Patent Application
20180282100
The present disclosure relates to a sheet conveyance device having a plurality of stacking portions for stacking discharged sheets, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, and a printer having the sheet conveyance device, and an image reading apparatus such as a scanner apparatus having the sheet conveyance device.
Conventionally, although downsizing of an apparatus main body of an image forming apparatus has been in progress, it has been often found that a sheet feeding tray or a sheet discharge tray projects from the apparatus main body in a state where sheets are stacked thereon. In consideration of distribution efficiency or a risk of breakage of the projecting portion, there is provided an image forming apparatus having a discharge tray or a sheet feeding tray which is foldable (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-060016) or detachable (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-037528) during distribution or when it is not in use.
However, with the configuration illustrated in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-060016, there arises a jam at a discharge portion if the image forming apparatus is operated in a state where the discharge tray is closed. Therefore, a user has to issue a print signal after setting the discharge tray to a stacking state.
Further, according to the configuration illustrated in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-037528, of the two discharge portions arranged one above the other, a discharge tray of the upper discharge portion is attachable to and detachable from the image forming apparatus. However, there is a possibility of jamming if discharge operation is executed while the discharge tray is attached. Further, if the image forming apparatus is operated in a state where the discharge tray is not attached to the upper discharge portion, printed materials stacked on the lower discharge tray are mixed with printed materials discharged from the upper discharge portion. Therefore, the user has to issue a print signal after attaching the discharge tray.
As described above, in the conventional configuration, because the user sets the discharge tray or performs jam processing before issuing a print signal, it will take unexpected time to acquire a printed material, and thus productivity thereof may be lowered considerably.
The present disclosure is directed to a technique of preventing lowering of productivity while achieving downsizing of the apparatus.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a sheet conveyance device includes a first discharge portion configured to discharge sheets, a first stacking portion on which sheets discharged from the first discharge portion are to be stacked, a second stacking portion arranged on an upper side of the first discharge portion, on which sheets are to be stacked, a second discharge portion configured to discharge sheets to the second stacking portion, and a control unit configured to control the second stacking portion to move between a first position and a second position, wherein the first position is that a downstream side of the second stacking portion is positioned and inclined upwardly with respect to an upstream side of the second stacking portion in a sheet conveyance direction of the sheets discharged from the second discharge portion, and wherein the second position is that the downstream side of the second stacking portion is positioned on a lower side of the first position of the downstream side of the second stacking portion.
Further features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.
Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the appended drawings. However, sizes, materials, shapes, and relative positions of constituent elements described in the embodiments described below are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, and should be changed as appropriate according to a configuration or various conditions of an apparatus to which the present disclosure is applied.
An image forming apparatus 1 including a sheet conveyance device according to a first embodiment will be described with reference to
Herein, a full-color laser beam printer having a plurality of photosensitive drums is described as an example of the image forming apparatus 1. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the present disclosure is also applicable to an image forming apparatus such as a monochrome copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile machine having a single photosensitive drum. Further, a sheet discharge portion having a plurality of sheet stacking portions for stacking sheets on which images are formed by the image forming apparatus is described as an example of the sheet conveyance device.
