JP3862491B2 - Toner supply container - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a toner supply container that can be attached to and detached from an electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body.
[0002]
Here, the electrophotographic image forming apparatus forms an image on a recording medium using an electrophotographic image forming system. Examples of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus include an electrophotographic copying machine, an electrophotographic printer (for example, a laser beam printer, an LED printer, etc.), a facsimile machine, a word processor, and the like.
[0003]
The following explanation The cartridge includes a process cartridge and a developing cartridge.
[0004]
The process cartridge is a cartridge in which a charging unit, a developing unit or a cleaning unit and an electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed, and the cartridge can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body. In addition, at least one of the charging unit, the developing unit, and the cleaning unit and the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed into a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from the main body of the image forming apparatus. Further, it means that at least the developing means and the toner storage portion are integrated into a cartridge so as to be detachable from the main body of the image forming apparatus.
[0005]
In addition to the process cartridge, the cartridge refers to a developing cartridge in which developing means and developer are integrated into a cartridge.
[0006]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, fine powder toner (developer) as a developer has been used in electrophotographic image forming apparatuses such as electrophotographic copying machines and printers. When the toner in the image forming apparatus main body is consumed, the toner is supplied to the image forming apparatus main body using a toner supply container (toner supply container).
[0007]
Here, since the toner is an extremely fine powder, the toner supply container is placed inside the image forming apparatus main body so that the toner is not scattered during the toner replenishment operation, and the toner is discharged little by little from the small opening. Are known.
[0008]
In such a system, it is difficult for the toner to be naturally discharged by the action of gravity or the like, and some kind of toner conveying means is required.
[0009]
An example of a toner replenishing container provided with such a toner conveying means is a toner replenishing container disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-113776. Here, the toner replenishing container has a substantially cylindrical shape as a whole, and a relatively small opening for discharging the toner is provided in a part of the outer peripheral surface thereof. Further, a helical toner conveying member is provided inside the container, and is driven from the outside of the container through the end wall surface of the container.
[0010]
The toner replenishing container is used while mounted in the apparatus main body, and the toner is conveyed by rotating the toner conveying member by driving from the apparatus main body side, and the toner is discharged little by little from the opening. Yes.
[0011]
On the other hand, as another toner replenishing container provided with toner conveying means, there is a toner replenishing container disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-44000. Here, the toner replenishing container has a cylindrical bottle shape, a spiral protrusion is provided on the inner surface, and a small toner discharge port is provided near the center on one end side.
[0012]
Unlike the conventional example, the toner replenishing container is not equipped with a conveying member and is used by being installed on the main body of the apparatus, and the toner is conveyed by rotating the main body of the container in response to driving from the main body side. Toner conveying means configured as described above is provided.
[0013]
As described above, the toner replenishing container described above is configured to discharge toner by receiving some driving from the image forming apparatus main body side and driving the conveying member and the container main body on the toner replenishing container side in any case. ing. There are several methods for such drive transmission means, for example,
(1) A configuration in which a gear portion is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the toner bottle, and a rotating driving gear connected to a driving source is engaged with the gear to rotate the toner bottle.
(2) A configuration in which a rotation driving projection is provided on the end face of the toner bottle, and this projection is engaged with a recess provided in a driving unit from the image forming apparatus main body to transmit driving.
{Circle around (3)} Contrary, the toner bottle end face is provided with a recess instead of a protrusion, and the protrusion provided on the driving portion of the image forming apparatus main body is engaged with the recess to transmit the drive.
Various drive transmission methods have been proposed.
[0014]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the above conventional example has some technical problems.
In the case of (1), when the toner bottle is inserted and set in the main body of the image forming apparatus, it is necessary to successfully mesh the gear portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the bottle and the drive gear section in the main body of the image forming apparatus. It was necessary for the user to insert it carefully, and the burden on the user's supply operability was forced. Also, since the toner bottle is rotated by meshing the gears, the toner bottle is subjected to a force that tends to shift in the direction perpendicular to the axis due to the rotation moment. There is a risk that it will not be possible. In order to prevent such a deviation, it is necessary to surround and support the entire periphery of the toner bottle, but in this case, the toner bottle cannot be easily attached / detached at the same time, and at the same time, the replenishment system itself The construction of the system becomes complicated, leading to an increase in cost.
In the case of (2) and (3), when the toner bottle is inserted so that the protrusion (or recess) on the end surface of the toner bottle engages with the recess (or protrusion) of the main body drive unit, The alignment of the direction is necessary, and if this is performed by the user himself, the replenishment operability may be deteriorated, and the drive may not be accurately transmitted due to a slight misalignment.
[0015]
In order to prevent such a poor engagement, a guide rib is provided on the outer surface of the toner bottle so that the position in the rotation direction when the toner bottle is inserted is always determined. It is necessary to control the rotational operation so as to stop at a predetermined rotational position, and both increase the complexity and cost of the replenishment system.
[0016]
In addition, in many coupling drive transmissions due to such uneven engagement, when the phase of the toner bottle and the main body drive unit is inserted out of phase, the main body drive unit is retracted by a spring, and when the phase matches, the engagement position is reached. There is a case where it is configured to return. With such a configuration, even if the phase of the bottle is shifted when the toner bottle is inserted, the main body drive unit escapes. Therefore, when the bottle is rotated, the phase can be matched and engaged. However, since the configuration of the main body driving unit is complicated and the main body driving unit is retracted to the back side, an extra space is required, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of making the main body compact.
[0017]
The present invention is a further development of the above-described conventional toner supply container.
[0018]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing container that can be reliably replenished by a simple operation without requiring the user to align the rotation direction of the toner replenishing container during a replenishing operation of the toner replenishing container.
[0019]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing container in which the mechanism of the toner replenishing container and the electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body is simple and inexpensive.
[0020]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing container that can make the electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body compact.
[0021]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the present invention, the above object can be achieved. The present invention relates to a toner replenishing container that can be attached to and detached from an electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body having a drive unit.
A rotatable storage section for storing toner;
An opening provided in the housing portion;
A sealing portion for sealing the opening;
A transport unit that transports toner toward the opening in accordance with rotation of the storage unit;
A driving force receiving portion provided with a surface fastener that is provided so as to be able to engage with the surface fastener of the driving portion, and that receives a rotational force during toner conveyance and receives a force in the direction of the rotational axis when opened;
It is characterized by having.
