JPH11292314A - Image formation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simplify the removal operation of an auto sheet feeder(ASF) from a printer. SOLUTION: When a push lever 40 on a top face of an ASF 1 is pushed in downward, both of two right and left hooks 16, 17 move downward so that a printer (not shown) can be removed. Since the push lever 40 can be operated by one hand and two hooks 16, 17 are moved simultaneously, the removal operation becomes simple.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to an image forming apparatus capable of separating a sheet material feeding device for feeding a sheet material and a recording device for recording an image on the sheet material.
More specifically, the present invention relates to a mechanism for attaching and detaching a sheet material feeding device and a recording device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various image forming apparatuses for recording an image on a sheet material have been proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 6-183852.

FIG. 39 is a perspective view showing an example of such an image forming apparatus. The illustrated image forming apparatus 1000 is an automatic sheet feeder (hereinafter, referred to as “ASF”) 1 for feeding a sheet material.
047, and a recording device (hereinafter, referred to as a “printer”) 1101 for recording an image on the sheet material fed by the ASF 1047. And the printer 11
01 has two engaging holes 1103y and 1103z, and the ASF 1047 has two rotatable hooks 1016 and 1017.
The ASF 1047 and the printer 110 are engaged by engaging the engagement holes 16 and 1017 with the engagement holes 1103y and 1103z.
1 was connected.

[0004]

Since the two hooks 1016 and 1017 are configured to rotate independently and independently, the ASF 1047 and the printer 11
In order to separate the hooks 01 and 01, it is necessary to rotate the hooks 1016 and 1017 separately, which is troublesome. Further, when the ASF 1047 and the printer 1101 are connected, there is also a problem that whether or not the connection has been normally performed cannot be confirmed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus for connecting and disconnecting a sheet feeding apparatus and a recording apparatus by a simple operation.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of confirming connection between a sheet feeding device and a recording device.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and comprises a sheet material feeding device for feeding a sheet material, and a sheet material fed by the sheet material feeding device. A recording device for recording an image on the sheet material, and, in the image forming apparatus configured to be able to separate the sheet material feeding device and the recording device, any one of the sheet material feeding device and the recording device Having a plurality of lock members movably supported, and an operation member movably supported while being engaged with at least one lock member, and based on operating the operation member, The sheet material feeding device or the recording device that does not have the lock member by integrally moving a plurality of lock members has a plurality of engagement portions with which the plurality of lock members are respectively engaged. ,And The sheet member feeding device and the recording device are connected by engaging the lock members with the engagement portions, and the lock member is engaged with the lock member by moving the lock member by the operating member. And disengaging the part.

In this case, it is preferable that the lock member is a claw-shaped member and the engaging portion is a hole. Further, the lock member may be rotatably supported.

On the other hand, the lock member and the operation member may be provided on the sheet material feeding device side, and the engaging portion may be provided on the recording device side.

In this case, the sheet feeding device has a horizontal guide surface for defining a moving direction of the recording device when the recording device is connected, and the lock member moves upward from the guide surface. The lock member may be moved downward by pressing the operation member downward so as to protrude, and the engagement between the lock member and the engagement portion may be released.

Further, when the lock member is urged by an elastic member in a direction in which the lock member is engaged with the engaging portion, and when the lock member is engaged with the engaging portion, the elastic member is May move the operation member via the lock member. In this case, the elastic member may be a spring such as a coil spring.

Further, the sheet material feeding device has a protruding portion supported movably in a substantially horizontal direction and connected to the operating member, and pressing the operating member downward. The protrusion may be moved in a substantially horizontal direction to push the recording device in the direction. In such a case, it is preferable that the recording device is separated from the sheet material feeding device based on the fact that the movement of the protrusion in the substantially horizontal direction is performed after the movement of the lock member.

On the other hand, the lock member and the operation member may be provided on the side of the recording device, and the engaging portion may be provided on the side of the sheet material feeding device.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a printer is mounted on an ASF according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view showing a state in which the printer is mounted on the ASF, and FIG.
Is a sectional view of the ASF, and FIG.
It is sectional drawing of SF.

Image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, an ASF (sheet material feeding device) 1 for feeding a sheet (sheet material) and a printer (recording device) 101 for printing an image on the sheet fed by the ASF 1 The ASF 1 and the printer 101 are configured to be separable.

Here, the printer 101 is a so-called mobile printer having a battery and being small and portable. In the present embodiment, the printer 101 does not have an ASF built therein, and the printer 101 alone has a so-called manual paper feeder. The paper is fed only by using the paper feed. With such a configuration, downsizing, simplification, and cost reduction of the printer 101 alone can be realized, and the printer 101 is optimally configured as a mobile printer. It goes without saying that the present invention is applicable even if the printer 101 has a built-in small ASF.

The small and portable printer 101 is used, for example, outdoors, in a car, or at a destination office when a salesman goes to a destination. In such a situation, the number of recordings required is relatively small, and as described above, only manual feed or a simple built-in ASF with a small capacity is sufficient. However, when this printer 101 is used in one's office, There is a need to print a wide variety of recording papers in relatively large quantities.

ASF1 separated from the printer 101 is very suitable for such needs. That is, ASF
Reference numeral 1 denotes a so-called desktop type which is always placed on an office desk.
By attaching the printer 101 to the SF 1, the printer 101 can have the characteristics of a desktop printer. In addition, AS
F1 is capable of automatically feeding various types of recording media ranging from plain paper to postcards, envelopes, plastic films and cloths by a configuration described later.

As described above, in the present embodiment, an extremely high value-added printer is provided, in which a very small mobile printer is used alone as a high-performance desktop printer by mounting it on the ASF according to the present invention. can do. At this time, the ASF 1 also functions as a storage place when the printer 101 is not used as a single printer, and has a role of a so-called docking station in which an automatic paper feed function is added when the printer 101 is stored.

Here, the ASF 1 according to the present invention can stably stand alone as the ASF when the printer 101 is not mounted, and further, the ASF 1 with the sheets stacked thereon can be used.
Can be separated. Thus, the user can enter the operation standby state as a desktop printer simply by attaching the separated printer 101 to the self-standing ASF 1. This means that it functions as an extremely convenient docking station for the user.

When the printer 101 is to be used for mobile and desktop as described above, AS
It is important that the operation of mounting and separating the F1 and the printer 101 can be performed extremely easily. This is because it is very troublesome for a user who detaches and carries the printer 101 from the ASF 1 every day and returns and combines the printer 101 with the ASF 1 if the mounting and separating operations are complicated or time-consuming.

Here, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, an opening 1A is provided on the front surface of the ASF 1,
The opening 1 </ b> A is a storage section of the printer 101. The sheet passage path in the printer 101 is a substantially horizontal so-called horizontal path.
The sheet feeding side of the ASF1 is moved substantially horizontally toward the ASF1 and is pushed into the front opening 1A of the ASF1 to form a paper path as described later.

That is, in the present embodiment, the printer 101 in the horizontal path is inserted into the ASF 1 by being pushed substantially horizontally. Then, the printer 101 is almost horizontally
Is pressed, the printer 101 is automatically fixed to the ASF 1 (both methods of fixing the printer 101 to the ASF 1 will be described later in detail). Also, A
When the printer 101 is separated from the SF 1, the user only pushes the push lever 40 provided on the upper surface of the ASF.
01 is released from the ASF1, and the printer 101 is pushed forward of the ASF1.

With this configuration, the user can mount and separate the printer 101 and the ASF 1 very easily, and can use the mobile and desktop printers properly.

Here, in this embodiment, a table portion 45c is provided on the front surface of the ASF 1 in order to make the mounting and separating work simple and easy. When attaching the printer 101 to the ASF 1, first, the printer 101
Is placed on the table 45c. At this time, the user
Hold the upper and lower surfaces of the printer 101 near the center on the near side (discharge side) with one hand, and place the printer 10 on the table 45c.
1 is placed so that the back side (paper feed side) can be gently attached (you may hold both sides of the printer 101 with both hands).

Next, when the printer 101 placed on the table portion 45c is pushed into the inside by hand as it is, both sides of the printer 101 are attached to the printer side guide portions 45a provided at both side ends of the table portion 45c. Is guided to a positioning boss described later, and is fitted and positioned in a positioning hole of the printer 101 described later. At this time, the printer 101 is merely pushed into the center of the table portion 45c and pushed in, and unnecessary alignment and the like are unnecessary.

The table section 45c has a printer sliding section 45b on which the back side of the printer slides when the printer 101 is pushed into both sides. In addition, a plurality of rubber feet (not shown) are provided on the back surface of the printer 101 to prevent the printer 101 from being easily moved by an external force when the printer alone is used on a desk or the like.

However, when the printer 101 is mounted on the ASF 1, if the rubber feet come into contact with the table 45c, the user pushes the printer 101 by hand, which makes it very difficult to operate the printer 101. The printer sliding portion 45b is set so as not to contact the table portion.
The portion between is a step having a depth greater than the height of the rubber feet.

On the other hand, an eave portion 47a is formed in the ASF upper case 47 substantially in parallel with the table portion 45c.
The eave portion 47a forms a pocket portion that holds the printer 101 together with the table portion 45c.
The pocket formed in this way allows the printer 101
The direction in which the printer 101 is pushed substantially parallel to the SF 1 is shown to the user in a shape, and the user can push the printer 101 only in this direction.

This direction is determined by a printer 101 described later.
The connection direction of both connectors for electrically connecting the
The connector is connected during the operation of pushing and setting the connector into F1. With this configuration, the operability is improved without requiring a separate operation for connecting the connectors, and the connector is prevented from being damaged due to abnormal interference between the connectors caused by being pushed from different directions.

Further, the eave portion 47a is provided with an ASF1
After the printer 101 is mounted, the printer 10
When the front (paper discharge side) of the printer 1 receives an upward force, the printer 1
01 prevents the mounting portion from being damaged or released from being mounted on the ASF 1.

In this embodiment, the eaves 47a have the largest overhang on both sides, and the eaves 47b are formed at the center. By providing such an eaves recess 47b, the printer 10
It is possible to prevent the operation unit such as a power switch provided on the upper surface of the first unit from being covered. The clearance between the eaves portion 47a and the upper surface of the printer is 0.5 mm or more.
When it is about 2 mm, it is sufficiently effective in preventing the above-mentioned tilt. If this clearance is too large, the desired effect cannot be obtained.

By the way, as shown in FIG.
1 is the length in the depth direction L1, the length of the table portion 45c in the depth direction is L2, and the length of the eave portion 47a in the depth direction is L.
Assuming that 3, the following relationship is established in the present embodiment.

L1 / 2 ≦ L2 ≦ L1−15 mm Then, by making the length L2 in the depth direction of the table portion 45c larger than half L1 / 2 of the length L1 in the depth direction of the printer, the printer 101 moves to the ASF1. When mounted, a stable state can be ensured. Here, it is sufficient that this relationship is established in a part of the table section 45c, and it is not necessary that the entire table section 45c be established.

In the relationship of L1 / 2 ≧ L2, the printer 101 is in a state of protruding greatly from the ASF 1 in the mounted state, and the whole rear is lifted when an external force is applied downward to the protruding portion. And become very unstable.

On the other hand, the length L2 of the table portion 45c in the depth direction is set to 15 m from the length L1 of the printer 101 in the depth direction.
By making it smaller by m or more, it is possible to secure a space where the user's finger can enter in the lower part of the lower side of the printer 101. Accordingly, the user can operate the upper and lower surfaces of the printer 101 with one hand when mounting and separating the printer 101. (Of course with both hands).
It should be noted that this is not limited to the entire area in the width direction of the table portion 45c, but may have only a concave portion that satisfies this condition, for example, near the center or on both sides.

