Patent Publication Number: US-6336758-B1

Title: Printer

Description:
This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/600,415 filed Feb. 13, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,913,626, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/329,058 filed Oct. 4, 1994, now abandoned the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention pertains to printers. More particularly, the invention is directed to a printer that can not only provide satisfactory printing conditions as quickly as possible but also reduce noise by improving the sheet discharge structure. The invention is further directed to a printer that can provide stable sheet discharge operation with a simple structure for a type of printer in which one of a pair of sheet discharge rollers is mounted on the printer cover. 
     2. Related Art 
     FIG. 5 is a schematic side view showing a printer disclosed as related art in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3-53961. 
     In FIG. 5 reference numeral  1  denotes a case of a printer. Within the case  1  are a platen  2  with a sheet P wrapped therearound, a print head H disposed so as to confront the platen  2 , and a pair of sheet discharge rollers  3  that discharges the sheet P printed by the print head H. 
     The pair of sheet discharge rollers  3  include: a drive roller  3   a , which is a first sheet discharge roller; and a driven roller  3   b , which is a second sheet discharge roller. 
     The drive roller  3   a  is mounted on the case main body  1 . 
     The driven roller  3   b  is mounted on a cover  5 . 
     The drive roller  3   a  receives motive power from the platen  2  and is driven at an increased circumferential speed with respect to the circumferential speed of the platen  2 . The driven roller  3   b  rotates while abutted against the drive roller  3   a.    
     The case  1  has a sheet discharge opening  4 . The cover  5  is fixed so as to be turned around a shaft  5   b.    
     According to the thus constructed printer, the sheet P wrapped around the platen  2  and printed by the print head H is forwarded by the pair of sheet discharge rollers  3  and discharged outside the case  1  from the sheet discharge opening  4 . 
     Since the sheet discharge roller  3   b , which is one of the pair of sheet discharge rollers  3 , is mounted on the cover  5  that can be opened and closed, when the sheet P is jammed at the sheet discharge roller section, the jammed sheet can be removed with ease by opening the cover  5 . 
     However, the above-mentioned printer addresses at least the following three problems. 
     Problem 1 
     In the above-mentioned printer generally the printing sound produced by the print head H is the major source of noise. Particularly, if the print head is of a wire dot type, the sound of the wire ends impacting the sheet aggravates the noise. On the platen  2  side, such noise is absorbed by the platen  2  itself, so the problem of this noise exists mainly on the print head H side. 
     In addition to the noise directly produced by the print head H, a noise caused by vibrations of the sheet itself that is vibrated by the print head H must also be taken care of. 
     In the above-mentioned conventional printer, there is a gap between the sheet P that is in the course of being discharged and an edge portion  4   a  on the print head H side of the sheet discharge opening  4 . A noise leaking from this gap has been the problem. 
     To overcome this problem, printers have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,173, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publications Nos. 1-97674 and 60-17186. These printers are characterized as arranging a sound absorbing material at the sheet discharge opening and thereby causing a sheet to be abutted against the sound absorbing material. 
     However, such structure characterizing these printers requires additional sound absorbing members arranged at the sheet discharge opening of the printer case, which not only increases the number of parts but also makes the sheet discharge opening structure complicated. 
     On the other hand, a drawing in which a sheet is abutted against the edge portion of a case at the sheet discharge section is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-14172. 
     However, this printer does not have a guide that allows the sheet to come in slidable contact with the edge portion of the case. As a result, it is not likely that the sheet will come in slidable contact with the edge portion of the case with a desired degree of certainty, thus not ensuring noise reduction. 
     Problem 2 
     To ensure satisfactory sheet discharge operation by the pair of sheet discharge rollers  3  in a printer such as shown in FIG. 5, it is preferable that both the drive roller  3   a  and the driven roller  3   b  be made of a material whose friction coefficient with respect to paper is larger,. e.g., of rubber. 
     However, if the driven roller  3   b  is made of rubber to which ink is easy to adhere, the ink on a print surface Pa of the sheet P adheres to the driven roller. Then, the ink on the driven roller is further transferred to the print surface Pa of the sheet P, thereby contaminating the print surface, which is a problem. 
