodies are integrally opened to the fully open position, the engaging portion is locked while being engaged. A cover structure for a printer, wherein a locking guide portion allowing movement is provided. 2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the first cover body is a top cover that covers an upper side of a print mechanism in a main body case of the printer, and the second cover body is a discharge tray that receives printed sheets when the printer is in a fully open position. The cover structure of the printer according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The engaging portion includes: an engaging piece vertically projecting from a back surface of an upper wall of the second cover body; and an engaging pin projecting horizontally from the engaging piece. 3. The cover structure for a printer according to claim 2, comprising: 4. An engaging opening formed in an upper wall portion of the first cover body and capable of introducing an engaging portion, and a slit connected to the introducing opening and allowing movement of the engaging piece. 4. A cover structure for a printer according to claim 3, further comprising a locking portion for locking the engaging pin portion when the engaging piece moves along the slit.