Image Reading Apparatus

• US 20140023416A1
• Filed: 07/18/2013
• Published: 01/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Suzuki, Hirofumi
• Granted Patent: US 9,319,544 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/380
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00554 Latches or hinges therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00557 Connection or assembly of components or elements H04N1/00538 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0081 Image reader H04N2201/0091 - H04N2201/0094 take precedence

Abstract

An image reading apparatus, including a main unit including a placement plane and an image reader, a document cover swingably supported by the main unit via a hinge to move between a closed position and an open position, and a conveyer unit to convey a document sheet, is provided. The hinge includes an in-main-unit joint section attached to an end of the main unit, an on-cover joint section attached to an end of the document cover, and an urging member arranged in between the in-main-unit joint section and the on-cover joint section. A coupling device to couple the end of the document cover and the end of the main unit together and to restrict the end of the document cover and the end of the main unit from being separated from each other is disposed in an intermediate position between the document cover and the conveyer unit.

Claims

1. An image reading apparatus, comprising:

a main unit comprising a placement plane, on which a document sheet to be read is placed, and an image reader, which is configured to read an image formed on the document sheet placed on the placement plane;

a document cover made of resin and configured to be swingably supported by the main unit via a hinge to swing about a swing axis, which is in parallel with a first direction, and to be movable between a closed position to cover the placement plane and an open position to expose the placement plane; and

a conveyer unit arranged on one side of the document cover along a second direction which is orthogonal with respect to the placement plane, the conveyer unit comprising a document tray, which is configured to accommodate the document sheet to be read therein, the conveyer unit being configured to convey the document sheet from the document tray to have the image formed thereon to be read by the image reader,

wherein the hinge comprises;

an in-main-unit joint section, which is configured to be attached to an end of the main unit on one side along a third direction being orthogonal with respect to the first direction and to the second direction;

an on-cover joint section, which is configured to be attached to an end of the document cover on the one side along the third direction; and

an urging member arranged in between the in-main-unit joint section and the on-cover joint section and configured to provide urging force to maintain the document cover in the open position;

wherein a coupling device, configured to couple the end of the document cover on the one side along the third direction and the end of the main unit on the one side along the third direction together, and to restrict the end of the document cover and the end of the main unit from being separated from each other along an orthogonal direction being orthogonal with respect to the first direction, is disposed in an intermediate position between the document cover and the conveyer unit.

2. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the coupling device is formed to have a rib extending along the orthogonal direction and along a spreading direction, the spreading direction intersecting with the orthogonal direction orthogonally on a virtual plane, which intersects with the first direction orthogonally.

3. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the coupling device is configured to couple the end of the document cover and the end of the conveyer unit together via a hooking structure including at least one hook.

4. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the coupling device is configured to couple the end of the document cover and the end of the conveyer unit together via at least one screw.

5. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the coupling device is configured to serve as an external covering to cover the conveyer unit.

6. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the hinge comprises a main hinge and an auxiliary hinge;

wherein the document cover is swingably supported by the main unit via the main hinge and the auxiliary hinge to be swingable about the swing axis;

wherein, between the main hinge and the auxiliary hinge within the hinge, the urging member is provided solely in the main hinge.