JPS6067338A - Paper supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To ensure the stability and security of paper supply and facilitate the attachment of a cassette by providing pivotably a blank delivering roller on a paper supply device to contact the uppermost surface of the blank in interlocking relation to the cassette loading. CONSTITUTION:When a cassette 21 is put on a paper supply bed 30 and slided slantly downward, a rising slope 28 of a cam surface 28 on the outer surface of side wall engages a roller 38 which is pushed up against a coil spring 37. Thus, a paper supply unit above the paper supply bed 30 is pivoted clockwise about a rotary shaft 31 to retreat from the upper surface of the cassette 21. When the cassette is further moved, the roller 38 movably rolls on the cam surface 28 and a blank feed roller 36 is located in the remotest position from the cassette 21. Further, when the cassette 21 is pushed on, the roller 38 is lowered along a lowering slant surface 28C to complete cassette loading so that the roller 36 contacts the blank P and stops in a definite position. When the roller 36 is rotated by a motor 33 to deliver the blank P1, the end of blank is discharged after overrunning a separating claw 24.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to image forming apparatuses such as printing machines, copying machines, and recording apparatuses;
In particular, the present invention relates to a paper feeding device in a printer that prints output signals from a computer, word processor, facsimile, etc. onto recording paper.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In order to make it easier to understand the contents of the present invention, an explanation will be given below using an inkjet type printer as an example.

The recording paper used in the above printers includes continuous paper with sprocket holes that can be folded (fanfold paper), rolled paper such as paper tubes, and various types of J-grip paper.
There is also cut paper that has not been cut to the foot size. The cut sheets (hereinafter referred to simply as sheets -f) are stored in a stack in a paper feed tray fixed on the printer or in a paper feed cassette (hereinafter referred to as a paper feed cassette) that is removable from the printer. In the cassette, sheets of different sizes and types of paper are stored separately in advance.
The top layer of the stacked sheets is fed one by one using the frictional force of a sheet feed roller or sheet feeding belt as a sheet feeding means of the printer 1 liter.

The automatic paper feeding system of the cassette 1 system is widely adopted in the various types of recording apparatuses mentioned above because it facilitates paper replacement and replenishment operations and allows the recording apparatus main body to be made compact.

In the above-mentioned cassette-type automatic paper feed system, when loading and unloading the cassette into and from the printer, it is necessary to keep the paper in the cassette and the printer's claw feed roller in a non-contact state (i.e. If there is contact, at least the topmost sheet of paper in the cassette will be held down by the paper feeder [70-ra] and may curl up, wrinkle, or fall out of the cassette due to loading or unloading the cassette. Extraction causes the inconvenience of coming out.

Therefore, in the past, the paper feed L20-ra was always held in a released position with respect to the paper uppermost side of the 7Th cassette loaded in the printer, and the paper feed roller was adjusted each time according to the manual force of the paper feed The above trouble can be avoided by swinging the -C into contact with the paper surface. However, with this type, q) the mechanical configuration is complicated and there are many causes of failure; ■ the paper feeding operation tends to be unstable because there is a contact shock of the feed roller against the paper each time the paper is fed; ■ the printer If an emergency stop occurs (for example, an emergency automatic stop due to the activation of a jam detection safety device), the feed roller remains in contact with the paper surface, so if the cassette is removed or loaded at this point, the above-mentioned problems may occur. There are drawbacks. In addition, there is a method in which the operator operates a lever to separate the paper feeding means from the paper in the cassette only when the cassette is attached or removed, but this method is troublesome.

An example of a paper feeding device that improves the above defects 1-Binding-C
The feeding system described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1, No. 57-21709 will be explained based on FIG. 1, 46, and FIG.

Figure 1 is a side view of the cassette 21 and the front of the tray, and Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view after loading. It also serves as a paper separation claw 4, and the paper receiving plate 3 is attached to the rear end 3.
The sheets P are set in a stacked manner on the seventy-span receiving plate 3, supported by the C spring 5 in a pushing upward direction with a as a fulcrum. Separation claw 4
is attached to the shaft 6 provided on the inner surface of the side wall of the paper storage box 3 so as to be movable up and down via the support part @7, and supports the leading edge corner of the uppermost paper P set on the receiving plate 3. Hold it down by yourself. Further, cam plates 8 are provided on the outer surface of both side walls of the paper storage box 20.

