JP2002169365A - Toner replenishing device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a toner replenishing device capable of preventing the backlash of an attached cartridge and avoiding imperfectness in electrical connection performed between a main body and the cartridge as soon as the cartridge is attached. SOLUTION: The cartridge 2 is supported by fitting the mouth part 23 of a container 20 in the fitting part of a placing part 35. The cartridge 2 is pressed in against the elastic force of a spring 36 and a cartridge pressing pawl 12 is engaged in the recessed part 25 of the container 20, whereby the cartridge is stably held. A connector electrode connected with the IC chips of a connector terminal 4 and a substrate 5 respectively is provided at the engaging part of the pawl 12 and the recessed part 25 on which the elastic force acts. Inclined surfaces are provided on the side surface of the recessed part 25 and the side surface on the pawl 12 side engaged with the side surface of the recessed part 25. By the action of the inclined surfaces, the position of the cartridge is adjusted to a position where it is regulated by the pressing pawl, and the appropriate holding and the appropriate electric connection of the cartridge are guaranteed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mounting / dismounting structure of a cartridge containing a toner in a toner replenishing apparatus provided in an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a copying machine, a facsimile or the like for forming an image by an electrophotographic system. A toner replenishing device having a cartridge detachable structure capable of preventing rattling, stably holding a cartridge, and simultaneously performing an electrical connection with an image forming apparatus main body when the cartridge is mounted. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus provided with a toner supply device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an image forming apparatus such as a printer for forming an image by an electrophotographic process, toner is used in a process of visualizing an electrostatic latent image at the time of forming an image. The toner is
Since it is consumed by use, it is necessary to replenish it.However, as a conventional form of replenishment, a cartridge consisting of a container containing toner is mounted on the apparatus main body, and the toner is supplied from the cartridge to a tank of the main body developing device. I have to. When the toner runs out, the user or serviceman replaces the cartridge mounted in the predetermined mounting position and supplies the toner to the apparatus main body again. It is necessary for the toner cartridge to smoothly discharge the toner contained therein. A discharge opening (neck) to facilitate smooth outflow of toner flowing due to gravity when the toner cartridge is mounted on the device.
In many cases, such an installation method is adopted, and the camera is often supported and supported by a neck portion. Specifically, by fitting the neck portion to a cartridge mounting portion provided below the cartridge holder provided in the cartridge mounting portion provided in the main assembly of the apparatus, alignment with the inflow port on the main assembly side is achieved. The cartridge is placed and supported in a state where the cartridge is held.

[0003]

However, when the method of supporting the cartridge by fitting the neck portion to the cartridge mounting portion is adopted as described above, other special means for holding the cartridge are required. Since it is not provided,
Although it is unstable to support only the neck part, the cartridge is inserted into and loaded into the cartridge holder, so that the cartridge is held by the side wall of the cartridge holder so that the stability is maintained. A clearance of several millimeters is provided between the cartridges for the purpose of facilitating manual attachment and detachment of the cartridge, and it is inevitable that the clearance causes rattling of the cartridge. In the worst case, this rattling causes toner leakage. By the way, in recent years, in order to manage the cartridge, it has been attempted to store information such as management data of the usage amount of the cartridge or the usage limit of the cartridge in the memory chip attached to the cartridge as information unique to the cartridge. I have. Since the reading and writing of information to the memory chip are performed when the cartridge is mounted on the apparatus main body, it is necessary to make an electrical connection between the memory chip and the main body at the same time as the mounting of the cartridge. However, if the above-mentioned rattling occurs in the cartridge, the connector for electrically connecting the cartridge and the main body is also affected, resulting in poor connection. The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems of the related art in a toner replenishing apparatus in which a toner cartridge can be mounted with a toner discharge port facing down,
Its purpose is to prevent rattling of the installed cartridge, to allow toner to be discharged in a stable state,
A toner replenishing device capable of avoiding a connection failure in a cartridge which needs to be electrically connected to the main body at the same time as the mounting of the cartridge, and an image forming apparatus equipped with the toner replenishing device (for example, a printer, a copying machine, a facsimile machine) Etc.).

