JP2659890B2 - Automatic paper feed mechanism - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic paper feed mechanism, and more particularly, to an automatic paper feed mechanism suitable for an automatic document feed mechanism such as a facsimile or an image scanner for automatically feeding a plurality of documents one by one. Regarding the mechanism.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, as an automatic document feed mechanism mainly for a facsimile or an image scanner, an automatic feeding mechanism for feeding a plurality of documents one by one and automatically performing operations such as reading an image and applying a stamp after processing. Paper mechanisms have been developed and are widely spread. For example, the automatic sheet feeding mechanism 1000 illustrated in FIG. 15 includes a pair of upper casing 1001a and lower casing 1001b that are vertically divided. Each casing 1001a, 1001
b, paper guide plates 1001d and 1002 each composed of a separate member are disposed for each of the corresponding casings 1001a and 1001b, and a paper sheet for conveying the paper between the paper guide plates 1001d and 1002 is provided. A transport path 1003, a sheet insertion port 1004 opened on the upstream side of the sheet transport path 1003, and a sheet discharge port 1005 on the downstream side are defined.

The paper transport path 1003 has a paper insertion slot 1004
Introducing section 1003a for introducing paper inserted from
A bent portion 1003b bent downward from 1003a;
b, a processing unit 1003c extending to the discharge port 1005 side, and the introduction unit 1003a has a width that allows a plurality of sheets to be inserted. In the paper transport path 1003, there is a paper advance means 1006 provided in the introduction section 1003a.
And a sheet feeding unit 1007 disposed in the bent portion 1003b, a sheet conveying unit 1008, a contact image sensor 1009, and a sheet discharging unit 1010 disposed in the processing unit 1003c.

[0004] The paper advance means 1006 is for advancing the paper disposed in the introduction section 1003a to the downstream side.
A forward feed roller 1006a is provided from the lower casing 1001b to face the introduction section 1003a of the paper transport path 1003. Above the forward feed roller 1006a, a pressing member that faces the introduction portion 1003a of the paper transport path 1003 from the upper casing 1001a.
1006b are opposed to each other and supported by the upper casing 1001a so as to be able to advance and retreat in the facing direction. The pressing member 1006b has a flat pressure receiving surface b1.
Both ends of the flat pressure receiving surface b1 are connected to the upper casing 10.
A tension spring member 1006c, which is fixed to 01a and extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction, is suspended. The pressing member 1006b is urged toward the forward feed roller 1006a by the single tension spring member 1006c, and the urging force causes the paper introduced into the introduction portion 1003a between the pressing member 1006b and the forward feed roller 1006a. Is configured to be able to be pinched. Further, in that state, the advance roller 1006
By rotating a, the paper introduced into the introduction section 1003a is sent to the bent section 1003b on the downstream side.

[0005] The loose paper feeding means 1007 provided at the bent portion 1003b has a paper feeding roller 1007a. Paper feed roller
1007a is a paper transport path 1003 from the lower casing 1001b.
At the bent portion 1003b. Above the paper feed roller 1007a, there is a paper transport path 1003 from the upper casing 1001a.
A separating member 1007b protruding from the bent portion 1003b is opposed to the bent portion 1003b. The separating member 1007b is urged toward the sheet feeding roller 1007a by a spring member 1007c. Further separating member 10
07b is a paper feed roller 1007a for separating sheets one by one.
And a pad 1007e disposed between the separation unit 1007d and facing the paper supply roller 1007a.
The end face of the sheet introduced into the introduction section 1003a by the separation section 1007d is slanted so that the upper end side is inclined to the upstream side, and only the lowermost sheet is supplied to the pad 1007e by the urging force of the spring member 1007c. It is sandwiched between the paper roller 1007a. Then, by rotating the paper feed roller 1007a in this state, only the lowermost sheet from the introduction section 1003a is sent from the bent section 1003b to the downstream processing section 1003c. Here, in the above configuration, since the separating direction of the separating member 1007b of the separating and feeding unit 1007 crosses the conveying direction of the sheet conveying unit 1008, multiple feeding is prevented, and only the lowermost sheet is conveyed. It becomes easier.

