CN111190333A

CN111190333A - Processing box with movable piece

Info

Publication number: CN111190333A
Application number: CN202010226794.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 闻艺俊
Original assignee: Zhuhai Tuojia Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Zhuhai Tuojia Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2019-03-31
Filing date: 2020-03-27
Publication date: 2020-05-22
Anticipated expiration: 2040-03-27
Also published as: CN109884867A; WO2020200065A1; CN110161824B; CN111190333B; CN110161824A; EP3951510A1; EP3951510A4

Abstract

The invention relates to a processing box with a movable part, which comprises a first unit and a second unit which are combined with each other, wherein when the processing box works, the first unit and the second unit are close to each other, when the processing box does not work, the first unit and the second unit are separated from each other, the movable part is arranged in the processing box in a way that at least one part of the movable part can move, and under the action of a force application part, the movable part can move between an initial position and a terminal position; when the movable piece is located at the initial position, the first unit and the second unit are close to each other; when the movable piece receives the acting force of the force application part, the movable piece moves from the initial position to the terminal position, and meanwhile, the first unit and the second unit are forced to be separated; when the acting force of the force application part is cancelled, the movable piece returns to the initial position from the terminal position along with the return of the second unit to the position close to the first unit, and even if the processing box falls or collides, the movable piece has a certain movement amount, so that the possibility that the movable piece is broken can be greatly reduced.

Description

Processing box with movable piece

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of electrophotographic image forming, and more particularly to a process cartridge detachably mountable to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus.

Background

Conventionally, a process cartridge includes a powder hopper for accommodating toner required for development and a waste powder hopper for accommodating waste powder generated by the development, the toner hopper being rotatably mounted in the powder hopper, the waste powder hopper being configured to accommodate waste powder generated by the development, a photosensitive member for forming an electrostatic latent image being rotatably mounted in the waste powder hopper, the developing member being in contact with the photosensitive member when the process cartridge is in operation, and the toner carried by the developing member developing the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photosensitive member.

In order to prevent the surface of the developing member from being deformed or the surface of the photosensitive member from being contaminated due to the long-term contact between the developing member and the photosensitive member when the process cartridge does not operate, the process cartridge further includes a force receiving portion fixed in the powder hopper, and accordingly, a force applying portion for applying a force to the force receiving portion is provided in the electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a printer. When force application portion and stress portion contact and to stress portion application effort, the powder storehouse is rotatory for useless powder storehouse, and the two is kept away from each other, and simultaneously, development piece and photosensitive part also separate, and when handling the box and need work, force application portion no longer applys the effort to stress portion, and powder storehouse and useless powder storehouse are close to each other, and at this moment, development piece and photosensitive part contact once more.

Above-mentioned application of force portion is exerted effort to atress portion and is forced the mode that powder storehouse and useless powder storehouse kept away from each other can reach the contaminated purpose of photosensitive piece, however, because atress portion is by fixed mounting in the powder storehouse, can combine with application of force portion for guaranteeing the atress portion, the atress portion is set up comparatively outstanding, falls when handling the box and take place, perhaps in the transportation, in case the collision, atress portion probably is broken to cause the developing piece and photosensitive piece can not separate and lead to the photosensitive piece to be contaminated.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a processing box, wherein a movable part combined with a force application part is movably arranged, and the movable part is movably arranged, so that even if the processing box falls or collides, the movable part has a certain movement amount, and the possibility of the movable part being broken off can be greatly reduced.

In order to achieve the purpose, the invention adopts the following technical scheme:

a process cartridge having a movable member detachably mountable to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus provided with a force application portion, and including a first unit and a second unit which are combined with each other, the first unit and the second unit being close to each other when the process cartridge is operated in the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the first unit and the second unit being separated from each other when the process cartridge is not operated in the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the movable member being mounted in the process cartridge in such a manner that at least a part thereof is movable, the movable member being movable between an initial position and a terminal position under the action of the force application portion; when the movable piece is located at the initial position, the first unit and the second unit are close to each other; when the movable piece receives the acting force of the force application part, the movable piece moves from the initial position to the terminal position, and meanwhile, the first unit and the second unit are forced to be separated; when the acting force of the force application part is cancelled, the movable piece returns to the initial position from the terminal position along with the return of the second unit to the position close to the first unit.

