JP2596006B2 - Toner supply device - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toner replenishing device for replenishing toner to a developing device of an electrophotographic copying machine.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as this type of toner replenishing device, there is the following one. That is, the toner supply device 50
As shown in FIG. 12, it is formed in an elongated box shape, and an opening 51 for toner supply is provided at the bottom thereof. The toner replenishing opening 51 is closed by a seal 52, and the seal 52 is housed on the lower surface of the toner replenishing device 50 so as to be folded back.

To supply toner to the developing device of the copying machine using the toner replenishing device, the developing device is detached from the main body of the copying machine, the lid of the toner box 53 provided integrally with the developing device is opened, and the toner replenishing device is opened. 50 to developing device toner box 53
Place on top. Then, the toner supply opening 51 provided at the bottom of the toner supply device 50 is opened by peeling off the seal 52, and the toner T is supplied to the toner box of the developing device.
53 is to be replenished.

At this time, the positioning between the toner replenishing device 50 and the toner box 53 of the developing device is performed as follows.
In other words, when replenishing the toner T to the toner box 53 of the developing device, if there is a gap between the toner box 53 and the toner replenishing device 50, the toner T may spill out of the gap and contaminate the developing device and its surroundings. Therefore, a projection 54 for positioning the toner replenishing device 50 at a predetermined position of the toner box 53 is provided at one end in the longitudinal direction. Then, when replenishing the toner T into the toner box 53, as shown in FIG. The toner replenishing device 50 is mounted at a predetermined position by lowering the other end of the toner replenishing device 50.

[Problems to be solved by the invention] However, such a conventional technique has the following problems. That is, when the toner replenishing device 50 is mounted in the toner box 53 of the developing device, the toner replenishing device 50 is mounted to be inclined downward with respect to one end thereof, so that the toner T is replenished as shown in FIG. It is offset to one end of the device 50. Therefore, the toner supply device 50
When the toner T is replenished into the toner box 53 by peeling off the seal 52, the toner T is replenished to one end of the toner box 53, and when the toner replenishing device 50 is removed, the toner T overflows or the other end. There is a problem that only a small amount of the toner T is supplied on the side. As a result, there arises a problem that a toner image developed by the developing device may have uneven density in the longitudinal direction of the developing device.

In order to solve the above problem, it is conceivable to provide a spatula or the like for correcting the deviation of the toner after the toner is supplied, and to allow the user to correct the deviation of the toner using the spatula after the supply of the toner. However, even in this case, the overflow of the toner immediately after replenishment cannot be eliminated, and a separate member such as a spatula needs to be newly provided, which leads to an increase in cost and a demand for extra work from the user. There is a problem that it also becomes.

Means for Solving the Problems Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an object thereof is to supply toner to a toner-supplied member when toner is supplied. An object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing device capable of uniformly replenishing toner without overflowing the toner or requiring a separate member such as a spatula even when the replenishing device is installed at an angle.

That is, in the present invention, when replenishing the toner, the replenishing device body is attached to a predetermined position of the toner replenishing member after tilting down with respect to one end of the replenishing device main body and positioning the replenishing member at the predetermined position. In the toner replenishing device for performing the above, the volume of the replenishing device main body is provided with a volume correcting section for reducing the volume on the side located below when positioning the replenishing member.

As the volume correcting section, for example, a narrowing section narrowed so as to reduce the cross-sectional area is provided over a predetermined length on a side located below when the toner supply section is mounted on the toner supply member of the main body of the replenishing apparatus. It is formed.

Further, as the volume correcting section, a cap for closing a filling hole for filling the toner replenishing device main body with toner may be used. In this case, the cap inserted into the replenishing device main body is formed in a long cylindrical shape. Then, the volume in the supply device main body is corrected.

As the toner replenishing member, for example, a toner box integrally provided in a developing device of an electrophotographic copying machine is used, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention is also applicable to other devices using toner. Of course you can.

[Operation] In the present invention, the replenishing device main body is provided with a volume correcting section for reducing the volume on the side located below when the toner replenishing member is mounted on the toner replenishing member. When the replenishing device main body is mounted on the toner replenishing member after being tilted downward and positioned on the toner replenishing member, the displacement of the toner is prevented by reducing the volume on the lower side by the volume correction unit. .

