JP2016160030A - Recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a recording device that can suppress a risk that a medium, which is conveyed on a branch path branching from a discharge path at a further downstream side in a conveying direction than a recording part, may interfere with a medium which is discharged from the discharge path.SOLUTION: The recording device comprises: a housing 12 that houses a recording part 14 that performs recording on paper P; a discharge path 25 having at an end a discharge port 26, to which the paper on which recording was performed is conveyed, which is provided at a part of a side wall of the housing; a branch path 24 that branches from the discharge path at a further downstream side in a conveying direction than the recording part and inverts a direction in which the paper is conveyed; an inverting path 23 that inverts front and back sides of the paper, which has a direction in which the paper is conveyed by the branch path inverted, and reconveys the paper to the recording part; and a branching mechanism 27 that switches selectively conveying directions so that the paper on which the recording was performed is conveyed to either one of the discharge path and the branch path. The branch path is configured so that a part thereof extends along the discharge path, has a length larger than a length of a medium in the conveying direction in the paper and is provided inside the housing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording apparatus such as a printer.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, printers including a recording unit that records an image or the like by attaching a recording material to a sheet, which is an example of a medium, are known as a type of recording apparatus. In such a printer, a paper feed path for feeding paper from the paper cassette to the recording unit, a discharge path for discharging recorded paper from the recording unit to the outside of the apparatus, and recording for recording on both sides of the paper In some cases, there is provided a reversal conveyance path for reversing the front and back of the sheet on which one side has been recorded by the unit and conveying it again to the recording unit.

  In general, the reverse conveyance path is a branch path formed so as to be bifurcated from the paper discharge path at a position downstream of the recording unit in the conveyance direction, and the direction in which the paper is conveyed in the branch path. Is configured to include a reversing path for reversing the paper from the front to the back and reversing the front and back of the paper and transporting the paper from the upstream side in the transport direction to the recording unit. For example, in the printer described in Patent Document 1, the branch path is provided so as to be aligned with the discharge path along the discharge path in order to suppress an increase in the size of the apparatus, and the transported direction is from the front to the rear. The length of the path provided in the apparatus is configured to be short so that the leading edge of the sheet projects out of the apparatus from the end of the branch path when reversed.

JP 2012-6726 A

  By the way, in the case of a printer like patent document 1, the termination | terminus of a branch path | route and the termination | terminus of a discharge path | route are exposed out of the apparatus by the positional relationship adjacent in an up-down direction. For this reason, if the leading edge of the paper conveyed forward in the branch path protrudes out of the apparatus from the end of the branch path, the leading edge of the protruding paper may come into contact with the paper discharged from the discharge path. There was a risk of quality degradation and paper jams.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. An object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus capable of suppressing the possibility that a medium conveyed on a branch path branched from the discharge path downstream from the recording unit in the conveyance direction with respect to the medium discharged from the discharge path can be suppressed. is there.

  A recording apparatus that solves the above problems includes a housing that accommodates a recording unit that records on a medium, and a discharge that enables the medium recorded by the recording unit to be transported and discharged to the outside of the housing at the end thereof. A discharge path having an outlet, a branch path that branches from the discharge path at a position downstream of the recording unit in the conveyance direction of the medium, and a direction in which the medium is conveyed is reversed; and the branch path In the medium in which the direction in which the medium is transported is reversed, the posture of the medium is reversed so that the back surface opposite to the recording surface recorded by the recording unit faces the recording unit. The conveyance direction of the medium is selected such that the medium is conveyed to the recording unit, and the medium recorded by the recording unit is conveyed to one of the discharge path and the branch path. A switching section that switches automatically, and the branch path is configured so that a part thereof is along the discharge path, and has a length that is equal to or longer than the medium length in the transport direction of the medium. Is provided.

  According to this configuration, the branch path configured so as to be partially along the discharge path with respect to the discharge path through which the medium to be conveyed is exposed from the discharge port is housed in the housing. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the possibility that the medium conveyed through the branch path branched from the discharge path on the downstream side in the conveyance direction with respect to the medium discharged from the discharge path interferes.

In the recording apparatus, it is preferable that the branch path includes a curved path in a part thereof.
According to this structure, compared with the case where the branch path is configured by only a straight path in the housing, the size of the apparatus can be suppressed when the curved path is included in a part thereof.

In the recording apparatus, it is preferable that the branch path includes a curved path that conveys the medium so that the recording surface is inside.
In general, the medium is likely to be curled with the recording surface convex as a result of the recording material adhering by the recording unit or being heated to a high temperature to fix the recording material. According to this configuration, the medium conveyed along the branch path is curved with the recording surface recorded by the recording unit as the inner side. Therefore, the effect of correcting the curl generated in the medium in the branch path can be expected.

  In the recording apparatus, it is preferable that the branch path has a guide surface that guides the medium by contacting the medium from a back surface that is a surface opposite to the recording surface.

  According to this configuration, the medium conveyed along the branch path is guided by the guide surface coming into contact with the back surface that is the surface opposite to the recording surface. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the recording quality of the image recorded on the recording surface of the medium conveyed along the branch path.

  In the recording apparatus, the branch path includes a first path section on a start end extending from the switching section along the discharge path, and a second path section on a terminal end side continuous with the first path section. In addition, it is preferable that the first path portion is detachably attached to the second path portion.