Further, since there is a space in the lower front portion of the printer 101, a design that does not visually sense the size in the height direction can be realized. Further, it is desirable that the thickness (length in the height direction) of the table portion 45c be about 10 mm or more, because the user's finger can enter under the printer 101.

Further, in the present embodiment, the following relationship also holds.

L1 / 4≤L3≤L1 / 2 Here, if the length L3 in the depth direction of the eave portion 47a is equal to or more than 1/4 of the length L1 in the depth direction of the printer 101, the printer 101 is tilted upward. It was found that the effect of limiting the pushing direction of the printer 101 was sufficient. Further, the length L3 in the depth direction of the eave portion 47a.
When the length exceeds half the length L1 of the printer 101 in the depth direction, the pushing amount at the time of mounting with respect to the depth of the printer 101 is too large, which impairs the operational feeling.

Further, the eaves portion 47a, which is visually large, makes the whole device look large, giving a feeling of oppression to the user, and causes other problems. Further, it may interfere with the operation on the upper surface of the printer 101, and it has been found that it is most desirable that the length L3 in the depth direction of the eaves portion 47a is not more than の of the depth of the printer 101. In addition, with this amount of overhang, the strength of the overhanging eave portion 47a can be sufficiently maintained, and the device can have a sufficient robustness.

Then, under such conditions, the table unit 45
By configuring the c and the eave portion 47a, it is possible to provide a mode in which the operability is extremely good and the effects such as limiting the pushing direction and preventing the tilt of the printer 101 are sufficiently exhibited.

The table 45c and the eaves 47a
A large opening is formed in the side surface between the printer side guide portion 45a and the height of the printer side guide portion 45a only needs to be equal to or greater than the clearance between the eaves portion 47a and the upper surface of the printer. If a power cord, an interface connector, or a light transmitting / receiving unit for infrared communication is provided on the side surface of the printer 101, there is no interference with this. That is, the printer 101 can be attached to the ASF 1 even when the power cord and the interface connector are attached to the printer 101, and can be separated as they are.

Next, the connectors 117 and 44 enabling the printer 101 and the ASF 1 to be electrically connected to each other, and the connector cover 11 for protecting these connectors.
9 and 59 will be described.

The printer 101 and the ASF 1 have detachable connectors 117 and 44, respectively, and are configured to electrically connect these to exchange power and control signals (hereinafter, the printer 101). Side connector 117 is referred to as “printer connector 117”, and ASF1
Side connector 44 is referred to as “ASF connector 44”).

Note that one printer connector 117 is
As shown in FIG. 5, it is arranged at the upper part of the surface facing the ASF1 when it is mounted on the ASF1, and the other AS
The F connector 44 is connected to the printer 10 as shown in FIG.
1 is disposed at a portion facing the printer connector 117 when the printer connector 117 is mounted.

The printer 101 and the ASF 1 have detachable connector covers 119 and 59 on the respective connectors 117 and 44 (hereinafter, a connector cover for protecting the printer connector 117 is referred to as a “printer connector cover 119”). And a connector cover for protecting the ASF connector 44 is referred to as an "ASF connector cover 59". The printer connector cover 119 is shown in FIG. 5, and the ASF connector cover 59 is shown in FIG. In this state, the connector covers 119 and 59 are attached to each connector 11.
7 and 44, these connectors 11
7, 44 are protected. As a result, adhesion of dust and dust to the connectors 117 and 44 is prevented, and good continuity during connection is maintained. Further, a situation where excessive static electricity is applied to the internal electric circuit through the connectors 117 and 44 can be avoided, and the destruction of the electric circuit can be prevented. Further, by using the detachable connector covers 119 and 59 as described above, it is possible to realize low cost and space saving, and it is particularly suitable for a micro printer such as a mobile printer.

On the other hand, on the upper surface of the table portion 45c of the ASF 1 (that is, the surface on which the printer 101 is mounted), a connector cover storage portion for storing the connector covers 119 and 59 removed from the connectors 117 and 44 is provided. 45d and 45e are formed, and when the printer 101 and the ASF 1 are connected, the connector covers 119 and
59 is detached from the connectors 117 and 44 and stored in the connector cover storage portions 45d and 45e (see FIG. 4). In addition, these storage parts 45d, 45e
Is one in which a projection having the same size as the connector is provided in the table utilizing the thickness of the table 45c.

The connector cover storage sections 45d, 4d
5e, the connector covers 119 and 59 are accommodated in the printer 101 and the printer 101.
A state of being sandwiched by the SF 1 prevents falling off and loss. In addition, the connector covers 119 and 59 are not visible from the outside, and thus are preferable in appearance. Further, when the printer 101 is detached from the ASF 1, the connector covers 119 and 59 stored in the connector cover storage portions 45d and 45e can be easily viewed.
It is possible to prevent forgetting to attach the connector covers 119 and 59 to the connectors 117 and 44.

In the present embodiment relating to the connector cover, the present invention is applicable even if the printer and the ASF are in a relationship of, for example, a notebook computer and a station.

Further, in this embodiment, both the printer connector 117 and the ASF connector 44 are protected by the connector covers 119 and 59.
Only one of the connectors 117 and 44 may be protected by the connector cover.

Further, in the present embodiment, the connector cover storage portion is provided on the upper surface of the table portion 45c of the ASF 1, but may be provided on a portion other than the upper surface. Further, the connector cover storage section may be provided on the printer 101 side instead of the ASF1 side.

Next, a brief description will be given of the path along which a sheet to be printed is fed and printed when the printer 101 is mounted on the ASF 1 (the details will be described later). .

FIG. 4 shows a cross section in a state where the printer 101 is mounted on the ASF 1. In FIG.
Reference numeral 26 denotes a pressure plate for setting a sheet to be illustrated after a predetermined number of sheets. One end of the pressure plate 26 is rotatably supported by the ASF chassis 11.
Thus, it is urged clockwise in a predetermined pressure toward the pickup rubber 23 wound around the pickup roller 19.

When the sheet is set, the pressure plate 26 is displaced and held in a direction away from the pickup rubber 23 by a cam shown later. At this time, a predetermined clearance is maintained between the pickup rubber 23 and the pressure plate 26, and the sheet is inserted and set in the clearance.

The leading end of the sheet hits a plastic film-like bank sheet 37 provided on the bank 36, and the leading end is positioned. Most of the sheet in the rear end direction is supported by the ASF paper feed tray 2. Here, the ASF paper feed tray 2 is rotatably supported at one end by the ASF upper case 47, and is held at a predetermined angle when supporting a sheet.

When the ASF 1 receives a paper feed command from the printer 101, the pickup roller 19 starts rotating clockwise, and at the same time, the cam releases the holding of the pressure plate 26. As a result, the pressure plate 26 presses the sheet against the pickup rubber 23, the sheet starts moving due to the surface friction of the pickup rubber 23, and is separated only by the bank sheet 37, and is formed by the bank 36 and the positioning base 39. The sheet is conveyed along the ASF sheet path 58 (see FIG. 3).

Thereafter, the sheet is transferred to the ASF sheet discharge section 56.
3 (see FIG. 3), it is composed of the platen 105 inside the printer and the lower surface of the battery 107, and is passed by the printer 101 alone to a sheet path called a manual feed slot.

Then, the paper end sensor 108 is
By detecting the sheet conveyed along this sheet path, the printer 101 recognizes that the sheet has been conveyed from the ASF 1, and the leading end of the sheet is applied to the pressure contact portion between the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110. . When the ASF 1 receives the information of the paper end sensor 108 from the printer 101, it sends a response signal indicating the end of paper feeding to the printer at a predetermined timing.

At this time, the sheet is pressed between the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110 with a predetermined pressure due to the waist of the sheet, and the so-called registration of the leading end of the sheet is performed. Then, in this state, the printer 101 that has received the response signal indicating the end of sheet feeding from the ASF 1 rotates the LF roller 109 at a predetermined timing and sends the sheet to the recording unit having the head 115. As a result, a predetermined feed for the sheet is performed, and the head 11
5, the recording on the sheet surface is performed. Thereafter, the sheet is conveyed between the paper discharge roller 112 and the spur 111 and discharged.

In this embodiment, the printer 1
When 01 is mounted on the ASF 1, the paper path as described above is configured, but the paper path of the printer 101 and the mounting direction of the connectors 44 and 117 are configured to be substantially parallel.

When a sheet is delivered from the ASF 1 to the printer 101 and a sheet is clogged in any part when a sheet common to both the ASF 1 and the printer 101 exists, the printer 101 is removed from the ASF 1. Need to be separated. The fact that the paper path and the connector connection direction are substantially parallel means that both can be separated in such a situation.

Here, if the paper path and the connector connection direction are at right angles, when separating the printer 101 in the connector connection direction, the sheet must be moved in the thickness direction. There is a possibility that the sheet may be torn or the torn sheet may remain in the apparatus. Furthermore, in the case of a thick sheet or the like that is difficult to tear, it may not be possible to separate the printer 101.

However, in the present embodiment, since the paper path and the connector connection direction are configured to be substantially parallel, the printer 101 can be moved in the direction in which the sheet exits when the sheet is clogged, so that the printer 101 can be separated. That is, the processing at the time is extremely simple, and the sheet is not broken or the sheet remains in the apparatus.

Next, a method of guiding the conveyed sheet (ie, a method of positioning the sheet in the width direction) will be described.

In this embodiment, the printer 101
Are used for both the case where the sheets are manually fed one by one without the ASF1 attached, and the case where the sheets are automatically and sequentially supplied with the * ASF1 attached. This makes it possible to reduce the size of the apparatus as compared with a case where a paper feed port for manual paper feed and a paper feed port for automatic paper feed are separately provided.

The printer 101 has a paper feed tray 116 as shown in FIG.
Is configured so that one end is pivotally supported and can be freely opened and closed. The sheet feeding tray 116 is used to form a sheet path for sheets when feeding sheets manually without mounting the ASF 1, thereby stabilizing the sheet feeding operation. Note that the paper feed tray 116 (that is, the paper path) is held substantially horizontally in the case of manual paper feed.

At one end of the upper surface of the paper feed tray 116, a reference guide 116a is vertically fixed along the edge, and the other end of the upper surface is slidable in the sheet width direction. The right end guide 122 is attached so that The guides 116a and 122 guide both edges of the sheet to be manually fed. The shapes of the guides 116a and 122 (shape viewed from the sheet width direction) are substantially the same.

On the other hand, the ASF 1 is formed with a reference guide storage portion 36b as shown in FIG. 4. Above the reference guide storage portion 36b, a reference guide guide portion 36c forming the reference guide storage portion 36b is provided. Are located. When the printer 101 is pushed into the ASF 1, the reference guide 116a on the printer side
6c, the sheet feed tray 116 is further rotated downward, and the reference guide 116a and the right end guide 1 are rotated.
It will be stored in the reference guide storage part 36b together with 22. A paper path for automatic paper feeding is formed above the reference guide storage section 36b. According to the present embodiment, since the paper feed tray 116 is stored in the reference guide storage portion 36b while being rotated downward, the paper path during automatic paper feeding (particularly, the paper path near the reference guide storage portion 36b) )
Can be made horizontal like the paper path at the time of manual feed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a problem (such as back tension on a sheet) due to an unnatural paper path. The reference guide storage section 36b stores the right end guide 122 in any sliding position. Also, at the time of automatic sheet feeding, the sheet reference guide 26 on the ASF side is used.
b guides one edge in the width direction of the sheet.