[0006] The sheet conveying means 10 provided in the processing unit 1003c
Reference numeral 08 denotes a sheet for conveying the sheets separated one by one by the separation sheet feeding means 1007 to the image contact type image sensor 1009 side, and includes a driven roller 1008a disposed on the upper casing 1001a and a lower casing 1001b. And a driving roller 1008b provided. The driving roller 1008b is set so as to be able to rotate at a higher circumferential speed than the paper feeding roller 1007a, thereby preventing continuous conveyance of the sheet.

The contact-type image sensor 1009 is for separating and scanning an image, which is two-dimensional information of a conveyed sheet, for each pixel, and includes a contact-type image sensor main body 1009a.
It has. The contact-type image sensor main body 1009a is connected to the lower casing 1001b via a frame 1009b by bolts 1010.
A contact glass 1009d, which is fixed by 09c and faces the processing section 1003c. Here, the contact glass 1009d in the conventional apparatus slightly protrudes above the upper surface of the paper guide plate 1002, so that the paper is not caught on the contact glass 1009d when the paper is transported and moved. It has a cut surface 1009e whose end face is cut obliquely.

The paper discharge means 1010 is for discharging the paper read by the close contact type image sensor main body 1009a to the paper discharge port 1005, and includes a driven roller 1010a mounted on the upper casing 1001a and a lower casing The drive roller 1010b is mounted on the drive roller 1001b.

[0009]

As described above, in the conventional structure shown in FIG. 15, the holding member 1006 is provided with the tension spring member 1006c suspended on the flat pressure receiving surface b1.
b is urged toward the forward feed roller 1006a, so that the tension spring member 1006c can be evenly brought into contact with the pressing member 1006b. And it is difficult to set the initial load.

More specifically, when the pressure-receiving surface b1 is formed flat, the edges of the pressure-receiving surface b1 are in sliding contact with the tension spring member 1006c. And the biasing force varies, and the tension spring member 10
There is a problem that the biasing state of the pressure receiving surface b1 of 06c is not stable. For this reason, there is a problem that the initial load is difficult to be set to the desired set value.

Further, since the number of sheets introduced into the introduction portion 1003a of the sheet transport path 1003 is usually always different, the stroke of the holding member 1006b in the clamping direction is set to be relatively large. Therefore, the above-mentioned variation in the urging force becomes remarkable due to the behavior of the holding member 1006b in the holding direction. When such a variation in the urging force occurs, if the urging force is too strong, the force for nipping the paper is also too strong, so that multiple feeding of the paper occurs. It was impossible to obtain the forward feed force, and there were problems such as a delay in transport.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has an automatic paper feed mechanism capable of exhibiting a highly accurate paper advance function by stabilizing a sheet clamping force when paper is advanced. It is intended to provide.

[0013]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the present invention comprises a casing having a sheet conveying path therein, and a sheet feeding section which faces the sheet introducing section of the sheet conveying path inside the casing. A pressing member that opposes the feed roller and the front feed roller and that moves back and forth in the opposing direction to pinch the sheet introduced into the sheet introduction portion with the front feed roller, and biases the pressing member in the pinching direction. And a pressure receiving surface formed on the pressing member so that the tension spring means is laid in a posture substantially perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction. Paper feed means for nipping the paper introduced into the path introduction unit and feeding the paper forward to the downstream side,
The pressure receiving surface of the pressing member is characterized in that it is formed in a curved shape in which an intermediate portion in the transverse direction of the tension spring means is curved in a convex shape.

[0014]

According to the automatic sheet feeding mechanism having the above structure, the pressure receiving surface of the pressing member is formed in a curved shape in which the intermediate portion in the transverse direction of the tension spring means is curved in a convex shape. Irrespective of the behavior in the clamping direction, the biasing force by the tension spring means can be evenly distributed over the entire pressure receiving surface.

