JP5690782B2 - Sheet conveying apparatus and image forming apparatus including the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet conveying apparatus that conveys a sheet, and an image forming apparatus including the sheet conveying apparatus.

  Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet, a toner image is formed on a photoconductive drum in an image forming unit, and the toner image is formed in a transfer nip portion formed between the photoconductive drum and a transfer roller. It is transferred to the sheet. The image forming apparatus further includes a fixing unit, and the sheet on which the toner image is transferred is subjected to a fixing process in the fixing unit and then discharged.

  In the image forming apparatus as described above, since sheets of different sizes are used, a sheet conveying apparatus is disposed below the image forming unit. The sheet conveying apparatus includes a plurality of sheet cassettes. The sheet fed from each sheet cassette is fed to a sheet conveyance path extending vertically on one end side of the plurality of sheet cassettes, and then conveyed to the image forming unit to form a toner image. .

  A cover that opens the sheet conveyance path to the outside is disposed in order to remove a sheet when a sheet jam occurs in the sheet conveyance path that extends over a plurality of sheet cassettes.

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, a plurality of opening / closing doors are arranged so as to face a sheet conveying path extending in the vertical direction.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-2753

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, in order for an operator to find a place where a sheet is jammed, the operator is often opened sequentially from the upper open / close door on the side close to the operator's hand in the standing state. In this case, when the lower opening / closing door is opened and the worker visually recognizes the sheet conveyance path, the upper opening / closing door already opened may prevent the internal viewing. In addition, when a sheet is jammed between the upper door and the lower door in the sheet conveyance path, as described above, the restoration work is performed with all the doors open. Is easy to be done. Even in this case, the visibility of the lower part of the sheet conveying path may be impaired by the upper opening / closing door.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and a sheet conveying device in which a plurality of opening and closing covers are arranged to open a sheet conveying path extending in the vertical direction to the outside, and An object of the image forming apparatus including the above is to improve the visibility of the sheet conveyance path from the outside.

A sheet conveying apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes a casing, a first conveying path that extends in the vertical direction in the casing, and a sheet is conveyed, and extends in the vertical direction in the casing. The lower end is connected to the upper end of the first conveyance path, the second conveyance path through which the sheet is conveyed, and the upper side can be opened and closed with the lower side as a fulcrum with respect to the housing. A first cover that exposes the first transport path to the outside of the housing, and an upper portion that can be opened and closed with a lower portion as a fulcrum with respect to the housing. And when the first cover is open, the second cover is open at a first opening angle with respect to the housing, and the first cover is closed. When in a state, the second cover is larger than the first opening angle. In open angle of the housing Ri Do an open state with respect to body, said in conjunction with open and closed states of the first cover, opening the opening angle of the second cover said first angle and said second A restricting portion for restricting the opening angle of the second cover, the restricting portion protruding from the second cover, and an opening angle of the second cover in contact with the protruding portion of the second cover. There is a state change between the first position that is restricted to the first opening angle and the second position that is in contact with the protrusion and restricts the opening angle of the second cover to the second opening angle. And a moving part that moves the restricting member to the first position and the second position in accordance with an open state and a closed state of the first cover. .

  According to this configuration, in the closed state of the first cover, the second cover is opened with the second opening angle with respect to the housing. The operator can visually recognize the second conveyance path through the space opened at the second opening angle. On the other hand, in the open state of the first cover, the second cover is opened with a first opening angle with respect to the housing. At this time, the first opening angle is set smaller than the second opening angle. For this reason, it is suppressed that the 2nd cover of an open state obstructs the visual field of the operator who visually recognizes the 1st conveyance path.

Also, according to this configuration, the opening angle of the second cover is restricted to the first opening angle and the second opening angle in conjunction with the open state and the closed state of the first cover by the restricting portion.

Moreover, according to this structure, a moving part moves a control member to a 1st position and a 2nd position corresponding to the open state and closed state of a 1st cover. The restricting member abuts against the protrusion of the second cover at the first position and restricts the opening angle of the second cover to the first opening angle. Further, the restricting member abuts against the protruding portion at the second position and restricts the opening angle of the second cover to the second opening angle. For this reason, the opening angle of a 2nd cover is changed suitably according to arrangement | positioning of a control member.

  In the above configuration, the second cover can be opened and closed by being rotated about a rotation shaft extending in a direction intersecting the sheet conveyance direction, and the projecting portion is configured to rotate the rotation shaft. An arc-shaped member extending in a circumferential direction in the rotation at intervals in a radial direction in the rotation, and the restricting member includes a ring portion rotatable around the rotation shaft, and the ring portion Projecting in the radial direction in the rotation and projecting in the radial direction from the ring portion at a distance from the first projecting portion in the circumferential direction with respect to the first projecting portion And the movable portion is fixed to the housing and arranged opposite to each other so as to sandwich the second projection portion of the regulating member in a direction intersecting the rotation axis. A first wall and a second wall A bracket, a biasing member disposed so as to be compressible between the first wall portion and the second protrusion, and a biasing member disposed on the first cover, wherein the biasing member is in the closed state of the first cover. Abutting against the second protrusion on the opposite side of the member, disposing the restricting member at the second position and being spaced apart from the second protrusion in the open state of the first cover; It is desirable to include a contact piece that allows the restricting member to be disposed at the first position by the second protrusion portion coming into contact with the second wall portion with the rotation.