  According to this configuration, even if a conveyance failure occurs due to a jam or the like in the branch path, the medium jammed in the branch path can be taken out by removing the first path section from the second path section. Therefore, the maintainability of the recording apparatus is improved.

  The recording apparatus includes a placement unit for placing the medium discharged from the discharge port, and the branch path is opposite to the placement unit in the transport direction with respect to the discharge port. It is preferable to be provided.

  According to this configuration, for example, it is possible to suppress an increase in the bulkiness of the recording apparatus as compared with a case where a branch path is provided in a region below the placement unit in the vertical direction. That is, the enlargement of the apparatus can be suppressed.

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram schematically illustrating an embodiment of a printer that is an example of a recording apparatus. The perspective view of the printer which abbreviate | omitted some housing structures. The front view which shows a discharge port. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a partial internal structure of a discharge port and a discharge tray. 4A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 4, FIG. 4B is a view when the second contact portion is rotated counterclockwise from the state of FIG. 4A, and FIG. The figure when rotating a 2nd contact part clockwise from the state of. 4A and 4B are schematic diagrams illustrating the movement of a sheet when performing duplex printing, where FIG. 5A is a diagram when the sheet is conveyed along a branch path, and FIG. 5B is a diagram illustrating the sheet conveyed along the third supply path from the branch path. FIG. 10C is a diagram when the sheet is conveyed along the discharge path toward the discharge port. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a positional relationship of sheets in a printer when continuously recording on a plurality of sheets. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the printer illustrating a state in which paper is discharged from a discharge port. The front view which shows the discharge port in FIG. The front view which shows the discharge port in the printer in which the 2nd contact part is not provided as a comparative example.

  Hereinafter, as an embodiment of a recording apparatus, an ink jet printer that prints (records) an image including characters, figures, and the like on a paper that is an example of a medium by ejecting ink that is an example of a liquid, see FIG. To explain.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 11 includes a support base 13 that supports a sheet P, which is an example of a medium, from the lower side in the vertical direction (vertical direction), and an image on the sheet P in a substantially rectangular housing 12. A recording unit 14 for recording and a transport path 20 through which the paper P is transported are provided. In addition, a transport unit 29 configured by a plurality of rollers (roller pairs) and transporting the paper P along the transport path 20 is provided.

  The printer 11 transports the paper P on the support table 13 and along the transport path 20 with the paper front and back direction in FIG. 1 as the width direction of the paper P and the direction intersecting the width direction as the transport direction. The recording unit 14 includes a line head as a liquid ejecting head capable of ejecting ink substantially simultaneously in the entire width direction intersecting the transport direction of the paper P, and the paper P transported on the support base 13. An image is printed by attaching ink from above in the vertical direction.

  The printed paper P is transported from the recording unit 14 to the discharge path 25 that forms the downstream portion of the transport path 20 by the paper discharge roller pair 18 and other plural transport roller pairs 19, and is provided at the end of the discharge path 25. At the same time, it is discharged out of the discharge path 25 from the discharge port 26 opened in the housing 12. Therefore, the transport direction of the paper P is the same as the transport direction to the discharge port 26 and the discharge direction Y from the discharge port 26. Then, the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 in the discharge direction Y indicated by the white arrow in FIG. 1 falls downward in the vertical direction, and is stacked up to a predetermined maximum number as indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. In this state, the paper is discharged onto the mounting surface 61 of the paper discharge tray (mounting unit) 60. The paper P is placed in a posture in which the recording surface (surface on which an image is printed) is directed downward in the vertical direction from the discharge port 26 by the transport roller pairs 19 arranged at a plurality of locations in the discharge path 25. The paper is discharged.

  The paper discharge tray 60 has a placement surface 61 that is a sloped surface that rises upward in the vertical direction toward the discharge direction Y of the paper P, and the paper P is placed on the placement surface 61 in a stacked state. Put. At this time, each sheet P placed on the placement surface 61 moves in the direction opposite to the discharge direction Y along the inclination of the placement surface 61 and is provided below the discharge port 26 of the housing 12. It is placed close to the vertical side wall 12W.

  In the present embodiment, the transport path 20 includes a discharge path 25 that transports the paper P from the recording unit 14 to the discharge port 26, and a supply path that supplies the paper P to the recording unit 14. The supply path includes a first supply path 21, a second supply path 22, and a third supply path 23.

  The discharge path 25 is curved with the recording surface of the paper P printed by the recording unit 14 inward while the paper P printed by the recording unit 14 is conveyed to the discharge port 26, and the recording of the paper P is performed. A curved reversing path is provided for reversing the sheet P from a state in which the surface is directed upward in the vertical direction to a state in which the surface is directed downward in the vertical direction. Accordingly, in the discharge path 25, the sheet P is discharged from the discharge port 26 in a state where the recording surface faces the placement surface 61 of the discharge tray 60 by passing through the curved inversion path.

  In the first supply path 21, the paper P inserted from the insertion port 12 a exposed by opening the cover 12 </ b> F provided on one side surface of the housing 12 is conveyed to the recording unit 14. That is, the paper P inserted into the insertion port 12a is pressed against the first drive roller 41a by the hopper 12b, and is conveyed by the rotational drive of the first drive roller 41a, so that the first drive roller 41a and the first driven roller 41b After being sandwiched therebetween, the sheet is conveyed toward the recording unit 14 by the rotational drive of the first drive roller 41a.

