The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus configured to feed a medium (for example, a recording medium or a reading medium) and form an image. Particularly, the present invention relates to the image forming apparatus having a configuration facilitating removal of a jammed medium.
A general image forming apparatus is configured to feed a medium using a pair of feeding rollers nipping the medium therebetween. For example, Japanese Laid-open Publication No. H08-72344 (see
However, in the general image forming apparatus, there is a possibility that the medium may be jammed. Particularly, if the medium is damaged (for example, torn), the medium may be caught between guide members of a medium feeding path and may be cut into fine pieces. In such a case, it is troublesome to remove the medium (i.e., the fine pieces) from the image forming apparatus.
In order to facilitate removal of the jammed medium, the image forming apparatus may be configured to be divisible into two units at the medium feeding path. However, in such a case, when the two units are joined, gears of the feeding rollers (mounted to the respective units) may hit each other. Therefore, the gears of the feeding rollers may be damaged.
An aspect of the present invention is intended to provide an image forming apparatus capable of facilitating removal of a jammed medium and preventing damage to gears.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including a first unit including a first feeding member for feeding a medium, a second unit including a second feeding member for feeding the medium, and a medium feeding path provided between the first unit and the second unit. The second unit is movable between a closing position where the medium feeding path is formed between the first unit and the second unit and an opening position where the second unit separates from the first unit so as to open the medium feeding path. The first feeding member has a first gear. The second feeding member has a second gear that meshes with the first gear when the second unit is in the closing position. The image forming apparatus further comprises a shift mechanism. When the second unit moves to the closing position, the shift mechanism holds one of the first gear and the second gear at a retracted position where the first gear and the second gear do not mesh with each other.
With such a configuration, a jammed medium can be easily removed from the image forming apparatus, and damage to the first and second gears can be prevented.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific embodiments, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
In the attached drawings:
Hereinafter, a belt unit and an image forming apparatus according to embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to drawings.
In
A medium insertion opening 6 is provided on a front surface (i.e., a surface facing +Y direction) of the upper cover 1. The medium insertion opening 6 is provided for inserting a medium (for example, a printing medium) 7 into the image forming apparatus 100. A stage 5 is provided on the lower cover 4. The stage 5 functions as a guide member for guiding the medium 7 inserted through the medium insertion opening 6.
A medium feeding path F for feeding the medium 7 is formed between the lower frame unit 8 and the upper frame unit 9. A feeding mechanism (i.e., a feeding driving unit 17 described later) is mounted on the lower frame unit 8. The feeding driving unit 17 (
A rear lower roller 15 (i.e., a first feeding member) is mounted to the lower frame unit 8 and is disposed on −Y side of the front rollers 12 and 13. A rear upper roller 14 (i.e., a second feeding member) is mounted to the upper frame unit 9 and is disposed on an upper side (i.e., +Z side) of the rear lower roller 15. The rear lower roller 15 and the rear upper roller 14 constitute rear rollers (i.e., a rear roller pair). The rear upper roller 14 has a plurality of roller parts arranged along a common rotation shaft extending in the X direction. The rear lower roller 15 has a plurality of roller parts arranged along a common rotation shaft extending in the X direction. The rear upper roller 14 rotates in an opposite direction to the rear lower roller 15. In other words, at a portion where the rear upper roller 14 faces the rear lower roller 15, a circumferential surface of the rear upper roller 14 moves in the same direction as a circumferential surface of the rear lower roller 15.
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
A carriage shaft 21 (i.e., a shaft) is mounted to the upper frame unit 9, and is disposed on an upper side (i.e., the +Z side) of the platen 19. An axial direction of the carriage shaft is parallel to the X direction. The carriage unit 11 is mounted to the carriage shaft 21 so as to be movable in the X direction.
The print head 10 is mounted on the carriage unit 11. The print head 10 (i.e., a head unit) is configured to form an image on the medium 7. The print head 10 has a head nose facing the platen 19.
An ink ribbon cassette 51 (
A belt body 28, a driving pulley 29 and a driven pulley (not shown) are provided on the upper frame unit 9 for moving the carriage unit 11 in the X direction. The belt body 28 is stretched around the driving pulley 29 and the driven pulley. The belt body 28 is fixed to the carriage unit 11. The driving pulley 29 is rotated by a carriage driving motor 27 (
When the driving pulley 29 is rotated by a driving force of the carriage driving motor 27, the belt body 28 runs, and the carriage unit 11 moves along the carriage shaft 21 in the X direction. A standby position is provided in a movable range of the carriage unit 11. The standby position is disposed outside the medium feeding path F in the X direction.
