JPH03107172A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve operability by providing both a first automatic document feeding type document feeding device and a manual feeding type semi-automatic document feeding device and selecting and utilizing one which is easier to use. CONSTITUTION:The document which is automatically extracted is fed into a space between a document platen 3 by the automatic document feeding device 8, and the document is ejected to one edge side after an image is formed. On the other hand, the semi-automatic document feeding device 11 is provided with a manual inserting guide 9 by which the document is manually inserted, the manually inserted document is fed by feeding a platen sheet 4 to the space between the document platen 3 from the other edge side of the document platen 3 and is ejected to the other edge after image formation. Here, when the document feeding device 8 is in use, a space is formed by rotating and changing position of the movable platen sheet 4 with one edge side as a rotation supporting point with a space forming device 105. Then, when document feeding semiautomatically, the movable platen sheet 4 is rotated and changed in position with the other edge side as the rotation support point when the document feeding device is in use with a space forming device 200.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as an electronic copying apparatus,
More specifically, the present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to a document set on a document table.

(Prior art) In recent years, automatic document feeders have been developed that are equipped with a document feeder that takes out and supplies multiple sheets of document one by one, and automatically feeds the document that has been taken out automatically onto a document tray, forms an image on it, and then discharges it. Device (A
DF), and a semi-automatic document feeder (SDF) that is equipped with a manual feed guide to manually feed the document, automatically feeds the manually fed document onto the document tray A, and then ejects it after image formation. Image forming apparatuses equipped with this technology have been put into practical use.

However, in the past, automatic document feeder (A
There was no image forming apparatus equipped with both a semi-automatic document feeder (SDF) and a semi-automatic document feeder (SDF).

In addition, conventionally, the means for conveying a document is such that a wide endless conveyor belt and a belt drive mechanism for rotating the conveyor belt are built into a part of the cover that overlaps the document placing table, and the document is fed by the running of the conveyor belt. It has a configuration in which the originals fed from the feeding section are fed and set on the document placement table, and the originals on the document placement table are ejected onto the document output tray provided on the opposite side of the document feeding section. It has become.

(Question 8 to be solved by the invention) Conventionally, in one image forming apparatus, an automatic document feeder (ADF) and a semi-automatic document feeder (SD
F) cannot be used selectively.

Furthermore, the conventional automatic and semi-automatic document feeders have the following problems because the cover part has a wide conveyor belt and a belt drive mechanism for driving the conveyor belt. That is, the cost of the cover portion is high, and this portion occupies more than half of the entire automatic document feeder. In addition, a portion of the cover is heavy, making it difficult to open and close it. Furthermore, since the wide conveyance belt rotates while touching substantially the entire surface of the document table, there are problems in that it not only requires a large amount of power and power, but also causes noise.

The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned circumstances, and has the object of making it possible to use both an automatic document feeder and a semi-automatic document feeder, to significantly reduce the cost of the document feeder, and to provide a cover that can It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus which can be easily opened and closed, requires less power and power to a document feeder, and can reduce noise.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) As a first means for solving the above problems, the present invention provides an image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to a document set on a document tray. , a document holding cover including a movable platen sheet that overlaps the document placing table and is movable to form a gap between the document placing table and the document placing table; and a document feeder for taking out and supplying a plurality of documents one by one. a first document feeder having a first document feeder for automatically taking out a document from one end of the document placing table between the platen sheet and the document placing table and ejecting the document to the one end after image formation; a second manual feed guide for manually feeding a document; the manually fed document is fed between the platen sheet and the document placement table from the other end of the document placement table; and the second document is ejected to the other end after image formation; a document feeding device; a first gap forming device for forming the gap by rotationally displacing the movable platen sheet using one end as a rotational fulcrum when the first document feeding device is used; and a first gap forming means for forming the gap by rotationally displacing the movable platen sheet using the other end as a rotational fulcrum when the document feeding means is used. As means 2, in an image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to a document set on a document tray, a movable movable device that is overlapped with the document tray and movable to form a gap between the document tray and the document tray; It is equipped with a document holding cover equipped with a platen sheet and a document feeding unit that takes out and supplies multiple sheets of document one by one. a first document feeding means for ejecting the document to the one end side after image formation; and a manual feed guide for manually feeding the document; a second document feeder that feeds the sheet between the sheet and the document table and discharges the document to the other end after forming an image;
The apparatus further includes a parallel gap forming means for displacing the movable platen sheet parallel to the document mounting table to form the gap when the document feeding means is used.

(Function) That is, according to the first means, since both the first document feeding means for automatic document feeding and the second document feeding means for semi-automatic document feeding are provided, it is preferable to choose the one that is more convenient. It can be used selectively, and operability can be improved.

