JP2007041327A - Toner replenishing apparatus and developing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To appropriately replenish toner from a toner replenishing apparatus into a developing apparatus with a simple mechanism while dispensing with the detection and control of the toner quantity in the developing apparatus in the case of replenishing the toner from the toner replenishing apparatus into the developing apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: The toner replenishing apparatus 20 for replenishing the toner (t) stored in a toner storage tank 21 into the developing apparatus 1 through a toner replenishing port 22 includes; a stirring means for stirring the toner in the toner storage tank by rotating a stirring member 23 with a stirring blade 23a; and a carrying means for guiding the toner to the toner replenishing port by rotating a carrying member 24 with a carrying blade 24b arranged on the outer periphery of a rotating shaft 24b. A notch 23b is formed in the stirring blade for the stirring member so as to be positioned corresponding to the toner replenishing port, and also, the carrying blade for the carrying member is eliminated in the position corresponding to the toner replenishing port, and a preventing member 25 for preventing the toner from falling in the toner replenishing port is arranged above the toner replenishing port. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a developing device for developing toner by supplying toner to a latent image portion formed on an image carrier in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile, and to supply toner to such a developing device. The present invention relates to a toner replenishing device used, and the toner is appropriately replenished from the toner replenishing device into the developing device without detecting the toner amount in the developing device and controlling the toner replenishing device. It is what has.

  Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile, development is performed by supplying toner from a developing device to a latent image portion formed on an image carrier, and such development is repeated. As the amount of toner decreases, the amount of toner in the developing device decreases. Therefore, the toner is replenished from the toner replenishing device into the developing device.

  When the toner is replenished from the toner replenishing device into the developing device as described above, the toner replenishing device is generally set in the developing device, and the toner accommodated in the toner accommodating tank in the toner replenishing device is transferred to the conveying member. For example, the toner is supplied to the toner supply port, and the toner is supplied into the developing device through the toner supply port.

  Here, when the toner stored in the toner storage tank is guided to the toner supply port by the transport member or the like to replenish the toner into the developing device, the transport member or the like is always operated to replenish the toner. Then, the toner is excessively replenished in the developing device. For example, in the case of a two-component developing type developing device using toner and a carrier as the developer, the toner concentration in the developer becomes high. In the case of a one-component development type developing device that uses only toner as a developer, the toner is excessively packed in the developing device, which causes the toner to aggregate and solidify and deteriorate. In addition, there are many problems that the toner is not properly conveyed in the developing device and proper development cannot be performed.

  Conventionally, in the developing device as described above, a sensor for detecting the amount of toner in the developing device is provided in order to prevent the toner from being excessively replenished in the developing device. When the amount of toner in the developing device is decreased based on the control of the conveying member and the like, the conveying member is operated to replenish the toner into the developing device through the toner replenishing port. ing.

  However, in order to detect the amount of toner in the developing device with the sensor and control the conveying member and the like, a complicated control circuit or the like is required, which is expensive and cumbersome to maintain. There was a problem of becoming.

  Conventionally, when a toner is supplied in a two-component developing type developing device using toner and carrier as a developer, a shutter mechanism is provided at a toner supply port in the toner supplying device, and the toner is consumed and the developing device is consumed. There has also been proposed an apparatus in which when the amount of developer in the toner is reduced, the shutter mechanism is operated to replenish the toner by the reduced amount (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

However, even in this case, it is necessary to provide a shutter mechanism, and it is necessary to operate the shutter mechanism at an appropriate timing at which the amount of the developer in the developing device decreases. There was a problem of being expensive.
JP 57-11366 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned various problems when toner is replenished from a toner replenishing device into a developing device. The amount of toner in the developing device is detected to replenish toner. An object of the present invention is to appropriately supply toner from the toner replenishing device into the developing device with a simple mechanism without controlling the device.

