Holding bracket and image forming apparatus

Abstract

To provide a holding bracket and an image forming apparatus that allow the holding bracket to be attached to a fixing member without using screws and without looseness.SOLUTION: A holding bracket 42 that holds a connection terminal for connection with an external device includes: an insertion portion 45 to be inserted into a through hole 43 of a front plate 41a of a reading frame 41 being a fixing member; an inner abutment portion being a first abutment portion that is provided at a distal end of the insertion portion 45 and abuts against the front plate 41a from a direction opposite to an insertion direction of the insertion portion 45 into the through hole 43; and three outer abutment portions 46, 47, 48 being second abutment portions that abut against the front plate 41a from the insertion direction. The holding bracket 42 is attached to the reading frame by abutment of the outer abutment portions against the front plate 41a and abutment of the inner abutment portion against the front plate 41.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a holding bracket and an image forming apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a holding bracket is known that holds a connection terminal for connecting to an external device and is attached to a fixing member.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a fixing member made of sheet metal, which is a fixing base, to which a holding bracket is screwed. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] To mount a holding bracket on a fixing member without using screws and without rattle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a holding bracket that holds a connection terminal for connecting to an external device and is attached to a fixed member, the holding bracket having an insertion portion that is inserted into a through hole in the main frame, a first abutment portion that is provided at the tip of the insertion portion and abuts against the fixed member from the direction opposite to the insertion direction of the insertion portion into the through hole, and a second abutment portion that abuts against the fixed member from the insertion direction, and is attached to the fixed member by the abutment of the first abutment portion against the fixed member and the abutment of the second abutment portion against the fixed member. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present invention, the holding bracket can be attached to the fixing member without using screws and without rattle. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a reading frame of the image reading unit and a holding bracket that holds a USB female terminal. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the mounting of the reading frame holding bracket. [Figure 4] FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 4 is a front view of a through hole provided in the front panel of the reading frame. [Figure 6] A front view showing the positional relationship between the outer abutment portion, the terminal mounting portion, and the inner mounting portion. [Figure 7] FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state in which the inner abutment portion abuts against the front panel. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a top view showing the state of the holding bracket after the front panel is attached. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a modified retaining bracket. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, an embodiment of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention can be applied will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the image forming apparatus of this embodiment. Image forming apparatus 1 is a tandem color copier and includes an original transport unit 3, an image reading unit (scanner) 4, an internal paper discharge unit (internal open unit) 5, and a writing unit (exposure unit) 6. Image forming apparatus 1 also includes a paper feed unit (paper feed cassette) 7, and imaging units 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10BK corresponding to each color (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black). Image forming apparatus 1 also includes an intermediate transfer belt 17, a secondary transfer roller 18, a fixing unit 20, a toner container 28, an operation panel 30, etc.

[0009] The document transport unit 3 transports a document set on a document setting unit (document table) 3a to the image reading unit 4 and discharges the document to a document discharge unit 3b. The image reading unit (scanner) 4 reads image information of the document.

[0010] The writing unit (exposure unit) 6 emits laser light based on input image information, and the paper feed unit (paper feed cassette) 7 stores sheets P such as paper. The intermediate transfer belt 17 transfers multiple color toner images in layers, and the secondary transfer roller 18 transfers the toner images formed on the intermediate transfer belt 17 onto the sheets P.

[0011] The fixing unit 20 fixes an unfixed image on the sheet P, and the toner container 28 stores toner for replenishing the toner of each color in the developing unit of each of the image forming units 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10BK. The operation panel 30 is used to display information related to the printing operation (image forming operation) and to perform operations.

[0012] Inside the main body of the image forming apparatus 1, four image forming units 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10BK are arranged side by side so as to face an intermediate transfer belt 17. The intermediate transfer belt 17 is configured to run in a predetermined direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1, which is counterclockwise) by a drive mechanism.

[0013] The internal paper discharge section 5 is formed so that at least a portion of the front surface is open in the main body of the image forming device 1, and the sheet P on which the image has been formed and discharged from the main body of the image forming device 1 is placed (stacked) on the paper discharge surface 5a.

