Image forming apparatus

Abstract

To provide an image forming apparatus that can move a button without using a special spring in relation to a button configuration.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus has an exterior part, a button, a support part supporting the button and including a deformation area, and a regulation part in contact with the support part and regulating the position of the button part. The button is movable to a first position where a part to be pressed is not pressed, and a second position where the part to be pressed is pressed and moved in a first direction. In the movement of the button from the first position to the second position, the exterior part of the image forming apparatus and the button are rubbed to each other, and thereby a force is applied in a second direction being a direction perpendicular to the first direction and the deformation area of the support part is deformed, which moves the button part to the second position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, a method using mechanical buttons has been used as an inexpensive configuration for buttons on image forming devices such as electrophotographic copiers, electrophotographic printers such as LED printers and laser beam printers, electrophotographic facsimile machines, and electrophotographic word processors.

[0003] As an example of such a configuration, there is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 10-14158, which uses a special spring to return the power button to its original position. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Application No. 10-14158 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] If a dedicated spring is used to configure the button, there is a problem in that the number of parts configuring the image forming apparatus increases. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides: An image forming apparatus for forming an image on a sheet, an exterior portion extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; a substrate having a contacted portion; a button portion having a pressed portion which forms the exterior of the device together with the exterior portion, a support portion which supports the pressed portion, the support portion having a deformation region which deforms in the second direction, and a contact portion which extends from the support portion in the first direction and is capable of coming into contact with the contacted portion, and which is movable from a first position where the contact portion and the contacted portion are not in contact to a second position where the contact portion comes into contact with the contacted portion when the pressed portion is pressed in the first direction; a restricting portion that contacts the support portion and restricts the position of the button portion; and When the pressed portion is pressed in the first direction, the button portion rotates, and a part of the support portion is restricted by the restricting portion, and the button portion and the exterior portion slide against each other. The button portion and the exterior portion rub against each other, applying a force to the deformation area in the second direction, and the deformation area is deformed, causing the button portion to move to the second position. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that is capable of moving a button without using a dedicated spring. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] Schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 3] Cross-sectional side view of the power button in Example 1 [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the relationship between the power button and the frame in the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a power button is pressed in the first embodiment; [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a power button according to a first embodiment; [Figure 7] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a power button and its periphery, showing a modification of the first embodiment; [Figure 8] 10 is a cross-sectional view of the power button periphery showing a second modification of the first embodiment; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Example 1 An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0010] 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus 100 according to this embodiment. A laser beam printer, which is an example of the present invention, includes an image forming unit that forms images, a sheet feeding device that separates and feeds sheets one by one to the image forming unit, a laser scanner unit, a fixing device, and a paper output tray. The image forming unit includes a process cartridge, a transfer roller, etc. that are detachable from the laser beam printer main body. The process cartridge includes a photosensitive drum, a charging roller, a developing means, a cleaning means, etc.

[0011] When image information is sent from a personal computer or the like and a control unit that has processed the image information for image formation issues a print signal, as shown in Fig. 1, a paper feed roller 111 rotates and a sheet S loaded in a paper feed cassette 118 is conveyed to a transfer roller 113 by a pair of conveying rollers 112. Meanwhile, based on this print command and the image information, an electrostatic latent image is formed on a photosensitive drum 114 by exposure to light from a laser unit (not shown). Furthermore, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 114 by a developing unit (not shown).

[0012] The toner image is then transferred to the sheet at the nip between the photosensitive drum 114 and the transfer roller 113, thereby forming an image on the sheet. The sheet is then sent to a fixing device 115 where the image is fixed. Then, the sheet is discharged onto a paper discharge tray by a pair of paper discharge rollers 116. In addition, in the case of double-sided printing, after the sheet is sent to the fixing device 115, it is reversed by the pair of paper discharge rollers 116, passes through a double-sided path 117, and an image is formed on the side where no image has been formed, before being discharged. In addition, in the configuration of this embodiment, the discharge direction in which the sheet is discharged by the pair of paper discharge rollers 116 is the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1.

[0013] Next, the configuration of the buttons according to this embodiment will be described using the power button 200 as an example of the button section of the image forming apparatus 100 with reference to Figures 2 to 6. Figure 2 is an overall perspective view of the image forming apparatus 100. As shown in Figure 2, the power button 200 is located on the upper right front side of the image forming apparatus 100.

[0014] For the sake of explanation, the rightward direction on the paper in Figures 3 and 5 is defined as the first direction, and the downward direction on the paper in Figures 3 and 5, which is perpendicular to the first direction, is defined as the second direction. The X direction in Figure 3 is the first direction, and the Y direction in Figure 3 is the second direction. The ejection direction in which a sheet with an image formed on it is ejected intersects with the second direction.