On the other hand, a paper feed tray 1 of the copying machine main body into which the cassette 1 is loaded
00 On both sides there is a grate 12 that can swing freely around the shaft 11.
, and the paper feed roller 13 is inserted therethrough. The paper feed roller 13 is connected to the shaft load 1 via a chain 14.
It is rotationally driven by a drive device that is coaxial with. In addition, a dowel 15 is fixed to the other end of the plate 12, and it loosely passes through the hole 16 of the paper feed tray 10, and the feed J1 (protruding inside the tray 10) 12 is pulled downward by a spring 17. There is. Therefore, the dowel 15 is in contact with the lower edge of the hole 6 in the feed M stand 10, except when the cassette is installed or removed, which will be described later.
This determines the stop position of the C feed-out row 213.

In the process of loading the cassette (1) onto the paper feed tray 10, the slope 8a of the cam plate 8 on the outer surface of the cassette side wall is inserted into the paper feed tray (10).
The dowel 1 is engaged with the dowel 15 protruding inwardly.
5 is pushed up against the spring 17, and then the dowel 15 is dropped from the upper surface 8b of the cam plate 8 along the vertical end surface 8c to disengage from the cam plate 8 and return downward by the spring 17. There is.

To remove the cassette 1, pull the handle 18 slidably provided on the outer surface of the side wall of the paper storage box 3 to the left against the spring 19.
is engaged with the dowel 15, and the vertical slope 8eK? of the cam plate 8 of the cassette 1 is engaged against the spring F. a and push it up to the position of the upper surface 8b. This allows the paper surface and the feed roller 1 to
3 becomes in a non-contact state, and the entire cassette 1-1 can be removed.

The above-mentioned conventional paper feeding device still has the following drawbacks, which cause problems when attaching and detaching the cassette 71.
There is C. That is, (1) When removing the cassette, the 011 handle 18 must be fully pulled to remove it, which is cumbersome to operate.

(7'l/-) 12 is located downstream of the cassette 1-1, and must be inserted below the 5 cassette stop plate so as not to obstruct paper feeding. The shaft 11 is installed considerably below the rotating shaft 13a of the cooled feed roller 13, and the direction of the pressing force on the contact surface between the feed roller 13 and the paper P is tilted, causing problems when separating and feeding the paper. It becomes stable.

A large amount of pushing force is required to install a small cassette.

■ The drive shaft that rotates the delivery L roller 13 must be coaxial with the swing axis 11 of the plate 10 and must be installed below the cassette stop plate, so the setting conditions of the drive device are determined and the structure is It is complex and remotely driven.

■ Dowel 15 is 11ib on cam plate 8 of Skein+7
'1-, the cassette installation force is required, and the cam or G''I,
Dowels are easily worn out.

As described above, the conventional paper feeding device has a complicated structure and has problems in the operation of attaching and detaching the cassette.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION The present invention is intended to improve the problems in conventional paper feeding devices as described above. Provides a stable paper feeding device that ensures stability and reliability, allows easy and reliable loading and unloading of cassettes, and has a simple structure1
-4) The purpose is to

Structure of the Invention The above-mentioned object is to feed the paper by loading a cassette containing paper into a paper feed table of a main body of a recording apparatus, and bringing the paper feeding means into contact with the topmost paper in the loaded cassette. In the paper device, the Mil-type paper feeding means is swingable with respect to a support shaft provided upstream of the paper feeding means in the paper feeding direction, a cassette,
In conjunction with the loading of the cassette 1, the paper feeding means, which is urged by gravity or an elastic member, is pushed up against the loading force to separate it from the top surface of the paper, and when the cassette loading is complete, it comes into contact with the top surface of the paper. 11°h what happened to the situation
A paper feeding device with special characteristics.

Example The illustrated example will be described below.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a printer, for example an inkjet printer, equipped with a paper feeding device according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a side view of the paper feeder with no cassette loaded, FIG. 5 is a longitudinal side view with the cassette loaded, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the cassette.

The cassette 21 has a paper storage box N, a paper receiving plate Z3, a separation claw fixed to the paper storage box 4, and a spring 6 that pushes the paper receiving plate Z3 upward.