     This problem can be overcome by making the driven roller  3   b  of a material to which ink is hard to adhere, e.g., of synthetic resin. 
     However, if the driven roller  3   b  is made of synthetic resin, the friction coefficient of the synthetic resin with respect to paper is smaller than that of rubber, which imposes another problem. 
     That is, when the leading end of the sheet printed by the print head H is guided so as to be abutted against the driven roller made of synthetic resin, it takes time for the leading end of the sheet to be guided to the drive roller  3   a  and nipped between the pair of sheet discharge rollers  3  so as to have a forwarding force imparted thereto because the friction coefficient of the surface of the driven roller with respect to the sheet is small. 
     The sheet P is not wrapped around the platen  2  in contact with the platen  2 , but floats up from the platen  2  surface until the forwarding force is given upon the leading end of the sheet having been nipped between the pair of sheet discharge rollers  3 . As a result, satisfactory printing conditions are not always ensured. Particularly, if the print head is of the wire dot type, vibrations of the sheet caused by the wire ends colliding with the sheet are increased, which in turn causes noise. 
     Problem 3 
     Since the second sheet discharge roller (driven roller)  3   b  is disposed at a position remote from the cover  5  fixing section  5   b  of the cover  5  in a printer such as shown in FIG. 5, positioning accuracy of the second sheet discharge roller (driven roller)  3   b  to the first sheet discharge roller (drive roller)  3   a  is not satisfactory, thereby not ensuring stable sheet discharge operation, which is still another problem. 
     To overcome this problem, a structure characterized as arranging a member on the case main body side for positioning the shaft of the driven roller is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 4-560. 
     However, this structure is problematical in that a positioning member other than the cover is required and this makes the structure complicated. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     A first object of the invention is to overcome the first problem and, therefore, to provide a printer that can reduce noise by minimizing noise leaking from the sheet discharge opening with a small number of parts and a simple structure. 
     A second object of the invention is to overcome the second problem and, therefore, to provide a printer that can prepare satisfactory printing conditions as quickly as possible and reduce noise. 
     A third object of the invention is to overcome the third problem and, therefore, to provide a printer that can ensure stable sheet discharge operation with a simple structure. 
     A printer of the invention includes: a print head disposed within a case; a sheet discharge opening, disposed in the case, for discharging a sheet printed by the print head; and a sheet discharge tray for guiding the sheet in the course of being discharged from the sheet discharge opening to an edge portion located on the print head side of the sheet discharge opening so as to come in slidable contact with the edge portion and supporting the sheet discharged from the sheet discharge opening. The sheet discharge opening is preferably arranged at an intersection between an upper surface and a back surface of the case. 
     Further, a printer of the invention includes: a platen for wrapping a sheet therearound; a print head disposed so as to confront the platen; a pair of sheet discharge rollers for discharging a sheet printed by the print head, one of the pair of sheet discharge rollers being made of a material whose friction coefficient with respect to the sheet is large and being disposed on a nonprinting side of the sheet, the other of the pair of sheet discharge rollers being made of a material to which an ink is hard to adhere and being disposed on a printing side of the sheet; and a sheet guide for guiding the sheet so that a leading end of the sheet gets abutted against said one of the pair of sheet discharge rollers earlier than said other of the pair of sheet discharge rollers. It is preferable that said one of the pair of sheet discharge rollers be a drive roller and that said other of the pair of sheet discharge rollers be a driven roller rotating while abutted against the drive roller. It is also preferable that the sheet guide be arranged inward with respect to the circumferential surface of the drive roller at the lateral sides of the drive roller. 
     Further, a printer of the invention includes: a case main body; a first sheet discharge roller mounted on the case main body; a cover fixed on the case main body so as to be opened and closed; a second sheet discharge roller, mounted on the cover, for discharging a sheet in cooperation with the first sheet discharge roller; and a cover fixing section, disposed close to the second discharge roller, for fixing the cover to the case main body. 
