JP6221313B2 - Electronic apparatus, image forming apparatus, and locking method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and a locking method.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, there is a technique for electrically detecting attachment of detachable units to an image forming apparatus, performing power control according to the detection result, and providing a lock mechanism to lock the attached units. It is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  However, since the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not monitor the locked state of units, there is a problem that the units may be detached.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide an electronic device, an image forming apparatus, and a locking method capable of reliably locking mounted units.

In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the present invention is an electronic device, and is configured integrally with at least a part of a front cover of the electronic device and configured to be drawable from a main body. In addition , a unit portion on which a load for performing the operation is mounted, a first position where the unit portion can be pulled out from the main body portion, and a second position where the unit portion cannot be pulled out from the main body portion. A lock unit movable to a position, a first detection unit detecting that the unit unit is stored in the main body unit, and detecting that the unit unit is stored in the main body unit by the first detection unit. If it is, the lock portion, a motor starts driving to move to the second position, and a second detection unit for the locking unit for detecting whether or not moved to the second position, the user The unit And a pull-out handle detection sensor for detecting that you are trying to drawer, when said locking portion is moved to the second position is detected in the second detecting portion, according to the driving of the motor When the movement of the lock portion is stopped and the drawer handle detection sensor detects that the unit portion is about to be pulled out while the operation of the load is stopped, the motor moves the lock portion to the second portion. An electronic device is moved from a position to the first position .

  According to the present invention, mounted units can be securely locked.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drawer unit is pulled out from the apparatus main body. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram when the drawer unit is pulled out. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the drawer unit. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the drawer unit with the front cover removed. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the lock member. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the drive unit. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the rear side of the apparatus main body with the drawer unit pulled out. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the rear side of the apparatus main body with the drawer unit set in the apparatus main body. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a positioning portion of the drawer unit. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of a positioning pin. FIG. 12 is an enlarged configuration diagram in the vicinity of the set detection sensor. FIG. 13 is an enlarged configuration diagram in the vicinity of the lock receiving member. FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the lock receiving member. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating the arrangement position of the secondary transfer driving unit. FIG. 16 is a view in which the lock receiving member is cut in the AA direction of FIG. 14. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a lock detection mechanism. FIG. 18 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of a main configuration of the control system. FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining the locked state and the unlocked state. FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the insertion relationship between the positioning pin and the positioning hole and the pull-in of the drawer unit. FIG. 21 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example when transitioning from the locked state to the unlocked state. FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating an example of lock release control. FIG. 23 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example when transitioning from the locked state to the unlocked state. FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating an example of lock control.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of an electronic apparatus and an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following embodiments, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described by taking as an example a case where it is applied to a tandem type color copying machine, but the present invention is not limited to this. The image forming apparatus according to the present invention can be applied to both monochrome and color as long as it is an apparatus that forms an image by an electrophotographic method. For example, the image forming apparatus can be applied to an electrophotographic printing device or a multifunction peripheral (MFP). Is also applicable. Note that a multifunction peripheral is a device having at least two functions among a printing function, a copying function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 1 includes an automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as “ADF”) 10 and an image forming apparatus main body 11. The image forming apparatus main body 11 includes a paper feeding unit 3, an image reading unit 4, and an apparatus main body unit 5.

  The ADF 10 includes a document tray 20, a document feed roller 21, a document transport belt 22, a document discharge roller 23, and a document discharge tray 24. The ADF 10 is attached to the image reading unit 4 through an opening / closing mechanism (not shown) such as a hinge.

  The document feed roller 21 separates a document bundle (not shown) placed on the document tray 20 one by one and conveys it toward the image reading unit 4. The document transport belt 22 transports the document separated by the document feed roller 21 to the image reading unit 4. The document discharge roller 23 discharges a document discharged from the image reading unit 4 by the document conveyance belt 22 to a document discharge tray 24 below the document tray 20.

  The image reading unit 4 includes a housing 40, a scanning optical unit 41, a contact glass 42, and driving means (not shown). The scanning optical unit 41 is provided inside the housing 40 and includes an LED unit. The scanning optical unit 41 emits light in the main scanning direction from the LED unit, and is scanned in the sub-scanning direction in the entire irradiation region by the driving unit. Thereby, the scanning optical unit 41 reads a two-dimensional color image of the document. The scanning optical unit 41 is not provided with an “LED unit” but may be another light emitting element unit such as an “organic EL unit”.

  The contact glass 42 is provided on the upper portion of the housing 40 of the image reading unit 4 and constitutes the upper surface portion of the housing 40. The driving means includes a wire (not shown) fixed to the scanning optical unit 41, a plurality of driven pulleys (not shown) and a driving pulley (not shown) bridged by the wires, and a motor for rotating the driving pulley. I have.

  The sheet feeding unit 3 includes a sheet feeding cassette 30 and a sheet feeding unit 31. The paper feed cassette 30 stores paper (not shown) as recording media having different paper sizes. The paper feed unit 31 transports the paper stored in the paper feed cassette 30 to the main transport path 70 of the apparatus main body 5.

  In addition, a manual feed tray 32 is disposed on the side surface of the apparatus main body 5 so as to be openable and closable with respect to the apparatus main body 5. The The uppermost paper in the manually fed paper bundle is sent out toward the main conveyance path 70 by the feed roller of the manual feed tray 32.

  In the main conveyance path 70, a registration roller pair 70a is disposed. The registration roller pair 70a sandwiches the sheet conveyed in the main conveyance path 70 between the rollers, and then feeds the sheet toward the secondary transfer nip at a predetermined timing.

