JP2012181331A - Powder container, powder carrier device and image formation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a powder container for enabling stabilization of the amount of powder carried and reduction of the amount of residual powder.SOLUTION: A powder container includes a powder containing part 66 having an opening 66a formed at one end portion thereof, containing powder inside and formed with a flexible material in a deformable manner. The powder container presses in a pushing-out member 81 from the outside of the powder containing part 66 and moves it toward the opening 66a, so that the powder is pushed out from the opening 66a. An engaged portion 66b for being engaged with an engaging portion 62b of an opposite member is provided at the other end portion on a side opposite to the one end portion with the opening 66a formed. The engaged portion 66b is placed at a position equal to or higher than a lower end of the opening 66a when the powder containing part 66 is in a use attitude.

Description

  The present invention relates to a powder container for storing powder therein, a powder conveying apparatus for sending out powder stored in the powder container, and an image forming apparatus including the same.

  In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, or a composite machine of these, a toner image is formed by a developing device using a developer generally called a toner or a carrier. ing. In this type of image forming apparatus, since toner is consumed together with image formation, normally, a toner cartridge containing toner is attached to the image forming apparatus, and when the toner in the cartridge runs out, a new cartridge is replaced. To replenish.

  Further, in the toner replenishing method using the cartridge as described above, there is a user's request to use up as much toner as possible in the cartridge in order to reduce running cost. Therefore, conventionally, as a toner cartridge, a container called a screw bottle in which a spiral protrusion is provided on the inner surface of a cylindrical container, and a method of conveying the toner little by little by rotating this container, commonly known as A method in which a screw called an auger is provided inside a container and rotated to send toner to a discharge unit is adopted.

  However, the conveyance method using the auger has a drawback that the structure is complicated because it is necessary to provide and rotate the screw inside the container. Further, in this transport system, the accumulated toner is forcibly transported by the auger, so that a load is applied to the toner and there is a risk of toner aggregation or deterioration. Furthermore, providing the screw inside the container to be replaced raises the cost of consumables, and at the same time has the problem of leading to an increase in environmental load due to resource consumption.

  On the other hand, the conveyance method using the screw bottle does not require a screw inside the container, and thus the configuration is simple. However, in this transport method, the container itself is rotated and used, so the shape of the container is usually a shape in which an outlet is provided on one side of a cylindrical container body (a shape like a bottle lying sideways). There is a drawback that the amount of toner that can be stored is smaller than that of this container, and that a hand is slippery and difficult to hold at the time of replacement.

  Conventionally, as a toner transport method that does not use the screw bottle or auger, the container is vibrated (reciprocating) by applying an impact to the container from the outside or by bringing the container into contact with a stopper. There is a system in which toner is moved / discharged by inertial force (see Patent Document 1). In this method, in a state where a large amount of toner is stored, the toner loaded in the container moves together by vibration, so that it is possible to secure a sufficient toner conveyance speed per vibration reciprocation. However, as the amount of toner in the container decreases, the toner peak collapses and spreads thinly, so the toner transport speed per round trip of vibration decreases with the height of the toner peak, and the transport speed is reduced. There is a problem that it cannot be maintained. In addition, there is a problem that the vibration generated in the container affects the writing system and disturbs the image.

  Further, as a transport method different from the above-described transport methods, a method has been proposed in which a deformable container is used, and a toner is sent out by pressing and moving a convex portion from the outside of the container (Patent Document). 2). According to this transport method, toner can be transported with a small stress, toner aggregation and deterioration can be suppressed, and there is no possibility of occurrence of abnormal images due to large vibrations or impacts.

  As described above, in the system in which the deformable container is pushed from the outside to convey the toner inside, the end of the container opposite to the opening of the container is locked so that the container itself does not move due to the force pushing out the toner. It is desirable to keep it. However, depending on the locking position, toner transportability may be reduced.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 24A, when the locked portion 300 of the container 200 locked by the locking portion 150 of the mating member is disposed below the lower end of the opening 400, When the amount of toner in the container 200 decreases as the toner is discharged, the container 200 is deformed into a shape as shown in FIG. That is, in this case, since the locked portion 300 is fixed at a position below the lower end of the opening 400, the bottom surface 210 of the container 200 moves from the opening 400 side to the locked portion 300 side when the toner amount decreases. Inclined downward toward In this way, particularly when the toner in the container 200 is low, the bottom surface 210 is inclined, and the toner carried to the opening 400 side returns due to the influence of gravity. As a result, the amount of toner sent out decreases, the conveyance speed (discharge speed) decreases, and the amount of toner remaining in the container eventually increases.

  Therefore, in view of such circumstances, the present invention provides a powder container capable of stabilizing the amount of powder transport and reducing the amount of residual powder, and a powder transport equipped with the powder container. An apparatus and an image forming apparatus are to be provided.

  The invention of claim 1 has a powder container formed with an opening at one end and containing powder therein and deformable with a flexible material. A powder container configured to feed powder from the opening by pushing the delivery member from the outside and moving it to the opening, opposite to the one end where the opening is formed The other end portion on the side is provided with a locked portion for locking the locking portion of the mating member, and the locked portion is the lower end of the opening in the installation posture when the powder container is used. It is configured to be disposed at the above positions.

  By disposing the locked portion at a position above the lower end of the opening, when the powder in the powder container decreases, the lower surface (or bottom surface) of the powder container from the locked portion side It is arranged to be inclined horizontally or downward toward the opening side. That is, even if the powder in the powder container is reduced, the position of the locked portion to be fixed does not change, so the lower surface of the powder container is disposed below the position of the locked portion. It arrange | positions inclining horizontally or downward toward the lower end of an opening part. Thus, according to the invention of claim 1, even if the powder in the powder container is reduced, the lower surface of the powder container is not inclined downward toward the side opposite to the opening. Therefore, it can suppress that the powder conveyed to the opening part side is returned by the influence of gravity. Thereby, it becomes possible to suppress the reduction of the powder conveyance amount due to the return of the powder from the opening, and the powder conveyance amount can be stabilized. It is also possible to reduce the amount of powder finally remaining in the powder container.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the powder container according to the first aspect, the opening is disposed at a central portion in the vertical direction of one end of the powder container.

  If the opening is disposed in the lower part of the powder container, the amount of powder adhering to the inner surface above the opening increases due to the powder delivery operation by the delivery member, and the amount of powder remaining increases. End up. On the other hand, when the opening is disposed in the upper part of the powder container, the position of the opening is relatively higher than the height of the delivery member, so that the amount of powder delivered is reduced. Therefore, as in the second aspect of the invention, by arranging the opening at the center in the vertical direction of the end portion of the powder container, the powder conveyance amount can be further stabilized and the residual powder amount. Can be reduced.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the powder container according to the first or second aspect, wherein the powder container is provided on the opening side of the powder container and discharges the powder fed from the opening to a supply destination. A discharge portion having a discharge port for providing the discharge portion with an inclined surface inclined downward from the opening portion toward the discharge port.

  In this case, the powder can be smoothly discharged from the discharge port because the powder slides on the inclined surface. Thereby, the powder in the powder container can be stably discharged to the end, and the amount of powder remaining in the powder container can be reduced.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a powder container having a powder container having an opening formed at one end thereof, containing powder therein and deformable with a flexible material, and the powder A feeding member that feeds powder from the opening by pushing the body container from the outside and moving to the opening, and the other side opposite to the one end where the opening of the powder container is formed The powder container provided with the latching | locking part which latches an edge part uses the powder container of any one of Claim 1 to 3 as said powder container.

  By using the powder container according to any one of claims 1 to 3 as a powder container, it is possible to stabilize the amount of powder transport and reduce the amount of residual powder.

  A fifth aspect of the present invention is the powder conveying apparatus according to the fourth aspect, wherein the locking portion is disposed at a position above the lower end of the opening.

  By disposing the locking portion at a position above the lower end of the opening, when the locked portion of the powder container is locked by the locking portion, the position of the locked portion is changed to the opening. It can be held above the lower end of. Thereby, when the powder in the powder container is reduced, the lower surface of the powder container is disposed so as to be inclined horizontally or downward toward the opening. That is, even if the powder in the powder container is reduced, the lower surface of the powder container does not tilt downward toward the side opposite to the opening. Can be prevented from returning due to the influence of gravity, and the amount of powder transport can be stabilized and the amount of residual powder can be reduced.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the powder conveying device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the delivery member is pushed by the delivery member when the delivery member is pushed into the powder container and moves to the opening. The top of the inner surface of the portion is configured so as to be at least the lower end and the upper end of the opening at least in the vicinity of the opening.

  If the top of the inner surface of the pushed-in portion is lower than the lower end of the opening, the amount of powder transported decreases. On the other hand, when the top of the inner surface of the pushed-in portion becomes higher than the upper end of the opening, the powder adheres to the inner surface above the opening due to the powder feeding operation, thereby increasing the residual amount of powder. For this reason, as in the invention of claim 6 above, by further configuring the top of the inner surface of the pushed-in portion to be not less than the lower end of the opening and not more than the upper end, the powder conveyance amount can be further stabilized. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of powder remaining.