  According to this configuration, the restricting member has a first position and a second position in rotation around the rotation axis. When the first cover is in the closed state, the contact piece disposed on the first cover contacts the second protrusion while compressing the biasing member. As a result, the restricting member is disposed at the second position. Then, when the protruding portion of the second cover comes into contact with the first protrusion at the second position, the opening angle of the second cover is restricted to the second opening angle. On the other hand, when the first cover is in the open state, the contact piece disposed on the first cover is separated from the second protrusion. For this reason, the 2nd projection part is urged by the urging member, and contacts the 2nd wall part of a bracket. As a result, the restricting member is disposed at the first position. Then, when the protruding portion of the second cover comes into contact with the first protrusion at the first position, the opening angle of the second cover is restricted to the first opening angle. Therefore, in conjunction with the opening and closing operation of the first cover, the restricting member is disposed at the first position and the second position by the contact piece, the biasing member, and the bracket, and the opening angle of the second cover Is preferably set.

  In the above configuration, the first cover is opened from the closed state in a state in which the second cover is in an open state and the restricting member disposed in the second position is in contact with the protruding portion. The biasing member moves the restricting member in contact with the projecting portion from the second position to the first position, so that the opening angle of the second cover is increased. It is desirable to change from the second opening angle to the first opening angle.

  According to this configuration, when the first cover is opened later with the second cover opened first, the opening angle of the second cover is changed from the second opening angle to the first opening angle. The Therefore, even when the second cover is opened first, the visibility of the first transport path is preferably ensured.

  In the above configuration, the sheet is conveyed from the lower side to the upper side along the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path, and is detachably attached to the housing, and the sheet is placed on the first conveyance path. It is desirable to have a first sheet stacking unit that feeds and a second sheet stacking unit that is detachably attached to the housing and feeds the sheet to the second transport path.

  According to this configuration, even when the sheet fed from the first sheet stacking unit is jammed in the first conveyance path or jammed across the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path, The visibility of the first conveyance path is preferably ensured, and the sheet is easily taken out.

  An image forming apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention includes an image forming unit that forms an image on the sheet transported from any one of the above and the sheet transported from the first transport path or the second transport path. It is characterized by having.

  According to this configuration, even when the sheet fed from the first sheet stacking unit is jammed in the first conveyance path or jammed across the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path, The visibility of the first conveyance path is preferably ensured, and the sheet is easily taken out. Therefore, the time during which the image forming operation is interrupted in the image forming unit is reduced as much as possible due to a paper jam recovery operation or the like.

  According to the present invention, in order to open the sheet conveying path extending in the vertical direction to the outside, in the sheet conveying apparatus provided with a plurality of opening and closing covers and the image forming apparatus including the same, the sheet conveying path from the outside Visibility is improved.

1 is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal structure of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, it is the perspective view in which the upper stage door and the lower stage door were made into the open state. FIG. 4 is a front view of the image forming apparatus in FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of an upper door and a lower door in FIG. 4. In the image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper door and the lower door are perspective views showing the periphery of the restricting portion in the closed state. In the image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper door and the lower door is a top view showing the periphery of the restriction portion in the closed state. In the image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. In the image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper door and the lower door are perspective views showing the periphery of the restriction portion in the open state.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal structure of the image forming apparatus 1. In FIG. 1, the automatic document feeder 20 and the transport unit 55 shown in FIG. 2 do not appear. Here, as the image forming apparatus 1, a multi-function machine having a printer function and a copying function is illustrated, but the image forming apparatus may be a printer, a copier, or a facsimile machine.

<Description of Image Forming Apparatus>
The image forming apparatus 1 includes an apparatus main body 10 (housing) having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped housing structure, and an automatic document feeder 20 disposed on the apparatus main body 10. In the apparatus main body 10, a reading unit 25 that optically reads a document image to be copied, an image forming unit 30 that forms a toner image on a sheet, a fixing unit 60 that fixes the toner image on a sheet, and image formation A sheet feeding unit 40 that stores a regular sheet conveyed to the unit 30, and a conveyance that conveys the regular sheet from the sheet feeding unit 40 or the sheet feeding tray 46 to the sheet discharge port 10E via the image forming unit 30 and the fixing unit 60. A path 50 and a transport unit 55 having therein a sheet transport path constituting a part of the transport path 50 are accommodated.

  An automatic document feeder (ADF) 20 is rotatably attached to the upper surface of the apparatus body 10. The ADF 20 automatically feeds a document sheet to be copied toward a predetermined document reading position (a position where the first contact glass 241 is assembled) in the apparatus main body 10. On the other hand, when the user manually places the original sheet on a predetermined original reading position (position where the second contact glass 242 is disposed), the ADF 20 is opened upward. The ADF 20 includes a document tray 21 on which a document sheet is placed, a document transport unit 22 that transports a document sheet via an automatic document reading position, and a document discharge tray 23 that discharges a document sheet after reading. .

  The reading unit 25 passes through a first contact glass 241 for reading a document sheet automatically fed from the ADF 20 on the upper surface of the apparatus body 10 or a second contact glass 242 for reading a manually placed document sheet. The image is optically read. In the reading unit 25, a scanning mechanism including a light source, a movable carriage, a reflection mirror, and the like, and an image sensor are accommodated (not shown). The scanning mechanism irradiates the original sheet with light and guides the reflected light to the image sensor. The image sensor photoelectrically converts the reflected light into an analog electric signal. The analog electric signal is converted into a digital electric signal by an A / D conversion circuit and then input to the image forming unit 30.

