JP2001278525A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] The present invention ensures that the blind cover 105 is fully opened to ensure sheet conveyance, and that the blind cover is provided.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus in which the opening / closing speed of the 105 is regulated to reduce an impact at the time of colliding with a desk surface, reduce an impact sound, and improve the quality of the apparatus. In order to solve the above problems, a typical configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a face-up discharge unit that discharges with a recording surface facing upward, and a face-down discharge unit that discharges with a recording surface facing down. A discharge unit, a switching unit for selecting one of the discharge units when discharging a sheet, a blind cover provided to be openable and closable in the face-up discharge unit, and interlocking the switching unit with the blind cover. In the image forming apparatus having a connecting means for, the connecting means, a sliding member which is connected to the blind cover and slides,
The above-mentioned switching is achieved by forming a raised portion provided on the sliding member, and a rotating member having one end rotating in contact with the raised portion, and connecting the other end of the rotating member to the switching means. The means and the blindfold cover are interlocked.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a face-up discharge section and a face-down discharge section to improve transportability and operability.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 is a view for explaining a face-down discharge state, and FIG. 8 is a view for explaining a face-up discharge state. 7 and 9 show a face-up discharge unit (hereinafter referred to as F).
FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a U discharge unit, and has a face-down discharge unit (hereinafter, referred to as an FD discharge unit) not shown above.

A sheet discharged from an image forming means (not shown) can be switched between an FU discharge section and an FD discharge section by a switching member 101 rotatably provided on a discharge guide 100. The switching member 101 is fixed to the opening / closing cover 103 with a screw or the like, and the sheet sent to the FD discharge unit is guided along the discharge guide 100. On the other hand, the sheet sent to the FU discharge unit is guided along the front cover 104, and is discharged straight out of the apparatus.

[0004] A blind cover 105 has a central shaft 1 at the FU discharge portion.
It is mounted so as to be rotatable around 05a, and is configured to hide the FU discharge unit when it is not used. A link portion 105b is provided on the inner surface of the blind cover 105, and one end of a link 106, which is a connecting means, is rotatably supported. The other end of the link 106 is formed with an elongated hole 106a,
The projection 101a of the switching member 101 penetrates.

When the cover 105 is closed as shown in FIG. 7, the projection 101a is located substantially at the center of the elongated hole 106a and is not restricted by the elongated hole 106a. Here, the switching member 101 is provided with an elastic member 102, which is urged against the front cover 104, so that the switching member 101 is located at the FD discharge position. The discharged sheet is picked up and guided to the FD discharge section along the discharge guide 100.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
Is opened about the center axis 105a, the link 106 is pulled down along with the blind cover 105. Then, the projection 101a of the switching member 101 is restricted by the end of the elongated hole 106a of the link 106 and is pulled down.
Pivots against the biasing force of the elastic member 102 and is positioned at the FU discharge position. Thus, the sheet discharged from the image forming unit is discharged as it is along the front cover 104, and is guided to the FU discharge unit.

FIG. 9 schematically shows the relationship between the degree of opening of the blind cover 105 and the switching member 101. That is, in the conventional example, it can be seen that the switching member is moved to the FU discharge position almost simultaneously with the opening of the blind cover 105.

Further, when a jam occurs, the opening / closing cover 103 is opened / closed about the central shaft 103a to remove a sheet having a paper jam. As described above, the opening / closing cover 103, the discharge guide 100, and the switching member 101 rotate integrally.

[0009]

However, in the above configuration, depending on the length of the link 106 as the connecting means, the switching member 101 is in the FU discharge position before the blind cover 105 is completely opened, and the blind cover 105 May be in a slightly floating state. Also, when the user releases his hand in the middle when opening the blindfold cover 105, or when opening the opening and closing cover 103 for jam clearance, the blindfold cover 105 falls by its own weight and contacts the desk top surface Loud collision noise may be generated, giving the impression of degrading the quality of the product.

Therefore, the present invention is to provide a cover
Fully opened to secure the sheet transportability, and by regulating the opening and closing speed of the blind cover 105, the impact at the time of colliding with the desk top surface is reduced, the impact sound is reduced, and the image quality of the device is improved. It is intended to provide a forming apparatus.

