Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Tokuyasu Inoue

Naofumi Okada

Takuharu Tanimoto

Kazutoshi Yamamoto

Mitsuhiro Murata

Mitshiro Murata

An automatic document transportation device has a rotatably supported guide piece at the junction between a document feeding route through which an incoming document sheet to be processed is passed to a scanning position and a discharge route through which the processed document sheet, moving backwards from the scanning position, travels to be discharged. The guide piece normally assumes a downward position by its own weight, thereby blocking the feeding route in such a way that the incoming document sheet can cause it to rotate and travel past it but the outgoing sheet, moving in the opposite direction, is deflected by it into the discharge route.

Automatic document transportation device

A document holder for holding a document sheet on top of and against a document table of a copier is connected to the housing structure of the copier and can be opened and closed with respect to the document table with hinge mechanisms. Each hinge mechanism has a plate adjustably attached to the side surface of the copier housing structure and supports a spring for applying a biasing force on the other hinge plate attached to the document holder. The spring applies its force through a cover piece having a cam surface such that the document holder can be kept open at any angular position and no biasing force acts on it when it is closed.

Document holder for a copier and hinge mechanism therefor

An automatic document transportation device is attached to a copier and can be opened and closed with respect to its document table. Its various components for transporting a document sheet to and from the document table are supported by plates which are directly attached to a flexible outer housing piece. Rollers for a conveyor belt for transporting a document sheet has collar-like pieces directly attached to their axes such that a fixed distance can be maintained between the conveyer belt and the document table.

Growing community of inventors

Hiroshima, Japan

Tokuyasu Inoue