JP2016184030A - Toner amount detection device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress a reduction in receiver sensitivity when detecting the amount of a toner inside a toner container with an ultrasonic sensor.SOLUTION: A printer 1 comprises: a housing 2; a waste toner box 50 that can be removably attached to the housing 2; and an ultrasonic sensor 51 for the waste toner box for detecting the amount of a toner inside the waste toner box 50. In the waste toner box 50, in a first sensor area and a second sensor area facing respectively a transmitter 52 and a receiver 53 of the ultrasonic sensor 51 for the waste toner box, a first ultrasonic propagation part 56a and a second ultrasonic propagation part 56b are respectively provided, and an acoustic isolation part 57 is provided to surround the first ultrasonic propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic propagation part 56b.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a toner amount detection device and an image forming apparatus using the same. The image forming apparatus includes various apparatuses such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, and a multifunction machine having these functions in a complex manner.

  Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus adopting an electrophotographic method, a reflection type ultrasonic sensor has been employed as a means for non-contact detection of the amount of waste toner in a waste toner box and the amount of print toner in a toner bottle. There are some (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2011-39214 A

  However, in the configuration of Patent Document 1, ultrasonic waves are emitted from the transmission / reception unit disposed on the upper portion of the main body of the waste toner collection cassette (that is, outside the main body) toward the waste toner inside the main body of the waste toner collection cassette. Therefore, there is a problem that the ultrasonic wave propagates (leaks) to the main body of the waste toner collecting cassette and the reception sensitivity is lowered.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a current situation, and an object of the present invention is to suppress a decrease in reception sensitivity when detecting the amount of toner in a toner container using an ultrasonic sensor.

  The invention of claim 1 includes an apparatus main body, a toner container detachably attached to the apparatus main body, and an ultrasonic sensor provided on the apparatus main body side for detecting the amount of toner in the toner container. In the toner amount detection device, an ultrasonic wave propagation portion is provided in the toner container to facilitate propagation of ultrasonic waves from the outside to the inside of the toner container in a sensor region facing the ultrasonic sensor. In addition, an acoustic isolation part is provided to prevent the ultrasonic wave from propagating from the sensor area to a non-sensor area other than the sensor area so as to surround the ultrasonic wave propagation part. It is.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to the first aspect, at least one of a material and a thickness of the ultrasonic wave propagation portion is different from that of the non-sensor region.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to the first or second aspect, the acoustic isolation portion is different from the non-sensor region in at least one of material, thickness, and presence / absence of bubbles. is there.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the ultrasonic wave propagation section is made of a material that is easy to propagate ultrasonic waves.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to the fourth aspect, the ultrasonic wave propagation section is made of acrylic resin or polystyrene.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to the second aspect, the ultrasonic wave propagation section is made of the same material as the non-sensor area and has a thickness larger than that of the non-sensor area. It is that it is getting thinner.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the acoustic isolation portion is made of a material that is difficult to propagate ultrasonic waves.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to the seventh aspect, the acoustic isolation portion is made of cork or styrene foam.

  According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to the third aspect, the acoustic isolation part is made of the same material as the non-sensor region and is thicker than the non-sensor region. It is what has become.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detecting device according to the third aspect, the acoustic isolating portion is made of the same material as the non-sensor region and has bubbles inside. Is.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the ultrasonic wave propagation section and the acoustic isolation section are detachable from the toner container. is there.

  According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the ultrasonic sensor includes a transmission unit and a reception unit that are separated from each other, and the ultrasonic propagation unit includes A first ultrasonic wave propagation unit that faces the transmission unit; and a second ultrasonic wave propagation unit that faces the reception unit, wherein the acoustic isolation unit includes the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit and the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit. Is provided so as to surround the first ultrasonic wave propagation part and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection device according to any one of the first to third aspects, in the device main body, at a position facing the ultrasonic sensor across the toner container, an acoustic reflection member or A sound absorbing member is provided.

  According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the toner amount detection apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the apparatus main body includes a rotation unit that rotates the toner container, and a position that detects the position of the toner container. The toner container is provided with a mark for detecting a position by the position detecting means.