  The image forming unit 30 performs a process of generating a full-color toner image and transferring it onto a sheet. Yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (Bk) arranged in tandem. An image forming unit 32 including four units 32Y, 32M, 32C, and 32Bk for forming the respective toner images, an intermediate transfer unit 33 disposed adjacent to the image forming unit 32, and an intermediate transfer unit 33. And a toner replenishing section 34 disposed in the.

  Each of the image forming units 32Y, 32M, 32C, and 32Bk includes a photosensitive drum 321 and a charger 322, an exposure device 323, a developing device 324, a primary transfer roller 325, and a cleaning device disposed around the photosensitive drum 321. 326.

  The photosensitive drum 321 rotates about its axis, and an electrostatic latent image and a toner image are formed on its peripheral surface. As the photosensitive drum 321, a photosensitive drum using an amorphous silicon (a-Si) material can be used. The charger 322 uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 321. The exposure device 323 includes a laser light source and optical system devices such as a mirror and a lens, and forms an electrostatic latent image by irradiating the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 321 with light based on image data of a document image. .

  The developing device 324 supplies toner to the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 321 in order to develop the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 321. The developing device 324 is for a two-component developer and includes a screw feeder, a magnetic roller, and a developing roller.

  The primary transfer roller 325 forms a nip portion with the photosensitive drum 321 across the intermediate transfer belt 331 provided in the intermediate transfer unit 33, and the toner image on the photosensitive drum 321 is primary transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 331. To do. The cleaning device 326 includes a cleaning roller and the like, and cleans the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 321 after the toner image is transferred.

  The intermediate transfer unit 33 includes an intermediate transfer belt 331, a driving roller 332, and a driven roller 333. The intermediate transfer belt 331 is an endless belt that is stretched around a driving roller 332 and a driven roller 333, and toner images from a plurality of photosensitive drums 321 are superimposed on the same portion on the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 331. Are transferred (primary transfer).

  A secondary transfer roller 35 is disposed to face the peripheral surface of the drive roller 332. A nip portion between the driving roller 332 and the secondary transfer roller 35 serves as a secondary transfer portion that transfers a full-color toner image overcoated on the intermediate transfer belt 331 to a sheet. A secondary transfer bias potential having a polarity opposite to that of the toner image is applied to the secondary transfer roller 35, and the drive roller 332 is grounded.

  The toner supply unit 34 includes a yellow toner container 34Y, a magenta toner container 34M, a cyan toner container 34C, and a black toner container 34Bk. These toner containers 34Y, 34C, 34M, and 34Bk respectively store toner of each color, and are supplied to the developing devices 324 of the image forming units 32Y, 32M, 32C, and 32Bk corresponding to each color of YMCBk through a supply path (not shown). Supply toner of each color. Each toner container 34Y, 34C, 34M, 34Bk is provided with a transport screw 341 for transporting the toner in the container to a toner discharge port (not shown). The conveying screw 341 is rotationally driven by a driving unit (not shown), so that toner is supplied into the developing device 324.

  The sheet feeding unit 40 includes four-stage first sheet feeding cassettes 40A, second sheet feeding cassettes 40B (second sheet stacking units), and third sheets that store the standard sheet S1 among the sheets subjected to image forming processing. A sheet feeding cassette 40C (second sheet stacking unit) and a fourth sheet feeding cassette 40D (first sheet stacking unit) are provided. These paper feed cassettes can be pulled out from the front of the apparatus body 10 toward the front.

  The first sheet feed cassette 40A includes a sheet storage unit 41 that stores a sheet bundle formed by stacking the standard sheets S1 and a lift plate 42 that lifts the sheet bundle for sheet feeding. A pickup roller 43 and a roller pair of a paper feed roller 44 and a retard roller 45 are arranged on the upper right side of the paper feed cassette 40A. By driving the pickup roller 43 and the paper feed roller 44, the uppermost sheet S1 of the sheet bundle in the paper feed cassette 40A is fed out one by one and carried into the upstream end of the transport path 50. The second paper feed cassette 40B, the third paper feed cassette 40C, and the fourth paper feed cassette 40D have the same configuration as the first paper feed cassette 40A. In addition, the third paper feed cassette 40C and the fourth paper feed cassette 40D are integrally formed, and the first paper feed cassette 40A and the second paper feed cassette 40B are mounted as so-called additional paper feed cassettes. The image forming apparatus 1 can be mounted.

  A paper feed tray 46 for manual paper feed is provided on the right side surface 10 </ b> R of the apparatus main body 10. The paper feed tray 46 is attached to the apparatus main body 10 at its lower end so as to be openable and closable. When performing manual sheet feeding, the user opens the sheet feeding tray 46 as shown in the drawing and places a sheet thereon. The sheet placed on the paper feed tray 46 is carried into the transport path 50 by driving the pickup roller 461 and the paper feed roller 462.

