Sheet Tray Bottom Plate Rotation and Holding Body Dynamics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sheet trays in image forming apparatuses face issues with sheet feeding failures due to the sheet being caught between the end fence and the front end wall surface or bent, leading to feeding failures when the bottom plate rotates, as the downstream end of the sheet is not raised directly upward and the distance from the end fence to the front end wall surface becomes shorter than the sheet length.
Innovation Solution
A sheet tray design with a rotatable bottom plate and a holding body that moves downstream in conjunction with the rotation, featuring a gap between the bottom plate-side and holding body-side contact portions, which stabilizes the sheet position and prevents the sheet from being caught, using a biasing spring to maintain the holding body's position and an abutted body to regulate movement, ensuring the sheet is fed correctly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the bottom plate rotates to raise the downstream end, then the sheet is fed to the image forming device, but the sheet gets caught between the end fence and front end wall surface or becomes bent
Solution Approach 1:
The holding body is made movable relative to the container housing, allowing it to dynamically adjust its position in the sheet feeding direction. The holding body can move downstream when the bottom plate rotates, maintaining the end fence position relative to the sheet length, thereby preventing sheet bending and feeding failures while preserving feeding efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The sheet container is divided into functionally independent components: the container housing, the rotatable bottom plate, the holding body with end fence, and the biasing body. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently - the bottom plate rotates to feed sheets while the holding body moves to maintain proper positioning, resolving the contradiction between feeding efficiency and stability
2Device complexity
If the holding body is fixed relative to the container housing, then the structure is simple, but the sheet position becomes unstable when the bottom plate rotates
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of a fixed holding body, the invention implements a movable holding body that can adjust its position downstream when the bottom plate rotates. This dynamic adjustment maintains the proper distance between the end fence and front end wall surface, ensuring sheet position stability without requiring a complex fixed mechanism
Solution Approach 2:
The holding body automatically moves downstream in conjunction with the bottom plate rotation through the mechanical connection, and the biasing body automatically returns the holding body to its initial position. This self-service mechanism maintains sheet stability without requiring external control systems or complex actuation mechanisms
3Reliability
If the holding body moves downstream with bottom plate rotation, then sheet feeding stability is improved, but additional components like biasing body and abutted body are required
Solution Approach 1:
The biasing body and abutted body are integrated into the existing container housing structure. The biasing body is positioned within the housing and acts on the holding body, while the abutted body serves as a fixed reference point on the housing. This merging approach adds the necessary functionality for stable sheet feeding without significantly increasing overall device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The biasing body provides a mechanical feedback mechanism that automatically returns the holding body to its initial position after the bottom plate completes its rotation. This feedback ensures the system resets for the next sheet feeding cycle, maintaining reliability without requiring complex control systems
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design prevents sheet feeding failures by maintaining the sheet's position and preventing it from being caught or bent, ensuring stable feeding even when the bottom plate raises the downstream end, by controlling the movement of the holding body and regulating body to match the sheet's length, thus maintaining efficient sheet feeding.
Implementation Method 1
a biasing body (62) to bias the holding body (60) to an upstream side in the sheet feeding direction with respect to the container housing (30)
Implementation Method 2
a bottom plate (43) which is disposed movable and has a bottom plate-side contact portion (44c)
Data Source
AI summary
A sheet container includes a bottom plate, a regulating body, and a holding body. The bottom plate is disposed movable and has a bottom plate-side contact portion. The regulating body regulates a position of a trailing end of a sheet. The holding body has a holding body-side contact portion and to hold the regulating body. The bottom plate and the holding body have a gap between the bottom plate-side contact portion of the bottom plate and the holding body-side contact portion of the holding body in a state in which the bottom plate is not rotated. The bottom plate-side contact portion of the bottom plate and the holding body-side contact portion of the holding body contact with each other along with rotation of the bottom plate. The holding body moves to a downstream side in a sheet feeding direction in conjunction with the rotation of the bottom plate.