JP2005257916A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus in which a high-voltage substrate can easily be fitted and replaced and the maintainability of the high-voltage substrate is increased. <P>SOLUTION: The high-voltage substrate 2 is arranged so that nearly the same direction with the direction of the axis of rotation of a photoreceptor drum 3 is the lengthwise direction of the substrate, and thus the high-voltage substrate 2 can be arranged on the front side of the image forming apparatus 1, so that the high-voltage substrate 2 can easily be fitted to the image forming apparatus 1 and replaced. Further, the high-voltage substrate is arranged beside the photoreceptor drum 3, and thus the high-voltage substrate 2 can be arranged avoiding a drive unit in which a drive motor and a plurality of gear trains are incorporated in one body. The high-voltage substrate 2 therefore can be arranged avoiding the heat source and rotary bodies and the reliability of the high-voltage substrate 2 can be increased. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus to which a high-voltage substrate for supplying power to an electric equipment unit is attached.

  In the image forming apparatus, a charging unit for charging the surface of the photosensitive drum, a developing unit for supplying toner to the surface of the photosensitive drum, a transfer unit for transferring a toner image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum to a sheet, A high voltage substrate is provided to apply a high voltage to an electrical equipment unit that requires a high voltage, such as a separation unit that separates the sheet from the photosensitive drum. The high-voltage board is arranged at a position away from the electric equipment unit, and the voltage is supplied to the electric equipment unit by connecting the contact terminal of the electric equipment unit and the high-voltage board with an electric wire.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a connection configuration using the contact terminal 101 shown in FIG. 9 without using a space or a time-consuming cable for connection between each electric device unit and the high-voltage board. . In the mounting structure of the high-voltage board described in Patent Document 1, the contact terminal 101 that electrically connects the high-voltage board 100 to the electric device unit and the contact terminal 101 is covered with the electric component mounting surface of the high-voltage board 100. The high voltage board 100 and the board mounting member 102 holding the contact terminals 101 are provided. The substrate attachment member 102 is attached to the main body of the image forming apparatus with the electric component mounting surface of the high-voltage substrate 100 facing the electric device unit, and the contact terminal 101 penetrates the substrate attachment member 102 and is electrically connected to the electric device unit. ing.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of attachment of such a high-voltage board attachment unit 110 to the image forming apparatus. As shown in FIG. 10, the high-voltage board attachment unit 110 is attached to the attachment frame 111 of the image forming apparatus main body in a state where the mounting surface of the high-voltage board 100 is covered with the board attachment member 102. The photosensitive drum unit 120 and the developing device 130 are attached to the attachment frame 111 from the side opposite to the high-voltage board attachment unit 110. Patent Document 2 also discloses a similar high-voltage board mounting structure.

JP 2003-224382 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-195697

  However, in the mounting structure of the high-voltage substrate disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the high-pressure substrate is disposed behind the image forming unit including the photosensitive drum (the longitudinal end of the photosensitive drum) as shown in FIG. Will be placed. That is, it is arranged on the back side of the image forming apparatus opposite to the front surface facing the operator. Since it is necessary to arrange a drive unit in which the drive motor and a plurality of gear trains are integrally assembled on the back side of the image forming apparatus, that is, behind the image forming unit, the drive unit is arranged when the high-voltage board is arranged behind the image forming unit. Are difficult to arrange, and the size of the main body of the image forming apparatus is increased.

  Furthermore, if the high-voltage board is disposed in the vicinity of the drive unit including the drive motor and a plurality of gear trains, the life of the high-voltage board is shortened due to the influence of heat from the drive motor. Furthermore, there is a problem in that dust and dust generated by the rotation of the gear fall on the high-pressure board, reducing the reliability of the board. Further, there is a problem that dust and dust from the outside easily enter the outer side of the main body such as the rear of the image forming apparatus provided with the drive unit through the gap of the cover.

  Further, since the high-voltage board is a maintenance part (or a regular replacement part), the replacement work must be performed. However, if the high-pressure board is disposed behind the image forming unit, there is a problem that workability at the time of board replacement is poor. As shown in FIG. 9, the mounting structure of Patent Document 1 requires a large number of components such as a chassis (substrate mounting member 102) and screws to secure the high-voltage substrate and secure the contact pressure of the contact terminals. The workability of replacement is further deteriorated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus in which the high-voltage substrate can be easily attached and replaced, and the high-voltage substrate has improved maintainability.

