JP2002046922A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance strength of a main body in simple structure in an image forming device having an in-drum sheet discharging part. SOLUTION: This image forming device 200 in which the in-drum sheet discharging part 500 is disposed, has a frame having a front side plate and a rear side plate standing on at least a base plate, the front side plate has an opening corresponding to the in-drum sheet discharging part 500, and an image reading part, an image forming part and a sheet feeding part are formed of a single press-molded plate connecting them to each other.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a housing structure for an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine and a printer, and more particularly to a housing structure having improved strength in an image forming apparatus having an in-body paper discharge mechanism.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus typified by a copying machine, a facsimile or the like, a paper discharge unit space is arranged inside an image forming apparatus main body in order to eliminate a protrusion as much as possible and to have a compact structure. A device employing a so-called internal discharge mechanism has been proposed.

More specifically, a document reading section (scanner section) is provided above an image forming section for forming a toner image on the surface of a photoreceptor drum by an electrophotographic method, while a sheet is supplied to the image forming section. The paper is provided at a position below the production unit, and a paper discharge unit for storing the discharged paper on which the toner image is fixed between the image formation unit and the document reading unit is formed as an internal discharge paper discharge space. Things.

In an image forming apparatus having such an in-body discharge space, usually, in order to improve the workability of the in-body discharge space, as shown in FIG. An opening 100 is provided.

[0005]

The above-mentioned conventional image forming apparatus has a large opening A extending between the front surface and the side surface, so that the sheet can be easily taken out. Unless a special reinforced housing structure is newly designed, the strength of the image forming apparatus main body is reduced. The present invention is to solve such a problem, and is to improve the strength of the image forming apparatus without employing a special housing structure. Further, it is for improving the strength of the image forming apparatus without impairing the sheet takeout property.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, an image forming unit, an image reading unit disposed above the image forming unit, and a sheet feeding unit disposed below the image forming unit are provided. Between the image forming unit and the image reading unit, the toner image formed by the image forming unit is transferred to the sheet fed from the sheet feeding unit, and then the toner image is fixed on the sheet by the fixing unit. An image forming apparatus in which an in-body paper discharge section for storing the output paper is disposed, the image forming apparatus has a frame in which a front plate and a rear plate are erected on at least a base, and the front plate is a cylinder. It is characterized in that it is provided with an opening corresponding to the internal discharge section, and is formed of one press-formed plate that connects the image reading section, the image forming section, and the paper feed section. According to the first aspect of the invention, the image reading unit includes
Since the image forming unit and the paper feeding unit are connected by one press plate, strength can be obtained with a simple structure.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the image forming apparatus is slidably mounted on the internal discharge portion so that a part thereof protrudes from the front surface of the image forming apparatus main body. It is characterized in that it is provided with a set paper placing portion. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the sheet discharged to the sheet stacking section of the internal discharge section can slide a portion of the sheet forward from the front surface of the main body. Can be easily taken out.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail using a copying machine as an example with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1A and 1B are views for explaining the appearance of the copying machine according to the present embodiment. FIG. 1A is a perspective view, and FIG. 1B is a front view.

A copying machine generally designated by 1 comprises an image forming apparatus main body 200 and a document processing section 6 mounted on the upper surface thereof so as to be openable and closable. The image forming apparatus main body 200 includes a paper feed cassette 400 that can be pulled out in the direction of the arrow at a lower portion, and an in-body paper discharge section 500 that uses the internal space of the main body at the upper part. On the lower surface of the in-body paper discharge section 500, a paper discharge tray 600 that can be pulled out like a paper feed cassette is provided.

On the left side of the paper feed cassette 400 and the inner discharge section 500 of the image forming apparatus main body 200, a paper feeding means for feeding the copy paper stored in the paper feed cassette 400 and a photosensitive drum are provided. Image forming means having a charging means, a developing means, a transferring means and a cleaning means at the center, and a conveying means for conveying a copy sheet fed from a paper feeding means to the transferring means and further to a fixing means located downstream thereof And various means constituting the image forming apparatus, such as a fixing means and a paper discharging means. Above the in-body paper discharge section 500 of the image forming apparatus main body 200, an image reading section in which an optical system is incorporated is provided. Details of these means will be described later.

