JP2862284B2 - Developing device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Purpose of the Invention] (Prior Art) The present invention relates to a developing device adopting a toner cartridge exchange system in an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

(Prior Art) An electrophotographic recording apparatus used for a copying machine, a facsimile machine, a laser printer, and the like is provided with a charging device, an exposure device, a developing device, a transfer device, and a fixing device around a photosensitive drum in the rotation direction. The photosensitive drum is rotated, the surface of the drum is charged by the charging device, the surface of the drum is exposed by the exposing device to form a latent image, and then the toner is supplied to the drum surface by the developing device to develop the latent image. Then, a toner image on the drum surface is transferred to recording paper by a transfer device, and the toner image on the recording paper is fixed by a fixing device to perform recording.

The developing device provided in the electrophotographic recording apparatus stores toner inside the apparatus main body and supplies the toner from the apparatus main body to the photosensitive drum. Further, as the toner is used, the toner inside the apparatus main body decreases. In this case, toner is supplied inside the apparatus main body. As one method of supplying toner to the device main body of the developing device, a toner cartridge containing toner is loaded into the device main body, the toner is discharged from the toner cartridge and supplied into the device main body, and the inside of the device main body becomes empty. In such a case, the used toner cartridge is detached from the apparatus main body, and an unused toner cartridge is loaded into the apparatus main body.

The developing device employing the toner cartridge exchange system has the following configuration. The apparatus main body has a toner receiving port on the upper surface, and the toner cartridge has a toner discharging port on the lower surface. The toner outlet of the toner cartridge is sealed with a sealing tape so that the toner contained in the toner cartridge does not spill from the toner outlet. Then, the toner cartridge is loaded into the apparatus main body with the toner discharge port aligned with the toner receiving port, the end of the seal tape is pulled, and the seal tape adhered to the toner cartridge is sequentially peeled off to separate the toner cartridge from the apparatus body. The toner cartridge is pulled out to the outside from the gap therebetween to open the toner discharge port of the toner cartridge. The toner contained in the toner cartridge is discharged from the toner discharge port and supplied to the inside of the apparatus main body through the toner receiving port. When the toner inside the apparatus main body becomes insufficient and replenishment is necessary, the used toner cartridge loaded in the apparatus main body is removed, and a new unused toner cartridge is mounted in the apparatus main body.

As described above, according to the toner cartridge replacement method, the toner contained in the toner cartridge can be replenished into the apparatus main body without spilling to the outside, and there is an advantage that the toner replenishment operation is performed without causing contamination due to scattering of the toner. is there.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) As described above, in the developing device employing the conventional toner cartridge replacement method, when the toner cartridge is replaced, the toner spills out of the toner cartridge to the outside when the toner cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body. There is a problem that you may get out.

That is, the toner outlet of the toner cartridge is sealed with a seal tape to prevent the toner contained in the toner cartridge from spilling out of the toner outlet. Then, when an unused toner cartridge is loaded in the apparatus main body, the seal tape is peeled off from the toner cartridge to release the toner from the toner cartridge, and the toner discharge port is opened. As a result, the toner is discharged from the toner discharge port of the toner cartridge.
At this time, the toner cartridge discharges the toner and the inside becomes empty, but the toner adheres to the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge and remains without being discharged. However, when the used toner cartridge is replaced, the toner cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body with the toner discharge port opened. Therefore, when the toner cartridge loaded in the apparatus main body is removed from the apparatus main body, the toner adhering to the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge is separated from the inner wall surface due to the vibration, and the toner is discharged from the opened toner discharge port to the outside. Spill out. There is a problem that toner spills out and falls inside or outside the electrophotographic recording apparatus provided with the developing device and becomes dirty, or adheres to an operator and becomes dirty.

The present invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and can prevent toner from spilling out of a toner cartridge when a used toner cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body. To provide a developing device with improved airtightness.

