JP2016130791A - Developing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a developing device which suppress that a developer is melted and adhered on a surface layer.SOLUTION: A developing device is equipped with a housing 50 for storing toner; a developing roller rotatably provided on the housing 50; a contacting member 210 which is provided between an end portion in an axial direction of the developing roller and the housing 50, and contacts with a peripheral surface of the developing roller; a side seal 200 which has a base 220 supported by the housing 50; a layer thickness regulating blade 100 which extends in the axial direction and has a blade rubber portion 120 contacting with the developing roller; and a side edge seal 130 which contacts with end surfaces on both sides in the axial direction of the blade rubber portion 120. An inside surface 211 in the axial direction of the contacting member 210 is disposed on an outer side in the axial direction than an inside surface 131 in the axial direction of the side edge seal 130.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a developing device including a developing roller having a rotation axis extending in the axial direction, and a side seal provided between an axial end of the developing roller and a housing.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a developing roller that is rotatably provided in a housing, a surface layer that is provided between an axial end of the developing roller and the housing, contacts the developing roller, and a base layer that is supported by the housing. A developing cartridge is known that includes a side seal, a layer thickness regulating blade having a pressing member that contacts the developing roller, and a side edge seal that contacts both end surfaces of the pressing member in the axial direction (Patent Literature). 1). The inner surface in the axial direction of the surface layer is disposed on the inner side in the axial direction than the inner surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal.

JP 2007-93950 A

  By the way, the contact pressure between the pressing member and the developing roller is larger than the contact pressure between the side edge seal and the developing roller. The inner portion becomes a high temperature portion where heat due to friction is larger than the outer portion. When the developer enters between the high temperature portion of the developing roller and the portion of the surface layer inside the side surface of the side edge seal, the developer may be melted and fixed on the surface layer.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a developing device that suppresses melting and fixing of the developer on the surface layer.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the developing device of the present invention includes a housing for containing a developer,
A developing roller having a rotation axis extending in the axial direction, a side seal provided between an end of the developing roller in the axial direction and the housing, and a surface layer in contact with a peripheral surface of the developing roller; Layer thickness regulation having a side seal having a base layer supported by a housing, a blade plate extending in the axial direction, and a protruding portion protruding from the blade plate toward the developing roller and contacting the developing roller A blade, and a side edge seal fixed to the blade plate and in contact with the axial end surface of the protrusion and the developing roller.
An inner side surface of the surface layer in the axial direction is arranged on an outer side in the axial direction than an inner side surface of the side edge seal in the axial direction.

  According to such a configuration, the inner surface of the surface layer is disposed at a position outside the inner surface of the side edge seal in the axial direction, so that the developer is prevented from melting and fixing on the surface layer. be able to.

  In the configuration described above, the base layer has a protrusion that protrudes inward in the axial direction from the inner surface in the axial direction of the surface layer, and a lubricant is applied to the surface of the side seal. It can be.

  According to such a configuration, the lubricant applied to the surface of the side seal is mixed with the developer between the protrusion and the developing roller by the rotation of the developing roller, and a mixture of the developer and the lubricant is formed. The The mixture is dammed at the upstream end of the side edge seal, and is kneaded by the upstream end of the side edge seal and the developing roller, so that the viscosity is increased and a wall of the mixture is formed. Since the wall of such a mixture fills the gap between the protrusion and the developing roller, it is possible to prevent the developer from entering the surface layer.

  In the case where the developing device includes a sheet-like lower seal that extends in the axial direction, contacts the developing roller, and contacts an upstream end of the surface of the developing roller in the rotational direction, In the rotation direction, it may be configured in a range from the upstream end of the protruding portion to the downstream end of the lower seal.

  According to such a configuration, since the protrusion is formed between the upstream end of the protrusion and the downstream end of the lower seal, a wall of the mixture can be formed in the range.

  In the configuration described above, a part of the protrusion overlaps with the side edge seal, and the inner side surface in the axial direction is disposed on the inner side in the axial direction than the inner side surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal. It can be set as the structure currently made.

  According to such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the developer from entering between the side edge seal and the projecting portion by forming the wall of the mixture also on the inner side in the axial direction than the side edge seal.

