Compound machine

Abstract

To provide a multi-functional printer that can improve operability and reduce its size in the vertical direction.SOLUTION: A multi-functional printer 1 comprises: an image reading unit 2; an image forming unit 5; a lower housing 50 that accommodates the image forming unit 5; and an upper housing 20 that accommodates the image reading unit 2. The upper housing 20 is connected with the lower housing 50 at a rear end 20B and can rotate between a placement position and an elevated position. The upper housing 20 has an operation panel 10 projecting frontward beyond a front wall part 20F. An undersurface 20D of the upper housing 20 has a contact and separation part 25 that is in contact with the lower housing 50 with the upper housing 20 being at the placement position and is separated from the lower housing 50 with the upper housing 20 being at the elevated position. A panel undersurface 10D of the operation panel 10 has a groove 70 that is depressed upward. The groove 70 has a first groove 71 that is located between the contact and separation part 25 and a panel front end 10F of the operation panel 10.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a multifunction peripheral. [Background technology]

[0002] A laser printer, which is an example of a conventional multifunction device, is disclosed in Patent Document 1. This laser printer includes an image reading unit, an image forming section, a printer housing, and a document table.

[0003] The document table has an opening / closing grip and an operating portion. The opening / closing grip protrudes forward beyond the front wall of the document table. The operating portion is located on the upper surface of the opening / closing grip.

[0004] The document table has legs on its bottom surface. The legs protrude downward from the bottom surface of the document table. The lower surfaces of the legs have contact and separation portions. The contact and separation portions abut against the printer housing when the document table is in the closed position, and separate from the printer housing when the document table is in the open position.

[0005] The front end faces of the legs extend downward at a position rearward away from the front end of the opening / closing grip. The front end faces of the legs prevent a user's hand from reaching the contact part when trying to place his or her hand on the opening / closing grip. This prevents the user's hand from getting caught between the contact part and the printer housing, improving operability of the laser printer. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2008-107637 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, in the conventional laser printers described above, the legs must protrude significantly downward from the bottom surface of the document table in order to prevent the user's hands from reaching the contact section, and since the legs are bulky in the vertical direction, it is difficult to achieve miniaturization in the vertical direction.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned conventional circumstances, and has an object to provide a multifunction peripheral that can realize improved operability and a reduced vertical size. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The multifunction peripheral of the present invention includes an image reading unit having a reading sensor for reading an image of a document; an image forming unit that is located below the image reading unit and forms an image on a sheet; a lower housing that houses the image forming unit; an upper housing that houses the image reading unit, the upper housing having a front wall portion that extends in a left-right direction and is located forward of a rear end portion of the upper housing; the upper housing has a rear end connected to the lower housing, and is rotatable about a rotation axis extending in the left-right direction between a placement position in which the front wall portion is placed on the lower housing and a raised position in which the front wall portion is higher than the placement position; the upper housing has an operation panel that protrudes forward from the front wall portion, a lower surface of the upper housing has a contact-separation portion that comes into contact with the lower housing when the upper housing is in the mounting position and that is separated from the lower housing when the upper housing is in the raised position; The lower surface of the operation panel has an upwardly recessed groove, The groove has a first groove located between the contact portion and a front end portion of the operation panel.

[0010] In the multifunction device of the present invention, when a user tries to put his / her hand on the operation panel, the fingertip moving while touching the bottom surface of the operation panel enters the first groove of the operation panel just before the contact part, so that the hand can be prevented from reaching the contact part. This makes it possible to prevent the multifunction device from having the hand pinched between the contact part and the lower housing.

[0011] In addition, this multifunction device does not have legs that protrude significantly downward from the underside of the upper housing to prevent the user's hands from reaching the attachment / detachment portion, and there is no problem of such legs being bulky in the vertical direction.

[0012] Therefore, the multifunction peripheral of the present invention can achieve improved operability and a reduced vertical size. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a multifunction peripheral according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a partial front view of the multifunction peripheral according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the multifunction peripheral of the first embodiment, showing a state in which the document cover is in an open position. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the multifunction peripheral of the first embodiment, showing a state in which the upper housing is in a raised position. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the multifunction peripheral of the first embodiment, showing a state in which the upper housing is in a raised position. [Figure 6] 2 is a partial perspective view mainly showing the lower surface of the upper housing, the panel lower surface of the operation panel, the contact / separation portion, and the groove. FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the cross section AA of FIG. 2. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the cross section BB of FIG. [Figure 9] 2 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an upper housing and an operation panel with the casing and the like removed. FIG. [Figure 10]2 is an exploded perspective view showing a casing of an operation panel, a touch panel, a touch panel holder metal plate, an LCD panel, a touch panel holder, a shielding metal plate, a substrate, etc. FIG. [Figure 11] 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a touch panel, a touch panel holder metal plate, and an LCD panel are attached to a casing of an operation panel. FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a partial front view showing a modified example of the arrangement of the operation panel. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view of a multifunction peripheral according to a second embodiment. [Figure 15] 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of a multifunction peripheral according to a second embodiment, showing a cross section similar to that of FIG. 7. [Figure 16] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, first and second embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0015] Example 1 As shown in Fig. 1, the multifunction device 1 of Example 1 is an example of a specific embodiment of the multifunction device of the present invention. In Fig. 1, the side on which the operation panel 10 is arranged is defined as the front of the device, and the side to the left when facing the operation panel 10 is defined as the left, and the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions are displayed. The directions shown in Fig. 2 and subsequent figures are all displayed in correspondence with the directions shown in Fig. 1. The left side is an example of "one of the left and right directions" of the present invention. The right side is an example of "the other of the left and right directions" of the present invention.

[0016] <Overall composition> As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the multifunction device 1 includes a lower housing 50, an upper housing 20, a document cover 30, an image forming section 5, and an image reading section 2. As shown in FIG.

