JPH0585629A - Paper feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide a paper feeding device having excellent separation performance that can be applied even when the paper used and the environment are changed and can be used with various paper feeding rollers with a small number of paper feeding rollers. In a sheet feeding device for cut sheets configured by arranging two or more sheet feeding rollers on at least one sheet feeding roller shaft by using a corner separator separation method, the sheet feeding roller is A sheet feeding device comprising means for moving the cut sheet in a direction orthogonal to the feeding direction.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet feeding device of a corner separator type that uses sheet paper, and can be applied especially when the used paper and the environment change, and various paper sizes can be accommodated with a small number of paper feed rollers. The present invention relates to a paper feeding device having excellent separation performance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An example of a conventional general corner separator type sheet feeder is shown in FIGS. 6 shows one sheet feed roller based on the center, FIG. 7 shows a plurality of sheet feed rollers based on the center, and FIG. 8 shows a plan view when there are a plurality of sheet feed rollers based on the end face. Shows a sectional view of the sheet feeding roller portion. In the figure, 1 is the paper S in the paper storage cassette
Corner separators (pawls) provided at both corners of the front end of the sheet feeding direction 2, 2a, 2b are sheet feeding rollers abutting against the upper surface of the sheet S, and 3 is the sheet S in the sheet storage cassette The bottom plate is configured to be pressed by the spring 4 against the paper feed roller 2 described above. The general operation of the sheet feeding device of the corner separator type is that the sheet S is locked by the corner separator 1 and is fed by the sheet feeding rollers 2, 2a and 2b.
When the sheet is sent out, the uppermost sheet S is buckled at the corner separator 1 and is pulled out from the corner separator 1 to be separated.

Here, the condition for sending out only the uppermost one sheet is the frictional force F between the sheet feeding roller 2 and the sheet S.
(= Μ ₁ · P, μ ₁ is the friction coefficient between the paper feed roller and the paper, P is the pressing force between the paper feed roller and the paper) is the corner separator 1
Greater than the resistance R of 1 and 1 against the second sheet
The feeding force T (= μ ₂ · P, μ ₂ is the friction coefficient between the sheets) by the first sheet is smaller than the resistance R of the corner separator 1. That is, F>R> T is established. The resistance R of the above corner separator 1 depends on the shape, size or weight of the corner separator 1, the distance between the sheet feeding roller 2 and the corner separator 1 (L ₁ , L ₂ and L ₃ ),
It is determined by the strength of the “waist” of the sheet S and the like. Regarding this, for example, the description in JP-A-60-2536 can be referred to.

[0004]

In the separation method shown in the above-mentioned prior art, the shape, size or weight of the corner separator 1, the paper feed roller 2 and the corner separator are determined by the strength of the "waist" of the paper used. It is necessary to optimize the distance to ₁ (L ₁ , L ₂ and L ₃ ). Therefore, when using papers with different characteristics (thin papers, thick papers, etc.) or when the humidity is extremely high, the resistance R of the corner separator 1 described above fluctuates and the separation performance is It can change. In addition, since a device having one paper feed roller cannot handle various paper sizes, a plurality of paper feed rollers are often arranged regardless of the center reference and the end face reference. In this case, in the end face reference device, the distance (L ₁ , L ₂ and L ₃ ) between the sheet feeding roller and the corner separator 1 cannot be set to the optimum value for each size, and the arrangement of the sheet feeding roller is asymmetric. However, there is a problem that it is difficult to sufficiently exhibit the separation performance due to the fact that it tends to occur.
On the other hand, in a center-based device, the diameter of the paper feed roller can be changed according to the paper size, so it is possible to support a wide variety of paper sizes, but the processing cost for changing the roller diameter There is a problem that is not stupid. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems in the related art, and can be applied even when the used paper or environment is changed, and is small for various paper sizes. An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet feeding device having excellent separation performance that can be handled by a sheet feeding roller.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above object of the present invention is to use a corner separator separation system and cut sheet constituted by arranging two or more paper feed rollers on at least one paper feed roller shaft. In the paper feeding device of
The present invention is achieved by a paper feeding device characterized in that a means for moving the cut sheet in a direction orthogonal to the feeding direction is provided.

