JPS5813454B2 - cassette - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a paper feeding cassette used in a recording apparatus such as a facsimile transceiver or an electrophotographic copying machine.

In recent years, devices such as facsimile transceivers and electrophotographic copying machines that have a so-called paper feeding function that feeds sheets such as originals or recording paper,
In order to simplify the replenishment and storage of sheets and to improve the operability of the device, a so-called paper feed cassette is used which serves both as a sheet container and a paper feed table.

However, since conventional paper feed cassettes accommodate only one type of sheet, it is necessary to prepare several paper feed cassettes depending on the type of sheet. However, the cassette must be removed and replaced each time depending on the sheet being used, which is a hassle.

In addition, in order to reduce these complicated operations, two different types of paper feed cassettes are loaded in the paper feed section of the device, so that one of the cassettes can be selectively used when feeding paper. However, in this type of device, both of the above cassettes are originally constructed as a single unit, so a paper feed mechanism dedicated to each cassette is required, and each of these paper feed mechanisms is Since a selection mechanism is required for selective operation depending on the cassette to be used, the device itself becomes complicated, large-sized, and expensive.

Furthermore, in order to avoid complicating the device and to reduce the complicated operations such as attaching and detaching cassettes, the two types of cassettes are arranged in two tiers (upper and lower) to form a unit, and a single paper feeding mechanism is used. A so-called two-stage paper feed cassette that allows for selective paper feeding has also been proposed, but while this paper feed cassette provides a single paper feed mechanism for the device, the structure of the cassette itself is complicated. Moreover, it was accompanied by the problem that it became difficult to replenish the lower cassette with sheets.

In view of the above-mentioned points, an object of the present invention is to form a unit by arranging two types of cassettes in upper and lower stages, similar to the above-mentioned two-stage paper feed cassette, thereby avoiding the complication of the cassette itself. To provide a paper feeding cassette which is simple, easy to operate, and easy to replenish with sheets.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a paper feeding cassette that can control the operation of the apparatus and the operation of the sheet separating means in conjunction with the loading operation of the cassette into the apparatus main body without bothering the operator. be.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a paper feeding cassette of the present invention, and this cassette includes a first sheet tray T1 on which a plurality of first sheets S1 can be placed, and a first sheet tray T1 that can hold a plurality of first sheets S1. A second sheet tray T2 that can hold a plurality of sheets S2, and a second sheet tray T2, which can hold a plurality of sheets S2, are stacked in two stages, upper and lower, and the first sheet tray TI located in the upper stage is stacked on the second sheet tray T2 located in the lower stage. One tray T2
The second
With the leading edge of the sheet S2 facing below the paper feed roller F disposed in the main body D of the recording apparatus (hereinafter referred to as the device receiving paper feed), move the second sheet tray TT2 to the main body D of the recording apparatus. and slide the first sheet tray T1 on the second sheet tray T2 in the direction of arrow a in FIG. This first sheet tray T1 is configured to be fixed with respect to the apparatus main body D in a state facing below the rollers F.

Further, the cassette of the present invention is configured as described above, and the first sheet tray T1 is slid on the second sheet tray T2, and the leading end of the first sheet S1 is moved by the paper feed roller F. A switch SW (for example, a switch for switching the transmission/reception mode of a facsimile transceiver, a switch for switching the transmission/reception mode of a facsimile transceiver, This is a switch that is used to display the seat size on machines.

Further, the cassette of the present invention is configured as described above, and when the first sheet S1 is fed using the sheet carrier, the cassette is connected to the operation of the first sheet tray T1. The separating function of the other sheet separating means SP disposed downstream of the corner separator in the main body D is disabled.

As shown in FIG. 2, the paper feeding mechanism of the paper feeding device applied to the cassette of the present invention is as shown in FIG. The roller may be brought into contact with the paper feed roller F disposed at a fixed position, and as shown in FIG. , the paper feed roller F may be brought into contact with the paper feed roller F by lowering the paper feed roller F.

Furthermore, the corner separator CP for separating the stacked sheets may be disposed beside the paper feeding cassette C as shown in FIG. It may also be placed beside the receiving device D.

Hereinafter, a specific example of the paper feeding cassette of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings, taking a facsimile transceiver as an example of a device for receiving paper feeding.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention configured to be suitable as a paper feed cassette for the facsimile transceiver, and this paper feed cassette has a sheet tray as shown in FIG. Push up T1 or T2 with the upper lever U to bring the leading end of each sheet S1, S2 into contact with the paper feed roller F, and as shown in FIG. 4, a corner separator CP is placed on the side of the cassette C. It is of the model type.

