JP2007140245A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus equipped with a toner conveying mechanism which is so configured that a flaw etc., on an inner peripheral surface of a toner conveying pipe member can be confirmed and reduces noise and vibrations generated as a conveying member rubs the inner peripheral surface of the toner conveying pipe member. <P>SOLUTION: The toner conveying pipe member 21 comprises two semicylindrical members 24 and 25; the semicylindrical member 24 has a plurality of engagement claws 26 and the other semicylindrical member 25 is provided with an engagement part 27 at a position corresponding to the engagement claws 26. The toner conveying pipe member 21 is assembled by engaging those engagement claws 26 and engagement part 27 with each other. Further, a buffer material 28 made of sponge etc., is sandwitched between an abutting edge part 24a and an abutting edge part 25a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus equipped with a toner conveying mechanism that conveys residual toner on a photosensitive drum removed by an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine and a printer using an electrophotographic process to a toner collecting unit. It relates to the device.

  In an image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic process, an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive drum is developed into a toner image, and this toner image is transferred onto a recording paper to form an image. At the time of transfer, some toner remains on the photosensitive drum without being transferred to the transfer member. Since such transfer residual toner has an adverse effect on the next image formation, it is removed and collected from the photosensitive drum by a cleaning device equipped with a cleaning blade or the like.

  The transfer residual toner collected from the photosensitive drum by the cleaning device is then transported to a toner recovery container provided at a lower position of the image forming apparatus by the toner transport mechanism and stored in the toner recovery container. It is like. Here, the toner transport mechanism is generally composed of a toner transport pipe member formed of an elongated resin or the like, and a transport member formed of a metal coil or the like rotatably disposed inside the toner transport pipe member. The transfer residual toner is conveyed through the toner conveyance pipe member by rotating the conveyance member by a motor or the like.

In the toner transport mechanism configured as described above, when the transport member disposed inside the toner transport pipe member is driven to rotate, the transport member scrapes the inner peripheral surface of the toner transport pipe member. At this time, if there is a scratch or the like on the inner peripheral surface of the toner transport pipe member, a very large noise is generated due to vibration or the like caused by the scratch or the like. Therefore, Patent Document 1 proposes a method of reducing the generated noise by absorbing the vibrations and the like causing such noise by forming the toner conveying pipe member with synthetic rubber.
JP 2002-14587 A

  However, in the toner transport pipe member formed of synthetic rubber described in Patent Document 1, if the hardness of the synthetic rubber forming the toner transport pipe member is too large, the noise suppression effect is insufficient and the toner transport pipe member is It becomes difficult to mold into the required shape, and if the hardness of the synthetic rubber is too small, the shape maintainability becomes too low due to the weight of the toner transport pipe member, the internal transport member and the weight of the transfer residual toner. Due to deformation, synthetic rubber having a hardness suitable as a material for the toner transport pipe member has been very limited. Further, since synthetic rubber is more expensive than ordinary synthetic resin, there is a problem that the cost of the toner transport pipe member becomes high.

  In the present invention, in view of the above-described circumstances, the toner transport pipe member is configured so that scratches on the inner peripheral surface of the toner transport pipe member can be easily confirmed before the toner transport pipe member is incorporated into the main body of the image forming apparatus. However, it is possible to prevent noise generated due to scratches on the inner peripheral surface, and the conveying member rubs the inner peripheral surface of the toner conveying pipe member. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus including a toner transport pipe member that can reduce vibration caused by the above.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a toner transport pipe member that connects a cleaning device and a toner collection container, and a transport member that is rotatably disposed inside the toner transport pipe member. In the image forming apparatus provided with the toner transport mechanism for transporting the transfer residual toner removed from the surface of the photosensitive drum by the toner collection container, the toner transport pipe member is composed of two semi-cylindrical members. It is a feature.

  According to the present invention, in the image forming apparatus, a plurality of fitting claws are formed on one of the semi-cylindrical members, and a fitting portion is formed on a position corresponding to the fitting claws on the other. It is characterized by.

  According to the present invention, in the image forming apparatus, a buffer material is sandwiched between the two semi-cylindrical members.

