Hinge and office machine using the hinge

Abstract

To disperse a load on a compression spring when a slide member goes up and down.SOLUTION: A hinge 100 comprises: a hollow main body part 10 that is fixed to a main body 2; a support member 30 that is fixed to a document crimping plate 3 and is rotatably connected with the main body part 10 with a hinge shaft 15, and is formed with a cam part 36 on a side of the main body part 10; a slide member 40 that is stored in the main body part 10 movably in a direction to approach and separate from the cam part 36, and is formed with a cam surface 43 on a side of the cam part 36; and three compression springs 51, 52, 53 that are interposed between the slide member 40 and a bottom part of the main body part 10, and urge the slide member 40 in a direction to approach the cam part 36 to bring the slide member 40 into contact with the came part 36. The cam surface 43 in contact with the cam part 36 is located above the two compression springs 52, 53 of the three compression springs 51, 52, 53.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a hinge for connecting a document pressing plate to a device main body so that the document pressing plate can be opened and closed, for example, by connecting the document pressing plate of an office device to the main body of the office device so as to be openable and closable, and an office device using this hinge.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, many office devices used in offices, such as copiers, facsimiles, scanners, etc., include a document reading unit (contact glass) on the upper surface of the main body thereof and a document pressing plate that covers the document reading unit. The document pressing plate presses the document placed on the document reading unit against the document reading unit and holds the position of the document with respect to the document reading unit.

[0003] As a device for connecting the main body of an office device and the document pressing plate, a hinge is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). The hinge includes a main body portion, a support member that is rotatably connected to the main body portion via a rotation shaft, a cam portion formed on the support member, a slide member that is housed in the main body portion and has a cam surface formed on the upper surface thereof that contacts the cam portion, and two compression springs that are arranged side by side in a direction away from the rotation shaft and bias the slide member against the cam portion.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the above hinge, the position where the cam portion and the cam surface contact is the upper part of the compression spring on the side far from the rotation shaft (front side) of the two compression springs. Therefore, when the slide member moves up and down, the slide member tilts toward the front compression spring side, and the load on the front compression spring becomes larger than the load on the rear compression spring.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above facts, and aims to provide a hinge that can distribute the load of the compression spring when the sliding member rises and falls. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To achieve the above objective, the hinge of the invention of claim 1 of the present disclosure comprises: a hollow main body fixed to the main body of the device and having a bottom; a support member fixed to the document pressing plate and rotatably connected to the main body via a hinge shaft, with a cam portion formed on the side of the main body; a slide member housed in the main body so as to be movable in a direction toward and toward the cam portion of the support member, with a cam surface formed on the side of the cam portion; and at least three compression springs interposed between the slide member and the bottom of the main body, biasing the slide member toward the cam portion, thereby causing the slide member to contact the cam portion, wherein the three compression springs are a first compression spring, a second compression spring, and a third compression spring arranged from the side closest to the hinge shaft, and the cam surface is located above the second and third compression springs.

[0008] The hinge according to claim 2 is such that the second compression spring is offset to either the left or right side when viewed from the front or rear side, with respect to the line connecting the first compression spring and the third compression spring.

[0009] The hinge according to claim 3 is provided with a dirt-preventing plate extending upward from the upper front side of the sliding member.

[0010] The hinge of the invention of claim 4 is the invention of claim 1, wherein the cam surface is a part of the surface of the slide member on the side of the cam portion and is a surface that is convex toward the cam portion.

[0011] The hinge of claim 5 is such that, in the invention of claim 1 or claim 2, when the support member closes the main body, the position where the cam portion and the cam surface come into contact is located above the second compression spring.

[0012] The office equipment according to claim 6 uses the above-described hinges between the main body of the device and the document pressure plate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] The hinge according to the present invention has the effect of distributing the load on the compression spring when the sliding member moves up and down. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This is a left side view showing a copier equipped with a hinge according to the embodiment. [Figure 2A] This is a left-side perspective view of the hinge in the closed state according to the embodiment. [Figure 2B] This is a left-side perspective view of the hinge in the open state according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] This is an exploded perspective view of the hinge according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure shows a configuration in which a compression spring is fixed between the main body and the sliding member of the hinge according to the embodiment. [Figure 5A] This diagram shows the position of the spring fixing portion on the main body side of the hinge according to the embodiment. [Figure 5B] This is a view from below of one of the spring fixing parts on the slide member side. [Figure 6] This is a cross-sectional view of the hinge in the closed state according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] This is a cross-sectional view of the hinge in the open state according to the embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0015] In the following section, a copier 1, which is an office device equipped with a hinge 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, will be described using Figure 1.

