1. Technical Field
An aspect of the present invention relates to an image reading apparatus, which may be installed in a multifunction device (MFD) having a plurality of functions, such as a scanning function, a printing function, and a copying function.
2. Related Art
An MFD having a plurality of functions, such as a scanning function, a printing function and a copying function, may generally be equipped with an image reading apparatus configured to read an image from a sheet of original document. The image reading apparatus may include, for example, a so-called flatbed-typed image reading apparatus, which reads an image from the original document placed still on a so-called platen (e.g., a transparent plate of glass or resin). For another example, the image reading apparatus may be equipped with an auto-document feeder (ADF), which separates original documents placed on a document placement section automatically and conveys the separated original documents one-by-one, and reads images appearing on the separated original documents while the original documents are sequentially conveyed. Moreover, the flatbed-typed image reading apparatus may be equipped with the ADF.
The flatbed-typed image reading apparatus with the ADF may include a document feeder unit and a reader unit. The document feeder unit may be arranged on top of the reader unit, and the document feeder unit may generally be openable (and closable) with respect to the reader unit. Therefore, when a user attempts to have the image read from the original document placed still on the platen, which is arranged in an upper part of the reader unit, in other words, when the user selects not to use the document feeder unit, the user opens the document feeder unit with respect to the reader unit to place the original document on the platen manually. On the other hand, when the user selects to use the document feeder unit, the document feeder unit is not moved but is maintained closed with respect to the reader unit.
Meanwhile, the above-mentioned reader unit may be configured to form a document placement space, in which the original documents to be read are placed, and a document collecting space, in which the original documents having been read are collected. In order to reduce a space required for installation of the image reading apparatus, and in order to reduce dimensions of the image reading apparatus in depth and width, the document placement space and the document collecting space may be formed in vertically and at least partly overlapping arrangement with respect to each other. In other words, in a plane view, the document placement space and the document collecting space may at least partly overlap each other. While the document placement space and the document collecting space are continuous with each other via a document conveyer path, in order to enable the vertically overlapping arrangement, it is necessary that the document conveyer path includes a reversible path, which is curved upward or downward, and in which the original documents are inverted upside-down.
With the reversible path, when so-called regular paper, such as commercially available copier paper, is used as the original document to be read, the regular paper can be flexibly conveyed in the document conveyer path without difficulties. Meanwhile, when thicker paper, such as a postcard and business card, is used as the original document to be read, the thicker paper may be curled in the reversible path along the curvature.
Therefore, an ADF equipped with a regular conveyer path and a straight-formed different conveyer path may be suggested. The auto-document feeder may convey the regular paper in the regular conveyer path, which is formed to effectively reduce the installation space, and the thicker paper in the different straight conveyer path, so that the deformation of the thicker paper is avoided.
More specifically, the ADF may be equipped with the regular conveyer path, including straight paths and an upward curved path continuous with the straight conveyer paths. And in the regular conveyer path, the original document is conveyed from the document placement section arranged in a lower position to the document collecting section arranged in an upper position. At the same time, the ADF may be equipped with the straight-formed different conveyer path, which is branched from the regular conveyer path at an upstream position with respect to the curved path. The straight-formed different conveyer path may be formed to be narrower in width than a predetermined width so that a smaller-sized thicker paper with a width narrower than the predetermined width is guided correctly and allowed to pass there-through. In other words, the different conveyer path may allow the paper with a smaller width, which is narrower than the predetermined width, to pass there-through, while a larger-sized regular paper with a larger width, which is wider than the predetermined width, should be restricted from entering the different conveyer path.
In order to restrict the larger-sized wider paper from the different conveyer path and allow the smaller-sized narrower paper in the different conveyer path, the ADF may be provided with a rotatable member, which forms a part of the reversible path and may be rotatable to open and close entrance of the different conveyer path. The rotatable member may be rotated in conjunction with an ejection tray, which may be moved to open when used, and in which the smaller-sized narrower thicker paper should be collected.
If, however, the original document having a width wider than the predetermined width is placed on the placement section, and when the different conveyer path being narrower than the predetermined width is open to the wider original document, the wider original document may be drawn into the different conveyer path, of which width is narrower than the width of the wider original document. In this regard, the original document may be damaged or jammed in the different conveyer path.