  The conveyance path 50 includes a main conveyance path 50A that conveys a sheet (standard sheet S1) from the paper feed unit 40 to the exit of the fixing unit 60 via the image forming unit 30, and one side when performing duplex printing on the sheet. A reverse conveyance path 50B for returning the printed sheet to the image forming unit 30, a switchback conveyance path 50C for directing the sheet from the downstream end of the main conveyance path 50A to the upstream end of the reverse conveyance path 50B, and the main conveyance And a horizontal conveyance path 50D that conveys the sheet in the horizontal direction from the downstream end of the path 50A to the sheet discharge port 10E provided on the left side surface 10L of the apparatus main body 10. Most of the horizontal conveyance path 50 </ b> D is configured by a sheet conveyance path provided inside the conveyance unit 55.

  A registration roller pair 51 is disposed on the upstream side of the main transfer path 50A from the secondary transfer portion 35A. The sheet is temporarily stopped by the resist roller pair 51 in a stopped state, and skew correction is performed. Thereafter, the registration roller pair 51 is rotationally driven by a drive motor (not shown) at a predetermined timing for image transfer, whereby the sheet is sent out to the secondary transfer portion. In addition, a plurality of conveyance rollers 52 for conveying the sheet are arranged in the main conveyance path 50A.

  Further, the sheet fed from the second sheet feeding cassette 40B and the third sheet feeding cassette 40C passes through the upper feeding path 70S (second conveying path) which is a part of the conveying path 50, and then the conveying roller 52. To. Further, the sheet fed from the fourth sheet feeding cassette 40D is conveyed through the upper feeding path 70S after passing through the lower feeding path 80S (first conveying path) which is a part of the conveying path 50. Thereafter, the transport roller 52 is reached.

  The lower feeding path 80S is a conveyance path that extends in the vertical direction on the right side of the apparatus body 10 and conveys the sheet. The upper feed path 70S extends in the vertical direction in the apparatus main body 10 and is connected to the upper end portion of the lower feed path 80S.

  A paper discharge roller 53 is disposed at the most downstream end of the transport path 50. The paper discharge roller 53 feeds the sheet to a post-processing device (not shown) disposed on the left side surface 10L of the apparatus body 10 through the sheet discharge port 10E. In the image forming apparatus to which the post-processing apparatus is not attached, a sheet discharge tray is provided below the sheet discharge port 10E.

  The transport unit 55 is a unit that transports the sheet unloaded from the fixing unit 60 to the sheet discharge port 10E. In the image forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the fixing unit 60 is disposed on the right side 10R side of the apparatus main body 10, and the sheet discharge port 10E is disposed on the left side 10L side of the apparatus main body 10 facing the right side 10R. Yes. Accordingly, the transport unit 55 transports the sheet in the horizontal direction from the right side surface 10R of the apparatus main body 10 toward the left side surface 10L.

  The fixing unit 60 is an induction heating type fixing device that performs a fixing process for fixing a toner image on a sheet, and includes a heating roller 61, a fixing roller 62, a pressure roller 63, a fixing belt 64, and an induction heating unit 65. A pressure roller 63 is pressed against the fixing roller 62 to form a fixing nip portion. The heating roller 61 and the fixing belt 64 are induction-heated by an induction heating unit 65, and give the heat to the fixing nip portion. As the sheet passes through the fixing nip portion, the toner image transferred to the sheet is fixed to the sheet.

  The image forming apparatus 1 further includes an upper door 70 (second cover) and a lower door 80 (first cover). The upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are disposed below the right side surface 10 </ b> R of the apparatus main body 10. The upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are arranged to be openable and closable with respect to the apparatus main body 10. In particular, the lower portions of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 serve as fulcrums, and the upper portions of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body 10. In the open state of the upper door 70, the upper feed path 70S is opened to the outside of the apparatus main body 10. Further, the lower feed path 80 </ b> S is opened to the outside of the apparatus main body 10 in the opened state of the lower door 80. As described above, when the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are opened and closed, the sheet is easily taken out even when the upper feed path 70S and the lower feed path 80S are jammed.

  In the above configuration, the paper feed unit 40 (first paper feed cassette 40A, second paper feed cassette 40B, third paper feed cassette 40C, fourth paper feed cassette 40D) and upper feed path 70S, upper door 70, lower A sheet feeding device 4 (sheet conveying device) of the image forming apparatus 1 is configured by the feeding path 80 </ b> S and the lower door 80. As described above, the sheet feeding device 4 supplies the standard sheet S <b> 1 to the image forming unit 30.

  Next, opening and closing modes of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 will be described. FIG. 3 is a perspective view when the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are opened with respect to the apparatus main body 10, and FIG. 4 is a front view thereof. Further, FIG. 5 is a view showing only the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 in the state of FIG. 4.

  As described above, the upper feed path 70 </ b> S is opened to the outside of the apparatus main body 10 by opening the upper door 70. On the other hand, the lower feed path 80 </ b> S is opened to the outside of the apparatus body 10 by opening the lower door 80. Here, when a sheet jam occurs in the image forming apparatus 1, the operator often opens in order from the door on the side close to the operator's hand in the standing position in order to find the location of the sheet jam. That is, the upper door 70 is opened first, and then the lower door 80 is opened. 4, when the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are opened with the same opening angle, the upper door 70 is disposed at the position A in FIG. 4 with the opening angle θ2. In this case, the upper door 70 blocks a part of the line of sight E where the worker visually recognizes the inside of the lower door 80 (the lower feed path 80S). Further, in the conveyance path 50, when the sheet is jammed while straddling between the upper door 70 and the lower door 80, the return operation is easily performed with any of the open / close doors open. Even in this case, the upper door 70 may impair the visibility of the lower part of the sheet conveyance path (lower feeding path 80S).

