JP2003208004A - Toner cartridge and its packaging method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a toner cartridge having high assembling operability, high toner filling efficiency and simple constitution capable of surely diffusing toner stored in its inside and a method for packaging the cartridge. <P>SOLUTION: The bottom part (wall part) 30 of a toner storing room 23 for storing toner (t) is formed by a flexible member allowed to be deformed to the inside, and after filling the storing room 23 with toner (t) on the assumption that the toner storing room 23 is transported and stored in the downward state of the bottom part 30, a packaging member 33 is pressed to the outside of the bottom part 30 and the cartridge is packaged in a state that the bottom part 30 is deformed to the inside. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toner cartridge removably mounted on a developing device provided in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, a printer and the like, and a packing method thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A toner cartridge for supplying toner is detachably attached to a developing device provided in an image forming apparatus. In the toner cartridge,
Usually, a toner agitating member is provided so that the toner filled inside can be evenly agitated when the toner is attached to the developing device.

In such a toner cartridge, as time passes during transportation and storage, the toner becomes dense and aggregates, and when used, a large resistance is exerted on the toner stirring member and a large starting torque is required. In addition, the stirring blade and the drive source may be overloaded.

Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, a partition member detachable from the outside is provided in the toner hopper (toner storage chamber) or the developing container.
A closed space that is not filled with toner (or developer) is formed in the lower part, and by removing the partition member before use, the toner can crack and collapse into the closed space, making it easier to stir. A proposal has been made.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-103880 discloses an example of such a proposal. In this case, the partition member for securing the space not filled with toner is a sheet-shaped member removable from the outside,
The sheet-shaped member is attached inside the container.

[0006]

In the case of the above-mentioned conventional example, when the sheet-shaped member is removed, the adhesive may remain inside the container. Therefore, a part of the toner stored inside is solidified. However, this may cause image deterioration. Further, there is a concern that the toner stirring member may adhere to the adhesive to increase the starting resistance thereof or the stirring blade may be damaged.

Further, since the toner accommodating chamber is provided with a removing hole for removing the sheet-like member, a sealing member for preventing the toner from leaking is attached to the removing hole. There is. Therefore, the number of parts is increased, and there is a concern that toner may leak to the outside due to the sealing member falling off or the like.

Regarding the assembling procedure, first, a sheet-like member is first adhered to the inside of the toner accommodating chamber, a space not filled with toner is secured first, and then other assembling is performed. For filling
The filling capacity in the container is reduced, the filling efficiency is deteriorated, and the peeling and damage of the adhesive portion of the sheet-shaped member during assembly work must be taken into consideration.
There is concern that assembly workability will decline.

The sheet-shaped member is not completely removed from the inside of the container due to forgetting to remove the sheet member before mounting it on the main body of the image forming apparatus, an error in the removing work, etc. There is also a concern that the toner cartridge or the developing cartridge may malfunction.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, has a good assembling workability and a high toner filling efficiency,
An object of the present invention is to provide a toner cartridge having a simple structure that can surely diffuse the toner stored inside, and a packaging method for the toner cartridge.

[0011]

The present invention comprises means for solving the above-mentioned problems as follows.

(1) A toner cartridge for supplying toner to a developing device, wherein a wall portion on the side where the toner is stored during transportation / storage is a flexible member that can be deformed inward. After the toner is filled in the toner storage chamber, a packing material is pressed against the outer side of the wall portion so that the wall portion is packed so as to be deformed inward. Characterize.

In this structure, after the toner is filled, the packing material is pressed against the outside of the wall portion (for example, the bottom portion) to be deformed inward, so that a sufficient toner filling capacity can be secured. And a high toner filling efficiency can be obtained.

When the toner cartridge is used, the packaging material is always removed, so that the deformation of the wall is restored, and a part of the toner (lower part) that has been densified and agglomerated during transportation, storage, etc. ), A space is formed in the space), and thereafter, the weight of the toner immediately causes a crack in the toner to collapse the toner in the space so that the toner can be diffused, and the state becomes easy to stir.

(2) A toner stirring member is provided in the toner storage chamber.

In this structure, after removing the packing material, a simple operation such as tapping can be applied to cause the densified and agglomerated toner to crack so that it can collapse and diffuse. The toner cartridge can be mounted on the developing device and the toner stirring member can be operated immediately, and the toner can be stirred efficiently with a small torque.

(3) The flexible member is further provided with an auxiliary member for restoring its shape to the original shape.

