This application is based on and claims priority under 35 USC 119 from Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-153092 filed Sep. 11, 2020.
The present disclosure relates to a supply device and an image forming apparatus.
JP-A-2016-000653 discloses a sheet feeding device including: a housing; a sheet feeding tray that includes a loading plate on which sheets are loaded and is slidably attached to inside and outside of the housing; a transport unit that transports the sheets loaded on the loading plate in a direction orthogonal to both a sliding direction of the sheet feeding tray and a loading direction of the sheets; a long sheet option that is detachably attached to an upstream portion in a transport direction of the loading plate and includes an extension plate that extends the loading plate such that long sheets can be mounted; and a first locking unit that can hold the sheet feeding tray at a first locking position where the sheet feeding tray cannot slide when the long sheet option is attached and can hold the sheet feeding tray at a first unlocking position where the sheet feeding tray can slide when the long sheet option is removed.
For example, when a small-sized sheet such as a postcard is to be travelled, an auxiliary guide for the small-sized sheet may be attached to a side guide. In this case, in a configuration that blows air to a side end portion of plural sheets so as to separate a sheet, the side end portion of the sheets is far from a discharge port of air in a state where the auxiliary guide for the small-sized sheet is attached. For this reason, a desired amount of air cannot be blown to an aiming position of the small-sized sheet, and there is a concern about occurrence of multi-feed of sheets.
Aspects of non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a supply device and an image forming apparatus that, as compared with a configuration in which air is blown from a blowing port provided in a contact portion when recording media having a second size smaller than a first size are accommodated, prevents multi-feed of the recording media having the second size.
Aspects of certain non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure address the above advantages and/or other advantages not described above. However, aspects of the non-limiting embodiments are not required to address the advantages described above, and aspects of the non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure may not address advantages described above.
According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a supply device including: a loading portion on which recording media are loaded; a transport unit configured to transport the recording media loaded on the loading portion; a contact portion provided on the loading portion, the contact portion being in contact with a side end portion of the recording media having a first size in a direction intersecting with a transport direction, the contact portion having a blowing portion configured to blow air to the side end portion; a guide portion detachably attached to the contact portion when recording media having a second size smaller than the recording media having the first size are loaded, the guide portion being configured to guide a side end portion of the recording media having the second size; and a duct provided in the guide portion, the duct including a discharge port configured to blow the air from the blowing portion to an upper end portion of the recording media having the second size and loaded on the loading portion.
Exemplary embodiment(s) of the present disclosure will be described in detail based on the following figures, wherein:
Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below. In the following description, a direction indicated by an arrow X appropriately shown in the drawings is referred to as an “apparatus width direction”, and a direction indicated by an arrow Y is referred to as an “apparatus height direction”. A direction (arrow Z direction) orthogonal to the apparatus width direction and the apparatus height direction is referred to as an “apparatus depth direction”.
Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus
As shown in
Configuration of Sheet Feeding Device
Overall Configuration
As shown in
The sheet feeding device 10 includes, on an upper side of the loading space S, a transport unit 80 (see
Further, as shown in
As shown in
Configuration of Main Body Portion 12
As shown in
The main body portion 12 includes an upper wall 12D disposed on the front wall 12A, the rear wall 12B, the side wall 12C and the other side wall (not shown in
The front wall 12A and the rear wall 12B sandwich the loading space S on the loading portion 16 from both sides in a direction intersecting with the transport direction of the recording medium P, that is, the apparatus depth direction indicated by the arrow Z. The front wall 12A is provided with a cutout portion 32 in which a height of a portion opposite to the upper wall 12D is lower than a height of a portion of the front wall 12A that is connected to the upper wall 12D.
