US20130177342A1 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents
Image forming apparatus Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20130177342A1 US20130177342A1 US13/729,451 US201213729451A US2013177342A1 US 20130177342 A1 US20130177342 A1 US 20130177342A1 US 201213729451 A US201213729451 A US 201213729451A US 2013177342 A1 US2013177342 A1 US 2013177342A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- image forming
- forming apparatus
- handle
- sheet container
- lift
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
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Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
- B65H1/00—Supports or magazines for piles from which articles are to be separated
- B65H1/28—Supports or magazines for piles from which articles are to be separated compartmented to receive piles side-by-side
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
- B65H1/00—Supports or magazines for piles from which articles are to be separated
- B65H1/26—Supports or magazines for piles from which articles are to be separated with auxiliary supports to facilitate introduction or renewal of the pile
- B65H1/266—Support fully or partially removable from the handling machine, e.g. cassette, drawer
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
- B65H2405/00—Parts for holding the handled material
- B65H2405/10—Cassettes, holders, bins, decks, trays, supports or magazines for sheets stacked substantially horizontally
- B65H2405/11—Parts and details thereof
- B65H2405/112—Rear, i.e. portion opposite to the feeding / delivering side
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
- B65H2405/00—Parts for holding the handled material
- B65H2405/10—Cassettes, holders, bins, decks, trays, supports or magazines for sheets stacked substantially horizontally
- B65H2405/12—Parts to be handled by user
Definitions
- Examples of the present invention relate to an image forming apparatus in which a sheet container provided therein is removably installable in the image forming apparatus.
- Image forming apparatuses such as copiers, printers, and facsimile machines include a sheet container (e.g., a paper tray) that accommodates a stack of sheets for printing an image thereon. To reload the sheets, a user pulls out the paper tray from the image forming apparatus.
- the image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit for forming an image on the sheet. For facilitating the sheet reloading, the paper tray has a pull-out handle for pulling the paper tray to remove from the image forming apparatus.
- image forming apparatuses have become smaller and lighter and thus more portable, and therefore include a lift-up handle mounted on the image forming apparatus for ease of lifting and moving. Accordingly, such image forming apparatuses generally include a pull-out handle at the sheet container and a lift-up handle at the image forming apparatus.
- JP-2009-069667-A discloses an image forming apparatus including a sheet container that can be withdrawn from the image forming apparatus and is set inside the image forming apparatus when the image forming apparatus is moved, and a positioning means for mutually positioning the image forming apparatus and the sheet container when the sheet container is lifted so as to hold the image forming apparatus.
- JP-2009-244673-A discloses an image forming apparatus including grips mounted on an intermediate frame that supports both an image forming apparatus and a scanner so as to easily carry the image forming apparatus while securing accurate image reading processing.
- the lift-up handle of the image forming apparatus is, however, generally attached to a side surface of the image forming apparatus perpendicular to a direction of pulling out the sheet container. If this image forming apparatus is installed in a vicinity of the wall of a room such as an office room, it is likely that the lift-up handle is located close to the wall, and therefore the user cannot reach the lift-up handle when moving the image forming apparatus.
- the image forming apparatus may need to be moved to where the user can place the fingers on the lift-up handle, which takes longer time for carrying the image forming apparatus.
- the lift-up handle is formed on the same side surface where the pull-out handle of the sheet container is arranged, it is likely that the user puts the fingers to the pull-out handle inadvertently when lifting the image forming apparatus. Consequently, a large load of the image forming apparatus is unexpectedly applied to the pull-out handle, which damages the sheet container.
- the present invention describes a novel image forming apparatus for forming an image includes a main body including an image forming device to form the image on a sheet, and a sheet container disposed removably installable in the main body, configured to accommodate a stack of sheets of recording media and feed an uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets of recording media toward the image forming device, and movable between a first state, in which the sheet container is installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus, and a second state, in which the sheet container is removed from a first side surface of the image forming apparatus.
- the sheet container includes a planar member at a proximal end thereof in a pull-out direction, disposed flush with the first side surface of the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- the planar member includes a cutout opening downwardly extending from an upper end of the planar member.
- a lower edge of the opening forms a pull-out handle on the first side surface to assist in removal of the sheet container from the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- An upper edge of the opening forms a lift-up handle to assist in lifting the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- the above-described image forming apparatus may further include four side surfaces including the first side surface and a second lift-up handle provided to one of the four side surfaces, the one surface disposed opposite the first side surface.
- the above-described image forming apparatus may further include four side surfaces including the first side surface and a second lift-up handle provided to one of the four side surfaces adjacent to the first side surface.
- the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface may be located at the same position as the opening formed in the planar member.
- the upper edge of the opening forming the lift-up handle surface may be inwardly recessed toward an interior of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- the upper edge of the opening forming the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface may include a scalloped portion.
- the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface and the second lift-up handle formed on the one of the side surfaces other than the first side surface may be disposed at the same height from a bottom of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- the opening in the planar member may have a height greater than a distance from a lower end of the sheet container to the bottom of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- the lower edge of the opening forming the pull-out handle of the sheet container may be graspable from above the lower edge.
- the sheet container may be removable from the main body of the image forming apparatus both in the pull-out direction and in a second direction perpendicular to the pull-out direction.
- FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an internal mechanism of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1;
- FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a sheet container of the image forming apparatus of FIG. 1 ;
- FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus of FIG. 1 , viewed from the sheet container side;
- FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus of FIG. 1 , viewed from an opposite angle of FIG. 3 ;
- FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the sheet feed tray of the image forming apparatus
- FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a sheet container of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 2;
- FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 3, viewed from a sheet container side;
- FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus, viewed from an opposite angle of FIG. 7 ;
- FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 4, viewed from a sheet container side;
- FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus, viewed from an opposite angle of FIG. 9 .
- spatially relative terms such as “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper” and the like may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements describes as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, term such as “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors herein interpreted accordingly.
- first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, it should be understood that these elements, components, regions, layer and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the present invention.
- the present invention is applicable to any image forming apparatus, and is implemented in the most effective manner in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus.
- FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an internal mechanism of the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1.
- the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1 is a color image forming apparatus employing an image forming mechanism performing an electrophotographic process to form color images using a general electrostatic image forming method.
- the present invention is not limited to this configuration. Further, the image forming mechanism is applicable for black-and-white printing, inkjet printing and so forth.
- the image forming apparatus 110 includes an image forming device 3 for forming an image and a sheet feeding device 100 disposed at the lower portion of the image forming apparatus 110 , specifically below the image forming device 3 , and supplies recording media to the image forming device 3 .
- the sheet feeding device 100 includes a sheet container 47 , a sheet feeding unit 4 , and a frame 10 .
- the sheet container 47 accommodates a sheet stack 41 that is a bundle of multiple sheets or sheet-like recording media accumulated one after another.
- the sheet feeding unit 4 contacts the sheet stack 41 stored in the sheet container 47 from above to separate an uppermost sheet from the other sheets and feed the uppermost sheet toward the image forming device 3 .
- the frame 10 contains the sheet container 47 and the sheet feeding unit 4 .
- the sheet feeding unit 4 includes a sheet feeding roller 42 having a rotary shaft 75 , and a friction pad 43 that serves as a sheet separation member disposed facing the sheet feed roller 42 .
- a sheet feeding roller 42 having a rotary shaft 75
- a friction pad 43 that serves as a sheet separation member disposed facing the sheet feed roller 42 .
- the sheet thus fed from the recording media container 47 is then conveyed by conveying rollers 44 and 45 toward a registration roller 81 . Then, the leading edge of the sheet abuts against a nip portion formed between the registration roller 81 and a registration tension roller 80 to align the leading edge of the sheet.
- the registration roller 81 rotates to synchronize with movement of the sheet to align with a transfer position of a toner image and the sheet.
- the image forming device 3 includes a transfer belt unit 5 and four image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K.
- the transfer belt unit 5 is disposed to extend in a horizontal direction in the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the four image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K are disposed horizontally above the transfer belt unit 5 along the upper portion of an endless transfer belt 54 to develop and form an image in each of the image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K, which serve as an image carrier.
- the elements or components of the image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K are similar in structure and function to each other, except that the image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K have different colors of toner, and therefore are also referred to as the image forming unit 30 in a singular form.
- the image forming unit 30 i.e., the image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K
- the image forming unit 30 includes a photoconductor drum 31 (i.e., photoconductor drums 31 M, 31 C, 31 Y, and 31 K), and image components are disposed around an outer circumferential surface of the photoconductor drum 31 .
- the image components are, for example, a charging roller 32 (i.e., charging rollers 32 M, 32 C, 32 Y, and 32 K) for uniformly charging a surface of the photoconductor drum 31 , a developing roller 33 (i.e., developing rollers 33 M, 33 C, 33 Y, and 33 K) for developing an electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 K into a visible toner image, a transfer roller 50 (i.e., transfer rollers 50 M, 50 C, 50 Y, and 50 K) for transferring the toner image onto a sheet, and a cleaning unit (not illustrated) for cleaning the photoconductor drum 31 after transfer of the toner image onto the sheet by removing residual toner from the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 .
- a charging roller 32 i.e., charging rollers 32 M, 32 C, 32 Y, and 32 K
- a developing roller 33 i.e., developing rollers 33 M, 33 C, 33 Y, and 33
- An optical writing unit 2 that serves as an exposure unit is disposed above the image forming units 30 M, 30 C, 30 Y, and 30 K.
- the optical writing unit 2 emits a laser light beam to the photoconductor drum 31 .
- the transfer belt unit 5 includes an endless transfer belt 54 , a drive roller 52 , and a driven roller 51 .
- the endless transfer belt 54 is that is spanned over the drive roller 52 and the driven roller 51 .
- the transfer rollers 50 M, 50 C, 50 Y, and 50 K are disposed inside the loop of the endless transfer belt 54 , facing the photoconductor drums 31 M, 31 C, 31 Y, and 31 K, respectively, with an upper moving surface of the endless transfer belt 54 interposed therebetween, so that the transfer roller 50 charged with transfer bias can contact the endless transfer belt 54 .
- a toner image is transferred onto the sheet.
- the sheet having the transferred toner image thereon is conveyed to a fixing unit 6 where the toner image is fixed to the sheet.
- the fixing unit 6 includes a fixing roller 60 and a pressure roller 61 .
- the fixing roller 60 serves as a fixing member to fix the toner image to the sheet.
- the pressure roller 61 serves as an opposed member disposed facing the fixing roller 60 to form a fixing nip portion.
- the fixing roller 60 encloses a non-illustrated heater that serves as a heating member.
- the pressure roller 61 contacts the fixing roller 60 with a predetermined pressure to form the fixing nip portion at a contact portion of the fixing roller 60 and the pressure roller 61 .
- the sheet to which the toner image is fixed in the fixing unit 6 further travels via a sheet discharging unit 7 to a sheet discharging portion 1 a arranged on top of the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the sheet discharging unit 7 includes transfer rollers 72 and 73 , and sheet discharging rollers 70 and 71 .
- the sheet discharging portion 1 a includes a retractable manual sheet tray 9 in the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of the sheet container 47 of the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1.
- FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus 110 , viewed from the sheet container 47 .
- FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus 110 , viewed from an opposite angle of FIG. 3 .
- FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the sheet container 47 of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 includes a right side 11 , a left side 12 , a distal side 13 , and a proximal side 14 .
- the sheet container 47 is disposed on the proximal side 14 .
- the sheet container 47 is disposed at the lower part of the image forming apparatus 110 and an opening of the sheet container 47 is provided on the proximal side 14 .
- the sheet container 47 is movable between two states, a closed state in which the sheet container 47 is retracted inside the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 and an open state in which the sheet container 47 is pulled out of the proximal side 14 of the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the sheet is fed from the sheet container 47 to the image forming device 3 in the closed state and new sheets can be loaded in the sheet container 47 in the open state.