If it is assumed that the sheet is automatically guided by the ASF 1 by both the ASF-side guide 26b and the printer-side guide 116a, the printer-side guide 1b may be displaced due to dimensional tolerances at the time of manufacture.
If the sheet 16a is disposed on the inner side of the sheet than the guide 26b on the ASF side, the guide 116a on the printer side becomes an obstacle for the sheet to be automatically fed, and skew of the sheet, damage to the sheet end, There is a problem that a sheet jam (jam) occurs.

However, according to the present embodiment, ASF1
The sheet guide for automatic sheet feeding is ASF
Such a problem can be avoided because the operation is performed only by the side guide 26b.

In order to avoid such a problem, it is not necessary to form the guide 26b on the ASF side and the guide 116a on the printer side with high precision, and it is not necessary to use high-precision parts.
Cost increase can be prevented.

Further, even when the sheet is slightly skewed, it is possible to avoid the interference of the sheet with the guide 116a on the printer side, and the skew of the sheet due to the interference, the damage of the sheet end, and the like. Thus, jamming of the sheet (jam) can be prevented.

By the way, the sheet guide on the printer side is
Although the guide is provided by the guide 116a of the paper feed tray 116, a similar guide is also provided in the printer main body at the same position in the sheet width direction, and the paper is manually fed by the guide 116a on the paper feed tray and the guide inside the main body. Sheet 2
One edge of the width direction 00 may be guided.
By defining the transport direction in a section that is long in the sheet transport direction in this way, it is possible to further prevent skew of the sheet.

When the guide is also provided inside the printer, the sheet reference guide 26 on the ASF side is used.
b is a guide 116a on the printer side as shown in FIG.
It may be formed at a position shifted by a predetermined amount t inside the sheet (that is, the recording position side by the head). Thus, in the case of automatic sheet feeding, a situation in which the sheet interferes with the guide inside the printer can be avoided, and the skew of the sheet due to the interference, damage to the sheet side end, and jamming of the sheet (jam) can be avoided. Can be prevented. Note that the shift amount t is equal to or larger than the positioning tolerance in the sheet width direction between the printer 101 and the ASF 1, and is set to, for example, about 0.6 mm in consideration of the case where the sheet is fed obliquely from the ASF. good.

When the guide on the ASF side and the guide on the printer side are shifted by t as described above, the recording position in the sheet width direction (image recording position in the sheet width direction) is automatically set. In this case, it is preferable to shift the sheet by substantially the same amount t inside the sheet as compared with the case of manual sheet feeding. As a result, the image is recorded at the same position regardless of the automatic paper feed / manual paper feed, and the problem due to the difference in the recording position (for example, the difference in the recording position on the preprint paper) is eliminated.

When automatically shifting the recording position between automatic paper feeding and manual paper feeding, a mode judging means for judging automatic paper feeding or manual paper feeding is provided. The recording position may be shifted based on the judgment result of the mode judging means. Examples of such mode determination means include: * a means for electrically detecting the connection state between the printer connector 117 and the ASF connector 44; * a presence / absence of ASF1 provided on the printer side (that is,
A dedicated switch or sensor for detecting automatic paper feed / manual paper feed) can be used.

Here, the amount of deviation between the guide on the ASF side and the guide on the printer side and the amount of deviation in the recording position in the case of automatic paper feed / manual paper feed need not be exactly the same.
It is necessary to make them equal so that a normal person can feel that the image is recorded at the same position regardless of the automatic paper feed / manual paper feed.

Next, the ASF paper feed tray 2 for supporting the stacked sheets will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the ASF paper feed tray 2 has one end supported by the ASF upper case 47. The ASF paper feed tray 2 is rotatable about this support portion. I have. The ASF paper feed tray 2 is opened at a predetermined angle when sheets are stacked, and can be closed as shown in FIG. 8 when no sheets are stacked.

Note that this is the same as the AS according to the present embodiment.
F1 is not for using the portable printer 101 as a desktop type, but the printer 10
It shows that the device is very compact even when the device 1 is mounted, and can be carried in that condition.

Further, in order to realize such a use form, when the ASF paper feed tray 2 is closed, it is necessary to close as much as possible along the outer shape of the ASF 1 with the printer mounted. For this purpose, the ASF paper feed tray 2 has a thin plate shape.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the paper feed tray 2 is closed, as shown in FIG. 9, the operation portion of the printer 101 is concealed, so that the paper feed tray 2 is closed and the printer 101 is mounted. When carrying the ASF 1 in the state, the operation unit is carelessly touched to eliminate the possibility that the printer 101 operates. Further, when the paper feed tray 2 is closed and is engaged with the ASF upper case 47 at an arbitrary portion, it is desirable that the paper feed tray 2 does not open carelessly when carrying.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
1, when the envelope is fed in the vertical direction, the tab of the envelope is usually on the left side in many cases. In the ASF1 of the present embodiment, the tab side (left side) of the envelope at the time of feeding is caused by swelling of the envelope tab due to moisture or the like. Receive strong resistance. As a result, the envelope receives a force that rotates clockwise.

Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to prevent the envelope from rotating clockwise, an ASF paper feed tray side guide 2a (hereinafter referred to as a side guide) is provided upstream of the ASF paper feed tray 2 in the paper feed direction. ). As a result, when the envelope is set vertically in the ASF 1, the right side of the rear end of the envelope is along the side guide portion 2a and does not further rotate clockwise.

By the way, in the case of envelope longitudinal feeding, resistance of the tab is received particularly at the timing when the envelope is fed. this is,
In the present embodiment, the time when the envelope crosses the bank sheet 37 and the time when the envelope tip is lifted along the slope of the bank 36 immediately after the envelope. When the timing is exceeded, the influence of the resistance of the envelope tab is reduced, and the clockwise rotation does not occur without the side guide portion 2a.

For this reason, in the present embodiment, the side guide portion 2a is provided at a part near the rear end of the envelope to prevent the envelope from rotating clockwise, and the side guide is not provided over the entire area in the vertical direction of the envelope. Note that this side guide portion 2a
When the ASF paper feed tray 2 is closed, the ASF paper feed tray 2 is closed by the step formed between the ASF upper case 47 and the printer 101 (see FIG. 8). When the side guide portion 2a does not interfere with other portions,
It can be stored along the outer shape and does not impair portability.

Further, if the height of the side guide portion 2a is greater than the thickness when sheets such as envelopes are stacked, the effect can be exhibited. It may be provided between them.

Further, the present embodiment has the effect of preventing clockwise rotation in the envelope longitudinal feeding. However, not only the envelope longitudinal feeding but also other sheet feeding having a length of the envelope may be caused by some cause. When clockwise rotation occurs, this can be prevented. Also, the side guide portion 2a
Is formed integrally with the ASF paper feed tray 2, so that a very inexpensive one can be provided. In addition,
When the side guide portion 2a is closed, the side guide portion 2a may be housed in a recess provided in the printer 101 or the ASF 1 instead of the step portion.

Next, the attachment / detachment mechanism between the ASF 1 and the printer 101 will be described.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the attaching / detaching mechanism on the ASF1 side, FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the attaching / detaching mechanism on the printer 101 side, and FIG. 13 is a attaching / detaching mechanism on the ASF1 side. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 11, a positioning base 39 is formed on the side of the ASF 1, and the positioning base 39 is provided with two positioning bosses 39d and 39e. As shown in FIG. 12, on the other printer 101 side, a substrate holder 118 is formed so as to face the positioning base 39, and the substrate holder 118 has a positioning hole facing the first positioning boss 39d. 11
8a, and a positioning slot 118b facing the second positioning boss 39e. When the printer 101 and the ASF 1 are connected, these bosses 39d and 39e are positioned by positioning holes (elongated holes) 118 before the ASF connector 44 and the printer connector 117 are connected.
a, 118b to position the printer 101 and the ASF 1 in the x and z directions. As a result, the ASF connector 44 and the printer connector 117 are accurately connected, and damage due to misalignment of these connectors is prevented. Further, the paper path on the ASF1 side and the paper path on the printer 101 side are correctly connected.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
It has a horizontal printer sliding portion (guide surface) 45b, and the printer sliding portion 45b is configured to regulate the moving direction of the printer 101 when connecting. Also, hooks 16 and 17 as lock members are provided so as to protrude upward from the printer sliding portion 45b.
(Accurately, hooks 16a and 17a of hooks 16 and 17)
Is arranged. These hooks 16 and 17 (hereinafter referred to as
When it is particularly necessary to distinguish them, the one indicated by reference numeral 16 is referred to as “left hook” and the one indicated by reference numeral 17 is referred to as “right hook”), both of which are fixed to the hook shaft 18 as shown in FIG. Then, it is rotatably attached to the chassis 11 and is configured to rotate integrally. A hook spring (elastic member) 3, which is a compressed coil spring, is interposed between the hook 16 and the ASF base 45.
7 is upward (that is, the hook fixing hole 103 described below).
y, 103z).

On the other hand, the base 103 of the printer 101
As shown in FIG. 12, hook fixing holes (engaging portions) 103y and 103z are provided at positions facing the claw portions 16a and 17a of the hooks 16 and 17 with the ASF 1 mounted. The hooks 16a and 17a are in the hook fixing holes 1 respectively.
03y, 103z, ASF1
And the printer 101 are positioned relative to each other in the y direction.

On the other hand, a lever shaft 42 is fixed to the positioning base 39 on the ASF side as shown in FIG. 13, and a push lever 40 as an operation member is attached to the lever shaft 42 by arrows 40A, 40B and arrows. 40
It is attached so as to be rotatable in the direction of C.
The push lever spring 7 is interposed between the push lever 40 and the chassis 11, and the push lever 40 is urged clockwise. Further, a connecting spring 9 is interposed between the push lever 40 and the left hook 16 so that the upper surface of the left hook 16 and the lower end 40d of the push lever 40 always contact (engage). It is configured.

Further, the push lever 40 is provided with a boss 40c as a rotation stopper, and the positioning base 39 has a slide surface 39 which abuts against the boss 40c.
a, 39b and 39c are provided. Here, the slide surfaces 39a, 39b, 39c are shown by two-dot chain lines so that the configuration is easy to understand. According to this configuration, the boss 40c of the push lever 40 rotates the guide surface 39a
It is regulated by hitting.

In the above description, the hooks 16 and 17 as the lock members and the push lever 40 as the operation member are provided on the ASF 1 side, and the hook fixing holes 103y and 103z as the engagement portions are provided on the printer 101 side. The lock member and the operation member are attached to the printer 101.
And the engaging portion may be provided on the ASF1 side. Also, hooks 16 and 17 as locking members are provided.
Alternatively, two hook fixing holes 103y and 103z as the engaging portions are provided, respectively. However, it is needless to say that the number of hook fixing holes 103y and 103z is not limited to this, and three or more hook fixing holes may be provided. Further, the hooks 16 and 17 are rotatably supported, but it is sufficient if they are movable. Further, the hooks 16 and 17 are configured to be integrally rotated by being fixed to the hook shaft 18.
7 may be configured to be able to be pressed, and such a configuration may be used to realize integral rotation.

Then, the pop-ups 43a and 43b provided in the ASF 1 are used to set the direction 43A (y direction).
By pressing the paper discharge side upper portion 102a of the printer 101, the connection of the connectors 44 and 117 is released. The pop-ups 43a and 43b are urged in the direction 43A (y direction) by an elastic member (not shown).
It is configured to be slidable in the direction.

