JP2006171582A - Conveying rod of developing device, method for manufacturing conveying rod, developing device, and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a conveying rod of a developing device which can surely prevent toner or a developer from entering a sliding surface between the conveying rod and a bearing, can be easily manufactured, has high productivity, can easily separate a metallic part and a resin part, has high reliability, generates no image abnormality, and has an excellent recycling property, and to provide an image forming apparatus provided with the developing device. <P>SOLUTION: The conveying rod of the developing device for conveying and stirring a developer to an image formation part in the image forming apparatus is provided with a spirally formed rotary blade 17 and a shaft part 4A which are integrally formed by synthetic resin and rotational sliding collars 16 integrally fitted to both the ends of the shaft part 4A. The rotational sliding collar 16 is formed by a metal and joined with the resin-made shaft part 4A by deforming a part of the resin-made shaft part 4A. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus used as an output recording apparatus to which an electrophotographic technology such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, and the like is provided.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a developing device and a cleaning device of an electrophotographic apparatus have been provided with a developer agitating / conveying means that agitates a developer composed of toner or toner and a carrier and conveys the developer to an arbitrary position. It is known that the stirring / conveying means is rotatably attached to the container of the developing device by a bearing (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).
Patent Document 1 discloses a rotary sliding collar having a configuration in which both end portions of a metal plate bent into a circular shape on a resin shaft portion are bent with respect to an axial direction by meshing between a convex portion and a concave portion. Has been.
Further, in Patent Document 2, a stainless steel collar is fixed and held in a spirally processed cavity, a molten resin of glass fiber-containing ABS resin / PC resin is injected, and after cooling, the molded product is taken out and used for toner stirring and conveying. A toner stirring and conveying screw for obtaining a screw is disclosed.
Further, toner supply / conveying means is provided for irradiating light to an arbitrary position of the photosensitive member to form an electrostatic latent image, and supplying / conveying toner to the electrostatic latent image. It has a toner removal cleaning means for removing and cleaning excess toner from the image carrier on the conveyed toner, and has a function of stirring and transporting the toner provided in the container main body and the toner provided in the container main body. And a transport rod on which the rotating blades are formed.
These supply / conveyance means are also rotatably attached to the container of the developing device by bearings. As this bearing structure, a bushing or bearing that contacts and slides with the rotating shaft, an elastic contact member (rubber seal) that contacts and slides in the radial direction of the rotating shaft, and the like are used to seal toner or developer. This method is used.

Here, in order to securely seal the toner or developer, not only the material of the elastic contact member, the contact pressure, the shape of the contact member, etc., but also the conveying rod formed with the rotor blade as the counterpart member The shape of the shaft, the surface condition, etc. become important, and the contact point with the elastic contact member rotates at a high speed, and the wear at that point leads to leakage of toner or developer. It must be a wearable material.
For this reason, in order to protect the rotating shaft of the resin-made transport rod, a metal rotary sliding collar is integrated into the transport rod, so that it can be prevented from wear due to friction with the bearing even during high-speed rotation, for example, 500 rpm. Protected.
For example, the bearing abutting portions at both ends of the toner stirring / conveying screw in the spirally processed cavity like the toner stirring / conveying screw of Patent Document 2 described above have a length of 16.7 mm and an outer diameter of 6 mm. A stainless steel metal collar having a thickness of 0.8 to 1.2 mm is disposed.
In this case, the collar is fixed and held by clamping, and a molten resin of PC / ABS resin containing glass fiber is injected into the cavity and cooled, and then the molded product is taken out to obtain a toner stirring and conveying screw. In this case, the injection molding machine must be stopped for each shot, and a metal collar must be inserted into the cavity, which impairs productivity.
Furthermore, when the metal collar is inserted into the cavity, if it is erroneously inserted, the cavity may be damaged, resulting in trouble in production and a serious trouble. Moreover, when produced in this way, the metal part and the resin part are not easily disassembled when the conveying rod is disassembled, and the recyclability is impaired.
