JP2015230408A - Member for image formation apparatus, and image formation apparatus with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To clean a container in every corner since a main body of the container is easily disassembled and a cylindrical member constituting the main body is restored to a flat sheet shape.SOLUTION: A toner cartridge 32 as an example of a member for an image formation apparatus includes a main body 1400, which comprises a sheet member 140a formed of flexible resin and ring members 142a-142c formed of synthetic resin having adequate strength. The main body 1400 is formed by fitting the ring members 142a-142c near the center and both ends of a cylindrical member 140 rounded in a cylindrical shape. When the ring members 142a-142c are detached in disassembly, the cylindrical member 140 is restored to a flat sheet shape.

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus member and an image forming apparatus including the same, and more particularly to image formation such as a toner replenisher for replenishing toner, a toner transport pipe for transporting toner, and a waste toner container for storing waste toner The present invention relates to an apparatus member and an image forming apparatus including the same.

  A container having a lid such as a toner cartridge disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a lid attached to a housing opening of a main body, and a heat having at least one heat-meltable resin layer at a joint between the main body and the lid. Adhesion is performed by interposing a bonding means composed of an adhesive film and a heating element that is disposed inside or adjacent to the thermal adhesive film and can generate heat intentionally. When the used container is collected, the joining means is destroyed by a method such as reheating, the lid is removed, new contents are accommodated, and the main body and the lid are bonded using the new joining means. Recycle the container.

JP 2001-55201 A

  In the above-described background art, the container is cleaned before accommodating new contents, but there is a problem that it is difficult to clean because the main body is formed in a cylindrical shape.

  Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a novel member for an image forming apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the same.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus member that can be easily cleaned and an image forming apparatus including the same.

  An image forming apparatus member according to a first aspect of the present invention is an image forming apparatus member used in a toner conveying unit or a storage unit, and a cylindrical member obtained by elastically deforming a flexible sheet and rounded into a cylindrical shape; A holding member that holds the shape of the cylindrical member is provided.

  According to the first invention, since the flexible sheet is simply rolled into a cylindrical shape and the shape of the cylindrical member is held by the holding member, disassembly and assembly are easy. Further, when the holding member is removed from the cylindrical member, the cylindrical member is restored to a flat sheet shape, so that the image forming apparatus member is cleanly cleaned to every corner.

  In the member for an image forming apparatus according to the second aspect of the invention, the cylindrical member is formed by rounding so that at least opposite ends of the flexible sheet overlap each other.

  According to the second aspect of the invention, the cylindrical member is formed by being rounded so that at least both opposing ends of the flexible sheet overlap with each other, so that it is possible to prevent the toner from leaking to the outside of the image forming apparatus member. .

  For example, when the flexible sheet is rolled up twice, the strength of the cylindrical member is increased, and thus the thickness of the flexible sheet may be thin. Therefore, it is easy to round. Also, if the flexible sheet is rolled up twice, toner leakage is reliably prevented.

  In the member for an image forming apparatus of the third invention, the cylindrical member has a moth-eye structure on the inner peripheral surface side.

  According to the third aspect, since the moth-eye structure is provided on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylindrical member, it becomes difficult for toner to adhere to the inside of the cylindrical member, so that it is easier to clean the image forming apparatus member.

  A member for an image forming apparatus according to a fourth aspect is the member for an image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the flexible sheet has a flexural modulus of 30 Mpa or more and 300 Mpa at room temperature. It is formed with the following resin.

  According to the fourth invention, it is possible to obtain the strength and workability necessary for rolling the flexible sheet into a cylindrical shape.

  A member for an image forming apparatus according to a fifth aspect is the member for an image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the holding member is a ring member that can be attached to and detached from the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical member. It is.

  According to the fifth aspect, similar to the first aspect, when the ring member is removed from the cylindrical member, the cylindrical member is restored to a flat sheet shape, so that the image forming apparatus member has an inner corner. It is cleaned neatly.

  In the member for an image forming apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the invention, the ring member is a resin having a flexural modulus in the range of 700 Mpa to 7000 Mpa at room temperature.

  According to the sixth invention, the ring member can obtain the strength necessary for holding the cylindrical member.

  In the image forming apparatus member according to the seventh aspect of the invention, the cylindrical member has a toner supply port on the side surface, and the holding member surrounds the entire portion of the cylindrical member where the toner supply port is formed, and on the side surface. An opening that can communicate with the toner supply port is provided. Furthermore, a sealing member that seals the toner inside the cylindrical member and a rotational force transmitting member that transmits a rotational force from the outside to the cylindrical member are further provided. Therefore, a toner cartridge that supplies toner to the developing device is configured.

  In the member for an image forming apparatus according to the eighth aspect of the invention, one end of the cylindrical member is connected to one side surface of the cleaning unit, and the other end of the cylindrical member is connected to the waste toner box. The image forming apparatus member further includes a conveying member that conveys the toner from one end to the other end inside the cylindrical member. Therefore, a toner conveying device is configured.