[0006]

In the paper feeding device according to the present invention, since it is possible to arrange the plurality of paper feeding rollers by arranging them around an arbitrary position, the plurality of paper feeding rollers can be arranged for any paper size. It is possible to sort the position of the paper centering on the center of the paper by using either the center reference or the end face reference.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1A is a side view showing a main part of a sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the paper feed roller 2
As shown in FIG. 1B or 1C, is composed of a rubber material 10 and a bearing portion 11 or 12. Here, the bearing unit 1
Reference numeral 1 is fitted into a paper feed roller shaft 13 having a "D" cross section to rotate, and the bearing portion 12 is constituted by a one-way clutch so that the driving force is transmitted.
Washers 15 made of a thin resin material or the like for smooth rotation are provided on both sides of the paper feed roller 12 in the holder 1.
It is inserted between the arms of Nos. 6 and 17. Further, the holders 16 and 17 are provided with racks 16 a and 17 a, respectively, and are connected by a pinion gear 18. The position of the paper feed roller shaft 13 is fixed. With this configuration, when the holder 16 is pushed in the direction of arrow A, the holder 17 moves in the opposite direction to the holder 16 by the same amount as the movement amount of the holder 16, and in the direction of arrow B, the holder 17 moves in the opposite direction. To do. That is, it is possible to distribute the positions of the two paper feed rollers 2 and 2 with respect to an arbitrary paper size with the center of the paper as the center regardless of the method of center reference or end face reference. In the case of the center reference, the position adjustment of the pinion gear 18 (including its driving means) is fixed with respect to the position of the above-mentioned paper feed roller shaft 13, and the adjustment of the above-mentioned size is performed. The two paper feed rollers 2 and 2 are moved symmetrically with respect to the center, and in the case of the end face reference, the position of the paper feed roller 2 on the end face side is set to a predetermined position, By determining the position of the other paper feed roller 2 based on this, the position of the paper feed roller 2 can be distributed around the center of the paper.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a main part of a paper feeding device according to another embodiment of the present invention. Here, the racks 16a and 17a and the pinion gear 18 in the above-described embodiment are replaced by wires or belts 19 that are "skewed" to move the two paper feed rollers 2 and 2 in opposite directions. Reference numeral 20 denotes a lever for setting the movement of the paper feed roller. As a method of connecting the wire or belt 19 to the holder 16 or 17, various methods can be used as shown in FIGS. 3 (a), the locking member 49 is fixed to the wire or the belt 19 by a method such as adhesion, and the locking member 49 is fitted into the engaging portion 50 provided in the holder 16 or 17, as shown in FIG. In b), a knot 48 is provided on the wire or belt 19, and the knot 48 is fitted into the above-mentioned engaging portion 50. In FIG. 3 (c), the locking member 51 is fixed to the wire or belt 19 by caulking,
The one in which the locking member 51 is fitted into the above-mentioned engaging portion 50,
FIG. 3D is a diagram showing a locking member 52 fixed to the wire or the belt 19 by sandwiching and caulking, and the locking member 52 is fitted into the above-mentioned engaging portion 50. Also,
FIG. 3E is a diagram showing another configuration example of the shapes of the locking member 53 and the engaging portion 50.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a main part of a paper feeding device which is still another embodiment of the present invention. Here, an example is shown in which a link mechanism is used in place of the rack and pinion gears, the "skew" belt or wire in the above-described embodiment. That is, in FIG. 4, the holders 16 and 1
7 are connected at a fulcrum C by a clamp connecting member 21 having the same length. Here, the fulcrum C is the slit member 22.
By this, only the movement in the direction parallel to the sheet feeding direction (vertical direction in the drawing) is allowed, and at the same time, it is also connected to the feed roller movement setting lever 20. The above-described rotation fulcrum D of the paper feed roller movement setting lever 20 has an elongated hole so that the movement of the fulcrum C is not hindered.
With this configuration, when the paper feed roller movement setting lever 20 is displaced in the arrow direction, the paper feed roller 2 moves on the above-mentioned paper feed roller shaft 13. Note that, as shown in FIG. 5, it is possible to configure the feed roller movement setting lever 20 and the slit member 22 to be shared.
In this case, a guide 24 can be provided on the paper storage cassette or tray 23 so that the common member 20a can move only in a predetermined direction.