  In this embodiment, in order to solve the above problems, the relationship between the opening angles of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 is suitably set. That is, in the present embodiment, in FIG. 4, the first opening angle θ1 of the upper door 70 with respect to the apparatus main body 10 in the opened state of the lower door 80 is the first opening angle θ1 with respect to the apparatus main body 10 of the upper door 70 in the closed state of the lower door 80. 2 is set to be smaller than the opening angle θ2. In other words, when the lower door 80 is closed, the upper door 70 is largely opened with respect to the apparatus main body 10 with the second opening angle θ2. Therefore, the upper feed path 70S is easily exposed to the outside of the apparatus main body 10, and the operator can easily visually recognize the upper feed path 70S. On the other hand, when the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are both opened, the upper door 70 is opened with respect to the apparatus main body 10 with a first opening angle θ1 smaller than the second opening angle θ2. . For this reason, the upper door 70 does not block the operator's line of sight E. For this reason, the worker can appropriately visually recognize the upper feeding path 70S and the lower feeding path 80S.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a restriction unit 9 (FIG. 5). The regulating unit 9 has a function of regulating the opening angle of the upper door 70 to the first opening angle θ1 and the second opening angle θ2 in conjunction with the open state and the closed state of the lower door 80. Next, with reference to FIG.6 and FIG.7, the control part 9 which concerns on this embodiment is explained in full detail. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the periphery of the restricting portion 9 with the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 closed in the present embodiment. FIG. 7 is a top view showing the periphery of the restricting portion 9 with the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 closed. The upper door 70 includes an upper front wall 701 and an upper rotation shaft 702. The upper front wall portion 701 is a front side wall of the upper door 70. The upper rotation shaft 702 is a fulcrum in the opening / closing operation of the upper door 70 and serves as a rotation shaft in the rotation of the upper door 70. The pivot shaft extends in a direction intersecting the sheet conveyance direction in the upper feeding path 70S. The upper stage rotation shaft 702 has a cylindrical shape protruding from the upper stage front wall portion 701 toward the front side. The apparatus main body 10 of the image forming apparatus 1 includes a front frame 101 disposed in front of the upper door 70 (see FIGS. 4 and 7). A shaft portion (not shown) that protrudes rearward from the front frame 101 is inserted into the upper rotation shaft 702, thereby forming a fulcrum (rotation shaft) in the opening / closing operation of the upper door 70. A rotation shaft similar to the upper rotation shaft 702 is also arranged on the rear side wall of the upper door 70. Similarly to the upper door 70, the lower door 80 includes a lower front wall 801. A lower rotation shaft 81 is disposed on the lower front wall portion 801. The lower front wall portion 801 is a front side wall of the lower door 80.

  The restricting portion 9 includes a protruding portion 703 (protruding portion), a restricting member 90, and a moving portion 91.

  The protrusion 703 protrudes from the upper front wall 701 to the front side with a radial distance from the outer peripheral portion of the upper rotation shaft 702. The protrusion 703 is a member having an arc shape that is arranged along the outer peripheral portion of the upper rotation shaft 702. The protrusion 703 is disposed with a width of about 30 degrees in the circumferential direction of the upper rotation shaft 702 at a position above and to the left of the axis of the upper rotation shaft 702.

  The restricting member 90 is fitted into the outer peripheral portion of the upper rotation shaft 702 and is supported rotatably with respect to the upper rotation shaft 702. Due to the rotation, the regulating member 90 abuts against the projection 703 and abuts against the projection 703 and a first position X1 (FIG. 6) that regulates the opening angle of the upper door 70 to the first opening angle θ1. The state can be changed with respect to the second position X2 (FIG. 9) that regulates the opening angle of the second opening angle θ2. The restriction member 90 includes a ring portion 901, a stopper 902 (first protrusion), and an engagement piece 903 (second protrusion).

  The ring portion 901 is a main body portion of the restricting member 90 and has a ring shape having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the upper rotation shaft 702. The ring portion 901 is fitted into the outer peripheral portion of the upper stage rotation shaft 702 and is rotatable about the upper stage rotation shaft 702. Further, the ring portion 901 is fitted between the upper rotation shaft 702 and the protrusion 703.

  The stopper 902 protrudes from the ring portion 901 in the radial direction of the upper stage rotation shaft 702. As the ring portion 901 rotates, the stopper 902 can come into contact with the protrusion 703. As shown in FIG. 6, in the closed state of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80, the stopper 902 projects from the upper rotation shaft 702 to the right and slightly upward.

  The engagement piece 903 protrudes from the ring portion 901 in the radial direction with an interval in the circumferential direction of the upper rotation shaft 702 with respect to the stopper 902. The engagement piece 903 is configured to be wider than the ring portion 901 so as to protrude forward. In the closed state of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80, the engagement piece 903 protrudes downward from the upper rotation shaft 702.

  The moving part 91 is disposed below the regulating member 90. The moving part 91 moves the restricting member 90 to the first position X1 and the second position X2 corresponding to the open state and the closed state of the lower door 80. The moving part 91 includes a bracket 102, a biasing spring 95 (biasing member), and a contact piece 803.