  According to the first configuration of the present invention, by configuring the toner transport pipe member from two semi-cylindrical members, it is possible to confirm the presence or absence of scratches on the inner peripheral surface before assembling the toner transport pipe member, Noise generated when there is such a scratch or the like can be prevented in advance.

  According to the second configuration of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus having the first configuration, the fitting claw is formed on one of the two semi-cylindrical members and the fitting portion is formed on the other, whereby the toner The transport pipe member can be easily assembled, and can be easily disassembled and maintained after assembly.

  According to the third configuration of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus having the first or second configuration, the transport member is disposed inside the toner transport pipe member by sandwiching the buffer material between the two semi-cylindrical members. The vibration generated by rubbing the peripheral surface can be absorbed and noise can be reduced. In addition, toner leakage from the gap between the two semi-cylindrical members can be prevented.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front sectional view for explaining the internal structure of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment is attached to an upper part of a rectangular parallelepiped apparatus main body 1 in which various devices for image formation described later are mounted. The document feeder 2 is provided.

  In the apparatus main body 1, a sheet feeding unit 3 disposed at a lower portion, a sheet conveying unit 4 disposed on the side and above the sheet feeding unit 3, and a sheet feeding unit 3 are disposed above the sheet feeding unit 3. The image forming unit 5, the fixing device 6 disposed on the discharge side of the image forming unit 5, and the image reading unit 7 disposed above the image forming unit 5 and the fixing device 6 are provided. Yes. The image forming unit 5 and the fixing device 6 are elongated in the width direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 1) perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction inside the apparatus main body 1, and in the upper part of the apparatus main body 1 in FIG. The image forming unit 5 and the fixing device 6 are arranged in this order from the right side along the conveyance direction (from right to left) of the recording paper P.

  The paper feeding unit 3 feeds a bundle of recording papers P stacked on the paper feeding cassette 3a one by one from the uppermost recording paper P to the paper transport unit 4 by rotating the paper feeding roller. It is. The sheet conveying unit 4 conveys the recording sheet P fed from the sheet feeding unit 3 to the image forming unit 5 by various pairs of conveying rollers 4 a, and further, image formation and fixing are performed in the image forming unit 5 and the fixing device 6. The formed recording paper P is discharged to the paper discharge tray 8 through a pair of conveying rollers 4 a provided on the downstream side of the fixing device 6.

  The image reading unit 7 reads image information of a document. When reading each document by hand, the document reading device 2 is opened and a contact glass provided on the upper surface of the apparatus main body 1. When the original is placed on 7a and the original bundle is automatically read one by one, the original bundle is placed on the paper feed tray of the closed original transport apparatus 2. It has become. When the original bundle is placed on the paper feed tray, the originals one by one from the original bundle are automatically and sequentially sent onto the contact glass 7a. In either case, the original positioned on the contact glass 7a is irradiated with light from the exposure lamp, and the reflected light is guided to a photoelectric conversion unit including a CCD sensor or the like via a reflecting mirror.

  The image forming unit 5 is disposed below the image reading unit 7 and forms a predetermined toner image on the recording paper P by an electrophotographic process. The photoconductive material is rotatably supported by the shaft. And a charging device 10, an exposure device 11, a developing device 12, a transfer device 13, a cleaning device 14, and a charge removal device 15 disposed around the photosensitive drum 9 in the rotation direction. I have.

  The fixing device 6 is disposed downstream of the image forming unit 5 in the sheet conveying direction, and the recording sheet P onto which the toner image has been transferred in the image forming unit 5 is composed of a pair of heating rollers 16 and pressure rollers 17. The toner image on the recording paper P is fixed on the recording paper P by being sandwiched between the fixing rollers and heated.

  Hereinafter, a basic operation of the apparatus main body 1 configured as described above will be described. First, the surface of the photosensitive drum 9 rotating in the clockwise direction in FIG. 1 is uniformly charged by the charging device 10, and subsequently the exposure device 11 (laser device or the like) based on the image information read by the image reading unit 7. Is irradiated onto the surface of the photosensitive drum 9, whereby an electrostatic latent image is formed on the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 9. By supplying toner as a developer from the developing device 12 to the electrostatic latent image, a toner image is formed.