  The apparatus main body 5 includes an exposure unit 51, a tandem image forming apparatus 50, an intermediate transfer belt 54, an intermediate transfer roller 55, a secondary transfer apparatus 52, a fixing unit 53, and the like. Further, it has a main transport path 70, a reverse transport path 73, a paper discharge path 60, and the like. That is, it can be understood that the apparatus main body 5 is loaded with a plurality of loads. In this example, the apparatus main body 5 can be regarded as corresponding to the “main body” in the claims. In other words, the image forming apparatus main body 11 can be regarded as corresponding to the “main body” in the claims.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the exposure unit 51 is disposed adjacent to the tandem image forming apparatus 50. The exposure unit 51 performs exposure on the photosensitive drum 74 provided for each color. The tandem image forming apparatus 50 includes four image forming units 75 of yellow, cyan, magenta, and black on the intermediate transfer belt 54 along the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 54. Although not shown in detail, each image forming unit 75 includes a charging device, a developing device, a photoconductor cleaning device, a static elimination device, and the like around the photoconductor drums 74 provided for the respective colors. Each photosensitive drum 74 and each of the devices provided around the photosensitive drum 74 are unitized to form one process cartridge.

  In the tandem image forming apparatus 50, a visible image (toner image) formed by toner is formed on each photosensitive drum 74 based on the image information read by the image reading unit 4 and separated by color. It has become. The visible image formed on each photosensitive drum 74 is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 54 between each photosensitive drum 74 and the intermediate transfer roller 55.

  On the other hand, a secondary transfer device 52 is provided on the opposite side of the tandem image forming apparatus 50 with the intermediate transfer belt 54 interposed therebetween. The secondary transfer device 52 has a secondary transfer roller 521 as a transfer member. A secondary transfer nip is formed by pressing the secondary transfer roller 521 against the intermediate transfer belt 54. In the secondary transfer nip, a toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 54 is configured to be transferred to a sheet conveyed from the sheet feeding unit 3 via the main conveyance path 70.

  The sheet on which the toner image is transferred at the secondary transfer nip is sent to the fixing unit 53 by the sheet conveying belt 56 stretched around the two support rollers 57.

  The fixing unit 53 is configured by pressing a pressure roller 59 against a fixing belt 58 that is an endless belt. The fixing unit 53 applies heat and pressure to the paper by the pressure roller 59 to melt the toner of the toner image transferred onto the paper and fix it on the paper as a color image.

  The sheet on which the color image is fixed in this manner is stacked on a sheet discharge tray 61 outside the apparatus via a sheet discharge path 60 as a sheet discharge conveyance path.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a reverse conveyance path 73 is provided below the secondary transfer device 52 and the fixing unit 53. The reverse conveyance path 73 is used for reversing the front and back of the paper discharged from the fixing unit 53 and supplying it again to the secondary transfer device 52 via the main conveyance path 70 in order to form images on both sides of the paper. Is.

  A plurality of paper detection sensors are arranged along the conveyance path in the main conveyance path 70 and the reverse conveyance path 73. Note that the number and location of the sheet detection sensors are set as appropriate. When each paper detection sensor does not detect the passage of paper within a predetermined time, it grasps that a paper jam has occurred, and detects that a jam has occurred in a display unit (not shown) of the image forming apparatus 1. You can be notified.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment holds the secondary transfer device 52, the fixing unit 53, the main transport path 70, the paper discharge path 60, the reverse transport path 73 and the like shown in FIG. 5 is provided with a drawer unit 76 that can be pulled out with respect to the unit 5. In this example, the drawer unit 76 corresponds to a “unit portion” in the claims.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drawer unit 76 is pulled out. The drawer unit 76 includes a carrier 71 that holds the secondary transfer device 52, the fixing unit 53, the main conveyance path 70, and the reverse conveyance path 73. A front cover 6 is attached to the carrier 71. The carrier 71 is supported by a rail 72 provided in the apparatus main body so as to be movable in the front-rear direction (arrow FR in FIG. 2) with respect to the apparatus main body 5. The user grips the handle 6a provided on the front cover 6 and moves the front cover 6 in the front-rear direction (arrow FR in FIG. 2) with respect to the apparatus main body 5. Can be pulled out against. Further, in this specification, the front side F of the image forming apparatus 1 means the front side of the image forming apparatus 1, and the rear side R means the back side of the image forming apparatus 1.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram when the drawer unit 76 is pulled out. In FIG. 3, the secondary transfer device 52, the fixing unit 53, the main conveyance path 70, and the reverse conveyance path 73 held by the carrier 71 are not shown. In the drawer unit 76 illustrated below, the secondary transfer device 52, the fixing unit 53, the main transport path 70, and the reverse transport path 73 held by the carrier 71 are not illustrated as appropriate. As shown in FIG. 3, the electrical component board 120 is disposed in the drawer unit 76. The electrical board 120 has a CPU, a ROM, and the like. The ROM includes a control program for performing control of the secondary transfer device 52, control of the fixing unit 53, paper transport control in the main transport path 70, paper transport control in the reverse transport path 73, jam detection control, and the like. It is remembered. The CPU executes various programs by executing programs stored in the ROM. In the following description, the electrical board 120 may be referred to as a “control unit 120” for explanation.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, even when the drawer unit 76 is pulled out, the electrical board 120 and the apparatus main body 5 are connected using the bundled wire 105 as an electric wire, and the electrical connection is maintained. It has come to be. In this way, by arranging the electrical board 120 that controls the device held by the carrier 71 in the drawer unit 76, the bundle line necessary for connection is the bundle line connecting the electrical board 120 and the apparatus main body 5. Only one 105 is required, and it is easy to secure a bundle path.