Further, an operation panel 700 for operating the copying machine 1 is disposed on the upper left front surface of the image forming apparatus main body 200.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the drawer-type paper discharge tray 600 is adopted to improve the ease of taking out a copy from the internal paper discharge unit 500. Specifically, the guide means 610 provided on the left side edge of the paper discharge tray 600 in the drawing.
And a slide means 620 similarly provided on the right side edge of the paper discharge tray 600 in the figure. And the guide means 61
0 is the guide means 6 at the lower left edge of the in-body paper discharge section 500.
10 is engaged with a groove 615 for allowing the slider 10 to slide freely. Further, the slide means 620 is, for example, a slider of Arcuride Co., Ltd., and one side of a pair of slide means 620 slidably incorporated via a bearing is disposed on the discharge tray 600 and the other side is discharged into the body. It is attached to the lower right side edge of the paper section 500 in the drawing (a stay 465 described later). With such a configuration, the paper discharge tray 600 can be freely pulled out from the in-body paper discharge unit 500. A space 640 for inserting a hand at the time of pulling out is secured on the front surface of the paper discharge tray 600. The rear side edge of the paper discharge tray 600 has a wall 6 projecting upward.
50 to prevent the copy from being left behind in the internal discharge space when the discharge tray 600 is pulled out.

Next, the schematic structure of the copying machine of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of the copying machine. The copying machine 1 has an apparatus main body 2 in which an image forming unit 8 and the like are stored, and a document processing unit 6 provided on an upper surface of the apparatus main body 2. The apparatus main body 2 has an upper part 3
, A lower part 4, and an in-body discharge part 500 partitioned between the upper part 3 and the lower part 4 to discharge the sheet. The internal discharge section 500 is exposed from the apparatus main body through an opening 7 defined between the upper section 3 and the lower section 4.

A reading section 20 is provided on the upper part 3 of the apparatus main body 2. A document placing plate (contact glass) 21 is provided on the upper surface of the upper part 3, and the document processing unit 6
Are mounted so as to be able to open and close. The document processing unit 6 automatically conveys a copy document placed on the upper surface thereof one sheet at a time to the document placing unit and discharges a document whose image has been read. The image reading unit 20 exposes the original passing through the transparent original placing plate 21 by the original processing unit 6, or exposes and scans the original placed on the original placing plate 21, and reflects the original from the original. The light is guided to a light receiving element 24 such as a CCD by an optical system such as a mirror 22 and a lens 23,
The reflected light is converted into an electric signal by the light receiving element 24. A signal from the reading unit 20 is subjected to predetermined processing by a signal processing unit (not shown) and output.

The lower part 4 of the apparatus main body 2 is
0 has the following components. In other words, a laser irradiation unit that obtains a beam light corresponding to predetermined image information by scanning laser light from an oscillated semiconductor laser or the like using a polygon mirror or the like in accordance with a signal from a signal processing unit ( LSU) 9. Also, as the image forming unit 8,
A photosensitive drum 41 for forming a latent image according to the light from the light irradiation unit 9, a charging charger 42 for charging the photosensitive drum 41, and a developing roller for charging the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 41 to a developing roller The image forming unit 40 includes a developing device 43 for visualizing the toner with the toner supplied by using the toner 44 and a cleaner 45 for cleaning the surface of the photosensitive drum 41 after the toner image is transferred. . In order to transfer an image visualized by the image forming unit 40 to a sheet, the transfer unit 46 includes a transfer roller 47 provided opposite to the photosensitive drum 41, and conveys the sheet in a predetermined direction. A fixing unit 48 for heating and fixing the transferred toner image, and a sheet are fed out from a sheet feeding cassette 51 as a sheet feeding unit 50 by a sheet feeding roller 52, and the image forming unit 40 and The paper transport unit 10 configured to discharge the paper to the paper discharge unit 5 is configured by the rear part 12 including the transport roller 54 through the fixing unit 48. The sheet transport unit 10, the image forming unit 40, and the transfer unit 46 constitute an image forming apparatus 8 that forms a toner image on a sheet.

The photosensitive drum 41 has a cylindrical shape, and is arranged so that the central axis thereof extends forward and backward. The photoreceptor drum 41 forms a toner image on the surface while rotating, for example, clockwise in FIG. Further, the above-described transfer roller 47 is disposed so as to approach and face the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 41. The transfer roller 47 is applied with a predetermined voltage, and charges the sheet when the conveyed sheet contacts the transfer roller 47. The transfer roller 47 transfers the charged toner image adhering to the photoconductive drum to the charged paper by electrostatic attraction while passing the paper between the photoconductive drum 41 while rotating.

In a portion of the transport path 13 near the photosensitive drum 41 and the transfer roller 47, the transported sheet is guided to a transfer area formed between the transfer roller 47 and the photosensitive drum 41. Guide members 56 and 57
Is provided. The pair of guide members 56 and 57 are plate-shaped members that are arranged on the upstream side of the photosensitive drum 41 in the sheet transport direction and are capable of moving the transported sheet along the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 41. And a part of the transport path 13 is defined therebetween. The guide member 57 is fixed to the transport base 33 forming a part of the transfer unit 46. The sheet is guided by the guide members 56 and 57, reaches between the photosensitive drum 41 and the transfer roller 47, and passes between them.