In addition, since it is equipped with a movable platen sheet that can be moved to create a gap between the original platen and the original platen, there is no need for a wide conveyor belt or belt drive mechanism in the cover part as in the conventional case. It can be placed on a mounting table. As a result, it is possible to significantly reduce the cost of the document feeder section, and also to reduce the weight of a portion of the cover, so that it can be opened and closed in the same way as a normal document holding cover. Furthermore, since there is nothing that rotates and runs in contact with substantially the entire surface of the document table, large amounts of power and power are not required, and the amount of power and power required for the automatic document feeder can be reduced, and noise can be reduced.

Furthermore, according to the second means, in addition to the effect of the first means,
The gap forming means for the first document feeding means and the gap forming means for the second document feeding means can be shared, and the configuration can be simplified.

(Embodiment) Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 26.

Figures 1 and 2 show how the manuscript is handled, and Figure 3 shows how the manuscript is handled.
The figure shows the internal configuration of the entire device. 4 to 6 show the upper part of the device.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an apparatus main body, and as shown in FIG. 3, the apparatus main body 1 houses image forming process constituent means 2 such as charging, exposure, development, transfer, cleaning, and fixing.

Further, on the top surface of the main body 1, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, there is a document holding cover 5 equipped with a movable platen sheet 4 that is superimposed on a platen glass 3 that serves as a document placement table. It is provided so that it can be opened and closed.

Further, near the right end side of the document holding cover 5, there is provided a document feeding section 6 that takes out and supplies a plurality of documents D one by one, and as shown in FIG. The paper is automatically fed between the movable platen sheet 4 and the platen glass 3 from the right end side of the platen glass 3, set with the right scale 7 as a reference as shown by the solid line in FIG. 2, and discharged after image formation. An automatic document feeder (ADF) 8 is provided as a first document feeding means.

Further, the left end portion of the document holding cover 5 is provided with a manual feed guide 9 for manually feeding the document, and as shown in FIG. and the platen glass 3, set the left scale 10 on the exposure start side as a reference as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 2, and discharge the document after image formation. Semi-automatic document feeder (S
DF) 11 is incorporated.

Furthermore, a numeric keypad 12 is provided on the front edge of the upper surface of the device main body 1.
, a guide display section 13, a copy key 14, and the like are arranged on an operation panel 15.

(See FIGS. 4 and 5) On the right side of the main body 1 of the apparatus, as shown in FIG. (Hereafter referred to as the upper cassette)
16 and a second paper feed cassette (hereinafter referred to as a lower cassette) 17 are installed. Furthermore, a tray 18 is installed on the left side of the apparatus main body 1 to collect fixed sheets P.

Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the image forming process configuration means 2 housed within the apparatus main body 1 will be described.

A drum-shaped photoreceptor 20 as an image carrier is arranged approximately in the center of the apparatus main body 1, and a charging device 21, an erasing device 22, a developing device 23, and a transfer device are arranged around the photoreceptor 20 in the direction of rotation thereof. device 24, peeling device 25, cleaning device 26,
Static eliminators 27 and the like are sequentially arranged. Further, in the upper part of the apparatus main body 1, an original set on the platen glass 3 with the right scale 7 or the left scale 10 as a reference is scanned and placed on the photoreceptor 20 from between the erasing device 22 and the developing device 23. An exposure device 28 for exposure is provided.

Further, inside the main body 1 of the apparatus, there is paper P1 automatically fed from the upper cassette 16 or the lower cassette 17, or paper manually fed via the manual paper feed table 30 which also serves as a cover for the upper cassette 16. A paper transport path 33 is formed that guides the paper P through an image transfer section 31 between the photoreceptor 20 and the transfer device 24 to a pair of paper discharge rollers 32 provided on the left side of the main body 1 of the apparatus.

On the upstream side of the image transfer section 31 of this paper conveyance path 33,
A pair of aligning rollers 34 are arranged, and a fixing device 35 is arranged on the downstream side.

Further, near the mounting portion of the upper cassette 16, a take-out roller 40 is attached to a swingable arm and takes out sheets P one by one. A separation conveyance means 41 consisting of a conveyance roller and a separation roller that feeds the paper P into a first branch conveyance path forming the upstream side of the paper conveyance path 33 is provided, and the manually fed paper P is separated and conveyed by the separation conveyance means 41. A manual feed roller 42 is provided that feeds the paper into the first branched conveyance path between the conveyance roller and separation roller which are spaced apart from each other.

Further, in the vicinity of the installed portion of the lower cassette 17, there is a take-out roller 43 that is attached to a swingable arm and takes out the sheets P one by one, and a take-out roller 43 that receives the sheets P taken out via the take-out paper feed roller 43. Separation conveyance means 44 consisting of a conveyance roller and a separation roller that feeds the sheet into a second branch conveyance path forming the upstream side of the paper conveyance path 33 is provided.