  A seventh aspect of the present invention is the powder conveying apparatus according to any one of the fourth to sixth aspects, wherein the locking portion is configured to be movable to the opening side and the opposite side, and the locking The portion is configured to be urged to the opposite side of the opening by the elastic member.

  In this case, the end portion of the powder containing portion locked by the locking portion is pulled to the side opposite to the opening side. At this time, volume reduction of the powder container is promoted by the tension generated in the powder container, and the shape of the powder container is stabilized, so that the return of the powder due to gravity is more effective. Can be suppressed.

  An eighth aspect of the invention is an image forming apparatus including the powder conveyance device according to any one of the fourth to seventh aspects.

  Since the image forming apparatus includes the powder conveyance device according to any one of claims 4 to 7, the powder conveyance amount can be stabilized and the remaining powder amount can be reduced.

  According to this invention, it can suppress that the powder conveyed to the opening part side by the sending member is returned to the opposite side to the opening part side by the influence of gravity. Thereby, the reduction of the powder conveyance amount can be suppressed, and the powder conveyance amount can be stabilized. In addition, the amount of powder remaining in the powder container can be reduced.

1 is a configuration diagram showing a printer as an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing an image forming unit of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a toner supply device. 2 is a configuration diagram of a toner cartridge. FIG. FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a toner cartridge. (A) is a plan view showing a state before the toner cartridge is mounted on the drawer tray, and (b) is a plan view showing a state where the toner cartridge is mounted on the drawer tray. It is an enlarged view of a fixed part. It is a perspective view of a drawer tray. It is a perspective view of the state which attached the drawer tray to the main body side frame. It is an enlarged view of a main body side frame. It is a cross-sectional side view of a main body side frame and a drawer tray. It is sectional side view, such as a drawer tray. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a toner conveying device. It is a cross-sectional side view of a drawer tray. It is a side view of a delivery member and a leg member. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement when the state from which the sending member stood up switched to the fall state. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement when the sending member switches from the fall state to the standing state. It is a figure for demonstrating delivery operation | movement of a delivery member. It is a figure for demonstrating the return operation | movement of a sending member. (A) is a diagram showing a state in which the toner container is not reduced in volume, and (b) is a diagram showing a state in which the toner container is reduced in volume. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a positional relationship between an opening and a locked portion in a toner accommodating portion. FIG. 6 is a diagram for describing a position of an opening in a toner accommodating portion and a position of an inner surface top portion pushed in by a delivery member. FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part showing a configuration in which the strength of a locked portion of a toner storage portion is improved. It is a figure which shows the structure at the time of arrange | positioning the to-be-latched part of a container below the lower end of an opening part.

  Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in each figure, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the part which is the same or it corresponds, The duplication description is simplified or abbreviate | omitted suitably.

First, the configuration and operation of the entire image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a printer as an image forming apparatus, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing an image forming unit thereof.

  As shown in FIG. 1, image forming portions 6Y, 6M, 6C, and 6Bk corresponding to the respective colors (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) are arranged in parallel so as to face the intermediate transfer belt 11 of the intermediate transfer unit 10. Yes. Note that the four image forming units 6Y, 6M, 6C, and 6Bk installed in the apparatus main body 100 have substantially the same structure except that the toner colors used in the image forming process are different. 6, the alphabets (Y, M, C, Bk) of the reference numerals of the photosensitive drum 6, the photosensitive drum 1, and the primary transfer bias roller 9 are omitted.

  Referring to FIG. 2, the image forming unit 6 includes a photosensitive drum 1 as an image carrier, a charging unit 4 disposed around the photosensitive drum 1, a developing device 5 as a developing unit, and a cleaning unit 2. (Only the developing device 5 is shown in FIG. 1). An image forming process (charging process, exposure process, developing process, transfer process, cleaning process) is performed on the photosensitive drum 1, and a desired toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 1.

  The photosensitive drum 1, the charging unit 4, the developing device 5, and the cleaning unit 2 constituting the image forming unit 6 are each configured to be detachably installed on the image forming apparatus main body 100. Each of them can be replaced with a new one when it reaches the end of its life.

  In this embodiment, the photosensitive drum 1, the charging unit 4, the developing device 5, and the cleaning unit 2 that constitute the image forming unit 6 are each a single unit. It may be a process unit that is detachably installed in 100. In this case, workability when performing maintenance of the image forming unit 6 is improved.

The configuration of the developing device 5 in the image forming unit 6 will be described in more detail based on FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the developing device 5 includes a developing roller 51 as a developer carrying member facing the photosensitive drum 1, a doctor blade 52 as a developer regulating member installed below the developing roller 51, a developer It is composed of two conveying screws 55 and 56 as developer stirring and conveying members disposed in the accommodating portions 53 and 54, a case 50 for accommodating the developer G, and the like. Here, as the developer G, a two-component developer composed of a carrier and a toner is used. The developing device 5 is provided with a toner concentration sensor (not shown) that detects the toner concentration in the developer G.

Referring to FIG. 2, the photosensitive drum 1 is rotationally driven in a clockwise direction in FIG. 2 by a drive unit (not shown). Then, the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is uniformly charged by the charging roller 4a at the position of the charging unit 4 (charging process).
Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 reaches an irradiation position of a laser beam L emitted from an exposure unit (not shown), and an electrostatic latent image is formed by exposure scanning at this position (exposure process).

Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 reaches a position facing the developing roller 51 of the developing device 5, and the electrostatic latent image is developed at this position to form a desired toner image (developing step).
Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 reaches a position facing the intermediate transfer belt 11 and the first transfer bias roller 9, and the toner image on the photosensitive drum 1 is transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 11 at this position. (Primary transfer process). At this time, a small amount of untransferred toner remains on the photosensitive drum 1.

Thereafter, the surface of the photoreceptor 1 reaches a position facing the cleaning unit 2, and untransferred toner remaining on the photoreceptor drum 1 at this position is collected by the cleaning blade 2a (cleaning step).
Finally, the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 reaches a position facing a neutralization unit (not shown), and the residual potential on the photosensitive drum 1 is removed at this position.
Thus, a series of image forming processes performed on the photosensitive drum 1 is completed.

  The image forming process described above is performed by the four image forming units 6Y, 6M, 6C, and 6Bk. That is, based on the image information read by the reading unit 32 shown in FIG. 1, a laser beam L (see FIG. 2) is sent from the exposure unit (not shown) disposed below the image forming unit to each image forming unit 6Y, Irradiation is directed toward the photosensitive drum 1 of 6M, 6C, and 6Bk. Specifically, the exposure unit emits laser light L from a light source and irradiates the photosensitive drum 1 via a plurality of optical elements while scanning the laser light L with a polygon mirror that is rotationally driven. Thereafter, the toner images of the respective colors formed on the respective photosensitive drums 1 through the development process are transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 11 in an overlapping manner. Thus, a color image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 11.

The four primary transfer bias rollers 9Y, 9M, 9C, and 9BK each sandwich the intermediate transfer belt 11 with the photosensitive drums 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk to form primary transfer nips. Then, a transfer bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner is applied to the primary transfer bias rollers 9Y, 9M, 9C, and 9Bk.
The intermediate transfer belt 11 travels in the direction of the arrow in the figure, and sequentially passes through the primary transfer nips of the primary transfer bias rollers 9Y, 9M, 9C, and 9Bk. In this way, the toner images of the respective colors on the photosensitive drums 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk are primarily transferred while being superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 11.

Thereafter, the intermediate transfer belt 11 onto which the toner images of the respective colors are transferred in a superimposed manner reaches a position facing the secondary transfer roller 19. At this position, the secondary transfer backup roller 12 sandwiches the intermediate transfer belt 11 with the secondary transfer roller 19 to form a secondary transfer nip. The color toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 11 is transferred onto a transfer material P such as transfer paper conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip. At this time, untransferred toner that has not been transferred to the transfer material P remains on the intermediate transfer belt 11, but the remaining toner on the intermediate transfer belt 11 is removed by a belt cleaning device (not shown).
Thus, a series of transfer processes performed on the intermediate transfer belt 11 is completed.

Here, the transfer material P transported to the position of the secondary transfer nip is transported from a paper feed unit 26 disposed below the apparatus main body 100 via a paper feed roller 27, a registration roller pair 28, and the like. It has been done.
Specifically, a plurality of transfer materials P such as transfer paper are stored in the paper supply unit 26 in a stacked manner. When the paper feed roller 27 is rotated in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1, the uppermost transfer material P is fed between the rollers of the registration roller pair 28.

