JP2003037706A - Document feeder, image forming apparatus having the same, and image reading apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a document feeder in which the operation of an operation section is easy and which can be reduced in size, and an image forming apparatus and an image reading apparatus having the same. SOLUTION: After a document S placed on a document placing table 14 is sent out by a document feeding means 3, a separating member 4 is pressed against the document S.
The sheet is separated one by one and fed to the image reading unit 2 by a separation unit constituted by the separation and conveyance member 5. Then, the pressure contact between the separation member 4 and the separation conveyance member 5 is released by the pressure release means 100, and the pressure release means 1
The axis of 00 is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the document S. Also, the operating portion of the pressure-contact releasing means 100 operated when releasing the pressure contact between the separation member 4 and the separation / conveyance member 5 is connected to one end of the shaft portion at the side end of the document feeding passage through which the document is fed. It is provided at a position corresponding to the part.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a document feeding apparatus, an image forming apparatus including the same, and an image reading apparatus,
In particular, the present invention relates to a configuration of a separation unit which is provided in a document feeding device and separates documents one by one and conveys them to an image reading unit.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a facsimile, or an image reading apparatus, an original placed on an original placing table is sent out by an original feeding means and then separated one by one by a separating section. A document feeding device that separates and feeds the image to the image reading unit is provided.

By the way, as a separating portion of such a document feeding apparatus, for example, as shown in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-168973, a separating member such as a separating pad having a high friction coefficient for pressure contact and a separating conveying member. Some are composed of and.

Here, in the separating section constituted by such a separating member and the separating and conveying member, for example, when the original is jammed in the separating section, the separating member and the separating and conveying member are pressed against each other in order to remove the original. The document is released and the original is removed in this state.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the structure of a separating portion of such a conventional document feeding apparatus. In FIG. 12, 80 is a separating member holder for holding a separating member (not shown), and 81 is a document for removal. It is a pressure contact releasing means that is operated before. Then, when removing the original sandwiched by the separating portions, after opening a cover (not shown), the pressure contact releasing means 81 as shown in FIG. It is designed to rotate in the direction.

Here, when the pressure contact releasing means 81 is rotated in this manner, the separating member holder 80 rises as shown in (b), whereby the pressure contact between the separating member and the separating and conveying member is released. It has become.

[0007]

By the way, in such a conventional document feeding apparatus, when the pressure contact releasing means 81 is rotated, the operating portion 81a is orthogonal to the document feeding direction indicated by the arrow B in FIG. The pressure contact releasing means 81 is rotated by operating the inside of the document in the width direction. However, since the operation portion 81a is located inside the original in the width direction of the document, it is very difficult to operate particularly in the case where the separating member is located below the document.

On the other hand, the rotary shaft 82 is located downstream of the separating member, and the point of action is also located downstream of the separating member.
However, in the case of such a configuration, there are many restrictions on the installation position of the rotating shaft 82 and a space in the document feeding direction is required, which hinders the downsizing of the apparatus.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such a situation as described above, and an original feeding device in which the operation of the operating portion is easy and the size thereof can be reduced, and an image forming apparatus including the same. Another object of the present invention is to provide an image reading device.

[0010]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The present invention is an original feeding device for feeding an original placed on an original placing table by an original feeding means and then separating the originals one by one and feeding them to an image reading section. A separating unit configured by a separating member and a separating / conveying member that are in pressure contact with each other, and separating the originals sent by the original document feeding unit one by one; The pressure contact releasing means includes a shaft portion arranged in a direction orthogonal to the document feeding direction, and a side end of a document feeding passage at one end of the shaft portion for feeding the document. It is characterized in that it has an operation section which is provided at a position corresponding to the section and which is operated when releasing the pressure contact between the separation member and the separation conveyance member.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the operation portion is located above a document passing through the document feeding passage.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the operation portion is provided with a guide rib on the bottom surface for guiding the document passing through the document feeding passage.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the pressure contact releasing means separates the separating member from the separating / conveying member by operating the operating portion.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that a holding member for holding the separating member is provided, and the pressure contact releasing means separates the separating member from the separating / conveying member via the holding member. It is a thing.

Further, according to the present invention, the pressure contact releasing means acts on the other end of the shaft portion to act on the holding member so as to separate the separating member from the separating and conveying member in accordance with the operation of the operating portion. It is characterized by having.

The present invention is also characterized in that the cam portion and the operating portion are integrally provided on the shaft portion.