[0107]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0108]
First, the configuration of an electrophotographic copying machine as an example of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus to which a toner supply container according to the present invention is mounted will be described with reference to FIG.
[0109]
(Electrophotographic image forming apparatus)
In the figure. Reference numeral 100 denotes an electrophotographic copying machine main body (hereinafter referred to as an apparatus main body). A document 101 is placed on the document glass 102. Then, a light image corresponding to the image information is formed on the electrophotographic photosensitive drum 104 by a plurality of mirrors M and lenses Ln of the optical unit 103. 105 to 108 are cassettes. Among the recording media (hereinafter referred to as “paper”) P loaded in these cassettes 105 to 108, the optimum paper P is selected from information input by the user from the operation unit 100a shown in FIG. Select from the paper size information of the cassettes 105-108. Here, the recording medium is not limited to paper, and may be selected as appropriate, such as an OHP sheet.
[0110]
Then, one sheet P conveyed by the sheet feeding / separation devices 105 </ b> A to 108 </ b> A is conveyed to the registration roller 110 via the conveying unit 109, and the rotation timing of the photosensitive drum 104 and the scanning timing of the optical unit 103 are detected. Are transported in synchronization. Reference numerals 111 and 112 denote a transfer discharger and a separation discharger. Here, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 104 is transferred onto the paper P by the transfer discharger 111. Then, the separation discharger 112 separates the paper P on which the toner image has been transferred from the photosensitive drum 104.
[0111]
Thereafter, the paper P conveyed by the conveyance unit 113 is fixed to the toner image on the paper P by heat and pressure in the fixing unit 114, and then passes through the paper discharge reversing unit 115 in the case of single-sided copying. The paper is discharged to a paper discharge tray 117 by a paper discharge roller 116. In the case of double-sided copying, the same path as in the case of single-sided copying after being transported to the registration roller 110 via the paper refeeding transport paths 119 and 120 under the control of the flapper 118 of the paper discharge reversing unit 115. Are discharged to the paper discharge tray 117.
[0112]
In the case of multiple copying, the paper P passes through the paper discharge reversing unit 115 and is once discharged out of the apparatus by the paper discharge roller 116. Thereafter, the end of the paper P passes through the flapper 118 and is controlled by the flapper 118 at the timing when it is still nipped by the paper discharge roller 116, and the paper discharge roller 116 is reversely rotated, so that the inside of the apparatus main body 100 again. It is conveyed to. Thereafter, the sheet is conveyed to the registration roller 110 via the re-feed conveyance units 119 and 120, and then discharged to the sheet discharge tray 117 along the same path as in the case of single-sided copying.
[0113]
Incidentally, in the apparatus main body 100 having the above-described configuration, a developing unit 201, a cleaner unit 202, a primary charger 203, and the like are disposed around the photosensitive drum 104. Here, the developing unit 201 develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 104 by the optical unit 103 with the information of the document 101 using toner. A toner supply container 1 for supplying toner to the developing unit 201 is detachably provided on the apparatus main body 100 by a user. Here, the developing unit 201 includes a toner hopper 201a and a developing device 201b. The toner hopper 201a has a stirring member 201c for stirring the toner supplied from the toner supply container 1. The toner stirred by the stirring member 201c is sent to the developing device 201b by the magnet roller 201d. The developing device 201b includes a developing roller 201f and a feeding member 201e. The toner sent from the toner hopper 201a by the magnet roller 201d is sent to the developing roller 201f by the feeding member 201e, and is supplied to the photosensitive drum 104 by the developing roller 201f.
[0114]
The cleaner unit 202 is for removing toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 104. The primary charger 203 is for charging the photosensitive drum 104.
[0115]
When the user opens the toner supply container replacement cover 15 (hereinafter referred to as a replacement cover), which is a part of the exterior cover shown in FIG. 2, as shown in FIG. 3, the container cradle 50 is driven by a drive system (not shown). Is pulled out to a predetermined position. Then, the toner supply container 1 is installed on the container cradle 50. When the user takes out the toner replenishing container 1 from the apparatus main body 100, the toner replenishing container 1 placed on the drawn-out container receiving base 50 is taken out. Here, the cover 15 is a dedicated cover for attaching and detaching (replacing) the toner supply container 1 and is opened and closed only for attaching and detaching the toner supply container 1. The maintenance of the apparatus main body 100 is performed by opening and closing the front cover 100c.
[0116]
The toner replenishing container 1 may be directly installed in the apparatus main body 100 and removed from the apparatus main body 100 without using the container cradle 50.
[0117]
[Embodiment 1]
Next, the toner supply container according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0118]
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of the toner supply container of the present embodiment. FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the drive transmission portion of the toner container.
[0119]
(Toner supply container)
A toner replenishing container (hereinafter referred to as a toner bottle) 1 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, and has an opening 1a having a smaller diameter than the cylindrical portion at the center of one end surface thereof. The opening 1a is provided with a sealing member 2 for closing the opening, and the opening / closing operation of the opening 1a is performed by sliding the sealing member 2 in the axial direction of the toner bottle 1. . A hook-and-loop fastener 3 is provided at the front end of the sealing member 2, and the hook-and-loop fastener 3 is provided with a hook-and-loop fastener 30 provided on the surface of a drive unit 20 (see FIG. 9) provided in the image forming apparatus main body to be described later. It is configured to perform the function of coupling and transmitting the rotational drive to the toner bottle 1. The configuration of the surface fasteners 3 and 30 will be described in detail later.
[0120]
The internal configuration of the toner bottle 1 will be described.
[0121]
The toner bottle 1 has a substantially cylindrical shape, is arranged in a substantially horizontal direction in the image forming apparatus main body, and is configured to rotate by receiving rotational driving from the apparatus main body 100. The inner surface of the toner bottle 1 is provided with a spiral protrusion 1c. When the toner bottle 1 is rotated, the toner is transported in the axial direction along the spiral protrusion 1c, and the toner is discharged from an opening 1a provided on the end surface of the toner bottle 1.