[0016] The copying machine 1 includes a device main body 2 and an original pressing plate 3. In this embodiment, the copying machine 1 is configured to include a hinge 100, but it is also possible to configure other office equipment different from the copying machine 1 or the multifunction machine to include the hinge 100. As other office equipment, as will be described later, there are devices such as a multifunction machine, a facsimile machine, and a scanner, each being a single device other than the copying machine 1. The device main body 2 and the original pressing plate 3 are examples of their respective device main bodies and original pressing plates.

[0017] The device main body 2 includes an original reading device, a control device, a printing device, a display device, and an input device.

[0018] The original reading device is disposed on the upper surface of the device main body 2. The original reading device reads an original placed on the upper surface of the device main body 2 (generates image information of the original).

[0019] The control device controls the operations of each part of the copying machine 1, more specifically, the operations of the original reading device, the printing device and the automatic document feeder (ADF (Auto Document Feeder)) to be described later. Further, the control device can store the image information generated by the original reading device and the image information acquired through a line (such as an Internet line) connected to the device main body 2.

[0020] The printing device is disposed below the original reading device. The printing device prints an image on a predetermined sheet based on the image information stored by the control device.

[0021] The display device is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal panel, and displays information related to the operation status of the copying machine 1 and the like.

[0022] The input device is composed of, for example, buttons, switches, etc., and is operated when an operator inputs an instruction or the like to the copying machine 1. The display device and the input device are disposed at the front part of the upper surface of the device main body 2.

[0023] The document pressure plate 3 presses down (presses) the document placed on the document scanner toward the document scanner, thereby preventing the document from moving (changing its relative position to the document scanner) when the document scanner reads it.

[0024] The document pressure plate 3 includes a pre-scan document tray, an ADF (Automatic Document Feeder), and a post-scan document tray (not shown).

[0025] The ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) sequentially removes multiple documents stacked in the pre-scan document tray one by one and places them on the designated scanning position on the document scanner. After the document scanner has finished scanning the documents, the ADF transports the documents placed on the scanning position to the post-scan document tray.

[0026] "Office equipment" refers to devices that have at least the function of scanning documents (acquiring image information from documents).

[0027] Specific examples of office equipment include: (a) scanners equipped with the function of scanning documents and transmitting image information related to the scanned documents to other devices (e.g., personal computers); (b) fax machines equipped with the function of scanning documents, transmitting image information related to the scanned documents to other devices via a communication line, and printing out image information acquired from other devices; (c) photocopiers equipped with the function of scanning documents and printing out image information related to the scanned documents; and (d) multifunction devices that combine the functions of the above-mentioned scanner, fax machine, and photocopier.

[0028] In the following explanation, the rotation angle θ of the document pressure plate 3 (more precisely, the rotation angle θ of the document pressure plate 3 relative to the device body 2) when the document pressure plate 3 is closed (when the lower surface of the document pressure plate 3 is in contact with the upper surface of the device body 2) is defined as "0°", and the rotation angle θ of the document pressure plate 3 is defined such that the rotation angle θ increases (the rotation angle θ becomes positive) when the document pressure plate 3 rotates in the direction of opening (see Figure 1). The direction from the device body 2 of the copier 1 toward the front is the forward direction, the direction from the device body 2 of the copier 1 toward the back (where the hinge 100 is located) is the rear direction, the left and right directions when looking at the copier 1 from the front are the left and right directions, the direction upwards on the copier 1 is the upward direction, and the direction downwards on the copier 1 is the downward direction. The front-to-back direction, the front-to-back direction, and the left-to-right direction are mutually orthogonal.

[0029] The hinge 100 will be described below using Figures 1 to 7.

