JP2010016498A - Image reader, and image forming apparatus with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain proper images at low cost, by enhancing the housing strength of a reader frame body, while maintaining planar accuracy of a glass support part for placing an original platen glass. <P>SOLUTION: In the image reader, the entirety including a glass support part 131a provided on the upper surface part 131d of the reader frame body 131 is turned into an integrated structure, and a configuration capable of adjusting a distance from the original platen glass 202 to spindles 132 and 133 for scanning is adopted. Thus, the rigidity of the reader frame body is improved by a simple configuration, without having to add a separate reinforcing member, or the like, as before, and the generation of the twist state of the reader frame body 131 is prevented. Also, by adjusting the height of the spindles 132 and 133 for scanning, the distance between an optical read unit 201, including a light source means and the original platen glass 202, is readily fixed. Thus, both of the productivity and reliability of the image reader and the image forming apparatus equipped with the image reader are improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus configured to read a document image by irradiating a document on a platen glass with a light source unit disposed inside a reading device frame, and an image forming apparatus including the image reading apparatus. .

  In general, in various apparatuses such as an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a laser beam printer, and a facsimile, and an image scanner, a document placed on a platen glass is scanned while being illuminated by a light source, and document description information is obtained. 2. Description of the Related Art Image reading apparatuses that optically read images are widely used. Such an image reading apparatus has been increasingly used by being disposed above the entire apparatus, for example, as indicated by reference numeral 1 in the printer shown in FIG. In order to reduce the area, an in-cylinder discharge type configuration in which a discharge tray 2 is disposed directly below the image reading apparatus 1 is often employed.

  In such an image reading apparatus 1, the document table glass 1a is disposed on the upper surface portion, and the document table glass 1a is formed to have a hollow box shape, for example, as shown in FIG. It is attached to a glass support (not shown) provided on the upper surface of the reading device frame 1b. An optical reading unit having light source means (not shown) is arranged so as to reciprocate along the guide members 1c and 1c arranged inside the reading device frame 1b. Then, the original reading illumination light emitted from the light source means of the optical reading unit is irradiated onto the original, and the path of the reflected light from the original is appropriately changed by the reflecting means, and the light is condensed by the optical system. The original image is read by forming an image on the photoelectric conversion means.

  The reading device frame 1b constituting the image reading device 1 is generally divided into two or more in the vertical direction. For example, the upper frame for placing the document table glass 1a is used. A configuration is adopted in which the body 1d and the lower housing 1e for fixing the guide member 1c for guiding the optical reading unit, the driving member, and the like are fitted in the vertical direction (Patent Document 1 below) Etc.). In the configuration in which the reading device frame 1b is vertically divided, overlapping portions of four side surfaces surrounding the bottom surface portion of the lower housing portion 1e and four side surfaces surrounding the top surface of the upper housing portion 1d are formed. The upper casing 1d and the lower casing 1e are fixed by being fastened with a plurality of fixing screws 1f. The guide member 1c that guides the optical reading unit including the light source means in the scanning direction may be formed as a part of a housing such as a bottom surface portion of the lower housing portion 1e.

  According to the configuration in which the reading device frame 1b of the image reading device 1 as described above is divided vertically, the upper housing portion 1d including the glass support portion (not shown) on which the document table glass 1a is placed is an integral member. Therefore, it is possible to improve the planar accuracy of the glass support portion that supports the document table glass 1a.

  On the other hand, in the image reading apparatus 1, the planar accuracy of the glass support described above is also important, but in addition, the sub-scanning direction is strictly orthogonal to the main scanning direction when performing image scanning. If the distance between the original on the platen glass 1a and the light source means (optical reading unit) is not kept constant, the original is distorted and read, and a good image cannot be obtained. Therefore, as a means for stabilizing the distance between the original and the light source means (optical reading unit), in the conventional apparatus shown in FIG. 14, the upper casing portion is provided at the outer end portion of the guide member 1c fixed to the lower casing portion 1e. A part of 1d is abutted so that the distance between the guide member 1c and the original table glass 1a is strictly controlled.