Configuration of Accommodating Device 14
The accommodating device 14 has a function of accommodating the plural recording media P. As shown in
The loading portion 16 on which the plural recording media P are loaded is provided inside the accommodating device 14 (see
In the sheet feeding device 10, the recording media P loaded on the loading portion 16 are transported one by one in the arrow A direction by the transport unit 80 (see
The opening-closing cover 30 is configured to be rotated along the apparatus depth direction by a hinge (not shown) provided on the back side of the main body portion 14A in the apparatus depth direction (that is, Z direction) (see
Configuration of Opening-Closing Member 20 and Rotating Member 22
The opening-closing member 20 has a function of opening the loading space S on the loading portion 16 in cooperation with the opening-closing cover 30 in a shared manner so as to load the plural recording media P on the loading portion 16. As shown in
The rotating member 22 allows placing of a recording medium for manual feeding (not shown) different from the recording medium P on the rotating member 22. The rotating member 22 is rotated around the hinge (not shown) provided on one end in the transport direction (that is, the arrow A direction shown in
Configuration of Contact Portion 40
As shown in
The first blowing portion 44 and the second blowing portion 46 have the same height in the upper and lower direction. In a state where the recording media P having the first size are loaded on the loading portion 16, the first blowing portion 44 and the second blowing portion 46 are arranged on the upper side of the loaded recording media P along the transport direction of the recording medium P. The first blowing portion 44 is disposed downstream of the second blowing portion 46 in the transport direction of the recording medium P. The first blowing portion 44 includes a blowing port 44A that blows air to the side end portion of the recording media P. The second blowing portion 46 includes a blowing port 46A that blows air to the side end portion of the recording media P.
A blower 52 that supplies air to the duct 50 is provided at an upstream end portion of the flow channel 50A of the duct 50. When air is supplied to the duct 50 by the blower 52, air is blown from the first blowing portion 44 and the second blowing portion 46 to the side end portion of the recording media P. In the present exemplary embodiment, air is blown from the first blowing portion 44 and the second blowing portion 46 to an upper side wall portion of the plural recording media P loaded on the loading portion 16.
Configuration of Guide Portion 60
As described above, the guide portion 60 is detachably attached to the contact portion 40 when the recording media P2 having the second size are loaded on the loading portion 16. When plural (for example, two) contact portions 40 are arranged along the transport direction of the recording medium P2 on the loading portion 16 (see
As shown in
In a state where the guide portion 60 is attached to the contact portion 40, the vertical wall portion 62 is able to come into contact with the side wall portion of the recording media P2 having the second size in the direction intersecting with the transport direction. As an example, the vertical wall portion 62 and the duct 66 are formed separately. An opening 64 is formed on the upper portion of the vertical wall portion 62, and a discharge port 66A of the duct 66 is connected to the opening 64. As an example, the opening 64 and the discharge port 66A have a rectangular shape, and a size of the discharge port 66A is smaller than a size of the opening 64.
As shown in
Since the size of the discharge port 66A is smaller than the size of the opening 64, the vertical wall 66C of the duct 66 is in contact with the vertical wall 62 in a state where the discharge port 66A of the duct 66 is connected to the opening 64 of the vertical wall portion 62. In a state where the cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 is connected to the blowing port 44A of the contact portion 40, the vertical wall 66D of the duct 66 is in contact with the vertical wall portion 42 of the contact portion 40.
The cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 has a shape in which a cross-sectional area gradually decreases toward the discharge port 66A. The cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 includes an upper inclined portion 70A at an upper portion thereof in the upper and lower direction, and a lower inclined portion 70B at a lower portion thereof in the upper and lower direction. The upper inclined portion 70A is inclined downward toward the discharge port 66A. The lower inclined portion 70B is inclined upward toward the discharge port 66A. As an example, the upper inclined portion 70A has a flat shape and has the same inclined angle with respect to a horizontal direction, in a flow direction. As an example, the lower inclined portion 70B is configured such that the inclined angle with respect to the horizontal direction is changed in an intermediate portion, and the inclined angle with respect to the horizontal direction on the downstream side in the air flow direction is larger than that on the upstream side in the air flow direction. A width of the cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 in the apparatus width direction (that is, X direction) is constant within a tolerance.