  In the second supply path 22, in the vertical direction, the paper P placed in a stackable manner on the paper cassette 12 c that can be inserted into and removed from the bottom on the lower side of the housing 12 is conveyed to the recording unit 14. That is, the paper P placed in the stacked state on the paper cassette 12c is fed out by the pickup roller 16a and separated one by one by the separation roller pair 16b, and then the second drive roller 42a. It is sandwiched between the second driven roller 42b and conveyed toward the recording unit 14 by the rotational drive of the second drive roller 42a.

  In the third supply path 23, when performing double-sided printing for printing on both sides of the paper P, the paper P on which one side has been printed by the recording unit 14 is conveyed again to the recording unit 14. That is, a branch path 24 that branches from the discharge path 25 by the operation of the branch mechanism 27 provided in the middle of the discharge path 25 is provided downstream of the recording unit 14 in the transport direction of the paper P.

  The branch path 24 is a position on the opposite side (left side in FIG. 1) from the discharge tray 60 with respect to the discharge port 26 when viewed from the width direction of the sheet P orthogonal to (crossing) the conveyance direction of the sheet P. The length is set to be equal to or longer than the medium length of the paper P in the transport direction. The branch path 24 is composed of an upstream branch path (first path section) 24a and a downstream branch path (second path section) 24b continuous thereto. The upstream branch path 24 a is an upstream portion that becomes the start end side of the branch path 24, and extends along the discharge path 25 from the branch mechanism 27. The downstream branch path 24 b extends away from a discharge port 26 that is a downstream portion that is the end side of the branch path 24 and that is the end of the discharge path 25. In other words, the branch path 24 is configured to include a curved path in which the paper P is bent in a posture with the recording surface facing inward. Further, the downstream branch path 24b has a guide surface 24c that guides the paper P by contacting from the back side opposite to the recording surface of the paper P on which recording is performed by the recording unit 14.

  A branch path roller pair 44 capable of both normal rotation and reverse rotation is provided on the downstream side of the branch mechanism 27 in the branch path 24. The branching mechanism 27 includes a first flap 27a and a second flap 27b as a switching unit that selectively switches a path along which the paper P is conveyed.

  At the time of double-sided printing, the paper P on which one side is printed is once guided to the branch path 24 from the recording unit 14 side by the first flap 27a of the branch mechanism 27, and the branch path roller pair 44 rotates in the branch path 24. It is conveyed downstream. At this time, the sheet P conveyed to the branch path 24 is curved along the branch path 24 so that the recording surface is on the inside.

  Thereafter, the paper P conveyed to the branch path 24 is reversely transported from the downstream side to the upstream side in the branch path 24 by the branch path roller pair 44 that rotates in the reverse direction. That is, the transport direction of the paper P transported in the branch path 24 is reversed.

  The sheet P that is reversely conveyed from the branch path 24 is conveyed to the third supply path 23 by the second flap 27 b of the branch mechanism 27, and is conveyed toward the recording unit 14 by a plurality of conveyance roller pairs 19. By being transported through the third supply path 23, the sheet P is reversed so that the unprinted paper surface faces the recording unit 14, and is sandwiched between the third driving roller 43a and the third driven roller 43b, It is conveyed toward the recording unit 14 by the rotational drive of the third drive roller 43a. In other words, the third supply path 23 functions as an inversion path through which the paper P is conveyed again to the recording unit 14 while being inverted on the front and back of the paper surface.

  The first flap 27 a included in the branching mechanism 27 guides the paper P, on which recording has been performed by the recording unit 14, to the first position for guiding the sheet P to the curved reversal path included in the discharge path 25 and to the branch path 24. The second position for switching between the first position and the second position for switching is provided. The second flap 27b is used for guiding the sheet P recorded by the recording unit 14 to the branch path 24 and the branch path 24 to the third supply path 23. The second position and the second position are switchable.

  The paper P transported toward the recording unit 14 through each supply path is transported to the alignment roller pair 15 disposed upstream in the transport direction of the recording unit 14, and then the alignment roller pair 15 whose rotation has stopped. The tip hits. Then, the inclination of the sheet P with respect to the conveyance direction is corrected (deskewed) according to the state in which the sheet P hits the alignment roller pair 15. Then, the sheet P whose inclination is corrected is aligned and conveyed to the recording unit 14 side by the subsequent rotational driving of the alignment roller pair 15.

  The paper P conveyed to the recording unit 14 side by the alignment roller pair 15 is discharged to the paper feeding roller pair 17 provided on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the paper P with respect to the recording unit 14 or on the downstream side in the conveyance direction. A pair of rollers 18 and a pair of transport rollers 19 are transported while facing the recording unit 14. Printing is performed on the transported paper P by ejecting ink from the opposed recording unit 14. Note that the alternate long and short dash line representing the paper P shown in FIG. 1 represents the trajectory of the paper P being conveyed.

  The printer 11 includes a control unit 50 having a computer function and a storage unit (not shown) that stores a program for controlling such a printing operation. Then, the control unit 50 operates according to the program stored in the storage unit, thereby controlling the operation of the recording unit 14 and the transport unit 29 based on the print data input to the printer 11 and serving as a recording area of the paper P. Print (record) an image in the print area.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the discharge port 26 opens in a horizontally long rectangular shape in the housing 12 with the direction intersecting both the discharge direction Y and the vertical direction of the paper P as the opening width direction (hereinafter referred to as the opening width). The direction is also simply referred to as the width direction). The paper discharge tray 60 on which the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 is placed is provided with a protruding rib 66 as a support portion that can protrude upward from the mounting surface 61 that is the upper surface thereof. That is, the protruding rib 66 is provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and is a displacement that operates when the protruding rib 66 protrudes from the mounting surface 61 at a predetermined rib height (height position) in the paper discharge tray 60. A mechanism is provided. This displacement mechanism is controlled by the control unit of the printer 11.