  In order to achieve this object, in the image forming apparatus according to claim 1, the high-pressure substrate is disposed on the side of the photosensitive drum so that the longitudinal direction is substantially the same as the rotational axis direction of the photosensitive drum. It is characterized by that.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the high voltage substrate can be arranged on the front side of the image forming apparatus by arranging the high voltage substrate so that the direction substantially the same as the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum is the longitudinal direction. Thus, it is possible to facilitate the attachment and replacement of the high-pressure substrate to the image forming apparatus. In addition, the high voltage board can be arranged by avoiding a drive unit in which a drive motor and a plurality of gear trains are integrally assembled by arranging the photoconductor drum on the side of the photosensitive drum. Therefore, the high voltage substrate can be disposed avoiding the heat source and the rotating object, and the reliability of the high voltage substrate can be ensured. In addition, by arranging the high voltage substrate on the side of the photosensitive drum, the high voltage substrate can be disposed at a position close to the electric device unit that supplies power, and generation of electromagnetic noise can be suppressed.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein both ends of the high-voltage substrate are sandwiched, and the high-voltage substrate is slid in a direction substantially the same as the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum. A guide portion for guiding the position is provided.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, a guide portion is provided that slides the high voltage substrate in a direction substantially the same as the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum and guides the high pressure substrate to a predetermined position. The substrate can be attached to the image forming apparatus.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the second aspect, the guide portion is disposed along a slide direction in which the high-voltage board is slid, and comes into contact with the high-voltage board from the high-pressure board. A plurality of power supply terminals for receiving voltage supply are provided.

  The invention described in claim 3 requires wiring for connection to the high voltage board by arranging a plurality of power supply terminals that contact the high voltage board and receive voltage supply from the high voltage board along the sliding direction of the guide portion. In spite of this, it is possible to easily attach and replace the substrate at a low cost. In addition, since the power supply terminals are arranged substantially linearly along the slide direction, the mounting space on the high-voltage board can be used effectively, and the insulation distance can be easily secured and the safety can be improved. .

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect, further comprising an elastic member that presses and fixes the high-voltage substrate sandwiched between the guide portions at both ends of the high-pressure substrate. .

  The invention according to claim 4 is provided with an elastic member that presses and fixes the high-pressure substrate sandwiched between the guide portions at both ends of the high-pressure substrate. A high-pressure substrate that is weak against vibration can be stably attached to the image forming apparatus.

  An image forming apparatus according to a fifth aspect is the image forming apparatus according to the fourth aspect, wherein the elastic member that presses one end of the high-voltage substrate is used as the power supply terminal.

  In the invention according to claim 5, since the elastic member that presses one of the ends of the high-voltage board is used as the power supply terminal, the contact terminals are sufficiently brought into contact with each other by inserting and sliding the high-voltage board into the guide part. Can be connected with pressure.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 6 is the image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the power supply terminal is in contact with the high-voltage substrate at a contact surface, and a tip portion is further bent upward from the contact surface. Yes.

  The power supply terminal is in contact with the high-voltage substrate at the contact surface, and the tip portion is bent upward from the contact surface. Will not hurt.

  The present invention can provide an image forming apparatus capable of easily attaching and replacing a high-voltage substrate.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  First, the attachment position of the high voltage substrate 2 to the image forming apparatus main body 1 will be described with reference to FIG. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the high-pressure substrate 2 is disposed adjacent to the vicinity of the photosensitive drum 3. The high-voltage board 2 is mounted inside the image forming apparatus main body 1 and is arranged so that the longitudinal direction of the high-voltage board 2 and the direction of the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 3 substantially coincide as shown in FIG.