Further, the exposure device 28 illuminates a document set on a platen glass 3 provided on the top surface of the main body 1 with an exposure lamp 51 whose back is surrounded by a reflector 50, and uses reflected light from the surface of the document as a second light source. 1 mirror 52. Second mirror 53. The light is guided to the lens 55 through the third mirror 54 in order, and then the light transmitted through the lens 55 is directed to the fourth mirror 5.
6, a fifth mirror 57, and a sixth mirror 58 in order.

The exposure lamp 51 and the first mirror 52 surrounded by the reflector 50 are mounted on a first carriage 59 that is movable back and forth along the lower surface of the platen glass 3, and
The second mirror 53 and the third mirror 54
It is mounted on a second carriage 60 that moves in the same direction at half the speed of the carriage 59, and these carriages 59
60 moves from the left to the right in the figure in the state shown in FIG. 3, so that the original set on the platen glass 3 is scanned and an image corresponding to the original is slit-exposed onto the photoreceptor 20. It has become.

Further, the lens 55 is also mounted on a third carriage (not shown) and is moved as the image is enlarged or reduced.

Further, the developing device 23 includes an upper developing unit 61 for color development and a lower unit 62 for black development, and can selectively develop black or other colors such as red.

Incidentally, the first carriage 59 is equipped with a spot unit 65 for specifying an area when copying is to be performed with the original area erased, and the erasing device 22 is equipped with a spot unit 65 for specifying the area. It is now possible to erase the charge in the area corresponding to the area specified by . Furthermore, a cooling fan 66 is arranged above the fixing device 35 in the apparatus main body 1 .

Moreover, on the platen glass 3, there are three sizes (maximum) (
If the document is for overseas use, the manuscript (leisure size) is placed on the right scale 7 or on the left scale 1 as shown in Figure 5.
It is possible to set either 0 as a reference.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the automatic document feeder (ADF) 8 includes a document tray 70 in which a plurality of documents D... can be set together, and documents on the document tray 70. A document feeding unit 6 that sequentially takes out original documents one by one and feeds the original documents between the movable platen sheet 4 of the document holding cover 5 and the platen glass 3 and sets them based on the right scale 7; A document discharge section 7 that discharges the original document from above the platen glass 3 and stores it in a first discharge document storage section 71 formed on the document presser cover 5.
The document feeding unit 6 and the document discharging unit 72 constitute a document feeding mechanism unit 73.

The document feeding section 6 of the document feeding mechanism unit 73 has a seventh
As shown in the figure, a pickup roller 75 facing the document D set on the document tray 70 and movable up and down, a single sheet take-out means 78 consisting of a supply roller 76 and a separation roller 77; Registration roller pair 79
Each of these rollers is configured to be rotationally driven in a predetermined direction via a drive system (not shown). Further, the right scale 7 is rotatably mounted around the axis of the lower roller 80 of the pair of registration rollers 79, and is driven by a solenoid (not shown).

Further, a feeding roller 81 is provided on the left side of the right scale 7 and in rolling contact with the upper surface of the right end of the platen glass 3, and is selectively rotated in both forward and reverse directions by the drive system (not shown) to feed the document. It is designed to feed in and eject.

The document discharge section 72 is arranged above the right scale 7 and includes a first guide plate 83 whose lower end faces near the tip of the right scale 7; A gate 8 arranged to form a document discharge path 84 between the
5..., a second guide plate 86, and a pair of discharge rollers 87 disposed at the terminal end of the document discharge path 84.

The gates 85 are rotatably attached to a horizontally suspended shaft 88, and their lower ends are inserted under their own weight into grooves 89 formed on the upper surface of the free end side of the right scale 7. It has become.

Further, the document holding cover 5 is constructed as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. That is, the movable platen sheet 4 is formed to have approximately the same size as the platen glass 3, and this sheet 4 includes an elastic member 4a made of urethane or the like, and a white sheet 4 with a low coefficient of friction attached to the lower surface of the elastic member 4a.
b, with a notch 95 (see FIG. 7) formed at the right end for the feeding roller 81 to be inserted therein.

In addition, the rear end of the movable platen sheet 4 is covered with a cover body 97 attached to the apparatus main body 1 via hinge members 96, 96 (see FIGS. 1 and 5) except for the lower surface. The situation is as follows. Movable platen sheet 4
is attached to a movable frame 98 attached within the cover body 97.

99.99 shown in Figure 8 (only the front side is shown) is
It is the left rotation fulcrum of the movable frame 98, and the cover body 9
It is located at the left end of 7. Further, a plurality of compression springs 100 as biasing bodies are disposed between the upper surface of both left and right ends of the movable frame 98 and the cover body 97, so that the movable frame 98 is in the horizontal state shown by the solid line in FIG. The entire movable platen sheet 4 is brought into close contact with the platen glass 3 by constantly urging its free end side downward.

