JPH06186800A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] When the jammed sheet material accumulated in the fixing unit, the sheet discharging unit, and the reversing unit, the sheet discharging side of the image forming apparatus main body does not need a space for the sheet jamming,
The substantial occupied area of the image forming apparatus is reduced. [Structure] A component unit 3 in which a fixing device 17, a pair of internal paper discharge rollers 18, a pair of external paper discharge rollers 19 and a reversing path 22 are integrated.
8 is configured so that the component unit 38 can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus body 1 from the front side of the image forming apparatus body 1.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention (first invention, second invention, third invention) relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer or a facsimile.

[0002]

[Prior art]

<Prior Art 1> In an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile, a toner image on a sheet material on which a toner image on a photosensitive drum 102 is transferred by a transfer charger 101 is conventionally used as shown in FIG. A fixing device 103 for fixing on the sheet surface, a pair of discharge rollers 105 for discharging the sheet material that has been fixed by the identification fixing device 103 to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body 104, and fixing by the identification fixing device 103. Reversing unit 10 for reversing the processed sheet material
6 and the like are fixedly installed on the image forming apparatus main body 104.

A double-sided unit 108 including an intermediate tray 107 for temporarily stacking sheet materials on which image formation has been performed once and feeding again to the photosensitive drum 102 is a front side of the image forming apparatus main body 104. From image forming apparatus main body 10
4 It can be pulled out.

In such a conventional image forming apparatus, the fixing device 103, the pair of discharge rollers 105, and the reversing unit 106 are provided.
When a jam occurs at a portion, as shown in FIG. 8, the sorter 109 is separated from the image forming apparatus main body 104 (arrow A
Then, the sheet discharge side cover 111 that can be opened and closed around the support shaft 110 is opened to remove the sheet material staying in the fixing device 103, the sheet discharge roller pair 105, and the reversing portion 106.

When a jam occurs in the double-sided unit 108, the double-sided unit 108 is pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 104, and the sheet material staying in the double-sided unit 108 is removed. <Prior Art 2> In an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile, main parts incorporated in the image forming apparatus main body are unitized and the main body is formed in the image forming apparatus main body for convenience of jam processing. There are some that can be pulled out to the outside (front side).

For example, in a conventional copying machine, a fixing unit including a fixing device for fixing the transferred image of the sheet material after the toner image transfer onto the sheet surface, and the sheet material after the image formation are re-imaged. For this reason, a duplex unit including an intermediate tray that is temporarily stored and re-fed can be pulled out of the main body of the copying machine.

Therefore, if the fixing unit and the double-sided unit are pulled out of the main body of the copying machine, the jammed sheet material in the fixing unit and the double-sided unit can be easily removed.

In this case, in the copying machine of the conventional example, the fixing unit and the double-sided unit are individually pulled out from the copying machine main body and housed individually.

[0009]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

<Problems of First and Second Inventions> However, like the image forming apparatus of the conventional example shown in the above-mentioned conventional technique 1, the toner stays in the fixing device 103, the discharge roller pair 105, and the reversing unit 106. In the case of a configuration in which the sheet material is removed by opening the sheet ejection side cover 111 (jamming), a space for opening the sheet ejection side cover 111 is required, which causes a problem that an actual occupied area of the image forming apparatus becomes large. there were.

Therefore, the first invention and the second invention have been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an image forming apparatus in which a substantial occupied area is not increased due to jam processing. And <Problem of the third invention> However, as in the conventional example shown in the above-mentioned conventional technique 2, each component unit (fixing unit, double-sided unit) can be individually pulled out from or housed in the image forming apparatus main body. If there is, there is a problem that the work for jam handling becomes troublesome.

Therefore, the third invention is made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and when the plurality of component units are pulled out from the image forming apparatus main body to perform the jam processing, the work for the jam processing can be performed easily. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of performing the above.

[0012]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

<Means of First Invention> A first invention is a fixing means (1) for fixing an image of a sheet material after image formation onto a sheet surface.
7), sheet discharging means (18, 19) for discharging the sheet material fixed by the fixing means (17) to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body (1), and fixed by the fixing means (17). And an inverting means (22) for inverting the processed sheet material.

