Sheet feeding device and image forming device

Abstract

To reduce the size of an expansive sheet tray at the time of packing and to prevent the expansive sheet tray from falling off from a sheet tray.SOLUTION: A sheet feeding device 100 has an expansive sheet tray 1 that includes a sheet tray attachment portion 2 that is detachably attached to a sheet tray 4, and a sheet stacking portion 3 that is rotatably attached to the sheet tray attachment portion 2 and can stack sheets S. When the expansive sheet tray 1 is attached to the sheet tray 4, the sheet stacking portion 3 is switchable between a first position where the sheets S can be stacked and a second position that is closer to a device body part 201A than the first position, and is configured as such that it can rotate from the second position to the first position but cannot rotate from the first position to the second position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a sheet feeding device that feeds sheets and an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile machine that is equipped with the sheet feeding device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, when printing on long sheets of paper approximately 1000 mm long, such as those used in in-store POP displays, a configuration in which an extension sheet tray is attached to a manual feed device attached to a side wall of the image forming apparatus body is known (for example, Patent Document 1). Such an extension sheet tray includes a manual feed attachment section attached to the manual feed device and a sheet stacking section that supports the upstream side of the long sheets in the sheet feeding direction. In addition, the sheet stacking section is generally made of materials such as wire in order to reduce the weight of the extension sheet tray.

[0003] Furthermore, because the extendable sheet tray needs to support long sheets of paper up to about 1000 mm, the sheet stacking section must be sufficiently long. This increases the size of the extendable sheet tray, which poses a problem in that the packaging box used to ship the extendable sheet tray must be large. To address this issue, a known configuration has been proposed in which the sheet stacking section can be folded relative to the manual paper feed attachment section to reduce the overall size of the extendable sheet tray.

[0004] Furthermore, as the size of the extension sheet tray increases, it is necessary for the user to be able to easily remove the extension sheet tray when not in use so as not to obstruct the passage of users passing by the side wall of the device body. A known configuration for easily removing the extension sheet tray includes a spring-loaded protrusion provided on the manual feed attachment section and a hole provided in the manual feeder. When the manual feed attachment section of the extension sheet tray is inserted into the hole in the manual feeder, the protrusion engages with the hole, securing the extension sheet tray to the manual feeder. The extension sheet tray will not be removed from the manual feeder unless a predetermined force is applied. This predetermined force is referred to as the engagement force Fm.

[0005] 3 and 4(a) show the configuration of a conventional sheet feeding device 50. Fig. 4(a) shows a state in which the tip of the wire 56 abuts against the right side surface W of the device body. Arrow A shown in Fig. 4(a) indicates the insertion direction of the extension sheet tray 51 into the manual sheet feeding device 54.

[0006] Conventional sheet feeding device 50 has manual feed attachment section 52, sheet stacking section 53, and manual feed device 54. Manual feed attachment section 52 is attached to manual feed device 54. Sheet stacking section 53 has wire 56 and rotates around shaft section 59 relative to manual feed attachment section 52.

[0007] Sheet stacking section 53 is folded relative to manual paper feed attachment section 52, resulting in the state shown in Fig. 3. At this time, if a user passes by the right side of sheet feeding device 50 in Fig. 3, for example, and extension sheet tray 51 is lifted together with manual paper feed device 54, the tip of wire 56 comes into contact with the right side surface W of the device main body, as shown in Fig. 4(a).

[0008] 4(a) further counterclockwise in FIG. 4(a), a force F and a friction force μF are applied to the tip of the wire 56 from the right side surface W of the device body. Here, μ is the coefficient of friction between the wire 56 and the right side surface W of the device body. Also, θ is the angle between the line connecting the shaft portion 59 and the contact point where the wire 56 abuts on the right side surface W of the device body, and a line perpendicular to the right side surface W. At this time, the sheet stacking section 53 can rotate with respect to the manual paper feed attachment section 52 if formula (1) is satisfied.

[0009] Fsinθ>μFconθ (1)

[0010] On the other hand, if formula (1) is not satisfied, the sheet stacking section 53 cannot rotate relative to the manual paper feed attachment section 52. Therefore, in this case, the extension sheet tray 51 cannot be rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 4(a) from the state shown in FIG. 4(a). However, if the user further lifts the extension sheet tray 51 counterclockwise in FIG. 4(a) from the state shown in FIG. 4(a), the force F that the tip of the wire 56 receives from the right side surface W increases, and the force that tries to remove the extension sheet tray 51 also increases.