Here, since the urging force of the pop-ups 43a and 43b acts as a reaction force when the printer 101 is mounted on the ASF 1, if the urging force is strong, the printer 101 cannot be pushed into the ASF 1 and cannot be mounted. Therefore, the biasing force is set to an appropriate biasing force (for example, a force at which the ASF1 does not move due to the biasing force when the printer 101 is mounted on the ASF1).

By the way, there is a case where the removing force between the connectors exceeds the urging force of the pop-ups 43a and 43b. In this case, the connection between the connectors is not released only by the pop-ups 43a and 43b. For this reason, in the present embodiment, the push lever 40 on the ASF side is provided with a protruding portion 40b so that the protruding portion 40b is movable in a substantially horizontal direction (y direction).
By pushing 0 in the direction of arrow 40A (downward), the lever shaft 42 is rotated in the direction of 40D with the lever shaft 42 as the center of rotation, and the protruding portion 40b is moved in a substantially horizontal direction (y direction).
It is designed to protrude. Thereby, the printer 1
The lower portion (or the central portion) 102b of the sheet No. 01 is pressed by the protruding portion 40b, and the space between the connectors (44, 117).
Is released, and the printer 101 is pushed out in the y direction. Therefore, the user has the ASF
1, the printer 101 can be easily pulled out in the y direction.

Here, an operation for connecting the printer 101 and the ASF 1 and an operation associated with the operation will be described with reference to FIG.
4 to FIG. 16 will be described. 14 is a diagram showing a state where the printer 101 is placed on the printer sliding portion 45b, FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a state when the printer 101 is pushed in, and FIG.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a state where 1 is connected to ASF1.

First, as shown in FIG. 14, when the printer 101 is pushed in the direction of arrow A along the printer sliding portion 45b of the ASF base 45, the hooks 16 and 17 are rotated clockwise and The claws 16a, 17a are pushed down in the direction of the arrow 16A (the hook 17 and the claws 17a are not shown in FIG. 15). At this time, the push lever 40 is also moved downward via the connecting spring 9. When the printer 101 is further pushed in in this state, the bosses 39d and 39e on the ASF side are fitted into the positioning holes (elongated holes) 118a and 118b on the printer side as described above, and the positioning in the x and z directions is performed. After that, the ASF connector 44 and the printer connector 117 are connected.

Incidentally, the hook fixing holes 103y, 103
When z reaches the positions of the claw portions 16a and 17a, the claw portions 16a and 17a are moved in the counterclockwise direction (direction of arrow 16B) by the urging force of the hook spring 3 as shown in FIG. Holes 103y, 103z and claws 16
a and 17a are respectively engaged. Then, the push lever 40 that has been moved downward moves to the hooks 16 and 1.
7, the hook spring 3 pushes the hook spring 3 up to a regular position. Thus, the connection between the printer 101 and the ASF 1 is completed. Since the hooks 16 and 17 are configured to be integrally rotated, the claw portions 16a and 17a
The hooks 16 and 17 do not rotate and the push lever 40 is not pushed up unless both of them are aligned with and engaged with the hook fixing holes 103y and 103z. Therefore, for example, when the printer 101 is mounted obliquely with respect to the ASF1, the push lever 40 is not pushed up to the proper position, and the user can visually check whether the mounting of the printer 101 and the ASF1 is good. Can be more easily known.

The height of the hooks 16a, 17a engaged with the hook fixing holes 103y, 103z and the height of the hook shaft 18 (that is, the center of rotation of the hooks 16, 17) are substantially equal. When the former is set slightly higher than the latter, the hooks 16 and 17 do not rotate even if a force in the opposite direction (ie, a force in the direction opposite to the arrow A) is applied to the printer 101, and the printer 101 does not rotate. Is AS
There is no departure from F1.

Next, an operation for separating the printer 101 from the ASF 1 and an operation associated with the operation will be described.

To separate the printer 101 from the ASF 1, the push portion 40a of the push lever 40 is pushed down (in the direction of arrow 40A) as shown in FIG. At this time, since the boss 40c is sandwiched between the guide surfaces 39a and 39b provided on the positioning base 39, the push lever 40 cannot rotate around the lever shaft 42 until the guide surface 39a disappears, and cannot move in the direction of the arrow 40A. Descends. As a result, the hooks 16 and 17 are integrally rotated about the hook shaft 18 in the direction 16A (downward), and the hooks 16a and 17a and the hook fixing holes 1 are rotated.
03y and 103z are released. According to the present embodiment, since the hooks 16 and 17 are configured to be integrally rotated, the engagement of the two claw portions 16a and 17a can be simultaneously released only by operating the push lever 40. And the release operation is simplified. Also, the claw portion 16
When the engagement between the a and 17a and the hook fixing holes 103y and 103z is released, it is not necessary to hold the image forming apparatus 100 itself so as not to move, and it is only necessary to press the push lever 40 downward with one hand. The effect that operation is easy is produced.

When the engagement of the pawls 16a and 17a is released, the printer 101 returns to FIG.
In FIG. 7, the pop-up 43 indicated by a broken line presses the paper discharge side upper portion 102a of the printer 101,
It is extruded in the direction of arrow B. At the same time, the connection between the ASF connector 44 and the printer connector 117 is released.

Here, when the user releases the pressing of the push lever 40 in the direction 40A in this state, a state as shown in FIG. 15 is obtained. That is, the connection of the connectors 44 and 117 is released, and the engagement between the hook 16 and the printer 101 is released, so that the user can easily remove the printer 101 from the ASF 1.

Incidentally, as described above, the pop-up 4
If the pulling force between the connectors exceeds the pushing force of No. 3, the printer 101 does not move even when the hook 16 and the printer 101 are disengaged, so that the state shown in FIG. The user can access the printer 1 from ASF1.
01 cannot be removed.

Therefore, the present embodiment has a configuration in which the push-out function by the user is added as described above.

FIG. 17 shows the hook 16 and the printer 1
This shows a state in which the printer 101 does not move even when the fitting of No. 01 is released. At this time, the left hook 16 is at the position where the fitting is released from the hook fixing hole 103y, and the boss 40c of the push lever 40 is in a state where the regulation of the movement direction by the guide surface 39b of the positioning base 39 is released.

The push lever 40 is in a state where the lever shaft 42 is pressed against the upper end surface of the slide hole 40e of the push lever 40, thereby restricting the left hook 16 from being pushed down. Further, the contact surface 40e of the push lever 40 with the left hook 16 is a lever shaft 42.
, The position of the left hook 16 does not change even if the push lever 40 rotates.

In this state, if the user continues to push the push portion 40a of the push lever 40,
Is rotated in the 40D direction about the lever shaft 42 as a rotation center. Thereby, as described above, the protrusion 40
b is moved in a substantially horizontal direction, the printer 101 is pressed in the same direction, and the connection between the printer 101 and the ASF 1 is released. In this embodiment, the printer 101 is separated from the ASF 1 without being hindered by the hooks 16 and 17, because the movement of the protrusion 40b in the substantially horizontal direction is performed after the rotation of the hooks 16 and 17. It will be.

When the push lever 40 is kept pressed, the contact surface 40e of the push lever 40 abuts against the stopper 39d of the positioning base 39, as shown in FIG. Is regulated. Here, the pushing amount of the printer 101 by the push lever 40 is different from the left hook 16 and the printer 101.
Is set to an amount at which the mating and the connector connection are released.

On the other hand, after the printer 101 is pushed out in this way, the user presses the push portion 40 of the push lever 40.
Release the pressing of a. Then, when the pushing force is released in this manner, the hook spring 3 causes the left hook 1 to move.
6 rises in the direction of arrow 16B. At the same time, the push lever 40 is also pushed up by the left hook 16, and the boss 40c of the push lever 40 comes into contact with the guide surface 39c of the positioning base 39, and thereafter the push lever 40 is pulled by the pulling force of the spring 7 of the push lever 40.
Rotates in the direction of arrow 40E.

The boss 40 of the push lever 40
When “c” abuts on the guide surface 39 a of the positioning base 39, the rotation of the push lever 40 is restricted, and the push lever 40 is raised in the direction of the arrow 40 </ b> B by the spring force of the hook spring 3.

As a result, the connection of the connector as shown in FIG. 15 is finally released, and the fitting between the left hook 16 and the printer 101 is released, so that the user can easily remove the printer 101 from the ASF 1. be able to.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the printer 101 is detached from the ASF 1,
Since the push lever 40 is pushed in a substantially vertical direction, AS
A vertical force acts on F itself. For this reason, when the printer 101 is pushed out in a substantially horizontal direction, the ASF 1 is configured not to shift. In addition, since the printer 101 is pushed out in a substantially horizontal direction, the removal failure does not occur due to the printer 101 moving in the mounting direction again by its own weight.

FIG. 19 shows the push lever 40, pop-ups 43a, 43b,
It is a figure showing arrangement and force relation of positioning bosses 39d and 39e, right hook 16, left hook 17, and ASF connector 44. FIG. 20 is a partial cross-sectional view of the upper surface of ASF1.

As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the printer 1
01 positioning bosses 39d, 39e and left hook 1
Reference numerals 6 and 17 are provided near both ends of the printer 101 in the width direction. The ASF connector 44 is located between the two positioning bosses 39e and 39d, and is disposed near the second positioning boss 39e. Also, the push lever 40 and the second pop-up 43b are connected to the first positioning boss 3
9D, it is arranged at a position further away from the ASF connector 44.

When the printer 101 is detached from the ASF 1 in such a configuration, as described above, the push lever 40 is pushed in the direction of the arrow 40A, and the left hooks 16 and 17 are simultaneously inserted into the hook fixing holes 103y and 103z of the printer 101. 14 (see FIG. 14), the protrusion 40b of the push lever 40 is released from the printer 1.
By pushing out the printer 101 by pressing it against the connector 01, the connection is released and the engagement between the left hooks 16 and 17 and the hook fixing holes 103y and 103z of the printer 101 is released.

The pop-ups 43a and 43b are auxiliary members for reducing the force of pressing the push lever 40 by the user, and are slidably biased to a predetermined position on the printer pushing side by an elastic member (not shown). I have.

In the present embodiment, the printer 101 is pushed out by the printer slidable portion 45b with the positioning bosses 39d and 39e as the center of rotation.
It is pushed out while sliding.

Since the printer positioning hole 118a on the first positioning boss side serving as a fulcrum of rotation is a round hole, and the positioning hole 118b on the second positioning boss side is a long hole setting (see FIG. 12). From the state of FIG.
1 is the first positioning boss 39d and the ASF 1
Printer 101 and ASF1
Is as shown in FIG.

However, in such a state, biting occurs between the first positioning boss 39d and the positioning hole 118a, so that the printer 101 can be moved only by the pushing force of the first pop-up 43a. Will be gone. Also, the user is forced to use the printer 101.
If the first positioning boss 39d is to be removed from the ASF 1, the first positioning boss 39d is deformed and destroyed.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, before the printer 101 is pushed out by the push lever 40 and the second pop-up 43b, the fitting position between the first positioning boss 39d, which is the rotation fulcrum of the printer 101, and the positioning hole 118a is determined. The first pop-up 43a is configured to be prevented from biting by being shifted in a connector releasing direction by a pushing force of the first pop-up 43a.

In other words, when the arrangement dimensions are as shown in FIG. 19, the first positioning boss 39e is used as a pivot point for the first positioning boss 39e.
Due to the pushing force of the pop-up 43a, the printer 10
The force required to push out 1 is as follows.