Further, according to the present invention, a cam hole for mounting the cam portion is formed in the holding member, and the cam hole is in a state where pressure contact between the separating member and the separating and conveying member is released. The present invention is characterized in that a holding portion for holding the press-contact releasing means via the cam portion is formed.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the cam portion acts on the holding member at a substantially central position of the separating member in the document feeding direction.

The present invention also provides an image reading apparatus including an image reading unit and a document feeding device for feeding a document to the image reading unit, wherein the document feeding device is one of the above. It is characterized by being.

Further, according to the present invention, an image reading section, a document feeding device for feeding a document to the image reading section, and an image forming section for forming an image based on the document information read by the image reading section. In the image forming apparatus including the above, the document feeding device is one of the above-described ones.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image reading apparatus equipped with a document feeding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing its configuration.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 60 is an image reading device, and 1 is an original feeding device attached to the upper portion of the image reading device 60. Here, the document feeding device 1 is attached to the upper part of the image reading device 60 so as to be openable and closable so that when the document is placed on the platen glass 22 and the document is read, the document is pressed. ing.

Reference numeral 40 denotes a document feeder 1 when the document feeder 1 is bound.
The apparatus main body 40 serves as a pressure plate for pressing the original, and inside the apparatus main body 40, a substantially U-shaped original conveying path (hereinafter referred to as U turn path) 12 is provided.
A document placing tray 14 is provided so as to be connected to the upstream end side of the U-turn path 12, and a document formed by a part of the upper surface of the apparatus main body 40 so as to be connected to the downstream end side of the U-turn path 12. A discharge tray 18 is provided.

In addition, on the upstream side of the U-turn path 12, there is a pickup roller 3 which is a document feeding means which comes into contact with the uppermost document S1 of the documents S stacked on the document placing tray 14 and sends it out, and a pickup. A separation pad 4 that is a separation member that constitutes a separation unit that separates the originals S1 sent out by the roller 3 one by one, a separation roller 5 that is a separation conveyance member that is in pressure contact with the separation pad 4, and a document placement tray 14 A document stopper 20 that regulates the leading end position of the document S stacked on the document S and a document presence sensor 16 that detects the presence or absence of the document S are provided.

Further, on the downstream end side of the U-turn path 12, a pair of document discharge rollers 9 for discharging the document S to the document discharge tray 18, and a document edge sensor for detecting the front end and the rear end of the document S. 17 are provided.

In the figure, reference numerals 6 and 7 denote first and second portions provided on the U-turn path 12 so as to convey the document S.
A pair of conveyance rollers, 18a is provided on the base end side of the document discharge tray 18, a document holding surface for holding the rear end of the document S to be discharged, and 50 is a cover provided on the apparatus main body 40 so as to be openable and closable. An upper cover, which is a member, is opened to remove the jammed document when the document is jammed, for example.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a pickup arm which holds the pickup roller 3 rotatably and can be brought into contact with and separated from the original S loaded on the original placing tray 14, and the pickup arm 10 is used to feed the original. The pickup roller 3 is rotated downward to bring the pickup roller 3 into contact with the document S. In addition, the pickup arm 10
When is rotated downward, the document stopper 20 is pushed down by the pickup arm 10.

On the other hand, in FIG. 2, reference numeral 2 denotes an image reading unit for reading a document placed on the platen glass 22, and the image reading unit 2 is provided below the platen glass 22 so as to be movable left and right. A contact image sensor 30 is provided.

Here, this contact image sensor 30
Is to read light by irradiating the image information surface of the document S with light from an LED array as a light source, and forming the reflected light reflected by the image information surface on a sensor element with a SELFOC lens (trademark) to read the image information. When reading a fixed original, the original image is read while moving in the left-right direction, and when reading the original conveyed from the original feeding device 1, the original is read while stopped at the position shown in FIG. Has become.

In the document feeder 1, when the operator places the document S on the document tray 14 and sets it,
The document is set from the right side to the left side in the left-right direction of the document feeder 1 and with the image surface facing upward. At the time of setting the document, the leading end position of the document S is set at the document stopper. The document is regulated by the document regulation surface 20e of 20 and the document presence sensor 16 detects the presence of the document.

When the operator gives an instruction to start reading from an operation unit (not shown) in the image reading apparatus 60, the drive unit (not shown) rotates and the pick-up arm 10 rotates downward. The document stopper 20 is pushed down by the pickup arm 10. Thereafter, the pickup roller 3 comes into contact with the uppermost original S1 of the originals S stacked on the original placing tray 14, and sends out the uppermost original S1.