This cassette 10 is roughly divided into a document tray 11 (on which a transmission document corresponding to the first sheet S1 described above is placed).
(corresponding to the above first sheet tray) and a recording paper tray 1 on which a recording sheet corresponding to the above second sheet S2 is placed.
2 (corresponding to the second sheet tray) and a cassette frame 13 that supports both trays 11 and 12.

The recording paper tray 12 has cassette frame 1 on both sides of its rear end.
The cassette frame 13 is supported by side plates 14 and 15 formed on both sides of the cassette frame 3 with screws 16 (one not shown), so that it can swing freely relative to the cassette frame 13.

A stay 17 is rotatably provided between the rear ends of the side plates 14 and 15, and support arms 18 (one not shown) for the document tray 11 are attached to both ends of the stay 17. Each is fixed.

Both sides of the rear end of the document tray 11 are pivoted to each extending end of both support arms 18 by screws 19 (one not shown), which allows the document tray 11 to be attached to the cassette frame 1.
3 and the recording paper tray 12.

Note that one end of a pair of L-shaped arm rods 20 is attached to a screw 19 on both sides of the rear end of the document tray 11, similar to the support arm 18.
The other ends of both arm rods 20 (one not shown) pass through long holes 12b formed in the fins 12a on both sides of the recording paper tray 12, and the recording paper They extend to both sides of the tray 12, respectively.

Pins 21 are fixed to the above-mentioned extending ends of both arm rods 20, and each of these pins 21 (one is not shown)
pass through each elongated hole 22 (one not shown) formed in both side plates 14, 15, and protrude outward from each side plate 14, 15, respectively.

Further, on one side plate 14, a sliding plate 23 is slidably attached to the side plate 14 by fitting a long hole 23a formed therein into a pair of guide pins 24 fixedly planted on the side plate 14. It is located in

Note that this sliding plate 23 is given a habit of shifting toward the rear end of the side plate 14 during normal life due to the elasticity of a tight spring 25 stretched between the sliding plate 23 and the guide pin 24. In this state, the rear end 23b of the sliding plate 23 is
It is located inside one end of the elongated hole 22.

Further, at the tip of the sliding plate 23, there are two bent pieces 23c, 23.
d are formed respectively, and these bent pieces are 23ct
23d passes through the notches 14a and 14b of the side plate 14,
They each extend outward from the side plate 4.

On the other hand, a coil spring 26 is wound around the stay 17. One end of the coil spring 26 is fixed to a collar 27 fixed to the stay 17, and the other end is attached to the cassette frame 13.
elastically abuts against the rear edge of the

Due to the elasticity of this coil spring 26, the support arm 18 is
7, it is given the habit of rotating in the direction of arrow b in the figure, and thereby it is given the habit of sliding on the recording paper tray 12 toward the rear with respect to the document tray 11.

Corner separators 28 are provided at both corners of the leading edge of the document tray 11 to press both corners of the leading edge of the transmitted document placed thereon.
In addition, from above document tray 11, record paper tray 1
Peep window 11 for easily determining the presence or absence of recording paper on 2.
a. Sensor lever that detects whether there is a document to be sent (described later)
a recess 1lb to which the tip of the document tray 11 corresponds;
A tongue piece 11c for aligning the tip end of the recording paper tray 12 with the fin 12a of the recording paper tray 12, etc. are formed respectively.

On the other hand, on both sides of the recording paper tray 12, a pair of corner separators 29 are provided for pressing both corners of the leading edge of the recording paper, similar to the corner separators 28 described above. A friction member 30 made of a rubber sheet or the like for preventing double-sheet feeding is disposed at a portion of the paper tray 12 where the recording paper is placed at the tip thereof that the paper feed roller does not correspond to.

Further, on both sides of the tip of the cassette frame 13, stationary arms 13a are formed, each of which is bent in a dogleg shape at the tip, for fixing the cassette frame 13 in a paper feed section of a device that receives paper feed. In addition, an arrow cut portion 13b is formed at the center of the tip of the cassette frame 13 at a location corresponding to a push-up lever to be described later.

Now, the paper feed cassette 10 configured as described above is
As shown in FIG. 7, a stopper 32 disposed on a support plate 31 of a paper feed section of a facsimile transceiver, for example.
By locking the stationary arm 13a, the paper sheet is placed on the support plate 31 and placed in a state in which paper can be fed.