In order to achieve the above object, the first aspect of the invention is to fix the fixing means (17) and discharge means (18, 1).
9), a component unit (38) including a reversing means (22) is configured so that the component unit (38) can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus body (1) from the front side of the image forming apparatus body (1). It is characterized by having done. <Means of Second Invention> A second invention is a fixing means (17) for fixing an image of a sheet material after an image forming apparatus onto a sheet surface, and a sheet fixed by the fixing means (17). The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a sheet discharging unit (18, 19) for discharging a material to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body (1).

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a second aspect of the invention comprises the fixing means (17) and the paper discharging means (1).
The component unit (60) including the image forming device main body (1) and the image forming device main body (1) can be pulled out from the front side of the image forming device main body (1). Characterize. <Means of Third Invention> A third invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a plurality of component units (38, 48) that can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1).

In order to achieve the above object, the third invention is characterized in that the respective component units (38, 48) are integrated by means of a pair unit locking means (66).

The pair unit locking means (66)
Locks the component units (38, 48) with each other when the component units (38, 48) are pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1), and the component units (38, 48) are When housed in the image forming apparatus main body (1), the lock state of the component units (38, 48) is released.

Further, each component unit (38, 48)
Is stored in the image forming apparatus body (1), and is locked to the image forming apparatus body (1) by a pair-body locking means (65) that can be unlocked.

The unit locking means is pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1) even when the component units (38, 48) are housed in the image forming apparatus main body (1). Also, when each component unit (3
(8, 48) are always locked together.

Further, lock releasing means for releasing the locked state of the unit locking means and sheet material detecting means for detecting the presence / absence state of the sheet material staying in each of the component units (38, 48) are provided. Each of the component units (3
(8, 48), the sheet material detecting means detects that the sheet material is not staying in any one of them, and the lock releasing means releases the locked state of the unit locking means.

[0020]

[Action]

<Operation of the First Invention> According to the first invention having the above structure, the image forming apparatus includes the component unit (38) including the fixing means (17), the paper discharging means (18, 19) and the reversing means (22). The main body (1) can be pulled out from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body (1).

Therefore, the fixing means (17) and the paper discharging means (1
8 and 19), when the sheet material stays in the reversing means (22), the seated sheet material can be removed by pulling out the component unit (38) to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body (1).

As a result, in the image forming apparatus, the fixing means (17), the paper discharging means (18, 19), and the reversing means (22).
A space for removing the sheet material accumulated in is not required, and the actual occupied area is reduced. <Operation of Second Invention> According to the second invention having the above-described configuration, the component unit (60) including the fixing means (17) and the paper discharging means (18, 19) is provided in the image forming apparatus main body (1). It can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1) from the front side.

Therefore, the fixing means (17) and the paper discharge means (1
When the sheet material stays in (8, 19), the staying sheet material can be removed by pulling out the component unit (60) to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body (1).

As a result, the image forming apparatus does not need a space for removing the sheet material accumulated in the fixing means (17) and the paper discharging means (18, 19), and the actual occupied area becomes small. <Operation of Third Invention> According to the third invention configured as described above, when a plurality of component units (38, 48) are pulled out from the image forming apparatus body (1), the image forming apparatus body (1) is pulled out.
The component units (38, 48) pulled out are integrated with each other by the unit locking means (66).
When the plurality of component units (38, 48) pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1) are housed in the image forming apparatus main body (1), the pair unit means (66) is released and at the same time, It is locked to the image forming apparatus main body (1) by the anti-main body locking means (65).

Therefore, the plurality of component units (38, 48) pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1) can store other component units by the operation of storing any one of the component units.

This makes it possible to easily carry out the work for housing the plurality of component units (38, 48) in the image forming apparatus main body (1) after the jam processing.

Further, since the plurality of component units (38, 48) housed in the image forming apparatus main body (1) are integrated by the unit locking means, they are pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1). Even when the image forming apparatus main body (1) is housed, a plurality of component units (38,
48) operates integrally. Then, each component unit (38,
When the sheet material detecting means detects that the sheet material is not staying in any one of 48), the lock releasing means releases the unit locking means and the component unit in which the sheet material is not staying is set to the sheet material. Is separated from the component unit in which the

Therefore, by pulling one component unit out of the image forming apparatus main body (1), other component units can be simultaneously pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body (1), and one component unit is image-formed. By storing it in the apparatus main body (1), other component units can be stored in the image forming apparatus main body (1) at the same time.

