JPH04261879A - Printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing device.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as shown in FIG. 6, paper in a paper feed cassette 101 provided at the bottom of a housing 100 is pulled out while being reversed by a paper feed roller 102.
In the process of transporting the paper in the direction of the arrow, the developed image formed on the photoreceptor 104 is transferred to the paper, and the transferred image transferred to the paper is transferred to the fixing roller 10.
There is a printing device that fixes the image at a speed of 5. The electrostatic latent image is formed on the photoreceptor 104 by applying charges to the photoreceptor 104 from the charger 106 to charge the outer peripheral surface of the photoreceptor 104, and to this charged portion, an image signal is transmitted from the exposure unit 107. This is done by scanning the corresponding optical signals. This electrostatic latent image is developed by a developing device 108, and this developed image is transferred onto paper by a transfer charger 109. Further, the photoreceptor 104 is cleaned by a cleaning unit 110.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7, the paper in the paper feed cassette 112 attached to the side surface of the housing 111 is transferred to the photoreceptor 10 via the paper feed roller 102 and the conveyance roller 103.
There is a printing device that transfers the developed image on the photoreceptor 104 to the paper during the process of supplying the paper to the photoreceptor 104 and then discharging the paper to a paper ejection receiver 113 formed on the top surface of the housing 111. Note that the principle of forming and fixing an image on the photoreceptor 104 is the same as that shown in FIG. 6, so the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and explanations will be omitted.

0004

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the case shown in FIG. 6, the height of the casing 100 is increased in order to arrange the photoreceptor 104 at the upper part of the paper feed cassette 101 with an interval for reversing the paper. , and also the paper feed roller 102 and the photoreceptor 104.
Since a conveyance roller 103 that conveys the paper pulled out by the paper feed roller 102 to the photoreceptor 104 is arranged between the housing 100 and the housing 100, the length of the housing 100 cannot be shortened. In the case shown in FIG. 7, the height of the housing 111 can be restricted by placing the paper feed cassette 112 on a tangent to the outer circumference of the lower part of the photoconductor 104. There is a problem that the installation area becomes large because it protrudes from the side.

Furthermore, since input devices and printing devices, such as personal computers or word processors that are not equipped with printers, are manufactured as independent devices,
When inputting image signals from an input device to a printing device,
It is necessary to secure a space for discharging paper from the printing device, and as a result, the printing device and the input device need to be connected with a cable and placed apart, which requires a large installation space. There's a problem.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides a paper storage unit that is placed on a flat loading surface and stores a large number of sheets of paper in a stacked state, and a paper feeder that contacts the top layer of paper in the paper storage unit. a printing unit having a paper roller and an image forming section; an input device connected to the printing unit and arranged adjacent to the upper surface of the paper storage section together with the printing unit; and an extension of a paper discharge port of the printing unit. and a paper discharge surface formed on the input device.

[0007]

[Function] When the printing unit is arranged on the upper surface of the paper storage section, and when inputting image signals from the input device to the image forming section, the input device is placed adjacent to the printing unit and the upper surface of the paper storage section is placed. Furthermore, since the paper discharged from the printing unit can be received on the paper discharge surface of the input device, the installation space can be extremely small.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. 2 and 3 are longitudinal sectional front views. In the figure,
1 is a paper storage section. The paper storage unit 1 is held movably in the width direction of the paper 4 by a flat paper feed body 2 that is slightly larger than A4 size paper 4 and a protrusion 3 formed at the bottom of the paper feed body 2. It consists of a mounting plate 5 and a pressing plate 6 which is held on the paper feed main body 2 so as to be able to rise and fall freely. Guides 7 for supporting both side edges of the paper 4 are formed on both sides of the mounting plate 5. Further, although the pressing plate 6 holds the sheets 4 in a stacked state and is biased by a spring 8 in a direction away from the mounting plate 5, the guide 7 may be provided with a stopper 9 that contacts the top layer of sheets 4. This limits excessive upward movement. Further, an electrical equipment compartment 10 is formed at the bottom of the paper feed main body 2, and the electrical equipment compartment 10 is provided with an electrical equipment case 11 and a circuit board 12 connected to the electrical parts housed in the electrical equipment case 11. It is being This electrical component case 11 is also provided with a power source. A plurality of legs 14 that come into contact with a desk top are fixed to a base plate 13 that closes the bottom of the electrical equipment room 10. Further, a lid 15 is attached to the upper surface of the paper feed main body 2 so as to be openable and closable.