As shown in
A shutter portion 74 supported so as to be movable in the upper and lower direction is provided outside the discharge port 66A (see
The frame body 74A is a rectangular member having an opening inside. The guide 74B is bent in a U shape along an outer end portion of the vertical wall 66C in the width direction from an end portion of the frame body 74A in the width direction. That is, the guide 74B wraps around from a front surface side of the vertical wall 66C that is in contact with the frame body 74A to a back surface side of the vertical wall 66C. The guides 74B on both sides of the frame body 74A in the width direction (it is noted that the guide 74B on a back side in
A lower portion of the pawl 74C protrudes from the frame body 74A in the horizontal direction. The pawl 74C is disposed at a position where the pawl 74C comes into contact with the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16, from above. The pawl 74C is movable in the upper and lower direction according to the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size by riding on the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. Accordingly, the shutter portion 74 moves in the upper and lower direction in response to a movement of the pawl 74C.
The bar portion 74D is bridged on a lower side of the rectangular frame body 74A along the horizontal direction. Since the shutter portion 74 includes the bar portion 74D, an area of the discharge port 66A is changed according to the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. As an example, when the shutter portion 74 is moved upward according to the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16, the bar portion 74D closes a lower side of the discharge port 66A in the upper and lower direction.
As shown in
As shown in
Configuration of Transport Unit 80
As shown in
The suction unit 82 includes a housing 82A and plural suction ports 82B provided in a lower portion of the housing 82A, for suctioning air. The suction unit 82 suctions air through the suction ports 82B by a suction device (not shown) to suction the uppermost recording medium P having the first size and loaded on the loading portion 16.
The transport roller 84 has a function of feeding the uppermost recording medium P having the first size and loaded on the loading portion 16 by being rotated in an arrow direction. Accordingly, the uppermost recording medium P suctioned by the suction unit 82 is transported in the arrow A direction by the transport roller 84.
Although not shown, the transport unit 80 has a function of, when the recording medium P2 having the second size is loaded on the loading portion 16, transporting the uppermost recording medium P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. The uppermost recording medium P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16 is suctioned by the suction unit 82. Further, the uppermost recording medium P2 having the second size and suctioned by the suction unit 82 is transported in the arrow A direction by the transport roller 84.
Operations and Effects
Next, operations and effects of the present exemplary embodiment will be described. In the sheet feeding device 10, when the recording media P having the first size are loaded on the loading portion 16, the side end portion of the recording media P having the first size in the direction intersecting with the transport direction comes into contact with the vertical wall portion 42 of the contact portion 40, so that the side end portion of the recording media P having the first size is guided. Further, air is blown from the first blowing portion 44 and the second blowing portion 46 that are provided in the contact portion 40 to the side end portion of the recording media P, so that the air is blown between the plural recording media P. Accordingly, the uppermost recording medium P is separated and transported in the arrow A direction by the transport unit 80.
In the sheet feeding device 10, when the recording media P2 having the second size smaller than the recording media P having the first size are loaded on the loading portion 16, the guide portion 60 is detachably attached to the contact portion 40. Accordingly, the side end portion of the recording media P2 having the second size in the direction intersecting with the transport direction comes into contact with the vertical wall portion 62 of the guide portion 60, so that the side end portion of the recording media P2 having the second size is guided.
The duct 66 including the discharge port 66A that blows air is provided on the guide portion 60. Air from the first blowing portion 44 is blown to an upper side end portion of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. That is, air from the first blowing portion 44 is blown to the side end portion of the recording media P2 having the second size via the discharge port 66A of the duct 66, so that air is blown between the plural recording media P2. Accordingly, the uppermost recording medium P2 having the second size is separated and transported in the arrow A direction by the transport unit 80.
