Medium feeding device and image reading device

Abstract

To maintain a designed posture required for a medium 3 fed in a feed direction F and to suppress disturbance of the posture, such as skew or floating of the medium.SOLUTION: A medium feeding device 2 includes a placement part 6 having a placement surface 5 on which the medium 3 can be placed, and a housing 7 to which the placement part is attached, and includes edge guides 9 and 10 arranged on the placement part and guiding both sides 8 and 8 of the medium 3, a feed roller 11 disposed in the housing and feeding the medium 3 in a feed direction F, a separation roller 12 that nips the medium between the separation roller and the feed roller and separates the medium, and a regulation member 13 that is disposed between the edge guides and the feed roller, where the regulation member 13 regulates a posture of the medium 3 being fed in the feed direction F between the edge guides 9 and 10 and the feed roller 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medium feeding device and an image reading device. [Background technology]

[0002] One example of this type of device is described in Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 discloses a document transport device capable of setting a large volume of documents. This document transport device includes a document tray on which documents can be set in a stacked manner, a separation section capable of separating the documents one by one, and a lifting device that lifts the document tray. Side guides that guide the documents are arranged on the document tray. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2008-169027 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the device of Patent Document 1, there is nothing to guide the document edge between the side guide and the separation section, so there is a concern that the document may become skewed. If the side guide is extended to the separation section, the document tray may collide with the housing part above the document tray when it is raised. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above problems, the media feeding device of the present invention comprises a mounting section having a mounting surface on which a medium can be placed, and a housing to which the mounting section is attached, and further comprises an edge guide arranged on the mounting section and guiding both sides of the placed medium, a feed roller arranged within the housing and feeding the medium in a feed direction, a separation roller arranged within the housing and nipping the medium between the feed roller to separate the medium, and a regulating member arranged between the edge guide and the feed roller, wherein the regulating member regulates the posture of the medium as it is fed in the feed direction between the edge guide and the feed roller.

[0006] An image reading device according to the present invention includes a medium feeding device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects described below, and a reading section that reads an image on the medium. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an image reading apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a cross section of a part of a main part of the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a part of a cross section of a main part of a medium feeding device according to a second embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is an external perspective view of an image reading device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 6A] FIG. 11 is a schematic front view of the image reading device according to the second and third embodiments. [Figure 6B] FIG. 11 is a schematic front view of the image reading device according to the second and third embodiments. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a main part of a second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view of a main part of a second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view of a main part of a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] The present invention will first be briefly described below. A first aspect of a media feeding device according to the present invention comprises a mounting section having a mounting surface on which a medium can be placed, and a housing to which the mounting section is attached, and further comprises: an edge guide arranged on the mounting section and guiding both sides of the placed medium; a feed roller arranged within the housing and feeding the medium in a feed direction; a separation roller arranged within the housing and nipping the medium between the feed roller to separate the medium; and a regulating member arranged between the edge guide and the feed roller, wherein the regulating member regulates the posture of the medium as it is fed in the feed direction between the edge guide and the feed roller. Here, "regulating the attitude of the medium" in this specification means a configuration that maintains the attitude of the medium fed in the feed direction according to the design specifications, such as a configuration that suppresses the medium from skewing in the feed direction, or a configuration that suppresses the medium from being displaced in a floating direction.

[0009] According to this aspect, a regulating member is provided between the edge guide and the feed roller. Furthermore, the regulating member is configured to regulate the attitude of the medium when it is fed in the feed direction between the edge guide and the feed roller. As a result, the medium placed on the placement section is fed to the position of the feed roller with the attitude regulated by the edge guide and the regulating member, so that the designed attitude required for the medium fed in the feed direction is maintained and disturbance of the attitude can be suppressed.

[0010] A second aspect of the media feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the first aspect, and is characterized in that it comprises a pick roller arranged between the edge guide and the feed roller for feeding the medium placed on the placement section in the feed direction, and a lifting mechanism for lifting the placement section to a position where the medium can be fed in the feed direction by the pick roller.

[0011] According to this aspect, in a structure in which the medium feeding device includes the pick roller and the lifting mechanism, the effect of the first aspect can be obtained. Specifically, in a structure including the lifting mechanism for lifting the placement section, in order to ensure the required lifting range, there are cases where the required length cannot be ensured in the design of the length of the edge guide in the feed direction due to structural constraints imposed by surrounding components. In such cases, the posture of the medium fed from the placement section is easily displaced. However, according to this aspect, the regulating member can suppress the displacement of the posture of the medium and feed it in the feed direction.