[0009] A printing unit 16 is provided above the paper storage section 1. This printing unit 1
Reference numeral 6 denotes a case 18 which is rotatably held on both sides of the paper feed main body 2 by a fulcrum shaft 17, a support 19 fixed to this case 18, and a support body 19 which is rotatably held by the case 18 by a fulcrum shaft 20. It has a cover 21. A developer container 22 for storing developer is integrally formed in the case 18. The case 18 also includes a paper feed roller 23, a photoreceptor 24 whose outer diameter is approximately half the outer diameter of the paper feed roller 23, a developing roller 25, and a developer layer with a thickness A regulating roller 26 and a fixing roller 27
are rotatably held, and a motor (not shown) for driving these rotating bodies is fixed.

The support 19 includes a charger 28 that applies a voltage to the photoreceptor 24 to charge the photoreceptor 24, and a charger 28 that irradiates the charged portion of the photoreceptor 24 with a light signal corresponding to an image signal. An exposure section 29 that forms an electrostatic latent image and a photoreceptor 24
An auxiliary brush 30 that evens out the developer remaining on the outer peripheral surface of the
and a static eliminator 30a that removes charges from the photoreceptor 24. The exposure section 29 is formed by arranging a large number of edge light emitting elements in a line. and,
The aforementioned photoreceptor 24, the developing roller 25 and regulation roller 26 in the developer container 22, the fixing roller 27 and the press roller 41, the charger 28, the exposure section 29, the auxiliary brush 30, and the static eliminator 30a. , and a transfer roller 39 form an image forming section 31.

A paper conveyance path 32 is formed between the case 18 and the cover 21, and the paper conveyance path 32 and the extension surface (paper feed path) of the uppermost layer of paper 4 on the press plate 6 are different from each other. , a plurality of ribs 34 connected by a reversing path 33 formed by a part of the outer circumferential surface of the paper feed roller 23, and for promoting the guiding action of the paper 4 through this reversing path 33.
is formed in the case 18. Further, a manual paper feed port 35 is formed at the end of the paper transport path 32 on the paper feed roller 23 side. Furthermore, the printing unit 16
At the rear end, there is a paper discharge port 21a connected to the paper transport path 32.
is formed.

Further, a paper guide surface 37 is formed on the toner cartridge 36 mounted in the developer container 22, and a paper guide plate 38 facing the paper guide surface 37 is held by the cover 21. The transfer roller 39 is rotatably held in the cover 21 in contact with the photoreceptor 24 . The paper guide plate 38 is formed of a leaf spring, and a pinch roller 40 and the press roller 41 are rotatably held at both ends thereof while being urged toward the case 18 side. As a result, the pinch roller 40 is brought into pressure contact with the paper feed roller 23, and the press roller 41 is brought into pressure contact with the fixing roller 27. Further, near the tip of the press plate 6 in the paper storage section 1, a lever 43 having a friction member 42 at the tip is biased clockwise by a spring 44 and is held rotatably about a support shaft 45. has been done. Thereby, the friction member 42 is brought into elastic contact with the outer peripheral surface of the paper feed roller 23. Further, a connector 46 for inputting power supply voltage, image signals, etc. is fixed to the case 18 of the printing unit 16, and a connector 47 connected to the circuit board 12 is provided in the paper storage section 1, These connectors 46 and 47 are connected by a cable 48.

Furthermore, the case 18 is provided with a stop lever 49. As shown in FIG. 4, this stop lever 49 is urged clockwise by a spring 50 and is rotatably held by a support shaft 51, and a stop shaft 52 facing the side edge of this stop lever 49 is attached to the case 18. It is erected on the side of the Further, a protrusion 53 is formed at the lower end of the stop lever 49 and comes into contact with the upper surface 2a of the paper feed main body 2. Here, FIG. 4 shows the paper feed main body 2.
2 is a side view showing the relative relationship between the upper surface 2a of the printer and the case 18 of the printing unit 16. FIG. That is, when the case 18 rotates upward about the fulcrum shaft 17, the relative position with respect to the upper surface 2a of the paper feed main body 2 changes. When the relative position of the upper surface 2a to the case 18 is L, the case 18 is located at the lower position and is in contact with the upper surface 2a of the sheet feeding main body 2. In this state, the upper surface 2a and the projection 53 contact each other. The rotational movement of the stop lever 49 is blocked, so that the upper part of the stop lever 49 projects into the manual paper feed port 35. When the relative position of the top surface 2a with respect to the case 18 is H, the case 18 is located at the upper position and is separated from the top surface 2a of the paper feed main body 2. In this state, the stop lever 49 is moved by the spring as shown by the imaginary line. It rotates clockwise due to the biasing force of 50, and its tip retreats below the manual paper feed port 35.