[0011] Here, the angle between the line connecting the shaft 59 and the tip of the wire 56 and the insertion direction A is defined as φ. At this time, the extension sheet tray 51 is disengaged from the manual sheet feeder 54 when the force F satisfies the relationship expressed by equation (2).

[0012] F>Fm / (cosθ×cosφ) (2)

[0013] Furthermore, if the user applies further force to the extension sheet tray 51 after it has been removed from the manual sheet feeder 54, the extension sheet tray 51 may fall off the manual sheet feeder 54, causing the extension sheet tray 51 to hit the ground and be damaged. To solve this problem, it is preferable to ensure that formula (1) is always true.

[0014] Here, by transforming equation (1), equation (3) is obtained.

[0015] tanθ>μ (3)

[0016] As a result, by increasing the angle θ, it becomes possible to establish equation (3). Therefore, by increasing the angle θ, the sheet stacking section 53 becomes rotatable even when the wire 56 abuts against the right side surface W of the device body. Furthermore, by increasing the angle θ, the extension sheet tray 51 becomes less likely to fall off. One possible configuration for increasing the angle θ is to provide an angle restriction section that prevents the sheet stacking section 53 from rotating more than a predetermined angle in the direction approaching the right side surface W relative to the manual paper feed attachment section 52 (counterclockwise in FIG. 3). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0017] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-53818 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0018] However, in a configuration in which an angle regulating section is provided in a sheet feeding device, the amount of rotation of the sheet stacking section relative to the manual paper feed attachment section is limited, which poses a problem that the size of the extended sheet tray when packed becomes large.

[0019] An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet feeding device and an image forming apparatus that can reduce the size of an extension sheet tray when packed and can prevent the extension sheet tray from falling off the sheet tray. [Means for solving the problem]

[0020] The sheet feeding device of the present invention is a sheet feeding device that feeds sheets, and has a sheet tray that is provided on a side wall of the device main body and is capable of stacking sheets, and an extension sheet tray that is attached upstream of the sheet tray in the sheet feeding direction and is capable of stacking sheets, wherein the extension sheet tray has a sheet tray mounting portion that is detachably attached to the sheet tray, and a sheet stacking portion that is rotatably attached to the sheet tray mounting portion and is capable of stacking sheets, and the sheet stacking portion is switchable between a first position where sheets can be stacked and a second position that is closer to the device main body than the first position when the extension sheet tray is attached to the sheet tray, and is configured to be able to rotate from the second position to the first position, but not be able to rotate from the first position to the second position. [Effects of the Invention]

[0021] According to the present invention, the size of the extendable sheet tray when packed can be reduced, and the extendable sheet tray can be prevented from falling off the sheet tray. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a front view of a sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a front view of a conventional sheet feeding device. [Figure 4] 1 is a front view illustrating a sheet feeding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in comparison with a conventional sheet feeding apparatus; [Figure 5] 1 is a plan view of a portion of a sheet feeding device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a front view of the sheet feeding device according to the embodiment of the present invention in a position during sheet passing. [Figure 7] 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a sheet feeding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a front view of a part of the sheet feeding device according to the embodiment of the present invention in a packaging position. [Figure 9] 10 is a front view of a part of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, which is in the middle of transitioning from a packaging position to a paper feed position. FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a front view of a part of the sheet feeding device according to the embodiment of the present invention, in which the part is in a transition state from a sheet passing state to a packaging state. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0023] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0024] <Configuration of image forming device> The configuration of an image forming apparatus 201 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

[0025] The image forming apparatus 201 includes a sheet feeding device 100, an apparatus main body 201A, an image forming section 201B, a double-sided reversing section 201D, and an image reading device 202. The image forming apparatus 201 also includes a first discharge roller pair 225a, a second discharge roller pair 225b, a stacking section 223, a feeding section 230, a registration roller 240, and a conveying roller 250. In the image forming apparatus 201, a discharge space V for discharging the sheet S is formed between the image reading device 202 and the apparatus main body 201A.

[0026] The sheet feeding device 100 is provided on a side wall of the apparatus main body 201A, and feeds the sheet S toward the registration rollers 240. The configuration of the sheet feeding device 100 will be described in detail later.

[0027] The apparatus main body 201A is provided below the image reading device 202 and houses the image forming unit 201B and the like.

