KR20130121660A - Reading device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention related to a device for positioning a medium which is conveyed to an image reading position at an appropriate point. The device for positioning a medium at an appropriate point comprises: a contact surface (120F) which the surface of a medium touches; a reading unit such as a CCD image sensor for reading the image of the surface of the medium which comes into contact with the contact surface (120F); a registration roll (113) for conveying the medium to a reading point (Rp) at which the image is read by the reading unit; and a second guidance member (117) which is located at the upper path, through which the medium is conveyed by the registration roll (113), than the reading point (Rp) and includes two leg units (1171) which come into contact with the contact surface (120F) at both sides of the path. The second guidance member (1171) is placed a given distance apart from the contact surface (120F) by positioning each leg unit (1171) on the contact surface (170F). The second guidance member whose position is determined guides the medium to the reading point (Rp) in order not to separate the medium from the contact surface (120F).

Description

READING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS}

The present invention relates to a reading apparatus and an image forming apparatus.

Patent Document 1 includes a document reader that can read a moving document, a conveying means for conveying the originals one by one to a reading window unit, and a reader that is arranged near the document reader and conveys the arrived document along the document reader. In the document conveying apparatus provided with a means, the reading part conveying means is a pressure roller arranged in proximity to the reading part and formed of an elastic member, a conveying belt guided by the pressure roller, and a driving means for driving the conveying belt. The document conveyance apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned is described.

Patent Document 2 includes a supply rotating body for supplying an original, an original receiving member for receiving an original supplied from the supply rotating body, image reading means for reading an image formed on the original supplied on the original receiving member, and an image. An image reading apparatus having an ejecting rotating body for discharging an original after reading the present invention, comprising: a plurality of guide rotating bodies for guiding the original so as to be held at a predetermined interval between the supply rotating body and the discharging rotating body with respect to the original receiving member. An image reading apparatus is described.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-42193 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-189069

An object of the present invention is to make it difficult to catch a medium conveyed to a position where an image is read.

The reading apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention is characterized in that the reading device reads an image from a contact surface with which a surface of a medium contacts, a reading means for reading an image from the surface in contact with the contact surface, and a reading position where the image is read by the reading means. In the conveying means which conveys a medium, and between two leg parts and each said leg part which are arrange | positioned upstream in a conveyance direction rather than the said reading position in the conveyance path by which the said medium is conveyed by the said conveyance surface, and extended toward the said contact surface And a guide member which is inserted and traverses the conveying path, and guides the medium to the reading position in a state where the body portion and the contact surface are kept at a predetermined distance by each of the leg portions contacting the contact surface, respectively. Characterized in that.

In the aspect of Claim 1, the reading apparatus which concerns on Claim 2 is provided between the support member which supports the said conveying means, and between the said support member and the said guide member, and the said contact surface is supported by the said support member. It is characterized in that it is provided with a deforming member for deforming in accordance with the pressed force when pressed toward the two contact portions respectively in contact with the contact surface.

An image forming apparatus according to claim 3 of the present invention is characterized by including the above-described reading apparatus and an image forming section for forming an image read by the reading apparatus on a medium.

According to the invention of Claims 1 and 3, compared with the case where the above-described guide member is not provided, the medium to be conveyed to the position where the image is read can be made difficult to catch.

According to the invention according to claim 2, even if the conveying means is not in a predetermined posture with respect to the contact surface, the media conveyed by the conveying means can be made difficult to fit in the contact surface, as compared with the case where the conveying means is not provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The figure which shows the whole structure of the image forming apparatus which concerns on this embodiment.
2 is a view for explaining the function of the second guide member.
3 is an enlarged view of a conveyance path from a nip to a reading point;
4 is a perspective view showing an outline of a second guide member;
5 is a view for explaining a posture of the lower end of the second guide member.
FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the configuration when the second guide member is not provided. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the configuration when the first guide member is expanded; FIG.

1. Embodiment

1-1. Overall configuration

1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus 9 according to the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, the image forming apparatus 9 includes a reading unit 1 and a forming unit 2. In the present specification and the drawings, in order to explain the arrangement of the respective components of the image forming apparatus 9, the space where the respective components are arranged is shown as the xyz right hand coordinate system coordinate space. In addition, the symbol which drawn the black circle in the white circle inside the coordinate symbol shown in the figure has shown the arrow toward the front from the inside of the paper. In addition, the symbol which draws the two line segments which the inner side intersects in the white circle has shown the arrow toward the inner side from the front of the paper. The direction along the x axis in space is called the x axis direction. In the x-axis direction, the direction in which the x component increases is called the + x direction, and the direction in which the x component decreases is called the -x direction. The y and z components are also defined in the y-axis direction, the + y direction, the -y direction, the z-axis direction, the + z direction, and the -z direction. The -z direction is a downward direction, that is, a direction in which gravity is applied to the object.

