JP2021051224A - Storage container and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To reduce the occurrence of a trouble that an outer diameter of a rotating member is restricted due to bearings to be used.SOLUTION: A storage container is provided with a conveying screw 32 (rotating member) that is rotatable centered on a shank 32a, and bearings 33 that rotatably support the shank 32a of the conveying screw 32. A hole part 31a is formed in a waste toner recovery container 30 so as to penetrate from the outside to the inside of the waste toner recovery container 30 to have a hole diameter M larger than an outer diameter N of the conveying screw 32. A holding member 34 for holding the bearing 33 is installed to be attachable to the waste toner recovery container 30 so as to fill the hole part 31a.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to a storage container such as a waste toner recovery container, and an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, or a multifunction device thereof provided with the storage container.

Conventionally, it is widely known that an image forming apparatus such as a copier or a printer is provided with a storage container such as a waste toner recovery container (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
In such a storage container, a rotating member such as a transport screw is often rotatably supported via a bearing.

On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which play is provided in advance between the bearing and the rotating shaft of the transport screw on the assumption that the size of the transport screw changes due to heat or the like.

In the conventional storage container, when the rotating member is assembled to the container in the manufacturing process, the rotating member is inserted into the container through a hole formed in the container, and a bearing is fitted into the hole. Therefore, it is necessary to make the outer diameter of the rotating member smaller than the outer diameter of the bearing. That is, the outer diameter of the rotating member is restricted by the outer diameter of the bearing used.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides a storage container and an image forming apparatus that are less likely to cause a problem that the outer diameter of the rotating member is restricted by the bearing used. It is in.

The storage container in the present invention includes a rotating member that can rotate around a shaft portion, a bearing that rotatably supports the shaft portion of the rotating member, and the rotation of the storage container that penetrates from the outside to the inside. A holding member that holds the hole formed in the storage container so that the hole diameter is larger than the outer diameter of the member and the bearing so as to be attached to the storage container so as to fill the hole. And, it is equipped with.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a storage container and an image forming apparatus that are less likely to have a problem that the outer diameter of the rotating member is restricted by the bearing used.

It is an overall block diagram which shows the image forming apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the process cartridge and its neighborhood. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which the waste toner collection container was installed in the image forming apparatus main body in the width direction. It is an enlarged view which shows the main part of the waste toner collection container. It is a figure which shows the state which the transport screw is assembled to the waste toner collection container. It is an enlarged view which shows the main part of the waste toner recovery container as a comparative example.

Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In each figure, the same or corresponding parts are designated by the same reference numerals, and the duplicated description thereof will be appropriately simplified or omitted.

First, with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the overall configuration and operation of the image forming apparatus 100 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, an intermediate transfer belt device 15 is installed in the center of the image forming apparatus main body 100. Further, process cartridges 6Y, 6M, 6C, and 6K corresponding to each color (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) are arranged side by side so as to face the intermediate transfer belt 8 of the intermediate transfer belt device 15.
A waste toner collection container 30 as a storage container is installed below the intermediate transfer belt device 15. In the waste toner collection container 30, the untransferred toner collected by the cleaning devices 2Y, 2M, 2C, 2K, and 16 in the image forming operation is collected as waste toner via the waste toner transport unit 40 (see FIG. 2). It is a thing.

With reference to FIG. 2, the process cartridge 6Y corresponding to yellow includes a photoconductor drum 1Y as an image carrier, a charging device 4Y (charging roller) arranged around the photoconductor drum 1Y, and a developing device 5Y. The cleaning device 2Y and the cleaning device 2Y are configured to be detachable (replaceable) from the image forming apparatus main body 100 as one unit. Then, an image forming process (charging step, exposure step, developing step, transfer step, cleaning step) is performed on the photoconductor drum 1Y to form a yellow image on the photoconductor drum 1Y. That is, the process cartridge 6Y constitutes an image forming unit together with the primary transfer roller 9Y (primary transfer device) and the like.