[0028] Image forming section 201B forms images of four colors, yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K), on sheet S fed by feeding section 230. Specifically, image forming section 201B includes an intermediate transfer unit 201C, a laser scanner 210, a process cartridge 211, a photosensitive drum 212, a charger 213, and a developing device 214. Image forming section 201B also includes a toner cartridge 215, a secondary transfer roller 217, a primary transfer roller 219, and a fixing section 220.

[0029] The intermediate transfer unit 201C is provided above the process cartridge 211. Specifically, the intermediate transfer unit 201C includes an intermediate transfer belt 216, a drive roller 216a, and a tension roller 216b.

[0030] The intermediate transfer belt 216 is wound around a drive roller 216a and a tension roller 216b. The intermediate transfer belt 216 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

[0031] The drive roller 216a, together with a tension roller 216b, stretches the intermediate transfer belt 216. The drive roller 216a is driven by a drive unit (not shown).

[0032] The tension roller 216b stretches the intermediate transfer belt 216 together with the drive roller 216a.

[0033] Based on an electrical signal transmitted from the image reading device 202, the laser scanner 210 irradiates the surface of the photosensitive drum 212, which has been uniformly charged to a predetermined polarity and potential by the charger 213, with laser light, thereby sequentially exposing the surface of the photosensitive drum 212. By sequentially exposing the surface of the photosensitive drum 212, the laser scanner 210 sequentially forms electrostatic latent images of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black on the photosensitive drum 212.

[0034] Four process cartridges 211 are provided corresponding to the four colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K). Each process cartridge 211 forms a toner image of one of the four colors, yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K).

[0035] On the photosensitive drum 212, yellow, magenta, cyan and black electrostatic latent images are formed in sequence.

[0036] The charger 213 uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 212 to a predetermined polarity and potential.

[0037] The developing device 214 develops the electrostatic latent image of each color formed on the photosensitive drum 212 with toner of the corresponding color to make it visible.

[0038] The toner cartridge 215 supplies toner to the developing device 214 .

[0039] The secondary transfer roller 217 is disposed at a position facing the drive roller 216a. When a secondary transfer bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 217, the secondary transfer roller 217 transfers the color toner images transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 216 all at once onto the sheet S fed by the feeding unit 230. The secondary transfer roller 217 transports the sheet S onto which the color toner images have been transferred to the fixing unit 220.

[0040] Primary transfer rollers 219 are provided at positions facing photosensitive drums 212 on the inside of intermediate transfer belt 216. Primary transfer rollers 219 abut against intermediate transfer belt 216. When a primary transfer bias is applied to primary transfer rollers 219, the primary transfer rollers 219 transfer the negative color toner images on each photosensitive drum 212 onto intermediate transfer belt 216 in succession, superimposing the images on top of each other.

[0041] The fixing unit 220 is provided above the secondary transfer roller 217. The fixing unit 220 applies heat and pressure to the sheet S conveyed by the secondary transfer roller 217, thereby melting and mixing the toners of each color of the toner image transferred onto the sheet S and fixing the toner image transferred onto the sheet S as a color image onto the sheet S. The fixing unit 220 conveys the sheet S on which the color image has been fixed to the first discharge roller pair 225a or the second discharge roller pair 225b.

[0042] The double-sided reversing unit 201D is provided above the fixing unit 220. The double-sided reversing unit 201D includes a pair of reversing rollers 222.

[0043] The image reading device 202 reads image information from the document, performs image processing on the read image information, converts the image-processed image information into an electrical signal, and transmits it to the laser scanner 210 of the image forming unit 201B.

[0044] The first discharge roller pair 225a is provided above the fixing unit 220 and downstream in the conveying direction of the sheet S. The first discharge roller pair 225a discharges the sheet S conveyed by the fixing unit 220 into the discharge space V.

[0045] The second discharge roller pair 225b is provided above the fixing unit 220 and downstream in the conveying direction of the sheet S. The second discharge roller pair 225b discharges the sheet S conveyed by the fixing unit 220 into the discharge space V.

[0046] The stacking portion 223 is provided so as to protrude into the discharge space V. The stacking portion 223 is configured to stack sheets S discharged by the first discharge roller pair 225a or the second discharge roller pair 225b.