  In addition, the placement surface 61 of the paper discharge tray 60 of the present embodiment is configured by an upstream first placement surface 61A and a downstream second placement surface 61B in the paper discharge direction Y. . The first placement surface 61A and the second placement surface 61B have a predetermined width at the center in the width direction intersecting the discharge direction Y of the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26, and the discharge of the paper P A first convex portion 62A and a second convex portion 62B each extending in the direction Y along the direction Y and having a height of a predetermined dimension are provided on the upper side in the vertical direction. The first convex portion 62A and the second convex portion 62B are provided so as to overlap each other when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and form a single convex portion 62 connected along the discharge direction Y on the mounting surface 61. .

  In the present embodiment, the first placement surface 61 </ b> A is the upper surface on the upper side in the vertical direction of the paper discharge tray unit 65 that is removable from the printer 11, and a displacement mechanism is attached to the paper discharge tray unit 65. By the operation of the displacement mechanism, the protruding rib 66 protrudes upward at a predetermined rib height from the upper surface of the first convex portion 62A provided on the first placement surface 61A, as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. To do.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the printer 11, a central portion in the width direction of the discharge port 26 connected to the end of the discharge path 25 from which the paper P is discharged is in the width direction of the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26. A discharge unit 30 is provided that contacts the central portion and discharges the paper P from the discharge port 26 to the discharge tray 60. The discharge unit 30 is held in a rotatable state by the discharge drive roller 30a as a drive roller that contacts the paper P from the upper side in the vertical direction and the holding unit 31 and contacts the paper P from the lower side in the vertical direction. It is comprised from the discharge driven roller 30b (3rd contact part) as a driven roller to do. A plurality of discharge driven rollers 30 b held by the discharge drive roller 30 a and the holding unit 31 are provided across the width direction at the center of the discharge port 26.

  Among the discharge driven rollers 30b provided in a plurality at the discharge port 26, there are those that are opposed to the discharge drive roller 30a and those that are not opposed. In the present embodiment, a discharge driven roller 30b that does not face the discharge drive roller 30a is provided between the discharge driven roller 30b that faces the discharge drive roller 30a in the width direction. In addition, the discharge driven roller 30b that does not face the discharge drive roller 30a is provided at a position that is slightly higher in the vertical direction than the face that faces the discharge drive roller 30a. The discharge driven roller 30b is composed of a roller with a serration such as a star wheel in order to reduce the possibility that the recording surface of the paper P recorded by the recording unit 14 is soiled.

  That is, with the discharge drive roller 30a and the discharge driven roller 30b opposite thereto sandwiching the central portion in the width direction of the paper P, the discharge drive roller 30a is driven to rotate, and the discharge driven roller 30b is connected to the discharge drive roller 30a. The paper P is discharged to the paper discharge tray 60 by being driven to rotate along with the drive rotation. At this time, a portion of the discharge driven roller 30b that contacts the paper P becomes the third medium contact portion 32 (see FIG. 9).

  Further, in the discharge port 26, a first vertically downward curved shape is formed with respect to the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 at each position on the outer side in the width direction than the position where the discharge unit 30 is provided. Contact portions 70 are respectively provided. The first contact portion 70 includes a protrusion 71 that protrudes vertically downward from the discharge port 26, and a roller 72 that is rotatably supported by the protrusion 71. The roller 72 is composed of a roller with a serration such as a star wheel, like the discharge driven roller 30b.

  That is, when the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26, the first contact unit 70 contacts the paper P from the upper side in the vertical direction at each position outside the center in the width direction. A downward curved shape is formed by pushing down vertically. Here, in the first contact portion 70, a portion that contacts the paper P in order to form a curved shape on the paper P becomes the first medium contact portion 73 (see FIG. 9). The first medium contact portion 73 is a lower end portion of the roller 72 in the vertical direction, and is at a position lower than the third medium contact portion 32.

  Further, a curved shape that is vertically upward with respect to the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 is formed at each position outside the discharge port 26 in the width direction from the position where the first contact portion 70 is provided. Second contact portions 80 are provided respectively. The second contact portion 80 includes a holder 81 attached to the discharge port 26 and a roller 82 that is rotatably supported by the holder 81. The roller 82 is constituted by a roller with a knurled surface such as a star wheel, like the discharge driven roller 30b and the roller 72 constituting the first contact portion 70.

  That is, when the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26, the second contact portion 80 comes into contact with the paper P from the lower side in the vertical direction at each position corresponding to both ends of the paper P in the width direction. Are pushed up to form upward curved shapes, respectively. Here, in the second contact portion 80, a portion that contacts the paper P in order to form a curved shape on the paper P becomes the second medium contact portion 84 (see FIG. 9). The second medium contact portion 84 is an upper end portion in the vertical direction of the roller 82, and is lower than the third medium contact portion 32 and higher than the first medium contact portion 73.

