JP2013047776A - Developer storage container, developing device, process unit and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a developer storage container that improves the degree of freedom in the layout design of a guide mechanism and is able to reduce its size.SOLUTION: The developer storage container comprises: a rotary member rotated and driven in a container body 70; a gear train provided outside the container body 70 and comprising a plurality of gears 62, 63, and 64 for transmitting drive torque to the rotary member; and a container-side guide part 73a for guiding the container body 70 in an attaching/detaching direction with respect to an image forming apparatus body in cooperation with a body-side guide part provided on the image forming apparatus body. One gear 64 composing the gear train is configured so as to be movable between an actuating position where torque is transmitted by its engagement with other gears 62 and 63 and a retreat position where the gear 64 is retreated from the actuating position. On a surface where a container-side guide part 73a is provided, a part of or the entire part of the container-side guide part 73a is disposed in the projection area J of the gear 64 located in the actuating position.

Description

  The present invention relates to a developer container that contains a developer, a developing device having the developer container, a process unit, and an image forming apparatus.

  In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, or a complex machine of these, a developing device, a charging device, a photosensitive member, etc. are integrated into an image forming unit, which is connected to the main body of the image forming device. A system configured to be detachable is known. This system has been adopted in many products because of the advantage that the user can easily maintain the apparatus by exchanging the unit. Also, in this type of image forming unit, there are a developer container that contains a developer such as toner that is integrated with the unit, and a developer container that is separate from the unit.

  In the former case, when the stored developer runs out, the image forming unit is replaced with a new unit. In this case, since the developing device, the photosensitive member, and the like can be replaced together with the used developer container, there is an advantage that the replacement operation is easy.

  On the other hand, in the latter case, when the stored developer runs out, only the developer container is replaced with a new one. In this case, if the developing device, the photoconductor, etc. have not reached the useful life, they can be used continuously without being replaced. For this reason, a configuration in which the developer container can be replaced independently is becoming mainstream due to the recent increase in consideration of environmental load.

  In the configuration in which the developer container is detachably attached, it is necessary to match the position of the discharge port on the container side and the position of the replenishment port on the developing device side with the developer container mounted on the main body of the image forming apparatus. . For this reason, generally, a guide portion for guiding the container main body at the time of attachment and detachment and a positioning portion for positioning with respect to the image forming apparatus main body are provided on the outer surface of the developer container.

  Some developer containers are provided with rotating members such as a conveying screw and an agitator for conveying and stirring the developer in the container. In such a developer container, the driving force to the rotating member is generally obtained from a driving source provided in the image forming apparatus main body. Therefore, a gear for transmitting the driving force from the driving source on the main body side to the rotating member is provided outside the developer container of this type (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  As described above, when the gear is provided outside the developer container, it is necessary to prevent the guide mechanism for guiding the container body and the gear from interfering with each other when the container is attached or detached. For this reason, the guide portion provided on the container side has a layout limitation that it must be disposed avoiding the gear position. However, if the guide portion is disposed avoiding the gear disposition position, there is a problem that as a result, the size of the developer container becomes large and it is difficult to reduce the size of the apparatus.

  In view of such circumstances, the present invention provides a developer container capable of improving the layout design of the guide mechanism and reducing the size, a developing device having the developer container, a process unit, and an image forming apparatus. It is something to be offered.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a developer container configured to be detachable from the image forming apparatus main body, the container main body containing the developer therein, and the developer in the container main body. A discharge port for discharging to the outside, a rotating member that is driven to rotate within the container body, a gear train that is provided outside the container body and that transmits a driving torque to the rotating member, and an image forming apparatus body In the developer container provided with a container side guide portion that guides the container main body in the attaching / detaching direction with respect to the image forming apparatus main body in cooperation with the main body side guide portion provided in the image forming apparatus main body, On the surface on which the container-side guide portion is provided, and the container-side guide portion of the container-side guide portion can be moved between an operating position that engages with other gears to transmit torque and a retracted position that is retracted from the operating position. Part or all of the above Characterized in that so as to be disposed on the gear of the projection area in the turned position.

  According to the present invention, since some of the gears constituting the gear train are configured to be movable between the operating position and the retracted position, a part or all of the container side guide portion is in the operating position. Even in the projection region, it is possible to avoid interference between the main body side guide portion and the gear train during the attaching / detaching operation of the container main body. In addition, according to the present invention, the degree of freedom in the layout design of the container side guide portion is improved, so that the developer container can be reduced in size.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a developing device and a toner cartridge. 2 is an external view of a toner cartridge. FIG. FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a state where an upper case and a gear cover are removed from the toner cartridge. FIG. 6 is a side view illustrating a state where a gear cover of the toner cartridge is removed. FIG. 6 is a side view illustrating a state where a gear cover of the toner cartridge is removed. It is a perspective view of a gear holder. It is the perspective view which looked at the gear cover from the front side. It is the perspective view which looked at the gear cover from the back side. FIG. 4 is a diagram of the toner cartridge as viewed from the gear cover side. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of one side wall side of an apparatus main body. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of the other side wall side of an apparatus main body. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining an attaching / detaching operation of the toner cartridge to / from the apparatus main body. It is a perspective view which shows the state by which the torque transmission gear was arrange | positioned in the operation position. It is a perspective view which shows the state by which the discharge port was open | released. It is a perspective view which shows the state by which the torque transmission gear was arrange | positioned in the retracted position. It is a perspective view which shows the state by which the discharge port was closed. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a force generated in a toner cartridge. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a state where the toner cartridge is mounted on the apparatus main body as viewed from below. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a mounting state of a toner cartridge of a comparative example viewed from below.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings for explaining the present invention, components such as members and components having the same function or shape are denoted by the same reference numerals as much as possible, and once described, the description will be given. Omitted.

First, an overall configuration and operation of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIG.
The image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is a color laser printer, and four process units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk as image forming units are detachably attached to the apparatus main body (image forming apparatus main body) 100. ing. Each process unit 1Y, 1M, 1C, 1Bk contains developers of different colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (Bk) corresponding to the color separation components of the color image. The configuration is the same except that.

  Specifically, each of the process units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk includes a drum-shaped photosensitive member 2 as a latent image carrier, a charging roller 3 that charges the surface of the photosensitive member 2, and the like, The image forming apparatus includes a developing device 4 that supplies a developer to the latent image on the photoconductor 2 and a cleaning device that includes a cleaning blade 5 for cleaning the surface of the photoconductor 2. In FIG. 1, only the photoconductor 2, the charging roller 3, the developing device 4, and the cleaning blade 5 included in the yellow process unit 1 </ b> Y are denoted by reference numerals. Omitted. In this embodiment, a one-component developer made of toner is used as the developer. However, the developer is not limited to this, and may be a two-component developer including a toner and a carrier.