Next, a method for handling various paper sizes will be described. When two paper feed rollers 2 are used as a center reference, the paper feed roller movement amount in each of the above-described embodiments may be set to an amount corresponding to the size of the paper. Hereinafter, this will be described with reference to FIG. 5 and FIG. 10 which complements this.
A description will be given using (a) to (c). In the paper feed roller movement setting mechanism shown in FIG. 5, the common member 20a is replaced with one shown in FIG.
It has a double structure as shown in (c). Here, FIG. 10 (a)
Is a side view (from the right direction in FIG. 5) of the common member 20a, and FIGS. 10 (b) and 10 (c) are sectional views taken along line XX ′ and YY ′ of FIG. 10 (a). FIG. As is apparent from the drawing, the common member 20a has a fine adjustment sub-member 20b on the upper surface thereof for coping with the strength of the "waist" of the paper, and both of them are provided on the common member 20a. Fixing means 2
7, 28, the positional relationship between them is adjustable. That is, when changing the sheet size, the common member 20a is moved by loosening the screws 26 of the fixing means 25 and 26 provided on the sheet storage cassette or tray 23 (see FIG. 10C). In this case, the common member 20
The relationship between a and the fine adjustment sub-member 20b remains fixed. Further, when the adjustment is made to correspond to the strength of the "waist" of the sheet, the screws 26 of the fixing means 25 and 26 are tightened to fix the common member 20a, and then the fixing means 27 and 26.
Loosen the screw 28 of 28 to move the position of the fine adjustment sub-member 20b with respect to the common member 20a (see FIG. 10B). It should be noted that the protrusion 2 is provided at the end of the fine adjustment sub-member 20b.
0c is provided so as not to move out of a predetermined range.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the common member 20a.
The detected portion 32 provided on the paper storage cassette or tray 23 is configured to be detected by the position detection means 30 such as a plurality of photosensors, so that the paper of the control portion of the image forming apparatus or the like is detected. It is also possible to perform size recognition at the same time. The above-mentioned detection means may detect the position of the paper feed roller 2 instead of detecting the detected portion 32 provided on the shared member 20a. According to the above-described embodiment, when the operator uses only the standard paper, the fixing means 2 does not touch the screws 28 of the fixing means 27 and 28.
It suffices to loosen the screws 26 of Nos. 5 and 26 to move the common member 20a. Further, when using a paper other than the standard paper, after moving the common member 20a by the above procedure, the fixing means 27, Since the screw 28 is loosened to move the position of the fine adjustment sub-member 20b with respect to the common member 20a, it is possible to realize a paper feeding device that is easy to handle.
The spring 31 in FIG. 5 is for always exerting a tensile force between the two paper feed rollers 2 and 2. When this is provided, the common member 20a moves in the direction of arrow B in the drawing. It suffices to press it, and it is not necessary to connect the common member 20a and the fulcrum C. In the case of the end face reference, the paper feed roller 2 on the reference surface side may be fixed within a range in which it can be slightly moved, and the other paper feed roller 2 may be moved according to the paper size.

In the sheet feeding device shown in each of the above embodiments, the sheet feeding roller 2 is described as moving on a single roller shaft, but if the shafts are kept parallel to each other,
The paper feed rollers 2 may move on different axes. Further, the paper feed roller 2 may be belt-shaped. Further, in the paper size detection by detecting the position of the shared member 20a shown in FIG. 5, if a predetermined paper size is not detected, a paper size error signal is issued, and in this case, the image forming apparatus It is also possible to use a piece that prevents the paper feeding operation. FIG. 11 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the paper storage cassette or tray 23 is provided with a means for setting the paper size so that the main body of the image forming apparatus can detect the means. That is, as shown in FIG. 11A, the cassette 102 is provided with a plurality of grooves 102a (portion A in the figure) on the insertion side end surface thereof, and the paper size setting member 10 is provided in the grooves 102a.
Insert 1 This detailed view is shown in FIG.
A paper size detection sensor 100 is provided on the main body of the image forming apparatus.
Is attached to the sensor 100.
A method of detecting the paper size by pressing the switch 100a is used. An example of this is shown in FIG.
It shows in (c).