[0015]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 2 is an external view of a facsimile 10 employing the automatic paper feed mechanism 100 of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view of the facsimile 10.
Referring to these drawings, the facsimile 10 includes an upper housing 11a, a lower housing 11b that supports the upper housing 11a via a support shaft P1, and a spring member 11c that urges the upper housing 11a in a direction in which the upper housing 11a is opened. Body 11
A telephone 12 attached to the main body 11, a modem 13 connected to the telephone 12 for modulating or demodulating a signal, and a transmission / reception control unit connected to the modem 13, and optically converted image information , A transfer paper cassette 15a, a photosensitive drum 15b, a developing device 15
recording means for recording an image converted into optical information by the optical system 14 on transfer paper, including a charging charger 15d, a transfer charger 15e, a peeling charger 15f, a cleaning device 15g, a fixing device 15h, a paper discharge tray 15i, and the like. 15 and transmission means 16 for transmitting transmission information to the control unit of the optical system 14. Then, like the general facsimile 10, in the receiving process, image information is received from the destination facsimile via the telephone 12, demodulated by the optical system 14, further decoded, and then recorded. In the transmission process, the image information on the paper is converted into an electric signal, and further encoded, then modulated into a transmission signal and transmitted to a receiving facsimile in the transmission process. It is configured as follows. The facsimile 10 of this embodiment is set so that a hard copy of a sheet can be obtained by transmitting a transmission signal from the transmission unit 16 to the recording unit 15.

The automatic paper feed mechanism 100 according to the present invention constitutes a main part of the transmission means 16. The automatic paper feed mechanism 100 includes a casing 101 mounted on the upper housing 11 a of the main body 11, a paper guide plate 102 disposed in the casing 101, and a paper conveyance partly partitioned by the paper guide plate 102. A path 103, a sheet insertion opening 104 formed at an upstream end of the sheet conveyance path 103,
And a sheet discharge port 105 formed at the downstream end of the sheet transport path 103.

The paper transport path 103 is connected to the paper insertion slot 1
An introduction unit 103a for introducing the paper inserted from the printer 04;
A bent portion 103b bent downward from the introduction portion 103a;
A processing section 103c extending to the discharge port 105 side continuously with the bent section 103b, a paper advance section 106 is provided at the introduction section 103a, a separating / feeding section 107 is provided at the bent section 103b, and a processing section 103c is provided. Paper transport means 10
8, a paper contact type image sensor 109 and a paper discharge unit 110 are sequentially arranged along the paper transport direction K.

Referring to FIG. 4, the casing 101
Are disposed above the upper casing 101a, the upper casing 101a defining the upper part of the paper transport path 103, the lower casing 101b supporting the upper casing 101 in a state where the paper transport path 103 can be opened. And an exterior panel 101c. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4, upper casing 101a includes a paper guide plate 101d made of resin, and a pair of side plate portions 101e extending on both sides of paper guide plate 101d.

The paper guide plate 101d is connected to the paper transport path 103, the paper insertion port 104, and the paper discharge port 1
05 (see FIG. 3), which is a section for feeding the sheet forward, the separating and feeding means 107, and the sheet transporting means 1
08, the paper contact type image sensor 109, and the upper functional part of the paper discharging means 110 to the lower paper transport path 1.
Opening P6a, P7a, P8a, P
9a and P10a. Also, the sheet transporting means 108
A mounting hole PS1 for mounting the sensor S1 (only shown in FIG. 1) is formed near the downstream side of the opening P8.
Further, each opening P6a, P7a, P8a, and P10a
Support members S6a, S7a, S8a, S10a for detachably supporting the corresponding functional components are provided upright at both ends. On the back surface of the paper guide plate 101d, a number of ribs 101f extending in the paper transport direction K are provided to guide the upper surface of the transported paper.

Each of the side plate portions 101e is connected to the sheet transport path 1
A hook locking member 101g is provided on the upstream side of 03, and an insertion hole 101i for inserting the support bolt 101h is provided on the downstream side. Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the lower casing 101b includes a side plate portion 101j facing the side plate portion 101e of the upper casing 101a from both outer sides, and a bottom plate portion not shown.

