JP2010170020A - Cleaning device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cleaning device that prevents toner scattering due to flicking at the exit of a nip between a fur brush roller and a recovering roller, from being ejected to the outside. <P>SOLUTION: The cleaning device includes: a brush roller 111 for removing residual toner, which is disposed in contact with an intermediate transfer body 8 so that part of the roller 111 is exposed from the opening of a casing; a recovering roller 112 for recovering removed toner from the brush roller; a blade 113 for scraping off recovered toner; and a toner blocking member 120 which is disposed from a predetermined part of a plane to a predetermined part of the lower wall 116 of the inside of the casing, the plane extending from the contact part N of the brush roller with the recovering roller to the lower part of the brush roller, and used to block flowing out of the toner from the opening. The brush roller 111 rotates in the direction in which the lower part of the brush roller 111 moves toward the opening. The toner blocking member 120 has such a shape that the member 120 is gradually separated from the surface of the brush roller as it extends toward the opening from the part abutting on the brush roller. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a copying machine, and a facsimile, and a cleaning device used for the image forming apparatus.

  In recent years, a tandem type image forming apparatus in which four image forming units of magenta, yellow, cyan, and black are separately provided has been used. As described above, in the tandem type image forming apparatus in which the image forming unit is separately provided for each toner color, the image forming speed can be increased as compared with the case of the one-drum system.

  FIG. 9 is a partial configuration diagram of such a tandem full-color copying machine. In FIG. 9, a black image forming unit 301, a yellow image forming unit 302, a cyan image forming unit 303, and a magenta image forming unit 304 are provided. Each image forming unit includes photosensitive drums 301a, 302a, 303a, and 304a, and developing rollers 301b, 302b, 303b, and 304b that supply each photosensitive drum with positively charged toner of each color. Further, primary transfer rollers 311, 312, 313, and 314 that are charged to a negative charge at the time of primary transfer are arranged opposite to the respective photosensitive drums.

  An intermediate transfer belt 315 is provided between the photosensitive drum and the primary transfer roller. A secondary transfer roller 316 is provided near the downstream side of the black image forming unit 301 so as to press the intermediate transfer belt 315 with reference to the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 315 (see the arrow in the figure). The intermediate transfer belt 315 is rotated by a driving roller 317 disposed inside the intermediate transfer belt 315 so as to face the secondary transfer roller 316.

  In addition, a cleaning device 400 is provided in the vicinity of the upstream side of the magenta image forming unit 304 to remove the positively charged toner that is not transferred onto the sheet during the secondary transfer and remains on the intermediate transfer belt 315.

  FIG. 10 is an enlarged configuration diagram of the cleaning device 400 portion.

  The cleaning device 400 is provided with a negatively charged fur brush roller 401. The fur brush roller 401 has a brush of a certain length arranged on the outer periphery of the roller, and removes toner by rotating the brush in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 315.

  Further, a collection roller 402 for collecting the toner removed by the fur brush roller 401 is provided, and a rubber blade 403 for removing the toner from the surface of the collection roller 402 is disposed. Further, a transport spiral 405 for transporting the collected toner to a waste toner bottle (not shown) is disposed below the rubber blade 403. Note that since there is a housing that houses the image forming units 301 to 304 below the cleaning device 400, the transport spiral 405 cannot be disposed below the fur brush roller 401, as shown in FIG. The conveying spiral 405 is arranged in the horizontal direction of the fur brush roller 401.

  Further, a driven roller 319 is provided on the inner side of the intermediate transfer belt 315 so as to face the fur brush roller 401, and on the upstream side of the driven roller 319 and downstream of the driving roller 317, the intermediate transfer belt 315 is provided. A tension roller 320 for applying tension to the belt 315 is provided.

  In such an image forming apparatus, since the toner on the developing rollers 301b, 302b, 303b, and 304b is positively charged, the surface of the secondary transfer roller 316 has a surface when the toner image is transferred onto the paper. A voltage is applied so as to be negatively charged.

  The toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 315 without being transferred after the secondary transfer by the secondary transfer roller 316 is removed by physical contact with the fur brush roller 401 and electrostatic force.

JP 2002-278398 A

  However, the cleaning device 400 configured as shown in FIG. 10 has a problem that residual toner that could not be collected is ejected from the casing opening and reattached to the intermediate transfer belt 315 to cause image smearing.