This makes it easy to pull out the plurality of component units (38, 48) to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body (1) and to store them in the image forming apparatus main body (1) during jam processing. You can

Also, a plurality of component units (38, 48)
Since it is pulled out integrally from the image forming apparatus main body (1),
It is not necessary to break the sheet material that straddles each component unit (38, 48).

Further, since the component unit in which the sheet material is not retained is separated from the component unit in which the sheet material is retained, only the component unit in which the sheet material is retained can be pulled out from the image forming apparatus main body (1). it can.

The reference numerals in parentheses refer to the drawings and do not limit the structure of the invention.

[0033]

Embodiments of the first, second and third inventions will be described below with reference to the drawings. <First Embodiment of the Invention> FIG. 1 shows the overall structure of an image forming apparatus (copying machine) according to an embodiment of the first invention, and FIG. 2 shows the structure of the essential parts of the image forming apparatus.

First, the general configuration of the image forming apparatus will be described along the flow of the sheet material.

In this image forming apparatus, a plurality of sheet feeding cassettes (front loading cassettes) 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D are provided in the lower part of the image forming apparatus main body 1, and these sheet feeding cassettes 2A and 2B are provided. , 2C, 2D, the sheet materials (not shown) stacked and stored are selectively used.

The sheet material in each of the sheet feeding cassettes 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D is fed from the uppermost sheet by a sheet feeding roller (pickup roller) 6 and separated and fed one by one by a separation roller pair (retard roller pair) 7. To be done.

The sheet material fed from each of the sheet feeding cassettes 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D is conveyed by a pair of conveying rollers 8, 9, 10, 1.
Registration roller pair 1 whose rotation is stopped by 1, 12
It is transported to 3.

The sheet material conveyed to the registration roller pair 13 rotates at a timing with the toner image on the photosensitive drum 14 which rotates in the clockwise direction.
Thus, the toner image on the photosensitive drum 14 is transferred between the photosensitive drum 14 and the transfer device 15, and the transfer device 15 transfers the toner image on the photosensitive drum 14.

The sheet material on which the toner image has been transferred is sent to the fixing device (fixing means) 17 by the conveyor belt 16,
The toner image transferred here is fixed on the sheet surface.

The sheet material on which the toner image fixing process has been completed is discharged onto a discharge tray 20 outside the apparatus by a pair of inner discharge rollers (paper discharge means) 18 and a pair of external paper discharge rollers (paper discharge means) 19. It

At this time, the flapper 21 installed between the inner paper discharge roller pair 189 and the outer paper discharge roller pair 19 is switched to the position shown in the phantom line (see FIG. 2).

In the double-sided mode or the multiplex mode, the sheet material on which the fixing process of the toner image has been finished is paired with the inner paper discharge roller 1.
8 is sent to a reversing path (reversing means) 22, where it is reversed and conveyed by a pair of conveying rollers 23 and 24 to an intermediate tray 25.
Discharged to the top.

At this time, the flapper 21 is switched to the position shown by the solid line.

The sheet material temporarily stacked on the intermediate tray 25 is fed out from the lowermost sheet by the paper feed roller 26, and separated and fed one by one by the separation roller pair 27.

In the double-sided mode, the sheet material re-fed from the intermediate tray 25 is sent to the re-feed path 29 by the transport roller pair 28, and is sent to the registration roller pair 13 through the re-feed path 29. To be

At this time, the flapper 30 installed immediately downstream of the conveying roller pair 28 is switched to the position shown in FIG.

In the multiplex mode, the sheet material re-fed from the intermediate tray 25 is once fed to the re-reversal path 31 by the conveyance roller pair 28, inverted, and then re-fed by the reversing conveyance roller pair 32. It is sent to the path 29, and then sent to the registration roller pair 13 through the re-feeding path 29.

At this time, the flapper 30 is switched to the position where the sheet material is sent to the re-feed path 29.

The toner image on the sheet material sent to the registration roller pair 13 is transferred again in the same manner as described above, and when the toner image is fixed, the inner paper discharge roller pair 18 and the outer paper discharge roller pair 19 are transferred. Thus, the paper is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 20 outside the machine.

