JP2002072644A - Toner replenishing device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a toner replenishing device and an image forming device where toner can be stably transported and the toner remaining in a toner storing container can be greatly decreased. SOLUTION: In the device, the toner storing container 20 that is set by having a toner ejecting part side engaged to a set part 50, a pulverous body pumping means 40 transporting the toner that is stored in the toner storing container 20 to a developing device 10 by sucking it up and a sealing member 55 to obtain airtightness between the set toner storing container 20 and a replenishing device main body are provided.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toner replenishing device for replenishing a developing device with toner stored in a toner container, and an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic printer, facsimile or copier.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional image forming apparatus, a toner container for storing toner such as a toner bottle or a toner cartridge is set in a main body of the image forming apparatus, and toner is supplied from the container to a developing section. ing. Since this type of toner container is made of a hard bottle such as a cartridge or a bottle, there has been a great problem in recycling the used container accompanying the replacement of the toner container. In other words, the used toner storage container is collected from the user to the manufacturer and recycled, reused or incinerated.However, the capacity of the toner storage container is large, and collection and transportation costs from the user to the manufacturer are expensive. Was.

Incidentally, the applicant of the present application has proposed a toner replenishing device in which toner stored in a flexible toner container is sucked by a powder pump and transferred to a developing device. In such a toner replenishing device, since the toner is transferred by the differential pressure, it is effective to make the path from the toner storage container to the suction type powder pump a closed system. In such a closed system, when the suction type powder pump is operated, the pressure in the container is reduced, and a suction force to the pump side is generated due to a pressure difference between the pump and the container. The toner in the container is supplied to the pump by the suction force.

Further, the toner container used in the toner replenishing device described above is provided with a self-closing valve having a slit formed in a sponge so that the container can be easily attached and detached, and is set only by dropping the container from above. It can be done, and when taking it out, it can be done simply by removing it.

[0005]

However, in the toner replenishing device proposed above, air leakage from the self-closing valve itself and air leakage from a gap between the self-closing valve and a nozzle inserted therein may occur. there were. When such an air leak occurs, the toner is not transferred by the toner replenishing device using the powder pump, so that the toner is exhausted even though there is still enough toner in the container.

[0006] The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems,
An object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing device and an image forming apparatus capable of stably transferring toner and greatly reducing toner remaining in a toner storage container.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a toner replenishing apparatus for replenishing a developing device with toner stored in a toner container, wherein a toner discharge portion side is fitted to a replenishing device main body. And a suction unit for sucking the toner stored in the toner storage container and transferring the toner to the developing device, and the airtightness between the set toner storage container and the replenishing device main body. And a sealing means for obtaining.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toner replenishing apparatus for replenishing toner contained in a toner container to a developing device. A toner storage container, air supply means for transferring the toner stored by the air pressure supplied to the toner storage container to the developing device, and airtightness between the set toner storage container and the supply device main body. And sealing means.

The present invention is effective when it is a non-breathable sealing member provided at a portion where the toner container in which the sealing means is set is fitted. Further, the present invention is effective when the non-breathable seal member is provided in the supply device main body.

Further, the present invention is effective when the supply device main body is provided with a nozzle inserted into the toner storage container, and the nozzle is provided with the non-permeable seal member. .

Further, the present invention is effective when the non-breathable seal member is provided in the toner container. Still further, the present invention is effective when the toner container is provided with a gas permeable filter and air supply means for supplying air to the toner container is provided.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a developing method for developing a latent image formed on an image carrier using a toner supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 8. It is characterized in that toner is supplied to the apparatus.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a toner replenishing mechanism used in an image forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a part of a developing device on which the toner is replenished.

In FIG. 1, in an image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic method, an electrostatic latent image formed on an image carrier 1 is developed as a toner image by a developing device 10. This developing device 10
A toner container 2 containing toner, which will be described in detail later.
From 0, toner is supplied via the powder pump means 40 as the suction means and the transfer tube 15.