An upper casing 1 is provided on the side plate 101j.
An insertion hole 101k corresponding to the insertion hole 101i provided in the side plate 101e of the side plate 101a, and a mounting hole 101L for attaching and detaching a paper discharge tray 105a (see FIGS. 2 and 3) mounted on the paper discharge port 105 are provided. Have been. Further, a hook member 101m for locking the hook locking member 101g of the upper casing 101a is fixed to the inner surface of the side plate portion 101j on the upstream side in the sheet transport direction K. Therefore, in this embodiment, the casing 101a and 101b are connected by the support bolt 101h, and the hook locking member 101g is locked to the hook member 101m, so that the paper transport path 103 is provided inside. A casing 101 that houses therein functional components protruding into the paper transport path 103 can be configured, and
By removing the hook locking member 101g from the hook member 101m and rotating the upper casing 101a counterclockwise in FIG.
Can be opened.

Referring to FIG. 4, the exterior panel 101c
Is provided on an upper portion of the upper casing 101a to provide an exterior of the upper casing 101a, and an operation panel portion 101n electrically connected to the telephone 12 is formed on an upper surface thereof. 4 and 5, on the upper part of the lower casing 101b, the sheet transport path 103, the sheet insertion port 104, and the sheet discharge port 105 are opposed to the ribs 101f of the upper casing.
And a paper guide plate 102 for guiding the lower surface of the paper being conveyed.

As described above, the paper guide plates 101d and 102 in this embodiment are formed by a well-known resin molding method.
They are integrally formed with the corresponding upper casing 101a and lower casing 101b. Therefore, in the present embodiment, each of the paper guide plates 101 conventionally existed.
Since the influence of assembly accuracy on each of the upper casing 101a and the lower casing 101b corresponding to d and 102 can be eliminated, the positioning accuracy of the functional components protruding into the paper transport path 103 with respect to the paper guide plate 102 is exclusively determined by the upper casing 101a and the lower casing 101a. It is determined only by the processing accuracy at the time of forming the casing 101b and the assembly accuracy of each functional component with respect to the upper casing 101a and the lower casing 101b. As a result, the variation in the amount of protrusion of the functional component in the path is reduced. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the amount of protrusion of each functional component into the paper transport path 103 can be set with high accuracy, thereby preventing generation of abnormal noise and delay of paper transport. Also, the paper transport path 103
By integrally forming the paper guide plates 101d and 102 for partitioning the upper casing 101a and the lower casing 101b, the number of parts and the number of assembling steps can be reduced, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Referring to FIG. 5, the paper guide plate 102
More specifically, the paper guide plate 102
Is an opening P6b for allowing the lower functional components of the sheet advance unit 106, the separating sheet feeding unit 107, the sheet conveying unit 108, the sheet contact image sensor 109, and the sheet discharging unit 110 to face the upper sheet conveying path 103. , P7b,
P8b, P9b and P10b are provided. In the vicinity of the downstream side of the opening P6 of the sheet advance means 106, a sensor S2 is provided.
(Only FIG. 5 is shown), and a mounting hole PS2 for mounting is provided.

Next, referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, at the downstream end of the paper guide plate 102, the paper discharge tray 105
A paper discharging means 110 for transporting the paper to a is provided. The paper discharge means 110 is for discharging the paper read by the close contact type image sensor 109a to the discharge tray 105a of the paper discharge port 105 similarly to the conventional product, and supports the support member S of the upper casing 101a.
It is composed of a driven roller 110a pivotally supported by 10a and a drive roller 110b mounted on the lower casing 101b.

Referring to FIG. 6, the paper guide plate 102
A close contact type image sensor 109 is disposed upstream of the sheet discharging means 110. The contact type image sensor 109 is provided with an opening P9 of the paper guide plate 102.
Continuing from b, the image sensor 109 is housed in a housing 102c having a space for housing the close-contact type image sensor 109. The storage portion 102c is defined by a U-shaped section formed of a bottom surface portion 102f and a pair of side wall portions 102g formed integrally with the paper guide plate 102.