  In the toner replenishing device according to the present invention, in order to solve the above-described problems, the toner replenishing device for replenishing the toner accommodated in the toner accommodating tank into the developing device through the toner replenishing port is provided with a stirring blade. Agitating means for agitating the toner accommodated in the toner accommodating tank by rotating the agitating member and a conveying member having conveying blades provided on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft to convey the toner to the toner supply port. At the position corresponding to the toner replenishing port, the stirring blade in the stirring member is notched, the conveying blade in the conveying member is eliminated, and the toner replenishing port is provided above the toner replenishing port. A deterring member that deters the toner from falling into the mouth is provided.

  In the developing device according to the present invention, in order to solve the above-described problems, the developer contained in the developer containing portion is guided to the image carrier by the developer carrier, and the latent image formed on the image carrier is In a developing device that supplies toner to an image portion and performs development, the above-described toner replenishing device is provided in a toner replenishing device that replenishes toner in a developer container.

  In the toner replenishing device according to the present invention, since the notch is provided in the stirring blade of the stirring member at the position corresponding to the toner supply port as described above, the toner stored in the toner storage tank by rotating the stirring member. When the toner is stirred, it is suppressed that a large amount of toner in the toner storage tank is supplied to the toner replenishing port by the stirring blade, and the conveying blade in the conveying member is eliminated at the position corresponding to the toner replenishing port. When the member is rotated and the toner is guided to the toner replenishing port, the toner is also prevented from being forcibly supplied to the toner replenishing port by the conveying blade, and the toner falls to the toner replenishing port above the toner replenishing port. Since the deterring member for deterring the toner is provided, the toner accommodated in the toner accommodating tank is dropped and supplied directly to the toner replenishing port. Is also suppressed, the excess toner in the toner replenishing port is supplied is prevented.

  In the developing device according to the present invention, the toner replenishing device is used to replenish the toner in the developer accommodating portion. Therefore, the agitating member in the toner replenishing device is rotated and the stirring blades accommodate the toner. Even when the toner stored in the tank is agitated and the toner is stored in the toner storage tank by the conveying blade by rotating the conveying member, the toner is supplied through the toner supply port. Excess toner is prevented from being supplied to the developing device.

  For this reason, when toner is replenished to the developing device using the toner replenishing device as described above, there is a device that controls the toner replenishing device by detecting the amount of toner in the developing device as in the past. Even if the stirring member and the conveying member are rotated as described above, it is possible to prevent excessive toner from being supplied to the developing device, and the toner can be easily fed into the developing device from the toner replenishing device at low cost. Can be properly replenished.

  In the case of a two-component developing type developing device using toner and carrier as the developer, the toner concentration in the developer is prevented from becoming too high, and one-component development using only the toner as the developer. In the case of a developing device of the type, toner is excessively packed in the developing device, preventing the toner from aggregating and solidifying in the developing device and deteriorating, and appropriately conveying the toner in the developing device. As a result, appropriate development can be performed stably.

  And a first conveying unit that circulates the toner replenished from the toner replenishing device while mixing the toner replenished from the toner replenishing device with the toner accommodated in the developer accommodating unit. A toner transport speed in the first transport section where the toner is replenished from the toner replenishing device is greater than the toner feed speed in the second transport section for supplying the toner to the developer carrier. Slowly, the amount of toner in the first transport unit increases, and when the first transport unit is full of toner, the toner is prevented from being replenished through the toner replenishing port. The toner is returned to the toner storage tank through the cutout portion of the stirring blade, and the toner is further suppressed from being excessively packed in the developing device. That.

  Next, a toner replenishing device according to an embodiment of the present invention and a developing device provided with the toner replenishing device will be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The toner replenishing device and the developing device according to the present invention are not limited to those shown in the following embodiments, and can be appropriately modified and implemented without departing from the scope of the invention.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a toner replenishing device 20 is provided on a one-component developing type developing device 1 using only toner t as a developer, and a toner storage tank 21 in the toner replenishing device 20. The toner t accommodated therein is supplied through the toner replenishing port 22 to the developer accommodating portion 2 in which the toner t is accommodated in the developing device 1.