  According to a ninth aspect of the invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus member including a connecting member that connects one end of the cylindrical member to the bottom of the cleaning unit, and a lid member that covers the other end of the cylindrical member. Therefore, a waste toner container is configured.

  According to the seventh to ninth inventions, as in the first invention, when the holding member is removed from the cylindrical member, the cylindrical member is restored to a flat sheet shape. It is cleaned to every corner.

  An image forming apparatus according to a tenth aspect includes the image forming apparatus member according to any one of the first to ninth aspects.

  According to the tenth invention, similarly to the first invention, when the holding member is removed from the cylindrical member, the cylindrical member is restored to a flat sheet shape, so that the image forming apparatus includes the image forming apparatus. The member is cleaned to every corner of the interior.

  According to the present invention, since the member for the image forming apparatus can be easily disassembled, cleaning is simple.

  The above object, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the entire image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment viewed from the front. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the main body of the toner cartridge shown in FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a sheet member constituting the main body of the toner cartridge shown in FIG. 2 as viewed obliquely from above, and FIG. 3B is a perspective view showing a state in which the sheet member is rolled up. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a state where the toner cartridge is disassembled in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state where the toner cartridge shown in FIG. 4 is assembled. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the toner conveying pipe, the photosensitive drum, the cleaning unit, and the waste toner box as viewed obliquely in the second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the toner conveyance pipe, the photosensitive drum, the cleaning unit, and the waste toner box shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which the cleaning unit, the toner transport pipe and the waste toner box are viewed obliquely in the third embodiment. FIG. 9 is an exploded view showing the state where the waste toner box removed from the cleaning unit in FIG. 8 is disassembled.

<First embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an entire image forming apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the front.

  Referring to FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment is a color printer, and forms a multicolor or single color image on a sheet (recording medium) by an electrophotographic method. However, the image forming apparatus 10 may be a monochrome printer. The image forming apparatus 10 need not be limited to a printer, and may be a copier, a facsimile machine, or a multifunction machine having these functions.

  First, the basic configuration of the image forming apparatus 10 will be schematically described. As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 10 includes a photosensitive drum 12, a developing device 14, a charger 16, a cleaning unit 18, an exposure device 20, an intermediate transfer belt unit 22, a secondary transfer roller 24, a fixing unit 26, and the like. And forming an image on a sheet conveyed from the sheet feed tray 28, and discharging the image-formed sheet to the discharge tray 30. As image data for forming an image on paper, image data input from an external computer is used. However, when the image forming apparatus 10 has a scanner function, not only image data input from the outside but also image data read from a document by a scanner can be used.

  Each of the components described above is accommodated in the housing 10a of the image forming apparatus 10. In addition, a control unit including a CPU and a memory (not shown) is provided in the housing 10a of the image forming apparatus 10. The control unit transmits a control signal to each part of the image forming apparatus 10 to cause the image forming apparatus 10 to execute various operations.

  Here, the image data handled in the image forming apparatus 10 corresponds to four color images of black (BK), magenta (M), cyan (C), and yellow (Y). For this reason, each of the photosensitive drum 12, the developing device 14, the charger 16 and the cleaning unit 18 is provided so as to form four types of latent images corresponding to the respective colors, thereby forming four image stations. Composed. The four image stations are arranged in a line along the running direction (circumferential movement direction) of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 36, and from the downstream side in the running direction of the intermediate transfer belt 36, that is, to the secondary transfer roller 24. From the near side, black, magenta, cyan and yellow are arranged in this order. However, the arrangement order of the colors can be changed as appropriate.

  In each image station, the charger 16, the developing device 14, and the cleaning unit 18 are arranged in this order around the rotation direction of the photosensitive drum 12 (clockwise in FIG. 1). The developing device 14 is arranged so that the rotation shaft of the developing roller is aligned in parallel with the rotation shaft of the photosensitive drum 12. Further, the charger 16 is arranged so that its own rotation axis is aligned in parallel with the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 12. Further, the cleaning unit 18 is arranged such that the longitudinal direction of the cleaning blade 18 a (not shown in FIG. 1) coincides with the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum 12. However, in FIG. 1, the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum 12 is a depth direction (front-rear direction) when the image forming apparatus 10 is viewed from the front.

  The photosensitive drum 12 is an image carrier in which a photosensitive layer (photoconductive layer) is formed on the surface of a conductive substrate, and is supported so as to be rotatable around an axis by a driving unit (not shown). The substrate can take various shapes such as a cylindrical shape, a columnar shape, and a thin film sheet shape. The photosensitive layer is formed of a material that exhibits conductivity when irradiated with light. The photosensitive drum 12 of the first embodiment includes a cylindrical base made of aluminum and amorphous silicon (a-Si), selenium (Se), or organic light formed on the outer peripheral surface of the base. Those including a photosensitive layer made of a semiconductor (OPC) are used.