FIG. 5 is a front view showing the support structure of the case 18 of the printing unit 16 with respect to the paper feed main body 2. The fulcrum shaft 17 and the pin 54 are provided on the front and back sides of the case 18.
has been erected. Further, on the front and back sides of the paper feed main body 2, an L-shaped groove 55 for holding the fulcrum shaft 17 and a pin 5 are provided.
A notch 56 having an opening on the top surface into which the pin 54 is fitted is formed, and a hook 58 that is rotatably held on the support shaft 57 and latched to the pin 54 is provided. This hook 5
8 is biased in one direction by a spring 59,
Excessive rotational movement is prevented by the pin 60.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a personal computer 61 is provided as an input device that is selectively placed on the lid 15 of the paper storage section 1. The personal computer 61 has a display 62, and a paper discharge surface 64 connected to the paper discharge port 21a of the printing unit 16 is formed on the upper surface of the personal computer 61 on which the keyboard 63 is arranged. The display 62 has a pair of left and right legs 66 that are supported by a hinge 65 so as to be able to rise and fall freely, and the distance between these legs 66 is determined to be approximately equal to the width of the paper 4. Therefore, when the display 62 is stood up, an opening 67 is formed between its lower edge and the paper discharge surface 64. This personal computer 61 is connected to the connector 46 of the printing unit 16 by a cable. Note that the connector 46 of the printing unit 16 is also selectively connected to other card-type or notebook-type personal computers, electronic notebooks, and the like.

In such a configuration, when printing using the paper 4 in the paper storage section 1, as shown in FIG. Maintain the state in which it is in contact with 2a. In this state, as described above, the tip of the stop lever 49 protrudes upward from the manual paper feed port 35, so that the paper feeding operation from the manual paper feed port 35 is prohibited. Then, when the paper feed roller 23 is driven clockwise, the sheets 4 stacked on the press plate 6 are separated one by one by the friction member 42 and pulled out, and are reversed toward the paper transport path 32 through the reversing path 33. . A photoreceptor 24 is attached to the paper 4 conveyed along this paper conveyance path 32.
The upper developed image is transferred by the transfer roller 39, and the transferred image is fixed by the fixing roller 27. The paper 4 with the image transferred in this way is discharged onto the top surface of the lid 15 of the paper storage section 1.

Here, the exposure section 29 receives a print signal from the circuit board 12 and forms an electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor 24. Further, a motor that rotates the paper feed roller 23, the photoreceptor 24, the fixing roller 27, the developing roller 26, and the regulating roller 27;
A voltage from a power source in the paper storage section 1 is applied to the charger 28, the auxiliary brush 30, the static eliminator 30a, and the transfer roller 39 via the cable 48.

In FIG. 4, the stop lever 49 is biased by a spring 50, and its protrusion 53 presses the upper surface 2a of the paper feed main body 2, and the reaction force of the pressing force acts as an upward rotational force on the printing unit 16. However, when feeding paper from the paper storage section 1, as shown in FIG. Rotational movements are prevented.

Therefore, in FIG. 5, the spring 5
When the hook 58 is rotated counterclockwise against the biasing force of the spring 50 and removed from the pin 54, the stop lever 49 is rotated clockwise due to the biasing force of the spring 50, as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. Since the projection 53 presses the upper surface 2a of the paper feed main body 2, the reaction force causes the printing unit 16 to rotate upward about the fulcrum shaft 17. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3, a gap s is formed between the left upper surface of the paper feed main body 2 and the left lower surface of the case 18. In this state, the upper end of the stop lever 49 is retracted below the manual paper feed port 35, so that paper can be fed from the manual paper feed port 35. In this case, since the paper conveyance path 32 is straight, even if stiff paper such as a postcard is inserted through the manual paper feed port 35, the paper will not bend.