Next, the uppermost original S1 passes through the inclined surface 20a of the original stopper 20, is separated from other originals by the separating roller 5 and the separating pad 4, and the U-turn path 1 is formed.
It is sent inside 2. Further, the document S1 thus fed into the U-turn path 12 is conveyed along the U-turn path 12 by the first conveying roller pair 6, and further imaged by the contact image sensor 30 by the second conveying roller pair 7. It is conveyed toward a reading position where information is read.

After that, when the leading edge of the document S1 is detected by the document edge sensor 17, the contact type image sensor 30 starts reading the image information when the document S1 is conveyed by a predetermined amount from that position. At this time,
The document S1 is pressed against the reading white background plate 8. After the reading is started, the original S1 is picked up by the transparent scooping sheet 19 and moves toward the original discharge roller pair 9.

Next, the document S is detected by the document edge sensor 17.
When the rear end portion of No. 1 is detected, when the predetermined amount is conveyed from that position, the reading of the image information by the contact image sensor 30 ends. The document S1 thus read is conveyed toward the document discharge tray 18 by the document discharge roller pair 9, and the document discharge tray 18 is conveyed.
Is discharged to.

When the trailing edge of the discharged document S1 passes through the document discharge roller pair 9, the document S1 freely falls, moves along the inclined document discharge tray 18, and eventually reaches the document holding surface 18a at the rear end. The documents are accommodated in the document discharge tray 18 while the parts are held. In this way, the image reading device 60 repeats the above-described reading operation until the document presence sensor 16 detects the absence of the document.

By the way, in the document feeder 1 of the image reading apparatus 60 having such a structure, when a jam occurs, the jammed document is removed, and therefore the arrow D shown in FIG.
The upper cover 50 of the document feeder 1 in the direction of
Is used as a fulcrum, and thereafter, the separation pad releasing lever 100, which is a pressure contact releasing means for separating the separation pad 4 from the separation roller 5, is operated.

Here, the separation pad release lever 100
Is a press-contact releasing mechanism for releasing the press contact between the separation pad 4 and the separation roller 5 together with the separation pad holder 101 which is a holding member holding the separation pad 4 shown in FIG. 4, and as shown in FIG. It is engaged with the separation pad holder 101.

Then, the separation pad release lever 100
5 is moved in the direction of arrow A as shown in FIG. 5, the separation pad holder 101 is rotated downward in conjunction with this, and the separation pad 4 pressed against the separation roller 5 is separated from the separation roller 5 accordingly. It is supposed to do.

By the way, the separation pad release lever 10
As shown in FIG. 6, reference numeral 0 denotes an operation lever portion 100a which is an operation portion operated by a user, and a rotating cam portion 100 which is a cam portion.
b, a shaft portion 100c provided with the operation lever portion 100a at one end and a rotating cam portion 100b at the other end, and a document guide portion 100d. In addition, in the present embodiment, the operation lever portion 100a and the rotating cam portion 10 are provided.
0b, the shaft portion 100c, and the document guide portion 100d are integrally formed, whereby the separation pad release lever 100 is formed.
Can be formed easily and inexpensively.

The shaft portion 100c of the separation pad release lever 100 is rotatably supported by a bearing (not shown) in the direction orthogonal to the document feeding direction. And
By arranging the shaft portion 100c in the direction orthogonal to the document feeding direction in this way, the space for arranging the separating pad release lever in the document feeding direction becomes small, and as a result, the document feeding device 1 is downsized. Is possible.

On the other hand, the separating pad holder 101 includes a rotating shaft 101d and a separating pad releasing lever 10 as shown in FIG.
0 is a cam hole 101a for inserting the rotary cam 100b formed at the other end of the 0, and a separating pad operated to remove the jammed document provided in the cam hole 101a. A cam holding projection 101b, which is a holding portion that holds the release lever 100 at a position where the jammed document can be removed, via the rotating cam portion 100b.

When the rotating cam portion 100b of the separating pad releasing lever 100 is inserted (mounted) in the cam hole portion 101a, the rotating cam portion 100b is substantially in the original feeding direction of the separating pad 4. Separation pad holder 1 at the center position
01, so that the pressure contact between the separation pad 4 and the separation roller 5 can be released in a well-balanced manner.

Next, the document removing operation using the separation pad release lever 100 having such a structure will be described.

During normal document transportation, the separating pad 4 is pressed against the separating roller 5 by the pressing spring 102 (see FIG. 2) as shown in FIG. When the document is stopped halfway or when the document is jammed, the upper cover 50 is first opened as shown in FIG. 3, and then the separation pad release lever 100 in the state shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the operation lever 100a of the separation pad release lever 100 is rotated in the arrow A direction.