As a countermeasure for this, there is a method such as forming the rotor blade and the shaft part integrally and then bonding the metal collar to the shaft part with an adhesive, but the productivity from application of the adhesive to drying and curing of the adhesive is low. Then, the sliding surface with the bearing is deformed by threading of the adhesive, adhesion to the metal collar surface, or the like.
The toner enters from the gap of the deformed part, the toner or developer is rubbed, melted and fixed with the energy, and the rotational torque increases, resulting in an abnormal image due to insufficient stirring and conveyance due to poor rotation, or worst case The rotation was sometimes locked.
In some cases, melted toner or developer aggregates are stirred and conveyed in the developing device, resulting in an abnormal image. Further, in recent years, the particle size of toner or developer has been reduced with the aim of improving image quality, and the occurrence of these defects due to the sliding surface is increasing. Also, in the case of this bonding method, like the above-described insert molding, the metal part and the resin part are not easily disassembled, and the recyclability is impaired.
Further, as in the rotary sliding collar of Patent Document 1, when the both ends of the circularly bent metal plate are bent with respect to the axial direction by the engagement of the convex and concave portions, The hemispherical protrusion protruding inside the moving collar enters the groove having a flat portion in the shaft portion, and it is possible to obtain both the rotation of the collar with respect to the shaft portion and the function of maintaining the position in the axial direction at the same time.
JP 2002-5183 A JP-A-9-54489

However, the toner or developer slips through a slight gap between the engagements of the concavo-convex portions, and gradually enters the sliding surface with the bearing that is rotatably attached to the container of the developing device, so that the toner or developer Rubbed. The energy melts and adheres to increase the rotational torque, resulting in an abnormal image due to insufficient agitation / conveyance due to poor rotation, and in the worst case, the rotation is locked.
In some cases, melted toner or developer aggregates are stirred and transported into the developing device, resulting in an abnormal image. Further, in recent years, the particle size of toner or developer has been reduced with the aim of improving image quality, and the occurrence of these defects due to the sliding surface is increasing.
In view of the above, the object of the present invention is to reliably prevent the toner or developer from entering the sliding surface between the conveying rod and the bearing, which is easy to manufacture, has high productivity, and An object of the present invention is to provide a transport rod of a developing device that is easy to disassemble a metal portion and a resin portion, is highly reliable, has no image abnormality, and is excellent in recyclability, and an image forming apparatus including the developing device.

In order to solve the above problems, the invention described in claim 1 includes a developer container containing a developer, a transport rod that is rotatably disposed in the developer container and transports and agitates the developer, In the developing device, the conveying rod has a synthetic resin spiral rotating blade integrated with a synthetic resin shaft, and a metal rotary sliding collar at both ends of the shaft. The sliding collar is fastened to the resin shaft portion by deforming a part of the resin shaft portion.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the portion where the metal collar is fastened to at least one end of the shaft portion and the shaft portion is deformed is 30% with respect to the length direction of the metal collar. Hereinafter, the size is preferably 10% or less.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the portion where the metal collar is fastened to at least one end of the shaft portion and the shaft portion is deformed is 1 with respect to the circumferential direction of the shaft portion. It is characterized by having more than one place.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first, second, or third aspect, the resin shaft portion is made of a synthetic resin formed by injection molding.
The invention of claim 5 is the resin of claim 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein the resin shaft portion or the resin spiral rotary blade is made of glass, potassium titanate, talc, mica, lavastonite, or a natural mineral. One or a plurality of these reinforcing materials is included, and the reinforcing material is composed of a synthetic resin containing 5 to 50%, preferably 15 to 35% of these reinforcing materials.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a transport rod that is rotatably disposed in a developer container containing a developer and transports and agitates the developer, wherein a resin rotor blade is provided on an outer periphery of the resin shaft portion. The step of integrally forming in a spiral shape, the step of fitting and integrating a metal collar for rotational sliding at both ends of the shaft portion, and the sliding collar by deforming a part of the resin shaft portion And a step of fastening to the resin shaft portion.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a developing device for storing a developer container, a developing roller for supplying toner to an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive member facing the developer container in parallel with the developer container, and A bearing rod formed with a rotating blade that stirs and conveys the developer by rotating in the developer container, and the developing roller and the bearing rod are provided on the inner wall surface of the developer container. In the developing device that is rotatably supported by the conveyor, the conveying rod integrally forms a spiral rotary blade and a shaft portion with a synthetic resin, and a metal collar is attached to at least one end of the shaft portion. The shaft portion is fastened to at least one side by deforming the portion.
