JP2003091119A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus which is effectively utilized by eliminating the need of storage control and the possibility of loss by using a press-contact releasing member used so as to keep a photoreceptor and a transfer unit in a separated state at the delivery time or the like of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus also as one part having the other purpose. SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus is provided with the photoreceptor 1, the transfer unit 12, an attaching/detaching mechanism to attachably/ detachably support the transfer unit to/from the photoreceptor, an outer case cover 42 to house them, a door 46 to open and close an aperture provided to the outer case cover and the press-contact releasing member 50 attachably/ detachably attached to/from the attaching/detaching mechanism so as to keep the transfer unit in the separated state from the photoreceptor, a housing part 60 to attach the press-contact releasing member detached from the attaching/ detaching mechanism that is provided on the inside surface of the door.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, etc., and in particular, a state where a photoconductor and a transfer unit are kept apart from each other when the apparatus is shipped. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus capable of effectively utilizing a pressure contact releasing member as one component having another application.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus,
After the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum is transferred onto the transfer paper by the transfer unit, the toner image is fixed onto the transfer paper by the fixing device. During the image forming operation, the transfer unit comes into contact with the photoconductor drum to transfer the toner image onto the transfer paper.However, the transfer unit is protected to protect the photoconductor drum at the time of shipping from the factory or during packaging. Need to be separated from the photoconductor drum. As a method of separating the transfer unit from the photosensitive drum,
A contact / separation mechanism is used that temporarily releases the contact between the transfer unit and the photosensitive drum to separate the transfer unit and the photosensitive drum. If it is necessary to keep the transfer unit separated from the photoconductor drum by the contact / separation mechanism for protection of the photoconductor during transportation or packaging, or for maintenance, etc., press contact release pin There is a case where a structure is adopted in which the transfer unit is inserted into an appropriate position of the contact / separation mechanism to prevent the transfer unit from returning to the photosensitive drum side. However, such a pressure contact releasing pin becomes unnecessary when the image forming apparatus normally operates, and is troublesome to manage. Further, it is easy to lose it, and thus it is inconvenient that it cannot be used when necessary.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and is for holding the photoconductor and the transfer unit in a separated state at the time of shipment of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus. The pressure contact releasing member to be used can also be used as a single component having other uses, so that the image forming apparatus can be effectively used without the need for storage management and the risk of loss. The challenge is to provide.

[0004]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention of claim 1 provides a photoconductor, a transfer unit, and a contact / separation mechanism for supporting the transfer unit so that the transfer unit can contact and separate from the photoconductor. And an exterior cover that accommodates them, a door that opens and closes an opening provided in the exterior cover, and is detachably attached to the contact / separation mechanism to hold the transfer unit in a state of being separated from the photoconductor. In the image forming apparatus provided with the pressure contact releasing member, a storage portion for attaching the pressure contact releasing member detached from the contacting / separating mechanism is provided on an inner surface of the door. By providing a storage section inside the openable door of the image forming apparatus main body, in which the pressure contact releasing member can be stored, the pressure contact releasing member will not be lost and the image forming apparatus main body will be moved again. It is possible to surely protect the photosensitive drum at the time of packaging and packaging. According to a second aspect of the present invention, door opening / closing detection means is provided in the image forming apparatus main body whose inner surfaces face each other when the door is closed, and the pressure contact releasing member is attached to the storage portion provided in the door. When you close the door in the state,
A part of the pressure contact releasing member is configured to operate the open / close detection means. When the pressure contact release member is housed inside the openable door, it has a shape that plays the role of a claw for the main power supply interlock switch of the image forming apparatus. Even if the member is forgotten to be removed from the transfer unit and the main power switch is turned on, by preventing the main power switch from being turned on, the photosensitive drum can be protected more safely and reliably. The invention of claim 3 is characterized in that the pressure contact release member can be locked in place on the exterior cover to operate the open / close detection means even when the pressure contact release member is removed from the housing provided in the door.
The pressure contact release member that can be stored inside the openable door has a shape that allows the main power supply interlock switch of the image forming apparatus to be turned on when the door is open so that the service technician can install the main body of the image forming apparatus. When performing maintenance, remove the pressure contact release member from the exterior cover, insert it into the main power supply interlock switch of the image forming apparatus main body, and with the main power turned on, check the operation of the image forming apparatus main body and perform maintenance. It is possible to perform the operation in an open state, which facilitates operation confirmation and maintenance.