- the sheet container 47 includes a planar front cover 48 disposed at an end portion of the proximal side 14 .
- the planar front cover 48 forms the same flat surface with the proximal side 14 .
- the front cover 48 includes an open space 49 that is cut from an upper edge 48 a of the front cover 48 and runs downwardly.
- a portion formed at the bottom of the open space 49 of the front cover 48 is referred to as a pull-out handle 91 in which a user places his/her fingers thereon when pulling the sheet container 47 is defined as a pull-out handle 91 .
- a rack 92 that extends in a horizontal direction is formed below the pull-out handle 91 .
- the user can use only one finger or hand to pull or push the sheet container 47 out of or into the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the user since the user generally uses more than one finger or both hands for moving the sheet container 47 , a plural form “fingers” is used in the description unless otherwise noted.
- the user When pulling out the sheet container 47 from the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 , the user inserts the fingers into the open space 49 and then places the fingers on the pull-out handle 91 from above. The inserted fingers contact an inside surface of the pull-out handle 91 from above and stops at the rack 92 . The user engages the fingers with the pull-out handle 91 and pulls out the sheet container 47 in a pull-out direction indicated by arrow “A 1 ” in FIG. 3 , which is the open state of the sheet container 47 .
- the user pushes the front cover 48 in a direction indicated by arrow “A 2 ”, which is an opposite direction of the pull-out direction “A 1 ” in FIG. 3 , so that the sheet container 47 can be set in the closed state.
- the pull-out handle 91 is used only to pull out the sheet container 47 by placing the fingers to the inside surface of the pull-out handle 91 from above and cannot be used to lift the image forming apparatus 110 .
- a lift-up handle 93 is formed on the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 above the open space 49 to lift up the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the lift-up handle 93 is a flat surface extending in the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 in the horizontal direction along the rack 92 .
- the lift-up handle 93 includes a protruding portion 94 that extends downwardly from a lower end 14 a of the proximal side 14 beyond the surface of the lift-up handle 93 .
- the open space 49 is located below the protruding portion 94 .
- the protruding portion 94 avoids the fingers coming off from the lift-up handle 93 . The user inserts the fingers into the open space 49 and holds the lift-up handle 93 with the fingers so as to lift up the image forming apparatus 110 for moving or transporting.
- the user can use only one finger or hand to lifting up the image forming apparatus 110 .
- a plural form “fingers” is used in the description.
- the pull-out handle 91 and the lift-up handle 93 are disposed on the same surface of the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 , thereby sharing an area required to insert the fingers when the user pulls out the sheet container 47 or lifts up the image forming apparatus 110 and reducing space of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the image forming apparatus 110 includes a distal lift-up handle 95 arranged on the distal side 13 that is disposed facing the proximal side 14 .
- the distal lift-up handle 95 includes a recessed portion or a portion that is recessed to the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 110 on the distal side 13 .
- the user When lifting up the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1, the user inserts the fingers into the open space 49 and then holds the distal lift-up handle 95 with the fingers from below. This action is completely different from the action for placing the fingers on the pull-out handle 91 , and therefore can prevent operation error. Accordingly, provision of the distal lift-up handle 95 can prevent the user from putting the fingers on the pull-out handle 91 inadvertently when lifting up the image forming apparatus 110 , thereby allowing the user to carry and move the image forming apparatus easily and safely.
- distal lift-up handle 95 provided on the distal side 13 , when transporting the image forming apparatus 110 , not only one user can carry the image forming apparatus 110 alone but also two or more users can carry the image forming apparatus 110 by holding the image forming apparatus 110 from both sides.
- the image forming apparatus 110 is installed at a position separated from an installation surface G by a height “b” to allow the user to remove the sheet container 47 from the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the lift-up handle 93 is located at a position separated from the pull-out handle 91 by a height “a”.
- the image forming apparatus 110 establishes a dimensional relation between the height “a” and the height “b” as “a>b”. Further, it is preferable that the height “b” is small enough to prevent the insertion of human fingers.
- a height “ca” from the installation surface G to the lift-up handle 93 is equal to a height “cb” from the installation surface G to an upper surface (i.e., a surface on which the fingers touch) of the distal lift-up handle 95 provided on the distal side 13 .
- FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of the sheet container 47 of the image forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2.
- the image forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2 has a similar configuration to the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1, and therefore reference numerals assigned to the units and components common to the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1 are employed to explain the configuration of the image forming apparatus 120 .
- the image forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2 further includes a scalloped portion 96 to prevent the user's fingers from slipping from the distal lift-up handle 95 , and does not include the protruding portion 94 of the image forming apparatus 110 .
- the scalloped portion 96 is formed on the lift-up handle 93 , with five protruding portions 96 a protruding outwardly and downwardly from the surface of the lift-up handle 93 and arranged along a direction into which the fingers are inserted through the open space 49 .
- the scalloped portion 96 is formed in a shape as illustrated in FIG. 6 .
- the shape of the scalloped portion 96 is not limited thereto and can be formed in a triangular shape or another applicable shape. With the configuration of the image forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2, the user can lift up the image forming apparatus 120 reliably.
- FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus 130 according to Embodiment 3, viewed from the sheet container 47 side.
- FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus 130 , viewed from an opposite angle of FIG. 7 .
- the image forming apparatus 130 according to Embodiment 3 has a similar configuration to the image forming apparatuses 110 and 120 according to Embodiments 1 and 2, and therefore reference numerals assigned to the units and components common to the image forming apparatuses 110 and 120 according to Embodiments 1 and 2 are employed to explain the configuration of the image forming apparatus 130 .
- the image forming apparatus 130 according to Embodiment 3 further includes a lift-up handle 97 on the right side 11 and a lift-up handle 98 on the left side 12 , respectively.
- the right side 11 and the left side 12 are disposed adjacent to the distal side 13 having the distal lift-up handle 95 and the proximal side 14 on which the open space 49 is formed from which the sheet container 47 is inserted or removed.
- either one of the lift-up handles 97 and 98 can be provided to a corresponding one of the right and left sides 11 and 12 .
