JP2009122604A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To miniaturize the whole apparatus in a height direction, without hindering the configuration of existing in the upper part of each developer storage unit than when each developer storage unit is arranged side by side in the same direction as the inclination direction of a transfer belt. <P>SOLUTION: Toner cartridges 55M and 55C are provided in an area lower than the extension l of a straight line connecting the center OK of the housing space of the toner cartridge 55K and the center OC of the cross-section of the housing space of the toner cartridge 55C adjacent to the toner cartridge 55K, as shown in Fig.(a), so that a free space SP is formed in the upper area of an intermediate transfer body unit 80 and in a position at least occupying the lower area of the toner cartridge 55C. In the free space SP, a high voltage power supply section 78 being a power feeding means is provided so that the whole apparatus is miniaturized in the height direction than when the high voltage power supply section 78 is installed around it or the like. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.

In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus for forming a color image, an intermediate transfer member such as an intermediate transfer belt is adopted, or the number of functions of the apparatus is increased, so that the entire apparatus becomes large. ing. Thus, for example, there is a device disclosed in Patent Document 1 as a device for downsizing the device. The image forming apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 is configured to incline the intermediate transfer belt with respect to the horizontal direction in order to reduce the size in the height direction, and to supply each image forming unit and these image forming units. A developer container called a toner cartridge for storing the toner is disposed so as to be inclined in the same direction as the inclination direction of the transfer belt.
JP 2006-30241 A

In the technique described in Patent Document 1, since the intermediate transfer belt, the image forming unit group, or the developer container group becomes larger in the height direction, for example, when a configuration such as a scanner is provided on the upper portion of the apparatus, However, there is a problem that the paper discharge space of the scanner has to be reduced, or that the operability is deteriorated by increasing the size of the apparatus main body in the height direction.
In the present invention, compared to the case where the developer containers are arranged in the same direction as the inclination direction of the intermediate transfer member, the configuration above the developer containers is not obstructed, and the entire apparatus is It aims at miniaturization in the height direction.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention includes a plurality of developer containers each having a storage space for storing a developer of a different color and arranged in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the storage space. The latent image is developed using an intermediate transfer member disposed below the plurality of developer containers in an inclined state with respect to a horizontal direction and a developer respectively supplied from the plurality of developer containers. And a plurality of image forming means for transferring the developed image to the intermediate transfer member, arranged in a line below the plurality of developer containers, and arranged on one end side of the line. A plurality of image forming means arranged in an inclined state with respect to the horizontal direction so that the image forming means disposed at the other end side is high and the image forming means disposed at the one end side. A first developer container for supplying developer to the means; Next to the first developer container among the plurality of second developer containers that supply the developer to the image forming means other than the image forming means. When the center of the vertical cross section of the storage space of a certain second developer container is connected with a straight line, the other than the adjacent second developer container below the straight line extension line. An image forming apparatus is provided in which a center of a vertical section of a storage space of a second developer container is located.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the image forming apparatus is disposed at least in a region above the intermediate transfer member and below the second developer container adjacent to the first developer container. You may make it provide the electric power feeding means which supplies the electric power for transfer of the development image by an image forming means.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the intermediate transfer member and a plurality of power receiving terminals arranged in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the housing space, the longitudinal direction of the housing space of the developer container, The intermediate transfer unit that is attached to and detached from the apparatus by being moved along the orthogonal direction, and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the storage space of the developer container below the plurality of developer containers. A plurality of power supply terminals that are arranged in a direction and supply power for driving the plurality of drive means included in the intermediate transfer body unit, and each of the plurality of power reception terminals and the plurality of power supply terminals is the intermediate The transfer unit may be provided at a position where it rubs against each other when it is attached to and detached from the apparatus.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the area of the cross section when the accommodation space included in the first developer container is cut in the vertical direction is equal to the storage space included in the plurality of second developer containers. It may be larger than any of the cross-sectional areas.

  According to the present invention, compared to the case where the developer containers are arranged side by side in the same direction as the inclination direction of the intermediate transfer body, the configuration above the developer containers is not obstructed, and the apparatus The whole can be downsized in the height direction.