Note that, as shown in FIG. 8, this paper feeding cassette 10 is operated with the cassette frame 13 fixed on the support plate 31.
The leading edge of the recording paper placed on the plain recording paper tray 12 is
It is located below the paper feed roller 33,
The transmission original placed on the original tray 11 is transferred to the original tray 1.
1 on the recording paper tray 12 to the right in FIG.
It is facing downwards.

Here, to explain the configuration of the illustrated facsimile transceiver, a gear 35 is disposed on a support shaft 34 of a paper feed roller 33 via a spring clutch 36, and this gear 35 meshes with another gear 38. ing.

A cam 40 is fixed to the shaft 39 of the gear 38, and an arm rod 42 that swings together with the shaft 41 is attached to the cam edge of the cam 40.
The peripheral surface of a roller 43 rotatably mounted on the end of the arm rod 42 is brought into contact with the elastic force of a spring 44 connected to the other end of the arm rod 42 .

A push-up lever 45 for pushing each tray 11, 12 of the cassette 10 upward in the figure is fixed to the shaft 41. In this case, the extending end 48a of the crank arm 48, which is swingably supported by the stay 46 and is biased by the spring 47, has a habit of swinging following the push-up lever 45. are in contact.

An L-shaped piece 49 is fixed to one part of the crank arm 48, and this L-shaped piece 49 has a gap between the sheet conveying belt 51 stretched between the paper feed roller 33 and another roller 50. A sheet separation plate 52 that separates sheets by formation and a friction member 53 that separates sheets by frictional contact.
are each fixed.

On the other hand, the drum FD is rotatably supported by both side plates (not shown) by a support shaft 54, and the drum drive motor M
It is rotated in the direction of arrow C in the figure by a worm 55 fixed to the output shaft of D through a worm gear 56 coaxially integral with the drum FD which meshes with the worm 55.

A synchronous rotation transmission gear 58 is disposed on the drum support shaft 54 and drives the drum FD in synchronization with the rotation of a sheet conveyance roller, which will be described later, via a well-known one-way rotation clutch 57 such as a spring clutch.

A drum drive gear 59 meshes with this synchronous rotation transmission gear 58, and two pulleys 60 and 61 are each fixed to the drive gear 59 coaxially and integrally therewith.

This one pulley 60 has a belt 64 connected to another pulley 63 fixed to the spindle 62a of the sheet conveying roller 62.
The other pulley 61 is fixed to a paper feed pulley 66 coaxially fixed to the paper feed roller 33 and an output shaft of a paper feed drive motor MP that drives the sheet feeding device. The output pulley 61 is connected by a belt 69 via an idler 68.

When the facsimile machine configured as described above is given an image transmission signal from another facsimile machine, the paper feed drive motor MP is activated, and the above-mentioned pulleys and belts 64, 6 are activated.
9, the paper feed roller 33 and the sheet conveyance roller 62 rotate in the direction of arrow d in the figure.

At the same time, the rotation of the drum drive gear 59 is transmitted to the synchronous rotation transmission gear 58, and the drum FD rotates in the direction of arrow C via the one-way rotation clutch 57.

Next, the spring clutch 36 is turned on, and the paper feed pulley is turned on.
The rotation of the reel 66 is transmitted to the other gear 38 via the gear 35, and the cam 40 rotates around the shaft 39.

As a result, the arm rod 42 swings due to the elasticity of the spring 44, the push-up lever 45 swings, and the recording paper tray 12 on which the recording paper is placed is pushed up by the push-up lever 45, and the crank arm 48 is pushed up. Following the movement of the lever 45, the sheet separating plate 52 and the friction member 53 come into contact with the sheet conveying belt 51.

The recording paper is carried out from the recording paper tray 12 when the tray 12 is pushed up and comes into contact with a paper feed roller 33 rotating in the direction of arrow d.

Then, due to the sheet separation action of the corner separator 29, the sheet separation plate 52, and the friction member 53 that press both corners of the leading edge of the recording paper arranged in the recording paper tray 12, the topmost recording paper is separated. This record paper is fed separately from the other stacked recording papers, and its leading edge is at the sheet guide plate 7.
By contacting the stopper 72 that extends from the sheet conveyance roller 62 from the sheet conveyance roller 62
Pause while facing the bottom of the frame.

During this time, the cam 40 rotates to the initial position, the clutch 36 is turned off, the push-up lever 45 and the crank arm 48 return to their initial positions, and the contact between the recording paper and the paper feed roller 33 is broken. .

