JP3103226B2 - Opening mechanism for toner cartridge - 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 cartridge for supplying toner to a developing device of an image forming apparatus such as an electrostatic copying machine, a facsimile machine, and the like. Related to the opening mechanism.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general,
A toner cartridge mounted on an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine includes a sheet-shaped seal member in which a toner drop opening at the bottom of a storage case storing toner is releasably covered on an outer surface of the toner storage case. . In this toner cartridge, after the toner cartridge is attached to the image forming apparatus main body,
The opening is opened by peeling off the seal member. The peeled seal member is separated from the toner cartridge and taken out of the image forming apparatus main body. However, there is a problem that the toner attached to the seal member scatters inside and outside the image forming apparatus main body.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a toner cartridge opening mechanism that can prevent toner from scattering when opening a replaced toner cartridge.

[0004]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toner cartridge unsealing mechanism which includes a toner cartridge body containing toner and a toner dropper provided on a bottom surface of the toner cartridge body. an opening, provided in the toner cartridge main body, the toner cartridge comprising a rotary conveying means for conveying the contained toner to the toner dropping opening, direction the rotary transport means perpendicular to the direction of rotation transporting the door toner along, the toner drop opening TMG rotary transport means
The narrow width is provided only below the downstream end in the toner conveying direction , and one end covers the toner dropping opening and the other end is fixed to the rotary conveying means when the toner cartridge is not used. A tape-shaped seal member is provided inside the toner cartridge main body, and the seal member is wound around a downstream end of the rotary transport means. In addition, the toner cartridge according to claim 2
The opening mechanism may be configured such that, in claim 1, the rotary conveying means is
Including a pair of screw conveyors arranged parallel to each other
Only, both screw conveyors are rotated in opposite directions
The toner is conveyed in opposite directions, and the toner drop opening
Is the downstream end of either screw conveyor in the conveying direction.
Characterized in that it is provided only below.
You.

[0005]

According to the present onset Ming configuration, fitted with unused toner cartridge in a copying machine or the like, driving the rotary conveying means, by said rotary conveying means, wound tape-like sealing member, The toner drop opening is opened. Since the seal member to which the toner has adhered is taken up inside the toner cartridge main body, it is possible to prevent the toner from scattering outside the toner cartridge at the time of replacement. In addition, since the sealing member has a narrow tape shape, even if it is wound around a part of the rotary conveying means, it hardly affects the conveying performance.

[0006]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an internal configuration of a copying machine as an image forming apparatus including a toner cartridge opening mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, this copying machine illuminates and scans a document placed on document placing plate 2 inside copying machine body 1 and guides reflected light from the document to photosensitive drum 42. The optical system 3, the image forming unit 4 that visualizes the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 42 by the developing device 41, and transfers the image to a sheet, and feeds the sheet in the sheet storage unit 6. A paper transport unit 5 and the like are drawn out of the tray 61 by a paper feed roller 51 having a half-moon cross section, and are discharged through the image forming unit 4 to a discharge tray 56 in the copying machine main body.

Referring to FIG. 1, in this copying machine, a toner cartridge T for replenishing toner to developing device 41 is provided.
C is detachably attached to the copying machine main body 1. The feature of the toner cartridge opening mechanism according to this embodiment is that the toner drop opening T3 of the toner cartridge TC is used.
As shown in FIG. 4, the sealing member S that seals the seal member S is wound up by a screw conveyor SC as a rotary conveying means inside the toner cartridge TC.

Referring to FIG. 3, copying machine main body 1 includes a lower unit 7 defined by a lower casing 71, and a predetermined rotation axis m provided at an end of lower unit 7.
And an upper unit 8 which is supported so as to be relatively rotatable around and is divided by an upper casing 81, and the upper unit 8 is opened and closed with respect to the lower unit 7.
It is of the so-called clamshell type.

The optical system 3 illuminates the original with a fluorescent lamp 39 having a reflector 38 fixed to the first moving frame 3A, and reflects the light reflected from the original on the first moving frame 3A. The first mirror 31, the second mirror 32 and the third mirror 33 fixed to the second moving frame 3B, the lens 37, the third mirror
The fourth mirror 34, the fifth mirror 35, and the sixth mirror 36 fixed to the moving frame 3B are sequentially guided to the photosensitive drum 42.

The image forming section 4 is such that a charging charger 43, a developing device 41, a transfer charger 44, and a cleaning device 45 are arranged around a photosensitive drum 42 in this order. The image forming unit 4 includes a charging charger 43
On the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 42 uniformly charged by
After forming an electrostatic latent image by forming an original image, the electrostatic latent image is visualized into a toner image by a developing device 41, the toner image is transferred to a sheet by a transfer charger 44, and a residual toner is removed by a cleaning device. 45 for recovery.

The paper transport section 5 includes the paper feed rollers 51 for pulling out sheets one by one from a paper feed tray 61, a transport roller 52 for feeding paper from the manual paper feed section 60 or the paper feed tray 61, and a transport roller 52. The driving roller means 53a and the driven roller means 53b constituting the registration means 53 for temporarily awaiting the sheet by abutting the leading end of the sheet conveyed by the printer, and a fixing unit 54 for fixing the toner image transferred to the sheet. And a pair of discharge roller means 55.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a toner cartridge TC is a container-shaped toner cartridge body T1.
And an opening T3 formed in the bottom surface portion T2 of the toner cartridge body T1 for dropping toner toward the developing device 41, and the pair of screw conveyors disposed along the longitudinal direction in the toner cartridge body T1. SC
And a narrow tape-shaped sealing member S whose one end S1 closes the opening T3 inside the toner cartridge body 1 when the toner cartridge TC is not used. The other end S2 of the seal member S is fixed to the spiral blade SC1 of one screw conveyor SC. The seal member S is attached to the edge of the opening T3 by heat fusion or the like.

The two screw conveyors SC are rotated in opposite directions (see the dashed line arrow in FIG. 1) to send the toner in the opposite directions (see the white arrow in FIG. 2). 1, the toner is circulated while passing over the opening T3. A U-shaped movable handle T4 is attached to an end of the toner cartridge body 1 on the drawer side. When not in use, the handle T4 can be stored in the recess T5 at the end so as not to protrude from the end.

According to this embodiment, when the unused toner cartridge TC is mounted on the copying machine main body 1 and the screw conveyor SC is driven to rotate, the sealing member S is taken up by the rotating screw conveyor SC. , The seal member S is peeled off from the opening T3,
The opening T3 is opened (see FIG. 4). Since the seal member S to which the toner adheres is taken up inside the toner cartridge body T1, the toner cartridge TC
When replacing the toner cartridge, it is possible to prevent the toner from scattering outside the toner cartridge TC. Therefore, at the time of replacement, the toner does not scatter inside and outside the copying machine body 1.

Since the sealing member S has a narrow tape shape, even if it is wound around a part of the screw conveyor SC, the conveying performance of the screw conveyor SC is hardly affected. In the above embodiment, instead of the screw conveyor, a structure in which a plurality of rotating plate-shaped stirring blades or the like are arranged in the conveyance direction to sequentially stir and convey the toner may be adopted. Also, the sealing member can be wound up by the stirring blade.

In addition, various design changes can be made without changing the gist of the present invention.

[0017]

As is evident from the foregoing description, according to this onset bright, fitted with unused toner cartridge in a copying machine or the like, driving the rotary conveying means, by said rotary conveying means, tape-shaped sealing member Is wound up, and the toner drop opening is opened. Since the seal member to which the toner has adhered is taken up inside the toner cartridge main body, it is possible to prevent the toner from scattering outside the toner cartridge at the time of replacement. Moreover, the transfer performance of the rotary transfer means
Has little adverse effect on

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of an unused toner cartridge including an opening mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the toner cartridge.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an internal configuration of the copying machine.

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view of the toner cartridge showing a state where the seal member is wound up.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Copier main body TC Toner cartridge T1 Toner cartridge main body T2 Bottom part T3 Opening S Seal member S1 One end S2 Other end SC Screw conveyor (rotary conveyance means)

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A toner cartridge main body containing toner, a toner drop opening provided on a bottom portion of the toner cartridge main body, and a stored toner provided inside the toner cartridge main body, the stored toner being supplied to the toner drop opening. in the toner cartridge comprising a rotary conveying means for conveying, it is the rotary transport means along a direction perpendicular to the direction of rotation
Transporting the door toner, the toner drop opening the toner conveying direction of the rotary transport means
The toner cartridge is provided only below the downstream end, and one end of the toner cartridge is in the unused state .
A narrow tape-shaped sealing member that covers the toner dropping opening and the other end of which is fixed to the rotary transport means is provided inside the toner cartridge main body; and the seal member is located downstream of the rotary transport means. An opening mechanism for a toner cartridge, which is wound around an end . 2. The rotary conveying means are arranged in parallel with each other.
The two screw conveyors are rotated in opposite directions to each other,
Are transported in opposite directions, and one of the screw conveyors is
That it is provided only below the downstream end of the
The toner cartridge opening machine according to claim 1, wherein
Structure.