US 10,221,030 B2Granted

Sheet conveying apparatus and image forming apparatus

AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorTakuma Koizumi

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Abstract

A sheet conveying apparatus includes first and second roller members fixed to a rotatable shaft, a first follower roller that cooperates with the first roller member to form a conveying nip, and a second follower roller that cooperates with the second roller member to form a conveying nip. The first and second roller members have outer periphery cut-away parts and the first and second follower rollers are moveably supported and can be biased to home positions. If the first roller member cut-away part faces the first follower roller, the first follower roller is biased to move toward a home position while the nip of the second roller member nips and conveys a sheet. If the second roller member cut-away part faces the second follower roller, the second follower roller is biased to move toward a home position while the nip of the first roller member nips and conveys a sheet.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A sheet conveying apparatus comprising:

a shaft configured to rotate by transmission of driving force;
a first roller member fixed to the shaft;
a second roller member fixed to the shaft;
a first follower roller configured to follow the first roller member, and to nip and convey a sheet with the first roller member;
a second follower roller configured to follow the second roller member, and to nip and convey a sheet with the second roller member;
a support unit configured to movably support the first follower roller and the second follower roller in a width direction of a sheet perpendicular to a sheet conveying direction;
a first biasing unit configured to bias the first follower roller to a first home position in the width direction;
a second biasing unit configured to bias the second follower roller to a second home position in the width direction;
a first cut-away part formed on a first outer periphery of the first roller member;
and
a second cut-away part formed on a second outer periphery of the second roller member,
wherein, in a state where the first cut-away part of the first roller member faces the first follower roller, the first follower roller is moved toward the first home position by the first biasing unit while a sheet is nipped and conveyed by the second roller member and the second follower roller,
wherein, in a state where the second cut-away part of the second roller member faces the second follower roller, the second follower roller is moved toward the second home position by the second biasing unit while a sheet is nipped and conveyed by the first roller member and the first follower roller, and
wherein, in a cross section of the first roller member intersecting with a first rotating shaft of the first roller member, a distance from the first rotating shaft to the first cut-away part in the first outer periphery is shorter than a distance from the first rotating shaft to a first outer surface of a part other than the first cut-away part in the first outer periphery, and, in a cross section of the second roller member intersecting with a second rotating shaft of the second roller member, a distance from the second rotating shaft to the second cut-away part in the second outer periphery is shorter than a distance from the second rotating shaft to a first outer surface of a part other than the second cut-away part in the second outer periphery.

11 more elements

An image forming apparatus comprising:

a shaft configured to rotate by transmission of driving force;
a first roller member fixed to the shaft;
a second roller member fixed to the shaft;
a first follower roller configured to follow the first roller member, and to nip and convey a sheet with the first roller member;
a second follower roller configured to follow the second roller member, and to nip and convey a sheet with the second roller member;
an image forming unit configured to form an image on a sheet conveyed by the first roller member, the first follower roller, the second roller member, and the second follower roller;
a support unit configured to movably support the first follower roller and the second follower roller in a width direction of a sheet perpendicular to a sheet conveying direction;
a first biasing unit configured to bias the first follower roller to a first home position in the width direction;
a second biasing unit configured to bias the second follower roller to a second home position in the width direction;
a first cut-away part formed on a first outer periphery of the first roller member;
and
a second cut-away part formed on a second outer periphery of the second roller member,
wherein, in a state where the first cut-away part of the first roller member faces the first follower roller, the first follower roller is moved toward the first home position by the first biasing unit while a sheet is nipped and conveyed by the second roller member and the second follower roller,
wherein, in a state where the second cut-away part of the second roller member faces the second follower roller, the second follower roller is moved toward the second home position by the second biasing unit while a sheet is nipped and conveyed by the first roller member and the first follower roller, and
wherein, in a cross section of the first roller member intersecting with a first rotating shaft of the first roller member, a distance from the first rotating shaft to the first cut-away part in the first outer periphery is shorter than a distance from the first rotating shaft to a first outer surface of a part other than the first cut-away part in the first outer periphery, and, in a cross section of the second roller member intersecting with a second rotating shaft of the second roller member, a distance from the second rotating shaft to the second cut-away part in the second outer periphery is shorter than a distance from the second rotating shaft to a first outer surface of a part other than the second cut-away part in the second outer periphery.

12 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/833,926Filed 6 Dec 2017
Priority: JP 2016-24133113 Dec 2016
Published: US 2018/0162673 A114 Jun 2018
Granted: 5 Mar 2019
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification20 codes

B65H 29/125
By means of the nip between two, or between two sets of, moving tapes or bands or rollers: between two sets of rollers
B65H 5/06
Feeding articles separated from piles; Feeding articles to machines: by rollers or balls, e.g. between rollers
B65H 5/062
By rollers or balls, e.g. between rollers: between rollers or balls
B65H 9/00
Registering