  A fifteenth aspect of the present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and includes the toner amount detection device according to any one of the first to fourteenth aspects.

  According to the present invention, in the toner container, the portion facing the ultrasonic sensor (sensor area) is provided with an ultrasonic wave propagation portion for facilitating the propagation of ultrasonic waves from the outside to the inside of the toner container, Furthermore, an acoustic isolation part is provided to prevent the ultrasonic wave from propagating from the sensor area to the other area (non-sensor area) so as to surround the ultrasonic wave propagation part. Propagation (leakage) can be suppressed, and ultrasonic waves can be efficiently propagated into the toner container. Therefore, it is possible to suppress a decrease in reception sensitivity.

It is a schematic explanatory drawing of a printer. 2 is a functional block diagram of a printer. FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of a first embodiment of a waste toner box. It is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows the structure of 1st Example. 10 is a flowchart of toner amount detection processing relating to a waste toner box. It is a figure which shows the reflected wave in 1st Example. It is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows the structure of 2nd Example of a waste toner box. It is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows the structure of 3rd Example of a waste toner box. It is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows the structure of 4th Example of a waste toner box. FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of a toner bottle. 6 is a flowchart of toner amount detection processing relating to a toner bottle.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment embodying the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings when applied to a tandem color digital printer (hereinafter referred to as a printer) which is an example of an image forming apparatus. In addition, in the following description, when using a term indicating a specific direction or position (for example, “left / right”, “up / down”, etc.) as necessary, the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. ing. These terms are used for convenience of explanation, and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

  First, the outline of the printer 1 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 1 includes an image process device 3, a paper feeding device 4, a fixing device 5, and the like in a housing 2. Although not shown in detail, the printer 1 is connected to a network such as a LAN, and is configured to execute printing based on the command when receiving a print command from an external terminal (not shown). Yes.

  The paper feeding device 4 located at the lower part in the housing 2 includes a paper feeding cassette 21 that accommodates the recording material P, a pickup roller 22 that feeds the recording material P in the paper feeding cassette 21 from the uppermost layer, and a fed recording material P. A pair of separation rollers 23 for separating the recording materials one by one, a pair of timing rollers 24 for conveying the recording material P separated into one sheet to the image processing apparatus 3 at a predetermined timing, and the like. The recording material P in each paper feed cassette 21 is sent out one by one from the uppermost layer to the conveyance path 30 by the rotation of the pickup roller 22 and the separation roller 23. The conveyance path 30 passes from the paper feeding cassette 21 of the paper feeding device 4 to the upper portion of the housing 2 through the nip portion of the timing roller pair 24, the secondary transfer nip portion of the image processing device 3, and the fixing nip portion of the fixing device 5. To the discharge roller pair 26 at

  The recording material P in the paper feed cassette 21 is set to a center reference that is conveyed in the arrow S direction toward the conveyance path 30 with the center of the sheet passing width (width dimension orthogonal to the arrow S direction) as a reference. Although not shown, the paper feed cassette 21 is provided with a pair of side portion regulating plates for bringing the recording material P before paper feeding into the center reference. The pair of side part restricting plates are configured to move in close proximity to each other in the sheet passing width direction. By sandwiching the recording material P in the paper feed cassette 21 from both sides in the sheet passing width direction by the pair of side portion regulating plates, the recording material P in the paper feed cassette 21 is set to the center reference regardless of the standard. Therefore, the transfer process in the image processing apparatus 3 and the fixing process in the fixing apparatus 5 are also executed on the basis of the center.

  The image processing device 3 positioned above the paper feeding device 4 plays a role of transferring a toner image formed on a photosensitive drum 13 which is an example of an image carrier to a recording material P, and is an intermediate transfer member. And a total of four image forming sections 7 corresponding to the respective colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C) and black (K).

  The intermediate transfer belt 6 is an endless belt made of a conductive material, and is also an example of an image carrier. The intermediate transfer belt 6 is wound around a driving roller 8 located on the right side of the central part in the housing 2 and a driven roller 9 located on the left side of the central part. The intermediate transfer belt 6 rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1 by rotating the driving roller 8 counterclockwise in FIG. 1 by power transmission from a main motor (not shown).