The image sensor 109 reads the paper in close contact with the lower surface of the paper being transported. The image sensor 109 includes an image sensor main body 109a formed of a long rectangular parallelepiped, and a pair of plate-shaped fixing portions 10 sandwiching both longitudinal ends of the image sensor main body 109a.
9b and 109c, and a plate-shaped contact glass 109d fixed to the upper surface of the image sensor main body 109a and in close contact with the lower surface of the sheet. The fixing portion 109b,
The cross-sectional shape of the image sensor 109c is slightly larger than the cross-sectional shape of the image sensor main body 109a.

A rectangular concave portion 102b is formed at the edge of the opening P9b on the upstream side in the transport direction K, as shown in FIG.
A part of 20 is pasted. This Lumirror 120
Is the contact glass 109d of the image sensor 109
In order to prevent the paper from colliding with the upper edge portion on the upstream side in the transport direction, the image sensor 109 is laid over the upstream portion 109g in the transport direction of the upper end surface of the contact glass 109d and the concave portion 102b. The sheet is guided from the upstream side in the conveyance direction to the upper surface of the contact glass 109d.
The mirror 120 is fixed to the recess 102b at a height (in this case, the same height) at which the collision between the edge 120a of the mirror 120 on the upstream side in the transport direction and the sheet can be avoided.

As described above, the image sensor 10
9 is fixed to the paper guide plate 102 side to prevent a collision with the contact glass 109d of No. 9;
By bending the mirror 120 upward, only the image sensor 109 can be replaced. Therefore, maintenance work of the image sensor 109 is easy. Also, unlike the conventional case where the end face of the contact glass 109d is cut obliquely, the manufacturing cost does not increase. Further, the maintenance cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the image mirror 109 is attached to the image sensor 109 and the image sensor 109 and the image mirror 120 are simultaneously replaced.

Referring to FIG. 6, the size of opening P9b is
The size is set so that the image sensor 109 can be put in and out of the storage section 102c from above the paper guide plate 102 through the opening P9b. The opening P9
When viewed from above, the portions 102h and 102i (both ends in the longitudinal direction) through which the fixing portions 109b and 109c at both ends of the image sensor 109 pass or are accommodated, have the widths of the fixing portions 109b and 109c. They are almost the same and are set wider than the other parts.
Thereby, the image sensor 109 housed in the housing section 102c can be positioned in the width direction.

At both ends in the longitudinal direction of the opening P9b, the image sensor 109 housed in the housing 102c through the opening P9b is positioned in the height direction and the longitudinal direction as shown in FIGS. A rigid piece 102d and an elastic piece 102e are arranged as a pair of locking means for locking in a state. The rigid piece 102d is a flat protruding piece integrally formed on the upper surface 102a of the paper guide plate 102, and protrudes from the opening edge to above the opening P9b. The upper edge 10 of the fixed portion 109b of the image sensor 109 housed in the housing portion 102c is located at a position facing the housing portion 102c of the rigid piece 102d.
A step 102j is formed in contact with 9e to position it in the longitudinal direction and the height direction.

Referring to FIG. 7 and FIG.
e is integrally formed so as to rise from the bottom portion 102f of the housing portion 102c, and can be elastically bent along the longitudinal direction of the housing portion 102c around the lower end portion. At the upper end of the elastic piece 102e, there is provided a finger hook 102k that is inclined outward to flex the elastic piece 102e outward (in the direction of releasing the lock). The elastic piece 102e has an engaging portion 102m that is continuous with the lower portion of the finger hook portion 102k and that is inclined in a direction opposite to the finger hook portion 102k. This engagement part 102m
Is a fixing unit 109 of the accommodated image sensor 109.
c is engaged with the upper edge 109f.