  The developing device 14 visualizes the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 12 with toner (forms a toner image). A toner cartridge 32 is connected to the developing device 14 via a toner supply pipe 34. The toner cartridge 32 is a container for storing unused toner and carrier, and is provided above the developing device 14 to supply (supplement) toner to the developing device 14 and replenish the carrier. A developing housing (two-component developer) made up of black, cyan, magenta or yellow toner and a carrier is stored in a developing housing provided in the developing device 14. However, the carrier is a magnetic material such as iron powder or ferrite. The toner supply pipe 34 connects (connects) a toner supply port 154 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) of the toner cartridge 32 and a toner supply port formed in the developing device 14.

  The charger 16 is a device that charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 12 to a predetermined polarity and potential. As the charger 16, a brush-type charging device, a roller-type charging device, a corona discharge device, an ion generator, or the like can be used.

  The cleaning unit 18 removes and collects the toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 12 after the toner image is transferred from the photosensitive drum 12 to the intermediate transfer belt 36, and cleans the surface of the photosensitive drum 12. . Therefore, for example, the cleaning unit 18 includes a cleaning blade 18a that is a plate-like member for scraping off the toner, and a recovery container for recovering the scraped toner.

  The exposure device 20 is provided below the developing device 14. The exposure device 20 is configured as a laser scanning unit (LSU) including a laser emitting unit, a reflection mirror, and the like, and exposes the charged surface of the photosensitive drum 12 to generate an electrostatic latent image corresponding to image data. It is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 12.

  The intermediate transfer belt unit 22 includes an intermediate transfer belt 36, a driving roller 38, a driven roller 40, four intermediate transfer rollers (primary transfer rollers) 42, and the like, and is disposed above the photosensitive drum 36.

  The intermediate transfer belt 36 is an endless belt having flexibility, and is formed of a synthetic resin, rubber, or the like appropriately mixed with a conductive material such as carbon black. The intermediate transfer belt 36 is stretched by a plurality of rollers such as a driving roller 38 and a driven roller 40, and the surface (outer peripheral surface) thereof is disposed so as to contact the surface of the photosensitive drum 12. The intermediate transfer belt 36 rotates (circulates) in a predetermined direction (counterclockwise in FIG. 1) as the driving roller 38 rotates.

  The drive roller 38 is provided so as to be rotatable around its axis by a drive unit (not shown). The driven roller 40 rotates as the intermediate transfer belt 36 rotates and applies a constant tension to the intermediate transfer belt 36 to prevent the intermediate transfer belt 36 from slackening.

  The intermediate transfer roller 42 is disposed at a position facing each of the photosensitive drums 12 with the intermediate transfer belt 36 interposed therebetween. The intermediate transfer roller 42 is in pressure contact with the inner peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 36 and rotates as the intermediate transfer belt 36 rotates. To do. Although not shown, the intermediate transfer roller 42 is connected to a transfer power source for applying a transfer bias. At the time of image formation, a voltage having a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner constituting the toner image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 12 is applied to the intermediate transfer roller 42. As a result, a transfer electric field is formed between the photosensitive drum 12 and the intermediate transfer belt 36, and the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 12 is transferred to the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 36 by the action of the transfer electric field. The For example, when forming a color image, the toner images of the respective colors formed on the respective photosensitive drums 12 are sequentially transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 36 (primary transfer), and are transferred onto the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 36. A multicolor toner image is formed.

  Further, the secondary transfer roller 24 is disposed at a position facing the driving roller 38 with the intermediate transfer belt 36 interposed therebetween. A transfer power supply (not shown) is connected to the secondary transfer roller 24, and a voltage (secondary transfer voltage) is applied to the secondary transfer roller 24 by the transfer power supply during image formation. Then, due to the action of the transfer electric field formed by the secondary transfer roller 24 to which a voltage is applied, while the sheet passes through the transfer nip area between the intermediate transfer belt 36 and the transfer roller 24, The toner image formed on the outer peripheral surface is transferred (secondary transfer) to the sheet. Thereafter, the toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 36 is removed and collected by a transfer belt cleaning unit (not shown).

  The fixing unit 26 includes a heat roller and a pressure roller, and is disposed above the secondary transfer roller 24. The heat roller is set to have a predetermined fixing temperature, and when the paper passes through the fixing nip area between the heat roller and the pressure roller, the toner image transferred to the paper is melted, mixed, and mixed. The toner image is heat-fixed on the sheet by pressure contact.

  In addition, a paper conveyance path for sending the paper placed on the paper feed tray 28 to the paper discharge tray 30 via the secondary transfer roller 24 and the fixing unit 26 is provided in the housing 10 a of the image forming apparatus 10. It is formed. In the paper conveyance path, paper conveyance means such as conveyance rollers 44, 46, and 48 and a registration roller 50 are appropriately disposed.