  In the configuration in which the inner side surface of the protruding portion is arranged on the inner side in the axial direction than the inner side surface of the side edge seal, the inner side in the axial direction of the protruding portion from the inner side surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal. The distance in the axial direction to the side surface is desirably 2.2 mm or more and less than 3.4 mm.

  In the configuration described above, the length of the surface layer in the axial direction may be greater than the length of the protrusion in the axial direction.

  In the above-described configuration, the protruding portion is disposed at a predetermined interval in the axial direction from the end surface, and has a concave portion that is recessed from the tip, and the protruding portion is at least partially in the axial direction, It can be set as the structure located in the range in which the recessed part was provided.

  According to such a structure, the wall of a mixture can be formed in three places, the upstream end of a side edge seal, the range of the predetermined part of a protrusion part, and the part of a recessed part.

  In the configuration in which the above-described protrusion is positioned in a range where the concave portion is provided in the axial direction, the rotation of the portion of the protrusion facing the concave portion and the downstream end of the concave portion in the rotation direction of the developing roller The distance in the direction is desirably 4.0 mm or less.

  In the above-described configuration, the lubricant may include fluorine.

  In the above-described configuration, the surface layer may be configured to send the lubricant from the outer side to the inner side in the axial direction as it goes from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotation direction of the developing roller.

  According to such a configuration, it becomes easy to feed the lubricant to the inside of the surface layer, so that it becomes easy to mix the lubricant and the developer on the protrusion.

  In the above-described configuration, it is desirable that the distance in the axial direction from the inner surface in the axial direction of the surface layer to the inner surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal is greater than 0 mm and less than 3.4 mm.

  In the above-described configuration, the surface layer may be a pile fabric.

  According to the present invention, since the surface layer is disposed at a position where the developing roller is retracted from the portion where the developing roller is likely to become high temperature, it is possible to suppress the developer that has entered the surface layer from being melted and fixed.

1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a laser printer including a developing cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing of a process cartridge. It is a perspective view which shows the structure around the opening of a housing | casing. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows a side seal simply. FIG. 7A is a rear view of the left side seal of the developing cartridge with the developing roller removed, and is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. b). It is a figure which shows a mode that the mixture of a toner and a lubricant is kneaded by the upstream end of a side edge seal by rotation of a developing roller. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of an upstream end of the side edge seal of FIG. 3, showing a state in which a developing roller is removed after a mixture is formed. It is sectional drawing which cut the side seal in the left-right direction, Comprising: It is a figure which shows the state which assembled | attached the developing roller after the mixture was formed. It is the perspective view (a) which shows the contact member which concerns on a modification, and the enlarged view (b) of the part enclosed with the broken line of a figure (a).

  Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. In the following description, first, the overall configuration of the laser printer will be briefly described, and then the details of the characteristic portions of the present invention will be described.

  Further, in the following description, the description will be made in the direction based on the user when the laser printer 1 is used. That is, the left side in FIG. 1 is “front”, the right side is “rear”, the back side is “left”, and the front side is “right”. Also, the vertical direction in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the laser printer 1 includes a feeder unit 4 for feeding a sheet 3 into a main body casing 2, an image forming unit 5 for forming an image on the sheet 3, and the like.

  The feeder unit 4 includes a paper feed tray 6 that is detachably attached to the bottom of the main casing 2 and a paper pressing plate 7 provided in the paper feed tray 6. The feeder unit 4 includes various rollers 11 that carry the paper 3 and remove paper dust. In the feeder unit 4, the sheet 3 in the sheet feeding tray 6 is moved upward by the sheet pressing plate 7 and conveyed to the image forming unit 5 by various rollers 11.

  The image forming unit 5 includes a scanner unit 16, a process cartridge 17, a fixing unit 18, and the like.

  The scanner unit 16 is provided at an upper portion in the main body casing 2 and includes a laser light emitting unit (not shown), a polygon mirror 19 that is rotationally driven, lenses 20, 21 and reflecting mirrors 22, 23, 24, and the like. . In the scanner unit 16, the laser beam is irradiated on the surface of the photosensitive drum 27 by high-speed scanning through a path indicated by a chain line in the drawing.

  The process cartridge 17 is configured to be detachably attached to the main casing 2 by appropriately opening a front cover 2A provided on the front side of the main casing 2. The process cartridge 17 is mainly composed of a developing cartridge 28 as an example of a developing device and a drum unit 39.