The elastic repulsion of the elastic piece 102e is applied to the image sensor 109 via the inclined engaging portion 102m.
Of the fixing portion 109c in the longitudinal direction and the downward direction. The downward force is applied to the fixing portion 10.
9c is pressed against the bottom surface portion 102f, whereby the fixing portion 109c is positioned in the height direction,
This positioning state is maintained. The force in the longitudinal direction is applied to the fixing portion 109b of the image sensor 109,
Work to press against the step 102j of the rigid piece 109,
Thereby, the image sensor 109 is positioned in the longitudinal direction, and this positioning state is maintained.

When the image sensor 109 is accommodated in the accommodating portion 102c through the opening P9b, the image sensor 109 is tilted so that one of the fixing portions 109b is lower, and the fixing portion 109b is positioned below the rigid piece 102d. After being sunk into the elastic piece 10
While the elastic piece 102e is deformed outward along the finger hook portion 102k of 2e, the fixing portion 109c is pushed down until it comes into contact with the bottom surface portion 102f. Then, the image sensor 10
9 is locked as described above by the rigid piece 102d and the elastic piece 102e. Also, the image sensor 109
When taking out from the accommodation portion 102c, the elastic piece 102e
Is pushed out to release the lock, and the take-out operation is performed in the reverse process to the above-described case of housing.

As described above, since the image sensor 109 is put into and taken out of the accommodating portion 102c from above the paper guide plate 102 through the opening P9b, the image sensor 109 can be removed without removing the paper guide plate 102 as in the related art. A detachable work can be performed. Therefore,
The maintenance work of the image sensor 109 is simple. Further, since the image sensor 109 accommodated in the accommodating portion 102c can be locked at a predetermined position, the attachment accuracy is good despite easy attachment / detachment.

As shown in FIG. 1, the upper casing 1
A pressing plate 109z, a part of which protrudes into the paper transport path 103 from the opening P9a, is fixed to the base end portion 101d of the image sensor 109. The pressing plate 109z presses the paper against the contact glass 109d of the image sensor 109. I have to. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, a sheet conveying means 108 is provided upstream of the contact image sensor 109. The sheet conveying means 108 includes:
A driven roller 108a is provided for transporting the sheets separated one by one by a separating sheet feeding unit 107 described later to the image contact type image sensor 109 side, and a driven roller 108a pivotally supported by a support member S9a of the upper casing 101a. And a drive roller 108b disposed on the lower casing 101b. The driving roller 108 b
Is driven at a paper feeding speed higher than or equal to the paper feeding speed, thereby preventing continuous conveyance of the paper similarly to the conventional product.

Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 5, and FIG. 11, the loose paper feed means 107 provided upstream of the paper transport means 108 has a paper feed roller 107a mounted on the lower casing 101b. I have. The paper feed roller 107a faces the bent portion 103b of the paper transport path 103 from the paper guide plate 102 of the lower casing 101b. Above the paper feed roller 107a, a separating member 107b projecting from the upper casing 101a to the bent portion 103b of the paper transport path 103 is opposed, and a support shaft 71, an arm 72, and a second support shaft 73 are interposed therebetween. By being connected to the support member S7a, the support member is supported so as to be able to slightly advance and retreat in the facing direction. The separating / feeding unit 107 includes a separating unit 117 fixed to the sheet guide plate 101d of the upper casing 101a. The separation unit 117 is for projecting to the paper feed roller 107a and pressing the paper between the paper feed roller 107a so as to separate the sheets one by one.
A plurality of pieces hang down in a state where they are arranged at intervals in a direction perpendicular to the sheet transport direction K.

The separating member 107b is connected to the support member S7a.
Are biased toward the paper feed roller 107a by a spring member 107c which is horizontally mounted in a posture substantially orthogonal to the paper transport direction K. Further separating member 107b
Is provided with a pad 107e disposed between the separation unit 117 and facing the paper feed roller 107a. The end face of the sheet introduced into the introduction unit 103a by the separation unit 117 is positioned such that the upper end is located upstream. The sheet is slanted so as to be inclined, and only the lowermost sheet is held between the pad 107e and the sheet feeding roller 107a by the urging force of the spring member 107c. By rotating the paper feed roller 107a in this state, the introduction unit 103 is rotated.
Only the lowermost sheet of the sheet from a is sent from the bent section 103b to the downstream processing section 103c. Here, since the separating direction of the separating member 107b in this embodiment intersects with the conveying direction of the sheet conveying means 108, it is possible to prevent multiple feeding and to convey only the lowermost sheet.