  The transfer material P conveyed to the registration roller pair 28 is temporarily stopped at the position of the roller nip of the registration roller pair 28 that has stopped rotating. Then, the registration roller pair 28 is rotationally driven in time with the color image on the intermediate transfer belt 11, and the transfer material P is conveyed toward the secondary transfer nip. In this way, a desired color image is transferred onto the transfer material P.

Thereafter, the transfer material P on which the color image has been transferred at the position of the secondary transfer nip is conveyed to the position of the fixing unit 20. At this position, the color image transferred to the surface is fixed on the transfer material P by heat and pressure generated by the fixing roller and the pressure roller.
Thereafter, the transfer material P is discharged out of the apparatus through the rollers of the discharge roller pair 29. The transferred P discharged from the apparatus main body 100 by the discharge roller pair 29 is sequentially stacked on the stack unit 30 as an output image.
Thus, a series of image forming processes in the image forming apparatus is completed.

  In FIG. 1, a toner replenishing unit 31 is disposed above the intermediate transfer unit 10. The toner replenishing unit 31 has four toner replenishing devices 60Y, 60M, 60C, and 60Bk filled with toner of each color. From each toner replenishing device 60Y, 60M, 60C, 60Bk, a toner transport path extends to the corresponding developing device 5Y, 5M, 5C, 5Bk. , 60Bk to supply toner to the developing devices 5Y, 5M, 5C, 5Bk. As a result, toner can be newly supplied according to the amount of toner consumed by each of the developing devices 5Y, 5M, 5C, and 5Bk, and the developing device can be used over a long period of time.

  The four toner replenishing devices 60Y, 60M, 60C, and 60Bk have the same configuration except that they store toners of different colors. Therefore, the configuration of one toner replenishing device will be described below.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the toner supply device. In FIG. 3, the alphabets (Y, M, C, Bk) of the reference numerals in the toner replenishing device 60 are omitted.
As shown in FIG. 3, the toner replenishing device 60 includes a toner cartridge 61 as a toner container (powder container) filled with toner, a drawer tray 62 as a holding member for holding the toner cartridge 61, and a toner cartridge. A fixing portion 63 for fixing 61, a sub hopper 64 for storing toner discharged from the toner cartridge 61, and the like. The sub hopper 64 is connected to a toner transport pipe (not shown) for transporting the toner stored therein toward the developing device.

  The drawer tray 62 is attached to the main body side frame 65 so as to be movable in the horizontal direction. When the drawer tray 62 is moved in the direction of the arrow X1 in the figure, the drawer tray 62 can be pulled out from the apparatus main body. Conversely, when the drawer tray 62 is moved in the direction of the arrow X2 in the figure, the drawer tray 62 is moved. Can be accommodated in the apparatus main body.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of the toner cartridge 61. In the figure, (a) is a plan view, (b) is a side view, (c) is a bottom view, and (d) is a cross-sectional view.
As shown in FIG. 4, the toner cartridge 61 includes a toner storage unit (powder storage unit) 66 that stores toner as powder and a discharge unit 67 that discharges the toner in the toner storage unit 66 to the outside. It is configured.

  As shown in FIG. 4D, the toner containing portion 66 is formed of a deformable longitudinal bag member having an opening 66a formed on one end side. The opening 66a is provided with an opening holding member 68 that holds the opening 66a in an open state so that the toner can be easily filled. In this embodiment, PxP toner (average particle size 5.8 μm) manufactured by Ricoh Co., Ltd. is accommodated in the toner accommodating portion 66. For example, when the approximate inner size of the toner container 66 is 60 mm × 60 mm × 400 mm, the toner container 66 can store about 500 g of toner.

  As the material of the toner storage portion 66, a flexible material having flexibility is used. Examples of the material of the toner container 66 include PA (polyamide resin, nylon), PE (high density polyethylene, low density polyethylene), PC (polycarbonate resin), PP (polypropylene resin), PS (polystyrene resin), PAN ( A material in which a sheet of various resins such as polyacrylonitrile resin), PET (polyester resin), PVC (polyvinyl chloride resin), PVDC (polyvinylidene chloride resin) or the like is used alone or in combination can be used. In the present embodiment, four types of resin sheets of PP, PET, PA, and LDPE (low density polyethylene) are bonded to each other, but it is also possible to connect one sheet material in a bag shape. It is. As a sheet forming method, a thin film forming method such as a PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) method or a CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) method can be applied. In addition, when the sheets are bonded by heat welding, the adhesion is improved by using LDPE for the innermost sheet layer.

  In the discharge portion 67, an introduction port 67a for introducing toner and a discharge port 67b for discharging toner are formed. In the present embodiment, the discharge port 67b is disposed so as to face downward. Thereby, the toner can be dropped by gravity from the discharge port 67b and sent to the sub hopper 64, and the configuration for discharging the toner can be simplified. Further, an inclined surface 67c inclined downward from the introduction port 67a toward the discharge port 67b is provided in the discharge unit 67 so that the toner is smoothly conveyed to the discharge port 67b. The inclination angle of the inclined surface 67c with respect to the horizontal plane is desirably set to 10 ° or more. Further, a slide shutter 67d for opening and closing the discharge port 67b is provided on the bottom surface (lower surface) of the discharge port 67b so as to be slidable in the arrow Y direction in FIG. 4B.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the toner cartridge 61. 4A is a perspective view of the discharge portion 67, FIG. 4B is a perspective view of the opening holding member 68, and FIG. 3C is a perspective view of the toner holding portion 66 provided with the opening holding member 68.
As shown in FIG. 5B, the opening holding member 68 is formed by integrally molding a short cylindrical insertion portion 68a and a flange-like connection portion 68b. As shown in FIG. 5C, the insertion portion 68 a can be inserted into the opening 66 a of the toner storage portion 66. In the present embodiment, the toner accommodating portion 66 and the opening holding member 68 are bonded together by heat welding, but may be bonded using an adhesive or the like. Further, the outer shape of the insertion portion 68a is formed in a substantially hexagonal shape so that the insertion location of the insertion portion 68a can be easily suppressed from the vertical direction in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, a pair of groove portions 67 e that can be engaged with the connection portion 68 a of the opening holding member 68 are provided on the introduction port 67 a side of the discharge portion 67. As described above, after the opening holding member 68 is inserted and bonded into the toner containing portion 66, the opening holding member 68 is inserted into the groove portion 67e from above and engaged with each other, whereby the toner containing portion 66 and the discharge portion 67 are connected. Can be connected together. In addition, a sealing material 69 is provided at a connection portion between the discharge portion 67 and the opening holding member 68 so that toner does not leak from the connection portion.

FIG. 6A is a plan view showing a state before the toner cartridge 61 is mounted on the drawer tray 62, and FIG. 6B is a plan view showing a state where the toner cartridge 61 is mounted on the drawer tray 62. .
As shown in FIG. 6B, concave portions 67 f are provided on both side surfaces of the discharge portion 67. On the other hand, a convex portion 62a is provided at a portion of the drawer tray 62 corresponding to each concave portion 67f, and each convex portion 62a can be inserted into the corresponding concave portion 67f. In addition, a hole 66b serving as a locked portion that is locked to the other locking portion is formed at the end of the toner containing portion 66 opposite to the discharge portion 67 side. On the other hand, a hook-like hooking portion 62b as a locking portion is provided at a portion of the drawer tray 62 corresponding to the hole 66b.

  The hook portion 62b is inserted into the hole portion 66b and locked, and the convex portion 62a is inserted into the concave portion 67f, so that the toner cartridge 61 is mounted on the drawer tray 62. . Further, in the state where the toner cartridge 61 is mounted as described above, the convex portion 62a and the concave portion 67f are normally in a non-contact state. However, when the toner cartridge 61 moves in the longitudinal direction when the drawer tray 62 is pulled out or stored in the apparatus main body, the movement of the toner cartridge 61 in the longitudinal direction is restricted by the convex portion 62a coming into contact with the concave portion 67f. It is like that.

  In order to remove the toner cartridge 61 from the drawer tray 62, the concave portion 67f may be detached from the convex portion 62a, and the hook portion 62b may be detached from the hole portion 66b. In the present embodiment, each convex portion 62a (or each concave portion 67f) is formed in the same shape as each other, but it is also possible to prevent erroneous mounting of the toner cartridge 61 by using different shapes.

