JP2016118733A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus that can improve the accuracy in regulating the position in the axial direction (width direction) of a cartridge including an image carrier on which a latent image is formed with respect to an apparatus body.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus comprises: a cartridge that includes a rotor; an apparatus body; and a moving member that moves with respect to the apparatus body while removably supporting the cartridge, the moving member capable of taking an internal position located inside the apparatus body and an external position located outside the apparatus body. The cartridge includes a position regulation part that regulates the position in the axial direction of the rotor with respect to the apparatus body, and the apparatus body includes a contact part that is in contact with the position regulation part when the moving member is at the internal position to regulate the position in the axial direction of the cartridge.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and is suitable for a copying machine, a printer (laser beam printer, LED printer, etc.) and the like that form an image on a recording medium using an electrophotographic image forming process or the like.

  As a cartridge replacement method for the image forming apparatus main body (apparatus main body), Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a plurality of process cartridges are mounted on a moving member and are attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. Also disclosed is a configuration in which a moving member is used to determine the position in the width direction (longitudinal direction) of the process cartridge in the apparatus main body. Further, it is disclosed that by adopting the above configuration, a means for replacing the process cartridge from the front side of the apparatus can be provided in a space-saving manner.

JP 2008-165027 A

  However, in the above-described prior art, the process cartridge is positioned in the main body width direction with respect to the main body side plate with the moving member interposed therebetween. Therefore, the process cartridge is positioned in the main body width direction by the error of the moving member thickness. Accuracy is reduced. In particular, when the main body of the moving member is made of a plastic member, there has been a problem that the position error increases due to the influence of warpage and accuracy during molding.

  In addition, with the miniaturization of the image forming apparatus, the process cartridge is also required to be miniaturized.For example, the opening for exposing the image carrier is reduced, and if the positioning error in the main body width direction is large, the exposure is blocked and the image is displayed. It cannot be formed. Also from this point, it is necessary to improve the position regulation (positioning) accuracy in the main body width direction (the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the image carrier) in the cartridge including the image carrier.

  An object of the present invention is to improve the accuracy of cartridge position regulation with respect to the apparatus main body.

  In order to achieve the above object, a typical configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a cartridge including a rotating body, an apparatus main body, and the cartridge moving relative to the apparatus main body in a state where the cartridge is detachably supported. A movable member, and a movable member capable of taking an internal position located inside the apparatus main body and an external position located outside the apparatus main body, and the cartridge is connected to the apparatus main body. A position restricting portion for restricting the position of the rotating body in the axial direction, and the apparatus main body contacts the position restricting portion when the moving member is in the internal position, and the cartridge in the axial direction It is characterized by providing the contact part which controls position of this.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the accuracy of position regulation of the cartridge with respect to the apparatus main body.

1 is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus with an open / close door closed according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus in which an opening / closing door is opened according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus in which a process cartridge is moved to an external position according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the image forming apparatus when the process cartridge is replaced at an external position according to the embodiment of the present invention. (A) is a perspective view showing a state where the open / close door is closed, (b) is a perspective view showing a state where the open / close door is opened, and (c) is a perspective view showing a state where the cartridge tray is pulled out. (A) is sectional drawing which shows the state which the opening / closing door closed, (b) is sectional drawing which shows the state where the opening / closing door opened. 1 is a perspective view of a process cartridge according to a first embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the process cartridge which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a perspective view of a process cartridge and a cartridge tray according to the first embodiment. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment. It is a perspective view of the process cartridge which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. (A) is sectional drawing which shows the state which the opening / closing door opened in 2nd Embodiment, (b) is sectional drawing which shows the state which the opening / closing door closed. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus in which an exposure apparatus is disposed below the image forming apparatus main body and a process cartridge is replaced with a cartridge tray as another embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<< First Embodiment >>
(Image forming device)
1 to 5 show a laser beam printer which is an electrophotographic image forming apparatus as an image forming apparatus which includes a process cartridge as a cartridge and forms an image on a recording medium. Here, the electrophotographic image forming apparatus forms an image on a recording medium using an electrophotographic image forming process. Examples of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus include an electrophotographic copying machine and an electrophotographic printer (laser beam printer, LED printer, etc.).

