JP2934051B2 - Toner replenishing method and toner cartridge used therefor - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toner replenishing method for replenishing toner to a toner hopper of a developing device provided in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine , and a toner replenishing method.
Related to the cartridge .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Heretofore, as a toner replenishing device of this type, for example, one disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-34564 is known. In the apparatus disclosed in the above publication, a cartridge containing toner is detachably mounted in an opening provided at an upper portion of a hopper. Then, the toner contained in the cartridge is supplied into the hopper through a supply port provided in a lower part of the cartridge and a storage port provided in the opening of the hopper. At this time, in accordance with the opening operation of the shutter provided at the supply port of the cartridge, the leveling member projecting downward from the opening of the hopper is operated in the same direction as the moving direction of the shutter. Then, the toner supplied into the hopper is leveled by the leveling member. As above
After the hopper is refilled into the hopper, the cartridge
Is removed from the top of the hopper.

[0003]

However, in the conventional toner replenishing apparatus constructed as described above, the leveling member operates when the shutter is opened, that is, during the toner replenishing operation.
Only the shutter is moved substantially in conjunction with the shutter, and the leveling member is configured to cut off the swelling of the toner built up in the hopper by dropping from the cartridge and level the level. Can not get
If the toner is not evenly distributed in the
The amount of replenishment to the developing tank varies depending on the location, and this
There was a problem of leading to spots . After death Yatta has also completed the operation of open and leveling member, a situation that comes to large amounts of toner mass is falling toward from the cartridge with a time lag in the hopper, prone to mass fine
This is common with powder toners,
Cannot be solved by the above conventional technology
Was. Further, in the above-described conventional technique, the toner is replenished as described above.
The toner was replenished to perform leveling only during operation.
To perform the leveling operation later, check that the toner has passed
It is necessary to make the leveling member move.
The member is "put on the shutter and with it
It has to be a “moving” configuration. Therefore, the above
Even when the shutter is fully open, the leveling member
Unable to reach the right end, resulting in uneven leveling. this
In order to solve the problem, in the above-mentioned prior art, the smoothing operation is not performed.
At the final position, it is operated to kick up the leveling member,
We try to push the toner out strongly,
A new problem of toner scattering occurs.
In addition, no matter how the kick-up operation is performed,
It cannot be evenly leveled to the edge of the par. Accordingly, a first object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing device as described above,
After the completion , the toner can be scattered so that multiple operations can be performed.
To provide a belt Na <br/> over replenishing method can of be substantially homogenized mounding toner built in the hopper effectively Kirikuzushi without. It is a second object of the present invention to provide a toner cartridge that can be used when performing the above-described toner supply method .

[0004]

In order to achieve the first object, the main means employed by the present invention is, in summary, a toner cartridge containing toner.
At the top of the hopper with the toner leveling member inside.
Attach to the specified mounting position, and
Opening and closing means for opening and closing the supply port provided in
The toner in the toner cartridge into the hopper.
In toner supply method for supplying to said hopper top
The toe mounted at the disengagement position adjacent to the above mounting position
The cartridge in the disengaged position together with the leveling member.
Cartridge mounting process to move from the cartridge to the above mounting position
And position the toner cartridge in the mounting position
In this state, the opening / closing means is disengaged with the leveling member.
Position of the toner cartridge.
Open the replenishing port and remove the toner in the toner cartridge.
A toner replenishing process for replenishing the hopper and the toner
After the replenishment process, place the toner cartridge in the mounting position
The opening / closing means is connected to the leveling member with the
By moving both to the mounting position,
-Cartridge closure to close the cartridge supply port
And the toner cartridge together with the leveling member.
Move from the mounting position to the disengagement position, and
Cartridge that removes the cartridge from the top of the hopper
And a toner separation step.
It is a replenishment method . In order to achieve the second object, the main means adopted by the present invention is that the gist of the invention is to provide a leveling member for leveling the toner and a toner storage port formed upward. Opening / closing and opening / closing lid which is locked by a lock mechanism with the toner storage port closed while engaging and disengaging the upper part of the hopper when toner is supplied.
After being set at the top of the hopper at the position, move to the mounting position
The toner filled inside the main body at the mounting position
After the hopper has been refilled,
The toner cartridge which is moved to the disengagement position and detached from the upper part of the hopper at the disengagement position, has
And closing means for opening and closing the made toner supply port, the body under
Part or the opening / closing means, and the main body is
When it is in the disengaged position at the top of the hopper, the lock mechanism
A first projection which is engaged with the first projection to release the locked state ;
The opening / closing means is provided so that the main body is located above the hopper.
When it is in the disengaged position, it engages with the leveling member and
Movement between the disengagement position and the mounting position;
Reciprocating movement of the leveling member with the opening and closing operation of the opening and closing means
A second projection to be provided, and
Between the disengaged position of the main body and the mounted position.
And an engagement portion for opening and closing the opening and closing lid in accordance with the movement operation.
The toner cartridge characterized by comprising in Bei.

[0005]

[Action] In the toner replenishing method according to the above configuration, upon replenishment of toner, with the wear <br/> opening and closing operation of the de-operating and closing means to the hopper top of the cartridge, the toner replenishing
For toner falling from the cartridge after completion
Since also by leveling member Gado operation, upsurge of toner built in the hopper is substantially uniform is effectively Kirikuzusa. Further, in the toner cartridge according to the above configuration, when the main body is mounted on the hopper, the first projection is engaged with the lock mechanism to release the locked state, and the second projection is leveled. The leveling operation is allowed by engaging with the member, and the engaging portion is engaged with the opening / closing lid.
The toner cartridge from the disengagement position.
The opening / closing lid is opened by moving to the landing position. At this time,
Since the opening / closing means is not open, the toner
Do not fall from. The toner cartridge has reached the mounting position
Sometimes, the lid is completely open. Next, the opening / closing means moves in the opening direction.
And the toner in the cartridge is supplied to the hopper.
It is. At this time, since the leveling members are moved together,
A rough leveling action of the toner dropped on the par is performed. I
However, when the opening / closing means hits the fully open position,
Toner existing as a lump in the cartridge drops further
In some cases, a lump of toner may be formed in the hopper. Second
According to the invention, the opening / closing means is further closed thereafter,
As the leveling member moves from end to end of the hopper,
The toner that has fallen from the toner is leveled again. Opening and closing means completely
When closed, the entire toner cartridge moves to the loading / unloading position.
Be moved. At this time, the opening / closing lid is closed, but at the same time
The member moves from one end of the hopper to the other
The smoothing function is exhibited, and image unevenness is prevented. Furthermore this
In the invention, during the above process, the hopper always opens and closes,
Closed by lid and opening / closing means or cartridge
And the toner inside is not exposed at all.
Is prevented.

[0006]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings to provide an understanding of the present invention. The following embodiment is an example embodying the present invention and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention. Here, FIG. 1 shows a toner supply method according to one embodiment of the present invention.
External perspective view of a hopper which constitutes a toner supply device capable of use, Figure 2 is a front sectional view in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a fragmentary plan view of FIG. 1, FIG. 4 is a side sectional view in FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is the FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of the cartridge constituting the toner replenishing device, FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of the cartridge, FIG. 7 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 2 with the cartridge mounted on the hopper,
FIG. 8 is a plan view of a main part in FIG. 7, FIG. 9 shows a leveling member according to another embodiment that can be mounted on the hopper, (A) is a plan view, and (B) is (A). A-A 'in
(C) is a front view in (A), (D) is a cross-sectional view in BB ′ arrow in (A), and FIGS. 10 to 14 are operating procedures for attaching and detaching the cartridge to and from the hopper. 15, FIG. 15 is a partial plan view taken along the arrow C in FIG. 10, FIG. 16 is an exploded view showing the configuration of the portion taken along the arrow D in FIG. 10, and FIG. It is explanatory drawing in the state which decomposed | disassembled the structure.

By applying the toner supply method according to this embodiment ,
As shown in FIG. 2, the toner supply device is a hopper 3 of a developing device 2 which is provided close to the surface of the photosensitive drum 1.
And a cartridge 4 (see FIG. 5) that contains toner and is detachably mounted on the upper part of the hopper 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the developing device 2 includes a mixing roller 6, a stirring paddle 7, a developing sleeve 8, a cutting plate 9, a partition plate 10 and the like inside the developing housing 5. A hopper housing 11 that constitutes the hopper 3 is provided at an upper portion of the hopper 3. Inside the hopper housing 11, a plurality of toner feeding members 12, 13, 14 and a toner replenishing roller 15 are provided.
And so on. In the cartridge 4, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, a shutter 18 (open / close) for opening / closing a toner supply port 17 opened at a lower portion of the cartridge body 16 is provided.
Corresponds to a unit) is, arrow comprises a handle 18 _{a 19 a,} 1
9 It is provided so as to be slidable in the direction _b . Shutter 1
A pair of projections 20, 20 ( an example of a second projection) is provided on both sides of the closed-side end portion 8 so as to project downward. The protrusions 20 are engaged with a leveling member described later, and operate the leveling member in accordance with the operation of attaching and detaching the cartridge 4 to and from the hopper 3 and the operation of opening and closing the shutter 18. A set of projections 2 is provided on the lower surface side of the cartridge body 16 and adjacent to the supply port 17.
1, 21 (an example of a first projection) are provided to project downward. The projection 21 has an operation of unlocking a later-described opening / closing lid of the hopper 3 and opening the opening / closing lid with the mounting operation of the cartridge 4. In the hopper 3, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, an opening 22 is formed in an upper portion of the hopper housing 11, and a storage port 23 for storing the toner in the cartridge 4 is opened in the opening 22. Have been.

A pair of rails 24, 24 formed substantially in an L-shape in cross section are provided on both longitudinal sides of the opening 22.
(See FIG. 4) is disposed so as to face each other, the rail 24 and 24, above the lid 25 for opening and closing the housing opening 23 is slidable in the arrow 19 _a, 19 _b direction It is fitted in. A projecting portion 26 for positioning when the cartridge 4 is mounted on the hopper 3 is formed on one end side of the upper surface of the opening / closing lid 25, and the opening / closing lid 25 closes the accommodation port 23. When in the state, it is locked by a pair of hooks 27 at its closed end. The hooks 27 are formed of, for example, a leaf spring member, and can be elastically displaced in the vertical direction. When the cartridge 4 is mounted in the opening 22, the protrusions 21 and 21 of the cartridge 4 are used.
(See FIGS. 5, 6, and 15).
Of the hooks 27, 27
And the engaged portion 25 _a (FIG. 16 participants at the end of the lid 25
) Is released, and the opening / closing lid 25 is moved to an arrow _19b.
It becomes possible to move in the direction. In this state, the opening / closing lid 25 is opened by pushing the opening / closing lid 25 in the direction of arrow 19 _b by the projections 21 and 21. The rail 24, 24, as the shutter 18 may allow disengagement of only the projections 20, 21 by advancing input into the hopper 3 side the cartridge 4 when in the closed state with respect to the cartridge 4 , The cartridge 4
Is opened corresponding to the engagement / disengagement position (see FIG. 1) .
Parallel to the opening and closing direction of the shutter 18 (arrow 19 _a, 19 _b direction), toward the mounting position and receiving port 23 of the supply port 17 and the hopper 3 of the cartridge 4 from the disengaged position of the cartridge 4 are opposed, The cartridge 4
Is slidably guided in a state where it cannot be detached from the opening 22 of the hopper 3.

Below the rails 24, 24 (an example of cartridge guide means), a pair of rails 28, 28 (an example of leveling member guide means) are arranged in parallel with the rails 24, 24.
(See FIG. 2) is extended, and the above-mentioned leveling member 29 (see FIG. 7) is slidably fitted on the rails 28, 28. The leveling member 29 protrudes downward from the opening 22 (see FIG. 2), and cuts and smoothes the swelling of the toner that has fallen from the cartridge 4 and has been built in the hopper 3. Works. The figure
As shown in FIG. 10, the leveling member 29 includes the shutter
It is installed so that it is located at the lower part near the end of 18.
The end of the hopper 3 with the movement of the shutter 18
Can move from to the edge. The leveling member 2 9 have a opening 29 for the toner passage at its central portion a _(see FIG. 4), the upper
The opening operation of the shutter 18 causes the cartridge 4 to
Part of the toner which falls into the wrapper 3 has the opening 29 _a
pass. Further, the leveling member 29 is capable of positively flushing the toner which has been broken down toward the right side in FIG. 3 (toward the toner replenishing roller 15 in FIG. 2) where the popper 3 has a relatively large space during reciprocation. The two side surfaces in a direction substantially perpendicular to the moving direction are formed to be inclined such that the right side in the moving direction operates later than the left side. That is, it is formed in a shape that can efficiently guide the toner to the toner supply roller 15 side. This allows
The toner can be evenly distributed inside the hopper 3, and the toner can be prepared around the toner supply roller 15. Incidentally, the leveling member 29 is operable by engagement with projections 20 provided in the cartridge 4 as described above, the the homogeneous to member 29 and the protrusion 20, the cartridge 4 is the Engagement holes 29 _b , 29 _b for engagement with the projections 20 of the leveling member 29 so that the engagement can be performed only when the engagement position is in the disengagement position.
Is designed so that the rails 24, 24 are open at the positions off the ends of the rails 24 (FIGS. 1, 10).
reference).

In this case, a leveling member 30 as shown in FIG. 9 can be used instead of the leveling member 29 described above. In the leveling member 30, as shown in FIG.
Its central portion has an opening 30 _a of the toner passed through the both side surfaces of the substantially perpendicular direction with respect to the movement direction are formed in parallel with a predetermined angle inclined to each other in plan view. Therefore, when the swelling of the toner is broken down by using the leveling member 30, the pushing-out direction of the toner is reversed in the forward operation and the return operation, so that the toner can be leveled more effectively. Further, the opening 22 of the hopper 3 is provided with a regulating portion 31 which engages with a part of the leveling member 29 and regulates an operation range of the leveling member 29. The regulation part 31
Means that the cartridge 4 is engaged with the rails 24
In this state, the shutter 18 is
The above is set so that it does not move beyond the area corresponding to the accommodation port 23.
The action of regulating through the leveling member 29 is performed . The toner supply device according to the present embodiment is configured as described above.

Subsequently, according to FIGS. 10 to 17 , the mounting and dismounting of the cartridge 4 with respect to the hopper 3 , and
The procedure for replenishing the nut will be described. First, when the storage port 23 of the hopper 3 is closed by the opening / closing lid 25 and the opening / closing lid 25 is engaged with the hook 27, the cartridge 4 is engaged with the projections 20 and 21 and the engaging hole 29 of the leveling member 29. _b and the hook 27 are positioned so as to correspond to each other (FIG. 1).
0, see FIGS. 15 and 16), a recess formed at the end of the cartridge body 16 of the cartridge 4 (corresponding to the engagement portion).
Engaging an equivalent) to the projection 26 of the lid 25 for positioning
And push it down (see FIGS. 1, 11, and 1).
7). Thereby, the opening / closing lid 25 is connected to the hook 27.
Is released from the engagement with
The leveling member 29 can be moved together with the cartridge body 16 and the shutter 18. to this
The cartridge body 16 is now mounted at the disengagement position. By moving the cartridge body 16 in the arrow 19 _b direction in this state (see FIG. 12), the closing cover 2
With 5 is opened, the leveling member 29 is also an arrow 19 _b
(Corresponding to a cartridge mounting process).

[0012] Subsequently, the handle as shown in Figure 13 18 _a
Holding the by moving the shutter 18 to the arrow 19 _a direction of supply port 17 of the cartridge 4 is successively opened from the left side in FIG. Accordingly, the opening of the supply port 17 and the opening 2 of the leveling member 29 are directed from the cartridge body 16 toward the hopper housing 11.
9 toner to fall through _a, protrusion of sequential toner within the hopper housing 11 is gradually formed. A part thereof is leveled by the leveling member 29 which moves with the opening operation of the shutter 18 (toner).
Equivalent to the replenishment process) . This is the first smoothing operation.
As a result, the outline of the toner replenished in the hopper
A leveling operation is performed. This is the toner hopper housing
The replenishment operation into the ring 11 ends. As mentioned above
The leveling member 29 is located near the end of the shutter 18.
The leveling member 29 is located at the lower part,
The entire operation range of the printer 18, that is, the entire range of toner fall
Over the hopper 3
Thus, the leveling operation is performed without unevenness. When the shutter 18 is completely opened as shown in FIG. 14, the toner stored in the cartridge body 16 is completely moved into the hopper housing 11 by hitting the outer surface of the cartridge body 16 or the like. Let it fall. At this time,
The toner existing as a lump in the cartridge falls further,
May form toner clumps in the hopper. Conventional technology
In the surgery, the leveling operation is completed by the first leveling operation.
The hopper was supplied with such a time delay
No toner leveling operation was performed. However, the book
In the embodiment, in this state , that is, after the completion of the toner supply operation,
From state, by moving the shutter 18 to the arrow 19 _b direction, with supply port 17 of the cartridge body 16 is gradually closed, the hopper housing 1 at the leveling member 29 moves together with the shutter 18
The swelling of the toner in 1 is broken down and leveled (corresponding to a cartridge closing step) . This is the second time
Leveling operation, which is fed into the hopper with a time delay.
The leveling operation is performed again including the toner that has been removed. And
By replenishing port 17 of the cartridge body 16 moves in a state of being completely closed by the shutter 18 (see FIG. 12), the cartridge body 16 in the arrow 19 _a direction of receiving port 23 of the hopper 3 The cartridge body 4 is closed by an opening / closing lid 25 which is moved by the engagement between the concave portion formed at the lower portion of the cartridge body 16 and the projecting portion 26.
Reaches a position where it can be detached from the hopper 3 (see FIG. 11) (corresponding to a cartridge detaching step) . At this time, since the leveling member 29 is also moved with the movement of the cartridge 4, the hopper housing 1
The toner in 1 is evened out more effectively. This is three
This is the second leveling operation, so that the leveling operation is perfect.
It becomes That is, in the toner replenishing apparatus according to the present embodiment, as described above, when replenishing toner to the hopper 3, the leveling member is attached to and detached from the hopper 3 and the shutter 18 is opened and closed. 29 is allowed inevitably more operations (2 roundtrip), toner
-A rough leveling operation was performed by the movement accompanying the replenishment operation.
After that, after the toner replenishment operation, one round-trip smoothing operation is further performed.
Time delay after toner supply operation.
Thus, the swelling of the toner that has fallen and built up from the cartridge 4 into the hopper 3 including the toner that has fallen into the hopper 3 can be effectively cut and substantially uniformized. The leveling member 29 is located at the end of the shutter 18.
The leveling member 29 is located at the lower part
The entire operation range of the shutter 18, that is, the fall range of the toner
The entire hopper 3 can move over the entire enclosure.
The smoothing operation is performed evenly over the entire range. In this case, it raised top of the toner, in order to be leveled so as to be circulated rides the side of the leveling member 29 which moves through the opening 29 _a, it is possible to maintain the fluidity of the toner,
An effect of preventing toner from blocking inside the hopper 3 is also obtained. Further, the hopper 3 always has the opening / closing lid 25,
Closed by the printer 18 or the cartridge 4
And the toner kick-up operation as in the prior art described above.
Since the forced leveling operation is not performed, toner scattering
Can be prevented.

Further, in this embodiment, since the cartridge 4 can be attached to and detached from the hopper 3 only when the shutter 18 is closed with respect to the cartridge 4, the cartridge 4 is provided with a simple mechanical improvement. Can be prevented from leaking. In the above configuration, when the shutter 18 is in the open state,
It is moved to the arrow 19 _a direction along the cartridge body 16 as attempt to remove the cartridge 4 to the rail 24, 24 by mistake, restricting its movement in the regulating unit 31 through the shutter 18 is leveling member 29 Has been done,
When the cartridge body 16 reaches the disengageable position where the cartridge body 16 can be detached from the hopper 3, the supply port 17 of the cartridge 4 is necessarily closed by the shutter 18. As a result, the cartridge 4
Is removed, the refill port 17 of the cartridge 4 is removed.
Is always closed by the shutter 18.

[0014]

According to the present invention, as described above, the toner
Insert the contained toner cartridge inside the toner
To the specified mounting position on the upper part of the hopper with the material,
Open / close the supply port provided at the bottom of the toner cartridge
Opening and closing means for opening and closing the toner cartridge
Replenishing method for replenishing toner inside the hopper
At a position adjacent to the mounting position above the hopper
Insert the toner cartridge attached to the
Move from the disengagement position to the mounting position with the leveling member
Cartridge mounting process, and the toner cartridge
With the opening and closing means in the above-mentioned mounting position.
To be moved to the disengagement position side together with the leveling member.
Open the toner cartridge replenishing port, and
Toner that replenishes the toner in the cartridge into the hopper
After the toner supply step and the toner supply step, the toner
-With the cartridge in the mounting position above,
The opening / closing means is moved to the mounting position side together with the leveling member.
By doing so, the replenishment port of the toner cartridge
A cartridge closing step for closing and a toner cartridge
Disengagement from the mounting position with the leveling member
And place the toner cartridge in the hopper
Cartridge removal process to be removed from the top of the
It since toner replenishment method comprising comprising Te, Ho
When supplying toner to the hopper,
Attaching / detaching operation to the hopper and opening / closing operation of the opening / closing means
Inevitably causes the smoothing member to move multiple times (two reciprocations)
Movement due to the toner supply operation
After performing the toner replenishment operation, one round trip
Is performed after the toner supply operation.
Including the toner dropped into the hopper 3
Toner built by falling into hopper 3 from cartridge 4
To effectively break down the swelling of the water and make it almost uniform
Can be. The leveling member is provided with an end of the opening / closing means.
Since it is installed in the lower part, the leveling member is
Over the entire operating range of the step, i.e.
To move the hopper.
A smoothing operation is performed. In addition, the hopper is always opened and closed,
Closed by a closing means or cartridge,
In addition, such as the toner kick-up operation as in the above prior art,
Prevents toner from scattering because no forcing operation is performed
can do. The toner cartridge that can be mounted on the toner replenishing device includes a leveling member for leveling toner, and a toner container opening formed upward, which is opened and closed.
-Moved to the mounting position via the engaging / disengaging position on the upper part of the hopper only when toner is supplied to the hopper that has an open / close lid that is locked by the lock mechanism with the storage port closed.
And the toner charged inside the main body is
After replenishment, it is moved from the mounting position to the disengagement position.
Then, in the toner cartridge that is detached from the upper part of the hopper, the toner
Opening / closing means for opening and closing the mouth, and the lower part of the main body or the above opening / closing
Means, the main body is engaged and disengaged at the top of the hopper
The lock mechanism engages with the lock mechanism when
A first projection for releasing the state, and a first projection provided on the opening / closing means.
And the main body is located at the disengaged position above the hopper.
At the same time, engages with the leveling member, and
Movement to and from the mounting position and opening and closing of the opening and closing means
A second projection for reciprocating the leveling member according to the operation
Is provided at the lower part of the main body and engages with the open / close lid.
Along with the movement operation between the disengagement position and the mounting position,
Since the opening and closing lid is provided with an engaging portion for opening and closing, the opening of the opening and closing means and the toner leveling operation by the leveling member can be easily performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a toner supply method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
External perspective view of a hopper which constitutes a toner supply device capable of use.

FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a main part in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of a cartridge constituting the toner supply device.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of the cartridge.

FIG. 7 is an equivalent view of FIG. 2 in a state where the cartridge is mounted on the hopper.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a main part in FIG. 7;

9A and 9B show a leveling member according to another embodiment which can be mounted on the hopper, wherein FIG. 9A is a plan view and FIG.
Is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA ′ in (A), and (C) is (A).
(D) is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ in (A).

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation procedure when attaching and detaching the cartridge to and from the hopper.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation procedure when attaching and detaching the cartridge to and from the hopper.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation procedure when attaching and detaching the cartridge to and from the hopper.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation procedure when attaching and detaching the cartridge to and from the hopper.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation procedure when attaching and detaching the cartridge to and from the hopper.

FIG. 15 is a partial plan view as seen from the arrow C in FIG. 10;

FIG. 16 is an explanatory view in a state where a configuration of a portion viewed from an arrow D in FIG. 10 is disassembled.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory view in a state where the configuration of a portion viewed from an arrow E in FIG. 11 is disassembled.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 ... Hopper 4 ... Cartridge 11 ... Hopper housing 16 ... Cartridge main body 17 ... Supply port 18 ... Shutter 20 ... Projection ( second projection ) 21 ... Projection (first projection) 22 ... Opening 23 ... Storage port 24 ... Rail (cartridge guiding means) 28 ... rail (leveling member guiding means) 25 ... cover 27 ... hook 29, 30 ... leveling member 29 _b, 29 b _... engagement hole 31 ... restricting portion

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Masahiro Sako 1-2-2, Tamazo, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi Inside Mita Kogyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shigeo Kurato 1-2-28, Tamazo, Chuo-ku, Osaka (72) Inventor Minoru Kishigami 1-2-2, Tamazo, Chuo-ku, Osaka City Mita Corporation (56) References JP-A-59-34564 (JP, A) 146158 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G03G 15/08 113

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A toner cartridge containing toner.
At the top of the hopper with the toner leveling member inside.
Attach to the specified mounting position, and
Opening and closing means for opening and closing the supply port provided in
The toner in the toner cartridge into the hopper.
In the method of replenishing toner, the upper part of the hopper is moved to a disengagement position adjacent to the mounting position.
The mounted toner cartridge is combined with the leveling member.
Cars that move from the disengagement position to the mounting position
The cartridge mounting process and the state where the toner cartridge is positioned at the mounting position.
In this state, the opening / closing means is moved together with the leveling member in the engagement / disengagement position.
To replenish the toner cartridge
Open the mouth and let the toner in the toner cartridge
A toner replenishing step for replenishing into the wrapper, after the toner supply step is completed, the toner cartridge
With the opening / closing means in the above-mentioned mounting position,
By moving to the mounting position side with the leveling member
Cart that closes the toner cartridge supply port
Ridge closing step and mounting the toner cartridge together with the leveling member
From the position to the disengagement position, and
Cartridge for removing the ridge from the top of the hopper
Toner replenishment characterized by comprising a releasing step
Method. 2. A leveling member for leveling a toner, and an upwardly forming member.
Opening and closing the toner receiving port, with respect to the hopper comprising a lid which is locked by the locking mechanism in a state of closing the toner receiving port, the hopper upper during toner replenishment
Is set at the upper part of the hopper at the disengagement position of
And the toner filled in the main body at the mounting position.
After the hopper has been replenished into the hopper,
Moved to the disengagement position, and on the hopper in the disengagement position
Opening / closing means for opening / closing a toner supply port formed in a lower part of the main body of the toner cartridge detached from the unit
And provided at the lower part of the main body or at the opening / closing means.
When the lock is in the disengaged position above the hopper,
1st projection which engages with the locking mechanism and releases the locked state
And the opening / closing means, wherein the main body is located above the hopper.
When it is in the disengaged position of the
Movement between the disengagement position and the mounting position of
The leveling member is reciprocated with the opening / closing operation of the opening / closing means.
A second projection to be formed, provided at a lower portion of the main body, engaged with the opening / closing lid, and
With the movement between the disengagement position and the mounting position,
And an engagement portion for opening and closing the opening / closing lid.
Toner cartridge.