[Embodiments] The present invention will be described below based on the illustrated embodiments.

FIG. 8 shows an electrophotographic copying machine to which the toner supply device according to the present invention can be applied. This copying machine, in addition to normal copying, double-sided copying, single-sided multiplex copying, and marking for partially marking a copy image in a different color, for example, at a low density to emphasize a portion of the copy image It is a copying machine with a composite function that can perform copying such as color copying. In addition, since the paper feed cassettes that supply paper are all housed inside the copier, the paper feed cassette does not protrude outside the apparatus, and the installation space can be reduced, and the appearance can be reduced. It has a clean and nice looking configuration.

The copying operation in the copying machine is performed as follows. That is, the original 2 placed on the platen glass 1 is illuminated by the light source 3, and the reflected light image from the original 2 is reflected by the photoconductor via the mirrors 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and the lens 10. Scanning exposure is performed on the drum 11. After the photosensitive drum 11 is uniformly charged by the charger 12 in advance,
As described above, the image of the document 2 is exposed, and an electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 1. This electrostatic latent image is developed by the selectively operating main developing device 13 or auxiliary developing device 14 to become a toner image. In the main developing device 13, black toner is used, and normal image development is performed.
In the auxiliary developing device 14, a toner of a color such as red or blue is used, and is mainly used for developing only a predetermined image when performing marking color copying or the like.

The toner image developed by the developing device 13 or 14 is transferred onto a transfer sheet 20 of a predetermined size supplied from one of a plurality of paper feed cassettes 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19.
The transfer is performed by charging the transfer corotron 21. The transfer paper 20 onto which the toner image has been transferred is separated from the photosensitive drum 11 by charging of the separation corotron 22, and then the fixing device 23
, And the toner image is fixed on the transfer paper 20.
The transfer paper 20 on which the toner image is fixed is discharged onto the discharge tray 24 as it is in a normal copy mode.

However, in the above-described modes such as double-sided copying, single-sided multiplex copying, and marking color copying, the transfer paper 20 on which the toner image has been fixed is not discharged as it is, but is transferred as it is or is The sheet is turned over and transported again to the image forming section, where a predetermined toner image is transferred. After the transfer and fixing of the predetermined image are repeated, the transfer paper 20 is discharged onto the discharge tray 24 for the first time.

In this embodiment, despite the fact that, in addition to the main developing device 13, an auxiliary developing device 14 that uses toner of a different color from that of the main developing device 13 is provided inside the copying machine main body, the overall size of the copying machine is small. In order to realize the development, the size of the developing device is reduced, and particularly the auxiliary developing device 14 is designed to be thin. Therefore, the auxiliary developing device 14 does not include a toner box separately from the developing device, but integrally includes a toner box on the back side of the developing device main body.

FIG. 7 shows the auxiliary developing device to which the toner replenishing device according to the present invention can be applied. This auxiliary developing device
14 is provided integrally with a toner box 28 as a toner supply member on one side of the developing device main body 27 as described above.
An agitator 29 and a screw 30 are rotatably arranged inside the toner box 28, respectively.
The toner agitated by 29 is conveyed by a screw 30 in a predetermined direction, and is supplied into the developing device main body 27 from an end thereof.

As shown in FIG. 5, an opening 31 for replenishing toner is provided at the upper end of the toner box 28, and this opening 31 is usually provided with a lid as shown in FIG.
Blocked by 32. Further, on both sides of the opening 31, engagement grooves 33 are provided along the width direction of the toner box 28 for engaging a locking leg of a toner replenishing device described later when replenishing toner. .

In order to supply toner to the auxiliary developing device 14, toner is supplied to the toner box 28 with the lid 32 of the toner box 28 provided integrally on the back side of the auxiliary developing device 14 being opened. The device 34 is mounted to supply toner.

1 to 3 show an embodiment of the toner replenishing device according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 35 denotes a toner replenishing device main body. As shown in FIG. 3, the toner replenishing device main body 35 has a ceiling portion 35a formed in an elongated box shape having a substantially semicircular cross section and a lower portion. The end faces are all open, and the hollow interior is a toner storage section 36.
A filling hole 35b for filling the toner accommodating portion 36 with toner at the time of manufacturing is provided on one end surface of the toner replenishing device main body 35, and the filling hole 35b is closed by a cap 44.

An opening provided on the lower end surface of the toner replenishing device main body 35 is an opening 37 for replenishing toner in the toner box 28. A mounting flange 38 extends in a planar rectangular shape around the lower end of the apparatus main body 35. Locking legs are provided at both ends in the width direction of the mounting flange 38.
39, 39 are protruded downward over substantially the entire length. When the toner replenishing device 34 is attached to the toner box 28 of the auxiliary developing device 14 at one end of the locking legs 39, 39, the toner is engaged with the end of the engaging groove 33 of the toner box 28. Protrusions 40, 40 for positioning the replenishing device 34 are provided.

The opening 37 of the toner replenishing device main body is sealed by a sealing seal 41 adhered to a lower surface of the mounting flange 38 by a double-sided adhesive tape or the like. This hermetic seal 41 has a length approximately twice as long as the supply device main body 35,
The opening 37 of the supply device main body 35 is folded back at the rear end thereof, and one end thereof is positioned at the other end of the main body 35. After the toner replenishing device 34 is mounted on the toner box 28 of the auxiliary developing device 14, the sealing seal 41 can be easily peeled off by pulling the end of the sealing seal 41 to open the opening 37 of the replenishing device main body. I can do it.

Further, a toner replenishing device 34 is attached to the mounting flange 38 on the side where the end of the sealing seal 41 is located.
28, the toner supply device 34
A locking claw 42 is provided for fixing the locking claw to. As shown in FIG. 6, the locking claw 42 is locked to a part of the auxiliary developing device 14 with the toner replenishing device 34 attached to the toner box 28, so that the toner replenishing device 34 It is fixed to a box 28 to prevent the position of the toner supply device 34 from shifting.

By the way, in the toner replenishing device according to this embodiment, the replenishing device main body is provided with a volume correcting unit for reducing the volume on the lower side when the toner replenishing member is mounted on the replenishing member. That is, the toner supply device main body 35 includes the supply device 34
When the is mounted on the toner box 28, the ceiling portion 35a is provided with a throttle section 43 as a volume correction section so that the volume on the lower projection 40 side is reduced. This diaphragm 43
Is located on the protrusion 40 side of the replenishing device main body 35, and narrows a ceiling portion 35a formed in a semicircular dome shape into a flat shape by a predetermined length L along the longitudinal direction, and the sectional area is reduced. It is formed so as to be small. By doing this,
The volume of the supply device body 35 on the protrusion 40 side is the product of the cross-sectional area S reduced by the throttle portion 43 and the length L of the throttle portion 43, that is, L
It is set smaller by × S. The sectional area of the throttle section 43 may be changed along the longitudinal direction of the supply device main body 35 as necessary.

In the above configuration, in the toner supply device according to this embodiment, toner is supplied as follows. That is, in an electrophotographic copying machine as shown in FIG.
To supply toner to the color auxiliary developing device 14, the auxiliary developing device 14 is detached from the copier main body, and the auxiliary developing device 14 is removed.
The cover 32 of the toner box 28 provided integrally with the cover 14 is opened. Next, the toner replenishing device 34 is inclined as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 4, and the projections 40, 40 provided at one ends of the locking legs 39, 39 are provided on the toner box 28. Groove
The toner replenishing device 34 is positioned by engaging with one end of 38, 38. At this time, the toner replenishing device main body 35 is inclined as described above, so that the toner T accommodated in the replenishing device main body 35 tends to lean toward one end of the replenishing device main body 35. However, on the same end side of the replenishing device main body 35, a throttle portion 43 is provided to reduce the volume, and the toner T
Of the supply device main body 35 to the same end side is suppressed. For this reason, after the toner replenishing device main body 35 is positioned, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 4, the other end of the replenishing device main body 35 is lowered, and the locking legs 39, 39 are moved to the toner box as shown in FIG.
28, completely fit into the toner box 28 in the engagement grooves 33, 33,
Even when the seal T is removed and the toner T is supplied to the toner box 28, a large amount of the toner T is not supplied to one end of the toner box 28, but is supplied uniformly to the toner box 28.

As described above, when replenishing the toner T into the toner box 28 of the auxiliary developing device 14, even when the toner replenishing device main body 35 is installed at an angle, the toner T does not shift, so that the toner box 28 The toner T can be supplied uniformly. Therefore, after the toner T is replenished in the toner box 28, there is no need to level the toner by brush or the like, so that it is not necessary to increase the number of parts or to perform a troublesome operation.

FIG. 9 shows another embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those of the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. In this embodiment, the volume correction section is restricted to the supply device main body 35. Instead of being formed by providing the portion 43, the volume correcting portion is formed by the cap 44 attached to the replenishing device main body 35 when the replenishing device main body 35 is filled with the toner T. That is, the cap 44 is fitted on the lower side when the toner replenishing device 34 is mounted on the toner box 28 of the auxiliary developing device 14 due to its configuration. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 9, the cap 44 is formed such that a portion located inside the replenishing device main body 35 is formed to be long in a cylindrical shape, and the volume of the toner replenishing device main body 35 on the cap 44 side is reduced. I have. In such a case, since it is not necessary to provide the throttle unit 43 and the like by particularly processing the replenishing device main body 35, the cost can be reduced, and when the toner T is filled in the toner replenishing device main body 35, the cap 44 is used. Accordingly, there is a secondary effect that the filling rate of the toner T can be improved by pressing the toner T. Other configurations and operations are the same as those of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 10 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those of the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and described. In this embodiment, a developing device is In order to prevent the toner box of a developing unit from being erroneously supplied with toner used for another developing unit when toner is supplied to the developing unit, a toner replenishing device is formed so as to be attachable only to a specific developing unit. That is, as the auxiliary developing device 14 to which the toner supply device according to this embodiment is applied, a plurality of auxiliary developing devices using toners of different colors such as red and blue are prepared. The device 14 can be exchanged for use.

Accordingly, a toner replenishing device 34 for replenishing toner to the auxiliary developing device 14 is also prepared according to the type of the auxiliary developing device 14. These toner replenishing devices 34 have exactly the same appearance and differ only in the color of the toner contained therein. The color of the toner contained in the replenishing device 34 is, of course, To prevent the developer from being replenished to another developing device by mistake. However, since the toner replenishing device 34 has the same structure, the toner replenishing device 34 can be mounted on a developing device having a different color. A problem arises in that different toners are mixed and the developing device cannot be used.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the locking leg of the replenishing device 34 is mounted so that the toner replenishing device 34 can be attached only to a specific developing device.
As shown in FIG. 11, a groove 47 that engages with a projection 46 provided in the engagement groove 33 of the auxiliary developing device 14 is formed in a predetermined position in the 39. And the position of the protrusion 46 and the groove 47 is
Only the developing device 14 and the toner replenishing device 34 of the same color are provided at the same position.

By doing so, the toner replenishing device 34 containing the red toner if it is red can be mounted only on the auxiliary developing device 14 using the red toner. Can be prevented. Further, this can also be applied to the case where the toner supply device is prevented from being mounted on another type of developing device, and it is possible to prevent the image quality from deteriorating by supplying another type of toner. Other configurations and operations are the same as those of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[Effects of the Invention] The present invention has the above-described configuration and operation. When replenishing toner to the toner-supplied member, even when the replenishing device is installed at an angle, the toner overflows or separate members such as a spatula are removed. It is not necessary to use and level, and the toner can be supplied uniformly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a toner replenishing apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same, and FIG. 3 is III in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view showing the state of use of the toner replenishing device. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 4, and FIG.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state of use, FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing an auxiliary developing device, FIG. 8 is a configuration diagram showing an electrophotographic copying apparatus to which the toner replenishing device according to the present invention can be applied, and FIG. FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view of a use state showing another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing still another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the essential part, FIG. 12 and FIG. FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the conventional toner replenishing device is used, and FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which toner is replenished by the conventional toner replenishing device. [Explanation of Symbols] T toner 28 toner box 34 toner replenishing device 35 toner replenishing device main body 43 throttle portion (volume correcting portion)

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] When the toner is replenished, the replenishing device is mounted on a predetermined position of the toner replenishing member after the replenishing device is positioned at a predetermined position on the toner replenishing member by tilting the replenishing device main body downward with reference to one end thereof. In the toner replenishing device to be performed, the replenishing device main body is provided with a volume correcting section for reducing a volume on a lower side when positioning the replenishing member with respect to the toner-supplied member.