Furthermore, the movable frame 98 is connected to the first gap forming means 105.
As a result, the right end side can be rotated upward by a predetermined angle using the left end side as a rotational fulcrum against the biasing force of the compression spring 100, as indicated by the chain double-dashed line in FIGS. 10 and 9. As shown, the right end side of the lower surface of the movable platen sheet 4 is largely opened at an angle e.

A wedge-shaped gap G having a length p is formed.

The movable platen sheet 4 is configured such that the left end side of the movable platen sheet 4 can be rotated upward by a predetermined angle with the right end side of the movable platen sheet 4 as a rotation fulcrum by a second gap forming means 200, which will be described later. A wedge-shaped gap G having an angle e and a length g can be formed.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the gap forming means 105 includes a drive mechanism 106 provided on the document feeding mechanism unit 73 side and a drive mechanism 10 provided on the document holding cover 5 side.
6 to the movable frame 98.

The drive mechanism 106 rotates and displaces a pusher (hereinafter referred to as a button) 109 that is rotatable about a shaft 108 in accordance with the rotation of an eccentric cam roller 111 that uses a cam motor 110 as a drive source, thereby moving the button 109. protrusion 109
a is made to protrude and sink into the document holding cover 70 side. Note that the bushing 109 is always urged by an unillustrated urging member so as to be in contact with the circumferential surface of the eccentric cam roller 111.

The power transmission mechanism 107 has the following configuration. That is, the protrusion 109 of the butcher 109
Slider 11 with one end surface 115a facing a
5 is provided. This slider 115 is capable of reciprocating in the direction of protrusion and retraction of the protrusion 109a of the button shear 109, and the other end surface side is provided with a link mechanism 116.
The cover body 97 is connected to one end of a shaft 117 that is horizontally suspended in the space between the cover body 97 and the movable frame 98.

The two front wheels 117 are provided with guide grooves 118 which are elongated holes formed in both the front and rear frame portions on the free end side of the movable frame 98.
118 (only the front frame side shown)
Rotating levers 120, 120 equipped with 19, 119 are attached. And the slider 1
15 is caused by the action of the link mechanism 116 on the shaft 11.
7, and the rotating levers 120, 120 attached to this shaft 117 are rotated by a predetermined angle.

In the first gap forming means 105 having the above-mentioned structure, the minimum eccentric portion of the eccentric cam roller 111 is normally stopped in contact with the bushing 109 as shown by the solid line in FIG. The end face 115a of is not pressed. Therefore, no force is generated to push up the free end of the movable frame 98, and the movable frame 98 is pushed down to a horizontal state by the force of the compression springs 100, 100, and the entire surface of the movable platen sheet 4 is brought into close contact with the platen glass 3. It is in a state.

Then, at the timing of supplying and discharging the original document, the cam motor 110 is driven to rotate the eccentric cam roller 111 by 180@ by a signal from a control section (not shown), and as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The eccentric portion stops in contact with the bushings 1, 09, and the bushing 109 is rotated, and the slider 115 is pushed in by its protrusion 109a. As described above, this sliding movement of the slider 115 is converted into a rotational displacement movement of the rotating levers 120, 120, and the free end of the movable frame 98 is pushed up against the biasing force of the compression springs 100, 100.

Further, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIGS. 10 and 9, a gap G is formed on the lower surface of the movable platen sheet 4, with the right end side being wide open.

Note that 125 is a cover that covers the document feeding mechanism unit 73, and 126 is a part of the first gap forming means 105 protruding from the upper surface of the cover main body 97, that is, a part of the slider 115 and the link mechanism 116. It is a cover that covers.

Next, with reference to FIG.
) 8 to supply and discharge the document to the platen glass 3 will be explained.

First, as shown in FIG. 11(a), the originals D, . As a result, the pickup roller 75 descends and rolls into contact with the topmost document tray, and the big up roller 75 and the supply roller 76 and separation roller 77 of the single sheet take-out means 78 rotate, and the topmost document tray moves to the left. It is taken out. On the other hand, at this time, as described above with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, the drive mechanism section 106 of the first gap forming means 105 operates and the slider 115 is pushed by the pusher 109, as shown in FIG. A gap G is formed on the lower surface of the platen sheet 95 as shown in FIG.

After the tip of the original document is aligned by hitting the stopped registration roller pair 79,
The conveyance is continued in the left direction by rotating.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 11(b), the right scale 7 is in a previously raised state, and the gate 85 is pushed away by the document printer against its own weight. Thereafter, the document is conveyed to the left over the platen glass 3 by the rotation of the feed roller 81. At this time, platen glass 3
Since the white sheet 4b of the movable platen sheet 4 is a low-friction member, the leading edge (left end) side of the paper P smoothly enters between the platen sheet 95 and the platen glass 3 due to its stiffness and may bend. Never.