With this structure, the wall portion of the toner storage chamber, which has been deformed inward when the packing material is removed, can be reliably returned to its original shape by the auxiliary member. Usability is improved.

(4) A method of packing a toner cartridge for supplying toner to a developing device, wherein after the toner storage chamber of the toner cartridge is filled with toner, the outside of a deformable wall portion of the toner storage chamber It is characterized in that the packing material is pressed against and the wall part is packed in a deformed state toward the inside.

In this method, after the toner is filled, the packing material is pressed against the outside of the wall portion to be deformed inward, so that the toner filling capacity can be sufficiently secured, and the toner filling capacity can be secured. High filling efficiency can be obtained.

When the toner cartridge is used, since the packaging material is always removed, the deformation of the wall part is restored, and a part of the toner (lower part) that has been densified and agglomerated during transportation, storage, etc. ), A space is formed in the space), and thereafter, the weight of the toner immediately causes a crack in the toner to collapse the toner in the space so that the toner can be diffused, and the state becomes easy to stir.

[0022]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, a toner cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention and a packing method thereof will be described in detail.

FIG. 4 shows the structure of the image forming apparatus. Reference numeral 1 includes a photosensitive drum, 2 is a main charger, 3 is a cleaning blade, 4 is a transfer roller, 5 is a developing roller, and 6 is a developing roller 5. The developing device 7 is a toner cartridge that is detachably attached to the developing device 6.

Explaining this image forming apparatus, sheets are fed from a sheet cassette 14 by a pickup roller 13, separated and fed one by one by a sheet feeding roller 11 and a separating roller 12, and conveyed by a sheet conveying roller 10. It is introduced into the registration roller-9.

The photosensitive drum 1 is a main charger 2
And is exposed by the laser light emitted from the laser unit 8 to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface thereof. The electrostatic latent image is formed as a toner image on the photoconductor drum 1 by the toner supplied to the photoconductor drum 1 by the developing roller 5 provided in the developing device 6.

On the other hand, the paper is introduced to the photosensitive drum 1 by the resist roller 9, and the transfer roller 4 transfers the toner image from the photosensitive drum 1 to the paper.
Then, the paper on which the toner image is transferred is conveyed to the fixing device, and is fixed on the paper by the fixing heat roller 15 and the pressure roller 16. After that, the paper on which the image is fixed is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 17 by the paper discharge conveyance roller 18 and the paper discharge roller 19.

As shown in FIG. 5, the above-mentioned toner cartridge 7 has a mechanism that can be attached to and detached from the main body of the image forming apparatus. In the present embodiment, only the toner cartridge 7 is configured to be attachable to and detachable from the image forming apparatus main body. However, in such a configuration, when the toner cartridge 7 is attached to the developing device 6, It is possible to obtain the same effect as in the case where the structure is detachable from the main body of the image forming apparatus.

Next, the developing device 6 and the toner cartridge 7 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. Toner hopper (toner storage chamber) 2 of the toner cartridge 7
Toner 3 is filled with toner t, and a toner stirring member 20 for stirring the toner t by a rotation operation is provided. The toner stirring member 20 is driven to rotate around a rotation shaft 21 in the arrow direction. To do.

At the outer end of the rotary shaft 21, a driving force transmission unit for driving the toner stirring member 20 and a stirring drive shaft coupling (not shown) are provided, and the toner cart fringe 7 is image-formed. When the toner stirring member 20 is mounted on the apparatus main body, the coupling is coupled to a drive source (not shown) mounted inside the main body of the image forming apparatus.
The rotational driving force is transmitted to.

A sheet-like flexible member (stirring blade) 22 is attached to the tip of the toner stirring member 20, and a part of the flexible member 22 is partially rotated by the rotation of the toner stirring member 20. The toner t is always in sliding contact with the inner wall surface of the toner hopper 23 so that the toner t can be surely stirred and conveyed.

By the agitating operation of the toner agitating member 20, the agitated toner t is supplied to the toner supplying roller 24 (arranged in the direction vertical to the paper surface), and the rotating operation causes the toner agitating member 21 to move on the toner supplying roller 21. The toner t is supplied to the developing device 6 from the toner supply hole 25 of the toner hopper 23.

In the developing device 6, the developer container 26 is filled with the developer d, and the developer stirring rollers 27a and 27b for stirring the developer d are arranged. Density sensor 28 for detecting the toner density of the developer, a developing roller (magnetic roller) 5 for supplying the toner t to the photosensitive drum 1, and a uniform layer thickness of the developer d attracted by the magnetic force of the developing roller 5. A doctor 29 and the like are provided for making the material.