[0015] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of the periphery of power button 200, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the relationship between power button 200 and frame 130. The surface of exterior 120 of the image forming apparatus having power button 200 extends in a second direction. Power button 200 has a pressed portion 201, a peripheral side portion 202, a light guide 203, a contact portion 204, and a support portion 205. One end of support portion 205 extending in the second direction is positioned on frame 130 of the apparatus body to support power button 200. In other words, frame 130 supports power button 200 and functions as a restricting means for restricting the position of power button 200. Support portion 205 has curved regions 205b and 205c as deformation regions, and a restricted region 205g.

[0016] The pressed portion 201 forms part of the exterior of the image forming apparatus 100, and can be pressed to turn the power of the image forming apparatus 100 on or off. The light guide 203 transmits light from an LED 152 (described later) and delivers it to the pressed portion 201. The contact portion 204 extends in a first direction from the support portion 205, and comes into contact with a contacted portion 151 (described later) when the pressed portion 201 is pressed. It can also be said that the pressed portion 201 and the side periphery 202 are supported by the support portion.

[0017] The frame 130 and the regulated portion 205g will be described in detail. As shown in Fig. 3, the frame 130 has an upper portion 130a, a bottom portion 130b, a rear end portion 130c, and a holding portion 130d as regulating portions. The rear end portion 130c is located on an extension of the regulated portion 205g, and the upper portion 130a and the bottom portion 130b face each other and are connected by the rear end portion 130c. The held portion 205a of the regulated area 205g is in contact with the holding portion 130d, thereby holding the force of gravity of the button portion 200.

[0018] The side periphery 202 has a protrusion 202a. Normally, the power button 200 is subjected to a force that tends to tip it to the left in FIG. 3 due to its own weight, but the protrusion 202a comes into contact with the exterior 120 of the device body, thereby absorbing the force that would cause it to tip due to its own weight. This configuration increases the precision of the surface that forms the exterior of the image forming apparatus 100, which is formed from the exterior 120 and the pressed portion 201. The position of the power button 200 at this time is referred to as a first position. In the first position, the contact portion 204 and the contacted portion 151 are not in contact. In addition, the power button 200 is positioned in the first position by the contact portion 205a and the protrusion 202a coming into contact with each other.

[0019] Next, the substrate 150 provided in the apparatus main body will be described. The substrate 150 has a contactable portion 151 and an LED 152 as a light-emitting portion. The contactable portion 151 comes into contact with the contact portion 204 when the pressed portion 201 is pressed, and has the role of receiving an instruction to switch the power of the image forming apparatus 100 on / off, and specifically is a switch element. The LED 152 is controlled so that the light-emitting state can be switched depending on the state of the image forming apparatus 100, and has the role of displaying the state of the image forming apparatus 100 to the user.

[0020] Next, what happens when the power button 200 is pressed will be described with reference to Figures 5 and 6. Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the power button 200 in a pressed state. Figure 6 is a perspective view showing the power button 200. Here, the regulated portion 205g is regulated by the frame 130 of the device main body so as to tilt in directions that cause the button portion 200 to rotate clockwise and counterclockwise as viewed from the paper surface of Figure 5 relative to the frame 130. In other words, although the regulated portion 205g extends horizontally in Figure 3, a gap is formed between the top 130a and bottom 130b of the frame 130 so that the regulated portion 205g can tilt clockwise and counterclockwise.

[0021] When the pressed portion 201 is pressed in the first direction, the button portion 200 can rotate clockwise in FIG. 5 around the held portion 205a. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, a part of the support portion 205 abuts against the upper portion 130a, restricting the movement of the button portion 200 in the first direction. Specifically, the abutting portion 205h of the support portion 205 and the abutted portion 130e of the frame 130 are in contact with each other. However, the movement of the button portion 200 in the first direction may also be restricted by a method such as the restricted portion 205g abutting against the rear end portion 130c. In this embodiment, the location where the upper portion 130a and the support portion 205 come into contact with each other and the movement of the button portion 200 in the first direction is restricted is closer to the pressed portion 201 than the contacted portion 151 in the first direction.

[0022] 5 and comes into contact with exterior sliding portion 120a of exterior surface 120. When side peripheral sliding portion 202a and exterior sliding portion 120a come into contact and rub against each other, a force in a second direction is applied to support portion 205.

[0023] When a force is applied to the support portion 205 in the second direction, the curved regions 205b and 205c deform and curve so that the pressed portion 201 moves in the second direction. This deformation reduces the friction between the side peripheral rubbing portion 202a and the exterior rubbing portion 120a, allowing the power button 200 to be pushed in. Then, the pressed portion 201 moves in the first direction. As the power button 200 is pushed in, the contact portion 204 and the contacted portion 151 come into contact. By the contact of the contact portion 204 and the contacted portion 151, the ON / OFF of the power supply of the image forming apparatus 100 can be switched. The position of the power button 200 when the contact portion 204 and the contacted portion 151 are in contact at this time is defined as the second position.

