JP2006072166A - Developing material storing device, process cartridge and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate various kinds of trouble in terms of component control and to prevent the erroneous attachment of a developing material storing device by making at least the basic form of a plurality of developing material storing devices common so that the number of components may be reduced in an image forming apparatus equipped with a plurality of developing material storing devices of different kinds such as a color copying machine. <P>SOLUTION: In a developing unit (developing material storing device) 13K provided with a plurality of developing units of different kinds in the image forming apparatus, its basic form 54 is made common to other developing units of different kinds, and identification members 57 having the same shape are attached to their slots 55 different according to the kinds. The basic form is made common to other developing units of different kinds, and identification members having different shape according to the kinds are attached to the same part of the developing units. The erroneous attachment is prevented by judging whether or not it is the developing unit of the proper kind according to the position of a projecting part 58 provided on the identification member. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, or a complex machine thereof. In particular, the present invention relates to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus that directly or indirectly transfers a toner image formed on an image carrier and records the image on a recording medium such as a sheet / OHP film. In such an image forming apparatus, a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device are integrally provided, and can be detachably attached to the main body of the image forming device. It relates to a process cartridge. The present invention also relates to a developer accommodating apparatus that accommodates a developer, such as a developing apparatus that visualizes an electrostatic latent image on an image bearing member by attaching toner to the image bearing member in a similar image forming apparatus.

  In general, in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, as a drum-shaped or belt-shaped image carrier is rotated, its surface is uniformly charged by a charging device, exposed to light by a writing device, and electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the image carrier. An image is formed, toner is attached by a developing device to visualize the electrostatic latent image, and the visible toner image is transferred directly or indirectly via an intermediate transfer member by a transfer device. An image is recorded on a recording medium.

  In recent years, in this type of electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a laser printer, colorization has progressed. For example, tandem type image forming apparatuses are widely used from the viewpoint of improving productivity. In such a color image forming apparatus, only the toner or a developer composed of the toner and the carrier is accommodated, and the electrostatic latent image on the image carrier is made visible by attaching the toner to the image carrier by color. A plurality of developing devices for imaging are provided for each color.

  The developer is consumed by use. Therefore, when the developer runs out, the developer accommodating device for supplying the developer to the developing device for each color and the developing device itself are replaced with new ones. Therefore, it is general that the user is provided with a developer accommodating device such as a spare developer accommodating device or a developing device in advance because the developer normally runs out.

  By the way, in such an image forming apparatus, when a spare developer accommodating device is attached, if it is mistakenly attached to the developer accommodating device mounting position of another color, colors may be mixed or developed with an incorrect color. If this happens, an image defect will occur, and therefore it is necessary to reliably prevent erroneous mounting of the developer accommodating device.

  Therefore, in some conventional image forming apparatuses, for example, in an image forming apparatus in which a developer container is attached to the developing device and the developer is replenished, grooves are formed at different positions for each color on the front surface of the developer container. On the other hand, a rib is provided on a door that opens and closes when the developer container is replaced. When the developer container is installed without error, the ribs fit into the grooves and the door is completely closed, and when the developer container is mistakenly installed at a different color position, the ribs do not fit into the grooves. In some cases, the installation of the developer container is detected because the door does not close completely due to interference.

JP 2001-343810 A JP 2003-195728 A Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-72984

  However, in an image forming apparatus that prevents erroneous mounting of a developer accommodating device such as a developer accommodating container, a developer accommodating device having a different form for each color must be prepared. Developers of corresponding colors must be accommodated in the accommodating devices, and the number of components increases, causing various troubles in managing components.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to reduce the number of parts by sharing at least the basic form of a plurality of developer accommodating devices in an image forming apparatus including a plurality of different types of developer accommodating devices such as a color machine, and managing components. It is to eliminate the above various troubles and to prevent erroneous mounting of the developer accommodating device.

  In order to achieve such an object, the invention described in claim 1 is a developer storage device such as a developing device provided with a plurality of different types such as colors in the image forming apparatus, and has a basic form with other different types. It is common, and the identification member of the same shape is attached to a different position depending on the type.

  Each developer is accommodated in a common basic form of the developer accommodating device, and an identification member is attached to a predetermined position different from the other according to the type.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in a developer accommodating device such as a developing device provided with a plurality of different types such as colors in the image forming apparatus, the basic form is common to other different types and differs depending on the type. The identification member having a shape is attached to the same part.

  Then, each developer is accommodated in a common basic form of the developer accommodating device, and an identification member having a predetermined shape different from the others is attached to the same part according to the type.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the developer accommodating device such as a developing device provided with a plurality of different types such as colors in the image forming apparatus, the whole form is shared with other types of different types and selected according to the type. And an identification shape portion having a plurality of removable portions to be removed.