  Next, the recording paper P stored in the paper feeding unit 3 is conveyed in accordance with the toner image formation timing of the photosensitive drum 9 through the paper conveying unit 4, and is here photosensitive by the transfer device 13 including a transfer roller. The toner image on the surface of the body drum 9 is transferred to the recording paper P. Then, the recording paper P onto which the toner image has been transferred is separated from the photosensitive drum 9, transported toward the fixing device 6, and the toner image is fixed by heat treatment by passing between the heating roller 16 and the pressure roller 17. Is done. The recording paper P that has passed through the fixing device 6 is discharged to the paper discharge tray 8 through the conveying roller pair 4a.

  After the transfer of the toner image onto the recording paper P is completed, the transfer drum remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 9 is removed by the cleaning device 14 in preparation for the next image formation. Then, the charge removal process for removing the residual charge is performed, and then, the charging process is performed again on the peripheral surface by the charging device 10.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, a transfer residual toner conveyance mechanism will be described. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cleaning device 14 (a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 1). FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a configuration of the apparatus main body 1 from the cleaning device 14 to the toner recovery container 22 through the toner transport pipe member 21, and FIG. 3A is a front perspective view of the apparatus main body 1. (B) is a side perspective view from the direction shown by arrow B in FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state where the toner transport pipe member 21 is disassembled.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning device 14 includes a cleaning blade 18 disposed in the housing 14a so as to be in line contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 9, and a spiral rotatably supported in the housing 14a. 19, the spiral 19 is composed of a support shaft 19a and a spiral wing 19b provided around the support shaft 19a, and the front end of the support shaft 19a of the spiral 19 projects through the housing 14a. The protruding end portion is connected to a driving means (not shown). A discharge hole 14b is formed in the back end surface of the housing 14a at a position corresponding to the back end of the spiral 19.

  In the rear direction of the cleaning device 14, a rectangular parallelepiped connecting member 20 is arranged so as to be adjacent to each other. The contact surface of the connecting member 20 with the housing 14a is provided with an introduction hole 20a at a position corresponding to the discharge hole 14b. Further, the entire lower surface of the connecting member 20 is open, and the upstream end 21a of the toner transport pipe member 21 is fitted to the downstream end so that the cleaning device 14 is interposed via the connecting member 20. A toner transport pipe member 21 is connected to the printer.

  Here, a shutter member (not shown) is disposed at the fitting portion between the connecting member 20 and the toner conveying pipe member 21, and the toner conveying pipe member 21 is fitted to the downstream end portion of the connecting member 20. When the toner transport pipe member 21 is fitted, the toner is closed, and when the toner transport pipe member 21 is not fitted, the transfer residual toner does not scatter into the apparatus main body 1. It is configured as follows.

  The toner conveying pipe member 21 is a cylindrical member curved in a substantially L shape, and its upstream end 21a is formed to have a rectangular cross section. As described above, the connecting member 20 is formed. It is fitted to the downstream end of the. The downstream end 21 b of the toner transport pipe member 21 is inserted into an opening provided near the upper surface of the toner recovery container 22 provided at a lower position on the back side of the apparatus main body 1. In addition, a conveying member 23 made of a metal coil or the like is rotatably disposed inside the toner conveying pipe member 21, and an upstream end 23 a of the conveying member 23 penetrates the upper surface of the connecting member 20. It protrudes, and a driving means (not shown) is connected to the upstream end 23a.

  Further, the toner transport pipe member 21 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. The toner conveying pipe member 21 is composed of two semi-cylindrical members 24 and 25 as shown in FIG. 4, and contact edge portions 24a and 25a are provided at both end portions of the semi-cylindrical members 24 and 25, respectively. Is integrally molded. One semi-cylindrical member 24 is formed with a plurality of fitting claws 26, and the other half-cylindrical member 25 is provided with a fitting portion 27 at a position corresponding to the fitting claws 26. The toner conveying pipe member 21 can be assembled by fitting the mating claw 26 and the fitting portion 27. Further, at the time of assembly, the gap between the abutting edge portion 24a and the abutting edge portion 25a is obtained. A cushioning material 28 made of sponge or the like is sandwiched.

