Automatic cut-sheet feeder
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorYuji Koga
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An automatic cut-sheet feeder is provided having an extendible guide for preventing the upper section of a sheet from hanging down, even if the extendible guide does not reach the upper edge of the sheet because of downsizing this feeder. The automatic cut-sheet feeder for a printer includes a sheet stacking section for stacking at least one printing sheet and an extendible guide for supporting a sheet from its back surface, which is disposed at the upstream side, in the sheet feeding direction of the section. The extendible guide has a low section located centrally in the sheet width direction. The low section is lower than both side sections, which are outwardly protruding and supports the sheet such the sheet is curved in the width direction of the sheet.
Claims33
A cut-sheet feeder in which sheets are fed in a sheet feeding direction comprising:
- a sheet stacking section for stacking at least one sheet;
- and
- an extendible guide for supporting the at least one sheet at a back surface of the sheet, the extendible guide being disposed at an upstream side of the sheet stacking section in the sheet feeding direction, the extendible guide comprising a supporting surface, the supporting surface including a central section and a side section along a width direction of the supporting surface, the central section being lower than the side section, the surface of the extendible guide supporting the at least one sheet so that the at least one sheet is curved in the width direction of the at least one sheet,
- wherein the extendible guide includes a sub-guide member, disposed along the upstream side of the sheet stacking section in the sheet feeding direction, the sub-guide member being arranged to be received inside the sheet stacking section,
- wherein the sub-guide member of the extendible guide includes the side section of the supporting surface of the extendible guide,
- wherein the sub-guide member of the extendible guide includes a bottom portion that forms part of the central section of the supporting surface of the extendible guide.
A cut-sheet feeder, engagable with an image forming apparatus, the feeder comprising:
- a body frame with a bottom section;
- and
- a leg supporting the feeder, the leg axially connected to the bottom section and rotated horizontally along a direction crossing a longitudinal direction of the bottom section, the leg including an end section positioned near the image forming apparatus when the leg is rotated horizontally along the direction crossing the longitudinal direction of the bottom section, and an engaging section disposed at the end section of the leg engagable with the image forming apparatus.
A cut-sheet feeder for feeding sheets into a side of an image forming apparatus, the feeder comprising:
- a body frame capable of being mounted on a side of the image forming apparatus inclined upwards at an angle from a horizontal face of the image forming apparatus, the body frame comprising an upper section and a lower section, the lower section expanding in width towards a junction with the image forming apparatus;
- a sheet stacking section that holds a sheet, the sheet stacking section being located at the upper section of the body frame inside the body frame;
- a sheet feeding roller section located inside the lower section of the body frame inside the body frame;
- a roller driving section located on a first lateral side of the sheet feeding roller section;
- and
- at least one leg coupled to the lower section of the body frame that rotates parallel to the bottom face of the body frame.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.