  Each developer is accommodated in a common overall form of the developer accommodating device, and some of the plurality of removable portions of the identification shape portion are selectively removed according to the type.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a developer storage device such as a developing device having a plurality of different types such as colors in the image forming apparatus, which has a common overall form with another of the different types, and has different shapes depending on the types. It attaches using the guide member of, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  Each developer is accommodated in a common overall form of the developer accommodating device, and is attached using a guide member having a predetermined shape different from the others depending on the type.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the developer accommodating device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, a display indicating the type is provided.

  The type is displayed on a display provided in the developer accommodating device.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process cartridge including a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and a plurality of different types of image forming devices. It is characterized in that the basic form is shared with other parts of different types, and identification members having the same shape are attached to different positions depending on the type.

  Then, each developer is accommodated in a common basic form of the process cartridge, and an identification member having the same shape is attached to a predetermined position different from the other according to the type.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process cartridge that integrally includes a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and includes a plurality of different types of image forming devices. It is characterized in that the basic form is shared with other parts of different types, and an identification member having a different shape depending on the type is attached to the same part.

  Each developer is accommodated in a common basic form of the process cartridge, and an identification member having a predetermined shape different from the other ones is attached to the same part according to the type.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process cartridge including a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and a plurality of different types of image forming devices. It is characterized by having an identification shape part having a plurality of removable parts that are shared in common with other types of different types and selectively removed depending on the type.

  Each developer is accommodated in a common overall form of the process cartridge, and some of the plurality of removable portions of the identification shape portion are selectively removed according to the type.

  According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a process cartridge including a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and a plurality of different types of image forming devices. It is characterized in that the whole form is common to other types of different types and is attached using guide members having different shapes depending on the type.

  Then, each developer is accommodated in a common overall form of the process cartridge, and is attached using a guide member having a predetermined shape different from that of the others depending on its type.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the process cartridge according to any one of the sixth to ninth aspects, a display indicating a type is provided.

  The type is displayed on the display provided on the process cartridge.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus, the developer storage device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects or the process cartridge according to any one of the sixth to tenth aspects is provided. It is characterized by.

  In an image forming apparatus having a plurality of different types of developer accommodating devices for each color, such as a color machine, at least the basic form of the plurality of developer accommodating devices is common, and an identification member having the same shape according to the type Are attached to a predetermined position, different shape identification members are attached to the same site, some of the plurality of removable portions of the identification shape portion are selectively removed, or they are attached using different shape guide members.

  According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the eleventh aspect, the developer accommodating device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, or the first aspect according to any one of the sixth to tenth aspects. It is characterized by comprising an erroneous mounting preventing member that allows only a predetermined type of process cartridge to be mounted.

  In addition, the erroneous mounting preventing member permits only attachment of a corresponding predetermined type of developer accommodating device or process cartridge.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the eleventh aspect, the developer accommodating device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, or the first aspect according to any one of the sixth to tenth aspects. Among the process cartridges, a detection means for detecting only attachment of a predetermined type is provided.

  Then, the detection unit detects only attachment of a corresponding predetermined type of developer accommodating device or process cartridge.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, each developer is accommodated in a common basic form of the developer accommodating device, and an identification member having the same shape is attached to a predetermined position different from the other according to the type. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the number of parts by sharing the basic form of a plurality of developer accommodating devices, eliminate various hassles in managing components, and determine the type from the mounting position of the identification member, and misinstall the developer accommodating device. Can be prevented.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the developer is accommodated in each common basic form of the developer accommodating device, and an identification member having a predetermined shape different from the others is attached to the same part according to the type. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the number of parts by sharing the basic form of a plurality of developer accommodating devices, eliminate various troubles in managing the components, and determine the type from the shape of the identification member and misinstall the developer accommodating device. Can be prevented.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the developer is accommodated in the common overall configuration of the developer accommodating devices, and some of the plurality of removable portions of the identification shape portion are selectively selected according to the type. Since it is removed, the overall configuration of the plurality of developer accommodating devices is reduced to reduce the number of components, eliminate various troubles in managing the components, and determine the type from the shape of the identification shape portion to determine the type of the developer accommodating device. Mismounting can be prevented.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, each developer is accommodated in a common overall form of the developer accommodating device, and is attached using a guide member having a predetermined shape different from the others depending on the type. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the number of parts by sharing the overall configuration of a plurality of developer accommodating apparatuses, eliminate various troubles in managing parts, and determine the type from the shape of the guide member, and misinstall the developer accommodating apparatus. Can be prevented.