As a result, the rotating cam 100b is rotated while being in pressure contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cam hole 101a, and accordingly, the separating pad holder 101 is rotated in the direction of arrow B with the rotating shaft 101d as a fulcrum. Accordingly, the separation pad 4 is separated from the separation roller 5.

Here, the separation pad release lever 10 is moved to the position where the separation pad 4 is separated from the separation roller 5 in this way.
When 0 moves, as shown in FIG. 7, the rotation cam 100b is caught and held by the protrusion 101b of the separation pad holder 101. Then, in this state, if the document S1 is pulled out, the document S1 can be taken out easily without receiving the frictional load of the separating portion and without damaging the document S1. After the original S1 is taken out in this manner, the separation pad 4 separated from the separation roller 5 can be brought into pressure contact with the separation roller 5 by performing a return operation of depressing the separation pad release lever 100.

By the way, the upper cover 50 includes the upper cover 5
When closing 0, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the separation pad 4 is released so as to release the pressure contact between the separation pad 4 and the separation roller 5.
Lever portion 100a of the separating pad release lever 100 held in the first position for separating the separating roller 5 from the separating roller 5.
Is provided with a protrusion 50b that pushes down the separating pad release lever 100 by acting on the.

When the upper cover 50 is provided with such a protrusion 50b so that the upper cover 50 is closed after the original is taken out, if the operator forgets to return the separating pad release lever 100. However, as shown in the same figure, the protrusion 50b acts on the operation lever portion 100a of the separation pad release lever 100 so that the release lever 100 is C-shaped.
To rotate in the direction.

As a result, the separating pad releasing lever 100, which is held in the state where the separating pad 4 is moved to the first position for separating it from the separating roller 5, brings the separating pad 4 and the separating roller 5 into pressure contact with each other as shown in FIG. And it returns to the second position shown in FIG.

In this embodiment, the abutment portion of the protrusion 50b of the upper cover 50 that abuts the operation lever portion 100a of the release lever 100 and the separation pad release lever 1
00 of the operating lever 100a of the upper cover 50 of the projection 5
The contact portions that come into contact with 0b are inclined, so that when the upper cover 50 is closed, the upper cover 50
The separating pad release lever 100 smoothly rotates along the protrusion 50b.

In this way, the separating pad release lever 100
When the upper cover 50 is closed after the manuscript S1 has been removed and the upper cover 50 is closed, the separation pad release lever 100 moving to the first position is returned to the second position in conjunction with the closing operation of the upper cover 50. By doing so, even if the return operation of the separation pad release lever 100 is forgotten, the separation pad 4 and the separation roller 5 can be reliably brought into pressure contact with each other.
As a result, the usability is dramatically improved, the document can be reliably conveyed, and appropriate image reading can be performed.

Furthermore, since the separation pad release lever 100 can be returned from the first position to the second position simply by providing the protrusion 50b on the upper cover 50, the structure is simple and low without adding another member. The separation pad release lever 100 can be reliably returned to the second position at a cost.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the operation lever portion 100a is provided with a document feeding passage R of (the shaft portion 100c of) the separation pad releasing lever 100 for feeding the document S. It is provided at a position corresponding to a side end portion orthogonal to the document feeding direction. By thus providing the operation lever portion 100a at the side end portion of the document feeding path R, even in the case where the separation pad 4 is located below the document, the operation lever portion 10 is not obstructed by the document.
0a can be easily operated.

Further, in the present embodiment, the document S is constructed so as to pass under the operation lever 100a as shown in FIG. With this configuration, in other words, the operation lever 100a is moved to the document feeding path R.
By locating the document S above the document S passing through it, the length of the document feeding device 1 in the document width direction can be minimized. As a result, it is possible to save space and reduce the size of the device. As described above with reference to FIG. 6, by providing the manuscript guide part 100d, which is a guide part, on the bottom surface of the operation lever part 100a, the manuscript S can be smoothly directed to the inside of the U-turn path 12.

Further, as described above, by disposing the separating pad release lever 100 (the shaft portion 100c thereof) in the direction orthogonal to the document feeding direction, the pressure contact is made without expanding the space in the document feeding direction. A release mechanism can be provided.

On the other hand, although the image reading apparatus using the original feeding apparatus 1 of the present invention has been described above,
The present invention is not limited to this, and includes an image reading unit, a document feeding device that feeds a document to the image reading unit, and an image forming unit that forms an image based on the document information read by the image reading unit. Even when it is used in an image forming apparatus, the usability is dramatically improved, the document can be reliably conveyed, and appropriate image reading and image formation can be performed.