  That is, the contact position where the second contact portion 80 contacts the paper P is higher in the vertical direction than the position where the first contact portion 70 contacts the paper P. The contact position where the first contact portion 70 contacts the paper P and the contact position where the second contact portion 80 contacts the paper P are determined from the contact position where the discharge driven roller 30b as the third contact portion contacts the paper P. Is also downward in the vertical direction.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the discharge unit 30, the first contact unit 70, and the second contact unit 80 provided in the discharge port 26 are provided so that their positions are different in the discharge direction Y. Specifically, the second contact portion 80, the first contact portion 70, and the discharge portion 30 are provided in this order from the upstream side. That is, when the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26, the first contact portion 70 forms a vertically downward curved shape after the second contact portion 80 forms a vertically upward curved shape.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the holder 81 constituting the second contact portion 80 has a base end on the upstream side in the discharge direction Y inserted through a shaft 83 extending in the width direction, whereby the discharge port 26. It is supported so that it can rotate. In addition, a roller 82 is rotatably supported at a distal end opposite to the base end.

  Here, when the holder 81 is rotated counterclockwise about the shaft 83, the position of the tip of the holder 81 is displaced as shown in FIG. The position in the direction becomes higher. Conversely, when the holder 81 is rotated clockwise about the shaft 83, the position of the roller 82 in the vertical direction is lowered as shown in FIG. That is, by rotating the holder 81, the contact position of the second medium contact portion 84 of the second contact portion 80 with the paper P is displaced in the vertical direction. Incidentally, the rotation operation of the holder 81 may be performed manually by the user or may be performed by the control unit 50 controlling.

Next, the operation when duplex printing is performed on the paper P by the operation of the branch mechanism 27 in the printer 11 configured as described above will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, the paper P supplied from the insertion opening 12 a or the paper cassette 12 c is transported through the first supply path 21 or the second supply path 22, and is one surface (recording) facing the recording unit 14 by the recording unit 14. Recording). Here, in the case of performing double-sided printing in which recording is also performed on the other side (back side) of the sheet P opposite to the first side, the sheet P is conveyed through the third supply path 23 (reversal path). The

  As shown in FIG. 6A, the control unit 50 controls the operations of the first flap 27a and the second flap 27b provided in the branch mechanism 27, the first flap 27a is set to the second position, and the second flap 27b is set to the second flap 27b. Position in the first position. The paper P is guided from the discharge path 25 to the branch path 24 by the branch mechanism 27 in which the positions of the flaps 27a and 27b are switched in this way. The sheet P guided to the branch path 24 is guided by the guide surface 24c included in the downstream branch path 24b from the back surface side opposite to the recording surface recorded by the recording unit 14, so that the recording surface is inward. As a result, the branch path 24 is conveyed downstream in a curved posture.

  As shown in FIG. 6B, when the control unit 50 determines that the trailing edge of the paper P has passed through the second flap 27b, the control unit 50 controls the operation of the second flap 27b and moves the second flap 27b. The branch path 24 and the third supply path 23 are made continuous by being positioned at the second position. Further, by rotating the branch path roller pair 44 in the reverse direction, the paper P stored in the branch path 24 is guided to the third supply path 23 with its transport direction reversed.

  The sheet P conveyed through the third supply path 23 is conveyed again to the recording unit 14 while the posture in the vertical direction is reversed. At this time, the other surface opposite to the one surface on which recording is performed is opposed to the recording unit 14. That is, the paper P is reversed in its posture and conveyed to the recording unit 14 again by being conveyed through the branch path 24 and the third supply path 23 that functions as the reversing path.

  As shown in FIG. 6C, when the sheet P is transported through the third supply path 23 and recording is performed on the other side by the recording unit 14, the control unit 50 controls the operation of the first flap 27a. By positioning the first flap 27a at the first position, the paper P is guided to the curved inversion path of the discharge path 25. Then, the paper P on which recording (double-sided printing) has been performed on both one side and the other side is discharged from the discharge port 26 to the discharge tray 60 by the discharge unit 30.

  When performing single-sided printing, which performs recording on only one side, on the paper P, the control unit 50 positions the first flap 27a at the first position and feeds the paper P to the branch path 24 as in FIG. 6C. The paper P is guided to the discharge path 25 as it is without being conveyed.

  Here, when recording is performed on a plurality of sheets, the recording unit 14 performs recording on the next sheet S (see FIG. 7) while the sheet P on which recording by the recording unit 14 is completed is transported through the discharge path 25. . When double-sided printing is performed on the paper S, the paper S on which recording on one side is completed is guided to the branch path 24 as in FIG.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the next sheet S is conveyed along the branch path 24 while the preceding sheet P is discharged from the discharge port 26 to the discharge tray 60. Temporarily, the downstream branch path 24b, which is the downstream part of the branch path 24, extends along the discharge path 25 in the same manner as the upstream branch path 24a, and its end is opened below the discharge port 26. In some cases, depending on the timing, the paper P and the paper S may contact each other and interfere with each other.

  In particular, when performing double-sided printing on a long sheet S in the transport direction, the leading edge of the sheet S greatly protrudes from the lower side of the discharge port 26 until the trailing edge of the sheet S passes through the second flap 27b. If the leading edge of the sheet S protrudes greatly from the lower side of the discharge port 26, it may come into contact with the sheet P that is discharged from the discharge port 26 and falls to the discharge tray 60, and may not be suitably placed on the discharge tray 60. is there. Further, the leading edge of the paper S may come into contact with the paper group already placed on the paper discharge tray 60, and a part of the paper group may drop off from the paper discharge tray 60. Therefore, the printer 11 according to the present embodiment reduces the possibility of interference with the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 by accommodating the path portion of the branch path 24 in the housing 12 (FIGS. 1 and FIG. 1). 7).