  According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in addition, since the type is displayed by the display provided in the developer accommodating device, the type of the developer accommodating device can be confirmed by viewing the display.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the developer is accommodated in the common basic form of the process cartridges, and the identification member is attached to a predetermined position different from the other according to the type, a plurality of the developer members are attached. By sharing the basic form of the process cartridge, the number of parts can be reduced, various troubles in parts management can be eliminated, and the type of the identification member can be determined from the attachment position of the identification member to prevent erroneous mounting of the process cartridge.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the developer is accommodated in the common basic form of the process cartridges, and an identification member having a predetermined shape different from the others is attached to the same part according to the type. The basic form of a plurality of process cartridges can be made common to reduce the number of parts, eliminate various troubles in parts management, and prevent the wrong mounting of the process cartridge by judging the type from the shape of the identification member. .

  According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the developer is accommodated in the common overall form of the process cartridge, and some of the plurality of removable portions of the identification shape portion are selectively removed according to the type. Therefore, the overall form of a plurality of process cartridges is made common, the number of parts is reduced, various troubles in parts management are eliminated, and the type is determined from the shape of the identification shape part to prevent erroneous mounting of the process cartridge. Can do.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the developer is accommodated in the common overall form of the process cartridge, and is attached using a guide member having a predetermined shape different from the others depending on its type. It is possible to reduce the number of parts by sharing the overall form of a plurality of process cartridges, eliminate various troubles in parts management, and prevent erroneous mounting of process cartridges by determining the type from the shape of the guide member.

  According to the tenth aspect of the invention, in addition, since the type is displayed by the display provided on the process cartridge, the type of the process cartridge can be confirmed by viewing the display.

  According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, in an image forming apparatus including a plurality of different types of developer accommodating devices such as a color machine, at least the basic form of the plurality of developer accommodating devices is common and the number of parts is reduced. In addition, various troubles in managing parts can be eliminated, and erroneous mounting of the developer accommodating device can be prevented.

  According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, in addition, the attachment of the developer container or the process cartridge of a predetermined type corresponding to the erroneous mounting prevention member is allowed, so that the developer container or the process cartridge Mismounting can be prevented.

  According to the thirteenth aspect of the invention, in addition, since the detection means detects only the attachment of the developer storage device or the process cartridge of the corresponding predetermined type, the erroneous mounting of the developer storage device or the process cartridge is detected. Can be prevented.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an overall schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet as a recording medium. FIG. 2 shows the image forming portion in an enlarged manner.

  Reference numeral A in the figure denotes an image forming apparatus main body. In the apparatus main body A, a sheet conveyance path P which is a recording medium conveyance path is provided so as to cross obliquely from the lower right to the upper left. The paper transport path P has a reverse transport path P1 on the exit side, and an automatic paper feed path P2 and a manual paper feed path P3 on the entrance side.

  An image forming unit is provided on the paper transport path P. The image forming unit arranges four process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K of magenta, cyan, yellow, and black in order from the lower right to the upper left along the paper conveyance path P and arranges them in a tandem type. Each process cartridge 10 includes image carrier units 12M, 12C, 12Y, and 12K and developing units (developing material storage devices) 13M, 13C, 13Y, and 13K, and is detachable from the apparatus main body A. Each image carrier unit includes a drum-like image carrier 14M, 14C, 14Y, and 14K.

  On such four process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K, writing units 16 common to the four colors are provided obliquely.

  On the other hand, an endless belt-like sheet carrier 18 is stretched under the process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K with the sheet conveyance path P interposed therebetween. The paper carrier 18 is wound around a plurality of support rollers 19 and is in contact with the image carriers 14M, 14C, 14Y, and 14K, and a part thereof is provided obliquely along the paper conveyance path P, and is driven by a driving device (not shown). It can be rotated and conveyed counterclockwise in the figure.

  Inside the sheet carrier 18, a transfer device including transfer rollers 20M, 20C, 20Y, and 20K is arranged corresponding to each of the image carriers 14M, 14C, 14Y, and 14K. The transfer device is a transfer roller in the illustrated example, but may be a non-contact charger. A cleaning unit 21 and a P sensor 22 are provided outside the paper carrier 18.

  A pair of registration rollers 23 is provided at an upstream position of such a paper carrier 18 along the paper conveyance path P, and a fixing device 24 is provided at a downstream position. The fixing device 24 is configured by pressing a pressure roller 26 against a fixing belt 25 that is an endless belt, and a pair of discharge rollers 27 at an outlet.

