U.S. patent application number 13/429129 was filed with the patent office on 2012-09-27 for printing device.
This patent application is currently assigned to SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Yuto Suzuki.
Application Number | 20120242034 13/429129 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46855323 |
Filed Date | 2012-09-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120242034 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Suzuki; Yuto |
September 27, 2012 |
PRINTING DEVICE
Abstract
A printing device includes: a moveable guided portion; and a
guide rail that guides the guided portion between a lower position
at a lower side in a vertical direction, and a retained region
being at an upper side from the lower position and in which the
guided portion is retained; the retained region being provided with
a receiving portion that receives a lower end of the guided
portion, and a first guiding element that changes an attitude of
the guided portion such that the lower end of the guided portion is
conducted to an upper portion of the receiving portion accompanying
an upward movement of the guided portion.
Inventors: |
Suzuki; Yuto; (Shiojiri-shi,
JP) |
Assignee: |
SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
Tokyo
JP
|
Family ID: |
46855323 |
Appl. No.: |
13/429129 |
Filed: |
March 23, 2012 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
271/162 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65H 2405/324 20130101;
B65H 2402/32 20130101; B41J 3/60 20130101; B41J 13/103 20130101;
B65H 2407/21 20130101; B65H 1/02 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
271/162 |
International
Class: |
B65H 1/04 20060101
B65H001/04 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Mar 25, 2011 |
JP |
2011-067607 |
Claims
1. A printing device comprising: a moveable guided portion; and a
guide rail that guides the guided portion between a lower position
at a lower side thereof in a vertical direction, and a retained
region being at an upper side thereof from the lower position and
holding the guided portion, the retained region being provided with
a receiving portion that receives a lower end of the guided
portion, and a first guiding element that changes an attitude of
the guided portion such that the lower end of the guided portion is
conducted to an upper portion of the receiving portion accompanying
an upward movement of the guided portion.
2. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein: the receiving
portion has a supporting portion capable of supporting the lower
end of the guided portion, and a guiding surface capable of guiding
the lower end of the guided portion to the supporting portion; and
the first guiding element that changes the attitude of the guided
portion is provided such that the lower end of the guided portion
is conducted to an upper portion of the guiding surface
accompanying the upward movement of the guided portion.
3. The printing device according to claim 2, wherein, when the
guided portion has moved from the lower position to the retained
region, the first guiding element changes the attitude of the
guided portion such that the lower end of the guided portion is
conducted to the upper portion of the guiding surface; and the
lower end of the guided portion comes into contact with the guiding
surface by a weight of the guided portion, the lower end moves to
the supporting portion while being guided by the guiding surface,
and the guided portion is supported by the supporting portion.
4. The printing device according to claim 2, wherein the retained
region is provided with a second guiding element that guides an
upper end of the guided portion to the first guiding element
accompanying the upward movement of the guided portion; and the
first guiding element is provided in a position that is displaced
above an extended line of a guide trajectory that is a trajectory
in which the guided portion guided by the guide rail moves, and the
supporting portion is provided on a side of the position at which
the first guiding element is displaced using the guide rail as a
baseline.
5. The printing device according to claim 2, wherein the guided
portion is a part of the medium supporting member that supports the
medium; in a state in which the medium supporting member is
withdrawn from the casing of the printing device and the medium can
be supported, the guided portion is supported by the supporting
portion in the retained region; in a state in which the medium
supporting member is stored in the casing of the printing device,
the guided portion is positioned in the lower position; and, when
the medium supporting member has been withdrawn from the casing of
the printing device, the lower end of the guided portion comes into
contact with the guiding surface by the weight of the medium
supporting member, the lower end moves to the supporting portion
while being guided by the guiding surface, and thereby the attitude
of the medium supporting member tilts with respect to the guiding
direction of the guide rail, and the attitude of the medium
supporting member adopts a predetermined attitude with respect to
the casing.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] 1. Technical Field
[0002] The present invention relates to a printing device including
a moveable guided portion and a guide rail that guides the guided
portion.
[0003] According to the present invention, the printing device
includes such varieties as inkjet printers, wire dot printers,
laser printers, line printers, copiers and facsimiles.