  That is, when the amount of residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 315 is large, the cleaning device 400 configured as shown in FIG. 10 cannot collect the residual toner at the nip portion between the fur brush roller 401 and the collecting roller 402, and the fur brush roller The toner in the brush scatters at the exit of the nip due to the flickering of the bristle 401, and accumulates on the lower wall of the casing of the cleaning device 400. Then, the toner accumulated in the casing is ejected from the casing opening to the outside of the cleaning device 400 and is reattached to the intermediate transfer belt 315, and the smudged image is generated by the reattached toner.

  For example, in order to reduce the toner scattered by flicking at the exit of the nip portion between the fur brush roller 401 and the collecting roller 402, by optimizing the winding angle of the belt-like pile fabric, A cleaning device or the like having a structure in which the flicker is in a direction with less flickering has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1). However, although the toner scattered by flicking can be reduced by using the cleaning device described in Patent Document 1, the toner ejected from the casing opening cannot be suppressed.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning device and an image forming apparatus that prevent the toner scattered by flicking between the fur brush roller and the collection roller from being ejected to the outside in consideration of the problems of the conventional cleaning device.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the first aspect of the present invention provides:
A casing having an opening toward the surface of the image carrier or the intermediate transfer member;
A brush roller for removing residual toner, disposed in the casing so as to be partly exposed from the opening and in contact with the image carrier or the intermediate transfer member;
A collection roller disposed within the casing for collecting the removed toner from the brush roller;
A blade disposed in the casing and scraping off the toner collected by the collection roller;
A waste toner transport unit that is disposed in the casing and transports the toner scraped off by the blade to a waste toner recovery unit;
The brush roller is disposed from a predetermined portion of the surface of the brush roller from the contact portion to the lower portion thereof to a predetermined portion of the lower wall surface inside the casing, and prevents the toner from flowing out from the opening. A toner blocking member,
The brush roller rotates in a direction in which the lower part moves toward the opening,
The toner blocking member is a cleaning device having a shape that gradually separates from the surface of the brush roller as it goes from the portion in contact with the brush roller toward the opening.

The second aspect of the present invention
The toner blocking member is a sheet-like elastic member, one edge of which is fixed in the vicinity of the opening of the lower wall surface, and the other edge facing the one edge is The brush is fixed to the standing wall standing on the lower wall surface, the lower wall surface or the waste toner conveying portion, and at least a part of the central portion comes into contact with the surface of the brush roller, so that the brush is removed from the one edge portion. The cleaning device according to the first aspect of the present invention is curved along the surface of the roller and then curved in the opposite direction to reach the other edge.

The third aspect of the present invention
The toner blocking member is a cleaning device according to the second aspect of the present invention, which is conductive and grounded.

The fourth aspect of the present invention is
The toner blocking member is the cleaning device according to the second aspect of the present invention, wherein another part of the central portion is also in contact with the collecting roller.

The fifth aspect of the present invention provides
The toner blocking member is a raising member, and is a cleaning device according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein hair is planted on the lower wall surface facing the lower portion of the brush roller.

The sixth aspect of the present invention provides
The upper surface of the raising member is the cleaning device according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, which has a curved surface along the curved shape of the surface of the brush roller.

The seventh aspect of the present invention
The hair of the raising member is the cleaning device according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, wherein at least part of the hair near the opening is tilted toward the opening.

In addition, the eighth aspect of the present invention
The hair of the raising member is the cleaning device according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, which has conductivity and is grounded.

The ninth aspect of the present invention provides
The raising member is a cleaning device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention, wherein bristles are planted in a base cloth part, and a layer of a low rebound elastic body is formed on the base cloth part.

The tenth aspect of the present invention is
The brush roller is the cleaning device according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the bristle is planted in a base cloth, and a layer of a low rebound elastic body is formed on the base cloth.

The eleventh aspect of the present invention is
A photosensitive drum having a toner image formed on the surface;
A cleaning device of the first invention;
An image forming apparatus including a fixing unit that fixes a toner image transferred to a recording medium.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a cleaning device and an image forming apparatus that do not eject toner scattered by flicking between the fur brush roller and the collection roller to the outside.