  In the downstream position of the fixing device 24, an opening 29 is provided in the left side surface 28 of the apparatus main body A. Further, the paper conveyance path P is branched to form a reverse discharge path P1 on one side, and a pair of discharge rollers 31 for discharging the paper to the paper discharge stack section 30 on the apparatus main body A is provided at the end.

  On the other hand, below the sheet carrier 18, a refeed unit 33 that forms a refeed path P4 with a pair of opposing guide plates 32 and a plurality of pairs of conveying rollers 38 is disposed obliquely. Under the paper re-feed unit 33, paper feed cassettes 34 constituting a recording medium storage unit are provided in two upper and lower stages. In the paper feed cassette 34, sheets of different sizes are stacked and stored. Then, a paper feed unit 35 for separating and feeding the paper one by one is provided.

  On the right side of the sheet feeding unit 35 in the figure, automatic feeding of the sheet transport path P that guides the sheet fed from the sheet feeding unit 35 and the sheet fed again through the refeed unit 33 to the pair of registration rollers 23. A paper path P2 is provided.

  Further, a manual feed section is provided on the right side of the apparatus main body A in FIG. 1, and a manual feed tray 36 is attached to the manual feed section so as to be freely opened and closed. The manual feed unit is provided with a paper feed unit 37 that separates and feeds the paper on the manual feed tray 36 one by one, and conveys the paper fed from the paper feed unit 37 to the pair of registration rollers 23. A manual feed path P3 for the path P is provided.

  Now, when recording an image on a sheet using this color image forming apparatus, for example, the sheet feeding unit 35 is selectively driven based on a signal from the host, and the sheets in one sheet feeding cassette 34 are fed together. The sheets are separated and fed out, put into the automatic paper feed path P2, and abutted against the pair of registration rollers 23 and stopped. Alternatively, the manual paper feed unit 37 is driven to separate and feed out the sheets on the manual feed tray 36 one by one, put into the manual feed path P3, and abut against the pair of registration rollers 23 to stop.

  On the other hand, in each of the process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K, the individual image carriers 14M, 14C, 14Y, and 14K are rotated to form magenta, cyan, yellow, and black single color toner images on the respective image carriers. To do. Further, at a timing, one of the support rollers 19 is rotationally driven by a drive motor (not shown), the other support rollers 19 are driven to rotate, and the paper carrier 18 is rotated and conveyed.

  Then, the pair of registration rollers 23 are rotated in synchronization with the rotation of the image carrier, and the paper is sent between the process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K and the paper carrier 18 through the paper conveyance path P, and the paper The sheet is conveyed by the rotational conveyance of the carrier 18. Along with the conveyance, the single color toner images on the individual image carriers 14M, 14C, 14Y, and 14K are transferred by the transfer rollers 20M, 20C, 20Y, and 20K, and the combined full-color images are recorded on the paper.

  The sheet after the image transfer is sent to the fixing device 24 to fix the transferred image, and then discharged by a pair of discharge rollers 27. Then, when discharging in the face-up state, the sheet conveying path P is passed straight through and discharged from the discharge port 29 to the outside of the apparatus main body A, and sent to, for example, a sheet receiver, finisher, sorter, double-sided apparatus, etc. .

  When discharging in the face-down state, the sheet is switched by a switching claw (not shown), led to the reverse discharge path P1, discharged by the pair of discharge rollers 31, and stacked on the discharge stack unit 30 in page order.

  Next, the process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K provided in the apparatus main body A will be described in detail below. The basic forms of the process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K are common to the respective colors, and FIG. 3 shows a schematic configuration of one process cartridge 10.

  In each image carrier unit 12 (12M, 12C, 12Y, 12K) of each process cartridge 10, as shown in FIG. 3, around the drum-shaped image carrier 14 (14M, 14C, 14Y, 14K), A charging device 40 and a cleaning device 41 are provided.

  The charging device 40 arranges a roller-shaped charging member 42 in the vicinity of the image carrier 14, and charges the image carrier 14 by applying a charging bias between the charging member 42 and the image carrier 14. . The charging member 42 is brought into contact with a cleaner 43 that cleans the surface thereof. In the illustrated example, the charging member 42 has a roller shape, but may be a known non-contact charger.

  The cleaning device 41 includes a fur brush 44 that rotatably rotates with the outer periphery contacting the image carrier 14, and a cleaning blade 45 made of polyurethane rubber, for example, with the tip pressed against the image carrier 14. Reference numeral 46 in the drawing is a recovery screw.