[0014] Below the internal paper discharge unit 5, there is provided a well-known image forming unit including imaging units 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10BK, an intermediate transfer belt 17, a writing unit 6, a paper feed unit 7, and a fixing unit 20. Above the internal paper discharge unit 5, there are provided a well-known image reading unit 4 and document transport unit 3.

[0015] Hereinafter, the operation of the image forming apparatus 1 during normal color image formation will be described. First, a document set on the document setting section (document table) 3a is fed into the document transport section 3 by a feed roller, and then transported by a transport roller to be placed on the contact glass of the image reading section 4. Then, the image reading section 4 optically reads the image information of the document placed on the contact glass.

[0016] The image reading unit 4 scans the image of the document on the contact glass while irradiating it with light emitted from an illumination lamp. The light reflected from the document is then focused on a color sensor via a group of mirrors and a lens. The color image information of the document is read by the color sensor in units of RGB (red, green, blue) color separation light and then converted into electrical image signals. The image processing unit then performs color conversion processing, color correction processing, spatial frequency correction processing, etc. based on the RGB color separation image signals to obtain color image information in yellow, magenta, cyan, and black.

[0017] After the image information is read at the position of the image reading unit 4, the document is transported by the transport rollers, discharged from the discharge port of the document transport unit 3, and placed (stacked) on the discharge surface of the document discharge unit 3b.

[0018] The image information of each color (yellow, magenta, cyan, black) read by the image reading unit 4 is sent to the writing unit 6. Then, the writing unit 6 irradiates laser light (exposure light) based on the image information of each color onto the photosensitive drum 11 of the corresponding imaging unit 10Y, 10M, 10C, 10BK.

[0019] The photosensitive drum 11 of each of the imaging units 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10BK rotates clockwise in FIG. 1. First, the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 is uniformly charged at a position facing the charging roller (charging process). In this way, a charging potential is formed on the photosensitive drum 11.

[0020] The surface of the charged photosensitive drum 11 reaches the irradiation position of each laser beam, and in the writing unit 6, a laser beam corresponding to each color of the image signal is emitted from the light source. The laser beam emitted from the light source of the writing unit 6 is incident on and reflected by a polygon mirror, and then passes through multiple lenses. After passing through the multiple lenses, the laser beam passes through separate optical paths for each color component (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) before being emitted from an exit window for each color component of the writing unit 6.

[0021] The laser light corresponding to the yellow component is irradiated onto the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 of the first imaging unit 10Y from the left side of the paper (upstream side in the direction of movement of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17). At this time, the laser light of the yellow component is scanned in the direction of the rotation axis (main scanning direction) of the photosensitive drum 11 by a polygon mirror rotating at high speed. In this way, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the yellow component is formed on the photosensitive drum 11 after it has been charged by the charging roller (exposure process).

[0022] Similarly, the laser light of the magenta component is irradiated onto the surface of the photoconductor drum 11 of the second image forming unit 10M from the left of the paper (upstream in the direction of movement of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17), forming an electrostatic latent image of the magenta component. The laser light corresponding to the cyan component is irradiated onto the surface of the photoconductor drum 11 of the third image forming unit 10C from the left of the paper (upstream in the direction of movement of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17), forming an electrostatic latent image of the cyan component. The laser light of the black component is irradiated onto the surface of the photoconductor drum 11 of the fourth image forming unit 10BK from the left of the paper (upstream in the direction of movement of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17), forming an electrostatic latent image of the black component.

[0023] The surface of the photosensitive drum 11 on which the electrostatic latent image of each color is formed reaches a position facing the developing unit, and the toner of each color is supplied from each developing unit onto the photosensitive drum 11, developing the latent image on the photosensitive drum 11 (developing process).

[0024] After the development process, the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 11 reach positions facing the intermediate transfer belt 17. At each of these facing positions, primary transfer rollers 14 are installed so as to abut against the inner circumferential surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17. Then, at the positions of the primary transfer rollers 14, the toner images of each color formed on the photosensitive drums 11 are transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 17 in order, superimposed on top of each other (primary transfer process).

[0025] After the primary transfer process, the surface of each photosensitive drum 11 reaches a position facing a cleaning unit. The cleaning unit then collects any untransferred toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 11 (cleaning process). Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 passes through the position of a charge removal unit, and the series of image formation processes on the photosensitive drum 11 is completed.