[0004] 2. Related Art
[0005] Conventionally, as shown in JP-A-2004-051358, the rear of a
printer has been provided with a withdrawable paper support. When
using the paper support, first the paper support stored in a
storage portion would be withdrawn along the direction of guide
channels. Next, it would be tilted to an angle closer to horizontal
than the angle upon withdrawal. In this manner, the paper could be
set on top of the paper support.
[0006] However, in order for the user to switch the paper support
from a stored state to a usable state, a withdrawing operation and
an operation of collapsing to a predetermined angle were required,
and operability was not sufficient.
[0007] Furthermore, the configuration was biased using a projecting
portion and spring member with respect to the guide channels in
order to retain the position and attitude of the paper support, and
there was a problem with the number of parts.
SUMMARY
[0008] An advantage of some aspects of the present invention is
that the task is to provide a printing device that takes into
consideration the operability of the moveable guided portion and
the number of parts.
[0009] In order to achieve the above-described task, the printing
device according to a first aspect of the present invention
includes a moveable guided portion and a guide rail that guides the
guided portion between a lower position at a lower side thereof in
the vertical direction, and a retained region being at an upper
side thereof from the lower position and holding the guided
portion. The retained region is provided with a supporting portion
capable of supporting a lower end of the guided portion, a guiding
surface capable of guiding the lower end of the guided portion to
the supporting portion, and a first guiding means that changes the
attitude of the guided portion such that the lower end of the
guided portion is conducted to an upper portion of the guiding
surface accompanying an upward movement of the guided portion.
[0010] According to the present aspect, the guided portion can be
switched to a predetermined attitude in the retained region with
just a single action of withdrawing the guided portion that is
positioned in the lower position, causing it to move to the
retained region above, and releasing ones hand. That is,
operability is good.
[0011] For example, the guided portion may be made as a part of a
medium supporting member that supports a medium. In a state in
which the medium supporting member is withdrawn from the casing of
the printing device and the medium can be supported, the guided
portion is supported by the supporting portion in the retained
region. Furthermore, in a state in which the medium supporting
member is stored in the casing of the printing device, the guided
portion is positioned in the lower position.
[0012] In such cases, the user withdraws the medium supporting
member from the casing of the printing device. When doing this, the
guided portion moves to the retained region. The user removes his
hand from the medium support member. The lower end of the guided
portion then comes into contact with the guiding surface by the
weight of the medium support member, and the lower end moves to the
supporting portion while being guided by the guiding surface.
[0013] In this manner, the attitude of the medium supporting member
tilts with respect to the guiding direction of the guide rail, and
the attitude of the medium supporting member adopts a predetermined
attitude with respect to the casing. That is, the user can switch
the medium supporting member to a predetermined attitude with just
a single action of withdrawing the medium supporting member and
releasing his hand.
[0014] Furthermore, the medium supporting member can be included by
a single member, and the number of parts can be reduced compared to
the configuration of the conventional paper support.
[0015] A second aspect of the present invention according to the
first aspect, wherein, when the guided portion has moved from the
lower position to the retained region, the first guiding means
changes the attitude of the guided portion such that the lower end
of the guided portion is conducted to the upper portion of the
guiding surface; and the lower end of the guided portion comes into
contact with the guiding surface by the weight of the guided
portion, the lower end moves to the supporting portion while being
guided by the guiding surface, and the guided portion is supported
by the supporting portion.
[0016] According to the present aspect, the attitude of the guided
portion adopts a predetermined attitude by the above-described
weight, in addition to having a similar operation effect to the
first aspect. The configuration according to the present aspect is
particularly advantageous in the case where the guided portion is a
part of the medium supporting member supporting the medium.
[0017] A third aspect according to the first or second aspect,
wherein the retained region is provided with a second guiding means
that guides the upper end of the guided portion to the first
guiding means accompanying the upward movement of the guided
portion; and the first guiding means is provided in a position
displaced above an extended line of a guide trajectory that is a
trajectory in which the guided portion guided by the guide rail
moves, and the supporting portion is provided on a side of the
position at which the first guiding means is displaced using the
guide rail as a baseline.