A cassette 2 that stores recording target sheets such as recording paper is housed in a lower portion of the image forming apparatus 1 in a drawable state. A cassette sheet feeding portion 3 is arranged in a vicinity of an end portion of the cassette 2. Then, a manual sheet feeding portion 4 is arranged on the right side of the image forming apparatus 1. Each of the cassette sheet feeding portion 3 and the manual sheet feeding portion 4 separates sheets one by one, and feeds a sheet to a registration roller 5. A conveyance sensor 200a for detecting passage of the sheet is arranged on a downstream of the registration roller 5 in a sheet conveyance direction. The conveyance sensor 200a is pushed up by the sheet and located at a position indicated by a dotted line in
The image forming apparatus 1 includes an image forming portion 6 serving as an image forming device for forming an image on a sheet. The image forming portion 6 according to the present embodiment includes four image forming stations 6Y, 6M, 6C, and 6K corresponding to respective colors of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. Photosensitive drums 7Y, 7M, 7C, and 7K serving as image bearing members (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “photosensitive drums 7”) and charging devices 8Y, 8M, 8C, and 8K that uniformly charge the surfaces of the respective photosensitive drums 7 are arranged on the image forming portion 6. Further, a scanner unit 9 that irradiates the photosensitive drums 7 with laser beam based on image information to form electrostatic latent images on the photosensitive drums 7 and development devices 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10K that apply toner to the electrostatic latent images to develop toner images are arranged on the image forming portion 6. Further, primary transfer portions 12Y, 12M, 12C, and 12K (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “primary transfer portions 12”) for transferring the toner images formed on the photosensitive drums 7 to a transfer belt 11 are arranged on the image forming portion 6. The toner images transferred to the transfer belt 11 at the primary transfer portions 12 in an overlapping manner are transferred to a sheet at a secondary transfer portion 13. Thereafter, the toner image on the sheet is fixed and processed by a fixing device 14. A conveyance sensor 200b is arranged on a downstream of the fixing device 14 in the sheet conveyance direction. The conveyance sensor 200b is pushed up by the sheet and positioned at a position indicated by a dotted line in
Thereafter, the sheet that has passed through the fixing device 14 is conveyed to a sheet discharge portion serving as a sheet conveyance device, and guided to a first discharge roller pair (first discharge portion) 16 or a second discharge roller pair (second discharge portion) 17 arranged on the upper side of the first discharge roller pair 16 by a switchable switching member 15.
In a case where images are to be formed on both sides of the sheet, the sheet that has passed through the fixing device 14 is guided to the second discharge roller pair 17 arranged on the upper side of the first discharge roller pair 16 and on the upper left side of the fixing device 14, by the switching member 15 located at a position indicated by a dotted line in
On the other hand, in a case where an image is to be formed on one side of the sheet, the sheet that has passed through the fixing device 14 is guided to the first discharge roller pair 16 arranged on the upper left side of the fixing device 14 by the switching member 15 located at a position indicated by a solid line in
A second sheet stacking portion (second stacking portion) 21 positioned on the upper side of the first sheet stacking portion (first stacking portion) 18 is arranged on the downstream side of the second discharge roller pair 17. The second sheet stacking portion 21 includes a rotation support shaft 21a extending in a width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction at an end portion on the upstream side in the conveyance direction, so that the second sheet stacking portion 21 is rotatably and axially supported thereby at a front side and a rear side of the apparatus main body. A driving gear 31 is coaxially fixed to the end portion of the rotation support shaft 21a on the rear side of the apparatus main body, and the driving gear 31 is coupled to a pinion gear 32 of a driving motor 33.
A sheet on which an image is fixed is conveyed to and stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 21 or the first sheet stacking portion 18 according to an instruction of a user or a control portion. The second sheet stacking portion 21 is located at a home position (second position) illustrated in
On the other hand, if a stacking instruction is issued to the second sheet stacking portion 21, the rotation support shaft 21a is driven and rotated by the driving motor 33 via the pinion gear 32 and the driving gear 31, so that the second sheet stacking portion 21 is moved to a stacking position (first position) from the home position. More specifically, as illustrated in
Then, in the present embodiment, regardless of whether the second sheet stacking portion 21 is located at the home position or the stacking position, or is moving between the home position and the stacking position, the second sheet stacking portion 21 will not intercept the conveyance path of the second discharge roller pair 17, and thus conveyance or inversion conveyance of the sheet can be executed by the second discharge roller pair 17.