Further, cam surfaces are formed on the outer surfaces of both side walls of the paper storage box B. The cam surface row is parallel to the ascending slope 28a near the tip of the cassette 2j, and the base surface of the cassette 2.
8b, a descending slope 28c, and a bottom surface 28d, and the left and right sides are almost symmetrical.

On the other hand, at the rear and upper part of the printer main body, a paper feed table 30 is provided with an inclined position for loading the cassette 21. This angle of inclination is determined by taking into account the dead weight of the paper, paper quality, etc., and the optimum paper feeding conditions, and is generally 45° to 65°.
Preferably, it is set to 50' to 60'. Above the paper feed side, a paper feed unit for rotating the paper feed roller 35 is provided so as to be swingable -C about the rotating shaft 31. A DC motor 33 is fixed to one of the left and right side plates 32 that support the rotating shaft 310 at both ends. One wheel with a built-in clutch at the end of the shaft meshes with the other wheel.

Further, a coil spring 37 is stretched between one end of the left and right side plates 32 and one end of the paper feed tray 30, and the paper feed unit v1,
Press it against the skein, , and side.

The left and right side plates 32 each have a roller 3 capable of rotating fTJ.
8 is pivotally supported and provided at a position corresponding to the cam surface portion of the cassette 21.

Further, on the left and right side plates 32, a sensor 39A for detecting the presence or absence of paper in the cassette 21 and a pin 39B for checking the state of paper feeding are mounted. As these sensors 39A and 39B, a reflected light type photoelectric switch, a transmission source type electric switch, or a microswitch is used.

The cassette 1, attachment/detachment operation, and paper feeding operation of the paper feeding device configured as described above will be described below.

First, when the cassette 1-21 is inserted between the paper feed trays and slid diagonally downward, the ascending slope 28a of the cam surface on the outer surface of the side wall of the cassette 21 engages with the roller holder. Coro 3
8 degrees Celsius against the coil spring 37.

, the paper feeding unit above the paper feeding tray 30Q is swung clockwise about the rotating shaft 31 and retreated from the upper surface of the cassette 21. If the cassette 21 is continued to be moved, the rollers will roll into contact with the upper surface 28b between the cam surfaces, and the paper feed roller 36 of the paper feed unit will be at the most retracted position from the upper surface of the cassette 21. If the cassette 21 is further pushed into the paper feed table, the rollers descend along the descending slope 28c and reach the bottom surface 28dK, completing the cassette installation.At this point, the paper feed roller 36 moves the paper P in the cassette It touches the top surface and stops at a rectangular position. It should be noted that in this state in which the seven trays are fully loaded, the top surface of the paper P is separated from the inner surface of the separation claw U.

After the loading of the cassette is completed, when a paper feed preparation command is issued or manual input is given, the DC motor of the paper feed unit starts rotating, and the paper feed roller rotates, causing the roller 36 and the paper receiving plate to rotate. The topmost sheet P of the sheets P held under pressure between the cassette 21 and the cassette 21 is fed out, and the leading edge of this sheet passes over the separating claw and is ejected to the outside of the cassette 21. The ejected sheet P is fed through a paper feed path shown by a dashed line in FIG. That is, guide plates 41A and 41B.

410° C., it is sent to the part where the platen 42 and the lower roller 43 come into pressure contact, and is further driven by a motor (shown in a small figure) that rotates the platen 42, so that it is brought into pressure contact with the lower roller 43 and the upper roller 44, and is in a printing standby state. becomes.

When a print start command is subsequently input, the paper is fed at a predetermined pitch, reaches the paper ejection section, passes through the paper ejection roller 45 and pressure contact plate 46, and is ejected and placed on the paper ejection shelf 47. .

When there is no paper P in the cassette, the sensor 39A detects and displays/warns the absence of paper. When replenishing paper or loading different types of paper, move the cassette 21 to the paper feed f.
There is no need to operate ft1J just by pulling it out from 330. When the cassette 21 is pulled out, the roller 38 rolls on the cam surface part and goes through the reverse process of loading, and pushes up the paper feeding unit. As a result, the paper surface and the feed roller 35 are brought into a non-contact state, and the entire cassette 21 can be removed.