(A) Overall Configuration and Operation of Image Forming Apparatus FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. It is the figure which expanded the component part which performs image formation especially among these. First, an overall configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 and an outline of its operation will be described mainly with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, on the upper part of the image forming apparatus 1, an automatic document conveying device 3 that separates and conveys documents 2 one by one, and an image of the document 2 conveyed by the automatic document conveying device 3 is read. A document reading device 4 is provided. The document reader 4 irradiates the document 2 placed on the platen glass 5 with light from the light source 6, and reflects the reflected light image from the document 2 into the full-rate mirror 7, the half-rate mirrors 8 and 9, and the imaging lens 10. Is received on an image reading element 11 such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), and the reflected light image of the document 2 is received by the image reading element 11 at a predetermined dot density (for example, 16 dots / mm). mm). The reflected light image read by the document reading device 4 is supplied to the image processing device 12 as document reflectance data of three colors, for example, red (R), green (G), and blue (B) (each 8 bits). Is done. The image processing apparatus 12 performs predetermined image processing such as shading correction, position shift correction, brightness / color space conversion, gamma correction, frame deletion, and color / movement editing on these document reflectance data. The image processing apparatus 12 also performs the above-described image processing on image data sent from a personal computer (not shown) or the like. The image processing device 12 converts the image data that has undergone such image processing into 8-bit gradation data for each of four colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K). The image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K corresponding to these colors are supplied. In the description of the present embodiment and the drawings, the configurations with reference numerals including the characters “Y”, “M”, “C”, and “K” are yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan, respectively. (C) means that the image formation is performed using the developer of each color of black (K).

  The image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K form an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the gradation data supplied from the image processing device 12, and develop the toner image with a developer to transfer the toner image to an intermediate transfer The images are transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 81 as a body in a superimposed manner. The recording paper 28 as a recording medium is transported from any one of the paper feed trays 40 to 43 disposed inside the image forming apparatus 1 by a paper feed roller 44 and a pair of rollers 45 and 46 for paper separation and transport. 49 and the paper transport path 47 are once transported to the registration roll 48 and stopped there. Then, the recording paper 28 is sent to a transfer position by the intermediate transfer belt 81 by a registration roll 48 that rotates at a predetermined timing. The secondary transfer roll 27 is a secondary transfer unit that transfers the toner image transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 81 to the recording paper 28, and comes into contact with the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 81 stretched by the backup roll 23. Is arranged. The toner images of the respective colors transferred on the intermediate transfer belt 81 are transferred onto the recording paper 28 by the action of the pressing force and electrostatic force of the secondary transfer roll 27 that is in pressure contact with the backup roll 23.

  The recording paper 28 onto which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed to a fixing device 29, subjected to a fixing process by heat and pressure by the fixing device 29, and then passed through an outlet roll 30 and a paper discharge path 31 of the fixing device 29. The paper is discharged onto the first discharge tray 33 by one discharge roll 32. The recording paper 28 may be discharged onto the second discharge tray 35 by the second discharge roll 34, or may be discharged onto the third discharge tray 37 by the third discharge roll 36. There is also. Further, in this image forming apparatus 1, when copying on both sides of the recording paper 28, the recording paper 28 with the toner image fixed on one side is moved in the direction of the first discharge tray 33 by the first discharge roll 32. Once fed out, while the first discharge roll 32 sandwiches the trailing edge of the recording paper 28, the conveying direction is switched by a switching gate (not shown), and the recording paper 28 is conveyed to the duplex conveying unit 50. The double-sided conveyance unit 50 conveys the recording paper 28 to the registration roll 48 again with the front and back sides of the recording paper 28 reversed by the conveyance roller pairs 52 to 54 provided along the conveyance path 51. After the toner image is transferred and fixed on the back surface of the recording paper 28, it is discharged to any one of the first discharge tray 33 to the third discharge tray 37. The manual feed tray 56 is illustrated in a folded state. The recording paper 28 placed on the manual feed tray 56 is conveyed to a registration roll 48 via a conveyance roll 60 by a paper feed roller 57 and a pair of rollers 58 and 59 for paper separation and conveyance.

