Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US20080180762?ie=ISO-8859-1
Timestamp: 2014-07-29 11:01:39
Document Index: 687906276

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Patent US20080180762 - Image forming apparatus - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign in<nobr>Advanced Patent Search</nobr>PatentsAn image forming apparatus includes an upper cover attached to a main body, an image forming part provided in the main body and configured to record an image on a sheet, an image reading part having a document press member, and a lock mechanism. The upper cover is configured to be pivotable on a support...http://www.google.com/patents/US20080180762?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US20080180762 - Image forming apparatusAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS20080180762 A1Publication typeApplicationApplication numberUS 12/010,262Publication dateJul 31, 2008Filing dateJan 23, 2008Priority dateJan 25, 2007Also published asUS8089666Publication number010262, 12010262, US 2008/0180762 A1, US 2008/180762 A1, US 20080180762 A1, US 20080180762A1, US 2008180762 A1, US 2008180762A1, US-A1-20080180762, US-A1-2008180762, US2008/0180762A1, US2008/180762A1, US20080180762 A1, US20080180762A1, US2008180762 A1, US2008180762A1InventorsTakayuki Andoh, Takuji Takahashi, Takamasa Shiraki, Shigeo Nanno, Yoshihide Ohta, Kohji HatayamaOriginal AssigneeRicoh Company, Ltd.Export CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManReferenced by (14), Classifications (11), Legal Events (1) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetImage forming apparatusUS 20080180762 A1Abstract An image forming apparatus includes an upper cover attached to a main body, an image forming part provided in the main body and configured to record an image on a sheet, an image reading part having a document press member, and a lock mechanism. The upper cover is configured to be pivotable on a support axis with respect to the main body. The image reading part is slidably mounted on the upper cover. The document press member is configured to open and close with respect to a housing of the image reading part in a direction similar to a direction in which the upper cover opens and closes. The lock mechanism is configured to prevent the document press member from opening over a slidable range of the image reading part when the upper cover is opened.
an upper cover attached to a main body, configured to be pivotable on a support axis with respect to the main body; an image forming part provided in the main body, configured to record an image on a sheet; an image reading part slidably mounted on the upper cover, including a document press member configured to open and close with respect to a housing of the image reading part in a direction similar to a direction in which the upper cover opens and closes; and a lock mechanism to prevent the document press member from opening throughout a slidable range of the image reading part when the upper cover is opened. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a sheet stack part provided between the image reading part and the upper cover to which the sheet is discharged from the main body in a direction similar to a sliding direction of the image reading part.
3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lock mechanism locks the document press member with opening of the upper cover and unlocks the document press member with closing of the upper cover.
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lock mechanism comprises:
a lock member configured to lock the document press member; a lock intermediate member; and an operation member configured to operate the lock member via the lock intermediate member. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image reading part comprises a leg part that is slidable on an upper surface of the upper cover, and the lock intermediate member is located in the leg part.
6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the lock mechanism comprises:
a lock member configured to lock the document press member; a lock intermediate member; and an operation member configured to operate the lock member via the lock intermediate member. 7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the lock intermediate member moves the lock member to a lock position and an unlock position by pivoting on an axis parallel to the sliding direction of the image reading part.
8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the lock intermediate member moves the lock member to a lock position and an unlock position by pivoting on an axis parallel to the sliding direction of the image reading part.
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the lock intermediate member moves the lock member to lock and unlock positions by pivoting on an axis parallel to the sliding direction of the image reading part.
10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the operation member is provided with a cam portion to pivot the lock intermediate member.
11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image reading part comprises an automatic document feeder and reads image data on an original document fed by the automatic document feeder, and the document press member is opened and closed integrally with the automatic document feeder. Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This patent specification claims priority from Japanese Patent Application Nos. JP2007-015090, filed on Jan. 25, 2007, JP2007-286238, filed on Nov. 2, 2007, and JP2007-180236, filed on Jul. 9, 2007 in the Japan Patent Office, the entire contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
There are image forming apparatuses, such as copiers, printers, facsimile machines, etc., that are provided with an image reading part, such as a scanner, located above an apparatus body in which an image forming part is included.