  Here, in the toner replenishing device 20, the stirring member 23 provided with the stirring blade 23 a is provided in the toner storage tank 21, and the stirring member 23 is rotated and the toner storage tank 21 is rotated by the stirring blade 23 a. In addition to stirring the toner t accommodated therein, a conveying member 24 provided with a spiral conveying blade 24b on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft 24a is provided above the toner replenishing port 22, and this conveying The member 24 is rotated so that the toner t accommodated in the toner accommodating tank 21 is guided to the toner supply port 22 by the conveying blade 24b.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the stirring blade 23 a in the stirring member 23 corresponds to the width of the toner supply port 22 at a position corresponding to the toner supply port 22. The notch 23b is formed, and at the position corresponding to the toner replenishing port 22 of the transport member 24, the transport blade 24b is provided on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft 24a of the transport member 24 as shown in FIG. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the toner t accommodated in the toner accommodating tank 21 on the conveying member 24 provided above the toner replenishing port 22 is transferred to the toner replenishing port 22. A deterring member 25 is provided for deterring falling.

  On the other hand, in the developing device 1 in which the toner t is replenished from the toner replenishing device 20, the developer carrying body 3 that rotates so as to face the image carrying body P is provided, and the developer in which the toner t is accommodated. A supply roller 4 is provided in the container 2 so as to face the developer carrier 3.

  Further, in the developing device 1, an opening 5 is provided so as to correspond to the toner replenishing port 22 in the toner replenishing device 20, and a partition wall 6 is provided in the developer containing portion 2 to provide a first transport unit. 11 and the second transport unit 12 are formed, and the first transport unit 11 and the second transport unit 12 are respectively provided with transport blades 13b and 14b having spiral shapes on the outer circumferences of the rotation shafts 13a and 14a. The members 13 and 14 are provided, the two transport members 13 and 14 are rotated, and the toner t is transported in the reverse direction between the first transport unit 11 and the second transport unit 12, and the toner t is stored in the developer storage unit. It is made to circulate within 2.

  The toner t is supplied from the toner replenishing device 20 through the toner replenishing port 22 and the opening 5 to the first transport unit 11 at a position away from the developer carrier 3, and the second In the transport unit 12, the toner t is sent to the supply roller 4, and the supply roller 4 supplies the toner t to the developer carrier 3.

  Then, the toner t supplied in this manner is transported while being held on the surface of the developer carrier 3 and the regulating member 7 is brought into contact with the surface of the developer carrier 3 to be transported. The amount of toner t is regulated and the toner t is charged, and the toner t regulated and charged in this way is guided to the developing region facing the image carrier P by the developer carrier 3, and the toner t is guided to the image carrier P. The electrostatic latent image formed on the image carrier P is developed.

  In addition, after developing the electrostatic latent image formed on the image carrier P in this manner, the toner t not used for development but remaining on the developer carrier 3 passes through the sealant 8 in the developer container 2. Then, the above-described supply roller 4 separates the remaining toner t after development from the surface of the developer carrier 3 and supplies new toner t to the developer carrier 3. .

  When the toner t in the developer accommodating portion 2 of the developing device 1 is reduced by performing the development as described above, the toner t accommodated in the toner accommodating tank 21 by the toner replenishing device 20 as described above. Is supplied to the first transport unit 11 in the developer storage unit 2 through the toner supply port 22 and the opening 5.

  Here, in this embodiment, the toner t is circulated in the developer accommodating unit 2 by rotating the conveying members 13 and 14 provided in the first conveying unit 11 and the second conveying unit 12. The feeding speed of the toner t in the second conveying section 12 that sends the toner t to the supply roller 4 is made faster than the feeding speed of the toner t in the first conveying section 11 where the toner t is replenished from the replenishing device 20. In this case, the amount of toner t guided from the second transport unit 12 to the first transport unit 11 is larger than the amount of toner t guided from the first transport unit 11 to the second transport unit 12, and the first The amount of toner t in one transport unit 11 increases.

  Further, in the toner replenishing device 20 in this embodiment, the notch 23b is formed in the stirring blade 23a of the stirring member 23 at the position corresponding to the toner supplying port 22 as described above, and the conveying member 24 described above. In addition, the conveying blade 24b is not provided on the outer periphery of the rotation shaft 24a of the toner, and the toner t accommodated in the toner accommodating tank 21 on the conveying member 24 above the toner replenishing port 22 is added to the toner replenishing port 22. Since the restraining member 25 for restraining the fall is provided, the force for forcibly supplying the toner t to the first transport unit 11 through the toner supply port 22 is weakened.