[0005]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a view showing a main configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a state in which a door provided on an outer cover of the image forming apparatus is opened. FIG. 1 shows an outer cover 42 of the image forming apparatus 41.
2 shows an open state of a door 44 whose lower end edge is openably and closably supported to open and close the opening 43 provided in the shaft 12a.
The transfer belt unit (transfer unit) 12 that is rotatably supported by the door is pulled out to the outside together with the door 44.

2A and 2B are a front view and a perspective view showing a transfer belt contact / separation mechanism of the image forming apparatus. The transfer belt 6 includes a transfer driving roller 21 and a transfer driven roller 2
2. The roller is stretched by a bias roller 23, and the position of each roller is determined by a transfer belt frame (not shown). This frame and rollers 21, 22, 2
3, the transfer belt 6 constitutes a transfer belt unit 12,
The transfer belt unit 12 is in contact with and separated from the photoconductor 1. The contact / separation operation of the transfer belt unit 12 is performed by the transfer contact / separation clutch 24, the transfer contact / separation cam 25, and the contact / separation lever 2.
6 is performed. When the main motor is OFF and the P (photo) sensor pattern is formed, the transfer contact / separation clutch 24 is turned on, and the transfer contact / separation cam 25 is rotated 1/2. And
The contact / separation lever 26 is pushed down (arrow 29 in FIG. 2B), and the transfer belt unit 12 (the transfer belt 6) is separated from the photoconductor 1 (arrow 30 in FIG. 2B). On the other hand, during the copying operation, the transfer contact / separation clutch 2 is activated when a certain time has passed since the main motor was turned on.
4 is turned on and the transfer contact / separation cam 25 is rotated by 1/2, the contact / separation lever 26 is raised, and the transfer belt unit 12 contacts the photoconductor 1. Further, the filler 28 and the transfer home position sensor 27, which are provided coaxially with the transfer contact / separation cam 25, detect whether the transfer belt unit 12 is in contact with the photosensitive member 1 or separated therefrom. The pressure spring 35 is a spring that biases the transfer belt 6 toward the photoconductor, and the return spring 40 is a spring that retracts the transfer belt 6 from the photoconductor 1. By the operation of the transfer contact / separation cam 25,
When the contact / separation lever 26 is pushed down, the other end of the contact / separation lever 26 rotates the release lever 36 in the retreat direction against the pressure spring 35, so that the urging force of the pressure spring 35 is canceled. As a result, the return spring 40 acts and the transfer belt 6 can be separated from the photoconductor 1. As shown in FIG. 2B, when the release lever 36 is in the urging position shown by the solid line, the transfer belt 6 moves to the photosensitive member 1
The transfer belt 6 is separated from the photoconductor 1 when in the retracted position (released position) indicated by the dotted line. Therefore, by using the pressure contact releasing member (pressure contact releasing pin) 50 shown in FIG. 1, if the release lever 36 is held at the retracted position shown by the dotted line and fixed so as not to return to the biasing position shown by the solid line, The transfer belt 6 should not be in contact with the photoconductor 1.