  The developing cartridge 28 is detachably attached to the main casing 2 while being attached to the drum unit 39. As shown in FIG. 2, the developing cartridge 28 includes a developing roller 31, a layer thickness regulating blade 100, a supply roller 33, and a casing 50 that supports these members. The housing 50 has a toner storage chamber 34 in which toner as an example of a developer is stored.

  In the developing cartridge 28, the toner stored in the toner storage chamber 34 is stirred by the agitator 34 </ b> A and then supplied to the developing roller 31 by the supply roller 33. At this time, the toner is supplied between the supply roller 33 and the developing roller 31. Frictional charge. The toner carried on the outer peripheral surface of the developing roller 31 enters between the layer thickness regulating blade 100 and the developing roller 31 as the developing roller 31 rotates, and is further thinly layered with a constant thickness while being frictionally charged. Is carried on the developing roller 31.

  The drum unit 39 includes a photosensitive drum 27, a scorotron charger 29 and a transfer roller 30. In the drum unit 39, the surface of the photosensitive drum 27 is uniformly positively charged by the scorotron charger 29 and then exposed by high-speed scanning of the laser beam from the scanner unit 16. Thereby, the potential of the exposed part is lowered, and an electrostatic latent image based on the image data is formed.

  Next, by the rotation of the developing roller 31, the toner carried on the developing roller 31 is supplied to the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 27, so that the toner image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 27. It is formed. Thereafter, the sheet 3 is conveyed between the photosensitive drum 27 and the transfer roller 30, whereby the toner image carried on the surface of the photosensitive drum 27 is transferred onto the sheet 3.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the fixing unit 18 includes a heating roller 41 and a pressure roller 42 that is disposed to face the heating roller 41 and pressurizes the heating roller 41. In the fixing unit 18 configured as described above, the toner transferred onto the paper 3 is thermally fixed while the paper 3 passes between the heating roller 41 and the pressure roller 42. The sheet 3 thermally fixed by the fixing unit 18 is conveyed to a paper discharge roller 45 disposed on the downstream side of the fixing unit 18, and is discharged from the paper discharge roller 45 onto a paper discharge tray 46.

  Next, the configuration of the developing cartridge 28 will be described in detail. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the developing roller 31 is removed from the housing 50. Further, since the configuration around the opening 51 of the developing cartridge 28 is substantially the same at the left end and the right end, only the left end is illustrated in the drawings referred to in the following description.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the housing 50 of the developing cartridge 28 has an opening 51 on the rear side wall, and the developing roller 31 having a rotation axis extending in the axial direction (left-right direction) closes the opening 51. It is rotatably supported by the housing 50 in the form. A lower film 35 as an example of a lower seal is provided at the lower edge of the opening 51, and side seals 200 are provided at the left and right edges of the opening 51. A layer thickness regulating blade 100 is provided on the upper edge of the opening 51 so as to extend in the left-right direction. The developing roller 31 is rotated in the direction of the arrow shown in the drawing, that is, so as to be in sliding contact with the lower film 35, the side seal 200, and the layer thickness regulating blade 100 in this order.

  The layer thickness regulating blade 100 includes a blade body 110 as an example of a blade plate, a blade rubber portion 120 as an example of a protruding portion fixed to the blade body 110, and a side edge seal 130.

  The blade body 110 is a plate-shaped sheet metal extending in the left-right direction. The blade body 110 is fixed to the housing 50 above the developing roller 31, and the tip is disposed in front of the developing roller 31.

  The blade rubber portion 120 is a rubber member that is elongated in the left-right direction and smaller in size in the left-right direction than the blade body 110, and is formed of, for example, silicon rubber or urethane rubber. The blade rubber portion 120 protrudes from the surface facing the developing roller 31 at the tip of the blade body 110 and is in contact with the developing roller 31.

  The blade rubber portion 120 is provided with a recess 121 that is recessed from the tip at both ends in the left-right direction. The concave portion 121 is disposed at a predetermined interval from the end surface 120A in the left-right direction of the blade rubber portion 120. Further, the portion of the blade rubber portion 120 where the concave portion 121 is not formed has a substantially semicircular cross section, and can be brought into contact with the developing roller 31 at an arc portion. It is configured in a substantially quarter circle shape, and can come into contact with the developing roller 31 at a pointed end of the arc. As a result, the bottom of the concave portion 121 is more angular than the portion of the blade rubber portion 120 other than the concave portion 121, so that the toner carried on the developing roller 31 can be more easily scraped off.