  As shown in FIG. 6A, the hook 62b is attached to the drawer tray 62 so as to be movable in the direction of arrow Q in the figure. That is, the hook portion 62b is configured to be movable in the direction opposite to the discharge portion 67 side when the toner cartridge 61 is mounted on the drawer tray 62 (the state shown in FIG. 6B). Further, as shown in FIG. 6A, the hook 62b is urged to the right side of the figure by a torsion coil spring 62k as an elastic member. As a result, when the hook 62b is inserted into the hole 66b of the toner container 66 and hooked, the hook 62b is pulled in the opposite direction to the discharge part 67 by the urging force of the torsion coil spring 62k. 66 is held in a predetermined position. It is possible to apply a member other than the torsion coil spring as the elastic member for pulling the hook portion 62b, but here, the configuration for pulling the hook portion 62b is made compact by using the torsion coil spring 62k.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the fixing portion 63. 4A shows a state before the toner cartridge 61 is fixed to the fixing portion 63, and FIG. 4B shows a state where the toner cartridge 61 is fixed to the fixing portion 63. FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, the fixing portion 63 extends over the main body portion 70 connected to the upper portion of the sub hopper 64, the fixing arm 71 attached to the upper portion of the main body portion 70, and the fixing arm 71 and the main body portion 70. An attached spring member 72 and a shutter opening member 73 attached to the main body 70 below the fixed arm 71 are provided. Note that one fixed arm 71, one spring member 72, and one shutter opening member 73 are provided on the front side and the back side in the drawing, respectively.

  The fixed arm 71 is formed in a substantially C shape having a recess 71a. The fixed arm 71 is attached to the main body 70 so as to be rotatable about a horizontal support shaft 71b disposed in an intermediate portion thereof. By rotating the fixed arm 71 around the support shaft 71b, the fixed arm 71 can be switched between a fixed release position shown in FIG. 7A and a fixed position shown in FIG. 7B. ing.

  The spring member 72 is a tension coil spring, one end of which is attached to the fixed arm 71 and the other end is attached to the main body 70. As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, when the fixed arm 71 rotates between the fixed position and the fixed release position, the end portion of the spring member 72 attached to the fixed arm 71 turns the fixed arm 71. It moves over the dynamic fulcrum (support shaft 71b). As described above, as the fixed arm 71 rotates, the spring member 72 exceeds the rotation fulcrum, so that the spring member 72 biases the fixed arm 71 in the direction in which the fixed arm 71 rotates.

  On the other hand, the discharge portion 67 is provided with a protruding portion 67g as a fixed portion fixed by the fixing arm 71. One protrusion 67g is provided on each side of the discharge portion 67 (see FIG. 4A or 4C).

  The shutter opening member 73 is attached to the main body 70 so as to be rotatable about a horizontal support shaft 73b. Further, the shutter opening member 73 has a concave portion 73 a for holding the convex portion 670 d of the slide shutter 67 d provided in the discharge portion 67.

  Further, a notch portion 70 a is formed in the main body portion 70 of the fixing portion 63. On the other hand, on both side surfaces of the discharge portion 67, L-shaped projecting piece portions 67h that can come into contact with the upper portions of the cutout portions 70a are provided.

  In order to fix the toner cartridge 61 to the fixing portion 63, first, the toner cartridge 61 is mounted on the drawer tray 62 as described in FIG. Then, the drawer tray 62 is moved in the direction in which the drawer tray 62 is accommodated in the apparatus main body (the direction of the arrow X2 in FIG. 3). 7A, when the discharge portion 67 of the toner cartridge 61 approaches the fixed portion 63, the protrusion 67g provided on the discharge portion 67 is connected to one end portion of the fixed arm 71 (as shown in FIG. 7A). The fixed arm 71 is rotated counterclockwise in the figure against the urging force of the spring member 72. Thereby, the fixed arm 71 is switched from the fixed release position shown in FIG. 7A to the fixed position shown in FIG. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7B, the protrusion 67g is housed in the recess 71a of the fixed arm 71, and the other end (the left end in the figure) 71d of the fixed arm 71 and the main body. It is fixed by being sandwiched between 70 edges. Further, when the spring member 72 exceeds the rotation fulcrum of the fixed arm 71 with the rotation of the fixed arm 71, the spring member 72 is biased in a direction to hold the fixed arm 71 at the position after switching.

  Further, when the discharge portion 67 of the toner cartridge 61 approaches the fixing portion 63, the protruding piece portion 67h provided in the discharging portion 67 is inserted into the notched portion 70a of the main body portion 70, and the protruding piece portion 67h is notched. It abuts on the upper part of the portion 70a (see FIG. 7B). Thereby, the vertical shaking of the discharge part 67 is prevented.

Further, the slide shutter 67d provided in the discharge portion 67 contacts the shutter opening member 73, and rotates the shutter opening member 73 in the clockwise direction in the figure. Then, as shown in FIG. 7B, the convex portion 670 d of the slide shutter 67 d is inserted and held in the concave portion 73 a of the shutter opening member 73. At this time, since the shutter opening member 73 is rotated and abuts against the main body 70, further rotation of the shutter opening member 73 is restricted, so that the slide shutter 67 d is discharged by the shutter opening member 73. It is pushed to the rear of 67 and moves. As a result, the slide shutter 67d (discharge port) is opened, and the toner can be discharged from the discharge portion 67 to the sub hopper 64.
As described above, the fixing of the toner cartridge 61 to the fixing portion 63 is completed.

  Further, when releasing the fixation of the toner cartridge 61, the drawer tray 62 is moved in the direction of drawing out from the apparatus main body (the direction of the arrow X1 in FIG. 3). By this pulling-out operation, the toner cartridge 61 moves to the left in FIG. 7B, and the projection 67 g provided on the discharge portion 67 pushes the other end 71 d of the fixed arm 71, so that the urging force of the spring member 72 is applied. The fixed arm 71 is rotated counterclockwise. As a result, the fixed arm 71 moves from the fixed position shown in FIG. 7B to the fixed release position shown in FIG. 7A, and the protruding portion 67 g is detached from the fixed arm 71. At the same time, the protruding piece portion 67h and the slide shutter 67d provided in the discharge portion 67 are detached from the notch portion 70a and the shutter opening member 73, respectively, and the fixing of the toner cartridge 61 is released. Further, the slide shutter 67d detached from the shutter opening member 73 is slid in a direction to close the discharge port by receiving a biasing force such as a spring (not shown) and prevents toner leakage from the discharge port. .

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the rotation operation of the fixed arm 71 and the opening / closing operation of the slide shutter 67d are performed in conjunction with the operation of pulling out / storing the drawer tray 62 (operation of attaching / detaching to the fixing portion 63). Therefore, it is possible to easily fix and release the toner cartridge 61 and to open and close the discharge port, and the operability is excellent. Further, as the fixed arm 71 rotates, the spring member 72 exceeds the rotation fulcrum of the fixed arm 71, so that the spring member 72 urges the fixed arm 71 in the direction in which the fixed arm 71 rotates. It is possible to securely hold the arm 71 at the position after switching. Furthermore, since the protrusion 67h abuts the notch 70a, it is possible to prevent the discharge portion 67 from rattling in the vertical direction, so that the fixing state of the toner cartridge can be stabilized. In the present embodiment, the toner storage unit 66 and the discharge unit 67 are integrated with each other so as to be attached to and detached from the drawer tray 62. However, the discharge unit 67 is connected to the drawer tray 62 (or the fixing unit 63). The toner container 66 may be detachably mounted.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the drawer tray 62.
As shown in FIG. 8, the drawer tray 62 has a pair of side walls 62 c that support both side surfaces of the toner cartridge 61, and a placement surface 62 d on which the toner cartridge 61 is placed. A main reference shaft 62e that serves as a main reference when the side wall 62c is attached to the main body side frame 65 is disposed at the end on the near side in the drawing. In the present embodiment, the main reference shaft 62e is used as a support shaft of a transmission gear 74 that transmits a driving force to a toner conveying device described later. Further, at the end of each side wall 62c on the back side in the figure, one slave reference shaft 62f is provided as a reference when each is attached to the main body side frame 65.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a state in which the drawer tray 62 is attached to the main body side frame 65.
As shown in FIG. 9, the main body side frame 65 has a pair of guide rails 65 a extending in the drawing direction X <b> 1 and the accommodating direction X <b> 2 of the drawing tray 62. The upper end edge of each guide rail 65 a is inserted into a groove 62 g formed on both side walls 62 c of the drawer tray 62. Thereby, the drawer tray 62 is configured to be movable in the drawer direction X1 and the accommodating direction X2 along the guide rail 65a.