In addition, in the automatic paper feeding mechanism 100 in the present embodiment, the separating section 117 provided between the sheet conveying means 108 and the separating and feeding means 107 is provided with the separating section 117 for separating and feeding the sheet. Guide means is provided for guiding the sheet so as to prevent the separating member 107b from being displaced upward from the separating direction by the sheet stretched between the sheet means 107 and the sheet. Therefore, in the present embodiment, since the effect of the tension on the separating member 107b when the tension is applied to the sheet can be eliminated by the separating portion 117, it is possible to prevent the separating member 107b from rebounding. In addition, it is possible to prevent multiple feeding of sheets due to the rebound of the separating member 107b. As a guiding means, as shown in FIG.
May be used together with a guide projection 111 provided separately on the downstream side of the guide.

Further, in the present embodiment, the separating portion 117 of the separating and feeding means 107 protrudes downstream of the bent portion 103b and cooperates with the feeding roller 107a to separate a plurality of sheets into one sheet. And a sub-separation unit 117b disposed upstream of the main separation unit 117a and configured to limit the number of sheets supplied to the main separation unit 117a. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the number of sheets introduced into the introduction section 103a of the sheet conveyance path 103 is first limited to a predetermined number by the sub-separation section 117b on the upstream side of the bending section 103b, and thereafter, the downstream side of the bending section 103b. Main handling part 117 on the side
Since the sheets are conveyed one by one to the downstream side by a, it is possible to reliably prevent the conveyance failure and the multi-feed in the loose paper feeding means 107.

The paper advance unit 106, which is disposed on the upstream side of the separation paper supply unit 107,
This is for advancing the paper disposed in the introduction section 103a to the downstream side. The front-feed roller 106a having a non-circular cross section, which faces the introduction section 103a of the paper transport path 103 from the lower casing 101b. Have. The forward roller 106a is for rotating the sheet by a predetermined amount at a predetermined timing in the counterclockwise direction in FIG.

A pressing member 106b facing the introduction portion 103a of the sheet transport path 103 from the upper casing 101a is opposed to the upper side of the forward feed roller 106a, and a supporting member is provided via the arm 61 and the support shaft 62. S6a
Is rotatably supported by the upper casing 101a so as to be able to advance and retreat in the opposite direction. The holding member 106b is connected to the upper casing 101.
a by the spring means SP fixed to the
It is urged to the a side.

The spring means SP includes two first and second tension coil springs having both ends fixed to the support member S6a of the upper casing 101a and extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the sheet transport direction K. It is composed of SP1 and SP2. Here, the first tension coil spring SP1 in the present embodiment constantly urges the pressing member 106b, as shown in FIGS. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 13, the second tension coil spring SP2 presses the pressing member only when the number of sheets introduced into the introduction portion 103a of the sheet conveyance path 103 is equal to or more than a predetermined value (for example, when the number is equal to or more than 10). It is fixed in the biasing position. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when the number of sheets to be nipped is small, the pressing member 106b is urged exclusively by the first tension coil spring SP1, so that a weak urging force can be obtained. On the other hand, when the number of sheets to be sandwiched is equal to or more than the predetermined number, the pressing member 106b is urged by the tension coil springs SP1 and SP2 as the first and second spring members, and as a result, the pressing force is increased. You can gain power.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, by changing the specifications of each of the tension coil springs SP1 and SP2, it is possible to easily obtain an urging force corresponding to the number of sheets, and It is possible to exhibit an appropriate forward function. Referring to FIG. 1, the pressing member 106b
Is provided with a pressure receiving surface 106s on which the tension coil springs SP1 and SP2 are laid to receive the urging force of the spring means SP. Here, the pressure receiving surface 106s in the present embodiment is:
Each of the tension coil springs SP1 and SP2 of the spring means has an intermediate portion in the transverse direction formed in a curved shape that is convexly curved. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the pressing member 106
irrespective of the behavior of the spring means SP in the clamping direction, the biasing force of each of the tension coil springs SP1 and SP2 of the spring means SP can be evenly distributed over the entire pressure-receiving surface. It is possible to stabilize and perform a highly accurate paper advance function.