  Above the four developing devices 4 of the process units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk, toner cartridges 50 as developer containers that store toner to be supplied to the developing devices 4 are disposed. ing. In the present embodiment, a partition plate 108 provided in the apparatus main body 100 is disposed between each developing device 4 and each toner cartridge 50, and the four mounting portions 106 formed on the partition plate 108 are arranged on the four mounting portions 106. Each toner cartridge 50 is detachably mounted.

  Further, an exposure device 6 for exposing the surface of the photoreceptor 2 of each process unit 1Y, 1M, 1C, 1Bk is disposed near the upper portion of each toner cartridge 50. The exposure device 6 includes a light source, a polygon mirror, an f-θ lens, a reflection mirror, and the like, and irradiates the surface of each photoreceptor 2 with laser light based on image data.

  Further, an upper cover 109 that can be opened and closed in the vertical direction by rotating around the fulcrum 110 is provided at the upper part of the apparatus main body 100. Further, the exposure apparatus 6 is attached to the upper cover 109. For this reason, when the upper cover 109 is opened, the exposure device 6 can be retracted from the vicinity of the upper side of the toner cartridge 50, and the toner cartridge 50 can be detached from the upper opening of the apparatus main body 100 in this state.

  A transfer device 7 is disposed below the process units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk. The transfer device 7 has an intermediate transfer belt 8 constituted by an endless belt as a transfer body. The intermediate transfer belt 8 is stretched around a driving roller 9 and a driven roller 10 as support members. When the driving roller 9 rotates counterclockwise in the figure, the intermediate transfer belt 8 is in the direction indicated by the arrow in the figure. It is comprised so that it may run around (rotate).

  Four primary transfer rollers 11 as primary transfer means are disposed at positions facing the four photoconductors 2. Each primary transfer roller 11 presses the inner peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 8 at each position, and a primary transfer nip is formed at a location where the pressed portion of the intermediate transfer belt 8 and each photoconductor 2 are in contact with each other. ing. Each primary transfer roller 11 is connected to a power source (not shown), and a predetermined direct current voltage (DC) and / or alternating current voltage (AC) is applied to the primary transfer roller 11.

  A secondary transfer roller 12 as a secondary transfer unit is disposed at a position facing the drive roller 9. The secondary transfer roller 12 presses the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 8, and a secondary transfer nip is formed at a location where the secondary transfer roller 12 and the intermediate transfer belt 8 are in contact with each other. Similar to the primary transfer roller 11, the secondary transfer roller 12 is connected to a power source (not shown) so that a predetermined direct current voltage (DC) and / or alternating current voltage (AC) is applied to the secondary transfer roller 12. It has become.

  A belt cleaning device 13 for cleaning the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 8 is disposed on the outer peripheral surface on the right end side of the intermediate transfer belt 8 in the drawing. A waste toner transfer hose (not shown) extending from the belt cleaning device 13 is connected to an entrance of a waste toner container 14 disposed below the transfer device 7.

  A paper feed cassette 15 that accommodates a recording medium S such as paper or an OHP sheet is disposed below the apparatus main body 100. The paper feed cassette 15 is provided with a paper feed roller 16 for feeding out the stored recording medium S. On the other hand, a pair of paper discharge rollers 17 for discharging the recording medium to the outside is disposed on the upper part of the apparatus main body 100. Further, a discharge tray 18 for stocking the recording medium discharged by the discharge roller 17 is provided on the upper cover 109.

  In the apparatus main body 100, a transport path R for transporting the recording medium S from the paper feed cassette 15 through the secondary transfer nip to the paper discharge tray 18 is disposed. In the transport path R, a pair of registration rollers 19 as transport means for transporting the recording medium to the secondary transfer nip at the transport timing is arranged upstream of the position of the secondary transfer roller 12 in the recording medium transport direction. Has been. A fixing device 20 is disposed downstream of the position of the secondary transfer roller 12 in the recording medium conveyance direction.

The image forming apparatus operates as follows.
When the image forming operation is started, the photosensitive members 2 of the process units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk are rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. 1, and the surface of each photosensitive member 2 is made to have a predetermined polarity by the charging roller 3. It is charged like this. Based on image information of a document read by an image reading device (not shown), the exposure device 6 irradiates the charged surface of each photoconductor 2 with laser light, and an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of each photoconductor 2. The At this time, the image information to be exposed on each photoconductor 2 is single-color image information obtained by separating a desired full-color image into color information of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. As the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive member 2 is supplied with toner by each developing device 4, the electrostatic latent image is visualized (visualized) as a toner image.

  Subsequently, the driving roller 9 that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 8 is rotationally driven, and the intermediate transfer belt 8 is caused to run in the direction of the arrow in the drawing. Also, a primary transfer nip between each primary transfer roller 11 and each photoreceptor 2 is applied to each primary transfer roller 11 by applying a constant voltage or a voltage controlled by a constant current opposite to the charging polarity of the toner. A transfer electric field is formed. Then, the toner images of the respective colors on the respective photoconductors 2 are sequentially superimposed and transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 8 by the transfer electric field formed in the primary transfer nip. Thus, the intermediate transfer belt 8 carries a full-color toner image on its surface. Further, the toner on each photoreceptor 2 that could not be transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 8 is removed by the cleaning blade 5.

  On the other hand, in the paper feed cassette 15, the stored recording medium S is sent out to the transport path R as the paper feed roller 16 rotates. The recording medium S sent to the conveyance path R is timed by the registration roller 19 and sent to the secondary transfer nip between the secondary transfer roller 12 and the intermediate transfer belt 8. At this time, a transfer voltage having a polarity opposite to the toner charging polarity of the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 8 is applied to the secondary transfer roller 12, thereby forming a transfer electric field in the secondary transfer nip. Then, the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 8 is collectively transferred onto the recording medium S by the transfer electric field formed in the secondary transfer nip. Further, the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 8 after the transfer is removed by the belt cleaning device 13, and the removed toner is conveyed to the waste toner container 14 and collected.

  Thereafter, the recording medium S to which the toner image is transferred is conveyed to the fixing device 20, and the toner image on the recording medium S is fixed to the recording medium S in the fixing device 20. Then, the recording medium S is discharged out of the apparatus by a pair of paper discharge rollers 17 and stocked on the paper discharge tray 18.

  The above description is an image forming operation when a full-color image is formed on a recording medium. A single color image is formed using any one of the four process units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1Bk, and 2 Two or three process units can be used to form a two or three color image.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the developing device and the toner cartridge.
As shown in FIG. 2, the developing device 4 includes a developing housing 40 that contains toner, a developing roller 41 that serves as a developer carrier that carries toner, and a developer supply member that supplies toner to the developing roller 41. A supply roller 42, a developing blade 43 as a regulating member for regulating the amount of toner carried on the developing roller 41, two conveying screws 44 and 45 as conveying members for conveying toner, and two light guide members 46 , 47 etc.

  The interior of the developing housing 40 is divided into a first region E1 on the upper side of the drawing and a second region E2 on the lower side of the drawing by a partition member 48 having a communication port 48a. The communication ports 48a are provided at both ends of the partition member 48 (the front side and the back side in the direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 2). That is, the first region E1 and the second region E2 communicate with each other at the place where the two communication ports 48a are formed.