  A secondary transfer roller 10 is disposed on the outer peripheral side of the portion of the intermediate transfer belt 6 that is wound around the drive roller 8. The secondary transfer roller 10 is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 6, and a portion between the intermediate transfer belt 6 and the secondary transfer roller 10 (contact portion) is a secondary transfer nip portion as a secondary transfer region. . The secondary transfer roller 10 rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. 1 with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 6 or with the movement of the recording material P that is nipped and conveyed by the secondary transfer nip portion. A transfer belt cleaner 12 for removing untransferred toner on the intermediate transfer belt 6 is disposed on the outer peripheral side of the portion of the intermediate transfer belt 6 wound around the driven roller 9. The transfer belt cleaner 12 is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 6.

  The four image forming units 7 are arranged along the intermediate transfer belt 6 in the order of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) from the left in FIG. They are arranged side by side. In FIG. 1, for convenience of explanation, symbols Y, M, C, and K are attached to each image forming unit 7 according to the reproduction color. Each image forming unit 7 includes a photosensitive drum 13 as an example of an image carrier that rotates clockwise in FIG. Around the photosensitive drum 13, a charging device 14, an exposure device 19, a developing device 15, a primary transfer roller 16, and a photosensitive cleaner 17 are arranged in this order along the clockwise rotation direction in FIG. 1.

  The photosensitive drum 13 is negatively charged and is configured to rotate clockwise in FIG. 1 by power transmission from the main motor. The charging device 14 uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum. The developing device 15 makes the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 13 visible by reversal development using toner having a negative polarity.

  The primary transfer roller 16 is located on the inner peripheral side of the intermediate transfer belt 6 and faces the photosensitive drum 13 of the corresponding image forming unit 7 with the intermediate transfer belt 6 interposed therebetween. The primary transfer roller 16 also rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 1 as the intermediate transfer belt 6 rotates. Between the intermediate transfer belt 6 and the primary transfer roller 16 (contact portion) is a primary transfer nip portion as a primary transfer region. The photoreceptor cleaner 17 is for removing untransferred toner remaining on the photoreceptor drum 13, and is in contact with the photoreceptor drum 13. An exposure device 19 is disposed below the four image forming units 7. The exposure device 19 forms an electrostatic latent image on each photosensitive drum 13 by laser light based on image information from an external terminal or the like.

  Above the intermediate transfer belt 6, bottle accommodating portions 39 corresponding to the respective image forming portions 7 (reproduced colors) are provided. A toner bottle 40 that stores printing toner supplied to each developing device 15 is detachably disposed in the bottle storage unit 39. The toner bottle 40 is an example of a toner container. In FIG. 1, for convenience of explanation, the bottle accommodating portion 39 and the toner bottle 40 are also denoted by symbols Y, M, C, and K according to the reproduced colors.

  Each bottle container 39 has a reflective type comprising a transmitter 42 for transmitting ultrasonic waves toward the surface of the print toner in the toner bottle 40 and a receiver 43 for receiving ultrasonic waves reflected from the surface of the print toner. A toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41 (see FIG. 2) is provided. After transmitting ultrasonic waves with the transmitter 42, the ultrasonic waves reflected from the print toner surface are received by the receiver 43, and the amount of print toner in the toner bottle 40 is detected based on the reception result.

  In each image forming unit 7, when a laser beam corresponding to an image signal is projected from the exposure device 19 onto the photosensitive drum 13 charged by the charging device 14, an electrostatic latent image is formed. The electrostatic latent image is reversely developed with toner supplied from the developing device 15 and becomes a toner image of each color. The toner images on the respective photosensitive drums 13 are primarily transferred from the photosensitive drum 13 to the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 6 in the order of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black at the corresponding primary transfer nip portions, and are superimposed. . Untransferred toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 13 is scraped off by the photosensitive cleaner 17 and removed from the photosensitive drum 13. When the recording material P passes through the secondary transfer nip portion, the superimposed four color toner images are secondarily transferred onto the recording material P all at once. Untransferred toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 6 is scraped off by the transfer belt cleaner 12 and removed from the intermediate transfer belt 6.