While the carriage unit 11 is moved in the X direction, a wire protrudes from the head nose of the print head 10, and impacts the platen 19. The medium 7 and the ink ribbon are interposed between the platen 19 and the wire, and therefore an ink of the ink ribbon is transferred to the medium 7 by impact applied by the wire. In this way, a line image (i.e., a one-dimensional image) in the X direction is formed on the medium 7. Line images in the X direction are formed on the medium 7 while the medium 7 is fed in the Y direction by the front rollers 12 and 13 and the rear rollers 14 and 15. As a result, a two-dimensional image is formed on the medium 7.
Next, a configuration for rotating (i.e., opening and closing) the upper frame unit 9 with respect to the lower frame unit 8 will be described.
As described above, the upper frame unit 9 is rotatable about the rotation axis A extending in the X direction. The upper frame unit 9 is rotatable between a closing position (
A tilt lever 22 (i.e., a rotation locking mechanism) is mounted on the +X side (i.e., a left side in
As shown in
The tilt lever 22 has groove portions 22a, 22b and 22c that successively engage a boss 24a (i.e., an engaging portion) of the lower frame unit 8. The boss 24a is formed on the +X side of the lower frame unit 8. As the groove portions 22a, 22b and 22c successively engage the boss 24a, the tilt lever 22 guides a rotation of the upper frame unit 9 or locks the rotation of the upper frame unit 9.
When the tilt lever 22 is in a rotational position as shown by a solid line in
As shown in
The lock lever 23 has an engaging groove 23a that engages a boss 24b (i.e., an engaging portion) of the lower frame unit 8. The boss 24b is formed on the −X side of the lower frame unit 8. When the engaging groove 23a engages the boss 24b, the lock lever 23 locks the rotation of the upper frame unit 9.
When the lock lever 23 is in a rotational position as shown by a solid line in
When the upper frame unit 9 is in the closing position, the first groove portion 22a of the tilt lever 22 engages the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8. When a user is going to rotate the upper frame unit 9 upward about the rotation axis A, an upward rotation of the upper frame unit 9 is prevented by engagement between the first groove portion 22a of the tilt lever 22 and the boss 24a. In other words, the upper frame unit 9 is locked at the closing position.
When the first groove portion 22a disengages from the boss 24a by the rotation of the tilt lever 22, the locking of the upper frame unit 9 is released, and the upper frame unit 9 becomes rotatable toward the opening position. As the upper frame unit 9 is rotated upward about the rotation axis A, the second groove portion 22b of the tilt lever 22 moves along the boss 24a.
When the tilt lever 22 is rotated by a predetermined angle after the upper frame unit 9 reaches the opening position, the third groove portion 22c of the tilt lever 22 engages the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8. A downward rotation of the upper frame unit 9 is prevented by engagement between the third groove portion 22c of the tilt lever 22 and the boss 24a. In other words, the upper frame unit 9 is locked at the opening position.
Here, a clockwise direction of the tilt lever 22 in
Next, description will be made of a configuration for preventing the gears from hitting each other when the upper frame unit 9 returns to the closing position.
As described above, the front upper roller 12 and the front lower roller 13 are both mounted to the lower frame unit 8. In contrast, the rear upper roller 14 is mounted to the upper frame unit 9, but the rear lower roller 15 is mounted to the lower frame unit 8. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent the gear 16c of the rear upper roller 14 and the gear 16d of the rear lower roller 15 from hitting each other. The configuration described below is provided for this purpose.
To be more specific, a shaft 14a (i.e., the rotation shaft) of the rear upper roller 14 has an end portion (i.e., a gear holding portion) which is formed to have a D-shaped cross section. The gear 16c has an engaging hole having a D-shape. The engaging hole of the gear 16c engages the end portion (having the D-shaped cross section) of the shaft 14a so that the gear 16c is slidable in the axial direction of the shaft 14a. The end portion (having the D-shaped cross section) of the shaft 14a has a sufficient length covering a moving range of the gear 16c in the X direction. With such a configuration, the gear 16c is movable in the X direction along the shaft 14a of the rear upper roller 14, and rotates together with the rear upper roller 14.