In the developing device 6 having such a structure, when the toner concentration of the developer d detected by the toner concentration detecting sensor 28 becomes lower than a predetermined value, a signal requesting the replenishment of the toner t is output to the image forming device. As a result, the toner stirring member 20 and the toner replenishing roller 24 of the toner cartridge 7 are driven, and the toner t is replenished from the toner cartridge 7 to the developing device 6.

As described above, since the toner t supplied from the toner cartridge 7 to the developing device 6 is composed of very fine particles, it is densified in the toner hopper 23 due to vibration during transportation and storage, Easy to aggregate. But,
At the time of use, the toner t must be evenly and uniformly stirred. Therefore, in this embodiment, the toner cartridge 7 is configured as shown in FIGS.

FIG. 2 shows the toner cartridge 7 when it is packaged, and FIG. 3 shows the toner cartridge 7 when it is removed. As shown in these drawings, the bottom portion of the toner hopper 23 of the toner cartridge 7 can be deformed by a deformable sheet-like elastic member or a sheet-like flexible member such as PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or PC (polycarbonate) material. The member 30 is used.

The deformable member 30 is adhered to the lower peripheral edge portion 23a of the toner hopper body, which is made of a hard resin material and has a cylindrical shape without a bottom, by an adhesive material or heat welding. With such a configuration, the bottom of the toner hopper 23 can be easily deformed into the shape of the broken line state 30b in FIG. That is, the bottom of the toner hopper 23, which is the toner storage chamber, can be deformed inward.

Further, a leaf spring 31 made of SUS material or the like is attached to the outer surface of the deformable member 30 by using an adhesive material such as double-sided tape.
The shape is formed so as to follow the original shape of the bottom,
It deforms with the bottom part that deforms inward as described above,
It functions as an auxiliary member for surely returning the bottom portion to the original shape.

In the toner cartridge 7 thus constructed, after the assembly is completed and the toner t is filled, as shown in FIG. 2, the bottom portion (wall portion) formed by the deformable member 30 is attached to the bottom portion (wall portion). After the packing material such as the Styrofoam 33 is pressed and deformed inward, the entire toner cartridge 7 is packed using the packing material 34 such as a corrugated cardboard material. In addition, during transportation and storage, the bottom 30
Should be turned downward.

When the toner cartridge 7 packed in such a packing method is subjected to vibration or impact due to transportation, storage, etc., the toner t1 (see FIG. 2) is densified and easily aggregates. However, at the time of use, packing material 3
By removing 4, 33, the toner cartridge 7
The bottom of the shape returns to its original shape 30a as shown in FIG.
The toner t1 which has been densified and agglomerated is diffused by its own weight or the like, and becomes a state of t2.

More specifically, when the packing material 33 at the bottom is removed, a closed space having the shape of the packing material 33 is initially formed under the toner t1, but a crack is immediately formed by the weight of the toner t1. As a result, the toner t1 collapses and diffuses into the closed space, resulting in a state of t2. When the density and aggregation are remarkable, the toner t1 can be easily and surely collapsed and diffused by lightly tapping (tapping) the toner cartridge 7.

In such a state, the toner t is easily agitated. Therefore, the toner cartridge 7
When the developing device 6 is attached to the toner stirring member 2 immediately.
0, the toner t can be evenly stirred with low resistance, the driving torque of the toner stirring member 20 can be small, and the flexible member (stirring blade) 22 and the drive system are not damaged. Can be prevented.

Further, in this case, the deformable member 30 only returns to its original shape while being adhered to the lower peripheral edge portion 23a of the toner hopper body by an adhesive material or heat welding. As in the case of the conventional example, there is no possibility that a damaged member, an adhesive, an adhesive or the like will remain in the toner hopper 23, and the deformable member 30 is deformed by the packing material 33 after the toner t is filled. Therefore, the filling efficiency does not decrease. Moreover, after removing the packaging material 33, the auxiliary member 31 ensures that the bottom portion returns to its original shape.

FIG. 6 shows a conventional product (like the above-mentioned conventional example,
A state in which the closed space is formed before the toner is filled) and a change in the stirring member drive torque due to tapping of the product of the present invention are shown for comparison. In this case, in both the conventional product and the implementation product, immediately after the same amount of toner is filled, tapping is performed in the direction shown by the arrow in FIG. 5, the toner cartridge is attached to the developing device, and the driving torque of the toner stirring member is set. Was measured.