  However, in such a conventional divided structure of the reading device frame 1b, an external force is applied, so that there is a vertical displacement between the upper housing portion 1d and the lower housing portion 1e. May occur. In particular, in the in-body discharge type apparatus in which the discharge tray 2 as shown in FIG. 13 described above is arranged directly below the image reading apparatus 1, the operation of taking out the output paper from the discharge tray 2 is performed on the front side. Since it is performed at the corner, a free end portion in which one of the four corners of the image reading apparatus 1 is not supported is configured. Therefore, when an external force F such as a person's weight is applied to the unsupported corner, a shearing force is applied between the upper and lower casings as shown in FIG. The fastening force of the fixing screw 1f provided in the side surface overlapping portion of the body part cannot support the case, and a positional deviation may occur between the upper and lower casing portions. If the whole of the reading device frame 1b is twisted without restoring the vertical displacement, the distance between the light source means (optical reading unit) and the platen glass is not constant. You may not be able to get it.

  In order to prevent the reading device frame from being twisted as described above, conventionally, measures such as increasing the number of screws that fasten the upper and lower casings and reinforcing members made of different members have been adopted. Increasing the number of screws fastened to the reinforcing member or the upper and lower casings made of different members increases the number of parts and increases the manufacturing cost. Further, in the configuration in which the reading device frame is divided into the upper and lower casing parts, the development dimensions of both the upper and lower casing parts are equal in order to keep the distance between the original on the platen glass and the reading means constant. There is a problem that a material is required, and therefore the material cost becomes very high.

JP 2004-271865 A

  Therefore, the present invention can obtain a good image at a low cost by improving the housing strength of the reading device frame while maintaining the planar accuracy of the glass support portion on which the platen glass is placed with a simple configuration. An object of the present invention is to provide an image reading apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the image reading apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, the light source means is arranged so as to reciprocate along a guide member arranged inside a reading device frame formed in a hollow box shape. In an image reading apparatus in which a glass platen is attached to a glass support provided on an upper surface portion of a reading device frame, the reading device frame includes a glass support provided on the upper surface as a whole. In addition, the guide member is attached to the reading device frame so as to be adjustable in height so that the distance from the platen glass can be adjusted.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the entire reading device frame including the glass supporting portion provided on the upper surface portion has an integrated structure. The optical reading including the light source means is achieved by improving the rigidity of the reading device frame with a simple configuration without adding, preventing the twisting state of the reading device frame from occurring, and adjusting the height of the guide member. The distance between the unit and the platen glass is easily fixed.

  Further, the entire reading device frame including the glass support portion in the present invention is formed by bending a sheet metal material, and the upper surface portion having the glass support portion is another upper surface portion adjacent thereto. It is possible to make it the structure fastened with the mechanical fixing means. Moreover, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which rivets are used as the mechanical fixing means in the present invention.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the reading device frame is manufactured at a low cost by bending or the like using a single sheet metal material.

  The guide member according to the present invention is configured such that the height of the guide member is adjusted by abutting the tip of an adjustment screw screwed so as to penetrate from the outer side to the inner side of the bottom surface portion of the reading device frame. Can be made.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the height of the guide member can be easily adjusted with high accuracy by turning the adjusting screw.

  Further, the guide member in the present invention can be configured to be fixed via a fixed support plate attached to a side plate of the reader frame.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the guide member after the height adjustment is easily fixed.

  Moreover, it is possible to constitute the guide member according to the present invention so that one end of the guide member is fixed to the reading device frame.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the adjustment of the guide member is quickly performed with reference to the shaft fixing portion.

  The guide member according to the present invention can be configured such that the height is adjusted by a spacer interposed between the guide member and the bottom surface of the reader frame.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the height of the guide member can be easily adjusted by adjusting the height by mounting the spacer inside the reading device frame. In particular, even when a part of the bottom surface portion of the reading device frame is formed as a sheet passing surface, the sheet passing surface may have a flat surface shape without any protrusions that may interfere with the sheet passing. Since it becomes possible, paper passing is performed smoothly.

  Further, the glass support portion in the present invention is formed so as to protrude from the upper surface portion of the reading device frame, and the protruding height of the glass support portion constitutes the reading device frame. It is possible to have a structure formed so as to be larger than the material thickness of the existing member.

  According to the present invention having such a configuration, the platen glass is reliably placed on the glass support portion, and the flatness of the platen glass can be obtained satisfactorily.