  The recording medium is an image on which an image is formed using an electrophotographic image forming process. For example, recording paper, OHT sheet, label, and the like.

  Here, such a cartridge can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body by the user himself. Therefore, the maintenance of the apparatus can be performed by the user himself / herself without depending on the service person. Therefore, the operability of the apparatus can be remarkably improved by such a cartridge system.

  The overall configuration and function of a laser beam printer that is an electrophotographic image forming apparatus will be described below. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus of the present embodiment. In the main body (hereinafter referred to as “device main body”) 100 of the image forming apparatus, there are a laser scanner 11, an intermediate transfer belt 13, a transfer facing member 17, a paper feed tray 19, a paper feed roller 20, transport rollers 21, 21, A fixing film 24, a pressure roller 25, and the like are installed.

  In addition, four process cartridges P (PY, PM, PC, PK) of the first process cartridge PY, the second process cartridge PM, the third process cartridge PC, and the fourth process cartridge PK are arranged in the horizontal direction. ing. Each of the first to fourth process cartridges P (PY, PM, PC, PK) has the same electrophotographic image forming process mechanism, and the color of the developer is different.

  Further, each of the first to fourth process cartridges P (PY, PM, PC, PK) is developed as a developer carrier unit having a developing roller 41 that develops the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 1. It has a unit 4 (FIGS. 8 and 9). The first process cartridge PY contains a yellow (Y) developer in the developing unit 4 and forms a yellow developer image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1. The second process cartridge PM contains a magenta (M) developer in the developing unit 4 and forms a magenta developer image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1.

  The third process cartridge PC contains a cyan (C) developer in the developing unit 4 and forms a cyan developer image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1. The fourth process cartridge PK contains a black (K) developer in the developing unit 4 and forms a black developer image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1.

  That is, the developing roller 41 is a developer carrying member that carries the developer (toner) and develops the latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 1. The photosensitive drum 1 is an image carrier that carries an image (latent image or toner image). The photosensitive drum 1 and the developing roller 41 are rotating members that are driven to rotate.

  In FIG. 2, the paper (recording medium) S stacked and stored in the paper feed tray 19 is fed by a paper feed roller 20 that rotates in the clockwise direction (in the direction of arrow W) in the figure, and the belt drive roller 14 and the secondary are fed. It is sent to the contact portion (hereinafter referred to as “nip portion”) of the transfer roller 18. Here, the photosensitive drum 1 rotates counterclockwise in the figure (arrow K direction), and an electrostatic latent image is sequentially formed on the outer peripheral surface by the laser light L from the laser scanner 11, and subsequently. The electrostatic latent image is developed by the developing roller 41 to form a toner image (developer image).

  The photosensitive drum 1 is an image carrier that carries an image (toner image). The developing roller 41 is a developer carrying member that carries a developer (toner) for developing the electrostatic latent image. The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 1 is transferred to an intermediate transfer belt 13 as an intermediate transfer member suspended from a belt driving roller 14 and rollers 15 and 16 in the intermediate transfer unit 12. When forming a color image, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black colors are developed on the photosensitive drum 1, and the toner images formed on the respective colors are sequentially transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 13.

  Next, the toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 13 is transferred to the sheet S sent to the nip portion between the belt driving roller 14 and the secondary transfer roller 18. In this embodiment, the toner image on the photosensitive drum 1 is once transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 13 and then transferred to the paper S. However, the toner image may be directly transferred from the photosensitive drum 1 to the paper S. . In this case, instead of the intermediate transfer belt 13, a conveyance belt (conveyance member) that conveys the recording medium (paper S) is provided, and the yellow, magenta, cyan, and black colors of the paper S conveyed by the conveyance belt are provided. The toner images may be transferred sequentially.

  The sheet S on which the toner image has been transferred is sent to the nip portion between the fixing film 24 and the pressure roller 25 in the fixing device 23, where it is heated and pressed to fix the toner image on the sheet S. The sheet S on which the toner image is fixed is discharged to a discharge tray 27 by a discharge roller pair 26.

(Process cartridge replacement)
3 to 5 are diagrams for explaining a process cartridge replacement method as a cartridge in the present embodiment. Hereinafter, a method for replacing the process cartridge P of the laser beam printer will be described. A member (moving member) that moves while holding the process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK is referred to as a cartridge tray 28 in the following description.