After the rear end (right end) of the document is conveyed to a position slightly leftward from the tip of the right scale 7, the document is conveyed to the right by the reverse rotation of the feeding roller 81.
As shown in FIG. 11(c), the feeding roller 81 stops with the right end of the document tray abutting the right scale 7.

After this, as shown in FIG. 11(d), the drive mechanism section 106 of the first gap forming means 105 operates again, the suppressing operation of the slider 115 by the button shear 109 is released, and the movable platen sheet 4 is pasted. The right end side of the movable frame 98 is moved to a horizontal state by the restoring force of the compression springs 100, 100, and the original document positioned with reference to the right scale 67 is brought into close contact with the platen glass 3.

In this way, when the document tray is completely set, the document is scanned by the exposure device 28 (see FIG. 3) in the main body 1 of the apparatus. When this document scanning is completed, the right scale 7 descends, as shown in FIG. 11(e).
The gate 85 is lowered by its own weight, and the movable platen sheet 4 is raised to form a gap G. Then, the feeding roller 81 rotates to convey the document to the right, and the document is guided to the document discharge path 84 by the action of the gate 85, and then, as shown in FIG. 11(f), The document is discharged to the discharge document storage section 71 via the discharge roller pair 87 . As shown in FIG. 11(g), the right scale 7 is raised until the rear end of the document discharged to the discharge document storage section 71 passes the discharge roller pair 87, and the following document is The take-out and supply operations shown in FIGS. 11(a) and 11(b) have been started, and thereafter the operations shown in FIGS. 11(C) to 11(g) will be performed.

In this way, all the originals D on the original tray 70...
When the copying operation is performed and the document is stored in the ejected document storage section 71, the movable platen sheet 4 is lowered and becomes a normal document holding cover 5, as shown in FIG. 11(h).

12 to 16 are illustrations showing the operating state of the automatic document feeder 8, and FIGS. 12 and 13 sequentially show how the movable platen sheet 4 is lifted and the document tray is pushed into the gap G. , FIG. 14 shows the document tray set on the platen glass 3 with the right scale 7 as a reference. Further, FIG. 15 shows how the original paper on the platen glass 3 is ejected, and FIG. 16 shows the ejected original storage section 7.
1 shows how the original paper is ejected to paper 1.

Next, the copying operation of a document set on the platen glass 3 by the automatic document feeder (ADF) 8 will be explained with reference to FIG. In synchronization with the document setting operation by the automatic document feeder 8 described above, the drum-shaped photoreceptor 20 rotates in the direction of the arrow (clockwise), and the photoreceptor 20 is uniformly charged by the charging device 21 . Next, five first carriages each carrying an exposure lamp 51 and a first mirror 52 of the exposure device 28 and a second carriage 60 carrying a second mirror 53 and a third mirror 54 are placed on the lower surface of the platen glass 3. Move from left to right in the diagram.

Then, when the first carriage 59 carrying the exposure lamp 51 and the first mirror 52 reaches a certain position, the exposure lamp 51 is turned on and the original set on the platen glass 3 is scanned, and the photoreceptor 20 is scanned. slit exposure.

Then, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the original is formed on the photoreceptor 20.

This electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor 20 is transferred to the upper developing unit 61 of the developing device 23 based on the color designation from the operation panel 15.
Alternatively, it is developed and visualized by the lower developing unit 62.

On the other hand, in synchronization with this developer image forming operation, the paper P1 automatically taken out from the upper cassette 16 or the lower cassette 17 or the paper P manually fed from the manual paper feed table 30 is fed through the aligning roller pair 44. image transfer section 3
1 and the developer image previously formed on the photoreceptor 20 is transferred onto the paper P by the action of the transfer device 24.

Next, the paper P is peeled off from the photoreceptor 20 by the peeling device 25 and sent to the fixing device 35 via the paper transport path 33, where the developer image is melted and fixed on the paper P.
The sheet is discharged via a pair of paper discharge rollers 32 and stored in the tray 18.

After the developer image has been transferred onto the paper P, the photoconductor 20 is faced to a cleaning device 26 to remove residual developer (residual toner), and then faced to a static eliminator 27 to remove the remaining developer (residual toner) from the photoconductor 20. 20 is irradiated with light to remove the electrostatic memory and return to a normal state in which the next copying operation is possible.

In this way, the copying operation is performed until the originals D... on the original tray 70 are exhausted.

In addition, as shown in Figure 16, the original copy that has been copied is
The document is accommodated in an inverted state in the first ejected document accommodating portion 71 formed on the upper surface of the document holding cover 5 .

Next, a semi-automatic document feeder (SDF) is installed as a second document feeding means built into the left end portion of the document holding cover 5.
) 11 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 17 to 26.