Furthermore, in FIG. 5, the printing unit 16 can be removed from the paper storage section 1 by rotating the hook 58 counterclockwise and removing the fulcrum shaft 17 from the groove 55. Therefore, by placing the printing unit 16 on a desk and arranging the paper storage section 1 inside or below the desk, it is possible to select a usage pattern such as using a large area of the desk.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG.
A personal computer 61 is placed on the cover 15 of the paper storage section 1, and an image signal inputted from the keyboard 63 and stored in the storage device is inputted to the image forming section 31 of the printing unit 16, and printing is performed using this image signal. It is possible to select the usage form. In this case, the paper 4 discharged from the printing unit 61 is guided by the legs 66 of the display 62 on both sides, and the paper 4 is guided to the personal computer 1 by the legs 66 of the display 62.
The paper is discharged onto the paper discharge surface 64 of No. 6.

Furthermore, the connector 46 of the printing unit 16 removed from the paper storage section 1 is connected via the cable 48 to an input device such as a card-type or notebook-type personal computer, a word processor without a printer, an electronic notebook, etc. It becomes possible to select a usage pattern in which a drive signal is input to the printing unit 16 using the input device.

As described above, the paper 4 in the paper storage section 1 is reversed by the paper feed roller 23 and conveyed to the photoreceptor 24.
Further, the paper inserted from the manual paper feed port 35 is also conveyed to the photoreceptor 24 by the paper feed roller 23, and it becomes possible to convey sheets of different paper feed paths with only one paper feed roller 23. Furthermore, since the circuit board 12 that outputs the drive signal is built into the paper storage section 1 and the printing unit 16 is arranged above the paper storage section 1, it is not affected by the size of the electrical component case 11 or the circuit board 12. It becomes possible to downsize the printing unit 16 without causing any problems.

Further, a photoreceptor 2 is placed below the paper conveyance path 32.
4, the mounting position of the image forming section 31 can be lowered, and the photoreceptor 24 is located closer to the paper feed roller 2.
3, the distance between the paper storage section 1 and the paper conveyance path 32 can be reduced, and the distance between the paper storage section 1 and the paper conveyance path 32 can be reduced. Each process unit can be easily arranged within a small space. Moreover, the printing unit 16 can be placed without protruding from the upper surface of the paper feed main body 2 installed on a desk, and the paper 4 after printing can also be ejected onto the lid 15 of the paper feed main body 2. This allows the installation space to be extremely small.

In this embodiment, the outer diameter of the paper feed roller 23 is set to about 20 mm, and the outer diameter of the photoreceptor 24 is set to about 10 mm. As a result, the length of the printing unit 16 in the paper feeding direction is about 70 mm, the height is about 30 mm, and the width corresponds to the width of A4 size paper 4, making it compact enough to be owned by an individual. Further, even if the size of the paper 4 to be used changes, only the width dimension of the printing unit 16 changes somewhat, and the height and length of the printing unit 16 are maintained within a certain dimension.

Although the above embodiments have been explained using an image forming section that forms images by electrophotography, the present invention is also applicable to those using an image forming section equipped with a line-type thermal head or an inkjet printer head. It is something that will be done.

[0027]

Effects of the Invention The present invention provides a paper storage unit that is placed on a flat loading surface and stores a large number of sheets of paper in a stacked state, a paper feed roller that contacts the top layer of paper in this paper storage unit, and an image forming apparatus. a printing unit having a forming section; an input device connected to the printing unit and disposed together with the printing unit adjacent to the upper surface of the paper storage section; and an input device located on an extension surface of the paper discharge port of the printing unit. and a paper discharge surface formed on the input device, so that when the printing unit is disposed in a range substantially above the paper storage section, and when inputting an image signal from the input device to the image forming section, The input device can be placed on the top surface of the paper storage unit adjacent to the printing unit, and the paper ejected from the printing unit can be received on the paper ejection surface of the input device, making the installation space extremely small. It has the effect of

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional front view showing a state in which paper is fed from the paper storage section.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional front view showing the state of paper being fed from the manual paper feed port.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing the opening/closing operation of the manual paper feed slot by the stop lever.

FIG. 5 is a front view showing the support structure of the printing unit with respect to the paper storage section.

FIG. 6 is a front view showing the internal structure of a conventional printing device.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing the internal structure of a conventional printing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Paper storage section 4 Paper 16 Printing unit 21a Paper output slot 23 Paper feed roller 31 Image forming section 61 Input device

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim 1: A paper storage unit that is placed on a flat loading surface and stores a large number of sheets of paper in a stacked state; a paper feed roller that contacts the top layer of paper in the paper storage unit; and an image forming unit. an input device connected to the printing unit and arranged adjacent to the upper surface of the paper storage unit together with the printing unit; A printing device characterized by comprising a paper ejection surface formed on the device.