In the present image forming apparatus, the image of the original document (not shown) placed on the original table 33 is scanned by the optical system 34 installed at the top of the image forming apparatus main body 1 and is rotated clockwise. It is exposed on the rotating photosensitive drum 14.

The latent images formed on the photosensitive drum 14 are sequentially made into toner images by the toner supplied from the developing device 35.

The reference numeral 36 in FIG. 1 indicates the intermediate tray 25.
It is a pressure roller for pressing the sheet material stacked on the sheet feeding roller 26, and when the sheet material is re-fed, it descends to a predetermined position as shown in the figure. Reference numeral 37 is a manual sheet feeding device.

In this image forming apparatus, the fixing device 1
7, a pair of internal paper discharge rollers 18, a pair of external paper discharge rollers 19, a flapper 21, and a reversing path 22 including a pair of transport rollers 23 are integrated to form a component unit 38.
8 can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus body 1 from the front side of the image forming apparatus body 1.

The parts unit 38 is provided with moving rails (Aculide rails) 39, 40 with respect to the main body of the image forming apparatus.
Is attached via the rail 39 for movement,
It can be pulled out along 40.

The component unit 38 is normally locked by the lock mechanism 41 so that it cannot be pulled out from the image forming apparatus main body 1.

In the lock mechanism 41, when the solenoid 42 is turned off, the lock lever 44 pulled by the tension spring 43 rotates clockwise about the support shaft 45 to the position a, whereby the frame 46 of the component unit 38.
To lock the parts unit 38.

When the solenoid 42 is turned on, the lock lever 44 pulled by the tension spring 43 rotates counterclockwise about the support shaft 45 to the position b, and the lock lever 44 is separated from the frame 46 of the component unit 38. Release the locked state of the component unit 38.

In the component unit 38, the component unit 3
8 and the conveyance belt 16, and between the component unit 38 and the sheet discharge tray 20, a sheet material detection sensor 47 for detecting a sheet material staying, a component unit 38, and a duplex unit 48. Sheet material detection sensor 4 for detecting a sheet material staying astride
9 and are installed.

Now, in the single-sided mode, a jam occurs, and the sheet material staying over the space between the component unit 38 and the conveyor belt 16 or between the component unit 38 and the discharge tray 20 is removed. When the detection sensor 47 detects, the solenoid 42 of the lock mechanism 41 remains on, and the component unit 38 is locked so that it cannot be pulled out.

In this state, the fixing device (fixing roller pair) 1
7, the inner paper discharge roller pair 18, and the outer paper discharge roller pair 29 are driven to forcibly discharge the accumulated sheet material into the paper discharge tray 20.
The paper is ejected upwards.

After this, the solenoid 42 of the lock mechanism 41
Is turned off, and the locked state of the component unit 38 is released.

When a jam occurs in the double-sided and multi-sided modes and the sheet material detecting sensor 49 detects the sheet material staying over between the component unit 38 and the double-sided unit 48, the lock mechanism is activated. The solenoid 42 of 41 is kept on, and the component unit 38 is locked so that it cannot be pulled out.

In this state, the fixing device (fixing roller pair) 1
7, the inner paper discharge roller pair 18, and the conveyance roller pairs 23, 24 are driven to forcibly discharge the accumulated sheet material onto the intermediate tray 25.

After this, the solenoid 42 of the lock mechanism 41
Is turned off, and the locked state of the component unit 38 is released.

When the lock state of the lock mechanism 41 is released, the component unit 38 can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1. Then, the sheet material staying in the component unit 38 pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1 is
It can be easily removed by opening the upper guide 51 of the paper discharge path 50 and the outer guide 52 of the reversing path 22.

The upper guide 51 of the paper discharge path 50 is attached to the support shaft 54 of the separation claw 53 of the fixing device 17 so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction about the support shaft 54. Therefore,
When the upper guide 51 is rotated upward as shown by the dotted line, the paper discharge path 50 is opened. By the rotation of the upper guide 51, the separation claw 53 is separated from the fixing roller.

The outer guide 52 of the reversing path 22 is attached to the image forming apparatus main body 1 so as to be rotatable in the left-right direction about a support shaft 55. Therefore, the reversing path 22 is opened by rotating the outer guide 52 to the outside (left side) as shown by the dotted line.