The semi-automatic document feeder 11 is configured as shown in FIG. 17, and has a manual feed guide 9 as shown in FIG.
A document capture unit 150 that automatically captures the document manually fed from the document capture unit 150 and a device that receives the document captured by the document capture unit 150 between the movable platen sheet 4 of the document holding cover 5 and the platen glass 3. Send left scale 10
a feed roller 151 serving as a document sending body that sets the document based on the original document and discharges the set document from above the platen glass 3 after the copying operation is completed;
19. A document discharge section 1 receives the document discharged by 51 and discharges it to a pocket 152, which serves as a second discharge document storage section, formed on the document presser cover 5 as shown in FIG.
Consists of 53.

The pocket 152 serving as a second ejected document storage section is formed between the upper surface of the cover main body 97 of the document holding cover 5 and the extending portion 9a of the manual document feed guide 9 that extends substantially parallel to the upper surface of the cover main body 97. A light emitting element 155a is provided on the extending portion 9a of the manual feed guide 9, and a light receiving element 155b is provided on the cover main body 97 side. It constitutes a detection means 155. If a document is detected in the pocket 152 before using the semi-automatic document feeder 11, an alarm is displayed on the guide display section 13 and the operation of the semi-automatic document feeder 11 is not started.

Further, the document importing section 150 is configured as shown in FIGS.
As shown in Figure 0, the guide plate 161a and the guide plate 16
lb, a movable guide 162, etc., and a document take-in path 163 formed by mutually opposing surfaces, and a take-in roller consisting of a drive roller 164a and a pinch roller 164b at the starting end of the document take-in path 163. Pair 164 is arranged.

The movable guides 162 are lowered by gravity or light force around the shaft 165, and their lower ends are connected to the recesses 1 formed on the upper surface of the left scale 10.
66...It is in a state of being stuck inside. and,
When the document feeder enters the document take-in path 163, it is easily lifted up and guided to the feed roller 151 side. Further, on the contrary, the document discharged by the feed roller 151 can be reliably guided into the document discharge path 167, which will be described later, without returning to the document take-in path 163.

Further, the document discharge section 153 includes a guide plate 16 l b
, a pair of discharge rollers 168 consisting of the drive roller 164a of the pair of take-in rollers 164 and the pinch roller 168a is provided at the end of the document discharge path 167 formed between the mutually opposing surfaces of the movable guides 162... and the guide plate 161C. It is configured with .

Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the feed roller 151 is supported by the free ends of a pair of rotating arms 170 and 170. The pair of rotating arms 170 and 170 are attached to a pickup shaft 171, and a link 173 is attached to one end of the pickup shaft 171 to rotate against the biasing force of a spring 172 to rotate the feed roller 1.
A solenoid 175 is connected to the feed roller shaft 174 to which the roller 51 is attached.

In addition, the pulley 1 attached to the feed roller shaft 174
A timing belt 178 is stretched between the pulley 177 attached to the pickup shaft 171 and a pulley 179 integrated with the pulley 177 attached to the pickup shaft 171 and attached to the drive shaft 180. A timing belt 182 is stretched between the pulley 181 and the pulley 181. The drive shaft 180 is selectively rotated in the forward direction or the reverse direction by a drive motor (not shown), so that the feed roller 151 is rotated in the forward direction or the reverse direction.

Further, the intake roller pair 164 and the discharge roller pair 168
The common rollers 164a... are driven by a motor whose rotation axis is not shown.

Further, as shown in FIG. 21, a second gap forming means 200 having the same configuration as the first gap forming means 105 described above is provided on the left end side of the movable frame 98, and as shown in FIG. The movable platen sheet 4 is brought into close contact with the platen glass 3, as shown in FIG.
It is designed to form a It should be noted that the same reference numerals as those of the first gap forming means 105 described above will be given, and repeated explanation will be omitted.

Next, with reference to FIG. 24, the operation of supplying and discharging a document onto the platen sheet 3 by the semi-automatic document feeder 11 will be described.

First, as shown in FIG. 24(a), a document manually fed through the manual feed guide 9 is taken into the document take-in path 163 via a pair of take-in rollers 164. At this time, the feed roller 151 and the movable platen sheet 4 are in a raised state. Further, a document feeder is fed by a pair of take-in rollers 164, and the leading edge of the document feeder advances while pushing up the movable guide 162, and enters under the feed roller 151. At this time, the left scale 10 is in a state of being moved upward.

Then, as shown in FIG. 24(b), the feed roller 15
1 descends while rotating and rolls into contact with the document tray, and as it rotates, the document [D] is conveyed rightward on the platen glass 3. At this time, a gap G is formed between the platen glass 3 and the movable platen sheet 4, and since the platen glass 3 and the white sheet 4b of the movable platen sheet 4 are low-friction members, the document can be loaded smoothly. It will not be sent or bent.