Cross-sectional view of the configuration of the front surface of the copying machine according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention 1 is a configuration diagram in the vicinity of an intermediate transfer belt of a copying machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The expanded block diagram of the cleaning apparatus of the 1st structure in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The expanded block diagram of the cleaning apparatus of the 2nd structure in Embodiment 1 of this invention. (A) The expanded block diagram of the cleaning apparatus of the 3rd structure in Embodiment 1 of this invention, (b) Of the base fabric part of the fur brush roller of the cleaning apparatus of the 3rd structure in Embodiment 1 of this invention Enlarged view The expanded block diagram of the cleaning apparatus of the 1st structure in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The expanded block diagram of the cleaning apparatus of the 2nd structure in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The expanded block diagram of the cleaning apparatus of the 3rd structure in Embodiment 2 of this invention. Configuration diagram near the intermediate transfer belt of a conventional copier Expanded configuration diagram of the cleaning unit of a conventional copier

  Hereinafter, a copying machine as an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a structural sectional view of the front surface of a copying machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the copying machine 1 according to the first embodiment includes two sheet feeding cassettes 2 for storing sheets on which images are formed at the bottom. In addition, the copying machine 1 includes an image reading unit 3 that reads an image of a document with an exposure lamp, a lens, a mirror, and the like.

  The copying machine 1 according to the first embodiment is a color copying machine using a tandem method, and includes a black image forming unit 4, a yellow image forming unit 5, a cyan image forming unit 6 arranged in the horizontal direction, and A magenta image forming unit 7 is provided. An intermediate transfer belt 8 for superimposing images formed by these image forming units is disposed.

  Further, a secondary transfer roller 9 for transferring the toner image superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 8 onto a sheet, and a fixing unit 10 for fixing the transferred toner image on the sheet are provided. Further, a discharge tray 13 for discharging the paper on which the toner image is fixed is provided below the image reading unit 3. Note that the sheet on which the toner image is transferred corresponds to an example of the recording medium of the present invention.

  Next, the image forming unit will be described. Since the basic configurations of the four image forming units 4, 5, 6, and 7 are the same, the magenta image forming unit 7 will be described as an example.

  FIG. 2 is an enlarged configuration diagram in the vicinity of the intermediate transfer belt 8.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the magenta image forming unit 7 includes a photosensitive drum 70, a charger 71, a developing device 72, a cleaning unit 73, and the like. Further, a laser scanner unit (hereinafter referred to as an electrostatic latent image) that forms an electrostatic latent image by optically scanning the surface of each photosensitive drum charged by each charger of each of the four image forming units 4, 5, 6, 7. (Referred to as LSU) 12 is provided below the image forming unit. Further, a primary transfer roller 17 is disposed so as to face the photosensitive drum 70 with the intermediate transfer belt 8 interposed therebetween. The developing device 72 has a developing roller 75 disposed in contact with the photosensitive drum 70 in order to supply the toner to the surface of the photosensitive drum 70 with a positive polarity.

  Between the photosensitive drum 70 and the primary transfer roller 17, between the photosensitive drum 60 and the primary transfer roller 16, between the photosensitive drum 50 and the primary transfer roller 15, and between the photosensitive drum 40 and the primary transfer roller 14. The intermediate transfer belt 8 is wound around the primary transfer rollers 14, 15, 16, and 17 so as to pass therethrough. In order to primarily transfer the positively charged toner onto the intermediate transfer belt 8, a voltage is applied to the primary transfer rollers 14, 15, 16, and 17 so that the surface is negatively charged.

  The intermediate transfer belt 8 is an example of the intermediate transfer member of the present invention, and the photosensitive drums 40, 50, 60, and 70 are examples of the image carrier of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a secondary transfer roller 9 is disposed in the vicinity of the downstream side of the black image forming unit 4 with respect to the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 8 so as to press the intermediate transfer belt 8. A driving roller 21 is provided inside the intermediate transfer belt 8 so as to face the secondary transfer roller 9. The drive roller 21 is grounded.

  A cleaning device 11 for removing residual toner on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 8 is disposed in the vicinity of the upstream side of the magenta image forming unit 7. A driven roller 22 is provided inside the intermediate transfer belt 8 so as to face the cleaning device 11. Further, a tension roller 23 for applying tension to the intermediate transfer belt 8 is disposed upstream of the driven roller 22 and downstream of the drive roller 21.