  The surface of the photoconductive drum 15 after the toner image transfer process is completed is prepared for the next image forming process by removing residual toner, paper dust, and the like by a cleaning blade provided in the cleaning device 18. Yes. Further, residual toner, paper dust, and the like are removed from the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 81 after the toner image transfer process is completed by the cleaning blade 64 of the cleaning device 63 shown in FIG. 2 to prepare for the next image forming process. It is like that. The cleaning device 63 is detachable in the same direction as the longitudinal direction of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55 (direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIGS. 1 and 2).

(B) Configuration relating to image formation Next, a configuration for performing image formation will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
The image forming apparatus 1 employs a two-component development method using a developer containing toner and a carrier. The toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K as developer containers have storage spaces that store toners of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black, and correspond to these toners as necessary. The developing unit 17 of the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K is supplied. The accommodation spaces of the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K are substantially cylindrical, and the longitudinal direction thereof is a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIGS. Therefore, the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K are arranged side by side in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the storage space.

  Each of the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K is arranged in a line at a certain distance from the adjacent image forming unit below the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K. In each of the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K, the yellow image forming unit 13Y that is the first transfer order is positioned at the uppermost position in the vertical direction, and the black image forming unit 13K that is the last transfer order. It is arranged in a state of being inclined obliquely by a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal direction so as to be located at the lowest position in the vertical direction. That is, the image forming unit 13K disposed on one end side of the row is arranged in a state inclined with respect to the horizontal direction so that the image forming unit 13Y arranged on the other end side is high. Thus, by arranging the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K in a state inclined with respect to the horizontal direction, these four image forming units are compared with the case where these image forming units are arranged side by side in the horizontal direction. The horizontal length of the entire image forming unit can be shortened. As shown in FIG. 2, components such as a waste toner collection box 70, a control circuit 74, and a low-voltage power source 75 are arranged on the side of the intermediate transfer belt 81 (to the right in the drawing). These parts are factors that increase the width of the image forming apparatus 1. However, since the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K are arranged in an inclined state as described above so that the horizontal length thereof is as short as possible, these waste toner collection boxes 70, Even if the control circuit 74 and the low-voltage power source 75 are provided at the illustrated positions, the width of the image forming apparatus 1 does not have to be so large. In the following, the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K are referred to as “image forming unit 13”, and the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K are referred to as “toner cartridge 55”. is there.

These image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K all have a common configuration. Here, the image forming unit 13Y will be described as an example, and the description of the image forming units 13M, 13C, and 13K will be omitted because only the corresponding colors are different from those of the image forming unit 13Y.
As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming unit 13Y includes a photosensitive drum 15 as an image holding member that is rotationally driven by a driving unit such as a driving motor, and a charging member that uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 15. As the charging roll 16, the image exposure device 14 including an LED print head that exposes the surface of the photosensitive drum 15 to form an electrostatic latent image corresponding to yellow, and the electrostatic formed on the photosensitive drum 15. A developing unit 17 as developing means for developing the latent image with yellow toner, and a cleaning device 18 for cleaning the surface of the photosensitive drum 15 are provided. The photosensitive drum 15 has a drum shape with a diameter of 30 mm, for example, and has an overcoat layer as a protective layer on the surface thereof. The charging roll 16 is, for example, a roll formed by covering the surface of a metal core with a conductive layer made of a synthetic resin or rubber and having an adjusted electric resistance. As a roll-shaped cleaning member for removing foreign matters such as toner adhering to the surface of the charging roll 16, a cleaning roll 16 a is disposed at a position in contact with the surface of the charging roll 16. The image exposure device 14 emits LED light emitting elements arranged linearly at predetermined intervals (for example, intervals corresponding to 600 dots / inch), and each LED light emitting element of the LED light emitting element array. And a lens array that images the light on the photosensitive drum 15 in a spot shape. The image exposure device 14 emits light corresponding to yellow gradation data supplied from the image processing device 12 from the LED light emitting element array, exposes the surface of the photosensitive drum 15, and electrostatic latent image corresponding to yellow. Form an image. The electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 15 is developed as a yellow toner image by the developing unit 17.