  The high-voltage board 2 is arranged so that the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 3 and the longitudinal direction of the board are substantially in the same direction, so that the high-voltage board 2 can be easily replaced or attached simply by removing the front cover. It is a position that can. In addition, since there is no drive motor or a plurality of gear trains around the mounting position in the image forming apparatus main body 1, the influence of heat and the influence of dust and dust generated by the rotation of the gear can be eliminated. The life of the high-pressure substrate 2 can be extended. Furthermore, by providing the high-voltage board 2 on the side of the photosensitive drum 3, the high-voltage board 2 can be disposed near the electric equipment unit to which power is supplied, and the generation of electromagnetic noise can be suppressed. .

  Next, a mounting structure of the high voltage substrate 2 provided in the image forming apparatus main body 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, inside the image forming apparatus main body 1, a pair of guide portions 4 for sliding the high-voltage substrate 2 in the direction of the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 3 and a guide portion 4 are slid and arranged at predetermined positions. The power supply terminal 5 is electrically connected to the high-voltage board 2 and supplies power to the electric equipment unit provided in the image forming apparatus main body 1.

  FIG. 3 shows a detailed configuration of the guide portion 4 on the side where the power supply terminal 5 is provided. The guide portion 4 is made of an insulating material such as synthetic resin so as not to conduct electricity generated in the high-voltage board 2 to the outside. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the guide portion 4 is formed with a slide groove 6 that sandwiches and slides the end portion of the high-voltage substrate 2. When the high-voltage board 2 is slid by the slide groove 6 and arranged at a predetermined position, the plurality of power supply terminals 5 come into contact with the jumper wires 8 of the high-voltage board to establish electrical connection. A plurality of power supply terminals 5 are provided as shown in FIG. 3, and are arranged in a line along the sliding direction of the high-voltage board 2. When the power supply terminal 5 and the jumper wire 8 of the high-voltage board 2 are in contact with each other, a power supply supplied from the high-voltage board 3 is connected to the power supply terminal 5 via the wiring 7, a charging device, a developing device, a transfer roll, and a separation device Etc. By arranging the power supply terminals 5 in a line along the slide direction, the power supply terminals 5 can be arranged in a substantially straight line, so that the mounting space on the high-voltage board 2 can be effectively used and the insulation distance can be easily secured. Become. Therefore, safety can be improved. In addition, the direction in which the photosensitive drum 3 is replaced or attached is aligned with the sliding direction of the high-voltage substrate 2. As a result, the maintainability of the entire apparatus can be improved.

  The shape of the power supply terminal 5 will be described with reference to FIG. The power supply terminal 5 is made of a spring member that is elastically deformed and protrudes toward the side on which the high-voltage board 2 is slid and mounted as shown in FIG. By inserting and sliding the high voltage substrate 2 into the slide groove 6, the power supply terminal 5 is elastically deformed, and the high voltage substrate 2 is pressed by the contact portion 5 </ b> A of the power supply terminal 5. When the power supply terminal 5 made of a spring member comes into contact with the high-voltage board 2, it is connected to the high-voltage board 2 with a constant contact pressure.

  The tip of the power supply terminal 5 is bent upward from the contact portion 5A of the high-voltage board 2 as shown in FIG. With such a bent shape, the high-voltage board 2 to be slid into the slide groove 6 is not damaged, and the insertion / extraction of the high-voltage board 2 is not hindered. Further, the strength of the power supply terminal 5 can be maintained, and the spring pressure can be stabilized. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the tip portion of the power supply terminal is divided into two parts in contact with the jumper wire 8. Even when the power supply terminal is inclined and the contact surface of the power supply terminal 5 cannot be completely contacted with the high-voltage board, the contact portion with the jumper wire 8 of the high-voltage board 2 can be obtained by making the structure cracked to two or more. It is possible to increase the connectivity with the high voltage substrate 2.

  Next, another configuration of the pair of guide portions 4 will be described. The high-voltage board 2 on the side in contact with the power supply terminal 5 is stably fixed in the image forming apparatus main body 1 by being inserted into the slide groove 6 and pressed by the power supply terminal 5. However, since the high-voltage board 2 is very vulnerable to vibration, the other end of the high-voltage board 2 needs to be fixed. For this reason, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the supporting member 4A that guides and supports the inserted high-voltage board 2 from below and the high-pressure board 2 that also guides the high-voltage board 2 and guides the high-voltage board 2 are supported. A pressing member 4B that presses the substrate 2 from above is provided. The support member 4A and the pressing member 4B are made of plastic, and the tip portion of the pressing member 4B that contacts the high-pressure substrate 2 and presses the high-pressure substrate 2 is a plate spring that is elastically deformed. The high-voltage board 2 inserted in the guide path between the support member 4A and the presser member 4B is supported by the support member 4A from the lower side and pressed by the leaf spring portion of the presser member 4B from the upper side to form an image. It is stably attached to the apparatus body 1.