An image forming apparatus according to an eighth aspect of the present invention includes the conveying rod according to any one of the first to fifth aspects or the developing device according to the seventh aspect, wherein the toner removes and cleans the toner from the image carrier. It has a removal cleaning means.

  According to the present invention, a metal collar is deformed at a part of the shaft portion of the transport rod by integrating the transport rod and the metal collar on the resin transport rod provided with the rotor blades, thereby integrating the toner or the developer. It reliably prevents the transfer rod and bearing from entering the sliding surface, is easy to manufacture, has high productivity, and is easy to disassemble the metal part and resin part. It becomes possible to be done.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing an image forming and developing unit according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view showing the image forming and developing unit of FIG. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a bearing according to the present invention.
1 to 3, the developing unit (housing) 6 is disposed to face the photosensitive drum 1, and toner is transferred to and from the photosensitive drum 1 to form an image area. The developing unit 6 includes a lower housing 9 and an upper housing 10.
A housing (development unit) 6 is provided with a magnetic roller 2 for supplying the developer, transport rods 4 and 5 for stirring and transporting the developer, a toner supply unit 7 and the like. The conveying rods 4 and 5 are usually made of resin, and a metal member 16 is partially used as a reinforcing member.
The magnetic roller 2 is disposed at a distance of 0.1 mm to 1 mm with respect to the photosensitive drum 1 and is rotatably attached to the housing (developing unit) 6 by a bearing 12 or the like. Further, a developer scrubber 3 is provided facing the magnetic roller 2, and a thin layer of developer is formed on the magnetic roller 2 by regulating the amount of developer.
The conveying rods 4 and 5 have a configuration in which the developer is stirred and conveyed by a screw-shaped rotating blade (spiral blade) 17, and both ends thereof are supported by bearings 14 and 21 with respect to a housing (developing unit) 6 that is a developer container. It can be rotated freely. A driving force is transmitted to the magnetic roller 2 and the conveying rods 4 and 5 through the gears 13, 18 and 23 fixed to the respective shaft end portions.
The bearings 14 and 21 are made of a molded product such as a polyacetal resin which is a crystalline resin excellent in wear resistance and lubricity. Further, the housing (developing unit) 6 is separated by a partition wall 11 into a developer stirring / conveying space in which the conveying rod 4 is arranged and a developer agitating / conveying space in which the conveying rod 5 is arranged.
Both transport spaces communicate with each other by notches at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the partition wall 11, and the developer is transported in the longitudinal direction of each transport rod through both spaces. The developer is agitated and conveyed in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 by screw-shaped rotating blades 17 formed on the conveying rods 4 and 5, respectively.
The developer stirred and transported in both spaces is a two-component developer, and the toner is supplied from a toner supply tank (toner supply unit) 7 provided on the transport bar 5, and the toner sensor (FIG. The toner is automatically supplied to the conveying rod 5 in response to a signal (not shown). The developing unit 6 may be a unit that contains a one-component developer that does not include a carrier.
The developer stirred and transported by the transport rod 4 forms a thin layer developing spike on the magnetic roller 2 by the developer scrubber 3 and is developed as a latent image on the photosensitive drum 1. The developer that has not been used for the latent image is returned again to the transport rod 4 and stirred and transported in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. The consumed toner equivalent amount is discharged from the toner supply tank 7 and stirred and transported by the transport rod 5.