Although the reading part 1 and the formation part 2 may be arrange | positioned, in this embodiment, the reading part 1 shown in FIG. 1 is arrange | positioned above the formation part 2, ie, in the + z direction. .

1-2. Configuration of the reading part

The reading unit 1 includes a housing 100, a container 101, and an accumulating unit 140. In addition, the reading part 1 is a roll group which conveys the document which is a medium in which the image to read is formed, The pick-up roll 110, the 1st feed roll 111, the pre-registration roll 112, and the registration roll 113, the discharge roll 114, and the 2nd delivery roll 115 are provided. Each of these rolls is a pair, and at least one of the rolls drives each pair.

The reading part 1 is a member which forms the conveyance path of an original, Comprising: The 1st guide member 116, the 2nd guide member 117, the reflection guide plate 118, the document guide 119, and the switching member ( 141. The switching member 141 is a member which rotates about an axis along the x-axis direction shown in FIG. 1, and changes a posture.

The container 101, the first guide member 116, the document guide 119, and the accumulator 140 are fixed to the housing 100. And the axis | shaft which rotates each roll which conveys a document, and the axis | shaft of the switching member 141 are being fixed to the housing 100. As shown in FIG.

In addition, the reading unit 1 is a reading unit 12 that is a configuration for reading an image of an original, and includes a platen plate 120, a full rate carriage 121, an illumination lamp 122, and a half rate carriage 123. And a first mirror 124A, a second mirror 124B, a third mirror 124C, an imaging lens 125, and a CCD image sensor 126. The reading unit 1 also includes a control unit 130 that controls the reading unit 1 itself and the forming unit 2.

The housing 100 is opened and closed with respect to the reading means 12. For example, the reading part 1 is provided with the axis | shaft along the y-axis direction shown in FIG. The housing 100 is rotatably supported with respect to the document glass 120 about this axis. For example, when the axis supporting the housing 100 is on the side of the image forming apparatus 9 in the -x direction, that is, inside, the user rotates the housing 100 in the clockwise direction when the housing 100 is viewed in the + y direction. The upper surface of the platen glass 120, that is, the contact surface 120F, which is a surface in the + z direction, and the lower surface of the housing 100 are combined to close. When the user rotates the housing 100 in the counterclockwise direction when the housing 100 is viewed in the + y direction, the contact surface 120F and the lower surface of the housing 100 fall.

The container 101 accommodates a plurality of originals Ps. The document Ps is a medium on which an image can be recorded on the surface, for example, a resin formed in the form of paper or sheet. Images include photographs, letters, line drawings, and the like. The pickup roll 110 is lifted up and held at the retracted position (not shown) at the time of waiting, and descends to the nip position (original conveyance position) at the time of document conveyance. The pickup roll 110 dropped to the nip position conveys the document Ps downstream, that is, in the direction of the arrow D10 shown in FIG. 1 from the original Ps bundle accommodated in the container 101. The original Ps conveyed by the pickup roll 110 reaches the first delivery roll 111. When the original Ps conveyed by the pickup roll 110 is one of the highest sheets of the originals Ps accommodated in the container 101, the 1st feed roll 111 conveys this to the pre-registration roll 112 as it is. do. In addition, when the originals Ps are bundled by a plurality of sheets instead of being arranged by the pickup roll 110, the first feeding roll 111 is arranged by one sheet of the highest original Ps among the bundles. To the pre-registration roll 112.

The document guide 119 is, for example, a wall surface formed of a resin material or the like, and each nip of the pre-registration roll 112, the registration roll 113, the discharge roll 114, and the second feeding roll 115 is formed. A ring-shaped conveyance path to connect is formed.

The pre-registration roll 112 conveys the original Ps along the original guide 119 to the further downstream roll. For example, the lower roll of the pre-registration roll 112 is driven to rotate in the direction of the arrow D11 shown in FIG. 1, so that the document Ps is guided to the document guide 119 to the nip of the registration roll 113. To reach. In addition, the pre-registration roll 112 forms a loop (curvature) of the original Ps. Specifically, the pre-registration roll 112 makes the end of the original Ps abut on the stationary registration roll 113 to form a loop in the original Ps.