[0011]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a typical configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises a face-up discharge section for discharging a recording surface upward, and a face-up discharge portion for discharging the recording surface downward. A face-down discharge unit that discharges a sheet, a switching unit that selects one of the discharge units when discharging a sheet, a blind cover that is openably and closably provided in the face-up discharge unit, and the switching unit and the blind. In an image forming apparatus having a connecting means for interlocking a cover, a sliding member connected to the blind cover and sliding, a raised portion provided on the sliding member, and one end of the sliding member. A rotating member which rotates in contact with the protruding portion, and the other end of the rotating member is connected to the switching means, whereby the switching means and the blind cover are interlocked.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment A first embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a view for explaining a face-down discharge state, FIG. 2 is a view for explaining a face-up discharge state, FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing the relationship between the opening degree of a blind cover and a switching member, and FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

(Overall Configuration) Image forming apparatus 1 shown in FIG.
Adopts an electrophotographic image forming unit, and after the surface of the image carrier 2 is uniformly charged by the charging unit 3, the optical unit 4 scans a light beam to form an electrostatic latent image. The toner image is formed and is developed by the developing means 5 to form a developer image.

A feed tray 6 for stacking sheets P as recording media is arranged at the rear of the apparatus. When sheets are separated and fed one by one by a feeding means 7, the transfer means 8 transfers the sheets onto the image carrier 2. Is transferred to the sheet P.
The developer remaining on the image carrier 2 is removed by a cleaning unit, and the image carrier 2 is used for the next image formation.
The sheet P to which the developer image has been transferred is conveyed to the fixing unit 9 and heat and pressure are applied to fix the developer image.

(Opening / Closing Mechanism) The sheet on which the image is fixed is conveyed by a conveying roller pair 10, and a face-down discharge unit (hereinafter referred to as an FD discharge unit 14) is controlled by a switching member 12 rotatably provided on a discharge guide 11. A face-up discharge unit (hereinafter referred to as FU discharge unit 15) can be switched. FD
The discharge unit 14 is provided above the discharge guide 11, and includes a discharge tray 14a that is stacked with the recording surface facing down. FU
The discharge section 15 is for directly discharging the sheet P from the front of the apparatus, and does not have a discharge tray, but has a blind cover 16 rotatably provided about a central axis 16a.
When the U discharge unit 15 is not used, the U discharge unit 15 is hidden. The switching member 12 is an elastic switching member spring.
A switching member 12 is always urged toward the FD discharge position.

The switching member 12 is fixed to an opening / closing cover 17 with screws or the like, and a sheet fed to the FD discharge section is guided along a discharge guide 11. On the other hand, the sheet sent to the FU discharge unit is guided along the front cover 18 and discharged onto the opened blind cover 16 with the recording surface facing up. Further, the opening / closing cover 17 is provided rotatably about a center shaft 17a, and is configured to remove a sheet having a paper jam. At this time, the opening / closing cover 17, the discharge guide 11, and the switching member 12 rotate integrally.

As shown in FIG. 1, a link portion 16b is provided on the inner surface of the blind cover 16, and the link portion 16b and the boss 11a on the discharge guide 11 are connected by a sliding link 19 which is a sliding member. I have. Sliding link 19 links shaft 19a
16b is rotatably supported, and a boss 11 is inserted into the elongated hole 19b.
a is engaged and slides in conjunction with opening and closing of the blind cover 16. Further, a raised portion 19c is provided on a side surface of the sliding link 19.

A rotation link 20, which is a rotation member, is rotatably supported on the discharge guide 11 so that the shaft 20a can rotate. The rotation link 20 has an elongated hole 20b at one end, and a protrusion 12a of the switching member 12.
, And the contact portion 20c at the other end is disposed near the sliding link 19. The sliding link 19 and the rotating link 20 constitute a connecting means for linking the switching member 12 and the blind cover 16.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the above configuration,
By opening the blind cover 16, the sliding link 19 becomes
b along the trajectory regulated by the boss 11a
To be pulled downward. At this time, the contact portion 20c of the rotating link 20 is pushed up by the raised portion 19c, and the rotating link 20 is turned around the shaft 20a by an amount corresponding to the pushed amount, and the switching member 12 is moved to the FU discharge side. Rotate.

FIG. 3 is a schematic graph showing the switching timing. That is, unlike the case described with reference to FIG. 9 in the conventional example, it is understood that the position of the switching member 12 can be switched before the blind cover 16 reaches the previous time. The timing of this switching can be adjusted by the positional relationship between the raised portion 19c and the contact portion 20c, the shape, the position of the boss 11a, and the like.

Note that in this graph, the FU
The longer the gradient K at the time of switching to the side becomes, the longer the time that the switching member 12 is located at the intermediate position between the FD side and the FU side becomes. Then, when the blind cover 16 stops in the middle of opening due to some obstacle, there is a high risk that the switching member stops at the intermediate position. In addition, since an obstacle is usually placed on a desk, the possibility is increased as the switching timing is set later. Therefore, the switching timing indicated by the gradient K is set to a gradient as much as possible,
Is required.