  The fixing device 5 positioned above the secondary transfer roller 10 in the image processing apparatus 3 includes a fixing roller 31 incorporating a heat source such as a halogen lamp heater, and a pressure roller 32 facing the fixing roller 31. A contact portion between the fixing roller 31 and the pressure roller 32 is a fixing nip portion which is a fixing region. The recording material P on which the unfixed toner image is passed through the secondary transfer nip portion is heated and pressurized when passing through the fixing nip portion between the fixing roller 31 and the pressure roller 32, and the recording material P An unfixed toner image is fixed thereon. Thereafter, the recording material P is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 27 by the rotation of the discharge roller pair 26.

  A waste toner box 50 that collects waste toner removed by the transfer belt cleaner 12 and each photoconductor cleaner 17 is detachably mounted on the front side (front side) of the image processing apparatus 3 in the housing 2. Yes. The waste toner box 50 is also an example of a toner container, like the toner bottle 40. Above the waste toner box 50, there is a reflection composed of a transmitter 52 that transmits ultrasonic waves toward the waste toner surface in the waste toner box 50 and a receiver 53 that receives ultrasonic waves reflected from the waste toner surface. An ultrasonic sensor 51 (see FIG. 2) for the type of waste toner box is provided. After the ultrasonic wave is transmitted by the transmitter 52, the ultrasonic wave reflected from the waste toner surface is received by the receiver 53, and the amount of waste toner in the waste toner box 50 is detected based on the reception result.

  A control unit 28 that performs overall control of the printer 1 is disposed between the image processing apparatus 3 and the sheet feeding apparatus 4 in the housing 2. The controller 28 incorporates a controller 60 that executes various arithmetic processes, storage and control. As shown in FIG. 2, the controller 60 includes a storage unit 61 that stores image data, various setting values, and the like, an ultrasonic control unit that controls the ultrasonic sensor 41 for each toner bottle and the ultrasonic sensor 51 for the waste toner box. 62, an operation panel 63 as a display unit for displaying various information, a bottle drive motor 45 for rotating the toner bottle 40, a transport screw drive motor 64 for rotating a transport screw 54 group described later, and a leveling screw 55 described later. A leveling screw drive motor 65 to be operated, a position sensor 66 for detecting the position (posture) of the toner bottle 40 in the bottle accommodating portion 39, a temperature sensor 67 for detecting the temperature of each portion in the housing 2, and the like are electrically connected. ing. Each toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41 and waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 are electrically connected to an ultrasonic control unit 62.

  Although illustration is omitted, the operation panel 63 is provided on the front side (front side) of the housing 2 in the printer 1. The toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41, the position sensor 66, and the bottle drive motor 45 are provided corresponding to the developing device 15 for each reproduction color. Toner replenishment based on the detection result of each toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41 is controlled independently for each color toner.

  FIG. 3 shows a first embodiment of the waste toner box 50. The waste toner box 50 of this embodiment is a hollow, substantially box-like shape that stores waste toner (untransferred toner) removed from each photosensitive drum 13 and the intermediate transfer belt 6. The waste toner box 50 is connected to the photoreceptor cleaner 17 and the transfer belt cleaner 12 of each image forming unit 7 via each conveying screw 54. Each conveyance screw 54 is connected to a common conveyance screw drive motor 64 so that power can be transmitted. By rotating each conveyance screw 54 by the conveyance screw drive motor 64, waste toner is sent to the waste toner box 50 from each photoconductor cleaner 17 and the transfer belt cleaner.

  The waste toner box 50 includes a leveling screw 55 as a leveling member that transports the waste toner in the waste toner box 50. The leveling screw 55 is connected to the leveling screw drive motor 65 so that power can be transmitted. By rotating the leveling screw 55 by the leveling screw drive motor 65, the waste toner in the waste toner box 50 is stirred and spread, and the surface of the waste toner is leveled as smoothly as possible. When the amount of waste toner in the waste toner box 50 is detected by using the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51, the leveling screw 55 is rotated before the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 is operated to thereby remove the waste toner surface. Is made as smooth as possible.