In the case of the conventional product, as the number of tappings is increased, the toner in the toner hopper is densified and aggregated, and the number of tappings is increased and the driving torque of the toner stirring member is increased. On the other hand, in the embodiment of the present invention, by increasing the number of tappings, the toner stirring member 20
Although a slight increase in the driving torque is recognized, it can be confirmed that the increase is at a level without any problem.

Therefore, in the conventional product, since the closed space is already formed in the bottom portion before the toner is filled, the toner filling capacity is small, and therefore the toner filling efficiency is also low. From this, it is considered that the density of the toner is apt to be increased due to tapping and the toner is not sufficiently collapsed and diffused after the sheet-shaped member is removed.

On the other hand, in the product of the present invention, since the closed space is formed after the toner is filled, a large toner filling capacity can be secured, and therefore, the tendency of densification and aggregation due to tapping is small. Therefore, it can be determined that the toner has been sufficiently collapsed and diffused after removing the packaging material 33.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the developing device and the image forming apparatus shown in the embodiments, and at least the developing device receiving the toner from the toner cartridge may be used as the image forming apparatus. It may be integrally incorporated into or may be detachably configured. Further, the image forming apparatus may be another copying machine, a facsimile machine, a printer, or the like.

[0048]

As is apparent from the above description, the present invention has the following effects.

(1) After the toner is filled, the packing material is pressed against the outside of the wall portion to be deformed inward.
A sufficient toner filling capacity can be secured, and high toner filling efficiency can be obtained.

When the toner cartridge is used, the packaging material is always removed, so that the deformation of the wall portion is restored and a part of the toner (lower part) which has been densified and agglomerated during transportation, storage, etc. ), A space is formed in the space), and thereafter, the weight of the toner immediately causes a crack in the toner to collapse the toner in the space so that the toner can be diffused, and the state becomes easy to stir.

(2) After removing the packing material, the toner can be disintegrated / diffused due to the weight of the toner, which can cause the densified and agglomerated toner to crack and collapse / diffuse. Thus, the toner stirring member can be operated immediately, and the toner can be efficiently stirred with a small torque.

(3) When the packing material is removed, the wall portion of the toner storage chamber, which has been deformed inward, is used as an auxiliary member.
Since it can be reliably restored to its original shape, usability is improved.

(4) After the toner is filled, the packing material is pressed against the outside of the wall portion to be deformed inward.
A sufficient toner filling capacity can be secured, and high toner filling efficiency can be obtained.

When the toner cartridge is used, the packaging material is always removed, so that the deformation of the wall part is restored and a part of the toner (lower part) which has been densified and agglomerated during transportation, storage, etc. ), A space is formed in the space), and thereafter, the weight of the toner immediately causes a crack in the toner to collapse the toner in the space so that the toner can be diffused, and the state becomes easy to stir.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a developing device and a toner cartridge according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the toner cartridge when it is packed.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the toner cartridge with a packing material removed.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an attachment / detachment operation of the toner cartridge.

FIG. 6 is a graph showing a change state of the driving torque of the stirring member according to a change in the number of tappings of the product of the same example and the conventional product.

[Explanation of symbols]

6-Developer 7-toner cartridge 20-toner stirring member 23-Toner Storage Room 30-wall (bottom) 31-Auxiliary member 33-Packaging material

Continued front page    (72) Inventor Hiroshi Kubota             22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka             Inside the company F term (reference) 2H071 DA08 EA01                 2H077 AA02 AB01 AB12 GA03

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A toner cartridge for supplying toner to a developing device, wherein a wall portion on the side where the toner is stored during transportation and storage is a flexible member that can be deformed inward. After being formed, the toner is filled in the toner storage chamber, a packing material is pressed against the outside of the wall portion, and the wall portion is packed so as to be deformed inward. And toner cartridge. 2. The toner cartridge according to claim 1, wherein a toner stirring member is provided in the toner storage chamber. 3. The toner cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the flexible member is provided with an auxiliary member for restoring the original shape of the flexible member. 4. A method of packing a toner cartridge for supplying toner to a developing device, comprising: filling a toner storage chamber of the toner cartridge with toner; A method of packing a toner cartridge, comprising: pressing a packing material, and packing the wall portion in a state of being deformed inward.