Like the component unit 38, the double-sided unit 48 including the intermediate tray 25, the paper feed roller 26, the separation roller pair 27, the re-reversal path 31, the re-paper feed path 29, etc. The image forming apparatus main body 2 can be pulled out from the front side.

The duplex unit 48 is used for the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus.
On the other hand, moving rails (Accuride rails) 56,5
It is attached via 7, and this rail for movement 5
It can be pulled out along 6,57.

In the duplex unit 48 pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1, the sheet material staying in the re-feeding path 29 is tilted from the substantially horizontal state to the substantially vertical state. It can be easily removed.

The re-feeding path 29 is mounted rotatably in the vertical direction with the roller shaft of the conveying roller pair 58 as a supporting shaft. Therefore, the re-feeding path 29 can be tilted from the substantially horizontal state to the substantially vertical state about the support shaft. <Embodiment 1 of the second invention> FIG. 3 shows Embodiment 1 of the second invention.
1 shows an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copying machine) according to the present invention.

In this image forming apparatus, the first
The same members as those of the image forming apparatus (FIG. 1) according to the embodiment of the present invention are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description of those that are structurally and functionally unchanged will be omitted.

The image forming apparatus is a one-sided copying machine,
The sheet material that has undergone the fixing process in the fixing device 17 is discharged onto the discharge tray 20 outside the machine by the pair of internal discharge rollers 18 and the pair of external discharge rollers 19.

In such an image forming apparatus as described above, the fixing device 17, the pair of inner paper discharge rollers 18 and the pair of outer paper discharge rollers 19 are used.
The component unit 60 is integrally formed, and the component unit 60 can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1 from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body 1.

In the case of the present image forming apparatus, when a jam occurs, the sheet material staying across the component unit 60 and the conveyor belt 16 or between the component unit 60 and the discharge tray 20 is changed to the sheet material. When the detection sensor 47 detects, the solenoid 41 of the lock mechanism 41 is kept on and the component unit 60 is locked so that it cannot be pulled out.

In this state, the fixing device (fixing roller pair) 1
7, the pair of inner paper discharge rollers 18 and the pair of outer paper discharge rollers 19 are driven to forcibly hold the accumulated sheet material to the paper discharge tray 20.
The paper is ejected upwards.

Thereafter, the solenoid 42 of the lock mechanism 41 is
Is turned off, and the locked state of the component unit 60 is released.

However, the component unit 60 and the conveyor belt 1
When the cause of the jam of the sheet material staying over the sheet 6 and 6 is the separation claw 53 of the fixing device 17, the sheet material staying as described above is forcibly discharged onto the discharge tray 20. Is difficult to do.

Then, the component unit 60 and the conveyor belt 1
In many cases, the trailing edge of the sheet material that has stayed between 6 and 6 has not reached the fixing device 17.

Therefore, in this way, the component unit 6 is placed with the rear end of the sheet material positioned upstream of the fixing device 17.
When 0 is pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1, as shown in FIG. 4, if a part 61A of the front side plate (hatched portion) 61 of the image forming apparatus main body 1 exists in the upstream region of the fixing device 17, it stays. The existing sheet material is torn by the front side plate portion 61, which makes jam processing troublesome.

Therefore, in this image forming apparatus, the front plate portion 61 is not present in the upstream region of the fixing device 17 so that the sheet material is not torn at the front plate portion.

In order to perform the jam processing for the component unit 60 pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1, the upper guide 51 of the paper discharge path 50 is rotated upward to open the paper discharge path 50. <Second Embodiment of Second Invention> FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the second invention.
1 shows an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copying machine) according to the present invention.

In the image forming apparatus (FIG. 3) according to the first embodiment of the second invention, the fixing device 17 and the inner paper discharge roller pair 1 are used.
8, the external discharge roller pair 19 as an integrated unit 60
However, in the present image forming apparatus, the fixing device 1
7, a pair of internal paper discharge rollers 18, a pair of external paper discharge rollers 19, a transfer device 15, and a conveyor belt 16 as a unit unit 62
Of the image forming apparatus main body 1
It can be pulled out from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body 1.

Such a structure is effective in processing a large-sized sheet material staying near the fixing device 17.