The other three process cartridges 6M, 6C, and 6K (image forming part) have almost the same configuration as the process cartridge 6Y (image forming part) corresponding to yellow, except that the color of the toner used is different. Therefore, an image corresponding to each toner color is formed. Hereinafter, the description of the other three process cartridges 6M, 6C, and 6K (image forming section) will be omitted as appropriate, and only the process cartridge 6Y (image forming section) corresponding to yellow will be described.

With reference to FIG. 2, the photoconductor drum 1Y is rotationally driven clockwise by the main motor. Then, the surface of the photoconductor drum 1Y is uniformly charged at the position of the charging device 4Y (charging roller) (the charging step).
After that, the surface of the photoconductor drum 1Y reaches the irradiation position of the exposure light emitted from the exposure unit 7Y (optical writing head), and an electrostatic latent image corresponding to yellow is formed by exposure scanning at this position. (It is an exposure process).

After that, the surface of the photoconductor drum 1Y reaches a position facing the developing device 5Y, and the electrostatic latent image is developed at this position to form a yellow toner image (a developing step).
After that, the surface of the photoconductor drum 1Y reaches a position facing the intermediate transfer belt 8 and the primary transfer roller 9Y, and the toner image on the photoconductor drum 1Y is transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 8 at this position ( This is the primary transfer step.). At this time, a small amount of untransferred toner remains on the photoconductor drum 1Y.

After that, the surface of the photoconductor drum 1Y reaches a position facing the cleaning device 2Y, and the untransferred toner remaining on the photoconductor drum 1Y at this position is collected in the cleaning device 2Y by the cleaning blade 2a (cleaning). It is a process.). The untransferred toner collected inside the cleaning device 2Y is conveyed to the front side in the vertical direction of the paper surface of FIGS. 1 and 2 by the conveying coil 2Ya, and then via the waste toner conveying section 40 (conveying path). The waste toner is stored (recovered) as waste toner inside the waste toner collection container 30 (see FIG. 3) as a storage container.
Finally, the surface of the photoconductor drum 1Y reaches a position facing the static elimination device, and the residual potential on the photoconductor drum 1 is removed at this position.
In this way, a series of image forming processes performed on the photoconductor drum 1Y is completed.

The image-forming process described above is also performed on the other process cartridges 6M, 6C, and 6K (image-creating unit) in the same manner as the process cartridge 6Y for yellow (image-imaging unit). That is, the exposure light based on the image information is irradiated onto the photoconductor drums of the process cartridges 6M, 6C, and 6K from the exposure unit arranged above the image-creating unit.
After that, the toner images of each color formed on each photoconductor drum through the developing process are superimposed and transferred on the intermediate transfer belt 8. In this way, a color image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 8.

Here, the intermediate transfer belt device 15 is composed of an intermediate transfer belt 8, four primary transfer rollers 9Y (see FIG. 2), a drive roller, a driven roller, and the like, with reference to FIG. The intermediate transfer belt 8 is stretched and supported by the drive roller, the driven roller, and the primary transfer roller, and is endlessly moved in the arrow direction (counterclockwise direction) of FIG. 1 by the rotational drive of the drive roller.

The primary transfer roller 9Y forms a primary transfer nip by sandwiching the intermediate transfer belt 8 with the photoconductor drum 1Y. Then, a transfer voltage (transfer bias) opposite to the polarity of the toner is applied to the primary transfer roller 9Y.
Then, the intermediate transfer belt 8 travels in the direction of the arrow and sequentially passes through the primary transfer nips of the primary transfer rollers (9Y). In this way, the toner images of each color on each photoconductor drum (1Y) are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 8 and first-order transferred.

After that, the intermediate transfer belt 8 on which the toner images of each color are superimposed and transferred reaches a position facing the secondary transfer roller 19 (secondary transfer device). At this position, the drive roller (secondary transfer opposed roller) sandwiches the intermediate transfer belt 8 with the secondary transfer roller 19 to form a secondary transfer nip. Then, the four-color toner images formed on the intermediate transfer belt 8 are transferred onto the sheet P of the paper or the like conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip (the secondary transfer step). At this time, untransferred toner that has not been transferred to the sheet P remains on the intermediate transfer belt 8.