The second unit comprises a second unit shell and a rotating piece which is rotatably arranged in the second unit shell, and when the movable piece receives acting force, the second unit rotates relative to the first unit by pushing the rotating piece.

The rotating member includes a rotating shaft, a covering layer covering the circumferential surface of the rotating shaft, and a power receiving portion disposed at one longitudinal end of the rotating shaft, and the moving member is coupled to the rotating shaft between the covering layer and the power receiving portion.

The first unit includes a first unit housing and a photosensitive member rotatably mounted in the first unit housing, and the movable member is mounted on the photosensitive member in such a manner that at least a portion thereof is movable.

The second unit includes the second unit casing, rotatably installs the development piece in the second unit casing, and when the moving part was located initial position, development piece and photosensitive part contacted, when the moving part was located terminal position, development piece and photosensitive part separation, the direction of motion of moving part was parallel with the central line of the two when development piece and photosensitive part contacted.

When the movable member is acted by the force application part, the contact point of the movable member and the part acted by the movable member in the processing box is P before the first unit and the second unit are separated from each other, the contact point of the forced pushing part and the part acted by the movable member in the processing box is Q after the first unit and the second unit are separated from each other, and the point P and the point Q are respectively positioned on two sides of the connecting line EF.

The straight line of the moving direction of the moving piece is not parallel to the straight line of the moving direction of the force application part.

At least one part of the movable part can move when in the initial position, and at least another part of the movable part can not move when in the terminal position.

The movable member includes an installation portion and an action portion connected to each other, the installation portion being used to cause the movable member to be combined with other components of the process cartridge, the action portion being used to act on the corresponding component of the process cartridge to force the first unit and the second unit to be separated from each other.

When the mounting portion is not fixedly mounted, both the mounting portion and the acting portion are movable in the initial position, and at least the acting portion is immovable in the terminal position.

When the mounting part is fixedly mounted, the action part can move relative to the mounting part, the mounting part is immovable and the action part is movable in the initial position, and the mounting part and the action part are immovable in the terminal position.

The movable piece is movably mounted, and even if the processing box falls or collides, the movable piece has certain movement amount, so that the possibility of breaking the movable piece can be greatly reduced.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a process cartridge according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an exploded schematic view of the process cartridge according to the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a movable member according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view illustrating a state in which the movable member and the developing device are coupled according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5A and 5B are side views of the movable member according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the movable member is not coupled to the urging portion, as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the process cartridge.

Fig. 6A and 6B are side views of the movable member according to the embodiment of the present invention, when combined with the urging portion, as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the process cartridge.

Fig. 7 is a simplified state diagram illustrating relative movement among the movable member, the photosensitive member, and the developing member according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the movable member according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the movable member according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the movable member according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Firstly, defining the length direction of a processing box 1 as a longitudinal direction X, the width direction as a transverse direction Y and the installation direction as a vertical direction Z; the overall structure of the process cartridge 1 is described below with reference to fig. 1 and 2.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a process cartridge according to the present invention; fig. 2 is an exploded schematic view of the process cartridge according to the present invention.

The process cartridge 1 is detachably mountable to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, and includes a first unit 2 and a second unit 3 coupled to each other and relatively rotatable, and a first end cap 4 and a second end cap 5 at both longitudinal ends, respectively, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 being coupled by the first end cap 4 and the second end cap 5.

Referring to fig. 1 and 2, the second unit 3 includes a second unit housing 30, a developing member 32 rotatably mounted in the second unit housing 30, a bracket 31 fixedly mounted in the second unit housing 30, and a first power receiving member 33 rotatably supported by the bracket 31; the first power receiving member 33 passes through the second end cap 5 for receiving driving force from the outside, and the second unit housing 30 for accommodating toner, and thus the second unit 3 can also be regarded as a toner hopper, and the second unit housing 30 can also be regarded as a toner hopper housing; the developing member 32 is rotatably supported by the bracket 31, and includes a rotating shaft 321, a cover layer 322 covering a circumferential surface of the rotating shaft 321, and a power receiving portion 323 provided at one longitudinal end of the rotating shaft 321, the power receiving portion 323 receiving a driving force of the first power receiving member 33 to drive the developing member 32 to rotate, the cover layer 322 extending in a longitudinal direction of the rotating shaft 321, and the rotating shaft 321 not being entirely covered by the cover layer 322 in the longitudinal direction.