On the other hand, a sheet gripping claw 73 disposed on the circumferential surface of the drum FD in the direction of its generatrix is opened by a sheet set cam (not shown) that cooperates with the rotation of the drum FD.

When this gripper claw 73 reaches its predetermined position due to the rotation of the drum, a lever 74 whose arm end extends to the peripheral edge of the drum FD is swung. The driven aperture roller 75 comes into pressure contact with the sheet conveyance roller 3 and pinches the leading end of the recording paper.

At the same time, the stopper 72 retreats from the seat passage,
As a result, the recording paper is fed again and moves along the circumference of the drum FD, and its leading edge enters below the gripping pawl 73. Immediately after this, the actuating member of the gripping pawl 73 moves to the sheet set cam. The gripping claw T3 closes and the leading end of the recording paper is fixed to the drum FD.

In addition, at this time, the drum FD and the sheet conveyance roller 62
are rotated synchronously via the drum drive gear 59 and the synchronous rotation transmission gear 58 so that the moving speed of the fed recording paper and the moving speed of the gripping claws 73 satisfy the above-mentioned timing.

With the leading edge of the recording paper fixed to the drum FD,
As the drum 4 rotates, it is wound onto the circumferential surface of the drum.

When the winding of the recording paper onto the drum FD is completed, the drum 1 drive motor MD is activated, and the drum FD is rotated by the action of the one-way rotation clutch 57 and only by the action of the drum drive motor MD.

In this way, the drum FD rotates through the drum 1 drive motor MD, and image signals from other facsimile machines are applied through the recording needle (not shown) that moves in the direction of its generatrix. The image is recorded on the recording paper.

Next, when this predetermined recording operation is completed, the gripper claw 73
is opened again, and at the same time, the discharge port roller 76 comes into contact with the periphery of the drum 4, and the recording paper is discharged toward the paper discharge tray 77.

On the other hand, when transmitting a transmission document electronically, place the transmission document on the document tray 11, move this document tray 11 to the right in FIG. By facing downward and operating the feed/finish motor MF in this state (see FIG. 9), it is fed and electrically transferred in substantially the same manner as the recording paper described above.

Note that the document tray 11 can be moved over the recording paper tray 12 to the right in FIG.
A pin 21 fixed to the end of the facsimile transceiver moves along the elongated hole 22, and as shown in FIG. , is fixed at that paper feeding position.

By the way, this cassette 10 is operated by sliding the document tray 11 on the recording paper tray 12 so that the leading edge of the transmitted document placed thereon faces below the paper feed roller 33, and is connected to the facsimile transceiver. The switch body can be operated to change the transmission mode.

That is, as shown in FIGS. 11 to 14, the main body of the facsimile transceiver is provided with an actuator 81 that has a habit of rotating in a predetermined direction (in the direction of arrow e in FIG. 11). The switch body 83 is configured such that the switch contact piece 82 can be closed or opened by rotating the switch body 83.
Two actuators 84 and 85 are fixed to the actuator 81 of the actuator 81, and the positions of the extending parts of each of these actuators 84 and 85 on the side in which they rotate depending on their habits (Figs. 12 to 14) are fixed. In the figure, the extending ends 86a and 87a of the two arm rods 86 and 87 are located to the left of the actuator 84 and to the right of the actuator 85, respectively. , and when one of these arm rods 86, 87 pushes the corresponding actuator against its habit, the other arm rod and the other corresponding actuator move away from each other. Both arm levers 86 and 87 are constructed to be movable, and a sensor lever 88 that is interlocked with the arm levers 86 and 87 and swings depending on the presence or absence of the transmission document So is disposed on the loading path of the document tray 11. A transmission mode switching mechanism is provided.

A trigger lever 93 is fixed to the sensor lever 88 and the support shaft 92 of each arm rod 86, 87, and a pivot shaft 94 parallel to the support shaft 92 is provided in the rotation path of the trigger lever 93. Bent edge 95 of attached channel arm 95
A is coming.

A tension spring 96 is connected to one arm portion 95b of the channel arm 95, and the elasticity of this spring 96 causes
Around the axis 94, right-hand maneuverability is provided in the figure.

In addition, a tension spring 98 connected to the arm rod 86 is attached to the arm rods 86, 87, the sensor lever 88, and the trigger lever 93.
Due to the elasticity of the trigger lever 93, the right-hand movement in the figure is given around the support shaft 92, and the rotation of the arm rods 86, 87 due to this movement is caused by the extension end 93a of the plain trigger lever 93 (see Fig. 11). ) is prevented by contacting the bent edge 95a of the channel arm 95.