In one related-art example of an image forming apparatus, an upper cover is pivotally attached to an apparatus body so as to be openable and closable with respect to the apparatus body, and an image reading part is mounted on the upper cover. The image reading part includes a pressure plate or an automatic document feeder (ADF) that serves as a document press member to hold an original document to be read. The pressure plate is rotatable so as to be openable and closable with respect to the housing of the image reading part.
If the upper cover and the pressure plate are configured to rotate in an identical direction, the pressure plate might rotate in conjunction with opening of the upper cover. If the pressure plate opens accidentally, the impact of the pressure plate might damage the upper cover, and/or the pressure plate might hit a user.
Therefore, such an image forming apparatus includes a platen lock that is interlocked with opening of the upper cover and prevents the pressure plate from opening. For example, the platen lock includes a lock claw that engages and disengages from an engagement part provided on the pressure plate in conjunction with opening and closing of the upper cover, respectively, thus preventing the pressure plate from opening accidentally.
Further, there are image forming apparatuses that use a space between an upper cover and an image reading part as a sheet stack part or sheet discharge part. However, if the image reading part is located over or above the sheet discharge part to make the image forming apparatus compact, it is difficult to remove and even to see the sheets on the sheet stack part.
Therefore, in another related-art example of an image forming apparatuses, an image reading part is mounted on an upper cover slidably in a direction that exposes part of the sheet stack part.
However, when the image reading part is slidably mounted on the upper cover, relative positions of the image reading part and the apparatus body depend on sliding of the image reading part. In such a case, the platen lock described above is not usable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the foregoing, various illustrative embodiments disclosed herein describe an image forming apparatus that prevents a document press member from accidentally opening with respect to a housing of an image reading part.
In one illustrative embodiment of the present invention, an image forming apparatus includes an upper cover attached to a main body, an image forming part provided in the main body configured to record an image on a sheet, an image reading part having a document press member, and a lock mechanism. The upper cover is configured to be pivotable on a support axis with respect to the main body. The image reading part is slidably mounted on the upper cover. The document press member is configured to open and close with respect to a housing of the image reading part in a direction similar to a direction in which the upper cover opens and closes. The lock mechanism is configured to prevent the document press member from opening throughout a slidable range of the image reading part when the upper cover is opened.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A more complete appreciation of the disclosure and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same become better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating an example of an interior of the image forming apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating a configuration of a scanner included in the image forming apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional diagram illustrating a left front portion of the scanner and a front portion of the left supporter when the scanner is at a foremost position;
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional diagram illustrating sliding engagement between a rail of the scanner and the left supporter;
FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional diagram illustrating the disengagement stoppers in the right supporter;
FIG. 18A is a cross-sectional diagram illustrating a disengagement stopper in a mount and removal direction, in which the scanner is at an initial position on the supporters;
FIG. 18B is a cross-sectional diagram illustrating the disengagement stopper in the mount and removal direction, in which the scanner is at a rearmost position on the supporters;
FIG. 47 illustrates the arrangement illustrated in FIG. 46 as seen in a bottom view of the scanner; and
FIG. 48 illustrates the left supporter illustrated in FIG. 46 as viewed from above.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the image forming apparatus 300 and FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an inner configuration thereof. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 300 includes an apparatus body (main body) 1 and a scanner 100, which is an image reading part. The scanner 100 is located above the apparatus body 1, and a sheet stack part 40 is provided in a space formed between the apparatus body 1 and the scanner 100. The apparatus body 1 includes a control panel 16 located at a front upper potion thereof and has an upper cover 18 attached.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the apparatus body 1 further includes an image forming part 2 to form images on sheets, located in a center portion thereof and a sheet feeder 20 to feed sheets to the image forming part 2, located beneath the image forming part 2.