  4A is an exploded perspective view of the carrier 71 of the drawer unit 76 and the front cover 6, and FIG. 4B is a perspective view of the front cover 6 fixed to the carrier 71 of the drawer unit 76. The front cover 6 is screwed to the drawer unit front side plate 150 and is configured to be removed without using a tool.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the drawer unit 76 with the front cover 6 removed. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the drawer unit 76 is stored in the apparatus main body 5. As shown in FIG. 5, a bundled wire 105 is arranged at the right end (the main conveyance path 70 side end) of the drawer unit 76 in the drawing, and the bundled wire 105 is held by a code guide (not shown). ing. The bundled wire 105 is a so-called curl cord in which a cord is wound spirally. By using the curled cord as the bundled wire 105, the bundled wire 105 can be expanded and contracted in the pull-out direction. Thereby, the bending of the bundled wire 105 can be suppressed compared with the case where the bundled wire 105 is not expanded and contracted.

  A lock shaft 703 is rotatably supported by the drawer unit front side plate 150 and the drawer unit rear side plate 151. A lock member 160 is provided at the rear end of the lock shaft 703.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the lock member 160. As shown in FIG. 6, the rear end portion of the lock shaft 703 protrudes from the drawer unit rear plate 151, and the lock member 160 is attached to the end portion. The lock member 160 has a prismatic fitting member 163 fixed to the lock shaft 703. In addition, the lock member 160 has a roller shaft 161 fixed to the fitting member 163 so as to penetrate in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the lock shaft 703. In the vicinity of both ends of the roller shaft 161, there is a rotating roller 162 that is rotatably attached to the roller shaft 161.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the lock shaft 703 is attached to the drawer unit rear plate 151 via a sintered bearing 721. Further, an E ring 722 is fixed to a groove provided in the lock shaft 703 so as to contact the front side surface of the drawer unit rear plate 151.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the drawer unit front side plate 150 is provided with a drive unit 700 that rotationally drives the lock member 160 via the lock shaft 703.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the drive unit 700. As shown in FIG. 7, the drive unit 700 includes a drive motor 701. The drive motor 701 is fixed to the drawer unit front plate 150 so that the motor shaft is parallel to the drawer unit front plate 150. By fixing the drive motor 701 in this way, the drawer unit 76 becomes larger in the pull-out direction than when the motor shaft of the drive motor 701 is fixed so as to be orthogonal to the drawer unit front plate 150. Can be suppressed.

  A screw gear 704 a of the worm gear 704 is fixed to the motor shaft of the drive motor 701. The driving force of the drive motor 701 is transmitted from the helical gear 704b of the worm gear 704 meshing with the screw gear 704a to the driven gear 706 fixed to the lock shaft 703 via a gear train 705 including a plurality of idler gears. Is driven to rotate. In this example, the drive unit 700 corresponds to a “drive unit” in the claims.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the rear side of the apparatus main body 5 with the drawer unit 76 being pulled out, and FIG. 9 is an apparatus with the drawer unit 76 stored (set) in the apparatus main body 5. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the rear side of the main body unit 5. A positioning hole 502 into which a positioning pin 152 provided at the left end portion of the drawer unit 76 in the drawing is inserted near the left end portion of the main body rear side plate 501 in the drawing.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the positioning pins 152 are provided near both ends of the drawer unit rear side plate 151. In addition, positioning holes 153 into which positioning pins (not shown) provided in the apparatus main body 5 are inserted are provided at both ends of the drawer unit front plate 150. A positioning pin (not shown) provided in the apparatus main body 5 has the same shape as the positioning pin 152 provided on the drawer unit rear side plate 151.

  FIG. 11 is a view showing the positioning pin 152. As shown in FIG. 11, the positioning pin 152 includes a fitting portion 152b that fits into the positioning hole 502, and a guide portion 152a that guides the positioning hole 502 to the fitting portion 152b. Further, as will be described later, the positioning pin 152 is provided when the drawer unit 76 housed in the apparatus main body 5 by the lock member 160 cannot be pulled out from the apparatus main body 5 (when locked). It has a seat surface portion 152c having a diameter larger than that of the fitting portion 152b pressed against the rear side plate 501.

  The fitting portion 152b has a diameter of 10 mm, which is the same diameter as the positioning hole 502. The guide portion 152a has a straight portion 152a2 having a diameter of 9.8 mm, a tip portion 152a1 whose diameter gradually decreases from the straight portion 152a toward the tip, and a taper whose diameter gradually increases from the straight portion 152a2 toward the fitting portion 152b. Part 152a3.

  The main body rear side plate 501 is provided with a set detection sensor 172 for detecting that the drawer unit 76 is set (stored) in the apparatus main body 5. The drawer unit rear plate 151 is provided with a set detection filler 171 as a set detection portion detected by the set detection sensor 172. That is, in the present embodiment, a set detection mechanism as a set detection means for detecting whether or not the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 is configured by the set detection sensor 172, the set detection filler 171 and the like. doing.

  FIG. 12 is an enlarged configuration diagram near the set detection sensor 172. As shown in FIG. 12, as the set detection sensor 172, a photo interrupter (transmission type optical sensor) is used. When the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus body 5, the set detection filler 171 provided on the drawer unit rear side plate 151 enters between the light receiving part 172b and the light emitting part 172a of the set detection sensor 172, and emits light. The light traveling from the portion 172a to the light receiving portion 172b is blocked. Therefore, the light receiving unit 172b does not detect the light from the light emitting unit 172a, and the signal output from the light receiving unit 172b (set detection sensor 172) is a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state”. On the other hand, in the state where the drawer unit 76 is not set in the apparatus main body 5 (the unset state), the set detection filler 171 does not exist between the light emitting unit 172a and the light receiving unit 172b, and from the light emitting unit 172a. Since the emitted light reaches the light receiving unit 172b (the light receiving unit 172b receives light from the light emitting unit 172a), the signal output from the light receiving unit 172b is a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”.