  Inside the developing device housing 170 of the developing device 17 is housed a developer composed of yellow toner and a carrier supplied from the toner cartridge 55Y. A developing roll 171 as a developer holding member is provided in an opening of the developing device housing 170 on the photosensitive drum 15 side. The developing roll 171 includes a magnet roll that is fixed inside and a developing sleeve that is rotatably installed on the outer periphery of the magnet roll. Further, a supply auger 174 as a developer supply member for supplying the developer to the developing roll 171 while stirring the developer is provided obliquely to the lower right of the developing roll 171. The developer supplied to the developing roll 171 by the rotation of the supply auger 174 is adsorbed to the surface of the developing roll 171 by the magnetic attractive force of the magnet roll, and the layer thickness is not shown by a layer thickness regulating member (not shown). After being regulated, the sheet is conveyed to a developing area facing the photosensitive drum 15. Further, a stirring auger 176 as a developer stirring member is provided at the lower right of the supply auger 174. A supply port for supplying yellow toner supplied from the toner cartridge 55Y is provided at a position above the supply auger 174 of the developing device housing 170.

  The toner images of the respective colors developed as described above are transferred from the photosensitive drums 15 of the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K to the toner cut ridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, by the action of the primary transfer roll 21. Transfer is performed so as to be superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 81 below 55K. The intermediate transfer belt 81 is formed into an endless belt shape by forming a synthetic resin film such as PET having flexibility in a belt shape and connecting both ends of the synthetic resin film formed in the belt shape by means such as welding. Formed. At this time, the toner images of the respective colors sequentially transferred by the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K are transferred in the order of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black.

  The structure on the left side of the intermediate transfer body unit 80 such as the double-sided conveyance unit 50, the manual feed tray 56, the secondary transfer roll 27, and the resist roll 48 described above is partially or integrally formed. It can be moved to the middle left. Specifically, the manual feed tray 56 can be rotated to the lower left with the vicinity of the paper feed roller 57 as the center, and a cover that covers the left side of the duplex conveying unit 50 and that constitutes the housing of the apparatus. A configuration is conceivable in which the double-sided conveyance unit 50, the secondary transfer roll 27, the resist roll 48, and the like can be pulled out together to the left. When these configurations are moved to the left in the figure, the left side portion of the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is open to the outside of the apparatus. At the time of maintenance, the service person can remove the intermediate transfer body unit 80 from the image forming apparatus 1 by pulling out the intermediate transfer body unit 80 in the direction of arrow C in the drawing, that is, in the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55. As described above, the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is detachable from the image forming apparatus 1.

  In the region above the intermediate transfer belt 81 and the region below the toner cartridges 55C and 55M, a high voltage power supply unit 78 is installed. The high-voltage power supply unit 78 is a power supply unit that supplies power for driving each unit in the image forming apparatus 1. For example, the image forming unit 13 supplies power for executing an image forming process. Power is supplied to the primary transfer roll 21 for transferring the toner image by the image unit 13 to the intermediate transfer belt 81. When power is supplied from an external commercial power supply via a power cord (not shown) provided in the image forming apparatus 1, the high voltage power supply unit 78 supplies power to each unit in the apparatus.

(C) Mutual Position Relationship of Each Toner Cartridge 55 Next, the mutual positional relationship of each toner cartridge 55 will be described.
In the image forming apparatus 1, since the use frequency of the black toner is generally high, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the toner cartridge 55K containing the black toner is replaced with the other color toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, and 55C. It is formed in a large size compared with. That is, the sectional area when the accommodation space of the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, and 55C (second developer container) is cut in the vertical direction is small, and the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55K (first developer container). The area of the cross-section when cutting in the vertical direction is large. Hereinafter, this cross section is referred to as a cross section of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55.