[0030] The hinge 100 comprises a hollow main body 10 having a bottom fixed to the main body 2 of the device, a support member 30 fixed to the document pressure plate 3 and rotatably connected to the main body 10 via a hinge shaft 15, with a cam portion 36 formed on the side of the main body 10, a slide member 40 housed in the main body 10 so as to be movable in the direction of approaching and separating (up and down) from the cam portion 36 of the support member 30, with a cam surface 43 formed on the side of the cam portion 36, and at least three compression springs 51, 52, and 53 interposed between the slide member 40 and the bottom of the main body 10, biasing the slide member 40 in the direction of approaching the cam portion 36, thereby bringing the slide member 40 into contact with the cam portion 36.

[0031] There is one sliding member 40. The three compression springs 51, 52, and 53 are the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53, which are arranged from the side closest to the hinge shaft 15. The cam surface 43 that contacts the cam portion 36 is located above two of the three compression springs 51, 52, and 53, namely the second compression spring 52 and the third compression spring 53.

[0032] As shown in Figure 1, the hinge 100 rotatably connects the document pressure plate 3 of the copier 1 to the main body 2 of the device. Specifically, the hollow and bottomed main body 10 is fixed to the main body 2 of the copier 1, and the support member 30 is fixed to the document pressure plate 3 of the copier 1, thereby rotatably connecting the document pressure plate 3 to the main body 2 of the device.

[0033] In this embodiment, when the document pressure plate 3 is closed (when the rotation angle θ of the document pressure plate 3 is 0°), it is referred to as the "closed state of the support member 30" (see Figures 2A and 6), and when the document pressure plate 3 is open (when the rotation angle θ of the document pressure plate 3 is greater than 0°), it is referred to as the "open state of the support member 30" (see Figures 2B and 7).

[0034] As shown in Figures 2A to 7, the hinge 100 comprises a main body 10, a support member 30 rotatably connected to the rear upper end of the main body 10 by a hinge shaft 15 and having a cam portion 36 formed on the side of the main body 10 (the lower side when the support member 30 is closed), a slide member 40 movably housed inside the main body 10 in a direction of approaching and separating from the cam portion 36 (vertical direction), and compression springs such as a first compression spring 51, a second compression spring 52, and a third compression spring 53 interposed between the slide member 40 and the bottom of the main body 10.

[0035] For convenience, the shapes of each component constituting the hinge 100 will be described below using the vertical, horizontal, and front-to-back directions of the copier 1 as a reference when the document pressure plate 3 is closed relative to the device body 2 (when the rotation angle θ = 0°) (corresponding to the vertical, horizontal, and front-to-back directions of the copier 1 when the document pressure plate 3 is closed relative to the device body 2, respectively, and the vertical, horizontal, and front-to-back directions of the hinge 100).

[0036] The main body 10 is a hollow member with an open top. As shown in Figures 6 and 7, it is inserted into a mounting hole 2a provided in the device body 2, and as shown in Figure 4, a screw hole 10J is formed in the lower part of the main body 10 into which a screw 19 (Figures 6 and 7) is inserted. The main body 10 is inserted into the mounting hole 2a of the device body 2 of the copier 1 and is fixed by the screw 19 as shown in Figures 6 and 7. The main body 10 is an injection-molded resin member. Inside the main body 10, spring fixing parts 11, 12, and 13 are formed at the bottom that protrude upward.

[0037] As shown in Figure 5A, the spring fixing parts 11, 12, and 13 are not aligned in a straight line, and the central position of the inner spring fixing part 12 is offset by a predetermined distance from the straight line passing through the central positions of the outer spring fixing parts 11 and 13.

[0038] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 2A and 2B, the main body 10 is provided with support plates 14, 14 that protrude upward on both the left and right sides of the rear upper end. The hinge shaft 15 is inserted through insertion holes 10H, 10H provided in the support plates 14, 14 with a common axis, thereby supporting the hinge shaft 15.

[0039] As shown in Figure 6, the support member 30 is a member having a cam portion 36 that protrudes downward when closed, and is rotatably supported on the main body portion 10 by a hinge shaft 15. The cam portion 36 contacts the slide member 40 which is biased by compression springs (first compression spring 51, second compression spring 52, and third compression spring 53). The support member 30 is an injection-molded resin member.

[0040] As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the support member 30 includes a support portion 30A that supports the cam portion 36 which protrudes downward in the closed state from above the cam portion 36, a protruding portion 30B that protrudes upward at the rear end of the support portion 30A, and an adjacent portion 30E located below the support portion 30A and adjacent to the cam portion 36 on the rear side. The support portion 30A has an upper surface 30C in the closed state. The protruding portion 30B has a surface 30D on the support portion 30A side and has a hole 30H1 into which a screw 17 is inserted.