The developing device 10 includes a developing sleeve 11 opposed to the image carrier 1, a first stirring screw 12,
A second stirring screw 13 is provided. The developer in the developing device 10 is circulated by being transported by the first stirring screw 12. During this circulation, the electrostatic latent image formed on the image carrier 1 is developed by the developer transferred to the developing sleeve 11 in the middle of the transport path. In addition,
Reference numeral 18 denotes a toner density sensor.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a powder pump means 40 is disposed adjacent to the developing device 10, and the powder pump means 40 is provided with a suction type uniaxial eccentric screw pump 41. The configuration of the screw pump 41 is such that a rotor 42 formed in an eccentric screw shape with a rigid material such as a metal, and a two-screw shape formed on the inside with an elastic body such as rubber are fixed and installed. A stator 43;
And a holder 44 made of a resin material or the like that wraps these and forms a powder conveyance path. In the present embodiment, the gear 16 is integrally connected to the first stirring screw 12 and is drivingly connected to a driving device (not shown), and the driving shaft 43a is connected to the rotor 42 by a pin joint.
The gear 45 is interlocked with a gear 45, and an electromagnetic clutch 46 is interposed in the gear 45 as an intermittent means for intermittently intermittently driving the rotation by the gear 16. The on / off state of the screw pump 41 is switched by the electromagnetic clutch 46, and the present invention can be applied to a developing device of a type that controls the developer concentration in the developing device 10 to be kept constant.

The screw pump 41 includes a rotor 42
A strong self-suction force is generated by the rotation of, and toner can be sucked from the toner storage container 20. The sucked-in toner is transferred into the developing device 10 by the supply hole 17 formed between the screw pump 41 and the first stirring screw 12, and during the transfer process when the two-component developing system is used. The toner replenished with the developer is mixed with the developer in the developing device 10 with stirring, so that a uniform developer concentration and an appropriate charge amount are obtained. The developing device includes a deaeration hole 14a and the deaeration hole 14a.
A filter 14 is provided to cover a, and only air is degassed from the developing device 10 to suppress the pressure increase in the device, stabilize toner supply, and prevent toner from scattering from the developing device 10.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 50 denotes a setting section in which the toner container 20 provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus is set. The set portion 50 is provided with a nozzle 51 as an insertion member, which can be integrated with or detached from the toner storage container 20 extending almost directly upward, but is fixed in position. The nozzle 51 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and is provided with a toner discharge path 33 following a pointed end 52 provided at an upper portion. The inside of the nozzle 51
It has a single tube structure, and the toner discharge path 33 has a nozzle 51
3 is bent to the left in FIG. 3 and the leading end thereof is connected to a toner transfer tube 15.

The toner container 20 includes an outer box 21 as a protective case, and a toner bag 22 as a flexible and deformable bag-like body removably housed in the outer box 21.
And a back-in-box type having: The outer box 21 is made of a rigid material such as paper, cardboard, resin, or the like, and has an internal space enough to accommodate the toner bag 22 with almost no gap.

The bag portion of the toner bag 22 is a bag-like container having a single layer or a multilayer structure of a flexible sheet material (thickness of about 80 to 125 μm) such as a polyester film or a polyethylene film. The toner bag 22 is opened at the lower center of the bag, and a cap member 23 made of resin such as polyethylene or nylon.
Are fixed.

The base member 23 includes a disk-shaped overhanging plate 24 provided substantially at the outer periphery of the center in the vertical direction, a cylindrical portion 25 provided at the lower portion of the overhanging plate 24 and having a seal 26 provided therein, It has a boat-shaped part 27 provided at the upper part of the plate 24 to which the bag body 22 is fixed, and an opening 28 that penetrates from the cylindrical part 25 to the boat-shaped part 27 is formed therein. A single-layer or multiple-layer seal 26 having a role of a self-closing valve is provided in the opening 28 on the cylindrical portion 25 side, and the seal 26 is formed of an elastic body made of a non-breathable foam sponge or the like. At a substantially center of the seal 26, a penetrating slit (not shown) formed, for example, in a cross shape is provided. Seal 26 provided with this slit
Is set in the setting section 50 of the toner storage container 20, and the tip side of the nozzle 51 is inserted. At this time, the seal 26 is in close contact with the nozzle 51 to prevent toner leakage from the toner bag 22 to the outside. Further, the toner storage container 20
Is taken out of the setting section 50, the nozzle 5
1 is pulled out, and the slit that has been spread thereby returns to almost its original state.

The toner replenishing device thus configured is
When the screw pump 41 operates, the toner in the toner bag 22 moves in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 3 due to the suction pressure of the pump and the gravity of the toner, and passes through the toner discharge path 33 of the nozzle 51 and the transfer tube 15. It is transferred to the pump 41. In order to generate suction pressure by the screw pump 41 in this toner supply path, it is important that the airtightness in the supply path is maintained.