On the other hand, roller position detecting means (B portion in the figure) is provided in the cassette. This is similar to that shown in the embodiment of FIG. 5 above, as shown in FIG. 11 (d), a detection target portion (claw) 106a for position detection of the common member 106 is provided,
This is hooked on the sliding knob 105a of the variable resistor 105, and the position of the paper feed roller 2 is detected by the change in the resistance value of the variable resistor 105. The result of the position detection of the paper feed roller 2 described above is also output to the image forming apparatus main body side via an output unit provided on the insertion end surface of the cassette 106. On the image forming apparatus main body side, if the above-mentioned paper size is detected,
It is confirmed that the results of the position detection of the paper feed roller 2 match, and if they do not match, the paper feed function is stopped. As a result, it is possible to prevent in advance troubles such as jam and conveyance failure due to the setting error of the paper size. In addition, it goes without saying that each of the above-described embodiments is merely an example of the present invention, and the present invention should not be limited thereto.

[0014]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, the present invention can be applied even when the used paper and the environment are changed, and various paper sizes can be accommodated by a small number of paper feed rollers, and the separation performance is excellent. This is a remarkable effect that a paper feeding device can be realized.

[0015]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a main part of a sheet feeding device that is an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main part of a paper feeding device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a modified example of the configuration shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a main part of a paper feeding device according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a main part of a paper feeding device according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram (No. 1) showing an example of a conventional sheet feeding device of a general corner separator system.

FIG. 7 is a diagram (No. 2) showing an example of a conventional general-purpose corner separator type sheet feeding device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram (No. 3) showing an example of a conventional sheet feeding device of a general corner separator system.

FIG. 9 is a view (No. 4) showing an example of a conventional sheet feeding device of a general corner separator system.

10 is a detailed view relating to the embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a main part of a paper feeding device according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1: corner separator, 2, 2a, 2b: paper feed roller,
3: bottom plate of paper storage cassette, 11: bearing part, 12: one-way clutch, 13: paper feed roller shaft, 16, 17:
Holder, 16a, 17a: rack, 18: pinion gear, 19: wire or belt, 20: lever for setting feed roller movement, 20a: common member, 24: guide, 2
5, 26: fixing means, 27, 28: fixing means, 30: position detecting means.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A sheet feeding device for cut sheets, which is configured by arranging two or more sheet feeding rollers on at least one sheet feeding roller shaft by using a corner separator separation method, wherein the sheet feeding roller is A sheet feeding device comprising means for moving the cut sheet in a direction orthogonal to the feeding direction. 2. A cut sheet feeding device configured by arranging two or more feeding rollers on the feeding roller shaft, wherein at least one feeding roller moving means is provided. A sheet feeding device comprising a connecting means including a pinion and a pair of racks fitted to the pinion. 3. A cut sheet feeding device configured by arranging two or more feeding rollers on the feeding roller shaft, wherein at least one feeding roller moving means is provided. A sheet feeding device comprising a belt or wire "skewed" and a connecting means composed of one or more pairs of sheet feeding roller holding means engaging with the belt or wire. 4. A cut sheet feeding device configured by arranging two or more feeding rollers on the feeding roller shaft, wherein the feeding roller moving means is provided on the feeding roller. A feed means comprising a link including two or more arms to be engaged with each other, and a connecting member including a regulating member that regulates a node serving as a node of the link so as to be movable only in the feeding direction of the cut sheet. Paper equipment. 5. A cut sheet feeding device configured by disposing two or more sheet feeding rollers on the sheet feeding roller shaft, wherein the sheet feeding roller moving means is provided on the sheet feeding roller. A link including two or more arms to be engaged with each other, and a connecting member including a restricting member that restricts a node serving as a node of the link so as to be movable only in the feeding direction of the cut sheet, and the moving of the restricting member A paper feeding device characterized in that a fine adjustment of a movement amount of the paper feeding roller is possible by adjusting a range. 6. A sheet feeding device configured such that information indicating a sheet size can be set in a cassette used for feeding the cut sheet and the sheet feeding device detects the information, and the position of the link is set. Alternatively, the sheet feeding device according to claim 4 or 5, further comprising means for detecting the position of the sheet feeding roller.