[0026] The surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17 onto which the images of each color on the photosensitive drum 11 are transferred and superimposed runs in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1 and reaches the position of the secondary transfer roller 18. Then, at the position of the secondary transfer roller 18, the full-color image on the intermediate transfer belt 17 is secondarily transferred onto the sheet P (secondary transfer process).

[0027] After passing the position of the secondary transfer roller 18, the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17 reaches the position of the intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit. Then, untransferred toner on the intermediate transfer belt 17 is collected by the intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit, and the series of transfer processes on the intermediate transfer belt 17 is completed.

[0028] The sheet P is transported from the paper feed unit 7 to the position of the secondary transfer roller 18 via a transport guide, registration rollers 19, etc. More specifically, the sheet P is fed from the paper feed unit 7, which stores the sheet P, by the paper feed rollers 8, passes through the transport guide, and is then guided to the registration rollers 9 (timing rollers). The sheet P that has reached the registration rollers 19 is transported toward the position of the secondary transfer roller 18 in synchronization with the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 17.

[0029] The sheet P onto which the full-color image has been transferred at the position of the secondary transfer roller 18 is guided to the fixing unit 20. In the fixing unit 20, the color image is fixed onto the sheet P at the nip between the fixing roller and the pressure roller. After the fixing process, the sheet P is discharged outside the apparatus by the paper discharge roller 29 as an output image, and then stacked on the paper discharge surface 5a of the internal paper discharge unit 5, completing the series of image formation processes.

[0030] On the front side of the image reading unit 4 opposite to the side where the operation panel 30 is arranged (on the left side of the paper in FIG. 1), a USB port 60 into which a USB male terminal as an external terminal is inserted is provided.

[0031] The USB port 60 used by the user is required to be easily accessible for easy operation. The image forming unit involved in image creation, which is located below the internal paper discharge unit 5 on the front of the main body of the image forming apparatus 1, does not have space to install the USB port 60. For this reason, the USB port 60 is generally provided in the image reading unit (scanner) 4, the document transport unit 3, or the operation panel 30. However, different document transport units 3 and operation panels 30 may be installed depending on the model. For this reason, in this embodiment, the USB port 60 is provided in the image reading unit 4, ensuring accessibility while also being compatible with models that do not have the document transport unit 3.

[0032] When providing a USB port 60 to the image reading unit 4, it is common practice to screw a holding bracket that holds a USB female terminal serving as a connection terminal to the front panel of the reading frame of the image reading unit 4. Screwing the holding bracket to the reading frame has the advantage of allowing the holding bracket to be attached to the reading frame without any rattle, giving the product a high-quality feel.

[0033] When the holding bracket is attached to the reading frame using screws, a tap is used to form a thread groove on the inner periphery of a through-hole formed in the sheet metal front panel of the reading frame by punching or laser processing. Cutting debris is generated during the formation of these thread grooves. After the thread grooves are formed, a removal process is performed to remove the cutting debris using air blowing or other methods. However, this removal process may not completely remove the cutting debris, leaving some remaining. If cutting debris remains, it may get inside the reading frame and adhere to the optical components arranged within the reading frame, potentially affecting reading performance. Especially when making a design change to add a USB port 60 to an image forming apparatus currently in mass production, considerations must be made to maintain reading quality, such as methods for removing cutting debris and detecting the presence of cutting debris, significantly affecting costs and schedules. Therefore, it is possible to secure the holding bracket 42 to the reading frame 41 using, for example, double-sided tape. However, rattles in the holding bracket 42 occur when inserting or removing the USB male terminal of an external device, resulting in a perceived degradation of quality.

[0034] Therefore, in this embodiment, the holding bracket 42 can be attached to the reading frame 41 without rattle without using screws. The characteristic features of this embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0035] Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the reading frame 41 of the image reading unit 4 and a holding bracket 42 that holds a USB female terminal serving as a connection terminal, and Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the attachment of the holding bracket 42 to the reading frame 41. Fig. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of the holding bracket 42. As shown in FIG. 2, the holding bracket 42 made of sheet metal has a terminal mounting portion 51 to which a USB female terminal is attached, and is attached to the front plate 41a made of sheet metal of the reading frame 41 which is a fixed member.

