Sheet feeding or delivering – Delivering – To receiver for pack of sheets
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-19
2001-09-11
Walsh, Donald P. (Department: 3653)
Sheet feeding or delivering
Delivering
To receiver for pack of sheets
C271S003030, C271S003130, C271S003170, C271S220000, C271S225000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06286830
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sheet material stacking device, and more particularly, it relates to a sheet material stacking device having a function for stacking sheet materials on a stacking tray and applicable to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile and the like.
2. Related Background Art
In conventional image forming apparatuses such as copying machines, printers, facsimiles and the like, there is provided a stacking tray on which sheet materials discharged from a main body of the image forming apparatus are stacked, and an example of such an image forming apparatus is shown in FIG.
6
. In
FIG. 6
, the reference numeral
201
denotes a main body of the image forming apparatus;
210
denotes a sheet material stacking device; and
222
,
251
,
252
,
253
,
254
and
255
denote stacking trays on which sheet materials discharged and sorted from the sheet material stacking tray
210
are stacked. In order to minimize the installation space of the system, the stacking trays
251
to
255
include extensible/retractable extension trays
261
to
265
, respectively.
However, the above-mentioned conventional example has the following problems.
That is to say, thicknesses of the stacking trays
251
to
255
must be increased to hold the extension trays
261
to
265
therein. More particularly, the thickness of each stacking tray is required to be not less than 12 mm.
Particularly when the number of the stacking trays is increased, the total height of the apparatus will be increased accordingly. To avoid this, there has been proposed a technique in which each of extension trays
361
is disposed at one side (upper side) of each of the stacking trays
351
,
352
, as shown in FIG.
7
. However, with this arrangement, a leading end of a sheet material
300
discharged from a main body
210
by a pair of rollers
353
of an image forming apparatus may be caught by an upstream end
361
a
of the extension tray
361
.
Further, when the stacking trays are arranged conversely (i.e., the extension trays are disposed at lower sides of the stacking trays), if an upwardly curled sheet material is discharged onto the extension tray of the lower stacking tray, the leading end of the sheet material may be caught by the upstream end of the extension tray of the upper stacking tray, thereby causing the sheet jam.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet material stacking device in which thicknesses of sheet material stacking means are reduced and a discharged sheet material is prevented from being caught thereby to increase stacking ability.
The present invention aims to eliminate the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, and an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet material stacking device comprising a sheet material discharging means for discharging a sheet material, a sheet material stacking means on which the sheet materials discharged by the sheet material discharging means are stacked, and an extension stacking means extensibly housed within the sheet material stacking means and capable of extending in accordance with a size of the sheet material, and wherein the extension stacking means has an inclined surface at an upstream end thereof in a sheet material stacking direction.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a sheet material stacking tray arrangement comprising a stacking tray on which sheet materials are stacked, and an extension tray extensibly held in the stacking tray, and wherein the extension tray has an inclined surface at an upstream end thereof in a sheet material stacking direction.
With the above-mentioned construction, when the sheet material is discharged by the sheet material discharging means onto the sheet material stacking means, if a size of the sheet is great, the extension stacking means is drawn from the sheet material stacking means to provide an extension tray. Since the extension stacking means has the inclined surface at its upstream end, even if a leading end of the discharged sheet material contacts with the upstream end of the extension stacking means, the leading end of the sheet material is slid on the inclined surface to be smoothly rested on the sheet material stacking means. In this way, the sheet materials can be stacked on the sheet material stacking means stably without increasing the thickness of the sheet material stacking means and with preventing the leading end of the sheet material from being caught by the extension stacking means.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5586758 (1996-12-01), Kimura et al.
Araki Tomoyuki
Hayakawa Yasuyoshi
Kitahara Yoshihiko
Komatsu Teruo
Beauchaine Mark J.
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Fitzpatrick ,Cella, Harper & Scinto
Walsh Donald P.
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