     Still further, a printer of the invention includes: a case main body; a first sheet discharge roller mounted on the case main body; a cover fixed on the case main body so as to be opened and closed; a second sheet discharge roller, mounted on the cover, for discharging a sheet in cooperation with the first sheet discharge roller. In such printer, a cover fixing section for fixing the cover to the case main body is formed by a first fixing section and a second fixing section; the case main body in the first fixing section has a regulating section for regulating a position at which the cover is fixed; the second fixing section has a biasing section for biasing the cover onto the regulating section; and the first fixing section is disposed close to the second sheet discharge roller. It is preferable that the second sheet discharge roller be biased onto the first sheet discharge roller by a biasing means disposed between the second discharge roller and the cover. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a segmentary side view of a printer, which is an embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 with a part thereof omitted; 
     FIG.  4 ( a ) is a general perspective view of a structure in which a cover is going to be fixed to a case main body; 
     FIG.  4 ( b ) is a partially enlarged perspective view of FIG.  4 ( a ); 
     FIG.  4 ( c ) is a sectional view taken along a line c—c in ( a );. 
     FIG.  4 ( d ) is a sectional view taken along a line d—d in ( a ); and 
     FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrative of a conventional example. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. 
     FIG. 1 is a segmentary side view of a printer, which is an embodiment of the invention; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of the printer as a whole; FIG. 3 is a plan view of the printer with a part thereof omitted; and FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the structure for fixing a cover to a case main body. 
     In FIG. 2 reference numeral  10  denotes a case main body of the printer. The case main body  10  includes a lower case  11  and an upper case  12 . 
     Reference numeral  13  denotes a cover, which is fixed to the upper case  12  so as to be opened and closed. The case main body  10  and the cover  13  are made of synthetic resin. 
     Reference numeral  20  denotes a sheet feed cassette attached to the bottom of the case main body  10 . 
     Reference numeral  14  denotes a sheet feed roller, which feeds sheets P (not shown in FIG. 2) placed in the sheet feed cassette  20  on a single sheet basis. 
     The fed sheet P is not only wrapped around a platen  15  via a sheet feed path  10   a  but also further fed while nipped between a sheet feed roller  16  and the platen  15  and printed through an ink ribbon (not shown) by a print head  17  of a wire dot type. 
     The printed sheet is discharged to a sheet discharge tray  19  from a sheet discharge opening  18  via a sheet discharge path  10   b  and a pair of sheet discharge rollers  30 . As shown by a three-dot chain line in FIG. 1, a discharged sheet P 3  is piled up in the sheet discharge tray  19  with the trailing end thereof supported by a support section  12   s  formed on the inner surface of the upper case. 
     As shown in FIG. 2, the sheet discharge opening  18  is arranged in the form of a slit (see FIG. 3) that extends in the sheet width direction at an intersection between an upper surface  13   a  of the cover and a back surface  12   a  of the upper case. An edge portion  18   a  located on the print head  17  side is linear. 
     The sheet discharge tray  19  constitutes a sheet guide. The sheet discharge tray  19  guides a sheet P 1  that is in the course of being discharged so as to come in slidable contact with the edge portion  18   a  on the print head side of the sheet discharge opening  18 . 
     As shown in FIG. 1, the pair of sheet discharge rollers  30  include a first sheet discharge roller  31  mounted on the case main body  10  side and a second sheet discharge roller  32  mounted on the cover  13  for discharging the sheet in cooperation with the first sheet discharge roller  31 . In this embodiment the first sheet discharge roller  31  is a drive roller, and the second sheet discharge roller  32  is a driven roller that rotates while abutted against the drive roller. 
     The drive roller  31  is made of a material whose friction coefficient with respect to the sheet P is large, e.g., of rubber, and disposed on the side of a nonprinting surface Pb of the sheet P. 
     As shown in FIG. 3, this drive roller  31  has a gear  31   b  on one end of a shaft  31   a  and is driven with the gear  31   b  meshed with an intermediate gear  33  that rotates while abutted against the platen  15 . The shaft  31   a  and the gear  31   b  of the drive roller  31  are made of synthetic resin. The drive roller is formed by firmly fixing a cylindrical body made of rubber to the shaft  31   a.    