The registration roll 113 resumes the rotation at a timing after stopping once, and conveys the original Ps while performing registration adjustment with respect to the position where the original Ps is read on the document table 120. The document Ps conveyed from the registration roll 113 is guided by the first guide member 116 and the second guide member 117 and is restricted from being conveyed inward from the loop of the conveying path. The document Ps guided by the first guide member 116 and the second guide member 117 is conveyed between the reflection guide plate 118 and the platen plate 120, and the platen plate 120. ) Is pressed against the contact surface 120F (see FIG. 3). Hereinafter, among the surfaces of the document Ps conveyed through the first feeding roll 111 → pre-registration roll 112 → registration roll 113, the first contact roll 120 is first contacted with the contact surface 120F of the document table 120. The surface of the contacting side is called a 1st surface. Moreover, the surface on the opposite side to a 1st surface among the surfaces of the original Ps is called a 2nd surface.

The document glass 120 is composed of a plate-like member that transmits light such as glass. The full-rate carriage 121 is arranged on the opposite side, that is, on the lower side, of the side of the document table 120 where the original Ps is in contact. The full rate carriage 121 includes an illumination lamp 122 that transmits light through the document table 120 to the document Ps pushed onto the contact surface 120F of the document table 120, and the document Ps. 1st mirror 124A which deflects the reflected light obtained from the () by the direction of the 2nd mirror 124B is provided. The half rate carriage 123 is provided with the 2nd mirror 124B which guides the light reflected from the 1st mirror 124A to an image forming part, and the 3rd mirror 124C. The imaging lens 125 forms the reflected light guided from the third mirror 124C on the charge coupled device (CCD) image sensor 126. The CCD image sensor 126 photoelectrically converts the optical image formed by the imaging lens 125. As a result, the image depicted on the first surface of the original Ps is read out from the lower surface direction of the document table 120, and the image data corresponding to the read image is generated by the controller 130. That is, the reading means 12 having the CCD image sensor 126 or the like reads an image from the surface in contact with the contact surface 120F.

The control unit 130 includes a central processing unit (CPU), a read only memory (R0M), and a random access memory (RAM). For example, the CPU 130 reads a computer program stored in a ROM into a RAM and executes the image. Each part of the forming apparatus 9 is controlled. Moreover, the control part 130 produces | generates the image data according to the image read from the original Ps, and sends it to the formation part 2, and forms the image in the formation part 2 based on this image data.

In addition to the originals Ps accommodated in the container 101, the reading unit 1 may also include a configuration for reading the originals Ps directly placed on the original table 120. When reading the original document Ps that is settled on the document table 120, the control unit 130 of the reading unit 1 scans the full rate carriage 121 and the half rate carriage 123 at a ratio of 2: 1. One page of the original Ps is read by moving in the direction (direction of arrow D12 shown in FIG. 1). On the other hand, as mentioned above, when conveying the document Ps accommodated in the container 101 to the document glass 120, the reading part 1 arrows the full-rate carriage 121 and the half-rate carriage 123. The image depicted in the first surface of the conveyed document Ps is read without moving in the direction of (D12).

The storage unit 140 is an area for storing the read document Ps. When reading the image depicted on the first side of the original Ps without moving the full-rate carriage 121 and the half-rate carriage 123, the original Ps after the image is read is transferred to the discharge roll 114. As a result, it is discharged toward the accumulation unit 140.

As described above, the reading unit 1 reads the image depicted on the first side of the original Ps, but may have a configuration that also reads the image depicted on the second side of the original Ps. The reading part 1 of the image forming apparatus 9 shown in FIG. 1 inverts the original Ps and reads the image depicted in the second surface by using the switching member 141. For example, when the reading unit 1 reads only the image depicted on the first side of the original Ps, the pair of rolls of the second feeding roll 115 are disposed at positions separated from each other, and the discharge roll The original Ps discharged by the 114 is accumulated in the accumulation unit 140 via the gap between the second feeding rolls 115. On the other hand, when the reading unit 1 reads the images depicted on both of the first side and the second side of the original Ps, respectively, the pair of rolls of the second feeding roll 115 is the discharge roll 114. The original Ps conveyed by is sandwiched between and conveyed in the + y direction until the upstream edge of the original Ps exceeds the switching member 141.