The drive mechanism of the automatic paper feed mechanism 100 is constituted by a pulley mechanism G (see FIG. 5) interlocked with a drive mechanism (not shown) of the facsimile 10. Referring to FIG. 5, the pulley mechanism G is wound around an input gear G1 connected to the drive mechanism (not shown), a small-diameter pulley G2 concentrically and integrally provided with the connection gear G1, and a small-diameter pulley G2. It is provided with a hung belt G3 and interlocking pulleys G4 and G5 driven by the belt G3. The small diameter pulley G2
Is rotatably attached to a pin G18 erected on the side plate portion 101j of the lower casing 101b. Further, the interlocking pulley G4 is fixed to the end of G17 of the driving roller 108b of the sheet conveying means 108. Further, the interlocking pulley G5 is connected to the driving roller 11 of the sheet discharging means 110.
0b is fixed to the end of the rotation axis G10. Although not specifically shown, the driving roller 108b of the sheet conveying means 108, the sheet feeding roller 107a, and the advance roller 106a are configured to be interlocked via a belt mechanism. Therefore, the connecting gear G1 is connected to the facsimile 1
When the small-diameter pulley G2 is driven by the drive mechanism of No. 0, the interlocked pulleys G4 and G5 are rotationally driven via the belt G3, and as a result, the respective rollers 107a, 108a and 11 are driven.
0b is driven to rotate in the same direction, and the paper feed roller 107a and the forward feed roller 106a
Is driven to rotate.

The present invention may be embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. Therefore, the above-described embodiment is merely an example in every aspect, and should not be construed as limiting. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims, and is not limited by the specification. Further, all modifications and changes belonging to the equivalent scope of the claims are within the scope of the present invention.

[0047]

According to the automatic paper feed mechanism having the above structure, the biasing force of the tension spring means can be evenly distributed over the entire pressure receiving surface regardless of the behavior of the holding member in the holding direction. As a result of being able to always stabilize the sheet holding force at the time of forward feeding, there is a remarkable effect that a highly accurate sheet forward function can be achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an upper casing of an automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of a facsimile employing an automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view of a facsimile employing an automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a casing of the automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a lower casing of the automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a main part of a contact image sensor of the automatic paper feed mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a fixing structure of the contact image sensor of the automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of a main part showing a fixing structure of a mirror applied to a close contact type image sensor of an automatic paper feeding mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a procedure for mounting the contact type image sensor of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a procedure for mounting the close contact type image sensor of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of the automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of an automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of the automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of the automatic sheet feeding mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic sectional view of a conventional automatic sheet feeding mechanism.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Casing 103 Paper conveyance path 106 Paper forward feed means 106a Forward feed roller 106b Pressing member 106s Pressure receiving surface SP Spring means

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Yoshiki Aoyama 1-28-28 Tamazo, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Mita Kogyo Co., Ltd.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A casing having a paper transport path therein; a forward feed roller facing a paper introduction portion of the paper transport path within the casing; and a sheet moving forward and backward in the facing direction. A holding member for holding the paper introduced into the introduction portion between the feed roller and the forward feed roller, a tension spring means having both ends fixed to the casing, and a tension spring means for urging the holding member in the holding direction. A paper advance which includes a pressure receiving surface formed on the pressing member so as to lie in a posture substantially orthogonal to the paper transport direction, and which sandwiches the paper introduced into the paper transport path introduction portion and forwards the paper downstream. And a pressure receiving surface of the pressing member is formed in a curved shape in which a transversely intermediate portion of the tension spring means is curved in a convex shape.