  In the present invention, an image forming apparatus including any of the above-described image reading apparatuses can be provided. According to the present invention having such a configuration, the image forming apparatus has a similar function. can get.

  As described above, the image reading apparatus according to the present invention and the image forming apparatus provided with the image reading apparatus include the entire reading device frame including the glass support portion provided on the upper surface, and the document table. By adopting a configuration that allows the distance from the glass to the guide member to be adjusted, the rigidity of the reader frame can be improved with a simple configuration without adding a separate reinforcing member, etc. The apparatus frame is configured to prevent the occurrence of a twisted state of the apparatus frame and to easily make the distance between the optical reading unit including the light source means and the document table glass easily by adjusting the height of the guide member. The image reading apparatus can obtain a good image at low cost by improving the housing strength of the reading device frame while maintaining the plane accuracy of the glass support portion on which the platen glass is placed with a simple configuration. Bisore can increase both the productivity and reliability of the image forming apparatus having a.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Prior to that, an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus as an example of a precision instrument to which the present invention is applied will be described by taking a multifunction printer (MFP) as an example. Let me explain.

  A multi-function printer (MFP) is a device that includes a scanner for image reading, a communication function for performing communication via a FAX or a LAN, and the like. In the following embodiments, the recording method is an electrophotographic method. It shall be adopted. That is, the multi-function printer employing the electrophotographic system shown in FIG. 1 employs a so-called in-cylinder sheet ejection system, and includes a device body 11 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped device housing. An image reading device 13 is provided in the upper part via a paper discharge unit 12.

  The image reading device 13 is configured to read image information of a book document, and is configured such that the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 is reciprocated directly below the document table glass 202. A book original or sheet-like original made of a book, recording paper, or the like is placed on the original platen glass 202, and the back side is pressed by an original pressure plate 203 that can be opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body 11. Then, the set is performed in a stationary state. When the user presses a reading start key (not shown) in this state, the above-described integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 moves in the direction of arrow a by moving the lower part of the platen glass 202, and an image on the original surface is scanned. Information is read.

  Further, a discharge unit 12 based on the above-described in-cylinder discharge method is provided below the image reading device 13, and the apparatus main body 11 is further below the discharge unit 12 through the discharge unit 12. The image forming unit 15 and the paper feeding unit 16 are disposed in the inside.

  The image forming unit 15 has a photosensitive drum 15a as an image carrier that rotates clockwise in the figure, and uniformly charges the photosensitive drum 15a around the photosensitive drum 15a along the rotation direction. A charger 15b, a laser emitter 15c that modulates image information from the image reading device 13 and exposes the scanning light to the photosensitive drum 15a to form an electrostatic latent image, and an electrostatic formed on the photosensitive drum 15a. A developing device 15d that supplies toner to the latent image and visualizes it to form a toner image, and transfer means that is arranged in the middle of the paper transport path and transfers the toner image on the photosensitive drum 15a to the paper side as a recording medium. A transfer roller 15e, a cleaning device 15f that removes, collects, and discharges toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 15a after transfer are sequentially arranged.

  Further, a fixing device 15g for thermally fusing and fixing the toner image on the paper is disposed on the paper conveyance path extending toward the paper discharge unit 12 disposed above the transfer roller 15e. The paper transport path extending upward from the exit of the fixing device 15g is connected to the paper discharge unit 12 described above. The paper discharge unit 12 is provided with a paper discharge tray 12b via a post-processing device 12a and the like, and a reverse conveyance mechanism 12c and the like for forming a double-sided image.

  A paper feeding unit 16 for feeding a sheet-like recording medium such as paper cut to a predetermined size is disposed below the image forming unit 15 described above. In the paper feed unit 16, paper feed cassettes 16a for storing sheets as cut recording media for each size are arranged so as to overlap in a plurality of stages, and are attached to the apparatus main body so as to be detachable. The sheets stacked in the sheet feeding cassette 16a are sent to the sheet feeding path side by the rotation of the sheet feeding roller 16b, and are abutted against the nip portion of the registration roller 16c provided in the sheet feeding path. While taking an appropriate timing, the image forming area is sent to the image forming area facing the photosensitive drum 15a.