  Next, the configuration of the cleaning device 11 having the first configuration according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of the cleaning device 11 having the first configuration according to the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cleaning device 11 is disposed in contact with the fur brush roller 111 disposed opposite to the driven roller 22 with the intermediate transfer belt 8 interposed therebetween, and the fur brush roller 111. A collecting roller 112 and a rubber blade 113 for removing toner on the collecting roller 112. A conveyance spiral 115 for conveying the collected toner to a waste toner bottle (not shown) is disposed below the rubber blade 113.

  On the inner surface of the casing, an upright wall 117 is provided so that the toner scraped off from the collection roller 112 by the blade 113 does not move from the waste toner conveyance portion where the conveyance spiral 115 is disposed to the opening side of the casing. . The elastic sheet 120 is bent along the surface of the fur brush roller 111 and then bent in the opposite direction, and is fixed to the vicinity of the opening of the lower wall 116 of the casing and the standing wall 117 by the holders 121 and 122. Yes. The elastic sheet 120 is shaped as shown in FIG. 3 by attaching the fur brush roller 111 after fixing the opposing edge portions with the holders 121 and 122, respectively. Holders 121 and 122 may be double-sided tape or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the fur brush roller 111 rotates so that its lower part moves in the direction of the opening of the casing, and the elastic sheet 120 moves from the portion in contact with the fur brush roller 111 toward the opening. The shape is gradually going away.

  The elastic sheet 120 is an example of the sheet-like elastic member of the present invention, and the portion in contact with the surface of the fur brush roller 111 is an example of a part of the central portion of the sheet-like elastic member of the present invention. It hits. Further, the fur brush roller 111 is an example of the brush roller of the present invention, and the casing portion in which the transport spiral 115 is disposed corresponds to an example of the waste toner transport unit of the present invention.

  One of the bearings of the collection roller 112 is conductive, and a voltage application unit (not shown) for supplying a voltage to the collection roller 112 through this bearing is provided.

  On the other hand, the bearing of the fur brush roller 111 is non-conductive, and the voltage applied to the recovery roller 112 can act as a cleaning voltage without loss. Since the toner supplied to the photosensitive drums 40, 50, 60, and 70 is positively charged, a voltage is applied to the recovery roller 112 so that the surface of the fur brush roller 111 is negatively charged. Note that the driven roller 22 disposed to face the fur brush roller 111 is grounded.

  The fur brush roller 111 is partially exposed from the opening of the casing of the cleaning device 11, and the brush hairs are in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 8. The fur brush roller 111 whose surface is negatively charged has the brush hairs in the middle. By rotating while contacting the transfer belt 8, residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 8 is removed by physical contact and electrostatic force. The toner removed by the fur brush roller 111 is collected by the collecting roller 112 at the nip portion N that contacts the rotating collecting roller 112, and the collected toner is scraped off by the blade 113, and the scraped toner is removed. Is conveyed to a waste toner bottle (not shown) by the conveying spiral 115.

  A specific example of the main configuration of the cleaning device 11 according to the first embodiment will be described below.

As such a fur brush roller 111, the material is nylon, the outer diameter is 17 mm, the bristle length is 4.5 mm, the fineness is 6D (denier), the yarn resistance is 11.5 (log Ω), and the brush density is 120 KF / Inch ² can be used. Further, as the collection roller 112, a material having an outer diameter of 13 mm formed of SUS can be used. Further, a current of −20 μA is passed through the collection roller 112 as a cleaning bias.

  Next, the cleaning operation in the cleaning device 11 having the first configuration according to the first embodiment will be described.

  As described in the conventional configuration of FIG. 10, when the amount of residual toner removed by the fur brush roller 111 from the intermediate transfer belt 8 increases, the nip portion N with the recovery roller 112 is caused by the flickering of the bristle of the fur brush roller 111. The toner is scattered at the outlet of the toner.

  Since the elastic sheet 120 is disposed so as to contact the surface of the fur brush roller 111, in this case, the toner scattered at the exit of the nip portion N is prevented from being ejected from the opening of the casing. The toner scattered at the exit of the nip portion N adheres to the brush hair of the fur brush roller 111 again and is collected by the collection roller 112. Further, since the elastic sheet 120 is gradually separated from the surface of the fur brush roller 111 toward the opening, the fur bristles of the fur brush roller 111 do not flick at a position away from the elastic sheet 120. The toner adhering to the bristles will not be ejected from the casing opening.