As described above, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes the second sheet stacking portion 21 movable to the home position and the stacking position. At the home position, in consideration of a distribution efficiency or breakage of the apparatus main body during distribution, the second sheet stacking portion 21 is positioned on the inner side of the exterior face of the apparatus main body, without interrupting a stacking property and user access with respect to the first sheet stacking portion 18. Further, at the stacking position, even if sheets having a maximum size are stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 21, a stacking property and user access with respect to the first sheet stacking portion 18 will not be interrupted thereby. Then, the second sheet stacking portion 21 can move between the home position and the stacking position even if conveyance operation is being executed by the second discharge roller pair 17, and image forming processing will not be interrupted at any of the above positions. As a result, it is possible to realize a user-friendly compact image forming apparatus which is capable of operating without suspending or delaying the sheet conveyance operation or sheet feeding operation and without lowering the productivity, even in a case where the user uses the image forming apparatus in various ways.
Further, in the above-described embodiment, although the second sheet stacking portion 21 is driven by the driving motor 33, the configuration thereof is not limited thereto. For example, an end portion of the rotation support shaft 21a of the second sheet stacking portion 21 may be extended to the outside of the exterior face of the apparatus, and a lever operable by the user may be coupled thereto instead of providing the driving motor 33. With this configuration, the second sheet stacking portion 21 can be manually moved by the user. In this case, even if the sheets are being conveyed, the user can intentionally move the second sheet stacking portion 21 without causing a jam or operational delay of the image forming apparatus 1, and thus an effect similar to the effect acquired from the configuration using a driving portion 30 can be acquired.
An image forming apparatus including a sheet conveyance device according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to
A second sheet stacking portion (second stacking portion) 22 positioned on the upper side of a first sheet stacking portion (first stacking portion) 18 is arranged on the downstream side of a second discharge roller pair 17. The second sheet stacking portion 22 has a two-body structure consisting of a fixed portion 22a on the upstream side and a movable portion 22b on the downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction. The fixed portion 22a on the upstream side is fixed to the image forming apparatus 1. The movable portion 22b on the downstream side is rotatably and axially supported by a rotation support shaft 22c extending in a width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction with respect to the fixed portion 22a. A driving gear (stepped gear) 31 coupled to a pinion gear of a driving motor 33 is coaxially fixed to the end portion of the rotation support shaft 22c on the rear side of the main body.
Further, an extension tray 24 is arranged on a lower face of the movable portion 22b of the second stacking portion 22. The extension tray 24 is rotatably and axially supported with respect to the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22, by a rotation support point 24a vertically extending to a stacking face of the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22. The extension tray 24 is supported with respect to the movable portion 22b to be movable to a supporting position at which the extension tray 24 supports the sheets projected on a downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction from the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22 at the stacking position in
Of the above-described drivetrain, the driving motor 33, the pinion gear 32, the driving gear (stepped gear) 31, and the bevel gears 39 and 41 are positioned on the apparatus main body. As a result, when the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22 is to be moved, driving force is transmitted thereto in a state where the timing belt 35 is twisted between the bevel gear 41 and the pulley 36.
Further, a discharged-sheet cover (cover member) 23 for covering the second discharge roller pair 17 and the second sheet stacking portion 22 is arranged on the upper side of the second sheet stacking portion 22. The discharged-sheet cover 23 is rotatably and axially supported around a rotation support shaft 23a, and an end portion of the rotation support shaft 23a on the rear side of the apparatus main body is coupled to a driving gear 40, so that driving force is transmitted thereto from the driving motor 33.
When sheets are not stacked on the second stacking portion 22, the second sheet stacking portion 22, the discharged-sheet cover 23, and the extension tray 24 are located at the home position (second position) illustrated in
Further, the discharged-sheet cover 23 covers the second discharge roller pair 17 and the second sheet stacking portion 22 at the home position. Accordingly, the user will not touch the second discharge roller pair 17 by mistake in a driving state, so that the second discharge roller pair 17 is prevented from being soiled. Further, an inversion path can be also prevented from being soiled.