Here, FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating the mutual positional relationship of the toner cartridges 55 in the image forming apparatus 1, and FIG. 3B has a configuration equivalent to that of the image forming apparatus 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a mutual positional relationship between toner cartridges 55 when there is no toner cartridge.
As shown in FIG. 3A, the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, and 55C are arranged in a substantially horizontal direction, and only the toner cartridge 55K is disposed below the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, and 55C. For this reason, when the center OK of the vertical section of the storage space of the toner cartridge 55K and the center point OC of the vertical section of the storage space of the adjacent toner cartridge 55C are connected by a straight line, The centers OM and OY of the vertical section of the accommodation space of the toner cartridges 13M and 13Y are positioned below the straight extension line l. That is, when the centers of the cross-sections of the adjacent toner cartridges 55 are connected by straight lines, these straight lines have an upward convex bent shape as shown in the figure. By forming such an upwardly convex bent shape, an empty area SP is formed in an area above the intermediate transfer belt 81 and below the toner cartridges 55M and 55C. In the image forming apparatus 1, the above-described high-voltage power supply unit 78 is installed in the empty area SP.

  On the other hand, FIG. 3B shows the lower side running side area 81a of the intermediate transfer belt 81 (that is, the belt surface area to which the toner image is transferred by the image forming unit 13), and the center OY of the cross section of each storage space. In the example, the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K are arranged in a straight line so that the straight line connecting OM, OC, and OK is parallel to each other. Here, it is assumed that the inclination direction of the lower side running side region 81a and the toner cartridge 55 is parallel to the extension line l in FIG. When the toner cartridges 55 are in such a positional relationship, the toner cartridges 55 are enlarged in the height direction (vertical direction) by an amount corresponding to the height H shown in FIG. As a result, this leads to an increase in the size of the entire apparatus in the height direction. Further, in the case of the configuration shown in FIG. 7B, since the empty area SP as shown in FIG. 5A is not formed below the toner cartridge 55 and above the intermediate transfer belt 81, the image forming apparatus 1 described above. In the same manner as described above, the high voltage power supply 78 cannot be installed in the empty area SP. In this case, for example, the high-voltage power supply unit 78 must be arranged at another position, and as a result, the entire apparatus is further increased in size in the height direction (vertical direction).

  In particular, since the first discharge tray 33 is provided in the vicinity immediately above the toner cartridge 55, when the toner cartridges 55 are arranged in a straight line, the position of the first discharge tray 33 is also moved upward. I must. The position of the first discharge tray 33 is preferably at a position where an operator can easily take recording paper. If the position of the first discharge tray 33 is changed unnecessarily, a problem occurs in the operability of the image forming apparatus 1. There is a fear. On the other hand, if the position of the first discharge tray 33 is not changed, there arises a disadvantage that the discharge space of the first discharge tray 33 is reduced. In the paper discharge space, a post-processing device that realizes a function of binding with staples and a paper supply path to the post-processing device can be installed. Therefore, when the post-processing device is installed, the discharged paper is taken out. The operability at that time is further deteriorated, and it may be necessary to separately manufacture a post-processing device corresponding to the size of the paper discharge space. On the other hand, according to the configuration of FIG. 3A, these problems can be solved.

(D) Configuration of Intermediate Transfer Member Unit 80 Next, the configuration of the intermediate transfer member unit 80 will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the intermediate transfer body unit 80.
The intermediate transfer body unit 80 includes an intermediate transfer belt 81, a driving roller 82, a plurality of power receiving terminals 831 to 836 (hereinafter collectively referred to as a power receiving terminal 83), an insertion hole 84, and a rotation shaft of the driving roller 82. And a supporting case 85. The plurality of drive rollers 82 are a generic term for the drive roll 22, the backup roll 23, the tension roll 24, the first idler roll 25, and the second idler roll 26 described above. The intermediate transfer belt 81 is wound around these drive rollers 82 with a certain tension, and comes into contact with the photosensitive drums 15Y, 15M, 15C, and 15K of the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K. Is arranged. The intermediate transfer belt 81 is rotated at a predetermined speed in the direction of arrow A by a drive roll 22 that is rotated by driving means such as a driving motor (not shown).

  The power receiving terminal 83 is a plate-like metal terminal that receives power for driving the plurality of driving rollers 82 from the outside. In the figure, in order to clearly indicate the position of the power receiving terminal 83, the thickness is expressed larger than the actual thickness. These power receiving terminals 83 are provided on the upper surface of the case portion 85 in the vicinity of one end portion of the driving roller 82 in the axial direction. These power receiving terminals 831 to 836 are provided so as to be parallel to the moving direction (direction of arrow A) of the intermediate transfer belt 81 at equal intervals. This arrow A direction is a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55. When power is supplied to the power receiving terminals 831 to 836, the driving roller 82 is rotated by driving a driving mechanism (not shown), and the intermediate transfer belt 81 is moved in the arrow A direction.