  Thus, by providing the elastic sheet 120 having the shape as shown in FIG. 3, it is possible to prevent the toner scattered by flicking from the exit of the nip portion N between the fur brush roller 111 and the collection roller 112 from being ejected to the outside. .

  The elastic sheet 120 may be grounded using a conductive sheet. By using a conductive sheet, the toner scattered at the exit of the nip portion N easily adheres to the fur brush roller 111 again.

  In addition, one edge portion of the elastic sheet 120 is fixed to the standing wall 117. However, if the elastic sheet 120 is brought into contact with the surface of the fur brush roller 111 and gradually separated toward the opening, the standing wall can be formed. Without providing 117, one edge portion of the elastic sheet 120 may be fixed to the lower wall 116 or the inner surface of the casing of the waste toner conveying portion.

  Next, the configuration of the cleaning device 11 having the second configuration according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of the cleaning device 11 having the second configuration according to the first embodiment. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as in FIG.

  The length between two fixed edges of the elastic sheet 123 of the cleaning device 11 having the second configuration shown in FIG. 4 is between the two fixed edges of the elastic sheet 120 shown in FIG. It is longer than the length and contacts along the surface of the fur brush roller 111 and also contacts along the surface of the collection roller 112.

  The portion where the elastic sheet 123 is in contact with the collection roller 112 corresponds to an example of another part of the central portion of the sheet-like elastic member of the present invention.

  Since the elastic sheet 123 is in contact with the surface of the fur brush roller 111, the same effect as that of the cleaning device 11 having the first configuration shown in FIG. Therefore, the toner scraped off from the collection roller 112 by the blade 113 is more open than the portion where the elastic sheet 123 and the collection roller 112 are in contact from the waste toner conveyance portion where the conveyance spiral 115 is disposed. Can be prevented from moving to the side.

  Next, the configuration of the cleaning device 11 having the third configuration according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 5A is a configuration diagram of the cleaning device 11 having the third configuration according to the first embodiment. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as in FIG.

  The cleaning device 11 having the third configuration shown in FIG. 5A is different from the fur brush roller 111 in FIG. 3 in the configuration of the fur brush roller 124.

  FIG. 5B is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the base fabric portion of the fur brush roller 124 of the cleaning device 11 having the third configuration.

  The fur brush roller 111 shown in FIG. 3 has a structure in which brush hairs are planted on a base cloth, whereas the fur brush roller 124 has brush hairs implanted as shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b). The base fabric is covered with a low resilience foam, and the low resilience elastic body layer 125 is formed on the base fabric. In addition, a low impact resilience body is a material whose impact resilience (JIS K 6400-3) is 10% or less.

  Since the low resilience elastic body layer 125 is provided at the base part of the brush hair of the fur brush roller 124, the recovery time until the fallen brush hair returns is that of the fur brush roller 111 without the low resilience elastic body layer 125 provided. Longer than the case. As a result, even when the amount of residual toner removed by the fur brush roller 124 from the intermediate transfer belt 8 increases, toner scattering due to flicking of the brush hair of the fur brush roller 124 at the exit of the nip portion N with the collecting roller 112 is prevented. Can be suppressed.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, by combining the configuration of the fur brush roller 124 and the elastic sheet 120, it is possible to more effectively prevent the ejection of toner from the inside of the cleaning device 11 to the outside.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of the cleaning device 11 having the first configuration according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as in FIG.

  The configuration of the copying machine including the cleaning device 11 according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the front sectional view of the copying machine according to the second embodiment is as shown in FIG. The enlarged configuration diagram in the vicinity of 8 is the same as FIG.

  Here, a different part from the cleaning apparatus 11 of Embodiment 1 shown in FIG. 3 is demonstrated.

  Instead of providing the elastic sheet 120 in the first embodiment, in the cleaning device 11 of the second embodiment, a raised portion 130 is provided on the inner surface of the lower wall 116.