Then, at the home position, the second sheet stacking portion 22 and the extension tray 24 are located at a position not to interrupt conveyance or a stacking property of sheets and the user who accesses the sheets stacked on the first sheet stacking portion 18 when a predetermined number of sheets are stacked on the first sheet stacking portion 18. More specifically, at the home position, the second sheet stacking portion 22 is positioned to have a sheet stacking space between the second sheet stacking portion 22 and the first sheet stacking portion 18.
When the sheets are to be stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 22, the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22, the discharged-sheet cover 23, and the extension tray 24 are driven by the driving motor 33 to move to the stacking position (first position) illustrated in
At the same time, the discharged-sheet cover 23 also receives driving force from the driving gear 40 and rotates about the rotation support shaft 23a. Then, as illustrated in
Further, as illustrated in
When sheets having the maximum size are discharged and stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 22 at the stacking position, the extension tray 24 supports the leading ends of the sheets in order not to interrupt a stacking property or user access with respect to the first sheet stacking portion 18. By providing the extension tray 24, at the home position, a length of the second sheet stacking portion 22 in the sheet conveyance direction can be shorter than that of the first embodiment. As a result, the user can access the first sheet stacking portion 18 more easily, and downsizing of the image forming apparatus 1 can be also achieved.
Further, at the stacking position, a length of the second sheet stacking portion 22 including the extension tray 24 in the sheet conveyance direction can be longer than that of the first embodiment, so that an amount of the leading end of the sheet having a maximum size projecting therefrom can be reduced. As a result, even if inclination of the second sheet stacking portion 22 is set to be reduced, the first sheet stacking portion 18 will not be interrupted thereby. Accordingly, a space height occupied by the entire apparatus when the sheets are stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 22 can be reduced.
As described above, with the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, erroneous user operation can be prevented by arranging the discharged-sheet cover 23 on the first sheet stacking portion 18, and a space occupied by the entire apparatus can be reduced by arranging the extension tray 24. Therefore, it is possible to realize a space-saving compact image forming apparatus capable of preventing lowering of the productivity caused by, for example, suspending or delaying the conveyance operation or the sheet feeding operation of transfer materials, and the image forming apparatus further can reduce the possibility of erroneous user operation, even in a case where the user uses the image forming apparatus in various ways.
Further, in the present embodiment, although the image forming apparatus 1 provided with both of the discharged-sheet cover 23 and the extension tray 24 has been described as an example, each of the effects corresponding thereto can be added to an image forming apparatus if any one of the discharge cover and the extension tray is provided.
Further, although the movable portion 22b provided with the driving motor 33 as a driving source has been described as an example, a configuration thereof is not limited thereto. Similar to the configuration described in the first embodiment, the rotation support shaft 22c may be coupled to a lever operable by the user, and the second sheet stacking portion 22, the extension tray 24, and the discharged-sheet cover 23 can be manually moved by the user, so that the effect similar to the above-described effect can be acquired.
In the present embodiment, although the discharged-sheet cover 23 and the extension tray 24 move in synchronization with each other by coupling the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22 with the respective gears 31, 32, 39, 41, and 40, the pulleys 36 and 37, and the timing belts 35 and 38, the present embodiment is not limited thereto, and any configuration is possible as long as a conveyance path between the discharged-sheet cover 23 and the second sheet stacking portion 22 is ensured, while the extension tray 24 does not exert an influence on the first sheet stacking portion 18. Further, in the present embodiment, although the discharged-sheet cover 23, the extension tray 24, and the movable portion 22b of the second sheet stacking portion 22 are rotated and moved by the rotation support shaft 23a, 24a, or 22c, another moving method such as a slide-moving method may be also used.