Whether the upstream side edge of the document Ps has crossed the switching member 141 is detected by the sensor etc. which are not shown in figure. When the upstream side edge of the document Ps exceeds the switching member 141, the control unit 130 drives the switching member 141 to connect the conveyance path connecting the second delivery roll 115 and the discharge roll 114. The attitude | position is changed so that the conveyance path which connects the 2nd delivery roll 115 and the preregistration roll 112 may be opened. After the attitude | position of the switching member 141 changes, the 2nd delivery roll 115 changes a rotation direction, and conveys an original Ps in the -y direction, ie, the direction where the pre-registration roll 112 is arrange | positioned. Accordingly, the original Ps is inverted and conveyed back to the gap between the reflection guide plate 118 and the platen 120 via the pre-registration roll 112 and the registration roll 113, and is depicted on the second surface. The image is read by the reading means 12 provided with the full rate carriage 121 and the like.

1-3. Formation of formation

The formation part 2 is equipped with the conveyance part 22, the developing part 23Y, 23M, 23C, 23K, the transfer part 24, and the heating part 25. As shown in FIG. In addition, Y, M, C, and K of the code mean that the structures correspond to yellow, magenta, cyan and black toners, respectively. Each of the developing units 23Y, 23M, 23C, and 23K differs only in the toners used, and there is no great difference in the configuration thereof. Hereinafter, when it is not necessary to specifically distinguish each of the developing portions 23Y, 23M, 23C, and 23K, the alphabet at the end of the sign indicating the color of the toner is omitted to be the "developing portion 23".

The conveying section 22 has a container in which paper P as a medium is accommodated. The conveyance conveyance part 22 has a some conveyance roll, and takes out the paper P from a container with these conveyance rolls, and conveys it to the transfer part 24. Moreover, the conveyance part 22 conveys the paper P which passed through the transfer part 24 and the heating part 25 to the exterior of the image forming apparatus 9.

Each developing unit 23 includes a photosensitive drum 231, a charger 232, an exposure apparatus 233, a developing unit 234, a primary transfer roll 235, and a drum cleaner 236. Doing. The photosensitive drum 231 is an image retainer having a charge generating layer or a charge transporting layer, and is rotated in the direction of an arrow D23 in the drawing by a driver not shown. The charger 232 charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 231. The exposure apparatus 233 includes a laser light source, a polygon mirror, and the like (all of which are not shown), and under the control of the control unit 130, laser light according to image data indicating an image read by the reading unit 1, Irradiation is directed toward the photosensitive drum 231 after being charged by the charger 232. As a result, a latent image is held in each photosensitive drum 231.

In addition, the said image data may be what the control part 130 acquired from the external device via the communication part which is not shown in figure. The external device is, for example, a storage device that stores image data.

The developing unit 234 contains a two-component developer containing toners of any of Y, M, C, and K, and magnetic carriers such as ferrite powder. When the tip of the magnetic brush formed in the developing unit 234 contacts the surface of the photosensitive drum 231, the toner is exposed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 231 by the exposure apparatus 233, that is, the portion of the electrostatic latent image. Attached to the line, an image is formed (developed) on the photosensitive drum 231.

The primary transfer roll 235 generates a predetermined potential difference at a position where the intermediate transfer belt 241 of the transfer portion 24 faces the photosensitive drum 231, and the intermediate transfer belt 241 is caused by this potential difference. Transfer the image. The drum cleaner 236 removes the non-transferred toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductive drum 231 after the image is transferred, and discharges the surface of the photoconductive drum 231. That is, the drum cleaner 236 removes unnecessary toner or electric charges from the photosensitive drum 231 in preparation for the next image formation.

The transfer part 24 is provided with the intermediate transfer belt 241, the secondary transfer roll 242, the belt conveyance roll 243, and the backup roll 244, The image formed by the developing part 23 Is a transfer portion for transferring the paper P of paper type determined according to the user's operation. The intermediate transfer belt 241 is an endless belt member, and the belt conveyance roll 243 and the backup roll 244 cover this intermediate transfer belt 241. At least one of the belt conveyance roll 243 and the backup roll 244 is provided with the drive part (not shown), and the intermediate transfer belt 241 is moved in the direction of the arrow D24 in a figure.

On the other hand, the belt conveyance roll 243 or the backup roll 244 which does not have a drive part rotates with the movement of the intermediate transfer belt 241. As the intermediate transfer belt 241 moves and rotates in the direction of the arrow D24 in the drawing, the image on the intermediate transfer belt 241 is an area sandwiched between the secondary transfer roll 242 and the backup roll 244. Is moved.