That is, when a large-sized sheet material stays near the fixing device, the trailing edge of the sheet is on the conveyor belt 16. Therefore, the conveyor belt 16 is attached to the fixing device 1.
If the sheet material can be pulled out of the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus together with 7 or the like, the accumulated sheet material can be easily treated. <Third Embodiment of Second Invention> FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment of the second invention.
1 shows an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copying machine) according to the present invention.

In the image forming apparatus (FIG. 5) of the second embodiment of the second invention, the large size sheet material staying in the vicinity of the fixing device 17 can be easily processed. Even if the image forming apparatus main body 1 is downsized, it is possible to easily process the large-sized sheet material staying near the fixing device 17.

Therefore, in this image forming apparatus, the fixing device 17, the inner paper discharge roller pair 18, and the outer paper discharge roller pair 1 are used.
9, a registration roller pair 13, a transfer device 15, and a conveyor belt 16 are integrated into a component unit 63, and the component unit 63 can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1 from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body 1. There is.

When the image forming apparatus main body 1 is downsized,
The rear end of the large-sized sheet material staying near the fixing device 17 may be pinched by the nip portion of the registration roller pair 13. In such a case, the pair of registration rollers 13 together with the fixing device 17 and the like are formed in the image forming apparatus main body 1
If it can be pulled out, the accumulated sheet material can be easily treated. <Embodiment of the Third Invention> FIG. 9 shows the overall construction of an image forming apparatus (copier) according to an embodiment of the third invention.

In this image forming apparatus, the first
The same members as those of the image forming apparatus (FIG. 1) according to the embodiment of the present invention are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description of those that are structurally and functionally unchanged will be omitted.

In this image forming apparatus, the fixing unit (parts unit) 38 and the double-sided unit (parts unit) 48 which can be pulled out from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body 1 are provided in the image forming apparatus main body 1. When pulled out, they are locked and united with each other by a unit locking mechanism (unit locking means) 66 described later. Then, when the fixing unit 38 and the duplex unit 48 are housed in the image forming apparatus main body 1, the locked state of the unit locking mechanism 66 is released, while the pair main body locking mechanism (counter body locking means) 65 described later is used. The image forming apparatus body 1 is locked.

FIG. 10 shows the structure of a pair-to-body lock mechanism 65 for locking the fixing unit 38 and the duplex unit 48 with respect to the image forming apparatus body 1.

A lock arm 67 is attached to the bottom plates 38A and 48A of the fixing unit 38 and the double-sided unit 48 so as to be rotatable about a support shaft 68. The lock arm 67 is constantly urged in the arrow direction by a lock spring 69, is attached to the rear side plate 70 of the image forming apparatus main body 1, and is attached to the rear side plate 70 of the image forming apparatus main body 1. Is configured to engage with.

Further, the lock arm 67 and the release link 72
Is rotatably coupled, and the other end of the release link 72 is rotatably coupled to the handle 73.

The handle 73 is rotatably supported by the handle shaft 74, and when the fixing unit 38 and the duplex unit 48 are pulled out to the front, when the handle 73 is moved in the arrow direction, the lock arm 67 is moved clockwise through the release link 72 in the drawing. It rotates (shown in phantom line) and the locked state with the image forming apparatus main body 1 is released.

When the fixing unit 38 and the double-sided unit 48 are housed in the main body of the image forming apparatus, the inclined head portion of the lock arm 67 comes into contact with the latch shaft 71 so that the latch shaft 71 is temporarily removed from the latch shaft 71 as shown in the figure. After being separated, the lock spring 69 returns to the solid line position so that the lock can be automatically performed.

FIG. 11 shows the structure of a pair unit locking mechanism 66 for locking the fixing unit 38 and the duplex unit 48 pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1.

FIG. 11 shows a state in which the fixing unit 38 and the duplex unit 48 are pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1.

In the double-sided unit 489, a vertical unit lock pin 75 is supported by pin support plates 76 and 77 and is vertically slidable. The unit lock pin 75 is urged upward by the pin spring 78 so as to be projected and retracted above the double-sided unit 48.

Hole 79 for engaging unit lock pin 75
Is formed on the bottom plate 38A of the fixing unit 39.