[0018] According to the present aspect, the position of the lower
side can be displaced to the side of the displaced position above
the extended line of the guide trajectory of the guide rail in a
case where the guided portion is a part of the lower side in the
raisable member, in addition to having a similar operation effect
to the first or second aspect. In such cases, the lower side of the
raisable member can be displaced to the side of the displaced
position while being moved upward by just raising the upper end of
the raisable member straight along the guiding direction of the
guide rail.
[0019] For example, the position of the lower end side of the
medium supporting member is displaced to the side of the displaced
position when observed from the side, and the lower end of the
guided portion is displaced to the upper portion of the guiding
surface, just by grasping the upper end of the medium supporting
member and raising along the guide direction of the guide rail.
That is, the upper end of the medium supporting member moves
substantially straight upward, and the lower side of the medium
supporting member is displaced to the side of the displaced
position while moving upward. When doing this, since the upper end
of the medium supporting member is barely displaced to the side of
the displaced position, the operability when raising the medium
supporting member can be further improved.
[0020] Furthermore, moving the lower end of the guided portion to
the upper portion of the guiding surface is facilitated.
[0021] A fourth aspect of the present invention, according to any
one of the first to third aspects, wherein the guided portion is a
part of the medium supporting member that supports the medium; in a
state in which the medium supporting member is withdrawn from the
casing of the printing device and the medium can be supported, the
guided portion is supported by the supporting portion in the
retained region; in a state in which the medium supporting member
is stored in the casing of the printing device, the guided portion
is positioned in the lower position; and, when the medium
supporting member has been withdrawn from the casing of the
printing device, the lower end of the guided portion comes into
contact with the guiding surface by the weight of the medium
support member, the lower end moves to the supporting portion while
being guided by the guiding surface, and thereby the attitude of
the medium supporting member tilts with respect to the guiding
direction of the guide rail, and the attitude of the medium
supporting member adopts a predetermined attitude with respect to
the casing.
[0022] According to the present aspect, the configuration that has
the retained region is particularly advantageous in a case where
the guided portion is a part of the medium supporting member
supporting the medium, in addition to having a similar operation
effect to any one of the first to third aspects.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] The invention will be described with reference to the
accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers reference like
elements.
[0024] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a multi-functional printer
according to the present embodiment.
[0025] FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view showing a summary of
the interior of a multi-functional printer according to the present
embodiment.
[0026] FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view showing a medium
supporting member when stored according to the present
embodiment.
[0027] FIG. 4 is a side cross-sectional view showing a medium
supporting member being raised according to the present
embodiment.
[0028] FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view showing a medium
supporting member when raised according to the present
embodiment.
[0029] FIGS. 6A to 6D are side cross-sectional views showing
movement of a guided portion when raised.
[0030] FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view showing a medium
supporting member when being used according to the present
embodiment.
[0031] FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view showing a medium
supporting member when being stored according to the present
embodiment.
DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0032] The embodiments according to the present invention are
explained below on the basis of the drawings.
[0033] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view showing an embodiment of
a multi-functional printer according to the present embodiment.
Furthermore, FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view showing a
summary of the interior of the multi-functional printer according
to the present embodiment.
[0034] The multi-functional printer 1 according to the present
embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, includes a printer body
2 and a medium conveying device 33.
[0035] Of these, the printer body 2 includes a scanner portion 12,
a mount portion 13, a feeding means 16, a feed pathway 23, a print
unit 25, a first ejection stacker 31 and a casing 3.
[0036] The scanner portion 12 is disposed above (the direction of
the arrow along the Z-axis), which is the medium conveying device
33 side in the printer body 2. Here, the Z-axis is the vertical
direction.
[0037] The scanner portion 12 is configured such that information,
such as photographs and documents, printed on a side of the paper S
fed by the medium conveying device 33, can be read.
[0038] Furthermore, the mount portion 13 is provided such that
paper P, which is an example of a printed medium, can be mounted.