Next, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state when the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is mounted on the image forming apparatus 1. In the figure, two axes orthogonal to each other are defined as x, y, and z axes, respectively. The y-axis direction is the same direction as the longitudinal direction of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55, and the x-axis direction is a direction orthogonal to the y-axis in the horizontal direction. The z-axis direction is orthogonal to the x-axis and y-axis directions and corresponds to the height direction of the apparatus.
As shown in FIG. 5, the support member 90 fixed to the image forming apparatus 1 side has a base portion 90c parallel to the y-axis and support portions 90a and 90b extending in the x-axis direction from both ends of the base portion 90c. When viewed from the vertical direction, it is substantially “U” -shaped. The distance between the support part 90a and the support part 90b is substantially the same as the width (the length in the y-axis direction) of the intermediate transfer body unit 80. In addition, rails extending in the x-axis direction are provided on the opposite sides of the support portion 90a and the support portion 90b. The width (vertical length) of the rail substantially matches the thickness (vertical length) of the intermediate transfer body unit 80. When mounting the intermediate transfer member unit 80 to the image forming apparatus 1, the service person may insert the intermediate transfer member unit 80 between the support portions 90a and 90b in accordance with the guide of the rails of the support portions 90a and 90b.

  The rail of the support portion 90a is provided with a plurality of power supply terminals 911 to 916 (hereinafter collectively referred to as power supply terminals 91) which are plate-like metal terminals. The power supply terminal 91 is electrically connected to the high voltage power supply unit 78 via a power supply line (not shown). In the figure, in order to clearly indicate the position of the power supply terminal 91, the thickness thereof is expressed larger than the actual one as in the case of the power reception terminal 83.

  Here, FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the intermediate transfer body unit 80 and the support member 90 are viewed from above in the vertical direction. As shown in the figure, the power receiving terminals 831 to 836 each have a rectangular shape with a length of L1 in the x-axis direction and a length of L2 in the y-axis direction, and are provided with an equally spaced pitch Δ. . Further, the thickness (length in the z-axis direction) is the same for each of the power receiving terminals 831 to 836. Similarly, the power supply terminals 911 to 916 also have a rectangular shape with a length of L1 in the x-axis direction and a length of L2 in the y-axis direction, and the same length in the z-axis direction, with an equally spaced pitch Δ. Is provided. As described above, the power supply terminals 911 to 916 and the power receiving terminals 831 to 836 are arranged in a line at the same size and at the same interval along the x-axis direction, and the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is mounted. It is provided at a position where it touches each other. That is, when the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is mounted, the power supply terminal 911 and the power reception terminal 831 are in contact with each other, the power supply terminal 912 and the power reception terminal 832 are in contact with each other, the power supply terminal 913 and the power reception terminal 833 are in contact with each other, The power receiving terminal 834 is in contact, the power feeding terminal 915 and the power receiving terminal 835 are in contact, and the power feeding terminal 916 and the power receiving terminal 836 are in contact.

  As described above, the rail width (vertical length) of the support portions 90a and 90b substantially matches the thickness (vertical length) of the intermediate transfer member unit 80. When the transfer body unit 80 is to be inserted between the support portions 90a and 90b, the power supply terminal 91 and the power receiving terminal 83 rub against each other. At this time, for example, the power receiving terminal 836 sequentially rubs against the power feeding terminals 911, 912,... 916, and the power receiving terminal 835 adjacent to the power receiving terminals 911, 912,. Will rub against each other. Due to this rubbing, the power receiving terminal 83 and the power feeding terminal 91 are moderately rubbed to remove oxide film (rust) and dust on the surface of each terminal, so that a so-called self-cleaning effect can be expected. Therefore, a good electrical connection can always be maintained between the power receiving terminal 83 and the power feeding terminal 91 without performing maintenance on the power receiving terminal 83 and the power feeding terminal 91. Further, the self-cleaning effect based on the same principle can be expected when the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is removed.

