Feeding mechanism, image forming apparatus and feeding tray

Abstract

To inhibit destabilization of transport of a roll medium unrolled from a roll body.SOLUTION: A feed mechanism includes a feed tray 1 capable of housing a roll body R formed by a sheet being wound in a roll shape. The feed tray 1 includes: a first housing part which houses the roll body R; and a bending mechanism 20 which bends a roll sheet Rp unrolled from the roll body R so that the roll sheet Rp is bent having at least one protruding portion with respect to a width direction orthogonal to a direction in which the roll sheet Rp is unrolled.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a feeding mechanism including a feeding tray capable of accommodating a roll of sheet-like medium, an image forming apparatus, and a feeding tray. [Background technology]

[0002] The facsimile (image forming apparatus) disclosed in Patent Document 1 is provided with a support unit for roll paper (roll medium), and includes a paper feed cassette (recording medium cassette) capable of accommodating the roll paper. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2-264556 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When a roll medium is unwound from a roll body in which a sheet-like medium is wound in a roll shape, the roll medium curls in the longitudinal direction. When the roll medium curls in the longitudinal direction, the leading edge of the roll medium may get caught on surrounding components during transport or may cause a jam, which may make the transport unstable. In addition, if the roll medium is not stiff, the transport is more likely to become unstable.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a feeding mechanism, an image forming apparatus, and a feeding tray that can prevent instability in the transport of a roll medium unwound from a roll body. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The feeding mechanism of the present invention is a feeding mechanism equipped with a feeding tray capable of accommodating a roll body in which sheet-like medium is wound into a roll shape, and is equipped with a bending mechanism that bends the roll medium, which is the sheet-like medium unwound from the roll body, so that the roll medium has a bent shape having at least one convex shape in the width direction, which is the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the sheet-like medium is unwound.

[0007] The image forming apparatus of the present invention includes the above-mentioned feeding mechanism.

[0008] The feed tray of the present invention is a feed tray capable of accommodating a roll body in which sheet-like medium is wound into a roll shape, and is equipped with a bending mechanism that bends the roll medium, which is the sheet-like medium unwound from the roll body, so that the roll medium has a bent shape having at least one convex shape in the width direction, which is the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the sheet-like medium is unwound. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the feeding mechanism, image forming apparatus, and feeding tray of the present invention, the bending mechanism causes the roll medium unwound from the roll body to have a curved shape, thereby suppressing curling in the longitudinal direction of the roll medium. Also, the stiffness of the roll medium can be increased, thereby suppressing instability in the transport of the roll medium. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic side view showing an internal structure of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the feed tray shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] 3 is a cross-sectional view of the feeding tray taken along line III-III shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a top view of the feeding tray shown in FIG. 2. [Diagram 5] 5A is a cross-sectional view taken along line Va-Va of the feed tray shown in FIG. 4, and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view taken along line Vb-Vb of the feed tray shown in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a feeding tray according to a first modified example. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a feeding tray according to a second modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] A printer 100 (image forming apparatus of the present invention) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to Fig. 1. The up-down, front-back, and left-right directions shown in Fig. 1 are the up-down, front-back, and left-right directions of the printer 100.

[0012] (Overall configuration of the printer 100) The printer 100 mainly includes a housing 100a, a feeding mechanism 3, a conveying mechanism 4, a cutter 5, a head 6, a paper discharge tray 7, and a control unit 10. The feeding mechanism 3 has a feeding tray 1, a feeding roller 2, and a separation piece 31. The feeding tray 1 is detachable from the lower part of the housing 100a. The feeding tray 1 is disposed below the head 6 in the housing 100a. The paper discharge tray 7 is disposed in front of the head 6 and above the feeding tray 1 in the housing 100a. The feeding tray 1 is insertable and removable from the housing 100a in the front-rear direction through an opening 101 formed in the front wall of the housing 100a. The paper discharge tray 7 is insertable and removable from the housing 100a in the front-rear direction through an opening 102 formed in the front wall of the housing 100a.

[0013] The feed tray 1 can accommodate both cut sheets Kp and the roll R, and has a first storage section 8 capable of accommodating the roll R, and a second storage section 9 capable of accommodating a plurality of cut sheets Kp stacked vertically. The roll R is formed by winding paper in a roll shape around the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical core member Rc. The width direction of the cut sheets Kp in the feed tray 1 and the roll paper Rp unwound from the roll R coincides with the left-right direction.

[0014] The feed roller 2 feeds out the roll paper Rp unwound from the roll R stored in the first storage section 8 or the cut paper Kp stored in the second storage section 9 from the feed tray 1. In the following description, when there is no need to distinguish between the cut paper Kp and the roll paper Rp, they will be referred to as "paper P." The feed roller 2 is supported on the tip of an arm 2a and rotates by the drive of a feed motor (not shown). The arm 2a is supported on a support shaft 2b so that it can rotate freely. The arm 2a is biased by a biasing member (not shown) so that the feed roller 2 approaches the bottom surface of the feed tray 1. The feed roller 2 comes into contact with the center of the width of the roll paper Rp or the cut paper Kp stored in the feed tray 1.