  For example, when the drawer unit 76 is not set, the set detection filler 171 enters between the light receiving unit 172b and the light emitting unit 172a of the set detection sensor 172, and then passes from the light emitting unit 172a to the light receiving unit 172b. While the light that travels is blocked, the set detection filler 171 does not exist between the light emitting unit 172a and the light receiving unit 172b in a state where the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5, and is emitted from the light emitting unit 172a. The light may reach the light receiving unit 172b (the light receiving unit 172b receives the light from the light emitting unit 172a).

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, when the drawer unit 76 is locked to the apparatus main body 5, the lock receiving member 180 against which the rotary roller 162 of the lock member 160 is pressed is the main body rear side plate 501. Is provided. As will be described later, the lock receiving member 180 has a hole into which the lock member 160 can be inserted. In this example, the lock receiving member 180 corresponds to a “receiving member” in the claims.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged configuration diagram in the vicinity of the lock receiving member 180, and FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the lock receiving member 180. The lock receiving member 180 is provided with a lock through hole 184 (corresponding to a “hole” in the claims) into which the lock member 160 is inserted. A secondary transfer through hole 185 into which a joint member 353 b fixed to the shaft of the secondary transfer roller 521 is inserted is provided above the lock through hole 184. The secondary transfer through-hole 185 and the lock through-hole 184 of the lock receiving member 180 have a cylindrical shape.

  When the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5, the joint member 353 b passes through the secondary transfer through hole 185 and is assembled to a joint member (not shown) of the secondary transfer driving unit 800 shown in FIG. It is done. Thereby, the secondary transfer roller 521 is rotationally driven by the driving force of the secondary transfer motor.

  As shown in FIG. 13, a locked portion for locking the drawer unit 76 so that it cannot be pulled out from the apparatus main body 5 by the rotation roller 162 of the lock member 160 coming into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the lock through-hole 184. The lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b are formed. Further, guide surfaces 183a and 183b for guiding the rotary roller 162 of the lock member 160 to the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b are respectively connected to the end portions of the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b in the clockwise direction in the drawing. Yes.

  16 is a view of the lock receiving member 180 cut in the AA direction of FIG. 14, (a) is a cross-sectional view of the lock receiving member 180 viewed from the side, and (b) is a lock view. 4 is a cross-sectional perspective view of a receiving member 180. FIG. As shown in FIG. 16, the guide surfaces 183a and 183b are tapered surfaces that are inclined toward the drawer unit 76 (front side) as they move away from the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 13, notches 181a and 181b for inserting the rotating roller 162 of the lock member 160 are formed on the guide surfaces 183a and 183b at the end portions on the clockwise side in the drawing. ing.

  Further, guide surfaces 186a and 186b inclined to the front side are also formed at the counterclockwise end portions of the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b in the drawing. In this example, the guide surfaces 183a, 183b, 186a, 186b correspond to “guide portions” in the claims.

  Next, a lock detection mechanism as a lock detection means for detecting whether the drawer unit 76 is in the locked state or the unlocked state will be described. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a lock detection mechanism. As shown in FIG. 17, the lock detection mechanism includes a disk-shaped lock detection filler 192 attached to the lock shaft 703, and a photo interrupter (transmission type optical sensor) lock detection sensor 191. doing. The lock detection filler 192 enters between the light receiving unit 191b and the light emitting unit 191a of the lock detection sensor 191, and blocks light traveling from the light emitting unit 191a to the light receiving unit 191b. Accordingly, the light receiving unit 191b does not detect the light from the light emitting unit 191a, and the signal output from the light receiving unit 191b (lock detection sensor 191) is a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state”. On the other hand, when the lock detection filler 192 is not present between the light emitting unit 191a and the light receiving unit 191b, the light emitted from the light emitting unit 191a reaches the light receiving unit 191b (the light receiving unit 191b is connected to the light emitting unit 191a). Therefore, the signal output from the light receiving unit 191b is a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”. In this example, the lock detection sensor 191 corresponds to “optical sensor” in the claims, and the lock detection filler 192 corresponds to “detection member” in the claims.

  FIG. 18 is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of a main configuration of the control system according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 18, a drawer handle detection sensor 200, a plurality of paper detection sensors 300, a drive motor 701, a lock detection sensor 191, a set detection sensor 172, and the like are connected to the control unit 120 as control means. The CPU mounted on the control unit 120 executes a program stored in the ROM mounted on the control unit 120 to control the drive motor 701 to control the lock of the drawer unit 76. Perform various controls.

  The drawer handle detection sensor 200 is provided on the front cover 6 and includes an optical sensor including a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit. In this example, when the user puts his hand into the drawer and a flapper (not shown) is pressed, the light receiving unit receives light from the light emitting unit. The light receiving unit outputs a signal indicating “ON: transmission state” in a state where the light from the light emitting unit is received, and outputs a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state” in a state where the light from the light emitting unit is not received. Output. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the user puts his hand in the drawer and the flapper is pressed, the light receiving unit does not receive the light from the light emitting unit, while in the state where the flapper is not pressed, the light receiving unit receives the light from the light emitting unit. May be configured to receive light. The control unit 120 can detect whether the flapper is pressed based on a signal output from the drawer handle detection sensor 200 (light receiving unit).

  Further, the control unit 120 can determine whether or not a paper jam has occurred in the image forming apparatus 1 based on a signal output from the paper detection sensor 300 provided in each part of the image forming apparatus 1. At the same time, the location where the paper jam has occurred can be identified.