F1> (X1 / X2) × P1 + P2 In the above formula, F1 is the first pop-up 43
a, the pushing force of the printer, P1 is the removal force of the connector 44, P2 is the frictional force between the printer 101 and the printer sliding surface 45b of the ASF 1, X1 is the distance from the second positioning boss 39e, which is a pivot point, to the connector 44, X2 is the distance from the second positioning boss 39e serving as a pivot point to the first pop-up 43a.

Here, as is clear from the above equation, the first distance increases between the first pop-up 43a and the ASF connector 44, that is, the smaller the value of X1 / X2, the higher the first pop-up 43a.
The value of the pushing force F1 of the pop-up 43a can be set small. The printer pushing force F1 of the first pop-up 43a causes the printer 101 to reach A
Considering that the connector works as a reaction force when attached to the SF1 and that the connector removal force is generally 1 to 2 kgf, the value of X1 / X2 is suitably 0.5 or less.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the hook height of the right hook 17 is formed to be lower than the hook height of the left hook 16, whereby the left hook 16,
Reference numeral 17 denotes hook fixing holes 103y and 102 of the printer 101.
The right hook 17 is earlier than the left hook 16 to release from the fitted state of z (see FIG. 12).

As a result, when the right hook 17 is first released from the fitting position with the hook fixing hole 103z of the printer 101, the printer 101 instantaneously uses the second positioning boss 39e as a rotation fulcrum to rotate the first pop-up 43a. As a result of the rotation by the pushing force, the fitting position between the first positioning boss 39d and the positioning hole 118a moves to the connector disconnection side as shown in FIG.

Thereafter, the left hook 16 is connected to the printer 101.
23 is released from the hook fixing hole 103y and the printer 101 is pushed out by the push lever 40 and the second pop-up 43b, as shown in FIG.
The printer 101 can be removed from the ASF 1 in a state where there is no bite between the positioning boss 39d and the positioning hole 118a.

Here, when the push lever 40 and the second pop-up 43b are disposed between the first positioning boss 39d, which is the pivot of the printer 101, and the ASF connector 44, if the connection force between the connectors is large, the connector 4
4 is a pivot point of the printer 101, and the first positioning boss 39d and the printer 10
Biting occurs with the ten positioning holes 118a, which may cause deformation and destruction of the boss 39d due to biting.

Therefore, as described above, the push lever 40 and the second pop-up 43b are
When viewed from the first positioning boss 39d, which is the rotation fulcrum of 01, it is necessary to dispose it at a position farther from the ASF connector 44.

FIG. 24 is a connection block diagram of the printer main unit control unit and the external ASF control unit according to the present invention.

A main body control section 202 for controlling the printer main body 101 is arranged on a main body substrate 123 shown in FIG. 4, and includes a microcomputer to which a CPU 203, a ROM 204 and a RAM 205 are connected by a bus.

[0136] The main body control unit 202 includes the printer main body 1
01 performs printing based on the main body control program stored in the ROM 204, drives the carriage motor 121 via the motor driver 208, and prints a print head mounted on a carriage (not shown) connected to the carriage motor 121. 115 for head driver 2
The recording is performed for one line by driving through the line 10.

Thereafter, the main body control unit 202 feeds the sheet by driving the paper feed motor 120 via the motor driver 206, and repeats the drive of the carriage motor 121 and the recording head 115 to complete the recording on the sheet. I do. A connector 117 outputs a command signal from the CPU 203 of the main body control unit to the outside, and functions as a communication port capable of two-way communication for inputting a response signal from the outside to the CPU 203. Can also be supplied. Reference numeral 108 denotes a paper end sensor provided inside the printer main body and having an optical switch or a mechanical switch. When the sheet 200 is inserted into the printer main body, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 changes from the LO state to the HIGH state. Reference numeral 113 denotes a paper discharge sensor having the same function as the paper end sensor 108.
If 0 remains inside the printer, the output voltage will be high.
It becomes H state.

The output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 and the output voltage of the paper discharge sensor 113 can both be monitored by the CPU 203, and the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 is connected via a connector 117 so as to be directly output to the outside. .

ASF control section 2 for controlling external ASF1
01 is the same as that of the printer main body control unit 202.
13, a microcomputer having a ROM 214 and a RAM 215 connected by a bus. CPU
213 drives the paper feed motor 27 via the motor driver 216 based on the ASF control program stored in the ROM 214. Reference numeral 44 denotes an ASF connector which receives a signal from an external device such as the printer main body 101, and
It functions as a communication port for outputting signals from the CPU 213 of the SF control unit and capable of bidirectional communication.

FIG. 26 shows the connector 117 and the ASF connector 44.
2 schematically shows a detailed configuration of the embodiment. Connector 1
17 and ASF connector 44 each have eight ports 11
7a-117h, 44a-44h, and ASF
When the printer 1 is mounted on the printer 101, the ports corresponding to the alphanumeric characters are electrically connected to each other.

As viewed from the ASF 1, 44a is a GND line, 44b is a 5V power line for signal, 44e is a 24V power line for driving the paper feeding motor 27, 44f is a transmission port for transmitting a signal to the printer side, and 44g is a printer port. A receiving port 44h for receiving a signal from the side is a line for receiving the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 inside the printer main body. It should be noted that since the ports 44c and 44d are short-circuited, the port 117 on the printer 101 side is used.
The configuration is such that it is easy to see that a device is connected to the outside using c and 117d.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view showing a state in which an external ASF according to the present invention is mounted on a printer main body.

Reference numeral 19 denotes a paper feed roller for feeding the sheet 200. A paper feed rubber 23 is fitted on the paper feed roller 19, and when the paper feed roller 19 rotates, the sheet 200 is conveyed by the frictional force of the paper feed rubber 23.

Reference numeral 26 denotes a pressure plate on which sheets 200 are stacked. Both ends on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction are rotatably supported by the ASF chassis 11. The pressure plate 26 is urged in the direction of the paper feed rubber 23 by the pressure plate spring 13. In an initial state, the cam portions 19 c provided at both ends of the paper supply roller 19 and the cam portions 26 a provided at both ends of the pressure plate 26 are provided. The paper feed rubber 23 and the pressure plate 26 are separated from each other, so that the sheet 200 can be set smoothly. The bank 36 has an abutting surface 36a on the extension of the pressure plate 26 in the sheet conveying direction. When setting the sheet 200, the bank 36 is set so that the leading end abuts on the abutting surface 36a. A bank sheet 37 as a sheet separating member is attached to the abutting surface 36a. The bank sheet 37 is a sheet made of an elastic material such as a plastic film, and has an action of separating the sheets one by one using an elastic force generated when the bank sheet 37 is bent.

Printer transport mechanism and printing mechanism Next, the transport mechanism and printing mechanism of the printer main body in FIG. 25 will be described.

Reference numeral 109 denotes an LF roller for conveying the sheet 200. The LF roller 109 is formed by forming a coating film of a material having a high friction coefficient such as urethane resin on the surface of a metal pipe. The LF roller 109 is rotated by being driven by a paper feed motor 120 shown in FIG. And transport it.

A recording head 115 records image information on the sheet 200 conveyed by the LF roller 109, and is mounted on a carriage (not shown) that can reciprocate in the longitudinal direction of the LF roller 109. The recording head 115 is driven together with the carriage by a carriage motor 121 in FIG. 24, and is capable of reciprocating in the paper width direction of the sheet 200 (a direction perpendicular to the paper surface).

The spur 111 and the discharge roller 112 are L
Two pairs of rollers are located downstream of the F roller 109 and the recording head 115 and convey the sheet 200 on which recording has been completed. The paper discharge roller 112 is connected to the LF roller 109 via a drive transmission member (not shown), and rotates so as to convey the sheet 200 in the same direction as the LF roller 109 using the LF roller 109 as a driving source.

The LF roller 1 moves in the sheet conveying direction.
Paper end sensor 10 on the paper path upstream of
Discharge sensors 113 are provided between the eight discharge rollers and the two discharge rollers, and the output voltage of each sensor changes from the LO state to the HIGH state as the sheet 200 crosses.

ASF Drive Mechanism FIG. 27 and FIG. 28 show a drive mechanism of an external ASF according to the present invention.

The paper feed motor 27 is a stepping motor that can rotate forward and reverse. Reference numeral 15 denotes an idle gear, which meshes with a motor gear 27a of the sheet feeding motor 27. 2
Reference numeral 9 denotes an ASF double gear having two-stage gears having different large and small diameters, and meshes with the idle gear 15.
Reference numeral 31 denotes a forward rotation planet gear, which meshes with a small diameter gear of the ASF double gear and revolves around the ASF double gear. Reference numeral 33 denotes a reverse sun gear having two stages of large and small diameter gears, which mesh with a small diameter gear of the ASF double gear 29. Reference numeral 35 denotes a reverse planetary gear, which meshes with a small-diameter gear of the reverse sun gear 33 and revolves around the reverse sun gear. Reference numeral 19a denotes a paper feed roller gear provided at the shaft end of the paper feed roller 19, and has a toothless portion 19b. The feed roller gear 19 is
It is located on the orbit of the forward rotation planetary gear 31 and the reverse rotation planetary gear 35 and is arranged at a position meshing with each gear.

Next, the operation of each gear will be described. In FIG. 27, when the feed motor 27 rotates in the direction of arrow b (reverse drive), each gear rotates in the direction of arrow. That is, the reverse rotation planetary gear 35 revolves around the reverse rotation sun gear 33 from the position indicated by the broken line in FIG. As a result, the paper feed roller 19 moves in the direction of the arrow in the figure (the direction in which the sheet 200 stacked on the pressure plate 26 is sent out to the printer 101).
To rotate. The feed roller gear 19a that meshes with and rotates with the reverse planetary gear 35 has a missing tooth portion 19b.
When the sheet feeding motor 27 is rotated to the position opposing to 5, the meshing is released, and the sheet feeding motor 27 does not rotate even if the sheet feeding motor 27 is further driven in the reverse direction.

At this time, the forward rotation planet gear 31 is
7 revolves from the broken line position toward the solid line position in the direction of the arrow, stops at the stopper (not shown), and does not affect the rotation of the paper feed roller 19.

Next, in FIG. 28, when the feed motor 27 is rotated in the direction of arrow f (forward rotation), each gear is set in FIG.
Rotate in the direction of the arrow. That is, the normal rotation planetary gear 31 revolves around the ASF double gear 29 toward the solid line position in the direction of the arrow from the dashed line position in the figure via the idle gear 15 and the ASF double gear 29, and meshes with the paper feed roller gear 19a. Thus, the paper feed roller 19 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 28 (the direction in which the sheet 200 stacked on the pressure plate 26 is sent out to the printer 101). The feed roller 19a, which meshes and rotates with the forward rotation planetary gear 31, disengages when the toothless portion 19b rotates to a position facing the forward rotation planetary gear 31, and the feed motor 27a further rotates.
Does not rotate even if it is driven forward.

At this time, the reverse rotation planetary gear 33 is
8 does not affect the rotation of the paper feed roller 19 because it revolves from the broken line position toward the solid line position in the direction of the arrow and stops by hitting a stopper (not shown).

Further, at a position where the missing tooth portion 19b of the feed roller gear 19a faces the forward rotation planetary gear 31, the cam portion 19c of the feed roller just meshes with the cam portion 26a of the pressure plate 26 to have the same phase as the initial state. , Pressure plate 26
And the paper feed rubber 23 are separated from each other.