The pressure contact releasing member 50 shown in FIG. 1 comprises a pin portion 50a and a holding portion 50b having a required shape (in this example, a rectangular parallelepiped shape) integrated with the pin portion 50a. By inserting the pin portion 50a of the pressure contact releasing member 50 into the mounting hole 57 provided in the arm 56 that supports the stepped transmission gear 55, the pressing portion 50b can rotate the release lever 36 in the urging direction. Block the release lever 36 in FIG.
It is possible to continue holding in the retracted position shown in. Therefore, even if the door 44 is closed while the press-contact releasing member 50 is mounted in the mounting hole 57, the transfer belt 6 remains separated from the photoconductor 1. The characteristic configuration of the present invention is that the storage portion 6 for attaching the pressure contact releasing member 50 removed from the transfer belt contacting / separating mechanism to the inner surface of the door 46 that opens and closes a part of the exterior cover 42 of the image forming apparatus.
0 is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b), this door 46 is not the door 44 shown in FIG. 1, but is pivotally supported by a hinge 47 to open and close the other side surface of the exterior cover 42. Is. In particular, the door 46 has an operating claw (main power source interlock) which is inserted into a hole 71 having a door opening / closing detecting means 70 provided on the apparatus main body side when the door is closed to operate the opening / closing detecting means 70. A switch claw) 72 is provided. The storage portion 60 is a recess made up of a rib 60 a provided at an appropriate position of the door 46, and the storage portion 60 has
The pressure contact release member 50 is detachably supported. As described above, by storing the pressure contact releasing member 50 in the storage portion 60 provided inside the openable / closable door 46 of the image forming apparatus 41, the pressure contact releasing member 50 is not lost. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the pressure contact releasing member 50 is attached to the transfer belt contacting / separating mechanism to prevent contact with the photoconductor, so that the photoconductor can be transported and transported during the movement of the image forming apparatus. It is possible to reliably protect the drum.

Next, FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention. When the pressure contact releasing member 50 is attached to the housing portion 60 of the door 46, a part of the pressure contact releasing member 50 is a main power interlock switch claw. A characteristic is that the double-sided operation claw 72 also has a function. The pressure contact releasing member 50 of this embodiment has a pin portion 50a, a holding portion 50b, and a holding portion 5a.
And a bending piece 50c obtained by bending a part of 0b by 90 degrees. As shown in the drawing, a claw member 60b that locks the pressing portion 50b is provided in a projecting manner in the storage portion 60, and the bending piece 50c can be projected by holding down the pressing portion 50b with the claw member 60b. When the 46 is closed, the bent piece 50c is configured to rush into the hole 71 shown in FIG. 3A to operate the opening / closing detecting means 70. The door 46 of this embodiment does not have the operating claw 72 shown in FIG. When the door 46 is closed while the press-contact releasing member 50 is attached to the storage portion 60, the bending piece 50c turns on the open / close detecting means 70, so that the interlock is released and the main power of the apparatus main body can be turned on. Becomes On the other hand, when the pressure contact releasing member 50 is left in the machine while being assembled to the transfer belt contacting / separating mechanism as shown in FIG. 1, it becomes impossible to turn on the main power source with the door 46 closed. . Therefore, in order to turn on the main power source, the pressure contact release member 50 is placed in the storage portion 60 of the door 46.
The main power supply can be turned on only after it is installed. In other words, even if the main power switch is turned on after unpacking the pressure contact release member from the transfer unit after unpacking the shipped image forming apparatus main body, the main power switch will not turn on, which makes it safer. In addition, it is possible to surely protect the photosensitive drum.

Next, FIGS. 5A and 5B are configuration diagrams of the main part of an image forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention, in which a pressure contact which can be housed inside an openable door 46 is provided. The releasing member 50 is shaped so that the main power supply interlock switch (opening / closing detecting means) 70 of the image forming apparatus can be kept ON while the door 46 is open. Therefore, when the service technician performs maintenance on the image forming apparatus, the pressure contact releasing member 50 is removed from the housing portion 60 of the door 46, inserted into the hole 71 of the image forming apparatus and locked, and the main power interlock switch 70 is turned on. Since the main power can be turned on, the operation check and maintenance of the image forming apparatus can be performed with the door 46 open. That is, the press-contact releasing member 50 according to this embodiment has the slit-shaped locking portion 50d at an appropriate position of the pressing portion 50b, and this locking portion 50d is shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), the switch 70 located inside the hole 71 is kept ON by being locked to the peripheral edge of the hole 71 provided on the side surface of the apparatus main body by the end portion of the holding portion 50b. ing. The interlock is released until the operator releases the pressure contact releasing member 50 from the hole 71. Therefore, it is convenient because it is possible to check the operation and perform maintenance and the like with the door 46 opened.