A coil spring 26 (i.e., a biasing unit) is provided so as to surround the shaft 14a of the rear upper roller 14. The coil spring 26 is configured to bias the gear 16c in the −X direction. The coil spring 26 has a winding axis extending in the X direction. An end of the coil spring 26 contacts the shaft 14a. The other end of the coil spring 26 contacts a shaft holding portion 9a provided on the upper frame unit 9.
Further, the upper frame unit 9 has a stopper 9b (
A cam member 25 (
The cam member 25 rotates together with the carriage shaft 21 (i.e., also together with the tilt lever 22). Therefore, when the tilt lever 22 rotates in the normal direction (D1), the cam member 25 also rotates in the normal direction (D1). When the tilt lever 22 rotates in the reverse direction (D2), the cam member 25 also rotates in the reverse direction (D2).
The cam member 25 has a recess portion 25e which is retracted inward in a radial direction from the outer circumferential surface 25a, and a protruding portion 25f that protrudes outward in the radial direction from the outer circumferential surface 25a. A cam surface 25d is formed between the recess portion 25e and the protruding portion 25f. The cam surface 25d has an inclination such that, when the cam 25 rotates in the normal direction (D1), a position on the cam surface 25d moves in the +X direction.
The gear 16d of the rear lower roller 15 is mounted to a shaft 15a (i.e., the rotation shaft) of the rear lower roller 15 via a universal joint 15b (i.e., a connecting member). This is to keep the gears 16c and 16d meshing with each other when a thick medium 7 is introduced between the rear upper roller 14 and the rear lower roller 15 (i.e., when a gap between the rear rollers 14 and 15 increases).
When the cam member 25 further rotates in the normal direction (D1), the cam surface 25d of the cam member 25 pushes gear 16c in the +X direction. Therefore, the gear 16c moves in the +X direction resisting the biasing force of the coil spring 26.
In this regard, when the rotation angle of the cam member 25 reaches 25 degrees, the first groove portion 22a of the tilt lever 22 disengages from the boss 24a as shown in
Thereafter, when the upper frame unit 9 is rotated from the closing position toward the opening position, the tilt lever 22 is not operated (rotated), and therefore a rotational position of the cam member 25 about the center axis B does not change. Accordingly, the gear 16c is kept displaced from the gear 16d in the +X direction.
Further, after the upper frame unit 9 reaches the opening position, when the tilt lever 22 is rotated (operated) in the normal direction (D1) as shown in
Further, when the upper frame unit 9 rotates from the opening position to the closing position, the tilt lever 22 is not operated (rotated), and therefore the rotational position of the cam member 25 about the center axis B does not change. Accordingly, the gear 16c is held at the position displaced from the gear 16d in the +X direction.
Therefore, when the upper frame unit 9 reaches to the closing position, the gear 16c of the upper frame unit 9 is kept displaced from the gear 16d of the lower frame unit 8 in the +X direction. Thus, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from hitting each other.
Thereafter, when the tilt lever 22 is rotated (operated) in the reverse direction (D2) in order to lock the upper frame unit 9 at the closing position, the cam member 25 rotates in the reverse direction (D2) as shown in
When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 (from the reference angle) returns to 20 degrees, the gears 16c and 16d start meshing with each other. When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 (from the reference angle) returns to 2 degrees, the gear 16c contacts the stopper 9b. In this state, the gears 16c and 16d completely mesh with each other. When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 returns to the reference angle (0 degree), the cam member 25 separates from the gear 16c by a predetermined distance.
An operation (i.e., a printing operation) of the image forming apparatus 100 will be described.
In
At a timing when a leading edge of the medium 7 passes the platen 19, the carriage driving motor 27 (
The front rollers 12 and 13 and the rear rollers 14 and 15 feed the medium 7 in the Y direction while the print head 10 forms the line images in the X direction. As a result, a two-dimensional image is formed on the medium 7.
When a predetermined time elapses after a trailing edge of the medium 7 passes the medium sensor (i.e., when the trailing edge of the medium 7 passes the platen 19), the carriage unit 11 moves to the standby position. Then, the front rollers 12 and 13 and the rear rollers 14 and 15 feed the medium 7 in the +Y direction, and eject the medium 7 from the medium insertion opening 6. With this, the printing operation on the medium 7 is completed.