  When the installation of the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is completed, the cover is closed by a service person, and when the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is fixed to the housing so as not to rotate with a predetermined fastening device, the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is in a state where this electrical connection is established. 80 is positioned. Subsequently, the cleaning device 63 is attached to the image forming apparatus 1 by a service person. As shown in FIG. 5, the cleaning device 63 is mounted in the y-axis direction, and the boss 66 provided on the cleaning device 63 is inserted into the insertion hole 84 of the intermediate transfer member unit 80 supported by the support member 90. It is inserted. In this state, the cleaning device 63 is positioned by closing a cover (not shown) rotatably provided on the housing of the image forming apparatus 1 and fixing the cover with a fastening tool. When the intermediate transfer body unit 80 and the cleaning device 63 are thus mounted, the image forming process by the image forming apparatus 1 as described above can be performed.

  According to the embodiment described above, the toner is located below the linear extension line l connecting the center OK of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55K and the center OC of the cross section of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55C adjacent thereto. By providing the cartridges 55M and 55C, an empty area SP is formed in an area above the intermediate transfer member unit 80 and at a position at least below the toner cartridge 55C. By providing the high-voltage power supply unit 78 in the empty area SP, the entire apparatus can be downsized in the height direction. Further, the intermediate transfer member unit 80 is detachable, and the contact portion can be cleaned by rubbing the power supply terminal 91 and the power receiving terminal 83 in the process of attachment and removal, so that maintenance is not performed. It is possible to maintain a good electrical connection.

(E) Modifications The above embodiment may be modified as follows. Specifically, the following modifications are mentioned, for example. These modifications can be appropriately combined with each other.
(E-1) Modification 1
In the embodiment described above, the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is detachable from the image forming apparatus 1, but this is not necessarily the case, and the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is fixed to the image forming apparatus 1. Also good.
In the embodiment, the entire high voltage power supply unit 78 is arranged in the empty area SP. However, when the high voltage power supply unit 78 is larger than the empty area SP, a part of the function of the high voltage power supply unit 78 is provided. You may move the structure which has to another location, for example, the downward direction of the image formation units 13Y and 13M. As can be seen from FIG. 2, since the image forming units 13Y, 13M, 13C, and 13K are inclined with respect to the horizontal direction, the lower portions of the image forming units 13Y and 13M are vacant. Is good. Further, all the high-voltage power supply units 78 may be installed in different locations, and only the power receiving terminal 83 and the power feeding terminal 91 may be arranged in the empty area SP. Even if such an arrangement is adopted, it is possible to contribute to downsizing of the apparatus in the height direction.

(E-2) Modification 2
In the above-described embodiment, the case where the cross section of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55K is larger than that of the other toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, and 55C has been described. However, these are all the same size. Also good. The empty area SP can be formed by adopting the positional relationship between the toner cartridges 55 as described in the embodiment regardless of the size of the cross section of the accommodation space.
In the embodiment, the case where the cross section of the accommodation space of the toner cartridges 55Y, 55M, 55C, and 55K is circular has been described. On the other hand, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, when the upper part of the cross section of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55 is linear and the lower part is U-shaped, the vertical direction of the accommodation space The center of gravity of the cross section may be regarded as the center of the cross section. That is, when the center of the vertical section of the housing space cannot be uniquely determined, the center of gravity of the section may be the center of the section.

(E-3) Modification 3
In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3A, the toner cartridges 55C, 55M, and 55Y are arranged in a substantially horizontal direction, but this is not necessarily the case. This is because the empty area SP can be formed as long as the center points of the toner cartridges 55M and 55Y are below the extension line l as described above. Therefore, as long as the empty area SP can be formed, the positional relationship between the toner cartridges 55C, 55M, and 55Y is not limited to that shown in FIG. What is necessary is just to determine the arrangement position of the toner cartridge 55 so as to form a vacant area SP having a minimum size necessary to accommodate the high-voltage power supply unit 78.