[0036] 3 and 4, port opening 49 is provided in the center of terminal mounting portion 51 of holding bracket 42, and through-holes 51a and 51b into which screws for fastening the USB female terminal are inserted are formed on both sides of this port opening 49. When the USB female terminal is fastened to terminal mounting portion 51 with the screws, the insertion opening of the USB female terminal is positioned at port opening 49.

[0037] The holding bracket 42 has three outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48 as second abutment portions that abut against the outer peripheral surface of the front plate 41a of the reading frame 41, and an insertion portion 45 that is inserted into a through-hole 43 provided in the front plate 41a. The holding bracket 42 also has an extension portion 50 that extends to the right in the figure. A screw hole 50a and a push-in portion 52 that serves as an operating portion are provided on the end side of the extension portion 50.

[0038] The three outer abutment portions 46, 47, 48 and the insertion portion 45 are formed by bending 90 degrees from the main body portion 42a of the holding bracket 42 toward the rear side of the image forming apparatus. The push-in portion 52 is formed by bending 90 degrees from the extension portion 50 toward the front side of the image forming apparatus. As will be described later, the push-in portion 52 is used by an operator to push in the holding bracket 42 when rotating the holding bracket 42 to attach it to the reading frame 41.

[0039] As shown in Fig. 4, the tip of the insertion portion 45 is provided with an inner abutment portion 45a, which serves as a first abutment portion and protrudes in the vertical direction from the insertion portion 45. As shown in Fig. 5, the through-hole 43 provided in the front panel 41a has an elongated hole shape that is long in the left-right direction of the image forming apparatus. The length a in the left-right direction, which is the longitudinal direction of the through-hole 43, is longer than the length c of the inner abutment portion 45a shown in Fig. 4. Furthermore, the length b in the up-down direction, which is the short side direction of the through-hole 43 (see Fig. 5), is shorter than the length c.

[0040] 6, when holding bracket 42 is viewed from the front, more than half of terminal mounting portion 51 is contained within the triangular shape T formed by connecting three outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48. In addition, one of the two abutment points of inner abutment portion 45a with front panel 41a is located within the triangular shape T.

[0041] FIG. 7 is an enlarged top view of a main part showing the dimensional relationship between the abutting portions. As shown in Figure 7, the length (height) e of the first outer abutment portion 46 from the main body 42a of the retaining bracket 42 is longer than the distance h1 from the surface of the main body 42a of the retaining bracket 42 facing the front plate 41a to the surface of the front plate 41a against which the first outer abutment portion 46 abuts.

[0042] The length (height) f of the second outer abutment portion 47 from the main body portion 42a of the retaining bracket 42 is longer than the distance h4 from the surface of the main body portion 42a of the retaining bracket 42 facing the front plate 41a to the surface of the front plate 41a against which the second outer abutment portion 47 abuts.

[0043] The length (height) g of the third outer abutment portion 48 from the terminal mounting portion 51 is longer than the distance h3 from the surface of the terminal mounting portion 51 facing the front panel 41a to the surface of the front panel 41a against which the third outer abutment portion 48 abuts.

[0044] The length d from the base of the insertion portion 45 to the inner abutment portion 45a is less than the distance h2 from the surface facing the front panel 41a of the main body portion 42a of the retaining bracket 42 to the inner end of the through hole 43 (the tip of the flange portion 43a (see Figure 7) against which the inner abutment portion abuts).

[0045] To attach the holding bracket 42 to the reading frame 41 (front plate 41a), first, the holding bracket 42 is rotated 90° counterclockwise from the position shown in Fig. 3, and the inner abutment portion 45a at the tip of the insertion portion 45 is passed through the through-hole 43. At this time, the third outer abutment portion 48 is located to the left of the front plate 41a, the first outer abutment portion 46 is located above the front plate 41a, and these outer abutment portions 46, 48 are located in positions that do not face the front plate 41a.