An image forming apparatus including a sheet conveyance device according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to
In
When sheets are not stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 42, the discharged-sheet cover 23 is located at a home position (second position) illustrated in
At the home position, the second sheet stacking portion 42 is located at a position not to interrupt conveyance or a stacking property of sheets and the user who accesses the sheets stacked on the first sheet stacking portion 18 when a predetermined number of sheets are stacked on the first sheet stacking portion 18. In other words, at the home position, the second sheet stacking portion 42 is positioned to have a sheet stacking space between the second sheet stacking portion 42 and the first sheet stacking portion 18. Further, at the home position, in consideration of distribution efficiency and an issue of breakage during distribution, the discharged-sheet cover 23 forms the same plain face as another exterior face.
When the sheets are to be stacked on the second sheet stacking portion 42, the discharged-sheet cover 23 moves to a stacking position (first position) illustrated in
As described above, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes the discharged-sheet cover 23 movable to the second and the first positions. Then, at the home position, in consideration of distribution efficiency or an issue of breakage of the apparatus main body during distribution, the discharged-sheet cover 23 is positioned on the inner side of the apparatus main body. Further, at the stacking position, the discharged-sheet cover 23 is moved to allow sheets to be stacked on the fixed second sheet stacking portion 42. The discharged-sheet cover 23 is movable between the home position and the stacking position even if conveyance operation is being executed by the second discharge roller pair 17, and image forming operation will not be interrupted thereby at any of the positions. In other words, it is possible to realize a user-friendly compact image forming apparatus capable of operating without lowering the productivity caused by, for example, suspending or delaying the sheet conveyance operation or sheet feeding operation or without, even in a case where the user uses the image forming apparatus in various ways.
An image forming apparatus including a sheet conveyance device according to a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to
As illustrated in
The document discharge roller pair 104 can discharge and inversely convey a sheet conveyed from the fixing device 14 in addition to discharging a document. The sheet conveyed from the fixing device 14 can be also stacked on the document stacking portion 105 in addition to the document of which image has been read. In other words, the document discharge roller pair 104 functions as a second discharge portion for discharging a reading target sheet such as a document or a recording target sheet such as a recording sheet. Further, the document stacking portion 105 is arranged on the upper side of the first sheet stacking portion 18 and functions as a second stacking portion on which the sheet discharged by the document discharge roller pair 104 is stacked.
With respect to the image forming apparatus 1, the document stacking portion 105 can move to two positions, i.e., a home position (second position) illustrated in
Image data read by the image reading unit 101 is stored in a computer on the network as electronic data, or converted into print data by the control portion and copied to a new sheet.
As described above, in the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the second sheet stacking portion can also serve as a document setting portion, and the user can prepare for document reading operation even if printing operation is being executed by the apparatus main body. Therefore, waiting time of the user can be reduced, and operation efficiency can be refined.
In the above-described embodiments, a printer has been described as an example of the image forming apparatus. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the image forming apparatus may be another image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a facsimile machine, or still another image forming apparatus such as a multifunction peripheral in which functions of the copying machine and the facsimile machine are combined together. The same effect can be acquired by applying the present disclosure to the sheet conveyance device used for the above-described image forming apparatus.
Further, in the above-described embodiment, although an image forming apparatus having an image forming portion or an image forming apparatus having an image forming portion and an image reading unit has been described as an example, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the image forming apparatus may be an image reading apparatus such as a scanner apparatus having an image reading unit for reading an image of a reading target sheet such as a document. The same effect can be acquired by applying the present disclosure to a sheet conveyance device which conveys a reading target sheet such as a document, which is used for the image reading apparatus.
Further, in the above-described embodiments, although a sheet conveyance portion (sheet discharge portion) for conveying a recording target sheet such as a recording sheet on which an image is formed has been described as an example of the sheet conveyance device, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the same effect can be acquired by applying the present disclosure to a sheet conveyance device which conveys a reading target sheet such as a document.
According to the present disclosure, it is possible to prevent lowering of productivity while achieving downsizing of the apparatus without causing operation delay of the apparatus or occurrence of a jam.
While the present disclosure has been described with reference to embodiments, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2017-070096, filed Mar. 31, 2017, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-070096 | Mar 2017 | JP | national |