[0041] The document pressure plate 3 is equipped with a fixing portion 3A having a lower surface 3S1 and an end surface 3S2 in a closed state (see Figure 6) for fixing to the support member 30.

[0042] With the lower surface 3S1 of the fixing portion 3A of the document pressure plate 3 and the upper surface 30C of the support portion 30A in contact, and with the end surface 3S2 of the fixing portion 3A and the surface 30D of the protruding portion 30B in contact, the screw 17 is inserted into the fixing portion 3A of the document pressure plate 3 through the hole 30H1. This fixes the document pressure plate 3 to the support member 30.

[0043] Furthermore, a hole 30H2 into which the hinge shaft 15 is inserted is formed in the adjacent portion 30E.

[0044] As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the slide member 40 is a resin member that is slidably housed inside the main body 10. The slide member 40 is a hollow member with a bottom. As shown in Figure 5B, spring fixing parts 47, 48, and 49 that protrude downward are formed at the upper bottom inside the slide member 40. The positions of the spring fixing parts 47, 48, and 49 correspond to the spring fixing parts 11, 12, and 13, respectively. As described above, the central position of the inner spring fixing part 12 is offset by a predetermined distance from the straight line passing through the central positions of the outer spring fixing parts 11 and 13 (see Figure 5A), so the central position of the inner spring fixing part 48 is offset by a predetermined distance from the straight line passing through the central positions of the outer spring fixing parts 47 and 49.

[0045] The slide member 40 has a cam surface 43 formed on its upper surface, which is on the side of the cam portion 36.

[0046] On the upper surface of the slide member 40, in front of the cam surface 43, a flat, stain-preventing plate 42 extending in the vertical, horizontal, and vertical directions is erected upwards. As shown in Figures 2A and 6, the stain-preventing plate 42 is housed in the main body 10 when the device is closed. On the other hand, as shown in Figures 2B and 7, when the device is open, the stain-preventing plate 42 extends from the main body 10 and covers the side of the document reading section of the device body 2. This prevents grease and other substances from the contact area between the cam part 36 and the cam surface 43 from adhering to the document placed on the document reading section of the device body 2 when transitioning from the closed state to the open state. The stain-preventing plate 42 also prevents foreign matter from entering the contact area between the cam part 36 and the cam surface 43.

[0047] The cam surface 43 is part of the upper surface of the slide member 40, is located behind the dirt-preventing plate 42, and is a convex surface facing upward. The second compression spring 52 and the third compression spring 53 are located below the cam surface, but the first compression spring 51 is not located there.

[0048] A first compression spring 51, a second compression spring 52, and a third compression spring 53 are interposed between the slide member 40 and the bottom of the main body 10. Specifically, as shown in Figures 4, 6, and 7, the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 are arranged in order from the side closest to the hinge shaft 15. The first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 are fixed to the slide member 40 within the main body 10 by the insertion of spring fixing parts 11 and 47, spring fixing parts 12 and 48, and spring fixing parts 13 and 49 from above and below, respectively.

[0049] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 5A and 5B, the central spring fixing parts 12 and 48 are offset to one side of the line connecting the spring fixing parts 11 and 47 and the spring fixing parts 13 and 49. This allows for smooth left-right sliding of the slide member 40, which is pushed by the cam surface 36 on the support member 39 side. The direction in which the spring fixing parts 12 and 48 are offset may be to either the left or right side of the spring fixing parts 11 and 13 and the spring fixing parts 47 and 49. However, this embodiment does not negate the possibility of aligning the six upper and lower spring fixing parts 47, 48, 49, 11, 12, and 13 in a straight line.

[0050] As described above, by interposing the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 between the main body 10 and the slide member 40, the biasing forces of the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 apply a force to the support member 30 in a rotational direction that separates it from the main body 10. Specifically, as shown in Figure 7, the forces from the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 are transmitted to the cam portion 36 disposed on the support member 30 via the cam surface 43 of the slide member 40. As a result, the front part of the support member 30 rotates in a direction that lifts it upward.