According to the present embodiment, there is a first mount portion
14 and a second mount portion 15. The first mount portion 14 is a
medium supporting member 14a and a hopper 14b that are provided at
the rear of the printer body 2. Of these, the hopper 14b is
configured such that downward can be separably moved with respect
to a first roller 17, mentioned later, focusing on upward (the
direction of the arrow along the Z-axis). Meanwhile, the second
mount portion 15 is a cassette portion 15a that is detachably
mounted downward of the printer body 2.
[0039] Furthermore, the feeding means 16 is provided such that the
paper P mounted on the mount portion 13 can be fed to the print
unit 25. Specifically, the feeding means 16 according to the
present embodiment has a first roller 17, a second roller 18, a
third roller 19, a first roller pair 21 and a second roller pair
22. Of these, the first roller 17 is provided so as to come into
contact with the top-most paper P when the downward of the hopper
14b approaches with respect to the first roller 17, and enable the
paper to be sent to the second roller 18 on the feeding direction
downstream side.
[0040] Furthermore, the third roller 19 is provided on a free end
of an arm portion 20 that separably moves with respect to the
cassette portion 15a. The roller is provided so as to come into
contact with the top-most paper P in the cassette portion 15a, and
enable the paper P to be sent to the second roller 18 on the
feeding direction downstream side. Moreover, the second roller 18
is provided so as to enable the paper P, which has been fed by the
first roller 17 and the third roller 19, to be further sent to the
first roller pair 21 on the downstream side.
[0041] Furthermore, the first roller pair 21 is provided so as to
enable the paper P to be sent to the print unit 25 and the second
roller pair 22 on the feeding direction downstream side (the
direction of the arrow along the Y-axis) when printing. Moreover,
the second roller pair 22 is provided on the feeding direction
downstream side from the print unit 25 when printing, and is
provided so as to enable the paper P printed by the print unit 25
to be ejected to the first ejection stacker 31.
[0042] Moreover, the feed pathway 23 is a pathway in which the
paper P is fed, and is configured by guiding members. Specifically,
the pathway is configured so as to enable the paper P to be guided
from the mount portion 13 to the first ejection stacker 31 via the
print unit 25.
[0043] Furthermore, the print unit 25 is configured so as to enable
printing to be performed by discharging ink with respect to the
paper P fed by the feeding means 16. Specifically, the print unit
25 has a carriage 26, a print head 27 and a medium supporting
portion 28.
[0044] Of these, the carriage 26 is configured, in one example, so
as to enable movement while being guided by the guiding members,
not shown in the drawings, which are extended in the width
direction X of the paper P, by means of the power of a motor, not
shown in the drawings. Furthermore, the print head 27 is provided
on the side opposing the paper P in the carriage 26. A surface
opposing the paper P in the print head 27 is further formed with
nozzles (not shown) that discharge ink. Moreover, the medium
supporting portion 28 is provided at a position opposing the print
head 27, and is configured to enable a distance between the paper P
and the print head 27 to be maintained at a predetermined
length.
[0045] Moreover, the first ejection stacker 31 is provided to
enable the printed paper P to be mounted. Furthermore, the first
ejection stacker 31 is retractably provided.
[0046] In addition to the feed pathway 23, a side reversing pathway
24 for reversing the sides of the paper P is also provided. In the
case of duplex printing mode, after printing with respect to an
obverse side of the paper P, the paper P is reverse fed in a
reverse direction to the feeding direction Y when printing by a
first roller pair 21 and a second roller pair 22. The paper is then
fed to the side reversing pathway 24, wraps around from the lower
side to the upper side of the second roller 18 and is fed once more
to the first roller pair 21. Upon doing this, the obverse side that
has already been printed becomes the medium supporting portion 28
side, and the reverse side that has yet to be printed becomes the
print head 27 side. The paper is then sent to the feeding direction
downstream side when printing by the first roller pair 21, and the
pathway is configured such that printing is performed by the print
unit 25 with respect to the obverse side.
[0047] Furthermore, the casing 3 is the case of the printer body 2.
The casing is configured so as to cover components such as the feed
pathway 23.