[0012] A third aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the first aspect, and is characterized in that the regulating member has side edge guide surfaces that face and guide each of both side edges of the medium, and the spacing between the side edge guide surfaces in a width direction intersecting the feeding direction is the same as the spacing between the edge guides in the width direction. This aspect can also be subordinate to the second aspect.

[0013] According to this aspect, the spacing between the side guide surfaces of the regulating member in the width direction intersecting the feed direction is the same as the spacing between the edge guides in the width direction, whereby both side edges of the medium are fed with their posture regulated by the edge guides and the regulating member, thereby reducing skew of the medium.

[0014] A fourth aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the first aspect, and is characterized in that the regulating member is arranged in an area corresponding to the space between each of the edge guides in a width direction intersecting the feeding direction, and has an upper surface contact portion positioned opposite the upper surface of the medium and capable of contacting the upper surface. This aspect can also be subordinate to the second aspect.

[0015] According to this aspect, the regulating member is disposed in an area corresponding to the gap between each of the edge guides in the width direction, and further has an upper surface contact portion located opposite to the upper surface of the medium and in contact with the upper surface, whereby the regulating member comes into contact with the upper surface of the medium, thereby preventing the medium from floating.

[0016] A fifth aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the first aspect, and is characterized in that the regulating member is displaceable between a first position in which it protrudes from a part of the housing toward the placement surface, and a second position in which it retracts in a direction opposite to the direction of the protrusion. This aspect can also be subordinate to the second aspect.

[0017] According to this aspect, the regulating member is displaceable between a first position where it protrudes from the placement surface and a second position where it retracts in the opposite direction to the protruding direction. As a result, the regulating member that takes the first position can exert a function of reducing skew of the medium, and the regulating member that takes the second position can exert a function of suppressing floating of the medium. In other words, the regulating member can reduce skew of the medium and suppress floating of the medium.

[0018] A sixth aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the fifth aspect, and is characterized in that when the regulating member does not contact the top surface of the placed medium, the regulating member is in the first position, and when the regulating member contacts the top surface of the placed medium, the regulating member is in the second position.

[0019] According to this aspect, the regulating member is in the first position or the second position depending on whether or not it is in contact with the top surface of the medium, whereby the regulating member exerts a function of reducing skew of the medium in the first position and exerts a function of suppressing floating of the medium in the second position.

[0020] A seventh aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the sixth aspect, and is characterized in that the regulating member comprises an axis and a rotating member rotatable around the axis, and when the regulating member does not contact the top surface of the placed medium, the rotating member rotates downward around the axis to reach the first position, and when the regulating member contacts the top surface of the placed medium, the rotating member rotates upward around the axis to reach the second position.

[0021] According to this aspect, when the regulating member is not in contact with the top surface of the medium, the rotating member rotates downward about the shaft to reach the first position, and when the regulating member is in contact with the top surface of the medium, the rotating member rotates upward about the shaft to reach the second position. This makes it possible to realize the displacement of the regulating member between the first position and the second position with a simple structure.

[0022] An eighth aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the sixth or seventh aspect, characterized in that the loading section is capable of loading multiple types of media of different sizes, and the regulating members are arranged to correspond to each of the sizes of the multiple types of media in a width direction intersecting the feeding direction of the media.

[0023] According to this aspect, the regulating members are arranged to correspond to the respective sizes of the plurality of types of media in a width direction intersecting the feeding direction of the media. As a result, even if the medium feeding device has a structure in which the placement section is capable of placing a plurality of types of media of different sizes, the regulating members arranged to correspond to the sizes of the media in the width direction among the media will exhibit a function of suppressing the skew, and the regulating members in contact with the upper surface of the media will exhibit a function of suppressing the floating. For example, when the regulating members are arranged to match the width direction of A3 and A4 size media, the following occurs when an A3 size medium is fed: The regulating members arranged to match the A3 size are in the first state and guide both sides of the medium to suppress the skew, and the regulating members arranged to match the A4 size are in the second state and can suppress the medium from floating.

[0024] A ninth aspect of the medium feeding device according to the present invention is an aspect dependent on the seventh aspect, and is characterized in that the rotating member has a driven roller at a portion that comes into contact with the upper surface of the medium.