  One conveying screw 44 and two light guide members 46 and 47 are provided in the first region E1. On the other hand, the other conveying screw 45 and the supply roller 42 are provided in the second region E2. Further, a developing roller 41 and a developing blade 43 are provided in an opening portion facing the photosensitive member 2 in the second region E2.

  The two conveying screws 44 and 45 are formed by providing spiral blades 441 and 451 on the outer circumferences of the rotating shafts 440 and 450, respectively. When the conveying screws 44 and 45 rotate, the toner is conveyed in the respective axial directions. Here, the toner conveying directions by the conveying screws 44 and 45 are opposite to each other.

  The developing roller 41 is composed of a metal core and conductive rubber disposed on the outer periphery of the core. In the present embodiment, the outer diameter of the core metal is set to φ6, the outer periphery of the conductive rubber is set to φ12, and the rubber hardness Hs75. Further, the conductive rubber is adjusted to have a volume resistance value of about 10 5 to 10 7 Ω. For example, conductive urethane rubber or silicone rubber can be used as the conductive rubber. The developing roller 41 rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2 and conveys the developer held on the surface to a position facing the developing blade 43 and the photoreceptor 2.

  As the supply roller 42, a sponge roller or the like is generally used. As the sponge roller, it is appropriate that the foamed polyurethane mixed with carbon and made semiconductive is attached to the outer periphery of a metal core. In this embodiment, the outer diameter of the metal core is set to φ6, and the outer diameter of the sponge portion is set to φ12. The supply roller 42 is in contact with the developing roller 41. The nip formed by the contact between the supply roller 42 and the developing roller 41 is usually set to about 1 mm to 3 mm. In this embodiment, the nip is 2 mm. Further, the supply roller 42 rotates counterclockwise with respect to the developing roller 41 (counterclockwise in FIG. 2) so that the toner in the developing housing 40 can be efficiently supplied to the surface layer of the developing roller 41. . Furthermore, in this embodiment, a favorable toner supply function is ensured by setting the rotation speed ratio between the developing roller 41 and the supply roller 42 to 1.

  The developing blade 43 is made of, for example, a metal plate such as SUS having a thickness of about 0.1 mm. The developing blade 43 is in contact with the surface of the developing roller 41 on the tip side. Control of the amount of toner on the developing roller 41 by the developing blade 43 is a very important parameter in order to stabilize the developing characteristics and obtain good image quality. Therefore, in a normal product, the contact pressure of the developing blade 43 with respect to the developing roller 41 is strictly controlled to about 20 to 60 N / m, and the position of the nip portion is strictly controlled to about 0.5 ± 0.5 mm from the tip of the developing blade 43. Yes. These parameters are appropriately determined according to the characteristics of the toner to be used, the developing roller, the supply roller, and the like. In this embodiment, the developing blade 43 is made of a SUS material having a thickness of 0.1 mm, the contact pressure is 45 N / m, the position of the nip portion is 0.2 mm from the tip of the developing blade 43, and the supporting end of the developing blade 43 By setting the length (free length) from to the free end (tip) to 14 mm, a stable toner thin layer can be formed on the developing roller 41.

  The two light guide members 46 and 47 are formed using a material having good light transmittance. For example, when a resin is used as the material, an acrylic material or a PC material having high transparency is preferable. In addition, as a material for each of the light guide members 46 and 47, it is also possible to use optical glass or the like that can obtain better optical characteristics. Alternatively, an optical fiber may be used for each of the light guide members 46 and 47. In this case, the degree of freedom in designing the optical path formed by the light guide members 46 and 47 is improved.

  One end portions of the light guide members 46 and 47 are exposed to the outside of the developing housing 40. In a state where the process unit is mounted on the image forming apparatus main body, a light emitting element (not shown) as a toner amount detecting means provided on the main body side and a light receiving element face each of the exposed end portions. Yes. In a state where the light emitting element and the light receiving element face the exposed end portions of the light guide members 46 and 47, an optical path for guiding light from the light emitting element to the light receiving element is formed via the light guide members 46 and 47. That is, light emitted from the light emitting element is guided into the developing housing 40 by one light guide member 46, and further, the light is guided to the light receiving element by the other light guide member 47. In the developing housing 40, a predetermined gap is provided between the ends of the light guide members 46 and 47 facing each other.

  The toner cartridge 50 includes a container main body 70 having a developer accommodating portion 51 for accommodating toner therein, a discharge port 52 for discharging the toner in the developer accommodating portion 51 to the outside, and the toner in the developer accommodating portion 51. A conveying screw 53 as a conveying member for conveying to the discharge port 52 and an agitator 54 as an agitating member for agitating the developer in the developer accommodating portion 51 are provided. The discharge port 52 is provided in the lower part of the developer container 51. On the other hand, a replenishment port 49 connected to the discharge port 52 of the toner cartridge 50 is formed in each mounting portion 106 of the partition plate 108 to which the toner cartridge 50 is mounted.

  The conveying screw 53 is formed by providing a spiral blade 531 on the outer periphery of the rotating shaft 530. The agitator 54 is formed by providing a planar deformable blade 541 on a rotation shaft 540 disposed in parallel with the rotation shaft 530 of the conveying screw 53. The blades 541 of the agitator 54 are made of a flexible material made of, for example, a PET film. In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, the bottom surface 501 of the developer container 51 is formed in an arc shape along the rotation path of the blade 541, so that it remains in the developer container 51 without being moved by the blade 541. This can reduce the amount of toner.

  In this embodiment, the toner cartridge 50 is detachably attached to the apparatus main body 100. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. For example, the toner cartridge 50 may be configured integrally with the developing device 4 and the photosensitive member 2 so as to be replaceable as a process unit. Alternatively, the toner cartridge 50 can be integrated with the developing device 4 and replaced as a developing unit. In that case, the toner cartridge 50 can be directly mounted on the upper portion of the developing device 4 by eliminating the partition plate 108 and providing the mounting portion 106 provided on the partition plate 108 on the upper portion of the developing device 4. It is.

The developing operation of the developing device will be described with reference to FIG.
When there is an instruction to start an image forming operation and the developing roller 41 and the supply roller 42 start to rotate, toner is supplied and carried on the surface of the developing roller 41 by the supply roller 42. The toner carried on the developing roller 41 passes through the nip portion between the developing roller 41 and the developing blade 43, whereby the thickness of the toner layer is regulated and frictionally charged. Then, when the toner on the developing roller 41 is conveyed to a position (development area) facing the photoconductor 2, the toner is electrostatically transferred to the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor 2 to form a toner image. The

Next, a toner replenishing operation to the developing device will be described.
The replenishment of toner to the developing device is performed when the amount of toner in the developing housing 40 becomes a predetermined reference value or less. Specifically, when the amount of toner in the developing housing 40 is larger than a predetermined reference value, the toner exists between the end portions of the two light guide members 46 and 47 facing each other, and the end portion is caused by the toner. Since the optical path between them is blocked, the light does not reach the light receiving element. Thereafter, when the toner in the developing housing 40 is consumed and the toner amount becomes a predetermined reference value or less, the toner does not exist between the opposite ends of the light guide members 46 and 47, and light is transmitted between the ends. It becomes transparent. By detecting the transmission of light at this time, an instruction to replenish toner is issued.

