Image forming apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9625866-B2
Application number	US-201414533449-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 5, 2014
Priority date	Nov 8, 2013
Publication date	Apr 18, 2017
Grant date	Apr 18, 2017

Abstract

An image forming apparatus includes an apparatus body, a sheet container detachably attachable to the apparatus body and accommodating recording media therein, an image forming part to form an image on each of the recording media, a sheet separating part to separate the recording media one by one, feed the recording medium toward the image forming part, and include a sheet feeding body and a sheet separating body to rotate in contact with the sheet feeding body and form a sheet separation nip region with the sheet feeding body, a sheet containing unit to contain the recording media therein, and a sheet separating body storing unit disposed at one end of the sheet containing unit to store the sheet separating body therein. The sheet container being pulled out from the apparatus body by moving from the sheet containing unit to the sheet separating body storing unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:
an apparatus body;
a sheet container detachably attachable to the apparatus body, the sheet container accommodating recording media therein;
an image forming part to form an image on each of the recording media accommodated in the sheet container;
a sheet separating part to separate the recording media one by one from the sheet container and feed the recording medium toward the image forming part, the sheet separating part comprising a sheet feeding roller that has a rotary shaft and rotates about the rotary shaft thereof and a sheet separating body that has a rotary shaft, is held within the sheet container, the sheet separating body being a sheet separating roller that is detachably attachable to the apparatus body together with the sheet container, the sheet separating body rotating in contact with the sheet feeding roller and forming a sheet separation nip with the sheet feeding roller;
a sheet containing unit included in the sheet container to contain the recording media therein; and
a sheet separating body storing unit included in the sheet container and disposed at one end of the sheet containing unit to store the sheet separating body therein,
the sheet container being pulled out from the apparatus body in a direction that is perpendicular to an axial direction of rotation of the sheet separating roller by moving the sheet container along with the sheet separating body such that the sheet separating body is separated from the sheet feeding roller, wherein the sheet separating body storing unit includes a containing device that integrally contains the sheet separating roller and wherein the containing device comprises a sheet contact part that houses the sheet separating body, the sheet contact part including
a first contact part disposed at a position closer to one end of the rotary shaft of the sheet separating roller than a cylindrical roller part in a rotation axis direction of the rotary shaft of the sheet separating roller and projecting beyond the sheet separation nip region toward the sheet feeding roller in the apparatus body; and
a second contact part disposed at a position closer to an opposite end to the one end of the rotary shaft of the sheet separating roller than the cylindrical roller part in the rotation axis direction and projecting beyond the sheet separation nip toward the sheet feeding roller in the apparatus body, and
the first contact part and the second contact part project only upstream from the sheet separation nip in a sheet feeding direction.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the sheet feeding roller is located above the sheet separating body and is pressed against the recording media in the sheet container attached to the apparatus body and feeds the recording media one by one from the sheet container to the sheet separation nip,
wherein, when multiple recording media are fed from the sheet container and held in the sheet separation nip, the sheet separating part separates a recording medium that directly contacts the sheet feeding roller from the multiple recording media and feeds the recording medium toward the image forming part.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2 , further comprising
a swing holder having a swing shaft to swingably hold the sheet separating body; and
a biasing member to bias the swing holder toward the sheet feeding roller when the sheet container is attached to the apparatus body by biasing the swing holder in a given direction.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3 ,
wherein the sheet separating body storing unit is a separation roller unit that is detachably attached to the sheet container and the containing device integrally contains the swing holder, and the biasing member.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4 ,
wherein the sheet separating roller has the cylindrical roller part.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4 , further comprising a torque limiter to support the rotary shaft of the sheet separating roller,
wherein, when a torque of rotation of the sheet separating roller exceeds a given threshold of the torque of rotation thereof, the torque limiter allows the sheet separating roller to rotate in contact with the sheet feeding roller in a sheet feeding direction,
wherein, when the torque of rotation of the sheet separating roller is equal to or smaller than the given threshold of the torque of rotation thereof, the torque limiter stops the sheet separating roller from rotating with the sheet feeding roller.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the separation roller unit includes a sheet separation nip guide to prevent the recording medium from abutting against a circumferential surface of the sheet separating roller by contacting the recording medium before the recording medium enters the sheet separation nip and to guide the recording medium toward the sheet separation nip.

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the separation roller unit includes an elasticity applying member to bend the recording medium having a small rigidity by contacting the recording medium before the recording medium enters the sheet separation nip and to generate wrinkles on the recording medium in the sheet feeding direction,
wherein the elasticity applying unit is the first contact part and the second contact part.

9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8 , the elasticity applying member includes multiple elasticity applying members to contact the recording medium from below in a direction of gravity at different positions from each other in the rotation axis direction of the sheet separating roller,
wherein the multiple elasticity applying members are the first contact part and the second contact part.

10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein at least one of the multiple elasticity applying members is disposed at a position closer to the one end of the rotary shaft of the sheet separating roller in the rotation axis direction than the cylindrical roller part of the sheet separating roller and at least another one of the multiple elasticity applying members is disposed at a position closer to the opposite end of the rotary shaft of the sheet separating roller in the rotation axis direction than the cylindrical roller part of the sheet separating roller.

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising at least one additional sheet container disposed vertically below the apparatus body,
wherein the sheet container and the at least one additional sheet container are disposed below the image forming part,
wherein the at least one additional sheet container includes multiple additional sheet containers, each including an additional sheet separating roller unit having an additional containing device,
wherein the containing device of the sheet container and the additional containing device of each of the multiple additional sheet containers other than a lowest additional sheet container are a sheet conveying guide to convey the recording medium toward the image forming part.

12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the sheet feeding roller is affixed in the apparatus body.

Assignees

• Aoyama Jumpei
• Nishida Hajime
• Tobinaga Hideki
• Kamichi Junpei
• Kuno Satoshi
• Kobayashi Shun
• Nonaka Manabu
• Ricoh Co Ltd

Inventors

• Aoyama Jumpei
• Nishida Hajime
• Tobinaga Hideki
• Kamichi Junpei
• Kuno Satoshi
• Kobayashi Shun
• Nonaka Manabu

Classifications

• G03G15/6514

  Manual supply devices · CPC title

• G03G15/6511 Primary

  Feeding devices for picking up or separation of copy sheets · CPC title