The image forming unit 40 including the photosensitive drum 41 and the transfer roller 47 are arranged such that the transfer roller 47 is disposed at a predetermined position with respect to the photosensitive drum 41.
The transfer units 46 are positioned and attached to the base member 32 of the housing 30, respectively. On the other hand, the image forming unit 40 is detachable from the base member 32 of the housing 30 and the transfer unit 46 is rotatable to facilitate maintenance such as jam clearance. .

In this embodiment, when the image forming unit 40 is attached or detached or the transfer unit 46 is rotated, a pair of positioning members 61 which are subsequently positioned again are replaced by a pair.
It is provided on the casing 35 of the image forming unit 40 including the photosensitive drum 41. Thus, the positioning of the transfer roller 47 with respect to the photosensitive drum 41 can be realized with high accuracy so that the positioning position when the image forming unit 40 or the like is displaced and returned to the original position does not change.

The rear portion 12 of the paper transport section 10 has a pair of transport guides 70 for guiding the paper from the fixing section 48 to the discharge roller 54. Then, the copy sheet on which the image is formed and which has been fixed by the fixing unit 48 is discharged from the discharge roller 54 to the discharge unit 5. The ejected copy paper, as described above,
It is placed on a paper discharge tray 600 provided in an in-body paper discharge section 500 which can be pulled out from the opening 7 to the front of the apparatus main body 2. The discharge tray 600 includes a slope 80 that is inclined low with respect to the main part 78 of the upper surface on the side of the discharge roller 54 and a wall surface 82 that stands upright from the left edge of the slope 80 in the drawing.
The end of the discharged copy sheet is aligned using the wall surface 82.

In this embodiment, since the discharge tray 600 which can be pulled out is provided, the opening 7 of the in-body discharge portion 500 has the lower end edge of the opening as shown by a chain line in FIG. The left edge of the opening is formed so as to include the discharge roller 54.

Next, a frame structure constituting the housing of the image forming apparatus of the present invention will be described. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view for explaining the outline of the frame structure of the present invention. The apparatus main body 2 is formed on a resin base block 410 on which a paper feed cassette 400 is mounted as a base base before being press-formed. Side plate 430, rear side plate 440, side plate 45
0, 2 stays 460, 465, and a partition plate 470 for separating the image forming section and the optical system section constituting the image reading section.
As a main component.

The base block 410 mainly constitutes the sheet feeding section 50 positioned below the apparatus main body 2.
It has a fixing portion 412 for fixing 30, 30, 440, 450 with fixing means such as screws. Also, block 410
An opening 414 is formed on the left side of the upper surface in FIG. 1 for feeding a sheet from the sheet feeding unit 50 to the image forming unit 8. On the other hand, inside the block 410, a space 416 for accommodating the paper feed cassette 400 so as to be able to be pulled out and a guide rail 418 for pulling out the cassette are integrally formed. In this way, by forming the base substrate into a block 410 of resin integral molding,
The strength of the lower portion of the image forming apparatus main body 2 can be increased, and the weight can be reduced.

The frame in this embodiment is formed on the upper surface of the base block 410 thus formed by the front and rear side plates 43.
0, 440 and the left side in the figure (the side having the sheet feeding and conveying means)
The side plates 450 are respectively erected using screws, and adjacent side plates are also connected using screws.
Specifically, connection portions 432, 442, 452 formed by press-molding plate-shaped side plates and bending them at right angles are formed below the side plates 430, 440, 450, and penetrated through these connection portions. Screw holes 434, 444, 454 are provided, and the screws are tightened to the base block 410, so that the side plates 430, 44
0 and 450 are fixed to the base block. Also, the side plate 45
0, bent portions 456 and 457 for connection to the front side plate 430 and the rear side plate 440 are formed at both lateral edges.
A female screw hole 458 is formed in this portion, and a threaded screw hole 436 formed in the front side plate 430 or the rear side plate 440 side,
The screws are tightened from 446 to fix them. A large opening 438 is formed in the front side plate 430 at a position corresponding to the in-body paper discharge unit 500, and is finished as one press-formed plate. By finishing as described above, even in the image forming apparatus having the internal paper discharge space, the front side plate 430 can be used.
However, the paper feed unit 50 located above and below the in-body paper discharge unit 500, the optical system unit, the image forming unit 8, and the like can be integrally connected, and the strength of the frame can be increased. Further, by forming the front side plate 430 with one press plate, the number of processing steps can be reduced, which leads to cost reduction. In this embodiment, the rear side plate 440 is also formed by one press plate, thereby achieving a cost reduction effect similarly to the front side plate.