The first unit 2 includes a first unit housing 20 and a photosensitive member 21 rotatably mounted in the first unit housing 20, the first unit housing 20 accommodating waste toner generated during development, and thus, the first unit 2 may also be referred to as a waste toner hopper, and the first unit housing 20 may also be referred to as a waste toner hopper housing; the photosensitive member 21 includes a photosensitive drum 211, a base 213 at one longitudinal end of the photosensitive drum 211, and a second power receiving member 212 mounted on the base 213, the second power receiving member 212 also passing through the second cover 5 for receiving a driving force from the outside to drive the photosensitive drum 211 to rotate; the photosensitive drum 211 has a diameter f1, and the base 213 has a diameter f2, satisfying f1 > f 2.

Meanwhile, the process cartridge 1 further includes a compression spring 7 installed between the first unit 2 and the second unit 3, the first power receiving member 33 and the second power receiving member 212 receive driving force from the electrophotographic image forming apparatus to drive the developing member 32 and the photosensitive member 21 to rotate, respectively, when the process cartridge 1 is operated, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 approach each other and the photosensitive member 21 and the developing member 32 contact each other by urging force provided by the compression spring 7; when the process cartridge 1 is not in operation, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are relatively rotated and separated by the urging portion 9 (shown in fig. 6A) in the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, and the photosensitive member 21 and the developing member 32 are out of contact; of course, the means for urging the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 toward each other is not limited to the compression spring 7, and may be, for example, a tension spring installed between the first unit 2 and the second unit 3, or an elastic rubber installed between the first unit 2 and the second unit 3.

The first power receiving part 33 and the second power receiving part 212 each pass through the second end cap 5, and herein, one end of the process cartridge 1 where the first power receiving part 33 and the second power receiving part 212 are provided is referred to as a driving end, and the other end thereof in the longitudinal direction is a non-driving end, and thus, the first end cap 4 may also be referred to as a non-driving end cap, and the second end cap 5 may also be referred to as a driving end cap; the direction from the non-driving end cap 4 to the driving end cap 5 is the + X direction, the direction from the second unit 3 to the first unit 2 is the + Y direction, and the mounting direction of the process cartridge 1 is the + Z direction; the second unit 3 and the first unit 2 are combined with the driving end cover 5 and the non-driving end cover 4, so as to realize the assembly of the processing box 1, wherein the first unit 2, the non-driving end cover 4 and the driving end cover 5 are combined in a fixed installation mode, the three cannot move relatively, the second unit 3 can move relative to the three, and the specific moving mode is that the second unit 3 and the first power receiving part 33 rotate coaxially.

Further, the process cartridge 1 further includes a movable member 6 disposed therein, at least a portion of the movable member 6 is movable between an initial position and a terminal position, when the movable member 6 is located at the initial position, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are close to each other, the photosensitive member 21 is in contact with the developing member 32, and at this time, the movable member 6 is in a movable state without being subjected to an external force; when the movable member 6 receives the acting force of the force application portion 9, the movable member 6 can move from the initial position to the terminal position, when the movable member 6 is located at the terminal position, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are separated from each other, the photosensitive member 21 is separated from the developing member 32, and at this time, the movable member 6 is in an immovable state due to the acting force of the force application portion 9; when the acting force of the force application part 9 is cancelled, the movable piece 6 returns to the initial position from the terminal position along with the return of the second unit 3 to the position close to the first unit 2, or the movable piece 6 returns to the movable state from the immovable state; movable part 6 is movable or immovable, both in the sense of movable part 6 relative to its mounting position.

Example one

[ moving parts ]

The movable member 6 includes a main body 61, a force receiving portion 62 connected to the main body 61, and a pushing portion 63 connected to the force receiving portion 62, the movable member 6 is movably disposed in the processing box 1 through the main body 61, the force receiving portion 62 is configured to receive an acting force of the force applying portion 9 and transmit the acting force to the pushing portion 63, the pushing portion 63 is configured to force the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 to be separated when the force receiving portion 62 receives the acting force, and force the movable member 6 to return to an initial position from a terminal position or return to a movable state from an immovable state after the acting force applied to the force receiving portion 62 is cancelled.

As shown in the figure, the main body 61 is formed with a coupling portion 611 for coupling with a component of the process cartridge 1, and preferably, the coupling portion 611 is an elliptical hole having a first major axis end 612 and a second major axis end 613 which are opposite to each other, and has a major axis length of h2 and a minor axis length of h 1; the force receiving portion 62 protrudes from the main body portion 61 and is formed with a force receiving surface 621 for receiving a force; the urging portion 63 is a groove connected to the force receiving portion 62 and recessed toward the direction of the coupling hole 611, and more preferably, the urging portion 63, the coupling portion 62 and the main body portion 61 are integrally formed, so that the movable member 6 is movable as a whole when the movable member 6 is located at the initial position, and the movable member 6 is immovable as a whole when the movable member 6 is located at the terminal position.

As described above, when the force receiving portion 62 receives a force, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are forced to separate, and the movable member 6 and the developing device 32 are combined as an example.

The process cartridge 1 further includes a developing gear 324 mounted on the power receiving portion 323 for receiving a driving force, when the movable member 6 is acted by the acting force, the movable member 6 is coupled to the rotating shaft 321 between the developing gear 324 and the covering layer 322, and the entire second unit 3 is driven to rotate by forcibly pushing the rotating shaft 321, so that the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are separated, and finally the developing member 32 is separated from the photosensitive member 21.

Of course, the movable member 6 may also be combined with other components in the second unit 3, such as a toner supply member 34 (shown in fig. 2) for supplying toner to the developing member 32, which, in general, the toner supply member is similar to the developing member 32 in structure, and is also covered with a covering layer on the outer surface of a rotating shaft, and a toner supply gear for receiving a driving force is installed at one longitudinal end of the toner supply, except that the material coated by the toner supply 34 is different from the material coated by the developing member 32, but the materials coated by the two have elasticity, the developing member 32 and the toner supplying member 34 are collectively referred to herein as a rotary member including a rotary shaft, and a cover layer covering the outer circumferential surface of the rotary shaft, with which the movable member 6 is coupled, and the position where the movable member 6 is coupled to the rotation shaft is located between the driving gear (the generic name of the developing gear 324 and the toner supplying member gear) and the cover layer.

Further, in order to prevent the rotation shaft from slipping off the urging portion 63 when the movable member 6 applies urging force to the rotation shaft, as shown in fig. 3, the movable member 6 further includes ear portions 64 provided adjacent to the urging portion 63, specifically, the ear portions 64 may be regarded as protrusions extending from the main body portion 61 or the urging portion 63, preferably, the ear portions 64 and the force receiving portion 62 are respectively located on both sides of the urging portion 62 in the short axis direction of the coupling hole 61 or the mounting direction of the process cartridge 1, more preferably, the force receiving portion 62 is located above the urging portion 63, the ear portions 64 are located below the urging portion 63, and when the urging portion 63 is coupled to the rotation shaft, the ear portions 64 may support the rotation shaft from the lower portion of the rotation shaft.

[ motion process of moving part ]

Fig. 5A and 5B are side views of the movable member according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the movable member is not coupled to the force applying portion, as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the process cartridge; fig. 6A and 6B are side views of the movable member according to the embodiment of the present invention, when combined with the urging portion, as viewed in the longitudinal direction of the process cartridge; fig. 7 is a simplified state diagram illustrating relative movement among the movable member, the photosensitive member, and the developing member according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in fig. 5A and 5B, the movable member 6 is located at the initial position, when the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are close to each other, the developing member 32 is in contact with the photosensitive member 21, the movable member 6 is not subjected to an urging force and remains in a movable state in which it can be in contact with or not in contact with the rotation axis, even if the movable member 6 is in contact with the rotation axis, the movable member 6 does not apply an urging force to the rotation axis, and the force receiving surface 621 faces the urging portion 9 located outside the process cartridge 1.

As shown in fig. 6A and 6B, when the force application portion 9 moves in the direction of the force receiving portion 62 along the direction M and starts to apply a force to the force receiving surface 621, the movable member 6/the pushing portion 63 moves in the direction of the second unit 3, and along with the movement of the movable member 6, the pushing portion 63 starts to apply a force to the rotating shaft, the force is transmitted to the bracket 31 through the rotating shaft and then transmitted to the second unit housing 30 by the bracket 31, the second unit 3 is forced to rotate in the direction r shown in fig. 5A relative to the first unit 2, the first end cap 4 and the second end cap 5, the second unit 3 is separated from the first unit 2, and finally the developing member 32 is separated from the photosensitive member 21 with a gap g formed therebetween, and the movable member 6 reaches the terminal position; in the case where the urging portion 9 continues to apply the urging force toward the urging portion 62, the developing member 32 and the photosensitive member 21 are kept in the state of being separated from each other, and the movable member 6 is kept in the state of being immovable by the urging force, while the compression spring 7 located between the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 is compressed.

When the force applied to the force receiving portion 62 is removed, the second unit 3 is rotated again in the direction opposite to the direction indicated by r with respect to the first unit 2, the first end cap 4 and the second end cap 5 by the elastic restoring force of the compression spring 7, and the second unit 3 returns to the state of being close to the first unit 2 as shown in fig. 5A and 5B, at which time the developing member 32 comes into contact with the photosensitive member 21 again; along with the rotation of the second unit 3, the urging portion 63 of the movable member 6 is urged by the rotation shaft and drives the movable member 6 to move from the terminal position toward the initial position; when the developing member 32 returns to the position of contact with the photosensitive member 21, the movable member 6 returns to the initial position from the terminal position, and at this time, the movable member 6 is again in the movable state.

As shown in fig. 7, when the developing device 32 and the photosensitive member 21 contact each other, the central connecting line of the two is EF, the moving direction of the movable element 6 after receiving the force applied by the force applying portion 9 is parallel to the connecting line EF, the force applying portion 9 applies a force to the force receiving portion 62 in the direction indicated by M, the connecting line EF is not parallel to the straight line of the moving direction of the force applying portion 9, in order to prevent the force applying portion 9 from slipping off when applying a force to the force receiving portion 62, the movable element 6 further includes a slip-off preventing surface 622 disposed adjacent to the force receiving surface 621, as shown in fig. 3, 5A and 6A, in the + Z direction, the slip-off preventing surface 622 is located downstream of the force receiving surface 621, and the slip-off preventing surface 622 faces at least partially in the main body portion 61/-Z direction, so that the slip-off preventing surface 622 forms a hook surface with respect to the force.

The above describes the movement process of the movable member 6 after receiving the acting force and the acting force is cancelled, compared with the way described in the background art in which the force receiving portion is fixedly installed in the powder hopper, the movable member 6 according to the present invention is movably installed, so that the movable member 6 is not easily broken even if the process cartridge 1 is collided or dropped; the mounting method has the advantages that the structure of the processing box 1 is not required to be changed, the movable part 6 can be movably mounted on the base part 213 by directly utilizing the structure of the prior photosensitive part 21, and for manufacturers of the processing box 1, the mounting method can greatly reduce the manufacturing cost, the logistics storage cost and the assembly cost and ensure the good connection between the processing box 1 and the conventional processing box during production.

Preferably, the movable member 6 is movably mounted on the base portion 213 of the photosensitive member 21, and the moving direction of the movable member 6 is parallel to the center line EF of the developing member 32 and the photosensitive member 21 when they are in contact, so that it is not necessary to provide a larger space for the movement of the movable member 6 in the circumferential direction of the photosensitive member 21, and the structure of the process cartridge 1 is simplified.

Further, with reference to fig. 5A and 7, in the process that the movable member 6 urges the second unit 3 to rotate, the contact point between the movable member 6 and the rotation axis moves from point P to point Q, and in the case that the moving direction of the movable member 6 is parallel to the connection line EF, the point P and the point Q are respectively located at two sides of the connection line EF, and the movable member 6 does not apply a force to the rotation axis in the + Z direction of the process cartridge 1, so that the sealing state between the developing member 32 and the second unit housing 30 is maintained; also, since the movable member 6 does not rotate relative to the photosensitive member 21, the movable member 6 does not affect the sealed state of the first unit housing 20.

As further shown in fig. 7, the movable member 6 is movably mounted on the base portion 213 of the photosensitive member 21, and therefore, the size of the elliptical coupling hole 611 of the movable member 6 and the size of the photosensitive member 21 satisfy the following relationship:

the length h2 of the long axis of the coupling hole 611 is larger than the diameter f1 of the photosensitive drum 211;

the length h1 of the minor axis of the bonding hole 611 is larger than the diameter f2 of the base 213 but smaller than the diameter f1 of the photosensitive drum 211;

by limiting the size of the coupling hole 611 to the above range, it is effectively ensured that the movable piece 6 is movably mounted on the base portion 213 without affecting the operation of the photosensitive drum 211.

In particular, in the present embodiment, when the movable member 6 is located at the initial position, the developing device 32 contacts the photosensitive element 21, and the base 213 of the photosensitive element 21 is closer to the second long-axis end 613 of the movable member coupling hole 611; as shown by the long dashed line in fig. 7, when the movable member 6 is located at the terminal position, the developing member 32 is separated from the photosensitive member 21, and the base portion 213 of the photosensitive member 21 is closer to the first long axis end 612 of the movable member coupling hole.

As shown in fig. 7, when the movable element 6 is located at the initial position, the urging portion 63 is coupled to the rotating shaft 321 at a point P, and when the movable element 6 is located at the terminal position, the urging portion 63 is coupled to the rotating shaft 321 at a point Q. Particularly, in the state where the movable member 6 is located at the initial position, when the movable member 6 is urged to push the rotating shaft 321 by the urging portion 9, the rotating shaft 321 may slip off from the bottom of the urging portion 63 (in the + Z direction, at a position upstream of the urging portion 63), which may cause a failure in separating the first unit 2 (photosensitive member 21) and the second unit 3 (developing member 32), and when the movable member 6 is provided with the ear portion 64, the ear portion 64 may support the rotating shaft 321 from the bottom of the rotating shaft 321, thereby effectively preventing the occurrence of the phenomenon that the rotating shaft 321 slips off from the urging portion 63.

As further shown in fig. 7, since the moving direction of the movable element 6 is parallel to the connection EF, when the movable element 6 reaches the terminal position, the coupling point Q of the movable element 6 and the rotation shaft 321 is farther from the ear 64 than the point P.

Example two

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a movable member according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and the same components of this embodiment are numbered the same as those of the above embodiment. As shown in the drawing, the movable member 6 in this embodiment is no longer provided with the escape prevention surface 622, the force receiving surface 621 is provided as a smooth surface, and the movable member 6 further includes a friction member 623 engaged with the force receiving surface 621. Preferably, the friction member 623 is a member that can generate a large frictional force, such as sandpaper, sponge, etc., and the friction member 623 is combined with the force receiving surface 621 in an adhesive manner.

When the urging portion 9 moves toward the force receiving surface 621, the urging portion 9 engages with the friction member 623, and the urging portion 9 is prevented from coming out of contact with the movable element 6 by the frictional force generated between the urging portion 9 and the friction member 623.

EXAMPLE III

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a movable member according to a third embodiment of the present invention, and the same components in this embodiment are numbered the same as those in the previous embodiment. As shown in the figures, the difference between the movable element according to the present embodiment and the movable element according to the first and second embodiments is mainly that the joint portion 611 of the movable element 6 is not elliptical, but is circular with a diameter r1, and it is satisfied that the diameter r1 is between the diameter f1 of the photosensitive cylinder 211 and the diameter f2 of the base 213, specifically: f2 < r1 < f 1; the ear portions 64 and the force receiving portions 62 are located on both sides of the urging portion 62, respectively, in the mounting direction of the process cartridge 1.

Similarly, the movable member according to the present embodiment can still achieve the functions of the movable member according to the above-described embodiment, that is, the movable member 6 is in the movable state before receiving the force applied by the force application portion 9, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are close to each other, and the photosensitive member 21 is in contact with the developing member 32; the movable member is in an immovable state after being applied with the urging force by the urging portion 9, the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 are separated from each other, and the photosensitive member 21 and the developing member 32 are out of contact.

Example four

As described above, the mover 6 is integrally formed, however, in practice, the main body portion 61 may be formed separately from the force receiving portion 62 and the urging portion 63, and referring to fig. 3, the mover 6 may be considered to include the mounting portion 6a and the acting portion 6b which are separately provided, wherein the mounting portion 6a corresponds to the main body portion 61 for coupling the mover 6 with other components of the process cartridge, and the acting portion 6b corresponds to at least one of the force receiving portion 62 and the urging portion 63, and when the force is applied by the force applying portion 9, the acting portion 6b acts on the corresponding component of the process cartridge to separate the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 from each other, and at the same time, the photosensitive member 21 and the developing member 32 are separated from contact.

Preferably, the action portion 6b is movable relative to the mounting portion 6a, so that the movable member 6 as a whole has a greater amount of movement, which is more advantageous in preventing the movable member 6 from being broken when the process cartridge 1 is dropped or collided.

The movable element 6 having the operating portion 6b movable relative to the mounting portion 6a is mounted in the following two ways:

firstly, the installation part 6a is movably installed, when the movable piece 6 is positioned at an initial position, the installation part 6a and the action part 6b can both move, when the movable piece 6 is positioned at a terminal position, the installation part 6a can move, and the action part 6b can not move; the mounting portion 6a is elliptical as in the first and second embodiments, and the mounting portion 6a is circular as in the third embodiment, and satisfies: f2 < r1 < f 1.

Secondly, the installation part 6a is fixedly installed, when the movable element 6 is positioned at an initial position, the installation part 6a is not movable, the action part 6b is movable, and when the movable element 6 is positioned at a terminal position, the installation part 6a and the action part 6b are not movable; at this time, whether the mounting portion 6a is oval or circular, the part of the process cartridge which is combined with the mounting portion 6a always matches the mounting portion 6a, so that the mounting portion 6a can be fixedly mounted.

In the second mounting mode, when the action part 6b does not receive the action force applied by the force application part 9, the action part 6b is located at the movable initial position; when the action part 6b receives the acting force applied by the force application part 9, the action part 6b moves relative to the installation part 6a, under the further action of the force application part 9, the action part 6b forces the first unit 2 and the second unit 3 to separate from each other, and simultaneously, the photosensitive member 21 and the developing member 32 are separated from contact, and at the moment, the action part 6b is positioned at the immovable terminal position; when the urging portion 9 no longer applies the urging force to the action portion 6b, the action portion 6b returns from the immovable end position to the movable initial position.

In this case, at least one of elastic connection, rack connection, magnetic connection, rail connection, and the like may be used between the operating portion 6b and the mounting portion 6 a. As shown in fig. 10, the mounting portion 6a and the acting portion 6b are connected by an elastic member 6c so as to be relatively movable, and further, the mounting portion 6a is further provided with a guide groove 6e, and the acting portion 6b is further provided with a protrusion 6d, and the protrusion 6d is slidable in the guide groove 6e, so that the relative movement locus of the mounting portion 6a and the acting portion 6b can be accurately controlled.

EXAMPLE five

According to the above embodiments, the present embodiment is further described with respect to the installation position of the movable piece 6. Based on the technical concept of the present invention, the installation position of the movable member 6 is not limited to the photosensitive member 21, as long as the movable member 6 can receive the acting force from the force application portion 9, apply the received acting force to the second unit 3, and force the second unit 3 to rotate and separate relative to the first unit 2, and finally separate the developing member 32 from the photosensitive member 21, for example, the movable member 6 can be movably installed on at least any one of the housing 20 of the first unit 2, the photosensitive member 21, the first end cover 4, the second end cover 5, the housing 30 of the second unit, and the developing member 32.