[0025] According to this aspect, the rotating member has a driven roller at a portion that comes into contact with the top surface of the medium, whereby the driven roller rotates when it comes into contact with the medium being fed in the feed direction, thereby reducing the risk of damaging the medium.

[0026] A tenth aspect of the medium feeding device of the present invention is an aspect dependent on the seventh aspect and is characterized in that it comprises a sensor, which senses the rotating member when the rotating member is displaced upward from the second position and does not sense the rotating member when the rotating member is in the second position.

[0027] If the medium has a strong crease or the like that causes a portion of the medium to rise upward, the regulating member may not be able to reduce the amount of the medium even when it comes into contact with the upper surface of the medium. In this case, if the medium continues to be fed as is, there is a risk of the medium becoming jammed. According to this aspect, the sensor senses the rotating member when the rotating member is displaced above the second position, and does not sense the rotating member when the rotating member is in the second position. As a result, when the sensor senses, control is performed to stop the feeding, thereby making it possible to prevent the occurrence of the medium jamming.

[0028] An eleventh aspect of the image reading device of the present invention comprises a medium feeding device described in any one of the first to tenth aspects, and a reading unit that reads an image on the medium.

[0029] According to this aspect, it is possible to obtain the same effect as any one of the first to tenth aspects as an image reading device.

[0030] [Embodiment] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a medium feeding device according to the present invention and an image reading device including the medium feeding device will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following explanation, the three mutually orthogonal axes are referred to as the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis, as shown in each figure. The directions indicated by the arrows on the three axes (X, Y, Z) are the + directions of each direction, and the opposite directions are the - directions. The Z-axis direction corresponds to the vertical direction, i.e., the direction in which gravity acts, the +Z direction indicates a vertical upward direction, and the -Z direction indicates a vertical downward direction. The X-axis and Y-axis directions correspond to the horizontal direction. The +Y direction indicates the front direction of the device, and the -Y direction indicates the rear direction of the device. The +X direction indicates the right direction of the device, and the -X direction indicates the left direction of the device.

[0031] <Overall Schematic Structure of Image Reading Device> The image reading device of this embodiment is a scanner capable of reading an image on a medium that is an original. Here, the image means something that is visually recorded on the medium, such as characters, figures, tables, pictures, photographs, etc. The medium is not limited to sheets, but also includes cards, booklets, etc. The image reading device 1 is not limited to a scanner, but may be a copy machine, a facsimile machine, etc.

[0032] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the image reading device 1 of this embodiment includes a medium feeding device 2 and a reading unit 4. The medium feeding device 2 includes a placement section 6 having a placement surface 5 on which the medium 3 can be placed, and a housing 7 to which the placement section 6 is attached. The medium feeding device 2 includes a transport path (not shown) inside the housing 7 for transporting the medium 3 in a transport direction F. A plurality of feed rollers 11 (FIG. 2) are arranged along the transport direction F on the transport path. The feed roller 11 applies a feed force in the transport direction F to the medium 3 by rotating around an axis 111. Here, one feed roller 11 that is located closest to the placement section 6 among the plurality of feed rollers 11 is illustrated, and the other feed rollers 11 are not illustrated. The other feed rollers 11 are configured to apply a feed force to the medium 3 in pairs with a driven roller.

[0033] The reading unit 4 is disposed within the housing 7 along the transport path. The reading unit 4 optically reads an image of the medium 3 transported along the transport path and acquires image information. In this embodiment, the medium 3 that has passed through the reading unit 4 is sent through an inversion unit (not shown) and discharged to the medium receiving unit 30. In this embodiment, a mounting section 6 on which a medium 3 is placed is disposed on the front side of the image reading device 1. The mounting section 6 rotates around its lower end as a pivot point and its upper end opens forward (in the +Y direction) to a substantially horizontal position, thereby entering an open state in which a medium 3 can be placed thereon. Both Figs. 1 and 2 show the mounting section 6 in an open state. The medium 3 placed on the loading section 6 in the open state is picked up by a pick roller 14 described later, sent along the transport path in the feed direction F by a feed roller 11, read by the reading section 4, and then sent through an inversion section (not shown) and discharged to the medium receiving section 30 located at the top of the entire device.