[0015] When the feed motor is driven under the control of the control unit 10, the feed roller 2 rotates and a conveying force in a direction from the front to the rear is applied to the paper P in contact with the feed roller 2. This causes the paper P to be sent out from the feed tray 1. The arm 2a is configured to be able to retreat upward when the feed tray 1 is attached to or detached from the housing 100a.

[0016] The separation piece 31 is intended to prevent double feeding when the cut sheet Kp is fed from the feed tray 1. The separation piece 31 is located downstream of the feed tray 1 in the direction in which the feed roller 2 transports the sheet P (direction from the front to the rear: simply referred to as the "transport direction" in the following explanation). The separation piece 31 is inclined so that the rear end is located higher than the front end. A fine uneven pattern is formed on the surface of the separation piece 31. The separation piece 31 comes into contact with the center of the width of the cut sheet Kp, and separates the cut sheet Kp that comes into contact with the feed roller 2 from the other cut sheets Kp. The sheet P that is sent out from the feed tray 1 and comes into contact with the separation piece 31 is guided diagonally upward.

[0017] The conveying mechanism 4 has an intermediate roller pair 41, a conveying roller pair 42, a paper discharge roller pair 43, and a guide member 44. The intermediate roller pair 41 is composed of a drive roller that rotates by driving an intermediate motor (not shown) and a driven roller that rotates with the drive roller. When an intermediate motor (not shown) is driven by the control of the control unit 10, the intermediate roller pair 41 rotates while sandwiching the paper P to convey the paper P. The intermediate roller pair 41 is located above the separation piece 31. The intermediate roller pair 41 conveys the paper P upward while sandwiching the paper P that is guided diagonally upward by the separation piece 31 after being sent out from the feed tray 1 by the feed roller 2. The guide member 44 is located above the intermediate roller pair 41. The guide member 44 guides the paper P conveyed upward by the intermediate roller pair 41 forward.

[0018] The conveying roller pair 42 is composed of a drive roller that rotates by the drive of a conveying motor (not shown) and a driven roller that rotates with the drive roller. The paper discharge roller pair 43 is composed of a drive roller that rotates by the drive of a paper discharge motor (not shown) and a driven roller that rotates with the drive roller. When the conveying motor and the paper discharge motor (not shown) are driven by the control of the control unit 10, the conveying roller pair 42 and the paper discharge roller pair 43 rotate while sandwiching the paper P to convey the paper P. The conveying roller pair 42 is located behind the head 6, and the paper discharge roller pair 43 is located in front of the head 6. The conveying roller pair 42 sandwiches the paper P guided forward by the guide member 44 and conveys it forward. The paper discharge roller pair 43 sandwiches the paper P conveyed forward by the conveying roller pair 42 and conveys it forward.

[0019] The cutter 5 is located between the separation piece 31 and the pair of intermediate rollers 41. The cutter 5 is composed of, for example, a disk-shaped rotary blade and a driven blade. The rotary blade of the cutter 5 rotates when driven by a cutting motor (not shown), and the cutter 5 moves back and forth in the left-right direction. The roll paper Rp that has been unwound from the roll R and transported is cut in the width direction of the roll paper Rp by the cutter 5 when the cutting motor is driven under the control of the control unit 10.

[0020] The head 6 includes a plurality of nozzles (not shown) formed on the bottom surface, and a driver IC (not shown). When the driver IC is driven under the control of the control unit 10, ink is ejected from the nozzles, and an image is formed on the paper P when the paper P transported by the transport mechanism 4 passes an image forming position facing the bottom surface of the head 6. The head 6 may be either a line type in which ink is ejected from nozzles while remaining in a fixed position, or a serial type in which ink is ejected from nozzles while moving left and right. The paper P on which the image has been formed by the head 6 is received in the paper output tray 7.

[0021] The control unit 10 is connected to the feed motor, intermediate motor, transport motor, discharge motor, cutting motor, and driver IC via an internal bus (not shown). The control unit 10 has a CPU (Central Processing Unit), ROM (Read Only Memory), and RAM (Random Access Memory). The ROM stores programs and data for the CPU to perform various controls. The RAM temporarily stores data used when the CPU executes a program.

[0022] (Feed Tray 1 Configuration) Next, the configuration of the feed tray 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 2 to 5. In the following description, the direction of each part of the feed tray 1 will be described based on the orientation of the feed tray 1 when it is attached to the housing 100a. The feed tray 1 has a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from above. The feed tray 1 has a bottom wall 11 and side walls 12 to 15 provided on the edges of the bottom wall 11, and is formed in a box shape that opens upward.

[0023] As shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 5(a) and (b), the bottom wall 11 extends in a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. The upper surface of the bottom wall 11 forms the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1. The side walls 12 and 13 extend upward from both left and right end edges of the bottom wall 11. The side walls 12 and 13 also extend in the front-rear direction from the front end to the rear end of the bottom wall 11. The side wall 14 extends upward from the front end edge of the bottom wall 11. Furthermore, the side wall 14 extends in the left-right direction from the right end to the left end of the bottom wall 11.

[0024] Four side walls 15 are provided on the rear edge of the bottom wall 11. The side walls 15 are connected to the rear end of the bottom surface 11a and have guide surfaces 15a that are inclined so that their upper ends are located rearward of their lower ends. The four side walls 15 are spaced apart from one another in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 2, when the feed tray 1 is attached to the housing 100a, a separation piece 31 is located between two of the four side walls 15 arranged in the left-right direction that are located on the inside. The guide surfaces 15a of the side walls 15, together with the separation piece 31, guide the paper P transported rearward by the feed roller 2 obliquely upward.

[0025] A convex portion 16 that protrudes upward is formed in the center in the left-right direction at the rear end of the bottom wall 11. An upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 is a horizontal surface. When there is no paper P on the upper surface 16a, the feed roller 2 contacts the upper surface 16a as shown in FIG. 3. When there is paper P on the upper surface 16a, the feed roller 2 contacts the paper P. In other words, the position in the conveying direction where the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 is provided is the conveying position where the feed roller 2 applies a conveying force to the paper P.

[0026] An inclined surface 16b is provided on the upstream side of the upper surface 16a in the conveying direction, the inclined surface 16b being connected to the upper surface 16a and inclining gradually downward toward the upstream side in the conveying direction. As shown in Fig. 3, the height position of the upstream end of the inclined surface 16b in the conveying direction is the same as the height position of the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1 other than the portion where the convex portion 16 is formed.

[0027] The feed tray 1 has a pair of side guides 17 arranged inside the pair of side walls 12, 13 and spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction. The pair of side guides 17 partially overlap the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16 in the front-rear direction. The side guides 17 are supported by the bottom wall 11 so as to be movable in the left-right direction, and are arranged facing each other in the left-right direction. One side guide 17 and the other side guide 17 can be moved in a linked manner in a direction toward and away from each other by a known linkage mechanism (not shown) consisting of, for example, racks facing each other and pinions meshing with both racks. The side guides 17 in this embodiment are of a center register type, and the center of the width of the paper P guided by the side guides 17 coincides with the center of the feed tray 1 in the left-right direction.

[0028] The side guide 17 is composed of a first portion 17a parallel to the side walls 12 and 13, and a second portion 17b parallel to the bottom wall 11. As shown in FIG. 5(b), the second portion 17b extends from the lower end of the first portion 17a to the right or left toward the opposing side guide 17. The opposing surfaces of the first portions 17a of the pair of side guides 17 are side abutment surfaces 18 that can abut against the widthwise ends of the paper P. By guiding the paper P with the side abutment surfaces 18 of the pair of side guides 17, the paper P can be positioned in the left-right direction in the feed tray 1. The upper surfaces of the second portions 17b of the pair of side guides 17 are lower abutment surfaces 19 that abut against the lower surface of the paper P. The lower abutment surface 19 is connected to the lower ends of the side abutment surfaces 18.

[0029] As described above, the feeding tray 1 has the first storage section 8 capable of storing the roll R, and the second storage section 9 capable of storing a plurality of cut sheets Kp stacked vertically. The first storage section 8 and the second storage section 9 are aligned in the conveying direction. The second storage section 9 is located downstream of the first storage section 8 in the conveying direction.

[0030] The first storage section 8 stores the roll R in a position in which the axial direction coincides with the left-right direction. The roll R stored in the first storage section 8 is unwound in the front-rear direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the first storage section 8 has a support table 81 that supports the roll R and two rollers 81a and 81b. The support table 81 extends in the left-right direction. The rollers 81a and 81b both extend in the left-right direction and are arranged spaced apart from each other in the front-rear direction. The rollers 81a and 81b are both supported on the upper end of the support table 81 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis that extends in the left-right direction. The rollers 81a and 81b support the roll R from below while being in contact with the outer circumferential surface of the lower part of the roll R.

[0031] A gap G is formed between the lower surface of the support base 81 and the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1. As described below, when the roll paper Rp is set on the feed tray 1, the roll body R supported by the support base 81 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 3, and the roll paper Rp is pulled out from the front part of the roll body R. Then, the roll paper Rp pulled out from the roll body R passes through the gap G and is pulled out from the front side of the support base 81 to the rear side of the support base 81.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 3, the first storage section 8 has a cover 82 consisting of a rear portion 82a that covers the rear of the roll body R supported by the support base 81 and an upper portion 82b that covers the upper part of the roll body R supported by the support base 81. The rear portion 82a is located behind the roll body R supported by the support base 81 and extends in a plane perpendicular to the front-rear direction. The upper portion 82b is connected to the upper end of the rear portion 82a. The upper portion 82b is located above the roll body R supported by the support base 81 and extends in a plane perpendicular to the up-down direction. The cover 82 can be rotated rearward around a rotation shaft (not shown) that extends along the left-right direction and is located at the lower end of the rear portion 82a. As shown in FIG. 3, the cover 82, which is located in a position that covers the roll body R supported by the support base 81, can be rotated rearward to expose the storage space for the roll body R above the support base 81.

[0033] The second storage section 9 has a support plate 91 (corresponding to the "support member" of the present invention) that supports from below the multiple cut sheets Kp that are placed in a stacked state. When the roll sheet Rp unwound from the roll R stored in the first storage section 8 is sent from the feed tray 1 to form an image, the cut sheet Kp is removed from the second storage section 9.

[0034] The support plate 91 is located at the front end in the transport direction and is rotatable up and down about a rotation shaft 91a extending in the left-right direction. The rotation shaft 91a is located downstream in the transport direction from the rear portion 82a of the cover 82 and in the vicinity of the rear portion 82a. The support plate 91 extends downstream in the transport direction from the rotation shaft 91a to the position of the end of the bottom wall 11 of the feed tray 1 on the downstream side in the transport direction.

[0035] 3, an opening 12a having an elliptical shape that is long in the vertical direction is formed in the side wall 12 of the feed tray 1. One end (right end) of the rotation shaft 91a of the support plate 91 is inserted into the opening 12a of the side wall 12. Similarly, an opening (not shown) having an elliptical shape that is long in the vertical direction is formed in the side wall 13, into which the other end (left end) of the rotation shaft 91a of the support plate 91 is inserted. The rotation shaft 91a is movable up and down within the opening 12a of the side wall 12 and the opening (not shown) of the side wall 13.

[0036] The side walls 12 and 13 are respectively formed with restricting portions 12b and 13b for restricting the downward rotation of the support plate 91. As shown in FIG. 4, the restricting portions 12b and 13b are provided upstream and downstream of the side guide 17 in the conveying direction. The restricting portions 12b and 13b are provided in portions of the side walls 12 and 13 located on both sides of the second storage portion 9 in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 5(a), the restricting portion 12b protrudes from the lower end of the side wall 12 toward the side wall 13. The restricting portion 13b protrudes from the lower end of the side wall 13 toward the side wall 12. The left-right ends of the support plate 91 abut against the upper surfaces of the restricting portions 12b and 13b, restricting the downward rotation of the support plate 91.

[0037] When the pivot shaft 91a is located at the lower end of the opening 12a of the side wall 12 and the opening (not shown) of the side wall 13, and the downward pivoting is restricted by the restricting portions 12b and 13b (hereinafter referred to as the "restricted state"), the support plate 91 assumes a posture in which the direction connecting the front end and the rear end is substantially the same as the conveying direction. When the support plate 91 is in the restricted state, the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1 and the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 are spaced apart, and a space is secured between the bottom surface 11a and the support plate 91.

[0038] As shown in Fig. 3 and Figs. 5(a) and (b), the bottom wall 11 and support plate 91 of the feed tray 1 define an introduction path I that introduces the roll paper Rp unwound from the roll body R stored in the first storage section 8. That is, the roll paper Rp unwound from the roll body R passes below the second storage section 9 (support plate 91). The bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1 is the transport surface along which the roll paper Rp is transported and can abut against the underside of the roll paper Rp. The introduction path I extends along the transport direction from near the first storage section 8, through the transport position of the feed roller 2, to the end of the bottom wall 11 of the feed tray 1 downstream in the transport direction.

[0039] The roll paper Rp that has been unwound from the roll body R and sent out to the rear of the support base 81 is fed into the introduction path I from the upstream end of the introduction path I in the transport direction. Here, a rotating shaft 91a of the support plate 91 is provided at the upstream end in the transport direction that serves as the entrance of the introduction path I. As described above, the rotating shaft 91a is movable up and down within the opening 12a of the side wall 12 and the opening (not shown) of the side wall 13. Therefore, when the roll paper Rp is fed into the introduction path I, the rotating shaft 91a is pushed upward by the roll paper Rp whose leading end is curled, as shown by the dashed line in FIG. 3. As a result, the upstream end of the support plate 91 in the transport direction is raised, and the entrance of the introduction path I becomes wider.

[0040] As shown in Figs. 2 and 4, the support plate 91 has cutouts 91b and 91c. The cutout 91b is formed at the end of the support plate 91 on the downstream side in the conveying direction. In a top view, the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 is located within the cutout 91b. The cutouts 91c are formed at both ends of the support plate 91 in the left-right direction. The first portion 17a of the side guide 17 is located within the cutout 91c. The lower end of the first portion 17a is located below the support plate 91, and the upper end of the first portion 17a is located above the support plate 91. The first portion 17a of the side guide 17 moves in the left-right direction within the range of the cutout 91c.

[0041] 2 and 4, the pair of side guides 17 are in positions where the lower contact surfaces 19 do not overlap the support plate 91 when viewed from above. The pair of side guides 17 move in directions approaching each other from the positions shown in Figures 2 and 4, so that the lower contact surfaces 19 overlap the support plate 91 when viewed from above.

[0042] 5(b), a height position H1 of the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 in the restricted state is higher than a height position H2 of the lower abutment surface 19 of the side guide 17. Therefore, the side guide 17 does not come into contact with the support plate 91 even when the lower abutment surface 19 is in a position overlapping with the support plate 91 in a top view.

[0043] The feeding tray 1 is equipped with a bending mechanism 20 that bends the roll paper Rp unwound from the roll body R in the width direction. The bending mechanism 20 is composed of an upper surface 16a and an inclined surface 16b of the convex portion 16, a lower surface 91d of the support plate 91, and each lower abutment surface 19 of the pair of side guides 17. The upper surface 16a and the inclined surface 16b of the convex portion 16 can abut against the lower surface of the roll paper Rp passing through the introduction path I. The upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91, and each lower abutment surface 19 of the pair of side guides 17 correspond to the first plane, the second plane, and the third plane of the present invention, respectively.

[0044] As shown in FIG. 5B, the height position H1 of the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 in the regulated state is lower than the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16. As shown in FIG. 3, the inclined surface 16b connected to the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16 has a downstream end in the transport direction located above the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91, and an upstream end in the transport direction located below the lower surface of the support plate 91. Also, as shown in FIG. 5B, the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16 is higher than the height position H2 of the lower abutment surface 19 of the side guide 17. The height position H2 of the lower abutment surface 19 of the side guide 17 is higher than the height position H4 of the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1. Also, the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16 is higher than the height position H5 of the upper surface of the support plate 91 in the regulated state.

[0045] In region A (see Figs. 3 and 4) where the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 and the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 overlap in the front-rear direction, the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 is located on both the left and right sides of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16. Therefore, in region A, the lower surface of the roll paper Rp fed in the introduction path I abuts against the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, and is pressed down by the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 on both the left and right sides of the upper surface 16a. As a result, the roll paper Rp has a bent shape with a convex shape that protrudes upward in the center of its width direction. By forming a convex shape in the center of the width direction of the roll paper Rp, curling in the longitudinal direction of the roll paper Rp can be mitigated. In addition, the stiffness of the roll paper Rp can be increased.

[0046] 3 and 4, region A can be divided into region B, which is a region where the lower abutment surface 19 of side guide 17 is disposed, and region C, which is a region where the lower abutment surface 19 of side guide 17 is not disposed. As shown in Fig. 3, region B is located downstream of inclined surface 16b in the conveying direction and upstream of feed roller 2. Feed roller 2 is located in region C in the conveying direction.

[0047] 4, in region B, support plates 91 are located on both left and right sides of convex portion 16. Furthermore, lower contact surfaces 19 of side guides 17 are located on the opposite side of convex portion 16 from the support plates 91 located on both left and right sides of convex portion 16. Therefore, in region B, roll paper Rp sent within introduction path I is pushed down by lower surfaces 91d of support plates 91 on both left and right sides of convex portion 16, and is pushed up by lower contact surfaces 19 of side guides 17 on the opposite side of convex portion 16 from the support plates 91.

[0048] As a result, the roll paper Rp has a corrugated shape, which is a curved shape having an upwardly protruding convex shape located in the center of the width direction and upwardly protruding convex shapes located on both sides of the upwardly protruding convex shape in the width direction, as shown in Fig. 5(b). By making the roll paper Rp corrugated, curling in the longitudinal direction of the roll paper Rp can be reliably mitigated. Also, the stiffness of the roll paper Rp can be further increased.

[0049] In area C, there is no lower contact surface 19 of the side guide 17, so the roll paper Rp has a bent shape with only one convex shape that protrudes upward in the center of its width direction. Even with a bent shape with only one convex shape, it is possible to reduce curling in the longitudinal direction of the roll paper Rp and increase the stiffness of the roll paper Rp.

[0050] Here, an example of the procedure for setting the roll paper Rp on the feed tray 1 will be described. First, the feed tray 1 is pulled in the direction from rear to front and removed from the housing 100a. Then, the cover 82 of the first storage section 8 is rotated to expose the storage space for the roll body R in the first storage section 8, and the roll body R is supported by the support base 81. Next, the roll body R is manually rotated to unwind the roll paper Rp from the roll body R, and the leading end of the roll paper Rp is fed to the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 on the bottom surface 11a.

[0051] The roll paper Rp unwound from the roll body R is first sent from the front side of the support stand 81 to the rear side of the support stand 81 through the gap G below the support stand 81. The roll paper Rp is then sent into an introduction path I defined by the bottom wall 11 of the feed tray 1 and the support plate 91 while moving upward the pivot shaft 91a at the end of the support plate 91 on the upstream side in the transport direction.

[0052] When the roll paper Rp reaches the position in the introduction path I where the side guide 17 is arranged, its underside comes into contact with the lower contact surface 19 of the side guide 17. At this time, both ends of the roll paper Rp in the width direction are pushed up by the lower contact surface 19 of the side guide 17. Furthermore, the leading edge of the roll paper Rp runs up the inclined surface 16b of the convex portion 16 to reach the upper surface 16a. At this time, the center of the roll paper Rp in the width direction is pushed up by the inclined surface 16b from height position H4 of the bottom surface 11a to height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16.

[0053] When the roll paper Rp reaches the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, the center portion in the width direction of the roll paper Rp abuts against the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 in region B, the roll paper Rp is pressed down on both left and right sides of the convex portion 16 by the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91, and both width direction ends of the roll paper Rp are pressed up by the lower abutment surfaces 19 of the side guides 17. This causes the roll paper Rp to take on a corrugated shape. In region C, the center portion in the width direction of the roll paper Rp abuts against the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, and the roll paper Rp is pressed down on both left and right sides of the convex portion 16 by the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91, resulting in a bent shape having only one convex shape.

[0054] Next, an example of the procedure for feeding the roll paper Rp from the feed tray 1 will be described. First, after the roll paper Rp is set in the feed tray 1 using the procedure described above, the left-right positions of the pair of side guides 17 are adjusted so that both ends of the roll paper Rp in the width direction abut against the side abutment surfaces 18. Then, the feed tray 1 is attached to the housing 100a without storing cut paper Kp in the second storage section 9. By attaching the feed tray 1 to the housing 100a, the feed roller 2 comes into contact with a portion of the roll paper Rp that is located on the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16. More specifically, the feed roller 2 comes into contact with the roll paper Rp in area C downstream of area B.

[0055] At this time, as described above, the roll paper Rp placed on the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 is corrugated in the region B by the bending mechanism 20. This reduces curling in the longitudinal direction of the roll paper Rp. This prevents jamming due to curling when the feed roller 2 comes into contact with the roll paper Rp in region C downstream of region B. The roll paper Rp maintains its bent shape in the vicinity of region C even after passing through regions B and C. This also prevents jamming downstream of region C in the transport direction. After that, the feed motor is driven to rotate the feed roller 2, applying a transport force to the roll paper Rp, and the roll paper Rp is sent out from the feed tray 1.

[0056] Note that when an image is not immediately formed on the roll paper Rp or when an image is formed on cut paper Kp, after the roll paper Rp has been set, the feed tray 1 can be attached to the housing 100a with the cut paper Kp stored in the second storage section 9. In this case, when an image is to be formed on the roll paper Rp, the feed tray 1 is pulled out from the housing 100a again, the cut paper Kp is removed from the second storage section 9, and then the feed tray 1 is attached to the housing 100a.

[0057] Next, an example of a procedure for feeding the cut sheets Kp from the feed tray 1 will be described. First, the feed tray 1 is pulled out from the housing 100a, and a plurality of stacked cut sheets Kp are placed on the upper surface of the support plate 91. Then, the left-right positions of the pair of side guides 17 are adjusted so that both ends of the cut sheets Kp in the width direction abut against the side abutment surfaces 18. Thereafter, the feed tray 1 is attached to the housing 100a. By attaching the feed tray 1 to the housing 100a, the feed roller 2 comes into contact with the uppermost cut sheet Kp among the plurality of stacked cut sheets Kp. Thereafter, the feed motor is driven to rotate the feed roller 2, thereby applying a conveying force to the cut sheets Kp, and the cut sheets Kp are fed from the feed tray 1.

[0058] (Effects of the embodiment) As described above, the feeding mechanism 3 installed in the printer 100 of this embodiment includes a feeding tray 1 capable of accommodating a roll R of paper wound in a roll shape. The feeding tray 1 includes a bending mechanism 20 that bends the roll paper Rp unwound from the roll R so that the roll paper Rp has a bent shape with at least one convex shape in the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the unwinding direction.

[0059] In the above-described configuration, the bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp that is unwound from the roll body R, thereby preventing curling in the longitudinal direction of the roll paper Rp. It also increases the stiffness of the roll paper Rp. This makes it possible to prevent instability in the transport of the roll paper Rp.

[0060] The feeding mechanism 3 of the above embodiment further includes a feeding roller 2 that comes into contact with the roll paper Rp and feeds it out. The bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp so that the portion of the roll paper Rp that comes into contact with the feeding roller 2, i.e., the central portion of the width direction of the roll paper Rp located in area C, has a convex shape that protrudes upward. This reliably prevents curling of the portion of the roll paper Rp that comes into contact with the feeding roller 2. This allows the feeding roller 2 to properly transport the roll paper Rp.

[0061] Furthermore, in the feeding mechanism 3 of the above-described embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp into a corrugated shape with three upwardly protruding convex shapes in region B upstream of the feeding roller 2 in the direction in which the roll paper Rp is transported by the feeding roller 2. By giving the roll paper Rp a corrugated shape in region B, curling in the longitudinal direction is reduced. Therefore, when the feeding roller 2 comes into contact with the roll paper Rp downstream of region B, it is possible to prevent jams caused by curling.

[0062] Additionally, in the feeding mechanism 3 of the above-described embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 has an upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 that can come into contact with the underside of the rolled paper Rp at the center in the width direction of the rolled paper Rp, and a lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 that is located on either side of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 in the width direction and can press down on the rolled paper Rp. Therefore, by pressing down the rolled paper Rp with the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 while the underside of the rolled paper Rp is in contact with the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, the center in the width direction of the rolled paper Rp can be made into a convex shape.

[0063] In the feeding mechanism 3 of the above-described embodiment, the support plate 91 supports the stacked cut sheets Kp from below. The rolled paper Rp unwound from the roll R passes below the support plate 91. Therefore, the rolled paper Rp can be bent by using the support plate 91 that supports the cut sheets Kp.

[0064] In the feeding mechanism 3 of the above-described embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 is connected to the upstream end of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 in the transport direction, and has an inclined surface 16b that is gradually inclined downward toward the upstream side in the transport direction. Therefore, the inclined surface 16b can push up the roll paper Rp fed in the transport direction up to the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16.

[0065] Additionally, in the feeding mechanism of the above-described embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 is located on either side of the support plate 91 in the width direction, and has lower contact surfaces 19 of a pair of side guides 17 that can push up the roll paper Rp. Therefore, by pushing up the roll paper Rp with the lower contact surfaces 19, the roll paper Rp can be bent so that further convex shapes are formed on both sides of the convex shape formed in the center of the roll paper Rp in the width direction. This makes it possible to further increase the stiffness of the roll paper Rp.

[0066] Furthermore, in the feeding mechanism 3 of the embodiment described above, the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 is higher than the height position H2 of the lower contact surface 19 of the side guide 17. Therefore, the height of the convex shape formed in the center of the width direction of the roll paper Rp is higher than the height of the convex shapes formed on both sides of it. By bending the roll paper Rp in the width direction by the bending mechanism 20, the width of the roll paper Rp becomes shorter than when the roll paper Rp is flat in the width direction. If the width of the roll paper Rp becomes narrow, the transport of the roll paper Rp may become unstable. Therefore, by increasing the convex shape of the center of the roll paper Rp, which is relatively important, while decreasing the convex shapes on both sides of the convex shape of the center, which is relatively less important, the reduction in the width of the roll paper Rp can be kept to a minimum. Therefore, it is possible to suppress instability in the transport of the roll paper Rp caused by the reduction in the width of the roll paper Rp.

[0067] Additionally, the feeding mechanism 3 of the above-described embodiment further includes a pair of side guides 17 spaced apart in the width direction, the side guides 17 having side contact surfaces 18 that can come into contact with the widthwise ends of the roll paper Rp, and a lower contact surface 19 that is connected to the side contact surfaces 18 and can come into contact with the lower surface of the roll paper Rp. Therefore, the side guides 17 can be used to bend the roll paper Rp in the width direction.

[0068] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above based on the drawings, the specific configuration should not be considered to be limited to these embodiments. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims rather than the description of the above embodiments, and further includes all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

[0069] In the above embodiment, the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16 is higher than the height position H5 of the upper surface of the support plate 91 in the regulated state. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, in the bending mechanism 220 of the feed tray 201 according to the first modified example of the above embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the height position H6 of the upper surface 216a of the protrusion 216 is lower than the height position H5 of the upper surface of the support plate 91 in the regulated state.

[0070] In the above embodiment, the description has been given of a case in which restricting portions 12b, 13b that restrict downward rotation of support plate 91 are formed and a space is provided between bottom surface 11a and support plate 91, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, in feed tray 301 according to a second modified example of the above embodiment shown in FIG. 7, a restricting portion that restricts downward rotation of support plate 391 is not provided, and when roll paper Rp is not set, support plate 391 contacts bottom surface 11a of feed tray 301.

[0071] In the feeding tray 301, when the lower contact surfaces 19 of the pair of side guides 17 are positioned so as not to overlap with the support plate 391 in a top view, the height position of the upper surface of the support plate 391 is substantially the same as the height position of the lower contact surfaces 19 of the side guides 17. Therefore, the cut paper Kp stored in the second storage section 9 can be supported straight by the upper surfaces of the support plate 391 and the lower contact surfaces 19 of the side guides 17.

[0072] In addition, in the feeding tray 301, when the lower abutment surfaces 19 of the pair of side guides 17 move to positions overlapping with the support plate 391 in a top view, the inclined surfaces 17c formed on the left and right ends of the second portions 17b of the side guides 17 abut against the support plate 391, the support plate 391 is pushed upward by the inclined surfaces 17c, and finally the lower abutment surfaces 19 of the side guides 17 abut against the lower surface 391d of the support plate 391. As a result, the support plate 391 rotates upward.

[0073] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a case has been described in which the height position H1 of the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 in the regulated state is lower than the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, but this is not limited to the above. The height position H1 of the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 may be equal to or higher than the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, so long as it is possible to press down both sides of the portion of the roll paper Rp that is in contact with the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16. That is, for example, the height position H1 of the lower surface 91d of the support plate 91 may be higher than the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, so long as it is less than the thickness of the roll paper Rp.

[0074] In the above embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp in a corrugated shape in region B, which is a bent shape having three convex shapes protruding upward in the width direction, and in region C, which is located downstream of region B in the transport direction, the roll paper Rp is bent in a shape having one convex shape protruding upward in the width direction, but this is not limited to the above. The bending mechanism 20 may bend the roll paper Rp into the same bent shape in both region B and region C. Also, the number of convex shapes formed by the bending mechanism 20 in the width direction on the roll paper Rp needs to be at least one. Therefore, two convex shapes may be formed, or four or more convex shapes may be formed. Also, the shape may be one in which one convex shape protruding downward is formed.

[0075] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp in area C including the area where the feed roller 2 contacts the roll paper Rp, and in area B adjacent to area C upstream of area C in the conveying direction, but the area in which the bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp is not limited to this.

[0076] In the above embodiment, the feed roller 2 contacts the center of the width of the roll paper Rp, but this is not limited to the above. That is, the position of the roll paper Rp where the feed roller 2 contacts does not have to be the center. Furthermore, multiple feed rollers 2 may be arranged in the width direction of the roll paper Rp.

[0077] Additionally, in the above embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 bends the roll paper Rp so that a convex shape that protrudes upward is formed at the portion of the roll paper Rp that comes into contact with the feed roller 2, but this is not limited to the above. That is, for example, the bending mechanism 20 may form a convex shape that protrudes downward at the portion of the roll paper Rp that comes into contact with the feed roller 2. Also, the bending mechanism 20 does not have to form a convex shape at the portion of the roll paper Rp that comes into contact with the feed roller 2.

[0078] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the support plate 91 supporting the cut paper Kp is used to press down both sides of the central portion of the roll paper Rp that abuts against the upper surface 16a of the protrusion 16, but this is not limited to the above. That is, for example, a protrusion may be formed in the central portion in the width direction below the support base 81 on the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1, and both sides of the portion of the roll paper Rp that abuts against the upper surface of this protrusion may be pressed down with the underside of the support base 81.

[0079] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 is connected to the end portion on the upstream side in the conveying direction of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16, and has an inclined surface 16b that is gradually inclined downward toward the upstream side in the conveying direction, but the inclined surface 16b may not be present.

[0080] In the above embodiment, the bending mechanism 20 is located on both sides of the support plate 91 in the width direction, and has the lower contact surfaces 19 of the pair of side guides 17 that can push up the roll paper Rp, but this is not limited to the above. That is, for example, the roll paper Rp may be pushed up on both sides of the support plate 91 in the width direction by the upper surface of a convex portion formed on the bottom surface 11a of the feed tray 1.

[0081] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the height position H3 of the upper surface 16a of the convex portion 16 is higher than the height position H2 of the lower abutment surface 19 of the side guide 17, but the height position H3 may be lower than the height position H1.

[0082] The present invention can be applied to image forming apparatuses in general that are equipped with a feeding mechanism having a feeding tray capable of accommodating a roll of medium. The sheet-like medium is not limited to paper, and may be any other sheet-like medium such as cloth. [Explanation of symbols]

[0083] 1 Feeding tray 2 Feeding roller 3 Feeding mechanism 16a Top surface (first plane) 16b Slope 17 Side guide 18 Side abutment surface 19 Lower contact surface (3rd plane) 20 Bending mechanism 91 Support plate (support member) 91d Bottom surface (2nd plane) 100 Printers (image forming devices) Kp cut paper (cut media) R Roll Body Rp roll paper (roll media)

Claims

1. A feeding mechanism including a feeding tray capable of accommodating a roll of sheet-like medium, a bending mechanism that bends the roll medium, which is a sheet-like medium unwound from the roll body, so that the roll medium has a bent shape having at least one convex shape in a width direction that is a direction perpendicular to the unwinding direction; a feed roller that contacts the roll medium and feeds the roll medium, The feeding mechanism is characterized in that the bending mechanism bends the roll medium so that at least a portion of the roll medium that comes into contact with the feeding roller has a convex shape.

2. The feeding mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the bending mechanism bends the roll medium upstream of the feeding roller in a direction in which the feeding roller transports the roll medium.

3. 3. The feeding mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the feeding roller contacts a central portion of the roll medium in the width direction.

4. The feeding mechanism described in claim 3, characterized in that the bending mechanism has a first plane that can abut the underside of the roll medium at the center of the width of the roll medium, and a pair of second planes that are located on either side of the first plane in the width direction and can press down on the roll medium.

5. The sheet-like medium conveying device further includes a support member that supports the plurality of stacked sheet-like media from below, The roll medium unwound from the roll body passes under the support member, 5. The feeding mechanism according to claim 4, wherein the second plane is provided on a lower surface of the support member.

6. The feeding mechanism described in claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the bending mechanism is connected to an upstream end of the first plane in the transport direction of the roll medium by the feed roller and has an inclined surface that is gradually inclined downward toward the upstream side of the transport direction.

7. The feeding mechanism of any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the bending mechanism has a pair of third planes located on either side of the pair of second planes in the width direction and capable of pushing up the roll medium.

8. 8. The feeding mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the first plane is located at a height higher than the height of the third plane.

9. The roll medium further includes a pair of side guides spaced apart in the width direction, the side guides having side contact surfaces capable of contacting the widthwise ends of the roll medium and a lower contact surface connected to the side contact surfaces and capable of contacting the lower surface of the roll medium, 9. The feeding mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the third plane is the lower contact surface of the side guide.

10. 10. An image forming apparatus comprising the feeding mechanism according to claim 1.

11. A feed tray that is provided in a feed mechanism having a feed roller that feeds a roll medium, the roll medium being a sheet-like medium unwound from a roll body, and that is capable of accommodating the roll body, a bending mechanism for bending the roll medium so that the roll medium has a bent shape having at least one convex shape in a width direction that is a direction perpendicular to a direction in which the roll medium is unwound, The feeding tray is characterized in that the bending mechanism bends the roll medium so that at least a portion of the roll medium that comes into contact with the feeding roller has a convex shape.

Images