The image forming part 2 includes drum shaped photoreceptors 3 a, 3 b, 3 c, and 3 d, on which different color toner images are formed. In an example embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, yellow, cyan, magenta, and black images are formed on the photoreceptors 3 a, 3 b, 3 c, and 3 d, respectively. The photoreceptors 3 a, 3 b, 3 c, and 3 d are aligned in parallel at a given interval, and an intermediate transfer belt 4, which is an endless belt looped around support rollers 5 and 6 and driven to rotate counterclockwise in FIG. 2 and functions as an intermediate transferer, faces lower sides of the photoreceptors 3 a, 3 b, 3 c, and 3 d. Alternatively, a drum may be used as the intermediate transferer.
Provided around the photoreceptor 3 a are, in order, a charger 7, an exposure unit including a light-scanning device 8, a developing unit 9, and a primary transferer 10 facing the photoreceptor 3 a via the intermediate transfer belt 4, and a cleaner 11.
When image forming processes are started in the image forming part 2 described above, the photoreceptor 3 a is rotated clockwise in FIG. 2 and the charger 7 charges the surface of the photoreceptor 3 a to a predetermined polarity uniformly. The light-scanning device 8 directs laser light onto the charged surface of the photoreceptor 3 a according to image information, thus forming an electrostatic latent image thereon. The electrostatic latent image is developed into a yellow toner image by the developing unit 9, and then transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 4 in a primary transfer process by the primary transferer 10. The cleaner 11 removes toner remaining on the surface of the photoreceptor 3 a after the toner image is transferred therefrom.
The sheet feeder 20 includes a sheet cassette 21 containing sheets S, a feed roller 22 to feed the sheets S to the image forming part 2, a friction pad 23 to separate the sheets S so that the sheets are fed one by one, and a return path 24. The sheets S include transfer papers, resin films, etc. The return path 24 is used when images are formed on both surfaces of a sheet S.
The scanner 100 includes a mechanism to scan an image on an original document set on an upper portion thereof, similarly to a typical image reading device. The scanner 100 further includes a platen cover 110 at an upper portion thereof. The platen cover 110 is a document press member that presses and holds the original document and is pivotable on a hinge 111 to open and close with respect to a housing of the scanner 100. An automatic document feeder (ADF) 120 is integrated into the platen cover 110. Thus, the scanner 100 can scan documents either set by a user manually or forwarded by the ADF 120.
The image forming part 2 and the scanner 100 are located so that the discharge direction shown by arrow Xa and a sub-scanning direction of the scanner 100 are at right angles or substantially right angles to each other. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the front side of the apparatus body 1 is located upstream of the scanner 100 and the supporters 51 and 52 in the discharge direction shown by arrow Xa, and the control panel 16 is located at the upper front portion, thus providing sufficient space for the front opening 42 to enhance removal of short sheets from above as well as visibility and operability of the cover pull 61.
The upper cover 18 provided at the upper portion of the apparatus body 1 is configured as a cover or a frame of the image forming part 2 on which the supporters 51 and 52 are provided. In the present embodiment, the supporters 51 and 52 are provided on both left and right edges of the upper cover 18 and form the sheet stack part 40 and the space between the scanner 100 and the sheet stack part 40. It is to be noted that the image forming apparatus 300 includes only the supporters 51 and 52 provided on left and right edges of the upper cover 18, and does not include a supporter at a back edge of the upper cover 18. This configuration is designed to enable the sheet stack part 40 to accommodate a long sheet having a length longer than a distance between front and back edges of the sheet stack surface 41, by dropping an overflowing part of the sheet behind the apparatus body 1. Further, although the overhanging scanner 100 shadows the sheet stack surface 41, light does come from a back side of the sheet stack part 40, which is open.
The image forming apparatus 300 further includes a rotary shaft 17 provided at a back end portion thereof and a cover lock 60. The upper cover 18 supports the light-scanning device 8, which is included in the image forming part 2, at a lower portion thereof and is rotatable upward around the rotary shaft 17. The cover lock 60 locks the upper cover 18 to the apparatus body 1. When the cover lock 60 is released, the upper cover 18 is rotatable and openable. When the upper cover 18 rotates counterclockwise around the rotary shaft 17 and opens with respect to the apparatus body 1 as illustrated in FIG. 3, the scanner 100 supported by the supporter 51 and 52 and the light-scanning device 8 are rotated together with the upper cover 18. In this state, the image forming part 2 is accessible, thus facilitating maintenance work. The scanner 100, the sheet stack part 40, and the upper cover 18 together form an upper structure 26.