- the lift-up handles 97 and 98 are formed by cutouts at the lower edges of the right side 11 and the left side 12 , respectively, to open sufficient space for inserting the user's fingers thereinto.
- the lift-up handles 97 and 98 can be recessed portions provided to the right side 11 and the left side 12 .
- the image forming apparatus 130 With the configuration of the image forming apparatus 130 according to Embodiment 3, even if the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 130 is installed close to the wall of a room and the user cannot reach either one of the lift-up handles 97 and 98 , the user can put the fingers on the other one of the lift-up handles 97 and 98 , and therefore moving or carrying the image forming apparatus 130 easily.
- FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4, viewed from the sheet container 47 side.
- FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus 140 , viewed from an opposite angle of FIG. 9 .
- the image forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4 has a similar configuration to the image forming apparatuses 110 , 120 , and 130 according to Embodiments 1, 2, and 3, and therefore reference numerals assigned to the units and components common to the image forming apparatuses 110 , 120 , and 130 according to Embodiments 1, 2, and 3 are employed to explain the configuration of the image forming apparatus 140 .
- the image forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4 can receive the sheet container 47 from two directions of the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 140 , which are from the proximal side 14 and from the right side 11 .
- FIG. 9 illustrates the sheet container 47 on both the right side 11 and the proximal side 14 .
- the sheet container 47 can be arranged on either one of the right side 11 and the proximal side 14 .
- the pull-out direction, indicated by arrow “A 1 ” in FIG. 9 in which the sheet container 47 is pulled out from the proximal side 14 of the image forming apparatus 140 , corresponds to a sheet conveyance direction in the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 140
- the pull-out direction, indicated by arrow “B 1 ” in FIG. 9 in which the sheet container 47 is pulled out of the right side 11 of the image forming apparatus 140 corresponds to a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction in the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 140 .
- the pull-out direction in which the sheet container is pulled out from the proximal side of the image forming apparatus corresponds to a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction in the main body of the image forming apparatus and the pull-out direction in which the sheet container is pulled out of a different side adjacent to the proximal side corresponds to the sheet conveyance direction.
- the sheet container 47 includes the pull-out handle 91 , which is same as the configuration of the image forming apparatus 110 according to Embodiment 1.
- the image forming apparatus 140 includes a lift-up handle 141 on the proximal side 14 , a lift-up handle 142 on the right side 11 , a lift-up handle 143 on the left side 12 , and a lift-up handle 144 on the distal side 13 .
- the sheet container 47 is removably installable in the main body 1 of the image forming apparatus 140 in two directions perpendicular to each other (in directions indicated by arrows A 1 and A 2 , and B 1 and B 2 in FIG. 9 ).
- the image forming apparatus 140 if the sheet container 47 is set on either of the right side 11 and the proximal side 14 , the user can insert the fingers from the open space 49 of the front cover 48 to put the fingers on the lift-up handle 141 or the lift-up handle 142 .
- the image forming apparatus 140 can be lifted up easily and safely without stressing the sheet container 47 .
- this configuration enables an opening (i.e., the open space 49 ) to be shared when the user inserts the fingers thereinto for pulling out or pushing in the sheet tray 47 or lifting up the image forming apparatus 140 , thereby enhancing a reduction in space of the image forming apparatus 140 .
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- Sheets, Magazines, And Separation Thereof (AREA)
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- Accessory Devices And Overall Control Thereof (AREA)
Abstract
An image forming apparatus includes a main body and a sheet container. The main body includes an image forming device to form the image on a sheet. The sheet container is removably installable in the main body, accommodates a stack of sheets, and is movable between a first state that the sheet container is installed in the main body and a second state that the sheet container is removed from a first side surface of the image forming apparatus. The planar member includes a cutout opening in an upper end of the planar member, a lower edge of the opening forms a pull-out handle on the first side surface to assist in removal of the sheet container form the image forming apparatus, and an upper edge of the opening forms a lift-up handle to assist in lifting the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed therein.
Description
- This patent application is based on and claims priority pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119 to Japanese Patent Application No. 2012-000462, filed on Jan. 5, 2012, in the Japan Patent Office, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
- 1. Field of the Invention
- Examples of the present invention relate to an image forming apparatus in which a sheet container provided therein is removably installable in the image forming apparatus.
- 2. Description of the Related Art
- Image forming apparatuses such as copiers, printers, and facsimile machines include a sheet container (e.g., a paper tray) that accommodates a stack of sheets for printing an image thereon. To reload the sheets, a user pulls out the paper tray from the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit for forming an image on the sheet. For facilitating the sheet reloading, the paper tray has a pull-out handle for pulling the paper tray to remove from the image forming apparatus.
- In recent years, image forming apparatuses have become smaller and lighter and thus more portable, and therefore include a lift-up handle mounted on the image forming apparatus for ease of lifting and moving. Accordingly, such image forming apparatuses generally include a pull-out handle at the sheet container and a lift-up handle at the image forming apparatus.
- Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2009-069667 (JP-2009-069667-A) discloses an image forming apparatus including a sheet container that can be withdrawn from the image forming apparatus and is set inside the image forming apparatus when the image forming apparatus is moved, and a positioning means for mutually positioning the image forming apparatus and the sheet container when the sheet container is lifted so as to hold the image forming apparatus.
- Further, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2009-244673 (JP-2009-244673-A) discloses an image forming apparatus including grips mounted on an intermediate frame that supports both an image forming apparatus and a scanner so as to easily carry the image forming apparatus while securing accurate image reading processing.
- The lift-up handle of the image forming apparatus is, however, generally attached to a side surface of the image forming apparatus perpendicular to a direction of pulling out the sheet container. If this image forming apparatus is installed in a vicinity of the wall of a room such as an office room, it is likely that the lift-up handle is located close to the wall, and therefore the user cannot reach the lift-up handle when moving the image forming apparatus.
- Therefore, the image forming apparatus may need to be moved to where the user can place the fingers on the lift-up handle, which takes longer time for carrying the image forming apparatus.