[0047] The pair of reversing rollers 222 is rotatable forward and reverse, and transports the sheet S, which has an image formed on its surface and is transported from the fixing unit 220, to a re-transport path R so that the sheet S can be transported again to the image forming unit 201B.

[0048] The feeding section 230 is provided below the apparatus main body 201A. The feeding section 230 stores sheets S and feeds the stored sheets S to the image forming section 201B.

[0049] The registration roller 240 corrects skew of the sheet S fed from the feeding section 230 or the manual feeding device 19 , and conveys the sheet S after the skew has been corrected to the secondary transfer roller 217 .

[0050] The conveying rollers 250 convey the sheet S fed from the manual feeding device 19 to the registration rollers 240 .

[0051] In the image forming apparatus 201 having the above configuration, the sheet feeding device 100 is provided with a pair of downstream side regulating plates (not shown) that regulate both ends of the sheet S in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the sheet S. A rack (not shown) is formed below the pair of downstream side regulating plates. By operating one of the pair of downstream side regulating plates, the other can be moved via a pinion (not shown) that meshes with the rack.

[0052] In addition, the sheets S loaded on the sheet feeding device 100 are fed by a roller (not shown) that is in contact with the upper surface of the sheets S, and are separated one by one at a nip formed by a feed roller and a retard roller (not shown) and fed to the conveying roller 250.

[0053] <Configuration of Sheet Feeding Device> The configuration of the sheet feeding apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 5 to 7. FIG.

[0054] 6A is a front view of the entire sheet feeding apparatus 100 in a position during paper passage, and FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view of the sheet feeding apparatus 100 in a position during paper passage taken along the line AA in FIG.

[0055] 7, FIG. 7(a) is a perspective view of the sheet tray attachment portion 2, and FIG. 7(b) is a perspective view of the sheet stacking portion 3. As shown in FIG.

[0056] The sheet feeding device 100 includes an extension sheet tray 1 and a sheet tray 4.

[0057] The extension sheet tray 1 is attached to the upstream side of the sheet tray 4 in the feeding direction of the sheets S, and includes a sheet tray attachment portion 2 and a sheet stacking portion 3.

[0058] The sheet tray attachment portion 2 is made of resin, is detachably attached to the sheet tray 4, and includes a rotation center portion 7, a claw portion 8, and a holding portion 13.

[0059] A shaft portion 9 of the sheet stacking portion 3, which will be described later, is rotatably engaged with the rotation center portion 7.

[0060] The claw portion 8 serving as an elastic portion has a cantilever shape and includes a base portion 8a and a tip portion 8b.

[0061] The base portion 8a is attached to the sheet tray attachment portion 2.

[0062] The tip portion 8b is elastically deformable and, when the guide portion 5 rotates, abuts in a slidable manner against the inclined portion 11 of the guide portion 5 described below, and also abuts against the regulating portion 12, thereby regulating the rotation of the sheet stacking portion 3.

[0063] The holding portion 13 holds the sheet stacking portion 3 in a position for paper feeding by contacting the wire portion 6 of the sheet stacking portion 3. Here, "paper feeding" refers to when the sheet S is fed by the sheet feeding device 100.

[0064] The sheet stacking section 3 is capable of stacking sheets S, which are long sheets of paper, and is switchable between a first position where sheets S can be stacked and a second position that is closer to the device main body 201A than the first position when the extension sheet tray 1 is attached to the sheet tray 4. The sheet stacking section 3 is configured to be able to rotate from the second position to the first position, but is unable to rotate from the first position to the second position. Specifically, the sheet stacking section 3 includes a guide section 5 and a wire section 6.

[0065] The guide portion 5 is made of resin and guides the feeding of the sheet S. The guide portion 5 includes a shaft portion 9, an engagement portion 10, an inclined surface portion 11, and a regulating portion 12.

[0066] The shaft portion 9 is a rotation center when the sheet stacking portion 3 rotates relative to the sheet tray attachment portion 2, and is rotatably engaged with the rotation center portion 7.

[0067] The engaging portion 10 is capable of coming into contact with the tip portion 8 b of the claw portion 8 .

[0068] The inclined surface 11 is provided near the engaging portion 10. The inclined surface 11 is curved along the rotation direction of the sheet stacking portion 3, and is curved so that the distance from the shaft portion 9 gradually increases toward the engaging portion 10.

[0069] The restricting portion 12 is provided adjacent to the engaging portion 10 and is capable of coming into contact with the tip portion 8b of the claw portion 8.