The double-sided unit 48 is also provided with a horizontal release shaft 80 for retracting the unit lock pin 75. The release shaft 80 is supported by shaft support plates 81 and 82 and is slidable in the arrow direction. The release shaft 80 is constantly urged by the shaft spring 83 toward the rear plate 70. Also, the cam surface 80 at the tip of the release shaft 80
A is in contact with the pin roller 84 of the unit lock pin 75.

In FIG. 11, since the release shaft 80 is urged by the shaft spring oil 83 toward the rear side plate 70 and the unit lock pin 75 is not lowered, the unit lock pin 75 is located in the hole 7 of the fixing unit 38.
9 and the double-sided unit 48 and the fixing unit 38 are locked.

FIG. 12 shows the fixing unit 38 and the double-sided unit 48 shown in FIG.
The state of being stored inside is shown.

The fixing unit 38 and the double-sided unit 48 are housed as a unit by the unit lock pin 75, but when the rear end of the release shaft 80 comes into contact with the rear side plate 70, the release shaft 80 is pushed to the rear side plate 70. As it is slid in the direction of the arrow (to the left), the unit lock pin 75 is pressed by the cam surface 80A and descends, comes out from the hole 79 of the fixing unit 38, and the locked state of the fixing unit 39 and the duplex unit 48 is released. To be done.

FIG. 13 shows a state in which only the fixing unit 38 is pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1.

Even when the double-sided unit 48 is pulled out in this state, the retracted unit lock pin 75 slides the back surface to the bottom plate 38A of the fixing unit 38, so that the double-sided unit 48 can be reliably pulled out.

FIG. 14 shows a state in which only the duplex unit 48 is pulled out of the main body of the image forming apparatus.

Even when the fixing unit 38 is pulled out in this state, the inclined surface 85 at the tip of the fixing unit 38 comes into contact with the inclined surface 75A of the unit lock pin 75 and the unit pin 75
Therefore, the fixing unit 38 can be reliably pulled out.

In the above embodiment, when the fixing unit 38 and the duplex unit 48 are pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body 1, they are integrated by the unit lock mechanism 66. Even when the double-sided unit 48 is housed in the image forming apparatus main body 1, the double-sided unit 48 may be integrated by using a pair-unit locking means for releasably locking the both.

In the case of this structure, the lock releasing means for releasing the unit locking means and the units 38, 4 are provided.
8 is provided with a sheet material detecting means for detecting the presence / absence state of the sheet material staying inside 8, and when the sheet material detecting means detects that the sheet material is not staying in any of the units 38 and 48, When the lock releasing means releases the locked state of the unit locking means, the following effects can be obtained.

That is, first, when performing the jam processing,
Only the unit in which the sheet material is retained can be pulled out. Secondly, since the units 38 and 48 can be integrally pulled out when the sheet material is staying over the units 38 and 48, the staying sheet material is not broken.

[0111]

【The invention's effect】

<Effect of First Invention> As described above, in the image forming apparatus of the first invention, a component unit including the fixing unit, the sheet discharging unit, and the reversing unit is configured, and the component unit is used as the main body of the image forming apparatus. Since it can be pulled out from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body, the sheet material accumulated in the fixing means, the paper discharging means, and the reversing means can be removed from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body.

Therefore, it is not necessary to remove the sheet material accumulated in the fixing unit, the sheet discharging unit, and the reversing unit from the sheet discharging side surface of the image forming apparatus main body, and the substantial occupied area of the image forming apparatus can be reduced.

Further, in order to remove the sheet material accumulated in the fixing means, the paper discharging means, and the reversing means, it is not necessary to move a sorter or the like arranged in parallel on the paper discharging side surface of the main body of the image forming apparatus. <Effect of Second Invention> As described above, in the image forming apparatus of the second invention, a component unit including a fixing unit and a sheet discharging unit is configured, and the component unit is arranged on the front surface of the image forming apparatus main body. Since it can be pulled out from the image forming apparatus main body from the side, the sheet material accumulated in the fixing unit and the sheet discharging unit can be removed from the front surface of the image forming apparatus main body.

Therefore, it is not necessary to remove the sheet material accumulated in the fixing unit and the sheet discharging unit from the sheet discharging side surface of the image forming apparatus main body, and the substantial occupied area of the image forming apparatus can be reduced.