The main cause of the imperfect sealing in the replenishment path is mostly due to the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 or the sealing of the seal 26 itself.
When the sealing property of such a portion is low, when the screw pump 41 is operated, as shown by a broken line in FIG. 14, air that is more easily sucked than toner is supplied from outside through a gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 or through the seal 26. And suck.
In this case, since no suction pressure is generated by the pump and the toner is not transferred, a problem may occur that the toner ends up even though the toner is still sufficiently remaining in the toner storage container.

However, it is very difficult to manage the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 and the tightness of the seal 26 itself. That is, a flexible sponge or the like is most preferable for the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 in view of the sealing property, but a sponge or a rubber material having a high compression ratio is preferable in consideration of the sealing property of the seal 26 itself. Therefore, the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 and the sealability of the seal 26 themselves are in a reciprocal relationship, and it is difficult to satisfy both of them. Further, since the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 is affected by the setting of the container, it is difficult to control the above-mentioned hermeticity.

In order to solve this problem, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, a seal as a sealing means is fitted in a fitting portion 54 in which the base member 23 of the holder 53 in which the set portion 50 is formed is fitted. A member 55 is provided. When the toner container 20 is set in the setting portion 50, the lower end of the cylindrical portion 25 of the base member 23 comes into pressure contact with the seal member 55. By forming the seal member 55 with a non-breathable rubber sponge or rubber sheet having excellent sealing properties and elasticity, it is possible to prevent air from entering the cylindrical portion 25 of the base member 23. . It is effective to use a material. Note that the seal member 55 may be simply placed on the fitting portion 54, but it is advantageous if the sealing member 55 is fixed to the fitting portion 54 with, for example, a double-sided tape so that it does not come off.

The toner replenishing device thus configured is
When the toner storage container 20 is set in the setting portion 50, the entire lower end of the cylindrical portion 25 of the base member 23 is pressed against the seal member 55. Therefore, since the airtightness of the toner bag 22 is maintained, even if the screw pump 41 is operated, the outside air is prevented from entering from the base member 23. Even if the property management is not sufficient, the sealing property of the replenishment path is well maintained.

In the toner replenishing device shown in FIG. 3, toner is replenished by the suction force of the screw pump 41.
It can be modified so that air is supplied into the toner bag 22 to supply the stored toner in a state where the flowability of the stored toner is increased. Such a toner supply device will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 6, the same members as those in the embodiment of FIG. 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

In FIG. 6, a set section 50 is made of resin or the like, holds a toner storage container 20, and incorporates various members for discharging the toner in the toner storage member 20 and transferring the toner to the developing device 10. Have been. The nozzle 51 has a double pipe structure including a toner supply path 33 and an air supply path 34. The toner supply path 33 is bent leftward in the drawing at the lower end of the nozzle 51 and has a toner transfer tube 15 Is provided with a toner connection port 35 to which is connected. The air supply path 34 is bent rightward in the figure above the toner supply path 33 and reaches the air connection port 36.

In this embodiment, the air connection port 36 is connected to an air pump 31 as an air supply means via an air transfer pipe 32. When the air pump 31 operates, the toner container 2 is transferred from the pump via an air transfer pipe 32 and an air supply path 34.
The air is blown into the toner bag 22 of No. 0. The air jetted into the toner bag 22 fluidizes the toner while diffusing by passing through the toner layer. The toner bag 22 used in the present toner replenishing apparatus is provided with a filter 22a that allows air to pass through but does not allow toner to pass through, so that the internal pressure is adjusted.

The toner replenishing device thus configured is
When a toner supply command is issued, the toner container 20
While being fluidized by the air pump 31, the toner stored in the toner container is discharged from the toner storage container 20 by a suction force to the powder pump means 40 due to the gravity of the toner itself, and the nozzle 51, the transfer tube 15, and the powder $ 4
The toner is supplied to the developing device 10 through 0.

In the above-described toner replenishment, no mechanical stress is applied to the toner, and the toner is fluidized by air. Therefore, the occurrence of the aggregation and the cross-linking phenomenon of the toner is prevented. However, even with the toner replenishing device configured as described above, if the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 or the sealability of the seal 26 itself is low, toner replenishment becomes unstable, and a large amount of residual toner may be discharged. is there.