After that, the intermediate transfer belt 8 reaches the position of the cleaning device 16 for the intermediate transfer belt. Then, at this position, the untransferred toner on the intermediate transfer belt 8 is mechanically removed by the intermediate transfer cleaning blade that press-contacts the intermediate transfer belt 8. Here, the intermediate transfer cleaning blade is a substantially plate-shaped member made of an elastic material such as urethane rubber, and is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 8 at a predetermined contact pressure and contact angle. The untransferred toner collected inside the cleaning device 16 for the intermediate transfer belt is also the transport coil in the same manner as the untransferred toner collected inside the cleaning devices 2Y, 2M, 2C, and 2K for the photoconductor drum. 1 and 2 are conveyed to the front side in the vertical direction of the paper surface, and then are collected as waste toner inside the waste toner collection container 30 (see FIG. 3) via the waste toner transfer unit 40. .. The waste toner collection container 30 (storage container) will be described in detail later with reference to FIGS. 3, 4, and the like.
In this way, a series of transfer processes performed on the intermediate transfer belt 8 is completed.

Here, referring to FIG. 1, the sheet P conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip is a paper feed roller 27 or a resist roller pair 28 (from the paper feed device 26 arranged below the device main body 100). It is transported via a timing roller pair) or the like.
Specifically, in the paper feed device 26, a plurality of sheets P such as paper are stacked and stored. Then, when the paper feed roller 27 is rotationally driven in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1, the top sheet P is fed between the resist rollers and the rollers 28.

The sheet P conveyed to the resist roller pair 28 temporarily stops at the position of the roller nip of the resist roller pair 28 that has stopped the rotational drive. Then, the resist roller pair 28 is rotationally driven in time with the color image on the intermediate transfer belt 8, and the sheet P is conveyed toward the secondary transfer nip. In this way, the desired color image is transferred onto the sheet P.

After that, the sheet P on which the color image is transferred at the position of the secondary transfer nip is conveyed to the position (fixing nip) of the fixing device 20. Then, at this position, the color image (toner image) transferred to the surface is fixed on the sheet P by the heat and pressure of the fixing belt 21 (fixing member) and the pressure roller 22 (pressurizing member). It is a fixing process.).
After that, the sheet P is discharged to the outside of the device by the paper ejection roller pair. The sheets P discharged to the outside of the device by the paper ejection roller pair are sequentially stacked on the stack portion (main body cover 110) as an output image.
In this way, a series of image forming processes in the image forming apparatus is completed.

Next, FIG. 2 details an image forming portion in the image forming apparatus.
As shown in FIG. 2, the process cartridge 6Y is composed of a photoconductor drum 1Y (image carrier), a charging device 4Y (charging roller), a developing device 5Y, a cleaning device 2Y, and the like.
The photoconductor drum 1Y as the image carrier is a negatively charged organic photoconductor, and is rotationally driven clockwise in FIG. 2 by receiving a driving force from a main motor installed on the device main body 100 side.

The charging device 4Y (charging roller) is an elastic roller member in which a medium-resistive urethane foam layer containing urethane resin, carbon black as conductive particles, a sulfide agent, a foaming agent, etc. is formed on a core metal. ..
The cleaning device 2Y is provided with a cleaning blade 2a that is in sliding contact with the photoconductor drum 1Y, and mechanically removes and recovers the untransferred toner on the photoconductor drum 1Y. The cleaning blade 2a is a substantially plate-shaped member made of an elastic material such as urethane rubber, and is in contact with the photoconductor drum 1Y at a predetermined contact pressure and contact angle.

The developing apparatus 5Y is arranged so that the developing roller 51 as a developing agent carrier comes into contact with the photoconductor drum 1Y, and a developing region is formed between both members 1Y and 51 (contact position). To. Toner (non-magnetic or magnetic one-component developer) as a developing agent is housed in the developing apparatus 5Y. Then, the developing device 5Y develops an electrostatic latent image formed on the photoconductor drum 1Y (forms a toner image).
The developing device 5Y includes a developing roller 51, a supply roller 53, a doctor blade 52, a developing transfer screw 54, 55, and the like. Further, a toner container 60 for appropriately replenishing new toner toward the developing device 5Y is detachably installed on the upper part of the developing device 5Y.