Further, the elasticity of each spring is such that the rotation force due to the habit of each arm rod 86, 87 and trigger arm 93 is stronger than that of each actuator 84, 85, and the channel arm 95
Each is set to be weaker than that of .

Note that if the document tray 11 moves even slightly from its paper feeding position and the sliding plate 23 moves backward, the sensor lever 88 will move.
The lever ratios of the sensor lever 88, trigger lever 93, and channel arm 95 are set so that the document tray immediately retreats from the concave portion 1lb.

The first mode of the mode switching mechanism configured as described above is the "receiving mode" shown in FIG. This is a state in which the trays 11 and 12 are evacuated from the paper feeding position and the recording paper tray 12 faces the paper feeding position.

The second mode is the [multi-transmission mode] shown in FIG.
It is.

This mode is obtained by placing the transmission original So on the original tray 11 and setting the original tray 11 at its paper feeding position.

That is, in FIG. 12, the document tray 11 is
When the sliding plate 23 moves forward to the position shown in the figure, the pin 21 moves the sliding plate 23 forward, and the channel arm 95 is pushed and moved by the bent piece 23c of the sliding plate 23 against the trigger lever. 93 is placed on the right around the support shaft 92, and along with this, the sensor lever 88 is placed in the same direction.
Then, the arm rod 86 rotates, the opening/closing mode of the switch contact piece 82 is changed, and the facsimile machine is switched to the multi-transmission mode.

As a result, the facsimile machine switches from the reception state shown in FIG. 12 to the transmission state, and electronically transmits the transmission document So.

At this time, if the number of sheets of the transmission document So is plural, when the electronic transmission of one sheet of the transmission document is completed and the scanning head turns on the end switch, the rotation of the sensor lever 88 is
Since the switch contact piece 82 is still in the ON state due to being blocked by the next document to be transmitted, the facsimile machine switches to the multi-transmission mode and the document to be transmitted So is continuously transmitted.

In this way, the transmission originals So are sent one after another, and when the last transmission original on the original tray 11 is sent out,
The extending end 88a of the sensor lever 88 is connected to the document tray 1.
This causes the switch contact piece 82 to switch between open and closed states, and when the scanning head turns on the end switch, the switch contact piece 82 turns off, causing the facsimile to perform the "transmission" operation shown in FIG. mode.

This mode corresponds to an intermediate mode between the above two modes, and in this mode, the document tray 11
When a plurality of transmission originals are set on the top, the sensor lever 88 moves to the left around the support shaft 92 against its habit.
When the facsimile machine switches to the "multi-transmission mode" shown in FIG. 13 in the same way as described above, and receives a reception command from another facsimile machine, the document tray 11 is moved to an ejector (not shown) that operates according to the command. ), the locking member 80 is retracted (see FIG. 10), returns to its original position, and switches to the "reception mode" shown in FIG. 12.

In addition, this paper feeding cassette 10 is similar to the document tray 1 described above.
1, the separation plate 52 and the friction member 5
3 can be moved toward and away from the sheet conveying belt 51.

In other words, since the originals to be sent generally vary in size, shape, thickness, and stiffness, the originals to be sent are placed in a sheet carrier made of a transparent film-like sheet folded in half, and placed on the original tray 11. will be placed on.

Therefore, when the originals to be sent using this sheet carrier are separated into sheets using the separating plate 52 and the friction member 53, since the sheet carrier is folded in half, multiple sheets of originals are fed. As a result, the lower sheet portion is stopped by the frictional force of the friction member 53, and only the upper sheet portion is stopped by the sheet conveying belt 5.
1, the sheet carrier is fed downstream, causing problems such as damage to the transmitted document or jamming of the sheet carrier in the conveyance path.

Therefore, in such a facsimile transceiver equipped with a plurality of sheet separating means, for example, the 15th
As shown in the figure, a notch 48b is provided on the side of the crank arm 48, one end faces the notch 48b near the drum, and the other end faces the bent piece 23d of the sliding plate 23 near the drum. An arm rod 102 is provided which is swingably supported by a shaft 100 so as to face the arm rod 102 and which is given a rotational habit by a spring 101 such that one end of the arm rod moves away from the notch.

With this configuration, the transmission document accommodated in the sheet carrier is placed on the tray 11, and the document tray 1 is
1 is moved to the right in FIG. Press the rear end portion 23b.