<Operation when Medium Jam Occurs>
During the above described printing operation, a jam of the medium 7 may occur. If such a jam occurs, the user first detaches the upper cover 1 (
Next, the user rotates the tilt lever 22 in the normal direction (D1) about the center axis B of the carriage shaft 21 by pushing the tilt lever 22 in the −Y direction (rearward). As the tilt lever 22 rotates in the normal direction (D1), the first groove portion 22a (having a circular arc shape about the center axis B) of the tilt lever 22 moves along the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8, and then the second groove portion 22b of the tilt lever 22 engages the boss 24a.
The lock lever 23 (
When the locking of the upper frame unit 9 at the closing position is released, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is switched as described below.
First, when the tilt lever 22 rotates in the normal direction (D1), the carriage shaft 21 also rotates about the center axis B. Therefore, the cam member 25 mounted to the carriage shaft 21 also rotates in the normal direction (D1) about the center axis B.
When the cam member 25 rotates in the normal direction (D1) by 2 degrees from the reference angle (i.e., 0 degree shown in
When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 (from the reference angle) reaches 20 degrees, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d starts being released. When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 reaches 25 degrees, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is completely released as shown in
In this way, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is released substantially at the same time as when the locking of the upper frame unit 9 at the closing position is released.
Thereafter, the user rotates the upper frame unit 9 upward about the rotation axis A as shown in
Then, when the lower end of the second groove portion 22b of the tilt lever 22 reaches the boss 24a as shown in
When the tilt lever 22 is rotated in the normal direction (D1) about the center axis B by 5 degrees, the third groove portion 22c of the tilt lever 22 engages the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8. Therefore, the rotation of the upper frame unit 9 is locked, and the upper frame unit 9 is held at the opening position. In this state, the tilt lever 22 functions as a stay for supporting the upper frame unit 9 at the opening position.
In a state where the upper frame unit 9 is held at the opening position, the rear upper roller 14 and the rear lower roller 15 are separated from each other, and the carriage unit 11 and the platen 19 are separated from each other. Therefore, the user can easily remove the jammed medium 7 from between the rear upper roller 14 and the rear lower roller 15, or from between the carriage unit 11 and the platen 19.
When removal of the jammed medium 7 is completed, the user rotates the upper frame unit 9 from the opening position to the closing position.
To be more specific, the user rotates the tilt lever 22 in the reverse direction (D2) about the center axis B of the carriage shaft 21 from the state shown in
Then, the user rotates the upper frame unit 9 downward about the rotation axis A. As the upper frame unit 9 rotates downward as shown in
When the upper frame unit 9 reaches the closing position, the upper end of the second groove portion 22b of the tilt lever 22 reaches the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8 as shown in
When the upper frame unit 9 returns to the closing position, the gear 16c is in a position displaced from the gear 16d in the +X direction as described above. Therefore, tooth tips of the gear 16c mounted to the upper frame unit 9 and the tooth tips of the gear 16d mounted to the lower frame unit 8 do not hit each other. Accordingly, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from being damaged.
Then, the user rotates the tilt lever 22 in the reverse direction (D2). When the tilt lever 22 rotates in the reverse direction (D2), the first groove portion 22a of the tilt lever 22 engages the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8.
The lock lever 23 rotates about the center axis B of the carriage shaft 21 in conjunction with the tilt lever 22. The engaging groove 23a of the lock lever 23 engages the boss 24b of the lower frame unit 8 substantially at the same time as when the first groove portion 22a of the tilt lever 22 engages the boss 24a. Therefore, the upper frame unit 9 is locked at the closing position.
When the upper frame unit 9 is locked at the closing position, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is switched as described below.
When the tilt lever 22 rotates in the reverse direction (D2), the cam member 25 also rotates in the reverse direction (D2) about the center axis B. When the cam member 25 rotates in the reverse direction (D2) about the center axis B, the contact portion between the cam surface 25d and the gear 16c moves in the −X direction, and therefore the gear 16c moves in the −X direction by the biasing force of the coil spring 26.
When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 (from the reference angle) returns to 20 degrees, the gears 16c and 16d start meshing with each other. When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 (from the reference angle) returns to 2 degrees, the gears 16c and 16d completely mesh with each other. When the rotation angle of the cam member 25 returns to the reference angle (0 degree), the cam surface 25d of the cam member 25 separates from the gear 16c by the predetermined distance.