  Further, a manual paper feed tray 16d is provided so as to project outward from the apparatus main body 11, and a paper feed conveyance path extending from each of the paper feed mechanisms 16a to 16d is connected to the photosensitive drum 15a and the transfer. The roller 15e extends upward toward an image forming area which is a transfer area facing the roller 15e.

  The multifunction printer (MFP) having such a configuration is connected to an appropriate communication network as described later, and is centrally managed by being connected to an external management server via the communication network. It is made the composition which becomes.

  Further, on the lower side of the apparatus main body 11, for example, an apparatus main body control unit (not shown) for controlling operations such as conveyance and image formation in the image forming unit of the multifunction printer (MFP) having the above-described configuration is arranged. Has been. The apparatus main body control unit is connected to the image control unit via an appropriate interface, and various control commands are output from the apparatus main body control unit in accordance with various image forming conditions set in the image control unit. It is configured as follows. Then, based on various control commands issued from the apparatus main body control unit, the image forming unit including the fixing device 15g including the photosensitive drum 15a described above, and the transport clutch and each sensor in each unit in the apparatus main body 11 The operation such as image formation using is controlled appropriately according to the set image forming conditions. In addition, the operation state such as conveyance and image formation with respect to the sheet-like recording medium at that time is notified from the apparatus main body control unit to the image control unit, and image formation from the image control unit to the apparatus main body control unit is performed. The setting conditions are indicated.

[Image reader]
Here, the configuration of the image reading apparatus 13 which is a main part of the present invention will be described. The image reading device 13 has a reading device frame 131 formed so as to form a hollow box having a generally rectangular shape as shown in FIGS. 2 and 7, and the reading device frame. A pair of main scanning support shafts 132 and a sub-scanning support shaft 133 as a guide member having a round bar shape are attached in a substantially parallel state so as to span both end portions in the sub-scanning direction in the body 131. One main scanning support shaft 132 is slidably mounted with a sliding bearing 201b provided on the bottom surface of the housing chassis 201a constituting the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 described above. The bottom surface portion of the housing chassis 201a is slidably mounted on the other sub-scanning support shaft 133.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the housing chassis 201a of the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 provided with the light source means for emitting illumination light for document reading described later is provided in the housing chassis 201a. Via the sliding bearing 201b, it is attached to the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 extending in the sub-scanning direction so as to be reciprocally movable, whereby the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 is entirely attached to the original table glass. It is configured to reciprocate in the sub-scanning direction below 202.

  An endless annular drive belt 134 is stretched so as to extend along the vicinity of the main scanning support shaft 132, and the above-described integrated illumination optical reading unit is provided in the middle of the drive belt 134. A housing chassis 201a of 201 is fixed. The endless annular drive belt 134 is wound around the output shaft of the motor 136 via a pulley 135, and is moved by the rotational drive force of the motor 136 so that the drive belt 134 is circulated. Has been made. Then, the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 is reciprocated along the scanning spindles 132 and 133 by the circular movement of the drive belt 134, and at that time, reading on the original surface on the original table glass 202 is performed. It is made to be done.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the housing chassis 201a constituting the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 has a document width direction (FIG. 1) which is a main scanning direction orthogonal to the sub-scanning direction. In the direction perpendicular to the paper surface). The housing chassis 201a is formed in a hollow box shape having an opening at the top, and covers the upper opening of the housing chassis 201a so as to cover the cover member 201c as a holding member. Is attached.

  The cover member 201c as the holding member is formed by a plate-like member made of a good heat conductor such as a metal material or a ceramic material, and includes mirrors 201m, 201n, 201p, 201q, 201r (see FIG. 4) is disposed above the reflection area, and in addition to the reflection areas by the respective mirrors, an imaging optical system and a CCD sensor (photoelectric conversion means) 201s to be described later from the original surface. Is arranged so as to substantially cover the entire upper portion of the chassis 201b so that external light other than the reflected light flux does not enter. As described above, the holding member in the present embodiment is configured by the cover member 201c that shields external light entering the interior of the integrated illumination optical reading unit.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 in particular, the cover member (holding member) 201c has a pair of light source mounting surfaces 201h and 201h recessed in a step shape in the document width direction which is the main scanning direction. It is formed so as to extend in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. The pair of light source mounting surfaces 201h and 201h are formed so as to face each other in the sub-scanning direction, and emit illumination light to the rising wall surfaces forming the steps of the light source mounting portions 201h and 201h. LED arrays 201i and 201i comprising a large number of point light sources constituting the light source means are attached. Each of the LED arrays 201i and 201i has a configuration in which micro light-emitting diodes that are point light sources are arrayed along the main scanning direction. The light-emitting surfaces 201j and 201i provided on the LED arrays 201i and 201i, respectively. 201j are arranged so as to face each other in the sub-scanning direction. Thus, in the present embodiment, the light source means has the LED arrays 201i and 201i that are a plurality of point light sources arrayed on a predetermined holding member made of the cover member 201c, and the holding member is The cover member 201c has at least a portion facing the light-emitting diode that is each of the point light sources formed of a good heat conducting member.