As a result, the sliding plate 23 resists the elasticity of the spring 25,
The cassette 21 moves toward the front (see FIG. 9), and the bent piece 23a pushes the end 102a of the arm rod 102, causing the arm rod 102 to swing against the force of the spring 101. Then, the other end 102b enters the notch 48b of the crank arm 48.

In this state, when the push-up lever 45 swings, the document to be sent rises, and the topmost sheet rotates on the paper feed roller 33.
The sheet conveyor belt 5
1, the friction member 5 is provided downstream of the passage.
However, at this time, the following movement of the crank arm 48 with respect to the push-up lever 45 is prevented by the engagement between the notch 48b and the end 102b of the arm rod 102, and the friction member 53 is moved against the sheet conveying belt. Since the document to be sent to the sheet carrier is placed at a position away from the recording paper 51, it is fed to the sheet carrier until it faces the lower part of the conveyance roller 62 without being subjected to the separation action of the friction member 53. A scanner (not shown) that is wound around the drum FD and moves along the generatrix direction of the drum FD,
After the image is scanned and electronically transmitted to another facsimile machine, it is discharged onto a paper discharge tray 77 by a discharge roller 76.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a paper feeding cassette which has a simple structure and simple operation, and in which sheets can be easily replenished because the upper tray opens relative to the lower tray. .

In addition, with a simple mechanism, it is possible to control the operating state of the paper feeding device and the separating function of the sheet separating means without any operation by an operator.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a paper feeding cassette of the present invention;
2 and 3 are explanatory diagrams of a sheet feeding mechanism applicable to the above cassette, FIGS. 4 and 5 are explanatory diagrams of a sheet separating means applicable to the above cassette, and FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a sheet separating means applicable to the above cassette. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of one embodiment; FIG. 7 is a side view showing the above embodiment placed in a paper receiving device; FIG. The figure is a side view showing the operating state of the above embodiment.
Figure 0 is a partial perspective view of the above embodiment in the operating mode, Figure 11 is a perspective view of the transmitting/receiving mode switching mechanism of the Joki facsimile transceiver, and Figures 12 to 14 show the operating mode of the mode switching mechanism. The side view, FIG. 15, is a perspective view of the sheet separating means of the upper facsimile transceiver. SL...First sheet, S2...Second sheet, T,...
...first sheet tray, T2...second sheet tray,
D... device for receiving paper feed, F, 33... paper feed roller,
CP, 28, 29...Corner separator, SW, 8
3...Switch, SP...Sheet separation means, 11...Document tray, 12...Recording paper tray, 13...Cassette frame,
13a... Stationary member, 23... Sliding plate.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A first sheet tray on which a plurality of first sheets can be placed, a second sheet tray on which a plurality of second sheets can be placed, and both of these trays. means for stacking the trays in two layers, upper and lower, and slidably and rotatably supporting a first sheet tray located in the upper layer with respect to a second sheet tray in the lower layer; means for fixing the second sheet tray to the main body of the recording apparatus with the leading end of the sheet facing below a paper feed roller disposed in the main body of the recording apparatus; The first sheet tray is slid on the first sheet tray, and the first sheet tray placed on it is
means for positioning the first sheet tray relative to the apparatus main body with the leading edge of the sheet facing below the paper feed slot; The operation mode of the recording apparatus is changed by sliding the first sheet tray and causing the leading edge of the sheet placed on the first sheet tray to face below the paper feed roller. and means for operating a switch to switch to a state corresponding to the sheets stored in the paper feed cassette. 2. A first sheet tray that can hold a plurality of first sheets, a second sheet tray that can hold a plurality of second sheets, and these trays are separated into upper and lower positions.
means for slidably and rotatably supporting a first sheet tray stacked in tiers and located in the upper tier with respect to a second sheet tray in the lower tier; and a leading end of the second sheet; means for positioning the second sheet tray on the apparatus main body, with the second sheet tray facing below a paper feed roller disposed on the apparatus main body of the recording apparatus; Slide the first sheet tray, and with the leading edge of the first sheet placed on it facing below the paper feed roller, place the first sheet tray against the main body of the apparatus. and an arm rod that engages and disengages from another sheet separating means disposed downstream of the corner separator of the apparatus main body when the first sheet is fed using a sheet carrier. A paper feeding cassette characterized in that the sheet separating means is engaged with and locked in conjunction with the sliding movement of the first sheet tray, thereby disabling the separating function of the sheet separating means. .