  The bracket 102 is fixed to the front frame 101 of the apparatus main body 10. The bracket 102 has a U-shape that is opened forward when viewed from above (FIG. 7). The bracket 102 includes a left wall portion 102A (first wall portion), a rear wall portion 102B, and a right wall portion 102C (second wall portion). The left wall portion 102 </ b> A is a left wall portion of the bracket 102. As shown in FIG. 7, the front end portion of the left wall portion 102 </ b> A is fixed to the front frame 101. The right wall portion 102 </ b> C is a right wall portion of the bracket 102. In addition, the rear wall portion 102B connects the rear end portions of the left wall portion 102A and the right wall portion 102C. In other words, for the left wall portion 102A and the right wall portion 102C, the left wall portion 102A is sandwiched between the engaging pieces 903 of the restricting member 90 in the direction intersecting the rotation axis of the upper rotation shaft 702 (left and right direction). And the right wall portion 102C are arranged to face each other. The right wall portion 102C is disposed so as to face the rear portion of the engagement piece 903 in the left-right direction. That is, the engagement piece 903 protrudes forward of the right wall portion 102C.

  The urging spring 95 is a spring member disposed so as to be compressible between the left wall portion 102A and the engagement piece 903.

  The contact piece 803 is disposed on the lower door 80. For this reason, the contact piece 803 is moved integrally with the lower door 80 as the lower door 80 is opened and closed. More specifically, the abutting piece 803 is a protruding piece that protrudes upward from the upper plate 802 constituting the upper surface of the lower door 80 with a slight thickness in the front-rear direction. The contact piece 803 has a substantially triangular shape in which the right end is inclined.

  The contact piece 803 comes into contact with the engagement piece 903 on the side opposite to the biasing spring 95 in the closed state of the lower door 80. At this time, the contact piece 803 is disposed on the front side of the right wall portion 102 </ b> C and is in contact with the front side portion of the engagement piece 903. As a result, the restricting member 90 is disposed at the first position X1. Further, the contact piece 803 is separated from the engagement piece 903 in the opened state of the lower door 80, and allows the engagement piece 903 to contact the right wall portion 102C. As a result, the regulating member 90 is disposed at the second position X2.

  Next, in addition to FIG. 6, the opening / closing operation | movement of the lower door 80 and the upper door 70 is further explained in full detail with reference to FIG. 8 and FIG. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the periphery of the restricting portion 9 with the upper door 70 in the open state and the lower door 80 in the closed state. FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the periphery of the restriction portion 9 with the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 open.

  In FIG. 6, the restricting member 90 is disposed at the first position X <b> 1 in the rotation around the upper rotation shaft 702. In the first position X1, the engaging piece 903 of the regulating member 90 is disposed so as to face downward. At this time, the engagement piece 903 is urged to the right by the urging spring 95 and is urged to the left by the contact piece 803 of the lower door 80. Thus, in the closed state of the upper door 70 and the lower door 80, the engagement piece 903 extends in the vertical direction with the biasing spring 95 being compressed between the left wall portion 102A and the engagement piece 903. As described above, the contact piece 803 fixes the position of the engagement piece 903. As a result, the stopper 902 is disposed at a position protruding from the ring portion 901 to the right and slightly upward.

  In the closed state of the lower door 80 as described above, that is, in the state where the regulating member 90 is disposed at the first position X1, the upper door 70 is opened by the operator. The upper door 70 is rotated around the shaft portion inserted in the upper rotation shaft 702. As a result, the upper rotation shaft 702 and the protrusion 703 of the lower door 80 rotate clockwise while the position of the regulating member 90 remains at the first position X1. Eventually, the protrusion right end 703A, which is the right end of the protrusion 703, comes into contact with the stopper 902 at the first position X1, and the opening operation of the upper door 70 is stopped. As a result, the upper door 70 is in the state shown in FIG. In this state, the upper door 70 is disposed at a position A in FIG. In other words, the opening angle of the upper door 70 with respect to the apparatus main body 10 corresponds to the second opening angle θ2. For this reason, the opening angle of the upper door 70 is maintained relatively large, and the operator can preferably visually recognize the upper feeding path 70S.

  When no sheet jam is found in the upper feeding path 70S, the operator opens the lower door 80 from the state shown in FIG. 8 (arrow D8 in FIG. 8). As a result, the contact piece 803 that urges the engagement piece 903 toward the left while compressing the urging spring 95 is separated from the engagement piece 903 to the right. Then, the biasing spring 95 is restored from the compressed state, and biases the engagement piece 903 to the right. At this time, the regulating member 90 is rotated counterclockwise around the upper rotation shaft 702. Note that the stopper 902 presses the protrusion 703 leftward as the regulating member 90 rotates. Therefore, the upper door 70 is moved in a direction in which the opening angle of the upper door 70 becomes smaller. Eventually, as shown in FIG. 9, in a state where the urging spring 95 urges the engagement piece 903 to the right, the engagement piece 903 comes into contact with the right wall portion 102C, so that the regulating member 90 rotates. Stopped. As a result, the restricting member 90 is disposed at the second position X2. In the second position X2, the stopper 902 is disposed so as to protrude rightward and upward from the ring portion 901. In this embodiment, at this time, the stopper 902 is extended along an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the horizontal line.