Then, as shown in FIG. 24(c), the rear end of the manuscript (
When the left end) is conveyed to the right by a distance δ from the end surface of the left scale 10, the feed roller 151 stops. Then, the feed roller 151 rotates in the reverse direction, and as shown in FIG. 24(d), the rear end of the document tray is brought into contact with the end surface of the left scale 10 to perform positioning and skew correction. Then,
As shown in FIG. 24(e), the movable platen sheet 4 is lowered to bring the document into close contact with the platen glass 3, and in this state, the moving optical system of the exposure device (not shown) moves in the direction of arrow A to place the document in close contact with the platen glass 3. Exposure scanning is performed on the image.

Then, when this document scanning is completed, the movable platen sheet 4 is raised to form a gap G, and the left scale 10 is lowered, as shown in FIG. 24(f). Then, the feed roller 151 rotates in the opposite direction to transport the document to the left, and the document is guided to the document ejection path 167 by the action of the movable guide 162, and the document is held down by the ejection roller pair 168. A pocket 1 formed on the top surface of the cover 5 and serving as a second ejected document storage section
It is discharged at 52. Then, the original paper is ejected from the pair of ejection rollers 16.
8, the feed roller 151 is in a raised state, as shown in FIG. 24(g).

Then, as shown in FIG. 24(h), when the document is discharged into the pocket 152, the movable platen sheet 4 is in a lowered state.

After this, the same operation as described above will be performed again.

Note that the copying process for the original set on the platen glass 3 is the same as described above, and will therefore be omitted.

Further, the ejected document is ejected into the pocket 152, and even if the document holding cover 5 is opened and closed quickly, the
The document holding cover 5 can be opened and closed easily without the document tray housed in the document holding cover 2 falling.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, when the semi-automatic document feeder 11 is used with a document D' such as a book stored in the pocket 152, the document detecting means 155 detects this, and the guide display 13. [Please take out the items in your pocket.] ] etc. is displayed, and the operation of the semi-automatic document feeder 11 is not started.

Therefore, the semi-automatic document feeder [1] is not used while the document D' such as a book is stored in the pocket 152, and jamming caused by the ejected document colliding with the document D' is prevented. be done.

Note that since the document D' in the pocket 152 is detected before using the semi-automatic document feeder 11, there is no possibility of confusing the document D' with the ejected document.

Further, an alarm is displayed when a certain period of time has elapsed after the use of the semi-automatic document feeder 11, and after the object is removed from the pocket 152, the semi-automatic document feeder 11 can be used.

Note that when the document D' or the like in the pocket 152 is detected, an alarm sound may be emitted simultaneously with the display on the guide display section 13, or in some cases, only the alarm sound may be emitted.

The hinge members 96 and 96 that attach the document holding cover 5 to the apparatus main body 1 in an openable and closable manner are connected to support shafts (not shown), respectively.
These support shafts are attached to the top surface of the device main body 1 by inserting them into holes (not shown). The movable platen sheet 4 of the document holding cover 5 can be held parallel to the platen glass 3 and pressed evenly even when copying thick objects such as books. It has become.

Note that in the above embodiment, an automatic document feeder (A
When using a semi-automatic document feeder (SDF), the movable platen sheet 4 is
Although the description has been given of a device in which the wedge-shaped gap G is formed by rotating and displacing each of the movable platen sheets 4, the invention is not limited to this. Two gap forming means may be used for both purposes.

That is, as shown in FIG. 27, the movable platen sheet 4 is attached to the lower surfaces of a pair of movable frames 253 and 253 that are movable by a parallel link mechanism 252 using a solenoid 251 as an operating source. When the connecting shaft 254 is pulled by the solenoid 251 in the direction of arrow a, the shaft 256 connected via the arm 255.255
256 rotates, and arms 257 and 257 attached to these shafts 256 and 256, respectively, rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 28, a movable frame 2 is attached to the free end of the arm 257...
53. Pins 259... that engage with long holes 258... formed in the side wall portion of 53.253 are provided protrudingly, so that the movable platen sheet 4 is moved upward (in the direction of arrow C) in parallel. It has become.

By turning on the solenoid 251, a uniform gap G' for document insertion and removal is formed between the movable platen sheet 4 and the platen glass 3 as shown in FIG. As a result, the movable platen sheet 4 descends and comes into uniform contact with the platen glass 3, as shown in FIG.

By doing this, when using an automatic document feeder (ADF) as shown in FIG. 31, or when using a semi-automatic document feeder (SDF) as shown in FIG.
It is sufficient to operate one parallel gap forming means 250.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment,
Of course, various modifications can be made without changing the gist.

[Effects of the Invention] Since the present invention is configured as described above, the following effects are achieved.