  Further, the control unit 120 can detect whether or not the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 based on a signal output from the set detection sensor 172. In this example, it can be understood that the control unit 120 has a function corresponding to the “first detection unit” in the claims. The control unit 120 can detect the rotational position of the lock member 160 based on a signal output from the lock detection sensor 191. In this example, the control unit 120 can be regarded as having a function corresponding to the “second detection unit” in the claims. Further, the control unit 120 individually controls the supply of power to each load such as a sensor or a motor mounted on the drawer unit 76. In this example, it can be understood that the control unit 120 has a function corresponding to the “power control unit” in the claims.

  Next, a locked state in which the drawer unit 76 cannot be pulled out from the apparatus main body 5 and a lock release state in which the drawer unit 76 can be pulled out from the apparatus main body 5 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 19A, in the unlocked state, the rotary roller 162 of the lock member 160 is located at a position corresponding to the notches 181a and 181b of the lock receiving member 180. Further, in the unlocked state, the lock detection filler 192 of the lock detection mechanism is located just away from the opposing portion of the lock detection sensor 191 between the light receiving unit 191b and the light emitting unit 191a. Therefore, in this case, the light receiving unit 191b of the lock detection sensor 191 detects the light of the light emitting unit 191a and outputs a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”.

  In the following description, the rotational position of the lock member 160 in the unlocked state is referred to as a “first position”. When the rotation position of the lock member 160 is the first position, the lock member 160 can be inserted into and removed from the lock through-hole 184 formed in the lock receiving member 180. For example, when the lock is released (when the rotation position of the lock member 160 is the first position), the lock detection filler 192 is interposed between the light receiving unit 191b and the light emitting unit 191a of the lock detection sensor 191. The light receiving unit 191b may output a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state”.

  From this state, when the drawer unit 76 is set (stored) in the apparatus body 5, the lock member 160 is inserted into the lock through-hole 184 of the lock receiving member 180. When the rotary roller 162 moves to the rear side of the guide unit 183a, 183b end on the drawer unit side, the set detection filler 171 enters between the light receiving unit 172b and the light emitting unit 172a of the set detection sensor 172, The light from the light emitting unit 172a is blocked. Based on the signal from the set detection sensor 172, the control unit 120 that detects the set of the drawer unit 76 starts driving the drive motor 701 and rotates the lock shaft 703.

  When the lock shaft 703 rotates, as shown in FIG. 19B, the rotary roller 162 of the lock member 160 comes into contact with the guide surfaces 183a and 183b and is guided by the guide surfaces 183a and 183b. Move to 182a, 182b. In this way, the rotary shaft 162 moves rearward while being guided by the guide surfaces 183a and 183b, whereby the lock shaft 703 is pulled back. As shown in FIG. 6, the E-ring 722 is fixed to the groove of the lock shaft 703 so as to contact the front side surface of the drawer unit rear side plate 151. Therefore, when the lock shaft 703 attempts to move rearward, the drawer unit rear plate 151 is pushed rearward by the E ring 722, and the drawer unit 76 is pulled into the apparatus main body 5.

  Further, since the rotating roller 162 is rotatably attached to the roller shaft 161, the rotating roller 162 moves on the guide surfaces 183a and 183b while rotating. Thereby, an increase in frictional resistance with the guide surfaces 183a and 183b can be suppressed, and the drawer unit 76 can be smoothly pulled back.

  In the present embodiment, the positioning pin 152 is fitted into the positioning hole 502 after the drawing by the lock member 160 is started, and the positioning is performed. Before the drawing is started (the signal from the set detection sensor 172 changes from “ON: transmission state” to “OFF: light shielding state”), the fitting portion 152b of the positioning pin 152 is fitted into the positioning hole 502. In the case of the configuration, the fitting portion 152 b is fitted into the positioning hole 502 when the drawer unit 76 is manually pushed. As a result, the resistance when pushing in manually is increased. In particular, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the fitting portions 152b of the positioning pins 152 are positioned almost simultaneously in two places, that is, two places on the drawer unit rear side plate 151 and two places on the drawer unit front side plate 150. The hole 502 is fitted. Therefore, the resistance at the time of pushing in during manual pushing increases rapidly. As a result, the user may misunderstand that the user has pushed in to the pull-in start position, and the pushing-in of the drawer unit may be stopped.

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 20, when the tapered portion 152a3 of the positioning pin 152 reaches the positioning hole 502, the signal from the set detection sensor 172 changes from “ON: transmission state” to “OFF: light shielding. The control unit 120 detects that the drawer unit 76 has been set in the apparatus main body unit 5 and starts drawing (starts driving the drive motor 701). While the drawer unit 76 is pulled by the lock member 160, the tapered portion 152 a 3 of the positioning pin 152 moves through the positioning hole 502, and the fitting portion 152 b of the positioning pin 152 is fitted into the positioning hole 502. Therefore, the push-in resistance rapidly increases until the pull-in unit 76 is pushed into the pull-in start position by the lock member 160 (the position at which the signal from the set detection sensor 172 changes from “ON: transmission state” to “OFF: light shielding state”). The increase can be suppressed. Thereby, the drawer unit 76 can be manually pushed into the retracting start position by the lock member 160 with certainty.

  Even after the positioning pin 152 is fitted into the positioning hole 502, the drawer unit 76 is pulled back by the guide surfaces 183a and 183b, and the positioning pin provided on the drawer unit rear plate 151 as shown in FIG. The seating surface portion 152c of the 152 abuts against the main body rear side plate 501. Then, as shown in FIG. 19 (c), when the rotating roller 162 of the lock member 160 reaches the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b, the lock detection sensor 191 detects the lock between the light receiving part 191b and the light emitting part 191a. A signal that enters the filler 192 and is output from the light receiving unit 191a is a signal indicating "OFF: light shielding state". The control unit 120 that has received a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state” from the lock detection sensor 191 detects that the drawer unit 76 has transitioned to a state in which it cannot be pulled out from the apparatus main body unit 5 (transitioned to the lock state). This is detected), and the drive motor 701 is stopped.