  When a toner replenishment instruction is issued, the conveying screw 53 in the toner cartridge 50 rotates. Accordingly, the toner is conveyed toward the discharge port 52, and the toner is supplied from the discharge port 52 into the first region E1 of the developing housing 40. In this embodiment, the agitator 54 also starts to rotate at the same time as the conveying screw 53 in the toner cartridge 50 starts to rotate. By the rotation of the agitator 54, the toner in the toner cartridge 50 is agitated and moved toward the conveying screw 53. Thereafter, when the amount of toner in the developing housing 40 exceeds a predetermined reference value due to toner replenishment (when the optical path between the two light guide members 46 and 47 is blocked by the toner), the conveying screw 53 and the agitator 54 Is stopped, and the toner supply is finished.

  On the other hand, in the developing housing 40, when the toner is replenished, the conveying screw 44 provided in the first area E1 and the conveying screw 45 provided in the second area E2 rotate, and each area E1, E2 is rotated. The toners are conveyed in opposite directions. The toner transported to the downstream ends in the transport direction of the regions E1 and E2 by the transport screws 44 and 45 passes through the communication ports 48a formed at both ends of the partition member 48, and in the other region (from the region E1). It is sent to the area E2 or the area E1 to the area E1). Then, the toner fed into the other area is conveyed by the conveying screws 44 and 45 in each area, and returned to the original area through the communication port 48a on the opposite side. By repeating this operation, the toner circulates between the first area E1 and the second area E2, and the replenished new toner and the toner in the developing housing 40 are mixed.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the toner is circulated in the developing housing 40 to make the toner state (the ratio of the new toner in the toner) uniform, and to prevent the occurrence of problems such as color unevenness and background contamination. ing.

FIG. 3 is an external view of the toner cartridge.
As shown in FIG. 3, the container body 70 of the toner cartridge 50 has an upper case 55 and a lower case 56. The toner, the conveying screw 53 and the agitator 54 are accommodated in an internal space formed by joining the cases 55 and 56. As a method for joining the cases 55 and 56, welding such as vibration welding or ultrasonic welding, or adhesion using a double-sided adhesive tape or an adhesive is used.

  A gear cover 57 is provided on the side surface of the upper case 55 and the lower case 56 on one end side in the longitudinal direction. In the gear cover 57, a plurality of gears that transmit driving force to the conveying screw 53 and the agitator 54 are accommodated as rotating members that are driven to rotate in the container body 70. By covering these gears with the gear cover 57, it is possible to prevent a user or the like from accidentally touching the gears during the toner cartridge 50 replacement operation.

  The gear cover 57 is provided with an information storage medium 58. The information storage medium 58 stores information relating to the toner cartridge 50 such as the color and amount of toner contained therein. The information storage medium 58 has a plurality of connection terminals, and each connection terminal is electrically connected to an information reading device (not shown) provided on the image forming apparatus main body 100 side, so that information about the toner cartridge 50 can be obtained. The information stored in the information storage medium 58 can be read or updated.

  A cap member 59 that seals a filling port for filling toner and a shutter 60 that opens and closes the discharge port 52 are provided on one end side of the container body 70 where the gear cover 57 is provided. The cap member 59 is attached to prevent toner leakage from the filling port after the toner cartridge 50 is filled with toner from the filling port. The shutter 60 is rotatably provided in the container body 70, and can be switched between a state in which the discharge port 52 is opened and a state in which the discharge port 52 is closed by the rotation of the shutter 60.

  A handle 61 is provided on the upper surface of the central portion of the container body 70 in the longitudinal direction. The handle 61 is formed of a flexible member made of a material such as polypropylene or polyethylene. When the toner cartridge 50 is replaced, the user or the like can easily attach and detach the toner cartridge 50 by holding the handle 61.

FIG. 4 shows a state where the upper case and the gear cover are removed from the toner cartridge.
In FIG. 4, reference numerals 62, 63 and 64 denote a plurality of gears housed in the gear cover 57. Among these gears, the gears denoted by reference numerals 62 and 63 are the conveyance drive gears and the agitation drive gears provided on the rotation shafts of the conveyance screw 53 and the agitator 54 that protrude outward from the side surface on one end side of the lower case 56. It is. A gear 64 is a torque transmission gear that meshes with the conveyance drive gear 62 and the agitation drive gear 63 to transmit rotational torque.

  Further, bearing members 80 and 81 having a sealing function for receiving the respective rotating shafts and preventing toner leakage from the penetrating portions at the portions through which the rotating shafts of the conveying screw 53 and the agitator 54 of the lower case 56 pass. 19). For the sealing function of the bearing members 80 and 81, for example, a G seal or the like can be used. The G seal is a rubber seal ring having a substantially G-shaped cross section in which a shaft is tightened in a radial direction and sealed by an elastic sealing lip formed integrally with an inner peripheral portion of the ring body. Further, a combination of a sponge having a high hardness and a resin bearing such as POM may be used as a bearing member having a lower cost than that using a G seal.

  In the present embodiment, when the toner cartridge 50 is attached to the apparatus main body 100, the conveyance drive gear 62 is brought into a state of being engaged with the main body side drive gear 105 (see FIG. 11) provided in the apparatus main body 100. In this state, when the main body side drive gear 105 is rotationally driven, the transport drive gear 62, the torque transmission gear 64, and the stirring drive gear 63 rotate in the directions indicated by the arrows in FIG. Is designed to rotate.

  The transport drive gear 62 in this embodiment is a two-stage gear having a large diameter gear portion and a small diameter gear portion, and the torque transmission gear 64 is connected to the large diameter gear portion. The main body side drive gear 105 is connected to a small-diameter gear portion.

Hereinafter, the configuration of the toner cartridge 50 will be described in more detail.
5 and 6 are side views showing a state where the gear cover of the toner cartridge is removed.
In this embodiment, the torque transmission gear 64 is engaged with the other gears 62 and 63 to transmit torque as shown in FIG. 5, and as shown in FIG. It is configured to be movable between positions. Specifically, the torque transmission gear 64 is held by a gear holder 71 provided so as to be rotatable about the rotation shaft 530 of the conveying screw 53 (or the conveying driving gear 62), and the gear holder 71 is rotated. Thus, the torque transmission gear 64 is switched between the operating position shown in FIG. 5 and the retracted position shown in FIG.