[0046] Next, when the retaining bracket 42 is rotated to assume the position shown in Fig. 3, the inner abutment portion 45a comes into contact with the flange portion 43a protruding inward of the through-hole 43, as shown in Fig. 8. Furthermore, when the retaining bracket 42 is rotated by 90 degrees, the first and third outer abutment portions 46, 48 ride up onto the outer peripheral surface of the front plate 41a. As a result, the three outer abutment portions 46, 47, 48 abut against the outer peripheral surface of the front plate 41a, and the inner abutment portion 45a abuts against the flange portion 43a.

[0047] As explained with reference to Fig. 7, in this embodiment, the lengths e, f, and g of the outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48 are longer than the distances h1, h3, and h4 from the main body 42a of the holding bracket 42 to the surface of the front plate 41a against which the abutment portions abut (e > h1, f > h4, g > h3). Furthermore, the length d from the base of the insertion portion 45 to the inner abutment portion 45a is less than the distance h2 from the main body of the holding bracket 42 to the inner end of the through-hole 43 (d ≤ h2). Therefore, when the first and third outer abutment portions 46 and 48 ride up on the outer peripheral surface of the front plate 41a, the main body 42a of the holding bracket 42 elastically deforms from the state indicated by the dashed line to the state indicated by the solid line, as shown in Fig. 9.

[0048] When these abutment portions 45a, 46, 47, and 48 abut against the front plate 41a, the sliding resistance between each abutment portion 45a, 46, 47, and 48 and the front plate 41a increases, and the force required to rotate the holding bracket 42 to the position shown in Fig. 3 increases. The holding bracket 42 of this embodiment has an extension portion 50, and a push-in portion 52 is provided on the end side of the extension portion 50. This allows an operator to push in this push-in portion 52, thereby rotating the holding bracket 42 using the principle of leverage.

[0049] Specifically, by providing extension portion 50, the distance from push-in portion 52, which corresponds to the point of force in the principle of leverage, to insertion portion 45, which corresponds to the fulcrum in the principle of leverage, can be made sufficiently longer than the distance from the point where each abutting portion abuts front panel 41a, which corresponds to the point of action in the principle of leverage, to insertion portion 45. Therefore, by pushing in push-in portion 52 of retaining bracket 42, the worker can easily rotate retaining bracket 42 and place retaining bracket 42 in the position shown in FIG.

[0050] 3, a screw is screwed into the screw hole 50a provided on the end side of the extension part 50, and the tip of the screw is inserted into the through-hole provided in the front plate 41a that overlaps the screw hole 50a. This attaches the holding bracket 42 to the front plate 41a of the reading frame 41 so that it cannot rotate.

[0051] The holding bracket 42 of this embodiment is attached to the front plate 41a by sandwiching the front plate 41a in the front-to-rear direction between the inner abutment portion 45a and the three outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48. The abutment of the inner abutment portion 45a against the front plate 41a and the abutment of the three outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48 against the front plate 41a allows the holding bracket 42 to be attached to the reading frame 41 without rattling in the front-to-rear direction of the image forming apparatus. Furthermore, the friction between the abutment portions 45a, 46, 47, and 48 and the front plate 41a also suppresses rattling in the left-to-right direction of the image forming apparatus. This allows the holding bracket 42 to be attached to the reading frame 41 without using screws and without rattle, thereby suppressing a decrease in the perceived quality of the image forming apparatus.

[0052] In particular, in this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 6, one of the two abutting points of the inner abutting portion 45a is located within the triangular shape T formed by connecting the three outer abutting portions 46, 47, and 48, allowing each abutting portion 45a, 46, 47, and 48 to abut favorably against the front plate 41a. This allows the inside of the triangular shape T of the holding bracket 42 to be firmly fixed to the front plate 41a. Therefore, by positioning more than half of the terminal mounting portion 51 within this triangular shape T, the area around the terminal mounting portion 51 of the holding bracket 42 does not bend when inserting or removing a USB male terminal of an external device, thereby improving the quality of the image forming apparatus.

[0053] Furthermore, in this embodiment, unlike the case where the holding bracket 42 is attached to the front panel 41a of the reading frame 41 by fastening screws, there is no need to form screw holes in the front panel 41a, and cutting dust generated during thread groove processing does not adhere to the optical components inside the reading frame 41.