[0004]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toner replenishing apparatus to which a toner cartridge can be mounted, wherein a toner cartridge having a recess formed in a container is used, and a toner discharge port is directed downward. The apparatus main body is provided with a cartridge mounting portion that supports the toner cartridge while being aligned with the toner inlet port on the main body side, and a locking portion that engages with the concave portion of the toner cartridge and holds the toner cartridge. This is a toner replenishing device characterized by the above-mentioned.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the toner replenishing apparatus according to the first aspect, means for giving an elastic force acting in a direction in which the recess formed in the toner cartridge and the engaging portion of the apparatus main body are engaged. Is provided.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the toner replenishing device according to the first or second aspect, an operation portion for releasing the engagement is provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the toner supply device according to any one of the first to third aspects, an IC chip is provided on the toner cartridge, and an electrical connection between the IC chip and the apparatus main body is formed in the concave portion. And engagement with the locking portion of the apparatus main body.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the toner supply device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the concave portion is formed on a bottom surface of the container.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the toner replenishing apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, at least one of a side surface of the concave portion of the toner cartridge and a surface on the locking portion side engaging with the side surface. One is an inclined surface.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus provided with the toner supply device according to any one of the first to sixth aspects.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described based on the following embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. FIGS. 1 and 2 show a main part of an embodiment of a toner replenishing apparatus according to the present invention. The toner supply device shown in this embodiment includes a toner cartridge containing toner, a cartridge mounting portion provided on the main body side of the image forming apparatus for mounting the cartridge, and the toner contained in the cartridge to the developing device of the main body. It consists of a toner discharge section for feeding. Although FIGS. 1 and 2 show only the toner supply device according to this embodiment and do not show the entire image forming apparatus, the main body of the image forming apparatus is provided with a developing device for forming an image by electrophotography. An image forming unit including the apparatus is provided, and a cartridge mounting portion and a toner discharging portion of the toner replenishing device are provided in a part of the configuration of the main body of the image forming device. Further, the toner sent from the toner discharge section of the toner supply device is supplied to the developing device through the toner transfer tube. Known techniques can be applied to the operation of replenishing the toner from the cartridge and the image forming process by the electrophotographic method, and thus description thereof is omitted here.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the toner replenishing device of the present embodiment will be described in detail. FIG. 1 shows a toner cartridge 2 in a partially mounted state or a pop-up state (described later). As shown in FIG.
0, a toner container 21 and an opening 23 of the container 21 constitute a main part. The cartridge container 20 is a molded product using polyethylene or polypropylene resin that is assembled into a box shape by being folded from the expanded state. When folded and assembled from the unfolded state, a deformable toner container 21 (described later) is stored,
An outer box having greater rigidity than the container 21 is formed. Also,
As shown in FIG. 1, the outer box has a truncated quadrangular pyramid-shaped top portion. An opening is formed in this top,
An opening 23 (described later) of the toner container 21 is attached to the opening. The toner container 21 is
It is constituted by a deformable bag using a polyethylene film or the like. The mouth 23 is integrated with the opening of the bag, and the mouth 23 can be attached to the opening of the container 20. ing. The mouth 23 has a discharge port for discharging the toner in the container 21, and the discharge port is filled with a seal member 22 such as a sponge to seal the inside of the container 21. The sealing member 22 is torn by penetrating a nozzle 30 (described later) having a pointed end, and can communicate between the outside and the inside through an opening 31 provided in the nozzle. At the time of the communication, the contained toner is discharged to the outside. You can do it.

When the cartridge 2 is mounted on the cartridge mounting portion 3 provided on the main assembly side of the apparatus, the container 20 of the cartridge 2 is placed with the opening 23 downward as shown in FIG.
The toner in the container 21 naturally falls through and is placed and supported in a state where the toner is smoothly discharged. For this purpose, the container 20 is dropped into the cartridge holder 1 having an inner surface shape corresponding to the outer shape of the container 20 with the mouth 23 down, and the cartridge mounting portion 3 provided at the lower portion of the holder.
, So that it is loaded. The cartridge mounting portion 3 has a nozzle 30 having a length capable of entering the inside of the container from the outlet of the mouth portion 23 attached to the top of the truncated square pyramid of the container 20 and having a pointed end.
And when the cartridge is loaded, the nozzle 3
A mounting portion 35 for mounting and supporting the cartridge is provided so that the opening 23 is aligned with respect to 0 and the nozzle 30 can properly enter the outlet. The mounting portion 35 has a fitting portion of the mouth portion 23 attached to the container 20, and the fitting portion is centered with respect to the nozzle 30. That is, it is provided concentrically with the nozzle 30. For this reason, when the mouth 23 of the container 21 is fitted into the fitting portion of the mounting portion 35, the nozzle 30 and the mouth 23
Are aligned, and the nozzle 30 can properly enter the outlet.