Therefore, similarly to the embodiment of FIG. 3, a sealing member 55 as a sealing means is provided in a fitting portion 54 of the holder 53 in which the set portion 50 is formed, in which the mouthpiece member 23 is fitted.
Is provided so that the airtightness of the toner bag 22 is maintained. Therefore, even if the screw pump 41 is operated, the outside air is prevented from entering from the base member 23. Therefore, even if the management of the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 and the tightness of the seal 26 itself is not sufficient, Good sealing performance is maintained.

Another toner replenishing device shown in FIG. 7 is configured to replenish toner by the air pressure of an air pump 31. In FIG. 7, the same members as those in the embodiment of FIG. Is attached.

In FIG. 7, the nozzle 51 has a double-pipe structure having a toner supply path 33 and an air supply path 34 as in the embodiment of FIG. Is provided with a toner connection port 35 which is bent to the left in the figure and the tip of which is connected to the toner transfer tube 15. The air supply path 34 is bent to the right in the figure above the toner supply path 33 to reach the air connection port 36, and the air connection port 36 is connected to the air pump 31 as air supply means by the air transfer pipe 32.
Connected through. When the air pump 31 operates, the toner bag 2 of the toner container 20 is supplied from the pump via an air transfer pipe 32 and an air supply path 34.
Air is blown into 2. Then, the air jetted into the toner bag 22 passes through the toner layer to diffuse and fluidize the toner, and at the same time, the toner bag 22
Increase pressure inside. The filter 22a that allows air but does not allow toner to pass through the toner bag 22 used in the toner supply device is not used.

The toner replenishing device thus configured is
When the air pump 31 operates, the air is supplied to the toner bag 22.
The pressure inside the toner bag 22 is increased while the fluidization of the toner is promoted. Then, the toner is discharged from the toner storage container 20 by its own gravity and the pressure in the container,
Developing device 10 through nozzle 51 and transfer tube 15
Is supplied with toner. Since a large amount of air is fed into the developing device 10 together with the toner, it is necessary to provide a filter 14 that allows air to pass but does not allow toner to pass.

The above-described toner replenishment does not apply a mechanical stress to the toner and is fluidized by air, so that the occurrence of the aggregation and the cross-linking phenomenon of the toner is prevented. However, even with the toner replenishing device configured as described above, if the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 or the sealability of the seal 26 itself is low, toner replenishment becomes unstable, and a large amount of residual toner may be discharged. is there.

Therefore, similarly to the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 6,
A sealing member 55 as a sealing means is provided in a fitting portion 54 of the holder 53 in which the set portion 50 is formed, in which the base member 23 is fitted, so that the airtightness of the toner bag 22 is maintained. Therefore, even when the screw pump 41 is operated, outside air is prevented from entering from the base member 23,
Even if the tightness of the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 and the tightness of the seal 26 itself are not sufficiently managed, the tightness of the replenishment path is kept good.

FIGS. 8 and 9 are a sectional view and an exploded perspective view showing another embodiment of the present invention. 8 and 9
In the figure, an O-ring shaped sealing member 56 is provided as a sealing means around the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 25 of the base member 23. When the toner storage container 20 is set in the setting section 50, the seal member 56 abuts on the peripheral surface of the fitting section 54 of the holder 53 to seal between the cylindrical section 25 and the fitting section 54. Therefore, also in the present embodiment, the airtightness of the toner bag 22 is maintained, so that even if the screw pump 41 is operated, outside air is prevented from entering from the base member 23. Therefore, even if the sealing between the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 and the sealing of the seal 26 itself is not sufficient, the sealing of the replenishment path is maintained well. Note that a groove 25a for holding the seal member 56 is formed in the cylindrical portion 25, and the movement of the seal member 56 can be prevented by fitting the seal member 56 into the groove 25a in advance.

FIGS. 10 and 11 are a sectional view and an exploded perspective view showing still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
In FIG. 0 and FIG. 11, the base member 23 of this embodiment is provided with a small cylindrical portion 29 below the cylindrical portion 25 with a certain gap from the nozzle 51 when the toner container 20 is set in the setting portion 50. Have been. The nozzle 51 is provided with an O-ring-shaped sealing member 57 as a sealing means so as to go around the outer periphery thereof.
When the toner storage container 20 is set in the setting section 50, the seal member 57 contacts the inner peripheral surface of the small cylindrical section 29 to seal between the nozzle 51 and the small cylindrical section 29. Therefore, also in the present embodiment, the airtightness of the toner bag 22 is maintained, so that even if the screw pump 41 is operated, outside air is prevented from entering from the base member 23. Therefore, even if the sealing between the gap between the nozzle 51 and the seal 26 and the sealing of the seal 26 itself is not sufficient, the sealing of the replenishment path is maintained well. The nozzle 51 has a seal member 5
The groove 58 for holding the groove 7 is formed, and the movement of the groove 58 can be prevented by fitting the seal member 57 into the groove 58 in advance.