  Furthermore, a pair of light guides 201k and 201k into which illumination light emitted from the LED arrays 201i and 201i as the light source means is incident on the light emitting surfaces 201j and 201j of the LED arrays 201i and 201i, respectively. It arrange | positions so that the light emission surface 201j and 201j of LED array 201i and 201i may be contacted. The light guides 201k and 201k are configured to emit illumination light incident from the LED arrays 201i and 201i in a predetermined direction to irradiate the document, and the document is in the main scanning direction. It is formed of an elongated transparent body extending along the width direction, and is arranged so as to cover the light emitting surfaces 201j and 201j of the LED arrays 201i and 201i from the front side. By arranging such light guides 201k and 201k, the illumination light emitted from each point light source composed of each LED array 201i is emitted toward the surface of the document on the platen glass 202. The Rukoto.

  At this time, the pair of light guides 201k and 201k described above are arranged so as to contact the point light sources constituting the LED arrays 201i and 201i described above. That is, between the pair of light guides 201k and 201k, in particular, pressing members 201l and 201l as shown in FIG. 6 are provided from the outer side at both ends in the extending direction of the LED array 201i. It is mounted so as to be fitted. The width dimension in the main scanning direction of each pressing member 201l is set to be slightly larger than the interval between the light guides 201k and 201k, and is formed so as to be slightly wider. When the pressing member 201l is inserted between the light guides 201k and 201k in a press-fitted state, the light guides 201k and 201k are opposed to the light emitting surfaces 201j and 201j of the LED arrays 201i and 201i. The contact is made so as to be pressed. Accordingly, the LED arrays 201i and 201i are fixed in a state where they are positively contacted with the light source mounting surfaces 201h and 201h of the cover member 201c.

  Then, the illumination light beam emitted from each LED array 201i through the light guide 201k as described above irradiates the document surface on the document table glass 202 disposed in the upper part of the cover member (holding member) 201c. The light beam reflected by the original surface is reflected by mirrors 201m, 201n, 201p, 201q, and 201r as reflecting means attached to the inner wall surface side of the housing chassis 201a, and then from the original. The original image is formed on the CCD sensor 201s, which is a photoelectric conversion unit, at an appropriate magnification by an optical system that forms an image of the reflected light on the photoelectric conversion unit, that is, an optical system including an imaging lens (not shown). Light reception is performed, and reading of a document image is completed.

  At this time, as described above, since the direction of illumination is controlled by the optical function of the light guide 201k, the formation accuracy of the sheet metal constituting the cover member 201c is reduced, etc. For example, even when there is a slight gap between the light guide 201k and the LED array 201i, a situation in which the amount of reading light is significantly reduced by the optical function of the light guide 201k. Will not cause.

  On the other hand, as described above, the image reading device 13 according to the present embodiment has light source means along the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 disposed inside the reading device frame 131 formed in a hollow box shape. The integrated illuminating optical reading unit 201 is arranged so as to reciprocate in the sub-scanning direction, but the glass support 131a provided on the upper surface of the reading device frame 131 has a document on it. A table glass 202 is attached. Further, along with the adoption of the in-body discharge type in which the discharge unit is disposed immediately below the image reading device 13, a part of the back surface of the bottom portion of the reading device frame 131 is formed as a sheet passing surface.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 7 as well, the above-described reading device frame 131 includes a glass supporting portion 131a provided on the upper surface portion, and has an integral structure. The entire reading device frame 131 including the glass support 131a is formed by bending a single sheet metal material, and has a particularly developed shape as shown in FIG. More specifically, a band plate-shaped side surface portion 131c is provided so as to rise substantially perpendicularly from each of the four sides of the bottom surface portion 131b having a substantially rectangular plane. In addition, upper end portions 131d that are bent substantially at right angles toward the inner side of the apparatus and extend substantially horizontally are integrally connected to upper end edges of the four side portions 131c.