[0017] As shown in Fig. 1, the lower housing 50 is substantially box-shaped. As shown in Fig. 4, the upper surface of the lower housing 50 has a discharge tray 55, a left support portion 57L, and a right support portion 57R. The discharge tray 55 is located in the center of the upper surface of the lower housing 50 in the left-right direction.

[0018] The left support portion 57L is located to the left of the discharge tray 55 on the upper surface side of the lower housing 50. The left support portion 57L protrudes upward beyond the discharge tray 55 and extends in the front-rear direction.

[0019] The left support portion 57L has a contact portion 57L1 and a positioning recess 58. The contact portion 57L1 is located on an upwardly facing surface at the front end of the left support portion 57L, and protrudes slightly upward from the upper surface of the left support portion 57L.

[0020] The abutment portion 57L1 extends in the left-right direction at the front end of the left support portion 57L so as to surround the outer periphery of the front end side of the left support portion 57L, and is in the form of a rib extending rearward from both ends of the portion extending in the left-right direction. The positioning recess 58 is recessed downward from the upward surface at the front end of the left support portion 57L. The positioning recess 58 has a circular inner peripheral edge. The abutment portion 57L1 surrounds the positioning recess 58.

[0021] The left support portion 57L extends to the rear end portion 50B of the lower housing 50. The surface of the left support portion 57L facing leftward forms an upper portion of the left side surface of the lower housing 50.

[0022] The right support portion 57R is located to the right of the discharge tray 55 on the upper surface side of the lower housing 50. The right support portion 57R protrudes upward beyond the discharge tray 55 and extends in the front-rear direction.

[0023] The right support portion 57R has an abutment portion 57R1. The abutment portion 57R1 is a surface facing upward at the front end of the right support portion 57R. As shown in Fig. 5, the surface facing right of the right support portion 57R forms an upper portion of the right side surface of the lower housing 50. The right support portion 57R extends to the rear end portion 50B of the lower housing 50.

[0024] Although not shown, the lower housing 50 has a rear wall that extends in the left-right direction and forms the rear end 50B. The rear wall connects the rear ends of the left support portion 57L and the right support portion 57R.

[0025] The lower housing 50 houses the image forming unit 5. The image forming unit 5 has a well-known configuration, so illustrations and explanations will be simplified. The image forming unit 5 forms an image on a sheet by an inkjet method, an electrophotographic method, or the like, and discharges the sheet onto a discharge tray 55.

[0026] 1 and 2, the upper housing 20 is located above the lower housing 50. The upper housing 20 is a flat, generally box-shaped body whose vertical length is significantly smaller than that of the lower housing 50.

[0027] 5 and 6, the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20 is a substantially flat surface. The multifunction device 1 does not have legs that protrude significantly downward from the lower surface 20D of the housing 20 toward the left support part 57L and the right support part 57R in order to prevent the user's hand from reaching the contact part 25 described later.

[0028] The upper housing 20 has a front wall portion 20F. The front wall portion 20F extends in the left-right direction and is located forward of the rear end portion 20B of the upper housing 20. The rear end portion 20B of the upper housing 20 is connected to the rear end portion 50B of the lower housing 50 via a hinge (not shown) that defines a rotation axis X20 extending in the left-right direction.

[0029] The upper housing 20 is rotatable about a rotation axis X20 between a placement position shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and 7 and a raised position shown in FIGS.

[0030] 2, when the upper housing 20 is in the placement position, the front wall 20F side of the upper housing 20 rests on the abutment portion 57L1 of the left support portion 57L and the abutment portion 57R1 of the right support portion 57R of the lower housing 50. In this state, the multifunction device 1 is capable of performing an image forming operation by the image forming unit 5.

[0031] 4, when the upper housing 20 is in the raised position, the front wall 20F is spaced upward from the left support portion 57L and the right support portion 57R and is higher than the placement position. In this state, the user can easily perform operations such as removing the sheets discharged onto the discharge tray 55.

[0032] 5 and 6, the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20 has a positioning protrusion 28 and a contact / separation portion 25. The positioning protrusion 28 protrudes downward from a position facing the positioning recess 58 on the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20. The positioning protrusion 28 has a cylindrical base and a generally truncated cone shape below the base.

[0033] The contact-separation portion 25 is located on the front wall portion 20F side and on the left end side of the bottom surface 20D of the upper housing 20, and protrudes slightly downward from the bottom surface 20D of the upper housing 20. The contact-separation portion 25 is shaped like a rib that extends in the left-right direction in front of the positioning protrusion 28 so as to surround the positioning protrusion 28, and further extends rearward from both ends of the portion extending in the left-right direction. The amount of protrusion of the contact-separation portion 25 is smaller than the amount of protrusion of the positioning protrusion 28.

[0034] 2, when the upper housing 20 is in the mounting position, the contact / separation part 25 contacts from above the contact part 57L1 of the left support part 57L of the lower housing 50. At this time, the cylindrical part at the base of the positioning protrusion 28 fits into the circular inner peripheral edge of the positioning recess 58, so that the position of the upper housing 20 in the front-rear and left-right directions relative to the lower housing 50 is determined. Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 5, when the upper housing 20 is in the raised position, the contact / separation part 25 moves upward away from the contact part 57L1 of the left support part 57L of the lower housing 50.

[0035] As shown in Fig. 3, the upper housing 20 houses the image reading unit 2. In other words, the image forming unit 5 is located lower than the image reading unit 2. The front wall 20F covers the image reading unit 2 from the front. The image reading unit 2 is also a well-known configuration, so illustration and description will be simplified. The image reading unit 2 has a document support surface 2A, a reading surface 2B, and a reading sensor 2S.

