Patent Abstract:
An image forming apparatus including: a first body including a developing unit to perform an image forming operation on a print medium, and a second body provided above the first body to pivot between a closed position and an open position in relation to the first body, the second body including a light emitting unit, wherein the light emitting unit is directly above the developing unit when the second body is in the closed position, and the developing unit is exposed to an outside of the image forming apparatus when the second body is in the closed position. A user can place the image forming apparatus on a desktop, which increases convenience in using the apparatus. Additionally, a specialized image forming apparatus can be provided to a user who mainly wants to print and copy in small quantities.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of Korean Application Nos. 2007-37140, filed Apr. 16, 2007, and 2007-93284, filed Sep. 13, 2007, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    Aspects of the present invention relate to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, to a compact image forming apparatus that can be used on a desktop. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    Generally, the size of an image forming apparatus is determined by the size of sheets of usable paper. Moreover, image forming apparatuses for use in offices are designed so that large capacity paper cassettes, network printing functions, and various sizes of paper can be used. As a result, the size of image forming apparatuses has increased. 
         [0006]    On the other hand, image forming apparatuses for use in the home are designed for compactness and low noise rather than high speed and powerful functions, because such image forming apparatuses are used less frequently than image forming apparatuses for office use. 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional multifunction peripheral (MFP) as an example of an image forming apparatus. The conventional MFP includes a scanning unit and a printing unit. Referring  FIG. 1 , the MFP includes a first body  10  in which the printing unit is mounted, and a second body  20  in which the scanning unit is mounted. 
         [0008]    The first body  10  is configured such that, if needed, an electrophotographic type image forming apparatus or an inkjet type image forming apparatus may be provided. The first body  10  of  FIG. 1 , in which an electrophotographic type image forming apparatus is provided, includes a paper cassette  11 , a pickup unit  12 , a feeding unit  13 , a developing unit  14 , a transferring unit  15 , a fixing unit  16 , a discharging unit  17 , and a light emitting unit  18 . 
         [0009]    The second body  20 , which is provided above the first body  10 , is the scanning unit and includes a plate  21  on which a document is placed, a charge coupled device (CCD) module  22  that is mounted on a bottom surface of the plate  21  so as to move from side to side, and a plate cover  23  that is designed to cover the plate  21 . 
         [0010]    However, the conventional MFP has been developed without taking into consideration the need for miniaturization. As a result, the dimensions of conventional MFPs are too large to fit on desktops. Accordingly, a separate space is required for the MFP, resulting in an inconvenience to a user. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0011]    Aspects of the present invention provide to a compact image forming apparatus suitable for desktop use. 
         [0012]    According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including: a first body including a developing unit to perform an image forming operation on a print medium; and a second body provided above the first body to pivot between a closed position and an open position in relation to the first body, the second body including a light emitting unit, wherein the light emitting unit is directly above the developing unit when the second body is in the closed position, and the developing unit is exposed to an outside of the image forming apparatus when the second body is in the open position. 
         [0013]    The second body may include a scanning unit, and a height of the first body may be approximately two or three times greater than that of the second body. 
         [0014]    The first body may have a height of less than 125 mm, and the first and second bodies may have a combined height of less than 165 mm. 
         [0015]    The first body may have a height of 110 mm to 125 mm, and the first and second bodies may have a combined height of 160 mm to 170 mm. 
         [0016]    A weight of the first body may be greater than that of the second body. 
         [0017]    The weight of the first body may be at least 1.5 to 2.5 times that of the second body. 
         [0018]    An opening angle between the second body and the first body may be approximately 40° to 80°. 
         [0019]    The first body may include a feeding unit, a developing unit, a transferring unit, a fixing unit and a discharging unit. 
         [0020]    A print medium picked up by the feeding unit may be printed and discharged after a feeding direction is changed only once. 
         [0021]    The direction in which the feeding unit slides open may be the same as the direction in which the print medium is discharged by the discharging unit. 
         [0022]    The second body may include a scanning unit to scan a document. 