Next, an operation when the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26 will be described.
The sheet P on which recording is performed on one or both sides by the ejection of ink by the recording unit 14 is transported to the discharge port 26 through the discharge path 25 including the curved inversion path in the transport path 20. Then, the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 by the discharge unit 30 is discharged in a state where a curved shape is formed by the first contact unit 70 and the second contact unit 80 provided in the discharge port 26.

  Then, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the sheet P discharged from the discharge port 26 is bent so as to undulate on the surface of the sheet P across the width direction when viewed from the front of the discharge port 26. A shape is formed. This curved shape is such that, in the width direction, the central portion of the paper P is sandwiched by the discharge portion 30, and both positions that are outside the central portion are pushed downward vertically by the first contact portion 70, and further outward. These positions are formed by being pushed up vertically by the second contact portion 80.

  Note that the recording surface of the paper P on which recording has been performed by the recording unit 14 is expanded by the ink ejected onto the recording surface. Due to the expansion of the recording surface, the paper P tends to be curled in a convex shape on the recording surface side. In the so-called face-down type printer 11 that discharges to the paper discharge tray 60 in a posture in which the recording surface is vertically downward at the time of single-sided printing like the printer 11 of the present embodiment, the curl that is convex downward in the vertical downward direction is the paper P Is more likely to occur. Therefore, in the face-down type printer 11, the curl is corrected by forming a vertically downward curved shape at a position outside the central portion of the paper P in the width direction.

  Incidentally, the projecting rib 66 provided at the central portion of the paper discharge tray 60 in the width direction supports the central portion of the discharged paper P from the lower side in the vertical direction, thereby curving both ends of the paper P vertically downward, Correct curls that are vertically downward convex.

  However, in the case of double-sided printing in which recording is performed on both sides, the direction of the generated curl differs for each sheet P due to the difference in the amount of ink ejected on one side and the other side and the difference in the dryness of the ink ejected on each side. For example, when recording is performed such that a relatively larger amount of ink is ejected on the upper surface in the vertical direction of the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26 than the lower surface, the paper P protrudes vertically upward. There is a high possibility that curling will occur.

  As in the comparative example shown in FIG. 10, the first contact portion 70 forms a vertically downward curved shape on the paper P at each position outside the central portion of the paper P in the width direction, and discharges the face down. In the case of a printer of the type, curl can be moderately corrected with respect to a curl that is convex downward in the vertical direction and occurs with high probability during single-sided printing. However, it is difficult to correct the curl that is vertically upward and convex due to double-sided printing, and the degree of curl may be increased.

  If the degree of curl that is convex upward in the sheet P is increased, both ends in the width direction of the sheet P are greatly warped, and a part of the upper surface in the vertical direction is placed on the discharge tray 60. It may face the surface 61. When the paper P is discharged to the paper discharge tray 60 in this state, both end portions of the paper P are bent due to contact with the placement surface 61 of the paper discharge tray 60 and may not be suitably placed on the paper discharge tray 60. is there.

Therefore, the printer 11 according to the present embodiment is provided with the second contact portion 80 so as to be able to correct both upper and lower curls.
The same can be said for a face-up type printer that discharges in a posture where the recording surface is in the vertical direction upper side during single-sided printing. That is, the printer 11 is configured to correct not only the curl in one direction but also the curl in both the upward and downward directions.

According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) In the width direction intersecting both the discharge direction Y and the vertical direction of the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26, the first contact portion 70 is vertically downward at each position outside the central portion of the paper P. Each of the curved shapes is formed, and a vertically upward curved shape is formed on the paper P at each position further outward in the width direction than the position by the second contact portion 80. In other words, the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26 in a state where a curved shape having an undulation is formed so as to wave in the width direction. Therefore, the curl can be corrected regardless of the direction of the curl generated on the paper P.

  (2) When the curved shape is formed on the paper P, the second medium contact where the second contact portion 80 contacts the paper P with respect to the first medium contact portion 73 that contacts the paper P of the first contact portion 70. The part 84 is at a high position in the vertical direction. Therefore, a curved shape can be suitably formed on the paper P.

  (3) When the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26, the paper P is supported by the third medium contact portion 32 of the discharge portion 30 in the state where the central portion in the width direction is supported from below. 70 and the second contact part 80. Therefore, the effect of correcting the curvature of the paper P due to the contact between the first contact portion 70 and the second contact portion 80 can be made more remarkable.

  (4) The first medium contact portion 73 that contacts the paper P of the first contact portion 70 and the second medium contact portion 84 that contacts the paper P of the second contact portion 80 are more vertical than the third medium contact portion 32. It is in a low position. Accordingly, since the sheet P does not come into strong contact with the sheet P, defective discharge of the sheet P can be suppressed.

  (5) In the discharge port 26, the first contact portion 70 is located downstream of the second contact portion 80 in the discharge direction Y. That is, when the paper P is discharged from the discharge port 26, the second contact portion 80 first forms a vertically upward curved shape, and then the first contact portion 70 forms a vertically downward curved shape. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress the discharge failure of the paper P due to a paper jam or the like when forming a vertically upward curved shape and a vertically downward curved shape on the paper P.