  As a result of the restriction member 90 being disposed at the second position X2, the upper door 70 is disposed at the position B in FIG. 4 while the protrusion 703 of the upper door 70 is supported by the stopper 902. In other words, the opening angle of the upper door 70 with respect to the apparatus main body 10 corresponds to the first opening angle θ1. For this reason, the opening angle of the upper door 70 is maintained relatively small with respect to the second opening angle θ2, and the worker preferably visually recognizes the lower feeding path 80S without blocking the operator's line of sight E. It becomes possible.

  Even when the upper door 70 and the lower door 80 are both closed and the lower door 80 is opened first and then the upper door 70 is opened later, the upper door 70 is opened as described above. The angle is set to the first opening angle θ1. That is, when the lower door 80 is opened first from the state of FIG. 6, the upper plate 802 is separated from the engagement piece 903. For this reason, the regulating member 90 is rotated while the upper door 70 is closed, and the engaging piece 903 is brought into contact with the right wall portion 102C. And the control member 90 is arrange | positioned in the 2nd position X2. When the upper door 70 is opened from this state, the protrusion 703 of the upper door 70 is brought into contact with the stopper 902 (FIG. 9) at the second position X2. As a result, the upper door 70 is disposed at the position B in FIG. 4 with the first opening angle θ1.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, in the closed state of the lower door 80, the upper door 70 is opened with the second opening angle θ <b> 2 with respect to the apparatus main body 10. The operator can visually recognize the upper feed path 70S through the space opened at the second opening angle θ2. On the other hand, in the open state of the lower door 80, the upper door 70 is opened with the first opening angle θ <b> 1 with respect to the apparatus main body 10. At this time, the first opening angle θ1 is set smaller than the second opening angle θ2. For this reason, it is suppressed that the upper stage door 70 obstruct | occludes the visual field of the operator who visually recognizes the lower feed path 80S.

  Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the opening angle of the upper door 70 is changed to the first opening angle θ1 and the second opening angle θ2 by the restricting portion 9 in conjunction with the open state and the closed state of the lower door 80. Be regulated.

  Moreover, according to said embodiment, the moving part 91 moves the control member 90 to the 1st position X1 and the 2nd position X2 corresponding to the open state and closed state of the lower door 80. FIG. Then, the restricting member 90 abuts against the protrusion 703 of the upper door 70 at the first position X1, and restricts the opening angle of the upper door 70 to the first opening angle θ1. In addition, the restricting member 90 abuts against the protrusion 703 at the second position X2, and restricts the opening angle of the upper door 70 to the second opening angle θ2. For this reason, the opening angle of the upper door 70 is suitably changed according to the arrangement of the regulating member 90.

  Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the regulating member 90 includes the first position X1 and the second position X2 in the rotation around the rotation axis of the upper rotation shaft 702. When the lower door 80 is in a closed state, the contact piece 803 disposed on the lower door 80 contacts the engagement piece 903 while compressing the biasing spring 95. As a result, the restricting member 90 is disposed at the second position X2. Then, the protrusion 703 of the upper door 70 abuts against the stopper 902 at the second position X2, whereby the opening angle of the upper door 70 is restricted to the second opening angle θ2. On the other hand, when the lower door 80 is in an open state, the contact piece 803 disposed on the lower door 80 is separated from the engagement piece 903. For this reason, the engagement piece 903 is urged by the urging spring 95 and abuts against the right wall portion 102 </ b> C of the bracket 102. As a result, the restricting member 90 is disposed at the first position X1. Then, the protrusion 703 of the upper door 70 abuts against the stopper 902 at the first position X1, whereby the opening angle of the upper door 70 is restricted to the first opening angle θ1. Therefore, in conjunction with the opening / closing operation of the lower door 80, the restricting member 90 is disposed at the first position X1 and the second position X2 by the contact piece 803, the biasing spring 95, and the bracket 102, The opening angle of the upper door 70 is suitably set.

  According to the above embodiment, when the upper door 70 is opened first and the lower door 80 is opened later, the opening angle of the upper door 70 is changed from the second opening angle θ2 to the first opening angle θ2. The opening angle θ1 is changed. Therefore, even when the upper door 70 is opened first, the visibility of the lower feeding path 80S is preferably ensured.

  Further, according to the above-described embodiment, when the sheet fed from the fourth sheet feeding cassette 40D is jammed in the lower feeding path 80S, or straddles the lower feeding path 80S and the upper feeding path 70S. Even if it is jammed, the visibility of the lower feeding path 80S is suitably secured, and the sheet can be easily taken out.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, in the image forming apparatus 1 including the paper feeding device 4 and the image forming unit 30, the sheet fed from the fourth paper feeding cassette 40D is jammed in the lower feeding path 80S. In this case, or even when the sheet is jammed across the lower feeding path 80S and the upper feeding path 70S, the visibility of the lower feeding path 80S is preferably ensured, and the sheet is easily taken out. For this reason, the time for which the image forming operation in the image forming unit 30 is interrupted is reduced as much as possible due to a paper jam recovery operation or the like.

  The sheet feeding device 4 and the image forming apparatus 1 including the sheet feeding device 4 according to the embodiment of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the following modified embodiment is adopted. Can do.