         [0023]    The scanning unit may include: a plate on which the document is placed; a scanning module that moves from side to side on the plate, the scanning module being provided below the plate; and a plate cover that is pivotably attached to the second body by a hinge to cover the plate by movement around the hinge. 
         [0024]    An initial position of the scanning module may be on a side opposite a hinge point at which the second body is attached to the plate cover by the hinge. 
         [0025]    The first body may include a groove in which a print media support member is adapted to slide and which is formed in a portion in which the print medium is discharged. 
         [0026]    According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including: a first body including a developing unit to perform an image forming operation on a print medium, and a feeding unit to stack print media and to feed the print medium toward the developing unit in a first direction; and a second body provided above the first body to pivot between a closed position and an open position in relation to the first body, the second body having a same width as the first body and including a scanning unit to scan a document and a light emitting unit, wherein the light emitting unit is directly above the developing unit when the second body is in the closed position, the developing unit is exposed to an outside of the image forming apparatus when the second body is in the open position, the feeding unit slides open in a second direction that is opposite the first direction, and the print medium is discharged from the first body in the second direction after the image forming operation is performed thereon. 
         [0027]    The first body may have a height of 110 mm to 125 mm, and the first and second bodies may have a combined height of 160 mm to 170 mm. 
         [0028]    A weight of the first body may be greater than that of the second body. 
         [0029]    The weight of the first body may be at least 1.5 to 2.5 times greater than that of the second body. 
         [0030]    An opening angle between the second body and the first body may be approximately 40° to 80°. 
         [0031]    According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including: a first body including a developing unit to perform an image forming operation on a print medium, and a feeding unit to stack print media and to feed the print medium toward the developing unit in a first direction; and a second body provided above the first body to pivot between a closed position and an open position in relation to the first body, the second body including a scanning unit to scan a document, wherein the feeding unit slides open in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction, and the print medium is discharged from the first body in the second direction after the image forming operation is performed thereon. 
         [0032]    According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including a feeding unit to stack print media; a conveying roller to convey the print media fed by the feeding unit; a transferring section to transfer an image onto the print media conveyed by the conveying roller; and a fixing section to fix the image transferred by the transferring section, wherein a route from the conveying roller to the transferring section and/or a route from the transferring section to the fixing section enables the print media to be bent in a substantially reverse direction with respect to a print media route, which is reversed in the conveying roller. 
         [0033]    The print media route may be substantially reversed adjacent to the conveying roller. 
         [0034]    The fixing section may be disposed in a gap between the transferring section and an upper portion of the conveying roller. 
         [0035]    The upper portion of the conveying roller may be disposed above the transferring section and the fixing section. 
         [0036]    The image forming apparatus may further include a discharging unit to discharge the print media conveyed through the fixing section. The discharging unit may be disposed in the same direction as that in which the print media is conveyed from the transferring section to the fixing section. 
         [0037]    A photoconductive medium may face a transferring unit in the transferring section, and a heating device may face a pressing device in the fixing section. If the photoconductive medium is disposed above the transferring unit, the rigidity of the photoconductive medium may be greater than that of the transferring unit, and if the photoconductive medium is disposed below the transferring unit, the rigidity of the photoconductive medium may be less than that of the transferring unit. If the heating device is disposed above the pressing device, the rigidity of the heating device may be greater than that of the pressing device, and if the heating device is disposed below the pressing device, the rigidity of the heating device may be less than that of the pressing device. 
         [0038]    The discharging unit may include a print media support member to stack the print media conveyed through the fixing section. 
         [0039]    The image forming apparatus may further include a groove in which a print media support member is adapted to slide. 
         [0040]    The image forming apparatus may further include a device to open the groove when the print media support member is attached, and to close the groove when the print media support member is detached. 
         [0041]    The image forming apparatus may further include an elastic member disposed adjacent to the device. 