Further, in order to remove the sheet material accumulated in the fixing means and the paper discharging means, it is not necessary to move a sorter or the like arranged in parallel on the paper discharging side surface of the image forming apparatus main body. <Effect of Third Invention> As described above, in the image forming apparatus of the third invention, the plurality of component units are integrated by the unit locking means, and the plurality of component units are placed outside the main body of the image forming apparatus. Since a plurality of component units operate integrally when being drawn out or stored in the main body of the image forming apparatus, by pulling out or storing any one of the component units, the plurality of component units can be drawn out at once. Or it can be stored.

Therefore, it is possible to easily pull out and store a plurality of component units during jam processing.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copier) according to an embodiment of the first invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional side view showing a detailed configuration of a main part of the image forming apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copier) according to Embodiment 1 of the second invention.

FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing a configuration of the image forming apparatus when a problem occurs in jam processing.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copier) according to a second embodiment of the second invention.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copier) according to a third embodiment of the second invention.

FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the overall configuration of a conventional image forming apparatus (copier).

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing a method of performing jam processing in the image forming apparatus of the conventional example.

FIG. 9 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus (copier) according to an embodiment of the third invention.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing the configuration of a pair-to-main-body locking mechanism that locks the fixing unit and the double-sided unit included in the image forming apparatus to the image forming apparatus main body.

FIG. 11 is a side view showing a configuration of a pair-to-unit locking mechanism that locks the identification attachment unit and both units.

FIG. 12 is a side view showing a state in which the identification attachment unit and the duplex unit are housed in the image forming apparatus main body and the lock state of the unit-to-unit lock mechanism is released.

FIG. 13 is a side view showing a state in which only the identification attachment unit is pulled out from the image forming apparatus main body.

FIG. 14 is a side view showing a state where only the double-sided unit is pulled out from the image forming apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Image Forming Apparatus Main Body 17 Fixing Device (Fixing Means) 18 Internal Paper Ejection Roller Pair (Paper Ejection Means) 19 External Paper Ejection Roller Pair (Paper Ejection Means) 22 Reverse Path (Reversal Means) 38, 60, 62, 63 Parts Unit 48 double-sided unit (parts unit) 65 pair body locking mechanism (body locking means) 66 unit locking mechanism (unit locking means)

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A fixing unit for fixing an image of a sheet material after image formation onto a sheet surface, and a discharging unit for discharging the sheet material fixed by the fixing unit to the outside of the main body of the image forming apparatus. And a reversing unit for reversing the sheet material fixed by the fixing unit, a component unit including the fixing unit, the sheet discharging unit, and the reversing unit, An image forming apparatus, wherein a component unit can be pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body. 2. A fixing unit for fixing an image of a sheet material after the image forming apparatus onto a sheet surface, and a sheet discharge for discharging the sheet material fixed by the fixing unit to the outside of the main body of the image forming apparatus. In the image forming apparatus having the means, a component unit including the fixing unit and the paper discharge unit is configured, and the component unit can be pulled out from the front side of the image forming apparatus main body to the outside of the image forming apparatus main body. An image forming apparatus characterized by the above. 3. An image forming apparatus having a plurality of component units that can be pulled out of the main body of the image forming apparatus, wherein each of the component units is integrated by a unit locking means. Image forming apparatus. 4. The pair unit locking means locks the component units when the component units are pulled out of the image forming apparatus main body, and the component units are housed in the image forming apparatus main body. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to release the locked state of each of the component units when the above is performed. 5. The component unit is locked in the main body of the image forming apparatus by being locked by a pair main body locking means that can be unlocked with respect to the main body of the image forming apparatus when housed in the main body of the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus described. 6. The unit-to-unit locking means always locks the component units with each other when the component units are housed in the image forming apparatus body or pulled out of the image forming apparatus body. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image forming apparatus has the following configuration. 7. A lock releasing means for releasing the locked state of the unit locking means and a sheet material detecting means for detecting the presence / absence state of the sheet material staying in each of the component units are provided, and the pair unit locking means is provided. When the sheet material detection means detects that the sheet material does not stay in any of the component units integrated by the unit, the lock release means releases the locked state of the pair unit lock means. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein