JP2001249601A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable the exchange of an image carrier, a process cartridge or the like with a simple constitution without separating belts or making units movable, such as a exposure means requiring the feed of an electric power or a signal line, and to realize cost reduction and improvement in usability. SOLUTION: The image forming device has a plurality of image carriers 7 (process cartridge 6) attachable to and detachable from the main body of the image forming device and a plurality of exposure means 5 to expose each image carrier surface, disposed and fixed on the main body of the image forming device corresponding to each image carrier 7. Each image carrier 7 is detachable from the side where a corresponding exposure means 5 is disposed in the direction which intersects nearly perpendicularly with the direction of the rotary shaft, without moving the exposure means 5 with respect to the main body of the image forming device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus provided with a plurality of image forming units including an exposure unit and an image carrier corresponding thereto.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for a color printer capable of high-speed printing, and a color image forming apparatus having a plurality of image forming units as described below has been put to practical use.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show a first conventional example. A plurality of image forming units (hereinafter referred to as process cartridges 102 (K: black, Y: yellow) including an image carrier 103 and a developing device 104 are arranged in parallel along the upper surface of a medium electrostatic adsorption and conveyance belt 101. , C: cyan, M: magenta) are detachably provided, and an exposure unit (LE) corresponding to each image carrier 103 is provided.
D) 105 is provided. The exposing means 105 is configured to be separated from the image carrier 103 together with the cover 106 by the opening operation of an exterior cover 106 provided at the top of the apparatus main body so as to be openable and closable as shown in FIG. In this configuration, each of the process cartridges 102 is detached from the upper surface of the apparatus when the outer cover 106 is open.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show a second conventional example. An intermediate transfer belt 201 (or a medium electrostatic attraction conveyance belt) is arranged horizontally, and the image carrier 20 is arranged in parallel along the upper surface thereof.
A plurality of image forming units (hereinafter referred to as process cartridges 202) each including a developing unit 3 and a developing unit 204 are provided, and an exposure unit (laser beam scanner) 205 corresponding to each image carrier 203 is fixed to the apparatus main body. As shown in FIG. 8, an opening 207 for attaching and detaching the process cartridge 202 is provided on one side plate 206 of the apparatus main body.
A door member 208 that closes 07 and has a positioning and holding portion for the process cartridge 202 is provided to be openable and closable. In this configuration, after the belt 201 is separated from the image carriers 202, the process cartridges 202 are detached from the apparatus main body horizontally in the longitudinal direction of the image carrier 203 (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 8).

[0005]

However, in the first conventional example, power and signal lines are supplied to an exposure means (LED) 105 which is opened and closed integrally with an exterior cover 106 provided on the apparatus body for opening and closing. Must be done, which increases costs. Also, when replacing each process cartridge, the belt
There is a problem in that the belt 101 is exposed and the belt 101 is damaged during the replacement operation.

In the second conventional example, the exposure means 20
Since 5 is fixed to the apparatus main body, it is necessary to separate the belt 201 from the image carrier 203 of the process cartridge 202 when exchanging each process cartridge, which increases the cost. Further, since the process cartridge 202 can be detached by opening one side plate 206 (opening portion 207) serving as a reference for positioning and holding the image carrier 202, the positioning accuracy is reduced, the holding rigidity is reduced, and the like. There is a problem such as a decrease in user usability at the time of attachment / detachment.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to separate a belt or to move a unit such as an exposure unit which requires supply of electric power or a signal line. Instead, it is possible to replace an image forming unit such as a process cartridge with a simple configuration, thereby achieving cost reduction and improvement of user usability.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a typical configuration of the present invention is a plurality of image carriers that can be attached to and detached from an image forming apparatus main body, and a plurality of image carriers that correspond to the respective image carriers. A plurality of exposure units that are fixedly disposed on the image forming apparatus main body and expose each image carrier surface, and wherein each of the image carriers does not move the exposure unit with respect to the image forming apparatus main body. And a direction substantially orthogonal to the direction of the rotation axis, and is detachable from a side on which the corresponding exposure means is disposed.

More specifically, for example, the image carrier is included in a process cartridge integrally having at least a developing means, and the process cartridge is detachable from an image forming apparatus main body. .

Further, when the image carrier is detached, the intermediate transfer member which bears the image formed on the image carrier and faces each image carrier does not move.

According to the above construction, a simple intermediate transfer member such as a belt facing the image carrier is not separated, or a unit such as an exposure unit which needs to supply power or a signal line is not movable. With this configuration, the image carrier or the process cartridge including the image carrier can be exchanged, so that cost reduction and improvement in user usability can be achieved. The opening at that time is also small, and the intermediate transfer body such as the belt is not exposed.

Further, since each of the exposing means is formed with a positioning portion for the image carrier corresponding thereto, adjustment between the exposing means and the image carrier is possible by the exposing means alone,
It is possible to improve the positioning accuracy and eliminate the need for adjustment when assembling the entire device.

Further, since each of the exposing means is formed with a positioning portion of the exposing means arranged adjacent to each other, the positional relationship between the exposing means is determined by the exposing means itself. Therefore, it is possible to improve the accuracy between the image forming units including the image bearing members and the like, and eliminate the need for adjustment when assembling the entire apparatus.

Further, since the plurality of image forming units having the exposure means and the corresponding image carriers are arranged in a stepwise manner from the upper part to the lower part of the apparatus, each image carrier (or image carrier) is arranged. The upper or lower image forming portion does not become a hindrance when replacing the process cartridge including the above, and the replacement can be easily performed.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment] An image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment.

A recording medium such as a recording sheet set in a paper feed cassette 1 is sent out one by one by a pickup member 2. After the skew of the recording medium is corrected by the registration roller section 3, the recording medium is conveyed to the secondary transfer section.

In the image forming section, exposure means 5a, 5
b, 5c, 5d are arranged on one surface of the intermediate transfer belt 10 as shown in FIG. 1, and each of the exposing means 5a, 5b, 5c, 5
d, the process cartridges 6a, 6b, 6c,
6d are provided. Each process cartridge 6a, 6
In steps b, 6c and 6d, the image carrier 7 is charged by the primary charging member 8, and a latent image is formed by the exposure unit 5,
The image is developed by the developing member 9.

The toner images of a plurality of colors formed in the respective image forming sections in this manner are sequentially transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 10 by the primary transfer member 11 facing each image carrier 7. The multicolor toner image transferred and formed on the intermediate transfer belt 10 is secondarily transferred onto a recording medium by the above-described secondary transfer member 4 in the secondary transfer section.

The secondary transfer residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 10 is collected by a belt cleaning unit 13.

The intermediate transfer belt 10 is driven to rotate by a belt driving roller 12 in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

The recording medium on which the multicolor toner images on the intermediate transfer belt 10 are collectively transferred is fixed by a fixing unit 14, and is discharged by a discharge unit 15 to a discharge stacking unit 16 in the upper part of the apparatus.

A plurality of exposure means 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d arranged corresponding to the respective image carriers 7 are fixed to the image forming apparatus main body. Each of the process cartridges 6a, 6b,
Reference numerals 6c and 6d denote directions perpendicular to the axial direction that is the center of rotation (the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1) while the exposing unit 5 is fixed to the image forming apparatus main body. It is removable from the side where it is arranged.

When the process cartridge 6 having the image carrier 7 is attached or detached, the intermediate transfer belt 10 that faces each image carrier 7 and carries the image formed on the image carrier 7 does not move. Has become.

That is, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the process cartridge 6 moves the intermediate transfer belt 10 from the opening / closing door 17 provided for each process cartridge without moving the exposure means 5. It can be detached independently without moving.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, each of the process cartridges 6a, 6b,
6c and 6d are exposure means 5a, 5b, 5c and 5 respectively.
Since d is not moved with respect to the image forming apparatus main body, it is in a direction substantially perpendicular to the rotation axis direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1), and is detachable from the side where the corresponding exposure means 5 is arranged. The intermediate transfer belt 10 facing the image carrier 7
It is possible to replace the process cartridge 6 having the image carrier 7 with a simple configuration without moving the unit such as the exposure unit 5 which needs to supply power or a signal line. And user usability can be improved. In addition, the opening at that time is small, and the intermediate transfer belt 10 is not exposed, which leads to improvement in reliability.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of image forming sections each including the exposing means 5 and the process cartridge 6 are arranged in a stepwise manner from the upper part to the lower part of the apparatus. Lower process cartridge 6
The upper image forming section is not in the way at the time of attaching and detaching.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
Although the image forming section and the intermediate transfer belt 10 are arranged obliquely, the present invention is not limited to this, and the angle may be appropriately set as needed (vertically or horizontally).

[Second Embodiment] An image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment. Note that members having the same functions as those of the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the image forming units for each color are arranged on the left and right of the intermediate transfer belt 10. Then, each of the exposure means 5a, 5b, 5
c and 5d are fixed to the apparatus main body as in the first embodiment, and the process cartridges 6a, 6b, 6c and 6d
Can be independently attached and detached in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

In the present embodiment, a configuration in which two sets of image forming units are arranged on the left and right sides of the intermediate transfer belt 10 is exemplified. However, the present invention is not limited to this.
And so on. At this time, for example, a black image forming unit which is assumed to be used in a large amount is arranged on one set side, and the capacity of the black image forming unit is made larger than those of the other three (yellow, magenta, cyan). May be larger.

[Third Embodiment] An image forming apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a main part configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to the third embodiment. Note that members having the same functions as those of the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the third embodiment, each of the exposing means 5 is provided with a positioning portion for positioning the corresponding image carrier 7 of the process cartridge 6.
50 are provided. Here, the exposure unit 5 adjusts its laser irradiation position and the like on the assumption that the image carrier 7 is positioned at the positioning unit 50 by itself. As a result, the exposure means 5 and the image carrier 7 can be positioned with high accuracy, and furthermore, the adjustment at the time of assembling the entire apparatus becomes unnecessary.

[Fourth Embodiment] An image forming apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. Note that members having the same functions as those of the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the fourth embodiment, each of the exposing means 5 is provided with a positioning portion for positioning the corresponding image carrier 7 of the process cartridge 6.
50 are provided. Each of the exposure means 5 is provided with a positioning portion 51, 52 for positioning with another exposure means 5 provided adjacent thereto. This allows
The relative positional accuracy between the respective exposure means 5 can be improved. Further, similarly to the above-described embodiment, highly accurate positioning between the exposure unit 5 and the image carrier 7 can be performed, and adjustment at the time of assembling the entire apparatus becomes unnecessary.

[Other Embodiments] In the above embodiment,
Although the case where the member arranged at the position facing each image carrier is an intermediate transfer member (intermediate transfer belt) that carries the image formed on each image carrier has been exemplified, it is not limited to this. For example, in order to sequentially transfer the images formed on the respective image carriers onto the recording medium in order to transfer the images, the present invention is applied to an image forming apparatus using a recording medium carrier that carries and conveys the recording medium (such as an electrostatic suction conveyance belt). Similar effects can be expected even if the invention is applied.

In the above-described embodiment, a printer is exemplified as an image forming apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a copying machine, a facsimile, or a multifunction machine combining these functions may be used. Other image forming apparatuses may be used, and similar effects can be obtained by applying the present invention to the image forming apparatus.

In the above-described embodiment, as the process cartridge detachably mountable to the image forming apparatus, a process cartridge integrally having an image carrier, a charging device as a process device acting on the image carrier, and a developing device has been exemplified. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention may be applied to an image forming apparatus having a detachable process cartridge such as a process cartridge in which the charging unit is removed from the above configuration or a process cartridge having a cleaning unit. The same effect can be obtained by applying.

Further, the same effect can be obtained by applying the present invention to an apparatus having a structure in which the image carrier alone can be detached.

[0040]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Each image carrier is attached and detached from the side where the corresponding exposure means is disposed in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction which is the center of rotation, with the corresponding exposure means fixed to the image forming apparatus main body. Since it is possible, for example, an intermediate transfer member such as a belt facing an image carrier is separated, or a unit such as an exposure unit which needs supply of electric power or a signal line is not movable, and the image is formed with a simple configuration. The carrier (or a process cartridge including the carrier) can be exchanged, so that cost reduction and improvement in user usability can be achieved. Further, the opening at that time is small, and the intermediate transfer member such as the belt is not exposed, which leads to improvement in reliability.

Further, since each of the exposing means is formed with a corresponding portion for positioning the image carrier, it is possible to adjust between the exposing means and the image carrier by the exposing means alone, thereby improving the positioning accuracy. This eliminates the need for adjustment when assembling the entire apparatus, and is effective in improving printing accuracy (image quality) and reducing costs.

Further, since each of the exposing means is formed with a positioning portion for the exposing means arranged adjacent to each other, the positional relationship between the respective exposing means is determined by the exposing means itself, and the exposing means and the It is possible to improve the accuracy between the respective image forming units including the corresponding image carriers and eliminate the need for adjustment at the time of assembling the entire apparatus, thereby improving printing accuracy (image quality) and reducing costs.

The plurality of image forming units having the exposure means and the corresponding image carriers are arranged in a stepwise manner from the upper part to the lower part of the apparatus. The upper or lower image forming unit does not become a hindrance when replacing the process cartridge (including the process cartridge), so that the replacement can be easily performed, which is effective in improving the usability.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a main configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a main configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a first conventional example.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a first conventional example.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a second conventional example.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a second conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Paper feed cassette 2 ... Pickup member 3 ... Registration roller part 4 ... Secondary transfer member 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d ... Exposure means 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d ... Process cartridge 7 ... Image carrier 8 ... Primary charging member 9 Developing member 10 Intermediate transfer belt 11 Primary transfer member 12 Belt drive roller 13 Belt cleaning unit 14 Fixing unit 15 Paper discharging unit 16 Paper discharging stacking unit 17 Opening door 50 Positioning units 51, 52 … Positioning part

Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2H030 AA07 AB02 BB23 BB42 BB46 BB63 2H071 BA05 BA13 BA16 BA29 DA02 DA06 DA08 DA09 DA15 5C062 AA02 AA05 AB22 AD05 AD06 5C074 AA11 AA13 BB03 BB26 CC26 GG02 GG09 GG13 GG13

Claims (6)

[Claims] A plurality of image carriers that can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body; and a plurality of image carriers that are fixed to the image forming apparatus main body corresponding to the respective image carriers and expose the surface of each image carrier. An exposure unit, wherein each of the image carriers is arranged in a direction substantially orthogonal to a rotation axis direction without moving the exposure unit with respect to the image forming apparatus main body, and a corresponding exposure unit is disposed. An image forming apparatus, which is detachable from a side. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image carrier is included in a process cartridge integrally having at least a developing unit, and the process cartridge is detachable from an image forming apparatus main body. Image forming device. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the image carrier is detached, an intermediate transfer body that faces each image carrier and carries an image formed on the image carrier does not move. An image forming apparatus according to claim 1. 4. An image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of said exposure means is formed with a corresponding portion for positioning an image carrier. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the exposing units is formed with a positioning portion of the exposing unit disposed adjacent to the exposing unit. 6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of image forming units having the exposure unit and the corresponding image carrier are arranged in a stepwise manner from an upper portion to a lower portion of the apparatus.
An image forming apparatus according to claim 1.