JP3004519B2 - Waste toner and developer collection device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electrophotographic apparatus such as a copying machine for visualizing an electrostatic latent image on the surface of a photoreceptor by a developing device containing a two-component developer comprising a toner and a carrier. The present invention relates to a waste toner and a waste developer collecting device for collecting a toner remaining on a body and a two-component developer discharged from a developing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a dry copying machine, a developing device for visualizing (developing) an electrostatic latent image on a photoreceptor surface with a two-component developer comprising a carrier and a toner is often used. In such a developing device, the toner is consumed by the developing operation, while the carrier is not consumed and remains in the developing device. Therefore, as the stirring frequency of the carrier stirred with the toner in the developing device increases,
A situation such as peeling of the resin coat layer on the surface or sticking of the toner to the surface occurs to cause deterioration, and as a result, the charging performance of the developer gradually decreases.

Therefore, apart from replenishment of toner consumed by the developing operation, a device in which the carrier is replenished little by little into the developing device so as to suppress the deterioration of the charging performance is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-15991. It is disclosed in the gazette. In the apparatus, the developer in the developer tank that has become excessive due to the replenishment of the carrier overflows from a developer overflow port provided on the wall surface of the developer tank, is discharged, and is collected in a developer collection container. By repeating such supply and discharge sequentially, the deteriorated developer in the developing tank is
The toner and the carrier are newly supplied, whereby the charging performance is maintained and the deterioration of the copy image quality is suppressed.

In an electrophotographic apparatus such as a copying machine provided with the above-described developing device, for example, as shown in FIG. 9, a developer supply unit 120 supplies a two-component developer composed of toner and carrier to the developing device. The two-component developer (waste developer) composed of the toner and the carrier discharged from the developer 108 is conveyed by a waste developer conveyance path 108 a provided on the side wall of the developing device 108 and collected in the developer collection container 111. On the other hand, after the toner image formed on the photoconductor 104 charged by the charging charger 107 is transferred to paper, the toner (waste toner) remaining on the photoconductor 104 is removed by the cleaning device 110, and the waste toner is removed. The toner is conveyed by the conveyance path 110a and collected in the waste toner collecting container 112.

Further, as shown in FIG.
13a and a waste toner port 113b are formed, and a waste developer collecting section 113c for collecting waste developer from the waste developer port 113a and a waste toner collecting section 113d for collecting waste toner from the waste toner port 113b. Is provided with a disposal box 113 having

[0006]

However, since the waste toner contains a large amount of paper dust and filler which have fallen off from the end of the sheet during transfer in addition to the toner, the flowability of the waste toner is reduced by the developing device. Is smaller than the unused toner existing in the inside. Further, since the apparent specific gravity of the toner is much smaller than that of the carrier, it is necessary to discharge and collect the toner little by little in order to properly collect the toner in the collection container. From these facts, the waste toner is removed little by little from the waste toner collection container 1.
12 or when collected by the waste toner collecting unit 113d,
Since the toner particles accumulate in a mountain shape, the inside of the container cannot be used effectively, and the collection efficiency of waste toner has been reduced.

Therefore, conventionally, in order to increase the amount of collected waste toner, it is necessary to increase the size of the waste toner collecting container 112 or the size of the waste toner collecting portion 113d of the waste box 113. A problem arises in that miniaturization of the device is prevented.

When the photosensitive member and the developing device are unitized, the size of the waste toner collecting container 112 and the developer collecting container 111 or the waste box 113 is determined according to the life of the photosensitive member. In such a case, if the apparatus is downsized, the waste toner collecting container 112 and the developer collecting container 111 or the waste box 113
Therefore, each collection container or the like becomes full of waste toner and waste developer in a short period of time, and the unit needs to be replaced in a short period of time.

Therefore, the photoconductor and the developing device must be replaced while the life is still left. As a result, there is a problem that the lives of the photoconductor, the developing device and the developer are shortened. I have.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object to improve the efficiency of collecting waste developer and waste toner, to reduce the size of the apparatus, It is an object of the present invention to provide a waste toner and a waste developer collecting device capable of extending the life of a developer.

[0011]

[0012]

Means for Solving the Problems] waste toner and the waste developer collecting apparatus comprising: a developing tank for containing a developer comprising a carrier and a toner, the carrier developer containing the carrier to the developer tank Waste toner and waste developer collected in the same collection container to collect waste toner discharged from a developing device provided with a developer replenishing unit for sequentially replenishing toner and residual toner on the surface of a photoreceptor collected by a cleaning device In the apparatus, a waste developer transport path including a waste developer transport unit that transports the waste developer to the recovery container, and a waste toner transport path including a waste toner transport unit that transports the waste toner to the recovery container A waste developer discharged from a waste developer discharge port formed in the waste developer transport path and a waste toner discharged from a waste toner discharge port formed in the waste toner transport path There is recovered from the same loading port provided in an upper portion of the collection container, the waste developer outlet,
It is characterized in that it is formed above the waste toner discharge port.