[Constitution of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, a developing device of the present invention has a toner receiving port, and stores a toner received from the toner receiving port and supplies the toner to a photoreceptor. A toner cartridge that has a toner discharge port and discharges the toner that is removably loaded into the apparatus main body and is filled therein from the toner discharge port through the toner receiving port of the apparatus main body to the inside of the apparatus main body; A cover for receiving the toner cartridge detached from the apparatus main body when removing the toner cartridge loaded in the apparatus main body from the apparatus main body, and sealing the toner discharge port of the toner cartridge; the apparatus main body; and the apparatus main body A mechanism for mutually locking the toner cartridges loaded in the cover, and the lock provided on the cover. Means for releasing the lock by the mechanism for performing the operation, a gasket provided over the entire length of the toner cartridge loading portion in the apparatus main body, on which the toner cartridge loaded on the apparatus main body is mounted, and the toner cartridge provided on the toner cartridge. The present invention is characterized in that it has a knob for pulling out the toner cartridge, which is rotatable between a position for pressing the gasket and a position for releasing the pressing.

(Operation) When removing the toner cartridge loaded in the main unit from the main unit, place the cover in front of the toner cartridge removal direction with respect to the main unit, place the toner cartridge removed from the main unit on the cover, and place the toner cartridge on the cover as it is. By sealing the discharge port, the toner attached to the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge can be prevented from spilling out of the toner discharge port to the outside. In particular, if the toner cartridge is slidably mounted on the apparatus main body, the toner cartridge can be smoothly moved from the apparatus main body to the cover, and the toner can be more reliably prevented from spilling out.

By providing the unlocking means on the cover, the unlocking means for the cover can be inserted into the locking mechanism between the apparatus main body and the toner cartridge to release the lock between them, and then the toner cartridge can be placed on the cover while being removed from the apparatus main body. Work becomes more convenient.

Further, when the toner cartridge is loaded into the apparatus main body, the toner cartridge is placed on a gasket provided on the apparatus main body, and the pull-out knob provided on the toner cartridge is turned to a pressing position to press the toner cartridge onto the gasket, whereby the toner cartridge is pressed. And the device main body can be reliably ensured to improve the sealing performance.

(Examples) Hereinafter, examples of the present invention shown in the drawings will be described.

1 to 7 show an embodiment of the developing device of the present invention. This embodiment is directed to a developing device of a type in which a toner cartridge having a toner discharge port formed on a lower surface thereof is slidably mounted on an upper surface of an apparatus main body having a toner receiving port formed thereon. The developing device is provided in the electrophotographic recording device.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an apparatus main body of a developing device, 2 denotes a toner cartridge, and 3 denotes a cover, all of which are formed of synthetic resin.

The apparatus main body 1 has a horizontally long hopper shape as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 5, and has a horizontally long toner receiving port 4 formed on an upper surface thereof, and both side edges of the toner receiving port 4 are formed. Are formed with horizontal guide rails 5 along the length direction to slidably support the toner cartridge. A guide rail 5 is provided at one end of the upper surface of the apparatus body 1.
5, a toner cartridge insertion / removal opening is formed, and a stopper 5b connected to the guide rails 5, 5 is formed at the other end. A toner supply port (not shown) is formed on the lower surface of the apparatus main body 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, the toner cartridge 2 has a horizontally long case shape, and has a horizontally long toner discharge port 6 formed on the lower surface thereof. Flanges 7, 7 are formed along the direction. The inside of the toner cartridge 2 is filled with toner,
The toner discharge port 4 is covered with a seal tape 8 adhered to the lower surface of the toner cartridge 2. Therefore, the toner filled in the toner cartridge 2 does not spill outside. The sealing tape 8 has a length that is at least twice the length of the toner discharge port 6 of the toner cartridge 2, and a portion that is not adhered to the lower surface of the toner cartridge 2 is folded back at the other end of the toner cartridge 2 and adhered. The toner cartridge 2 overlaps the outside of the portion that has been formed, and projects outward from one end of the toner cartridge 2. The end of the portion where the seal tape 8 is not adhered is adhered to a knob 9 provided at one end of the toner cartridge 2.

The apparatus main body 1 and the toner cartridge 2 are provided with a lock mechanism having the configuration shown in FIGS. A widened portion 5a is formed on one of the guide rails 5 at the toner cartridge insertion opening of the apparatus main body 1, and a projection 10 is formed inside the widened portion 5a. At one end of the toner cartridge 2, an inclined member 11 that is inclined outward is formed on one flange 7, and a concave portion 12 and a projection 13 are formed outside the inclined portion 11 in a line.

The cover 3 is formed of an elongated plate having the same length and width to receive the toner cartridge 2 as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and has flanges 7 of the toner cartridge 2 on both side edges. Guide rails 14, 14 having a hook-shaped cross section for supporting the slidably are formed along the length direction. One guide rail of cover 3
At one end of 14, a release member 15 in the form of a piece for releasing the lock between the apparatus main body 1 and the toner cartridge 2 by the above-mentioned lock mechanism is formed by turning outward to have elasticity. A stopper 16 is formed at the other end of the cover 3. The release member 15 may be formed by folding back toward the inside of the guide rail 5.

The operation of the thus-configured developing device will be described.

First, the toner cartridge 2 is loaded into the apparatus main body 1. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the orientation is set with the other end of the toner cartridge 2 facing forward. And
The toner cartridge 2 is mounted on the upper surface of the apparatus main body 1 from the toner cartridge insertion / removal opening of the apparatus main body 1 by combining the flanges 7 with the guide rails 5, 5.
Slide along the 5 toward the other end of the device body 1.
The other end of the toner cartridge 2 is the stopper 5b of the apparatus main body 1.
When the slide of the toner cartridge 2 is stopped at the time of collision, the toner discharge port 6 of the toner cartridge 2 matches the toner receiving port 4 of the apparatus main body 1. Then, the toner cartridge 2 slides and one end thereof is
When the guide rails 5, 5 reach the toner cartridge insertion opening, the inclined member 11 of the toner cartridge 2 comes into contact with the protrusion 7 of the guide rail widening portion 5a of the apparatus main body 1 by elastic force,
The projection 7 is engaged with the concave portion 12 of the inclined member 11. As a result, the toner cartridge 2 is prevented from sliding and is fixed to the apparatus main body 1.

Next, the end of the seal tape 8 is peeled off from the knob 9 and pulled outward, so that the non-adhesive portion of the seal tape 8 is removed from the inside of the apparatus main body 1 with the toner cartridge 2 and the apparatus main body 1.
And pull it out through the gap. Subsequently, the portion of the seal tape 8 adhered to the lower surface of the toner cartridge 2 is sequentially peeled from the toner cartridge 2 and pulled out of the apparatus main body 1. As a result, the entire toner discharge port 6 of the toner cartridge 1 is opened, and the toner filled in the toner cartridge 2
Is discharged into the apparatus main body 1 through the toner receiving port 4 of the apparatus main body 1.

Then, the toner supplied to the inside of the apparatus main body 1 is supplied to the photosensitive drum from the toner supply port of the apparatus main body 1.
When toner inside the apparatus main body 1 is reduced due to supply to the photoreceptor and replenishment is required, the used toner cartridge 1 loaded in the apparatus main body 1 is removed from the apparatus main body 1 and unused. A new toner cartridge 2 is newly loaded. As shown in FIG. 1, the cover 3 is arranged along the length direction of the toner receiving port 4 on the upper surface of the apparatus main body 1 outside the toner cartridge opening. In this case, the direction of the cover 3 is set such that the release member 15 faces the toner cartridge insertion opening of the apparatus main body 1. Then, the cover 3 is moved toward the apparatus main body 1 as shown in FIG. 6, and the release member 15 is moved to the projection 10 on the apparatus main body 1 and the projection 13 on the inclined member 11 in the toner cartridge 2 as shown in FIG. Between the main body 1 and the toner cartridge 2 by releasing the inclined member 11 from the guide rail widening portion 5a. Here, the cover 3 is in a state of being connected to the toner cartridge opening of the apparatus main body 1. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the user holds the knob 9 and pulls the toner cartridge 2 outward from the toner cartridge insertion opening of the apparatus main body 2. The toner cartridge 2 pulled out from the toner cartridge insertion / removal opening of the apparatus main body 2 is placed on the cover 3 which is continuous with the toner cartridge insertion / removal opening. Then, the toner cartridge 2 is moved on the cover 3 until the knob 9 hits the stopper 16 of the cover 3. Thus, the cover 3 receives the toner cartridge 2 and covers the entire surface of the toner discharge port 6 of the toner cartridge 2. The cover 3 is held on the toner cartridge 2 by the engagement between the guide rails 14 and the flanges 7.

In this way, the toner cartridge 3 can be
When the toner cartridge 3 is removed from the toner cartridge 3, even if the toner remaining on the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge 3 is separated from the inner wall surface, it is blocked by the cover 3 and does not fall out from the toner discharge port 6. For this reason, when the toner cartridge 3 is taken out of the apparatus main body 1, the toner attached to the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge 3 spills out of the toner discharge port 6 to the inside and outside of the electrophotographic recording apparatus provided with the developing device. And do not pollute the workers. Then, the used toner cartridge 2 and the cover 3 that have been taken out are carried to a disposal place and discarded. Also in this case, it is possible to prevent the toner from spilling out of the toner cartridge 2 and contaminating the surroundings.

Note that a structure in which a gasket is provided in the apparatus main body 1 and the gasket is pressed by the toner cartridge 2 using the knob 9 provided in the toner cartridge 2 when the toner cartridge 2 is loaded in the apparatus main body 1 can also be adopted. That is, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 5, 8, and 9, a gasket 17 such as a sponge is provided over the entire length of the toner cartridge loading portion on the upper surface of the apparatus main body 1, and the apparatus main body 1 is provided. The toner cartridge 2 to be loaded into the cartridge 1 is placed on the gasket 17. The knob 9 is rotatably provided on the toner cartridge 2. When the toner cartridge 2 is loaded into the apparatus main body 1, the knob 9 is turned upright and a part of the knob 9 is mounted on the guide rail 5 of the apparatus main body 1. The toner cartridge 2 is configured to be pressed downward by contacting the formed holding piece 5c. That is, the knob 9 for pulling out the toner cartridge is provided on the toner cartridge 2 so as to be rotatable between a position where the toner cartridge 2 is pressed against the gasket 17 and a position where the pressing is released. As a result, the toner cartridge 2 pushed by the knob 9 is
17, the toner cartridge 2 and the apparatus main body 1 are pressed.
And the airtightness can be improved. Also,
In the figure, 5d is a pressing piece.

In the above-described embodiment, the toner cartridge is slidably mounted on the apparatus main body. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the toner cartridge may be mounted on the upper surface of the apparatus main body from above.

The configuration of the mechanism for locking the apparatus main body and the toner cartridge is not limited to the embodiment.

The configurations of the apparatus main body and the toner cartridge are not limited to the embodiments.

[Configuration of the Invention] As described above, according to the developing device of the present invention, when the used toner cartridge is removed from the apparatus main body, the toner discharge port of the toner cartridge is sealed with a cover. It is possible to prevent toner adhered to the inner surface from spilling to the outside and soiling the inside and outside of the electrophotographic recording apparatus provided with the developing device and workers.

Further, when the toner cartridge is loaded into the apparatus main body, the toner cartridge is placed on a gasket provided on the apparatus main body, and the pull-out knob provided on the toner cartridge is turned to the pressing position to press the toner cartridge against the gasket, whereby the toner cartridge is pressed. And the device main body can be reliably ensured to improve the sealing performance.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 and 2 are explanatory diagrams showing an operation of removing a toner cartridge from an apparatus main body, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a cover, and FIG. 4 is a toner cartridge. 5, FIG. 5 is a view showing the apparatus main body, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are explanatory views showing an operation of releasing the lock between the apparatus main body and the toner cartridge by a release member provided on the cover, FIGS. FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing a state where the toner cartridge is pressed against the apparatus main body. Reference numeral 1 denotes an apparatus main body, 2 denotes a toner cartridge, 3 denotes a cover, 4 denotes a toner receiving port, and 6 denotes a toner discharging port.

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G03G 15/08

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] An apparatus main body having a toner receiving port and storing toner received from the toner receiving port and supplying the toner to a photoreceptor; and a toner discharging port, which is detachably loaded in the apparatus main body and filled therein. A toner cartridge that discharges the discharged toner from the toner discharge port to the inside of the apparatus main body through the toner receiving port of the apparatus main body; and the toner cartridge that is removed from the apparatus main body when the toner cartridge loaded in the apparatus main body is removed from the apparatus main body. A cover for receiving the toner cartridge and sealing the toner discharge port of the toner cartridge, a mechanism for mutually locking the apparatus main body and the toner cartridge loaded in the apparatus main body, and the lock provided on the cover. Means for releasing the lock by the mechanism, and a toner cartridge in the apparatus main body. A gasket provided over the entire length of the loading portion and on which the toner cartridge to be loaded into the apparatus main body is mounted, and a position between a position provided on the toner cartridge for pressing the toner cartridge against the gasket and a position for releasing the pressing. A rotatable knob for pulling out the toner cartridge.