  At the time of image formation, the sheets placed on the sheet feeding tray 28 are guided to the sheet conveying path one by one by a pickup roller (not shown) and conveyed to the registration roller 50 by the conveying roller 44. Then, the registration roller 50 conveys the sheet to the secondary transfer roller 24 at a timing when the leading end of the sheet and the leading end of the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 36 are aligned, and the toner image is transferred onto the sheet. Thereafter, by passing through the fixing unit 26, unfixed toner on the sheet is melted and fixed by heat, and the sheet is discharged onto the sheet discharge tray 30 through the conveyance rollers 46 and 48.

  In such an image forming apparatus 10, the toner cartridge 32, which is an example of an image forming apparatus member, contains toner in its internal space, and when the toner in the developing device 14 is consumed by development, the developing device 14 is appropriately replenished with toner. Therefore, the toner cartridge 32 is replaced with a new toner cartridge 32 when the toner becomes empty.

  The toner cartridge 32 thus replaced is collected and recycled by the manufacturer in order to effectively use resources in consideration of environmental problems. The manufacturer cleans the container (housing) of the collected toner cartridge 32 and regenerates the toner cartridge 32 by refilling the cleaned empty container with toner.

  However, if the configuration of the container is complicated, cleaning is difficult. For this reason, when the container is dismantled for cleaning, the structure is complicated, and assembly is troublesome.

  In order to avoid such an inconvenience, in the first embodiment, the toner cartridge 32 using a container having a simple structure and easy to disassemble and assemble is formed.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a main body 1400 of the toner cartridge 32 shown in FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the sheet member 140a used to form the main body of the toner cartridge 32 shown in FIG. 2 as viewed obliquely from above, and FIG. 3B shows a state in which the sheet member 140a is rolled up. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the toner cartridge 32 using the main body 1400 shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an example of the toner cartridge 32 formed using the main body 1400 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 2 shows a container main body (main body 1400) of the toner cartridge 32, and the main body 1400 includes a cylindrical member 140. The main body 1400 includes ring members 142 a to 142 c and is detachably provided on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical member 140.

  The main body 1400 is formed by detachably providing ring members 142a to 142c on the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical member 140 obtained by rolling a sheet member 140a into a cylindrical shape as shown in FIG.

  As can be seen from FIG. 3A, the sheet member 140a has a quadrangular shape. In the first embodiment, the sheet member 140a is formed of a resin such as nylon, and its thickness D is set to 0.5 mm to 2.0 mm, for example. This is because if the thickness D of the sheet member 140a is thinner than 0.5 mm, the sheet member 140a is easily broken. Further, if the thickness D of the sheet member 140a is greater than 2 mm, the sheet member 140a is broken when the sheet member 140a is rolled into a cylindrical shape, that is, when elastically deformed. Thus, if the sheet member 140a is torn or cracked, as will be described later, when the cylindrical member 140 with the sheet member 140a rounded is used as a container (housing) of the toner cartridge 32, the toner is removed from the container. Leaks.

  However, the material of the sheet member 140a is not necessarily limited to nylon, and other resins such as ethylene vinyl acetate can be used as long as the resin has appropriate strength and workability.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the bending elastic modulus of the sheet | seat member 140a in normal temperature is the range from 30 Mpa to 300 Mpa. This is because if the flexural modulus is smaller than 30 Mpa, the sheet member 140a is too soft and has poor recoverability. Further, if the flexural modulus is larger than 300 Mpa, it is too hard to deform such as rounding into a cylindrical shape.

  Here, the flexural modulus is the modulus of elasticity calculated using the load-deflection curve obtained in the three-point bending test. The distance between fulcrums, the width of the specimen, the thickness of the specimen, and the load-deflection. It is calculated by the load at an arbitrarily selected point in the first straight line portion of the curve and the amount of deflection at the load. This flexural modulus is calculated in accordance with JIS K 7023 (1982). The same applies hereinafter.

  A container (housing) of the toner cartridge 32 is formed using such a sheet member 140a. For example, as can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3B, the sheet member 140a is rounded into a cylindrical shape. Although not shown in the drawings, the sheet member 140a is configured such that at least both ends overlap when rolled into a cylindrical shape. This is to prevent the toner from leaking from the joint of the sheet member 140a when the toner is sealed in the toner cartridge 32, as will be described later. Therefore, the sheet member 140a may be doubled. In such a case, the strength of the tubular member 140 is increased. For this reason, the thickness of the sheet member 140a may be thin and easy to round.

  With such a configuration, three ring members 142a, 142b, and 142c are attached to the sheet member 140a rounded into a cylindrical shape at equal intervals or substantially equal intervals. At this time, the sheet member 140a rounded into a cylindrical shape, that is, the cylindrical member 140 tends to expand in the radial direction by its restoring force (elastic force), but its expansion is restricted by the three ring members 142a to 142c. Therefore, the shape of the cylindrical member 140 is maintained (maintained).