[0122]
The internal configuration of the toner bottle 1 in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as the shape and configuration of the toner bottle 1 is a bottle shape that discharges toner when the toner bottle 1 rotates. The gist of the present invention is that the hook-and-loop fastener 3 is used in the drive transmission portion of the toner bottle 1 in the toner supply container that discharges the toner by driving the toner bottle 1. As for, a generally well-known bottle having a spiral projection 1c formed therein or any other configuration may be used.
[0123]
Incidentally, FIG. 4 shows an example of a toner bottle in which a spiral protrusion 1c is formed inside the bottle, which is the most general configuration.
[0124]
Further, the type of driving in the present invention is not limited to the rotational driving as shown in this embodiment, and the toner is replenished by vibrating or swinging the toner replenishing container or other driving methods. If so, the type of driving is not particularly limited. In other words, as long as the toner supply container discharges toner by receiving driving from the image forming apparatus main body 100, the driving may be any of rotation, swinging, and vibration.
[0125]
The bottle main body 1A has an opening 1a on one end surface of the bottle, and a drive shaft 1b provided integrally with the bottle main body 1A protrudes from the opening 1a in the opening 1a. The drive shaft 1b is positioned substantially on the central axis of the opening 1a and is configured to engage with an engagement hole 2a provided in the sealing member 2. Since the drive shaft 1b is for transmitting the rotational driving force from the apparatus main body 100 to the bottle main body 1A via the sealing member 2, the sectional shape of the driving shaft 1b is a quadrangular shape capable of transmitting the rotational driving force. Or H-cut shape, D-cut shape or the like. Here, the drive shaft 1b is fixed to the bottle body 1A.
[0126]
(Sealing member)
Next, the sealing member 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 is a front view of the sealing member, FIG. 7 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 6, and FIG. 8 is a front sectional view of FIG.
[0127]
6 to 8, reference numeral 2b denotes a sealing portion that seals the toner supply opening 1a of the toner supply container 1 so that the toner supply opening 1a can be opened. The outer diameter of the sealing portion 2b is set to be an appropriate amount larger than the inner diameter of the opening 1a. Then, the sealing member 2 seals the toner replenishing port formed as the opening 1a by press-fitting the sealing part 2b into the opening 1a.
[0128]
By the way, the sealing member 2 has an engagement hole 2a for engaging the drive shaft 1b and transmitting the drive force received from the apparatus main body 100 to the drive shaft 1b. The engagement hole 2a is configured by an opening (hole) formed over the formation portion of the sealing portion 2b and the coupling engagement portion 2c. Here, the engagement hole 2a has a shape corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the drive shaft 1b and is formed slightly larger than the drive shaft 1b. As a result, the drive shaft 1b is loosely fitted into the engagement hole 2a. Here, the engagement hole 2a has the same cross section as the drive shaft 1b and has a polygonal shape. In this embodiment, a square is adopted.
[0129]
Then, the drive shaft 1b is loosely fitted in the engagement hole 2a in this way, whereby the bottle main body 1A and the sealing member 2 are locked to each other in the rotation direction of the bottle main body 1A, while the axial direction Are configured to be movable with respect to each other. Thus, when the toner replenishing container is attached to the toner replenishing device, the sealing member 2 and the bottle main body 1A can be separated as will be described later, and the toner supply port can be opened (opened).
[0130]
By the way, the engagement length between the engagement hole 2a and the drive shaft 1b has a length that does not come off when the sealing member 2 and the bottle body 1 are separated from each other. Thereby, even if the sealing member 2 is separated from the bottle main body 1, the drive shaft 1 b can receive a driving force via the sealing member 2.
[0131]
Such a sealing member 2 is preferably manufactured by injection molding of a resin such as plastic, but other materials and manufacturing methods may be arbitrarily divided and joined. Further, the sealing member 2 is required to have an appropriate elasticity in order to press-fit and seal the toner replenishing opening. As the material, low density polyethylene is most preferable, and polypropylene / linear polyamide, for example, trade name nylon / high density polyethylene can be preferably used.
[0132]
(Configuration of hook-and-loop fastener)
Next, the configuration of the hook-and-loop fastener 3 that best represents the features of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0133]
The surface fastener 3 is a driving force receiving portion of the toner replenishing container 1 and receives a driving force from a driving force transmitting portion 30 of the toner replenishing device.
[0134]
The definition of the hook-and-loop fastener according to the present invention is to press the two surfaces on which a large number of fine protrusions (stems) 3a that can be elastically deformed are pressed, so that the protrusions 3a are engaged with each other, and the entire surface is engaged. It means an engaging member that is mated. The protrusion 3a has an outer diameter D of the tip 3a2 larger than that of the root 3a1. The tip 3a2 is hemispherically rounded.
[0135]
The protrusion 3a is provided integrally or integrally with the base 3z. The base 3z has a disk shape in this example, but is not limited, and may have a conical shape. In the case of a conical shape, one of the pair of driving side and passive side surface fasteners is concave with respect to the other side, and the other is convex with respect to the other side.
[0136]
A feature of the hook-and-loop fastener 3 is that each of the protrusions 3a is fine, but since many of them are engaged on the entire surface, the entire surface has a strong engaging force. On the other hand, when separating the engagement surface, it is a great feature that it can be easily detached with a small force by removing the individual fine protrusions 3a so that it can be easily separated with a small force. is there.
[0137]
Furthermore, another major feature is that, unlike the conventional coupling that engages the concave portion with the convex portion, the phase alignment is not required such that the convex portion is engaged with the concave portion. This is because the fine protrusions 3a that can be elastically deformed are arranged over the entire surface, so that the protrusions can be engaged with each other at any position and can be firmly engaged. Therefore, when the user replaces the toner bottle 1, it can be set to an arbitrary phase without worrying about the phase of the rotation direction of the toner bottle 1 when setting a new toner bottle 1 in the apparatus main body 100. Therefore, the operability is very good and there is no occurrence of poor engagement due to phase shift.
[0138]
The hook-and-loop fastener 3 is provided at the tip of the sealing member 2, engages with the hook-and-loop fastener 30 provided on the drive unit surface of the apparatus main body 100, and drives from the apparatus main body 100 via the sealing member 2. It plays a role of transmitting to the toner bottle 1.