  Brushed hair is planted in the raised portion 130, and the tip of the brushed hair is arranged so as to contact the surface of the fur brush roller 111, that is, the brush hair of the fur brush roller 111.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the fur brush roller 111 rotates so that the lower portion thereof moves in the direction of the opening of the casing, and the brush hair of the raised portion 130 opens from the portion in contact with the fur brush roller 111 to the opening. It is arranged to gradually move away toward the side.

  The raised portion 130 corresponds to an example of the raised member of the present invention.

As a specific example of the raised portion 130, a material having nylon, a hair length of 2.0 mm, a fineness of 2D (denier), and a brush density of 240 KF / inch ² can be used.

  By arranging the raised portions 130 so as to contact the surface of the fur brush roller 111, the toner scattered at the exit of the nip portion N is prevented from being ejected from the opening of the casing. The toner scattered at the exit of the nip portion N adheres to the brush hair of the fur brush roller 111 again and is collected by the collection roller 112. Further, since the raised portion 130 is arranged so as to gradually move away from the surface of the fur brush roller 111 toward the opening portion, the flicking of the brush hair of the fur brush roller 111 does not occur at a position away from the raised portion 130. Therefore, the toner attached to the brush bristles of the fur brush roller 111 is not ejected from the casing opening.

  By providing the raised portion 130 as shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to prevent the toner scattered by flicking from the outlet of the nip portion N between the fur brush roller 111 and the collection roller 112 from being ejected to the outside.

  In addition, you may make it earth | ground using a conductive hair as a brush hair of the raising part 130. FIG. By using conductive bristles, the toner scattered at the exit of the nip portion N easily adheres to the fur brush roller 111 again.

  Next, the configuration of the cleaning device 11 having the second configuration according to the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of the cleaning device 11 having the second configuration according to the second embodiment. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as in FIG.

  In the first configuration shown in FIG. 6, the length of the brush hair of the raised portion 130 is uniform, whereas in the second configuration shown in FIG. 7, the length of the brush hair of the raised portion 131 is It is changed along the surface of the fur brush roller 111. That is, the length of the brush hair is changed so that the length of the brush hair of the raised portion 131 is the shortest at the position where the distance between the surface of the fur brush roller 111 and the lower wall 116 is the smallest.

  In addition, the upper surface part which contacts the surface of the fur brush roller 111 formed by the front-end | tip of the brush hair of the raising part 131 corresponds to an example of the curved surface along the curved shape of the surface of a brush roller of this invention.

  By adopting such a configuration, the amount of contact between the brush hair of the fur brush roller 111 and the brush hair of the raised portion 131 can be made uniform, so that the occurrence of flickering occurs when the surface of the fur brush roller 111 moves away from the raised portion 131. Can be further suppressed.

  Therefore, compared to the first configuration shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to more effectively prevent the toner from being ejected to the outside.

  Next, the configuration of the cleaning device 11 having the third configuration according to the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 8 is a configuration diagram of the cleaning device 11 having the third configuration according to the second embodiment. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as in FIG.

  The cleaning device 11 having the third configuration shown in FIG. 8 uses the fur brush roller 124 having the configuration described in FIG. Moreover, the raising part 132 arrange | positioned at the lower wall 116 is set as the structure which formed the low-repulsion elastic body layer 133 on the base fabric which has planted the bristle as demonstrated in FIG.5 (b).

  Since the low resilience elastic body layer 133 is provided at the base of the brush hair of the raised portion 132, the recovery time until the fallen brush hair returns is more than that of the raised portion 130 without the low resilience elastic body layer. become longer. As a result, it is possible to prevent flicking at a portion where the fur brush roller 124 moves away toward the opening, and more effectively prevent toner from being ejected from the inside of the cleaning device 11 to the outside. Further, since the low resilience elastic body layer 125 is also provided at the base portion of the brush hair of the fur brush roller 124, even when the amount of residual toner removed by the fur brush roller 124 from the intermediate transfer belt 8 increases, the collection roller The toner scattering due to the flickering of the bristle of the fur brush roller 124 at the exit of the nip portion N with the 112 can be suppressed.

  In the configuration of FIG. 8, the fur brush roller 124 in which the low repulsion elastic body layer 125 is formed on the base fabric is used as the fur brush roller, but the low repulsion elastic body layer 125 is not provided. A fur brush roller 111 may be used.