On the other hand, the right side in the figure uses the two stays 460 and 465 without standing the side plate, and
30 and the rear side plate 440, like the side plate,
Connection is made with screws using 2, 467. This is because the right side surface corresponds to the right side surface of the in-body paper discharge space, and the functional components constituting the image forming apparatus are not assembled. Therefore, the distance between the front and rear side plates 430 and 440 is made accurate, and from the viewpoint of securing strength. It has a stay structure. This leads to a reduction in the weight of the frame itself.

An upper partition plate 47 is provided above the inside of the side wall of the frame formed by the three side plates and the two stays in order to secure a space for assembling the moving optical system.
0 is placed. Specifically, the mounting portions 457, 46 formed by welding or press molding on the side plate and the upper stay.
8, female screw holes 459 and 469 are provided, a partition plate 470 is placed, and screws are fixed. A bent portion 472 is formed at the front and rear side edges of the upper partition plate 470, and a female screw hole 474 is provided in the bent portion 472, and is fixed by screws from the front and rear side plates 430 and 440.

The structure of the copying machine according to the present invention has been described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. For reference, the positional relationship between the frame and each system means for forming an image will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic view as seen from the front of the apparatus main body, and each system means is indicated by a dotted line.

A paper feed cassette is attached to the opening 414 of the base block 410 so that it can be pulled out. On the right side of the base block 410, side plates 430, 440, 450
In the space defined by, there is disposed a sheet feeding means partly protruding. On the left side of the side plate space in the figure, the sheet transporting unit 10 from the sheet feeding unit 50 to the transfer unit and the fixing unit is arranged, and the image forming unit 40 is arranged below the side plate space. A laser scanner unit (LSU) 9 is disposed on the right side of the image forming unit 40.

An inner discharge section 500 is formed at the center of the side plate space. The opening 438 formed in the front side plate 430 has a substantially rectangular shape, and is arranged in such a manner that the paper discharge unit 5 arranged downstream of the fixing unit 48 faces the inside of the opening 438. Further, the paper discharge tray 600 has an inclined surface 80 and a flat surface 78 in which the paper discharge unit 5 side is slightly downwardly inclined.
And is located inside the opening 438 with respect to the lower edge of the opening 438. An optical system means is disposed above the space of the in-body paper discharge section 500 with a partition plate 470 therebetween, and a document placing plate (contact glass) 2 is provided above the optical system means.
1. Further, an original processing unit 6 also serving as an original press is provided on the upper part of the original mounting plate 21 so as to be openable and closable, and an operation panel 700 and other necessary various functional components and an exterior panel are mounted thereon. Become.

As described above, in the image forming apparatus provided with the internal discharge section, the opening corresponding to the internal discharge space is provided on the front side plate, and the base block and the optical system storage section are formed integrally. As a result, the frame strength can be extremely increased.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention, as the frame structure, the front side plate is formed by pressing one sheet, and the front side plate is provided with an opening corresponding to the in-body paper discharge portion. Each system means including the optical system of the image forming apparatus can be arranged inside the strong frame structure. As a result, the strength of the image forming apparatus itself can be increased, and there is no possibility that image blurring or the like will occur. Even when the internal discharge portion has an opening only on the front side of the main body, the paper can be taken out extremely smoothly.

[0032]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A and 1B are views for explaining an external appearance of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 1A is a perspective view and FIG. 1B is a front view.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view for explaining a frame structure of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the arrangement of each means as viewed from the front of the frame according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the appearance of a conventional image forming apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 6 Document processing unit 7 Opening 8 Image forming unit 9 LSU 20 Image reading unit 40 Image forming unit 50 Feeding unit 200 Image forming apparatus main unit 400 Feeding cassette 410 Base block 430 Front side plate 438 Opening 440 Rear side plate 450 Side plate 500 Body Paper output unit 600 paper output tray

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2H071 AA35 AA37 BA23 BA27 DA24 3F054 AA01 AC01 BA02 BC02 BC08 BJ02

Claims (2)

[Claims] An image reading section, an image reading section disposed above the image forming section, a sheet feeding section disposed below the image forming section, and a sheet feeding section between the image forming section and the image reading section. The toner image formed in the image forming unit is transferred to the supplied paper, and then an internal paper discharge unit for storing the output paper having the toner image fixed on the paper by the fixing unit is disposed. In the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus has a frame having at least a front plate and a rear plate standing on a base, the front plate having an opening corresponding to an in-body paper discharge unit, an image reading unit and an image forming unit. , And the paper feed unit 1
An image forming apparatus comprising: a press-formed plate. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the in-body paper discharging unit includes a paper mounting unit slidably mounted so that a part thereof protrudes from the front surface of the image forming apparatus main body. apparatus.