  Then, the fur brush 44 is rotated in the counter direction with respect to the image carrier 14 to remove transfer residual toner remaining on the image carrier 14 after image transfer. Thereafter, the toner remaining on the image carrier 14 is scraped off and removed by the cleaning blade 45. In the illustrated example, the toner removed by the fur brush 44 and the cleaning blade 45 is conveyed to a waste toner bottle (not shown) common to the four colors by the rotation of the collection screw 46.

  On the other hand, in each of the developing units 13M, 13C, 13Y, and 13K of the individual process cartridges 10M, 10C, 10Y, and 10K, a one-component developer may be used. However, in the illustrated example, a magnetic carrier and a nonmagnetic toner are used. A two-component developer is used. As the non-magnetic toner, magenta is used in the developing unit 13M, cyan is used in the developing unit 13C, yellow is used in the developing unit 13Y, and black toner is used in the developing unit 13K.

  The developing unit 13 includes two screws 48 that stir and convey the toner replenished from the toner cartridge 47, a developing roller 49 that carries the toner conveyed from the screw 48, and a thin toner layer on the developing roller 49. A doctor blade 50, a toner density sensor 51, and the like.

  In each process cartridge 10 (10M, 10C, 10Y, 10K), as the image carrier 14 rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. Is uniformly charged. Next, writing is performed with scanning light from the writing unit 16 shown in FIG. 1 to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the image carrier 14. Then, the toner is attached by the developing roller 49 of the developing unit 13 (13M, 13C, 13Y, and 13K) to develop the electrostatic latent image, and a monochromatic toner image is formed on the image carrier 14.

  A magenta single color toner image is formed on the image carrier 14M of the process cartridge 10M, a cyan single color toner image is printed on the image carrier 14C of the process cartridge 10C, and a yellow single color toner image is printed on the image carrier 14Y of the process cartridge 10Y. Then, a black monochromatic toner image is formed on the image carrier 14K of the process cartridge 10K.

  In the illustrated example, the process cartridge 10 is integrally provided with a charging device 40, a developing device (developing unit 13), and a cleaning device 41 together with the image carrier 14, and is detachable from the image forming apparatus main body A at once. In addition to improving maintainability, the image forming apparatus main body A was downsized. However, even if the charging device 40, the developing device (developing unit 13), and the cleaning device 41 are not provided, at least one of the image carrier, the charging device 40, the transfer device, and the cleaning device 41 is integrated with the developing device. In preparation for this, the maintainability may be improved, and the image forming apparatus main body A may be downsized.

  As described above, the illustrated image forming apparatus is provided with the developing units 13 for the respective colors that store magenta, cyan, yellow, and black developing materials as different types of developer containing devices. These developing units 13 share the same basic form with other types (colors) different from each other, that is, with the same basic shape except for an identification member 57 described later, with respect to the image forming apparatus main body A in FIG. It is provided so that it can be inserted and removed from the front side in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, a plurality of slots 55M, 55C, 55Y, and 55K are arranged side by side on the upper surface of the stepped portion on the back side in the insertion / removal direction of the common basic form 54, and are formed in tandem from the back side. A display 56 indicating the type is provided in the vicinity of each slot. The display 56 attaches characters, abbreviations, pictures, etc. by printing or engraving. For example, as shown in the drawing, “M”, “C”, “Y”, “B” and the like are written.

  In these slots 55M, 55C, 55Y and 55K, for example, block-shaped identification members 57 having the same shape are attached at different positions depending on the type. That is, as shown in FIG. 4B, the identification member 57 is attached to the black slot 55K in the developing unit 13K that stores the black developer. Although not shown, similarly, the developing unit 13Y containing yellow developer contains magenta developer in the yellow slot 55Y, and the developing unit 13C containing cyan developer contains the cyan slot 55C. In the developing unit 13M, identification members 57 are attached to the magenta slots 55M, respectively. The attachment may be by bonding or screwing, but a replaceable means such as fitting is more desirable.

  In this manner, the identification member 57 is selectively attached to one of the four slots 55M, 55C, 55Y, and 55K provided in the common basic form 54, and the developing units 13M, 13C, 13Y, and 13K are formed, respectively.

  On the identification member 57, a convex portion 58 is formed upward. When the developing unit 13K is inserted into the image forming apparatus main body A by sliding as indicated by an arrow a in FIG. 4B, the detecting means 60K is activated by pushing with the convex portion 58 of the identification member 57, The detection unit 60K detects the attachment of the developing unit 13K. When the other developing units 13M, 13C, and 13Y are attached to the unit attaching position, the positions of the convex portion 58 and the detecting means 60K are shifted so that the detecting means 60K cannot be pushed, and the detecting means 60K is not activated. ing.