Here, as shown in FIG. 3, the toner tends to enter the bearing 14 by the developer agitation / conveyance pressure generated by the rotating blades 17 of the conveyance rod 4 during the developer circulation process. However, the elastic sealing lip portion 24 of the elastic contact member 8 contacts the metal collar 16 fitted and integrated with the conveying rod 4 to prevent the toner from entering the bearing. In FIG. 3, only the transport rod 4 is shown, but the same applies to the transport rod 5.
The elastic contact member 8 is made of an elastic body such as fluorine rubber, nitrile rubber, or styrene rubber, and maintains a fitting force between the elastic sealing lip portion 24 formed in a ring shape and the hole of the bearing 14. And a metal ring 25 formed in a ring shape with a rigid body such as SPCC, SPHC, or SUS. That is, the elastic contact member 8 includes a hollow cylindrical metal ring 25 on the outer periphery, and an elastic sealing lip portion 24 integrally on the inner surface of the metal ring 25.
In addition, when the pressing force of the elastic sealing lip portion 24 to the conveying rod 4 is required, a spring formed of a hard steel wire, a piano wire, a stainless steel wire or the like is disposed inside or outside the elastic sealing lip portion 24. Sometimes.
Here, the conveying rods 4 and 5 are formed of a synthetic resin or the like, and a stepped portion of the mold is formed at a contact portion with the elastic sealing lip portion 24, so that the portion is in contact with the elastic sealing lip portion 24. The pressure is lowered and a slight gap is generated, which impairs the toner sealing effect.
The conveying rods 4 and 5 formed of a synthetic resin are excellent in non-adhesiveness with a developer, and excellent in dimensional stability and strength. For example, polycarbonate resin, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene resin, acrylonitrile styrene resin, polyphenylene ether resin, polyphenylene oxide resin, polyether terephthalate resin, and alloy resins thereof are used.
In addition, strength and heat resistance must be increased in order to stably perform the stirring / conveying function. Therefore, reinforcing materials are added to the glass fiber, potassium titanate fiber, talc fiber, mica fiber, wollastonite. Fibers or the like are used, and these are used alone or in combination, and the addition amount is preferably 10 to 40% by weight.
Moreover, as a shape of these reinforcing materials, an aspect ratio is 5-50, Preferably it is 20-40, and an average particle diameter (average value of a major axis) is 1-300 micrometers, Preferably it is 5-50 micrometers.
If the aspect ratio is less than 5, the flatness is good, but the dimensional stability is insufficient, and if the aspect ratio exceeds 50, the moldability is deteriorated. On the other hand, if the average particle size is less than 1 μm, the appearance is glossy and good, but the dimensional stability is poor.

Further, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-11169 (die and screw-like injection molded body), the complicated spiral spiral rotor 17 is a molding die having a movable piece divided into four parts. Each of the movable pieces is injection-molded and has a mold structure that is configured to be movable in a perpendicular direction.
Further, the spiral shape of the rotary blade 17 may be a configuration in which the rotary blade 17 does not have an axis as described in JP-A-11-52725 (toner stirring and conveying screw).
Also, as described in Patent Document 2 (toner stirring and conveying screw), in the conveying rod 4 made of synthetic resin, a metal core having a length substantially equal to the length of the rotating blade 17 is concentric inside the blade. It may be embedded in a shape.
Further, as the image forming and developing unit is used, the elastic sealing lip portion 24 of the elastic contact member 8 and the shaft portion of the conveying rod 4 which is a contact partner thereof are fatigued and worn, and the toner sealing performance is lowered. Come. For this reason, a cylindrical reinforcing metal member 16 is attached to the contact portion with the elastic sealing lip portion 24, and a stable toner sealing effect is obtained over a long period of time.
First, grease is applied to the surface of the reinforcing metal member 16, which is a contact portion between the conveying rod 4 and the bearing 14, and the bearing 14 is incorporated into the conveying rod 4. In addition, the elastic contact member 8 is previously assembled in the bearing 14 by press-fitting or bonding.