The cover pull 61 is integrated into the cover lock 60 and used to unlock the cover lock 60. The cover pull 61 is located on the sheet stack surface 41, at a portion that is covered with sheets when sheets are stacked on the sheet stack surface 41. Further, the cover lock 60 integrally includes a support shaft 62 extending in the sheet width direction shown by arrow Y in FIG. 1 and a pair of lock claws 63 at both ends of the support shaft 62. The lock claws 63 engage protrusions la provided on the apparatus body 1 as illustrated in FIG. 2, and are biased constantly in a direction to engage the protrusion 1 a. The support shaft 62 is rotatably supported by the upper cover 18. The cover pull 61 includes a plate part whose surface is flush with or nearly flush with the sheet stack surface 41.
As described above, when a user inserts his/her hand into the convexity 44 and pulls up the cover pull 61 against the bias force that engages the lock claws 63 with the protrusion la, the cover lock 60 rotates clockwise around the support shaft 62 and the lock claws 63 disengage from the protrusion la. When the user pulls up the cover pull 61 further, the upper cover 18 is opened counterclockwise as illustrated in FIG. 3. This open direction of the upper cover 18 is identical or similar to the open direction of the platen cover 110 including the ADF 120.
Further, as described above, the image forming apparatus 300 includes the first tapered portion 137 illustrated in FIG. 2 to enhance visibility of and access to the sheets from the front opening 42 and the second tapered portion 19 illustrated in FIG. 2 to enlarge the front opening 42. In particular, because the second tapered portion 19 is configured to enlarge the size of the front opening 42 outward, the user can put his/her hand into the sheet stack part 40 easily and remove the sheets stacked therein. This configuration may be applied to the first tapered portion 137. Alternatively, another configuration may be used to enlarge the size of the front opening 42, instead of a taper.
As illustrated in FIG. 7, the supporters 51 and 52 are not symmetrical. The supporter 51, located at the right side viewed from the front side, has a depth L1 illustrated in FIG. 7 that is shallower than that of the supporter 52 located at the left side because of the curved portion 43.
Referring to FIG. 8, a reference character L2 indicates the depth of the supporter 52. Because the depth L1 of the supporter 51 is shallower than the depth L2 of the supporter 52 as described above, the sheets are easily removed from the sheet stack part 40 through the curved portion 43. Further, because light comes into the sheet stack part 40 through the curved portion 43, the sheets on the sheet stack surface 41 can be seen more easily. Further, the supporter 52 has a width W2 that is larger than a width W1 of the supporter 51. It is to be noted that the supporters 51 and 52 have sufficient strength because the supporter 52 located the left side of the ADF 120, which is heavier than the right side thereof, has the depth L2 that is greater than the depth L1 of the supporter 51.
Further, the ADF 120 illustrated in FIG. 4 is located so that a sheet turnaround side thereof, where the turnaround path 143 illustrated in FIG. 6 is located, is at the left as viewed from the front side and a right side of the document table 121 and the platen cover 110, which is a discharge tray, is open. This configuration takes into account right-handed users to provide convenience to many users.
Referring to FIG. 13, the front cover 27 is provided with an opening 29 to insert the sheet cassette 21 into the apparatus body 1 from the front side, that is, from right to left in FIG. 13. FIG. 13 illustrates a state in which the sheet cassette 21 is being pulled out of the apparatus body 1 in a direction shown by arrow P, together with the friction pad 23 and the return path 24. That is, maintenance and replacement work and removal of sheets stuck in the apparatus body 1 can be performed from the front side, making a space required to do that work from the back side of the apparatus body 1 unnecessary. Therefore, an image forming apparatus with a small footprint and good operability can be attained at a lower cost.