  Although not shown in the drawings, other color detection means 60Y, 60C, and 60M other than the detection means 60K are also provided side by side on the detection means 60K corresponding to the unit mounting positions of the respective colors. Only the mounting of the developing unit 13 is detected. Thereby, erroneous mounting of the developing unit 13 can be prevented.

  In the example shown in FIG. 4, the identification member 57 having the same shape is attached to the basic form 54 of the developer accommodating device at a different position depending on the type. However, the image forming apparatus is also provided with a plurality of developing units 13 as different types of developer accommodating devices, and the basic form 54 is shared with other developing units 13 of different types, for example, as shown in FIG. The identification members 62M, 62C, 62Y, and 62K having different shapes depending on the types may be selectively attached to the same identification member attachment portion 63 of the basic form 54.

  A plurality of identification members 62M, 62C, 62Y, and 62K are prepared by shifting the positions of the convex portions 64M, 64C, 64Y, and 64K formed upward in a stepwise manner. A display 65 indicating the type is provided on the top surface of each convex portion 64. Similarly, the display 65 attaches characters, abbreviations, pictures, etc. by printing or engraving. For example, as shown in the drawing, “M”, “C”, “Y”, “B” and the like are written. The attachment may be similarly performed by bonding or screwing, but a replaceable means such as fitting is more desirable.

  In such an image forming apparatus, as shown in FIG. 5B, for example, the image forming apparatus main body A includes a frame 66 as an erroneous attachment preventing member. The frame 66 is provided with a unit insertion hole 67K through which the rear side of the developing unit 13K is inserted corresponding to the mounting position of the developing unit 13K, and a notch 68K is provided at the hole edge. Although not illustrated in the frame 66, similarly, unit insertion holes 67M, 67C, and 67Y that pass through the back sides of the development units 13 corresponding to the mounting positions of the development units 13M, 13C, and 13Y of other colors are similarly provided. Open side by side. The unit insertion holes 67 are provided with notches 68M, 68C, and 68Y by slightly shifting the positions of the hole edges.

  When the developing unit 13K is inserted into the image forming apparatus main body A by sliding as indicated by an arrow a in FIG. 5B, the positions of the convex portions 64K and the notches 68K coincide with each other so that the convex portions 64K are aligned. The developing unit 13K is allowed to be attached through the notch 68K and through the unit insertion hole 67K. The frame 66, which is an erroneous attachment preventing member, allows only the attachment of a predetermined type of developing unit 13. Therefore, when the developing unit 13 of another color is inserted into the unit mounting position, the positions of the convex portion 64 and the notch 68 are shifted and the mounting of the developing units 13 of other colors is blocked by the frame 66. Thereby, erroneous mounting of the developing unit 13 can be prevented.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5, the frame 66 is provided as the erroneous mounting preventing member. However, the frame 66 is not limited to the frame, and other shapes may be used. Means may be provided to prevent erroneous mounting of the developing unit 13.

  In the example illustrated in FIG. 6, the image forming apparatus is similarly provided with a plurality of developing units 13 as different types of developer accommodating devices, and has the same overall shape and the same shape as other developing units 13 of different types. Then, an identification shape portion 72 having a plurality of removable portions 70M, 70C, 70Y, and 70K that are selectively removed depending on the type is provided on the back side of the developing unit 13.

  Each removable portion 70 is provided in a thin plate shape so that it can be easily cut and removed, and a convex portion 73M, 73C, 73Y, 73K is formed to protrude upward. A display 74 indicating the type is provided on the top surface of each convex portion 73. Similarly, the display 74 attaches characters, abbreviations, pictures, etc. by printing or engraving. For example, as shown in the drawing, “M”, “C”, “Y”, “B” and the like are written.

  Then, in the developing unit 13M containing magenta developer, as shown in FIG. 6B, all the other removable portions 70C, 70Y, and 70K are cut and removed while leaving the magenta removable portion 70M. To do. Although not shown, similarly, in the developing unit 13C containing the cyan developer, the cyan removable portion 70C is left, and in the developing unit 13Y containing the yellow developer, the yellow removable portion 70Y is left, In the developing unit 13K containing the developer, the black removable portion 70K is left, and all other removable portions 70 are cut and removed.

  Although not shown, for example, as in the example shown in FIG. 5 described above, the image forming apparatus main body A is provided with an erroneous attachment preventing member that permits only attachment of a predetermined type of development unit 13. Alternatively, as in the example shown in FIG. 4 described above, the mounting of the developing unit 13 is prevented by including a detecting unit that detects only the attachment of the developing unit 13 of a predetermined type.