  For example, the ring members 142a to 142c are formed of a resin such as polycarbonate. The bending elastic modulus of the ring members 142a to 142c at normal temperature is preferably in the range from 700 Mpa to 7000 Mpa. This is because if the flexural modulus is less than 700 Mpa, the ring members 142a to 142c are too soft and the shape of the ring cannot be stably maintained. In this case, as a matter of course, the shape of the sheet member 140a rounded into a cylindrical shape cannot be maintained. Further, if the flexural modulus is larger than 7000 Mpa, the ring members 142a to 142c are too hard and weak against impact. For example, the ring members 142a to 142c are broken by an impact.

  However, the ring members 142a to 142c may be made of polyacetal, acrylic, vinyl chloride or the like instead of polycarbonate.

  Alternatively, the shape of the tubular member 140 may be maintained by attaching an adhesive tape instead of the ring members 142a to 142c.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the toner cartridge 32 includes a main body 1400, urethane foam materials 144 a and 144 b, ring members 146 a and 146 b, a rotation member 148, and a spring 152.

  The main body 1400 is as described above. The urethane foam materials 144a and 144b are formed in a disc shape and function as a lid for sealing the opening of the main body 1400. The ring members 146a and 146b are also formed of resin and are used to attach the urethane foam materials 144a and 144b to the openings of the main body 1400, respectively. Specifically, the diameters of the urethane foam materials 144a and 144b are set slightly larger than the diameter of the opening of the main body 1400. The urethane foam material 144a and the ring member 146a are arranged on one side of the main body 1400 so that the edges (outer peripheral portions) of the urethane foam materials 144a and 144b are sandwiched between the inner peripheral surface of the opening of the main body 1400 and the outer peripheral surface of the ring members 146a and 146b. The urethane foam material 144b and the ring member 146b are attached to the other opening of the main body 1400. Therefore, even when the main body 1400 is sealed and the toner is sealed as described later, the toner does not leak from the opening of the main body 1400.

  However, the urethane members 144a and 144b and the inner peripheral surface of the main body 1400 are bonded. Further, the urethane members 144a and 144b and the ring members 146a and 146b may be bonded or may not be bonded.

  A container (housing) of the toner cartridge 14 is a body 1400 in which the urethane members 144a and 144b are mounted using the ring members 146a and 146b.

  When the urethane members 144a, 144b and the ring members 146a, 146b are attached to the main body 1400, the rotating member covers the one end of the main body 1400 (the other opening side in the first embodiment). 148 is mounted. The rotating member 148 is formed in a cap shape, and one end of the main body 1400 is fitted into the rotating member 148.

  The rotating member 148 is bonded to the main body 1400 (tubular member 140) by ultrasonic welding, vibration bonding, or the like, or is bonded to the main body 1400 (tubular member 140) by various adhesives such as a hot melt adhesive. Or However, the rotating member 148 may be attached (joined) to the main body 1400 (tubular member 140) using an adhesive tape. In such a case, it is easy to remove the rotating member 148.

  The rotation member 148 is integrally formed with a coupling gear 150a extending from the center in the direction of the rotation axis of the toner cartridge 32 and extending in the direction opposite to the side on which the main body 1400 (tubular member 140) is mounted. When the toner cartridge 32 is mounted on the image forming apparatus 10, the coupling chia 150 a engages with a coupling gear 150 b provided inside the image forming apparatus 10. A driving force from the motor is applied to the coupling gear 150b, and when the coupling gear 150b rotates, the coupling gear 150a and the rotating member 148 that engage with the coupling gear 150b are also rotated. Therefore, the cylindrical member 140 is also rotated.

  Further, toner and a spring 152 are sealed inside the container (housing). However, in FIGS. 4 and 5, the toner is omitted. When the cylindrical member 140 rotates or vibration is generated by the image forming apparatus 10 executing the printing operation, the spring 152 vibrates, and the toner enclosed in the container becomes a lump. Or the toner mass is loosened inside the container.

  Further, as can be seen from FIGS. 4 and 5, the side surface (outer peripheral surface) of the cylindrical member 140 and the portion where the ring member 142 b is mounted are for supplying (supplementing) toner to the developing device 14. A toner supply port 154 is formed. That is, the ring member 142b surrounds the portion of the cylindrical member 140 where the toner supply port 154 is formed over the entire circumference. For example, the shape of the toner supply port 154 is a quadrangle, and the size of the toner supply port 154 is appropriately determined according to the amount of toner supplied (supplied) at a time. However, the toner supply port 154 is determined to have a size hidden by the ring member 142b.

  A hole (opening) 200 for supplying toner to the developing device 14 is also formed on the side surface (outer peripheral surface) of the ring member 142b. That is, in the first embodiment, the ring member 142b also functions as a toner supply unit. The opening 200 is formed in the same size or substantially the same size (shape) as the toner supply port 154.