  The side edge seal 130 is a substantially rectangular member formed of, for example, a nonwoven fabric, and is disposed on the front side surface of the blade body 110. The side edge seal 130 is provided in a range from a position above the blade rubber portion 120 to a position below the blade rubber portion 120. In the side edge seal 130, the inner side surface 131 that is the inner end surface in the left-right direction is in contact with the end surface 120 </ b> A in the left-right direction of the blade rubber portion 120. As a result, the leakage of toner from the left and right ends of the blade rubber portion 120 is suppressed.

  The lower film 35 is a sheet-like member made of a resin such as polyethylene terephthalate, and extends along the axial direction of the developing roller 31 to contact the developing roller 31. The lower film 35 is formed to be longer in the left-right direction than the lower edge of the opening 51, and is disposed so as to contact the rear end of the side seal 200. Thereby, the leakage of toner from between the side seal 200 and the lower film 35 is suppressed.

  The side seal 200 is disposed in a substantially C shape following the outer peripheral shape of the developing roller 31 between the housing 50 and the axial direction of the developing roller 31, that is, both ends in the left-right direction, and is in contact with the developing roller 31. doing. The side seal 200 includes a contact member 210 as an example of a surface layer that contacts the peripheral surface of the developing roller 31, and a base material 220 as an example of a base layer that supports the contact member 210.

  The contact member 210 is a substantially rectangular member formed from a fabric member such as a pile fabric, and extends along the rotation direction of the developing roller 31 (hereinafter simply referred to as “rotation direction”). As shown in FIG. 4, the contact member 210 intersects a plurality of first fibers B1 extending in a direction inclined with respect to the left-right direction and a plurality of second fibers B2 extending in a direction different from the first fibers B1. It is configured by weaving.

  More specifically, the first fiber B1 extends from the outer side in the left-right direction to the inner side, that is, the direction from the left side to the right side, as the second fiber B2 rotates in the rotation direction. As it goes from the upstream side to the downstream side, it extends from the inner side to the outer side in the left-right direction, that is, from the right side to the left side. The contact member 210 is woven so that the portion of the first fiber B1 that rides over the second fiber B2 protrudes closer to the developing roller 31 than the portion of the second fiber B2 that rides over the first fiber B1. By being woven in this way, the contact member 210 is configured to send toner on the surface and a lubricant G described later from the outer side to the inner side in the left-right direction as it goes from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotation direction. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the contact member 210 has a length in the left-right direction smaller than that of the side edge seal 130, and when assembled to the housing 50, the inner side surface 211 in the left-right direction becomes the side edge. The seal 130 is disposed so as to be positioned on the left side of the inner side surface 131 in the horizontal direction, that is, on the outer side in the horizontal direction.

  As shown in FIG. 4, an adhesive member T is provided on the back surface of the contact member 210. The adhesive member T is a double-sided tape that adheres the contact member 210 and the base material 220 between the contact member 210 and the base material 220. The adhesive member T is shorter in the rotational direction than the contact member 210 and is provided on the upstream side of the contact member 210 in the rotational direction. That is, the adhesive member T is not provided on the downstream side of the contact member 210 in the rotation direction. Thereby, when the side seal 200 is disposed in the casing 50 in a C shape, the surface of the contact member 210 is prevented from being wrinkled. For example, in FIG. 3 and FIGS. 7A and 7B, the adhesive member T is omitted as appropriate in consideration of the visibility of the drawing.

  The base material 220 is an elastic member formed from, for example, urethane sponge. As shown in FIG. 5A, the base material 220 has a housing between a position downstream of the blade rubber portion 120 in the rotational direction and a position upstream of the downstream end 35 </ b> A of the lower film 35 in the rotational direction. 50 is attached with a double-sided tape or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the base material 220 includes a main body portion 222 on which the contact member 210 is disposed, and an end surface on the right side of the main body portion 222, that is, the right side surface of the contact member 210, that is, the inner side surface 211 in the left-right direction. 1st protrusion part 223 as an example of the protrusion part which protruded in the left-right direction rather than the 2nd protrusion part 221 which protruded in the rotation direction downstream rather than the main-body part 222.