  As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the first ultrasonic wave is applied to the portion (first sensor region shown in FIG. 4) facing the transmitter 52 of the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 on the upper surface of the waste toner box 50. A propagation unit 56 a is provided, and a second ultrasonic propagation unit 56 b is provided in a portion (second sensor region shown in FIG. 4) facing the receiver 52 of the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51. The 1st ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the 2nd ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b are comprised with the material (for example, acrylic resin, polystyrene, etc.) which is easy to propagate an ultrasonic wave. Thereby, the ultrasonic wave transmitted from the transmitter 52 is easily propagated to the inside of the waste toner box 50, and the reflected wave reflected on the surface of the waste toner is transmitted to the receiver 53 outside the waste toner box 50. It becomes easy to propagate.

  Further, on the upper surface of the waste toner box 50, the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b are separated so as to surround the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b. In addition, an acoustic isolation part 57 is provided. The acoustic isolation part 57 is made of a material that hardly propagates ultrasonic waves (for example, cork, polystyrene foam, etc.). Thereby, the ultrasonic wave propagating through the sensor area (first sensor area, second sensor area) of the waste toner box 50 is propagated to the other area (non-sensor area shown in FIG. 4) of the waste toner box. Can be suppressed.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing toner amount detection processing by the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51.

  After starting the toner amount detection process, the ultrasonic control unit 62 first determines whether or not it is a detection timing (S01). Examples of the detection timing in this case include an example in which the waste toner surface is leveled smoothly by the operation of the leveling screw drive motor 65 and then during the printing operation or after the printing is completed. Of course, any timing can be set. If it is the detection timing (S01: YES), an ultrasonic wave is transmitted from the transmitter 52 toward the waste toner surface, and the transmission start time is set to t0 (S02).

  If the ultrasonic wave reflected from the surface of the waste toner is not received by the receiver 53 even when the preset time-out time is reached (S04: YES), the process ends as it is, but if the ultrasonic wave is received by the receiver 53 ( S03: YES), the time t1 taken until the reception is stored in the storage unit 61 (S05), and the ultrasonic sensor for the waste toner box is based on t1-t0 (seconds) which is the time from the ultrasonic transmission to the reception. A distance L (m) from 51 to the waste toner surface = 346 × (t1−t0) / 2 is calculated (S06). Here, the speed of sound in the air at 25 ° C. is 346 (m / s). Note that the sound speed value may be corrected by the temperature inside the housing 2 detected by the temperature sensor 67, and the calculation accuracy of the distance L may be improved. For example, the relationship between temperature and sound speed is stored in the storage unit 61, and if the detected temperature is 50 ° C., 360 (m / s) is used as the sound speed value.

  Thereafter, the amount of waste toner in the waste toner box 50 is calculated based on the distance L calculated in S06 (S07). In this case, the waste toner amount may be calculated from a calculation formula based on the volume of the waste toner box 50 that can be grasped in advance, or a table indicating the relationship between the distance L and the waste toner amount is stored in the storage unit in advance. Alternatively, the waste toner amount may be obtained by referring to this. By controlling in this way, the amount of waste toner in the waste toner box 50 is obtained based on the time from ultrasonic transmission to reception, so that the amount of waste toner can be calculated in detail.

  According to this embodiment, it is possible to suppress a decrease in reception sensitivity when the amount of toner in the waste toner box 50 is detected by the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51. For example, if the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56 a, the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56 b, and the acoustic isolation unit 57 are not provided, the ultrasonic wave propagates (leaks) to the non-sensor area of the waste toner box 50. Therefore, as indicated by a broken line in FIG. 6, the amplitude of the reflected wave (the reflected wave reflected from the waste toner surface) reaching the receiver 52 of the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 becomes very small. Therefore, it becomes easy to be influenced by noise. On the other hand, when the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56 a, the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56 b, and the acoustic isolation part 57 are provided, it is possible to suppress the propagation (leakage) of ultrasonic waves to the non-sensor area of the waste toner box 50. Therefore, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 6, the amplitude of the reflected wave reaching the receiver 52 of the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 becomes larger, and the reception sensitivity is improved. Therefore, the amount of waste toner in the waste toner box 50 can be detected with higher accuracy.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 is installed not in the waste toner box 50 but in the casing 2 (that is, the main body side) of the printer 1. At the time of replacement, the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 remains on the main body side. Therefore, the cost for replacing the waste toner box 50 can be reduced.

  The first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a, the second ultrasonic wave propagation member 56b, and the sound isolation part 57 may be integrated as one unit, and this unit may be detachable from the waste toner box 50. For example, the unit may be configured to be easily attached to and detached from the opening of the waste toner box 50 by a screw type or a fitting type. Thereby, it becomes easy to attach the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56 a, the second ultrasonic wave propagation member 56 b and the acoustic isolation part 57 to the waste toner box 50. In addition, cleaning becomes easy even when the first ultrasonic propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic propagation member 56b are contaminated with waste toner. Further, when replacing the waste toner box 50, the unit can be easily reused.

  FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of the waste toner box 50. In the present embodiment, the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a, the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b, and the acoustic isolation part 57 are all made of the same material (for example, polystyrene resin) as the non-sensor area of the waste toner box 50. Has been. The thicknesses of the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b are sufficiently thinner than the non-sensor area, and the thickness of the acoustic isolation part 57 is sufficiently thicker than the non-sensor area. ing. The transmitter 52 and the receiver 53 of the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 provided on the main body side are respectively inserted into the two recesses caused by the difference in thickness.

  According to the second embodiment, the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56a, the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56b, and the acoustic isolation unit 57 are made of the same material as the non-sensor area of the waste toner box 50. The propagation unit 56a, the second ultrasonic propagation unit 56b, and the sound isolation unit 57 can be integrally formed with the waste toner box 50, and the cost of the waste toner box 50 can be reduced.

  Further, according to the second embodiment, since the thicknesses of the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b are reduced, the waste toner box 50 is moved from the outside to the inside (or from the inside to the outside). Ultrasonic waves are easy to propagate. Further, since the thickness of the acoustic isolation portion 57 is increased, it is possible to suppress the propagation (leakage) of ultrasonic waves from the sensor region (first sensor region, second sensor region) to the non-sensor region. it can. Therefore, it is possible to suppress a decrease in reception sensitivity.

  In addition, instead of providing the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b, it is conceivable to provide an opening in the sensor area (first sensor area, second sensor area). There is a possibility that the waste toner leaks from the opening. Therefore, in order to prevent waste toner from leaking out, it is desirable to provide the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b having a reduced thickness as in this embodiment.

  FIG. 8 shows a third embodiment of the waste toner box 50. The third embodiment is different from the second embodiment only in that bubbles 58 are included in the sound isolation part 57. In the third embodiment, since the acoustic isolation part 57 includes the bubbles 58, the ultrasonic waves propagate (leak) from the sensor area (first sensor area, second sensor area) to the non-sensor area. Further suppression can be achieved. In order to include the bubbles 58 in the acoustic isolation part 57, for example, when the first ultrasonic propagation part 56 a, the second ultrasonic propagation part 56 b and the acoustic isolation part 57 are integrally formed with the waste toner box 50, It is only necessary to inject the bubbles 58 only into the isolation part 57.

  FIG. 9 shows a fourth embodiment of the waste toner box 50. The fourth embodiment is different from the first embodiment only in that an ultrasonic reflection member 59 is provided at a position below the waste toner box 50 and facing the ultrasonic sensor 51 for waste toner box. . Since the ultrasonic reflection member 59 is installed in the casing 2 (that is, the main body side) of the printer 1, the configuration of the waste toner box 50 itself is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  In the fourth embodiment, since the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 and the ultrasonic reflection member 59 are both installed on the main body side, for example, the waste toner box 50 is not attached to the printer 1. When the toner amount detection process is performed, the distance from the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 to the ultrasonic reflection member 59 is calculated. On the other hand, if the above-described toner amount detection process is performed with the waste toner box 50 attached to the printer 1, a shorter distance is calculated.

  Thus, according to the fourth embodiment, it is possible to determine whether or not the waste toner box 50 is attached to the printer 1 based on the distance calculated by the toner amount detection process. Therefore, when it is desired to determine whether or not the waste toner box 50 is attached to the printer 1, there is an advantage that it is not necessary to provide any other means.

  Although the ultrasonic reflecting member 59 is used in the fourth embodiment, the same effect can be obtained by using an ultrasonic absorbing member instead of the ultrasonic reflecting member 59. Specifically, when the toner amount detection process described above is performed in a state where the waste toner box 50 is not attached to the printer 1, the ultrasonic waves transmitted from the transmitter 52 of the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 are ultrasonic waves. The reflected wave is absorbed by the absorbing member and is not received by the receiver 53. On the other hand, when the above-described toner amount detection processing is performed in a state where the waste toner box 50 is attached to the printer 1, the distance from the waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 51 to the waste toner surface (or the bottom surface of the waste toner box 50). Will be calculated. Therefore, whether or not the waste toner box 50 is attached to the printer 1 can be determined based on whether or not the reflected wave is received by the receiver 53.

  FIG. 10 shows an embodiment of the toner bottle 40. In this embodiment, the toner bottle 40 is detachably attached to the toner supply unit 44 provided in the bottle housing unit 39. The toner bottle 40 is connected to the bottle drive motor 45 so as to be able to transmit power while being stored in the bottle storage portion 39. By continuously rotating and driving the toner bottle 40 by the bottle drive motor 45, the print toner in the toner bottle 40 is supplied from the toner supply unit 44 of the bottle storage unit 39 to the developing device 15 corresponding thereto.

  The bottle drive motor 45 also functions as a leveling member that levels the surface of the print toner in the toner bottle 40. By rotating and driving the toner bottle 40 about several times by the bottle driving motor 45, the surface of the printing toner in the toner bottle 40 is smoothed as smoothly as possible. When the amount of print toner in the toner bottle 40 is detected using the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41, the bottle drive motor 45 is operated before the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41 is operated, so that the surface of the print toner is made possible. It is configured so that it is smooth and smooth.

  Similar to the first embodiment of the waste toner box 50 described above, in the toner bottle 40, a portion (first sensor region) of the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41 facing the transmitter 42 (first sensor region) is a first ultrasonic wave propagation portion 56a. The second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b is provided in a portion (second sensor region) facing the receiver 52 of the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41. In addition, an acoustic isolation unit 57 is provided so as to surround the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56b and to separate the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit 56b. It has been.

  As described above, the toner bottle 40 is rotated as necessary by the bottle drive motor 45. Therefore, when the amount of print toner in the toner bottle 40 is detected by the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41, the first toner bottle 40 is rotated. It is necessary to control the position (posture) of the toner bottle 40 so that the first ultrasonic propagation unit 56a and the second ultrasonic propagation unit 56b are directly below the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41. In this embodiment, such position control is performed using the position mark 48 on the outer peripheral surface of the toner bottle 40 and the position sensor 66 installed in the bottle container 39. For example, by using a reflecting member that reflects light as the position mark 48 and using a photo reflector as an optical sensor as the position sensor 66, such position control can be performed.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a toner amount detection process in the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41.

  After starting the toner amount detection process, the ultrasonic control unit 62 first determines whether or not it is a detection timing (S11). Examples of the detection timing in this case include an example in which the printing toner surface is smoothed and smoothed by the operation of the bottle driving motor 45, and during the printing operation or after the printing is completed. Of course, any timing can be set. If it is the detection timing (S11: YES), it is determined whether the position mark 48 is detected by the position sensor 66 while the toner bottle 40 is rotated by the bottle drive motor 45 (S12) (S13). When the position mark 48 is detected by the position sensor 66 (S13: YES), the rotation of the toner bottle 40 is stopped (S14). Then, an ultrasonic wave is transmitted from the transmitter 42 toward the print toner surface, and the transmission start time is set to t0 (S15).

  Then, if the ultrasonic wave reflected from the print toner surface is not received by the receiver 43 even if the preset time-out time is reached (S17: YES), the process is terminated, but if the ultrasonic wave is received by the receiver 43 (S17: YES) (S16: YES), the time t1 taken to receive is stored in the storage unit 61 (S18), and the toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 41 is based on t1-t0 (seconds) that is the time from ultrasonic transmission to reception. A distance L from the print toner surface is calculated (S19). Thereafter, the print toner amount in the toner bottle 40 is calculated based on the distance L calculated in S19 (S20).

  According to the present embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment of the waste toner box 50, it is possible to suppress a decrease in reception sensitivity when the amount of toner in the toner container is detected by the ultrasonic sensor.

  In the present embodiment, the first ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the second ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b are provided in the first sensor area and the second sensor area, respectively. One ultrasonic wave propagation unit including the second sensor region may be provided.

  In this embodiment, the transmitter and the receiver of the ultrasonic sensor are close to each other. However, even when the transmitter and the receiver are largely separated from each other, the corresponding portions (first sensor region and You may make it provide the 1st ultrasonic wave propagation part 56a and the 2nd ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b in a 2nd sensor area | region), respectively.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be embodied in various forms. For example, a printer has been described as an example of the image forming apparatus. However, the image forming apparatus is not limited thereto, and may be a copier, a facsimile, or a complex machine having these functions in combination. In addition, the configuration of each unit is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

1 Printer (image forming device)
39 Bottle container 40 Toner bottle 41 Toner bottle ultrasonic sensor 42 Transmitter 43 Receiver 44 Toner supply unit 45 Bottle drive motor 48 Position mark 50 Waste toner box 51 Waste toner box ultrasonic sensor 52 Transmitter 53 Receiver 54 Conveying screw 55 Leveling screw 56a First ultrasonic wave propagation part 56b Second ultrasonic wave propagation part 57 Acoustic isolation part 58 Bubble 59 Ultrasonic reflection member 66 Position sensor

Claims (15)

The device body;
A toner container detachably attached to the apparatus body;
An ultrasonic sensor provided on the apparatus main body side for detecting the amount of toner in the toner container;
A toner amount detection device comprising:
In the toner container, an ultrasonic wave propagation portion for facilitating the propagation of ultrasonic waves from the outside to the inside of the toner container is provided in a sensor region facing the ultrasonic sensor. An acoustic isolation unit is provided to prevent the ultrasonic wave from propagating from the sensor region to a non-sensor region other than the sensor region so as to surround the propagation unit.
Toner amount detection device. The ultrasonic wave propagation portion is different from the non-sensor region in at least one of material and thickness.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The acoustic isolation part is different from the non-sensor area in at least one of material, thickness and presence / absence of bubbles,
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The ultrasonic wave propagation part is made of a material that easily propagates ultrasonic waves,
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The ultrasonic wave propagation part is made of acrylic resin or polystyrene,
The toner amount detection device according to claim 4. The ultrasonic wave propagation part is made of the same material as the non-sensor area, and the thickness is smaller than the non-sensor area.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 2. The acoustic isolation part is made of a material that is difficult to propagate ultrasonic waves,
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The acoustic isolation part is made of cork or polystyrene foam,
The toner amount detection device according to claim 7. The acoustic isolation part is made of the same material as the non-sensor area, and is thicker than the non-sensor area.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 3. The acoustic isolation part is made of the same material as the non-sensor area, and has bubbles inside.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 3. The ultrasonic wave propagation unit and the acoustic isolation unit are detachable from the toner container.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The ultrasonic sensor includes a transmitter and a receiver separated from each other,
The ultrasonic wave propagation unit includes a first ultrasonic wave propagation unit facing the transmission unit, and a second ultrasonic wave propagation unit facing the reception unit,
The acoustic isolation unit is provided so as to surround the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit and the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit, and to separate the first ultrasonic wave propagation unit and the second ultrasonic wave propagation unit. Yes,
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. In the apparatus main body, an acoustic reflecting member or an acoustic absorbing member is provided at a position facing the ultrasonic sensor across the toner container.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The apparatus main body is provided with a rotating means for rotating the toner container and a position detecting means for detecting the position of the toner container,
The toner container is provided with a mark for detecting a position by the position detecting means.
The toner amount detection device according to claim 1. The toner amount detection device according to claim 1.
Image forming apparatus.

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