Further, the waste toner and the waste developer collecting device according to claim 2, wherein, in the waste toner and the waste developer collecting device according to claim 1, in the waste developer outlet, the waste developer outlet An open / close lid is provided to open and close the lid, and the open / close lid is opened when the weight of the waste developer conveyed on the open / close lid becomes a predetermined value or more.

Further, according to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a waste toner and waste developer collecting device comprising a carrier and a toner.
And a carrier containing the developer.
And a developer replenishing section for sequentially replenishing the carrier developer.
Waste developer discharged from the developing device
The remaining toner on the photoreceptor surface
In the waste toner and waste developer collection device collected in the container , the waste developer is transported to the collection container.
Waste developer conveying path provided with an image agent conveying means, and the waste toner
Waste toner transport means for transporting waste toner to the collection container
And a toner conveying path, which is formed in the waste developer conveying path.
Waste developer discharged from the waste developer discharge port
Discharged from the waste toner discharge port formed in the toner conveying path
The waste toner is the same as the one provided at the top of the collection container.
The waste developer transport path and the waste toner transport path collected from the carry-in port are provided on the same straight line, and the waste developer transport means and the waste toner transport means are formed as one transport means, and the waste developer discharge port and the waste toner discharge port and is formed as a single outlet, the discharge
The peripheral edge of the waste developer transport side at the exit stores waste developer in the collection container.
Make sure that the waste toner falls on the collected waste toner.
It is characterized in that it is provided to be inclined on the side of the transport side periphery .

[0015]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the waste developer and the waste toner can be dropped to substantially the same position in the collection container, so that the waste toner accumulated in the collection container according to the number of copies. The waste developer can be dropped from above.
This makes it possible to destroy the mountain of waste toner formed by waste toner containing paper powder or the like and having reduced fluidity by the waste developer. Therefore, the collection efficiency of the waste toner and the waste developer in the collection container can be improved, and the collection amount of the waste toner and the waste developer in the collection container having the same volume can be improved.

As a result, the size of the collecting container can be reduced, so that the size of an electrophotographic apparatus such as a copying machine having a waste toner and waste developer collecting device can be reduced.

Further, since the waste toner and the waste developer can be sufficiently collected even if the size of the collection container is small, when the photosensitive member and the developing device are unitized, the life of the photosensitive member and the developing device depends on the unit. The entire device can be made compact. As a result, it is possible to extend the life of the photoconductor, the developing device, and the developer.

According to the above construction, the waste developer discharge port is formed above the waste toner discharge port, so that the waste developer is transferred to the collection container together with the waste toner near the waste toner discharge port. Can be recovered. Accordingly, the waste toner attached to the waste toner transport path and the waste toner transport unit can be discharged to the collection container while being scraped off by the waste developer including the carrier having a large fluidity and a specific gravity larger than the toner. . Therefore, the cleaning effect on the waste toner conveying path and the waste toner discharge port can be improved, and the efficiency of collecting the waste toner and the waste developer into the collection container can be improved.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the operation of the first aspect , the weight of the waste developer conveyed to the waste developer outlet is a predetermined value. By providing the opening / closing lid that opens when the above occurs, it is possible to collectively discharge a predetermined amount of waste developer from above the waste toner discharge port. Thus, the waste toner collected in the collection container and accumulated in a mountain shape can be broken, so that the waste toner and the waste developer can be efficiently collected in the collection container, and the collection efficiency can be improved. .

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, the waste developer conveying means and the waste toner conveying means are formed by one conveying means, and the waste developer discharge port and the waste toner discharge port are formed by one discharge port. As a result, the structures of the conveying means and the conveying path can be simplified. Moreover, the outlet
The peripheral edge of the waste developer transport side collects the waste developer into the collection container.
Transfer side of the waste toner so that it falls on the waste toner
By being inclined on the peripheral edge side, the inside of the collection container
More accurately drop the waste developer near the top of the waste toner
Can be lowered. Thus, with a simple configuration, the peak of the waste toner formed by the waste toner can be more accurately broken by the waste developer. As a result,
Improved collection efficiency of waste toner and developer in the collection container
Can be made.

[0021]

【Example】

[Embodiment 1] FIGS. 1 to 5 show an embodiment of the present invention.
This will be described below.

As shown in FIG. 2, a copying machine constituted by applying the waste toner and waste developer collecting apparatus of the present invention includes:
An original mounting table 1 is provided on the upper surface, and an exposure optical system 2 is provided below the original mounting table 1. This exposure optical system 2
Is a light source lamp 3 that scans a document (not shown) placed on the document table 1 while irradiating the document with light, a plurality of reflecting mirrors 5 for guiding reflected light from the document to the photoreceptor 4, and a reflector. It comprises a lens unit 6 disposed in the optical path of light.