[0070] The wire portion 6 is made of metal and is attached to the guide portion 5. The wire portion 6 abuts against the holding portion 13, thereby holding the sheet stacking portion 3 at a first position where the sheets S can be stacked.

[0071] The sheet tray 4 is provided on a side wall of the apparatus main body 201A and is capable of stacking sheets S. The sheet tray 4 feeds the stacked sheets S to the image forming unit 201B via a conveying roller 250 and a registration roller 240.

[0072] <Operation of the sheet feeding device> The operation of the sheet feeding apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 4(b) to 10. FIG.

[0073] FIG. 4(b) shows a state in which the sheet stacking portion 3 cannot rotate relative to the sheet tray attachment portion 2 beyond a predetermined angle.

[0074] 8, FIG. 8(a) is a front view of the entire extendable sheet tray 1 in the packaged position, and FIG. 8(b) is a cross-sectional view of the extendable sheet tray 1 in the packaged position taken along the line AA in FIG.

[0075] In Figure 9, Figure 9(a) is a front view of the entire extension sheet tray 1 while it is rotating from the packaging position to the paper passing position, and Figure 9(b) is a cross-sectional view of the extension sheet tray 1 along AA in Figure 5 while it is rotating from the packaging position to the paper passing position.

[0076] 10A is a front view of the entire extendable sheet tray 1 during rotation from the paper feed position to the packaging position, and FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view of the extendable sheet tray 1 taken along line AA in FIG. 5 during rotation from the paper feed position to the packaging position.

[0077] First, we will explain in detail the operation of the sheet feeding device 100 when changing the extended sheet tray 1 from the packaging position in which the sheet stacking section 3 is located at the second position to the paper passing position in which the sheet stacking section 3 is located at the first position.

[0078] The extendable sheet tray 1 is in the state shown in Fig. 8(a) when packed with the sheet stacking section 3 in the second position. At this time, the guide section 5 and the claw section 8 are spaced apart as shown in Fig. 8(b).

[0079] In order to unpack the extended sheet tray 1, which is in the packaged position shown in Figures 8(a) and 8(b), and place the extended sheet tray 1 in the position required for paper passage, the sheet stacking section 3 is rotated clockwise in Figure 8(a).

[0080] As the sheet stacking section 3 starts to rotate clockwise in FIG. 8(a), the inclined surface 11 of the guide section 5 comes into contact with the tip 8b of the claw section 8 and rides up onto the tip 8b, as shown in FIG. 9(b).

[0081] When the sheet stacking section 3 is further rotated clockwise in Figure 9(a) with the inclined portion 11 resting on the tip portion 8b, the inclined portion 11 presses the tip portion 8b in the direction of arrow B in Figure 9(b), and the tip portion 8b elastically deforms in the direction of arrow B around the base portion 8a.

[0082] 9 with the inclined surface 11 pressing the tip end 8b in the direction of arrow B, the sheet stacking unit 3 is further rotated clockwise in Fig. 9, so that the inclined surface 11 passes the tip end 8b and releases the pressure on the tip end 8b in the direction of arrow B, as shown in Fig. 6(b). As a result, the claw 8 returns to its original state by its own elastic restoring force.

[0083] 9 after the inclined surface 11 has passed the leading edge 8b, the sheet stacking unit 3 is further rotated clockwise in FIG. 9, whereby the wire portion 6 abuts against the holding portion 13, and the sheet feeding device 100 assumes a posture for paper feeding. As a result, the sheet stacking unit 3 rotates from the second position to the first position.

[0084] Next, we will explain in detail the operation of the sheet feeding device 100 when changing the extended sheet tray 1 from the paper passing position in which the sheet stacking section 3 is located at the first position to the packaging position in which the sheet stacking section 3 is located at the second position.

[0085] By rotating the sheet stacking section 3 in the paper passing position shown in Figure 6(a) counterclockwise in Figure 6(a), the engagement section 10 engages with the tip 8b of the claw section 8 as shown in Figure 10(b).

[0086] When the engagement portion 10 is engaged with the tip portion 8b, by further rotating the sheet stacking portion 3 counterclockwise in Figure 10(a), the tip portion 8b elastically deforms in the direction C in Figure 10(b) around the base portion 8a and abuts against the regulating portion 12.

