Sheet feeding or delivering – Feeding – Pack holders
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-19
2001-11-06
Skaggs, H. Grant (Department: 3651)
Sheet feeding or delivering
Feeding
Pack holders
C271S171000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06311970
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image formation apparatus, such as a facsimile machine, printer, or photocopier, having a paper feed cassette, and to a paper feed cassette for use with such an image formation apparatus.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIGS. 17A and 17B
show a top view and a front view, respectively, of a conventional facsimile machine. The facsimile machine has a body
1
, and in a central side portion of the body
1
is provided a power supply section
13
. In an upper portion of the body
1
are provided an operation section
3
for performing transmission and other operations and an original document placement section
2
for placing a document to be transmitted. The information written or drawn on the original document is read by a reader section
5
. Then, the information thus read is transmitted, and the original document is fed out in the direction indicated by the arrow A so as to be stocked in an original document stacker
4
.
In a lower portion of the body
1
is provided a paper feeder section
6
. Sheets of recording paper P are lifted upward by a lifting plate
8
so as to be pressed against a pickup roller
9
. When a facsimile document is received, the pickup roller
9
rotates and thereby feeds forward one sheet after another of recording paper. These sheets of recording paper are then, one by one, fed between transfer rollers
10
to a recording section
11
. In the recording section
11
, images are formed on the sheets of recording paper in accordance with the received information. The sheets of recording paper P′ having images formed thereon are then fed out in the direction indicated by the arrow B so as to be stocked in a recording paper stacker
12
.
FIGS. 18A and 18B
show a sectional view as seen from above and a sectional view as seen from the front, respectively, of the paper feeder section
6
. As shown in these figures, the sheets of recording paper P are loaded in a paper feed cassette
7
. As shown in
FIG. 19
, replenishment of the sheets of recording paper P is performed with the paper feed cassette
7
pulled out in the direction indicated by the arrow C.
A facsimile machine having a construction as described above requires a space to pull out the paper feed cassette
7
on one side (in the above example, on the right side) of the body
1
, and thus the body
1
occupies an accordingly large area. For this reason, as shown in
FIGS. 20A and 20B
, some commercially available facsimile machines are so designed that the paper feed cassette
7
is pulled out on the front side (in the direction indicated by the arrow D), where a space is secured to allow operation by the user. This helps reduce the area occupied by the body
1
.
However, in a facsimile machine having a construction as described just above, the direction in which the paper feed cassette
7
is pulled out is perpendicular to the direction in which the sheets of recording paper are fed to the recording section
11
(see FIG.
17
B). As a result, as shown in
FIGS. 21A and 21B
, which are a sectional view as seen from above and a sectional view as seen from the side, respectively, when a paper jam occurs, the sheet of recording paper P″that is causing the jam may interfere with the rear plate
7
a
of the paper feed cassette
7
and thereby hinder the paper feed cassette
7
from being pulled out. This complicates removal of the sheet of recording paper P″ that is causing the jam and thus recovery from the jam.
Moreover, the size of the sheets of recording paper P actually used varies from user to user. For this reason, the paper feed cassette
7
needs to be made so wide as to cope with the longest sheets of recording paper P generally available, and thus also the body
1
of the facsimile machine needs to be made accordingly wide.
For example, as shown in
FIG. 20B
mentioned previously, even if a user uses only letter-size sheets (having a length L
1
=279 mm) and A4-size sheets (having a length L
2
=297 mm), he has no choice but to use a paper feed cassette
7
that is made so wide W
1
as to cope with legal-size sheets (having a length L
3
=356 mm). As a result, also the body
1
of the facsimile machine needs to be made accordingly wide W
2
, and thus occupies an unnecessarily large area.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a paper feed cassette that ensures easy removal of a sheet of recording paper in the event of a paper jam.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an image formation apparatus that ensures easy dismounting of a paper feed cassette in the event of a paper jam.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an image formation apparatus that allows use of various types of sheets of recording paper having different lengths and that nevertheless occupies a minimum of area.
To achieve the above objects, according to one aspect of the present invention, in a paper feed cassette, loaded with sheets of recording paper and mounted in an image formation apparatus, for feeding the sheets of recording paper to the image formation apparatus, at least a part of the rear wall of the paper feed cassette, as seen from the direction from which the paper feed cassette is mounted, is brought into an inclined state when the paper feed cassette is dismounted.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in a paper feed cassette, loaded with sheets of recording paper and mounted in an image formation apparatus, for feeding the sheets of recording paper to the image formation apparatus, at least a part of the rear wall of the paper feed cassette, as seen from the direction from which the paper feed cassette is mounted, is cut out.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in an image formation apparatus in which a paper feed cassette loaded with sheets of recording paper is mounted and in which the sheets of recording paper are fed to the image formation apparatus in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the paper feed cassette is mounted, at least a part of the rear wall of the paper feed cassette, as seen from the direction from which the paper feed cassette is mounted, is brought into an inclined state when the paper feed cassette is dismounted.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in an image formation apparatus in which a paper feed cassette loaded with sheets of recording paper is mounted and in which the sheets of recording paper are fed to the image formation apparatus in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the paper feed cassette is mounted, at least a part of the rear wall of the paper feed cassette, as seen from the direction from which the paper feed cassette is mounted, is cut out.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, in an image formation apparatus in which a paper feed cassette loaded with sheets of recording paper is mounted and in which the sheets of recording paper are fed to the image formation apparatus in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the paper feed cassette is mounted, the image formation apparatus has an insertion cavity that is open, at one side, toward the insertion surface through which the paper feed cassette is inserted into the image formation apparatus and, at another side, toward a side surface that is perpendicular to the insertion surface. Here, the insertion cavity makes the insertion surface and the side surface each appear to be C-shaped.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4402498 (1983-09-01), Suzuki
patent: 4958823 (1990-09-01), Iwaki et al.
patent: 5085419 (1992-02-01), Bell
patent: 5537195 (1996-07-01), Sagara et al.
patent: 0203126 (1989-08-01), None
patent: 404246030A (1992-09-01), None
patent: A9110195 (1997-04-01), None
Birch & Stewart Kolasch & Birch, LLP
Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
Skaggs H. Grant
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