On the outer periphery of the photoconductor 4, a charging charger 7 for charging the surface to a predetermined potential, an inter-image eraser (not shown), and a developing device for developing an electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photoconductor 4 8, a transfer charger 9 for transferring the toner image on the surface of the photoconductor 4 to paper, a cleaning device 10 for collecting residual toner on the surface of the photoconductor 4, and a static eliminator (not shown)
Etc. are provided. A timing roller 11, a feeding roller 12, a paper feed cassette 13, and a paper feed roller 14 for supplying paper at a predetermined timing are provided on the paper input side with respect to the photoreceptor 4, while the timing output roller 11 supplies paper with predetermined timing. Is provided with a fixing device 15 for fixing the toner image transferred onto the sheet to the sheet.

FIG. 1 shows a waste toner and waste developer collecting device.
As shown in, the waste developer conveying path 26 for conveying the waste developer discharged from the developing device 8, the waste toner conveyance path 29 for conveying the waste toner issued discharged from the cleaning device 10
And a collection container 27 for collecting waste developer and waste toner.

The developing device 8 has a container-shaped developing tank 16, in which a developing roller 17 composed of a magnet roller and a stirring roller 18 are rotatably arranged. . The developer contained in the developing tank 16 is composed of a carrier and a toner, and the carrier made of a magnetic material has a resin coating layer on its surface for suppressing the adhesion of the toner. When the carrier and the toner are stirred by the stirring roller 18, the toner is charged by friction.
The developing roller 17 attracts the carrier by magnetic force, forms a magnetic brush, and conveys the toner. The toner adhered to the carrier by Coulomb force is supplied to the photoconductor 4 and is attracted to the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor 4. Then, development is performed.

An opening 16c for supplying a developer is formed in an upper wall portion 16a of the developing tank 16, and the opening 16c for supplying the developer is formed.
A developer supply unit (developer replenishing unit) 20 is fitted to c from above. Further, transport rollers 19 for transporting the developer supplied from the developer supply unit 20 to the stirring roller 18 and the developing roller 17 side of the developing tank 16 are provided below the supply opening 16c. .

The developer supply unit 20 contains a two-component developer (hereinafter, simply referred to as a developer) in which a carrier is mixed with toner at a predetermined ratio, and is provided below the developer supply unit 20. The developer flows down and is supplied into the developing tank 16 according to the driving time of the supplied developer supply roller 21.

On the other hand, on the side wall 16b of the developing tank 16, a waste developer collecting container 22 having a container shape with an open side surface is attached. A waste developer discharge opening 2 for connecting the developer tank 16 to a waste developer collection container 22 is formed in the side wall portion 16b.
3, and an opening / closing mechanism 25 for opening and closing the waste developer discharge opening 23 is provided along the side surface of the side wall 16b. Further, at the bottom of the waste developer collecting container 22, a waste developer discharging opening 22a is formed for discharging the collected waste developer to the outside, and the waste developer rotating in the direction of arrow B (FIG. 4). An agent discharge screw 24 is provided. That is, the waste developer collected in the waste developer collecting container 22 is conveyed by the waste developer discharge screw 24, and is conveyed from the waste developer discharge opening 22 a to the bottom of the developing device 8 by the waste developer conveyance. It is discharged to the road 26.

As shown in FIG. 3, the waste developer conveying path 26 serves as a waste developer conveying means for conveying the waste developer discharged from the waste developer discharge opening 22a of the waste developer collecting container 22. The waste developer conveying screw 26a is provided. That is, the developer discharged from the waste developer collecting container 22 is transported in the direction of arrow L by the rotation of the waste developer transport screw 26a in the direction of arrow C,
Through the waste developer discharge port 26b formed at the end of the waste developer transfer path 26 in the transfer direction, together with the waste toner discharged from the cleaning device 10, the waste developer is collected through a carry-in port 27a formed above the recovery container 27. It is carried into the container 27.

The operation of the cleaning device 10 for discharging waste toner will be described later. The waste developer discharging screw 24 and the waste developer conveying screw 26a are driven in conjunction by a waste developer discharging gear (not shown), and are driven and controlled by a control device 37 described later.

As shown in FIG. 1, in order to discharge the toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 4 scraped off by the cleaning blade 10a to the outside, the cleaning device 10 A toner discharge opening 10c is formed, and a waste toner discharge screw 28 is provided. That is, the waste toner collecting unit 10
b is conveyed by the waste toner discharge screw 28, and the waste toner discharge opening 10
The toner is discharged from c to a waste toner transport path 29 provided below the cleaning device 10.

As shown in FIG. 3, the waste toner conveying path 29 is a waste toner conveying screw as a waste toner conveying means for conveying the waste toner discharged from the waste toner discharge opening 10c of the waste toner collecting section 10b. 29a are provided. That is, the waste toner discharged from the waste toner collecting unit 10b is transported in the direction of arrow R by the rotation of the waste toner transport screw 29a in the direction of arrow D, and at the end of the waste toner transport path 29 in the transport direction. Along with the waste developer discharged from the developing device 8 through the formed waste toner discharge port 29b, the waste developer is carried into the collection container 27 through a carry-in port 27a formed above the collection container 27.

The waste toner discharging screw 28 and the waste toner conveying screw 29a are driven in conjunction by a waste toner discharging gear (not shown), and are driven and controlled by a control device 37 described later.