  Also, a first positioning recess 65b that can be fitted to the main reference shaft 62e of the drawer tray 62 is formed at the front end of the main body side frame 65 (see FIG. 10). A second positioning recess 65c that can be fitted to the slave reference shaft 62f is formed at the end on the far side in FIG. As a result, when the drawer tray 62 is moved in the accommodating direction X2, the main reference shaft 62e and the sub-reference shaft 62f are inserted into the first and second positioning recesses 65b and 65c and fitted to each other. The tray 62 is positioned at a predetermined position with respect to the main body side frame 65.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 9, a drive gear 75 that is driven by a drive device is provided at the front end of the main body side frame 65 in the figure. The drive gear 75 is connected to the transmission gear 74 in a state where the drawer tray 62 is accommodated in the apparatus main body and positioned on the main body side frame 65.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the main body side frame 65 is provided with a pressurizing member 76 that pressurizes and fixes the drawer tray 62. In the present embodiment, the pressing member 76 is configured by combining two levers. When the drawer tray 62 is moved in the accommodating direction X2, the drawer tray 62 is pressed by the two levers so as to sandwich the convex portion 62h provided on the lower surface of the drawer tray 62, thereby making the drawer tray 62 the first and second positioning concave portions. It is adapted to be pressed against the 65b and 65c sides.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the drawer tray 62 is provided with a toner conveying device (powder conveying device) 8 for conveying the toner in the toner containing portion 66 to the discharge portion 67 side. Hereinafter, the configuration of the toner conveying device 8 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the toner conveying device 8 includes a base member 80, a delivery member 81 and a pair of leg members 82 attached to the base member 80, and a belt member 83 as a moving unit that moves the base member 80. And a pair of guide rails 84 as guide members for guiding the base member 80. In FIG. 13, the front guide rail 84 is not shown.

  The base member 80 is divided into an upper part 80a and a lower part 80b. The base member 80 is attached to the belt member 83 by sandwiching the belt member 83 between the upper part 80a and the lower part 80b. The belt member 83 is configured by an endless belt, and is stretched by two rollers 77 and 78 (see FIG. 12) provided on the drawer tray 62. The belt member 83 is configured to be rotatable in both forward and reverse directions by transmitting a driving force to the one roller 77 from the transmission gear 74 (see FIG. 8). Thus, when the belt member 83 rotates in the forward direction or the reverse direction, the base member 80 and the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 attached to the base member 80 are integrally delivered in the delivery direction toward the discharge portion 67 side. A reciprocating movement is possible in Z1 and a return direction Z2 opposite to Z1.

  Further, two rollers 85 as rotating bodies that roll on the guide rails 84 are provided on both side surfaces of the base member 80. Thus, by providing the roller 85 on the base member 80, the base member 80 can move smoothly along the guide rail 84. The pair of guide rails 84 are fixed to the drawer tray 62.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 13, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are attached to each other via a horizontal support shaft 86 so as to be opened and closed. Specifically, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are configured to be rotatable independently of each other about the support shaft 86, and the delivery member 81 or the leg member 82 rotates about the support shaft 86. By moving, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 can be opened and closed with respect to each other. Further, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are urged in the opening direction by a torsion coil spring as an urging member (not shown). The delivery member 81 is formed with an accommodation recess 81a for accommodating the leg member 82 when the leg member 82 is closed.

  The rotation direction of the belt member 83 is switched by two switches 87 and 88 shown in FIG. The switches 87 and 88 as moving direction switching means are respectively disposed at the moving direction switching positions of the delivery member 81. Specifically, one switch 87 is disposed at the end of the drawer tray 62 in the sending direction Z1 (the end on the left side of the drawing), and the other switch 88 is the end of the drawer tray 62 in the return direction Z2. (The end on the right side of the figure). Further, when the delivery member 81 reaches one of the movement direction switching positions, the base member 80 comes into contact with the switch 87 or 88 disposed at that position. That is, the base member 80 functions as an input means that contacts each switch 87, 88 and turns on. In this way, when the base member 80 contacts the switch 87 or 88, the moving direction of the delivery member 81 is switched to the delivery direction Z1 or the return direction Z2, so that the toner delivery operation can be performed continuously. is there. In addition, a non-contact type sensor is provided in place of the contact type switch, and the detected part (input means) provided on the base member 80 or the like approaches the non-contact type sensor to turn on the sensor. You may make it do.

FIG. 15 is a side view of the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82.
As shown in FIG. 15, the leg member 82 is in contact with the placement surface 62d of the drawer tray 62, and can reciprocate in the sending direction Z1 and the return direction Z2 along the placement surface 62d. . That is, the mounting surface 62d also has a function as a guide surface for guiding the leg member 82. As described above, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are biased so as to open each other by the torsion coil spring, but the leg member 82 is disposed in a horizontal direction by contacting the mounting surface 62d. It is supported. On the other hand, the delivery member 81 is biased so as to rotate and open in the delivery direction Z1 (on the discharge portion 67 side) with respect to the leg member 82 supported in the horizontal direction. The portion restricts the rotation of the delivery member 81 in the opening direction against the urging force of the torsion coil spring. As a result, the delivery member 81 is supported so as to stand up with respect to the placement surface 62d (a state indicated by a solid line in the figure). As described above, the opening angle between the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 is a predetermined angle so that the delivery member 81 is in a predetermined standing state with respect to the placement surface 62d by the placement surface 62d and the restricting portion. It is held at an angle α.

  Further, in FIG. 15, the opening angle β is an angle when the delivery member 81 is not restricted by the restriction part. That is, the angle β indicates an opening angle when the torsion coil spring is in a natural state. As shown in FIG. 15, the opening angle β held by the torsion coil spring in the natural state is set within a range that is larger than the opening angle α at which the delivery member 81 is in a predetermined standing state and smaller than 180 °. ing.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6A, the leg members 82 can enter the both end portions in the direction (the sending direction Z1 and the returning direction Z2) in which the leg members 82 reciprocate on the placement surface 62d. Recesses 62i and 62j are provided. In the present embodiment, by providing these recesses 62i and 62j, the delivery member 81 can be switched between a standing state and a falling state with respect to the mounting surface 62d.
Hereinafter, a switching operation for switching the sending member 81 between the standing state and the falling state will be described with reference to FIGS. 16 and 17.

  FIG. 16A shows a state before the delivery member 81 reaches the recess 62i on the end side in the delivery direction Z1. In this state, the opening angle formed by the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 is held at a predetermined angle α by a restriction portion (not shown) and the placement surface 62d, and the delivery member 81 is predetermined with respect to the placement surface 62d. Is standing up.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 16B, when the delivery member 81 moves in the delivery direction Z1 and the leg member 82 reaches the position of the recess 62i, there is a mounting surface 62d that supports the leg member 82 at this position. Therefore, the leg member 82 receives a biasing force of a torsion coil spring (not shown) and opens downward, and the leg member 82 enters the recess 62i. At this time, the opening angle between the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 is an angle β held in the natural state of the torsion coil spring.

  When the delivery member 81 reaches the position of the recess 62i, the base member 80 contacts the switch 87 shown in FIG. 14, and the movement direction of the delivery member 81 is switched.

  As shown in FIG. 16C, when the movement direction is switched and the delivery member 81 moves in the return direction Z2, the leg member 82 comes into contact with the edge (near the opening) of the recess 62i, and the tip of the leg member 82 is moved. It is lifted up. When the leg member 82 is lifted in this way and further rotated in the opening direction, the opening angle is larger than the angle β, so that the biasing force by the torsion coil spring acts in the closing direction. As a result, the delivery member 81 receives a biasing force in the closing direction and falls on the placement surface 62d.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 16 (d), when the leg member 82 is removed from the recess 62i, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are held in a state of falling horizontally on the placement surface 62d. Specifically, in this state, since the opening angle formed by the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 is an angle close to 180 °, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 exert an urging force in a direction to close each other by a torsion coil spring. However, since the rotation of the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 is restricted by the placement surface 62d, the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are held in a state of being horizontally collapsed. The delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are configured so as not to open 180 ° or more.

  FIG. 17A shows a state before the delivery member 81 that has been tilted as described above reaches the recess 62j on the end side in the return direction Z2. In this state, similarly to the state shown in FIG. 16D, the opening angle formed by the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 is an angle close to 180 °, and the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 are mounted. It is held in a state of falling horizontally on the placement surface 62d.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 17B, when the leg member 82 reaches the position of the recess 62j, the mounting surface 62d for supporting the leg member 82 does not exist at this position. Under the urging force, it closes downward and the leg member 82 enters the recess 62j. Further, the opening angle between the delivery member 81 and the leg member 82 at this time is an angle β held in the natural state of the torsion coil spring. Since the delivery member 81 is configured so as not to enter the recess 62j, the delivery member 81 passes over the recess 62j.

  When the delivery member 81 reaches the position of the recess 62j, the base member 80 comes into contact with the switch 88 shown in FIG. 14, and the movement direction of the delivery member 81 is switched.

  As shown in FIG. 17C, when the movement direction is switched and the delivery member 81 moves in the delivery direction Z1, the leg member 82 comes into contact with the edge (near the opening) of the recess 62j, and the tip of the leg member 82 is moved. It is lifted up. Thus, when the leg member 82 is lifted and further rotated in the closing direction, the opening angle is smaller than the angle β, so that the biasing force by the torsion coil spring acts in the opening direction. As a result, the delivery member 81 is raised by receiving a biasing force in the opening direction.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 17 (d), when the leg member 82 is detached from the recess 62j, the delivery member 81 is held upright at a predetermined opening angle α.