  The main body 222 is a portion upstream of the line L1 extending in the left-right direction in FIG. 4 and on the left side of the line L2 extending in the rotation direction, and the first protrusion 223 is on the right side of the line L2. The second projecting portion 221 is a part on the left side of the line L2 and on the downstream side in the rotational direction with respect to the line L1. Here, the line L1 refers to a line that matches the downstream end 210A of the contact member 210 when the side seal 200 is assembled to the casing 50, and the line L2 corresponds to when the side seal 200 is assembled to the casing 50. A line that matches the inner surface 211 of the contact member 210.

  The main body portion 222 has a length in the left-right direction that is substantially the same as a length in the left-right direction of the contact member 210, and a length in the rotation direction is larger than a length in the rotation direction of the contact member 210. Specifically, the main body portion 222 is sized so that the position of the downstream end 222 </ b> A in the rotation direction of the main body portion 222 matches the position of the downstream end 210 </ b> A of the contact member 210 when assembled to the housing 50. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 5B, when the side seal 200 is arranged in a C shape on the housing 50, the position of the downstream end 210A of the contact member 210 where the adhesive member T is not arranged is the main body. By shifting so as to approach the downstream end 222 </ b> A of the portion 222, the difference between the inner periphery of the main body portion 222 and the inner periphery of the contact member 210 is canceled out, and the downstream end 222 </ b> A of the main body portion 222 and the downstream of the contact member 210. The position in the rotational direction of the end 210A is matched.

  5A, the downstream end 222A of the main body 222 and the downstream end 210A of the contact member 210 are the back side of the blade main body 110 of the layer thickness regulating blade 100 together with the second protrusion 221 of the base material 220. It is arranged to be located in. Therefore, the downstream end 210 </ b> A of the contact member 210 is pressed against the base material 220 side in contact with the blade body 110.

  The first projecting portion 223 is located in a range from the downstream side of the upstream end 120B in the rotational direction of the blade rubber portion 120 to the upstream side of the downstream end 35A in the rotational direction of the lower film 35 in the rotational direction. The first protrusion 223 has a wide portion 223A disposed close to the upstream side of the upstream end 120B of the blade rubber portion 120, and a narrow portion 223B disposed on both sides in the rotational direction of the wide portion 223A. ing.

  A part of the wide portion 223A is located in a range in which the concave portion 121 is provided in the left-right direction. Note that the distance D2 in the rotational direction between the downstream end 223C of the wide portion 223A and the bottom of the recess 121, that is, the downstream end 121A in the rotational direction, is preferably 4.0 mm or less.

  The wide portion 223A partially overlaps the side edge seal 130 when viewed from the rear side, that is, from the developing roller 31 side, and the inner side surface 223D that is the inner end surface in the left-right direction is the left-right direction of the side edge seal 130 It is arrange | positioned rather than the inner surface 131 of the left-right direction inside. The distance D3 from the inner side surface 131 in the left-right direction of the side edge seal 130 to the inner side surface 223D in the left-right direction of the wide portion 223A is preferably 2.2 mm or more and less than 3.4 mm.

  The wide portion 223 </ b> A has a horizontal length that is smaller than the horizontal length of the contact member 210. In other words, the length in the left-right direction of the contact member 210 is larger than the length in the left-right direction of the wide portion 223A. In addition, the distance D1 in the left-right direction from the inner surface 211 of the contact member 210 to the inner surface 131 of the side edge seal 130 is 0.1 mm. The distance D1 is preferably greater than 0 mm and less than 1.2 mm.

  The narrow portion 223B on the upstream side extends to the upstream side from the position facing the downstream end 35A of the lower film 35 from the wide portion 223A, and is shorter in the left-right direction than the wide portion 223A.

  Further, the downstream narrow portion 223 </ b> B extends from the wide portion 223 </ b> A to a position downstream of the blade rubber portion 120. The second protrusion 221 is disposed on the back side of the blade body 110 together with a part of the main body 222 and the narrow portion 223B on the downstream side in the rotation direction of the first protrusion 223. The main body 222, the first protrusion 223, and the second protrusion 221 have the same surface height (thickness) from the housing 50 in a state where the layer thickness regulating blade 100 and the developing roller 31 are not assembled. (See FIG. 5B and FIG. 7A).