[0034] [Embodiment 1] The medium feeding device 2 of the first embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, 6A, and 6B. The medium feeding device 2 of the first embodiment includes a mounting section 6, a housing 7, edge guides 9, 10 arranged on the mounting section 6 and guiding both sides 8, 8 of the medium 3 placed thereon, a feed roller 11 arranged within the housing 7 and feeding the medium 3 in a feed direction F, and a separation roller 12 arranged within the housing 7 and nipping the medium 3 between the feed roller 11 and the medium 3 to separate the medium 3. The edge guides 9, 10 have extensions 91, 101 that can be pulled out in the feed direction F. The separation roller 12 rotates around an axis 121. The separation roller 12 is also called a retard roller, and when the media are in a double-feed state, it applies a feeding force in the opposite direction to the feeding direction F to separate the media. After separation, the double-feed state is no longer in place, and the separation roller 12 rotates in a driven manner as if being dragged by the sheet of media 3 being fed by the feeding force of the feed roller 11.

[0035] Furthermore, the medium feeding device 2 includes a regulating member 13 disposed between the edge guides 9, 10 and the feed roller 11. The regulating member 13 is configured to regulate the attitude of the medium 3 being fed in the feed direction F between the edge guides 9, 10 and the feed roller 11. The regulating member 13 is fixed to the housing 7. Note that the regulating member 13 may have a structure including a shaft 18 and a rotating member 19 as in other embodiments described later. Here, "regulating the posture of medium 3" can mean either suppressing skew in the feed direction F or suppressing displacement of medium 3 in a floating direction, but in embodiment 1, as described below, it is configured to suppress skew in the feed direction F.

[0036] 2, in this embodiment, the medium feeding device 2 has a pick roller 14 disposed between the edge guides 9, 10 and the feed roller in the feed direction F. The pick roller 14 picks up the medium 3 placed on the placement unit 6, sends it out in the feed direction F, and carries it to the feed roller 11. In the area where the pick roller 14 is disposed, the regulating member 13 is provided as described above. Furthermore, the medium feeding device 2 is equipped with a lifting mechanism 15. The lifting mechanism 15 lifts the mounting unit 6, i.e., lifts the medium 3 to a position where it can be fed in the feeding direction F by the pick roller 14. The lifting mechanism 15 is specifically configured using a rack and pinion mechanism. Incidentally, a structure without the lifting mechanism 15 may be used. In this case, a portion of the media placed on the placement unit 6 is lifted by a known hopper (not shown) and brought into contact with the pick roller 14 .

[0037] 3, 6A, and 6B, the regulating member 13 has side guide surfaces 16, 16 that face and guide both side edges 8, 8 of the medium 3. A distance L1 (FIG. 6A) between the side guide surfaces 16, 16 in a width direction W that intersects with the feed direction F is configured to be the same as a distance L2 (FIG. 6A) between the edge guides 9, 10 in the width direction W. Each state in FIGS. 6A and 6B will be described later. The regulating member 13 of this embodiment is configured so that the side guide surfaces 16, 16 contact and guide both side edges 8, 8 of the medium 3, suppressing skew of the medium 3 sent out from the loading section 6 in the feed direction F. In other words, the regulating member 13 of this embodiment regulates the attitude of the medium 3 so as to suppress skew of the medium 3.

[0038] The entire operation of the image reading device 1, including the feeding operation by the medium feeding device 2, is performed by a control unit (not shown). The control unit includes a CPU, a flash ROM, and a RAM. The CPU performs various arithmetic processing according to programs stored in the flash ROM and controls the operation of the entire image reading device 1. The flash ROM, which is an example of a storage means, is a non-volatile memory that can be read and written. Various information is temporarily stored in the RAM, which is an example of a storage means.

[0039] <Explanation of Effects of First Embodiment> (1) In the medium feeding device 2 of this embodiment, a regulating member 13 is disposed between the edge guides 9, 10 and the feed roller 11. Furthermore, the regulating member 13 is configured to regulate the posture of the medium 3 being fed in the feed direction F between the edge guides 9, 10 and the feed roller 11. As a result, the medium 3 placed on the loading section 6 is fed to the position of the feed roller 11 with the posture regulated by the edge guides 9, 10 and the regulating member 13, so that the designed posture required for the medium 3 being fed in the feed direction F is maintained and disturbance of the posture can be suppressed.