The secondary transfer roll 242 transfers the image on the intermediate transfer belt 241 to the paper P conveyed from the transfer section 22 by the potential difference with the intermediate transfer belt 241. The belt cleaner 249 removes the untransferred toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 241. And the transfer part 24 or the conveyance part 22 conveys the paper P to which the image was transferred to the heating part 25.

The heating unit 25 sandwiches the paper P between, for example, a magnetic field generating circuit that generates a magnetic field, a heating belt that generates heat by electromagnetic guidance generated by the generated magnetic field, and a heating belt. It has a press roll to convey. The heating unit 25 heats the paper P to fix an image transferred to the paper P. The paper P on which the image is fixed via the heating unit 25 is conveyed to the outside of the image forming apparatus 9 by the conveying unit 22.

1-4. Configuration of the second guide member

2 is a diagram for explaining the function of the second guide member 117. The original Ps shown in FIG. 1 is conveyed through the conveyance path pt shown in FIG. The conveyance path pt is a path | route which connects the nip part N113 of the registration roll 113 to the nip part N114 of the discharge roll 114, The 1st guide member 116 and the 2nd guide member 117 And a path passing through each of the reflection guide plates 118 and the gap between the document glass 120. Between the reflection guide plate 118 and the document glass 120, the first mirror 124A → the second mirror 124B → the third mirror 124C → the imaging lens 125 → the CCD image sensor 126 There is a reading point Rp which is a position (reading position) at which an image of the original Ps is read out through an optical path.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the transport path pt from the nip portion N113 shown in FIG. 2 to the reading point Rp. The document Ps, which exits the nip N113 and is conveyed toward the reading point Rp, is lower than the lower end E116 by the lower end E116 which is an edge in the -z direction of the first guide member 116 ( in the + z direction). The tip of the document Ps of which the traveling direction is limited is conveyed toward the second guide member 117 or the document table 120 below it.

4 is a perspective view illustrating the outline of the second guide member 117. The second guide member 117 is a plate-shaped portion 1170 which is a plate-shaped portion extending in the x-axis direction upstream of the reading point Rp in the direction in which the document Ps is conveyed, and the plate-like shape. Legs 1171 are provided on both ends of the part 1170 so as to face each other. That is, the plate-shaped portion 1170 is sandwiched between two leg portions 1171 upstream of the read point Rp in the direction in which the medium is conveyed by the registration roll 113 to cross the conveying path of the medium. It is an example of a torso part.

Moreover, each leg part 1171 is provided with the elastic member 1174 extended toward the + z direction from the edge part of the + z direction, respectively. The elastic member 1174 changes its length in accordance with the force when a force along the z-axis direction is applied, and restores its original length when this force is removed, for example, a coil spring or the like. There are two leg portions 1171 and two elastic members 1174, respectively. Hereinafter, when distinguishing these, "R" is added to the thing arrange | positioned in the + x direction, and "L" is added to the thing arrange | positioned in the -x direction.

Among the surfaces of the plate-shaped portion 1170, the surface in the -y direction is referred to as a guide surface 1172. The guide surface 1172 guides the document Ps to the read point Rp when the document Ps conveyed from the nip N113 abuts. The edge of the plate-like part 1170 in the -z direction is the lower end E117.

The tip of the original Ps that has passed through the lower end E116 of the first guide member 116 may have a second guide member (depending on the bending formed in the original Ps or the rigidity of the material of the original Ps). Abuts on the guide surface 1172 of 117. The guide surface 1172 is inclined so as to push the abutted document Ps down in the -z direction. Therefore, the tip of the document Ps abutting on the guide surface 1172 moves to the lower end E117 of the second guide member 117, and beyond this lower end E117, the reflection guide plate 118 and the document table It moves between the poles of the contact surface 120F of 120. The contact surface 120F is a surface where the original Ps conveyed from the registration roll 113 is pushed in contact with. The contact surface 120F has a width wider than the width of the original Ps. That is, the document Ps is limited by the lower end E117 of the second guide member 117 so as not to advance above the lower end E117 (+ z direction) and reaches the read point Rp. As a result, the first surface of the original Ps moves to the read point Rp. That is, the registration roll 113 conveys the medium to the reading point Rp which is a position where the image is read by the reading means 12.

