JPH1120957A - Image reading device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image reading device capable of preventing the falling of documents stacked on a document presser cover during opening of the document presser cover and surely supporting a document hopper. SOLUTION: An image reading device is provided with a static document reading surface, a moving document reading part, a document hopper 17, a document presser cover C for covering the static document reading surface B so as to be freely opened/closed and a continuous document feeding part 15 for continuously feeding documents D1 one by one from the document hopper 17 to the moving document reading part, and a stopper member 40 is provided in the document presser cover for preventing the falling of the documents D1 stacked on the document presser cover C during opening of the document presser cover.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus having an original reading function, for example, an optical image reading apparatus in a copying machine or an image processing apparatus having both functions of copying and facsimile. And so on.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An optical image reading apparatus is provided in the above-described copying machine or an image processing apparatus having both functions of copying and facsimile. 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an image reading apparatus is provided with a document reading unit, and a stationary document reading unit that reads a stationary document such as a book on an upper surface of the document reading unit;
A continuous document feeder for feeding and reading a document sheet by sheet is provided. Generally, the stationary document reading unit is provided with a document pressing cover for pressing the stationary document reading surface from above on the stationary document reading surface so as to be openable and closable. The continuous document feeder requires a document hopper for supplying the document and a discharge tray for storing the read document. Some image processing apparatuses have a document holding cover provided with a document hopper and a discharge tray in order to reduce the size of the entire apparatus. In these apparatuses, on the upper surface of the document pressing cover, a discharged document tray in which the documents read by the moving document reading unit in the continuous document feeding unit are discharged and stacked and stored is formed.

[0003] Above the discharged document tray,
A document hopper on which a stack of documents supplied to the moving document reading unit is placed is integrally mounted with the document pressing cover so as to be inclined upward as the distance from the moving document reading unit increases. With the above-described configuration, the stacked originals placed on the original hopper are continuously supplied one by one to the moving original reading unit in the continuous original feeding unit to be read, and the discharged original formed on the original pressing cover is formed. It was discharged to a tray and stored.

[0004]

However, in the above-described conventional image reading apparatus, there is no member between the discharge document tray formed on the document pressing cover and the document hopper. For this reason, when the document holding cover is opened, there has been a problem that the documents stacked on the discharge document tray fall from between the discharge document tray and the document hopper. In addition, since the original hopper is integrated with the original cover, if a load is applied to the original hopper, the joint between the original hopper and the original cover may be deformed or damaged, or the original hopper itself may be damaged. Had occurred.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the conventional disadvantages described above, prevent a document stacked on the document holding cover when the document holding cover is opened, and securely support the document hopper.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a document holding cover having a stationary document reading surface, a moving document reading section, and a document hopper, which covers the still document reading surface in a freely openable and closable manner. And a continuous document feeder for continuously feeding documents one by one from a document hopper to a moving document reader. The image reading device supports the document hopper and is mounted on a document holding cover. A stopper member is provided on the document holding cover to prevent the document from falling when the document holding cover is opened. In addition, the stopper member is provided on the hinge mechanism side of the document holding cover so as to support the document hopper against the lower surface of the document hopper and to be detachably attached to the document holding cover. Further, the stopper member is detachable by a hole provided in the document pressing cover and an L-shaped projection provided in the stopper member.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of an image reading apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an image processing apparatus including an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a perspective view illustrating a state where a document pressing cover is opened. FIG.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a state where a document pressing cover of the image processing apparatus in FIG. 1 is closed. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the inside of the image reading unit of the image processing apparatus. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing attachment of a document hopper to a document holding cover of the image reading apparatus. FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating the image processing apparatus of FIG. 1 when the document pressing cover is opened.

First, an image processing apparatus to which the image reading apparatus of the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. As a housing structure of the entire apparatus, a document reading unit A and an image recording unit 10 are provided vertically. The document reading unit A is formed above the image recording unit 10, and has a transparent stationary document reading surface B on which a stationary document such as a book is placed. Then, behind the stationary document reading surface B,
A document holding cover C which can be freely opened and closed via a hinge mechanism E is attached to the document reading section A.
The document placed on the stationary document reading surface B is pressed from above.

In the document reading section A, as shown in FIG.
A photoelectric conversion unit 13 including a lens 13a and a photoelectric converter 13b is provided on the bottom surface. Then, the first scanning body 11 including the light source 11a and the first reflecting mirror 11b
And the second scanning body 12 having the second reflecting mirror 12a and the third reflecting mirror 12b are transported below the stationary original reading surface B, and the light source 11a irradiates the stationary original reading surface B. The image of the document D placed thereon is reflected via the first reflecting mirror 11b, the second reflecting mirror 12a, and the third reflecting mirror 12b,
The image is formed by the lens 13a of the photoelectric conversion unit 13 and converted into an electric signal by the photoelectric converter 13b. The first scanning body 11 and the second scanning body 12 are transported immediately below the glass of the stationary original reading surface B.