Referring to FIGS. 14 through.16, the slide mechanism that slides the scanner 100 with respect to the supporters 51 and 52 in the sliding direction shown by arrows Xa and Xb illustrated in FIG. 1 is described below.
FIG. 15 illustrates interiors of the supporters 51 and 52, and FIG. 16 illustrates a state in which the rail 133 of the scanner 100 engages the supporter 52. As illustrated in FIG. 15, the supporters 51 and 52 integrally include upper surfaces 51 a and 52 b that slidably contact the lower surfaces 133 a and 134 a of the rails 133 and 134 illustrated in FIG. 14, respectively, and thus the scanner 100 is slidably supported by the supporters 51 and 52. The supporter 52 further includes a pair of pins 55 projecting upward that engage the groove 133 c on the rail 133 with a given space, respectively as illustrated in FIG. 16, thus limiting horizontal jolting of the scanner 100. The supporter 52 further includes a scanner lock mechanism to lock the scanner 100 in the sliding direction, and an operation button 70 to operate the scanner lock mechanism is provided on the left side of the supporter 52.
However, if disengagement stoppers are provided on both outer and inner sides of the supporters 51 and 52, respectively, a sufficient space might not be left for other components. Because the supporters 51 and 52 need to include a mechanism to buffer the action of opening and closing the upper cover 18 illustrated in FIG. 3, etc., it is preferred that the disengagement stoppers require a smaller space.
In FIG. 17, a reference character L indicates a length of the front stopper 53 a. It is to be noted that the length L of the front stopper 54 a is similar to that of the front stopper 53 a, although not illustrated in FIG. 17. The length L is set so that the rails 133 and 134 of the scanner 100 engage the front stoppers 53 a and 54 a and rear stoppers 53 b and 54 b, respectively, when the scanner 100 slides within a slidable range of the scanner 100 in the sliding direction shown by arrow Xa. Therefore, when the scanner 100 is at any given position within the slidable range, the rails 133 and 134 engage the front stoppers 53 a and 54 a and rear stoppers 53 b and 54 b, respectively, and thus the upward disengagement of the scanner 100 can be reliably prevented.
As described above, the disengagement stoppers 53 and 54 prevent the scanner 100 from disengaging from the supporters 51 and 52, and the scanner 100 is mountable and removable from the back side of the apparatus body 1 in the discharge direction and the direction opposite thereto (sliding direction) shown by arrows Xa and Xb, which is hereinafter also referred to as the mount and removal direction. Further, the step screw 56 prevents the scanner 100 from falling backward in the mount and removal direction. That is, the step screw 56 serves as a disengagement stopper in the mount and removal direction.
As described above with reference to FIG. 15, two supporters 51 and 52 slidably support the scanner 100, and the supporter 52 includes the scanner lock mechanism provided with the operation button 70 located on the outer side of the supporter 52. This scanner lock mechanism is further described below with reference to FIGS. 19 and 20.
Referring to FIGS. 20 through FIGS. 23A-23C, operations of the two lock mechanisms are described below. FIGS. 23A through 23C illustrate changes in the engagement state between the lock member 80 and the groove 136.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, the upper structure 26 including the scanner 100, the sheet stack part 40, and the upper cover 18 is rotatable around the rotary shaft 17 and openable at the front side with respect to the apparatus body 1 to facilitate replacement of consumables such as toner cartridges and periodic replacement of components such as the transfer belt. When the process cartridges are aligned horizontally as illustrated in FIG. 3 in the tandem color image forming apparatus according to the illustrative embodiment, the upper structure 26 should be rotated upward by about 90 degrees to install and remove the process cartridges from above. In this state, if the user presses the operation button 70 illustrated in FIG. 15 accidentally and unlocks the scanner lock mechanism, the scanner 100 might fall by its own weight. Therefore, the pendulum 75 illustrated in FIG. 21 prevents the operation button 70 from being accidentally pressed, as the disengagement stoppers 53 and 54 illustrated in FIG. 15 and the step screw 56 illustrated in FIGS. 18A and 18B do.
To solve the problem described above, the supporter 52 may have a flat surface without an engagement part on the front portion thereof. In this case, the flat surface should have a height higher than that of a slide contact surface between the upper surface 52 a and the lower surface 133 a illustrated in FIG. 16, which is hereinafter also referred to as the boundary surface. Otherwise, the slide surface of the scanner 100 might protrude from the front side, forming a space thereunder. If the exterior of the image forming apparatus 300 includes such a space in the sliding direction, users' hands, clothing, etc. might get caught therein when the scanner 100 slides, thus posing a safety problem.
When the scanner 100 is configured so that the projection is housed in the supporter 52 with the boundary surface maintained, the opening 59 illustrated in FIGS. 15 and 19 is formed by an exterior maintaining the boundary surface and a space to house the projection. As illustrated in FIGS. 15 and 19, the opening 59 is formed in the front edge portion of the supporter 52 in the sliding direction shown by arrows Xa and Xb. To enhance strength of the supporter 52, particularly the front stopper 54 a, this front edge portion is formed continuously by the pair of sidewalls 52 c and 52d and the front wall 52 e forming a single integrated unit.
Referring to FIGS. 25 and 26, a torsion spring 98 is wound around the spring attachment part 95 located between the shaft parts 91 a and 91 b. The torsion spring 98 includes a first end 98 a to be engaged with the first and second holders 93 a and 93 b and a second end 98 b to be engaged with a spring engagement part 58 a on a bottom wall of the supporter 52 shown by a dashed-dot line in FIG. 26. More specifically, the first end 98 a is sandwiched between the first and second holders 93 a and 93 b so as not to disengage therefrom. The torsion spring 98 thus attached to the shield 90 and the supporter 52 transmits a torsion moment to the shield 90. The supporter 52 further includes a stopper engagement part 58d on the inner side of the sidewall 52 d. Each of the shaft parts 91 a and 91 b includes an oval cutout having a width smaller than a diameter thereof. The supporter 52 further integrally includes bearings 58 b and 58 c provided on the sidewalls 52 c and 52 d, having upward openings whose widths are larger than the widths of the oval cutouts of shaft parts 91 a and 91 b, respectively.
The shield 90 operates in conjunction with the sliding of the scanner 100. As described above with reference to FIG. 10, the engagement part 139 shaped like a plate projecting downward is integrally provided on a bottom wall of the scanner 100, at a position beneath the driving motor 131. FIG. 31 is an enlarged illustration of the engagement part 139 and the shield 90. As illustrated in FIG. 31, the engagement part 139 is a type of cam having an outline such as to engage the pivot limiters 94 a and 94 c and slide thereon selectably within the slidable range of the scanner 100, and includes a downward projecting surface at a back edge portion thereof on a left side and a front projection at a right side in FIG. 31.
When the shield 90 is at the standby position, the back side of the scanner 100 aligns with the back side of the apparatus body 1 as illustrated in FIG. 29B. In this state, the image forming apparatus 300 occupies a minimum volume and has less concavity and convexity. Therefore, the image forming apparatus 300 requires less packing and is environmentally sound because the number of image forming apparatuses that can be shipped at any one time can be increased. It should be noted that, during transport, the step screw 56 prevents the scanner 100 from disengaging from the supporter 51 and 52 in the mount/removal direction as illustrated in FIGS. 18A and 18B.
As described above with reference to FIG. 3, the upper cover 18 is pivotable upward on the rotary shaft 17. When the user operates the cover pull 61 to pivot the upper cover 18 upward on the rotary shaft 17, the light-scanning device 8 in the lower portion thereof and the scanner 100 located thereon via the supporters 51 and 52 are also rotated upward. In this state, the interior of the apparatus body 1 is exposed, facilitating maintenance work.
It is to be noted that the platen cover 110 might pivot on the hinge 111 in conjunction with rotation of the upper cover 18 because the rotary shaft 17 of the upper cover 18 and the hinge 111 of the platen cover 110 have axis lines parallel to each other.