In the process of extracting the cassette 21, the upper surface 28b1 of the roller cam surface portion 281'L r 28c
Since the paper P is guided and held in the upward position,
The non-contact state of the roller 35 is maintained, and the above-mentioned inconvenience due to contact between the two does not occur. Alternatively, it may be a curve or a combination thereof.

It is also possible to output a cassette loading completion detection signal using this cam surface.

Effects of the Invention In summary, according to the present invention (]) When loading or unloading a cassette, regardless of the operating state of the printer, such as emergency stop +I-, 1ISj, etc., the paper feed roller can be reliably and smoothly Since the paper can be evacuated from the paper, it is possible to prevent the paper from becoming curled, wrinkled, or pulled out.

(2) Loading or removing the cassette does not require any other operating lever for releasing pressure from the paper feed roller, and can be done with one touch, making the operation easy and reliable.

(3) Since the paper feed roller is always kept at a fixed feeding position regardless of paper consumption, the paper can always be fed from a fixed feeding position, making feeding more stable.
It is possible to reduce reliability and certainty.

(4) The separation claw fixed inside the cassette and the cam surfaces on both sides are integrally formed inside the cassette, so when the paper feed roller contacts and feeds the paper,
Since the upper surface of the paper and the claw are maintained at a constant distance, the paper can be fed and separated reliably.

(5) The rotation of the paper feed roller is driven by the paper feed unit.

1. No chain drive or clutch is required, drive operation is reliable, and repair, inspection, and maintenance are easy.

(6) Since the swing axis of the paper feed unit and the paper feed unit is on the upstream side in the paper feeding direction, the contact angle between the roller and the paper is most effective, and the rolling direction of the cam surface and the first mouth are almost the same, so the operation is smooth. It is Enwei.

(η Because the mounting angle of the cassette is wide, the amount of paper stacked and stored in the cassette changes. The influence of the self-weight caused by the IC is small, and the push-up pressure is kept almost constant, so the feeding force is always -W It is kept stable.

(8) The cam surface and the rollers are in rolling engagement, so there is less wear and tear, and less force for attaching and detaching.

(9) Various sensors are mounted on the paper feed unit, and when the cassette is attached or removed, they and the paper feed units, .

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 are a side view and a sectional view showing an example of a conventional paper feeding device, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of a printer equipped with a paper feeding device according to the present invention, and FIG. The figure shows a side view of the paper feeder with the cassette loaded, Figure 5 is a vertical side view of the loaded state, and Figure 6 is a perspective view of the cassette. 21...Cassette 22...Paper storage box illusion...Paper receiving plate Sae...Separation claw row...Cam surface addition...Paper feed stand 31...Rotary shaft 32...Side plate 33 ...DCC Morph 3... Paper feed roller 38... Rollers 39A, 39B...
Sensor agent Yoshimi Kohara

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) In a paper feeding device that feeds paper by loading the paper into the paper feeding tray of the main body of the recording apparatus, which is a cassette containing paper, and bringing the paper feeding means into contact with the topmost paper in the loaded cassette.
[, the paper feeding means is swingable with respect to a support shaft provided upstream of the paper feeding means in the paper feeding direction, and the paper feeding means is biased by gravity or an elastic member in conjunction with loading of the cassette. The paper feeding device is characterized in that the paper is pushed up against the biasing force to be separated from the uppermost surface of the paper, and is brought into contact with the uppermost surface of the paper when the cassette is fully loaded. (2) A cam or a protrusion is integrally formed in a part of the cassette 1.'1'', and a roller is provided on the paper feeding means that rolls into contact with the cam or protrusion, so that when the cassette is attached or removed, the cassette is 2. The paper feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the paper feeding means is made swingable by a provided cam or protrusion pushing up the roller. (3) The paper feeding device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the paper feeding means includes a paper feeding roller and an electric means for driving the roller. (4) The paper feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the paper feeding means includes a sensor that detects the presence or absence of paper in the cassette I and the paper feeding status. Device. (5) When the cassette is completely loaded on the paper feed table, the rollers of the paper feed means are moved to the left so that they are positioned in the valleys of cams or protrusions formed on the 1llll plate of the cassette. Feature n' [Paper feeding device according to claims 1 to 4.