Sheet cutting device and image forming apparatus including the sheet cutting device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8967028-B2
Application number	US-201213402238-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 22, 2012
Priority date	Mar 4, 2011
Publication date	Mar 3, 2015
Grant date	Mar 3, 2015

Abstract

A sheet cutting device includes a cutter holder, a moving unit, and a guide member. The cutter holder accommodates a cutter. The cutter has opposed blades opposing each other to cut a sheet of recording media fed along a sheet feed path of a feed guide plate unit. The moving unit holds the cutter holder and is movable in a sheet width direction perpendicular to a sheet feed direction in which the sheet is fed along the sheet feed path. The guide member is disposed along the sheet width direction to guide the moving unit in the sheet width direction. The cutter holder partially overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in a thickness direction of the sheet perpendicular to both the sheet width direction and the sheet feed direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sheet cutting device comprising:
a cutter holder accommodating a cutter, the cutter having opposed blades opposing each other to cut a sheet of recording media fed along a sheet feed path of a feed guide plate unit;
a moving unit holding the cutter holder and movable in a sheet width direction perpendicular to a sheet feed direction in which the sheet is fed along the sheet feed path; and
a guide member disposed along the sheet width direction to guide the moving unit in the sheet width direction,
wherein the cutter holder partially overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in a thickness direction of the sheet perpendicular to both the sheet width direction and the sheet feed direction, and
wherein the moving unit moves the cutter holder accommodating the cutter including the opposed blades from a home position, along a forward path in the sheet width direction to cut the sheet of recording media, and after the sheet is cut with the cutter, retracts the cutter including both of the opposed blades downward below the sheet feed path of the sheet of recording media in the thickness direction to a retracted position, to move the cutter holder in a backward path back to the home position.

2. The sheet cutting device according to claim 1 , wherein the cutter holder has an escape portion that overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in the thickness direction of the sheet.

3. The sheet cutting device according to claim 1 , wherein the guide member has a first path to guide the cutter holder in the sheet width direction to cut the sheet with the cutter and a second path to guide the cutter holder in the sheet width direction after the sheet is cut with the cutter, the second path disposed away from the first path in the thickness direction of the sheet, and
when the cutter holder moves along the second path, the cutter holder is retracted away from the sheet feed path in the thickness direction of the sheet.

4. The sheet cutting device according to claim 3 , wherein the cutter holder has a first escape portion at an upper end thereof upstream in the sheet feed direction, and the first escape portion overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in the thickness direction of the sheet when the cutter holder moves along the second path.

5. The sheet cutting device according to claim 4 , wherein the cutter holder has a slanted face that is inclined at an angle from the sheet feed path toward the thickness direction of the sheet when the cutter holder moves along the first path and is parallel to the sheet feed path when the cutter holder moves along the second path, and the first escape portion is formed at the slanted face.

6. The sheet cutting device according to claim 3 , wherein the cutter holder has a second escape portion at an upper end thereof downstream in the sheet feed direction, and the second escape portion overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in the thickness direction of the sheet when the cutter holder moves along the second path.

7. The sheet cutting device according to claim 6 , wherein the cutter holder has a slanted face that is inclined at an angle from the sheet feed path toward the thickness direction of the sheet when the cutter holder moves along the first path and is parallel to the sheet feed path when the cutter holder moves along the second path, and the second escape portion is formed at the slanted face.

8. The sheet cutting device according to claim 3 , wherein the cutter holder has a third escape portion at a side face thereof upstream in the sheet feed direction, and the third escape portion overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in the thickness direction of the sheet when the cutter holder moves along the first path.

9. The sheet cutting device according to claim 3 , wherein the cutter holder has an upper part and a lower part positioned higher and lower, respectively, than the sheet when the cutter holder moves along the first path, and the upper part has a width greater than a width of the lower part.

10. The sheet cutting device according to claim 1 , wherein the guide member overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in the thickness direction of the sheet.

11. An image forming apparatus comprising:
an image forming device that forms an image on a sheet of recording media;
a sheet feed device that has a feed guide plate unit forming a sheet feed path thereon and feeds the sheet having the image formed thereon along the sheet feed path; and
a sheet cutting device that cuts the sheet fed along the sheet feed path, the sheet cutting device comprising:
a cutter holder accommodating a cutter, the cutter having opposed blades opposing each other to cut a sheet of recording media fed along the sheet feed path;
a moving unit holding the cutter holder and movable in a sheet width direction perpendicular to a sheet feed direction in which the sheet is fed along the sheet feed path; and
a guide member disposed along the sheet width direction to guide the moving unit in the sheet width direction,

wherein the cutter holder partially overlaps with the feed guide plate unit in a thickness direction of the sheet perpendicular to both the sheet width direction and the sheet feed direction, and
wherein the moving unit moves the cutter holder accommodating the cutter including the opposed blades from a home position, along a forward path in the sheet width direction to cut the sheet of recording media, and after the sheet is cut with the cutter, retracts the cutter including both of the opposed blades downward below the sheet feed path of the sheet of recording media in the thickness direction to a retracted position, to move the cutter holder in a backward path back to the home position.

12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the guide member has a first path to guide the cutter holder in the sheet width direction to cut the sheet with the cutter and a second path to guide the cutter holder in the sheet width direction after the sheet is cut with the cutter, the second path disposed away from the first path in the thickness direction of the sheet, and
when the cutter holder moves along the second path, the cutter holder is retracted away from the sheet feed path in the thickness direction of the sheet.

13. The image forming apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein the feed guide plate unit has a first feed guide plate disposed upstream from the cutter holder in the sheet feed direction,
the cutter holder has a first escape portion at an upper end thereof upstream in the sheet feed direction, and
in the thickness direction of the sheet, the first escape portion overlaps with an edge portion of the first feed guide plate downstream in the sheet feed direction when the cutter holder moves along the second path.

14. The image forming apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein the feed guide plate unit has a second feed guide plate disposed downstream from the cutter holder in the sheet feed direction,
the cutter holder has a second escape portion at an upper end thereof downstream in the sheet feed direction, and
in the thickness direction of the sheet, the second escape portion overlaps with an edge portion of the second feed guide plate upstream in the sheet feed direction when the cutter holder moves along the second path.

15. Image forming apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein the feed guide plate unit has a first feed guide plate disposed upstream the cutter holder in the sheet feed direction,
the cutter holder has a third escape portion at a side face thereof upstream in the sheet feed direction, and
in the thickness direction of the sheet,

Assignees

• Yamada Masahiko
• Wakamatsu Kazuhiro
• Maeyama Yuichiro
• Ogawa Masato
• Yoshinuma Toshihiro
• Ricoh Co Ltd

Inventors

• Yamada Masahiko
• Wakamatsu Kazuhiro
• Maeyama Yuichiro
• Ogawa Masato
• Yoshinuma Toshihiro

Classifications

• B26D1/185

  for thin material, e.g. for sheets, strips or the like · CPC title

• Y10T83/8822

  Edge-to-edge of sheet or web [e.g., traveling cutter] · CPC title

• Y10T83/783

  Tool pair comprises contacting overlapped discs · CPC title

• Y10T83/647

  With means to convey work relative to tool station · CPC title

• B65H35/04 Primary

  from or with transverse cutters or perforators · CPC title