Referring to FIGS. 32 through.34, the lock member 171 includes a first end (upper end) including a lock claw 173 that detachably engages the engagement part 140 and a second end having an operation part 174, opposite to the lock claw 173 via the pivot 172. The lock intermediate member 175 is substantially panel-shaped, and includes a support shaft 176 provided along a side in a longitudinal direction thereof by which the lock intermediate member 175 is rotatably supported by the scanner 100 as illustrated in FIG. 32. The other side of the lock intermediate member 175 in the longitudinal direction is an outer circumferential side during rotation. As illustrated in FIG. 34, the lock intermediate member 175 further includes an upward projection on one end in the longitudinal direction, and an operation pin 177 that contacts the operation part 174 of the lock member 171 is provided on an upper end of the upward projection.
Although the lock intermediate member 175 rotates around the support shaft 176, its outer circumferential side descends by its own weight and rests on the cam 179 of the operation member 178. The cam 179 is provided on a circle whose axis is coaxial or nearly axial with the axis of the shaft 180.
FIG. 36 is an enlarged illustration of left side portions of the apparatus body 1 and the upper structure 26 in a state illustrated in FIG. 3, as viewed from the front side. The upper cover 18 further includes a pair of right and left upper frames 45 in the lower portion thereof, between which the light-scanning device 8 illustrated in FIG. 3 is provided, although only the left upper frame 45 is illustrated in FIG. 36. The rotary shaft 17 is attached to an upper edge of the back side of the apparatus body 1, with both ends thereof inserted into the right and left upper frames 45, respectively. Therefore, the upper structure 26 is rotatable around the rotary shaft 17 and openable and closable with respect to the apparatus body 1. With this configuration, when being rotated to an angle exceeding a reversionary angle, the upper structure 26 receives a moment in an open direction due to gravity, and thus the image forming part 2 is exposed as illustrated in FIG. 3. Further, a rotary shaft spring 47, such as a torsion spring, is provided on each end of the rotary shaft 17 penetrating the upper frame 45, with one end thereof attached to the apparatus body 1 and the other end thereof attached to the upper structure 26. The rotary shaft springs 47 are a bias member to bias the upper structure 26 in the open direction.
It is to be noted that the lock intermediate member 175 should rotate only within a range from the position slant in the width direction illustrated in FIGS. 32 through 34 to the substantially horizontal position illustrated in FIGS. 37 through 39. The lock intermediate member 175 contacts the cam 179 and is held thereby in the state illustrated in FIGS. 32 though 34. Further, a stopper, not shown, is provided on the housing of the scanner 100 to prevent the outer circumferential side of the lock intermediate member 175 from rotating downward from the horizontal state illustrated in FIGS. 37 through 39. Therefore, the lock intermediate member 175 may be either in contact with or slightly away from the cam 179 while in the horizontal state illustrated in FIGS. 37 through 39. Further, when the stopper is provided, the lock intermediate member 175 does not project from the slide contact surface between the scanner 100 and the supporter 52 illustrated in FIGS. 35A and 35B, and thus sliding of the scanner 100 is not hindered.
Referring to FIG. 40, the upper cover lock mechanism includes a relay lever 265, a slide member 266 that is slidable in the sliding direction shown by arrows Xa and Xb, and a pin 267 attached to a front end of the slide member 266. The relay lever 265 includes a first end fixed to a left end of the support shaft 62 of the cover lock 60 and a second end that contacts the pin 267. The relay lever 265 rotates when the cover pull 61 is operated and the support shaft 62 is rotated. The slide member 266 is a long lever extending in the sliding direction shown by arrows Xa and Xb, and a slot 268 extending in the sliding direction is provided on a portion slightly backward from the center of the slide member 266. A coil spring 64 attached to the shaft 62 biases the lock claws 63 constantly to engage the protrusions la provided on the apparatus body 1 illustrated in FIG. 2.