  The cartridge tray 28 is a mounting member for mounting the process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK. The cartridge tray 28 is supported by a cartridge tray holding member (hereinafter referred to as “tray holding member”) 32 (FIG. 7) with respect to the apparatus main body 100, and between the internal position and the external position of the apparatus main body, FIG. It is slidable in the horizontal direction. That is, the cartridge tray 28 is configured to slide in the direction intersecting the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 1 and the developing roller 41 provided in the cartridge P (direction substantially orthogonal to the axial direction).

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the internal position provided in the space inside the apparatus main body 100 is a mounting portion for the process cartridge P during image formation. When forming an image, the process cartridge P is placed on the cartridge tray 28, moves toward the mounting portion of the apparatus main body 100, and is mounted on the apparatus main body 100.

  The process cartridge P is detachable from the cartridge tray 28, and this will be described. The opening / closing door 30 is provided so as to be able to rotate (open / close) with respect to the apparatus main body 100, and FIG. 3 shows a state in which the opening / closing door 30 is opened. The opening / closing door 30 is an opening / closing member that opens and closes an opening through which the cartridge tray 28 passes. By opening the opening / closing door 30 in the direction of arrow D in FIG. 3, the user can access the handle portion 29 of the cartridge tray 28.

  In FIG. 3, a connecting arm 33 is provided so as to connect the opening / closing door 30 and the tray holding member 32. The connecting arm 33 and the tray holding member 32 constitute interlocking means (interlocking mechanism) that moves the cartridge tray 28 in conjunction with the opening / closing operation of the opening / closing door 30. In other words, when the opening / closing door 30 is closed (FIG. 2) and the opening / closing door 30 is opened (FIG. 3), the connecting arm 33 pulls the tray holding member 32 upward to the right. 28 is moved upward (FIG. 3).

  Then, the photosensitive drum 1 is separated from the intermediate transfer belt 13, and the cartridge tray 28 can be pulled out from the apparatus main body 100. That is, the user can pull out the cartridge tray 28 by pulling the handle portion 29. At this time, the process cartridge P placed on the cartridge tray 28 also moves in the moving direction intersecting the axis of the photosensitive drum 1 and is pulled out of the apparatus main body 100 (external position).

  With respect to the drawer of the cartridge tray 28 accompanying the opening / closing of the opening / closing door 30, the case where the image forming apparatus is viewed from an oblique direction will be described. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 6A shows a state in which the opening / closing door 30 is closed, and FIG. 6B shows a state in which the opening / closing door 30 is opened. FIG. 6C shows a state where the cartridge tray 28 is further pulled out from the inside of the apparatus main body 100 of the image forming apparatus. 7 is an enlarged view of the opening / closing door 30 and the cartridge tray 28. FIG. 7 (a) shows a state in which the opening / closing door 30 is closed, and FIG. 7 (b) shows a state in which the opening / closing door 30 is open.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, a connecting arm 33 is attached to the opening / closing door 30, and a boss 33 a provided on the connecting arm 33 engages with a groove 32 b provided on the tray holding member 32. Yes. The tray holding member 32 has a boss 32 a that is engaged with a groove 101 a provided on the side plate 101 of the apparatus main body 100. Accordingly, the opening / closing operation of the opening / closing door 30 and the tray holding member 32 are interlocked, and when the opening / closing door 30 is opened from the closed state (see FIG. 7A), the tray holding member 32 enters the groove 101 a of the side plate 101. Along the direction of arrow D1 shown in FIG.

  Here, since the groove 101a of the side plate 101 has a step (FIG. 7), when the tray holding member 32 moves, it moves not only in the horizontal direction but also in the upward direction by a distance L1. For this reason, the cartridge tray 28 held by the tray holding member 32 also moves upward L1 (FIG. 7B). At this time, when the process cartridge P is mounted on the cartridge tray 28, the photosensitive drum 1 is separated from the intermediate transfer belt 13. In this state, when the user pulls the handle portion 29 shown in FIG. 6B, the cartridge tray 28 is pulled out of the apparatus main body 100 and moved to the drawing position as shown in FIG. 6C.

  FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the cartridge tray 28 is pulled out from the internal position of the apparatus main body 100 to the external position in the direction of arrow C. In this state, the upper surfaces of the process cartridges PY, PM, PC, PK are opened, and the respective process cartridges PY, PM, PC, PK can be removed upward (in the direction of arrow E) as shown in FIG.

  When the replaced new process cartridge P is mounted on the apparatus main body 100, the cartridge tray 28 is placed in the apparatus main body 100 after the new process cartridge P is loaded with the cartridge tray 28 pulled out by the reverse procedure. To do. At this time, the process cartridge P placed on the cartridge tray 28 also moves in the moving direction intersecting the axis of the photosensitive drum and moves toward the mounting portion of the apparatus main body 100.

  Then, by closing the opening / closing door 30 after the cartridge tray 28 is stored in the apparatus main body 100, the tray holding member 32 is pushed down in the lower left direction in FIG. 3 via the connecting arm 33. As a result, the cartridge tray 28 also moves downward, and the photosensitive drum 1 of the process cartridge P contacts the intermediate transfer belt 13. That is, by closing the opening / closing door 30, the cartridge tray 28 is mounted at the mounting position inside the apparatus main body 100. At the same time, the process cartridge P is disposed at a position (internal position) where the photosensitive drum 1 is brought into contact with the intermediate transfer belt 13 and image formation is possible (FIG. 2).

  In the present embodiment, the configuration in which the contact state and the separation state of the photosensitive drum 1 and the intermediate transfer belt 13 are switched in conjunction with the opening and closing of the opening / closing door 30 has been described, but instead of the intermediate transfer belt 13 as described above. In addition, a conveyance belt for conveying the paper S may be provided. In this case, the contact state and separation state of the photosensitive drum 1 and the conveyance belt are switched in conjunction with opening / closing of the opening / closing door 30.

(Process cartridge configuration)
FIG. 8 shows process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK each including a position restricting portion (positioning portion) that is directly position restricted (positioned) with the apparatus main body in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the photosensitive drum. FIG. As described above, the process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK have the same electrophotographic process mechanism, and the toner color and the toner filling amount are different from each other.

  The process cartridge P is a horizontally long box type assembly in which the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the photosensitive drum 1 which is a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the cartridge tray 28 as a moving member is the left-right direction, and the left-right direction is the longitudinal direction. It is. In FIG. 8, a drive side cartridge cover member 46 disposed on the right side surface portion of the cleaner unit 5 as an image carrier unit (photosensitive drum unit) and a non-drive side cartridge cover member 47 disposed on the left side surface portion. The photosensitive drum 1 is supported so as to be rotatable.

  A drum coupling member (not shown) as a photosensitive drum driving force input unit and a driving force input unit to the developing roller 41 in the developing unit 4 are provided at the driving side shaft end (right side surface side) of the process cartridge P. And a developing coupling member (not shown). A cartridge electrical contact (not shown) is disposed on the left side surface. That is, in the process cartridge P, the drum coupling member to which the driving force is transmitted from the apparatus main body 100 and the right side surface provided with the developing coupling member are the driving side, and the left side surface on the opposite side is the non-driving side. It is.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section when the process cartridge P is cut in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 1. The driving force from the apparatus main body 100 is transmitted to the drum coupling member and the developing coupling member of the process cartridge P. As a result, in FIG. 9, the photosensitive drum 1 is rotationally driven at a predetermined speed in the counterclockwise direction (arrow K direction) and the developing roller 41 in the clockwise direction (arrow L direction).

  The process cartridge P as a cartridge in this embodiment includes a cleaner unit 5 that is an image carrier unit, and a developing unit 4 that is a developer carrier unit that is rotatably coupled to the cleaning unit 5. The cleaner unit 5 is a first unit (photosensitive drum unit) that holds the photosensitive drum 1, and the developing unit 4 is a second unit that holds the developing roller 41.

  The charger 3 provided in the cleaner unit 5 is a contact charging type charging member that abuts on the photosensitive drum 1 and rotates in a driven manner. Further, the cleaning blade 51 is an elastic rubber blade, and is disposed with its tip portion in contact with the photosensitive drum 1, and serves to remove the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 1. The transfer residual toner removed by the cleaning blade 51 is accommodated in a toner accommodating portion 52 in the cleaner unit 5.

