JP2975737B2 - Cleaning device for electrostatic recording device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning device provided in an electrostatic recording device such as an electronic copying machine or an optical printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an electrostatic recording apparatus generally used as a copying machine or an electrostatic printer, an image is recorded by a so-called Carlson image forming process. First, a photosensitive drum charged by a charging means is used. The surface is exposed to light by exposure means to form an electrostatic latent image. Subsequently, toner is attached to the electrostatic latent image by developing means to form a toner visible image (visible image). The image is transferred and fixed as a copy image on the recording paper by the transfer means. Thereafter, residues such as toner and paper dust remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum are removed by a cleaning device to prepare for the next formation of a new latent image.

Conventionally, this cleaning device includes, for example, a fur brush. This device includes a cleaning blade, a fur brush, a toner guide, and the like as cleaning members, which are pressed against the surface of the photosensitive drum. Then, residues such as toner and paper dust adhering to the drum surface are scraped off.

In such a cleaning system, the cleaning member needs to be periodically replaced with a new one as a consumable. In addition to these component replacements, it is often performed to remove some of the components of the cleaning device for maintenance or the like.

[0005]

However, with such a structure, there is a possibility that the toner guide may be damaged when attaching or detaching the component parts. In particular, since the positional relationship between the fur brush and the toner guide can be configured only at a very difficult position in terms of structure, this tendency is stronger when the fur brush is attached or detached. If the copying operation is performed while the toner guide is damaged as described above, there is a problem that the toner drops on the copy image and causes contamination in the copying machine.

In this regard, in order to attach and detach the fur brush without damaging the photosensitive drum and the toner guide, it is conceivable to provide a special device such as a fur brush separation / contact mechanism. In such a configuration, the cleaning device itself becomes large, complicated, and expensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has a simple structure and can easily attach and detach components, particularly a fur brush, without damaging a toner guide. An object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning device for a recording device.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a cleaning apparatus according to the present invention comprises a fur brush and a cleaning blade for removing residual toner and the like on the surface of a photosensitive drum, and a fur brush and a cleaning blade. A toner guide for guiding the scraped toner and the like, and a pair of bearing members for supporting both ends of the fur brush are detachably mounted on the apparatus main body. The holding member is detachably mounted.

The two bearing members have the same structure with an engaging portion, and the holding member of the toner guide is provided with a pair of engaging portions to be fitted to the both engaging portions. The two bearing members are positioned and fixed by the engagement portions of the two being fitted into the engagement portions of the two bearing members, respectively.

[0010]

When assembling the cleaning device of the present invention, a pair of bearing members supporting both ends of the fur brush are formed.
In a state of being positioned on the apparatus main body, the holding members are attached to the engagement portions of the two bearing members while fitting the engagement members provided on the holding member of the toner guide into the engagement portions. Fix the bearing member.

Conversely, the fur brush can be easily removed from the apparatus main body by removing the holding member of the toner guide and releasing the fixed state of the two bearing members.
That is, the attachment and detachment of the fur brush can be performed with the toner guide removed in advance.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1 to 3 show a cleaning device for an electrostatic recording apparatus according to the present invention. The cleaning device 1 is specifically for a photosensitive drum 2 of a copying machine, and includes a fur brush 3 and a cleaning blade 4. And a toner guide 5 and the like as main parts.

The cleaning device 1 is integrated with the photosensitive drum 2 behind the transfer section of the photosensitive drum 2, and the photosensitive drum 2 is rotationally driven in the direction of arrow A at a fixed position of the copying machine main body. At the same time, the fur brush 3 is rotationally driven in a direction (arrow B direction) opposed thereto.

The fur brush 3 is for removing residual toner and the like on the surface 2 a of the photosensitive drum 2. It is provided for the purpose of, for example, extending the life of the blade 4. The fur brush 3
Both ends of the support shaft 3a are rotatably supported by the apparatus main body 7 via a pair of bearing members 6 and 6.

The bearing members 6 and 6 have the same structure made of a material having excellent wear resistance, so that the cost is reduced. These two bearing members 6, 6 are detachably mounted on the apparatus main body 7. That is, the portion 6a of the bearing hole of the bearing member 6 is projected to the rear side to be a positioning projection, and the positioning projection 6a is fitted into the positioning recess 7a of the apparatus main body 7. Also,
On the front side of the bearing member 6, an engagement projection 6b is provided to protrude forward.

The cleaning blade 4 is for scraping off residual toner and the like on the surface 2a of the photosensitive drum 2, and is made of an elastic material such as polyurethane rubber. The cleaning blade 4 is of a so-called leading cleaning type, is arranged in a counter direction with respect to the photosensitive drum 2, and is provided downstream of the fur brush 3 via a mounting bracket 8 via a mounting bracket 8.
It is fixed to.

The toner guide 5 guides the toner and the like scraped off by the fur brush 3 and the cleaning blade 4, and is adhered to a holding member 9 made of a metal plate bent in a substantially L-shape. Have been.

The holding member 9 is structured to be removably mounted on the bearing members 6, 6. That is, a pair of engagement recesses 1 are provided at both ends of the upright portion 9 a of the holding member 9.
Reference numerals 0 and 10 are provided, and these are fitted to the engaging projections 6b and 6b of the bearing members 6 and 6, respectively.

In the illustrated example, the engaging recesses 10, 10 of the holding member 9 are formed in a substantially U-shape with an open upper portion, and these are fitted into the engaging convex portions 6b, 6b from below. After the joining, the holding members 9 are fastened to the bearing members 6 and 6 by the fastening screws 11 and 11, and the bearing members 6 and 6 are positioned and fixed to the apparatus main body 7.

That is, in assembling the cleaning device 1, first, the bearing members 6, 6 are inserted through both ends of the support shaft 3a of the fur brush 3, and then the both bearing members 6, 6 are attached to the device main body 7. Are positioned and supported in the positioning recesses 7a, 7a. Subsequently, these two bearing members 6,
The axial positioning of the bearing members 6, 6 is completed by fitting the engaging concave portions 10, 10 of the holding member 9 of the toner guide 5 into the engaging portion engaging convex portions 6b, 6b. Finally, these bearing members 6, 6 are tightened by tightening screws 11, 11.
The assembly is completed by tightening and fixing the holding member 6 and the holding member 9.

In the copier equipped with the cleaning device 1 constructed as described above, first, the exposure means (electrostatic latent image forming means) is applied to the surface 2a of the photosensitive drum 2 charged by the charging means. To form an electrostatic latent image, and toner is adhered to the electrostatic latent image by a developing unit to form a toner visible image (visible image). After the development, the toner visible image is electrostatically transferred and fixed as a copy image on transfer paper fed from a paper feeding device by a transfer unit.
In the transfer section, a transfer charger for performing corona discharge is provided, and a charger for similarly performing corona discharge is provided adjacent to the transfer charger. The separated transfer paper is sent to a transport belt.

On the other hand, after the completion of the transfer operation, the cleaning device 1 disposed behind the transfer portion completely removes the residue such as toner and paper dust remaining on the surface 2a of the photosensitive drum 2. This prepares for the next new latent image formation.

By the way, in the cleaning device 1, the fur brush 3, the cleaning blade 4, and the toner guide 5, which are the cleaning members, need to be periodically replaced with new ones by repeating the image forming process. is there. In addition to these parts replacement, it is necessary to remove some of the components for the purpose of maintenance of the apparatus and the like.

In this case, the work of attaching and detaching these components is
As described below, the operation is performed with the toner guide 5 removed.

That is, for example, to remove the fur brush 3, first remove the two tightening screws 11, 11, and
The holding member 9 of the toner guide 5 is separated from the bearing members 6 and 6, and the toner guide 5 is removed. At the same time, the bearings 6 and 6 are released from their fixed state. Therefore, the bearings 6 and 6 are separated in the axial direction of the fur brush 3 and removed from the positioning recesses 7a and 7a, so that the fur brush 3 is removed from the apparatus main body 7 It can be easily removed from. As described above, the fur brush 3 can be easily mounted in the completely reverse procedure.

[0026]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention,
A pair of bearing members supporting both ends of the fur brush are detachably mounted on the cleaning device main body, and the holding member of the toner guide is detachably mounted on both bearing members. This is performed in a state where the toner guide is removed in advance.

Therefore, even though the positional relationship between the fur brush and the toner guide is very complicated, the fur brush can be easily attached and detached without damaging the toner guide, and the copied image can be easily copied. Of toner and contamination in the copying machine can be effectively prevented.

Furthermore, by assigning priorities to the attachment and detachment of the constituent members, manual attachment and detachment work can be achieved, and improvement in work efficiency can be expected.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a cleaning device of a copying machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a state where a toner guide and a fur brush are removed from the cleaning device.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a partial cross section showing an assembled state of the cleaning device and a photosensitive drum.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cleaning device 2 Photoreceptor drum 2a Photoreceptor drum surface 3 Fur brush 4 Cleaning blade 5 Toner guide 6 Bearing member 6b Engagement convex part (engagement part) 7 Device main body 7a Positioning concave part 9 Holding member 10 Engaging concave part (engagement) Part) 11 Tightening screw

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cleaning device comprising: a fur brush and a cleaning blade for removing residual toner and the like on the surface of a photosensitive drum; and a toner guide for guiding toner and the like scraped off by the fur brush and the cleaning blade. And in the device body,
A cleaning device for an electrostatic recording apparatus, wherein a pair of bearing members that support both ends of the fur brush are detachably mounted, and a holding member for the toner guide is detachably mounted on both bearing members. .