A conduit from the nozzle 30 has a toner discharge connection port 33 to which a toner transfer tube extended from a suction pump (not shown) is connected, and an air supply connection port 32 for sending air to the container 21. Is provided. When the suction pump operates in the cartridge mounted state, the toner in the container 5 of the cartridge 2 is sucked from the opening 31 formed at the tip of the nozzle 30 and the connection port 33 is opened.
From the developing device toward the tank of the developing device. When air is supplied, the toner is fluidized by the air sent from the connection port 32 through the opening 31 formed at the tip of the nozzle 30.

The above description is of a configuration employing the prior art prior to the present invention. According to this configuration, the cartridge 2 is dropped into the cartridge holder 1 and provided below the cartridge holder 1. The container 20 is inserted into the fitting portion of the mounting portion 35 in the cartridge mounting portion 3.
By fitting the opening 23 of the container 21 attached to the cartridge, the cartridge can be placed and supported in a state where the position of the cartridge 21 is aligned with the nozzle 30. However, with the support means alone, it is inevitable that the rattling of the cartridge 2 occurs, as described in the above-mentioned problem to be solved by the present invention. In the present embodiment, this rattling is reduced by the container 20 of the cartridge 2 when the cartridge is mounted.
Is provided by further providing means for holding the cartridge holder 1 in the cartridge holder 1. This holding means is desirably at a position where rattling can be effectively eliminated, and here, a position where rattling is greatest, that is,
The bottom surface of the container 20 of the cartridge 2 which is opposite to the supporting means supporting the mouth portion 23 with the mounting portion 35 (FIG. 1)
In the state shown in FIG.

Here, the holding means provided on the bottom surface of the container 20 of the cartridge 2 will be described in detail with reference to the illustrated embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the holding means engages the concave portion 25 provided on the bottom surface of the container 20, the cartridge pressing claw 12 engaging with the concave portion 25, and the concave portion 25 and the cartridge pressing claw 12. It comprises a spring 36 as a means for giving an elastic force acting in the direction. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the cartridge is in a semi-mounted state and the holding means is not functioning, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which the cartridge is in the mounted state and the functioning of the holding means.
The concave portion 25 provided on the bottom surface of the container 20 is provided at the edge of the bottom surface of the container 20, and the concave portion 25 has
But to engage. For this purpose, a protrusion (claw) having a convex shape having substantially the same contour as the concave portion 25 is formed on the cartridge pressing claw 12 so as to fit into the concave portion 25 of the container 20 to enable the engagement. Cartridge holding claw 12
Can take both positions of the disengaged position in the half-mounted state (FIG. 1) and the engaged position in the mounted state (FIG. 2). For this reason, the cartridge holding claw 12 is provided at the end of the cantilever-shaped holding member 11 in which the base is integrated with the container 20 of the cartridge 2. The mounting operation of the cartridge 2 is enabled. Further, the cartridge 2 in the engagement position
In order to be able to manually perform the operation of releasing the engagement of the cartridge, the head of the cartridge pressing claw 12 is used as an operation unit,
A surface convenient for operation is formed as an operation surface.

A mounting portion 3 for supporting the cartridge 2
A spring 36 is provided to urge the upper part 5 upward by elastic force. One end of the spring 36 is provided at the bottom of a spring casing 34 fixed to the lower portion of the cartridge holder 1, and the other end is provided at the nozzle 3.
It is mounted on a mounting portion 35 that is slidable in the axial direction concentrically with 0. Here, the spring casing 34 is formed integrally with the nozzle 30. At the time of mounting the cartridge 2, as shown in FIG. 2, the spring 36 stably holds the cartridge 2 by pressing the recess 25 provided on the bottom surface of the container 20 of the cartridge 2 against the cartridge pressing claw 12 by elastic force. The rattling of the cartridge, which has conventionally been a problem, is prevented, and toner leakage and the like do not occur.