  In FIG. 9, the developing unit 4 has a developing roller 41 as a developing means, a developing blade 42, and a developing chamber (developer containing portion) 43 for containing toner. The developing roller 41 is disposed in the developing chamber 43, and the developing blade 42 is disposed in contact with the developing roller 41 at the tip. The developing blade 42 serves to regulate the toner carried on the peripheral surface of the developing roller 41 into a thin layer.

(Regulation of position of process cartridge in the axial direction of the photoconductor relative to the main body)
In the present embodiment, when the process cartridge is mounted on the apparatus main body 100, the position of the process cartridge is directly regulated (positioned) with respect to the apparatus main body 100 in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the photosensitive drum. The

  Specifically, the cartridge position whose position is directly regulated (positioned) with respect to the apparatus main body 100 in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the photosensitive drum on the non-driving side cartridge cover member 47 (FIG. 8) of the process cartridge. A restricting portion (positioning portion) 47a is provided. The cartridge position restricting portion 47a is a protruding portion (convex portion) that protrudes further outward in the axial direction from the end portion of the process cartridge in the axial direction (that is, the driven-side cartridge cover member 47).

  The cartridge position restricting portion 47a (FIGS. 8 and 11) in this embodiment restricts the position of the process cartridge P placed on the cartridge tray 28 in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the photosensitive drum at the internal position of the apparatus main body 100. (Positioning) At the same time, the cartridge position restricting portion 47a in the apparatus main body 100 when the process cartridge P placed on the cartridge tray 28 is installed in the apparatus main body 100 (when moving between the external position and the internal position of the apparatus main body). It also serves as a guide part with the side plate 102.

  The drive-side cartridge cover member 46 shown in FIG. 8 is connected to the side plate 101 when the process cartridge P is installed in the apparatus main body 100 by the cartridge tray 28 (when moving between the external position and the internal position of the apparatus main body). A guide portion 46a (FIG. 11) is provided as a guide. However, as will be described later, when the open / close door 30 is closed, the process cartridge P is urged against the side plate 102 on the opposite side by a driving coupling (drum coupling member and developing coupling member) which is a driving force input unit. Is done. As a result, the process cartridge P is directly positioned on the opposite side plate 102 (internal position).

  A process cartridge position regulation (positioning) method will be described below. FIG. 10 is an external perspective view when the process cartridge is mounted on the cartridge tray. The process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK are mounted at predetermined positions on the cartridge tray 28. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus main body 100 when the process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK are mounted in the apparatus main body.

  The process cartridges PY, PM, PC, and PK installed in the apparatus main body 100 by the cartridge tray 28 are urged to the side plate 102 by the drive coupling that is a driving force transmission unit when the opening / closing door 30 is closed. Positioned directly on.

  That is, the process cartridge P is urged (pressed) to the left in FIG. 11 by the drive coupling (drum coupling member and developing coupling member) that acts as a pressing portion as the opening / closing door 30 closes. . As a result, the cartridge position restricting portion 47a provided on the driven side (left side in FIG. 11) of the process cartridge P contacts the side plate 102 and is pressed against the side plate 102. By doing so, the process cartridge P can be prevented from moving in the left-right direction in FIG. 11 (that is, the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 1 and the developing roller 42). That is, the position of the process cartridge P is regulated in the axial direction.

  The side plate 102 is a contact portion provided in the apparatus main body 100 that contacts the cartridge position restricting portion 47a. In this embodiment, not the cartridge tray 28 but the side plate 102 of the apparatus main body 100 directly contacts the process cartridge P to regulate the position of the process cartridge P. As a result, the accuracy of the position regulation of the process cartridge P with respect to the apparatus main body 100 is improved.

  The details are as follows. Components relating to image accuracy such as the laser scanner 11, the transfer facing member 17, and the paper positioning portion are positioned with respect to the side plate 102, and the positions of the components related to image formation are arranged around the side plate 102. Therefore, in this embodiment, each precision improves and it becomes possible to miniaturize the part in the body width direction.