Since the gear 16c and 16d mesh with each other, the driving force of the feeding motor 18 becomes transmittable to the gears 16a, 16b, 16c and 16d. Therefore, the feeding of the medium 7 by the front rollers 12 and 13 and the rear rollers 14 and 15 and the printing on the medium 7 are enabled.
The above described operation is also performed when the upper frame unit 9 is opened and closed for replacing (i.e., detaching and attaching) the ink ribbon cassette.
As described above, according to the first embodiment, when the upper frame unit 9 is moved to the closing position with respect to the lower frame unit 8, the cam member 25 (i.e., the shift mechanism) holds the gear 16c at a position (i.e., a retracted position) where the gear 16c does not mesh with the gear 16d. Therefore, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from hitting each other. As a result, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from being damaged.
Further, the cam member 25 moves the gear 16c to the retracted position in conjunction with an operation of the tilt lever 22 to release the locking of the upper frame unit 9. Therefore, it is not necessary for the user to separately perform an operation to move the gear 16c to the retracted position.
Furthermore, the cam member 25 moves the gear 16c to a meshing position where the gear 16c meshes with the gear 16d, in conjunction with an operation of the tilt lever 22 to lock the upper frame unit 9 at the closing position. Therefore, the printing operation can be started immediately after the upper frame unit 9 returns to the closing position.
Moreover, the cam member 25 moves the gear 16c in the axial direction (i.e., the X direction), and therefore switching of the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d can be performed with a relatively simple configuration.
Additionally, the tilt lever 22 is rotatably mounted to the upper frame unit 9 and has groove portions 22a, 22b and 22c that engage the boss 24a of the lower frame unit 8. Therefore, the rotation of the upper frame unit 9 can be controlled using the tilt lever 22.
Further, the tilt lever 22 functions as a stay for supporting the upper frame unit 9 at the opening position, and therefore it is not necessary to provide an exclusive supporting member for supporting the upper frame unit 9 at the opening position.
Furthermore, the cam member 25 is mounted to the carriage shaft 21 guiding the carriage unit 11, and therefore a locking-and-releasing operation of the upper frame unit 9 using the tilt lever 22 and a moving operation of the gear 16c using the cam member 25 can be performed in conjunction with each other.
Next, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the second embodiment, the cam member 25 and the lock lever 23 described in the first embodiment are integrated. An image forming apparatus of the second embodiment have the same configurations as those of the image forming apparatus of the first embodiment except the integration of the lock lever 23 and the cam member 25.
The lock lever portion 75B (i.e., a lock portion) extends in the radial direction of the cam member 75 from the center axis B (i.e., a rotation axis of the cam member 75). An engaging groove 75g is formed on an end portion of the lock lever portion 75B. The engaging groove 75g extends along a circular arc about the center axis B.
The engaging groove 75g of the lock lever portion 75B engages a boss 74 provided on the lower frame unit 8 shown in
The cam member 75 has a recess portion 75e which is retracted inward in a radial direction from the outer circumferential surface 75a, and a protruding portion 75f that protrudes outward in the radial direction from the outer circumferential surface 75a. A cam surface 75d is formed between the recess portion 75e and the protruding portion 75f. The recess portion 75e, the protruding portion 75f and the cam surface 75d are respectively the same as the recess portion 25e, the protruding portion 25f and the cam surface 25d described in the first embodiment.
The cam profile of the cam surface 75d shown in
When the lock lever portion 75B of the cam member 75 is in a lower position in
In this regard, the boss 74 of the second embodiment is located at a position shifted in the +Y direction and in the +Z direction with respect to the boss 24b (
In a state shown in
The locking of the upper frame unit 9 at the closing position is released as described in the first embodiment. The meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is switched as described below.
When the cam member 75 further rotates in the normal direction (D1), the cam surface 75d pushes the gear 16c in the +X direction. Therefore, the gear 16c moves in the +X direction resisting the biasing force of the spring 26.