Also, the separation pad release lever 1 has been used so far.
By operating 00, the separating pad 4 is moved to the separating roller 5
Although the case where the separation roller 5 is separated from the separation pad 4 has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same effect can be obtained even if the separation roller 5 is separated from the separation pad 4 by operating the pressure contact releasing means.

[0059]

As described above, as in the present invention, the pressure contact releasing means for releasing the pressure contact between the separating member and the separating / conveying member, the shaft portion arranged in the direction orthogonal to the document feeding direction,
The operating portion is provided at a position corresponding to the side end portion of the document feeding passage through which the document at one end of the shaft portion is fed, and when releasing the pressure contact between the separating member and the separating and conveying member. By operating the operating portion to release the pressure contact between the separating member and the separating and conveying member, the operating portion can be easily operated and the size can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image reading apparatus including a document feeding apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an image reading apparatus including the document feeding apparatus.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the document feeding device.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a compression releasing mechanism provided in the document feeding device.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state when a separation pad release lever of the compression release mechanism is operated.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the separation pad release lever.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view of an essential part showing a state when the separation pad release lever is operated.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view of an essential part showing a state before operating the separation pad release lever.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of essential parts showing a state in which a separation pad release lever rotates in conjunction with a closing operation of an upper cover provided in the document feeding device.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of essential parts showing a state in which a separation pad release lever is rotated in association with a closing operation of an upper cover provided in the document feeding device.

FIG. 11 is a top view of a main part of the document feeding device.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a configuration of a separation unit of a conventional document feeding apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Document feeder 2 Image reading section 3 pickup roller 4 Separation pads 5 Separation roller 12 U turn pass 50 Top cover 50b protrusion 60 image reading device 100 Separation pad release lever 100a Operation lever part 100b Rotating cam part 100c shaft 100d Document guide section 101 Separation Pad Holder 101a hole for cam 101b Cam holding protrusion R Document feeding passage S, S1 manuscript

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Yasushi Ishida             3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo             Non non corporation (72) Inventor Masakatsu Yamada             3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo             Non non corporation (72) Inventor Takuma Suzuki             3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo             Non non corporation (72) Inventor Shigeyuki Sugiyama             3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo             Non non corporation F-term (reference) 2H076 AA04 BA17 BA24 BA35 BA36                       BA72 BB02                 3F343 FA03 FB01 FC27 GA02 GB01                       GC01 GD01 JA01 JD03 JD08                       JD09 KB05 LA04 LA15 LB08                       LC27                 5C062 AB31 AD02 AD06 BA01

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A document feeding device for feeding a document placed on a document placing table by a document feeding means, and then separating the documents one by one and feeding them to an image reading section. And a pressure-contact releasing means for releasing pressure contact between the separation member and the separation-conveying member. The means is provided at a position corresponding to a shaft portion arranged in a direction orthogonal to the feeding direction of the document and a side end portion of a document feeding passage at one end of the shaft portion to which the document is fed. A document feeding device, comprising: an operation unit that is operated when the pressure contact between the separation member and the separation conveyance member is released. 2. The document feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation section is located above a document passing through the document feeding path. 3. The document feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation section has a guide rib on a bottom surface for guiding a document passing through the document feeding path. 4. The original document according to claim 1, wherein the press-contact releasing means separates the separating member from the separating / conveying member by operating the operation section. Feeding device. 5. A holding member for holding the separating member, wherein the pressure contact releasing means separates the separating member from the separating / conveying member via the holding member. 5. The document feeder according to any one of items 4 to 4. 6. The pressure contact releasing means has a cam portion at the other end of the shaft portion, which acts on the holding member so as to separate the separating member from the separating and conveying member in accordance with the operation of the operating portion. The document feeding device according to claim 5, wherein 7. The document feeder according to claim 6, wherein the cam portion and the operation portion are integrally provided on the shaft portion. 8. A cam hole for mounting the cam portion is formed in the holding member, and the pressure contact releasing means in a state where pressure contact between the separating member and the separating and conveying member is released in the cam hole. 8. The document feeder according to claim 6, further comprising a holding portion that holds the sheet via the cam portion. 9. The document feeding apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the cam portion acts on the holding member at a substantially central position of the separating member in a document feeding direction. apparatus. 10. An image reading apparatus comprising an image reading unit and a document feeding device for feeding a document to the image reading unit, wherein the document feeding device is any one of claims 1 to 9. An image reading apparatus, which is the document feeding apparatus described above. 11. An image reading unit, an original feeding device that feeds an original to the image reading unit, and an image forming unit that forms an image based on the original information read by the image reading unit. In the image forming apparatus, the document feeding device is the document feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.