     Reference numeral  34  denotes a holder that is C-shaped when viewed from top. The holder  34  supports the shaft  31   a  of the drive roller  31  and a shaft  33   a  of the intermediate gear  33  rotatably. The holder  34  is pivotably supported by fitting holes  34   b ,  34   b  with projections  12   b ,  12   b , the holes  34   b ,  34   b  being arranged on lateral plates  34   a ,  34   a  of the holder  34  and the projections  12   b ,  12   b  being disposed on the upper case  12 . A compression spring  35  disposed between a bottom plate  34   c  of the holder  34  and the upper case urges the intermediate gear  33  in such a direction as to be abutted against the platen  15  at all times. 
     The intermediate gear  33  operates as a one-way clutch with the shaft  33   a  thereof being supported by a long hole  34   d  formed on the holder  34 . The intermediate gear  33  transmits motive power to the drive roller  31  only when the platen  15  rotates in a direction indicated by the arrow a in FIG.  1 . Therefore, the drive roller  31  does not rotate reversely, and the trailing end of the once discharged sheet P 3  will no longer be nipped back into the pair of sheet discharge rollers  30 . 
     The driven roller  32  is made of a material to which ink is hard to adhere, e.g., of synthetic resin, and is disposed on the side of the printing surface Pa of the sheet P. 
     A shaft  32   a  of the driven roller  32  is rotatably supported by a holder  36  that is C-shaped when viewed from top. 
     The holder  36  is movable in and out with respect to the drive roller  31  with projections  36   b ,  36   b  slidably fitted into a long hole  38   b  of a support plate  38 , the projections  36   b ,  36   b  being respectively disposed on lateral plates thereof  36   a ,  36   a  and the support plate  38  being attached to the cover  13  with engaging pawls  38   a ,  38   a . A compression spring  37  serving as an urging means disposed between an upper plate  36   c  of the holder  36  and the cover  13  urges the driven roller  32  in such a direction as to be abutted against the drive roller  31  at all times. 
     As shown in FIG. 3, two pairs of sheet discharge rollers  30  are arranged in the sheet width direction. 
     Reference numeral  40  denotes a guide piece disposed integrally on the lower surface of the cover  13 . A guide surface  41  has such an angle as to guide the sheet P that has been sent from the platen  15  while slightly bent so that the leading end Pc of the sheet P will be abutted against the drive roller  31  earlier than the driven roller  32 . 
     A portion  42  of the guide piece  40  that is on a lateral side of the drive roller  31  is located inward with respect to the circumferential surface of the drive roller (i.e., toward the shaft  31   a ). 
     Further, the guide surface  41  of the guide piece  40  is not only designed to guide the sheet so that the leading end of the sheet does not touch the support plate  38  and the like, but also formed into a recess  41   c  in the vicinity of the sheet discharge opening  18  so that the slidable contact of the edge portion  18   a  with the sheet will not be disturbed. 
     As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the section at which the cover  13  having the above-mentioned driven roller  32  and guide piece  40  is fixed to the case main body  10  includes a first fixing section  51  and a second fixing section  52 . A pair of first fixing sections  51  are disposed at a position close to the driven rollers  32 , i.e., in the rear of the printer. A pair of second fixing sections  52  are disposed in the front of the printer. 
     In each first fixing section  51 , a regulating section  12   k  that regulates the cover  13  fixing position is formed on the upper case  12 . 
     The regulating section  12 k has a regulating surface  12   c  and an opening  12   d . The regulating surface  12   c  is substantially L-shaped when viewed from the front and is abutted against an end  13   c  of the rear end corner of the cover  13 . The opening  12   d  receives therein an engaging piece  13   d  that projects rearward at a position slightly inward from the lateral surface of the rear end corner of the cover  13 . Reference character  12   e  denotes a guide surface continuing from the regulating surface  12   c ; and  12   f , a guide surface continuing from the regulating surface  12   c  and the guide surface  12   e . These guide surfaces  12   e ,  12   f  are designed to guide the lower surface  13   e  and inner surface of the lateral plate of the cover  13 . 
     Each second fixing section  52  has an engaging section  52   a  as shown in FIG.  4 ( c ) and a biasing section  52   b  shown in FIG.  4 ( d ). 