[0139]
Although the hook-and-loop fastener 3 is provided at the tip of the sealing member 2, the hook-and-loop fastener 3 and the sealing member 2 are formed by integrally molding the hook-and-loop fastener 3 and the sealing member 2 as shown in FIG. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 12, an adhesive member 3 b may be provided on the back surface of the hook-and-loop fastener 3 and bonded and fixed to the surface of the sealing member 2. Or you may couple | bond by various coupling methods, such as screwing with the small screw 3c, or a bolting, as shown in FIG.
[0140]
In addition to the combination of mushroom-shaped stems (protrusions) described above, there are several types of protrusions 3a of the hook-and-loop fastener 3 as shown in FIGS. May be used. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, a combination of a hook (male side) 3d and a loop (female side) 3e, a combination of a truncated pyramidal stem 3f as shown in FIG. 15, or a head of the tip of the stem in FIG. A shape in which a taper is provided in the lower neck portion, or a form in which the hook 3d and the loop 3e are mixed on the same plane as shown in FIG. Further, as other shapes, various shapes such as a T shape as shown in FIG. 18, a corrugated shape as shown in FIG. 19, a spherical shape as shown in FIG. The shape and dimensions are not limited.
[0141]
Further, in the present invention, it is not necessary to have the combination of engagement shown in FIGS. 14 to 20 described above. For example, the hook 3d and loop 3e mixed type surface fastener shown in FIG. A combination of irregularly shaped surface fasteners, such as engaging surface fasteners, may be used. As described above, in the present invention, the stem shape and the combination of the engagement are not particularly limited, and the engagement may be in any shape and free combination. Further, the driving force receiving side and the driving side may be interchanged. That is, in FIG. 14, the hook-and-loop fastener 3 having the hook 3d may be the driving side, and the hook-and-loop fastener 30 having the loop 3e may be the driven side.
[0142]
Furthermore, by freely designing the arrangement of the protrusions (stems) 3a, it is possible to reduce variations in strength difference depending on the meshing direction, and to increase or decrease the engagement strength.
[0143]
For example, by arranging the stem arrangement freely, such as a series arrangement as shown in FIG. 21, a curved arrangement as shown in FIG. 22, or a concentric arrangement as shown in FIG. The engagement strength in the radial direction can be controlled. If it is desired to increase the engagement strength, a stronger engagement strength can be obtained by arranging the stems at a high density. Further, in the present invention, it is not always necessary to have a combination of engagements of the same array, for example, by a combination of two different arrays such as FIGS. 21 and 22, or FIGS. 22 and 23, or FIGS. Engagement is also acceptable.
[0144]
In addition, by designing the height and shape of the stem freely, it is possible to achieve a smooth engagement and a coupling method that achieves both strengths. The present invention is not limited to these shapes and arrangements, and can be freely designed. You can do it.
[0145]
In addition, as a dimension of the stem 3a of the surface fastener 3 in this invention, the length of the stem 3a is 0.5-5 mm, Preferably it is about 1-2 mm, and the diameter of the stem 3a is 0.1-2 mm, Preferably it is 0.5. It is good that it is about ˜1 mm.
[0146]
As described above, it is preferable that the surface fastener 3 described above is mainly manufactured by injection molding a resin such as plastic, but other materials and manufacturing methods may be used. Further, since the hook-and-loop fastener 3 requires appropriate elasticity at the time of engagement and separation between the fasteners, more preferably, polyolefin resin, linear polyamide such as nylon (trade name) resin, polypropylene, polyethylene, etc. Resin material is good.
[0147]
(How to replace the toner supply container)
Next, a method for replacing the toner supply container will be described.
[0148]
When substantially the entire amount of toner in the toner bottle 1 is consumed in accordance with the image forming process, display means 100b such as liquid crystal (see FIG. 4) is detected by detection by a toner supply container empty detection means (not shown) provided in the apparatus main body 100. 2), the user is informed that the toner in the toner supply container 1 has run out.
[0149]
In the present embodiment, replacement of the toner supply container 1 is performed by the user himself and the procedure is as follows.
[0150]
First, as shown in FIGS. 2, 24, and 25, the replacement cover 15 in the closed state is rotated around the hinge 18 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 26, and the position shown by the broken line in FIG. Open until. The toner container main body 1A is moved in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 28 by a toner replenishing section opening / closing means described later in conjunction with the opening operation of the replacement cover 15, and the toner replenishing opening section separated from the toner container main body 1A until then. The sealing member 2 (see FIG. 29) that has been in a state of opening 1a is press-fitted into the toner replenishing opening 1a, and the toner replenishing opening 1a is closed (see FIG. 28).
[0151]
Next, the user pulls out the toner bottle 1 with no toner attached to the apparatus main body 100 in the direction opposite to the arrow shown in FIG. Thereafter, the user inserts a new toner supply container 1 into the apparatus main body 100 in the direction of arrow a shown in FIG. 27, and then closes the replacement cover 15. In conjunction with the operation of closing the replacement cover 15, the sealing member 2 is separated from the container main body 1A by the toner replenishing part opening / closing means, and the toner replenishing opening 1a is opened. The above is the procedure for replacing the toner supply container.
[0152]
(Description of replenishment operation)
Next, the replenishing operation of the toner replenishing container according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIGS. 27 to 29 are diagrams showing the state of the process of inserting the toner bottle 1 according to the present invention into the image forming apparatus main body 100 and replenishing toner at each stage. In the figure, m is a drive motor provided in the apparatus main body 100. The drive motor m is configured to rotate the drive unit 20 connected to the toner supply container side via the intermediate gear pair 21. A main body side surface fastener 30 for rotationally driving the bottle is provided on the surface of the driving unit 20.
[0153]
FIG. 27 is a view showing a state in which the toner bottle 1 is inserted into the apparatus main body 100. At this time, an opening 1 a is provided at one end of the tip of the toner bottle 1, and the opening 1 a is in a state of being sealed by the sealing member 2.
[0154]
FIG. 28 shows a state where the toner bottle 1 is further inserted and the toner bottle side fastener 3 provided at the tip of the sealing member 2 is engaged with the main body side fastener 30 of the drive unit 20 on the apparatus main body side. The engagement between the main body side surface fastener 30 and the toner container side surface fastener 3 is performed by an insertion force when the user inserts the toner bottle 1. At this time, the holding member 22 for fixing and holding the position of the sealing member 2 in the thrust direction (axial direction) is engaged with the positioning groove 2d of the sealing member 2 in conjunction with the insertion operation of the toner bottle 1 and sealed. The position of the stopping member 2 in the thrust direction (axial direction) is fixed. The holding member 22 is provided in the apparatus main body 100 so as to be movable in the radial direction of the sealing member 2, and slides on the positioning groove 2 d by the rotation of the sealing member 2. The positioning groove 2d is provided on the outer periphery of the cylindrical coupling engaging portion 2c on the entire circumference (see FIG. 6).