         [0042]    According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including a feeding unit to stack print media; a conveying roller to convey the print media fed by the feeding unit; a transferring section to transfer an image onto the print media conveyed by the conveying roller; and a fixing section to fix the image transferred by the transferring section, wherein the upper portion of the conveying roller is disposed above the transferring section and the fixing section. 
         [0043]    The fixing section may be disposed above the transferring section. 
         [0044]    Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0045]    These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiment, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which: 
           [0046]      FIG. 1  is a schematic view of a conventional multifunction peripheral (MFC); 
           [0047]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0048]      FIG. 3  is a front view of the image forming apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0049]      FIG. 4  is a side view of the image forming apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0050]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention; and 
           [0051]      FIG. 6  is a side view of the image forming apparatus shown in  FIG. 5 . 
           [0052]      FIGS. 7A to 7D  are views of a print media support member of the image forming apparatus shown in  FIG. 5 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0053]    Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present invention by referring to the figures. 
         [0054]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 3  is a front view of the image forming apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 , and  FIG. 4  is a side view of the image forming apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 . Referring to  FIGS. 2 through 4 , the image forming apparatus includes a first body  100  and a second body  200 . 
         [0055]    The first body  100  includes a printing unit mounted therein, a feeding unit  110 , a developing unit  120 , a transferring unit  130 , a fixing unit  140  and a discharging unit  150 . The feeding unit  110  is mounted on the first body  100  so as to slide open when a button  111  is pressed. However, it is understood that according to other aspects, other methods and devices may be used to slide the feeding unit  110  out. For example, the feeding unit  110  may include a handle such that the feeding unit  110  is manually slid out by pulling the handle. Furthermore, the feeding unit  110  holds a plurality of sheets of print media. The print media is any media on which an image forming apparatus prints. For example, the print media may be paper or transparency sheets. In order to reduce the height of the image forming apparatus, the feeding unit  110  may, although not necessarily, hold approximately 100 sheets of print media. 
         [0056]    As shown in  FIG. 4 , the developing unit  120  is detachably mounted on the first body  100 , and prints an image on a surface of a print medium while rotating in close contact with the transferring unit  130 . A photoconductive medium  121  mounted in the developing unit  120  may, although not necessarily, have a diameter of approximately 20 mm in order to minimize a size of the image forming apparatus. 
         [0057]    The fixing unit  140  includes a heating roller  141  and a pressing roller  142 . The fixing unit  140  applies heat and pressure to the print medium passing through the developing unit  120  and the transferring unit  130 , and fixes the image on the surface of the print medium. A heat insulating member  143  is mounted above the fixing unit  140  to prevent heat emitted from the fixing unit  140  from being transmitted to the second body  200 . 
         [0058]    The discharging unit  150  includes a plurality of roller units  151  provided in positions adjacent to the fixing unit  140 . The discharging unit  150  discharges sheets of print medium passing through the fixing unit  140  towards a front portion of the first body  100 . The front portion of the first body  100  is a portion from which the feeding unit  110  may be detached and the printed sheets of print media may be discharged. 
         [0059]    The discharged sheets of print media may drop onto a surface on which the first body  100  is provided, or may be dropped on to a print media support member  152  that is mounted on the front portion of the first body  100  (as shown in  FIG. 4 ). The print media support member  152  is adapted to slide in a groove  101  (illustrated in  FIGS. 2 and 3 ) provided in the front portion of the first body  100 . 
         [0060]    As shown in  FIGS. 7A to 7B , the print media support member  152  may be attached onto the groove  101  provided in the front portion of an external frame  1  of the first body  100 . Additionally, a cover  102  may be included in an inlet of the groove  101  to elastically open and close the groove  101 . Here, the elastic movement of the cover  102  may be made by an elastic member  103 , such as a leaf spring or a coil spring, which is connected to the cover  102  and has an elastic force. 
         [0061]    If the elastic member  103  is disposed above the cover  102 , as shown in  FIGS. 7A and 7B , the print media support member  152  may be inserted from the left upper side to the right lower side, so it is possible to open and close the groove  101  by the movement of the cover  102  without separately having the elastic member  103 . In this situation, a hinge point h may be disposed in the upper side in order to rotate the cover  102 . 