[0036] The document support surface 2A is the upper surface of a large-area platen glass located on the upper surface of the upper housing 20. One edge 2A1 of the rectangular document support surface 2A is located on the rear end 20B side of the upper housing 20 and extends in the left-right direction. The document support surface 2A supports a document to be read. The document to be read is a sheet such as paper or an OHP sheet, or a book.

[0037] The reading surface 2B is the upper surface of a platen glass that is elongated in the front-rear direction and located to the left of the document support surface 2A. The reading surface 2B is used when the transport unit 3, which will be described later, is in operation.

[0038] When the image reading unit 2 reads an image of a document supported on the document support surface 2A, the reading sensor 2S moves left and right below the document support surface 2A, i.e., in the main scanning direction, while reading the image of the document in a line shape in the front and rear direction, i.e., in the sub-scanning direction. When the transport unit 3, which will be described later, is operated, the reading sensor 2S moves below the reading surface 2B and stops.

[0039] 1 and 2, the document cover 30 is located above the upper housing 20. The bottom surface of the document cover 30 is a flat surface having substantially the same shape as the top surface of the upper housing 20.

[0040] A rear end 30B of the document cover 30 is connected to a rear end 20B of the upper housing 20 via a hinge (not shown) that defines an opening / closing axis X30 extending in the left-right direction.

[0041] The document cover 30 is rotatable about an opening / closing axis X30 between a closed position shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 4 to 7, and an open position shown in FIG.

[0042] 1, when the document cover 30 is in the closed position, it covers the entire upper surface, including the document support surface 2A, of the upper housing 20. In this state, the document cover 30 brings the document supported on the document support surface 2A into close contact with the document support surface 2A, and prevents external light from reaching the reading sensor 2S.

[0043] 3, when the document cover 30 is in the open position, it moves upward from the top surface of the upper housing 20 to expose the document support surface 2A. In this state, the user can place a document on the document support surface 2A and remove the document.

[0044] 1 and 2, the document cover 30 has a supply tray 31, a discharge tray 32, and a transport section 3. The supply tray 31 and the discharge tray 32 are located on the right side of the document cover 30.

[0045] The supply tray 31 is located above the discharge tray 32. The supply tray 31 supports sheet-shaped documents to be read in a stacked state. The supply tray 31 has side guides 34A and 34B.

[0046] 1, the side guides 34A, 34B are slidable in the front-rear direction. The side guides 34 slide toward and away from each other to position the documents on the supply tray 31 in the front-rear direction.

[0047] 2, the transport unit 3 is located inside the left portion of the document cover 30. The transport unit 3 is also a well-known configuration, so illustration and description will be simplified. The transport unit 3 transports the documents on the supply tray 31 one by one toward the reading sensor 2S stationary below the reading surface 2B, passes the documents over the reading surface 2B, causes the reading sensor 2S to read the image of the documents, and then discharges the documents onto the discharge tray 32.

[0048] 2 is an imaginary line that extends vertically and passes through the left-right center of the upper housing 20 and the left-right center of the document cover 30. That is, in this embodiment, the left-right center of the upper housing 20 and the left-right center of the document cover 30 coincide with each other.

[0049] <Handle recess> 1 to 3, the document cover 30 has a handle recess 40. The handle recess 40 is an example of a "handle portion".

[0050] The handhold recess 40 is located above the front wall 20F of the upper housing 20. The handhold recess 40 is located in an area including the center in the left-right direction of the document cover 30, that is, an area including the center line C1 shown in FIG.

[0051] 3 and 6, the handle recess 40 is recessed backward from the cover front end 30F of the document cover 30 so as to approach the opening / closing axis X30. The handle recess 40 is recessed upward from the bottom surface of the document cover 30. The handle recess 40 defines a space that is elongated in the left-right direction by its inner wall surface and opens forward and downward at the cover front end 30F of the document cover 30.

[0052] The handle recess 40 has an upper handle inner wall surface 40U and a handle inner wall surface 40S. The upper handle inner wall surface 40U is an inner wall surface that is located at the upper part of the inner wall surfaces of the handle recess 40 and faces downward. The handle inner wall surface 40S is an inner wall surface that is located on the left side of the inner wall surfaces of the handle recess 40 and faces right. The handle inner wall surface 40S is an example of a "handle side end portion".

[0053] A user can insert his / her fingertips into the handle recess 40 and place his / her hands on the upper handle inner wall surface 40U of the handle recess 40. The handle recess 40 receives a rotation operation by the user with respect to the document cover 30, that is, a manual operation for rotating the document cover 30 between the closed position shown in FIG. 1 and the open position shown in FIG.

[0054] 1 and 2, the handhold recess 40 is located so as to overlap with the side guides 34A and 34B in the left-right direction. This allows the user to extend his / her hands in the same direction when placing his / her hands on the upper handhold inner wall surface 40U of the handhold recess 40 and when operating the side guides 34A and 34B.

[0055] <Operation panel> 3, the upper housing 20 has an operation panel 10. The operation panel 10 protrudes forward from a front wall portion 20F of the upper housing 20. An upper surface 10U of the operation panel 10 gently slopes downward and forward from an upper end of the front wall portion 20F of the upper housing 20 to an upper end of a panel front end portion 10F of the operation panel 10.

[0056] The operation panel 10 has a panel side end 10S. The panel side end 10S is a side surface located on the right side of the operation panel 10. The panel side end 10S faces to the right and extends in a generally flat shape in the front-rear and up-down directions.

[0057] 2, the operation panel 10 is located to the left of the center line C1 and further to the left of the handhold recess 40. As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 6, the panel side end 10S of the operation panel 10 is located at a position coinciding with the handhold inner wall surface 40S of the handhold recess 40 in the left-right direction.

[0058] Operation panel 10 has touch panel 110 and power button 170B. Touch panel 110 is located approximately in the center of upper surface 10U of operation panel 10. Power button 170B is located to the right of touch panel 110 on upper surface 10U of operation panel 10.

[0059] The power button 170B is a button for switching on and off the power of the multifunction device 1. When a user presses the power button 170B to turn on the power of the multifunction device 1, the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the conveying unit 3, etc. are powered on and become operable.

[0060] The touch panel 110 is a transmissive type and receives operation instruction inputs made by a user to the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the transport unit 3, and the like.

[0061] 7 and 8, the operation panel 10 has an LCD panel 150 therein. The LCD panel 150 displays images showing the operating states and settings of the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the conveying unit 3, etc., on a liquid crystal screen. The user can view the images displayed by the LCD panel 150 via the touch panel 110.

[0062] Furthermore, the user can place his / her hand on the operation panel 10 to perform a manual operation for rotating the upper housing 20 between the placed position shown in FIG. 1 and the like and the raised position shown in FIG.

[0063] <Exterior configuration of the operation panel> As shown in FIGS. 7 to 10, the operation panel 10 has a panel base 120 and a casing 100 as an exterior configuration.

[0064] 7 and 9, the panel base 120 is molded integrally with a resin scanner base 20Z that forms the bottom wall of the upper housing 20. As shown in Fig. 6 and 7, the lower surface of the bottom wall of the panel base 120 forms a panel lower surface 10D of the operation panel 10. The panel lower surface 10D is connected to the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20 with almost no step.

[0065] As shown in FIG. 9, panel base 120 has an outer peripheral wall that protrudes upward from the outer periphery of the bottom wall of panel base 120, and lattice-like ribs, screw holes, engagement portions, etc. located inside the outer peripheral wall.

[0066] 11, the casing 100 has an upper wall 101, a panel side wall 102, and an extension portion 103. The upper wall 101 has a panel opening 101A that exposes the touch panel 110, and a button opening 101B that exposes the power button 170B. The panel side wall 102 protrudes downward from the outer periphery of the upper wall 101. The extension portion 103 protrudes rearward from the rear end of the upper wall 101.

[0067] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, the casing 100 is attached to the panel base 120 from above, and screws (not shown) are inserted into the panel base 120 from below and screwed into the casing 100, thereby fixing the casing 100 to the panel base 120.

[0068] With the casing 100 fixed to the panel base 120, the upper surface of the top wall 101 forms the upper surface 10U of the operation panel 10. The front surface of the panel side wall 102 forms the panel front end portion 10F of the operation panel 10. The right surface of the panel side wall 102 forms the panel side end portion 10S of the operation panel 10. The extension portion 103 forms a part of the upper surface of the upper housing 20 on the front wall portion 20F side.

[0069] As shown in FIG. 7, the extension 103 of the casing 100 extends to a position where it is covered by the document cover 30 in the closed position.

[0070] <Internal structure of the operation panel> As shown in Figures 7, 8 and 10, the touch panel 110 is rectangular and is located on the upper surface 10U of the operation panel 10 with its outer peripheral edge 111 abutting from below against the peripheral edge of the panel opening 101A in the upper wall 101 of the casing 100 and being exposed inside the panel opening 101A.

[0071] As shown in FIG. 10, between the outer periphery 111 of the touch panel 110 and the periphery of the panel opening 101A in the upper wall 101, a frame-shaped spacer 110W made of a resin film is interposed.

[0072] The operation panel 10 has therein a touch panel holder metal plate 130, a touch panel holder 140, a shield metal plate 160, a power switch shield metal plate 167, and a substrate 180.

[0073] The touch panel holder sheet metal 130 is a sheet metal member having a substantially rectangular frame shape. The inner peripheral edge of the touch panel holder sheet metal 130 is slightly larger than the outer peripheral edge of the rectangular LCD panel 150. The touch panel holder sheet metal 130 has a plurality of small pieces 135 that are bent downward from the inner peripheral edge and can abut against the outer peripheral edge of the LCD panel 150.

[0074] The outer periphery of the touch panel holder sheet metal 130 is larger than the outer periphery 111 of the touch panel 110 with a margin. As shown in Fig. 7, Fig. 8, and Fig. 11, the touch panel holder sheet metal 130 supports the outer periphery 111 of the touch panel 110 from below. As shown in Fig. 11, the area surrounded by the outer periphery 111 is an area 110E where the touch panel 110 exists.

[0075] Furthermore, the touch panel holder metal plate 130 uses a plurality of small pieces 135 to position the LCD panel 150 located below the touch panel 110 in the front-rear and left-right directions.

[0076] 10, the touch panel holder 140 is a resin molded product manufactured by injection molding of a thermoplastic resin, etc. The touch panel holder 140 integrally includes a holder body 141 and a power button support portion 147.

[0077] The holder body 141 has a generally rectangular frame shape that surrounds the LCD panel 150 in the front-rear and left-right directions. The power button support portion 147 is connected to the right edge of the holder body 141.

[0078] The shield metal sheet 160 is a sheet metal member, and is located below the holder body 141. The power switch shield metal sheet 167 is also a sheet metal member, and is located below the power button support portion 147. The substrate 180 is located below the shield metal sheet 160 and the power switch shield metal sheet 167.

[0079] The touch panel holder metal plate 130, the touch panel holder 140, the shield metal plate 160 and the substrate 180 are fastened to the casing 100 by a plurality of screws, and the touch panel 110 and the LCD panel 150 are supported therebetween.

[0080] The holder body 141 of the touch panel holder 140 has a plurality of support ribs 142. Each support rib 142 protrudes upward from the outer periphery of the holder body 141 and extends along that outer periphery.

[0081] 7 and 8, the holder body 141 supports the touch panel holder metal sheet 130 from below by a plurality of support ribs 142. In Fig. 11, the areas where the plurality of support ribs 142 abut against the touch panel holder metal sheet 130 are shaded.

[0082] The holder body 141 supports the touch panel holder metal sheet 130 from below by a plurality of support ribs 142 in an area adjacent to the outer periphery of the touch panel holder metal sheet 130, outside an area 110E in which the touch panel 110 is present.

[0083] 10, operation panel 10 has a power switch 170. Power switch 170 has power switch body 170A and the above-mentioned power button 170B. Power switch body 170A is located on substrate 180 inside operation panel 10.

[0084] Power button 170B is located inside operation panel 10 except for its upper surface exposed through button opening 101B. Power button 170B is located above power switch main body 170A.

[0085] Power button support portion 147 of touch panel holder 140 supports power button 170B inside operation panel 10. Power button support portion 147 allows power button 170B to move downward when pressed by the user, and returns power button 170B to its original position when the user stops pressing it. Power switch main body 170A makes and breaks the contacts in response to the displacement of power button 170B.

[0086] The touch panel holder 140 has the power button support portion 147, and thus also serves as a power switch holder that supports the power button 170B and the power button 170B of the power switch main body 170A.

[0087] As shown in FIG. 7, operation panel 10 accommodates substrate 180 in a position inclined upward from panel front end 10F side toward contact section 25 side.

[0088] <Operation panel groove> 6 and 7, the panel lower surface 10D of the operation panel 10 has a groove 70. The groove 70 is integrally formed in the bottom wall of the panel base 120. The groove 70 is recessed upward from the panel lower surface 10D, and has a first groove 71 and a second groove 72.

[0089] The first groove 71 is located between the contact / separation portion 25 and the panel front end portion 10F of the operation panel 10, and extends in the left-right direction. More specifically, the first groove 71 is located forward of the frontmost portion of the contact / separation portion 25. The first groove 71 has a first surface 71A and a second surface 71B.

[0090] 7, the first surface 71A is a downward-facing inner wall surface located at the front of the first groove 71. The first surface 71A is inclined upward from the panel front end portion 10F side toward the contact / separation portion 25 side.

[0091] The second surface 71B is a forward-facing inner wall surface located at the rear of the first groove 71. The second surface 71B faces the panel front end 10F at a position closer to the contact / separation portion 25 than the first surface 71A.

[0092] An angle α2 of the second surface 71B relative to the panel lower surface 10D is larger than an angle α1 of the first surface 71A relative to the panel lower surface 10D. In this embodiment, as an example, the angle α1 is about 20° to 30°, and the angle α2 is about 80° to 90°.

[0093] 6, the second groove 72 is connected to the right end of the first groove 71, extends rearward, and surrounds the contact-separation portion 25 together with the first groove 71. More specifically, the second groove 72 is located to the right of the rightmost portion of the contact-separation portion 25. The second groove 72 is located between the contact-separation portion 25 and the panel side end portion 10S.

[0094] The panel lower surface 10D has a first edge 10D1 and a second edge 10D2. The first edge 10D1 extends in the front-rear direction on the left side of the panel lower surface 10D. The second edge 10D2 extends in the front-rear direction on the right side of the panel lower surface 10D. The contact-separation portion 25 is biased toward the first edge 10D1 on the panel lower surface 10D.

[0095] The distance in the left-right direction between the first end 70M located on the left side of the groove 70 and the first edge 10D1 is defined as a first distance L1. The distance in the left-right direction between the second end 70N located on the right side of the groove 70 and the second edge 10D2 is defined as a second distance L2. The second distance L2 is greater than the first distance L1.

[0096] 12, the substrate 180 is located so as to overlap the groove 70 when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above. As shown in Fig. 9, the panel base 120 has a region where the groove 70 exists reinforced by lattice-shaped ribs.

[0097] As shown in FIG. 7, with such groove 70, when a user attempts to place a hand on operation panel 10, the fingertip moving forward while contacting underside 10D of operation panel 10 enters first groove 71 or second groove 72 of operation panel 10 just before contact-separation portion 25, thereby preventing the hand from reaching contact-separation portion 25.

[0098] <Action and effect> 6, in the multifunction device 1 of the first embodiment, the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20 has a contact / separation portion 25. The panel lower surface 10D of the operation panel 10 has a groove 70 recessed upward. The groove 70 has a first groove 71 located between the contact / separation portion 25 and the panel front end portion 10F of the operation panel 10.

[0099] With this configuration, when a user tries to place a hand on the operation panel 10, the fingertip moving forward while contacting the panel underside 10D of the operation panel 10 enters the first groove 71 of the operation panel 10 just before the contact / separation portion 25, thereby preventing the hand from reaching the contact / separation portion 25. As a result, the multifunction device 1 can prevent problems such as the hand being pinched between the contact / separation portion 25 and the contact portion 57L1 of the lower housing 50.

[0100] Furthermore, this multifunction device 1 does not have any legs that protrude downward significantly from the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20 in front of the contact section 25 in order to prevent the user's hand from reaching the contact section 25, and there is no problem of such legs being bulky in the vertical direction.

[0101] Therefore, the multifunction device 1 of the first embodiment can realize improved operability and a reduced size in the vertical direction.

[0102] In addition, in this multifunction device 1, the first groove 71 extends in the left-right direction between the contact-separation portion 25 and the panel front end portion 10F. The groove 70 has a second groove 72 that is connected to the first groove 71, extends rearward, and surrounds the contact-separation portion 25 together with the first groove 71. With this configuration, when a user tries to place his or her hand on the operation panel 10 from various directions, the fingertip enters the first groove 71 or the second groove 72 just before the contact-separation portion 25. As a result, the multifunction device 1 can reliably restrict the hand from reaching the contact-separation portion 25.

[0103] Furthermore, in this multifunction device 1, as shown in Fig. 2, the operation panel 10 is located to the left of the center line C1. Then, as shown in Fig. 6, the second groove 72 is located between the contact / separation part 25 and the panel side end part 10S of the operation panel 10. With this configuration, the second groove 72, which is located on the side that is easily reachable by the user, surrounds the contact / separation part 25 together with the first groove 71 in a substantially L-shape. As a result, this multifunction device 1 can reliably restrict the contact / separation part 25 from being reached.

[0104] In addition, in this multifunction device 1, the contact / separation portion 25 is biased toward the first edge 10D1 of the panel lower surface 10D. The second distance L2 between the second end 70N of the groove 70 and the second edge 10D2 of the panel lower surface 10D is greater than the first distance L1 between the first end 70M of the groove 70 and the first edge 10D1 of the panel lower surface 10D. With this configuration, the multifunction device 1 can suppress a decrease in strength due to the groove 70 in a region that is easily bent near the center in the left-right direction of the upper housing 20, on the side opposite to the side where the contact / separation portion 25 is biased on the panel lower surface 10D of the operation panel 10.

[0105] Furthermore, in this multifunction machine 1, as shown in Fig. 7, the operation panel 10 accommodates the substrate 180 in a position that is inclined upward from the panel front end 10F side toward the contact / separation section 25 side. As shown in Fig. 12, the substrate 180 is located at a position that overlaps with the groove 70 when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above. As shown in Fig. 7, the first groove 71 has a first surface 71A that is inclined upward from the panel front end 10F side toward the contact / separation section 25 side. With this configuration, the multifunction machine 1 can reliably insert the user's fingertip into the first groove 71 of the operation panel 10 just before the contact / separation section 25 while suitably securing the arrangement space for the substrate 180 in the operation panel 10 by the first surface 71A.

[0106] In addition, in this multifunction device 1, the first groove 71 has a second surface 71B facing the panel front end 10F side at a position closer to the contact / separation part 25 than the first surface 71A. The angle α2 of the second surface 71B with respect to the panel lower surface 10D is larger than the angle α1 of the first surface 71A with respect to the panel lower surface 10D. With this configuration, the multifunction device 1 can stop the user's fingertip that has entered the first groove 71 of the operation panel 10 by the first surface 71A by the second surface 71B. As a result, the multifunction device 1 can more reliably restrict the user's hand from reaching the contact / separation part 25.

[0107] Further, in this multifunction machine 1, as shown in FIG. 2, the handhold recess 40 is located in an area including the center of the document cover 30 in the left-right direction, that is, an area including the center line C1. The operation panel 10 is located to the left of the handhold recess 40. The panel side end 10S located on the right side of the operation panel 10 is located in a position that coincides with the handhold inner wall surface 40S located on the left side of the handhold recess 40 in the left-right direction. Due to such a positional relationship, the operation panel 10 is located in a position that does not overlap with the handhold recess 40 in the left-right direction. Therefore, when a user tries to rotate the document cover 30 by placing his / her hand on the upper handhold inner wall surface 40U of the handhold recess 40, the hand is unlikely to hit the operation panel 10, and the hand is unlikely to be pinched between the handhold recess 40 and the operation panel 10. In addition, the user can easily place his / her hand on the upper handhold inner wall surface 40U of the handhold recess 40 located in an area including the center of the document cover 30 in the left-right direction. Therefore, this multifunction machine 1 can improve the operability of the rotation operation of the document cover 30.

[0108] 1 and 2, in this multifunction device 1, the handle recess 40 is recessed from the cover front end 30F of the document cover 30 so as to approach the opening / closing axis X30, and the panel side end 10S is positioned so as to coincide with the handle inner wall surface 40S in the left-right direction, so that the user can easily determine the position of the handle recess 40 using the panel side end 10S as a reference. Also, with this configuration, the handle recess 40 does not protrude, making it easy to improve the design of the multifunction device 1.

[0109] Furthermore, in this multifunction device 1, the handle recess 40 is located so as to overlap with the side guides 34A and 34B in the left-right direction. This configuration allows the user to extend his / her hand in the same direction when placing his / her hand on the upper handle inner wall surface 40U of the handle recess 40 and when operating the side guides 34A and 34B. As a result, this multifunction device 1 can reduce the user's inconvenience.

[0110] 3 and 7, in this multifunction device 1, the extension portion 103 of the casing 100 of the operation panel 10 extends to a position covered by the document cover 30 in the closed position. With this configuration, even if the operation panel 10 is likely to rattle when the user places his / her hand on the operation panel 10 to rotate the upper housing 20 or when the user operates the touch panel 110 or the power button 170B of the operation panel 10, the cover front end portion 30F of the document cover 30 in the closed position abuts against the extension portion 103 from above and holds down the operation panel 10, so that the operation panel 10 is unlikely to rattle.

[0111] Furthermore, in this multifunction machine 1, as shown in Figs. 7, 8, 10, and 11, the touch panel holder sheet metal 130 supports the outer peripheral edge 111 of the touch panel 110 from below. The touch panel holder 140 supports the touch panel holder sheet metal 130 from below, outside an area 110E in which the touch panel 110 is present, by a plurality of support ribs 142. With this configuration, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, when an overload F1 acts on the touch panel 110 due to a user's press, the touch panel holder sheet metal 130 can bend together with the touch panel 110. As a result, the multifunction machine 1 can suppress local bending of the touch panel 110, making the touch panel 110 less likely to be damaged.

[0112] 10, in this multifunction device 1, touch panel holder 140 has power button support portion 147, and thus also serves as a power switch holder that supports power button 170B and power button 170B of power switch main body 170A. With this configuration, this multifunction device 1 can reduce the number of parts and simplify the assembly work, compared to a case in which operation panel 10 has touch panel holder 140 and a power switch holder separately, and as a result, can realize low manufacturing costs.

[0113] (Modification) 13 shows a modification of the multifunction device 1 of the first embodiment in which the position of the operation panel 10 is shifted to the left. In this modification, the panel side end 10S of the operation panel 10 is located to the left away from the handle inner wall surface 40S of the handle recess 40. Even in this modification, the operability of the rotation operation of the document cover 30 can be improved, as in the multifunction device 1 of the first embodiment.

[0114] Example 2 14 to 16, the multifunction device 2 of the embodiment 2 has an upper surface 210U instead of the upper surface 10U of the operation panel 10 of the multifunction device 1 of the embodiment 1. Moreover, the multifunction device 2 has a power button 270B, a display unit 250, first operation keys 271A, 271B, 271C, 271D, 271E, 271F, and second operation keys 272A, 272B, 272C, 272D, 272E, 272F instead of the power button 170B and touch panel 110 of the embodiment 1 on the operation panel 10.

[0115] Other configurations of the second embodiment are similar to those of the first embodiment. Therefore, the same components as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted or simplified.

[0116] 16, display unit 250 is located approximately in the center of upper surface 210U of operation panel 10. Power button 270B is located to the left of touch panel 110 on upper surface 10U of operation panel 10.

[0117] The power button 270B is a button for switching on and off the power of the multifunction device 2. When a user presses the power button 270B to turn on the power of the multifunction device 2, the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the conveying unit 3, etc. are powered on and become operable.

[0118] The display unit 250 displays images showing the operating states and settings of the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the conveying unit 3, etc., on a liquid crystal screen or the like. In other words, the display unit 250 only displays images, and the user does not input operational instructions.

[0119] The first operation keys 271A to 271F are located on the upper surface 210U of the operation panel 10 closer to the panel front end 10F than the display unit 250, and are aligned in a line in the left-right direction.

[0120] The first operation keys 271A to 271F accept operation instruction inputs made by the user to the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the transport unit 3, and the like.

[0121] The second operation keys 272A to 272F are located to the right of the display unit 250 on the upper surface 210U of the operation panel 10. The second operation keys 272A to 272F are aligned in the left-right direction with respect to the display unit 250.

[0122] The second operation keys 272A to 272F accept operation instruction inputs made by the user to the image forming unit 5, the image reading unit 2, the transport unit 3, and the like.

[0123] As shown in FIG. 15, the contact / separation portion 25 and the groove 70 of the multifunction device 2 are the same as the contact / separation portion 25 and the groove 70 of the multifunction device 1 of the first embodiment.

[0124] 16, the groove 70 is located at a position overlapping the display unit 250 and the power button 270B when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above. The groove 70 is located rearward away from the first operation keys 271A to 271F. The groove 70 is also located leftward away from the second operation keys 272A to 272F.

[0125] As shown in Fig. 15, the substrate 280 is housed in a position that is inclined upward from the panel front end portion 10F side toward the contact / separation portion 25 side. As shown in Fig. 16, the substrate 280 is located at a position that overlaps with the groove 70 when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above.

[0126] <Action and effect> 15 and 16, when a user tries to place a hand on the operation panel 10, the fingertip moving while contacting the panel underside 10D of the operation panel 10 enters the first groove 71 or the second groove 72 of the operation panel 10 just before the contact / separation portion 25, thereby preventing the hand from reaching the contact / separation portion 25. This makes it possible to prevent the multifunction device 2 from causing problems such as the hand being pinched between the contact / separation portion 25 and the contact portion 57L1 of the lower housing 50.

[0127] Furthermore, this multifunction device 2 does not have any legs that protrude downward from the lower surface 20D of the upper housing 20 forward of the contact section 25 in order to prevent the user's hand from reaching the contact section 25, and there is no problem of such legs being bulky in the vertical direction.

[0128] Therefore, like the multifunction device 1 of the first embodiment, the multifunction device 2 of the second embodiment can achieve improved operability and a smaller size in the vertical direction.

[0129] In addition, in this multifunction machine 2, as shown in FIG. 16, the groove 70 is located at a position overlapping the display unit 250 and the power button 270B when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above, and is located at a position away from the first operation keys 271A to 271F. With this configuration, even if the first operation keys 271A to 271F are strongly pressed by the user, the operation panel 10 can support the pressing force in an area where the strength reduction due to the groove 70 is small. As a result, this multifunction machine 2 can suppress deformation of the operation panel 10. Note that the power button 270B is a key operated to switch the power of the multifunction machine 2 on and off, and therefore the user has fewer opportunities to operate it compared to other operation keys. Therefore, the power button 270B is located at a position overlapping the groove 70 when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above.

[0130] Furthermore, in this multifunction device 2, the groove 70 is located at a position overlapping with the display unit 250 when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above, and is located at a position away from the second operation keys 272A-272F to the left. With this configuration, even if the second operation keys 272A-272F are pressed hard by the user, the operation panel 10 can support the pressing force in an area where the strength reduction due to the groove 70 is small. As a result, this multifunction device 2 can suppress deformation of the operation panel 10.

[0131] In addition, in this multifunction device 2, the substrate 280 is located at a position overlapping with the groove 70 when the operation panel 10 is viewed from above. Then, as shown in Fig. 15, the first surface 71A of the first groove 71 is inclined upward from the panel front end portion 10F side toward the contact / separation portion 25 side. With this configuration, in this multifunction device 2, the first surface 71A appropriately ensures an arrangement space for the substrate 280 in the operation panel 10, while allowing the user to reliably insert the fingertip into the first groove 71 of the operation panel 10 just before the contact / separation portion 25.

[0132] In the above, the present invention has been described based on Examples 1 and 2. However, the present invention is not limited to the above Examples 1 and 2, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0133] In the first and second embodiments, the groove 70 is L-shaped having the first groove 71 and the second groove 72, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration. For example, the groove may have only the first groove. Also, the groove may be C-shaped with two second grooves connecting one end and the other end of the first groove.

[0134] In Examples 1 and 2, the handle portion is a handle recess 40 and the handle side end portion is a handle inner wall surface 40S, but for example, the handle portion may be a handle protrusion such as a handle that protrudes forward from the front end portion of the document cover, and the handle side end portion may be an outer wall surface located on one of the left and right sides of the handle protrusion.

[0135] In the first embodiment, the power switch 170 is a push button switch having a power button 170B and a power switch body 170A, but the power switch may be various switches such as a rocker switch, a slide switch, or the like.

[0136] In the first embodiment, the power button support portion 147 of the touch panel holder 140 supports only the power button 170B, but for example, the touch panel holder may also serve as a power switch holder that supports the power button and the power switch body. [Industrial Applicability]

[0137] The present invention can be used, for example, in a multifunction peripheral including an image reading unit and an image forming unit. [Explanation of symbols]

[0138] 1, 2... Multifunction device, 2S... Reading sensor, 2... Image reading unit, 5... Image forming unit 50: lower housing, 20: upper housing, 20B: rear end of upper housing 20F: front wall of upper housing, X20: rotation axis, 10: operation panel 20D...lower surface of upper housing, 25...contact portion, 10D...lower surface of panel 70: groove, 10F: front end of panel, 71: first groove, 72: second groove 10S: Panel side end, 10D1: First edge of the bottom surface of the panel 10D2: second edge of lower surface of panel; 70M: first end of groove 70N...Second end of groove, L1...First distance, L2...Second distance 180, 280...substrate, 71A...first surface of first groove, 71B...second surface of first groove α1: Angle of the first surface relative to the bottom surface of the panel α2: Angle of the second surface relative to the bottom surface of the panel 10U, 210U: Top of operation panel, 250: Display unit 271A, 271B, 271C, 271D, 271E, 271F...1st operation key 272A, 272B, 272C, 272D, 272E, 272F...Second operation key

Claims

1. an image reading unit having a reading sensor for reading an image of a document; an image forming unit that is located below the image reading unit and forms an image on a sheet; a lower housing that houses the image forming unit; an upper housing that houses the image reading unit, the upper housing having a front wall portion that extends in a left-right direction and is located forward of a rear end portion of the upper housing; the upper housing has a rear end connected to the lower housing, and is rotatable about a rotation axis extending in the left-right direction between a placement position in which the front wall portion is placed on the lower housing and a raised position in which the front wall portion is higher than the placement position; the upper housing has an operation panel that protrudes forward from the front wall portion, a lower surface of the upper housing has a contact-separation portion that comes into contact with the lower housing when the upper housing is in the mounting position and that is separated from the lower housing when the upper housing is in the raised position; The lower surface of the operation panel has an upwardly recessed groove, The groove includes a first groove located between the contact portion and a front end portion of the operation panel, The multifunction printer, wherein the first groove is located forwardly away from a frontmost portion of the contact portion.

2. The first groove extends in the left-right direction between the contact portion and the panel front end portion, 2. The multifunction device according to claim 1, wherein the groove further comprises a second groove that is connected to the first groove, extends rearward, and surrounds the contact and separation portion together with the first groove.

3. the operation panel is located on one side in the left-right direction from the center of the upper housing in the left-right direction, 3. The multifunction device according to claim 2, wherein the second groove is located between the contact portion and a panel side end portion located on the other side in the left-right direction of the operation panel.

4. the operation panel is located on one side in the left-right direction from the center of the upper housing in the left-right direction, The panel lower surface has a first edge extending in a front-rear direction at one of the left and right directions; a second edge extending in the front-rear direction at the other end of the left-right direction, the contact portion is biased toward the first edge side of the panel lower surface, a first distance is a distance in the left-right direction between a first end portion of the groove located at one side in the left-right direction and the first edge, When a distance in the left-right direction between a second end portion of the groove located at the other of the left-right directions and the second edge is defined as a second distance, 4. The multifunction peripheral according to claim 1, wherein the second distance is greater than the first distance.

5. the operation panel accommodates the substrate in an upwardly inclined position from the front end side of the panel toward the contact portion, the substrate is located at a position overlapping with the groove when the operation panel is viewed from above, 5. The multifunction device according to claim 1, wherein the first groove has a first surface that is inclined upward from the front end side of the panel toward the contact portion.

6. the first groove has a second surface facing the front end of the panel at a position closer to the contact portion than the first surface; 6. The multifunction peripheral according to claim 5, wherein an angle of the second surface relative to the lower surface of the panel is larger than an angle of the first surface relative to the lower surface of the panel.

7. The operation panel includes a display unit located on an upper surface of the operation panel; a first operation key located on the top surface of the operation panel closer to a front end of the panel than the display unit, the first operation key receiving an input operation for the image forming unit and the image reading unit when the power is turned on; 7. The multifunction machine according to claim 1, wherein the groove is located at a position overlapping with the display unit when the operation panel is viewed from above, and is located away from the first operation key.

8. The operation panel includes a display unit located on an upper surface of the operation panel; a second operation key located on the upper surface of the operation panel, arranged in the left-right direction with respect to the display unit, and configured to receive an input operation for the image forming unit and the image reading unit when the image forming unit and the image reading unit are powered on; 8. The multifunction machine according to claim 1, wherein the groove is located at a position overlapping with the display unit when the operation panel is viewed from above, and is located away from the second operation key.

Images