Typewriting machines – Means auxiliary to typewriting function – Frame – casing – or support for typewriter
Reexamination Certificate
2002-03-11
2004-05-25
Colilla, Daniel J. (Department: 2854)
Typewriting machines
Means auxiliary to typewriting function
Frame, casing, or support for typewriter
C399S110000, C399S388000, C399S391000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06739778
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a sheet transport device for use in an image forming apparatus such as a copier, a facsimile machine, a printer, and a scanner to transport recording paper, documents, and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are known sheet transport devices equipped with a plurality of sheet transport paths. Recently, copiers incorporated with a plurality of sheet cassettes have been widespread. Such a copier is generally equipped with a plurality of sheet transport paths.
FIG. 15
is a perspective view of a copier incorporated with a plurality of sheet cassettes arranged at respective positions, specifically showing a state that a side door of the copier is opened.
FIGS. 16A and 16B
are enlarged sectional views illustrating a conventional sheet transporting section of a copier.
FIG. 16A
shows a state that a side door of the copier is closed, and
FIG. 16B
shows a state that the side door is opened.
The aforementioned copier is equipped with a group of sheet cassettes
111
consisting of, for example, four sheet cassettes
111
a
,
111
b
,
111
c
, and
111
d
each accommodating a stack of sheets therein. The copier is constructed in such a manner that a copy sheet
115
is dispensed from an arbitrary sheet cassette of the sheet cassette group
111
, fed to an image forming section via a specified sheet transport path, has an image formed and fixed thereon, and is discharged onto a discharge tray.
The sheet transporting section is adapted to transport a sheet
115
dispensed from any one of the sheet cassettes
111
a
to
111
d
to the image forming section located at an upper part of the copier along a specified transport path from upstream toward downstream with respect to a sheet transport direction.
Specifically, as shown in
FIGS. 16A and 16B
, each sheet cassette has the following configuration. For example, the uppermost sheet cassette
111
a
has a first sheet transport path
211
along which a sheet
115
dispensed therefrom is transported toward the image forming section, and a second sheet transport path
212
along which a sheet
115
dispensed from a lower-side sheet cassette (e.g., sheet cassette
111
b
) is transported toward the image forming section. The first sheet transport path
211
and the second sheet transport path
212
are jointed at an upper part of the sheet cassette and directed upward. Likewise, the sheet cassette located below the sheet cassette
111
a
(for example, sheet cassette
111
b
) has a sheet transport path (namely, a first sheet transport path
211
) dedicatedly used for the sheet cassette
111
b
, and a sheet transport path (namely, a second sheet transport path
212
) which extends from a lower-side sheet cassette and is jointed at an upper part of the sheet cassette
111
b
(see the upper part of each sheet cassette in FIGS.
16
A and
16
B).
A guide member
220
for switching over a sheet transport path between the first sheet transport path
211
and the second sheet transport path
212
is provided at each jointed part of the first sheet transport path
211
and the second sheet transport path
212
. When a side door
230
is opened in the direction shown by the arrow A in
FIG. 16B
, the guide member
220
is changeable to an opened position by pivotal rotation thereof indicated by the arrow B in
FIG. 16B
, whereby the interior of the first sheet transport path
211
is exposed. When the guide member
220
is set to the opened position, an operator can remove a sheet jammed or staying in the first sheet transport path
211
. Likewise, the second sheet transport path
212
is exposed outside when the side door
230
is opened, whereby an operator can remove a jammed sheet from the second sheet transport path
212
.
Changing over the guide member
220
between the opened position (position for exposing the interior of the first sheet transport path
211
) and the closed position (position for defining the first sheet transport path
211
of a certain configuration) is associated with opening and closing of the side door
230
. Closing the side door
230
pivotally rotates the guide member
220
to the closed position by pressing a lead end of the guide member
220
against an inner wall of the side door
230
(see FIG.
16
A). Opening the side door
230
releases pressing of the guide member
220
to thereby allow the guide member
220
to pivotally set to the opened position (see FIG.
16
B).
The copier shown in
FIGS. 15
to
16
B is operated in such a manner that the side door
230
is pivotally openable about a vertical axis. Hereafter, this type of copier is also referred to as “sideways openable copier”. In the case of a copier operated in such a manner that a side At door is pivotally openable about a horizontal axis (hereafter, also referred to as “vertically openable copier”), similar to the sideways openable copier, an operation of a guide member for switching over a sheet transport path between a first sheet transport path and a second sheet transport path is associated with opening and closing of the side door. Pressing a lead end of the guide member against the inner wall of the side door pivotally sets the guide member to the closed position.
FIG. 17
is a sectional view of a vertically openable copier specifically showing a state that a side door
230
is opened.
It is preferable to provide a guide member
220
having a relatively large size in order to set an opening angle of the guide member
220
with respect to a vertical plane as large as possible to sufficiently expose the interior of the first sheet transport path
211
in light of an operator's operability of removing a jammed sheet from the first sheet transport path
211
(see FIGS.
16
A and
16
B). However, the aforementioned conventional copier (specifically, sheet transport device) involves the following drawback.
Specifically, as shown in
FIG. 18
, which is a perspective view for illustrating open/close operations of the guide member
220
in association with open/close operations of the side door
230
, pressing the guide member
220
by the side door
230
as the side door
230
is being closed enables to set the guide member
220
to the closed position. With this arrangement, it is likely that part on the inner surface of the side door
230
abutted against the guide member
220
(part indicated by the arrow C in
FIG. 18A
) is subjected to an abrasion or frictional resistance. Particularly, in the case where the guide member
220
is set at a large opening angle, the abutted part (region around the arrow C in
FIG. 18
) of the side door
230
and the guide member
220
is subjected to a high abrasion or frictional resistance. As shown in
FIG. 18B
, closing motion of the side door
230
about an axis V cannot be smoothly transferred to a rotational motion of the guide member
220
around an axis H because the closing motion of the side door
230
does not create a force, i.e., a upwardly acting force component to produce a moment MH, required to rotate the guide member
220
upward. Therefore, it is highly likely that the abutted part on the side door
230
and the guide member
220
are damaged or lost.
In the case of a vertically openable copier, although a physical load exerted to part of a side door and a guide member corresponding to the aforementioned abutted part is small compared to the case of a sideways openable copier, the part of the side door
230
and the guide member
220
is subjected to a physical load if the guide member
220
is attempted to be set at a large opening angle.
In view of the aforementioned drawbacks, in the conventional sheet transport device, a maximal openable angle of the guide member
220
is restricted, thus hindering operability in removing a jammed sheet.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the above, it is an object of the invention to provide a sheet transport device free from the problems residing in the prior art.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a sheet transport device capable of setting an op
Fuchi Masami
Kimata Hideaki
Koyanagi Tsuyoshi
Onishi Yuzo
Shibata Mitsuhiro
Colilla Daniel J.
Jordan and Hamburg LLP
Kyocera Mita Corporation
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