When the rotation angle of the cam member 75 (from the reference angle) reaches 20 degrees, the gear 16c pushed by the cam surface 75d of the cam member 75 is released from meshing with the gear 16d. When the rotation angle of the cam member 75 reaches 25 degrees, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is completely released as shown by circles K and L in
In this regard, when the rotation angle of the cam member 75 reaches 25 degrees, the first groove portion 22a of the tilt lever 22 disengages from the boss 24a (see
Thereafter, when the upper frame unit 9 is rotated from the closing position to the opening position, the tilt lever 22 is not operated (rotated), and therefore the rotational position of the cam member 75 does not change. Accordingly, the gear 16c is kept displaced from the gear 16d in the +X direction.
Further, after the upper frame unit 9 reaches the opening position, when the tilt lever 22 is rotated (operated) in the normal direction (D1) as shown in
Further, when the upper frame unit 9 rotates from the opening position to the closing position, the tilt lever 22 is not operated (rotated), and therefore the rotational position of the cam member 75 does not change. Accordingly, the gear 16c is held at the position displaced from the gear 16d in the +X direction.
Therefore, when the upper frame unit 9 reaches to the closing position, the gear 16c of the upper frame unit 9 is kept displaced from the gear 16d of the lower frame unit 8 in the +X direction. Thus, as in the first embodiment, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from hitting each other.
Thereafter, as described in the first embodiment, the meshing between the gears 16c and 16d is switched.
To be more specific, when the tilt lever 22 is rotated in the normal direction (D2), the cam member 75 also rotates in the reverse direction (D2). When the cam member 75 rotates in the reverse direction (D2), the contact portion between the cam surface 75d and the gear 16c moves in the −X direction, and therefore the gear 16c moves in the −X direction by the biasing force of the coil spring 26.
When the rotation angle of the cam member 75 (from the reference angle) returns to 20 degrees, the gears 16c and 16d start meshing with each other. When the rotation angle of the cam member 75 (from the reference angle) returns to 2 degrees, the gears 16c and 16d completely mesh with each other. When the rotation angle of the cam member 75 returns to the reference angle (0 degree), the cam surface 75d of the cam member 75 separates from the gear 16c by the predetermined distance.
As described above, according to the second embodiment, when the upper frame unit 9 is moved to the closing position with respect to the lower frame unit 8, the cam member 75 (i.e., a shift mechanism) holds the gear 16c at a position (i.e., a retracted position) where the gear 16c does not mesh with the gear 16d. Therefore, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from hitting each other. Accordingly, as in the first embodiment, the gears 16c and 16d are prevented from being damaged.
Further, according to the second embodiment, the cam member 75 has the lock lever portion 75B. Therefore, the switching of the meshing of the gears 16c and 16d and the locking (releasing) of the upper frame unit 9 are performed using the same component (i.e., the cam member 75). As a result, manufacturing cost can be reduced.
In the above described embodiments, the image forming apparatus is configured to feed the medium 7 (i.e., the printing medium) and print an image on the medium 7 using the print head 10. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. For example, the present invention is applicable to an image forming apparatus configured to feed a reading medium such as a document and read an image of the reading medium using a reading head.
Further, in the above described embodiments, the upper frame unit 9 is locked at the closing position by the tilt lever and the lock lever 23. However, if the image forming apparatus is not of a large size, it is also possible to lock the upper frame unit 9 at the closing position using the tilt lever 22 only (i.e., without using the lock lever 23).
Further, in the above described embodiments, the gear 16c of the rear upper roller 14 is moved in the X direction so as to prevent the gears 16c and 16d from hitting each other. However, it is also possible to move the gear 16d of the rear lower roller 15 instead of the gear 16c.
Further, in the above described embodiments, the upper frame unit 9 is rotatably supported by the lower frame unit 8. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. The present invention is applicable to an image forming apparatus including a first unit and a second unit configured to be divisible (openable) at a medium feeding path provided therebetween.
In the above described embodiments, the configuration for preventing the gear 16c of the rear upper roller 14 and the gear 16d of the rear lower roller 15 from hitting each other. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. The present invention is applicable to an image forming apparatus configured to prevent a gear of a first feeding member of a first unit and a gear of a second feeding member of a second unit from hitting each other.
Further, the cam profiles of the cam members 25 and 75 shown in
The present invention is applicable to an image forming apparatus (for example, a printer, a copier, a facsimile machine and a multifunction peripheral) including a first unit and a second unit one of which is openable.
While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in detail, it should be apparent that modifications and improvements may be made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the following claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2012-236471 | Oct 2012 | JP | national |