The operation from mounting to removal of the cartridge will be described. First, the cartridge 2 is dropped into the cartridge holder 1. At this time, since the cartridge pressing claws 12 can escape due to the elasticity of the holding member 11, there is no problem in the operation (see FIG. 1). The dropped cartridge 2 is inserted into the mounting portion 35 of the mouth portion 23 of the container 20.
At this time, the cartridge pressing claws 12 are not yet engaged with the concave portions 25 of the container 20 (see FIG. 1). In order to complete the mounting, it is necessary to push the cartridge 2 against the elastic force of the spring 36. When the cartridge 2 is further pushed in and the cartridge holding claw 12 reaches the position of the concave portion 25, the holding claw 12 is
To the state shown in FIG. In the state shown in FIG. 2, the cartridge 2 is stably held by pressing the recess 25 against the cartridge holding claw 12 by the elastic force of the spring 36. Thereafter, when the cartridge is removed due to running out of toner or the like, the head operating surface of the cartridge pressing claw 12 is operated to move the cartridge pressing claw 12 against the elasticity of the holding member 11 to release the engagement from the recess 25. I do. At this time, the released cartridge 2
The pop-up is caused by the elastic force of the spring 36.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention in which the above-described cartridge holding means is used for electrical connection between the toner cartridge and the apparatus main body will be described. Here, as an electrical connection between the apparatus main body and the toner cartridge, a connection to an IC (memory) chip attached to the cartridge is taken as an example. The IC chip stores, for example, management information of the cartridge (for example, management data of the usage amount of the cartridge or the usage limit of the cartridge) as information unique to the cartridge. Therefore, it is necessary to access the IC chip every time an image is formed using the cartridge. For this purpose, the cartridge and the apparatus main body must be electrically connected via the connector simultaneously with the mounting of the cartridge. When the cartridge is electrically connected to the apparatus main body via the connector at the same time as the mounting of the cartridge, a major cause of the contact failure of the connector is rattling of the cartridge and contamination of the connector by toner. In order to reduce the influence of these causes, in the present embodiment, the engaging portion of the holding means for engaging the cartridge pressing claw 12 with the concave portion 25 provided on the bottom surface of the container 20 of the toner cartridge 2 described above is used. By using the connector, a contact failure of the connector does not occur.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the holding means of the present embodiment in which the cartridge and the apparatus main body are electrically connected by the engaging portions of the holding means of the cartridge. FIG.
This embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, a connector is provided in the concave portion 25 provided on the bottom surface of the container 20 of the toner cartridge 2 and the cartridge holding claw 12 which constitute the engaging portion of the holding means. As shown, the substrate 5 is provided on the concave portion 25 side, and the substrate 5 has a connector electrode 51 on which an IC chip is mounted and which is connected to the IC chip. On the other hand, a connector terminal 4 connected to a CPU (not shown) of the main body control unit is provided on the cartridge holding claw 12 side. In the cartridge mounting state, the connector electrode 51 of the substrate 5 provided in the concave portion 25 and the connector terminal 4 provided in the cartridge holding claw 12 are in direct contact with each other, and the electrical connection is performed by this contact and the cartridge is held. Also function as an engaging portion. Therefore, the cartridge is stably held, and the contact portion of the connector is provided with a spring 3
Since the elastic force of 6 acts, the connection is made more reliably,
Does not cause poor contact. In addition, since the cartridge is set with the toner outlet below, the electrical connection is made at the upper part of the apparatus farthest from the toner outlet, so even if toner leakage etc. may occur, contamination may occur. No connection failure occurs.

Next, an embodiment relating to the improvement of the engaging portion of the cartridge holding means for enabling the concave portion 25 provided on the bottom surface of the container 20 of the toner cartridge 2 to more appropriately engage the cartridge pressing claw 12 will be described. An example will be described. Since the operation of mounting the cartridge is performed manually, it is desirable to make the operation as easy as possible so that the cartridge can be properly engaged. For this purpose, here, at least one of the side surface of the concave portion 25 provided in the toner cartridge 2 and the surface on the side of the cartridge pressing claw 12 that engages with the side surface is formed as an inclined surface, and the engagement is performed with the inclined surface. Engagement between the recess 25 and the cartridge holding claw 1 when the cartridge is mounted.
It is possible to easily secure a proper position without strictly positioning the positional relationship manually by hand. Referring to FIG. 3 showing the engaging portion of the cartridge holding means in more detail, in this embodiment, both side surfaces 25a of the concave portion 25 provided in the cartridge container 20 and both sides of the cartridge pressing claw 12 side engaged with the side surface are described. The surface 12a is an inclined surface. The position of the cartridge 2 is adjusted to a position regulated by the cartridge pressing claws 12 by the action of the inclined surfaces provided on both side surfaces 25a of the concave portion 25 and both side surfaces 12a on the side of the cartridge pressing claws 12 engaged with the side surfaces. At this time, the cartridge is moved to the adjustment position. This adjustment operation is permitted by the mounting portion 35 that supports the cartridge 2 urged by the spring 36. It is to be noted that the adoption of such an inclined surface when the electrical connection is performed simultaneously is as follows. As shown in the illustrated embodiment, the connector is provided on the front surface of the concave portion 25 and on the surface of the cartridge holding claw 12 facing the surface. The electrode 51 and the connector terminal 4 are provided, and in the correct installation state when the cartridge is mounted, the connector terminal 4 and the connector electrode 5 are always provided.
It is necessary to take such a positional relationship as to make contact with the first contact. Therefore, in this case, the contact on the inclined surface must be eliminated (that is, in the correct installation state, both sides 2
5a and the side surface 12a of the cartridge holding claw 12 that engages with the side surface requires play.) Therefore, a design taking this point into consideration is required. As described above, by making the side surface of the concave portion 25 and the surface on the cartridge holding claw 12 side engaging with the side surface into an inclined surface, the engaging operation is facilitated and the cartridge is properly engaged. Become like