The waste developer discharge port 26b is disposed above the waste toner discharge port 29b, and the waste developer discharge port 26b and the waste toner discharge port 29b are formed on the upper surface of the collection container 27. It is arranged on the dashed line A passing substantially the center of the carried-in entrance 27a, that is, on the same straight line. The waste developer discharge port 26b and the waste toner discharge port 29b form one discharge port 32, through which the waste developer and waste toner are carried into the collection container 27 through the carry-in port 27a. You. As a result, the waste toner and the waste developer can drop to almost the same position in the collection container 27.

An opening / closing lid 30 is provided at the waste developer discharge port 26b. The opening / closing lid 30 is urged in the direction of arrow X by a spring 31 provided at the end of the waste developer discharge port 26b. The urging force of the spring 31 is such that the waste developer is placed on the opening / closing lid 30 by a predetermined weight, for example, 0.5%.
The g is set so that the lid 30 moves in the direction of the arrow Y when the deposition of g or more occurs, that is, the lid 30 is opened. That is, the waste developer is collected in a predetermined
The pile of waste toner accumulated in the collection container 27 is efficiently destroyed.

However, it is desirable that the weight of the waste developer deposited on the opening / closing lid 30 is about 0.5 g to 2.0 g. this is,
If it is less than 0.5 g, it is difficult to break up the pile of waste toner accumulated in the collection container 27, and if it is more than 2.0 g, it is necessary to increase the spring strength of the spring 31 for urging the opening / closing lid 30. This causes a problem that the cost for manufacturing the device increases.

Accordingly, the waste toner conveyed from the waste toner conveying path 29 is carried into the collection container 27 through the discharge port 32 through the carry-in port 27a, while the waste developer conveyed from the waste developer conveying path 26 is The collection container 2 is collected at a predetermined weight by the opening / closing lid 30 from the carry-in port 27a through the discharge port 32.
7.

The rotating shaft 29c of the waste toner conveying screw 29a is formed so as to be narrow in the vicinity of the discharge port 32, whereby the waste developer discharged from the waste developer discharge port 26b is discharged. Through the entrance 27a.

Further, the opening / closing mechanism 25 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), a flat shutter 33 slidably disposed along the side surface of the side wall portion 16b, and a shutter 3 for guiding the sliding operation of the shutter 33.
3. Guide plates 34 provided on both sides of
And a discharge solenoid 35 connected to the shutter 33 at the tip of the plunger 35a.

That is, when the discharge solenoid 35 is in a non-energized state (OFF), the plunger 35a is held at the advanced position, whereby the shutter 33 opens the discharge opening 23.
Is held in a closed state that covers the side surface. On the other hand, when the discharge solenoid 35 is energized (ON), the plunger 35a
The shutter 33 retracts from the position covering the developer discharge opening 23, and the developer discharge opening 23 is switched to the open state. In this open state, the developer in the developing tank 16 flows through the developer discharge opening 23 to the waste developer collecting container 2.
2 is forcibly discharged from the developing tank 16.

Next, a copying operation in the copying machine having the above configuration will be described. Power switch (not shown) is ON
Then, a warm-up process is performed first. After this is completed, a copy start switch 36 described later
Is turned on, the original placed on the original placing table 1 is scanned by the light source lamp 3 of the exposure optical system 2. The reflected light from the original at this time is irradiated on the photoconductor 4 via the reflecting mirrors 5 and the lens unit 6, and an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photoconductor 4 charged to a predetermined potential by the charging charger 7. It is formed.

Next, the electrostatic latent image is developed with toner supplied from the developing device 8. The toner image on the surface of the photoreceptor 4 is transferred to a sheet supplied from a sheet feeding cassette 13 by a transfer charger 9 and is thermally fixed on the sheet by a fixing device 15. As a result, a copy image corresponding to the document image is formed on the sheet.

In order to control such a series of copying operations, as shown in FIG. 5, a control device 37 comprising a microcomputer is provided in the copying machine. 36 ON operation signals are input. Further, a copy counter 38 for counting the cumulative number of copying operations is further provided, and this count value (hereinafter referred to as a copy count value) n is also input to the control device 37.

When the above-described copying operation is repeated, the toner in the developer contained in the developing tank 16 of the developing device 8 is gradually consumed, and the ratio of the toner to the carrier, that is, the toner concentration decreases. I will do it.

A toner density sensor 39 for detecting a change in the toner density is provided in the developing tank 16. The drive control of the developer supply roller 21 based on the toner density sensor 39 is further controlled by the control device 37. Done.
That is, when it is detected that the detection signal from the toner density sensor 39 has fallen to the lower limit of the appropriate range required for development, the driving of the developer supply roller 21 is started. As a result, the developer in the developer supply unit 20 is replenished into the developing tank 16, and the toner concentration in the developing tank 16 increases. When it is detected that the toner concentration has reached the upper limit of the above-mentioned appropriate range, the driving of the developer supply roller 21 is stopped. By such control, the toner concentration in the developing tank 16 is maintained within the above-mentioned appropriate range.

The toner contained in the developer replenished as described above is stirred with the developer in the developing tank 16 together with the carrier, controlled to a constant charge amount, supplied to the photoconductor 4, and developed. used. On the other hand, the carrier in the developer does not decrease and is used repeatedly, so that the carrier gradually deteriorates due to stirring by the developing roller 17 and the stirring roller 18 and contact with the photoconductor 4. When the carrier deteriorates in this manner, a predetermined charge amount cannot be given to the toner, and the image quality deteriorates.

However, as described above, the developer replenished from the developer supply unit 20 in accordance with the decrease in the toner concentration contains a carrier in addition to the toner. By replacing the deteriorated carrier in the tank 16, the above-described deterioration of the charging performance can be suppressed. Therefore, the developer supply roller 2
By replenishing the developer from the beginning, the toner density can be maintained and the charging performance of the carrier can be maintained.

For this purpose, the developer supply unit 2
The control device 37 also performs replenishment and discharge control for replenishing the developer from zero and discharging the developer in the developing tank 16.

With the supply of the developer from the developer supply unit 20, the developer discharged from the developing tank 16 is transported by the waste developer discharge screw 24 driven by the control device 37, and The developer is discharged to a waste developer transport path 26 from a waste developer discharge opening 22 a formed at the bottom of the developer collection container 22. The developer is conveyed in the direction of arrow L by a waste developer conveying screw 26a driven in conjunction with the waste developer discharging screw 24, and is collected from a carry-in port 27a through a waste developer discharging port 26b and a discharging port 32. The waste developer is collected in the container 27.

On the other hand, residual toner (waste toner) collected from the surface of the photoconductor 4 by the cleaning blade 10a
Is collected by a waste toner collecting unit 10b provided at a lower portion of the cleaning device 10, and is conveyed by a waste toner discharge screw 28 provided in the waste toner collecting unit 10b and driven by a control device 37. Waste toner discharge opening 10c provided at the lower part of collection unit 10b
Is discharged to the waste toner conveying path 29 from the Then, the waste toner is conveyed by the waste toner conveying screw 29a, and is collected in the collection container 27 from the carry-in port 27a via the waste toner discharge port 29b and the discharge port 32.

By the way, in addition to the powdery toner having a size of 5 to 12 μm, the waste toner includes,
Also, since it contains a large amount of filler such as clay (clay), talc, kaolin, etc., the fluidity is lower than that of unused toner. The apparent specific gravity of the toner itself is
It is about 0.3 to 0.4 g / cc and the particle size is very small.
7 and must be collected. from these things,
If the waste toner is discharged little by little into the collection container 27, the waste toner accumulates in a mountain-like manner, thereby reducing the collection efficiency of the waste toner in the collection container 27.

However, in the configuration according to the present embodiment, the waste toner and the waste developer are collected in the same collection container 27, and the waste developer transport path 26 is, as shown in FIGS. The waste developer outlet 26b is disposed above the waste toner transport path 29, and the waste developer outlet 26b is
The outlets are arranged so as to be higher than and on the same straight line, that is, on the alternate long and short dash line A shown in FIG.
As a result, the waste developer can be dropped from above the waste toner collected in the collection container 27, so that the peak formed by the waste toner can be broken. Therefore, the collection amount of the waste toner and the waste developer in the collection container 27 can be increased, and the collection efficiency of the collection container 27 can be improved.

The waste developer discharge port 26b is provided with an opening / closing lid 30 that opens when a predetermined weight of waste developer is deposited, so that a large amount of waste developer is deposited in a pile. Can be dropped from above. As a result, the peak of the waste toner can be broken more effectively, and the collection efficiency of the collection container 27 can be improved.

Further, since the waste toner and the waste developer can be sufficiently collected even if the size of the collection container 27 is small, when the photosensitive member and the developing device are unitized, the life of the photosensitive member 4 and the developing device 8 can be reduced. Accordingly, the entire apparatus can be reduced in size. As a result, it is possible to extend the life of the photoconductor 4, the developing device 8, the developer, and the like.

Further, since the waste developer discharge port 26b is formed above the waste toner discharge port 29b, the waste developer can be collected in the collection container together with the waste toner near the waste toner discharge port 29b. it can. As a result, the waste toner attached to the waste toner conveying path 29 and the waste toner discharge port 29b is discharged to the collection container 27 while being scraped off by the waste developer containing a carrier having a large fluidity and a large specific gravity as compared with the toner. it can.

Therefore, the cleaning effect on the waste toner conveying path 29 and the waste toner outlet 29b can be improved, and the efficiency of collecting the waste toner and the waste developer into the collection container 27 can be improved.

The waste developer outlet 26b is provided with an opening / closing lid 30 that opens when the weight of the waste developer conveyed to the waste developer outlet 26b exceeds a predetermined value. A predetermined amount of the waste developer can be collectively discharged from above the waste toner discharge port 29b. As a result, the waste toner collected in the collection container 27 and accumulated in the shape of a mountain can be efficiently broken, so that the waste toner and the waste developer can be efficiently collected in the collection container 27, and the collection efficiency can be improved. Can be improved.

In the present embodiment, the developer discharging opening 23 for discharging the developer from the developing tank 16 is provided with the side wall 1 of the developing tank 16.
6b, the developer is forcibly discharged by an opening / closing mechanism 25 that opens and closes an opening / closing lid 30 provided so as to cover the developer discharging opening 23. However, the invention is not limited thereto. For example, a configuration in which the developer is discharged from the developer discharge opening 23 by overflow is also possible.
Further, the developer discharge opening 23 may be provided on the bottom wall of the developing tank 16. However, in this case, it is necessary to provide a mechanism for forcibly discharging the waste developer as in this embodiment.

Embodiment 2 The following will describe another embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG. The same members as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. The same applies to the following embodiments.

The waste toner and waste developer collecting apparatus according to the present embodiment is similar to the waste developer transport path 26 shown in FIG.
In place of the waste toner transport path 29, a waste developer transport path 41 and a waste toner transport path 42 are provided as shown in FIG.

The above-mentioned waste developer transport path 41 is disposed on the upper surface of the waste toner transport path 42 and has a waste developer discharge port 41a.
Is also formed on the upper surface of the waste toner conveying path 42. Thus, the waste developer transported in the arrow L direction by the waste developer transport screw 43 rotating in the arrow C direction in the waste developer transport path 41 is discharged to the waste toner transport path 42 from the waste developer discharge port 41a. Is done.

The waste toner transport path 42 is provided with a waste toner transport screw 44 for transporting waste toner. The waste toner conveying screw 44 rotates in the direction of arrow D, and conveys waste toner in the direction of arrow R. Further, the waste toner transport screw 44a includes a first waste toner transport screw portion 44a from a point a where the waste toner in the waste toner transport path 42 is carried into the waste toner transport path 42 to a junction b of the waste developer discharge port 41a. And a second waste toner conveying screw 44b from the junction b to a point c near the waste toner outlet 42a.

The second waste toner conveying screw portion 44b
Are formed such that the pitch of the screws is larger than that of the first waste toner conveying screw portion 44a. That is, when the transport amount of the first waste toner transport screw unit 44a is set to “1”, the second waste toner transport screw unit 44b sets the transport amount of the second waste toner transport screw unit 44b to “1.3 to 2.2. 0 ". This is because the first waste toner transport screw section 44a only needs to transport waste toner, but the second waste toner transport screw section 44b needs to transport waste developer in addition to waste toner. This is because it is necessary to increase the transport amount of the waste toner transport screw section 44b.

In general, waste toner having low fluidity and high hygroscopicity tends to adhere to the inner surface of the waste toner transport path 42 and the surface of the waste toner transport screw 44. Clogging, which reduces the transfer efficiency of waste toner.

However, according to the above configuration, from the junction b of the waste toner transport path 42 with the waste developer discharge port 41a,
Since the waste toner is transported together with the waste developer, the waste toner hardly adheres to the inner surface of the waste toner transport path 42 and the surface of the waste toner transport screw 44, and the transport efficiency can be improved.

Further, since the waste toner and the waste developer are collected in the collection container 27 in a mixed state, the waste toner does not pile up. Thereby, the collection container 2
7, the recovery efficiency of the waste toner and the waste developer can be improved.

The mixture of the waste toner and the waste developer is as follows:
Since the waste toner is conveyed while scraping off the waste toner attached to the waste toner transport path 42, the cleaning effect on the waste toner transport path 42 and the waste toner discharge port 42a can be improved.

The waste toner conveying screw 44
Is a waste developer outlet 41a in the waste toner transport path 42.
Is formed so that the amount of conveyance from the opening 42b to the waste toner discharge port 42a is larger than the amount of conveyance from the opening 42b of the waste toner conveyance path 42 to the entire conveyance. The transfer efficiency can be maintained even if the amount increases. Thus, even when the waste developer is added to the waste toner in the waste toner transport path 42 and the overall transport amount increases, the waste toner can be transported efficiently.

In this embodiment, the position of the waste developer transport path 41 on the upper surface of the waste toner transport path 42 is not particularly limited, but the waste developer discharge port 41a of the waste developer transport path 41 is provided.
Is located on the waste toner supply side of the waste toner transport path 42 as much as possible,
That is, the cleaning device 10 is preferably provided on the side of the waste toner collecting section b (FIG. 1). This is because the waste developer can improve the cleaning effect in the waste toner conveyance path 42 and can more uniformly mix the waste toner and the waste developer. Thereby, the collection efficiency of the waste toner and the waste developer collected in the collection container 27 can be improved.

[Embodiment 3] The following will describe still another embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIGS.

The waste toner and waste developer recovery apparatus according to the present embodiment is different from the waste developer transport path 26 and the waste toner transport path 29 shown in FIG. By using the transport path 51 in which the waste developer transport section 51a that transports the waste developer and the waste toner transport section 51b that transports the waste toner are integrated, the waste toner and the waste developer are collected in the collection container 27. It is designed to be collected.

The transport path 51 includes a waste developer transport section 51.
A transport screw 52 having a different screw pitch shape is provided between the side a and the waste toner transport section 51b. Therefore, the waste developer transport section 51a of the transport screw 52
The waste developer transport screw 52a on the side and the waste toner transport screw 52b on the waste toner transport 51b are formed so that their transport directions are opposite. That is, each transport screw rotates the transport screw 52 in the direction of arrow D, thereby simultaneously discharging the waste developer with arrow L.
In the direction of arrow R and in the direction of arrow R.

The waste toner conveying screw 52
A drive gear 54 is connected to the end b of the side opposite to the waste toner conveyance direction. The drive gear 54 meshes with a drive gear (not shown) of the waste toner discharging screw 28 of the cleaning device 10 and is driven and controlled by the control device 37.

An outlet 53 for discharging the transported waste developer and waste toner to the collection container 27 is formed substantially at the lower center of the transport path 51. Therefore, the waste developer and waste toner transported by the transport screw 52 as described above are collected through the discharge port 53 into the collection container 2.
7 to be collected.

As shown in FIG. 8, the waste toner conveying side peripheral portion 53b of the discharge port 53 is positioned in the waste toner conveying direction so that the waste toner falls vertically to the bottom surface of the collecting container 27. It is formed so as to be substantially vertical. On the other hand, the peripheral portion 53a on the waste developer transport side of the discharge port 53 is formed to be inclined at approximately 45 ° downward with respect to the transport direction. As a result, the waste developer can be accurately dropped to the vicinity of the top where the waste toner in the collection container 27 is piled up. In addition, the above-mentioned waste developer transport side peripheral portion 53
The inclination angle of a is desirably about 35 ° to 45 °.

Further, the apparatus can be simplified by using the transport path 51 in which the waste developer transport section 51a for transporting the waste developer and the waste toner transport section 51b for transporting the waste toner are integrated. And this allows for smaller equipment,
The manufacturing cost of the apparatus can be reduced.

Further, the peripheral portion 53a on the waste developer transport side of the discharge port 53 is dropped so that the waste developer falls on the waste toner collected in the recovery container 27.
By being inclined to the b side, the waste developer can be more accurately dropped near the top of the mountain of waste toner in the collection container 27. Accordingly, the peak of the waste toner formed by the waste toner with the simple configuration can be more accurately broken by the waste developer. As a result, the collection efficiency of the waste toner and the waste developer in the collection container 27 can be improved.

[0078]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the waste toner and waste developer collecting device is constructed as described above .
And a carrier for storing the developer.
Replenishment to successively replenish carrier developer containing
Waste developer discharged from a developing device having a
Residual toner on the photoreceptor surface
Waste toner and developer collected in the same collection container
In recovery system, and a waste developer conveying path provided with a waste developer conveying means for transporting the waste developer to the recovery container, the upper
Serial waste toner and a waste toner conveyance path having a waste toner conveying means for conveying to the collection container is provided and has been waste developer and the waste discharged from the waste developer is formed on the conveyance path a waste developer discharging port Waste toner discharged from a waste toner discharge port formed in the toner conveying path is collected from the same carry-in port provided at an upper portion of the collection container, and the waste developer discharge port is collected.
There is a configuration that is formed above the said waste toner discharge port.

As a result, the waste developer can be dropped on the mountain of waste toner formed by waste toner having reduced fluidity containing paper powder and the like, and the mountain can be broken.

Therefore, the collection efficiency of the waste toner and the developer in the collection container can be improved, and the collection amount of the waste toner and the developer in the collection container can be improved.

Further , in the waste toner and waste developer collecting device according to the first aspect of the present invention, the waste developer outlet is
This is a configuration formed above the waste toner discharge port.

Thus, even if the waste toner containing paper powder and having a low fluidity that easily absorbs humidity adheres to the waste toner conveying path and the waste toner conveying means, the fluidity is large and the specific gravity is higher than that of the toner. The waste developer including the large carrier makes it possible to collect the waste toner and the waste developer into the collection container while scraping the waste toner.

Therefore, the cleaning effect on the waste toner conveying path and the waste toner discharge port can be improved, and the efficiency of collecting the waste toner and the waste developer into the collection container can be improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a waste toner and waste developer collecting apparatus is provided in addition to the structure of the first aspect.
The waste developer outlet is provided with an opening / closing lid for opening and closing the waste developer outlet, and the weight of the waste developer conveyed on the opening / closing lid is equal to or more than a predetermined value. It is a configuration that is sometimes opened.

Thus, in addition to the effect of the first aspect , the waste toner collected in the collection container and accumulated in the form of a mountain can be destroyed by a large amount of waste developer, so that the efficiency of the collection container is reduced. It is possible to effectively collect waste toner and waste developer, and it is possible to improve the collection efficiency of the collection container.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, as described above , the waste toner and waste developer collecting device transfers the waste developer to the collecting container.
Developer transport path with waste developer transport means for transporting by
And waste toner transport for transporting the waste toner to the collection container
And a waste toner conveying path provided with a waste developing means.
Waste discharged from the waste developer outlet formed in the developer conveyance path
Discharge of developer and waste toner formed in the above waste toner transport path
Waste toner discharged from the mouth is
With recovered from the same loading port provided above the waste developer conveyance path and the said waste toner conveying path is provided on the same straight line, the waste developer conveying means and said waste toner conveying means and the one of the transport means And the waste developer discharge port and the waste toner discharge port are formed as one discharge port, and the peripheral part of the discharge port on the waste developer transport side is a waste product.
Drop the image agent onto the waste toner collected in the collection container.
As described above, the configuration is such that the waste toner is provided inclining on the peripheral side of the conveyance side .

[0087] Accordingly, a pile of waste toner that is formed by the waste toner by a simple construction, thus the waste developer
Can be destroyed more accurately, and as a result,
This has the effect of improving the efficiency of collecting toner and waste developer .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a waste toner and waste developer collecting device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a copying machine including the waste toner and waste developer collecting device shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a main part configuration diagram of a vicinity of a joint between a waste developer conveying path and a waste toner conveying path of the waste toner and waste developer collecting device of FIG. 1;

4A and 4B show an opening and closing mechanism of a waste developer collecting container provided in the waste toner and waste developer collecting device shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4A is a longitudinal sectional view; Figure (b)
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a control block diagram of the copying machine shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a main part configuration diagram of a waste toner and waste developer collecting device according to another embodiment of the present invention in the vicinity of a junction between the waste developer transport path and the waste toner transport path.

FIG. 7 is a main part configuration diagram near a junction between a waste developer conveying path and a waste toner conveying path in a waste toner and waste developer collecting apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of an outlet of a waste developer conveying path shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional waste toner and waste developer collecting device.

FIG. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional waste toner and waste developer collecting device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 4 photoconductor 8 developing device 10 cleaning device 16 developing tank 20 developer supply unit (developer replenishing unit) 26 waste developer transport path 26a waste developer transport screw (waste developer transport unit) 27 recovery container 27a carry-in port 29 waste Toner transport path 29a Waste toner transport screw (waste toner transport means) 30 Open / close lid 41 Waste developer transport path 41a Waste developer outlet 42 Waste toner transport path 42a Waste toner outlet 43 Waste developer transport screw (Waste developer transport) Means) 44 waste toner transport screw (waste toner transport means) 51 transport path 52 transport screw (transport means) 53 discharge port 53a peripheral edge of waste developer transport side

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Seiko Uwakawa 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor Shoichi Fujita 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp shares In-company (56) References JP-A-4-42285 (JP, A) JP-A-63-23181 (JP, A) JP-A-64-29663 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. . ^7, DB name) G03G 21/10 - 21/12 G03G 13/08 G03G 15/08 - 15/08 507

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] A waste developer discharged from a developing device having a developing tank for storing a developer comprising a carrier and a toner, and a developer replenishing section for sequentially replenishing a carrier developer containing a carrier in the developing tank. Waste toner and waste developer collecting device for collecting the developer and the residual toner on the photoreceptor surface collected by the cleaning device in the same collecting container, wherein the waste developer conveying means for conveying the waste developer to the collecting container A waste developer conveying path provided with a waste toner conveying means for conveying the waste toner to a collection container, and a waste developer outlet formed in the waste developer conveying path. The waste developer discharged from and the waste toner discharged from the waste toner discharge port formed in the waste toner conveying path are collected from the same carry-in port provided at the upper part of the collection container, Sharing, ABS developer discharge port, the waste toner and the waste developer collecting device, characterized in that it is formed above the said waste toner discharge port. 2. The waste developer discharge port is provided with an opening / closing lid for opening and closing the waste developer discharge port, and the weight of the waste developer conveyed on the open / close lid is provided. 2. The waste toner and waste developer collection device according to claim 1 , wherein the waste toner and waste developer collection device is opened when the value exceeds a predetermined value. 3. A developer comprising a carrier and a toner.
And a carrier containing a carrier in the developer tank.
Development with a developer replenishing section for sequentially replenishing rear developer
The waste developer discharged from the device and the cleaning device
The same residual toner on the photoreceptor surface
Waste toner and waste developer collection device
Te, waste developer conveying to convey the waste developer to the recovery container
And a waste developer conveying path provided with means for storing the waste toner.
Waste toner transport with waste toner transport means for transporting to a container
And a waste path formed in the waste developer conveying path.
Waste developer discharged from the image agent discharge port and the above waste toner transport
Waste toner discharged from the waste toner discharge port formed in the road
Is the same loading port provided at the top of the collection container
And the waste developer transport path and the waste toner transport path are in the same straight line.
And the waste developer conveying means and the
The waste toner conveying means is formed as one conveying means,
In addition, the waste developer discharge port and the waste toner discharge port
Is formed as one discharge port, and the peripheral edge of the discharge port on the waste developer transport side collects waste developer.
The waste toner is dropped onto the waste toner collected in the container.
That it is provided on the transfer side
A waste toner and waste developer collecting device.