[0051] According to the hinge 100 of this embodiment, as described above, the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 are arranged in order from the side closest to the hinge shaft 15, and the hinge torque is generated using these first compression spring 51, second compression spring 52, and third compression spring 53. As a result, the hinge 100 can exert sufficient hinge torque through the biasing force of the three compression springs (first compression spring 51, second compression spring 52, and third compression spring 53), while reducing the thickness of each individual compression spring and limiting the dimension of the support member 30 in the direction of the hinge shaft 15 (left-right direction) to the thickness of one compression spring. Furthermore, since the biasing forces of the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 are applied to the same part (approximately the central part) of the hinge shaft 15, the support member 30 will not twist and rotate relative to the hinge shaft 15 even if the elastic forces of the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53 are different.

[0052] In the hinge 100 according to this embodiment, the cam surface 43 that contacts the cam portion 36 as described above is located above the front second compression spring 52 and the third compression spring 53. When the slide member 40 moves up and down, the load generated by the tilting of the slide member 40 forward can be distributed to the front second compression spring 52 and the third compression spring 53.

[0053] The present invention can also be applied in the following embodiments.

[0054] Firstly, the compression springs are not limited to three, such as the first compression spring 51, the second compression spring 52, and the third compression spring 53, but may be four or more (N). Therefore, the spring fixing parts of the slide member 40 and the spring fixing parts of the main body 10 may also be N.

[0055] Secondly, the spring fixing portion of the slide member 40 and the spring fixing portion of the main body 10 may be arranged in a straight line, or multiple rows of spring fixing portions arranged in the front-to-back direction may be arranged in the left-to-right direction.

[0056] In the first and second embodiments described above, a plurality of compression springs, more specifically, two or more and N-1 or fewer, are arranged on the lower side of the cam surface 43 that contacts the cam portion 36. Specifically, for example, if the compression springs are first to fourth compression springs arranged from the side closest to the hinge shaft, the following arrangements may be made below the cam surface 43 that contacts the cam portion 36: firstly, the second and third compression springs; secondly, the second to fourth compression springs; and thirdly, the third and fourth compression springs. Also, if the compression springs are first to fifth compression springs arranged from the side closest to the hinge shaft, the following arrangements may be made below the cam surface 43 that contacts the cam portion 36: firstly, the second and third compression springs; secondly, the third and fourth compression springs; thirdly, the fourth and fifth compression springs; fourthly, the second to fourth compression springs; fifthly, the third to fifth compression springs; and sixthly, the second to fifth compression springs. [Industrial applicability]

[0057] As described above, the present invention provides a hinge for office equipment in which the load on the sliding member pressed by multiple compression springs is not biased in the front-to-back direction, or in addition to that, not biased in the left-to-right direction. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 1. Photocopier 2. Main unit of the device 3. Document pressure plate 10 Main body 15 Hinge shaft 30 Support member 36 Cam section 40 Sliding member 42 Stain-resistant version 43 Cam surface 51 First Compression Spring 52 Second compression spring 53 Third compression spring 100 hinge

Claims

1. a hollow body portion fixed to the device body and having a bottom; a support member fixed to the original cover and rotatably connected to the main body via a hinge shaft, the support member having a cam portion formed on the main body side; a slide member accommodated in the main body portion so as to be movable in a direction toward and away from the cam portion of the support member, the slide member having a cam surface formed on the cam portion side; at least three compression springs interposed between the slide member and the bottom of the main body and biasing the slide member in a direction approaching the cam portion, thereby bringing the slide member into contact with the cam portion; A hinge comprising: the three compression springs are a first compression spring, a second compression spring, and a third compression spring arranged from the side closest to the hinge shaft, The cam surface is located above the second compression spring and the third compression spring. Hinge.

2. The hinge according to claim 1 , wherein the second compression spring is offset to either the left or right side from a line connecting the first compression spring and the third compression spring when viewed from the front or rear side.

3. 2. The hinge according to claim 1, wherein the slide member is provided with a dirt prevention plate extending upward from the front upper side of the slide member.

4. The hinge according to claim 1 , wherein the cam surface is a part of a surface of the slide member on the side of the cam portion and is a surface that is convex toward the cam portion.

5. 3. The hinge according to claim 1, wherein when the support member closes the main body, the position where the cam portion and the cam surface come into contact is located above the second compression spring.

6. An office machine using the above hinge between the main body of the machine and an original cover that opens and closes.

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