- To avoid this inconvenience, if the lift-up handle is formed on the same side surface where the pull-out handle of the sheet container is arranged, it is likely that the user puts the fingers to the pull-out handle inadvertently when lifting the image forming apparatus. Consequently, a large load of the image forming apparatus is unexpectedly applied to the pull-out handle, which damages the sheet container.
- The present invention describes a novel image forming apparatus for forming an image includes a main body including an image forming device to form the image on a sheet, and a sheet container disposed removably installable in the main body, configured to accommodate a stack of sheets of recording media and feed an uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets of recording media toward the image forming device, and movable between a first state, in which the sheet container is installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus, and a second state, in which the sheet container is removed from a first side surface of the image forming apparatus. The sheet container includes a planar member at a proximal end thereof in a pull-out direction, disposed flush with the first side surface of the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- The planar member includes a cutout opening downwardly extending from an upper end of the planar member. A lower edge of the opening forms a pull-out handle on the first side surface to assist in removal of the sheet container from the main body of the image forming apparatus. An upper edge of the opening forms a lift-up handle to assist in lifting the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- The above-described image forming apparatus may further include four side surfaces including the first side surface and a second lift-up handle provided to one of the four side surfaces, the one surface disposed opposite the first side surface.
- The above-described image forming apparatus may further include four side surfaces including the first side surface and a second lift-up handle provided to one of the four side surfaces adjacent to the first side surface.
- The lift-up handle formed on the first side surface may be located at the same position as the opening formed in the planar member.
- The upper edge of the opening forming the lift-up handle surface may be inwardly recessed toward an interior of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- The upper edge of the opening forming the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface may include a scalloped portion.
- The lift-up handle formed on the first side surface and the second lift-up handle formed on the one of the side surfaces other than the first side surface may be disposed at the same height from a bottom of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- The opening in the planar member may have a height greater than a distance from a lower end of the sheet container to the bottom of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
- The lower edge of the opening forming the pull-out handle of the sheet container may be graspable from above the lower edge.
- The sheet container may be removable from the main body of the image forming apparatus both in the pull-out direction and in a second direction perpendicular to the pull-out direction.
- A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the advantages thereof will be obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
-
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an internal mechanism of an image forming apparatus according toEmbodiment 1; -
FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a sheet container of the image forming apparatus ofFIG. 1 ; -
FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus ofFIG. 1 , viewed from the sheet container side; -
FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus ofFIG. 1 , viewed from an opposite angle ofFIG. 3 ; -
FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the sheet feed tray of the image forming apparatus; -
FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a sheet container of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 2; -
FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an image forming apparatus according toEmbodiment 3, viewed from a sheet container side; -
FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus, viewed from an opposite angle ofFIG. 7 ; -
FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 4, viewed from a sheet container side; and -
FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating the image forming apparatus, viewed from an opposite angle ofFIG. 9 . - It will be understood that if an element or layer is referred to as being “on”, “against”, “connected to” or “coupled to” another element or layer, then it can be directly on, against, connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, if an element is referred to as being “directly on”, “directly connected to” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, then there are no intervening elements or layers present. Like numbers referred to like elements throughout. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
- Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper” and the like may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements describes as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, term such as “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors herein interpreted accordingly.
- Although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, it should be understood that these elements, components, regions, layer and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the present invention.
- The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the present invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “includes” and/or “including”, when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
- Descriptions are given, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of examples, exemplary embodiments, modification of exemplary embodiments, etc., of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. Elements having the same functions and shapes are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the specification and redundant descriptions are omitted. Elements that do not require descriptions may be omitted from the drawings as a matter of convenience. Reference numerals of elements extracted from the patent publications are in parentheses so as to be distinguished from those of exemplary embodiments of the present invention.
- The present invention is applicable to any image forming apparatus, and is implemented in the most effective manner in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus.
- In describing preferred embodiments illustrated in the drawings, specific terminology is employed for the sake of clarity. However, the disclosure of the present invention is not intended to be limited to the specific terminology so selected and it is to be understood that each specific element includes all technical equivalents that have the same function, operate in a similar manner, and achieve a similar result.
- Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views, preferred embodiments of the present invention are described.
- A description is given of a configuration of an
image forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1. -
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an internal mechanism of theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1. - The
image forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1 is a color image forming apparatus employing an image forming mechanism performing an electrophotographic process to form color images using a general electrostatic image forming method. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. Further, the image forming mechanism is applicable for black-and-white printing, inkjet printing and so forth. - The
image forming apparatus 110 includes animage forming device 3 for forming an image and asheet feeding device 100 disposed at the lower portion of theimage forming apparatus 110, specifically below theimage forming device 3, and supplies recording media to theimage forming device 3. - The
sheet feeding device 100 includes asheet container 47, a sheet feeding unit 4, and aframe 10. - The