  In this embodiment, the gear train is composed of three gears 62, 63, 64, but the gear train may be composed of two gears or four or more gears. Further, the gear moved between the operating position and the retracted position may be a plurality of gears among the gears constituting the gear train.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the gear holder 71 is integrally provided with the shutter 60. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6, when the gear holder 71 is rotated, the shutter 60 is also rotated around the rotation shaft 530 of the conveying screw 53. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5, in the state where the torque transmission gear 64 is disposed at the operating position, the discharge port 52 is opened by the shutter 60, while the torque transmission gear 64 is retracted as shown in FIG. In the state of being disposed at the position, the discharge port 52 is closed by the shutter 60.

  Further, one end portion of a tension spring 72 as an urging means is attached by being hooked to an attachment portion 71 a provided in the gear holder 71, and the other end portion of the tension spring 72 is provided on a side surface of the upper case 55. It is attached to the part 70a. The gear holder 71 is urged so as to separate the torque transmission gear 64 from the stirring drive gear 63 by the tensile force (biasing force) by the tension spring 72. Therefore, when no external force is applied to the gear holder 71, the gear holder 71 is pulled upward by the tension spring 72 as shown in FIG. 6, and the torque transmission gear 64 is arranged at the retracted position.

  Further, the gear holder 71 is provided with a contacted portion 71b to which a contact portion 102 (see FIG. 11) provided on the apparatus main body 100 contacts when the toner cartridge 50 is mounted on the apparatus main body 100.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the gear cover as viewed from the front side.
As shown in FIG. 8, a groove 73 disposed in the vertical direction is formed on the outer surface (front surface) of the gear cover 57. The groove 73 attaches the container body 70 to the apparatus main body 100 in cooperation with the protrusion 101 (see FIG. 11) provided in the apparatus main body 100 when the toner cartridge 50 is attached to the apparatus main body 100. It has a function of guiding in the direction and a function of positioning the container body 70 with respect to the apparatus body 100. Specifically, in the groove 73, the container side guide portion 73a having a guide function extends from the lower end portion to a portion before the width of the upper portion is narrow, and the portion having the narrow width is a positioning function. It is the container side positioning part 73b which has. The lower end part of the container side guide part 73a is opened facing down. The open portion of the container side guide portion 73a is formed to have a wide width, and the width is formed so as to gradually narrow toward the container side positioning portion 73b in the upper portion of the container side guide portion 73a.

  Further, a convex portion 79 is provided on the front side of the gear cover 57 as another container side guide portion and a container side positioning portion for the apparatus main body 100. The protrusion 79 guides the container body 70 in the mounting direction with respect to the apparatus main body 100 in cooperation with the main body side groove 103 (see FIG. 11) provided in the apparatus main body 100, and The container body 70 is positioned. As described above, in this embodiment, the container body 70 is positioned with respect to the mounting body 100 at the two positions of the container-side positioning portion 73b and the convex portion 79 of the groove 73 shown in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the gear cover as viewed from the back side.
As shown in FIG. 9, a positioning boss 76 projects from the back surface of the gear cover 57. The boss 76 is inserted into a long hole 77 (see FIG. 5, rectangular hole) provided on the side surface of the upper case 55 when the gear cover 57 is attached to the cases 55 and 56. Thereby, the gear cover 57 is positioned with respect to the upper case 55. The gear covers 57 are attached to the cases 55 and 56 by hooking the elastically deformable latching pieces (the latching pieces 57a in FIG. 9 in this embodiment) provided on both or one side to the other claws. It is done by things.

  Further, a hole 78 is formed on the back surface of the gear cover 57. One end of the rotating shaft 530 protruding from the lower case 56 of the conveying screw 53 is inserted into the hole 78. That is, the gear cover 57 is positioned with respect to the lower case 56 by holding the rotating shaft 530 of the conveying screw 53 through the hole 78. As described above, in this embodiment, the gear cover 57 is positioned with respect to the cases 55 and 56 at the two locations of the boss 76 and the hole 78 shown in FIG.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, two positioning portions for the apparatus main body 100 and two positioning portions for the cases 55 and 56 are provided on the front side and the back side of the gear cover 57, respectively. The front side and the back side of the gear cover 57 are disposed at the same position or substantially the same position. Specifically, a boss 76 shown in FIG. 9 is disposed in the vicinity of the back side of the container side positioning portion 73b of the groove 73 shown in FIG. 8, and the hole shown in FIG. 9 is provided on the back side of the convex portion 79 shown in FIG. 78 is disposed.

FIG. 10 is a view of the toner cartridge as viewed from the gear cover side.
In FIG. 10, the projection areas of the gears 62, 63, 64 on the outer surface of the gear cover 57 provided with the grooves 73 are indicated by dotted lines. Moreover, the area | region shown with the code | symbol J is a projection area | region of the torque transmission gear 64 in an operating position, and the area | region shown with a code | symbol U is a projection area | region of the torque transmission gear 64 in a retracted position. Thus, in this embodiment, a part of the container side guide portion 73a of the groove 73 is disposed in the projection region J of the torque transmission gear 64 in the operating position. It is also possible to arrange the entire container side guide portion 73a within the projection region J of the torque transmission gear 64 in the operating position. On the other hand, the narrow container side positioning portion 73b needs to be disposed outside the projection region J of the torque transmission gear 64 in the operating position.

Hereinafter, the configuration of the apparatus main body 100 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 11, a plurality of mounting portions 106 for mounting the toner cartridges 50 for each color are provided inside the apparatus main body 100. A total of four mounting portions 106 are provided for each toner cartridge 50. FIG. 11 shows a state in which the toner cartridges 50 are mounted on two of them. The mounting unit 106 to which the toner cartridge 50 is mounted is determined in advance for each toner color in the toner cartridge 50.

  Each mounting portion 106 is provided with a contact portion 102 that protrudes upward. The abutting portion 102 abuts against the abutted portion 71 b (see FIG. 7) of the gear holder 71 when the toner cartridge 50 is attached to the apparatus main body 100.

  On the inner surface of one side wall 111 shown in FIG. 11, connection terminals 104 of the information reading device are provided at four locations. These connection terminals 104 are connected to connection terminals of an information storage medium 58 provided on a gear cover 57 of the toner cartridge 50 in a state where the toner cartridge 50 is mounted on the apparatus main body 100.

  Further, on the inner surface of the side wall 111 of the apparatus main body 100, a protruding portion 101 that protrudes in the horizontal direction is provided for each mounting portion 106. The protrusion 101 cooperates with a groove 73 (see FIG. 8) provided in the gear cover 57 to function as a main body side guide portion for guiding the container main body 70 in the attaching / detaching direction, and the container main body 70 to the apparatus main body. It has a function as a main body side positioning portion for positioning to 100.

  Further, on the inner surface of the side surface 111 of the apparatus main body 100, a main body side guide portion different from the protrusion 101 and a main body side groove 103 as a main body side positioning portion are provided in the vertical direction for each mounting portion 106. The upper end portion 103a of each main body side groove 103 opens upward, and a convex portion 79 (see FIG. 8) provided in the toner cartridge 50 can be inserted from the upper end portion 103a that opens. On the other hand, a receiving portion that receives the convex portion 79 is formed at the lower end portion 103 b of the main body side groove 103. That is, the lower end portion 103b of the main body side groove 103 functions as a main body side positioning portion for positioning the convex portion 79, and the upper end portion 103a of the main body side groove 103 to the front of the lower end portion 103b serves as a main body side guide portion that guides the convex portion 79. It is supposed to function.

