JP3453571B2 - Cleaning device cleaning method and cleaning device, and cleaning unit cleaning method - 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 method and a cleaning device for a cleaning device used in an image forming apparatus, and a cleaning method for a cleaning unit. Here, the image forming apparatus includes an electrophotographic copying machine, a laser beam printer, an LED printer, a facsimile machine, and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a laser beam printer, an image carrier and other process means such as a cleaning unit and a developing unit are integrally formed into a cartridge to form a process cartridge.
It is known that the process cartridge is detachably attached to the main body of the image forming apparatus to realize maintenance-free operation.

Conventionally, in such an image forming apparatus, for example, when the developer accommodated in the process cartridge is used up, the entire process cartridge is generally replaced with a new one. This replacement work is an extremely simple work such as opening the main body of the device with one touch, taking out the old process cartridge from the inside of the main body of the device, and installing a new process cartridge, and it can be easily performed by the operator himself. Is something that can be done.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned process cartridge, when the developer is used up (the case where the remaining amount of the developer in the developer accommodating container becomes a predetermined amount or less. The same applies hereinafter. It was common to replace the entire process cartridge with a new one.
Therefore, it is conceivable to refill the process cartridge that has run out of the developer (hereinafter referred to as “toner”) with toner, replace other consumables, and recycle the process cartridge. At this time, in the cleaning unit, it is necessary to replace necessary components and also perform a work of removing the waste toner collected in the toner reservoir, that is, a so-called cleaning work.

This cleaning operation is carried out with the cleaning blade and the squeeze sheet attached in order to prevent the scattering of waste toner. By the way, conventionally, it was not necessary to extract the waste toner accumulated inside the toner reservoir to the outside.Therefore, the toner reservoir is not provided with a discharge port for removing the waste toner. , The only opening, which must be done through a narrow gap between the cleaning blade tip and the squisheet tip. Therefore, it has been pointed out that it is difficult to sufficiently remove the waste toner.

Therefore, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention applies vibration and blows air while the cleaning device and the cleaning unit are housed in the housing chamber,
A cleaning device that discharges the waste toner in the toner reservoir from the opening to ensure the removal of the waste toner,
An object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning method for a cleaning unit, a cleaning device for performing the cleaning method, and the like.

[0007]

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and in a method for cleaning a cleaning device used in an image forming apparatus, the cleaning device is stored in a storage chamber, It is characterized in that air is blown to the cleaning device and vibration is sucked from the storage chamber while applying vibration to the cleaning device housed in.

The cleaning method of the cleaning device is also such that the cleaning device swings to direct its opening downward, or the swing is about 80 degrees, or the cleaning device is tapped. By applying vibration, or the cleaning device slides automatically, or stops blowing compressed air after stopping the tapping of the cleaning device, or sucking air from the storage chamber, It is always done.

Next, in a cleaning device for cleaning a cleaning device used in an image forming apparatus, a storage chamber for storing the cleaning device, a vibration applying means for applying vibration to the cleaning device stored in the storage chamber, and Air blowing means for blowing air to the cleaning device housed in the housing chamber.

The cleaning device of the cleaning device further comprises air suction means for sucking air from the storage chamber in the cleaning device, or further comprises slide means for automatically sliding the cleaning device, or The cleaning device further comprises a swinging device for directing the opening of the cleaning device downward.

Next, in the method for cleaning the cleaning unit of the process cartridge mountable to the main body of the image forming apparatus, after dividing the process cartridge into a developing unit having a developer accommodating container and a developing sleeve, and a cleaning unit. The cleaning unit is stored in a storage chamber, air is blown to the cleaning unit while the cleaning unit stored in the storage chamber is vibrated, and air is sucked from the storage chamber.

Further, in the above-mentioned cleaning method of the cleaning unit, the process cartridge is integrally made into a cartridge and is attached to and detached from the main body of the image forming apparatus. Further, the process cartridge further includes an electrophotographic photosensitive member as an image bearing member, and the cleaning unit is configured to collect residual toner removed from the electrophotographic photosensitive member in a toner reservoir through an opening. ,
The cleaning unit discharges the residual toner in the toner reservoir through the opening after removing the electrophotographic photosensitive member.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Before describing a cleaning method and a cleaning device of a cleaning unit according to the present invention, a schematic structure of a process cartridge in which the cleaning unit is incorporated, and a laser beam printer (image forming) to which the process cartridge is attached are described. The outline of the configuration of the apparatus) and the operation of taking out the cleaning unit from the process cartridge will be described.

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing an outline of the process cartridge C. First, the process cartridge C
It can be disassembled into four units, that is, an upper frame (cartridge cover) 1, a primary charging unit (charging means) 2, a developing unit (developing means) 3, and a cleaning unit 4. When the process cartridge C is disassembled into these four units, the photosensitive drum 41 as an image carrier is included in the cleaning unit 4.

The upper frame 1 is composed of a frame that covers the primary charging unit 2, the developing unit 3 and the cleaning unit 4 from above, and is in the front-back direction (arrows Kl, K in FIG. 1).
A through hole 11 for passing the exposure light is formed at a substantially central portion in the (two directions) so as to vertically pass therethrough.

The primary charging unit 2 has a U-shaped cross section and a shield 21 whose opening is directed toward the photosensitive drum 41.
And a discharge wire 22 arranged inside the shield 21.
And a grid 23 arranged in the opening of the shield 21.

The developing unit 3 is provided with a toner container (developer containing container) 31 for containing toner (developer), and is arranged adjacent to the toner container 31 and communicated with the toner container 31 through an opening 31a. The developing chamber 32 is provided with a developing sleeve 33 arranged in the developing chamber 32 so as to face the photosensitive drum 41. The developing sleeve 33 is rotatably supported in the direction of the arrow R1.
A developing blade 35 that regulates the layer thickness of the toner applied to the surface of the developing sleeve 33 is disposed above.

The cleaning unit 4 includes the photosensitive drum 4
1 and a cleaning device 42. The photosensitive drum 41 is rotatably supported in the direction of arrow R2, and a protective plate (drum shutter) 43 for protecting the photosensitive drum 41 from unnecessary exposure and scratches is disposed below the photosensitive drum 41. The protective plate 43 is configured to be retractable, and when the process cartridge C is attached to the apparatus main body described later, the protective plate 43 is automatically retracted to expose the lower portion of the photosensitive drum 41. Cleaning device 4
2 is a cleaning blade 45 for rubbing the surface of the photosensitive drum 41 to remove the residual toner adhering to the surface.
A squeeze sheet 46 for capturing the residual toner scraped off by the cleaning blade 45, a waste toner feeding member 47 for moving the residual toner captured by the squeegee sheet 46 forward (in the direction of arrow K1) through an opening portion,
A waste toner reservoir 49 for accumulating the moved residual toner is provided.

The process cartridge C thus constructed is mounted on the laser beam printer 50 shown in FIG. The laser beam printer 50 includes a device body 51.
A cover 52 having a rotation center 51a is provided at the lower end of the front side of the apparatus body 51 (direction of arrow K1). This cover 5
No. 2 is normally closed (solid line in the figure), and is opened when the process cartridge C is replaced or when the transfer material P such as paper to be image-formed is jammed (the same figure). The two-dot chain line) is configured. The process cartridge C when mounted is once held by the open cover 52, and by closing the cover 52, the apparatus main body 5
1 is arranged at a predetermined position (solid line in the figure). The process cartridge C arranged at a predetermined position includes the photosensitive drum 41 and the developing sleeve 33.
Etc. are connected to driving means (not shown) on the apparatus main body 51 side and are rotationally driven in the directions of arrows R2 and R1 (see FIG. 1), respectively, and the discharge wire 22 and developing sleeve 33 of the primary charging unit 2 are also the same. It is adapted to be connected to a high-voltage power source on the main body 51 side.

Next, the image forming operation by the laser beam printer 50 will be described with reference to FIGS. When an image formation start is instructed via a start button (not shown), the photosensitive drum 41 is rotationally driven in the direction of arrow R2, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 41 is uniformly charged by the primary charging unit 2. To be done. The surface of the photosensitive drum 41 is exposed to the exposure L by the exposure unit including the laser unit 53, the reflection mirror 55, etc., and an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image information is formed. Toner is attached to the electrostatic latent image via the developing sleeve 33 of the developing unit 3 to form a toner image. The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 41 is transferred onto the transfer material P via the transfer device 56. This transfer material P is stored in a paper feed cassette 57 mounted on the rear side of the apparatus main body 51 (in the direction of arrow K2) and is fed by a paper feed roller 59, and further, by the registration roller pair 60, the photosensitive drum 41. It is supplied in synchronization with the rotation of. The transfer material P onto which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed along the conveyance guide 61 and then to the fixing device 62. The transfer material P is
Here, the toner image is fixed on the surface by being heated and pressed by the fixing roller 62a and the pressure roller 62b. The transfer material P on which the toner image has been fixed is then ejected by the ejection roller 63 to the ejection tray 65 formed on the upper surface of the cover 52.
Discharged on top.

By repeating the above-mentioned image formation,
The toner in the toner container 31 of the developing unit 3 is sequentially consumed. Then, when the remaining amount of toner in the toner container 31 becomes less than or equal to a predetermined amount, the amount of toner applied to the surface of the developing sleeve 33 decreases, and therefore, the toner adheres to the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 41 via the developing sleeve 33. Toner runs out. If the toner image on the photosensitive drum 41 is transferred onto the transfer material P in this state, the image area may be scratched.

In such a case, the process cartridge C
Replace the whole with a new one. Recently, from the viewpoint of effective use of resources, in order to effectively reuse reusable members for the same purpose, toner is refilled, and consumable items that need to be replaced are replaced. The old process cartridge C is reproduced and reused. In the cleaning unit 4, the waste toner accumulated in the waste toner reservoir 49 is removed, the cleaning blade 45 is replaced, and the squeeze sheet 46 is replaced. The removal of the waste toner and the replacement of the cleaning blade 45 and the like are performed by disassembling each unit and each unit in detail.

Therefore, first, the entire process cartridge C is composed of the above-mentioned four units, that is, the upper frame 1, the primary charging unit 2, the developing unit 3, and the cleaning unit 4.
The procedure for taking out the cleaning unit 4 in order to remove the waste toner by disassembling it into a plurality of parts will be described, and then a cleaning device for cleaning the cleaning unit 4 and a cleaning method using this cleaning device will be described in detail. Then, resealing of the toner container 31 of the developing unit 3 and refilling of toner will be briefly described.

First, the process cartridge C to be disassembled is set in an air duct (not shown) and air is blown to remove the toner and dust adhering to the surface.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, the left and right wall portions 1a and 1b of the upper frame 1 (the direction of the arrow K1 is the front) are fixed to the cleaning unit 4, and the left and right wall portions 1a and 1b are respectively attached to a total of four. Remove the pin 12 of the book. The head of the pin 12 is formed in the shape of a flange having a recess in the center, and this flange is grasped with, for example, radio pliers, and pulled out to the outside while rotating. The pin 12 is made of resin and has an engaging portion on the front end side, but the engaging portion and the flange portion grasped by the radio pliers are easily damaged at the time of pulling out, and the pin 12 is replaced with a new one at the time of reassembly.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, the left and right sides of the upper frame 1 are grasped by the left and right hands (two-dot chain line), and the left and right thumbs are respectively applied to the two shaded portions in the upper part of the figure, and these portions. While pushing down, with the other fingers, the left and right wall portions 1a, 1a of the upper frame 1
The whole slanted part is opened by opening the slanted part (only one slanted part is shown) at the bottom of b to the outside on the left and right respectively. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, the claws 4a and 4a that are projected to two positions on the upper surface of the cleaning unit 4 and are locked in the engagement holes 1c and 1c of the upper frame 1 are released, The upper frame 1 is removed from the cleaning unit 4. This completes the removal of the upper frame 1 of the four units. The upper frame 1 is reused as it is by blowing air in the air duct to remove foreign matters such as toner and dust adhering to the surface and the inside.

Next, the primary charging unit 2 attached to the upper part of the cleaning unit 4 is pulled up and removed from the cleaning unit 4.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the developing unit 3
And the pressure springs 4 arranged on both the left and right sides of the cleaning unit 4 and biasing the developing sleeve 33 on the developing unit 3 side toward the photosensitive drum 41 on the cleaning unit 4 side.
1a and 41a (however, only one spring 41a is shown in FIG. 5) are removed, and as shown in FIG. 6, arms 36 and 3 are screwed to the left and right ends of the developing unit 3.
The engagement of 6 with the cleaning unit 4 is released, and the connection between the developing unit 3 and the cleaning unit 4 is released. The cleaning unit 4 can be taken out from the process cartridge C by the series of disassembling operations.

The protective plate 43 (see FIG. 1) and the photosensitive drum 41 are further removed from the cleaning unit 4, and in this state, the waste toner described later is removed (cleaning work).
In the above description, the cleaning unit 4 includes the photosensitive drum 41 and the protective plate 43, but
In the following, those not including these will be appropriately referred to as the cleaning unit 4.

Next, the structure of the cleaning device will be described with reference to FIG. The cleaning device 70 includes a housing 70 that covers the entire device.
The storage chamber for storing the cleaning unit 4 is provided inside. Housing 70
A transparent cover 70b with a handle 70c is openably and closably attached to the upper front side of a (upper left in FIG. 7).
The open / closed state of the cover 70b is detected by the detection sensor 70d. Further, an exhaust port 70e is formed in the upper part on the back side of the housing 70a (upper right in the figure),
The atmosphere suction port 78 of the auxiliary suction device is connected.

A stopper base 71 is arranged in the lower part of the front side inside the housing 70a.
Has a horizontal surface, and the rear surface has a steep slope. On these horizontal and inclined surfaces,
The stoppers 71a and 71b made of rubber are fixed to each other, and the swinging limit of the swinging motion of the swinging device described later is restricted by these stoppers 71a and 71b.

On the horizontal surface of the stopper base 71, the receiving base 72
Are arranged so as to be movable in the front-back direction. The cradle 72 is
By the air cylinder 75 connected to the back side, the origin position M ₁ (two-dot chain line in FIG. 7) and the cleaning position M ₂ (solid line in the same figure).
Is configured to move between. The upper surface of the cradle 72 is formed in a shape that is in union with the lower surface of the cleaning unit 4, and as shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 7, with respect to the cradle 72 arranged at the origin position M ₁ , the cleaning unit 4, the cleaning blade 45 is placed on the upper side of the pedestal 72 with the cleaning blade 45 placed on the upper side of the back and the squi sheet 46 placed on the lower side of the back. Therefore, the gap G formed by the tip of the cleaning blade 45 and the tip of the scooping sheet 46 is arranged on the back side. Cradle 7
As shown in FIG. 8, 2 includes a clamp device 72c including a moving block 72a and a fixed block 72b. The perspective view of FIG. 8 shows the cleaning unit 4 in a state of being mounted on the receiving table 72 (not shown) located at the origin position M ₁ in the above-described posture. Clamping device 7
2c is a cover 70b which was opened prior to mounting the cleaning unit 4 on the receiving table 72 at the origin position M _1.
When the (two-dot chain line in FIG. 7) is closed after the cleaning unit 4 is placed (solid line in FIG. 7), the above-mentioned detection sensor 70d detects the closing, grips the cleaning unit 4 on the receiving base 72, and It is configured for positioning. That is, the clamp device 72c starts the clamp operation in conjunction with the closing of the cover 70b, extends the positioning block 72a in FIG. 8 via an air cylinder (not shown), and attaches it to the fitting portion 4b on the side surface of the cleaning unit 4. The cleaning unit 4 is contacted and slid until the other side surface contacts the fixed block 72b.

The pedestal 72 described above is loaded on the swinging device (moving device) 73 at the cleaning position M ₂ whose lower end on the inner side is regulated by the stopper 73c (see FIG. 7). As shown in FIG. 9A, the rocking device 73 includes a rocking base 73a in which side plates 73b and 73b are provided upright on the left and right ends of the bottom plate. The swing base 73a is swingably supported via a rotary shaft 73d fixed to the outer surface of one side plate 73b, and the other side plate 73b is provided with a key 76c at a position corresponding to the rotary shaft 73d. The swing shaft 76b is connected via. As shown in FIG. 7, the swing shaft 76b is configured to repeat normal rotation and reverse rotation within a range of a predetermined angle α by a rotary actuator 76 via an air cylinder 76a. By repeating the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the swing shaft 76b, FIG. 9B ((a) of FIG. 9B) is obtained.
As shown in cross section A) of FIG.
₁ (solid line in the figure) and standing position N ₂ (two-dot chain line in the figure)
It is configured to oscillate between and at an angle α. The horizontal position N ₁ and the standing position N _{2 of the} rocking base 73a are
The stoppers 71a and 71 of the stopper base 71 described above, respectively.
It is positioned by b and. In addition,
In this embodiment, α is set to about 80 degrees.

A shock imparting device 77 for striking the cleaning unit 4 via a motor 77a is mounted on the upper rear side of the swing base 73a at the horizontal position N ₁ (solid line in FIG. 1). As shown in FIG. 10 (a) (however, this figure shows the impact applying device 77 viewed from the side opposite to FIG. 7), the impact applying device 77 is attached to the end face of the motor shaft 77b from the center thereof. An eccentric cam shaft 77c (see FIG. 7C) and a guide groove 7 having a swing center 77e on the base end side and the cam shaft 77c loosely fitted on the tip end side.
A striking table 77d having 7h, a striking plate 77f screwed to the upper surface of the striking table 77d on the tip side, and the striking plate 77f.
It is provided with a convex member 77g fixed downward at the tip. The striking plate 77f is formed of a plate-shaped member having appropriate elasticity. Further, the convex member 77g is, for example, the waste toner reservoir 49 of the cleaning unit 4 to be hit.
The cleaning unit 4 is made of a resin having a hardness lower than that of the cleaning unit 4 so as not to damage the cleaning unit 4. In the impact imparting device 77, the striking table 77d swings almost vertically due to the rotation of the cam shaft 77c, which is integral with the motor shaft 77b, in the direction of the arrow. a)), the operation of hitting the upper surface of the cleaning unit 4 ((b) in the figure) is repeated. In the figure, the striking table 77d and the striking plate 77 are shown.
f, only one set of convex members 77g is shown, but another set is provided and these two sets are integrally connected by, for example, a shaft, and each convex member 77g is shown in FIG. It is assumed that the cleaning unit 4 is hit at the positions indicated by arrows P and P on the upper surface.

As shown in FIG. 7, the above-mentioned cleaning position M ₂
The pedestal 72, the air cylinder 75, and the impact imparting device 77 are all mounted on the oscillating base 73a of the oscillating device 73, so that they are configured to operate integrally with the oscillating base 73a. .

The gap G on the back side of the cleaning unit 4 on the cradle 72 moved to the cleaning position M ₂ is covered by the air block 79a of the suction device 79 as shown in FIG. FIG. 11 shows a detailed view of the air block 79a. The entire air block 79a is configured to be substantially hollow, and the contact surface 79g facing the gap G of the cleaning unit 4 has a rubber-like seal on the entire hollow except for the ejection port 79d and the suction port 79e. The member 79b is attached. An air supply pipe 79c for blowing air into the cleaning unit 4 is provided inside the air block 79a.
And the jet port 79d of the air supply pipe 79c opens near one end of the contact surface 79g. Further, an intake pipe 79f is arranged inside the air block 79a, and a suction port 79e of the intake pipe 79f is arranged near the other end of the contact surface 79g. These spouts 79d,
The contact surface 79g having the suction port 79e is provided on the pedestal 7 described above.
2 is conveyed in the direction of the arrow K3 through the sheet ₂ , and is brought into close contact with the cleaning blade 45 and the squeeze sheet 46 of the cleaning unit 4 arranged at the cleaning position M ₂ so as to completely cover the gap G between the tips thereof. There is. This situation is shown by two-dot chain lines A ₁ , A ₂ and A ₃ near the gap G in the figure. These two-dot chain lines correspond to the contact surface 79g, the ejection port 79d, and the suction port 79e, respectively. In this way, the suction device 79 supplies the compressed air Q ₁ supplied from the base end side of the air supply pipe 79c to the cleaning unit 4 which is in close contact with the air block 79a, and the gap G from the ejection port 79d which is in close contact with A _2. Is sent to the inside of the cleaning unit 4 via (Q ₂ ), the waste toner in the cleaning unit 4 is scattered, and the waste toner is sucked together with the air in the cleaning unit 4 from the suction roller 79e closely attached to A _3. (Q _3), and is configured to deliver the waste toner suction proximally (Q _4).

At this time, the waste toner that has leaked to the outside of the cleaning unit 4 and the air block 79a passes through an atmosphere suction port 78 and an auxiliary suction device (not shown) together with the atmosphere, as shown in FIG. I try to inhale.

Next, FIG. 7 showing the groove formation of the cleaning device 70.
And a flow chart showing the flow of operations, centering on FIG.
The cleaning method for the cleaning unit 4 and the operation of the cleaning device 70 will be described in detail with reference to other drawings as appropriate.

First, the operation of the cleaning device (vacuum cleaner) 70 is opened.
Start (S1). Next, the origin position M ₁Placed in
On the upper surface of the base 72, a cleaning unit to be cleaned
Place 4 (S2). When the cover 70b is closed (S
3), detection sensor (door switch) 70d detects this
(S4), the air cylinder is turned on (S5), and the receiving
The cleaning unit 4 is clamped at a predetermined position on the table 72.
(S6). Air cylinder 75 is turned on (S
7), the cradle 72 is at the origin position M₁To cleaning position M₂Moved to
(S8), the gap G of the cleaning unit 4 is sucked
It is brought into close contact with the contact surface 79g of the device 79 (see FIG. 11).
The motor 77a is turned on (S9), and the impact imparting device 77
The cleaning unit 4 is activated by the convex member 77g.
The impact is started (S10). This makes the cleaning
Forcibly the waste toner adhering to the inner wall of the unit 4
Make sure that the waste toner is easy to move while dropping it.
It The rotary actuator 76 is activated (S1
1), the rocking base 73a of the rocking device 73 has an angle of α = 0 to 80 degrees.
Make one round trip between the two spaces (S12). Compressed air bar of suction device 79
The lube (not shown) is opened (S13, S14) and the spout 7
9d (see FIG. 11) and the cleaning unit through the gap G.
In parallel with blowing air into the knit 4, cleaning
The air inside the unit 4 passes through the gap G together with the waste toner.
Then, suction is performed from the suction port 79e. Do this for an appropriate time
Continue and complete suction of waste toner in cleaning 4
It

The rocking base 73a is rocked back and forth once (S1
5). The rotary actuator 76 is turned off (S1
6) After confirming the horizontal position N ₁ of the swing base 73a (S
17), the motor 77a is turned off (S18, S19),
The impact of the cleaning unit 4 by the impact imparting device 77 is completed. The compressed air valve is closed (S20, S2
1), when the air cylinder 75 is turned off (S22), the cradle 72 that were in the cleaning position M ₂ is returned to the initial position M ₁ (S23). Then, the air cylinder is turned off (S
24) Then, the clamp of the cleaning unit 4 on the pedestal 72 is released (S25). Next, cover 7
0b is opened (S26), the cleaning unit 4 is taken out of the housing 70a (S27), and the cleaning operation for the cleaning unit 4 is completed.

Here, when the cleaning unit 4 is to be cleaned next, the procedure returns to S2, while when the cleaning work is finished, the cleaning device 70 is turned off (S29).

In the above-mentioned cleaning process, the impact imparting device 7 is operated from S9 to S18 in the flow chart of FIG.
The cleaning unit 4 is continuously hit by the cleaning unit 4, and in parallel with this, the cleaning unit 4 is hit.
Rocking operation and suction of waste toner are being performed. Therefore, the waste toner adhering to the inner wall of the cleaning unit 4 is knocked off, and is directed toward the gap G.
The waste toner in the cleaning unit 4 is appropriately lifted by the compressed air which is smoothly moved and is blown out from the ejection port 79d, and is sucked from the suction port 79e. By such a series of operations, the waste toner in the cleaning unit 4 can be reliably removed without remaining.

In the cleaning work described above, the rocking base 7
The number of swings of 3a, the suction time by the suction device 79, etc.
It may be arbitrarily set based on the remaining amount of waste toner in the cleaning unit 4, the performance of the suction device 79, and the like.

In the cleaning work shown in the flow chart of FIG.
The operator manually performs S1 to S4, and S5 to 25
Is performed automatically, and the final steps S26 to S29 are performed again.
It is done in motion. In other words, the manual
The cleaning unit 4 at the origin position M₁Receiving
The origin position is M until it is placed on the platform 72 and at the end. ₁
Cleaning unit after cleaning is completed on the tray 72
It is from the point where 4 is taken out.

By the way, in the present invention, it does not matter at all which steps among the series of cleaning steps shown in FIG. 12 are to be performed manually and which steps are to be performed automatically. For example, as shown in the perspective view of FIG.
All may be done manually. Place the cleaning unit 4 on an appropriate table and fix it, and then use a suction device (not shown).
The suction nozzle 80 is held by hand and its suction port 80a is pressed against the gap G of the cleaning unit 4. While striking the arrow P on the upper surface of the cleaning unit 4, the suction port 80a is moved laterally along the gap G to suck the waste toner inside.

At this time, if the suction operation is performed while rotating the gear 47a exposed in the vicinity of one end of the cleaning unit 4 in the direction of arrow R3 (during the carrying step), the waste toner can be more efficiently collected. Can be extracted. That is, the gear 47a is meshed with a gear (not shown) fixed to the waste toner feeding member shown by 47 in FIG. 1. Therefore, when the gear 47a is rotated in the arrow R3 direction in FIG. 13, the gear 47a in FIG. This is because the waste toner feeding member 47 rotates in the counterclockwise direction in the figure, whereby the waste toner at the bottom of the waste toner reservoir 49 can be moved toward the gap G in sequence.

In the partially manual, so-called semi-automatic cleaning device 70 shown in FIG. 7, it is not necessary to rotate the gear 47a shown in FIG. As an alternative to the cleaning device 70, the rocking device 73 is incorporated as described above, and when the rocking device 73 rocks the cleaning unit 4, the waste toner feeding member 47a is rotated. This is because the waste toner can be moved in the gap G direction more efficiently.

Next, the process unit C is reconfigured by incorporating other units such as the developing unit 3 into the cleaning unit 4 as follows. Prior to this reconstruction, the developing unit 3 and the primary charging unit 2
For each unit, the members that need to be replaced, the members that need to be cleaned and adjusted, and the like must be replaced or readjusted. Here, cleaning of the developing unit 3, resealing of the opening, and refilling of toner will be briefly described.

The developing unit 3 is first cleaned in a state where the developing blade 35 and arms 36, 36 shown in FIG. 14 are still attached, that is, in a state in which the process cartridge C is first disassembled into four units. .
The cap (not shown) is removed from the toner supply port 31c of the toner container 31, and the suction port (not shown) of the suction device is inserted from the toner supply port 31c while rotating the developing sleeve 33. Then, the residual toner is removed by suction and cleaning is performed.

Next, the cleaned developing unit 3 is disassembled into smaller parts. First, as shown in FIG.
5a and 35a are removed, the developing blade 35 is removed,
Further, the screws 36a, 36a at the left and right ends are removed, and the left and right arms 36, 36 are pulled out. The developing sleeve 33 and the magnet 33a inside the developing sleeve 33 held in the developing chamber 32 by the left and right arms 36, 36 are removed forward (in the direction of arrow K1). As a result, the opening 31a (see FIG. 1) of the toner container 31 to which the reseal member is attached is exposed.

A re-seal member (not shown) is attached to the opening 31a to refill the toner container 31 with the toner, or while the process cartridge C is being conveyed, etc.
Prevent toner from leaking from a.

To the toner container 31 that has been resealed, the toner T can be refilled through the toner supply port 31c by using the developing hopper 87 as shown in FIG. A supply port 87b for replenishing the toner T is formed in the upper part of the funnel-shaped main body 87a, and an adapter 87c that fits the toner replenishment port 31c is attached to the lower end part. Further body 8
Inside the 7a, a rotatable auger 87d is arranged,
By appropriately controlling the rotation of the auger 87d, the toner replenishment speed is adjusted. When the inner surface of the main body 87a is subjected to fluorine treatment or the like to reduce the friction coefficient, it is possible to efficiently replenish the toner from the developing hopper 87 to the toner container 31.

A cap (not shown) is attached to the toner supply port 31c of the toner container 31 which has been replenished with toner, and the procedure is almost the reverse of that described with reference to FIG.
Developing sleeve 33, arms 36, 36, developing blade 3
The developing unit 3 can be reconfigured by mounting the unit 5 and the like.

On the other hand, the cleaning unit 4 constitutes a new cleaning unit 4 by replacing the cleaning blade 45 and the squishy sheet 46 with new ones. Similarly, a new photosensitive drum 41 is attached to the cleaning unit 4, and a protective plate 43 is attached to the cleaning unit 4, so that the cleaning unit 4 is first disassembled into four units when the process cartridge C is disassembled. The process cartridge C is reconfigured by the cleaning unit 4 and the developing unit 3 described above in this state.

The developing unit 3 is combined with the cleaning unit 4 (FIG. 6) and the developing sleeve 3 according to a procedure almost reverse to the disassembly described with reference to FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6.
A compression spring 41a for urging 3 toward the photosensitive drum 41 is attached (FIG. 5), the primary charging unit 2 is mounted on the upper surface of the cleaning unit 4, and finally, the cleaning integrally assembled by these series of assembling. The upper frame 1 is covered from above the unit 4, the developing unit 3, and the primary charging unit 2 (FIG. 4) and fixed by the pin 12.

The process cartridge C reconstructed in this way (see FIG. 1) can be regenerated so as to exhibit the same performance as the new process cartridge C, thus contributing to resource saving. You can

The form of the process cartridge is as follows, including the form described in the above embodiment.

First, a charging means, a developing means, or a cleaning means as a process means and an electrophotographic photosensitive member as an image carrier are integrally made into a cartridge which can be attached to and detached from the main body of the image forming apparatus.

Next, at least one of a charging means, a developing means, and a cleaning means as a process means and an electrophotographic photosensitive member as an image carrier are integrally made into a cartridge and attached / detached to / from the image forming apparatus main body.

Then, at least the developing means as the process means and the electrophotographic photosensitive member as the image carrier are integrally made into a cartridge and attached to and detached from the main body of the image forming apparatus.

[0062]

As described above, according to the present invention,
To remove the waste toner in the cleaning unit, give a shock to the cleaning unit to move the waste toner,
By sucking the waste toner in the waste toner reservoir through the gap, it is possible to perform the suction operation while moving the waste toner in the waste toner reservoir toward the gap of the opening.
It is possible to reliably remove the waste toner.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a process cartridge including a cleaning unit to be cleaned.

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a laser beam printer equipped with a process cartridge.

FIG. 3 is a perspective explanatory view showing a process cartridge with pins removed.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which an upper frame is removed from the process cartridge.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which a compression spring for urging the developing sleeve toward the photosensitive drum is removed.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which a developing unit and a cleaning unit are separated.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing the outline of a cleaning device of a cleaning unit.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a clamp of the process cartridge.

FIG. 9A is a perspective explanatory view of a rocking device. (B) is A sectional drawing of (a) which shows operation | movement of a rocking | swiveling base.

FIG. 10A is an operation explanatory view of the impact imparting device. (B)
FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory view of the impact imparting device. FIG. 3C is a perspective view showing a configuration of a motor shaft and a cam shaft.

FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory view of the suction device.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow of operations of the cleaning device.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the suction device.

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of a cleaning unit.

FIG. 15 is an operation explanatory view showing toner supply to the developing unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Upper Frame (Cartridge Cover) 2 Charging Means (Primary Charging Unit) 3 Developing Means (Developing Unit) 4 Cleaning Means (Cleaning Unit) 31 Developer Container (Toner Container) 33 Developing Sleeve 41 Image Carrier (Photosensitive Drum) 42 Cleaning device 43 Drum shutter (protection plate) 45 Cleaning blade 46 Squeeze sheet 47 Waste toner feeding member 49 Waste toner reservoir 70 Cleaning device 70a Housing 72c Clamp device 73 Swing device (moving device) 77 Impact applying device 78 Auxiliary suction device (atmosphere suction) Mouth) 79 Suction device 79d Jet port 79e Suction port G Gap

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) Reference JP-A-6-242642 (JP, A) JP-A-5-197278 (JP, A) JP-A-5-165326 (JP, A) JP-A-5- 72825 (JP, A) JP-A-4-362961 (JP, A) JP-A-4-309967 (JP, A) JP-A-4-289869 (JP, A) Actually developed flat 3-1-15084 (JP, U) (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 21/00 G03G 21/10-21/12 G03G 15/00 550 G03G 21/16-21/18 B08B 1/00-1/04 B08B 5/00-13/00

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A method for cleaning a cleaning device used in an image forming apparatus, wherein the cleaning device is housed in a housing chamber, and air is blown to the cleaning device while vibrating the cleaning device housed in the housing chamber. A method for cleaning a cleaning device, wherein air is sucked from the storage room. 2. The cleaning device is configured to collect the residual toner removed from the image bearing member in a toner reservoir through an opening, and swings to direct the opening downward. The cleaning method of the cleaning device according to claim 1. 3. The cleaning method for the cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein vibration is applied by hitting the cleaning device. 4. A cleaning device for cleaning a cleaning device used in an image forming apparatus, a storage chamber for storing the cleaning device, a vibration applying unit for applying vibration to the cleaning device stored in the storage chamber, and the storage device. A cleaning device for a cleaning device, comprising: an air blowing unit that blows air to a cleaning device housed in a room. 5. The cleaning device is configured to collect the residual toner removed from the photosensitive drum in a toner reservoir through an opening, and further has a swinging means for directing the opening downward. The cleaning device for a cleaning device according to claim 4, wherein the cleaning device is a cleaning device. 6. A method of cleaning a cleaning unit having a process cartridge attachable to an image forming apparatus main body, wherein the process cartridge is divided into a developing unit having a developer accommodating container and a developing sleeve, and a cleaning unit. The cleaning unit is stored in a storage chamber, air is blown to the cleaning unit while vibration is applied to the cleaning unit stored in the storage chamber, and air is sucked from the storage chamber. How to clean.