     The engaging section  52   a  includes an elastic pawl  13   g  formed integrally with the lower surface of the cover  13  and an engaging hole  12   g  formed on the upper case  12 , so that when the cover  13  is attached to the upper case  12 , the elastic pawl  13   g  clicks the engaging hole  12   g.    
     The biasing section  52   b  includes: a recess  12   h  formed on the upper surface of the upper case  12 ; and a slightly bent projection  13   h  formed integrally on the lower surface of the cover  13 . When the cover  13  is attached to the upper case  12 , a front surface  13   i  of the projection  13   h  gets abutted against the inner surface  12   i  that is on the front side of the recess  12   h  strongly as the projection  13   h  enters the recess  12   h . This force biases the cover  13  toward the above-mentioned regulating section  12   k.    
     With respect to the engaging sections  52   a  and the biasing sections  52   b , only those on the right side are shown in the drawing in enlarged form. It goes without saying that those on the left side are formed similarly (so as to be symmetrical) (see FIG.  3 ). 
     The following steps will be taken to attach the thus constructed cover  13  to the case main body  10 . First, as shown in FIG.  4 ( b ), the engaging pieces  13   d  on the rear end of the cover are inserted into the openings  12   d  of the upper case  12 . Then, as shown in FIG.  4 ( a ), the cover  13  is turned downward. As a result, the elastic pawls  13   g  of the cover  13  get fitted into the engaging holes  12   g  of the upper case  12 ; the projections  13   h  of the cover  13  enter into the recesses  12   h  of the upper case  12 ; and the cover  13  is attached and, at the same time, fixed to the upper case  12  while biased toward the regulating sections  12   k . With the cover fixed in this way, the rear end corner of the cover  13  gets abutted against the regulating section  12   k  so strongly that positioning accuracy of the cover  13  with respect to the case main body  10  (the upper case  12 ) in the first fixing section  51  becomes quite high. 
     According to the thus constructed printer, the following advantages can be obtained. 
     (i) Since the sheet P 1  that is in the course of being discharged is guided by the sheet discharge tray  19  so as to come in slidable contact with the edge portion  18   a  on the print head side of the sheet discharge opening  18 , the gap between the sheet and the edge portion on the print head side of the sheet discharge opening, which is present in the case of the printer shown in FIG. 5, is closed by the sheet. In other words, a space S (see FIG. 2) into which a noise is scattered by the head  17  is closed by the upper case  12 , the cover  13 , and the sheet P 1  that is in the course of being discharged. 
     At the same time, since the sheet P 1  that is in the course of being discharged is guided by the sheet discharge tray  19  so as to come in slidable contact with the edge portion  18   a  on the print head side of the sheet discharge opening  18 , vibrations of the sheet are disturbed at the portion of the sheet which is in slidable contact with the edge portion  18   a , which in turn changes the mode of vibration to decay the vibration of the sheet itself. 
     Therefore, the amount of the noise produced by the head  17  leaking outside the case can be reduced remarkably. 
     In addition, since the structure in which the sheet is caused to come in slidable contact with the edge portion  18   a  of the sheet discharge opening  18  by the sheet discharge tray  19  that supports the discharged sheet P 1  is adopted, no other sheet guides and sound absorbing members are required. Hence, the above-mentioned advantage can be obtained by a simple structure with the sheet discharge tray supporting the discharged sheet P 1 . 
     (ii) Since the sheet discharge opening  18  is disposed at an intersection between the upper surface  13   a  and the back surface  12   a  of the case, the noise produced by the print head is sent to the rear side of the printer. Therefore, the noise in the front of the printer where the user usually stays can be reduced more effectively together with the advantage (i). 
     (iii) Since the drive roller  31  is made of rubber and is disposed on the nonprinting surface Pb side of the sheet P and the driven roller  32  is made of synthetic resin and is disposed on the printing surface Pa side of the sheet P, not only satisfactory sheet P forwarding conditions can be ensured, but also the ink that has adhered to the printing surface Pa of the sheet will not be transferred onto the printing surface Pa again through the driven roller  32  any more. 