[0024] When the force in the first direction applied to the pressing portion 201 disappears, such as when the user removes a finger from the power button 200, the power button 200 moves to the first position by its own weight. Also, in the present embodiment, when viewed from one end side of the support portion 205 along the portion forming the power button 200, the held portion 205a, the deformation region, and the pressed portion 201 are arranged in this order.

[0025] The configuration of the support portion 205 will be described using FIG. 6. The support portion 205 has a linear region 205d extending in the second direction. The plate thickness T1 around the deformation region of the support portion 205 is thinner than the plate thickness T2 of the linear region 205d, and the relationship is T1 < T2, making it easy to deform. Specifically, since the deformation region has lower rigidity than the linear region 205d, when a force in the second direction is applied to the support portion 205, the deformation region is more likely to deform with respect to the linear region 205d.

[0026] Also, regarding the width L1 around the deformation region, it is narrower than the width L2 of the linear region 205d, and L1 < L2. Such a configuration makes it easier to cause elastic deformation, improving the operability while maintaining the durability of the support portion 205. Here, in the present embodiment, the curved regions 205b and 205c are formed between the portion where the support portion 205 extends in the first direction and the portion extending in the direction opposite to the first direction.

[0027] Furthermore, in this embodiment, linear region 205d is provided only on one side of pressed portion 201 in the second direction. More specifically, held portion 205a and curved regions 205b and 205c are provided only on one side of pressed portion 201 in the second direction. This allows support portion 205 to be provided in the available space even when there is little space around power button 200. Furthermore, because power button 200 is returned to the first position by the elastic force of support portion 205 and no dedicated spring member is used, the number of parts required to construct the button can be reduced.

[0028] Next, a modified example of the first embodiment will be shown using Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the periphery of a power button 1200 showing a modified example of the first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 7, the deformation area 1205e may have any shape. In this modified example, the support portion 1205 is configured to have a hollow circular shape.

[0029] Furthermore, a second modification of the first embodiment will be shown using Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the periphery of a power button 2200 showing the second modification of the first embodiment. The power button 2200 is configured to rotate around a rotating portion 2205f. At this time, the power button 2200 is biased by its own weight in the left direction in the drawing, which is the direction opposite to the first direction (a force tending to tilt the button is applied).

[0030] As described above, the configuration shown in this embodiment makes it possible to reduce the number of parts required to configure the button. [Explanation of symbols]

[0031] 100 Image forming device 120 Exterior part 150 boards 200 Power button 201 Pressed part 205 Support part

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus for forming an image on a sheet, an exterior portion having a surface extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; A substrate having a contacted portion; a button portion having a pressable portion exposed to the outside of the exterior portion and forming an exterior of the device together with the exterior portion, a support portion connected to the pressable portion and having a curved portion and a regulated portion that deform in the second direction, and a contact portion extending from the support portion in the first direction and capable of coming into contact with the contacted portion, wherein when the pressable portion is pressed in the first direction, the button portion can move from a first position where the contact portion and the contacted portion are not in contact to a second position where the contact portion comes into contact with the contacted portion; a restricting portion that comes into contact with the restricted portion so as to support the button portion and restricts a position of the button portion, the restricting portion having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion and the second portion facing each other such that a gap is formed between the first portion and the second portion; having the regulated portion is inserted into the gap so that the button portion can be tilted relative to the regulating portion, and the pressed portion is pressed in the first direction, whereby the button portion and the exterior portion slide against each other; An image forming device characterized in that, when the button portion is moved to the second position, the button portion and the exterior portion rub against each other, applying a force to the curved portion in the second direction, causing the curved portion to deform.

2. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate includes a light emitting portion, and the button portion includes a light guide that transmits light from the light emitting portion.

3. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a discharge direction in which a sheet on which an image is formed is discharged intersects with the second direction.

4. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support portion has a straight portion extending in the second direction, and the curved portion has a thickness and a width smaller than those of the straight portion.

5. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the curved portion is formed between a portion of the support portion extending in the first direction and a portion of the support portion extending in a direction opposite to the first direction.

6. An image forming device as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the curved portion is arranged between the contact portion and the regulated portion.

7. An image forming apparatus as described in claim 6, characterized in that the contact portion is arranged between the pressed portion and the curved portion.

8. An image forming apparatus as described in claim 7, characterized in that the contact portion and the curved portion are arranged between the pressed portion and the regulated portion.

9. An image forming device as described in claim 8, characterized in that the contact portion is closer to the pressed portion than the regulated portion, and the curved portion is closer to the regulated portion than the pressed portion.

10. An image forming apparatus as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising a frame having the regulating portion.

11. An image forming device as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the curved portion includes a first curved portion and a second curved portion.

Images