[0155]
In FIG. 29, after the sealing member 2 and the drive unit 20 are engaged by the toner container side surface fastener 3 and the main body side surface fastener 30, the slide member 300 moves in the direction of arrow b in conjunction with the closing operation of the main body front cover (not shown). By retreating, the toner bottle 1 is also retreated, the sealing member 2 is relatively separated from the bottle 1 and the opening 1a is opened, and the toner can be replenished. At this time, the drive shaft 1b fixed to the bottle body 1A of the toner bottle 1 is not completely detached from the sealing member 2, and a part of the drive shaft 1b remains in the sealing member 2. The cross-sectional shape of the drive shaft 1b is a non-circular cross-section, such as a quadrangle or a triangle, which can transmit rotational drive.
[0156]
When the motor m is driven in this state, the rotational driving force is transmitted from the main body driving unit 20 to the sealing member 2, and further transmitted from the sealing member 2 to the bottle driving shaft 1b, whereby the toner bottle 1 rotates. It has become. That is, the sealing member 2 serves two functions of sealing the toner and transmitting the rotational driving force of the toner bottle 1 at the same time. Further, since the toner bottle 1 is rotatably supported by the bottle receiving roller 23, the toner bottle 1 can be smoothly rotated even with a slight driving torque. The rollers 23 are arranged at four locations in a position that becomes a ridge with respect to the bottle main body 1A. The bottle receiving roller 23 is rotatably provided in the toner supply device of the apparatus main body 100. As the toner bottle 1 rotates in this manner, the toner contained in the container is sequentially discharged from the opening 1a and replenished to the hopper 201a on the image forming apparatus main body side.
[0157]
(Separation method)
Next, a method for separating the surface fastener 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 30 and 31.
[0158]
When the toner supply is completed and the toner bottle 1 is empty, the old toner bottle must be removed and replaced with a new toner bottle. In that case, it is necessary to isolate | separate each sealing fastener 3 and 30 provided in the sealing member 2 and the drive part 20 which were engaged until then.
[0159]
Reference numeral 24 in FIGS. 30 and 31 denotes a knife-like separating member. The separation member 24 is provided in the image forming apparatus main body and is configured to be movable in the direction of arrows cd. When separating, each of the hook-and-loop fasteners 3 and 3 is operated in such a manner that the individual stems 3a are sequentially separated and the fastener portions are blocked by causing the knife-like separating member 24 to enter the c-direction into the engaging portion of the hook-and-loop fastener 3. 30 is separated. This knife-like separation member 24 is interlocked with the opening / closing operation of the front cover of the image forming apparatus main body 100 (not shown), and when the front cover is opened, the knife-like separation member 24 descends in the direction of the arrow c to perform separation. When the front cover is closed, it may be configured to move in the direction of the arrow d, or may be configured to perform an independent separation operation using a separate drive motor, or the front cover of the apparatus main body 100. Instead of the interlocking operation, any method may be used, such as providing a separate manual lever and performing a separation operation in conjunction with this.
[0160]
Examples of other separation methods shown in FIGS. 32 and 33 are shown.
[0161]
An extrusion rod 25 is provided on the back side of the main body drive unit 20, and the extrusion rod 25 is configured to be movable in the arrow direction EF. A through hole 26 is provided in a substantially central portion of the back side surface of the hook-and-loop fastener 30. When the surface fastener 30 is separated, the push rod 25 moves in the direction of arrow F from the back surface of the surface fastener as shown in FIG. 33 and pushes the surface fastener 30 so that the surface fastener 30 faces the center side as shown in FIG. Project and warp toward the fastener 3. Since the hook-and-loop fastener 30 is made of resin, it is bent by elastic deformation, and the engagement of the stem 3a is sequentially released from the outer peripheral portion of the hook-and-loop fastener 30 to be separated.
[0162]
Further, as another separation method, it is of course possible to combine the two methods described above. By making the hook-and-loop fastener 30 first pushed out by the push rod 25 and making the hook-and-loop fastener 30 warped, separation by the knife-like separation member 24 described above makes it possible to achieve smoother and more reasonable separation.
[0163]
Further, in the present invention, it is not limited to the above-described separation method, and it goes without saying that there is no problem even if other separation methods are used.
[0164]
(Arrangement configuration of hook-and-loop fastener)
Next, the arrangement configuration of the hook-and-loop fastener 3 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0165]
The arrangement configuration of the hook-and-loop fastener according to the present invention is not limited to being provided at the tip portion of the sealing member 2 described above, and may be freely selected as long as the toner bottle 1 can be driven and transmitted. .
[0166]
For example, the configuration shown in FIGS. 34, 35, and 36 may be used.
[0167]
FIG. 34 shows a case where the hook-and-loop fastener 3 is provided on the entire circumference of the end surface of the toner bottle 1.
[0168]
FIG. 35 shows a case where the hook-and-loop fasteners 3 are provided at a plurality of locations by dividing the toner bottle 1 into the end surface.
[0169]
FIG. 36 shows a case where, instead of providing the opening 1a for discharging the toner on the end surface of the toner bottle 1, a discharge port 1d is provided on the peripheral surface and the surface fastener 3 is provided on the end surface.
[0170]
The position where the hook-and-loop fastener 3 is arranged freely may be configured by various toner container shapes. However, in the case of being divided and arranged as shown in FIG. 35, the surface fastener of the mating body drive unit needs to have a configuration in which the surface fastener is arranged on the entire circumference as shown in FIG.
[0171]
Next, an example in which the present invention is applied to a process cartridge as another embodiment of the present invention will be described below.
[0172]
[Embodiment 2]
First, the process cartridge according to the second embodiment and the image forming apparatus to which the process cartridge can be mounted will be specifically described with reference to FIGS.