[0048] Meanwhile, the medium conveying device 33 is disposed upward
(the arrow direction of the Z axis) of the printer body 2. Although
detailed references to the drawings are omitted, the device is
provided so as to enable the paper S mounted on a third mounting
device 34 to be sent by a conveying pathway (not shown in the
drawings) with respect to a predetermined position opposing the
scanner portion 12 on the printer body 2 side. The information
printed on the side of the paper S is read by the scanner portion
12. Thereafter, the medium conveying device 33 is provided so as to
enable the paper S to be ejected by feeding to a second ejection
stacker 35.
[0049] Next, the medium supporting member 14a according to the
present embodiment will be explained in detail while paying
particular attention to the action when withdrawing.
[0050] FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view showing the medium
supporting member 14a when stored according to the present
embodiment. In order to facilitate understanding of the position
and attitude of the guided portion 11 of the medium supporting
member 14a, the medium supporting member 14a is represented by a
dot-dashed line (the same is also true hereinafter).
[0051] As shown in FIG. 3, both sides in the width direction X in
the medium supporting member 14a are formed with guided portions
11.
[0052] According to the present embodiment, one of the both sides
in the width direction X in the medium supporting member 14a is
explained, and the other side is similar to the one side and thus
an explanation thereof is omitted (the same is also true
hereinafter).
[0053] The guided portion 11 of the medium supporting member 14a is
configured so as to be guided by a guide rail 4 formed on the
casing 3. Specifically, the guide rail 4 is configured so as to
guide the guided portion 11 between a lower position 36 at which
the guided portion 11 is positioned when the medium supporting
member 14a is stored in the casing 3, and a retained region 5 in
which the guided portion 11 is positioned when the medium
supporting member 14a has been withdrawn from the casing 3.
[0054] The lower position 36 is the lower end in a substantially
vertical direction of the guide rail 4. The guide rail 4 is
extended from the lower position 36 to the retained region 5 upward
in the substantially vertical direction.
[0055] Furthermore, the retained region 5 is provided with a
supporting portion 6, a slanted guiding surface 7 as the guiding
surface, a first guiding means 8 and a second guiding means 10.
[0056] Although explained in brief here, the supporting portion 6
is provided so as to be capable of supporting a lower end 11a of
the guided portion 11.
[0057] Furthermore, the slanted guiding surface 7 is tilted with
respect to the horizontal direction to enable the lower end 11a of
the guided portion 11 to be guided to the supporting portion 6.
Moreover, the first guiding means 8 is provided so as to enable the
attitude of the guided portion 11 to be changed accompanying the
upward movement of the guided portion 11. Furthermore, the second
guiding means 10 is provided so as to enable the lower end 11b of
the guided portion 11 to be guided to the first guiding means 8
accompanying the upward movement of the guided portion 11.
[0058] FIG. 4 is a side cross-sectional view showing the medium
supporting member 14a while being raised according to the present
embodiment.
[0059] As shown in FIG. 4, from the state of FIG. 3, the user
withdraws the medium supporting member 14a from the casing 3 by
grasping the upper portion of the medium supporting member 14a and
raising the medium supporting member upward in the substantially
vertical direction. Upon doing this, the guided portion 11 of the
medium supporting member 14a moves upward while being guided by the
guide rail 4.
[0060] FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view showing the medium
supporting member 14a when raised according to the present
embodiment.
[0061] As shown in FIG. 5, from the state of FIG. 4, the user
withdraws the medium supporting member 14a from the casing 3 by
further raising the medium supporting member upward. The guided
portion 11 is then guided by the guide rail 4 and enters the
retained region 5. Upon doing this, the upper end 11b of the guided
portion 11 is guided by the second guiding means 10 to the first
guiding means 8. The attitude of the guided portion 11 is changed
by the first guiding means 8 so as to conduct the lower end 11a of
the guided portion 11 to the upper portion of the slanted guiding
surface 7. The condition of the guided portion 11 at this time will
now be explained in further detail.
[0062] FIGS. 6A to 6D are side cross-sectional views showing
movement of a guided portion 11 when raised.