[0054] In this embodiment, through holes 43 are provided in the front panel 41a of the reading frame 41 to attach the holding bracket 42 to the reading frame 41. The through holes 43 can be formed by punching or laser processing, and no cutting dust is generated. Furthermore, the punch dust generated by forming the through holes 43 by punching or laser processing has a certain size, and unlike cutting dust, it is easy to remove and does not remain after molding. Therefore, when a design change is made to add a USB port 60 to an image forming apparatus currently in mass production, even if the design change is made to provide through holes 43 in the front panel 41a of the reading frame 41, there is little risk of adversely affecting reading quality, and a significant impact on costs and schedules can be suppressed.

[0055] Furthermore, unlike this embodiment, when the holding bracket 42 is fastened to the reading frame 41 with screws, a process of forming a through hole 43 in the reading frame 41, a process of forming a thread groove on the inner circumferential surface of the through hole 43, and a process of removing cutting dust generated during the thread groove formation are required. On the other hand, this embodiment can eliminate the process of forming a thread groove on the inner circumferential surface of the through hole 43 and the process of removing cutting dust generated during the thread groove formation. Therefore, compared to when fastening with screws, the number of manufacturing steps can be reduced, leading to cost reductions.

[0056] Next, a modification of this embodiment will be described. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a modified retaining bracket 42'. As shown in FIG. 10, a modified holding bracket 42' has an insertion portion in the form of an insertion pin 145, which is a separate member. As shown in Figure 10, a pair of inner abutment portions 45a made of plate-like members are provided at the tip of the bayonet pin 145. Each inner abutment portion 45a is attached to the bayonet pin 145 so as to be swingable between a retracted position retracted within the pin and a protruding position protruding from the pin. When positioned in the protruding position, each inner abutment portion 45a has a tapered portion that slopes outward from the tip of the pin. Each inner abutment portion 45a is biased by a biasing means to be positioned in the protruding position. In this modification, the through-hole 43 provided in the front plate 41a is a round hole.

[0057] When the tip of the insertion pin 145 is inserted into the through-hole 43, the tapered portion of each inner abutment portion 45a is pressed into the edge of the through-hole 43. As a result, as shown in FIG. 10(a), the insert pin 145 swings from the protruding position to the retracted position, and the tip side of the insertion pin 145 is inserted into the through-hole 43.

[0058] 10(b), when the insertion pin 145 is pushed in while the main body 42a of the holding bracket 42 is elastically deformed, and the tip end of the insertion pin 145 passes through the through hole 43, the pair of inner abutment portions 45a is swung from the retracted position to the protruding position by the biasing means. As a result, the pair of inner abutment portions 45a abut against the flange portion 43a of the through hole 43, and as in the embodiment, the pair of inner abutment portions 45a and the three outer abutment portions 46, 47, 48 can attach the holding bracket 42 to the front plate 41a in such a way that the front plate 41a is sandwiched in the front-rear direction.

[0059] 10, the pair of inner abutment portions 45a are provided on the bayonet pin 145 so as to be able to swing. However, the pair of inner abutment portions 45a may be fixed to the bayonet pin 145 at the protruding positions. In such a configuration, the through hole 43 is an elongated hole as in the embodiment, and the protruding direction of the pair of inner abutment portions is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the through hole 43, and the tip side of the bayonet pin 145 is inserted through the through hole 43. Thereafter, the bayonet pin 145 is rotated 90°. This allows the pair of inner abutment portions 45a to abut against the flange portion 43a of the through hole 43.

[0060] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to such specific embodiments, and unless otherwise specifically limited in the above description, various modifications and variations are possible within the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims. For example, although the inner abutment portion abuts against the front panel at two locations in the above description, it may abut against the front panel at one location. Furthermore, for example, inner abutment portion 45a may be formed in a cross shape, protruding in four directions (upward, downward, leftward, and rightward) from the tip of insertion portion 45. After the cross-shaped inner abutment portion is inserted into cross-shaped through-hole 43, the holding bracket may be rotated 45° so that the inner abutment portion abuts against the flange of the through-hole at four locations.

[0061] Alternatively, four or more outer abutment portions may be provided. The abutment points of the four or more outer abutment portions against the front panel are connected to form a polygonal shape, and the abutment points of the inner abutment portion against the front panel and at least half of the terminal mounting portion are positioned within the polygonal shape. This allows the periphery of the terminal mounting portion to be firmly fixed to the front panel.