[0173]
Here, as an order of explanation, first, the overall configuration of the process cartridge and the image forming apparatus used by mounting the process cartridge will be described with reference to FIGS. 37 to 40, and then the process cartridge and the process cartridge will be described with reference to FIGS. A configuration of a hook-and-loop fastener that is a drive transmission mechanism of the image forming apparatus main body will be described.
[0174]
(overall structure)
FIG. 37 is a schematic explanatory diagram of the configuration of the image forming apparatus in which the process cartridge is detachably mounted, FIG. 38 is a schematic explanatory diagram of the configuration of the process cartridge, FIG. 39 is an external perspective view of the process cartridge, and FIG. It is explanatory drawing of a structure.
[0175]
As shown in FIG. 37, the electrophotographic image forming apparatus (laser beam printer) A irradiates a drum-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member with a laser light image based on image information from an optical unit 103 to cause the latent image on the photosensitive member. An image is formed, and the latent image is developed to form a toner image. In synchronization with the formation of the toner image, the paper P as a recording medium is transported from the paper feed cassette 31a by the transport means 31 including the pickup roller 31b, the feed roller pair 31c, the transport roller pair 31d, the registration roller pair 31e, and the like. In addition, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum formed into a cartridge as the process cartridge B is transferred to the paper P by applying a voltage to the transfer roller 4 as the transfer means, and the paper P is guided by the guide plate 31f. To the fixing means. The fixing unit 5 includes a driving roller 5a and a fixing roller 5c having a built-in heater 5b, and applies heat and pressure to the passing paper P to fix the transferred toner image. The paper P is transported by a pair of discharge rollers 31g and 31h, and discharged to the discharge unit 6 through a reverse transport path. The image forming apparatus A can also be manually fed by a manual feed tray 31i and a roller 31j.
[0176]
On the other hand, the process cartridge B includes an electrophotographic photosensitive member and at least one process means. Here, as the process means, for example, a charging means for charging the electrophotographic photosensitive member, a developing means for developing the latent image formed on the electrophotographic photosensitive member, and a cleaning means for cleaning the toner remaining on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member. Etc. As shown in FIGS. 38 and 39, the process cartridge B of the present embodiment rotates a photosensitive drum 7 having a photosensitive layer which is an electrophotographic photosensitive member, and the surface thereof is applied to a charging roller 8 which is a charging means. It is configured to be uniformly charged by applying a voltage, to expose the information light from the optical unit 103 to the photosensitive drum 7 through the exposure opening 9 to form a latent image, and to develop it by the developing means 10. Yes.
[0177]
The developing means 10 feeds the toner in the toner storage portion 10a by the feeding member 10b, rotates the developing roller 10d having the fixed magnet 10c built therein, and develops the toner layer to which the triboelectric charge is applied by the developing blade 10e. The toner image is formed on the surface of the toner and transferred to the photosensitive drum 7 in accordance with the latent image, thereby forming a toner image to be a visible image. Then, after the toner image is transferred to the paper P by applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner image to the transfer roller 4, the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 7 is scraped off by the cleaning blade 11a and scraped off by the squeeze sheet 11b. The residual toner on the photosensitive drum 7 is removed by the cleaning means 11 that collects in the removed toner reservoir 11c.
[0178]
Each member such as the photosensitive drum 7 forms a developing unit by welding a toner container 12a that stores toner and a developing frame 12b that holds a developing member such as the developing roller 10d, and this is configured as a cleaning frame. A cleaning unit having the photoconductive drum 7 and the cleaning unit 11 attached to the body 12c is combined into a cartridge frame that is configured as a cartridge, and is detachably mounted to the cartridge mounting unit provided in the apparatus main body 13. Is done.
[0179]
In the cartridge mounting means, when the opening / closing cover 14 is opened around the shaft 14a, as shown in FIG. 40, the cartridge mounting guide members 32 are mounted facing the left and right side surfaces of the cartridge mounting space (FIG. On the other hand, only the side surface is shown), and the left and right guide members 32 are provided with a guide portion 32a as a guide when the process cartridge B is inserted. The process cartridge B is mounted on the image forming apparatus A by inserting the bosses protruding from both sides in the longitudinal direction of the cartridge frame into the guide portion 32a and inserting the bosses into the guide portion 32a.
[0180]
When the process cartridge B is mounted on the image forming apparatus A, as will be described later, the cartridge side surface fastener and the main body side surface fastener engage with each other, and the photosensitive drum 7 and the like can be rotated by being driven by the apparatus main body 13.
[0181]
(Drive transmission configuration)
Next, the configuration of a drive transmission unit that is a drive transmission mechanism from the image forming apparatus main body 13 to the process cartridge B will be described.
[0182]
As shown in FIGS. 41 and 42, the cartridge side surface fastener 3 is provided at one end of the photosensitive drum 7.
[0183]
On the other hand, a main body side surface fastener 30 is provided on the image forming apparatus main body side. The main body side surface fastener 30 is provided with a drive shaft 1b at a position coinciding with the photosensitive drum rotation axis when the process cartridge B is inserted. The drive shaft 1b receives rotational force from the pinion gear 33 of the motor 19 via the transmission gear 34, and can be driven to rotate. A main body side surface fastener 30 is formed at the tip of the drive shaft 1b.
[0184]
As shown in FIG. 42, a transmission gear 34 is fixed to the drive shaft 1b, and the transmission gear 34 and the pinion gear 33 are constituted by helical gears. This helical gear has teeth with an inclination angle that causes the transmission gear 34 to generate a thrust force in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 20 when the drive shaft 1b is rotated in the rotational direction during image formation. As a result, the drive shaft 1b integrated with the transmission gear 34 is pressed against the photosensitive drum 7, and the main body side surface fastener 30 provided on the surface of the drive shaft 1b and the surface fastener 3 provided on the photosensitive drum side are engaged. .