  As described above, the toner cartridge 32 is attached to the image forming apparatus 10. At this time, the opening 200 is disposed on the lower side. When supplying the toner to the developing device 14, the coupling gear 150b is rotated, and the cylindrical member 140 is rotated in accordance with this as described above. When the toner supply port 154 provided in the cylindrical member 140 overlaps the opening 200 of the ring member 142b, the toner enclosed (stored) inside the container is the toner supply port 154, the opening 200, and the toner. The liquid drops through the supply pipe 34 and is supplied into the developing device 14.

  When toner is not supplied to the developing device 14, the rotation of the cylindrical member 140 is stopped at a position where the toner supply port 154 provided in the cylindrical member 140 and the opening 200 provided in the ring member 142b do not overlap. .

  The toner cartridge 32 having such a configuration is replaced with a new toner cartridge 32 when the toner becomes empty. As described above, the empty toner cartridge 32 is collected by the manufacturer and recycled.

  First, the collected toner cartridge 32 is disassembled, and parts such as the disassembled sheet member 140a are cleaned.

  However, when the toner cartridge 32 is disassembled, the bonded rotating member 148 is first removed from the cylindrical member 140. Next, the urethane foam materials 144a and 144b and the ring members 146a and 146b attached to the openings at both ends of the tubular member 140 are removed. Then, the ring members 142 a to 142 c are removed from the tubular member 140. Then, the cylindrical member 140 is deformed into a flat sheet by a restoring force.

  As described above, when the toner cartridge 32 is disassembled, the ring members 142a to 142c, 146a, and 146b are simply removed from the cylindrical member 140, except for removing some of the components. It can be easily dismantled. Moreover, since the cylindrical member 140 which comprises a container is decompress | restored to a sheet form, the inside of a container can also be cleaned easily.

  When the sheet member 140a is cleaned, the cleaned sheet member 140a is rounded into a cylindrical shape, and the cylindrical member 140 rounded into a cylindrical shape is fixed by the ring members 142a to 142c. That is, the main body 1400 as shown in FIG. 2 is formed. In addition, new toner and spring 152 are placed in the body 1400. And the opening part of this main body 1400 (tubular member 140) is covered (sealed) using the urethane foam materials 144a and 144b and the ring members 146a and 146b as described above. Then, the rotating member 148 is mounted so as to cover the other opening of the main body 1400 (tubular member 140). In this way, the toner cartridge 32 is regenerated.

  According to the first embodiment, the main body 1400 which is a part of the container of the toner cartridge 32 is formed simply by fixing the cylindrical member 140 obtained by rolling the sheet member 140a into a cylindrical shape with the ring members 142a to 142c. Therefore, the assembly and disassembly of the toner cartridge 32 are easy.

Further, according to the first embodiment, when the ring members 142a to 142c are removed when the toner cartridge 32 is disassembled, the cylindrical member 140 is restored to a sheet shape, so that the container of the toner cartridge 32 is clean all the way. To be cleaned.
<Second embodiment>
In the image forming apparatus 10 of the second embodiment, the main body 1400 is used as a main body (toner transport pipe) of a toner transport apparatus 300 which is another example of the image forming apparatus member. Since the configuration of the main body 1400 is the same as that of the first embodiment, a duplicate description is omitted.

  The toner conveying device 300 of another example of the member for the image forming apparatus is also collected and recycled by the manufacturer after a certain period of use. Therefore, like the toner cartridge 32 described above, the toner conveying device 300 is preferably easy to clean and can be easily assembled and disassembled. Therefore, the main body 1400 is employed as a toner transport pipe (main body) of the toner transport device 300. However, in the main body 1400 of the second embodiment, the size (the length of the cylinder and the diameter of the circle) is different from the case where it is used as a part of the container of the toner cartridge 32 of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the photosensitive drum 12, the cleaning unit 18, the toner transport pipe 300, and the waste toner box 400 as seen from an oblique direction. FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of FIG.

  As can be seen from FIGS. 6 and 7, the toner conveying device 300 includes the main body 1400 as described above, and the main body 1400 connects the cleaning unit 18 and the waste toner box 400. Although omitted in FIG. 1, for example, the toner transport pipe 300 and the waste toner box 400 are provided on the front side of the image forming apparatus 10.

  As described above, the cleaning unit 18 has the cleaning blade 18 a whose longitudinal direction extends parallel to the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum 12, and an edge portion of the cleaning blade 18 a is pressed against the surface of the photosensitive drum 12. The

  The cleaning unit 18 is the bottom of the housing of the cleaning unit 18, and a conveying screw 18b extending in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning blade 18a is provided below the cleaning blade 18a.

  The cleaning unit 18 is provided with a discharge port for discharging waste toner at one end in the extending direction of the rotation shaft of the conveying screw 18b. An L-shaped connecting member 160 a is integrally provided in the cleaning unit 18 at the discharge port. The waste toner discharge port in the cleaning unit 18 and one end of the main body 1400 are connected via the connection member 160a.

  The main body 1400 is fixed by the connection member 160a so as to extend obliquely upward from the discharge port, and the waste toner box 400 is connected to the other end of the main body 1400 via the connection member 160b.