[0063] As shown in FIG. 6A, when the user raises the medium
supporting member 14a upward in the substantially vertical
direction, the guided portion 11 enters the retained region 5. Once
the guided portion 11 has entered the retained region 5, due to the
attitude of the guided portion 11, the upper end 11b of the guided
portion 11 abuts with the slanted surface 10a of the second guiding
means 10. Here, the slanted surface 10a is a surface slanted with
respect to the vertical direction Z, which is the guiding direction
of the guide rail 4. The second guiding means 10 is configured so
as to guide the upper end 11b of the guided portion 11 to the first
guiding means 8 accompanying the upward movement of the guided
portion 11.
[0064] Here, the first guiding means 8 is provided at a displaced
position above an extended line A1 of a guide trajectory A that,
viewed from the direction of the X-axis, is the trajectory in which
the guided portion 11 that is guided by the guide rail 4 moves. In
the case where the direction of movement when the guided portion 11
has entered the retained region 5 is upward in the substantially
vertical direction, the configuration is one in which the upper end
11b of the guided portion 11 abuts the slanted surface 10a of the
second guiding means 10, and the upper end 11b of the guided
portion 11 is guided to the first guiding means 8 by the second
guiding means 10.
[0065] If the direction of movement when the guided portion 11 has
entered the retained region 5 is a direction facing the first
guiding means 8 displaced from the the extended line A1 of the
guide trajectory A of the guide rail 4, and not upward in the
substantially vertical direction, the upper end 11b of the guided
portion 11 does not abut with the slanted surface 10a of the second
guiding means 10. That is, the upper end 11b of the guided portion
11 is by no means always guided to the first guiding means 8 by the
second guiding means 10, and the configuration may be one that does
not have a second guiding means 10.
[0066] As shown in FIG. 6B, from the state of FIG. 6A, when the
user further raises the medium supporting member 14a upward, the
guided portion 11 moves further upward. The upper end 11b of the
guided portion 11 then abuts with the first guiding means 8. The
first guiding means 8 changes the attitude of the guided portion 11
such that the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11 is conducted
to the upper portion of the slanted guiding surface 7 accompanying
the upward movement of the guided portion 11.
[0067] Specifically, the position of the lower end 11a of the
guided portion 11 becomes the upper portion of the slanted guiding
surface 7, and the guided portion 11 adopts an attitude tilted with
respect to the vertical direction Z such that the lower end 11a
approaches the supporting portion 6 side. Upon doing this, the
attitude of the medium supporting member 14a also adopts an
attitude tilted with respect to the vertical direction Z, to a
direction in which upward of the medium supporting member 14a is
collapsed to the rear of the multi-functional printer 1. The degree
of tilting of the medium supporting member 14a may be slight, as
mentioned later.
[0068] In order to obtain the use effect of the first guiding means
8, it is necessary to determine not only the actual shape of the
first guiding means 8 and the actual shape of the guided portion
11, but also the measurements of the first guiding means 8 and the
measurements of the guided portion 11, and these are not determined
uniformly.
[0069] As shown in FIG. 6C, from the state of FIG. 6B, when the
user removes his hand from the medium supporting member 14a, the
guided portion 11 moves in the same tilted attitude downward in the
vertical direction by the weight of the medium supporting member
14a. Here, prior to removing his hand, the lower end 11a of the
guided portion 11 is positioned in the upper portion of the slanted
guiding surface 7. Consequently, when his hand is removed, the
lower end 11a of the guided portion 11 abuts with the slanted
guiding surface 7.
[0070] As shown in FIG. 6D, from the state of FIG. 6C, the slanted
guiding surface 7 guides the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11
to the supporting portion 6. The lower end 11a of the guided
portion 11 is supported by the supporting portion 6. Furthermore,
the upper end 11b of the guided portion 11 abuts with an abutting
portion 6 of the first guiding means 8. In this manner, the
attitude of the guided portion 11 is retained. That is, the
attitude of the guided portion 11 is retained in a state in which
the tilt with respect to the vertical direction Z of the guide
portion 11 is greater than the tilt during FIG. 6B and FIG. 6C.