  As described above, when the amount of toner t in the first transport unit 11 increases and the first transport unit 11 becomes full of toner t, the toner t is supplied to the first transport unit 11 through the toner supply port 22. Instead, the toner t guided to the toner replenishing port 22 is returned to the toner storage tank 21 of the toner replenishing device 20 through the notch 23b provided in the stirring blade 23a.

  For this reason, the toner t is excessively supplied into the developing device 1 to prevent the toner t from aggregating and solidifying in the developing device 1, and the toner t is deteriorated or the toner t is clogged in the developing device 1. The development device 1 can stably perform appropriate development.

  In the toner supply device 20 in this embodiment, a notch 23b having a width corresponding to the width of the toner supply port 22 is formed in the stirring blade 23a of the stirring member 23 at a position corresponding to the toner supply port 22. The conveying blade 24b is not provided on the outer periphery of the rotation shaft 24a of the conveying member 24. However, when the amount of toner t to be replenished into the developing device 1 through the toner replenishing port 22 is increased, for example, as shown in FIG. As described above, at the position corresponding to the toner replenishing port 22, the notch 23b is provided so that the stirring blade 23a of the stirring member 23 has a comb-tooth shape, or as shown in FIG. In the position corresponding to the above, a plurality of protrusions 24c are formed without providing the conveying blade 24b on the outer periphery of the rotation shaft 24a of the conveying member 24 described above. It is possible to kick way.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a toner replenishing device is set in a developing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing a state of a toner supply port portion in the toner supply device used in the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a schematic front view showing a state in which a notch is provided in a stirring blade of a stirring member that stirs toner stored in a toner storage tank in the toner replenishing device used in the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing a state in which a change example of a stirring member that stirs toner stored in a toner storage tank is used in the toner supply device used in the embodiment. 6 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing a state in which a modified example of a conveying member that guides toner stored in a toner storage tank to a toner supply port is used in the toner supply device used in the embodiment. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Developing apparatus 2 Developer accommodating part 3 Developer carrier 4 Supply roller 5 Opening part 6 Partition 7 Restriction member 8 Sealing material 11 1st conveyance part 12 2nd conveyance part 13,14 Conveyance member 13a, 14a Rotating shaft 13b, 14b Conveying blade 20 Toner replenishing device 21 Toner storage tank 22 Toner replenishing port 23 Stirring member 23a Stirring blade 23b Notch 24 Conveying member 24a Rotating shaft 24b Conveying blade 24c Protrusion 25 Inhibiting member t Toner P Image carrier

Claims (4)

  In a toner replenishing device that replenishes toner accommodated in a toner accommodating tank into a developing device through a toner replenishing port, a stirring member provided with a stirring blade is rotated to stir the toner accommodated in the toner accommodating tank. Stirring means and transport means for rotating the transport member provided with transport vanes on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft to guide the toner to the toner replenishing port are provided, and the stirrer is provided at a position corresponding to the toner replenishing port. A toner having a notch provided in the stirring blade in the member and a conveying member in the conveying member is eliminated, and a deterring member is provided above the toner replenishing port to prevent the toner from dropping into the toner replenishing port. Replenishment device.   In a developing device that conducts development by supplying a developer contained in a developer container to an image carrier by a developer carrier and supplying toner to a latent image portion formed on the image carrier, the developer container is provided in the developer container. A developing device comprising the toner replenishing device according to claim 1 as a toner replenishing device for replenishing toner.   The developing device according to claim 2, wherein the developer accommodated in the developer accommodating portion is a one-component developing type developing device in which toner is used.   4. The developing device according to claim 3, further comprising a first transport unit and a second transport unit that circulate while mixing the toner replenished from the toner replenishing device with the toner stored in the developer storage unit. A developing device characterized in that the toner feeding speed in the first conveying unit to which toner is replenished from the replenishing device is slower than the toner feeding rate in the second conveying unit for supplying the toner to the developer carrier. .

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