  Further, a main body side drive gear 105 is provided in the vicinity of the lower end portion 103 b of each main body side groove 103. The main body side drive gear 105 is rotationally driven by a drive source (not shown) provided in the apparatus main body 100. The main body side drive gear 105 is adapted to mesh with the transport drive gear 62 (see FIG. 5) in a state where the toner cartridge 50 is mounted on the apparatus main body 100.

12 is a diagram showing an internal structure of the apparatus main body on the side surface opposite to that shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 12, a biasing member 107 that biases the toner cartridge 50 toward one (opposite side) side wall 111 is provided for each mounting portion 106 on the other side wall 112 side. In this embodiment, the urging member 107 is constituted by a leaf spring.

Hereinafter, the attaching / detaching operation of the toner cartridge 50 according to the present embodiment with respect to the apparatus main body 100 will be described with reference to FIG.
First, when the toner cartridge 50 is attached to the apparatus main body 100, the upper cover 109 (see FIG. 1) of the apparatus main body 100 is opened so that the toner cartridge 50 can be attached to the attachment portion 106. Then, the toner cartridge 50 is gripped, and the toner cartridge 50 is inserted from the upper opening portion of the apparatus main body 100 toward the lower mounting portion 106 as shown in FIG.

  When the toner cartridge 50 is inserted into the apparatus main body 100, as shown in FIG. 13B, the convex portion 79 provided in the toner cartridge 50 is inserted into the main body side groove 103 provided in the apparatus main body 100. Thus, by inserting the convex portion 79 into the main body side groove 103, the toner cartridge 50 is inserted while being guided by the cooperation of the convex portion 79 and the main body side groove 103. Further, when the toner cartridge 50 is inserted downward, the protrusion 101 provided in the apparatus main body 100 is inserted into the groove 73 provided in the toner cartridge 50, and the toner is also activated by the cooperation of the protrusion 101 and the groove 73. The cartridge 50 is guided.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 13C, when the toner cartridge 50 is attached to the attachment portion 106, the convex portion 79 on the toner cartridge 50 side contacts the lower end portion (receiving portion) of the groove on the main body side groove 103. The toner cartridge 50 is positioned by the contact. Specifically, the downward movement of the toner cartridge 50 and the lateral direction along the side wall 111 of the apparatus main body 100 (horizontal direction in FIG. 13C) are obtained by cooperation of the convex portion 79 and the lower end portion of the main body side groove 103. Movement to is regulated.

  In the state where the toner cartridge 50 is mounted on the mounting portion 106, the protrusion 101 on the main body side is disposed on the container-side positioning portion 73b in which the width of the groove 73 is narrow. 50 is positioned. Specifically, the movement of the toner cartridge 50 in the rotation direction around the convex portion 79 is restricted by the cooperation of the protrusion 101 and the container-side positioning portion 73b of the groove 73.

  In the present embodiment, since the width is wide at the lower end portion of the groove 73 on the toner cartridge 50 side, the protrusion 101 can be easily inserted from the lower end portion. Further, since the width of the groove 73 is formed so as to be gradually narrowed toward the container side positioning portion 73b, the protrusion 101 can be smoothly guided to the container side positioning portion 73b, and the container side positioning portion having a narrow width is provided. In 73b, the positioning with high accuracy can be achieved by cooperation with the protrusion 101.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the positioning portion (the container-side positioning portion 73b and the convex portion 79 of the groove 73 shown in FIG. 8) with respect to the apparatus main body 100 provided on the front side of the gear cover 57 and the back side of the gear cover 57 Positioning portions (the boss 76 and the hole 78 shown in FIG. 9) for the provided cases 55 and 56 are disposed at the same position or substantially the same position on the front side and the back side of the gear cover 57. In addition, the front-side convex portion 79 and the back-side hole 78 serve as the main reference for positioning, and the front-side container-side positioning portion 73b and the boss 76 in the vicinity of the back-side each follow the positioning reference. It has become. Thus, in the present embodiment, the positions of the main reference and the secondary reference for positioning on the front side and the back side of the gear cover 57 are set to the same position or substantially the same position on the front side and the back side. The distance between the two main references and the distance between the two sub references when the paper surface of (c) is used as the reference plane are each set to a minimum (approximately 0 mm). In this case, the gear cover 57 is used for the purpose of protecting the gear. However, the influence, that is, the dimensional variation when determining the position of the container main body 70 on the apparatus main body 100 via the gear cover 57 can be suppressed. Even when mass-produced, positioning to the apparatus main body 100 can be performed with high accuracy for all products.

  Further, on the end side opposite to the side where the toner cartridge 50 is positioned by the protrusion 101 and the groove 73, the toner cartridge 50 is moved by the biasing member 107 (see FIG. 12) provided in the apparatus main body 100. The main body 100 is biased toward the side wall 111 provided with the protrusion 101 and the like. This urging force restricts the movement of the toner cartridge 50 in the direction perpendicular to the side wall 111 of the apparatus main body 100 (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 13C), and the protrusion 79 from the main body side groove 103 is removed. The protrusion 101 is prevented from falling off from the container side positioning portion 73b. In particular, in this embodiment, the urging member 107 has a function of reliably pressing the plurality of connection terminals of the information storage medium 58 against the connection terminals on the main body side via the container main body 70 and the gear cover 57 to ensure conduction. Yes.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 13C, when the toner cartridge 50 is attached to the attachment portion 106, the contact portion 102 provided in the apparatus main body 100 contacts the contacted portion 71 b of the gear holder 71. . As a result, the gear holder 71 is rotated in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 13C against the tensile force (biasing force) of the tension spring 72, so that the torque transmission gear 64 is engaged with the stirring drive gear 63. Arranged. Further, when the gear holder 71 is rotated, the shutter 60 provided integrally with the gear holder 71 is also rotated, and the discharge port 52 is opened.

  Further, when the torque transmission gear 64 moves to the operating position, the protrusion 101 is moving in the groove 73, but when the torque transmission gear 64 approaches the groove 73, the protrusion 101 is already on the groove 73. The torque transmission gear 64 and the protrusion 101 do not interfere with each other since the region that overlaps with the operating position of FIG.

  FIG. 14 shows a state in which the torque transmission gear 64 is disposed at the operating position, and FIG. 15 shows a state in which the discharge port 52 is opened. In FIG. 14, the gear cover 57 is not shown.