FIG. 12 shows a configuration diagram of the seal 26 provided on the base member 23. The seal 26 includes a plurality of seals 26a and 26b. These seals 26 are disk-shaped and have slits 26 through which a
c, 26d, and the seal 26a and the seal 26b are mounted at positions where the respective cross-shaped slits 26c, 26d do not overlap, that is, at positions shifted in phase. The lengths of the slits 26c and 26d are the same as the outer diameter of the nozzle 51 or a length inscribed in a circle centered on a large-diameter shaft core up to about 3 mm, and the seals 26a and 26b are bonded with a double-sided adhesive tape or the like. Assembling is performed by bonding the bonding position to the outside of the slit forming circle by means. Seal 2
The materials 6a and 26b are made of an elastic material such as a foamed sponge, and use a material having excellent toner resistance and very low air permeation and excellent creep strength. Specifically, Bridgestone's polyester polyurethane foam S
T, Inoac's maltoprene SM65, SM55 are suitable.

When the toner container 20 is set in the setting section 50, the slits 26c of the seals 26a and 26b
26 d is expanded in the axial direction by the nozzle 51.
Similarly, at the time of detachment, the original state is restored, and the toner storage member is sealed. At this time, if the slits 26c and 26d of the seals 26a and 26b are out of phase with each other and the slit 26 of the seal b is eccentric, the slit 26c of the seal a is sealed by the seal b. By these,
The base member 23 of the toner storage container 20 is sealed, so that the toner does not easily scatter outside.

The drive and control of the toner replenishing apparatus are performed by controlling and driving a drive motor by a power outlet (not shown), a power supply, a switch (not shown), and a control circuit. These may use a conventionally well-known technique.

For the control of toner supply, a conventionally known developer concentration detection / control method is used. This is based on the magnetic susceptibility detector 18 provided in a part of the developing device. The change in the mixing ratio of the toner and the carrier in the developing device 10 is detected. Operate. When the amount of toner transferred into the developing device 10 by the powder pump means 40 becomes a certain amount or more, the drive of the powder pump means 40 is interrupted by the signal of the magnetic permeability detector 18 by an electromagnetic clutch (not shown). Stop operation.
As other methods for controlling the toner replenishment amount, conventionally known techniques such as a method of detecting the reflection density of the toner image on the photoconductor and controlling the same toner replenishment amount can be used.

According to the structure of the present invention, the toner container 2
The toner storage container 20 can be replaced by pushing or pulling 0 into the nozzle 51, so that the operability at the time of replacement is good. At the same time, at the time of replacement, toner scattering and contamination can be prevented by the sealing effect. Further, since the toner container 20 has a good sealing property, the toner in the toner container can be protected and maintained in the toner quality characteristics without being affected by the outside air, especially humidity. Furthermore, since the present sealing method has a simple configuration, it contributes not only to simplification of the toner storage container and cost reduction, but also to simplification of the toner supply device, cost reduction, and improvement in machine maintenance.

Further, since the outer box 21 of the toner container 20 has rigidity, the operability at the time of loading / removing the toner container 20 from / to the toner replenishing device is facilitated. Also,
This is also effective in protecting and maintaining the quality characteristics of the toner in the toner container 20. Further, the toner storage container has no outer box, and is a cap member 23 formed by a blow molding method or the like.
It is also possible to use a flexible container in which the toner bag 22 and the toner bag 22 have an integral structure.

The toner container 20 is filled with toner. When the container in this state is set in the set section 50 and the toner supply operation is performed, the toner in the toner bag 22 of the toner container 20 becomes Due to the suction pressure generated by the powder pump means 40 and the gravity of the toner, the toner is transferred from the toner receiving port 53 provided at the sharp end 52 of the nozzle 51 to the developing device 10 through the toner discharge path 54. Every time this operation is repeated, the internal pressure in the toner bag 22 is gradually reduced.

