Sheet housing device and image forming device including same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10703593-B2
Application number	US-201916269738-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 7, 2019
Priority date	Feb 15, 2018
Publication date	Jul 7, 2020
Grant date	Jul 7, 2020

Abstract

A sheet housing device includes: a housing; and a sheet cassette. The sheet cassette has: a detection mechanism; and a pair of cursors. The detection mechanism includes: a detection switch; a first actuator; and a second actuator. A first cursor pushes down a pressed part of the first actuator and a connection part pushes up a connected part of the second actuator, and the second actuator swings in a first rotation direction from a first posture and the second actuator is set to a second posture in which a switch pressing part is capable of pressing a switch pressed part. The switch pressing part has: a first pressing part that is connected to a front end of a pressing arm; and a second pressing part that is disposed to protrude further toward an upstream side in the first rotation direction than the pressing arm does.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A sheet housing device comprising:
a housing that has an opposing wall; and
a sheet cassette that is capable of housing sheets and that is attached to the housing along a first direction; wherein
the sheet cassette includes:
a bottom wall on which the sheets are stacked;
a wall part that is erected from the bottom wall and faces the opposing wall in a state in which the sheet cassette is attached to the housing;
a pair of cursors that is slidable along the first direction on the bottom wall and restrict a position of the sheets, the pair of cursors including a first cursor that is arranged to face the wall part in the first direction and a second cursor that is arranged to face the first cursor at an opposite side from the wall part, the first cursor and the second cursor relatively moving in conjunction with each other in the opposite directions along the first direction; and
a detection mechanism that detects a position of the first cursor,
the detection mechanism includes:
a detection switch arranged at the opposing wall;
a first actuator that is supported by the bottom wall so as to be swingable with a first fulcrum part extending along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction as a fulcrum; and
a second actuator that is supported by the wall part so as to be swingable with a second fulcrum part extending along the first direction as a fulcrum,
the first actuator has: a pressed part that is provided at one end side of the first actuator in the first direction and is capable of emerging from and being retracted into the bottom wall; and a connection part that is provided at other end side of the first actuator in the first direction,
the second actuator has: a support arm that extends in one direction from the second fulcrum part of the second actuator; a connected part that is arranged at an end part of the support arm and is connected to the connection part; a pressing arm that extends from the second fulcrum part of the second actuator in a direction differing from the direction in which the support arm extends; and a switch pressing part that is arranged at an end part of the pressing arm and is capable of pressing the detection switch,
the detection switch has a switch pressed part that is arranged at the opposing wall so as to face the second actuator and is capable of being pressed by the switch pressing part,
the first cursor is configured to be movable between a first position at which the first cursor is arranged at a predetermined distance from the second cursor in the first direction and a second position at which the first cursor is more distant from the second cursor toward the front end side in the first direction compared to a case where the first cursor is in the first position,
when the first cursor is set to the first position, the pressed part of the first actuator protrudes upward from the bottom wall and the connection part pushes down the connected part of the second actuator, and the second actuator is set to a first posture in which the switch pressing part is spaced away from the switch pressed part,
when the first cursor is set to the second position, the first cursor pushes down the pressed part of the first actuator and the connection part pushes up the connected part of the second actuator, and the second actuator swings in a first rotation direction from the first posture with the second fulcrum part as the fulcrum and the second actuator is set to a second posture in which the switch pressing part is capable of pressing the switch pressed part, and
the switch pressing part has: a first pressing part that is connected to a front end of the pressing arm; and a second pressing part that protrudes from the first pressing part further toward an upstream side in the first rotation direction than the pressing arm does.

2. The sheet housing device according to claim 1 , wherein
when the second actuator is set to the second posture, the second pressing part of the switch pressing part presses the switch pressed part.

3. The sheet housing device according to claim 1 , wherein
the switch pressing part of the second actuator has a pressing surface that faces the switch pressed part, and the pressing surface is an inclined surface that is inclined so as to approach the switch pressed part from the second pressing part toward the first pressing part and that is capable of contacting the switch pressed part, and a swing of the second actuator in the upstream side in the first rotation direction is suppressed by a contact between the inclined surface and the switch pressed part.

4. The sheet housing device according to claim 1 , wherein
the switch pressing part of the second actuator has: a pressing surface that faces the switch pressed part; and an engagement part that is arranged at a downstream side edge part of the pressing surface in the first rotation direction and that is capable of engaging with the switch pressed part in the second posture.

5. The sheet housing device according to claim 4 , wherein
the engagement part is a rib that is protruded from the pressing surface toward the detection switch.

6. An image forming device comprising:
the sheet housing device according to claim 1 ; and
an image forming unit that forms images on the sheets.

Assignees

• Kyocera Document Solutions Inc

Inventors

• Maeda Hiroyuki
• Tashiro Yoshiaki

Classifications

• B65H2553/61

  Mechanical means, e.g. contact arms · CPC title

• H04N1/00729 Primary

  Detection means · CPC title

• B65H7/02

  by feelers or detectors · CPC title

• B65H2511/20

  Location in space · CPC title

• B65H1/266 Primary

  Support fully or partially removable from the handling machine, e.g. cassette, drawer (B65H1/027 takes precedence) · CPC title