[0040] (2) In addition, in this embodiment, in the structure in which the medium feeding device 2 includes the pick roller 14 and the lifting mechanism 15, the effect of the first aspect can be obtained. Specifically, in a structure including a lifting mechanism 15 that lifts the mounting unit 6, in order to ensure the required lift range, there are cases where the required length cannot be ensured in the design of the length of the edge guides 9, 10 in the feed direction F due to structural constraints imposed by surrounding components. In such cases, the position of the medium 3 fed from the mounting unit 6 becomes easily disturbed. However, in this embodiment, the regulating member 13 can feed the medium 3 in the feed direction F while preventing the medium 3 from being disturbed in its position.

[0041] (3) In this embodiment, the distance L1 in the width direction W intersecting the feed direction F of the side guide surfaces 16 of the regulating member 13 is the same as the distance L2 in the width direction W of the edge guides 9, 10. As a result, the side edges 8, 8 of the medium 3 are fed with their posture regulated by the edge guides 9, 10 and the regulating member 13, thereby reducing skew of the medium 3.

[0042] [Embodiment 2] Next, a medium feeding device 2 according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 4 to 9. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and the description of the configurations and corresponding effects will be omitted. In the medium feeding device 2 according to the second embodiment, whereas in the first embodiment, two regulating members 13 are provided at positions contacting both sides 8, 8 of the medium 3, two or more regulating members 13 are provided as shown in Figures 5 to 7. Here, as shown in Figures 6A and 6B, a total of six regulating members 13 are provided. In this embodiment, the regulating member 13 is configured to be displaceable. Specifically, the regulating member 13 is configured to be displaceable so as to be able to take a first position P1 (FIGS. 4, 5, and 6A) where the regulating member 13 protrudes from a part of the housing 7 toward the placement surface 5, and a second position P2 (FIG. 6B) where the regulating member 13 retreats in the direction opposite to the protruding direction (+Z direction).

[0043] In this embodiment, the regulating member 13 is configured to take a first position P1 or a second position P2 depending on whether or not the regulating member 13 is in contact with the medium 3 placed on the placement unit 6. Specifically, as shown in Figures 5 and 6A, the regulating member 13 takes a first position P1 when it is not in contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 placed on the placement unit 6. Figure 5 shows a state in which the placement unit 6 is in a raised position, but no medium 3 is placed on the placement surface 5. Also, as shown in Figure 6B, the regulating member 13 takes a second position P2 when it is in contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 placed on the placement unit 6.

[0044] Next, an example of a structure in which the regulating member 13 can take the first position and the second position will be described. As shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 7, the regulating member 13 includes a shaft 18 (Fig. 4) and a plate-shaped rotating member 19 that is rotatable around the shaft 18. The shaft 18 is attached to the housing 7. Fig. 4 shows only one regulating member 13. Also, Fig. 7 does not show the shaft 18. 6A, when the regulating member 13 is not in contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 placed on the placement unit 6, the rotating member 19 rotates downward around the shaft 18 under its own weight, thereby assuming a first position P1. When the placement unit 6 is raised by the lifting mechanism 15 as indicated by the arrow, the regulating member 13 comes into contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 placed on the placement unit 6, thereby making it possible for the medium 3 to be fed out by the pick roller 14. In this state, the regulating member 13 is lifted by the top surface 17 of the medium 3 with which it is in contact, and the rotating member 19 rotates upward around the shaft 18, thereby assuming a second position P2. 6B and 7, reference numeral 22 indicates a portion where the rotating member 19 comes into contact with the upper surface 17 of the medium 3. In FIG.

[0045] 8, in this embodiment, the rotating member 19 may have a driven roller 20 at a portion 22 that contacts the top surface 17 of the medium 3. The driven roller 20 is rotated by contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 being fed in the feed direction F. The driven roller 20 prevents damage caused by the rotating member 19 coming into contact with the medium 3 due to the driven rotation. As shown in Fig. 9, this embodiment also includes a sensor 21. The sensor 21 is an optical sensor that emits light from a light-emitting section (not shown) toward a light-receiving section and senses when a sensing object enters the emission area and blocks the light. The sensor 21 senses the rotating member 19 when the rotating member 19 is displaced above the second position P2 (dashed line in Fig. 9). In this case, the aforementioned control section is configured to stop feeding of the medium 3. Moreover, the sensor 21 does not sense the rotating member 19 when the rotating member 19 is in the second position (solid line in FIG. 9), which corresponds to a normal feed state.