  As shown in FIG. 13C, the opened discharge port 52 is connected to the supply port 49 when the toner cartridge 50 is mounted on the mounting unit 106. Further, in a state where the toner cartridge 50 is mounted, the main body side drive gear 105 is connected to the conveyance drive gear 62, and a rotational torque can be transmitted from the drive source (not shown) on the main body side to the conveyance screw 53 and the agitator 54. It becomes. Accordingly, by rotating the conveying screw 53 and the agitator 54, the toner can be replenished from the opened discharge port 52 to the developing device through the replenishing port 49.

  When the toner cartridge 50 is mounted on the mounting unit 106, the connection terminal of the information storage medium 58 on the toner cartridge 50 side is connected to the connection terminal 104 of the information reading device on the apparatus main body 100 side. Or the information stored in the information storage medium 58 can be updated.

  Next, when removing the toner cartridge 50 from the apparatus main body, the toner cartridge 50 is gripped and lifted upward, contrary to the above-described mounting. At this time, the toner cartridge 50 is guided by the cooperative action of the main body side groove 103 and the projection 79 and the cooperative action of the groove 73 and the protrusion 101 on the toner cartridge 50 side. Further, when the toner cartridge 50 is lifted, the contact by the contact portion 102 on the apparatus main body 100 side with respect to the contacted portion 71 b of the gear holder 71 is released, and the gear holder 71 is rotated by the tensile force (biasing force) of the tension spring 72. To return to the original position. As a result, the shutter 60 rotates to close the discharge port 52, and the torque transmission gear 64 is disposed at a retracted position away from the stirring drive gear 63 (see FIG. 13B).

  FIG. 16 shows a state where the torque transmission gear 64 is disposed at the retracted position, and FIG. 17 shows a state where the discharge port 52 is closed. In FIG. 16, the gear cover 57 is not shown.

  Further, as the toner cartridge 50 is lifted at the time of removal, the protrusion 101 inserted into the groove 73 passes through an area overlapping the operating position on the groove 73. However, the protrusion 101 reaches the area. In this case, the torque transmission gear 64 is already retracted from the groove 73, so that the projection 101 and the torque transmission gear 64 do not interfere with each other.

  In the present embodiment, when the toner cartridge 50 is removed as described above, the shutter 60 automatically closes the discharge port 52 in conjunction with the removal operation. The toner can be prevented from leaking and scattering.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating the force generated in the toner cartridge when the rotational torque is transmitted.
As shown in FIG. 18, when the main body side drive gear 105 rotates counterclockwise in the drawing, a force is generated in the direction indicated by the arrow F in the torque transmission part G in which the main body side drive gear 105 and the transport drive gear 62 mesh. . As a result, the rotational load of the gear 62 generated when the toner inside is agitated and conveyed resists the force F, and the entire toner cartridge 50 has a rotational force in the direction of arrow W centered on the convex portion 79 positioned. (Moment) occurs. However, as described above, the rotation of the toner cartridge 50 around the convex portion 79 is restricted by the cooperation of the protrusion 101 and the container-side positioning portion 73b of the groove 73. As a result, the toner cartridge 50 does not rotate. In particular, in this embodiment, the length L1 of the arm from the center of the convex portion 79 to the portion that receives the acting force of the protruding portion 101 (the side closer to the convex portion 79 of the pair of container side positioning portions 73b) is the convex portion 79. This is sufficiently long, about 6.4 times as long as the arm length L2 from the center to the torque transmission part G, and as a result, it can be said that the rotation preventing property (positional stability) of the toner cartridge is good. Further, in the gear cover 57, the container side guide portion 73a extends vertically downward from the upper container side positioning portion 73b so as to cross the passage region when the torque transmission gear is moved inside. The entrance portion into which the main body side protrusion 101 enters is disposed near the bottom of the toner cartridge 50 (between the conveyance drive gear 62 and the agitation drive gear 63). Accordingly, when the user mounts the toner cartridge on the apparatus main body, the entrance of the guide portion 73a can be easily engaged with the protrusion 101, and the subsequent setting operation can be performed smoothly. Such rotation blocking property and ease of mounting depend on the arrangement relationship between the convex portion 79 (that is, the center of the conveyance drive gear 62 related to the shutter 60), the container side positioning portion 73b, and the container side guide portion 73a. Therefore, it can be said that the present invention was devised in connection with a moving mechanism that established the arrangement of the torque transmission gear without interfering with them.

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view of the toner cartridge as viewed from below with the toner cartridge mounted on the apparatus main body.
As shown in FIG. 19, the torque transmission portion G of the transport drive gear 62 is positioned by the main body side groove 103 and the convex portion 79 in the longitudinal direction Q of the toner cartridge 50 (or the rotational axis direction of the transport screw 53). It is disposed between α and a positioning portion β formed by the groove 73 on the toner cartridge 50 side and the protrusion 101 on the main body side. That is, the convex portion 79 and the groove 73 as two positioning portions on the toner cartridge 50 side are provided on one side and the other side in the longitudinal direction Q with respect to the torque transmission portion G.

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view of the toner cartridge as viewed from below in a state where the toner cartridge of the comparative example is mounted on the apparatus main body.
In this comparative example, unlike the above embodiment, in the longitudinal direction Q of the toner cartridge 50, the positioning location α by the main body side groove 103 and the convex portion 79, the groove 73 on the toner cartridge 50 side, and the protrusion 101 on the main body side Is provided on the same side (upper side in the figure) with respect to the torque transmission part G of the transport drive gear 62. Other than that, it is the same structure as the said embodiment. That is, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 20, the torque transmission unit G is positioned on one side in the longitudinal direction Q.

  In this case, when the force in the direction of arrow F is generated in the torque transmission part G by the rotation of the main body side drive gear 105, the toner cartridge is positioned on one side in the longitudinal direction Q with respect to the torque transmission part G. It is also conceivable that twisting occurs at one end side and the other end side in the longitudinal direction Q of 50. In particular, as in the toner cartridge 50 according to the present embodiment, at the end opposite to the end provided with the gear train, the biasing member 107 urges the end in the longitudinal direction Q without positioning. In the case of only the configuration, misalignment in the direction intersecting the longitudinal direction Q tends to occur on the end side.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 19, the container side positioning portions (positioning locations α and β) of the toner cartridge 50 are provided on both sides in the longitudinal direction Q with respect to the torque transmission portion G, thereby transmitting torque. Even if the toner cartridge 50 receives the force F in the portion G, it is possible to effectively prevent the twisting at one end side and the other end side in the longitudinal direction of the toner cartridge 50. Thereby, the positioning of the toner cartridge 50 with respect to the apparatus main body 100 can be performed with higher accuracy.