  Next, the configuration of the high voltage substrate 2 will be described with reference to FIG. A jumper wire 8 that comes into contact with the power supply terminal 5 provided on the image forming apparatus main body 1 side is provided at one end portion in the short direction of the high-voltage board on which the electrical components are mounted. In this embodiment, nickel plated wires are used as jumper wires. As long as the jumper wire has conductivity, the shape and material are not particularly limited. Further, as described above, the front end portion of the power supply terminal 5 is divided into two portions in order to improve the connectivity, and accordingly, two pairs of jumper wires 8 are arranged substantially in parallel. Note that the arrangement of the jumper wires 8 is not limited to that shown in FIG. 6. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the arrangement positions of the jumper wires 8 that make a pair are slightly shifted in the longitudinal direction of the high-voltage board. It may be a thing. Further, the jumper wires 8 may be arranged in a line in the longitudinal direction of the high voltage substrate.

  A metal plate 9 is attached to one end of the high-voltage substrate 2 in the longitudinal direction as shown in FIG. The sheet metal 9 is provided with a pair of screw holes 10 on the left and right sides. Screws are inserted into the screw holes 10 and fixed to the chassis 12 of the image forming apparatus. The high voltage board 2 and the chassis 12 of the image forming apparatus are electrically connected by screwing, and the high voltage board 2 is grounded.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the high-voltage board 2 is inserted along the slide groove 6 or the guide path provided in the guide portion 4 so that each power supply terminal 5 has a sufficient contact pressure and the jumper of the high-voltage board 2. Connected to line 8. For this reason, no wiring is required, and since many components are not required for fixing the high voltage substrate 2 and connecting to the high voltage substrate, the cost of the image forming apparatus can be reduced.

  The above-described embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a mounting position of the high voltage substrate 2 to the image forming apparatus main body 1. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a mounting structure of a high voltage substrate 2 on the image forming apparatus main body 1 side. 3 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement of guide portions 4 and power supply terminals 5 provided in the image forming apparatus main body 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the external appearance shape of the electric power feeding terminal. It is a figure which shows the structure of the guide part 4 of the side in which the electric power feeding terminal 5 is not provided. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an external shape of a high-voltage substrate 2. It is a figure which shows the arrangement | sequence of the jumper wire 8 on the high voltage board | substrate 2. FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a procedure for attaching the high-voltage substrate 2 to the image forming apparatus main body 1. It is a figure which shows the attachment structure of the conventional high voltage | pressure board | substrate. It is a figure which shows the attachment structure of the conventional high voltage | pressure board | substrate.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus main body 2 High voltage board 3 Photosensitive drum 4 Guide part 4A Support member 4B Holding member 5 Feeding terminal 5A Contact part 6 Slide groove 7 Wiring 8 Jumper wire 9 Sheet metal 10 Screw hole 11 Screw 12 Chassis

Claims (6)

An image forming apparatus, wherein a high-pressure substrate is disposed on a side of a photosensitive drum so that a longitudinal direction is substantially the same as a rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a guide portion that sandwiches both end portions of the high-voltage substrate and slides the high-voltage substrate in a direction substantially the same as the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum to guide the high-voltage substrate to a predetermined position. apparatus. 3. The guide portion includes a plurality of power supply terminals that are arranged along a sliding direction in which the high-voltage board is slid, and that are in contact with the high-voltage board and receive voltage supply from the high-voltage board. Image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising an elastic member that presses and fixes the high-voltage substrate sandwiched between the guide portions at both ends of the high-pressure substrate. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the elastic member that presses one of the ends of the high-voltage substrate is the power supply terminal. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the power supply terminal is in contact with the high-voltage substrate at a contact surface, and a tip portion of the power supply terminal is bent upward from the contact surface.

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