  In the following description, the rotational position of the lock member 160 in the locked state is referred to as a “second position”. When the rotation position of the lock member 160 is the second position, the lock member 160 is in a state where it cannot be inserted into and removed from the lock through hole 184 formed in the lock receiving member 180. For example, when the lock member 160 is in the locked state (when the rotation position of the lock member 160 is the second position), the lock detection filler 192 is exactly the light receiving unit 191b and the light emitting unit 191a of the lock detection sensor 191. The light receiving unit 191b may detect the light from the light emitting unit 191a and output a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”.

  In addition, as will be described later, when the control unit 120 detects that the user is about to pull out the drawer unit 76 in the locked state, the lock member 160 rotates counterclockwise in the drawing. Thus, control for driving the drive motor 701 is performed. As a result, the rotary roller 162 moves from the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b to the guide surfaces 186a and 186b. Then, as shown in FIG. 19D, the rotating roller 162 that has been in contact with the lock receiving surface 182a has reached the position of the notch 181a, and the rotating roller 162 that has been in contact with the lock receiving surface 182b is When the position of the notch 181b is reached, the lock detection filler 192 does not exist between the light receiving unit 191b and the light emitting unit 191a of the lock detection sensor. As a result, the signal output from the lock detection sensor 191 is switched from the signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state” to the signal indicating “ON: transmission state”. The control unit 120 that has detected that the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has switched from “OFF: light shielding state” to “ON: transmission state” has transitioned to a state in which the drawer unit 76 can be pulled out from the apparatus body 5. This is detected (detection of transition to the unlocked state), and control to stop the rotation of the drive motor 701 is performed.

  Next, an operation example when transitioning from the locked state to the unlocked state will be described. FIG. 21 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example when transitioning from the locked state to the unlocked state. In this example, the control unit 120 performs polling for requesting an output signal (detection result) to various sensors such as the drawer handle detection sensor 200 every 10 msec, but the polling cycle is limited to 10 msec. Instead, the control unit 120 can perform polling at an arbitrary cycle. As shown in FIG. 21, the control unit 120 first determines whether the signal from the drawer handle detection sensor 200 has changed from a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state” to a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”. (Step S1).

  If it is determined in step S1 that the signal from the pull-out handle detection sensor 200 has changed from “OFF: light shielding state” to “ON: transmission state” (step S1: YES), the control unit 120 determines that the flapper ( It is detected that (not shown) has been pressed (step S2). Next, the control unit 120 determines whether a paper jam has occurred based on a signal from each paper detection sensor 300 (step S3).

  When it is determined in step S3 described above that a paper jam has occurred (step S3: YES), the control unit 120 determines whether a paper jam has occurred in the drawer unit 76 (step S4). If it is determined that a paper jam has occurred in the drawer unit 76 (step S4: YES), the process proceeds to step S6 described later. On the other hand, when it is determined that a paper jam has occurred in a part other than the drawer unit (step S4: NO), the control unit 120 uses a work method for clearing the location where the paper jam has occurred or the paper jam. Control which displays on a display unit (not shown) and notifies the user is performed (step S5). And a process transfers to below-mentioned step S6. If it is determined in step S3 described above that no paper jam has occurred (step S3: NO), the process proceeds to step S6 described later.

  In step S <b> 6, the control unit 120 determines whether the lock has already been released based on the signal from the lock detection sensor 191. When the signal received from the lock detection sensor 191 is a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”, the control unit 120 determines that the lock has already been released (step S6: YES), and ends the process. On the other hand, when the signal received from the lock detection sensor 191 is a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state”, the control unit 120 determines that the signal is still in the locked state (step S6: NO), and the plotter is operating (printing in progress). , Including adjustment, warm-up, etc.) (step S7).

  When it is determined in step S7 described above that the plotter is operating (step S7: YES), the control unit 120 maintains the locked state (step S8), and ends the process. On the other hand, when it is determined that the plotter is not operating (step S7: NO), the control unit 120 stops supplying power to each load mounted on the drawer unit 76 (step S9). Next, the control unit 120 determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the drive motor 701 or the drawer handle detection sensor 200 (step S10).

  In step S10 described above, when it is determined that an abnormality has occurred in the drive motor 701 or the drawer handle detection sensor 200 (step S10: YES), the control unit 120 maintains the locked state (step S11) and performs processing. finish. On the other hand, when it is determined that no abnormality has occurred in the drive motor 701 or the drawer handle detection sensor 200 (step S10: NO), the control unit 120 performs control for releasing the lock state (in the following description, “lock release control”). Is sometimes called (step S12).

  FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating an example of lock release control. As shown in FIG. 22, first, the control unit 120 starts driving the drive motor 701 (step S20). In this case, as described above, when the lock shaft 703 rotates according to the drive of the drive motor 701, the rotary roller 162 moves from the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b to the guide surfaces 186a and 186b, and moves to the guide surfaces 186a and 186b. It moves to the position of the notches 181a and 181b while being guided (retraction is released).

  Next, the control unit 120 determines whether or not the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has changed from “OFF: light shielding state” to “ON: transmission state” (step S21). When it is determined that the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has changed from “OFF: light shielding state” to “ON: transmission state” (step S21: YES), that is, the rotational position of the lock member 160 is changed from the first position. When it is determined (detected) that the position has changed to the second position, the control unit 120 applies a brake in order to fix the rotation position of the lock member 160 to the second position (in order to maintain the unlocked state). Then, the drive of the drive motor 701 is stopped (step S22). And after time T2 (for example, T2 = 500 msec) passes, the control part 120 cancels | releases the brake of the drive motor 701, and stops supply of the electric power with respect to the drive motor 701 (step S23).