FIG. 5: is a figure for demonstrating the attitude | position of the lower end E117 of the 2nd guide member 117. As shown in FIG. The 2nd guide member 117 shown in FIG. 5 is shown in schematic drawing, In order to make the description about the attitude | position of the lower end E117 easy to understand, the dimension of the x-axis direction is reduced compared with the dimension of the z-axis direction.

An end portion (ie, an upper end) in the + z direction of each elastic member 1174 is fixed to the housing 100 of the reading part 1, respectively. And the edge part (namely, lower end) of the elastic member 1174 in the -z direction is being fixed to the leg part 1171, respectively. The point where the elastic member 1174L is fixed in the housing 100 is called point SL, and the point where the elastic member 1174R is fixed in the housing 100 is called point SR.

When the line segment 100F connecting the point SL and the point SR is not inclined with respect to the contact surface 120F, as shown in FIG. 5A, the elastic member 1174L and the elastic member 1174R ) Are the same length in the z-axis direction and press the leg portion 1171L and the leg portion 1171R in the -z direction, respectively. Accordingly, the leg portion 1171L contacts the contact surface 120F at the point CL, and the leg portion 1171R contacts the contact surface 120F at the point CR. That is, the two leg parts 1171 are respectively erected on the contact surface 120F on both sides of the conveyance path through which the medium is conveyed by the registration roll 113. The second guide member 117 is molded so that the line connecting the point CL and the point CR and the lower end E117 of the plate-shaped portion 1170 fall by a certain distance δ within a range of a predetermined error. It is. Therefore, the distance between the lower end E117 and the contact surface 120F becomes constant (distance δ) within the above error range regardless of the position in the x-axis direction.

On the other hand, as described above, since the housing 100 is opened and closed with respect to the document glass 120, the housing 100 may be inclined with respect to the contact surface 120F of the document glass 120.

When the line segment 100F connecting the point SL and the point SR is inclined with respect to the contact surface 120F as shown in FIG. 5B, the elastic member 1174L is larger than the elastic member 1174R. It is shortened in the z-axis direction. As a result, the leg part 1171L contacts the contact surface 120F at the point CL, and the leg part 1171R contacts the contact surface 120F at the point CR. Therefore, also in this case, the distance between the lower end E117 and the contact surface 120F becomes constant (distance δ) within the above error range regardless of the position in the x-axis direction.

When the line segment 100F connecting the point SL and the point SR is inclined with respect to the contact surface 120F as shown in FIG. 5C, the elastic member 1174R is less than the elastic member 1174L. It is shortened in the z-axis direction. That is, each of the elastic members 1174 described above is deformed in accordance with the pressed force when pressed toward the contact surface 120F by the housing 100 (support member) supporting the conveying means such as the registration roll 113 and the leg portion. It functions as a deformation | transformation member which contacts each 1117 1 to the contact surface 120F.

As a result, the leg part 1171L contacts the contact surface 120F at the point CL, and the leg part 1171R contacts the contact surface 120F at the point CR. Therefore, also in this case, the distance between the lower end E117 and the contact surface 120F becomes constant (distance δ) within the above error range regardless of the position in the x-axis direction. That is, the plate-shaped portion 1170 has an end portion (lower end E117) at which a predetermined distance is maintained at the contact surface 120F at any place in the width direction by the respective leg portions 1171 contacting the contact surface 120F, respectively. Have

1-5. Comparison with the configuration without installing the second guide member

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the configuration when the second guide member 117 is not provided. As shown in FIG. 6A, the second guide member 117 is provided between the first guide member 116 and the reflective guide plate 118 without changing the position of the first guide member 116. If it is set as the structure which does not, the space which does not restrict the document Ps arises between the 1st guide member 116 and the reflection guide plate 118. Therefore, the tip portion of the document Ps sandwiched between the nip portions N113 and conveyed passes through the conveyance path pt1 or through the conveyance path pt2 depending on the bending strength applied to itself and the rigidity of the material. Or For example, when passing through the conveyance path pt1 bent upwards from the conveyance path pt2, the document Ps may contact with the reflection guide plate 118, and may be folded or bent. As a result, the document Ps is not conveyed forward from the position where it is caught and abuts, and may fail to reach the read point Rp.

In addition, when passing through the nip N113, the original Ps is not supported by the nip N113, so the position of the rear end of the original Ps may not be determined. For example, as shown in FIG. 6B, the document Ps passes through the conveying path pt3 or passes through the conveying path pt4 depending on the bending strength and the rigidity of the material. . When passing through the conveying path pt4 bent upwards from the conveying path pt3, the document Ps is between the reflection guide plate 118 and the contact surface 120F as compared with the case where the conveying path pt3 passes. It is easy to allow light from the -y direction to enter. Therefore, the amount of light irradiated to the document Ps at the read point Rp is not stable, and the image may be disturbed.