Accompanying this, the attitude of the medium supporting member 14a
becomes a state tilted at a predetermined angle with respect to the
vertical direction Z, to a direction in which upward of the medium
supporting member 14a is collapsed to the rear of the
multi-functional printer 1. In other words, the attitude of the
medium supporting member 14a becomes a state tilted at a
predetermined angle with respect to the casing 3.
[0071] Here, the principle of the lower end 11a of the guided
portion 11 being guided by the slanted guiding surface 7 to move to
the supporting portion 6 may be a configuration whereby the guided
portion 11 moves by sliding down the slanted guiding surface 7,
which is slanted with respect to the horizontal direction, by the
weight of the medium supporting member 14a.
[0072] Furthermore, the attitude of the medium supporting member
14a is already slightly tilted, as previously mentioned, to a
direction in which upward of the medium supporting member 14a is
collapsed to the rear of the multi-functional printer 1 with
respect to the vertical direction Z. The lower end 11a of the
guided portion 11 being guided by the slanted guiding surface 7 to
move to the supporting portion 6 may also be configured by adopting
a further tilt by the weight of the medium supporting member 14a.
In such a case, it is unnecessary for the slanted guiding surface 7
to be tilted with respect to the horizontal direction.
[0073] FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view showing the medium
supporting member 14a when being used according to the present
embodiment.
[0074] As shown in FIG. 7, when the attitude of the guided portion
11 becomes the state of FIG. 6D, the attitude of the medium
supporting member 14a becomes a state tilted at a predetermined
angle with respect to the vertical direction Z, as previously
mentioned. Consequently, the paper P can be mounted on the hopper
14b and the medium supporting member 14a of the first mount portion
14, as previously mentioned.
[0075] As explained above, the user withdraws the medium supporting
member 14a from the casing 3 by grasping the upper portion of the
medium supporting member 14a and raising the medium supporting
member upward in the substantially vertical direction, and, by just
removing his hand, can switch to a state in which the medium
supporting member 14a is tilted at a predetermined angle with
respect to the vertical direction Z. That is, just a single action
is sufficient to raise the medium supporting member 14a, and
intentionally tilting the medium supporting member 14a at a
predetermined angle is unnecessary. Consequently, operability is
extremely good.
[0076] Furthermore, since the medium supporting member 14a can be
formed as a single member including the guided portion 11, the
number of pieces can be reduced compared to the conventional
configuration.
[0077] Next, the action when storing the medium supporting member
14a will be explained.
[0078] FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view showing the medium
supporting member 14a when being stored according to the present
embodiment.
[0079] As shown in FIG. 8, from the state shown in FIG. 7, the user
changes the attitude of the medium supporting member 14a by tilting
the upper portion of the medium supporting member 14a to the front
of the multi-functional printer. The upper end 11b of the guided
portion 11 then abuts with the first guiding means 8, and thereby
the medium supporting member 14a rocks about the upper end 11b of
the guided portion 11 or an area proximal thereto.
[0080] Upon doing this, the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11
moves so as to rise up the slanted guiding surface 7 from the
supporting portion 6, and detaches from the slanted guiding surface
7. That is, a state is adopted in which the guided portion 11 is
not supported in the retained region 5. Consequently, a state is
adopted in which the guided portion 11 is capable of moving along
the guide rail 4 to the lower position 36 by the weight of the
medium supporting member 14a. When the user removes his hand from
the medium supporting member 14a, the guided portion 11 moves along
the guide rail 4 to the lower position 36 by the weight of the
medium supporting member 14a. As a result, a state is adopted in
which the medium supporting member 14a is stored in the casing
3.
[0081] When storing the medium supporting member 14a, the user may
of course use his hands to store the medium supporting member
14a.
[0082] Furthermore, according to the embodiment described above,
although the withdrawing and storing of the medium supporting
member 14a, with the guided portion 11 as a part of the medium
supporting member 14a, has been explained, the guided portion 11 is
not limited to a part of the medium supporting member 14a.
Alternatively, the guided portion may also be a part of a member of
the configuration that is withdrawn from the casing 3.