Accordingly, when the paper feed motor 27 is continuously driven to rotate forward, the paper feed roller cam 19c and the pressure plate cam 26
a, the feed roller 19 stops rotating at the same phase as the initial state while the pressure plate 26 and the feed rubber 23 are separated from each other, and thereafter the forward planetary gear 33 and the reverse planetary gear 35
28 also idles at the position shown by the solid line in FIG.

As described above, regardless of whether the paper feed motor 27 is rotating forward or backward, the paper feed roller 19 keeps the sheet 200
Rotates only in the direction in which is sent to the printer 101, and does not rotate in the opposite direction.

O Feeding Operation and Recording Operation (Printer Side) Next, the printer and the ASF according to the present invention
A description will be given of a series of operations for feeding, transporting, printing, and discharging 00.

When receiving a recording command from an external information device such as a computer, the printer 101 first performs a paper feeding operation, and then performs a recording operation.

FIG. 29 is a control flow when the printer 101 performs a paper feeding operation. First, the main body control unit 202 of the printer 101 executes the sub flow C1. The detailed contents will be described later with reference to FIG.
Are used to determine the model attached to the outside of the printer via the ports 117f and 117g shown in FIG.

Next, the flow proceeds to S1, and if the result of the subflow C1 indicates that the ASF is mounted on the printer 101, the ASF paper is fed, so the flow proceeds to S2.
In S2, the main body control unit 202 transmits an initialization command signal to the ASF, and proceeds to S3.

If there is no response signal indicating completion of initialization from the ASF in S3, the process returns to S3, and when the response signal is received, the process proceeds to S4. In S4, the main body control unit 202
Transmits to the ASF a paper feed command signal and a paper type signal indicating the type of sheet to be fed (plain paper, coated paper, postcard, glossy film, etc.), and proceeds to S5.

In S5, if the response signal from the ASF has not been received, the process proceeds to S8, and if the predetermined time limit t2 seconds has not elapsed, the process returns to S5. S
In step 8, if the time limit t2 seconds has elapsed from the start of sheet feeding, the process advances to step S9, where the main body control unit 202 issues a sheet feeding error and ends the sheet feeding operation. In S5, ASF
If the response signal indicates that the sheet feeding has been completed, the process proceeds to S7. Step S7 is a part for performing a so-called cueing operation of the sheet 200. The main body control unit 202 drives the paper feed motor 120 to rotate the LF roller 109 by a predetermined amount R3 in the sheet conveyance direction (forward rotation direction) during recording. And the paper feeding operation is completed. The predetermined amount R3 is determined by the sheet 200
The leading end does not reach the sheet detectable area of the sheet ejection sensor 113, and is set to a size just below the recording head 115.
When recording is started at 0, there is no need to return the sheet 200 to the upstream side in the transport direction.
Since it does not collide with the internal mechanism components of F, there is no occurrence of sheet breakage or misfeed.

In S5, if there is a response signal from the ASF and it is a signal indicating a paper feed error, the process proceeds to S9, where the main body control unit 202 issues a paper feed error and ends the paper feed operation.

In S1, if the result of the sub-flow C1 indicates that the ASF is not mounted on the printer 101, the process proceeds to S10 because manual paper feed is performed.

In S10, if the user has not inserted a sheet, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 is in the LO state, so no sheet is detected, and the process returns to S10. When the user inserts the sheet 200 into the printer 101 and hits the LF roller 109, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 becomes HIGH and the sheet is detected, and the process proceeds to S11. In step S11, the main body control unit 202 drives the paper feed motor 120 via the paper feed motor driver 206 such that the LF roller 109 rotates forward by a predetermined amount R4 (rotation direction for conveying the sheet in the conveyance direction during recording). I do. The predetermined amount R4 is set to a size such that the leading end of the sheet 200 reaches the sheet detectable area of the sheet discharge sensor 113. Next, the process proceeds to S12, and if the sheet ejection sensor 113 detects the sheet 200, it is determined that the sheet feeding is successful, and the process proceeds to S13. In step S13, the main body control unit 202 controls the paper feed motor via the paper feed motor driver 206 so that the LF roller 109 reversely rotates by a predetermined amount R5 (rotation direction in which the sheet is conveyed in a direction opposite to the conveyance direction during recording). 120 is driven. The predetermined amount R5 is the sheet 2 conveyed to the detectable area of the sheet ejection sensor 113.
00 is returned to the recording start position, and is set to such an amount that the leading end of the sheet 200 does not fall out from between the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110.

In S12, the paper discharge sensor 113
Does not detect the sheet 200, for example, L
When the sheet 200 does not bite well between the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110 due to weak contact with the F roller 109, or because the sheet 200 is obliquely pressed against the LF roller 108, the sheet 200 is conveyed by a predetermined amount R4. Even if the sheet 200 can be
If the leading end has not been reached, the main body control unit 202 determines that manual paper feeding has failed, and proceeds to S14. In S14, the main body control unit 202 determines that the LF roller 109 has
The paper feed motor 120 is driven via the paper feed motor driver 206 so as to rotate in the reverse direction by six.

The predetermined amount R6 is set to an amount large enough for the leading end of the sheet 200 conveyed to the detectable area of the sheet discharge sensor 113 to fall out between the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110.

In this way, at the time of manual feeding, by confirming whether or not the sheet ejection sensor 113 has detected the sheet 200, it is possible to reliably confirm that the sheet has been successfully fed. Since the sheet 200 is returned to a position where the sheet 200 is not bitten by the LF roller, there is an advantage that the sheet 200 can be easily removed, and manual sheet feeding can be performed again.

Since there is no mechanical component that collides during manual insertion unlike when the ASF is mounted, the sheet 200 is not used.
Transporting in the opposite direction does not cause breakage or misfeed.

The printer 101 that has completed the sheet feeding operation in accordance with the above-described sheet feeding control flow performs a recording operation thereafter.
The main body control unit 202 drives the carriage motor 121 via the motor driver 208, and also drives the recording head 115 mounted on a carriage (not shown) connected to the carriage motor 121 via the head driver 210, thereby controlling one line. Record. Thereafter, the main body control unit 202 sends the paper feed motor 1 via the motor driver 206.
The sheet 200 is conveyed by one row by driving the carriage motor 20 and the carriage motor 121 and the recording head 115 again.
The recording on the sheet is completed by repeating the driving of. When the recording is completed, the main body control unit 202 drives the paper feed motor 120 to rotate the LF roller 109 forward. As a result, the paper discharge roller 112 rotates, and the sheet 200 is discharged out of the printer 101.

FIG. 30 shows an ASF that can be externally attached to the printer according to the present invention.
3 shows a main control flow of the first embodiment. When the control unit 201 of the ASF 1 according to the present invention is connected to the printer 101, the control unit 201 is normally in a standby state.
If no command signal has been received from S1, S37 is repeatedly executed until the command signal is received. When a command signal from the printer 101 is received via the serial reception port 44g of FIG. 26, the process proceeds to the following sub-flows or steps according to the content of the command signal. That is, when the command signal from the printer 101 indicates a “paper feed command”, the process proceeds to the sub-flow C2 for controlling the ASF paper feed operation,
In the case of indicating the "initialization command", the process proceeds to the subflow C3 for controlling the initialization operation, and when each subflow is completed, the process again proceeds to S37 to be in a standby state. If the command signal from the printer 101 indicates the "model discriminating command", the process proceeds to step S6, where the code ID representing the model of the ASF 1 itself is transmitted to the printer 10 via the serial transmission port 44f.
After transmitting to 1, the process proceeds to S37 again, and enters a standby state.

Of the two sub-flows described above, the sub-flow C2 for controlling the ASF sheet feeding operation will be described first, and the details of the sub-flow C3 for controlling the initialization operation will be described later.

FIG. 31 is a sub-flow C2 for controlling the sheet feeding operation in the ASF1.

The ASF control section 201 first proceeds to S15,
Based on the paper type information received from the printer 101 together with the paper feed instruction signal, the drive table T of the paper feed motor 27 optimal for the paper type to be fed is read from the ROM 214 to the CPU 213. The drive table T includes a driving speed of the sheet feeding motor 27 as a pulse motor and a registration removal pulse number P5 for rotating the sheet supply roller 19 by an optimum amount in accordance with a paper type at the time of registration operation in step 22 described later. And the like, and a plurality of types are prepared according to assumed sheet characteristics.

After reading the drive table T, the ASF control section 201 proceeds to step S16, where INIT, n, P
0 is set as an initial value of each variable defined by c. Each variable is a variable stored in the RAM 215.
Is a flag indicating whether or not the phase in the rotation direction of the sheet feeding roller 19 is at the initial position, n is a rotation number counter indicating how many times the sheet feeding roller 19 has rotated since the start of the sheet feeding flow C2,
Pc is a pulse number counter indicating how many pulses the paper feed motor 27 has been driven in the reverse direction.

Next, in S17, the ASF control section 201 drives the paper feed roller 19 through the paper feed motor driver 216 by one pulse in the reverse rotation direction. Next, the process proceeds to S18, in which the value of the pulse number counter Pc is increased by 1, and the process proceeds to S19. S19
In the ASF control unit 201, the pulse number counter Pc
Is compared with the value of the allowable pulse number Pmax.

The allowable pulse number Pmax is determined by the feed motor 27
Is the total number of pulses from the start of reverse rotation until the paper feed roller rotates to the position where the toothless portion 19b of the paper feed roller gear faces the reverse planetary gear 35 described with reference to FIG. 27, and stops rotating any further. Immediately after the start of sheet feeding, the relationship of Pc <Pmax holds, so the process proceeds to step S20. S2
0, the ASF control means 201
4h through the paper end sensor 1 in the printer 101
Although the output voltage of 08 is checked, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 is in the LO state immediately after the start of the sheet feeding operation because the sheet 200 has not yet reached the inside of the printer 101, and therefore, the process returns to S17. S17 to S as described above
When step 20 is repeated, the reverse rotation planetary gear 35 shown in FIG. 27 revolves from the position indicated by the broken line to the position indicated by the solid line, meshes with the sheet feeding roller gear 19a, and the sheet feeding roller 19 starts rotating.
When the feed roller 19 starts to rotate from the initial phase, the feed roller cam portion 19c and the press plate cam portion 26a disengage, and the press plate 26 is lifted upward by the press plate spring 13, and the sheet stacked on the press plate 26 is lifted. 200 is pressed against the paper feed rubber 23. At this time, the leading end of the sheet 200 that has been abutted against the abutting surface 36a of the bank 36 is also lifted upward, and abuts near the center of the bank sheet 37.

When the paper feed motor 27 is continuously rotated in the reverse direction by repeating steps S17 to S20 and the paper feed roller 19 is rotated, the conveyance of the sheet 200 is started by the frictional force of the paper feed rubber 23, and the leading end of the sheet 200 is moved. Is separated from the lower sheet by a reaction force generated by bending the elastic bank sheet 37, and only one sheet is sent out.

However, if the reverse rotation drive of the sheet feeding motor 27 is continued until the pulse number counter Pc reaches a certain value,
Since the relationship of c <Pmax is not satisfied, the process branches from S19 and proceeds to S24. In S24, the ASF control unit 201 drives the sheet feeding motor 27 in the normal rotation direction by a predetermined number of pulses P4. The predetermined number of pulses P4 is equal to the forward rotation planetary gear 31.
The number of pulses is sufficient for the paper feed roller 19 to rotate to the initial position by the drive of That is, by executing S24, the paper feed roller 19 is moved from the initial position by exactly 1
It rotates to the phase of rotation, where the toothless portion 19b of the paper feed roller gear comes to a position just opposite to the forward rotation planetary gear 31, the engagement is released, and the gear stops. Next, the process proceeds to step S25, in which the number-of-pulses counter Pc is reset to 0, the number-of-rotations counter n is increased by 1, and the process proceeds to step S26. In step S26, since n = 1 is still at this point, the flow returns to step S17, and the reverse rotation drive of the sheet feeding motor 27 is started again.