Hereinafter, the toner delivery operation (conveyance operation) of the toner conveyance device 8 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
18A, 18B and 18C, the toner cartridge 61 is mounted on the drawer tray 62, and the drawer tray 62 is housed in the apparatus main body. Therefore, in this state, the driving force can be transmitted from the driving device on the apparatus main body side to the belt member 83, and the sending member 81 can be reciprocated.

  FIG. 18A shows a state in which the remaining amount of toner T in the toner storage unit 66 has been reduced to some extent. In this case, the delivery member 81 is in a standing state under the urging force of the torsion coil spring. As a result, the lower surface of the toner container 66 is pushed inward by the standing delivery member 81. Then, when the delivery member 81 moves in the delivery direction Z1 with the toner accommodating portion 66 pushed inward, the toner T inside is pushed by the delivery member 81 and is moved to the discharge portion 67 side. Then, the toner T moved to the discharge unit 67 side is discharged downward from the discharge unit 67 by inertia force and gravity. Further, as described above, since the discharge portion 67 is provided with the inclined surface 67c (see FIG. 4D), the toner T is smoothly discharged by sliding on the inclined surface 67c. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, vibration applying means (not shown) that applies minute vibrations to the discharge portion 67 is provided. By applying a minute vibration to the discharge portion 67 by the vibration applying means, the discharge of the toner T from the discharge portion 67 is promoted and the adhesion of the toner T to the discharge portion 67 is prevented.

  In the present embodiment, the discharge part 67 is vibrated with a frequency of 30 Hz and an amplitude of 0.3 mm. The frequency and amplitude vary depending on the type of toner used, but the range of good frequency and amplitude is 10 to 100 Hz and 0.1 to 1 mm in amplitude. When the frequency is less than 10 Hz or when the amplitude is less than 0.1 mm, the effect of promoting the toner discharge and the effect of preventing the toner from adhering to the discharge unit 67 are reduced. On the other hand, if the frequency is greater than 100 Hz, or if the amplitude is greater than 1 mm, the vibration becomes too large and the image forming apparatus main body may vibrate, which may affect image formation. Therefore, by setting the frequency and amplitude within the above ranges, it is possible to satisfactorily exert the effects of promoting toner discharge and preventing toner adhesion while suppressing the influence on image formation.

FIG. 18B shows a state in which a large amount of toner T is filled in the toner container 66.
As described above, in a portion where the toner T is present in a large amount in the toner containing portion 66, the toner containing portion 66 is hardened due to the clogging of the toner T, and is heavy due to the weight of the toner T. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 18B, the delivery member 81 is in a collapsed state, and the pushing amount of the delivery member 81 with respect to the toner accommodating portion 66 is reduced. Then, the delivery member 81 moves in the delivery direction Z1 while being in a collapsed state at a location where a large amount of toner T is present. Thereafter, when the delivery member 81 reaches a position where the toner T near the discharge portion 67 is relatively small, as shown in FIG. 18C, the delivery member 81 is in an upright state so that the pushing amount of the delivery member 81 is increased. Will increase. As described above, the feeding member 81 stands up in the vicinity of the discharge portion 67 and the pushing amount increases, so that the toner T that is easy to move in the vicinity of the discharge portion 67 can be discharged sequentially.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the pushing amount of the delivery member 81 changes according to the amount of toner in the toner storage unit 66, so regardless of the remaining amount of toner in the toner storage unit 66. The toner can be sent stably and reliably to the discharge portion 67. Further, the toner can be conveyed with a small stress, and aggregation and deterioration of the toner can be suppressed. Furthermore, since no large vibration or impact occurs (only minute vibration is applied to the discharge portion 67), there is no possibility of occurrence of an abnormal image due to vibration.

  Further, by appropriately changing the biasing force of the torsion coil spring that biases the delivery member 81 according to the material (flexibility, etc.) of the toner accommodation portion 66 and the maximum toner accommodation amount, the pushing force of the delivery member 81 is appropriately set. It is possible to adjust to a different value. In this case, even if the urging force of the torsion coil spring is increased, in the embodiment of the present invention, the rotation of the delivery member 81 is restricted by a restricting portion (not shown), and thus the delivery member 81 is held in a predetermined standing state. be able to.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 19, when the delivery member 81 is returned to the original position, the delivery member 81 is switched to the collapsed state. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the toner from being returned by the delivery member 81 moving in the return direction Z2. Moreover, in the case of the present embodiment, as described with reference to FIGS. 16 and 17, the switching operation between the standing state and the collapsed state of the delivery member 81 is performed only by the leg member 82 entering the recess 62i or 62j. Since it can be realized by a simple mechanism, the configuration can be simplified. Instead of the recesses 62i and 62j, a through hole can be used.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 18, during the toner delivery operation, the toner accommodating portion 66 is pushed toward the discharge portion 67 by the moving delivery member 81, whereby the hook portion 62b that engages the end of the toner accommodating portion 66. Are also pulled and moved toward the discharge portion 67 (in the direction of arrow A in the figure). As described above, in the present embodiment, the hook 62b moves as the toner accommodating portion 66 is pushed, so that a sudden load on the toner accommodating portion 66 generated when the delivery member 81 pushes the toner accommodating portion 66 is performed. The increase in toner can be reduced, and the wear of the toner container 66 can be suppressed.

  After that, as shown in FIG. 19, when returning the delivery member 81, the hook 62b is moved to the opposite side (in the direction of arrow B in the figure) from the discharge part 67 side by the torsion coil spring 62k (see FIG. 6A). The toner container 66 is pulled back and held in a predetermined position.

  Further, the toner container 66 is reduced in volume as the internal toner is sent out. Specifically, the volume is reduced by deforming so that the upper surface 660 and the lower surface 661 of the toner storage portion 66 approach each other so that the state shown in FIG. 20A is changed to the state shown in FIG. . As described above, since the toner container 66 automatically reduces the volume as the toner in the interior decreases, it is possible to grasp the toner remaining amount by appearance. In addition, since the volume of the toner container 66 is automatically reduced, the convenience of the toner container 66 is eliminated because it is not necessary to crush the toner container 66 when the used toner container 66 is discarded. In addition, in the present embodiment, since the entire toner container 66 is made of a deformable member, the used toner container 66 can be folded more compactly. Thereby, it is possible to reduce the environmental load at the time of collection, transportation, and reuse. Note that the toner accommodating portion 66 may be configured by a member that can be deformed only partially if the volume can be reduced as the toner is discharged.

  Further, when the volume of the toner container 66 is reduced, the lower surface (bottom surface) 661 of the toner container 66 is inclined downward from the horizontal shape toward the opening 66a side from the hole 66b side which is the locked portion. Is arranged. As shown in FIG. 21, in the installation posture of the toner containing portion 66 when it is used, the hole 66b of the toner containing portion 66 is positioned more than the lower end of the opening 66a (the position indicated by the one-dot chain line U in FIG. 21). This is because it is disposed above. In other words, even if the volume of the toner container 66 is reduced, the position of the fixed hole 66b does not change, so the lower surface 661 of the toner container 66 extends from the upper hole 66b to the lower end of the lower opening 66a. It is arrange | positioned so that it may incline below gradually.

  Thus, in the present embodiment, unlike the case shown in FIG. 24 described above, the lower surface 661 of the toner container 66 is opposite to the opening 66a even if the toner in the toner container 66 is reduced and the volume is reduced. Since the toner does not incline downward toward the side, the toner carried to the opening 66a side can be prevented from returning due to the influence of gravity. As a result, it is possible to suppress a reduction in the toner conveyance amount due to the return of the toner from the opening 66a, and the toner conveyance amount can be stabilized. It is also possible to reduce the amount of toner that finally remains in the toner container 66.

  Further, in this embodiment, since the end of the toner storage portion 66 is pulled by the hook portion 62b, the volume of the toner storage portion 66 is promoted by the tension generated at this time, and the toner storage portion 66 is The shape can be stabilized. Thereby, the return of the toner can be more effectively suppressed.

  In order to suppress the return of the toner, it is only necessary that the lower surface 661 is arranged at least horizontally when the toner storage portion 66 is reduced in volume. Therefore, the position of the hole 66b may be the same height as the lower end of the opening 66a or higher.

  However, even if the hole 66b is disposed at a position higher than the lower end of the opening 66a, if the hook 62b that locks the hole 66b is below the lower end of the opening 66a, the hole 66b is hooked. In the state where the portion 62b is hooked, the hole 66b is disposed below the lower end of the opening 66a. Therefore, it is necessary to dispose the hook portion 62b at a position equal to or higher than the lower end of the opening portion 66a, similarly to the hole portion 66b.