  The cartridge position restricting portion 47a protrudes in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) from the cartridge tray 28 so that the side plate 102 and the cartridge position restricting portion 47a are in direct contact with each other. That is, as can be seen from FIG. 11, the cartridge position restricting portion 47 a protrudes leftward from the cartridge tray 28. In this embodiment, the maximum width of the process cartridge P is larger than the maximum width of the cartridge tray 28.

  In this embodiment, the belt 13 is an intermediate transfer member. However, the present embodiment is also applied to a configuration in which a recording medium is passed between the photosensitive drum 1 and the belt 13 and an image on the photosensitive drum 1 is directly transferred to the recording medium. Similar to the embodiment, a process cartridge attaching / detaching mechanism can be realized.

(Effect of this embodiment)
As described above, according to this embodiment, the process cartridge can be easily replaced by the operation from the front of the apparatus by performing the attaching / detaching operation by moving the cartridge tray 28 in the arrangement direction of the process cartridges arranged in the substantially horizontal direction. . Further, the position regulation (positioning) in the longitudinal direction (width direction) between each process cartridge and the apparatus main body at the time of image formation can be performed with high accuracy without using the cartridge tray.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the width of the process cartridge (maximum width in the longitudinal direction) is made larger than the width of the cartridge tray 28 (maximum width in the longitudinal direction), which is a moving member, To do. As a result, the process cartridge, which is a consumable item, is slid against the apparatus main body using the process cartridge as a guide, so that consumption due to the rubbing of the cartridge tray 28, which is a moving member, with the apparatus main body can be avoided. Can be improved.

<< Second Embodiment >>
Similarly to the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the process cartridge P placed on the cartridge tray 28 is moved in the longitudinal direction with respect to the apparatus main body at the internal position of the apparatus main body by the cartridge position restricting portion 47a (FIG. 14B). The position is regulated (positioned) in the width direction. However, in the first embodiment, the cartridge position restricting portion 47a also serves as a guide portion for the apparatus main body when the process cartridge P is installed in the apparatus main body (when moving between the external position and the internal position of the apparatus main body). Differently, in this embodiment, another guide portion is provided. Furthermore, this other guide portion also serves as an electrical contact portion with the apparatus main body (FIG. 14A).

  Hereinafter, the description will be focused on the configuration different from the first embodiment, and description of the same configuration will be omitted. FIG. 13 is an external perspective view of the process cartridge P (PY, PM, PC, PK) of the present embodiment. In the process cartridge P, the convex portions 47b protruding from the side surface of the cartridge tray 28 are used as guide portions when moving between the external position and the internal position of the apparatus main body, and the both sides of the longitudinal direction (width direction) of the cartridge tray 28 are used. It is provided on one side.

  Further, the convex portion 47b also serves as a ram earth contact portion and is electrically connected to the photosensitive drum 1 within the process cartridge (not shown). The contact portion is made of a conductive material such as a conductive resin or a metal shaft.

  FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the apparatus main body 100 engaged with and electrically connected to a contact portion provided in the process cartridge P (PY, PM, PC, PK). The side plate 102 of the apparatus main body 100 is provided with a leaf spring-shaped main body contact portion 103 that is electrically connected to the process cartridge by an operation when the process cartridge P (PY, PM, PC, PK) is inserted. In the present embodiment, a leaf spring-shaped main body contact portion is provided. However, a configuration in which the main body side plate 102 is in direct contact with a conductive member having a spring property such as a wire spring or the like may be used. .

  FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus main body (FIG. 14A) in the process of inserting and removing the process cartridge P (PY, PM, PC, PK) into the cartridge tray 28, and the process cartridge P is disposed at the image forming position of the apparatus main body. It is an apparatus main body sectional drawing (FIG.14 (b)) when doing. The main body contact portion 103 is disposed at a position where the passage of the process cartridge P and the cartridge tray 28 is not blocked when the process cartridge P mounted on the cartridge tray 28 is inserted into and removed from the main body of the image forming apparatus. Yes.

  The operation of placing the process cartridge P at the image forming position (internal position) in the apparatus main body, that is, the cartridge P mounted on the cartridge tray 28 is lowered, so that the cartridge contact portion 47b of the cartridge P is moved to the main body contact portion 103. Contact and make electrical connection.