If grease is also applied to the elastic sealing lip portion 24, it is possible to prevent the elastic sealing lip portion 24 from being worn and to prevent abnormal noise caused by friction with the conveying rod 4. However, if excessive grease is applied to the elastic sealing lip 24, excess grease is mixed into the developer, causing an abnormal image.
Further, the same effect can be obtained by applying a mirror finish to the surface of the reinforcing metal member 16 or applying a Teflon process to the surface of the reinforcing metal member 16 instead of applying grease to the surface of the reinforcing metal member 16.

As a method of forming the metal member 16 as a reinforcing member for the conveying rods 4 and 5, a metal plate bent into a circle as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-5183 (rotary sliding collar) is used.
Further, the sulfur and sulfur composite free-cutting steel pipe, the carbon steel pipe for machine structure or the stainless steel pipe for machine structure is cut to a desired length and ground to a desired outer diameter to obtain the metal member 16. Further, aluminum or an aluminum alloy such as A1050, A3003, A6063 or the like is processed into a cylindrical shape by a porthole method, a mandrel method, or the like, and then formed into a cylinder having a desired thickness, length, and outer diameter, thereby obtaining the metal member 16.
These metal members may be subjected to surface treatment such as electroplating or chemical plating to prevent rust. Examples of these plating methods include copper plating, zinc plating, nickel plating, gold plating, alloy plating thereof, electroless nickel-phosphorous plating, and electroless copper plating.
In addition, it is preferable to perform degreasing or processing soot washing as a pretreatment before plating, and cleaning is generally performed by heating with an alkaline solution, electrolytic cleaning, and organic solvent cleaning, and the cleaning effect is improved by using ultrasonic waves. Can be planned.
Heat washing is performed using sodium hydroxide, sodium carbonate, or sodium phosphate solution. The cleaning ability can be improved by using a surfactant.
For the electrolytic cleaning, an alkali solution such as sodium hydroxide is used, and the anode cleaning is performed after the cathode cleaning at 50 to 60 ° C. and 10 A / d square meter. In addition, it can remove effectively when hydrochloric acid or sulfuric acid is used for the removal of the oxide of steel. Moreover, you may perform an anodizing process as this other surface treatment.
As the electrolytic solution for anodizing treatment, sulfuric acid, oxalic acid, phosphoric acid or the like can be used. The treating temperature of these electrolytic solutions is preferably 10 to 30 ° C., and the electrolytic solution concentration is preferably 100 to 300 g / l. The processing time is determined according to the thickness of the film.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing the metal collar and the left side portion of the transport rod in an enlarged manner. FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing the attachment of the metal collar to the conveying rod together with the right side view (only the conveying rod 4 is illustrated, but the same applies to the conveying rod 5). As shown in the enlarged perspective view of FIG. 4, the metal collar 16 manufactured as described above is fitted to the end portion of the shaft portion 4 </ b> A of the transport rod 4.
5 is a schematic diagram of FIG. 5 in which a concave notch 16a for preventing rotation around the one end of the metal collar 16 is fitted with a convex (L-shaped) stopper 4a provided on the outer peripheral surface of the conveying rod 4. (The metal collar 16 is a cross-sectional view), and the metal collar 16 (total length 13 mm) is pushed in until it stops at the rotation stop 4a.
A trowel having a tip diameter of φ0.5 mm is heated to 250 ° C. on the shaft portion 4A of the transport rod 4 next to the metal collar 16 and pressed against the shaft portion 4A (shaft diameter of 5.4 mm) of the resin transport rod 4. Two protrusions 16b of 0.3 mm were formed, and the metal collar 16 was fastened to the shaft portion 4A of the transport rod 4.
Further, as an application example, the deformation 16b may be mechanically given to the shaft portion 4A by a punch or the like. Then, it inserts so that the elastic sealing lip | rip part 24 (refer FIG. 3) of the bearing 14 may contact | abut to the metal collar 16 part.
Further, a rotation driving gear 19 (FIG. 4) is attached to the D-cut 4b formed on the shaft portion of the conveying rod 4, and an E-ring (not shown) for preventing the removal is attached to stir the toner or developer. -The conveyance rod 4 which bears the function to convey is obtained.
FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing a modification of the metal collar of FIG. 5 together with a right side view. As a modification of the embodiment of FIG. 5, as shown in the schematic diagram of FIG. 6, a metal iron 16 is deformed and fused by pressing a iron heated to 250 ° C. onto the convex detent 4a (deformation fusion). The landing portion 16 c) and the metal collar 16 were fastened to the shaft portion 4 A of the transport rod 4.

FIG. 7 is a view showing an end portion of the transport rod and a right side view, and FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing a metal collar together with the right side view. FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing an example in which a metal collar is deformed and welded to the shaft portion of the transport rod.
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, and as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-225116 (burring method and its mold), the metal collar 16 is an example produced by progressive press working.
In the process of sequentially moving one sheet-shaped metal plate material on male and female molds arranged in a straight line, each metal plate material is plastically deformed to form a covered cylindrical portion of a predetermined size. Thereafter, the lid portion is cut to produce a metal collar 16 as a thin cylinder with a flange.
As shown in the schematic diagram of FIG. 7, the metal collar 16 is inserted into the shaft portion 4A of the transport rod 4 from the flange portion 16e side, and a resin rib 16c formed integrally with the resin transport rod 4 in advance. Press the iron heated to 250 ° C.
As shown in FIG. 9, the resin rib 16 c was deformed to form a deformed weld portion 16 cc, and the metal collar was fastened to the shaft portion 4 </ b> A of the transport rod 4. Note that the metal collar 16 may be fastened to the shaft portion 4A of the conveying rod 4 by mechanically deforming and fusing with a punch or the like instead of the heated iron (deformed fusing portion 16cc).
FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram of an application example of the modification of FIG. 7 and a right side view showing a state in which a metal collar is fitted. FIG. 11 is a schematic view showing a metal collar together with a right side view. FIG. 12 is a schematic view showing an application example in which a metal collar is deformed and welded to the shaft portion of the transport rod together with a right side view.
As shown in FIG. 11, a fastening hole 16d is provided in the flange portion 16e of the metal collar 16, and a resin rib 4d is provided in the shaft portion of the resin transport rod 4 at a position corresponding to the fastening hole 16d. 12, the iron heated to 250 ° C. is pressed against the rib 4 d to be deformed to form a deformed welded portion 16 dd, and the metal collar 16 is fastened to the shaft portion 4 A of the conveying rod 4. .
Note that the metal collar 16 may be fastened to the shaft portion 4A of the conveying rod 4 by mechanically deforming and fusing with a punch or the like instead of the heated iron (deformation fusing portion 16dd). An image containing pictograms was output by the image forming unit incorporating the conveying rod 4 obtained in these embodiments, but a clear image was obtained.
Further, 100,000 images were continuously output on A4 paper, but a clear image output was obtained after 100,000 sheets as well as the initial output image.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing a method for applying and bonding an adhesive and fitting and fastening a metal collar to the shaft portion of the conveying rod. As a comparative example, the metal collar 16 is fitted to the shaft portion 4A of the conveying rod 4. -Adhesive 20 is applied as a method of fastening, and it adheres and fastens.
In this case, there is a high probability that stringing or sagging will occur due to the viscosity of the adhesive 20, and these adhere to the sliding surface of the metal collar 16 with the elastic sealing lip 24 of the elastic contact member 8.
Then, the toner or developer leaks from the location, gradually enters the sliding surface with the bearing that is rotatably mounted on the container of the developing device, and the toner or developer is rubbed and melted and fixed by the energy. However, the rotational torque increases, stirring due to poor rotation, and an abnormal image due to insufficient conveyance. In the worst case, the rotation is locked.
In some cases, melted toner or developer aggregates are agitated and transported into the developing device, resulting in an abnormal image. Therefore, after applying the adhesive 20 and attaching the metal collar 16, the surface of the metal collar 16 must be wiped off with an organic solvent or the like.