[0046] <Explanation of Effects of the Second Embodiment> (1) In the medium feeding device 2 of this embodiment, the regulating members 13 are displaceable between a first position P1 protruding relative to the placement surface 5 and a second position P2 retracting in the opposite direction to the protruding direction. As a result, the regulating members 13 that take the first position P1 can exert a function of reducing skew of the medium 3, and the regulating members 13 that take the second position P2 can exert a function of suppressing floating of the medium 3. In other words, the regulating members 13 can reduce skew of the medium 3 and suppress floating of the medium 3.

[0047] (2) In this embodiment, the regulating member 13 is in the first position P1 or in the second position P2 depending on whether or not it is in contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3. As a result, the regulating member 13 exerts a function of reducing skew of the medium 3 when in the first position P1, and exerts a function of suppressing floating of the medium 3 when in the second position P2.

[0048] (3) In this embodiment, the regulating member 13 includes a rotating member 19, and when the regulating member 13 is not in contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3, the rotating member 19 rotates downward about the shaft 18 to reach the first position P1, and when the regulating member 13 is in contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3, the rotating member 19 rotates upward about the shaft 18 to reach the second position P2. This makes it possible to realize the displacement of the regulating member 13 between the first position P1 and the second position P2 with a simple structure.

[0049] (4) In this embodiment, the rotating member 19 has a driven roller 20 at a portion 22 that contacts the upper surface 17 of the medium 3. As a result, the driven roller 20 rotates when it comes into contact with the medium 3 being fed in the feed direction F, thereby reducing the risk of damaging the medium 3.

[0050] (5) Furthermore, if medium 3 has a deep crease or the like that causes a portion of medium 3 to float upward, the floating portion may not be reduced even when regulating member 13 comes into contact with upper surface 17 of medium 3. In this case, if medium 3 continues to be fed as is, there is a risk of medium jamming. However, in this embodiment, a sensor 21 is provided, which senses the rotating member 19 when the rotating member 19 is displaced above the second position P2, and does not sense the rotating member 19 when the rotating member 19 is in the second position P2. As a result, when the sensor 21 senses, control is performed to stop the feeding, thereby making it possible to prevent the occurrence of the medium jamming.

[0051] [Embodiment 3] Next, a medium feeding device 2 according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 6A and 6B. The same parts as those in the first and second embodiments are given the same reference numerals, and the description of the configurations and corresponding effects will be omitted. In the medium feeding device 2 according to the third embodiment, a plurality of different sizes of media 3 can be placed on the mounting section 6. The edge guides 9 and 10 can be moved to positions corresponding to each size of the medium 3. The regulating members 13 are disposed in a width direction W intersecting with the feeding direction F of the medium 3 so as to correspond to each of the sizes of the plurality of types of media 3. In FIG. 6, the positions of the edge guides 9, 10 shown by solid lines are, as an example, the positions when guiding an A3 size medium, and the positions shown by dashed lines are, as an example, the positions when guiding an A4 size medium.

[0052] When an A3 size medium 3 is fed in the feed direction F, as shown in Fig. 6B, the regulating members 13, 13 located on both sides of the six regulating members 13, guide both side edges 8 of the medium 3 to suppress skew. Meanwhile, the other four regulating members 13, 13, 13, 13 come into contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 to suppress floating of the medium 3. When an A4 size medium 3 is fed in the feed direction F, two of the six regulating members 13 located on the inside of both sides guide both side edges 8 of the medium 3 to suppress skew. The other two regulating members 13 come into contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 to suppress floating of the medium 3. The two outermost regulating members 13 are not involved in the posture of the medium 3.

[0053] In this embodiment, the regulating members 13 are arranged to correspond to the respective sizes of the multiple types of media 3 in the width direction W intersecting with the feed direction F of the media 3. As a result, even if the medium feeding device 2 has a structure in which the mounting section 6 is capable of mounting multiple types of media 3 of different sizes, the regulating members 13 arranged to correspond to the sizes of the media 3 in the width direction W exert the function of suppressing the skew, and the members in contact with the top surface 17 of the media 3 exert the function of suppressing the floating.