  Incidentally, in the examples shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the shape of the back side of the developing unit 13 as the developer containing device is held at least in the basic form, and is partially changed depending on the type, so that incorrect mounting is performed. Prevented. However, the shape of the process cartridge 10 having the developer containing device may be held in common at least in the basic form, and may be partially changed depending on the type to prevent erroneous mounting. For example, although not shown in the drawing, as described above, the basic form is shared with other process cartridges that differ in the color of the developer to be accommodated, and an identification member of the same shape is attached to a different position depending on the color, The identification member having a different shape is attached to the same part. Alternatively, an identification shape portion having a plurality of removable portions that are made common to other process cartridges 10 and selectively removed by color is provided.

  Next, another example will be described based on FIGS. In this example, as described above, as shown in FIG. 7, the developing unit 13 that is a developer accommodating device is attached to the process cartridge 10 of each color. Each process cartridge 10 is mounted on a plate-like guide slider 76 that is a guide member at a corresponding attachment position of each color, and the guide slider 76 is slid and attached to the image forming apparatus main body A. The guide sliders 76 for each color, together with the process cartridge 10 mounted thereon, can be inserted into and removed from the apparatus main body A in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the guide sliders 76M, 76C, 76Y, and 76K for each color are provided with downward bent pieces 77M, 77C, 77Y, and 77K on the back side in the loading / unloading direction. As shown in the figure, the bent pieces 77 (77M, 77C, 77Y, and 77K) are shifted in stages step by step according to the color and are provided at different positions. Thus, the guide slider 76 has a different shape depending on the type. Then, on the surface of each guide slider 76, a display 78 indicating the type is provided in the vicinity of the bent piece 77. Similarly, the display 78 attaches characters, abbreviations, pictures, etc. by printing or engraving. For example, as shown in the drawing, “M”, “C”, “Y”, “B” and the like are written.

  Then, the guide sliders 76M, 76C, 76Y, and 76K for each color are guided and slid by the rails 79M, 79C, 79Y, and 79K provided at the respective mounting positions in the direction indicated by the arrow a in FIG. When inserted into the main body A, the detection means 80M, 80C, 80Y, and 80K are actuated by pushing the bent pieces 77M, 77C, 77Y, and 77K, and the detection means 80 detects attachment of each corresponding process cartridge 10. . A configuration in which when the process cartridge 10 different from the attachment position is attached, the position of the bent piece 77 of the guide slider 76 and the detection means 80 is displaced and the detection means 80 cannot be pushed, and the detection means 80 is not operated. It has become. Thereby, erroneous mounting of the process cartridge 10 can be prevented.

  In addition to the detection means 80, as shown in FIG. 9, for example, the image forming apparatus main body A may be provided with a frame 82 as an erroneous mounting prevention member to prevent erroneous mounting of the process cartridge 10. In the frame 82, corresponding to the mounting position of the process cartridge 10 for each color, an insertion hole 83 is formed through the back side of the process cartridge 10 for each color and the back side of the guide slider 76 for mounting the process cartridge 10. A notch 84 is provided by slightly shifting the position for each color.

  When the guide slider 76 is inserted into the image forming apparatus main body A by sliding in the direction indicated by the arrow a in FIG. 9, the positions of the bent piece 77 and the notch 84 coincide with each other, and the bent piece 77 becomes the notch 84. Then, the process cartridge 10 of each color is allowed to be attached through the insertion hole 83. The frame 82, which is an erroneous mounting prevention member, allows only the attachment of the process cartridge 10 of a predetermined type. Therefore, when the guide slider 76 loaded with the process cartridge 10 of another color is inserted into the mounting position, the positions of the bent piece 77 and the notch 84 are shifted so that the process cartridge 10 of the other color is mounted on the frame 82. Stop. As a result, it is possible to determine whether or not the correct color process cartridge 10 is mounted for each mounting position, and to prevent erroneous mounting of the process cartridge 10.

  In all the examples described above, development is performed from the position of one convex portion 58, 64 of the identification member 57, the position of one convex portion 73 of the identification shape portion 72, and the position of one bent piece 77 of the guide member. Although the type of the material storage device and the process cartridge is determined, the type is not limited to one, and the type of the developer storage device and the process cartridge may be determined by a combination of a plurality of convex portions and bent pieces.

  According to the present invention, at least the basic forms of a plurality of developer accommodating devices and process cartridges are shared, the number of components is reduced, and various troubles in managing components are eliminated, and one of the developer accommodating devices and process cartridges is eliminated. It is possible to prevent the erroneous mounting of the developer accommodating device by determining the type from the shape of the part. The type of the developer accommodating device and the process cartridge can be easily confirmed by the display provided on the developer accommodating device and the process cartridge.