  (6) The holder 81 constituting the second contact portion 80 is provided so as to be rotatable with respect to the discharge port 26 by a shaft 83. That is, the position of the second medium contact portion 84 in contact with the paper P in the second contact portion 80 in the vertical direction can be displaced, and the degree of contact strength of the second contact portion 80 with respect to the paper P can be displaced. Can do. Accordingly, the strength of the vertically upward curved shape formed on the paper P by the second contact portion 80 can be changed.

(7) Since the protruding rib 66 is provided at the central portion of the paper discharge tray 60 in the width direction, the curling of the paper P placed on the paper discharge tray 60 can be corrected.
(8) The discharge port 26 connected to the end of the discharge path 25 opens in the housing 12, whereas the branch path 24 provided beyond the medium length of the paper P in the transport direction is accommodated in the housing 12. Is provided. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress the possibility that the sheet S conveyed on the branch path 24 branched from the discharge path 25 on the downstream side of the recording unit 14 with respect to the sheet P discharged from the discharge path 25 interferes.

  (9) The branch path 24 is configured to include a curved path. That is, it is possible to suppress an increase in the size of the apparatus as compared with the case where the branch path 24 is configured only by a straight path in the housing 12.

  (10) The sheet P transported through the branch path 24 has a posture in which the recording surface recorded by the recording unit 14 is curved inward. In general, the paper P is likely to curl with a recording surface as a convex surface when the recording unit 14 adheres ink or is heated to a high temperature to fix a recording material such as toner. Therefore, the effect of correcting the curl generated in the paper P in the branch path 24 can be expected.

  (11) The sheet P conveyed on the branch path 24 is guided by contacting the guide surface 24c of the downstream branch path 24b on the back surface that is the surface opposite to the recording surface. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the recording quality of the image recorded on the recording surface of the paper P conveyed through the branch path 24.

  (12) Since the branch path 24 is provided on the side opposite to the discharge tray 60 with respect to the discharge port 26 when viewed from the width direction of the sheet P orthogonal to (intersects) the conveyance direction of the sheet P, for example As compared with the case where the branch path 24 is provided in the lower region of the paper discharge tray 60 in the vertical direction, it is possible to prevent the printer 11 from becoming bulky. That is, the enlargement of the apparatus can be suppressed.

  (13) The branch path 24 is provided so as to be accommodated in the housing 12. Similar to the discharge path 25, the paper P transported through the branch path 24 is not exposed from the casing 12 as compared with the configuration in which the end of the branch path 24 opens to the casing 12, so that the user can perform double-side printing during the double-side printing. Printing defects such as forcibly being pulled out can be suppressed.

In addition, you may change the said embodiment as follows.
In the above-described embodiment, at least one of the first contact portion 70 and the second contact portion is not limited to a configuration that contacts the paper P so strongly that a curved shape is formed. For example, the configuration may be such that the curl generated on the paper P due to the adhesion of ink is suppressed to such an extent that curling is suppressed. That is, the posture of the paper P when discharged from the discharge port 26 of the printer 11 in the present embodiment is not limited to a posture that undulates so as to wave.

  In the above embodiment, the first contact portion 70 and the second contact portion 80 overlap each other when viewed from the width direction so as to simultaneously form a curved shape with respect to the paper P discharged from the discharge port 26. The structure provided may be sufficient. If it is this structure, since it can provide in a smaller space area than the structure which shifts and provides each in the discharge direction Y, the enlargement of an apparatus can be suppressed.

  In the above embodiment, the second contact portion 80 provided in the discharge port 26 may be provided so as to be movable in the width direction. According to this configuration, the position where the second contact portion 80 forms a vertically upward curved shape with respect to the paper P can be changed in the width direction. Therefore, it is possible to deal with paper P of various sizes.

  In the above embodiment, at least one of the first medium contact portion 73 included in the first contact portion 70 and the second medium contact portion 84 included in the second contact portion 80 is in the discharge direction when contacting the paper P. In Y, the position may be displaceable downstream. For example, at least one of the first contact portion 70 and the second contact portion 80 is formed of a flexible member such as plastic or rubber, or provided so as to be swingable with respect to the contact of the paper P. May be. According to this configuration, when the curved shape is formed on the paper P, at least one of the first contact portion 70 and the second contact portion 80 does not contact the paper P more strongly than necessary. Therefore, when the curved shape is formed on the paper P, it is possible to suppress the discharge failure of the paper P due to the paper P being in strong contact with the first contact portion 70 and the second contact portion 80. Further, the contact strength can be changed according to the rigidity of the medium.

  In the above embodiment, the second medium contact portion 84 included in the second contact portion 80 may be provided at a position lower in the vertical direction than the first medium contact portion 73 included in the first contact portion 70. Since it is not curved so that both ends in the width direction of the paper P are flipped up, it is possible to reduce the possibility of discharge failure when discharging a highly rigid medium such as thick paper.

  In the above embodiment, the second contact portion 80 is not limited to a configuration like a lever that displaces the strength of contact with the paper P by rotating about the shaft 83. For example, the rib may protrude from the lower side in the vertical direction, and the strength of contact with the paper P may be displaced by displacing the protrusion amount.

In the above embodiment, the first contact part 70 may be provided on the upstream side in the discharge direction Y from the second contact part 80.
-In the said embodiment, in the discharge driven roller 30b which comprises the discharge part 30, what does not oppose the discharge drive roller 30a does not need to be provided. Moreover, a pair may be sufficient instead of a plurality of pairs.