A moving original reading section 14 is provided above the original reading section A adjacent to the stationary original reading surface B, and a continuous original feeding section 15 is provided above the moving original reading section 14. . A discharge document tray 18 is formed on the upper surface of the document holding cover C. A document hopper 17 for stacking a plurality of documents to be supplied to the moving document reading unit 14 is provided above the document holding cover C, so that the documents can be continuously supplied and read one by one. I have. In this case, the first scanning body 11 and the second scanning body 12 are kept below the moving document reading unit 14.

Based on the image information read by such an image reading unit or the received facsimile information, a recording unit provided in the image recording unit 10 records on a recording sheet. You.

The document hopper 17 is provided so as to be inclined upward as the distance from the continuous document feeder 15 increases. The document hopper 17 is provided with a document guide 17a, which guides the document D1 placed on the document hopper 17 in the width direction. A document inlet 23 of the continuous document feeder 15 is provided at an end of the continuous document feeder 15 on the side of the document hopper 17, and a document outlet 2 is provided immediately below the document inlet 23.
4 are provided.

A pickup roller 5, a separation roller 6, and a retard roller 7 are provided at a document entrance 23 of the continuous document feeder 15, and a document D1 placed on a document hopper 17 is separated one by one. The document is conveyed in a document conveyance path 15 a formed in a substantially horizontal U-shape in the document feeding section 15. The paper feed roller 8 is provided at the curved portion of the original conveying path 15a.
Is provided at the lowermost portion of the document transport path 15a via the paper feed roller 8 to form a reading section for continuously supplied documents.
A movable document reading unit 14 made of a transparent member such as glass is provided.

Discharge rollers 21 and 22 are provided at a document discharge port 24 at the end of the document transport path 15a. The document discharged through the discharge rollers 21 and 22 is discharged onto a discharge document tray 18 formed on the document pressing cover C, and the continuously supplied documents are sequentially accumulated. Also,
The document discharge port 24 is positioned at the upper end of a discharge document receiving inlet 27 formed between the front surface of the discharge document tray 18 and the back surface of the document hopper 17 in the vertical direction. Then, the height difference between the document discharge port 24 and the discharge document tray 18 is increased so that a large amount of discharge documents placed on the discharge document tray 18 can be secured.

Next, the document pressing cover C of the present invention will be described. As described above, the document pressing cover C is attached to the document reading unit A via the fulcrum of the hinge mechanism E. As shown in FIG. 1, the document holding cover C includes a platen cover 51 and a pressing sheet 54.
The platen cover 51 is attached to the hinge mechanism E.
For example, resin is used for the platen cover 51 in order to reduce the weight and improve the operability of opening and closing. The pressing sheet 54 is a flexible member that contacts and presses the upper surface of the document D. The pressing sheet 54 is attached to the platen cover 51.

Then, as shown in FIG.
An original D such as a book is placed on the stationary original reading surface B, the original pressing cover C is closed, the original D is also pressed, and the original reading unit A can read the image of the original.

Next, the document hopper 17 will be described mainly with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG. First, the configuration of the document hopper 17 will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the original hopper 17 is provided with protrusions 30 and 31 at the corners on both sides by integral molding. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the projecting portion 51 of the platen cover 51
Holes 32 and 33 are provided in each of a and 51b. The original hopper 17 is made of a plastic molded product that can be bent. As shown in FIG. 4, the original hopper 17 is bent in the width direction so that the projection 30 becomes the hole 32 and the projection 31 becomes the hole 33. (The document holding cover C is bent so that the protrusion 30 is
Alternatively, the protrusion 31 can be inserted into the hole 33. ). As described above, the document hopper 17 (document pressing cover C) is bent so that the document hopper 17 can be detached from the document pressing cover C. Also, the protrusion 30
And the hole 32, and the projection 31 and the hole 33 constitute a hinge mechanism H of the original hopper, and the original hopper 17 is rotatable.

The rotating original hopper 17 is tilted and stopped by a stopper member 40, which will be described later, so as to move upward as the distance from the continuous original feeding section 15 increases. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a pair of document guides 17a are provided on the document hopper 17 so as to be able to reciprocate in the width direction of the document D1. As shown in FIG. 2, the pair of document guides 17a
The document D1 placed in a stack on the sheet is guided in the width direction.