With the above configuration, it is possible to provide the sliding member with an overstroke even after the switching member moves to the FU side, and it is possible to reliably open the blind cover 16 fully. In addition, by dividing the function of the connecting means, it becomes possible to manage the operation of the switching member 12 by managing the dimensions (mechanical management) of each component. That is, since the amount of rotation of the switching member 12 can be controlled by the height of the raised portion 19c of the sliding link 19, the incomplete switching state is eliminated, and the reliability of the switching conveyance can be improved. Further, since the opening degree of the blind cover 16 and the timing of switching can be mechanically adjusted by the shapes of the raised portions 19c and the contact portions 20c, it is possible to easily respond to various structural requirements. it can.

Further, in the above configuration, the switching member spring
Since the force of 13 does not affect the opening and closing of the blind cover 16, it is possible to urge the switching member with a sufficiently strong force, and the FD is not pushed down to the FU side by the cardboard when the FD is discharged. Performance can be improved.

[Second Embodiment] Next, a second embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a face-down discharge state, and FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a face-up discharge state.
The same parts as those in the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

In this embodiment, a locking portion 11b is provided below the discharge guide 11, and the sliding link 19 is similarly provided with the locking portion 11b.
19d is provided, and a link spring 21 is attached between them. As a result, when the blind cover 16 is opened, the link spring 21 is pulled downward, thus providing an effect as a damper. That is, the opening / closing operation of the blind cover 16 can be regulated by the strength of the link spring 21, and the opening / closing speed can be easily adjusted. Therefore, when the blind cover 16 is opened, it is possible to limit the speed thereof, and it is possible to give a sense of quality to the operation without colliding with the desk surface.

Further, since the force of the link spring 21 does not affect the switching member spring 13, the link spring 21 does not exert a pulling force on the switching member toward the FU when the FD is discharged, and the reliability of the switching conveyance is reduced. Is not reduced.

[0027]

As described above, in the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the connecting means for interlocking the switching means and the blind cover is provided with the sliding member connected to the blind cover and sliding, and the one end. Is constituted by a rotating member which rotates in contact with the sliding member, and the other end of the rotating member is connected to the switching means, so that the blind cover can be completely opened without fail. Jamming can be avoided by reliably switching. Further, since the spring for urging the switching member is not related to the operation of the blind cover, it is possible to apply a sufficient force necessary for paper passing, and it is possible to improve the reliability of the switching conveyance. .

Further, by providing an urging means on the sliding member to regulate the opening / closing speed of the blind cover, an effect as a damper can be obtained, and the operation does not collide with the desk top surface, so that the operation of the sliding member is luxurious. You can have.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a state of face-down discharge according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a state of face-up discharge.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a relationship between a degree of opening of a blind cover and a switching member.

FIG. 4 is an overall configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a face-down discharge state according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state of face-up discharge.

FIG. 7 illustrates a face-down discharge state according to a conventional example.

FIG. 8 is a view for explaining a state of face-up discharge according to a conventional example.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing the relationship between the degree of opening of a blind cover and a switching member according to a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 P ... Sheet 1 ... Image forming apparatus 2 ... Image carrier 3 ... Charging means 4 ... Optical means 5 ... Developing means 6 ... Feeding tray 7 ... Feeding means 8 ... Transfer means 9 ... Fixing means 10 ... Transport roller pair 11 ... Discharge guide 11a boss 11b locking part 12 switching member 12a projection 13 switching member spring 14 FD discharge part 14a discharge tray 15 FU discharge part 16 blind cover 16a central shaft 16b link part 17 Opening / closing cover 17a Central shaft 18 Front cover 19 Sliding link 19a Shaft 19b Elongated hole 19c Elevated portion 19d Locking portion 20 Rotating link 20a Shaft 20b Elongated hole 20c Contact portion 21 Link spring

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A face-up discharge unit that discharges with a recording surface facing up, a face-down discharge unit that discharges with a recording surface down, and a switch that selects one of the discharge units when discharging a sheet. An image forming apparatus comprising: a unit; a blind cover that is openably and closably provided on the face-up discharge unit; and a connecting unit for linking the switching unit and the blind cover. The connecting unit is connected to the blind cover. A sliding member that slides and slides; a raised portion provided on the sliding member; and a rotating member that rotates at one end in contact with the raised portion. An image forming apparatus, wherein the switching unit and the blind cover are linked to each other by being connected to the switching unit. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said sliding member is provided with an elastic member for urging in a sliding direction. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the opening / closing speed of the blind cover is regulated to give a sense of quality.