(E-4) Modification 4
In the embodiment, the high-voltage power supply unit 78 is disposed in the region above the intermediate transfer belt 81 (intermediate transfer member unit 80) and below the toner cartridges 55C and 55M. There is no need. In short, the high-voltage power supply unit 78 may be disposed at least in a region above the intermediate transfer belt 81 and below the toner cartridge 55C. As described above, when the center points of the toner cartridges 55M and 55Y are arranged below the extension line l, the empty area SP is surely generated in the area above the intermediate transfer belt 81 and the toner cartridge 55C. Because it is the area below.

(E-5) Modification 5
The number, position, size, and shape of the power receiving terminal 83 and the power feeding terminal 91 are not limited to the contents exemplified in the embodiment. In short, the power receiving terminal 83 and the power supply terminal 91 are arranged along the moving direction when the intermediate transfer body unit 80 is attached and detached (that is, the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the accommodation space of the toner cartridge 55). It suffices if the body unit 80 is provided at a position where the body unit 80 rubs against each other when being attached to or detached from the own device.

1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which expanded the part which performs image formation especially among the structures of an image forming apparatus. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a mutual positional relationship between toner cartridges in the image forming apparatus and a mutual positional relationship between toner cartridges when a configuration equivalent to that of the image forming apparatus is not provided. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of an intermediate transfer body unit. FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a state when the intermediate transfer body unit is mounted on the image forming apparatus. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state where an intermediate transfer body unit and a support member are viewed from above in the vertical direction. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a cross-sectional shape of a storage space of a toner cartridge according to a modification.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image forming apparatus 13, 13C, 13M, 13Y, 13Y ... Image forming unit, 14 ... Image exposure apparatus, 15 ... Photosensitive drum, 16 ... Charging roll, 16a ... Cleaning roll, 17 ... Developer, 33 ... No. 1 discharge tray, 35 ... second discharge tray, 37 ... third discharge tray, 55, 55C, 55K, 55M, 55Y ... toner cartridge, 63 ... cleaning device, 66 ... boss, 78 ... high voltage power supply unit, 80 ... Intermediate transfer member unit 81 ... Intermediate transfer belt 81a ... Lower side running region 82 ... Drive roller 83,831,832,833,834,835,836 ... Power receiving terminal 84 ... Insertion hole 85 ... Case portion , 90 ... support members, 90a, 90b ... support parts, 90c ... base parts, 91, 911, 912, 913, 914, 915, 916 ... power supply terminals.

Claims (4)

A plurality of developer containers each having a storage space for storing a developer of a different color and arranged in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the storage space;
An intermediate transfer member disposed below the plurality of developer containers and inclined with respect to a horizontal direction;
A plurality of image forming means for developing a latent image using a developer supplied from each of the plurality of developer containers, and transferring the developed image to the intermediate transfer member, the plurality of developer containers; In an inclined state with respect to the horizontal direction so that the image forming means arranged at one end of the row is low and the image forming means arranged at the other end is high. A plurality of arranged image forming means,
Supply the developer to the center of the vertical section of the accommodation space of the first developer container that supplies the developer to the image forming means disposed on the one end side, and to the image forming means other than the image forming means Among the plurality of second developer containers, when connecting a straight line with the center of the vertical section of the storage space of the second developer container adjacent to the first developer container, The center of the section in the vertical direction of the accommodation space of the second developer container other than the adjacent second developer container is located below the straight extension line. Image forming apparatus. Transfer of the developed image by the image forming means, at least in a region above the intermediate transfer member and below the second developer container adjacent to the first developer container. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a power feeding unit that performs power feeding for the camera. The intermediate transfer member and a plurality of power receiving terminals arranged in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the storage space, and are moved along a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the storage space of the developer container. An intermediate transfer body unit which is attached to and detached from the apparatus by
A plurality of power supply terminals arranged in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the storage space of the developer container below the plurality of developer containers,
The image according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of power receiving terminals and the plurality of power feeding terminals are provided at positions that rub against each other when the intermediate transfer body unit is attached to and detached from the apparatus. Forming equipment. The cross-sectional area when the accommodation space of the first developer container is cut in the vertical direction is larger than any of the cross-sectional areas of the accommodation spaces of the plurality of second developer containers. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.

Images