In the sheet feeding device 10, when the recording media having the second size smaller than the first size are accommodated, the multi-feed of the recording media P2 having the second size is prevented as compared with a configuration in which air is blown from the blowing port provided in the contact portion.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 has a shape in which the cross-sectional area gradually decreases toward the discharge port 66A. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, a wind speed of air blown from the discharge port 66A can be increased as compared with a case where the cross-sectional area of the duct is constant toward the discharge port. By increasing the wind speed of air blown from the discharge port 66A, air is easily blown between the plural recording media P having the second size.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 includes the upper inclined portion 70A at the upper portion in the upper and lower direction, and the lower inclined portion 70B at the lower portion in the upper and lower direction. The upper inclined portion 70A is inclined downward toward the discharge port 66A. The lower inclined portion 70B is inclined upward toward the discharge port 66A. For example, when the lower inclined portion is provided only on the lower portion of the cylindrical portion of the duct, an area of the lower side of the discharge port may be reduced. Further, for example, when the upper inclined portion is provided only on the upper portion of the cylindrical portion of the duct, an area of the upper side of the discharge port may be reduced. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, as compared with a case where the inclined portion is provided on only one portion of the duct in the upper and lower direction, it is prevented that a range in the upper and lower direction in which air is blown to the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16 is biased to one of upper and lower sides and decreases.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the contact portion 40 includes the second blowing portion 46 that blows air to the upper side end portion of the recording media P having the first size in a state where the recording media P having the first size are loaded on the loading portion 16. Further, the guide portion 60 includes the closing portion 68 that closes the second blowing portion 46 in a state of being attached to the contact portion 40. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, the amount of air blown from the discharge port 66A can be increased as compared with a case where air is supplied from two positions of the discharge port and another blowing portion to the duct.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the first blowing portion 44 is disposed downstream of the second blowing portion 46 in the transport direction of the recording medium P. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, the multi-feed of the recording media P is prevented as compared with a configuration in which the blowing portion is disposed upstream of another blowing portion in the transport direction of the recording medium.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the guide portion 60 is provided with the shutter portion 74 supported so as to be movable in the upper and lower direction. The shutter portion 74 is moved in the upper and lower direction to change the area of the discharge port 66A according to the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, the range of the air blown from the discharge port 66A can be adjusted according to the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size, as compared with a configuration in which the area of the discharge port does not change.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the shutter portion 74 includes the pawls 74C riding on the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. As a result, the pawl 74C is moved depending on the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size, and the shutter portion 74 is moved in the upper and lower direction. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, a structure that moves the shutter portion 74 is simple as compared with a configuration in which the shutter portion is moved by detecting the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media having the second size by a sensor.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the shutter portion 74 is provided with the bar portion 74D that closes the lower side of the discharge port 66A in the upper and lower direction when moved upward according to the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. As a result, the amount of air blown to the side wall portion, facing the bar portion 74D, of the recording media P2 having the second size is reduced, so that air is less likely to enter between the recording media P2 having the second size, and the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size is easily moved downward. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, the position of the uppermost surface of the recording media P2 having the second size may be lowered as compared with a configuration in which the lower side of the discharge port in the upper and lower direction is not closed when the uppermost surface of the recording media having the second size is moved upward.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the transport unit 80 includes the transport roller 84 that transports the uppermost recording medium P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, the multi-feed of the recording media P2 having the second size is prevented as compared with a configuration in which the transport roller is provided and air is blown from the blowing portion when the recording media having the second size are accommodated.
In the sheet feeding device 10, the transport unit 80 includes the suction unit 82 that suctions the uppermost recording medium P2 having the second size and loaded on the loading portion 16 from above. Therefore, in the sheet feeding device 10, the multi-feed of the recording media P2 having the second size is prevented as compared with a case where the uppermost recording medium having the second size and loaded on the loading portion is not suctioned.