         [0062]    Alternatively, if the elastic member  103  is disposed below the cover  102 , as shown in  FIGS. 7C and 7D , it is difficult for the cover  102  to return to the original position itself, so the elastic member  103  is required. 
         [0063]    As shown in  FIG. 4 , the developing unit  120 , transferring unit  130 , fixing unit  140  and discharging unit  150  are mounted in order above the feeding unit  110 , and form a C-shaped print medium feeding path toward the front portion of the first body  100 . Accordingly, the direction in which the feeding unit  110  slides open may be the same as the direction in which the print medium is discharged by the discharging unit  150 . Thus, it is possible to reduce the height H 1  of the first body  100  by removing unnecessary space in the interior of the first body  100 . 
         [0064]    Referring to  FIGS. 2 through 4 , the second body  200  includes a light emitting unit  240  and a scanning unit including a plate  210 , a scanning module  220 , and a plate cover  230 . Additionally, the second body  200  has the same width as the first body  100 , and is mounted to pivot open and closed on the first body  100 . 
         [0065]    The plate  210  is made of a light permeable material, such as glass. The scanning module  220  is mounted so as to be able to be moved from side to side on the bottom surface of the plate  210 . The plate cover  230  is mounted to pivot open and closed on the second body  200  and a hinge point  231 . The initial position of the scanning module  220  is on a side of the second body  200  opposite that of the hinge point  231  (as shown in  FIG. 4 ). Accordingly, the scanning module  220  may scan images of documents placed on the plate  210 . Specifically, the initial position of the scanning module  220  may be provided in the front portion of the second body  200 , and the hinge point  231  may be provided in the rear portion of the second body  200 . However, it is understood that according to other aspects, the scanning module  220  may be initially provided in a middle portion of the second body  200  or on a same side of the second body  200  as the hinge point  220 . 
         [0066]    If the initial position of the scanning module  220  is on the front portion of the second body  200 , a document may be placed on the plate  210  in the front portion of the second body  200 . Accordingly, the hinge point  231  of the cover  230  may have a simple configuration, and an angle between the plate  210  and the cover  230  can be reduced when the cover  230  is closed to cover the document. 
         [0067]    The light emitting unit  240  is mounted in an open space of a lower part of the second body  200  and exposes the photoconductive medium  121  of the developing unit  120  mounted in the first body  100 . Thus, because the light emitting unit  240  is mounted in a remaining open space of the second body  200 , the height of the image forming apparatus can be less than that of an apparatus in which the light emitting unit  240  is mounted in the first body  100 . 
         [0068]    A portion of the second body  200  that faces the fixing unit  140  is provided to cover the fixing unit  140 . That is, the fixing unit  140  protrudes upwardly (towards the second body  200 ) from the first body  100  because the heat insulating member  143  is mounted thereon. Accordingly, the second body  200  includes a housing groove  250  provided to face the fixing unit  140  in order to house the fixing unit  140 . 
         [0069]    An opening angle between the second body  200  and the first body  100  may, although not necessarily, be approximately 40° to 80. If the opening angle is too small, a user may experience inconvenience when removing jammed paper. Conversely, if the opening angle is too large, a hinge portion  260  that rotatably connects the first body  100  and the second body  200  may break due to the weight of the second body  200 . 
         [0070]    In order to prevent the image forming apparatus from flipping due to inertia caused by the weight of the second body  200  when opening the second body  200 , the height H 1  of the first body  100  may be greater than that of the second body  200  (for example, approximately two to three times greater). The first body  100  may, although not necessarily have a height H 1  less than 125 mm, and the first body  100  and the second body  200  may, although not necessarily, have a combined height H 2  less than 165 mm. For example, the first body  100  may have a height H 1  less than 114 mm, and the first body  100  and the second body  200  may have a combined height H 2  of less than 163 mm. Furthermore, to prevent flipping, the weight of the first body  100  may be greater than that of the second body  200  (for example, by a magnitude of at least 1.5 to 2.5 times greater). 