Referring to FIGS. 41 and 42, the convexity 270 engages a substantially panel-shaped lock release 271. The lock release 271 has an axis line in a longitudinal direction and is attached to the scanner 100 pivotally on a rotary support shaft 273 provided on a short side thereof. The lock release 271 includes concavities 272 each of which has a rectangular cross section, and the convexity 270 engages one of the concavities 272 as illustrated in FIG. 42, and disengages therefrom as illustrated in FIG. 41. In the present embodiment, three concavities 272 are formed on the lock release 271. The lock release 271 is biased by a spring 274.
FIG. 44A illustrates a lock position of the lock release 271 at which the convexity 270 engages the concavity 272, and FIG. 44B illustrates an unlock position thereof at which the convexity 270 disengages from the concavity 272. The lock release 271 is controlled by a stopper, not shown, to rotate between the lock position and the unlock position. Referring to FIGS. 41, 42, 44A, and 44B, the spring 274 biases the lock release 271 to rotate around the rotary support shaft 273 to the unlock position, and the leg 276 of the operation member 275 rotates the lock release 271 to the lock position and the unlock position.
By contrast, when the platen cover 110 is closed, the operation member 275 rotates counterclockwise from the position illustrated in FIGS. 42 and 45A around the pivot 277. In this rotation, the leg 276 of the operation member 275 moves away from the lock release 271, and the lock release 271 is rotated clockwise around the rotary support shaft 273 by the spring 274 so that the concavity 272 disengages from the convexity 270 as illustrated in FIGS. 41 and 45B.
FIG. 46 illustrates arrangement of the upper cover lock mechanism and the platen lock 170 in a cross section of the support 52 as viewed from the front side. FIG. 47 also illustrates this arrangement in a bottom view of the scanner 100.
Referenced byCiting PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS8089666Jan 23, 2008Jan 3, 2012Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming apparatusUS8154770 *Jan 31, 2008Apr 10, 2012Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming apparatusUS8194255Sep 10, 2008Jun 5, 2012Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming apparatusUS8279495 *Jul 16, 2009Oct 2, 2012Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming apparatus having cover lock deviceUS8509653Dec 2, 2010Aug 13, 2013Ricoh Company, Ltd.Fixing device and image forming apparatusUS8513551Jun 29, 2011Aug 20, 2013Ricoh Company, Ltd.Interlock mechanism and image forming apparatusUS8587847 *Dec 19, 2011Nov 19, 2013Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming deviceUS8610910Sep 24, 2010Dec 17, 2013Brother Kogyo Kabushiki KaishaMulti-function apparatusUS8693936Jan 9, 2012Apr 8, 2014Ricoh Company, Ltd.Fixing device and image forming apparatus incorporating sameUS8717779Feb 8, 2012May 6, 2014Ricoh Company, Ltd.Holder for holding cable noise suppressor and image forming system incorporating the sameUS8767231Dec 16, 2013Jul 1, 2014Brother Kogyo Kabushiki KaishaMulti-function apparatusUS20080291501 *Jan 31, 2008Nov 27, 2008Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming apparatusUS20100014129 *Jul 16, 2009Jan 21, 2010Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming apparatus having cover lock deviceUS20120162728 *Dec 19, 2011Jun 28, 2012Ricoh Company, Ltd.Image forming device* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification358/498International ClassificationH04N1/04Cooperative ClassificationH04N2201/0091, H04N1/00554, H04N1/00559, H04N1/00519, H04N1/0083European ClassificationH04N1/00E9, H04N1/00K, H04N1/00E7B, H04N1/00ELegal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionJan 23, 2008ASAssignmentOwner name: RICOH COMPANY, LTD., JAPANFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:ANDOH, TAKAYUKI;TAKAHASHI, TAKUJI;SHIRAKI, TAKAMASA;AND OTHERS;REEL/FRAME:020447/0705;SIGNING DATES FROM 20080116 TO 20080117Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:ANDOH, TAKAYUKI;TAKAHASHI, TAKUJI;SHIRAKI, TAKAMASA;AND OTHERS;SIGNING DATES FROM 20080116 TO 20080117;REEL/FRAME:020447/0705RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services©2012 Google