[0062] The above description is merely an example, and each of the following aspects provides unique effects. (Aspect 1) Holding bracket 42 holds a connection terminal such as a USB female terminal for connecting to an external device and is attached to a fixed member such as a reading frame 41. It has an insertion portion 45 that is inserted into through-hole 43 of the fixed member, a first abutment portion such as inner abutment portion 45a that is provided at the tip of insertion portion 45 and abuts against the fixed member from the direction opposite to the insertion direction of insertion portion 45 into through-hole 43, and a second abutment portion such as outer abutment portions 46, 47, 48 that abut against the fixed member from the insertion direction, and is attached to the fixed member by the abutment of the first abutment portion against the fixed member and the abutment of the second abutment portion against the fixed member. In the first aspect, the first abutting portion abuts against the fixing member from the direction opposite to the insertion direction of the insertion portion into the through-hole, and the second abutting portion abuts against the fixing member from the insertion direction, sandwiching the fixing member between the first abutting portion and the second abutting portion, thereby attaching the holding bracket to the fixing member. This allows the holding bracket to be attached to the fixing member without any play in the insertion direction (the abutting direction of the abutting portions). Furthermore, the holding bracket can be attached to the fixing member without any play in the direction perpendicular to the insertion direction due to the frictional force between each abutting portion and the fixing member. This allows the holding bracket to be attached to the fixing member without any play, even without using screws.

[0063] (Aspect 2) In aspect 1, there are three or more second abutment portions such as outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48, and when viewed from the insertion direction, more than half of terminal mounting portion 51, to which a connection terminal such as a USB female terminal is attached, and the abutment points of first abutment portions such as inner abutment portion 45a against the fixed member are located within a polygonal shape formed by connecting the abutment points of each second abutment portion against the fixed member such as reading frame 41. 6, the abutment points of the first abutting parts, such as inner abutting part 45a, against the fixed member, such as reading frame 41, are located within a polygon formed by connecting the abutment points of each second abutting part against the fixed member, such as reading frame 41, so that the periphery of this polygon is firmly fixed to the fixed member, such as reading frame 41. Furthermore, since more than half of terminal mounting part 51, to which the connection terminal is attached, is located within the polygon, deformation of holding bracket 42 can be suppressed when inserting or removing the terminal of the external device into or from the connection terminal attached to terminal mounting part 51, and a sense of quality can be improved.

[0064] (Aspect 3) In aspect 1 or 2, the insertion portion 45 is inserted into a long-hole-shaped through-hole 43 of a fixed member such as a reading frame 41, and a first abutment portion such as the inner abutment portion 45a protrudes from the tip of the insertion portion 45 in a direction perpendicular to the insertion direction, and the first abutment portion is longer than the short-side length b of the through-hole 43 and shorter than the long-side length of the through-hole. According to this, as described in the embodiment, by adjusting the posture of the holding bracket 42 so that the protruding direction of the first abutment portion, such as the inner abutment portion 45a, from the insertion portion 45 is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the through-hole 43, the first abutment portion can be passed through the through-hole 43. Then, after the first abutment portion has passed through the through-hole 43, the holding bracket can be rotated so that the first abutment portion can be abutted against a fixed member, such as the reading frame 41.

[0065] (Aspect 4) In aspect 3, after the tip side of the insertion portion 45 passes through the through hole 43, it has an operating portion which is a pushing portion 52 for rotating the holding bracket 42, and when viewed from the insertion direction, the distance from the operating portion to the insertion portion 45 is longer than the distance from the insertion portion 45 to each of the abutment portions 45a, 46, 47, and 48. As a result, as described in the embodiment, when rotating the holding bracket 42 after the tip end of the insertion portion 45 has been inserted into the through-hole 43, a large force is required due to the sliding resistance of each abutment portion against fixed members such as the reading frame 41. When rotating the holding bracket 42, the distance from the operating part, which is the push-in part 52 that is the force point of the lever principle, to the insertion part 45 that is the fulcrum of the lever principle is made longer than the distance from the insertion part 45 to the abutment point of each abutment part that is the point of action of the lever principle with the fixed member, so that the holding bracket can be easily rotated and the work of attaching the holding bracket to the fixed member can be improved.