  As described above, in the above-described embodiment of the present invention, the torque transmission gear 64 is configured to be movable between the operating position and the retracted position. Therefore, the protrusion 101 is located on the toner cartridge 50 side during the attachment / detachment operation. Interference with the torque transmission gear 64 can be avoided when passing through the groove 73. As a result, as shown in FIG. 10, at least a part of the container-side guide portion 73a of the groove 73 can be disposed in the projection region J of the torque transmission gear 64 at the operating position. Compared to the above, the degree of freedom in the layout design of the guide mechanism of the toner cartridge 50 is improved.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the degree of freedom in designing the layout of the guide mechanism is improved, so that the toner cartridge can be reduced in size, and thus the overall size of the image forming apparatus can be reduced. Become. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, in the toner cartridge 50 having a gear train in which a plurality of gears 62, 63, 64 are connected, in the conventional configuration, the grooves 73 must be disposed avoiding the gear train. The groove 73 needs to be arranged on the left side of the drawing with respect to the projection region of the conveyance drive gear 62 or on the right side of the drawing with respect to the projection region of the stirring drive gear 63. However, when the groove 73 is provided in this way, the size of the toner cartridge 50 increases on the left side or the right side (short direction) in the drawing. Alternatively, it is conceivable that the longitudinal direction Q of the toner cartridge 50 is increased and the gear train is disposed so as not to overlap the groove 73. Either arrangement is an increase in size that has nothing to do with the toner storage capacity of the toner cartridge, which reduces the attractiveness of the product.

  On the other hand, according to the configuration of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 10, the groove 73 and the conveyance drive gear 62 and the agitation drive gear 63 are arranged so that the groove 73 and the gear train overlap each other when viewed from the longitudinal direction of the toner cartridge. Therefore, an increase in the size of the toner cartridge 50 as in the conventional case can be avoided, and as a result, a reduction in size can be achieved.

In particular, in the configuration of the embodiment as shown in FIG. 10, it is necessary to dispose the groove 73 so as to pass through the gear train due to the following circumstances.
First, in the case of the configuration as shown in FIG. 10, the information storage medium 58 is disposed on the upper part of the toner cartridge 50 far from the discharge port 52 (the gear cover 57 is generally disposed) so that the information storage medium 58 is not easily contaminated with toner. It is desirable that the position be separated in a substantially diagonal direction when regarded as a rectangle. Next, in order to improve the positioning accuracy of the information storage medium 58, the arrangement position of the container-side positioning portion 73 b of the groove 73 is preferably close to the information storage medium 58. As a result, the arrangement position of the container-side positioning portion 73b of the groove 73 is above the gear train. Then, as in this embodiment, in the method in which the toner cartridge 50 is attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 100 in the vertical direction, the groove 73 must be extended from the upper side to the lower side of the gear train. 73 is arranged to pass through the gear train.

  Therefore, in particular, in the configuration as shown in FIG. 10, by applying the configuration of the present invention, the groove 73 can be disposed between the projection areas of the conveyance drive gear 62 and the stirring drive gear 63. Therefore, downsizing of the apparatus can be expected.

  Further, as described above, in the configuration of the present embodiment, the container-side positioning portion 73b is disposed in the vicinity of the information storage medium 58, so that information on the connection terminal of the information reading device provided in the apparatus main body 100 is obtained. The positioning accuracy of the storage medium 58 is improved. As a result, it is possible to reliably ensure electrical continuity between the information storage medium 58 and the information reading device. Further, since the positioning accuracy of the information storage medium 58 is improved, it is possible to reduce the size of each connection terminal on the information storage medium 58 side and the information reading apparatus side. Usually, such connection terminals are plated with gold in order to prevent corrosion. However, by reducing the size of the connection terminals, the amount of gold plating used for these is reduced, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Become.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, Of course, a various change can be added in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention. In the above-described embodiment, the color laser printer shown in FIG. 1 is described as an example of the image forming apparatus to which the configuration of the present invention is applied. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and is not limited thereto. Alternatively, the configuration of the present invention can also be applied to an image forming apparatus such as a multifunction peripheral.

1Y, 1M, 1C, 1Bk Process unit 2 Photoconductor (latent image carrier)
4 Developing Device 40 Developing Housing 41 Developing Roller (Developer Carrier)
50 Toner cartridge (developer container)
52 Discharge port 53 Conveying screw (rotating member)
54 Agitator (Rotating member)
58 Information storage medium 60 Shutter 62 Transport drive gear 63 Stirring drive gear 64 Torque transmission gear 70 Container body 73 Groove 73a Container side guide portion 73b Container side positioning portion 79 Convex portion (container side guide portion and container side positioning portion)
100 Image forming apparatus main body 101 Projection part (main body side guide part and main body side positioning part)
103 Main body side groove (Main body side guide part and Main body side positioning part)
G Torque transmission part J Projection area of torque transmission gear in operating position U Projection area of torque transmission gear in retracted position

JP 2006-139069 A

Claims (9)

A developer container configured to be detachable from the image forming apparatus main body,
A container body for containing a developer therein;
A discharge port for discharging the developer in the container body to the outside;
A rotating member that is driven to rotate within the container body;
A gear train comprising a plurality of gears provided on the outer side of the container body and transmitting drive torque to the rotating member;
In the developer container including a container-side guide portion that guides the container main body in the attaching / detaching direction with respect to the image forming apparatus main body in cooperation with the main body-side guide portion provided in the image forming apparatus main body, the gear train A part of the gears constituting the gear is movable between an operating position that engages with other gears to transmit torque and a retracted position that is retracted from the operating position,
A developer container, wherein a part or all of the container-side guide part is disposed within a projection region of the gear at the operating position on a surface on which the container-side guide part is provided.   In a state where the container main body is mounted on the image forming apparatus main body, the container side positioning portion for positioning the container main body in cooperation with the main body side positioning portion provided on the image forming apparatus main body is provided with a gear projection region at the operating position. The developer container according to claim 1 provided outside.   A part of the gears constituting the gear train, on the one side in the rotation axis direction of the gear, with reference to a torque transmission portion that meshes with a main body side drive gear provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus and transmits a driving torque. The container side positioning portion is provided, and the container main body is positioned in cooperation with another main body side positioning portion in a state where the container main body is mounted on the image forming apparatus main body on the other side in the rotation axis direction. The developer container according to claim 2, further comprising a container side positioning portion.   In conjunction with a gear movable to the operating position and the retracted position, a shutter is provided that closes the discharge port when the gear is in the retracted position and opens the discharge port when the gear is in the operating position. The developer container according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   The information storage medium having a connection terminal that can be electrically connected to an information reading device provided in the image forming apparatus main body in a state where the container main body is mounted on the image forming apparatus main body is provided in the container main body. The developer container according to claim 1.   The developer container according to claim 5, wherein the container-side positioning portion is provided in the vicinity of a connection terminal included in the information storage medium. A development housing for containing the developer;
A developer carrier that carries the developer in the development housing and supplies the developer to the latent image on the latent image carrier;
In a developing device that contains a developer and at least a developer container that supplies the developer into the developing housing,
A developing device comprising the developer container according to claim 1 as the developer container. A latent image carrier that carries a latent image on the surface;
A developing device for supplying a developer to the latent image on the latent image carrier,
In the process unit configured to be detachable from the image forming apparatus main body,
A process unit comprising the developing device according to claim 7 as the developing device.   An image forming apparatus comprising the developer container according to claim 1, the developing device according to claim 7, or the process unit according to claim 8.

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