  Connection member 160a and connection member 160b are formed of the same resin as ring members 142a to 142b.

  The toner conveying device 300 includes a conveying screw 302 for conveying the waste toner to the waste toner box 400. The conveying screw 302 is disposed inside the main body 1400 so that the axial direction thereof coincides with the longitudinal direction of the main body 1400.

  One end of the conveying screw 302 is pivotally supported inside the connection member 160a, and the other end is connected to a drive gear 306 provided outside the connection member 160b via a coupling member 304. However, the drive gear 306 may be provided on the connection member 160a side.

  The connection member 160b is a member that connects the main body 1400 and the waste toner box 400. In the second embodiment, the connection member 160b is provided integrally with the waste toner box 400. However, the waste toner box 400 includes a storage unit 400a that stores (stores) waste toner, and a transport pipe 400b that transports waste toner from the main body 1400 to the storage unit 400a via the connection member 160b. .

  Each of the connection member 160a and the connection member 160b includes a ring-shaped recess (groove) for connection to the end of the main body 1400, and the end of the main body 1400 is sandwiched in the recess. Therefore, the main body 1400 is sandwiched between the connection members 160a and 160b. For example, the end of the main body 1400 is bonded to the connection member 160a and the connection member 160b.

  With this configuration, the waste toner collected from the surface of the photosensitive drum 12 by the cleaning unit 18 is transported from the discharge port to the connection member 160a by the transport screw 18b. The waste toner transported to the connection member 160a is transported inside the main body 1400 (transport pipe) by the transport screw 302, falls into the waste toner storage section 400a via the connection member 160b and the transport pipe 400b, and is stored ( Stored).

  When the toner conveying device 300 is collected, the main body 1400 is removed from the connecting member 160a and the connecting member 160b. At this time, the conveying screw 302 is removed from the coupling member 304. The disassembly, cleaning, and regeneration of the main body 1400 after the toner transport device 300 is collected are the same as in the first embodiment.

  According to the second embodiment, the toner conveying pipe as the main body 1400 is formed by simply fixing the sheet member 140a rounded into a cylindrical shape with the ring members 142a to 142c, so that the toner conveying pipe can be easily assembled and disassembled. It is.

  Further, according to the second embodiment, when the ring members 142a to 142c are removed at the time of disassembly of the toner transport pipe, the cylindrical member 140 is restored to a sheet shape, so that the toner transport pipe is clean to every corner inside. To be cleaned.

  In addition, it is also possible to comprise the conveyance pipe 400b of 2nd Example with the main body 1400. FIG.

The toner conveying device 300 of the second embodiment can also be used as a toner conveying device that conveys toner within the housing of the developing device 14 which is another example of the image forming apparatus member.
<Third embodiment>
In the image forming apparatus 10 of the third embodiment, the main body 1400 is used as a waste toner box 600 which is another example of a member for an image forming apparatus. Since the configuration of the main body 1400 is the same as that of the first embodiment, a duplicate description is omitted.

  The waste toner box 600 of another example of the image forming apparatus member is collected and recycled by the manufacturer when the waste toner is full, for example. Therefore, it is preferable that the waste toner box 600 can be easily assembled and disassembled, like the toner cartridge 32 and the toner transport device 300 described above. Therefore, the main body 1400 is employed as a part of the waste toner box (waste toner container) 600. However, the main body 1400 of the third embodiment is about the same size (the length of the cylinder and the diameter of the circle) as when used as a part of the container of the toner cartridge 32 of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a part of the cleaning unit 18 and the waste toner box 600 as viewed obliquely. 9 is an exploded perspective view in which the toner box 600 removed from the cleaning unit 18 in FIG. 8 is disassembled.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the waste toner box 600 includes a main body 1400, a connection member 610, and a lid member 620, and is formed in a bottle shape. The connection member 610 is attached to one end of the main body 1400 and used to connect to the cleaning unit 18. The lid member 620 is attached to the other end of the main body 1400. As can be seen from FIG. 9, the connecting member 610 is formed by connecting two cylindrical portions having different diameters with a connecting portion having a tapered surface, and is formed in a substantially funnel shape upside down. The lid member 620 is a bottomed cylindrical member. The connecting member 610 is fitted into the main body 1400 so that the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion having a large diameter in the connecting member 610 is in contact with a part of the inner peripheral surface of the main body 1400. The main body 1400 is fitted into the lid member 620 such that the cylindrical inner peripheral surface of the lid member 620 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the other end of the main body 1400.

  However, the connection member 610 and the lid member 620 and the main body 1400 are bonded by ultrasonic welding, vibration bonding, or the like, or bonded by various adhesives such as a hot melt adhesive. Alternatively, the connection member 610 and the lid member 620 may be fixed to the main body 1400 using an adhesive tape.

  The configuration of the cleaning unit 18 of the third embodiment is almost the same as that of the cleaning unit 18 of the second embodiment. However, in the third embodiment, the arrangement position of the waste toner box 600 and the shape of the waste toner box 600 in the image forming apparatus 10 are different from those in the second embodiment.