[0185]
At this time, in order to further increase the engagement accuracy between the photosensitive drum 7 and the drive shaft 1b on the main body drive side, as shown in FIGS. 41 and 42, the alignment center 30a is provided at the center of the main body drive side surface fastener 30. The center 30a may be inserted into the center hole 3h of the drum flange 16 to which the drum side surface fastener 3 is attached and the center hole of the surface fastener 3 is inserted into the center 30a. The drum flange 16 is fitted and fixed to the end of the hollow cylindrical photosensitive drum 7. The center 30a, which is an engaging protrusion for alignment, and the center hole 3h, which is an engaging recess, are positioned at the rotation centers of the drive transmission unit of the apparatus main body 100 and the driving force receiving unit of the toner bottle 1. Note that a positioning engagement recess may be provided on the apparatus main body side, and an engagement protrusion that fits into the engagement recess may be provided on the toner bottle. As a result, the center axes of the two can be accurately matched, and a reliable and highly accurate rotational drive can be realized without causing poor engagement at the time of drive transmission. Such a configuration is particularly effective for a drive transmission unit that requires high rotational accuracy such as a photosensitive drum.
[0186]
In addition, this configuration may be applied to the toner supply container described in the first embodiment, or may be applied to other drive transmission units.
[0187]
As shown in FIG. 44, an arc-shaped release member 35 centering on a shaft 14a is attached to the opening / closing cover 14, and the distal end portion of the release member 35 is gradually increased in thickness as shown in FIG. A cam portion 35a is formed. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 45 and 46, when the opening / closing cover 14 is opened to remove the process cartridge B, the cam portion 35a enters between the wall portion 36 and the transmission gear 34, and the side surface of the transmission gear 34 is moved to the arrow. Extrude in direction b. As a result, the drive shaft 1b and the hook-and-loop fastener 30 provided on the surface thereof are retracted from the wall portion 36 to be disengaged from the hook-and-loop fastener 3 provided on the photosensitive drum 7, and the process cartridge B can be removed smoothly. .
[0188]
[Other embodiments]
Next, another example of each part of the process cartridge B and the image forming apparatus according to the above-described embodiment will be described.
[0189]
In the second embodiment described above, the process cartridge B is for forming a single color image. However, the process cartridge is provided not only for forming a single color image, but also by providing a plurality of developing means, For example, the present invention can be suitably applied to a cartridge for forming a two-color image, a three-color image, or a full color.
[0190]
As the developing method, various developing methods such as a known two-component magnetic brush developing method, cascade developing method, touch-down developing method, and cloud developing method can be used.
[0191]
The electrophotographic photosensitive member is not limited to the photosensitive drum, and includes, for example, the following. First, a photoconductor is used as the photoreceptor, and examples of the photoconductor include amorphous silicon, amorphous selenium, zinc oxide, titanium oxide, and organic photoconductor (OPC). The shape for mounting the photosensitive member includes, for example, a rotating member such as a drum shape or a belt shape, and a sheet shape. In general, drum-shaped or belt-shaped ones are used. For example, in the case of a drum-type photoreceptor, a photoconductor is mounted or coated on a cylinder made of aluminum alloy or the like. It is.
[0192]
In addition, the so-called contact charging method is used in the above-described second embodiment for the configuration of the charging means, but as another configuration, a metal shield such as aluminum is provided around three sides of a tungsten wire conventionally used, and the tungsten wire Naturally, it is possible to use a configuration in which positive or negative ions generated by applying a high voltage to the surface of the photosensitive drum are moved to the surface of the photosensitive drum, and the surface of the drum is uniformly charged.
[0193]
In addition to the roller type, the charging means may be a blade type (charging blade), pad type, block type, rod type, wire type, or the like.
[0194]
Further, as a method for cleaning the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum, the cleaning unit may be configured using a blade, a fur brush, a magnetic brush, or the like.
[0195]
The process cartridge described above includes, for example, an electrophotographic photosensitive member and at least one process means. Therefore, as an aspect of the process cartridge, in addition to the embodiment described above, for example, the electrophotographic photosensitive member and the charging means are integrally formed into a cartridge so that it can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. An electrophotographic photosensitive member and developing means are integrated into a cartridge so that it can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. The electrophotographic photosensitive member and the cleaning means are integrally formed into a cartridge, and can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. Further, the electrophotographic photosensitive member and two or more of the process means are combined into a cartridge, Some devices are detachable from the main body.
[0196]
That is, the process cartridge described above is a cartridge in which a charging unit, a developing unit or a cleaning unit and an electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed, and this cartridge can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body. In addition, at least one of the charging unit, the developing unit, and the cleaning unit and the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed into a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body. Further, it means that at least the developing means and the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrated into a cartridge so that it can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body.
[0197]
The present invention is also applicable to a developing cartridge in which a developing member and a developer are integrated into a cartridge and can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body.
[0198]
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the laser beam printer is exemplified as the image forming apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the image forming apparatus may be an electrophotographic copying machine, a facsimile apparatus, or another image forming apparatus such as a word processor. Of course, it is also possible to use.
[0199]
Further, the drive transmission mechanism that transmits the driving force by engaging the surface fastener and the surface fastener described above need not be limited to the drive transmission between the image forming apparatus main body and the process cartridge, and can be driven between members in other devices. It can also be used for transmission.
[0200]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, it is possible to simplify the engagement configuration with the electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body for toner conveyance and opening. Furthermore, the conventional troublesome work such as phase alignment associated with the engagement with the electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body is unnecessary, and the operability can be improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of an image forming apparatus main body (copier).
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electrophotographic copying machine.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state where a toner container replacement cover of the electrophotographic copying machine is opened and a toner replenishing container is attached to the electrophotographic copying machine.
FIG. 4 is a toner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Supply It is a perspective view of a container.
FIG. 5 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view of a drive transmission unit.
FIG. 6 is a side view of a sealing member of the toner supply container.
7 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A in FIG.
FIG. 8 is a front sectional view of FIG. 6;
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a drive transmission unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 10 is a side view of the drive transmission unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a coupling example of a surface fastener and a sealing member.
FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a coupling example of a surface fastener and a sealing member.
FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a coupling example of a surface fastener and a sealing member.
FIG. 14 is a schematic configuration side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 15 is a schematic configuration side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 16 is a schematic side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 17 is a schematic side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 18 is a schematic side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 19 is a schematic configuration side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 20 is a schematic configuration side view showing another example of the hook-and-loop fastener.
FIG. 21 is a front view showing an arrangement pattern of hook-and-loop fasteners.
FIG. 22 is a front view showing an arrangement pattern of hook-and-loop fasteners.
FIG. 23 is a front view showing an arrangement pattern of hook-and-loop fasteners.