In addition, since it is fastened to the shaft portion with an adhesive, it is difficult to separate the metal collar 16 and the shaft portion 4A formed of synthetic resin during dismantling at the time of recycling, and the recycling work becomes complicated.
The bearing 14 can be mass-produced at low cost by an injection molding method using a material such as a thermoplastic resin featuring abrasion resistance such as nylon or polyacetal, or a thermoplastic resin featuring rigidity such as polycarbonate. .
Further, the present invention may be an image forming unit in which the photosensitive drum 1 is incorporated in the developing unit 6, and further, not only a transport rod for stirring or transporting toner or developer, but also recovery / discharge of toner or developer. It may be a transfer rod for use.
The present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and various modifications are possible, and the effect can be maintained even if the shapes and materials of the transport rods 4 and 5 and the reinforcing metal member 16 are changed.

The present invention reliably prevents toner or developer from entering the sliding surface between the bearings 14 and 21 of the image forming unit and the conveying rod 4, is inexpensive, has high productivity, and is excellent in recyclability. The metal collar 16 is mounted by deforming a part of the transport rod 4 shaft portion 4A.
The present invention is not limited to these, and it is possible to increase the mounting force between the metal collar and the conveying rod shaft portion by providing a plurality of deformations in spots. Further, a plurality of deformation portions may be provided.
According to the present invention, the portion where the shaft portion 4A of the conveying rod 4 is deformed is 30% or less in the length direction of the metal collar 16, whereby the toner or developer conveying rod 4 and the bearing 14 are used. The sliding surface area and the intrusion to the sliding surface are surely prevented, the manufacture is easy, the productivity is high, the metal part and the resin part are easily disassembled, and the recyclability An excellent transport rod can be obtained.
According to the present invention, it is ensured that the metal collar 16 is prevented from falling off the conveying rod 4 by providing a plurality of locations where the shaft portion 4A of the conveying rod 4 is deformed with respect to the circumferential direction of the axial portion 4A. In addition, toner or developer can be surely prevented from entering the sliding surface between the conveying rod 4 and the bearing 14, can be easily manufactured, has high productivity, and is a metal part and a resin part formed by injection molding. Can be easily disassembled and a transport rod with excellent recyclability can be obtained.
According to the present invention, as described above, the resin shaft portion resin includes one or more reinforcing materials made of glass, potassium titanate, talc, mica, lavastonite, and natural minerals, and these reinforcements By comprising a synthetic resin containing 5 to 50%, preferably 15 to 35% of a material, a transport rod that is easy to manufacture, has high productivity, and is excellent in the function of stirring or transporting toner or developer can be obtained. It is done.

According to the present invention, the toner or developer is agitated, and the rotating rod having the function of conveying the toner or developer to the developing roller rotatably supported by the developing container is formed on the sliding surface between the conveying rod and the bearing. A developing device having a transport rod that can reliably prevent intrusion, is easy to manufacture, has high productivity, is easy to disassemble the metal portion and the resin portion, and has excellent recyclability.
According to the present invention, the metal collar 16 is fitted to the resin conveyance rod 4 provided with the rotating blades 17 to deform a part of the shaft portion 4A, so that the conveyance rod 4 and the metal collar 16 are integrated. To do. As a result, the toner or developer is reliably supported by the toner replenishing container, and the intrusion into the sliding surface between the conveying rod 4 and the bearing 14 on which the rotating blade 17 having the function of stirring and conveying is supported. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an image forming apparatus including a transport rod that is easy to manufacture, easy to manufacture, high in productivity, easy to disassemble the metal part and the resin part, and excellent in recyclability.
In the above description of the present invention, the conveying rod 4 has been mainly described. However, the description of the conveying rod 4 and the metal collar 16 is the same as the conveying rod 5, and thus the description thereof is omitted.