[0054] Other Embodiments The image reading device 1 and medium feeding device 2 according to the present invention are based on the configuration of the embodiment described above, but it is of course possible to modify or omit some of the configuration without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0055] The regulating member 13 of the first embodiment has been described as having a configuration that guides both side edges 8,8 of the medium 3 to suppress skew of the medium 3. The regulating member 13 of the second embodiment has been described as having a configuration that includes both a member that guides both side edges 8,8 of the medium 3 to suppress skew of the medium 3, and a member that comes into contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3 to suppress floating of the medium 3. Alternatively to these configurations, the regulating member 13 may be arranged in a region corresponding to the gap between the edge guides 9, 10 in the width direction W intersecting with the feed direction F, and may have an upper surface contact portion 22 positioned opposite the upper surface 17 of the medium 3 and capable of contacting the upper surface 17. In other words, a structure without the regulating member 13 that guides both side edges 8, 8 of the medium 3 to suppress skew of the medium 3 may be used. According to this configuration, the restricting member 13 can come into contact with the top surface 17 of the medium 3, and the medium 3 can be prevented from floating. [Explanation of symbols]

[0056] 1: image reading device; 2: medium feeding device; 3: medium; 4: reading unit; 5: placement surface; 6: placement portion, 7: housing, 8: side, 9: side guide, 10: side guide, 11: Feed roller; 12: Separation roller; 13: Regulating member; 14... pick roller, 15... lifting mechanism, 16... side guide surface, 17... upper surface, 18: shaft; 19: rotating member; 20: driven roller; 21: sensor; 22: Portion in contact with the upper surface (upper surface contact portion), 30: medium receiving portion, 91: extension portion, 101...Extension part, 111...Axis, 121...Axis F...Feed direction, L1...Spacing, L2...Spacing, P1...First position, P2...Second position

Claims

1. a placement section having a placement surface on which a medium can be placed; A housing to which the mounting portion is attached, an edge guide disposed on the placement section and configured to guide both side edges of the medium placed on the placement section; a feed roller disposed within the housing and feeding the medium in a feed direction; a separation roller disposed within the housing and nipping the medium between the feed roller and the separation roller to separate the medium; a regulating member disposed between the edge guide and the feed roller, the regulating member regulates a posture of the medium being fed in the feed direction between the edge guide and the feed roller; A medium feeding device comprising:

2. 2. The medium feeding device according to claim 1, a pick roller disposed between the edge guide and the feed roller, the pick roller feeding the medium placed on the placement section in the feed direction; a lifting mechanism that lifts the placement portion to a position where the medium can be fed in the feed direction by the pick roller; A medium feeding device comprising:

3. 2. The medium feeding device according to claim 1, The regulating member is a side guide surface that faces and guides both side edges of the medium; The spacing between the side guide surfaces in a width direction intersecting the feed direction is the same as the spacing between the edge guides in the width direction. A medium feeding device comprising:

4. 2. The medium feeding device according to claim 1, The regulating member is The edge guides are disposed in regions corresponding to the gaps between the edge guides in a width direction intersecting the feed direction, an upper surface contact portion located opposite to an upper surface of the medium and in contact with the upper surface; A medium feeding device comprising:

5. 2. The medium feeding device according to claim 1, the regulating member is displaceable between a first position where the regulating member protrudes from a part of the housing toward the placement surface and a second position where the regulating member retracts in a direction opposite to the protruding direction. A medium feeding device comprising:

6. 6. The medium feeding device according to claim 5, When the regulating member does not contact the top surface of the placed medium, the regulating member is in the first position, When the regulating member comes into contact with the top surface of the placed medium, the regulating member is in the second position. A medium feeding device comprising:

7. 7. The medium feeding device according to claim 6, The regulating member is Axle and a rotating member that is rotatable about the axis, When the regulating member is not in contact with the top surface of the placed medium, the rotating member rotates downward about the axis to reach the first position, When the regulating member comes into contact with the upper surface of the medium placed on the medium, the rotating member rotates upward about the axis to reach the second position. A medium feeding device comprising:

8. The medium feeding device according to claim 6 or 7, the mounting section is capable of mounting a plurality of types of the media having different sizes; the regulating members are arranged corresponding to the sizes of the plurality of types of media in a width direction intersecting the feed direction of the media, A medium feeding device comprising:

9. 8. The medium feeding device according to claim 7, The rotating member has a driven roller at a portion that contacts the upper surface of the medium. A medium feeding device comprising:

10. 8. The medium feeding device according to claim 7, Equipped with sensors, The sensor comprises: detecting the rotating member when the rotating member is displaced upward from the second position; When the rotating member is in the second position, the rotating member is not detected. A medium feeding device comprising:

11. The medium feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 10; A reading unit that reads an image on the medium; An image reading device comprising:

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