  As described above, the reading device frame 131 is provided with the four upper surface portions 131d, and the glass support portions 131a of the above-described document table glass 202 are provided on the upper surface portions 131d on the near side and the rear side in the main scanning direction. Each pair is provided. Each of these glass support portions 131a is formed so as to protrude in a base shape upward, and the upper surface portion 131d having each of these glass support portions 131a is in contrast to the other upper surface portion 131d adjacent thereto. Fastened by mechanical fixing means 131e. A rivet is used as the mechanical fixing means 131e in this embodiment.

  At this time, both end portions of the upper surface portion 131d having the glass support portion 131a are superposed so that both end portions of the other upper surface portion 131d adjacent thereto are covered from above. On the other hand, as described above, the glass support 131a is formed so as to protrude upward from the upper surface 131a of the reader frame 131. The protruding height of the glass support 131a is determined by the reader frame. It is formed so as to be larger than the material thickness of the members constituting the body 131. By having such a height relationship, the protruding height of the glass support portion 131a is higher than the other adjacent upper surface portion 131d, and the glass support portion 131a extends from the upper surface portion 131a of the reader frame 131. Is maintained in a state of reliably protruding.

  Further, the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 attached to the reading device frame 131 can be adjusted in height with respect to the reading device frame 131 so that the distance from the document table glass 202 can be adjusted. Is attached. That is, as particularly shown in FIG. 9, both end portions in the axial direction of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 are respectively inserted into shaft support holes 131f formed in the side surface portion 131c of the reading device frame 131. However, each of the shaft support holes 131f is formed to have a long hole shape that is slightly larger in the height direction than the outer diameter of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133. Thereby, the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 can be adjusted in the vertical direction.

  On the other hand, the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 are abutted with the tips of adjustment screws 131g screwed so as to penetrate from the outside to the inside of the bottom surface portion 131b of the reading device frame 131. The height is adjusted. That is, as described above, a part of the back surface of the bottom surface of the reading device frame 131 is a sheet passing surface, and the adjustment screw 131g is provided in an outer region of the sheet passing surface. The adjusting screw 131g is inserted from the lower side to the upper side of the bottom surface portion 131b of the reading device frame 131, and is directly screwed to the bottom surface portion 131b of the reading device frame 131. Yes. Then, by rotating the adjusting screw 131g in an appropriate direction, the upper end height of the adjusting screw 131g is moved and adjusted in the vertical direction, and the upper end of the adjusting screw 131g is adjusted along with the movement adjustment of the adjusting screw 131g. The height positions of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 with which the abutment is abutted are finely adjusted.

  Further, the scanning spindles 132 and 133 whose heights have been adjusted as described above are fixed via a fixed support plate 131 h attached to the reader frame 131. The fixed support plate 131h has a fixed hole 131i through which both end portions in the axial direction of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 are inserted, and a pair of fixed screws mounted on both side portions of the fixed hole 131i. 131j and 131j are fastened and fixed to the side surface portion 131c of the reader frame 131. Then, both end portions in the axial direction of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 after the height adjustment as described above are inserted into the fixing holes 131i provided in the fixing support plate 131h, and then the fixing screws 131j are inserted. By being tightened, the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 whose heights have been adjusted are fixed to the side surface portion 131c of the reading device frame 131 so as to be immovable.

  However, one end of the above-described scanning support shafts 132 and 133, that is, one end portion of both end portions of the main scanning support shaft 132 and both end portions of the sub-scanning support shaft 133 is the reading device frame 131. Are attached in a fixed state that does not require height adjustment. This corresponds to one corner portion of the four corners of the image reading device 13 that has an unsupported free end configuration. That is, as described above, with the adoption of the in-body discharge type structure, a part of the back surface of the bottom surface portion 131b of the reading device frame 131 is formed as a sheet passing surface, but is adjusted to a portion formed on the sheet passing surface. If the screw 131g is present, there is a possibility that the paper that has been passed through will come into contact with the adjustment screw 131g and cause a jam. For this reason, with respect to the height adjustment of the sub-scanning support shaft 133 corresponding to that portion, the height adjustment is performed by the spacer interposed between the bottom surface portion 131b of the reading device frame 131. It is configured.