  However, when the hook 62b is disposed above the upper end of the opening 66a (the position indicated by the alternate long and short dash line N in FIG. 21), the toner container 66 having the same configuration as that of the present embodiment is employed. Since the degree of inclination of the toner containing portion 66 with respect to the horizontal direction increases, it becomes difficult to arrange the toner containing portion 66 in a compact manner in the vertical direction. Therefore, in order to arrange the toner accommodating portion 66 in a compact manner in the vertical direction, the positions of the hook portion 62b and the hole portion 66b are preferably below the upper end of the opening portion 66a.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, by setting the position of the opening 66a and the height of the delivery member 81 as follows, it is possible to further stabilize the toner conveyance amount and reduce the remaining toner amount. It becomes.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 22, the opening 66 a is disposed at the center in the vertical direction at the end of the toner containing portion 66. On the other hand, if the opening 66a is disposed below the toner container 66, the amount of toner adhering to the inner surface above the opening 66a is increased due to the toner feeding operation by the sending member 81, and the remaining amount of toner is reduced. Become more. On the other hand, when the opening 66a is disposed on the upper part of the toner accommodating portion 66, the position of the opening 66a becomes relatively high with respect to the height of the delivery member 81, so that the amount of toner delivered is reduced. . For this reason, as described above, the opening 66a is disposed at the center in the vertical direction of the end of the toner accommodating portion 66, thereby further stabilizing the toner conveyance amount and reducing the remaining toner amount. Is possible.

  Note that “the opening 66 a is disposed at the center in the vertical direction at the end of the toner containing portion 66” means that the vertical center line H 1 of the opening 66 a shown in FIG. It is not limited to the case where it is disposed so as to be completely coincident with the vertical center line H2 of the main body portion, but may be located at a position where it substantially coincides (substantially the center in the vertical direction).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 22, when the powder is sent out by the sending member 81, the top F of the inner surface of the portion where the toner accommodating portion 66 is pushed by the sending member 81 at this time is not less than the lower end of the opening 66a and the upper end. It is desirable to make it below (within the range indicated by the symbol V in FIG. 22). If the top F of the pushed-in portion is lower than the lower end of the opening 66a, the toner conveyance amount decreases. Conversely, if the top F of the pushed-in portion is higher than the upper end of the opening 66a, the toner feeding operation is performed. This is because the toner remaining on the inner surface above the opening 66a increases due to the toner. For this reason, as described above, the top F of the inner surface of the pushed-in portion is configured to be not less than the lower end and not more than the upper end of the opening 66a, thereby further stabilizing the toner conveyance amount and remaining toner. The amount can be reduced.

  Note that the top F of the inner surface of the pushed-in portion is not less than the lower end and not more than the upper end of the opening 66a as long as the delivery member 81 is at least near the opening 66a. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 18B, when the delivery member 81 at the start of the delivery operation is tilted, even if the top F is at a position lower than the lower end of the opening 66a, it is shown in FIG. Thus, when the delivery member 81 reaches the vicinity of the opening 66a and stands up, the top F may be equal to or higher than the lower end of the opening 66a.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  For example, the toner storage unit 66 may be configured with a transparent member, or may be configured with a translucent or opaque member. Alternatively, the toner container 66 may be colored in the same color as the toner inside. Further, the wear resistance of the bottom surface (contact surface with the delivery member 81) of the toner container 66 is increased, or the bottom surface is formed of a thin film having a small coefficient of friction formed by various methods such as PVD and CVD. By doing so, it is possible to suppress the abrasion of the bottom surface of the toner accommodating portion 66 due to the sliding contact of the delivery member 81. Further, by providing a mechanism for applying a lubricant to at least one of the delivery member 81 and the toner accommodating portion 66, it is possible to reduce friction between them and suppress wear. Further, by making a crease in the toner accommodating portion 66 in advance, the toner accommodating portion 66 is folded along the crease as the toner amount decreases. In this case, when the toner container 66 has almost no toner, the toner container 66 is folded into a flat shape to be compact, so that the cost of disposal and collection can be reduced.

Further, the portion of the toner containing portion 66 where the hole 66b is formed has a sufficient strength to prevent damage or deformation of the portion because a force is applied by being pulled by the hook portion 62b. desirable.
For example, as shown in FIG. 23A, the portions where the holes 66b are formed (hereinafter referred to as “locked portions J”) 2 constitute the upper and lower surfaces of the toner storage portion 66 in the drawing. By configuring the sheet materials S1 and S2 to be bonded together, the locked portion J can be formed thick and the strength is improved. Specifically, when the thicknesses t1 and t2 of the upper and lower sheet materials S1 and S2 are 100 μm, the thickness tJ of the locked portion J is 200 μm.

  In order to further improve the strength, as shown in FIG. 23 (b), the thicknesses t1J and t2J of the locked portions J of the upper and lower sheet materials S1 and S2 are compared with the thicknesses t1 and t2 of other portions. It may be thick. Specifically, in the upper and lower sheet materials S1 and S2 having thicknesses t1 and t2, the upper and lower sheet materials S1 and S2 are bonded together by increasing only the thicknesses t1J and t2J of the locked portion J to 150 μm. The thickness tJ of the locked portion J when configured as described above can be set to 300 μm.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 23 (c), it is possible to improve the strength by separately attaching a reinforcing sheet material S3 to the locked portion J.

  As described above, by improving the strength of the locked portion J, it is possible to prevent the locked portion J from being damaged or deformed. As a result, the attitude of the toner accommodating portion 66 can be maintained well over a long period of time, and thus the stability of toner conveyance due to the movement of the delivery member 81 can be ensured.

  Further, the configuration of the present invention can also be applied to a powder container for storing powder other than toner and a powder conveyance device including the same. The image forming apparatus on which the powder container and the powder conveying device according to the present invention are mounted is not limited to the printer shown in FIG. 1, but may be other printers, copiers, facsimiles, or complex machines thereof. Also good.

Details of the toner used in the present invention will be described below.
The toner is mainly formed of a resin component, a pigment component, a wax component, and an external additive.

  As resins, polystyrene resin, epoxy resin, polyester resin, polyamide resin, styrene acrylic resin, styrene methacrylate resin, polyurethane resin, vinyl resin, polyolefin resin, styrene butadiene resin, phenol resin, polyethylene resin, silicon resin, butyral resin, terpene There are resins, polyol resins and the like. Examples of vinyl resins include styrene such as polystyrene, poly-p-chlorostyrene, and polyvinyltoluene, and homopolymers thereof: styrene-p-chlorostyrene copolymer, styrene-propylene copolymer, styrene-vinyltoluene copolymer. Polymer, styrene-vinyl naphthalene copolymer, styrene-methyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-ethyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-butyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-octyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-methacrylic copolymer Acid methyl copolymer, styrene-ethyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-butyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-α-chloromethyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-vinyl methyl ether copolymer Coalescence, styrene-vinyl ethyl acetate Copolymer, styrene-vinyl methyl ketone copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-isoprene copolymer, styrene-acrylonitrile-indene copolymer, styrene-maleic acid copolymer, styrene-maleic acid ester Styrene copolymers such as copolymers: polymethyl methacrylate, polybutyl methacrylate, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl acetate and the like.

  The polyester resin is composed of a dihydric alcohol as shown in the following group A and a dibasic acid salt as shown in the group B, and further a trihydric or higher alcohol as shown in the group C or Carboxylic acid may be added as a third component.

  Group A: ethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, 1,2-propylene glycol, 1,3-propylene glycol, 1,4 butanediol, neopentyl glycol, 1,4 butenediol, 1,4-bis (hydroxymethyl) cyclohexane Bisphenol A, hydrogenated bisphenol A, polyoxyethylenated bisphenol A, polyoxypropylene (2,2) -2,2′-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane, polyoxypropylene (3,3) -2, 2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane, polyoxyethylene (2,0) -2,2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane, polyoxypropylene (2,0) -2,2′-bis (4 -Hydroxyphenyl) propane and the like.

  Group B: maleic acid, fumaric acid, mesaconic acid, citraconic acid, itaconic acid, glutaconic acid, phthalic acid, isophthalic acid, terephthalic acid, cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, succinic acid, adipic acid, sebacic acid, malonic acid, linolenic acid, or These acid anhydrides or esters of lower alcohols.

  Group C: Trivalent or higher alcohols such as glycerin, trimethylolpropane and pentaerythritol, and trivalent or higher carboxylic acids such as trimellitic acid and pyromellitic acid. As the polyol resin, an alkylene oxide adduct of an epoxy resin and a dihydric phenol, or a compound having one active hydrogen in the molecule that reacts with the glycidyl ether and the epoxy group, and an active hydrogen that reacts with the epoxy resin in the molecule. There are those obtained by reacting two or more compounds.

The following are used as the pigment used in the present invention.
Examples of black pigments include azine dyes such as carbon black, oil furnace black, channel black, lamp black, acetylene black, and aniline black, metal salt azo dyes, metal oxides, and composite metal oxides.

  Examples of yellow pigments include cadmium yellow, mineral fast yellow, nickel yellow, navel yellow, naphthol yellow S, hansa yellow G, hansa yellow 10G, benzidine yellow GR, quinoline yellow lake, permanent yellow NCG, and tartrazine lake. .