For example, when the movable member 6 is movably mounted on other components or housings in the process cartridge 1, specifically, a coupled portion for coupling with the coupling portion 611 is provided in the first unit housing 20, or the coupled portions are provided in the first end cover 4 and the second end cover 5, and in this way, the structure of the existing process cartridge 1 needs to be modified, which is not favorable for production connection of the process cartridge 1 and increases various costs, but the technical solution of the present embodiment is still effective for solving the technical problems encountered in the background art.

As described above, at least a portion of the movable member 6 is movably installed, and even if the process cartridge 1 falls or collides, since the movable member 6 has a certain amount of movement, the chance of the movable member 6 being broken can be greatly reduced.

Claims

1. A process cartridge having a movable member detachably mountable to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus provided with a force application portion, including a first unit and a second unit coupled to each other, the first unit and the second unit being adjacent to each other when the process cartridge is operated in the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the first unit and the second unit being separated from each other when the process cartridge is not operated in the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, characterized in that,

the movable piece is arranged in the processing box in a mode that at least one part of the movable piece can move, and the movable piece can move between an initial position and a terminal position under the action of the force application part;

when the movable piece is located at the initial position, the first unit and the second unit are close to each other; when the movable piece receives the acting force of the force application part, the movable piece moves from the initial position to the terminal position, and meanwhile, the first unit and the second unit are forced to be separated; when the acting force of the force application part is cancelled, the movable piece returns to the initial position from the terminal position along with the return of the second unit to the position close to the first unit.

2. A process cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the second unit includes a second unit housing, a rotary member rotatably mounted in the second unit housing, and the second unit is rotated relative to the first unit by urging the rotary member when the movable member receives the acting force.

3. A process cartridge according to claim 2, wherein the rotary member includes a rotary shaft, a covering layer covering a circumferential surface of the rotary shaft, and a power receiving portion provided at one longitudinal end of the rotary shaft, and the movable member is coupled to the rotary shaft between the covering layer and the power receiving portion.

4. A process cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the first unit includes a first unit housing and a photosensitive member rotatably mounted in the first unit housing, the movable member being mounted on the photosensitive member in such a manner that at least a part thereof is movable.

5. A process cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the second unit includes a second unit housing, a developing member rotatably mounted in the second unit housing, the developing member being in contact with the photosensitive member when the movable member is located at the initial position, the developing member being separated from the photosensitive member when the movable member is located at the terminal position, a moving direction of the movable member being parallel to a central line connecting the developing member and the photosensitive member when they are in contact.

6. A process cartridge according to claim 5, wherein when the movable member is subjected to the urging force of the urging portion, a contact point of the movable member with a portion of the process cartridge on which the movable member acts before the first unit and the second unit are separated from each other is P, and a contact point of the urging portion with a portion of the process cartridge on which the movable member acts after the first unit and the second unit are separated from each other is Q, and the P point and the Q point are located on both sides of the connection line EF, respectively.

7. A process cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a line in which a moving direction of the movable member is located is not parallel to a line in which a moving direction of the urging portion is located.

8. A process cartridge according to claim 1, wherein at least one portion of the movable member is movable in the initial position, and at least another portion of the movable member is immovable in the terminal position.

9. A process cartridge according to claim 8, wherein the movable member includes a mounting portion for engaging the movable member with another member of the process cartridge and an acting portion for acting on the corresponding member of the process cartridge to force the first unit and the second unit to be separated from each other, which are connected to each other.

10. A process cartridge according to claim 9, wherein when the mounting portion is not fixedly mounted, in the initial position, both the mounting portion and the acting portion are movable, and in the terminal position, at least the acting portion is not movable.

11. A process cartridge according to claim 9, wherein the acting portion is movable relative to the mounting portion when the mounting portion is fixedly mounted, the mounting portion is immovable and the acting portion is movable in the initial position, and neither the mounting portion nor the acting portion is movable in the terminal position.