[0083] Moreover, according to the embodiment described above, when
withdrawing the medium supporting member 14a, the configuration was
adopted in which the medium supporting member 14a is tilted to the
rear of the multi-functional printer 1, but the direction of
tilting is not limited to this. As a technical concept, when the
member having the guided portion 11 has been withdrawn upward, and
the user has removed his hand, any configuration is acceptable in
which the predetermined attitude is adopted with respect to the
vertical direction Z. For example, when a member having the guided
portion 11 has been withdrawn, and the user has removed his hand, a
configuration tilted to the front of the multi-functional printer 1
is acceptable.
[0084] Furthermore, according to the embodiment described above,
the configuration was adopted in which, after withdrawing the
medium supporting member 14a, the guided portion 11 abuts with the
supporting portion 6 and the abutting portion 9, and thereby the
attitude of the medium supporting member 14a is retained, but it is
not limited to this. A configuration is also acceptable in which
the attitude of the medium supporting member 14a is retained by
adopting a concave shape for the supporting portion 6, when seen
from the side, and the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11
coupling onto the supporting portion 6. That is, a configuration
not having the abutting portion 9 is also acceptable.
[0085] As the printing device according to the present embodiment,
the printer body 2 includes: a moveable guided portion 11; and a
guide rail 4 that guides the guided portion 11 between a lower
position 36 at a lower side in the vertical direction, and a
retained region 5 being at an upper side from the lower position 36
and in which the guided portion 11 is retained; the retained region
5 being provided with a supporting portion 6 capable of supporting
a lower end 11a of the guided portion 11, a slanted guiding surface
7 as a guiding surface capable of guiding the lower end 11a of the
guided portion 11 to the supporting portion 6, and a first guiding
means 8 that changes an attitude of the guided portion 11 such that
the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11 is conducted to an upper
portion of the guiding surface 7 accompanying an upward movement of
the guided portion 11.
[0086] Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, when the
guided portion 11 has moved from the lower position 36 to the
retained region 5, the first guiding means 8 changes the attitude
of the guided portion 11 such that the lower end 11a of the guided
portion 11 is conducted to the upper portion of the slanted guiding
surface 7; and the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11 comes
into contact with the slanted guiding surface 7 by the weight of
the guided portion 11, the lower end 11a moves to the supporting
portion 6 while being guided by the slanted guiding surface 7, and
the guided portion 11 is supported by the supporting portion 6.
[0087] Moreover, according to the present embodiment, the retained
region 5 is provided with a second guiding means 10 that guides an
upper end 11b of the guided portion 11 to the first guiding means 8
accompanying the upward movement of the guided portion 11; and the
first guiding means 8 is provided in a position that is displaced
above an extended line A1 of a guide trajectory A that is a
trajectory in which the guided portion 11 guided by the guide rail
4 moves, and the supporting portion 6 is provided on a side of the
position at which the first guiding means 8 is displaced using the
guide rail 4 as a baseline.
[0088] Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, the guided
portion 11 is a part of the medium supporting member 14a that
supports paper P as an example of a medium; in a state in which the
medium supporting member 14a is withdrawn from the casing 3 of the
printer body 2 and the paper P can be supported, the guided portion
11 is supported by the supporting portion 6 in the retained region
5; in a state in which the medium supporting member 14a is stored
in the casing 3 of the printer body 2, the guided portion 11 is
positioned in the lower position 36; and, when the medium
supporting member 14a has been withdrawn from the casing 3 of the
printer body 2, the lower end 11a of the guided portion 11 comes
into contact with the slanted guiding surface 7 by the weight of
the medium supporting member 14a, the lower end 11a moves to the
supporting portion 6 while being guided by the slanted guiding
surface 7, and thereby the attitude of the medium supporting member
14a tilts with respect to the vertical direction Z, which is the
guiding direction of the guide rail 4, and the attitude of the
medium supporting member 14a adopts a predetermined attitude with
respect to the casing 3.
[0089] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments
described above, and various modifications are possible within the
scope of the inventions described in the claims, and these are of
course included within the scope of the present invention.
[0090] The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No.
2011-67607, filed Mar. 25, 2011 is expressly incorporated by
reference herein.
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