     (iv) Since the leading end Pc of the sheet is guided by the guide surface  41  of the sheet guide  40  so as to be abutted against the drive roller  31  earlier than the driven roller  32  and the drive roller  31  is made of rubber, the leading end Pc of the sheet can be guided and nipped into the pair of sheet discharge rollers  30  quickly. 
     Therefore, the force for forwarding the sheet P after printing can be given quickly, and the sheet P can be wrapped around the platen  15  quickly while in intimate contact therewith. The state in which the sheet P is wrapped around the platen in intimate contact is indicated by a two-dot chain line P 1  in FIG.  1 . 
     Hence, according to this printer, conditions for satisfactory printing by the head  17  can be prepared quickly. 
     Further, as a result of the sheet P having been wrapped around the platen  15  in intimate contact therewith quickly, vibrations of the sheet caused by the wires projected from the head  17  colliding against the sheet P can be reduced quickly. 
     (v) Since the portion  42  positioned on the lateral side of the drive roller  31  in the sheet guide  40  is disposed inward with respect to the circumferential surface of the drive roller  31 , the sheet P can be guided so as to be biased onto the drive roller  31 , so that further satisfactory sheet forwarding conditions can be ensured. 
     (vi) Since the section for fixing the cover  13  to the case main body  10  includes the first and second fixing sections  51 ,  52 , stable conditions for fixing the cover  13  to the case main body  10  can be ensured. 
     (vii) The upper case  12  in the first fixing section  51  has the regulating sections  12   k  for regulating the cover  13  fixing position and the second fixing section  52  has the biasing sections  52   b  for biasing the cover  13  toward the regulating sections  12   k . Therefore, when the case main body  10  and the cover  13  are fixed together by the first and second fixing sections  51 ,  52 , positioning accuracy of the case main body  10  and the cover  13  in the first fixing section  51  becomes improved. Since the first fixing section  51  is disposed close to the driven roller  32 , positioning accuracy of the drive roller  31  and the driven roller  32  can in turn be improved. 
     As a result, positioning accuracy of the driven roller  32  with respect to the drive roller  31  can be improved without requiring any other positioning member than the cover  13 , which in turn ensures stable sheet discharge operation. 
     (viii) High positioning accuracy of the driven roller  32  with respect to the drive roller  31  can be obtained despite the fact that the driven roller  32  is mounted on the cover  13  as described above. As a result, inconsistencies in contact pressure of the compression spring  37  with respect to the drive roller  31  are reduced, thereby ensuring stable sheet discharge operation. 
     If the driven roller  32  were positioned with respect to the drive roller  31  with low accuracy, then the contact pressure by the compression spring  37  would become inconsistent, thereby not ensuring stable sheet discharge operation. 
     On the other hand, according to the printer, which is the embodiment of the invention, high positioning accuracy can be obtained despite the fact that the driven roller  32  is mounted on the cover  13  as described above. Therefore, inconsistencies in the contact pressure of the compression spring  37  can be reduced, thereby ensuring stable sheet discharge operation. 
     That is, the fixing structure of this type is particularly effective when the second sheet discharge roller disposed on the cover is urged toward the first sheet discharge roller by an urging means disposed between the second sheet discharge roller and the cover. 
     (ix) Since the cover  13  is fixed stably with respect to the upper case  12  and the edge portion  18   a  of the sheet discharge opening  18  is formed at the edge portion of the cover located close to the first fixing section  51  whose positioning accuracy is high as described above, the sheet P comes in slidable contact with the edge portion  18   a  stably, which in turn contributes to further stable noise reduction. 
     (x) Since the cover  13  is fixed stably with respect to the upper case  12  and the guide piece  40  is formed close to the first fixing section  51  whose positioning accuracy is high as described above, the leading end Pc of the sheet can be guided toward the pair of sheet discharge rollers  30  certainly as well as stably, which in turn contributes to further stable noise reduction. 
     The embodiment of the invention has been described in the foregoing. How the invention is embodied is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, but may be modified as appropriate within the scope and spirit of the invention. 
     For example, while the case where the first and second fixing sections constitute the fixing section has been described in the above embodiment, the number of fixing sections may be one as long as the fixing section is disposed close to the second sheet discharge roller in order to obtain the above-mentioned advantages.