If the toner bag 22 is made to have a structure that deforms with a pressure smaller than the suction pressure generated by the powder pump means 40, the toner bag 22 keeps a balance with the atmospheric pressure in accordance with the depressurizing action. , Reduce its volume from the top,
As the volume decreases, the container wall moves. The toner in the toner bag 22 drops downward without staying in one place due to the volume reducing action and the gravity of the toner, and the powder pump means 40
Is sucked up to the end with no remaining amount. The toner bag 22
When the toner has run out, the volume is greatly reduced as compared to when the toner is full.

The used toner container 20 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the outer box 21 and the toner bag 22 can be easily disassembled, the outer box 21 can be folded, and the toner bag 22 is flexible, so that the container is less bulky than a conventional hard bottle such as a cartridge or a bottle. Because it is easy to handle during transportation and storage and does not take up storage space,
Significant reduction in collection and distribution costs from users to manufacturers is possible.

The present toner replenishing device only needs to connect a flexible toner transfer pipe to the developing device of the image forming apparatus, and there is no restriction on the installation position and location of the toner replenishing device with respect to the developing device. The toner replenishing device can be provided in a place where the operability at the time of replacement of the toner replenishing container is most easily performed.

[0050]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the toner transfer for supplying the toner by the suction force is reliably performed, and the residual toner in the container can be greatly reduced.

According to the configuration of the second aspect, the toner transfer for replenishing the toner by the air pressure is reliably performed, and the residual toner in the container can be greatly reduced. Claim 3
According to the configuration, it is possible to reliably prevent the outside air from entering the toner container.

According to the fourth to sixth aspects of the present invention, it is possible to reliably prevent the outside air from intruding into the toner storage container for surely replenishing the toner, and to easily install the seal member.

According to the seventh aspect of the invention, the toner can be reliably replenished in the toner container with filter. According to the configuration of the eighth aspect, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus of a type in which toner is stably supplied and toner is supplied from a toner container with little residual toner to the developing device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a toner supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of an end of the developing device shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory sectional view showing an embodiment of the toner supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of the toner supply device of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the components shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory sectional view showing another embodiment of the toner supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory sectional view showing still another embodiment of the toner supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view showing another example of a main part in the toner supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view of the components of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional view showing still another example of a main part of the toner supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the components shown in FIG. 11;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating an example of a seal portion of the toner storage container.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an aspect when the toner container is used.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a problem of the toner storage container.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Developing device 15 Toner transfer tube 20 Toner storage container 22 Toner bag 26 Seal 31 Air pump 41 Screw pump 51 Nozzle 55,56,57 Seal member

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Junichi Matsumoto 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company (72) Inventor Nobuo Kasahara 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Share Ricoh Company (72) Inventor Tomoyuki Ichikawa 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo F-term in Ricoh Company (reference) 2H077 AA02 AC11 CA12

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A toner replenishing device for replenishing toner contained in a toner container to a developing device, wherein a toner container is set by fitting a toner discharge portion side to a replenishing device main body, and stored in the toner container. And a suction unit for sucking the transferred toner and transferring it to the developing device, and a sealing unit for obtaining airtightness between the set toner storage container and the replenishing device main body. . 2. A toner replenishing device for replenishing toner contained in a toner container to a developing device, comprising: a toner container that is set by fitting a toner discharge portion side to a replenishing device main body; Air supply means for transferring the toner stored by the air pressure to the developing device, and sealing means for obtaining airtightness between the set toner storage container and the supply device main body. Toner supply device. 3. The toner replenishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said sealing means includes a non-permeable seal member. 4. The toner replenishing device according to claim 3, wherein the non-breathable seal member is provided on the replenishing device main body side. 5. The toner replenishing device according to claim 3, wherein the toner storage container on which the seal member is set is provided at a portion on the replenishing device main body side to be fitted. Toner supply device. 6. The toner supply device according to claim 3, wherein the supply device main body is provided with a nozzle inserted into the toner storage container, and the nozzle is provided with the air-impermeable seal member. And a toner replenishing device. 7. The toner replenishing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said non-permeable seal member is provided in said toner container. 8. The toner replenishing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a permeable filter provided in the toner storage container, and air for supplying air to the toner storage container. A toner supply device provided with a supply unit. 9. An image using the toner supply device according to claim 1 to supply toner to a developing device that develops a latent image formed on the image carrier. Forming equipment.