[0066] (Aspect 5) In any of aspects 1 to 4, when a first abutment portion such as the inner abutment portion 45a is abutted against a fixed member such as the reading frame 41 and a second abutment portion such as the outer abutment portions 46, 47, and 48 is abutted against a fixed member, the main body portion 42a of the holding bracket 42 is elastically deformed. As described in the embodiment, this allows the abutment portions 45a, 46, 47, and 48 to abut against a fixed member such as the reading frame 41 with a strong force, thereby firmly attaching the holding bracket to the fixed member. This allows the holding bracket to be securely attached to the fixed member without any rattle.

[0067] (Aspect 6) In an image forming apparatus equipped with a holding bracket 42 that holds a connection terminal such as a USB female terminal for connecting to an external device, and a fixed member such as a reading frame 41 to which the holding bracket 42 is attached, a holding bracket 42 of any of aspects 1 to 5 is used as the holding bracket 42. This allows the holding bracket to be attached to a fixed member such as the reading frame 41 without using screws and without any looseness, thereby improving the quality of the image forming apparatus.

[0068] (Aspect 7) In the sixth embodiment, the fixed member to which the holding bracket 42 is attached is a frame such as the reading frame 41 of the image reading unit 4. This eliminates the need to form thread grooves in the reading frame, and prevents cutting dust generated during thread groove formation, which is not removed after the thread grooves are formed and remains in frames such as the reading frame 41, from adhering to optical components inside the frame and causing adverse effects. [Explanation of symbols]

[0069] 1: Image forming device 3: Document transport section 4: Image reading unit 5: Internal paper discharge section 30: Operation panel 41: Reading frame 41a: Front plate 42: Retaining bracket 42a: Main body 43:Through hole 43a:Tsubabe 45: Insertion part 45a: Inner abutment part 46: First outer abutment part 47: Second outer abutment part 48:Third outer abutment part 49: Port opening 50: Extension part 50a: screw hole 51: Terminal mounting part 51a: Through hole 52: Push-in part 60: USB port 145: Insert pin [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0070] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-175532

Claims

1. A holding bracket for holding a connection terminal for connecting to an external device and attached to a fixing member, an insertion portion to be inserted into the through hole of the fixing member; a first abutment portion provided at a tip of the insertion portion and abutting against the fixing member from a direction opposite to an insertion direction of the insertion portion into the through hole; a second abutting portion that abuts against the fixing member from the insertion direction, A holding bracket characterized in that it is attached to the fixed member by the first abutment portion abutting against the fixed member and the second abutment portion abutting against the fixed member.

2. 2. The retainer bracket of claim 1, The second abutment portion has three or more, A retaining bracket characterized in that, when viewed from the insertion direction, more than half of the terminal mounting portion to which the connection terminal is attached and the abutment point of the first abutment portion against the fixed member are located within a polygonal shape formed by connecting the abutment points of each second abutment portion against the fixed member.

3. 2. The retainer bracket of claim 1, the insertion portion is inserted into a slot-shaped through-hole of the fixing member, the first abutment portion protrudes from a tip of the insertion portion in a direction perpendicular to the insertion direction, The holding bracket, wherein the first abutment portion is longer than the length of the through hole in the short direction and shorter than the length of the through hole in the long direction.

4. 4. The retaining bracket of claim 3, an operating portion for rotating the holding bracket after the tip side of the insertion portion has passed through the through hole; A retaining bracket characterized in that, when viewed from the insertion direction, the distance from the operating portion to the insertion portion is longer than the distance from the insertion portion to the abutment point of each abutment portion with the fixed member.

5. 2. The retainer bracket of claim 1, A holding bracket characterized in that when the first abutment portion abuts against the fixing member and when the second abutment portion abuts against the fixing member, the main body portion of the holding bracket is elastically deformed.

6. An image forming apparatus including a holding bracket that holds a connection terminal for connecting to an external device, and a fixing member to which the holding bracket is attached, 2. An image forming apparatus, comprising: a support bracket according to claim 1;

7. 7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, 10. An image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the fixing member to which the holding bracket is attached is a frame of an image reading unit.

Images