  As can be seen from FIGS. 8 and 9, in the third embodiment, the waste toner discharge port of the cleaning unit 18 is provided on the bottom surface of the end of the cleaning unit 18 to which the waste toner is conveyed by the conveying screw 18b. Further, the cleaning unit 18 of the third embodiment is provided with a transport pipe 18c extending from the waste toner discharge port, and the connection member 610 of the waste toner box 600 is connected to the transport pipe 18c. However, the transport pipe 18c is fitted into the connection member 610 so that the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion of the connecting member 610 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the transport pipe 18c. Therefore, when the waste toner is conveyed through the cleaning unit 18, it falls into the waste toner box 600 from the discharge port via the conveyance pipe 18c and is stored (stored).

  When collecting the waste toner box 600, the waste toner box 600 is removed from the cleaning unit 18. The disassembly, cleaning, and regeneration of the main body 1400 after the connection member 610 and the lid member 620 are removed from the waste toner box 600 are the same as in the first embodiment.

  According to the third embodiment, the main body 1400 of the waste toner box 600 has a simple configuration in which the sheet member 140a is rounded into a cylindrical shape and fixed by the ring members 142a to 142c. Assembly can be performed easily.

Further, according to the third embodiment, when the ring members 142a to 142c are removed when the waste toner box 600 is disassembled, the cylindrical member 140 is restored to a flat sheet shape. Every corner is cleanly cleaned.
<Fourth embodiment>
The image forming apparatus 10 of the fourth embodiment is the same as the first to third embodiments except that at least the inner surface of the main body 1400 is provided with a moth-eye structure.

  Here, the moth-eye structure means, as the name suggests, a shape that imitates the eye of a moth, and projections with a minute height are two-dimensionally arranged at a minute pitch. It is a structure formed continuously.

  In the fourth embodiment, a moth-eye structure is provided on the inner surface of the main body 1400 so that toner and waste toner adhere to the inner surface of the main body 1400 and waste toner stays inside the main body 1400. Is prevented. However, the moth-eye structure may also be applied to the inner surface of a member other than the main body 1400.

  According to the fourth embodiment, since it is difficult for toner to adhere to the inside of the main body 1400, cleaning is easy during recycling.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Image forming apparatus 12 ... Photosensitive drum 14 ... Developing device 16 ... Charger 18 ... Cleaning unit 18a ... Cleaning blade 18b, 302 ... Conveying screw 18c, 400b ... Toner conveying pipe 20 ... Exposure device 24 ... Secondary transfer roller 32 ... toner cartridge 36 ... intermediate transfer belt 42 ... intermediate transfer roller 140 ... cylindrical member 140a ... sheet members 142a, 142b, 142c, 146a, 146b ... ring members 144a, 144b ... urethane foam material 148 ... rotating members 150a, 150b ... cups Ring gear 152 ... Spring 154 ... Toner supply port 160a, 160b, 160c, 610 ... Connection member 200 ... Opening part 300 ... Toner transport device 400, 600 ... Waste toner box 400a ... Storage part 620 ... Member 1400 ... body

Claims (10)

A member for an image forming apparatus used in a toner transport unit or storage unit,
A cylindrical member obtained by elastically deforming a flexible sheet and rounded into a cylindrical shape;
A member for an image forming apparatus, comprising a holding member that holds the shape of the cylindrical member.   The image forming apparatus member according to claim 1, wherein the cylindrical member is formed by being rounded so that at least opposite ends of the flexible sheet overlap each other.   The image forming apparatus member according to claim 1, wherein the cylindrical member includes a moth-eye structure on an inner peripheral surface side.   The member for an image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible sheet is formed of a resin having a flexural modulus at room temperature of 30 Mpa to 300 Mpa.   The image forming apparatus member according to claim 1, wherein the holding member is a ring member that is detachably provided on an outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical member.   6. The member for an image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the ring member is a resin having a bending elastic modulus in a range of 700 Mpa to 7000 Mpa at room temperature. The cylindrical member has a toner supply port on a side surface,
The holding member surrounds the entire portion of the cylindrical member where the toner supply port is formed, and has an opening that can communicate with the toner supply port on a side surface.
A sealing member that seals toner inside the cylindrical member;
A rotation force transmitting member that transmits a rotational force from the outside to the cylindrical member;
The member for an image forming apparatus according to claim 1. One end of the cylindrical member is connected to one side surface of the cleaning unit;
The other end of the cylindrical member is connected to a waste toner box,
The member for an image forming apparatus according to any one of 1 to 6, further comprising a conveying member that conveys toner from the one end to the other end inside the cylindrical member. A connecting member for connecting one end of the cylindrical member to the bottom of the cleaning unit;
The image forming apparatus member according to claim 1, further comprising a lid member that covers the other end of the cylindrical member.   An image forming apparatus comprising the member for an image forming apparatus according to claim 1.

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