FIG. 7: is a figure for demonstrating the structure at the time of extending the 1st guide member 116 to the position of the 2nd guide member 117 instead of providing the 2nd guide member 117. FIG. The first guide member 116 shown in FIG. 7B is shown in schematic diagram, and in order to make the description of the attitude | position of the lower end E116a clear, the dimension of the x-axis direction compared with the dimension of the z-axis direction It is reduced.

As shown in FIG. 7A, the expanded first guide member 116 is positioned at the lower end E117 of the second guide member 117 in the y-axis direction (see FIG. 3). 2 has a lower end E116a. Therefore, the document Ps which has passed through the lower end E116 of the first guide member 116 is lower than the lower end E116 in the conveying direction (+ y direction) and located at the lower end (-z direction). By E116a), bending to the upper side (+ z direction) is limited.

However, since the lower end E116a is the lower end of the first guide member 116, its position is determined by the housing 100. For example, as shown in FIG. 7B, the first guide member 116 is supported by the housing 100 at two points, the point SL and the point SR, and the point SL and the point SL. The line segment 100F connecting the point SR is inclined with respect to the contact surface 120F. In this case, since the lower end E116a also inclines with respect to the contact surface 120F, the distance between the lower end E116a and the contact surface 120F changes from δL to δR. That is, the position of the lower end E116a in the z-axis direction is unstable in the x-axis direction and is not stable. Therefore, when passing through the lower end E116a, the document Ps may be inclined with respect to the conveying direction, which is likely to be caught, and is likely to be disturbed in the image to be read.

On the other hand, as described in FIG. 5, the second guide member 117 is attached to the housing 100 via two elastic members 1174. Therefore, in the structure with the 2nd guide member 117, even if the housing 100 inclines with respect to the contact surface 120F, the distance from the lower end E117 to the contact surface 120F is constant within the range of a predetermined error. Is maintained. As a result, when the original Ps passes through the lower end E117, at any position in the x-axis direction, it passes through a position of a substantially constant distance (a constant distance within a predetermined error range) from the contact surface 120F. As compared with the case where the 2nd guide member 117 is not provided, it becomes easy to convey to the clearance gap between the reflection guide plate 118 and the contact surface 120F. That is, by providing the second guide member 117, the document Ps is stable in the attitude | position at the time of conveyance with respect to the contact surface 120F, and it is hard to catch, and it becomes easy to pass through the reading point Rp. Further, by providing the second guide member 117, the posture of the original Ps when the image is read is stabilized, so that the disturbance of the read image is suppressed.

2. Variations

Although the above is description of embodiment, the content of this embodiment can be modified as follows. In addition, you may combine the following modifications.

2-1. Modification 1

In the above-described embodiment, the image forming apparatus 9 including the reading unit 1 and the forming unit 2 has been described, but the reading unit 1 and the forming unit 2 may each be separate devices. In addition, the image read by the reading part 1 does not need to be formed in the medium. In this case, the formation part 2 may not be needed.

That is, this invention conveys the conveyance which conveys the said medium to the contact surface which the surface of a medium contacts, the reading means which reads an image from the said surface which contacted the said contact surface, and the reading position where the said image is read by the said reading means. Means and a conveying path in which the medium is conveyed by the conveying means, disposed upstream in the conveying direction rather than the reading position, interposed between two leg portions extending toward the contact surface and the respective leg portions, and the conveying path And a guide member for guiding the medium to the reading position in a state in which the body portion and the contact surface are held at a predetermined distance by each of the leg portions contacting the contact surface, respectively, and the conveying means. A support member to be provided between the support member and the guide member, wherein the contact surface is provided by the support member. It may be pressed against and thus deformation of the pressed force notion of the two bridge parts of a reading apparatus including the deformable member into contact with the contact surface.

2-2. Modification 2

In the above-described embodiment, the reading unit 1 is a configuration for reading an image of an original, and includes a full-rate carriage 121 and a half-rate carriage that move in the x-axis direction with respect to the platen 120. Although 123 was provided, these structures may be fixed with respect to the document glass 120. In this case, the reading part 1 reads the image of the original Ps conveyed through the conveyance path pt.