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S21 described above that the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has not changed from “OFF: light shielding state” to “ON: transmission state” (step S21: NO), the control unit 120 Then, it is determined whether or not the operation time of the drive motor 701 after starting the drive in the above-described step S20 has exceeded the time T1 (for example, T1 = 10000 msec) (step S24). When it is determined that the operation time of the drive motor 701 has exceeded the time T1 (step S24: YES), the control unit 120 calls a contractor (serviceman) to indicate that an abnormality that needs to be repaired has occurred. Control is performed to display the call on a display unit (not shown) (step S25). And the control part 120 stops the drive of the drive motor 701, and stops supply of the electric power with respect to the drive motor 701 (step S26). The above is the content of the unlock control in the present embodiment.

  Next, an operation example when transitioning from the unlocked state to the locked state will be described. FIG. 23 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example when transitioning from the locked state to the unlocked state. As shown in FIG. 23, first, the control unit 120 displays a service man call or opens a door (not shown) that covers toner stored in the image forming apparatus main body 11 (door open). ) Is determined (step S30). If the serviceman call is being displayed or if it is determined that the door is open (step S30: YES), the process ends. On the other hand, when the serviceman call is being displayed or when it is determined that the door is not open (step S30: NO), the control unit 120 determines whether or not it is currently in the unlocked state (step S31). In this example, the control unit 120 determines (detects) whether or not the lock is released based on the signal received from the lock detection sensor 191. More specifically, when the signal received from the lock detection sensor 191 is a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”, the control unit 120 determines that the signal is in the lock state, while “OFF: light shielding state”. Is a signal indicating that the lock is released.

  When it is determined in the above-described step S31 that the lock is released (step S31: YES), the control unit 120 checks whether or not the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 (step S31). In the following description, it may be referred to as “set state confirmation control”) (step S32). In the present embodiment, the control unit 120 determines whether or not the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 based on a signal from the set detection sensor 172. More specifically, when the signal from the set detection sensor 172 is a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”, the control unit 120 is in a state where the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5. The process proceeds to step S33 described later. On the other hand, when the signal from the set detection sensor 172 is a signal indicating “OFF: light shielding state”, the control unit 120 determines that the drawer unit 76 is not set in the apparatus main body unit 5, The process is terminated as it is.

  In the set state confirmation control in step 32 described above, when it is determined that the drawer unit 76 is in the state of being set in the apparatus main body unit 5, the control unit 120 performs control to shift to the locked state (in the following description, “ May be called "lock control") (step S33). Hereinafter, specific contents of the lock control will be described.

  FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating an example of lock control. As shown in FIG. 24, first, the control unit 120 starts driving the drive motor 701 (step S40). In this case, as described above, when the lock shaft 703 rotates according to the drive of the drive motor 701, the rotating roller 162 of the lock member 160 contacts the guide surfaces 183a and 183b and is guided to the guide surfaces 183a and 183b. By moving to the lock receiving surfaces 182a and 182b on the rear side, the lock shaft 703 is pulled back.

  Next, the control unit 120 determines whether or not the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has changed from “ON: transmission state” to “OFF: light shielding state” (step S41). When it is determined that the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has changed from “ON: transmission state” to “OFF: light shielding state” (step S41: YES), that is, the rotational position of the lock member 160 is changed from the second position. When it is determined that the position has changed to the first position, the control unit 120 applies a brake to fix the rotation position of the lock member 160 at the first position (in order to maintain the locked state), and the drive motor. The driving of 701 is stopped (step S42). And after time T4 (for example, T4 = 500 msec) passes, the control part 120 cancels | releases the brake of the drive motor 701, and stops supply of the electric power with respect to the drive motor 701 (step S43).

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S41 described above that the signal from the lock detection sensor 191 has not changed from "ON: transmission state" to "OFF: light shielding state" (step S41: NO), the control unit 120 Then, it is determined whether or not the operation time of the drive motor 701 after starting the drive in the above-described step S40 has exceeded the time T3 (for example, T3 = 10000 msec) (step S44). When it is determined that the operation time of the drive motor 701 has exceeded the time T3 (step S44: YES), the control unit 120 performs control to display the above-mentioned service man call on a display unit (not shown) (step S45). And the control part 120 stops the drive of the drive motor 701, and stops supply of the electric power with respect to the drive motor 701 (step S46). The above is the content of the lock control in this embodiment.

  Returning to FIG. 23 again, the description will be continued. After the lock control in step S33 described above, the control unit 120 determines whether or not the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 (step S34). In the present embodiment, the control unit 120 determines whether or not the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 based on a signal from the set detection sensor 172. More specifically, when the signal from the set detection sensor 172 is a signal indicating “ON: transmission state”, the control unit 120 is in a state where the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5. On the other hand, if the signal indicates “OFF: light shielding state”, it is determined that the drawer unit 76 is not set in the apparatus main body 5.

  If it is determined in step S34 described above that the drawer unit 76 is not in the state of being set in the apparatus main body 5 (step S34: NO), the control unit 120 displays the above-mentioned service man call on a display unit (not shown). Display control is performed (step S35). On the other hand, when it is determined that the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 (step S34: YES), the control unit 120 applies to at least some of the loads mounted on the drawer unit 76. Control for starting the supply of electric power is performed (step S36). The above is the content of the lock control in this embodiment.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when it is detected that the drawer unit 76 is set in the apparatus main body 5 in the unlocked state, the rotation position of the lock member 160 is changed from the first position to the first position. By moving to position 2, the state is shifted to the locked state. Then, by detecting whether the lock member 160 has moved to the second position based on the signal output from the lock detection sensor 191 described above, it is ensured whether the drawer unit 76 has transitioned to the locked state. Judgment can be made. Thereby, it is possible to reliably prevent the drawer unit 76 that should have shifted to the locked state from being unintentionally detached.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, the above-mentioned embodiment is shown as an example and is not intending limiting the range of invention. The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments as they are, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Further, the above-described embodiment and modification examples can be arbitrarily combined.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example of an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a recording medium has been described as an electronic apparatus to which the present invention is applied. However, the present invention is not limited to this and the present invention is applied. The type of electronic equipment to be obtained is arbitrary.