  The operation of the toner transport mechanism configured as described above will be described. The transfer residual toner scraped off from the surface of the photosensitive drum 9 by the cleaning blade 18 is accumulated in the housing 14 a of the cleaning device 14. When the spiral 19 is driven to rotate, the transfer residual toner is conveyed to the rear end side of the housing 14a, is discharged from the discharge hole 14b provided in the housing 14a, passes through the introduction hole 20a, and enters the connecting member 20. Be transported.

  The untransferred toner conveyed to the connecting member 20 falls to the lower part of the connecting member 20 due to gravity. As described above, when the toner transport pipe member 21 is fitted, a shutter member (not shown) is opened, and the untransferred toner falls onto the toner transport pipe member 21. The untransferred toner dropped into the toner transport pipe member 21 is transported in the downstream direction when the transport member 23 is driven to rotate, and is discharged from the downstream portion 21b and stored in the toner recovery container 22.

  At this time, if the conveying member 23 scrapes the inner peripheral surface of the toner conveying pipe member 21 and the inner peripheral surface of the toner conveying pipe member 21 has a scratch or the like, a very large noise is caused by vibration or the like caused by the scratch or the like. However, since the toner transport pipe member 21 is composed of the two semi-cylindrical members 24 and 25 as described above, the inner peripheral surface can be confirmed before the toner transport pipe member 21 is assembled. If there is a scratch or the like, it is possible to prevent noise caused by a scratch on the inner peripheral surface by replacing it with a scratch-free one.

  Even if there is no scratch or the like, the conveying member 23 rubs the inner peripheral surface of the toner conveying pipe member 21 to cause slight vibration and noise, but the buffer sandwiched between the two semi-cylindrical members 24 and 25. The noise generated by absorbing this vibration can be reduced by the buffering action of the material 28. Further, the buffer material 28 can prevent the transfer residual toner from leaking from the gap between the two semi-cylindrical members 24 and 25.

  As described above, since the toner transport pipe member is assembled from two semi-cylindrical members, scratches on the inner peripheral surface can be confirmed before assembly, and noise caused by such scratches can be prevented. In addition, the toner transport pipe member can be disassembled and maintained even after being incorporated into the apparatus main body.

  The size and shape of the toner conveying pipe member 21 can be appropriately changed according to the position, size and shape of the cleaning device 14 and the toner collection container 22, and the material is resin, synthetic rubber or the like. can do. In addition, a material having a buffering action such as sponge and synthetic rubber can be used for the buffer material 28.

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus equipped with a toner conveying mechanism that conveys residual toner on a photosensitive drum removed by an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine and a printer using an electrophotographic process to a toner collecting unit. Can be used in the device.

These are front sectional views showing the internal structure of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the cleaning device (a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1). FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a toner conveying mechanism, where (a) is a front perspective view of the apparatus main body, and (b) is a side perspective view from a direction indicated by an arrow B in FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state where a toner transport pipe member is disassembled.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 14 Cleaning apparatus 14a Housing 14b Ejection hole 15 Static elimination apparatus 18 Cleaning blade 19 Spiral 19a Support shaft 19b Spiral blade 20 Connecting member 20a Introduction hole 21 Toner conveyance pipe member 21a Upstream side end 21b Downstream side end 22 Toner collection container 23 Conveyance member 23a Upstream end portion 24, 25 Semi-cylindrical member 24a, 25a Contact edge portion 26 Fitting claw 27 Fitting portion 28 Buffer material

Claims (3)

A toner transport pipe member linking the cleaning device and the toner recovery container; and a transport member rotatably disposed inside the toner transport pipe member. The transfer residue removed from the surface of the photosensitive drum by the cleaning device. In an image forming apparatus provided with a toner transport mechanism for transporting toner to the toner recovery container,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the toner conveying pipe member is composed of two semi-cylindrical members.   The image according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of fitting claws are formed on one of the semi-cylindrical members, and a fitting portion is formed on the other side at a position corresponding to the fitting claws. Forming equipment.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a buffer material is sandwiched between the two semi-cylindrical members.

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