As described above, the original hopper 17 is
And a hinge mechanism H composed of a projection 31 and a hole 33. The original hopper 17 is lifted and rotated, and the discharged original tray 18 from the continuous document feeder 15 is rotated.
Is ejected to take out the stacked originals. Further, since the document hopper 17 and the discharge document tray 18 are configured in two stages, the installation area of the apparatus is reduced, and the apparatus is compact. Further, since the original hopper 17 is located at the upper stage, the original D1 in a stacked state can be easily placed on the original hopper 17.

Next, the stopper member 40 will be described.
2, 3, and 5, the stopper member 40 is provided between the document hopper 17 and the document pressing cover C and on the hinge mechanism E side as shown in FIG. The stopper member 40 has a Z-shaped support portion 41 as shown in FIG. 5, and a Z-shaped support portion 4 as shown in FIGS.
A pair of L-shaped protrusions 4 extending from the bottom surface of the bottom 41b
Consists of two. Z-shaped support portion 41 and L-shaped protrusion 42
Are integrally formed. The upper surface 41a of the Z-shaped support portion 41 of the stopper member 40 is rotatable with the original hopper 1
7 and supports the original hopper.

As shown in FIG. 3, the stopper member 40
In FIG. 3, a pair of L-shaped protrusions 42 are inserted in a pair of holes 51h provided in the protrusions 51b of the platen cover 51 of the document holding cover C in the direction of arrow m. Only the hole 51h and the protrusion 42 are shown.) That is, the bottom surface of the bottom portion 41b of the support portion 41 and the upper surface of the protrusion portion 51b of the platen cover 51 are in contact with each other, and the bottom portion 41b of the Z-shaped support portion 41 and the tip portion 42 of the L-shaped protrusion portion 42
and is fixed by the engagement of the upper surface of the protruding portion 51b between the protruding portions 51a. Since the stopper member 40 is configured as described above, it can be detached.

As described above, since the stopper member 40 is provided on the upper surface of the document holding cover C on the hinge mechanism E side, the document D1 is stacked on the upper surface of the document holding cover C as shown in FIG. Even if the pressing cover C is opened, the document D1 hits the stopper member 40, and the document is prevented from falling from the document pressing cover C to the floor or the like.

As described above, the stopper member 40 supports the document hopper 17, and when the document pressing cover C is opened as shown in FIG. Document D1 is prevented from falling. Further, since the stopper member 40 can reliably support the document hopper 17, even if a slight load is applied to the document hopper 17, the document hopper 17 is not damaged. Further, as described above, the stopper member 40 is attached by fitting the hole 51 provided on the document pressing cover C with the L-shaped projection 42 provided on the stopper member 40.
Can be easily removed. Further, as described above,
Since the original hopper 17 can also be removed, the projecting portion of the apparatus can be eliminated, and the packing state can be made compact.

[0024]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention,
When the document holding cover is opened, it is possible to prevent a problem that the documents stacked on the discharge document tray fall from between the discharge document tray and the document hopper. In addition, since the original hopper can be reliably supported, even if a slight load is applied to the original hopper, the attachment between the original hopper and the original pressing cover may be deformed or damaged, or the original hopper itself may be damaged. Such a problem is prevented.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the stopper member is provided on the hinge mechanism side of the document holding cover, the document can be prevented from dropping when the document holding cover is opened, and the document loaded and stored on the document holding cover can be taken out. Does not hinder Further, since the document hopper is supported against the stopper member, the stopper member does not hinder the removal of the document hopper.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the stopper member can be securely attached to the upper surface of the document pressing cover with a simple configuration, and the stopper member can be easily removed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an image processing apparatus including an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a perspective view illustrating a state where a document pressing cover is opened.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the image processing apparatus of FIG. 1 when a document pressing cover is closed.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the inside of an image reading unit of the image processing apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating attachment of a document hopper to a document pressing cover of the image reading apparatus.

5 is a side view illustrating the image processing apparatus of FIG. 1 when a document pressing cover is opened.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A Document Reading Unit B Still Document Reading Surface C Document Holding Cover D1 Document E Hinge Mechanism 14 Moving Document Reading Unit 15 Continuous Document Feeding Unit 17 Document Hopper 40 Stopper Member 42 Projection 51 Platen Cover 51h Hole

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A document holding cover having a stationary document reading surface, a moving document reading unit, and a document hopper, and covering the still document reading surface in an openable and closable manner; An image reading apparatus having a continuous document feeder for feeding a document, wherein the stopper supports the document hopper and prevents a document stacked on the document holding cover from dropping when the document holding cover is opened. An image reading device provided on a document holding cover. 2. The image according to claim 1, wherein the stopper member is provided on the hinge mechanism side of the document holding cover so as to contact the lower surface of the document hopper to support the document hopper and to be detachably attached to the document holding cover. Reader. 3. The image reading apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the stopper member is detachable by a hole provided in the document pressing cover and an L-shaped projection provided in the stopper member.