  Examples of the orange pigment include molybdenum orange, permanent orange GTR, pyrazolone orange, Vulcan orange, indanthrene brilliant orange RK, benzidine orange G, and indanthrene brilliant orange GK.

  Examples of red pigments include Bengala, Cadmium Red, Permanent Red 4R, Resol Red, Pyrazolone Red, Watching Red Calcium Salt, Lake Red D, Brilliant Carmine 6B, Eosin Lake, Rhodamine Lake B, Alizarin Lake, Brilliant Carmine 3B.

  Examples of purple pigments include fast violet B and methyl violet lake.

  Examples of blue pigments include cobalt blue, alkali blue, Victoria blue lake, phthalocyanine blue, metal-free phthalocyanine blue, phthalocyanine blue partially chlorinated, first sky blue, and indanthrene blue BC.

  Examples of green pigments include chrome green, chromium oxide, pigment green B, and malachite green lake.

  These can use 1 type (s) or 2 or more types. Especially for color toners, uniform dispersion of good pigments is essential. Instead of putting pigments directly into a large amount of resin, a master batch in which pigments are once dispersed at a high concentration is prepared and diluted. The method of throwing in is used. In this case, a solvent is generally used to assist dispersibility. However, there is a problem of environment and the like, and in the present invention, water is used for dispersion. When water is used, temperature control is important so that residual moisture in the masterbatch does not become a problem.

  In the toner of the present invention, a charge control agent is blended (internally added) inside the toner particles. The charge control agent makes it possible to control the optimum charge amount according to the development system. In particular, in a developing device to which the present invention is applied, the balance between the particle size distribution and the charge amount can be further stabilized. For controlling the toner to be positively charged, nigrosine and quaternary ammonium salts, triphenylmethane dyes, imidazole metal complexes and salts can be used alone or in combination of two or more. Further, salicylic acid metal complexes, salts, organic boron salts, calixarene compounds, and the like are used for controlling the toner to be negatively charged.

  Further, a release agent can be internally added to the toner in the present invention to prevent offset at the time of fixing. Release agents include natural waxes such as candelilla wax, carnauba wax and rice wax, montan wax and derivatives thereof, paraffin wax and derivatives thereof, polyolefin wax and derivatives thereof, sazol wax, low molecular weight polyethylene, and low molecular weight polypropylene. And alkyl phosphate esters. The melting point of these release agents is preferably 65 to 90 [° C.]. If it is lower than this range, blocking during storage of the toner tends to occur, and if it is higher than this range, offset tends to occur in a region where the fixing temperature is low.

  Additives may be added for the purpose of improving the dispersibility of a release agent or the like. As additives, styrene acrylic resin, polyethylene resin, polystyrene resin, epoxy resin, polyester resin, polyamide resin, styrene methacrylate resin, polyurethane resin, vinyl resin, polyolefin resin, styrene butadiene resin, phenol resin, butyral resin, terpene resin, There is a polyol resin or the like, and a mixture of two or more of these resins may be used.

  As the resin, crystalline polyester may be used. It is an aliphatic polyester having crystallinity, having a sharp molecular weight distribution, and increasing the absolute amount of its low molecular weight as much as possible. This resin undergoes a crystal transition at the glass transition temperature (Tg), and at the same time, the melt viscosity suddenly decreases from the solid state and exhibits a fixing function to paper. By using this crystalline polyester resin, low-temperature fixing can be achieved without excessively reducing the Tg and molecular weight of the resin. Therefore, there is no decrease in storage stability associated with a decrease in Tg. Also, there is no excessively high gloss and offset resistance deterioration due to the low molecular weight. Therefore, the introduction of the crystalline polyester resin is very effective for improving the low-temperature fixability of the toner.

  As the toner, an inorganic fine powder may be attached or fixed to the toner surface as a fluidity improver. The average particle size of the inorganic fine powder is suitably 10 to 200 [nm]. When the particle size is smaller than 10 [nm], it is difficult to create an uneven surface having an effect on fluidity, and when the particle size is larger than 200 [nm], the powder shape becomes rough, which is a problem of toner shape. Occurs.

  As the inorganic fine powder of the present invention, Si, Ti, Al, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, In, Ga, Ni, Mn, W, Fe, Co, Zn, Cr, Mo, Cu, Ag, V, Zr, etc. Oxides, hydroxides, carbonates, sulfides, and composite oxides. Of these, the following oxides are often used from the viewpoint of safety and stability. In particular, fine particles of silicon oxide (silica), titanium oxide, and aluminum oxide (alumina, corundum) are preferably used. Furthermore, it is effective to perform a surface modification treatment of the additive with a hydrophobizing agent or the like. A typical example of the hydrophobizing agent is a silane coupling agent, which includes the following.

  Dimethyldichlorosilane, trimethylchlorosilane, methyltrichlorosilane, allyldimethyldichlorosilane, allylphenyldichlorosilane, benzyldimethylchlorosilane, bromomethyldimethylchlorosilane, α-chloroethyltrichlorosilane, p-chloroethyltrichlorosilane, Chloromethyldimethylchlorosilane, chloromethyltrichlorosilane, hexaphenyldisilazane, hexatolyldisilazane, etc.

  Hydrophobizing the additive makes it difficult for moisture to be adsorbed on the surface of the additive, which is a nanoparticle, and improves toner stability.

  The inorganic fine powder is preferably used in an amount of 0.1 to 2% by weight based on the toner. If it is less than 0.1 [wt%], the effect of improving toner aggregation is poor, and if it exceeds 2 [wt%], there are problems such as toner scattering between fine wires, contamination in the machine, scratches and abrasion of the photoreceptor. It tends to occur.

  In addition, a charge control agent may be attached or fixed to the surface of at least a powder composed of a resin and a pigment so that the powder surface shape has a small period and a large period. The average particle size is optimally as small as 5 to 200 [nm].

  In addition, the toner of the present invention may further contain other additives within a range that does not have a substantial adverse effect, such as Teflon (registered trademark) powder which is an organic powder, metal soap powder such as zinc stearate powder, polyfluoride Lubricant powder such as vinylidene powder, or abrasive such as cerium oxide powder, silicon carbide powder, strontium titanate powder, or conductive particles such as carbon black powder, zinc oxide powder, tin oxide powder, indium oxide powder, and insulating properties A small amount of a conductivity-imparting agent such as a powder obtained by coating conductive particles on the powder may be used as a developability improver.

  Since the fine powder is added to the toner, the toner is easily loosened when the delivery member 81 is operated, and the toner is removed from the container even when there is no replenishment operation for a while and the fluidity of the toner is lowered. Can be discharged.

8 Toner conveying device (powder conveying device)
60 Toner supply device 61 Toner cartridge (powder container)
62b Hook (locking part)
62k torsion coil spring (elastic member)
66 Toner container (powder container)
66b hole (locked part)
66c Ventilation part 67 Discharge part 67i Ventilation part T Toner (powder)

JP 2002-46843 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-143195

Claims (8)

An opening is formed at one end, the powder is contained inside, and the powder containing part is formed so as to be deformable with a flexible material. The delivery member is pushed in from the outside of the powder containing part. A powder container configured to send powder from the opening by moving to the opening,
A locked portion for locking the locking portion of the mating member is provided at the other end opposite to the one end where the opening is formed, and the powder storage portion is installed in use. The powder container is configured such that the locked portion is disposed at a position above the lower end of the opening.   The powder container according to claim 1, wherein the opening is disposed at a central portion in the vertical direction of one end of the powder container.   A discharge unit provided on the opening side of the powder container and having a discharge port for discharging the powder fed from the opening to a supply destination; The powder container according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an inclined surface inclined downward toward the discharge port. An opening is formed at one end, and a powder container having a powder container formed so as to be deformable with a flexible material while containing powder therein, and the powder container is pushed in from the outside The engaging member that feeds the powder from the opening by moving to the opening side and the other end opposite to the one end where the opening of the powder container is formed are engaged. In the powder conveying apparatus provided with the stopper,
The powder container using the powder container according to any one of claims 1 to 3 as the powder container.   The powder conveying apparatus of Claim 4 which has arrange | positioned the said latching | locking part in the position beyond the lower end of the said opening.   When the delivery member pushes the powder container and moves to the opening, the top of the inner surface of the portion pushed by the delivery member is at least in the vicinity of the opening, and more than the lower end of the opening, The powder conveyance device according to claim 4 or 5 constituted so that it may become below an upper end.   7. The locking portion according to claim 4, wherein the locking portion is configured to be movable to the opening portion side and the opposite side thereof, and the locking portion is configured to be urged to the opposite side of the opening portion side by an elastic member. The powder conveyance apparatus of any one.   An image forming apparatus comprising the powder conveyance device according to claim 4.

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