As described above, the ASF control unit 201 repeatedly executes steps S17 to S20, and
Starts the second rotation, and the sheet 200 is further conveyed. The leading end of the sheet 200 is the printer 101
Upon reaching the internal paper end sensor 108, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 becomes HIGH, and the process proceeds from S20 to S21. In S21, ASF
The control unit 201 compares the value obtained by adding the registration pulse number P5 in the drive table T read to the value of the pulse number counter Pc with the allowable pulse number Pmax. Pc
If the relation of + P5 ≦ Pmax is satisfied, even if the paper feed motor 27 is further driven to rotate in the reverse direction by P5 pulse, the transmission of the reverse drive will not be canceled in the middle, and the process proceeds to S22.

If the relationship of Pc + P5> Pmax is satisfied, if the sheet feeding motor 27 is further driven to rotate in the reverse direction by the pulse P5, the missing tooth portion 19 of the sheet feeding roller gear will be rotated halfway.
Since the drive transmission to the sheet feed roller 19 is interrupted at the position opposing the position No. 5, the process proceeds to S24. In step S24, the paper feed motor is driven forward again by the pulse P4 to rotate the paper feed roller 19 again.
Is returned to the initial position, and then in step S25, Pc is set to 0 and n is set to n +
Then, the process proceeds to S26. Normally, the feed roller 19-2
Since the paper end sensor 108 detects the sheet 200 at the rotation time, n = 2 at this point, and the process returns to S17. At this point, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 is already in the HIGH state, and the pulse number counter Pc has just been reset.
Proceed with S19 → S20 → S21, this time Pc + P5 ≦
The process proceeds to S22 to satisfy the relationship of Pmax.

S22 is a portion for performing a so-called registration operation. The ASF control section 201 drives the sheet feeding motor 27 in the reverse direction by the number of pulses P5 in the read drive table T.
The paper feed roller 19 is rotated. At this time, the sheet 200
Is further fed into the printer 101 from the position detected by the paper end sensor 108, stops at the nip formed by the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110 that are stopped, but stops further behind the sheet 200. It is pushed by the paper feed roller 19. For this reason, the leading end of the sheet 200 is
And the nip formed by the pinch roller 110.

Next, proceeding to step S23, the ASF control unit 201 transmits a signal indicating the completion of sheet feeding to the printer 101 via the serial transmission port 44f shown in FIG. 26, and completes the operation.

When no sheets are stacked on the pressure plate 26, the output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 does not become HIGH regardless of the number of rotations of the paper feed roller 19.

[0187] Therefore, the ASF control section 201 performs the steps S17 → S18 → S19 → S20 after step S17.
→ After repeating the loop of S17 a certain number of times, S19 → S
24 → S25 → Operation returning to S17 via S26
After repetition of the number of times, when the process reaches S26 for the third time, the rotation counter n of the sheet feeding roller 19 becomes n = 3, so the process proceeds to S27, a sheet feeding error signal is transmitted to the printer 101, and the operation is completed.

Other Operations (Printer Side, ASF Side) FIG. 32 is a sub-flow C3 for controlling the initialization operation of ASF1. Upon receiving the initialization command signal from the printer main body 101, the ASF control unit 201 proceeds to S28, and checks the value of the flag INIT indicating whether or not the phase in the rotation direction of the paper feed roller 19 is at the initial position. If INIT = 1, it indicates that the paper feed roller 19 is already at the initial position, and the process proceeds to step S31, where an initialization completion signal is transmitted to the printer 101, and the operation ends. Also, IN
If IT = 0, the process proceeds to step S29, in which the paper feed roller motor 27 is driven in the normal rotation direction by a predetermined number of pulses P0. The predetermined number of pulses P0 is such that the toothless portion 19b of the feed roller gear rotates to the opposite surface of the forward rotation planetary gear 31 no matter where the phase in the rotation direction of the feed roller 19 is located.
Is set to a value that can sufficiently rotate the sheet feeding roller 19 to the initial position. By executing S29, the sheet feeding roller 19 rotates to return to the initial position, and the pressure plate 26 and the sheet feeding rubber 23 are separated from each other. The seat 200 can be set smoothly.

Then, the process proceeds to a step S30, wherein the flag INIT is set to 1 so as to indicate that the sheet feeding roller is at the initial position.
, And proceeds to S31 to send an initialization completion signal to the printer 1
01 to end the operation.

FIG. 33 shows a sub-flow C1 for determining the type of the printer main body 101 mounted outside the printer via the ports 117f and 117g shown in FIG. The main body control unit 202 first proceeds to step 32 and transmits a model identification command signal to the external device via the port 117g. Next, the process proceeds to S33, and if no response signal is received from the external device via the port 117f, the process proceeds to S35, and if the predetermined time limit t1 has not elapsed, the process returns to S33. In S35, if the time limit t1 has elapsed, the process proceeds to S36, where it is determined that no external device is attached,
End the operation.

If a response signal is received from an external device in S33, the process proceeds to S34. In step S34, the main body control unit 202 reads the partial code ID indicating the attached model from the received response signal, and ends the operation. (Second Embodiment) FIGS. 34 and 35 show a second embodiment of the control flow in the printer according to the present invention and the external ASF that can be mounted on the printer. The first
Portions having the same functions and shapes and the same operations as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference symbols, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 31, the ASF control unit 201 sets the feed motor to P5 in S22.
After the pulse has been driven to rotate in the reverse direction, the process proceeds to step S23, where the sheet supply completion signal has been transmitted to the printer 101. But in this case,
Since the paper feed roller 19 has not returned to the initial position, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, the paper feed roller 19 remains in a state of being pressed against the sheet 200. In this state, if the cueing operation or the recording operation of the printer main body is simply performed only by the LF roller 109, the back tension is generated by the paper feed roller 19, and the conveyance accuracy of the sheet 200 may be deteriorated.

The second embodiment solves this problem.

As shown in FIG. 35, after performing the registration operation in S22, the ASF control unit 201 proceeds to S38 and drives the paper feed motor 27 to rotate forward by a predetermined number of pulses P6. The predetermined number of pulses P6 is a sufficient number of pulses for rotating the sheet feeding roller 19 to the initial position by driving with the forward rotation planetary gear 31. At the same time as the normal rotation drive of the paper feed motor 27 is started, a counter for measuring the elapsed time from the drive start is operated. When a predetermined time t3 has elapsed, the process proceeds to S39, and a synchronous drive request signal is transmitted to the printer main body 101 side. I do. During the predetermined time t3, after the paper feed motor 27 starts rotating in S38, the normal rotation planetary gear 31 revolves and meshes with the paper feed roller gear 19a to feed the paper feed roller 19.
Is slightly longer than the time until the start of rotation.

Further, in S38, the speed at which the paper feed motor 27 is driven is such that the peripheral speed of the paper feed rubber 23 attached to the paper feed roller 19 is lower than the peripheral speed when the LF roller 109 of the printer body rotates in S7. It is set to be slightly larger.

When step S38 is completed, the paper feed roller 19 rotates to the same phase as the initial position, and proceeds to S40. In S40, the ASF control unit 201 substitutes “1” indicating that the rotation direction phase of the paper feed roller 19 is in the initial state into the INIT flag, and ends the operation.

On the other hand, upon receiving the synchronous drive request signal transmitted by the ASF control section 201 in S39, the printer main body control section 202 proceeds from S5 to S7 in FIG.
The LF roller 109 starts normal rotation.

Printer body 101 in the present embodiment
FIG. 37 is a time chart summarizing how the ASF1 and ASF1 operate over time.

When the printer starts the paper feeding operation, first, a model identification command signal is transmitted to the ASF (S32). AS
F sends a signal ID indicating its model code to the printer (S37). Next, the printer transmits an ASF initialization command signal to the ASF side (S2). If the ASF is not in the initialization state, the printer rotates the sheet feed roller to perform an initialization operation (S2).
29), and transmits an initialization completion signal to the printer (S3).
1). Next, the printer transmits a paper feed command signal to the ASF side (S4). The ASF reads the optimal drive table T based on the paper type information sent together with the paper feed command signal (S15, not shown in FIG. 37), and then controls the paper feed motor based on the paper feed operation control flow C2. Then, the paper feed roller rotates (S18). The output voltage of the paper end sensor 108 provided on the printer side becomes HIGH,
When the sheet is detected, the ASF further rotates the sheet feeding roller by the rotation amount R1 based on the above-described pulse number P5, and performs a so-called registration removing operation (S22). After the completion of the registration operation, the ASF further rotates the sheet feeding roller by the rotation amount R3 at the same position as the initial state (S38), and when the time t3 elapses from the start of driving of the sheet feeding motor, the ASF. A synchronous drive request signal is transmitted to the printer (S39).

The printer which has received the synchronous drive request signal from the ASF rotates the LF roller by the rotation amount R3, and performs a so-called cueing operation (S7).

As is clear from the above description, in the present embodiment, in FIG. 36 showing a state in which step S22 is completed, the feed roller 19 starts rotating, and the LF roller 109 is slightly delayed. At the same time as the rotation starts, the peripheral speed of the paper feed rubber 23 is slightly higher than the peripheral speed of the LF roller 109 at this time. Therefore, the LF roller 1
When 09 starts rotation for the cueing operation in S7, since the paper feed rubber 23 pressed against the sheet 200 starts to rotate slightly earlier, no back tension occurs, and the peripheral speed of the paper feed rubber 23 is not increased. Is slightly higher than the peripheral speed of the LF roller 109, so that back tension due to the peripheral speed difference does not occur, and the conveyance accuracy at the time of cueing of the sheet 200 is stabilized.

If t3 is too small, the feed roller 19
The LF roller 109 may start rotating before the driving force transmission of the sheet feeding motor 27 is started. If t3 is too large, the sheet feeding roller 19 may rotate a lot before the LF roller 109 starts rotating. The sheet 200 may be deformed on the way or the leading edge may not be aligned in parallel with the nip formed by the LF roller 109 and the pinch roller 110. As a result of the experiment, in the present embodiment, the optimal value of t3 was about 10 ms to 100 ms. If the peripheral speed of the rubber feeder 23 attached to the paper feed roller 19 is not too high relative to the peripheral speed of the LF roller 109, the paper feed rubber 23 may slip due to the type of the sheet 200 and the surrounding environment. When this is done, back tension may still occur, and if the peripheral speed of the paper feed rubber 23 is too high, the sheet 200 may be deformed. As a result of the experiment, the optimal condition was that the peripheral speed of the paper feed rubber 23 in S38 of the present embodiment was about 5% to 50% faster than the peripheral speed of the LF roller 109 in S7.

In this embodiment, the name of the signal corresponding to the "paper feed completion signal" in the first embodiment is called "synchronous drive request signal" because of the difference in the meaning of the operation. As described above, no problem occurs even if the same signal as the "paper feed completion signal" is used as the actual signal. Therefore, the flow of controlling the sheet feeding operation of the printer main body (FIGS. 29 and 34) in the first embodiment and the second embodiment is essentially exactly the same. That is, the printer described in the first embodiment is
AS shown in the first embodiment and the second embodiment
Any of F can be mounted and used.