  Then, as shown in FIG. 5B, before assembling the developing roller 31, a lubricant G for improving the sliding property between the developing roller 31 and the side seal 200 is applied to the surface of the contact member 210. Has been. As the lubricant G, for example, a lubricant containing fluorine such as silicone grease or heat-resistant fluorine grease can be adopted.

  The lubricant G is applied to a part of the surface of the contact member 210 during manufacture, and is spread over the entire surface of the side seal 200 by rotating the developing roller 31 after the manufacture is completed. More specifically, the lubricant G is expanded in the entire contact member 210 by the rotation of the developing roller 31, and in the left-right direction along the texture of the first fiber B1 and the second fiber B2 of the contact member 210. Is moved to the inside of the first protrusion 223 and is expanded to the range of the first protrusion 223.

  Note that the lubricant G may be applied to the entire surface of the side seal 200, that is, the entire surface of the contact member 210 and the entire surface of the first protruding portion 223 at the time of manufacture.

The operational effects of the developing cartridge 28 configured as described above will be described.
The developing roller 31 rotates while being in contact with the contact member 210, the blade rubber portion 120, and the side edge seal 130. Here, since the contact pressure between the blade rubber portion 120 and the developing roller 31 is larger than the contact pressure between the side edge seal 130 and the developing roller 31, the portion of the developing roller 31 that contacts the blade rubber portion 120, that is, the development. A portion of the roller 31 on the inner side of the inner surface 131 of the side edge seal 130 becomes a high-temperature portion where heat due to friction is greater than that of the outer portion.

  In the present embodiment, since the inner surface 211 of the contact member 210 is positioned outside the inner surface 131 of the side edge seal 130, the contact member 210 does not contact the high temperature portion of the developing roller 31. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the toner on the contact member 210 from being melted and fixed as compared with the configuration in which the high temperature portion of the developing roller is in contact with the contact member.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the developing roller 31 rotates, the toner enters between the developing roller 31 and the first protrusion 223. This toner is mixed with the lubricant G spread on the first protrusion 223, and a mixture M of the toner and the lubricant G is formed. The mixture M moves downstream in the rotation direction due to the rotation of the developing roller 31, is dammed at the upstream end 132 in the rotation direction of the side edge seal 130, and is kneaded by the upstream end 132 and the developing roller 31. As a result, the viscosity of the mixture M increases, and the mixture M gradually accumulates and spreads on the upstream side in the rotational direction. As shown in FIG. 7, the wall of the mixture M is adjacent to the inside of the contact member 210. It is formed.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 8, when the developing roller 31 is assembled, the first protruding portion 223 is inclined by being pulled toward the contact member 210 and the main body portion 222 when the contact member 210 sinks. . Therefore, a gap having a triangular shape in cross section is formed between the first protrusion 223 and the contact member 210. However, in the present embodiment, since the wall of the mixture M fills the gap, the intrusion of the toner that tries to enter the gap is blocked by the wall of the mixture M, and thus the toner is prevented from entering the contact member 210. be able to.

  The mixture M also moves inward in the left-right direction along the upstream end 132 of the side edge seal 130 as the developing roller 31 rotates. Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the mixture M is blocked at the upstream end 120 </ b> B adjacent to the inside of the side edge seal 130 of the blade rubber portion 120 and the downstream end 121 </ b> A of the recess 121, and the upstream end 120 </ b> B and the downstream end It is kneaded by the end 121A and the developing roller 31. As a result, a wall of the mixture M is also formed at a position adjacent to the inside of the side edge seal 130. As described above, in this embodiment, the wall of the mixture M can be formed at three locations, that is, the upstream end 132 of the side edge seal 130, the upstream end 120 </ b> B of the blade rubber portion 120, and the downstream end 121 </ b> A of the recess 121. Further, since the wall of the mixture M is also formed inside the side edge seal 130, it is possible to prevent the toner from entering between the side edge seal 130 and the blade rubber portion 120.

  Moreover, since the 1st protrusion part 223 is provided in the range from the upstream end 120B of the layer thickness control blade 100 and the blade rubber part 120 to the downstream end 35A of the lower film 35, the wall of the mixture M is formed in the said range. be able to.

  Further, as the contact member 210 moves from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction, the lubricant G is sent from the outside in the left-right direction to the inside, so that the lubricant G is made part of the contact member 210 during manufacturing. When applied, the lubricant G is easily fed to the first protrusion 223 by the rotation of the developing roller 31. Therefore, it becomes easy to mix the lubricant G and the toner.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment. About a concrete structure, it can change suitably in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention.

  In the said embodiment, although the contact member 210 was comprised from the fabric member, this invention is not limited to this, Fiber members other than a fabric member may be sufficient, and it may not be a fiber member. Further, the configuration for feeding the toner and the lubricant G of the contact member 210 may be different from the configuration in the above embodiment.

  For example, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, the contact member 310 is made of a pile woven fabric in which a pile is woven out on at least one surface of a knitted fabric by plain weave or twill weave. The loop-shaped pile woven out on the surface of the contact member 310 on the developing roller 31 side is cut, and the direction component in which the tip of each cut pile CP faces the downstream side in the rotation direction of the developing roller 31 and the left and right It is configured to face in an oblique direction having a directional component facing inward of the direction (left side in the figure). Even with such a configuration, the lubricant G can be sent from the outside in the left-right direction to the inside.

  In the said embodiment, although the recessed part 121 was formed in the braid | blade rubber part 120, this invention is not limited to this, The recessed part does not need to be formed.

  In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to the laser printer 1. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention may be applied to other image forming apparatuses such as a copying machine and a multifunction machine.

28 Developing Cartridge 31 Developing Roller 35 Lower Film 35A Downstream End 50 Case 100 Layer Thickness Restricting Blade 120 Blade Rubber Part 121 Concave 130 Side Edge Seal 131 Inner Side 200 Side Seal 210 Contact Member 211 Inner Side 220 Base Material 223 First Protrusion G Lubricant

Claims (12)

A housing for containing the developer;
A developing roller having a rotation axis extending in the axial direction;
A side seal provided between an end portion of the developing roller in the axial direction and the casing, the side seal having a surface layer contacting the peripheral surface of the developing roller and a base layer supported by the casing When,
A layer thickness regulating blade having a blade plate extending in the axial direction, and a protruding portion that protrudes from the blade plate toward the developing roller and contacts the developing roller;
A side edge seal fixed to the blade plate and in contact with the axial end face of the protrusion and the developing roller;
The developing device according to claim 1, wherein an inner side surface of the surface layer in the axial direction is arranged on an outer side in the axial direction than an inner side surface of the side edge seal in the axial direction. The base layer has a protrusion that protrudes inward in the axial direction from the inner surface in the axial direction of the surface layer,
The developing device according to claim 1, wherein a lubricant is applied to a surface of the side seal. A sheet-like lower seal that extends in the axial direction, contacts the developing roller, and contacts the end of the surface layer on the upstream side in the rotational direction of the developing roller;
The developing device according to claim 2, wherein the protrusion is formed in a range from an upstream end of the protrusion to a downstream end of the lower seal in the rotation direction.   The protrusion is partially overlapped with the side edge seal, and the inner side surface in the axial direction is disposed more inside in the axial direction than the inner side surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal. The developing device according to claim 3, wherein:   The distance in the axial direction from the inner surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal to the inner surface in the axial direction of the protrusion is 2.2 mm or more and less than 3.4 mm. The developing device according to 1.   The developing device according to claim 2, wherein a length of the surface layer in the axial direction is larger than a length of the protrusion in the axial direction. The protrusion is disposed at a predetermined interval in the axial direction from the end surface, and has a recess that is recessed from the tip.
The developing device according to claim 2, wherein at least a part of the protrusion is located in a range in which the concave portion is provided in the axial direction.   The distance in the rotation direction between a portion of the protrusion facing the recess and a downstream end of the recess in the rotation direction of the developing roller is 4.0 mm or less. Development device.   The developing device according to claim 2, wherein the lubricant contains fluorine.   The said surface layer is comprised so that the said lubricant may be sent to the inner side from the outer side of the said axial direction as it goes to the downstream from the upstream of the rotation direction of the said developing roller. 10. The developing device according to any one of items 9.   The distance in the axial direction from the inner surface in the axial direction of the surface layer to the inner surface in the axial direction of the side edge seal is greater than 0 mm and less than 3.4 mm. Item 11. The developing device according to any one of Items 10.   The developing device according to claim 1, wherein the surface layer is a pile fabric.

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