According to the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect, since both the first document feeding means for automatic document feeding and the second document feeding means for semi-automatic document feeding are provided, it is possible to select the one that is easier to use. It can be used and the operability can be improved.

In addition, since it is equipped with a movable platen sheet that can be moved to create a gap between the original platen and the original platen, there is no need for a wide conveyor belt or belt drive mechanism in the cover part as in the conventional case. It can be placed on a mounting table. As a result, it is possible to significantly reduce the cost of the document feeder section, and also to reduce the weight of a portion of the cover, making it possible to easily open and close the cover in the same way as a normal document holding cover. Moreover, since there is nothing that rotates and runs in contact with substantially the entire surface of the document table, large amounts of power and power are not required, and the power and power required for the automatic document feeder can be reduced, and noise can be reduced.

Further, according to the image forming apparatus according to claim 2, claim 1
In addition to the effects described above, the gap forming means for the first document feeding means and the gap forming means for the second document feeding can be made common, and the configuration can be simplified.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 26 show an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the document supply/discharge state, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the document setting state, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the document setting state. A schematic longitudinal sectional front view of the entire image forming apparatus, FIG. 4 is a partial external perspective view with the document holding cover closed, FIG. 5 is a partial external perspective view with the document holding cover open, and FIG. 6 is a schematic longitudinal sectional front view showing the configuration of the main parts with the document holding cover closed;
FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing the structure of the document feeding mechanism unit of the automatic document feeder, FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing the structure of the document holding cover and the first gap forming means, and FIG. A schematic configuration diagram of the first gap forming means, FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a gap is formed with the left end side as a pivot point,
@Figure 11 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the automatic document feeder, Figures 12 to 15 are illustrations showing the operating state of the automatic document feeder, and Figure 16 is a diagram showing the document supply and ejection state of the automatic document feeder. A schematic perspective view, FIG. 17 is a schematic longitudinal sectional front view showing the main parts of the semi-automatic document feeder and the structure of its vicinity, FIG. 18 is a schematic perspective view showing the document feeding state, and FIG. 19 is a document ejection state. FIG. 20 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of the document feeding mechanism of the semi-automatic document feeder; FIG. 21 is a schematic perspective view showing the platen cover and second gap forming means. 22 is a schematic longitudinal sectional front view of the movable platen sheet in close contact with the platen glass, and FIG.
4 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the document feeder, FIG. 25 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which documents are stored in a pocket that is a document ejection section, FIG. 26 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view, and FIGS. FIG. 32 shows another embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a schematic perspective view of the parallel gap forming means, FIG. 28 is a side view of the main parts, FIG. 29 is a schematic longitudinal sectional front view showing the state in which the gap is formed, and FIG. A schematic longitudinal sectional front view of the state in close contact with the glass,
FIG. 31 is an explanatory diagram showing the usage state of the automatic document feeder;
FIG. 32 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of use of the size automatic document feeder. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Apparatus main body, 3... Document placement table (platen glass), 4... Movable platen sheet, 5... Original holding cover 6... Document feeding section, 8... First Document feeding means (automatic document feeding device) 9...Manual feed guide, 1
1... first document feeding means (semi-automatic document feeding device),
105... First gap forming means, 200... Second gap forming means, 250... Parallel gap forming means, D...
・Manuscript.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) In an image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to a document set on a document platform, a movable platen sheet is overlapped with the document platform and is movable to form a gap between the document platform and the document platform. and a document feeder that takes out and supplies multiple sheets of originals one by one, and automatically feeds the retrieved originals from one end side of the document placing table between the platen sheet and the document placing table. a first document feeder that feeds the document and discharges it to the one end side after image formation; and a manual feed guide that manually feeds the document; a second document feeding means that is fed between the document placing table and discharged to the other end after image formation; and a rotation fulcrum for the movable platen sheet at one end when the first document feeding means is used. a first gap forming means for rotationally displacing the movable platen sheet to form the gap, and forming the gap by rotationally displacing the movable platen sheet using the other end as a rotation fulcrum when using the second document feeding means; An image forming apparatus comprising a first gap forming means for forming a gap. (2) In an image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to a document set on a document platform, a movable platen sheet is overlapped with the document platform and is movable to form a gap between the document platform and the document platform. and a document feeder that takes out and supplies multiple sheets of originals one by one, and automatically feeds the retrieved originals from one end side of the document placing table between the platen sheet and the document placing table. a first document feeder that feeds the document and discharges it to the one end side after image formation; and a manual feed guide that manually feeds the document; a second document feeding means that is fed between the document placing table and discharged to the other end side after forming an image; and when the first document feeding means is used and when the second document feeding means is used. An image forming apparatus comprising: parallel gap forming means for displacing the movable platen sheet in parallel to the document mounting table to form the gap.