  (1) In the above embodiment, the sheet feeding unit 40 has been described as having four stages of sheet feeding cassettes, but the present invention is not limited to this. The sheet may be fed from the second sheet feeding cassette 40B to the upper feeding path 70S, and the sheet may be fed from the fourth sheet feeding cassette 40D to the lower feeding path 80S. Furthermore, the upper feeding path 70S and the lower feeding path 80S may be a conveyance path that conveys a sheet in the vertical direction, and a mode in which the sheet is not directly fed may be used. That is, in a large sheet stacking apparatus that stacks a large number of sheets, when the transport path from the sheet stacking section to the image forming section is set long, the transport path for transporting the sheet in the vertical direction is The upper feed path 70S, the lower feed path 80S, the upper door 70, and the lower door 80 may be applied.

  (2) In the above embodiment, the second opening angle θ2 of the upper door 70 and the opening angle of the lower door 80 are described as being the same angle, but the present invention is limited to this. is not. The second opening angle θ2 of the upper door 70 and the opening angle of the lower door 80 may be different.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 4 Paper feeding apparatus 10 Apparatus main body (casing)
101 Front frame 102 Bracket 102A Left wall (first wall)
102B Rear wall portion 102C Right wall portion (second wall portion)
30 Image forming unit 40 Paper feeding unit 40A First paper feeding cassette 40B Second paper feeding cassette (second sheet stacking unit)
40C Third paper feed cassette (second sheet stacking unit)
40D Fourth paper feed cassette (first sheet stacking unit)
46 Feed tray 70 Upper door (second cover)
70S Upper feed path (second transport path)
701 Upper front wall 702 Upper rotation shaft 703 Projection (projection)
703A Protrusion right end 80 Lower door (first cover)
80S downward feed path (first transport path)
801 Lower front wall portion 802 Upper plate 803 Contact piece 81 Lower rotation shaft 9 Restriction portion 90 Restriction member 91 Moving portion 901 Ring portion 902 Stopper (first protrusion)
903 Engagement piece (second protrusion)
95 Biasing spring (Biasing member)
X1 first position X2 second position θ1 first opening angle θ2 second opening angle

Claims (5)

A housing,
A first conveyance path that extends in the vertical direction in the housing and conveys a sheet;
A second conveying path that extends in the up-down direction in the housing, has a lower end portion connected to an upper end portion of the first conveying path, and conveys the sheet;
A first cover that is openable and closable with a lower portion as a fulcrum with respect to the housing, and that exposes the first transport path to the outside of the housing in an open state;
A top cover that can be opened and closed with the bottom as a fulcrum with respect to the housing, and in an open state, the second cover that exposes the second transport path to the outside of the housing;
When the first cover is open, the second cover is open at a first opening angle with respect to the housing, and when the first cover is closed, the second cover is the first cover. in open angle second opening angle greater than the, Ri Do an open state with respect to the housing,
In conjunction with the open state and the closed state of the first cover, further comprising a restricting portion for restricting the opening angle of the second cover to the first opening angle and the second opening angle,
The regulating part is
A protrusion protruding from the second cover;
A first position that contacts the projecting portion of the second cover and restricts an opening angle of the second cover to the first opening angle; and an opening angle of the second cover that contacts the projecting portion and the first opening angle. A regulating member capable of changing the state between the second position that regulates the opening angle of 2;
A moving unit that moves the restricting member to the first position and the second position in response to an open state and a closed state of the first cover;
Sheet conveying apparatus characterized by having a. The second cover can be opened and closed by being rotated about a rotation shaft extending in a direction intersecting the sheet conveyance direction,
The projecting portion is an arc-shaped member extending in the circumferential direction in the rotation at an interval in the radial direction in the rotation from the rotation shaft,
The regulating member is
A ring part rotatable around the rotation axis;
A first protrusion protruding from the ring portion in a radial direction in the rotation and capable of contacting the protrusion;
A second protrusion protruding in the radial direction from the ring portion at an interval in the circumferential direction with respect to the first protrusion,
The moving unit is
A bracket having a first wall portion and a second wall portion that are fixed to the housing and are disposed to face each other so as to sandwich the second protrusion of the restricting member in a direction intersecting the rotation axis. When,
An urging member disposed so as to be compressible between the first wall portion and the second projecting portion;
Arranged in the first cover, in the closed state of the first cover, abutted against the second protrusion on the side opposite to the biasing member, the regulating member is arranged in the second position, In the open state of the first cover, the regulating member is separated from the second projecting portion, and the second projecting portion comes into contact with the second wall portion as the ring portion rotates, so that the regulating member is The sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a contact piece that allows the sheet to be disposed at a position. When the first cover is changed from a closed state to an open state in a state where the second cover is in an open state and the restricting member disposed in the second position is in contact with the protruding portion. The biasing member moves the restricting member in contact with the projecting portion from the second position to the first position, thereby setting the opening angle of the second cover to the second opening. The sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the sheet conveying apparatus is changed from an angle to the first opening angle. The sheet is transported from the bottom to the top along the first transport path and the second transport path,
A first sheet stacking unit that is detachably attached to the housing and feeds the sheet to the first conveyance path;
The detachably mounted to the housing, to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a, a second sheet stacking portion for feeding the sheet to the second conveying path The sheet conveying apparatus according to the description. A sheet conveying apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
An image forming unit that forms an image on the sheet conveyed from the first conveyance path or the second conveyance path;
An image forming apparatus comprising:

Images