1 is an overall schematic configuration diagram of an internal mechanism in a tandem color image forming apparatus. It is an enlarged block diagram around the image forming unit. It is sectional drawing of the 1 process cartridge. FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged perspective view of the developing unit of the process cartridge, in which (A) shows a state before the identification member is attached, and (B) shows a state after being attached together with the detecting means. FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged perspective view of a developing unit of another process cartridge, where (A) shows a state before attaching an identification member, and (B) shows a state after attachment, together with an erroneous attachment preventing member. FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged perspective view of a developing unit of another process cartridge, where (A) shows a state before cutting the removable portion of the identification shape portion, and (B) shows a state after cutting. It is sectional drawing of a process cartridge and the guide slider which mounts it. FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view of the guide slider and detection means, in which (A) is black, (B) is yellow, (C) is cyan, and (D) is magenta guide sliders. It is a fragmentary perspective view of a black guide slider and an incorrect attachment prevention member.

Explanation of symbols

10 · 10M · 10C · 10Y · 10K Process cartridge 13 · 13M · 13C · 13Y · 13K Developing unit (Developer accommodating device)
14 / 14M / 14C / 14Y / 14K Image carrier 40 Charging device 41 Cleaning device 54 Basic form 55 / 55M / 55C / 55Y / 55K Slot 56 Display 57 Identification member 58 Protrusion 60 / 60M / 60C / 60Y / 60K Detection means 62 / 62M / 62C / 62Y / 62K Identification member 63 Identification member mounting part (same part)
64 ・ 64M ・ 64C ・ 64Y ・ 64K Convex 65 Display 66 Frame (Incorrect mounting prevention member)
67 / 67M / 67C / 67Y / 67K Unit insertion hole 68 / 68M / 68C / 68Y / 68K Notch 70 / 70M / 70C / 70Y / 70K Removable part 72 Identification shape part 73 / 73M / 73C / 73Y / 73K Convex part 74 Display 76 / 76M / 76C / 76Y / 76K Guide slider (guide member)
77 ・ 77M ・ 77C ・ 77Y ・ 77K Bending piece 80 ・ 80M ・ 80C ・ 80Y ・ 80K Detection means 82 Frame (Incorrect mounting prevention member)
83 Insertion hole 84 Notch

Claims (13)

In the developer accommodating device provided with a plurality of different types of image forming apparatus,
A developer accommodating device characterized in that a basic form is shared with another of a different type, and an identification member having the same shape is attached to a different position depending on the type. In the developer accommodating device provided with a plurality of different types of image forming apparatus,
A developer accommodating device characterized in that a basic form is shared with another of a different type, and an identification member having a different shape depending on the type is attached to the same part. In the developer accommodating device provided with a plurality of different types of image forming apparatus,
A developer storage device comprising an identification shape portion having a plurality of removable portions that are shared in common with other types of different types and selectively removed depending on the type. In the developer accommodating device provided with a plurality of different types of image forming apparatus,
A developer accommodating device, characterized in that the whole form is common to other types of different types and is attached using guide members having different shapes depending on the types.   The developer accommodating device according to claim 1, wherein a display indicating the type is provided. In a process cartridge that integrally includes a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and includes a plurality of different types of image forming devices.
A process cartridge characterized by having a basic form in common with another of a different type, and attaching an identification member having the same shape to a different position depending on the type. In a process cartridge that integrally includes a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and includes a plurality of different types of image forming devices.
A process cartridge characterized by having a basic form in common with another of a different type and attaching an identification member having a different shape depending on the type to the same part. In a process cartridge that integrally includes a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and includes a plurality of different types of image forming devices.
A process cartridge comprising an identification shape portion having a plurality of removable portions that are shared in common with other types of different types and selectively removed depending on the type. In a process cartridge that integrally includes a developing device and at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a transfer device, and a cleaning device, and includes a plurality of different types of image forming devices.
A process cartridge, characterized in that it has the same overall form as another type of different type and is mounted using a guide member having a different shape depending on the type.   The process cartridge according to claim 6, wherein a display indicating a type is provided.   An image forming apparatus comprising the developer accommodating device according to claim 1 or the process cartridge according to any one of claims 6 to 10.   11. A mounting error preventing member that allows only a predetermined type of the developer accommodating device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 or the process cartridge according to any one of claims 6 to 10 to be attached. The image forming apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:   A developer storage device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 or a detecting means for detecting only attachment of a predetermined type of the process cartridge according to any one of claims 6 to 10 is provided. The image forming apparatus according to claim 11, wherein:

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