  -In the above-mentioned embodiment, the 1st contact part 70 and the 2nd contact part 80 do not need to be provided with roller 72 and roller 82, respectively. Even without the roller 72 and the roller 82, the curved shape can be formed on the paper P. In this case, the first medium contact portion 73 is a lower end portion of the projecting portion 71, and the second medium contact portion 84 is an upper end portion of the holder 81.

  -In above-mentioned embodiment, the 2nd contact part 80 does not need to be the structure which can be displaced from the state shown to Fig.5 (a) to the state shown in FIG.5 (c). Even if the second medium contact portion 84 is not lower than the first medium contact portion 73 in the vertical direction, the discharge failure of the paper P is suppressed if it is lower than the third medium contact portion 32.

In the above embodiment, the discharge unit 30 is not limited to a roller pair, and may be a conveyor such as a belt.
-In the said embodiment, the 1st contact part 70 and the 2nd contact part 80 which are provided in the discharge port 26 may be provided with two or more in the width direction.

  In the above embodiment, the upstream branch path 24a and the downstream branch path 24b constituting the branch path 24 are configured separately, and the part surrounded by the broken line shown in FIG. But you can. According to this configuration, even if a conveyance failure occurs due to a paper jam or the like in the branch path 24, the paper P jammed in the branch path 24 is taken out by removing the upstream branch path 24a from the downstream branch path 24b. be able to. Therefore, the maintainability of the printer 11 is improved.

  In the above embodiment, the portion of the upstream branch path 24a that is on the downstream side of the branch path roller pair 44 may be configured to guide the paper P only from the back surface that is opposite to the recording surface. . According to this configuration, the recording surface of the sheet P conveyed on the branch path 24 has a small area in contact with the component parts in the branch path 24, and therefore, the recording surface can be prevented from being contaminated.

  In the above embodiment, the branch path 24 may be configured by a roller that winds up the paper P with the recording surface as the inner side. According to this configuration, an effect of further correcting curl can be obtained.

  In the above embodiment, the branch path 24 is not limited to a configuration that curves along the inside of the discharge path 25. For example, the structure which curves along the outer side of the discharge path 25 may be sufficient. The discharge path 25 is not limited to a curved path, and may be configured to extend along the discharge path 25 that extends linearly.

In the above embodiment, the recording unit 14 is not limited to a line head provided extending in the width direction, but may be a serial head that scans the paper P.
In the above embodiment, the printer 11 serving as a recording apparatus is a fluid other than ink (a liquid, a liquid obtained by dispersing or mixing functional material particles in a liquid, a fluid such as a gel, or a fluid. It may be a printer that performs recording by ejecting or ejecting solids (including solids that can be flowed and ejected). For example, printing is performed by ejecting a liquid material containing a material such as an electrode material or a color material (pixel material) used for manufacturing a liquid crystal display, an EL (electroluminescence) display, and a surface emitting display in a dispersed or dissolved state. It may be a printer. Moreover, the printer which ejects fluids, such as a gel (for example, physical gel), may be sufficient. The present invention can be applied to any one of these printers. In the present specification, the term “fluid” is a concept that does not include a fluid consisting only of gas. Examples of the fluid include liquid (inorganic solvent, organic solvent, solution, liquid resin, liquid metal (metal melt), etc. ), Liquids, fluids, powders (including granules and powders), and the like.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Printer (recording apparatus), 12 ... Housing | casing, 14 ... Recording part, 23 ... 3rd supply path (inversion path) 24 ... Branch path, 24a ... Upstream branch path (1st path | route part), 24b ... Downstream side Branch path (second path section), 24c ... guide surface, 25 ... discharge path, 26 ... discharge port, 27 ... branch mechanism (switching section), 60 ... loading section, P ... paper, S ... paper.

Claims (6)

A housing for storing a recording unit for recording on a medium;
A discharge path having a discharge port that allows the medium recorded by the recording unit to be conveyed and allows the medium to be discharged out of the housing at the end thereof;
A branch path that branches from the discharge path at a position downstream of the recording unit in the transport direction of the medium, and that reverses the transport direction of the medium;
In the medium in which the direction in which the medium is transported by the branch path is reversed, the posture of the medium is such that the back surface, which is the surface opposite to the recording surface recorded by the recording unit, faces the recording unit. A reversing path in which the medium is reversed and the medium is conveyed to the recording unit;
A switching unit that selectively switches the transport direction of the medium so that the medium recorded by the recording unit is transported to any one of the discharge path and the branch path;
The branching path is configured so that a part thereof is along the discharge path, and has a length equal to or longer than a medium length of the medium in the transport direction, and is provided inside the casing. .   The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a part of the branch path includes a curved path.   The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the branch path includes a curved path for conveying the medium so that the recording surface is on an inner side.   4. The branch path includes a guide surface that guides the medium by contacting the medium from a back surface that is a surface opposite to the recording surface. The recording device according to any one of the above.   The branch path includes a first path section on a start end extending along the discharge path from the switching section, and a second path section on a terminal end side continuous with the first path section. The recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the path unit is detachably provided to the second path unit. A mounting portion for mounting the medium discharged from the discharge port;
The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the branch path is provided on a side opposite to the placement unit in the transport direction with respect to the discharge port. .