The present invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a transport rod that is rotatably disposed in a developer container containing a developer and transports and agitates the developer, in which a resin rotating blade is spirally formed on the outer periphery of the resin shaft portion. A step of integrally forming a metal collar for rotation and sliding on both ends of the shaft portion, and a step of deforming the resin shaft portion by deforming a part of the resin shaft portion. And a method of manufacturing a conveying rod comprising the step of fastening to a shaft-making part.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an image forming and developing unit according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view showing the image forming and developing unit of FIG. 1. Sectional drawing which shows the bearing by this invention. The schematic perspective view which expands and shows metal collars. Schematic which shows the attachment to the conveyance stick | rod of metal collars with a right view. Schematic which shows the modification of the metal color | collar of FIG. 5 with a right view. The schematic diagram which shows the modification which produced metal color | collars by progressive press work with a right view. Schematic which shows metal color | collars with a right view. The schematic diagram which shows the modification which deform | transforms and welds a metal color | collar to the axial part of a conveyance rod. Schematic which shows the application example of the modification of FIG. 7 with a right view. Schematic which shows metal color | collars with a right view. Schematic which shows the application example of the modification of FIG. 7 which deforms and welds a metal collar to the shaft part of a conveyance rod with a right side view. The schematic diagram which shows the method of apply | coating an adhesive agent and fitting and fastening a metal color | collar to the axial part of a conveyance rod.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Photoconductor (photosensitive drum, image carrier), 2 Developing roller (magnetic roller), 4 Conveying rod, 4A Axis part, 4a Non-rotating portion, 5 Conveying rod, 6 Developer container (developing unit, housing), 14 Bearing, 16 Rotating sliding collar (Metal collar, Reinforced metal member), 16a Recessed notch for rotation prevention, 17 Rotating blade

Claims (8)

In a developing device comprising a developer container containing a developer, and a transport rod that is rotatably disposed in the developer container and transports and stirs the developer.
The conveying rod has a structure in which a synthetic resin spiral rotating blade is integrated with a synthetic resin shaft, and a metal rotary sliding collar is integrated at both ends of the shaft. A transport rod for a developing device, wherein the sliding collar is fastened to the resin shaft portion by deforming a part of the resin shaft portion.   The metal collar is fastened to at least one end portion of the shaft portion, and the portion where the shaft portion is deformed is 30% or less, preferably 10% or less with respect to the length direction of the metal collar. The transport rod of the developing device according to claim 1.   3. The metal collar is fastened to at least one end portion of the shaft portion, and the location where the shaft portion is deformed is one or more locations in the circumferential direction of the shaft portion. A transport rod of the developing device according to 1.   The transport rod of the developing device according to claim 1, wherein the resin shaft portion is made of a synthetic resin formed by injection molding.   The resin shaft portion or the resin spiral rotary blade includes one or more reinforcing materials of glass, potassium titanate, talc, mica, lavastonite, or natural mineral, and these 5. The transport rod for a developing device according to claim 1, wherein the transport rod is made of a synthetic resin containing 5 to 50%, preferably 15 to 35% of a reinforcing material.   In a manufacturing method of a transport rod that is rotatably disposed in a developer container containing developer and transports and agitates the developer, a step of integrally forming a resin rotating blade spirally on the outer periphery of the resin shaft portion; , A step of fitting and integrating a metal shaft for rotational sliding at both ends of the shaft portion, and a part of the resin shaft portion is deformed to fasten the sliding collar to the resin shaft portion. And a method of manufacturing a transport rod, comprising the steps of:   A developer container for containing the developer, a developing roller for supplying toner to the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive member parallel to the developer container, and rotating in the developer container. A developing device in which the developing roller and the conveying rod are rotatably supported by a bearing provided on an inner wall surface of the developing container, and a conveying rod formed with a rotating blade for stirring and conveying the developer; The conveying rod integrally forms a spiral rotary blade and a shaft portion with a synthetic resin, and at least one end portion of the shaft portion is deformed with a metal collar at least a part of the shaft portion. A developing device fastened to one side. An image forming apparatus comprising: the conveying rod according to claim 1; or the developing device according to claim 7, further comprising a toner removing cleaning unit that removes and cleans the toner from the image bearing member. apparatus.

Images