  The program executed by the control unit 120 is an installable or executable file and can be read by a computer such as a CD-ROM, flexible disk (FD), CD-R, or DVD (Digital Versatile Disk). The recording medium may be recorded and provided.

  Further, the program executed by the control unit 120 described above may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. The program executed by the control unit 120 may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 5 Apparatus main-body part 76 Drawer unit 120 Control part (electric equipment board | substrate)
160 Lock member 171 Set detection filler 172 Set detection sensor 180 Lock reception member 182 Lock reception surface 183 Guide surface 184 Lock through hole 186 Guide surface 191 Lock detection sensor 192 Lock detection filler 700 Drive unit 701 Drive motor 703 Lock shaft

JP 2003-320660 A

Claims (10)

Electronic equipment,
A unit unit that is configured integrally with at least a part of the front cover of the electronic device, is configured to be drawable from the main body unit, and is equipped with a load that performs an operation ,
A first position where the unit part can be pulled out from the main body part; and a lock part which can be moved to a second position where the unit part cannot be pulled out from the main body part;
A first detection unit for detecting that the unit unit is stored in the main body unit;
A motor that starts driving to move the lock unit to the second position when the first detection unit detects that the unit unit is stored in the body unit;
A second detection unit for detecting whether or not the lock unit has moved to the second position;
A drawer handle detection sensor for detecting that the user is about to pull out the unit portion;
With
When the second detection unit detects that the lock unit has moved to the second position, the movement of the lock unit by driving the motor is stopped ,
When the drawer handle detection sensor detects that the unit portion is about to be pulled out while the operation of the load is stopped, the motor moves the lock portion from the second position to the first position. Let
Electronics. The lock part is
Including a lock member that can rotate according to the driving of the motor;
The main body is
A receiving member having a hole into which the lock member can be inserted;
When the rotation position of the lock member is the first position, the lock member can be inserted into and removed from the hole, while when the rotation position of the lock member is the second position, the lock member Is in a state where it cannot be inserted into and removed from the hole,
The electronic device according to claim 1 . The lock part is
A lock shaft that is supported by the unit portion and that can rotate according to the driving of the motor,
The lock member is provided at an end of the lock shaft.
The electronic device according to claim 2 . The second detector is
An optical sensor including a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion;
A detection member that is attached to the lock shaft and that blocks or passes light from the light-emitting portion with respect to the light-receiving portion according to a rotational position of the lock shaft.
The electronic device according to claim 3 . In the case of the first position, the detection member enters between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit, blocks light from the light emitting unit to the light receiving unit, and in the case of the second position, the detection The member is not positioned between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit, and allows light from the light emitting unit to pass through the light receiving unit.
The electronic device according to claim 4 . When the second detection unit detects that the lock unit has moved to the second position, control is performed to supply power to at least a part of the load mounted on the unit unit. A power control unit for performing further,
The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 . The receiving member has a pull-in mechanism that pulls the unit portion into the main body when the rotational position of the lock member inserted into the hole moves from the first position to the second position.
The electronic device according to claim 2 . The receiving member has a lock receiving surface for locking the unit part so that the unit part cannot be pulled out from the main body part when the lock member in the second position comes into contact.
The pull-in mechanism includes a guide portion that is inclined in a pull-out direction of the unit portion and guides the lock member to the lock receiving surface.
The electronic device according to claim 7 . An image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium,
A unit unit configured integrally with at least a part of the front cover of the image forming apparatus , configured to be able to be pulled out from the main body unit, and loaded with an operation ;
A first position where the unit part can be pulled out from the main body part; and a lock part which can be moved to a second position where the unit part cannot be pulled out from the main body part;
A first detection unit for detecting that the unit unit is stored in the main body unit;
A motor that starts driving to move the lock unit to the second position when the first detection unit detects that the unit unit is stored in the body unit;
A second detection unit for detecting whether or not the lock unit has moved to the second position;
A drawer handle detection sensor for detecting that the user is about to pull out the unit portion;
With
When the second detection unit detects that the lock unit has moved to the second position, the movement of the lock unit by driving the motor is stopped ,
When the drawer handle detection sensor detects that the unit portion is about to be pulled out while the operation of the load is stopped, the motor moves the lock portion from the second position to the first position. Let
Image forming apparatus. A lock that is configured integrally with at least a part of the front cover of the electronic device and that can be pulled out from the main body, and that locks the unit mounted with an operating load so that it cannot be pulled out from the main body. A method,
A first detection step of detecting that the unit portion is stored in the main body portion;
When it is detected by the first detection step that the unit part is stored in the main body part, a first position where the unit part can be pulled out from the main body part, and the unit part is moved to the main body part. A drive start step for starting driving of a motor for moving the lock portion movable to the second position which cannot be pulled out from the second position;
A second detection step of detecting whether or not the lock portion has moved to the second position by the driving step;
A motor stop step for stopping movement of the lock portion by driving the motor when detecting that the lock portion has moved to the second position;
A drawer handle detecting step for detecting by a sensor that the user is about to pull out the unit part;
A movement step of driving the motor to move the lock portion from the second position to the first position when it is detected that the drawer is going to be performed while the operation of the load is stopped;
including,
Lock method.

Images