sheet container 47 accommodates asheet stack 41 that is a bundle of multiple sheets or sheet-like recording media accumulated one after another. The sheet feeding unit 4 contacts thesheet stack 41 stored in thesheet container 47 from above to separate an uppermost sheet from the other sheets and feed the uppermost sheet toward theimage forming device 3. Theframe 10 contains thesheet container 47 and the sheet feeding unit 4. - The sheet feeding unit 4 includes a
sheet feeding roller 42 having arotary shaft 75, and afriction pad 43 that serves as a sheet separation member disposed facing thesheet feed roller 42. As therotary shaft 75 of thesheet feed roller 42 rotates, a sheet placed on top of thesheet stack 41 stored in thesheet container 47 is fed therefrom by thesheet feeding roller 42 and theseparation pad 43. The sheet thus fed from therecording media container 47 is then conveyed by conveyingrollers registration roller 81. Then, the leading edge of the sheet abuts against a nip portion formed between theregistration roller 81 and aregistration tension roller 80 to align the leading edge of the sheet. - The
registration roller 81 rotates to synchronize with movement of the sheet to align with a transfer position of a toner image and the sheet. - The
image forming device 3 includes atransfer belt unit 5 and fourimage forming units transfer belt unit 5 is disposed to extend in a horizontal direction in theimage forming apparatus 110. The fourimage forming units transfer belt unit 5 along the upper portion of anendless transfer belt 54 to develop and form an image in each of theimage forming units - The elements or components of the
image forming units image forming units image forming units photoconductor drums rollers rollers photoconductor drum 31K into a visible toner image, a transfer roller 50 (i.e.,transfer rollers - An optical writing unit 2 that serves as an exposure unit is disposed above the
image forming units - The
transfer belt unit 5 includes anendless transfer belt 54, adrive roller 52, and a drivenroller 51. Theendless transfer belt 54 is that is spanned over thedrive roller 52 and the drivenroller 51. - The
transfer rollers endless transfer belt 54, facing thephotoconductor drums endless transfer belt 54 interposed therebetween, so that the transfer roller 50 charged with transfer bias can contact theendless transfer belt 54. By proceeding in thetransfer belt unit 5, a toner image is transferred onto the sheet. The sheet having the transferred toner image thereon is conveyed to afixing unit 6 where the toner image is fixed to the sheet. - The fixing
unit 6 includes a fixingroller 60 and apressure roller 61. The fixingroller 60 serves as a fixing member to fix the toner image to the sheet. Thepressure roller 61 serves as an opposed member disposed facing the fixingroller 60 to form a fixing nip portion. The fixingroller 60 encloses a non-illustrated heater that serves as a heating member. - The
pressure roller 61 contacts the fixingroller 60 with a predetermined pressure to form the fixing nip portion at a contact portion of the fixingroller 60 and thepressure roller 61. - The sheet to which the toner image is fixed in the fixing
unit 6 further travels via asheet discharging unit 7 to a sheet discharging portion 1 a arranged on top of themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110. Thesheet discharging unit 7 includestransfer rollers sheet discharging rollers manual sheet tray 9 in themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110. - Next, a description is given of the
sheet container 47 of thesheet feeding device 100. -
FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of thesheet container 47 of theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1.FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating theimage forming apparatus 110, viewed from thesheet container 47.FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating theimage forming apparatus 110, viewed from an opposite angle ofFIG. 3 .FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating thesheet container 47 of theimage forming apparatus 110. - As illustrated in
FIGS. 2 through 4 , themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1 includes aright side 11, aleft side 12, adistal side 13, and aproximal side 14. Thesheet container 47 is disposed on theproximal side 14. Specifically, thesheet container 47 is disposed at the lower part of theimage forming apparatus 110 and an opening of thesheet container 47 is provided on theproximal side 14. - The
sheet container 47 is movable between two states, a closed state in which thesheet container 47 is retracted inside themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110 and an open state in which thesheet container 47 is pulled out of theproximal side 14 of themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110. The sheet is fed from thesheet container 47 to theimage forming device 3 in the closed state and new sheets can be loaded in thesheet container 47 in the open state. - The
sheet container 47 includes a planarfront cover 48 disposed at an end portion of theproximal side 14. When thesheet container 47 is retracted inside themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110, the planarfront cover 48 forms the same flat surface with theproximal side 14. Further, thefront cover 48 includes anopen space 49 that is cut from anupper edge 48 a of thefront cover 48 and runs downwardly. A portion formed at the bottom of theopen space 49 of thefront cover 48 is referred to as a pull-out handle 91 in which a user places his/her fingers thereon when pulling thesheet container 47 is defined as a pull-out handle 91. Arack 92 that extends in a horizontal direction is formed below the pull-out handle 91. - It is to be noted that the user can use only one finger or hand to pull or push the
sheet container 47 out of or into themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110. However, since the user generally uses more than one finger or both hands for moving thesheet container 47, a plural form “fingers” is used in the description unless otherwise noted. - When pulling out the
sheet container 47 from themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110, the user inserts the fingers into theopen space 49 and then places the fingers on the pull-out handle 91 from above. The inserted fingers contact an inside surface of the pull-out handle 91 from above and stops at therack 92. The user engages the fingers with the pull-out handle 91 and pulls out thesheet container 47 in a pull-out direction indicated by arrow “A1” inFIG. 3 , which is the open state of thesheet container 47. - By contrast, when installing the
sheet container 47 in themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110, the user pushes thefront cover 48 in a direction indicated by arrow “A2”, which is an opposite direction of the pull-out direction “A1” inFIG. 3 , so that thesheet container 47 can be set in the closed state. - Accordingly, the pull-
out handle 91 is used only to pull out thesheet container 47 by placing the fingers to the inside surface of the pull-out handle 91 from above and cannot be used to lift theimage forming apparatus 110. - Further, a lift-up
handle 93 is formed on themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110 above theopen space 49 to lift up theimage forming apparatus 110. The lift-uphandle 93 is a flat surface extending in themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110 in the horizontal direction along therack 92. Further, the lift-uphandle 93 includes a protrudingportion 94 that extends downwardly from alower end 14 a of theproximal side 14 beyond the surface of the lift-uphandle 93. Theopen space 49 is located below the protrudingportion 94. The protrudingportion 94 avoids the fingers coming off from the lift-uphandle 93. The user inserts the fingers into theopen space 49 and holds the lift-uphandle 93 with the fingers so as to lift up theimage forming apparatus 110 for moving or transporting. - It is to be noted that the user can use only one finger or hand to lifting up the
image forming apparatus 110. However, since the user uses more than one finger or both hands for moving theimage forming apparatus 110, a plural form “fingers” is used in the description. - In the
image forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1, the pull-out handle 91 and the lift-uphandle 93 are disposed on the same surface of themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110, thereby sharing an area required to insert the fingers when the user pulls out thesheet container 47 or lifts up theimage forming apparatus 110 and reducing space of theimage forming apparatus 110. - Further, the
image forming apparatus 110 includes a distal lift-uphandle 95 arranged on thedistal side 13 that is disposed facing theproximal side 14. The distal lift-uphandle 95 includes a recessed portion or a portion that is recessed to themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 110 on thedistal side 13. - When lifting up the
image forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1, the user inserts the fingers into theopen space 49 and then holds the distal lift-uphandle 95 with the fingers from below. This action is completely different from the action for placing the fingers on the pull-out handle 91, and therefore can prevent operation error. Accordingly, provision of the distal lift-uphandle 95 can prevent the user from putting the fingers on the pull-out handle 91 inadvertently when lifting up theimage forming apparatus 110, thereby allowing the user to carry and move the image forming apparatus easily and safely. - Further, due to the distal lift-up
handle 95 provided on thedistal side 13, when transporting theimage forming apparatus 110, not only one user can carry theimage forming apparatus 110 alone but also two or more users can carry theimage forming apparatus 110 by holding theimage forming apparatus 110 from both sides. - Next, a description is given of respective positions and heights of the pull-
out handle 91, the lift-uphandle 93, and the distal lift-uphandle 95. - According to
Embodiment 1, theimage forming apparatus 110 is installed at a position separated from an installation surface G by a height “b” to allow the user to remove thesheet container 47 from theimage forming apparatus 110. In addition, the lift-uphandle 93 is located at a position separated from the pull-out handle 91 by a height “a”. - At this time, if the height “b” is greater than the height “a”, it is likely that the user puts the fingers in a gap between the
image forming apparatus 110 and the installation surface G separated from each other by the height “b”, mistaking it for the space for placing the fingers on the pull-out handle 91. To avoid the above-described mistake, theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1 establishes a dimensional relation between the height “a” and the height “b” as “a>b”. Further, it is preferable that the height “b” is small enough to prevent the insertion of human fingers. - Further, it is also preferable that a height “ca” from the installation surface G to the lift-up
handle 93 is equal to a height “cb” from the installation surface G to an upper surface (i.e., a surface on which the fingers touch) of the distal lift-uphandle 95 provided on thedistal side 13. With this arrangement, theimage forming apparatus 110 can be carried and easily be lifted up horizontally in a same condition in which theimage forming apparatus 110 stands on the installation surface G, thereby maintaining the balance of theimage forming apparatus 110 easily. - Next, a description is given of a configuration of an
image forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2. -
FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of thesheet container 47 of theimage forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2. - The
image forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2 has a similar configuration to theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1, and therefore reference numerals assigned to the units and components common to theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1 are employed to explain the configuration of theimage forming apparatus 120. However, there are some exceptions: theimage forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2 further includes a scallopedportion 96 to prevent the user's fingers from slipping from the distal lift-uphandle 95, and does not include the protrudingportion 94 of theimage forming apparatus 110. The scallopedportion 96 is formed on the lift-uphandle 93, with fiveprotruding portions 96 a protruding outwardly and downwardly from the surface of the lift-uphandle 93 and arranged along a direction into which the fingers are inserted through theopen space 49. The scallopedportion 96 is formed in a shape as illustrated inFIG. 6 . However, the shape of the scallopedportion 96 is not limited thereto and can be formed in a triangular shape or another applicable shape. With the configuration of theimage forming apparatus 120 according to Embodiment 2, the user can lift up theimage forming apparatus 120 reliably. - Next, a description is given of a configuration of an
image forming apparatus 130 according toEmbodiment 3. -
FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating theimage forming apparatus 130 according toEmbodiment 3, viewed from thesheet container 47 side.FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating theimage forming apparatus 130, viewed from an opposite angle ofFIG. 7 . - The
image forming apparatus 130 according toEmbodiment 3 has a similar configuration to theimage forming apparatuses Embodiments 1 and 2, and therefore reference numerals assigned to the units and components common to theimage forming apparatuses Embodiments 1 and 2 are employed to explain the configuration of theimage forming apparatus 130. However, there is an exception: theimage forming apparatus 130 according toEmbodiment 3 further includes a lift-uphandle 97 on theright side 11 and a lift-uphandle 98 on theleft side 12, respectively. Theright side 11 and theleft side 12 are disposed adjacent to thedistal side 13 having the distal lift-uphandle 95 and theproximal side 14 on which theopen space 49 is formed from which thesheet container 47 is inserted or removed. Alternatively, either one of the lift-up handles 97 and 98 can be provided to a corresponding one of the right and leftsides - The lift-up handles 97 and 98 are formed by cutouts at the lower edges of the
right side 11 and theleft side 12, respectively, to open sufficient space for inserting the user's fingers thereinto. Alternatively, the lift-up handles 97 and 98 can be recessed portions provided to theright side 11 and theleft side 12. - With the configuration of the
image forming apparatus 130 according toEmbodiment 3, even if themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 130 is installed close to the wall of a room and the user cannot reach either one of the lift-up handles 97 and 98, the user can put the fingers on the other one of the lift-up handles 97 and 98, and therefore moving or carrying theimage forming apparatus 130 easily. - Next, a description is given of a configuration of an
image forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4. -
FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating theimage forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4, viewed from thesheet container 47 side.FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating theimage forming apparatus 140, viewed from an opposite angle ofFIG. 9 . - The
image forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4 has a similar configuration to theimage forming apparatuses Embodiments image forming apparatuses Embodiments image forming apparatus 140. However, theimage forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4 can receive thesheet container 47 from two directions of themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 140, which are from theproximal side 14 and from theright side 11. - It is to be noted that
FIG. 9 illustrates thesheet container 47 on both theright side 11 and theproximal side 14. However, thesheet container 47 can be arranged on either one of theright side 11 and theproximal side 14. - Further, the pull-out direction, indicated by arrow “A1” in