Hereinafter, the characteristic configuration and operation of the waste toner recovery container 30 as the storage container in the present embodiment will be described in detail.
With reference to FIG. 1, in the present embodiment, the waste toner recovery container 30 as a storage container is below the intermediate transfer belt device 15 in the image forming apparatus main body 100, and is on the front side of the image forming apparatus main body 100 ( It is detachably installed on the front side in the vertical direction of the paper surface in FIG. 1). The waste toner collection container 30 is a storage container capable of collecting waste toner.
In the present embodiment, the waste toner recovery container 30 is configured to be detachable from the image forming apparatus main body 100 (or the waste toner transport unit 40 shown in FIG. 3), and the inside of the waste toner recovery container 30 is formed. When it is full of waste toner (when the fullness detection sensor 35 shown in FIG. 3 or the like detects a state in which waste toner is present at that position), it is replaced with a new (empty) one. Specifically, in the present embodiment, the waste toner collection container 30 opens and closes the main body door (installed on the right side in FIG. 1) of the image forming apparatus main body 100 in the width direction (FIG. 1, FIG. It will be replaced by the attachment / detachment operation (in the left-right direction of FIG. 3).

Here, referring to FIG. 3 and the like, the waste toner collection container 30 (storage container) is in the width direction (the left-right direction of FIGS. 3 and 4 and the rotation axis direction of the transport screw 32 described later). Is a box-shaped container formed so as to extend in the longitudinal direction.
As shown in FIG. 3, the container body 31 as a housing in the waste toner recovery container 30 is molded into a bottle shape by blow molding or the like, and a substantially rectangular parallelepiped space is formed inside the container body 31. There is. An insertion port 31c (opening) is formed on the ceiling surface of the container body 31. In the insertion port 31c, the waste toner transport unit 40 as a transport path fixed to the image forming apparatus main body 100 is inserted / not inserted in conjunction with the operation of attaching / detaching the waste toner collecting container 30 to / from the image forming apparatus main body 100. Will be done.

With reference to FIG. 3, the waste toner transport unit 40 is a transport path in which untransferred toner (untransferred developer) collected by a plurality of cleaning devices is transported as waste toner toward the waste toner collection container 30. Inside, a waste toner transport screw 41 that rotates in a predetermined direction and transports waste toner from the left side to the right side of FIG. 3 is installed. In the waste toner transport unit 40, a discharge port for discharging untransferred toner collected by the black cleaning device 2K is formed on the most upstream side, and is collected by the cyan cleaning device 2C on the downstream side thereof. An discharge port for discharging untransferred toner is formed, and an discharge port for discharging untransferred toner collected by the magenta cleaning device 2M is formed on the downstream side thereof, and cleaning for yellow is formed on the downstream side thereof. An discharge port for discharging the untransferred toner collected by the device 2Y is formed, and an discharge port for discharging the untransferred toner collected by the cleaning device 16 for the intermediate transfer belt is formed on the most downstream side. ..

Then, in a state where a part of the waste toner transport unit 40 (transport path) is inserted into the waste toner collection container 30 through the insertion port 31c (the state shown in FIG. 3), the five cleaning devices 2Y and 2M, The toners (untransferred toner, waste toner) collected in 2C, 2K, and 16 are discharged from the discharge port 40a of the waste toner transport unit 40 and stored (recovered) in the waste toner collection container 30.
Specifically, the untransferred toner collected by the five cleaning devices 2Y, 2M, 2C, 2K, and 16 is discharged from each discharge port to the waste toner transport unit 40, and then discharged by the waste toner transfer screw 41 at the discharge port 40a. It is transported to the position of, drops by its own weight in the direction of the black arrow from the discharge port 40a, and is collected as waste toner T inside the waste toner collection container 30 (container body 31).

On the other hand, referring to FIG. 3, the waste toner collection container 30 has a transfer screw 32 (as a rotating member) that rotates in a predetermined direction and conveys the waste toner that has flowed into the waste toner collection container 30 (storage container). Screw member) is installed. The transport screw 32 as a rotating member is a screw member formed of a metal material or a resin material, which is composed of a shaft portion 32a and a screw portion 32b spirally wound around the shaft portion 32a. The transport screw 32 is provided with a driven coupling 36 on the back side in the mounting direction (leftward in FIG. 3), and the driven coupling 36 is fixed to the motor 50 (fixed to the device main body 100). It will be fitted to the drive coupling installed on the motor shaft of. Then, the transport screw 32 is rotationally driven by receiving a driving force from the motor 50, and the waste toner flowing into the container body 31 is conveyed while being appropriately agitated in the direction of the white arrow in FIG.

More specifically, first, in the empty waste toner collection container 30, the waste toner is discharged from the discharge port 40a and is deposited on the lower bottom of the discharge port 40a. Then, when the height of the waste toner thus deposited reaches the position of the transfer screw 32, the waste toner is conveyed by the transfer screw 32 in the directions of the white arrows (both directions in the width direction). Then, when the collection of waste toner progresses and the waste toner T is detected by the fullness detection sensor 35 (for example, a piezoelectric sensor) installed at the end in the width direction, the waste collected in the container body 31 Assuming that the toner T is full, the operation display panel 95 (see FIG. 1) of the image forming apparatus main body 100 is displayed to prompt the replacement of the waste toner collection container 30.

Here, as described above, the transport screw 32 is a rotating member that can rotate around the shaft portion 32a. Since the transfer screw 32 in the present embodiment has a large screw diameter N (outer diameter) of the screw portion 32b, the transfer speed (conveyance force) with respect to the waste toner is high, and the waste toner in the container body 31 is formed. Stagnation can be less likely to occur.
Then, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the waste toner collection container 30 (storage container) in the present embodiment is provided with a bearing 33 that rotatably supports the shaft portion 32a of the transport screw 32 (rotating member). Has been done. The bearing 33 is a versatile (common) functional component having excellent wear resistance and the like, and is also used as a bearing for other members (for example, a waste toner transfer screw 41). ..

The container body 31 of the waste toner recovery container 30 (storage container) is formed with a hole 31a (see FIG. 5) that penetrates from the outside to the inside of the waste toner recovery container 30. The hole portion 31a is formed so that the hole diameter M is larger than the outer diameter N of the transport screw 32 (rotating member) (M> N). Specifically, the hole portion 31a is a hole portion having a substantially circular cross section, and is formed on the side surface of the container body 31 (the side surface corresponding to one end side in the rotation axis direction of the transport screw 32). There is. Further, in the present embodiment, the hole portion 31a is formed on the side surface of the container body 31 corresponding to the non-driving side (the side on which the driven coupling 36 is not installed) of the transport screw 32.
Then, in the waste toner recovery container 30, a holding member 34 for holding the bearing 33 is provided.
It is installed so as to be attached to the waste toner collection container 30 so as to fill the hole 31a.

For details, refer to FIG. 5 and the like, and the container body 31 (waste toner recovery container 30) has an edge portion 31b surrounding the substantially circular hole portion 31a outside the waste toner recovery container 30 (FIG. 5). It is formed so as to protrude toward the right side of.).
The holding member 34 is a cap member formed in a substantially circular shape so as to fit into the edge portion 31b of the container body 31. Specifically, the holding member 34 is fitted to the edge portion 31b so as to cover the edge portion 31b from the outside. Since the holding member 34 is preferably installed on the container body 31 in a non-rotating manner, a non-rotating fitting portion (concavo-convex portion) or the like is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the edge portion 31b and the inner peripheral surface of the holding member 34. Can be provided. Further, it is preferable to fix the holding member 34 to the container body 31 by screwing or the like so that the holding member 34 does not fall off from the container body 31.
Further, in the holding member 34, the bearing 33 is held in a through hole 34a (see FIG. 5) formed in the center of the circle. The holding member 34 is fitted to the bearing 33 and the edge portion 31b in a non-rotating manner, and does not require high wear resistance unlike the bearing 33. Therefore, the holding member 34 is formed of an inexpensive material. Is possible. Since the bearing 33 is preferably held by the holding member 34 so as not to fall off due to non-rotation, the bearing 33 is tightly fitted to the through hole 34a of the holding member 34 with a fit, or the holding member 34 is fitted. The bearing 33 can also be integrally molded when the bearing 33 is molded with resin.

Then, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the screw diameter N (the outer diameter of the transport screw 32) of the screw portion 32b is smaller than the hole diameter M of the hole portion 31a, and is outside the bearing 33. It is larger than the diameter Q (Q <N <M).
That is, the screw diameter N of the screw portion 32b is set to be larger than the outer diameter Q of the bearing 33, which is a general-purpose component having a small degree of freedom in shape change, and the outer diameter M of the hole portion 31a having a large degree of freedom in shape change. Is set smaller than.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, even when a transport screw 32 having a large screw diameter N is used, the transport screw 32 is provided from the hole 31a formed in the container body 31 regardless of the outer diameter Q of the bearing 33. It can be inserted and assembled.

Specifically, the manufacturing process (assembly procedure) of the waste toner recovery container 30 will be described with reference to FIG.
First, the transport screw 32 is inserted into the container from the hole 31a in the direction of the arrow with respect to the container body 31 in a single state without any parts such as bearings 33 installed. At this time, since the screw diameter N of the transport screw 32 is smaller than the hole diameter M of the hole portion 31a, the transport screw 32 can be inserted without being caught in the hole portion 31a. Then, the shaft portion 32a on one end side of the transport screw 32 is inserted into the hole formed in the one end side side surface (the left side surface in FIG. 5) of the container body 31, and the shaft portion on one end side thereof is inserted. A bearing 33 and a driven coupling 36 are installed in 32a. Further, the holding member 34 (bearing 33 is integrated) with the edge portion 31b of the hole portion 31a formed on the other end side side surface (the right side surface in FIG. 5) of the container body 31. Is fitted, and the bearing 33 held by the holding member 34 is inserted into the shaft portion 32a on the other end side of the transport screw 32. Finally, a retaining ring 37 (see FIG. 4) is installed on the shaft portion 32a for positioning of the transport screw 32 in the rotation axis direction.
In this way, the assembly of the waste toner recovery container 30 is completed (the state of the waste toner recovery container 30 shown in FIG. 3).
In the assembling procedure described above, the transfer screw 32 with the holding member 34 (the bearing 33 integrated) is inserted into the container body 31 through the hole 31a. The holding member 34 may be fitted to the edge portion 31b.

As described above, in the waste toner collection container 30 of the present embodiment, the waste toner is filled so that the holding member 34 holding the bearing 33 fills the hole portion 31a having a hole diameter M larger than the screw diameter N of the transport screw 32. Since it is installed so that it can be attached to the collection container 30, the problem that the screw diameter N (outer diameter) of the transport screw 32 is restricted by the bearing 33 used is less likely to occur.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6A as a comparative example, when the bearing 33 is configured to be directly fitted into the hole portion of the container body 131, the transport screw 132 is inserted from the hole portion in the manufacturing process. The outer diameter R of the transport screw 132 needs to be smaller than the outer diameter Q of the bearing 33 in order to be inserted into the container. Therefore, the outer diameter R of the transport screw 132 is restricted by the outer diameter Q of the bearing 33 to be used, and even if an attempt is made to install a transport screw having a large outer diameter, it cannot be installed. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, it is possible to install the transport screw 32 having a large outer diameter N regardless of the outer diameter Q of the bearing 33 to be used.
Further, as shown in FIG. 6B as a comparative example, a hole portion 31a having a hole diameter M larger than the outer diameter N is formed in the container body 231 in accordance with the transport screw 3 having a large outer diameter N. When the bearing 233 is configured to be directly fitted into the hole 31a, it is necessary to manufacture a bearing 233 having a large outer diameter M, which is not a general-purpose part, as a dedicated part. Therefore, the bearing 233 becomes expensive. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, even when the transport screw 32 having a large outer diameter N is installed, the bearing 33 as a general-purpose component can be used regardless of the outer diameter N. It is possible to reduce the problem that the waste toner collection container 30 is costly.

Here, in the present embodiment, the holding member 34 can be detachably installed with respect to the waste toner collection container 30 (storage container).
That is, not only the holding member 34 can be configured to be attachable to the edge portion 31b of the container body 31, but also the holding member 34 can be configured to be removable from the edge portion 31b of the container body 31.
By making the holding member 34 detachable in this way, the transport screw 32 can be easily disassembled from the container body 31 when the waste toner collection container 30 is recycled, so that the workability is improved. become.

As described above, the waste toner collection container 30 (storage container) in the present embodiment includes a transfer screw 32 (rotating member) that can rotate around the shaft portion 32a and a shaft portion 32a of the transfer screw 32. A bearing 33 that rotatably supports the bearing 33 is provided. Further, the hole portion 31a is formed in the waste toner recovery container 30 so as to penetrate from the outside to the inside of the waste toner recovery container 30 and have a hole diameter M larger than the outer diameter N of the transport screw 32. Then, the holding member 34 that holds the bearing 33 is installed so as to be attached to the waste toner recovery container 30 so as to fill the hole 31a.
As a result, the problem that the outer diameter N of the transport screw 32 is restricted by the bearing 33 used is less likely to occur.

In the present embodiment, the untransferred toner collected in each of the plurality of cleaning devices 2Y, 2M, 2C, 2K, and 16 is directed toward the waste toner collection container 30 via the waste toner transfer unit 40 (conveyance path). The present invention has been applied to the image forming apparatus 100 configured to be conveyed, but the application of the present invention is not limited to this, and the untransferred toner collected in a single cleaning apparatus is transported. As a matter of course, the present invention can be applied to an image forming apparatus configured to be conveyed toward a waste toner recovery container via.
Further, in the present embodiment, the present invention is applied to the waste toner recovery container 30 as a storage container for storing the waste toner, but the application of the present invention is not limited to this, and the rotating member is not limited to this. The present invention can also be applied to all of the installed storage containers (for example, a developing device 5Y, a toner container 60, a cleaning device 2Y, and the like).
Further, in the present embodiment, the transport screw 32 is used as the rotating member installed in the waste toner collection container 30, but the rotating member is not limited to this, and for example, the transport coil (coil member) is used as the rotating member. Can also be used.
Further, in the present embodiment, the bearing 33 and the holding member 34 are integrated only on one end side in the rotation axis direction, but the bearing 33 and the holding member 34 are also integrated on the other end side in the rotation axis direction. It is possible to install a modified version.
Then, even in such a case, the same effect as that of the present embodiment can be obtained.

It is clear that the present invention is not limited to the present embodiment, and the present embodiment may be appropriately modified in addition to the suggestions in the present embodiment within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. is there. Further, the number, position, shape, etc. of the constituent members are not limited to the present embodiment, and can be a suitable number, position, shape, etc. for carrying out the present invention.

2Y, 2M, 2C, 2K cleaning equipment,
16 Cleaning device (cleaning device for intermediate transfer belt),
30 Waste toner collection container (storage container),
31 Container body (case),
31a hole,
31b edge,
32 Transport screw (rotating member),
32a shaft part, 32b screw part,
33 bearings,
34 Holding member (cap member),
34a through hole,
100 Image forming apparatus (image forming apparatus main body).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2009-63765

Claims (6)

A rotating member that can rotate around the shaft,
A bearing that rotatably supports the shaft portion of the rotating member,
A hole formed in the storage container so as to penetrate from the outside to the inside of the storage container and have a hole diameter larger than the outer diameter of the rotating member.
A holding member that holds the bearing and is mounted so as to fill the hole and can be attached to the storage container.
A storage container characterized by being equipped with. The storage container according to claim 1, wherein the holding member is detachably installed with respect to the storage container. The hole is a substantially circular hole and has a substantially circular shape.
A rim that surrounds the hole and projects outward of the storage container is provided.
The holding member is a cap member formed in a substantially circular shape so as to be fitted to the edge portion, and the bearing is held in a through hole formed in the center portion of the circle. The storage container according to claim 1 or 2. The rotating member is a screw member in which a screw portion is wound around the shaft portion.
The storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the screw diameter of the screw portion is smaller than the hole diameter of the hole portion and larger than the outer diameter of the bearing. The storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the storage container is a waste toner collection container capable of collecting waste toner. An image forming apparatus comprising the storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

Images