  In the present embodiment, in order to prevent the cartridge positioning portion 47a from rubbing and wearing against the apparatus main body side plate 102, a convex portion 47b serving as a guide portion also serving as an electrical contact is provided separately from the cartridge position regulating portion 47a. . However, if there is little influence on the guide portion such as wear due to rubbing with the side plate 102 of the apparatus main body, the convex portion 47b that also serves as an electrical contact serves as a position restricting portion (positioning portion) at the internal position of the apparatus main body. The cartridge positioning portion 47a can be eliminated.

  According to this embodiment, when the process cartridge is inserted into and removed from the apparatus main body, the convex guide portion that slides on the apparatus main body also serves as the electric contact portion with the apparatus main body, so that the electric contact portion can be efficiently arranged. Thus, the space efficiency of the apparatus main body is improved. As a result, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus provided with an easy process cartridge replacement means using the moving member while suppressing the width of the main body as compared with the case where the moving member is provided with an intermediate contact as in the prior art.

(Modification)
Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in the above-described embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist.

  In the above-described embodiment, the process cartridge has been described as the cartridge including the rotating body. That is, the cartridge has been described that includes a photosensitive drum as an image carrier as a rotating member and a developing roller as a developer carrier. However, the present invention is not limited to this. A cartridge having one of a photosensitive drum as an image bearing member and a developing roller as a developer bearing member may be used as the rotating member.

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the exposure apparatus 11 is disposed above the apparatus main body 100 with respect to the photosensitive drum 1 has been described. However, the exposure apparatus 11 is disposed below the photosensitive drum 1 as shown in FIG. An apparatus main body configuration may be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, four cartridges that can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body are used. However, the number of cartridges used is not limited and may be set as needed.

  In the above-described embodiment, the printer is exemplified as the image forming apparatus, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the image forming apparatus may be another image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a facsimile machine, or another image forming apparatus such as a multi-function machine combining these functions. The same effect can be obtained by applying the present invention to these image forming apparatuses.

28 .. Cartridge tray, 47 a .. Cartridge positioning part, 47 b .. Cartridge contact part, 100 ..Main body (image forming apparatus main body), P (PY, PM, PC, PK) .. Process cartridge

Claims (14)

In an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium,
A cartridge comprising a rotating body;
The device body;
A moving member that moves relative to the apparatus main body with the cartridge removably supported, and takes an internal position located inside the apparatus main body and an external position located outside the apparatus main body. A moving member to obtain;
Have
The cartridge includes a position restricting portion that restricts the position of the rotating body in the axial direction between the apparatus main body and the cartridge.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus main body includes a contact portion that contacts the position restricting portion and restricts the position of the cartridge in the axial direction when the moving member is in the internal position.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position restricting portion is a convex portion that protrudes in the axial direction from the moving member when the cartridge is supported by the moving member.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position restricting portion is provided on one side of the cartridge in the axial direction.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the one side is a side opposite to a driving side to which a driving force for driving the rotating body is input in an axial direction of the rotating body.   The position restricting portion restricts the position of the cartridge in the axial direction at the internal position, and also serves as a guide portion for restricting the position in the axial direction in movement between the internal position and the external position. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4.   The position restricting portion includes a first convex portion that restricts the position in the axial direction at the internal position, and a guide portion that restricts the position in the axial direction in movement between the internal position and the external position. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a second convex portion protruding from the convex portion.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the second convex portion also serves as an electrical contact portion that contacts a contact portion of the apparatus main body.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a maximum width of the moving member in the axial direction is smaller than a maximum width of the cartridge in the axial direction.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the axial direction is a direction orthogonal to a moving direction of the moving member.   The said apparatus main body is provided with the press part which urges | biases the said position control part to the said contact part by pressing the said cartridge to the said axial direction. Image forming apparatus.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the pressing unit is a driving force input unit that inputs a driving force to the rotating body.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge includes an image carrier on which a latent image is formed as the rotating body.   13. The image forming apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the cartridge is a process cartridge having the image carrier and process means acting on the image carrier.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge includes a developer carrying member that carries a developer and develops a latent image as the rotating body.