FIG. 9 , in which thesheet container 47 is pulled out from theproximal side 14 of theimage forming apparatus 140, corresponds to a sheet conveyance direction in themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 140, and the pull-out direction, indicated by arrow “B1” inFIG. 9 , in which thesheet container 47 is pulled out of theright side 11 of theimage forming apparatus 140 corresponds to a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction in themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 140. Alternative to this configuration, however, it is also applicable that the pull-out direction in which the sheet container is pulled out from the proximal side of the image forming apparatus corresponds to a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction in the main body of the image forming apparatus and the pull-out direction in which the sheet container is pulled out of a different side adjacent to the proximal side corresponds to the sheet conveyance direction. - Further, the
sheet container 47 includes the pull-out handle 91, which is same as the configuration of theimage forming apparatus 110 according toEmbodiment 1. - Furthermore, the
image forming apparatus 140 includes a lift-uphandle 141 on theproximal side 14, a lift-uphandle 142 on theright side 11, a lift-uphandle 143 on theleft side 12, and a lift-uphandle 144 on thedistal side 13. With the configuration of theimage forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4, thesheet container 47 is removably installable in themain body 1 of theimage forming apparatus 140 in two directions perpendicular to each other (in directions indicated by arrows A1 and A2, and B1 and B2 inFIG. 9 ). - Accordingly, in the
image forming apparatus 140 according to Embodiment 4, if thesheet container 47 is set on either of theright side 11 and theproximal side 14, the user can insert the fingers from theopen space 49 of thefront cover 48 to put the fingers on the lift-uphandle 141 or the lift-uphandle 142. With this configuration, theimage forming apparatus 140 can be lifted up easily and safely without stressing thesheet container 47. Further, this configuration enables an opening (i.e., the open space 49) to be shared when the user inserts the fingers thereinto for pulling out or pushing in thesheet tray 47 or lifting up theimage forming apparatus 140, thereby enhancing a reduction in space of theimage forming apparatus 140. - The above-described embodiments are illustrative and do not limit the present invention. Thus, numerous additional modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. For example, elements at least one of features of different illustrative and exemplary embodiments herein may be combined with each other at least one of substituted for each other within the scope of this disclosure and appended claims. Further, features of components of the embodiments, such as the number, the position, and the shape are not limited the embodiments and thus may be preferably set. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the disclosure of the present invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein.
Claims (10)
1. An image forming apparatus for forming an image, the image forming apparatus comprising:
a main body including an image forming device to form the image on a sheet; and
a sheet container disposed removably installable in the main body, configured to accommodate a stack of sheets of recording media and feed an uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets of recording media toward the image forming device, and movable between a first state, in which the sheet container is installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus, and a second state, in which the sheet container is removed from a first side surface of the image forming apparatus,
the sheet container comprising a planar member at a proximal end thereof in a pull-out direction, disposed flush with the first side surface of the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus,
wherein the planar member includes a cutout opening downwardly extending from an upper end of the planar member,
a lower edge of the opening forming a pull-out handle on the first side surface to assist in removal of the sheet container from the main body of the image forming apparatus,
an upper edge of the opening forming a lift-up handle to assist in lifting the image forming apparatus with the sheet container installed in the main body of the image forming apparatus.
2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
four side surfaces including the first side surface; and
a second lift-up handle provided to one of the four side surfaces, the one surface disposed opposite the first side surface.
3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
four side surfaces including the first side surface; and
a second lift-up handle provided to one of the four side surfaces adjacent to the first side surface.
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface is located at the same position as the opening formed in the planar member.
5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the upper edge of the opening forming the lift-up handle surface is inwardly recessed toward an interior of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the upper edge of the opening forming the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface comprises a scalloped portion.
7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the lift-up handle formed on the first side surface and the second lift-up handle formed on the one of the side surfaces other than the first side surface are disposed at the same height from a bottom of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the opening in the planar member has a height greater than a distance from a lower end of the sheet container to the bottom of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the lower edge of the opening forming the pull-out handle of the sheet container is graspable from above the lower edge.
10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the sheet container is removable from the main body of the image forming apparatus both in the pull-out direction and in a second direction perpendicular to the pull-out direction.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
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JP2012000462A JP2013140264A (en) | 2012-01-05 | 2012-01-05 | Image forming device |
JP2012-000462 | 2012-01-05 |
Publications (1)
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US20130177342A1 true US20130177342A1 (en) | 2013-07-11 |
Family
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Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US13/729,451 Abandoned US20130177342A1 (en) | 2012-01-05 | 2012-12-28 | Image forming apparatus |
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JP (1) | JP2013140264A (en) |
Cited By (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JP2016012059A (en) * | 2014-06-30 | 2016-01-21 | 京セラドキュメントソリューションズ株式会社 | Image forming apparatus |
US11414289B2 (en) | 2019-01-24 | 2022-08-16 | Ricoh Company, Ltd. | Sheet handling device and image forming apparatus incorporating the sheet handling device |
Families Citing this family (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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GB201510463D0 (en) * | 2015-06-15 | 2015-07-29 | Videojet Technologies Inc | Printer |
Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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JP2009069667A (en) * | 2007-09-14 | 2009-04-02 | Ricoh Co Ltd | Image forming device |
Family Cites Families (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JP2001296707A (en) * | 2000-04-12 | 2001-10-26 | Matsushita Electric Ind Co Ltd | Image forming device |
JP2007204170A (en) * | 2006-01-30 | 2007-08-16 | Murata Mach Ltd | Paper feed cassette |
JP2008015052A (en) * | 2006-07-04 | 2008-01-24 | Murata Mach Ltd | Image forming apparatus |
JP2010002561A (en) * | 2008-06-19 | 2010-01-07 | Canon Inc | Image forming device |
JP5487925B2 (en) * | 2009-12-10 | 2014-05-14 | 富士ゼロックス株式会社 | Medium storage device and image forming apparatus |
-
2012
- 2012-01-05 JP JP2012000462A patent/JP2013140264A/en active Pending
- 2012-12-28 US US13/729,451 patent/US20130177342A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JP2009069667A (en) * | 2007-09-14 | 2009-04-02 | Ricoh Co Ltd | Image forming device |
Cited By (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JP2016012059A (en) * | 2014-06-30 | 2016-01-21 | 京セラドキュメントソリューションズ株式会社 | Image forming apparatus |
US11414289B2 (en) | 2019-01-24 | 2022-08-16 | Ricoh Company, Ltd. | Sheet handling device and image forming apparatus incorporating the sheet handling device |
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