[0022]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a mounting portion for supporting a toner cartridge in a state where the toner discharge port faces downward and is aligned with the toner inflow port on the apparatus main body side, and a toner. By providing a locking portion for holding the toner cartridge by engaging with a concave portion provided in the cartridge, a conventional mounting method adopts a method in which the toner discharge port is directed downward and the neck portion is merely supported. eliminating rattling of happened cartridge for a, it is possible to discharge the toner in a stable state, it is possible to prevent the leakage of toner. (2) Effects corresponding to the second aspect of the invention In addition to the effects of the above (1), a more stable state is provided by giving an elastic force acting in a direction in which the concave portion and the locking portion of the apparatus main body are engaged. Can hold the cartridge. (3) Effects corresponding to the third aspect of the invention In addition to the effects of the above (1) and (2), the provision of the operation portion for releasing the engagement makes it possible to remove the cartridge. Further, when an elastic force is acting on the engaging portion, the cartridge pops up by the releasing operation, so that the cartridge can be easily taken out. (4) Effects corresponding to the fourth aspect of the invention In addition to the effects of the above (1) to (3), a concave portion for holding an electrical connection between the IC chip provided on the toner cartridge and the apparatus main body is provided. By performing the operation by engaging with the locking portion of the apparatus main body, the configuration is simplified as compared with a case in which each is provided as separate means. Also,
Since electrical contact is made by the holding force of the cartridge, contact failure does not occur and reliability can be improved.

(5) Advantages Corresponding to the Invention of Claim 5 In addition to the advantages (1) to (4) above, the concave portion is formed on the bottom surface of the container, so that the holding is simple and easy to manufacture. Means can be provided. In addition, since the cartridge is set with the toner outlet below, the electrical connection is made at the upper part of the apparatus farthest from the toner outlet, so even if toner leakage etc. may occur, contamination may occur. No connection failure occurs. (6) Effects corresponding to the sixth aspect of the invention In addition to the effects of the above (1) to (5), at least one of the side surface of the concave portion of the toner cartridge and the surface of the locking portion engaging with the side surface is inclined. With the surface, the engagement operation is facilitated, and the cartridge can be engaged in an appropriate state. (7) Effects corresponding to the seventh aspect of the invention The effects (1) to (6) are realized in the image forming apparatus.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a configuration of a main part of an embodiment of a toner supply device according to the present invention, in which a toner cartridge is in a half-mounted state.

Figure 2 shows an apparatus of the embodiment of FIG. 1 in which the toner cartridge is in the mounted state.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view in which a part of the toner replenishing device is cut away and an engagement portion of a holding unit of the cartridge is shown in more detail.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Cartridge holder, 11 ... Holding member 12 ... Cartridge holding claw, 2 ... Toner cartridge, 20 ... Cartridge container, 21 ... Toner container, 22 ... Seal member, 23 ... Toner container opening, 25 ... Recess, 3 ... cartridge mounting portion, 30 ... nozzle, 31 ... opening provided in the nozzle,
32: air supply connection port, 33: toner discharge connection port, 35: mounting section, 36: spring,
30 ... nozzle, 4 ... connector terminal, 5 ... IC
A substrate on which a chip is mounted, 51... A connector electrode 51.

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A is a toner cartridge toner supply device attachable, using a toner cartridge forming a recess in the container, toward the lower outlet of the toner, and was aligned with the toner inlet port of the apparatus body state And a cartridge mounting portion for supporting the toner cartridge and an engaging portion which engages with the concave portion of the toner cartridge and holds the toner cartridge. 2. The toner replenishing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: means for applying an elastic force acting in a direction in which the recess formed in the toner cartridge and the locking portion of the apparatus main body are engaged. Characteristic toner supply device. 3. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, further comprising an operation unit for releasing the engagement. 4. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein the toner cartridge is
A toner supply device provided with a C chip, wherein electrical connection between the IC chip and the apparatus main body is performed by engagement of the recess with the locking portion of the apparatus main body. 5. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein said concave portion is formed on a bottom surface of the container. 6. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of a side surface of the concave portion of the toner cartridge and a surface of the locking portion engaging with the side surface has an inclined surface. A toner replenishing device characterized in that: 7. An image forming apparatus equipped with the toner replenishing device according to claim 1.