Here, the contents of a plurality of drive tables T in the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

For example, when the paper type information received by the ASF 1 indicates plain paper, the ASF control unit 201 selects the driving table 1. For plain paper, step 22
The driving speed is set to the medium speed because the resistance force at the time of the registration taking operation is small. Further, since the sheet is rarely conveyed obliquely during sheet feeding, it is not necessary to increase the amount of pressing against the LF roller 109, and a small value is set as the number of registration removal pulses P5.

If the paper type information received by the ASF 1 indicates an envelope, the ASF control unit 201 selects the drive table T3. Since the envelope has a high resistance when fed, and particularly has a high resistance during the registration operation in step S22, the driving speed is lower than that of plain paper so that the feed motor 27 does not lose synchronism. To ensure a large torque. On the other hand, since the envelope is more likely to be skewed (easily skewed) during paper feeding than other paper types, the number P5 of registration pulses in step S22 is a medium value larger than that of the plain paper table T1. Is set.
As a result, the amount by which the leading end of the envelope is pressed against the LF roller 109 increases, so that the leading ends of the envelopes are more reliably aligned.

When the paper type information indicates glossy paper, the ASF control section 201 selects the drive table T4. Glossy paper has a high resistance during the registration operation, but skew is unlikely to occur. Therefore, at T4, the driving speed at the time of registration removal is set to be low, and the number of registration removal pulses P5 is set to a small value equivalent to that of plain paper.

When the paper type information indicates a postcard, the ASF control section 201 selects the drive table T2. Since the postcard does not have a large resistance during the registration operation, the driving speed during the registration operation is set to the medium speed as in the case of plain paper.

On the other hand, in FIG. 37, when the rotation of the LF roller 109 on the printer side and the paper feed roller 19 of the ASF are simultaneously rotating, a sheet having high rigidity such as a postcard is not easily deformed on the way, and the peripheral speed is low. Large feed roller 19 is L
The postcard is pushed in against the frictional force of the F roller 109, and the leading end of the postcard is conveyed beyond the rotation amount R3 of the LF roller, so that a correct printing result may not be obtained. To avoid this, in the table T2, the number P5 of registration pulses in step S22 is set to a value as large as possible. Specifically, P5 = Pma
It is set as a variable represented by x-Pc and determined by the number of reverse rotation drive pulses of the sheet feeding motor 27 required until the paper end sensor 108 detects the sheet 200. As a result, when the paper end sensor 108
Even if 0 is detected, the total number of pulses in which the sheet feeding motor 27 is reversely driven at the end of the execution of step S22 in FIG. 35 is Pmax. That is, the feed roller gear 19
The toothless portion 19b of a rotates reliably to a position where the toothless portion 19b is disengaged in opposition to the reverse rotation planetary gear 35. For this reason, the rotation direction phase of the paper feed roller 19 after step S22 ends comes to a position greatly advanced from the initial position, and even if the paper feed roller 19 rotates in step S40, the phase of the paper feed roller 19 quickly changes. Return to initial position. Accordingly, the postcard loaded on the pressure plate 26 and the paper feed rubber 23 are immediately separated immediately after the LF roller 109 and the paper feed roller 19 start synchronously driving.
The postcard will not be pushed in against the frictional force of 09.

If the paper type information received from the printer 101 by the ASF 1 is a paper type not compatible with the ASF 1 or the paper type is not specified, the ASF control unit 2
01 selects the drive table T5. The drive table T5 according to the present embodiment includes a drive table T2 for a postcard.
Is stored, but depending on the assumed condition, it is also possible to store the same value in T5 as the table of another paper type, or of course, to store a value that does not completely match the table of another paper type. It is possible.

[0211]

As described above, according to the present invention,
By operating one operation member, the plurality of lock members are integrally moved. Therefore, the engagement between each lock member and each engagement portion can be released at the same time, and the release operation is simplified.

When the engagement between the lock member and the engagement portion is released by pressing the operation member downward, it is necessary to hold the image forming apparatus itself so as not to move. And the release operation can be easily performed with one hand.

Further, since the plurality of lock members are configured to be moved integrally, and the operation member is engaged with at least one lock member, all the lock members are engaged with the operation member. Do not move to the normal position unless it is in the combined state. Therefore, the engagement state of the lock member can be confirmed by the position of the operation member.

On the other hand, in the case where a protruding portion which is moved in a substantially horizontal direction by pressing the operation member downward is provided, the separation of the recording device is performed smoothly. Further, in a case where the movement of the protrusion in the substantially horizontal direction is performed after the movement of the lock member, the separation of the recording device is performed smoothly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of components related to the ASF printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a printer mounted on the ASF according to the present invention;
It is the perspective view which showed the component arrangement | positioning relevant to attachment and detachment with SF.

FIG. 13 is a left cross-sectional view for explaining an ASF and printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a left sectional view for explaining an ASF and a printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a left sectional view for explaining an ASF and a printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a left sectional view for explaining an ASF and a printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a left sectional view for explaining an ASF and a printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a left cross-sectional view illustrating a mechanism for attaching and detaching the ASF and the printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view in which a component arrangement and a force relationship relating to an ASF and a printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention are symbolized.

FIG. 20 is a top view for explaining an attachment / detachment mechanism between the ASF and the printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a top view illustrating an attachment / detachment mechanism between the ASF and the printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a top view for explaining an ASF and printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a top view for explaining an ASF and printer attaching / detaching mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 24 shows a printer 101 and an ASF 1 according to the present invention.
It is a connection block diagram of.

FIG. 25 shows a printer 101 and an ASF 1 according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a state where the are connected.

FIG. 26 is a schematic diagram showing the connection between the connector 117 and the ASF connector 44.

FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram showing connection and operation directions of a driving mechanism of the ASF1.

FIG. 28 is a schematic diagram illustrating connection and operation directions of a driving mechanism of the ASF1.

FIG. 29 is a control flow of a sheet feeding operation in the printer control unit 202 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 30 is a main control flow in the ASF control unit 201.

FIG. 31 is a sub-flow C2 of sheet feeding operation control by the ASF control unit 201 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 32 shows a sub-flow C3 of the initialization operation control of the ASF control unit 201.

FIG. 33 shows a sub-flow C1 of model discrimination operation control in the printer control unit 202.

FIG. 34 is a control flow of a sheet feeding operation in the printer control unit 202 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 35 is a sub-flow C2 of sheet feeding operation control by the ASF control unit 201 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 36 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which step S22 is completed during a paper feeding operation.

FIG. 37 is a time chart illustrating an outline of an operation flow of the printer 101 and the ASF 1 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 38 is a table showing the contents of a drive table T of the paper feed motor 27.

FIG. 39 is a perspective view for explaining a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ASF (sheet material feeder) 2 ASF paper feed tray 2a ASF paper feed tray side guide part 3 Hook spring (elastic member) 4 ASF connector cap 5 Hook spring base 6 Paper guide spring 7 Push lever spring 8 Chassis cover 9 Connecting Spring 10 Shield plate 11 ASF chassis 12 Bundle clamp 13 Pressure plate spring 15 Idle gear 16 Left hook (lock member) 16a1 Claw slope 16a2 Claw flat surface 16a3 Claw fixing surface 17 Right hook (lock member) 18 Hook shaft 19 Paper feed Roller 19a Paper feed roller gear 19b Tooth missing portion 19c Paper feed roller cam 20 Auxiliary ring 21 Second auxiliary ring 22 Paper feed roller bearing 23 Paper feed rubber 24 Paper guide 25 Separation pad 26 Press plate 26a Press plate cam 27 Feed motor 2 Gear stopper 29 ASF double gear 30 Forward rotation arm 31 Forward rotation planetary gear 32 Forward rotation spring 33 Reverse rotation sun gear 34 Reverse rotation arm 35 Reverse rotation planetary gear 36 Embankment 36a Butt surface 36b Reference guide storage section 36c Reference guide guide section 37 Embankment sheet 38 Embankment Sheet presser 39 Positioning base 39a-39c Slide surface 39d Positioning boss for round hole 39e Positioning boss for oblong hole 40 Push lever (operating member) 40a Push section 40b Pushing section 40c Sliding boss section 40d Sliding elongated hole section 41 Pop-up spring Reference Signs List 42 Lever shaft 43 Pop-up 43a Round hole fitting release pop-up 43b Oval hole fitting release pop-up 44 ASF connector 45 ASF base 45a Printer side guide part 45b Printer sliding part (guide surface) 4 c Table part 45d Connector cover storage part 1 45e Connector cover storage part 2 46 Bottom cover 47 ASF upper case 47a Eaves part 47b Eaves concave part 48 Paper feed unit 49 ASF chassis unit 50 Hook unit 51 Paper feed roller unit 52 Pressure plate unit 53 Paper feed Motor unit 54 Bank unit 55 Positioning base unit 56 ASF sheet discharge unit 58 ASF sheet path 59 ASF connector cover 100 Image forming apparatus 101 Printer (recording apparatus) 101A Paper feed port 102 Upper case 102a Pop-up contact part 102b Push lever contact part 103 Base 103y Hook fixing hole (engaging portion) 103z Hook fixing hole (engaging portion) 103w Base bottom surface 104 Chassis 105 Platen 107 Battery 11 Spurs 115 head 116 paper feed tray 116a reference guide 117 connector 118 substrate holder 118a positioning hole 118b elongated positioning holes 119 printer connector cover 120 a paper feed motor 121 the carriage motor 122 right edge guide 200 sheet (sheet material)

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Shinya Asano 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Takashi Nojima 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inside (72) Inventor Noriko Kawa ▲ saki ▼ 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Hiroshi Hasegawa 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon stock In company

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A sheet material feeding device for feeding a sheet material, and a recording device for recording an image on the sheet material fed by the sheet material feeding device, and wherein the sheet material feeding is performed. In the image forming apparatus configured such that the apparatus and the recording apparatus are separable, one of the sheet material feeding apparatus and the recording apparatus may include a plurality of movably supported lock members and at least one lock member. An operating member that is engaged and movably supported, and moves the plurality of lock members integrally based on the operation of the operating member, and does not include the lock member. The sheet material feeding device or the recording device has a plurality of engagement portions with which the plurality of lock members are respectively engaged, and engages each of the lock members with each of the engagement portions. The above Connecting the lock member with the engagement portion by connecting the sheet material feeding device and the recording device and moving the lock member by the operation member. apparatus. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lock member is a claw-shaped member, and the engagement portion is a hole. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lock member is rotatably supported. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lock member and the operation member are provided on a side of the sheet material feeding device, and the engaging portion is provided on a side of the recording device. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein 5. The sheet material feeding device has a horizontal guide surface that defines a moving direction of the recording device when connecting the recording device, and the lock member protrudes upward from the guide surface. Wherein the lock member is moved downward by pressing the operation member downward, thereby releasing the engagement between the lock member and the engagement portion. 5. The image forming apparatus according to 4. 6. The elastic member, wherein the lock member is urged by an elastic member in a direction in which the lock member is engaged with the engagement portion, and the lock member is engaged with the engagement portion. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the operation member moves the operation member via the lock member. 7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the elastic member is a spring. 8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the elastic member is a coil spring. 9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet feeding device has a protrusion supported movably in a substantially horizontal direction and connected to the operation member, and pressing the operation member downward. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the protrusion is moved in a substantially horizontal direction to push the recording device in the direction. 10. The recording device is separated from the sheet feeding device based on the fact that the movement of the protrusion in the substantially horizontal direction is performed after the movement of the lock member. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9. 11. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lock member and the operation member are provided on a side of the recording device, and the engaging portion is provided on a side of the sheet material feeding device. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein