JP3840103B2 - Process cartridge and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a process cartridge and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus to which the process cartridge can be attached and detached.
[0002]
Here, the electrophotographic image forming apparatus forms an image on a transfer material using an electrophotographic image forming system. Examples of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus include an electrophotographic copying machine, an electrophotographic printer (laser beam printer, LED printer, etc.), a facsimile machine, and a word processor.
[0003]
The process cartridge is a cartridge in which the charging unit, the cleaning unit, and the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrated, and the cartridge can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body. Since the user can attach and detach the apparatus main body, the apparatus main body can be easily maintained.
[0004]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic image forming process, a process in which a photosensitive drum and process means acting on the photosensitive drum are integrally formed into a cartridge and the cartridge can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body. A cartridge system is adopted.
[0005]
According to this process cartridge system, the apparatus can be maintained by the user himself / herself without depending on the service person, so that the operability can be remarkably improved. Therefore, this process cartridge system is widely used in image forming apparatuses.
[0006]
In the above-described process cartridge type image forming apparatus, the waste toner (waste developer) removed from the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member by the cleaning means has a volume capable of sufficiently storing the waste toner in accordance with the life of the electrophotographic photosensitive member. And is removed when the process cartridge is replaced.
[0007]
In such a conventional image forming apparatus, an extremely high density image is recorded even if the waste toner container has a capacity capable of sufficiently storing the waste toner in accordance with the life of the electrophotographic photosensitive member. If an improper transfer material (recording material) is used, jamming occurs or normal transfer is not performed, waste toner overflows from the waste toner container. In order to prevent scattering inside, the amount of waste toner in the waste toner container is constantly monitored by the waste toner full detection means.
[0008]
As a waste toner full tank detection means, as shown in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-112304, a system that detects a full tank by passing a waste toner container up and down the optical axis and shielding the optical axis by waste toner in the container. There is.
[0009]
A light transmitting port is provided on the lower and upper surfaces of the waste toner container, a transparent window member is coupled to each light transmitting port, and a light emitting member and a light receiving member are provided on the main body. The light emitted from the light emitting member of the main body enters the light transmitting port on the lower surface of the waste toner container, and the light receiving member of the main body receives the light emitted from the light transmitting port on the upper surface of the waste toner container. The fullness of waste toner is detected by shielding the optical axis connecting the transmission ports.
[0010]
In JP-A-11-52820, by providing a light guide between the light emitting member and the light transmitting port, the position of the light emitting member and the light receiving member of the main body can be arranged at one place, and the assembling property is improved. Wiring is no longer necessary.
[0011]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the conventional configuration, a transparent window member has to be coupled to both the light transmitting and receiving light transmitting ports, and the cost of the cartridge increases due to the increase in the number of parts and the assembly procedure.
[0012]
Further, if a light guide is provided as in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-52820 in order to place the light emitting member and the light receiving member of the main body in one place, the cost of the main body will increase by the amount of the light guide. Further, if a light guide is provided on the main body, when the cartridge is attached to or detached from the main body, the light guide may be in the way, making it difficult to attach or remove the cartridge, and the operability is reduced.
[0013]
For this reason, it is conceivable to provide a light guide on the cartridge side, but this will increase the cost of the cartridge. Some conventional products have a light guide on the cartridge, but the window member and the light guide member are separate, which also increases the number of parts and the assembly procedure, which increases the cost of the cartridge. End up.
[0014]
Further, when the light guide is provided, it is necessary to take care to match the optical axes of the light emitting side and the light receiving side during assembly. On the other hand, in order to clean and remove the waste toner adhering to the inner surface of the window member, a wiping member having a rotation center around the center of both windows is provided, and the wiping member rotates along the inner surface of the window and wipes off. However, providing the concave shape of the rotary bearing of the wiping member on the inner side surface of the waste toner container causes design limitations such as undercutting when forming the waste toner container. There was a problem.
[0015]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a process cartridge and an image forming apparatus that can increase the number of parts and reduce the assembly procedure, thereby reducing the cost of the cartridge and improving the assemblability.
[0016]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
  In order to solve the above-described problems, a typical configuration of the process cartridge and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a toner storage container for storing the toner removed from the image carrier, and a light emission provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus. A light guide member that guides light emitted from a member to a light receiving member provided in the image forming apparatus main body through the toner storage container; The guide member has a light emitting surface that emits light received from the light emitting member, and a light receiving surface that receives light emitted from the light emitting surface, and has a rotation axis between the light emitting surface and the light receiving surface. The light guide member has a wiping member for wiping off the toner on the light emitting surface and the light receiving surface, and the light guide member has a support portion for supporting a rotating shaft of the wiping member.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[First embodiment]
A process cartridge and an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a horizontal sectional view of a waste toner box of a process cartridge according to the present embodiment as viewed from above, FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, and FIG. 3 is viewed from the left side of the process cartridge. 4 is a left perspective view of the process cartridge, and FIG. 5 is a right perspective view of the process cartridge.
[0018]
(Outline of image forming operation of color image forming apparatus)
FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a four-color full-color laser beam printer as an electrophotographic image forming apparatus embodying the present invention.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 2, the photosensitive drum 1 as an image carrier is rotated in the direction of the arrow in synchronization with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 5a, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is uniformly charged by the charging device 2. The exposure unit 3 irradiates the yellow image with light to form a yellow electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 1. Simultaneously with the formation of the electrostatic latent image, the developing device 4 is driven to place the yellow developing unit 4Y at the developing position, and the yellow toner is attached to the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 1 so that the yellow toner adheres to the electrostatic latent image. Development is performed by applying a yellow toner to the electrostatic latent image by applying a voltage having the same polarity as the charging polarity and substantially the same potential. Thereafter, a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner is applied to the pressing roller 5j (primary transfer roller) of the process cartridge 5 to primarily transfer the yellow toner image on the photosensitive drum 1 onto the intermediate transfer belt 5a.
[0020]
When the primary transfer of the yellow toner image is completed as described above, the next developing device rotates and is positioned at the developing position facing the photosensitive drum, and in the same manner as in the case of yellow, magenta, cyan, and For each black color, electrostatic latent image formation, development, and primary transfer are sequentially performed, and four color toner images are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 5a.
[0021]
During this time, the secondary transfer roller 11 is not in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 5a. At this time, the charging roller 5f as a cleaning unit is also in a non-contact state with the intermediate transfer belt 5a.
[0022]
After the formation of the four color toner images on the intermediate transfer belt 5a, the secondary transfer roller 11 is pressed against the intermediate transfer belt 5a (the state shown in FIG. 2), and is further fed in synchronization with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 5a. The transfer material waiting at a predetermined position in the vicinity of the registration roller pair 7d serving as a feeding means is sent to the nip portion between the intermediate transfer belt 5a and the secondary transfer roller 11.
[0023]
Here, immediately before the registration roller pair 7d, a pre-registration sensor 14 is provided that detects the leading edge of the transfer material, blocks the rotational driving force of the registration roller pair 7d, and waits the transfer material at a predetermined position.
[0024]
Further, a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller 11, and the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 5 a is secondarily transferred onto the surface of the transfer material conveyed in a batch.
[0025]
In this way, the transfer material that has been secondarily transferred reaches the fixing device 8 via the conveying belt unit 12, and after fixing the toner images of a plurality of colors, the discharge roller pair 13 follows the discharge guide 15. Then, the paper is discharged to a discharge tray 10 above the color image forming apparatus A by a discharge roller pair 9 to complete image formation.
[0026]
On the other hand, after the secondary transfer, the cleaning charging roller 5f is brought into pressure contact with the intermediate transfer belt 5a, and the residual toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt is given a charge opposite to that at the time of transfer. The residual toner to which the reverse charge is applied is electrostatically attached to the photosensitive drum 1 and then collected by a cleaning blade 6 which is a cleaning means for the photosensitive drum. The collected residual toner follows a conveyance path, which will be described later, as waste toner, and is collected and accumulated in a waste toner box 16 that is a waste toner storage container.
[0027]
In the following description, the front surface of the apparatus refers to the upstream surface (the right surface in FIG. 2) of the transfer material in the transfer process from the transfer process to the fixing process. Left or right when viewed from the front. The longitudinal direction is a direction parallel to the surface of the transfer material and substantially perpendicular to the transfer material conveyance direction.
[0028]
(Configuration of process cartridge 5)
FIG. 3 shows a longitudinal sectional view of the process cartridge 5 as viewed from the left side. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the process cartridge 5 as viewed from the left side, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the process cartridge 5 as viewed from the right side. In this embodiment, a part including the photosensitive drum 1, the intermediate transfer belt 5a, and the waste toner box 16 is formed as an integrated process cartridge. The process cartridge 5 further includes two units, a photosensitive drum unit 20 including the photosensitive drum 1 and an intermediate transfer body unit 21 including the intermediate transfer belt 5a and the waste toner box 16. The photosensitive drum unit 20 is arranged in the upward projection direction of the intermediate transfer body unit 21, and the left and right side plates 160 and 161 of the intermediate transfer body unit 21 extend to both sides of the photosensitive drum unit 20 and are held from the side of the photosensitive drum unit 20. It is configured.
[0029]
(Configuration of photosensitive drum unit 20)
The photosensitive drum unit 20 is held by a right bearing 206 and a left rotating shaft 202 so that both ends of the photosensitive drum 1 can rotate freely. A predetermined rotational driving force is transmitted from the apparatus main body via a coupling 24 at the right end. It has become so.
[0030]
The charging roller 2 is pressed against the photosensitive drum 1 with a predetermined force by a compression spring 26 via bearings 25 at both ends, and is driven to rotate.
[0031]
At least one of the bearings 25 is composed of a conductive member, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is uniformly charged by applying a predetermined charging bias voltage to the charging roller 2.
[0032]
The photosensitive drum unit 20 is also provided with a drum shutter 19 that opens and closes in conjunction with an operation of attaching to and detaching from the image forming apparatus main body.
[0033]
Further, a cleaning blade 6 is provided at a predetermined position on the photosensitive drum 1, and the residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 5 a to which the reverse charge is applied is collected on the photosensitive drum 1 and remains on the photosensitive drum 1. It is configured to scrape with the toner.
[0034]
Further, the scraped waste toner is prevented from dropping onto the intermediate transfer belt 5a by the squeeze sheet 27, and the residual toner accumulated between the cleaning blade 6 and the squeeze sheet 27 rotates the feed blade 151, whereby the photosensitive drum It is swept out to the back of the container 29, that is, away from the photosensitive drum 1. The first screw 28 is provided further behind the feed blade 151. When the first screw 28 rotates, the waste toner is conveyed to the left (frontward in FIG. 3) when viewed from the front of the apparatus. The screw 28 has a gear 31 coupled to the left end, and is coupled to a gear coupled to the left end of the driving roller 40 that suspends the intermediate transfer belt 5a to transmit the drive.
[0035]
In the photosensitive drum container 29, an opening 152 is provided in the downward direction at the left end of the groove where the first screw 28 is disposed, and waste toner conveyed to the left end by the first screw 28 falls from the opening 152, The intermediate transfer belt unit 21 is conveyed to the opening 153a. A seal member 154 is provided on the lower surface of the opening 152 to prevent toner leakage at the joint with the opening 153a.
[0036]
(Configuration of intermediate transfer belt unit 21)
Next, the configuration of the intermediate transfer belt unit 21 will be described.
[0037]
The intermediate transfer belt unit 21 has means for transferring an image transferred from the photosensitive drum 1 by the intermediate transfer belt 5a to a transfer material, and means for collecting and storing waste toner. The configuration of the intermediate transfer belt unit will be described below for each means.
[0038]
(Intermediate transfer means)
The intermediate transfer belt 5a is stretched around an intermediate transfer member frame 45 by a driving roller 40 and a driven roller 41.
[0039]
Both ends of the drive roller 40 are rotatably supported by a right bearing 205 and a left bearing 201, and a predetermined rotational driving force is transmitted from the apparatus main body via a coupling 42 at the right end. The bearings 43 at both ends of the driven roller 41 are provided with compression springs 44 so as to apply a predetermined tension to the intermediate transfer belt 5a.
[0040]
A primary transfer roller 5j is provided at a position facing the photosensitive drum 1 across the intermediate transfer belt 5a, and is pressed by a predetermined force by a compression spring 47 through bearings 46 at both ends, and is driven to rotate. It is like that.
[0041]
At least one of the bearings 46 is composed of a conductive member, and the toner on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 5a by applying a predetermined charging bias voltage to the primary transfer roller 5j. Is done.
[0042]
Further, at a position facing the driving roller 40, a cleaning charging roller portion 23 is provided for applying a charge opposite to that at the time of transfer to the residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 5a.
[0043]
The charging roller 5f is brought into pressure contact with a predetermined force by a compression spring 52 through bearings 51 at both ends, and is driven to rotate.
[0044]
At least one of the bearings 51 is composed of a conductive member. By applying a voltage opposite to that at the time of transfer to the cleaning charging roller 5f, a charge opposite to that at the time of transfer is applied to the residual toner on the intermediate transfer body belt 5a. The photosensitive drum 1 is electrostatically adsorbed and collected on the drum surface and accumulated in the waste toner box 16 as described above.
[0045]
(Waste toner collection and saving means)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a waste toner collection / storage unit and a waste toner full detection unit, which will be described later, as seen from above.
[0046]
The intermediate transfer body unit 21 has a photosensitive drum unit 20 on one side with the intermediate transfer belt 5a as a center, and a waste toner box 16 on the opposite side. The waste toner box 16 is formed by welding a partition plate 150 to a part of the intermediate transfer member frame 45, and the residual toner on the photosensitive drum 1 is finally stored in the waste toner box 16.
[0047]
An impeller cover 153 is coupled to the left side surface of the intermediate transfer member frame 45 with a seal member 156 interposed therebetween. The impeller cover 153 has an opening 153a on the upper side, and is joined to the opening 152 provided at the lower left end of the photosensitive drum container 29 with the seal member 154 interposed therebetween, and waste toner dropped from the opening 152 is impeller cover 153. Falls inside.
[0048]
Inside the impeller cover 153, an impeller 155 rotates counterclockwise when viewed from the left side, and conveys internal waste toner toward the waste toner box 16.
[0049]
The impeller cover 153 overlaps the left side surface of the waste toner box 16, and a hole 157 communicating with the inside of the impeller cover 153 is provided in the overlapped portion. Further, a second screw 158 is provided at a position extending in the longitudinal direction from the hole 157, and the waste toner conveyed by the impeller 155 rotates the second screw 158 to turn the waste toner box 16 from the left side to the right side. It is transported to the back.
[0050]
The waste toner box 16 is partitioned into several small rooms by a plurality of planes 159 perpendicular to the second screw 158, and is sequentially filled from the leftmost small room to the right next small room. In the rightmost small room, a detection unit 162 that detects that the waste toner box 16 is full is provided.
[0051]
Both the impeller 155 and the second screw 158 are connected to gears 163 and 164 at the left end, respectively, and are connected to the gear connected to the left end of the drive roller 40 in the same manner as the drive gear 31 of the first screw 28. The drive is transmitted.
[0052]
Hereinafter, full tank detection will be described in detail. In the full tank detection, light is transmitted through the waste toner box 16, and the amount of light received by the light receiving unit when there is no waste toner is compared with the amount of light received when blocked by waste toner. It is done by judging.
[0053]
In the apparatus main body, a lamp 165 as a light emitting member for detection and a light detecting element 166 as a light receiving member are provided facing the right side surface of the waste toner box 16. The lamp 165 and the light detection element 166 are mounted on one substrate 167.
[0054]
On the other hand, the right side surface of the waste toner box 16 has an opening 168 that is a light transmission opening. A transparent light guide 169 is welded to the opening 168 from the outside to block the opening 168. Two cylinders 169a and 169b extend outwardly in parallel to the outside of the waste toner box 16 of the light guide 169, and two rectangular pillars 169c coaxial with the centers of the cylinders 169a and 169b extend inside the waste toner box 16. 169d extends inward in parallel.
[0055]
The light emitting surface 169e in one square column 169c and the light receiving surface 169f in the other quadrangular column 169d are opposed to each other, and the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f are behind the square columns 169c and 169d. A light emitting / reflecting surface 169g and a light receiving / reflecting surface 169h inclined by 45 degrees with respect to the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f are formed.
[0056]
Further, since the light guide 169 is extracted from the mold in the direction of the central axis of the cylinders 169a and 169b and the square columns 169c and 169d when the product is molded, each side has a taper of about 5 °.
[0057]
When the process cartridge 5 is mounted on the apparatus main body, the optical axis of the lamp 165 and the central axis of one cylinder 169a of the light guide 169 are coaxial, and the optical axis of the light detection element 166 and the other cylinder of the light guide 169 169b is configured to be coaxial with the central axis.
[0058]
Here, the cylinder 169a and the quadrangular column 169c facing the lamp 165 serve as a light emission guide, the end surface of the cylinder 169a serves as an incident surface 169i, the opposing surface serves as a light emitting surface 169e, and a surface inclined by 45 degrees emits and reflects light. The surface is 169g. Similarly, a cylinder 169b and a quadrangular prism 169d facing the light detection element 166 serve as a light receiving guide, an end surface of the cylinder 169b serves as an emission surface 169j, a facing surface serves as a light receiving surface 169f, and a surface 169h inclined by 45 degrees. It becomes a light receiving reflection surface.
[0059]
Light emitted from the lamp 165 is incident on the incident surface 169i, reflected by the light emitting / reflecting surface 169g to the light emitting surface 169e, and emitted from the light emitting surface 169e toward the light receiving surface 169f. The light incident on the light receiving surface 169f is reflected by the light receiving / reflecting surface 169h to the emission surface 169j, and the light emitted from the emission surface 169j is received by the light detection element 166 of the apparatus main body.
[0060]
Here, when there is toner between the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f, the amount of light received by the light detection element 166 is reduced compared to the case where there is no toner, and therefore, when the amount of received light falls below a certain threshold, it is discarded. It is determined that the toner is full.
[0061]
Even when the waste toner box 16 has a sufficient capacity, the process cartridge 5 may be tilted or shaken when the process cartridge 5 is attached or detached, and toner may adhere to the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f. . In this case, the amount of received light is reduced even if the tank is not full, and it may be erroneously detected that the tank is full. For this purpose, a wiping member 170 for wiping the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f is provided.
[0062]
The wiping member 170 is configured by providing a rotating shaft 170b at an intermediate position between the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f, and attaching a flexible sheet member 170a to the rotating shaft 170b. As the rotary shaft 170b rotates, the sheet member 170a wipes away the waste toner adhering to the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f.
[0063]
The rotating shaft 170b of the wiping member 170 is configured to cross from the left side surface of the waste toner box 16 to the right side surface, and a gear 171 is coupled to the left end portion, and the first screw 28, the second screw Similarly to the drive gears 31, 164, and 163 of 158 and the impeller 155, the drive is transmitted by being connected to the gear coupled to the left end of the drive roller 40.
[0064]
In this configuration, a recess 169k is provided between the light emitting guide and the light receiving guide of the light guide 169, and the rotating shaft 170b of the wiping member 170 is engaged with the recess 169k.
[0065]
By providing the light guide 169 with the recess 169k as described above, it is not necessary to form a closed recess on the inside of the waste toner box 16, and an undercut at the time of molding the waste toner box 16 can be avoided.
[0066]
  As described above, the opening 168 for making light incident on the waste toner box 16 and for emitting the incident light.Is provided. Light guide 169 IsAn optical path between a column 169a and a square pillar 169c that form an optical path between the lamp 165 and the opening 168 provided in the image forming apparatus main body, and an optical path between the light detection element 166 and the opening 168 provided in the image forming apparatus main body. Cylinder 169b and square column 169d to be formedAnd is provided. AndThe cylinder 169b and the square pillar 169d and the cylinder 169b and the square pillar 169dLight guide with 169 But,Join all around the opening 168Has been.
[0067]
As a result, the light guide 169 can also serve as a window member for preventing toner leakage, so that the number of parts and the assembly procedure can be reduced, and the process cartridge 5 can be suppressed. Further, by providing the light guide 169 in the process cartridge 5, the position of the lamp 165 and the light detecting element 166 of the main body can be arranged at one place, and it is not necessary to provide the light guide on the main body side. When the cartridge 5 is attached to and detached from the main body, the light guide does not get in the way. Therefore, the process cartridge 5 can be easily attached and detached, and a product excellent in operability can be provided.
[0068]
Further, by integrating the cylinder 169b and the quadrangular column 169d with the cylinder 169b and the quadrangular column 169d, it is possible to increase the number of parts and reduce the assembling procedure, thereby reducing the cost of the process cartridge 5. Furthermore, it is not necessary to take care to match the optical axes of the light emitting side and the light receiving side during assembly, and the assemblability can be improved.
[0069]
Further, by providing the entrance surface 169i and the exit surface 169j in parallel, it is possible to mount the cylinder 169b and the quadrangular column 169d, the cylinder 169b and the quadrangular column 169d on one substrate, and reduce the component cost. I can do it. Also, the wiring connecting the two becomes unnecessary, and the cylinder 169b and the square pillar 169d are integrated with the cylinder 169b and the square pillar 169d even during debugging, so that it can be easily confirmed by the substrate alone.
[0070]
Further, inside the waste toner box 16, the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f are arranged to face each other, the light reflecting surface 169g for emitting incident light to the light emitting surface 169e, and the light incident on the light receiving surface 169f to the opening 168. A light receiving / reflecting surface 169h for emission is provided. Thereby, when an impact is applied from the outside such as accidentally dropping the cartridge, damage to the light emitting surface 169e, the light receiving surface 169f, the light emitting reflective surface 169g, and the light receiving reflective surface 169h can be suppressed.
[0071]
Since the process cartridge 5 can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus, stable coupling is completed in a short time and the sealing performance is excellent, so that there is no fear of toner leakage and inexpensive coupling is possible.
[0072]
[Reference example]
  NextInProcess cartridge and image forming apparatusReference exampleWill be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the waste toner box showing the waste toner full detection unit according to the present embodiment. About the part which overlaps with said 1st embodiment, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted.
[0073]
  BookReference exampleThen, as shown in FIG. 6, the light emission guide 169 a and the light reception guide 169 b are separated and arranged on the upper and lower surfaces of the waste toner box 16.
[0074]
Openings 168a and 168b are respectively provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the waste toner box 16, and the light emission guide 269a is welded to the one opening 168a without any gap so as not to leak toner. Similarly, the light receiving guide 269b is welded to the other opening 168b without a gap so as not to leak toner.
[0075]
The light emitting guide 269a and the light receiving guide 269b are provided with a light emitting / reflecting surface 169g and a light receiving / reflecting surface 169h so that the incident surface 169i and the exit surface 169j are coplanar.
[0076]
As in the first embodiment, the lamp 165 that is a light emitting member and the light detecting element 166 that is a light receiving member are formed on a single substrate so as to face the entrance surface 169i and the exit surface 169j provided on the side surface of the waste toner box 16. Mounted on 167.
[0077]
Also in this case, the wiping member 170 is configured by providing a rotation shaft at an intermediate position between the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f, and attaching a flexible sheet member 170a to the rotation shaft. The sheet member 170a wipes away the waste toner adhering to the light emitting surface 169e and the light receiving surface 169f.
[0078]
  In the first embodiment, when the light guide 169 is formed, the light guide 269a and the light receiving guide 269b are extracted from the mold in the direction of the central axis of the cylinders 169a and 169b. Difficult in product molding. In contrast, the bookReference exampleThen, since it can be extracted from the mold in a direction perpendicular to the axial center of the guide, the length of the guide can be set freely.
[0079]
【The invention's effect】
  As explained above,The light guide member has a light emitting surface that emits light received from the light emitting member, and a light receiving surface that receives light emitted from the light emitting surface, and a rotation axis between the light emitting surface and the light receiving surface. And a wiping member for wiping off the toner on the light emitting surface and the light receiving surface, and the light guide member has a support portion for supporting the rotating shaft of the wiping member.
[0080]
  Thus, in order to clean and remove the waste toner adhering to the inner surface of the window member, a wiping member having a rotation center around the center of both windows is provided, and the wiping member rotates and wipes along the inner surface of the window. In such a configuration, providing the concave shape of the rotary bearing of the wiping member on the inner surface of the toner storage container eliminates design restrictions such as undercutting when forming the toner storage container. I can do it.
[0082]
  In addition, the light guide member has an incident surface that receives light emitted from the light emitting member and an output surface that emits light to the light receiving member, and the incident surface and the emission surface are provided in parallel. TheAs a result, the light emitting member and the light receiving member of the main body can be mounted on one substrate, and the component cost can be reduced. Also, the wiring connecting the two becomes unnecessary, and since the light emitting member and the light receiving member are integrated in debugging, it is easy to confirm with a single substrate.
[0083]
  Further, inside the toner storage container, the light emitting surface of the light emitting guide member and the light receiving surface of the light receiving guide member are arranged to face each other, and the light emitting guide member has a reflecting surface for emitting incident light to the light emitting surface, The light receiving guide member has a reflection surface for emitting light incident on the light receiving surface to the light transmission port.Thereby, when an impact is applied from the outside such as accidentally dropping the cartridge, damage to the light emitting surface, the light receiving surface, and the reflecting surface can be suppressed.
[0085]
  An image forming apparatus has the process cartridge.As a result, stable bonding is completed in a short time and the sealing property is excellent, so that there is no fear of toner leakage and inexpensive bonding is possible.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a horizontal sectional view of a waste toner box of a process cartridge according to a first embodiment viewed from above.
FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus.
FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view as viewed from the left side of the process cartridge.
FIG. 4 is a left perspective view of a process cartridge.
FIG. 5 is a right perspective view of a process cartridge.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a waste toner box showing a waste toner full detection unit according to a second embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
A: Color image forming apparatus
1 ... Photosensitive drum
2 ... Charging device
3 Exposure means
4 ... Developing device
4Y ... Developer
5 Process cartridge
5a Intermediate transfer belt
5f: Charging roller
5j: Primary transfer roller
6 ... Cleaning blade
7d ... Registration roller pair
8 ... Fixer
9… discharge roller pair
10… discharge tray
11 ... Secondary transfer roller
12… Conveyor belt unit
13… Rear discharge roller pair
14… Sensor before registration
15… discharge guide
16… Waste toner box
19… Drum shutter
20… Photoreceptor drum unit
21 Intermediate transfer unit
23… Cleaning charging roller
24… Coupling
25… Bearing
27… Squish sheet
28 ... 1st screw
29… Photoreceptor drum container
31… Gear
40… Drive roller
41… driven roller
42… Coupling
43, 46, 51… Bearing
44, 47, 52… compression spring
45… Intermediate transfer member frame
150… Partition plate
151… feather
152, 153a, 168, 168a, 168b ... opening
153… Impeller cover
154, 156 ... Sealing member
155 ... impeller
157… hole
158… second screw
159 ... plane
160, 161 ... left and right side plates
162… Detection part
163, 164 ... Gear
165… Ramp
166… Photodetection element
167… Board
169… Light guide
169a, 169b ... cylinder
169c, 169d ... Square pillar
169e… Light emitting surface 1
169f ... Light receiving surface
169g ... Light-emitting reflective surface
169h ... Light-receiving / reflecting surface
169i ... Incident surface
169j Output surface
169k ... recess
170… Wiping member
170a ... Sheet member
170b ... Rotating shaft
171… Gear
201… Left side bearing
202… Left axis of rotation
205, 206… right side bearing
269a, 269b ... Light receiving guide

Claims (4)

A toner storage container for storing toner removed from the image carrier;
A light guide member that guides light emitted from a light emitting member provided in the image forming apparatus main body to the light receiving member provided in the image forming apparatus main body through the toner storage container;
In the process cartridge detachable from the image forming apparatus main body having
The light guide member has a light emitting surface that emits light received from the light emitting member, and a light receiving surface that receives light emitted from the light emitting surface,
A rotating shaft between the light emitting surface and the light receiving surface; a wiping member for wiping off toner on the light emitting surface and the light receiving surface; A process cartridge characterized by that.   The light guide member has an incident surface that receives light emitted from the light emitting member, and an emission surface that emits light to the light receiving member, and the incident surface and the emission surface are provided in parallel. The process cartridge according to claim 1.   The light emitting surface and the light receiving surface are disposed to face each other, and the light guide member has a reflecting surface that guides light from the incident surface to the light emitting surface and a reflecting surface that guides light from the light receiving surface to the emitting surface. The process cartridge according to claim 2.   An image forming apparatus comprising the process cartridge according to claim 1.

Images