  Moreover, you may combine the structure which changes the length of the bristle shown in FIG. 7 with the structure of the raising part 132 shown in FIG.

  Moreover, in each structure of this Embodiment 2, in order to suppress the flicking which arises between fur brush rollers more, it is good also as a structure by which the brush hair of the raising parts 130-132 fell in the opening part direction of the casing. In this case, among the brush hairs of the raised portions 130 to 132, only the brush hair close to the opening may fall in the opening direction.

  In each of the embodiments, the cleaning device 11 that removes residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 8 has been described. However, the cleaning units 43, 53, 63, and 73 for the photosensitive drums 40, 50, 60, and 70, that is, The configuration of the present invention can also be applied to a cleaning unit for an image carrier.

  The cleaning device and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention have the effect of preventing the toner scattered by the flicking between the fur brush roller and the collecting roller from being ejected to the outside, and image forming apparatuses such as a printer, a copier, and a facsimile, It is useful as a cleaning device to be used.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Copier 2 Paper feed cassette 3 Image reading part 4 Black image forming part 5 Yellow image forming part 6 Cyan image forming part 7 Magenta image forming part 8 Intermediate transfer belt 9 Secondary transfer roller 10 Fixing part 11 Cleaning device 12 LSU
13 Discharge tray 14, 15, 16, 17 Primary transfer roller 21 Drive roller 22 Driven roller 23 Tension roller 40, 50, 60, 70 Photosensitive drum 43, 53, 63, 73 Cleaning unit 45, 55, 65, 75 Developing roller 71 Charging Device 72 Developing Device 111, 124 Fur Brush Roller 112 Recovery Roller 113 Blade 115 Conveying Spiral 116 Lower Wall 117 Standing Wall 120, 123 Elastic Sheet 121, 122 Holder 125, 133 Low Rebound Elastic Layer 130, 131, 132 Raised Part

Claims (11)

A casing having an opening toward the surface of the image carrier or the intermediate transfer member;
A brush roller for removing residual toner, disposed in the casing so as to be partly exposed from the opening and in contact with the image carrier or the intermediate transfer member;
A collection roller disposed within the casing for collecting the removed toner from the brush roller;
A blade disposed in the casing and scraping off the toner collected by the collection roller;
A waste toner transport unit that is disposed in the casing and transports the toner scraped off by the blade to a waste toner recovery unit;
The brush roller is disposed from a predetermined portion of the surface of the brush roller from the contact portion to the lower portion thereof to a predetermined portion of the lower wall surface inside the casing, and prevents the toner from flowing out from the opening. A toner blocking member,
The brush roller rotates in a direction in which the lower part moves toward the opening,
The cleaning device, wherein the toner blocking member has a shape that gradually separates from the surface of the brush roller as it goes from the portion in contact with the brush roller toward the opening.   The toner blocking member is a sheet-like elastic member, one edge of which is fixed in the vicinity of the opening of the lower wall surface, and the other edge facing the one edge is The brush is fixed to the standing wall standing on the lower wall surface, the lower wall surface or the waste toner conveying portion, and at least a part of the central portion comes into contact with the surface of the brush roller, so that the brush is removed from the one edge portion. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning device is curved along the surface of the roller and then curved in the opposite direction to reach the other edge.   The cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the toner blocking member has conductivity and is grounded.   The cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein another part of the central portion of the toner blocking member is also in contact with the collecting roller.   The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the toner blocking member is a raised member and is planted on the lower wall surface facing the lower portion of the brush roller.   The cleaning apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the upper surface of the raising member has a curved surface that follows the curved shape of the surface of the brush roller.   The cleaning device according to claim 5, wherein at least part of the bristles of the raising member is tilted toward the opening.   The cleaning apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the hair of the raising member has conductivity and is grounded.   The said raising member is a cleaning apparatus of Claim 5 by which the bristles are planted by the base fabric part, and the layer of the low-elasticity elastic body is formed on the said base fabric part.   2. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the brush roller has brush bristles planted on a base cloth, and a layer of a low resilience elastic body is formed on the base cloth. A photosensitive drum having a toner image formed on the surface;
A cleaning device according to claim 1;
An image forming apparatus comprising: a fixing unit that fixes a toner image transferred to a recording medium.

Images