FIG. 24 is a front view of an electrophotographic copying machine.
FIG. 25 is a side view of an electrophotographic copying machine.
FIG. 26 is a plan view showing an electrophotographic copying machine with a toner container replacement cover opened.
FIG. 27 is a side view illustrating the mounting operation of the toner supply container according to the embodiment of the present invention (mounting start).
FIG. 28 is a side view showing the mounting operation of the toner replenishing container according to the embodiment of the present invention (while mounting).
FIG. 29 is a side view showing the mounting operation of the toner supply container according to the embodiment of the present invention (mounting completed).
FIG. 30 is a side view showing a means for separating the surface fastener in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 31 is a side view showing a means for separating the surface fastener in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 32 is a side view showing another separating means of the hook-and-loop fastener in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 33 is a side view showing another separating means of the surface fastener in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 34 is a perspective view showing an example of the arrangement configuration of the hook-and-loop fastener according to the embodiment of the present invention (doughnut shape).
FIG. 35 is a perspective view showing an example of the arrangement configuration of the hook-and-loop fastener according to the embodiment of the present invention (division).
FIG. 36 is a perspective view showing an example of the arrangement configuration of the hook-and-loop fastener according to the embodiment of the present invention (discharge port).
FIG. 37 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of a configuration of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus (laser beam printer).
FIG. 38 is a schematic vertical sectional view of the configuration of a process cartridge.
FIG. 39 is a schematic perspective view of a process cartridge.
FIG. 40 is a perspective view of a process cartridge mounting portion.
41 is a schematic perspective view of a configuration of a cartridge side surface fastener and a main body side surface fastener. FIG.
FIG. 42 is a schematic side view of a configuration of a cartridge side surface fastener and a main body side surface fastener.
FIG. 43 is a plan view of the drive transmission means of the apparatus main body when the opening / closing cover is closed.
FIG. 44 is a front view of the main assembly side fastener drive transmission means when the open / close cover is closed.
FIG. 45 is a plan view of the body side zipper drive transmission means when the open / close cover is opened.
FIG. 46 is a front view of the body side zipper drive transmission means when the open / close cover is opened.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Toner supply container (toner bottle) 1a ... Opening part 1b ... Drive shaft 1c ... Helical protrusion 1d ... Discharge port 1A ... Toner container main body
2 ... Sealing member 2a ... Engagement hole 2b ... Sealing part 2c ... Coupling engagement part 2d ... Positioning groove
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 ... Hook fastener 3a ... Protrusion (stem) 3a1 ... Root 3a2 ... Tip 3b ... Adhesive member 3c ... Small screw 3d ... Hook 3e ... Loop 3f ... Pyramid frustum projection (stem) 3h ... Center hole 3z ... Base
4 ... Transfer roller
5. Fixing means 5a ... Driving roller 5b ... Heater 5c ... Fixing roller
6 ... discharge part
7 ... Photosensitive drum
8 ... Charging roller
9: Exposure opening
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Developing means 10a ... Toner storage part 10b ... Feeding member 10c ... Fixed magnet 10d ... Developing roller 10e ... Developing blade
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Cleaning means 11a ... Cleaning blade 11b ... Squee sheet 11c ... Removal toner reservoir
12a ... toner container 12b ... developing frame 12c ... cleaning frame
13 ... Main unit
14 ... Opening / closing cover 14a ... Shaft
15 ... Toner supply container replacement cover
16 ... Drum flange
18 ... Hinge
19 ... Motor
20 ... Drive unit
21 ... Intermediate gear
22 ... Holding member
23 ... Bottle receiving roller
24 ... Knife-shaped separation member
25 ... Extruded rod
26 ... through hole
30 ... Body side fastener 30a ... Center
31 ... Conveying means 31a ... Paper feed cassette 31b ... Pickup roller 31c ... Feed roller pair 31d ... Conveying roller pair 31e ... Registration roller pair 31f ... Guide plate 31g ... Discharge roller pair 31h ... Discharge roller pair 31i ... Manual feed tray 31j ... Roller
32 ... Left and right guide members 32a ... Guide portion
33 ... pinion gear
34 ... Transmission gear
35 ... Release member 35a ... Cam portion
36 ... Wall
50 ... Container stand
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Image forming apparatus main body 100a ... Operation part 100b ... Liquid crystal display means 100c ... Front cover
101 ... Original
102: Document glass
103: Optical part
104 ... Photosensitive drum
105-108 ... cassette 105A-108A ... paper feed / separation device
109 ... Conveying section
110: Registration roller
111 ... Transfer discharger
112. Separate discharger
113 ... Conveying section
114. Fixing part
115 ... Paper discharge reversing unit
116: paper discharge roller
117: paper discharge tray
118 ... Flapper
119 to 120: Re-feed conveyance path
201 ... developing part 201a ... toner hopper 201b ... developer 201c ... stirring member
201d ... Magnet roller 201e ... Feed member 201f ... Developing roller
202 ... Cleaner
203 ... Primary charger
300 ... slide member
M ... Mirror
Ln ... Lens
P ... paper
m ... Drive motor
A: Image forming apparatus
B ... Process cartridge
D ... Outer diameter

Claims (5)

In a toner replenishing container that can be attached to and detached from an electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body having a drive unit,
A rotatable storage section for storing toner;
An opening provided in the housing portion;
A sealing portion for sealing the opening;
A transport unit that transports toner toward the opening in accordance with rotation of the storage unit;
A driving force receiving portion provided with a surface fastener that is provided so as to be able to engage with the surface fastener of the driving portion, and that receives a rotational force during toner conveyance and receives a force in the direction of the rotational axis when opened;
And a toner supply container.   The toner replenishing container according to claim 1, wherein the surface fastener of the driving force receiving portion includes a plurality of fine protrusions.   3. The toner replenishing container according to claim 2, wherein the fine protrusion of the surface fastener of the driving force receiving portion has a larger outer diameter on the tip side than the root.   2. The toner supply container according to claim 1, wherein the surface fastener of the driving force receiving portion includes at least a large number of loop portions that can be engaged with the surface fastener of the driving portion.   2. The toner supply container according to claim 1, wherein the surface fastener of the driving force receiving portion has a configuration in which at least a number of hook portions that can be engaged with the surface fastener of the driving portion are arranged.

Images