2-3. Modification 3

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the reading part 1 was provided with the switching member 141 which inverts the original Ps in order to read the image depicted in the 2nd surface, but the structure which inverts the original Ps Does not have to be. The reading part 1 does not need to have a structure which reads the image of a 2nd surface, For example, it has a CCD image sensor different from CCD image sensor 126 inside the ring of a conveyance path pt, When the document Ps passes through the conveying path pt once, the respective images of the first and second surfaces may be read by the respective CCD image sensors. That is, this invention conveys the conveyance which conveys the said medium to the contact surface which the surface of a medium contacts, the reading means which reads an image from the said surface which contacted the said contact surface, and the reading position where the said image is read by the said reading means. Means and a conveying path in which the medium is conveyed by the conveying means, disposed upstream from the reading position, interposed between the two leg portions extending toward the contact surface and the respective leg portions to cross the conveying path. It may be conceived as a reading device including a guide member for guiding the medium to the position in a state in which the trunk and the contact surface are held at a predetermined distance by each of the leg portions contacting the contact surface.

2-4. Modification 4

In the above-mentioned embodiment, each leg part 1171 was provided with the elastic member 1174 extended toward the + z direction from the edge part of the + z direction, respectively, but the elastic member 1174 may not be provided. In this case, even when the housing 100 is in an inclined posture with respect to the contact surface 120F of the document table 120, each leg portion 1171 may be configured to contact the contact surface 120F, respectively. For example, when the housing 100 is closed with respect to the document glass 120, the hook portion provided on the leg portion 1171 of the second guide member 117 and the contact surface 120F of the document glass 120 are provided. The 2nd guide member 117 may be comprised so that a hook receiving part may engage. Thereby, the leg part 1171 may stand on the contact surface 120F, and the lower end E117 of the 2nd guide member 117 may be positioned with respect to the contact surface 120F. Even in this case, the distance between the lower end E117 of the second guide member 117 and the contact surface 120F is constant within a predetermined range, regardless of the position in the x-axis direction.

That is, when each leg part 1171 contacts the contact surface 120F, respectively, the distance of the lower end E117 of the plate-shaped part 1170 and the contact surface 120F is in a fixed range regardless of the position of an x-axis direction. This should be constant.

2-5. Modification 5

In the above-mentioned embodiment, although the 2nd guide member 117 had the plate-shaped part 1170 which is a plate-shaped member extended in the x-axis direction, it guides the document Ps to the read point Rp. The body may not be plate-shaped. That is, the 2nd guide member 117 is interposed between each leg part 1171, traverses a conveyance path, and is provided with the trunk | drum which has the above-mentioned lower end E117, and the original ( Ps) may be directed to the read point Rp.

1-reader
100-housing
101-Courage
110-pickup roll
111-first feed roll
112-Preregistration Roll
113-Registration Roll
114-exit roll
115-second delivery roll
116-First guide member
117-Second guide member
1170-plate shape (body)
1171-Legs
1172-Guide
1174-elastic member
118-Reflective Guide Plate
119-Original guide
12-reading means
120-platen glass
120F-Contact Surface
121-Full Rate Carriage
122-lighting lamp
123-Half Rate Carriage
124A-First Mirror
124B-Second Mirror
124C-third mirror
125-Imaging Lens
126-CCD image sensor
130 -
140-accumulator
141-transition member
2-formation
22-Carrier
23-developing part
24-Transcription
25-heating
9-image forming apparatus
E116-bottom
E117-bottom
N113-Nib
N114-Nib
P-Paper
Ps-Manuscript
Rp-Read Point

Claims (3)

The contact surface with which the surface of the medium is in contact,
Reading means for reading an image from the surface in contact with the contact surface;
Conveying means for conveying the medium to a reading position at which the image is read by the reading means;
In the conveying path in which the medium is conveyed by the conveying means, it is disposed upstream in the conveying direction than the reading position, and is interposed between the two leg portions extending toward the contact surface and the respective leg portions to cross the conveying path. A guide member which has a trunk portion and guides the medium to the reading position in a state where the trunk portion and the contact surface are kept at a predetermined distance by each of the leg portions contacting the contact surface, respectively.
Readout device comprising a. The method of claim 1,
Deformation is provided between the support member for supporting the conveying means, the support member and the guide member, and deformed according to the pressed force when pressed by the support member toward the contact surface to contact the two leg portions with the contact surface, respectively. And a member. The reading device according to claim 1 or 2,
An image forming unit for forming an image read by the reading apparatus in a medium
And an image forming apparatus.

Images