  For example, the spacer 131k in the embodiment shown in FIG. 10 is disposed on the bottom surface portion 131b of the reading device frame 131 and is in contact with the above-described sub-scanning support shaft 133 from below. It is attached to. The upper surface where the spacer 131k contacts the sub-scanning support shaft 133 is formed so as to form an inclined surface, and the sub-scanning support shaft 133 is appropriately moved by moving the spacer 131k in the direction of the inclined surface. The height is adjusted. By using such a spacer 131k, it becomes possible to eliminate protrusions such as the adjusting screw 131g described above from the paper surface. The scanning support shafts 132 and 133 after height adjustment are fixed by the above-described fixed support plate 131h, and thus the spacer 131k is removed.

  Further, when removing the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 in the market, the fixed support plate 131h on the adjustment screw 131g side is removed and the height of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 is adjusted by the spacer 131k. If 131h is fixed, the height adjustment is not required by attaching the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 to the fixed support plate 131h that is fixed at the time of reassembly. When removing the scanning support shafts 132 and 133, it is possible to prevent the adjustment screws 131g from being touched.

  Here, the height adjustment of the scanning spindles 132 and 133 is performed using a dial gauge 137 as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, for example. In the present embodiment, four dial gauges 137 are attached to a gauge base 138 formed with high planar accuracy, and each of the four dial gauges 137 has the above-described scanning support shaft 132, 133 is arranged in a portion corresponding to each axial end portion of 133. When actually adjusting the height of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133, the above-described gauge base 138 is placed on the original table glass 202 or the glass support 131a to which the original table glass 202 is attached. In this state, the heights of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 are adjusted so that the readings of the dial gauges 137 are within appropriate tolerances.

  According to the present embodiment having such a configuration, the entire reader frame 131 including the glass support 131a provided on the upper surface 131d of the reader frame 131 is integrally formed. The rigidity of the reading device frame 131 can be improved with a simple configuration without adding another reinforcing member or the like, and the occurrence of a twisted state of the reading device frame 131 can be prevented, and the scanning support shaft can be prevented. By adjusting the heights 132 and 133, the distance between the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201 including the light source means and the document table glass 202 is easily fixed.

  In the integrated illumination optical reading unit 201, the perpendicular angle between the main scanning reading direction and the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 is adjusted by changing the angle of the sliding bearing 201b provided in the housing chassis 201a. Fixed in state.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the reading device frame 131 is manufactured at a low cost by a bending process using a single sheet metal material and the scanning support 131 is turned by turning the adjusting screw 131g. The heights of the shafts 132 and 133 can be adjusted easily and with high accuracy.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 after the height adjustment are easily fixed via the fixed support plate 131h, and the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 are adjusted. It is performed quickly with the fixed part as a reference.

  Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, the height adjustment of the scanning support shafts 132 and 133 can be easily performed by adjusting the height by mounting the spacer 131k inside the reading device frame 131. In particular, even when a part of the bottom surface of the reading device frame 131 is a sheet passing surface, if the above-described spacer 131k is used inside the apparatus, a protruding portion that causes trouble in passing the sheet is passed. Since it is possible to make a flat surface without using the paper, the paper is smoothly passed.

  The embodiment of the present invention made by the present embodiment has been specifically described above, but the present embodiment is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Needless to say.

  For example, the above-described embodiment is a method of moving the integrated illumination optical reading unit at the time of reading, but the present invention may be applied to a method of reading an original by conveying the original without moving the illumination optical reading unit. Can be applied in the same manner, and the reading position stop accuracy is stabilized by smooth scanning by document conveyance, and the reading position accuracy with the document conveyance device can be improved. The present invention can be similarly applied to an illumination optical reading unit having only light source means.

  Further, although the above-described embodiment is an application of the present embodiment to a copying machine, the present embodiment can be similarly applied to an image forming apparatus such as a printer or other apparatuses. .