The image forming apparatus 200 includes the sheet feeding device 10, and is configured such that the recording medium P having the first size or the recording medium P2 having the second size is transported from the sheet feeding device 10 to the image forming unit. Therefore, in the image forming apparatus 200, the multi-feed of the recording media P2 having the second size is prevented as compared with a configuration in which air is blown from the blowing port provided in the contact portion when the recording media having the second size are accommodated.
Next, a sheet feeding device 100 according to a second exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to
As shown in
A loading portion 102 on which the recording media P1 having a first size are loaded is provided inside the pulling-out tray 27. The loading portion 102 is provided with an end guide 104 that guides an upstream end portion (that is, trailing end portion), in a transport direction, of the recording media P1 having the first size. The end guide 104 includes a hinge portion 106 at an intermediate portion in the upper and lower direction. The hinge portion 106 can bend an upper piece 104A of the end guide 104 toward a downstream side in the transport direction of the recording medium P1. Although not shown, when the accommodating device 14, which is an option, is attached to the sheet feeding device 100, the upper piece 104A of the end guide 104 is bent toward the downstream side (that is, a loading portion 102 side) in the transport direction of the recording medium P1.
A length of the recording medium P1 having the first size in the transport direction (an arrow A direction) is, for example, equal to or more than a length of an A4 size in a shorter direction and equal to or less than a length of an A3 size in a longer direction. The length of the recording medium P1 having the first size in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction is, for example, equal to or more than the length of the A4 size in the shorter direction and equal to or less than the length of the A4 size in the longer direction.
In the sheet feeding device 100, when the recording media P2 having the second size smaller than the recording media P1 having the first size are loaded on the loading portion 102, the guide portion 60 is detachably attached to the contact portion 40 in a similar manner as the sheet feeding device 10 according to the first exemplary embodiment. Configurations of the contact portion 40 and the guide portion 60, and other configurations of the sheet feeding device 100 are similar to those of the sheet feeding device 10 according to the first exemplary embodiment.
In the above-mentioned sheet feeding device 100, similar operations and effects are obtained with a configuration similar to the sheet feeding device 10 according to the first exemplary embodiment.
Supplementary Description
In the first and second exemplary embodiments, the contact portion 40 includes the first blowing portion 44 and the second blowing portion 46. It is noted that the present disclosure is not limited to this configuration. For example, the number of at least one of the first blowing portion 44 or the second blowing portion 46 may be increased. The second blowing portion 46 may not be provided.
In the first and second exemplary embodiments, a configuration of the guide portion 60 may be changed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. For example, a shape of the cylindrical portion 66B of the duct 66 may be changed, and may have a uniform cross-sectional area along an air flow direction. An attachment structure of the guide portion 60 to the contact portion 40 may be changed. The closing portion 68 may be a separate member from the guide portion 60. The closing portion 68 may not be provided.
In the first and second exemplary embodiments, a configuration of the shutter portion 74 may be changed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the number of the bar portion 74D may be increased.
In the first and second exemplary embodiments, the shutter portion 74 is provided in the guide portion 60. It is noted that the present disclosure is not limited to this configuration. The shutter portion may not be provided.
While the present disclosure has been described in detail with reference to specific exemplary embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various other exemplary embodiments are possible within the scope of the present disclosure.
The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure has been provided for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the disclosure and its practical applications, thereby enabling others skilled in the art to understand the disclosure for various embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the disclosure be defined by the following claims and their equivalents.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2020-153092 | Sep 2020 | JP | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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8113501 | Uji | Feb 2012 | B2 |
20070194514 | Ikeda | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20070273080 | Toya | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20150217954 | Fujikura | Aug 2015 | A1 |
20160016740 | Niikura et al. | Jan 2016 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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2005-335885 | Dec 2005 | JP |
2016-000653 | Jan 2016 | JP |
WO9944929 | Sep 1999 | WO |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20220082977 A1 | Mar 2022 | US |