[0011]

As described above, according to the present invention, the pressure contact releasing member used for holding the photosensitive member and the transfer unit in the separated state at the time of shipping of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, By adopting a configuration in which it can also be used as a single component having other uses, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that can be effectively used without the need for storage management and the risk of loss. That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the storage unit for storing the transfer unit pressure contact releasing member of the transfer unit is provided inside the openable door of the image forming apparatus main body, so that the pressure contact releasing member is not lost. Therefore, the photosensitive drum can be reliably protected during transportation such as moving the image forming apparatus main body again and during packaging. According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the transfer unit pressure contact releasing member is housed inside an openable door, the transfer unit pressing contact releasing member has a shape that serves as a main power supply interlock switch claw of the image forming apparatus. After opening the package, even if you forget to remove the transfer unit pressure contact release member and turn on the main power switch,
By preventing the main power switch from being turned on, the photosensitive drum can be protected more safely and reliably. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the transfer unit pressure contact releasing member is shaped such that the main power supply interlock switch of the image forming apparatus can be turned on with the exterior cover opened, and the service technician maintains the image forming apparatus main body. At this time, remove the transfer unit pressure contact release member from the door, insert it into the main power supply interlock switch of the image forming apparatus main body, and with the main power turned on, check the operation of the image forming apparatus main body and maintain the outer cover. It can be performed in the open state, and operation confirmation and maintenance can be facilitated.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a main configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2A and 2B are a front view and a perspective view showing a transfer belt contact / separation mechanism of the image forming apparatus.

3A and 3B are a perspective view showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus of the present invention and a configuration explanatory view of a storage section.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a storage portion and a pressure contact releasing member according to another embodiment of the present invention.

5A and 5B are configuration explanatory views of an image forming apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 photoconductor, 6 transfer belt, 12 transfer belt unit, 41 image forming device, 42 exterior cover, 43 opening, 44 door, 46 open / close door, 50 pressure contact releasing member (pressure contact releasing pin), 50a pin portion, 50b pressing portion,
50c bending piece, 50d locking portion, 57 mounting hole, 60
Storage part, 70 Door opening / closing detection means, 71 holes, 72 Operating claw (main power interlock switch claw).

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Kaetsu Matsumoto             1-3-3 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Stocks             Company Ricoh (72) Inventor Osamu Takashima             1-3-3 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Stocks             Company Ricoh (72) Inventor Kiyoshi Tsukamura             1-3-3 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Stocks             Company Ricoh F term (reference) 2H071 AA17 AA18 BA03 BA13 BA14                       BA23 BA27 BA29 DA09 DA15                       DA32                 2H200 FA12 GA23 JB06 LA03 LA06                       LA17 LA24 LA33 LA38

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A photosensitive member, a transfer unit, a contact / separation mechanism that supports the transfer unit so that the transfer unit can contact and separate from the photosensitive member, an exterior cover that accommodates these members, and an opening provided in the exterior cover. An image forming apparatus comprising: a door that opens and closes; and a pressure contact releasing member that is detachably attached to a contacting / separating mechanism for holding a transfer unit in a state of being separated from a photoconductor. The image forming apparatus is provided with a storage portion for mounting the pressure contact releasing member detached from the contacting / separating mechanism. 2. A door opening / closing detector is provided in the image forming apparatus main body whose inner surface faces the door when the door is closed, and the pressure contact releasing member is attached to a storage portion provided in the door. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the door is closed, a part of the pressure contact releasing member is configured to activate the opening / closing detecting means. 3. The pressure contact releasing member can be locked in place on the exterior cover to operate the open / close detecting means even when the pressure contact releasing member is removed from a storage portion provided in the door. The image forming apparatus according to Item 1 or 2.