  As described above, the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment and the image forming apparatus including the image reading apparatus can be widely applied to a wide variety of image forming apparatuses such as printers and copiers, and other apparatuses. .

1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional explanatory diagram illustrating an outline of the overall configuration of a copying machine as an example of an image forming apparatus to which the present embodiment is applied. FIG. 2 is an external perspective view illustrating the overall structure in a state where a cover is removed from the image reading apparatus used in the copying machine illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an external perspective explanatory view of an integrated illumination optical reading unit used in the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram showing the internal structure of the integrated illumination optical reading unit shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 5 is an explanatory cross-sectional view illustrating a part of the upper surface portion of the integrated illumination optical reading unit illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 4 in an enlarged manner. FIG. 6 is an explanatory perspective view showing an enlarged appearance of a positioning portion provided on a light source contact side of a light guide used in the integrated illumination optical reading unit shown in FIGS. 2 to 5. 1 is an external perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is an external perspective explanatory view showing a developed state of a reading device frame used in the image reading device shown in FIG. 7. FIG. 8 is a front explanatory view showing a schematic configuration of a height adjustment mechanism for a scanning spindle employed in the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 7. It is a cross-sectional enlarged explanatory view showing other embodiment regarding the height adjustment mechanism of the scanning spindle. FIG. 8 is an external perspective explanatory view showing a state in which the height of the scanning spindle is being adjusted with respect to the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 7. FIG. 8 is a longitudinal cross-sectional explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the height of a scanning spindle of the image reading apparatus illustrated in FIG. 7 is being adjusted. FIG. 10 is an external perspective view illustrating an example of an image forming apparatus including a conventional image reading apparatus. FIG. 14 is an external perspective view illustrating a general structure of the conventional image reading apparatus illustrated in FIG. 13. FIG. 15 is an explanatory side view showing a torsional deformation state in the conventional image reading apparatus shown in FIG. 14.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Apparatus main body 12 Paper discharge part 13 Image reader 15 Image forming part 16 Paper feed part 131 Reader frame 131a Glass support part 131b Bottom part 131c Side part 131d Top part 131e Rivet (mechanical fixing means)
131f Shaft support hole 131g Adjustment screw 131h Fixed support plate 131i Fixing hole 131j Fixing screw 131k Spacer 132 Sub scanning support shaft 133 Sub scanning support shaft 134 Endless annular drive belt 135 Pulley 136 Motor 201 Integrated illumination optical reading unit 201a Housing Body chassis 201b sliding bearing 202 platen glass 203 original platen 201c cover member 201m, 201n, 201p, 201q, 201r mirror 201s CCD sensor (photoelectric conversion means)
201h Light source mounting surface 201i LED array (point light source)
201j Light emitting surface 201k Light guide 201l Press member 137 Dial gauge 138 Gauge base

Claims (8)

The light source means is arranged to reciprocate along a guide member arranged inside a reading device frame formed in a hollow box shape, and is provided on the upper surface of the reading device frame. In the image reading apparatus in which the platen glass is attached to the glass support portion,
The reader frame has a whole structure including a glass support provided on the upper surface part, and
The image reading device, wherein the guide member is attached to the reading device frame so as to be adjustable in height so that a distance from the platen glass can be adjusted. The entire reading device frame including the glass support is formed by bending a single sheet metal material,
The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the upper surface portion having the glass support portion is fastened to the other upper surface portion adjacent thereto by a mechanical fixing means.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a rivet is used as the mechanical fixing unit.   The guide member is a scanning support shaft provided so as to extend in a scanning direction in which the light source means reciprocates, and the scanning support shaft is formed from the outside of the bottom surface portion of the reader frame. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the height of the adjustment screw is adjusted by abutting a tip of an adjustment screw screwed so as to pass through in the direction.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the guide member is fixed via a fixed support plate attached to the reading apparatus frame. The glass support portion is formed so as to protrude from the upper surface portion of the reading device frame,
3. The image reading apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the protruding height of the glass support portion is formed so as to be larger than the material thickness of a member constituting the reading device frame.   5. The image reading apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a part of the rear surface of the bottom surface of the reading device frame is a sheet passing surface, and the adjustment screw is provided in an outer region of the sheet passing surface.   An image forming apparatus comprising the image reading apparatus according to claim 1.

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