[0087] 10(b) in a state where the leading end 8b of the sheet stacking section 3 is in contact with the restricting section 12, the sheet stacking section 3 cannot be rotated further in the counterclockwise direction. As a result, the sheet stacking section 3 cannot be rotated from the first position to the second position.

[0088] As described above, the sheet stacking section 3 can be rotated from the second position to the first position, but cannot be rotated from the first position to the second position. As a result, as shown in Fig. 4(b), the angle θ formed by the line connecting the shaft portion 9 and the contact point where the wire portion 6 is in contact with the right side surface W, which is a side wall portion of the device main body 201A, and the line perpendicular to the right side surface W can be made larger than in the conventional case.

[0089] In this embodiment, the extended sheet tray 1 includes a sheet tray attachment portion 2 that is detachably attached to the sheet tray 4, and a sheet stacking portion 3 that is rotatably attached to the sheet tray attachment portion 2 and is capable of stacking sheets S. In this embodiment, when the extended sheet tray 1 is attached to the sheet tray 4, the sheet stacking portion 3 is switchable between a first position where sheets S can be stacked, and a second position that is closer to the device main body 201A than the first position. The sheet stacking portion 3 is configured to be rotatable from the second position to the first position, but not rotatable from the first position to the second position.

[0090] This allows the size of the expansion sheet tray 1 to be reduced when packed, and also prevents the expansion sheet tray 1 from falling off the sheet tray 4.

[0091] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0092] Specifically, in the above embodiment, the angle θ when the wire part 6 abuts against the right side surface W of the device main body 201A is increased, but this is not limiting, and the angle θ when the wire part 6 enters a step or the like in the exterior cover of the device main body 201A may also be increased. In this case, it is possible to suppress force acting in a direction that causes the extension sheet tray 1 to fall when the wire part 6 enters a step or the like in the exterior cover of the device main body 201A.

[0093] In the above embodiment, the wire portion 6 comes into contact with the device main body 201A to restrict the rotation of the sheet stacking portion 3 to the second position. However, this is not limiting, and the wire portion 6 may come into contact with the device main body of the sheet feeding device 100 to restrict the rotation of the sheet stacking portion 3 to the second position. [Explanation of symbols]

[0094] 1 Expandable Sheet Tray 2 Sheet tray mounting area 3 Sheet stacking area 4 sheet trays 5 Guide section 6 Wire section 7 Rotation center 8 Claw 8a Base 8b Tip 9 Shaft 10 Engagement portion 11 Slope 12 Regulatory Department 13 Holding part 100 sheet feeding device 201 Image forming device 201A Device main body 201B Image forming section

Claims

1. A sheet feeding device that feeds sheets, a sheet tray provided on a side wall of the device body and capable of stacking sheets; an extension sheet tray that is attached to the upstream side of the sheet tray in the sheet feeding direction and that can stack sheets; and The extendable sheet tray is a sheet tray attachment portion that is detachably attached to the sheet tray; and a sheet stacking portion that is rotatably attached to the sheet tray attachment portion and is capable of stacking sheets, The sheet stacking unit When the extension sheet tray is attached to the sheet tray, the position can be switched between a first position where sheets can be stacked and a second position that is closer to the device body than the first position, and the extension sheet tray is configured to be rotatable from the second position to the first position but not rotatable from the first position to the second position. A sheet feeding device characterized by:

2. The sheet stacking unit It is composed of a resin guide part and a metal wire part provided on the guide part.

2. The sheet feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the sheet feeding device is a sheet feeding device.

3. The sheet tray attachment portion is an elastic portion that comes into contact with the guide portion when the sheet stacking portion rotates; The sheet stacking unit When the rotating member rotates from the second position to the first position, the elastic portion that is in contact with the guide portion is elastically deformed, thereby rotating the rotating member to the first position.

3. The sheet feeding device according to claim 2, wherein the sheet feeding device is a sheet feeding device.

4. The sheet tray attachment portion is an elastic portion that elastically deforms by contacting the guide portion when the guide portion rotates; The sheet stacking unit When the lever rotates from the first position to the second position, the elastic portion that comes into contact with the guide portion does not elastically deform, thereby restricting the rotation to the second position.

3. The sheet feeding device according to claim 2, wherein the sheet feeding device is a sheet feeding device.

5. The sheet feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, an image forming unit that forms an image on the sheet fed by the sheet feeding device; An image forming apparatus comprising:

Images