         [0071]    The direction in which the feeding unit  110  slides open, the direction in which the print media housed in the feeding unit  110  is discharged, and the direction in which the scanning unit  220  moves from side to side may be the same. Accordingly, when a user prints or copies on a second side of a paper (on which printing has already been performed on a first side), the user can conveniently use the image forming apparatus without confusion. 
         [0072]    It is understood that aspects of the present invention can be applied to an image forming apparatus including only a printing unit without scanning and copying functions.  FIGS. 5 and 6  illustrate an image forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention, implemented without the second body  200  as described above with reference to  FIGS. 2 through 4 . Referring to  FIG. 5 , the image forming apparatus includes a main body  310 , a feeding unit  320 , a developing unit  330 , a transferring unit  340 , a fixing unit  350 , a discharging unit  360 , and a cover  370  that is mounted to open and close in order to, for example, remove jammed paper or maintain the above mentioned components. The cover  370  includes a light emitting unit  380  mounted therein. The main body  310  may, although not necessarily, have a height of less than 125 mm. The main body  310  has the same configuration as the first body  100  described with reference to  FIGS. 2 through 4 , so a description thereof is omitted here. 
         [0073]    Hereinafter, operations of the image forming apparatus according to aspects of the present invention will be described. Referring to  FIG. 4 , the image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a first body  100  in which the printing unit is mounted, and a second body  200  in which the scanning module  220  is mounted. The second body  200  may be opened and closed from the first body  100  (i.e., pivoting up and down from the first body  100 ). 
         [0074]    In order to reduce the height of the first body  100 , a C-shaped paper feeding path is provided to change a paper feeding direction once. Specifically, a developing unit  120 , a transferring unit  130 , a fixing unit  140 , and a discharging unit  150  are arranged in order above the feeding unit  110  to provide the C-shaped paper feeding path. Accordingly, the first body  100  may have height H 1  of less than 125 mm, and the first body  100  and the second body  200  may have height H 2  of less than 165 mm. As a result, the image forming apparatus can be directly mounted on a desktop, for example, without a separate space required. 
         [0075]    The image forming apparatus having a low height as described above may be placed conveniently from a user (for example, directly on a desktop), so it is not necessary for the user to travel a far or inconvenient distance to a position in which the image forming apparatus is placed in order to perform copying, scanning, and/or printing. Additionally, the print medium may be printed on so that a printed surface is visible upon discharge, making it possible to immediately check the printing results. Furthermore, the user may stack print media by attaching a print media support member  152  onto a groove  101  (as illustrated in  FIG. 4 ), if needed, or may allow the output print media to be piled on a surface on which the image forming apparatus is mounted. 
         [0076]    If paper jamming occurs during printing or copying, or if maintenance of the developing unit  120  or the fixing unit  140  is needed, the user may lift the second body  200  so that the developing unit  120  and the fixing unit  140  are exposed and easily accessible. 
         [0077]    The first body  100  has a height and/or a weight greater than the second body  200 , so it is possible to prevent the image forming apparatus from flipping due to inertia during rotation of the second body  200  when the user opens the second body  200 . Additionally, the opening angle between the first body  100  and the second body  200  may be approximately 45°. Accordingly, a user can easily reach into a gap between the first body  100  and the second body  200  to change the developing unit  120  or to remove jammed paper. In addition, it is possible to prevent the second body  200  or the hinge portion  260  connecting the first body  100  and the second body  200  from being broken due to excessive opening of the second body  200 . 
         [0078]    As illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the image forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention does not include the second body  200  having the scanning unit. 
         [0079]    According to aspects of the present invention described above, a user can conveniently place an image forming apparatus (for example, on a desktop), and accordingly, the user can more conveniently operate the image forming apparatus. Additionally, a specialized image forming apparatus can be provided to a user who primarily prints or copies in small quantities. 
         [0080]    Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.

Technology Classification (CPC): 6