JP3907447B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as an electrostatic copying machine or an electrostatic printer using an electrostatic transfer process.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In an image forming apparatus using an electrostatic transfer process, an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive drum as an image carrier is visualized as a toner image by a developing device, and the toner image is transferred from the photosensitive drum to a transfer material. The toner that has not been transferred but remains on the photosensitive drum without being transferred is cleaned and removed by the cleaning device.
[0003]
By the way, conventionally, when cleaning untransferred toner on a photosensitive drum, foreign matters contained in the untransferred toner, paper powder of a transfer material, etc. are carried by the photosensitive drum, and a cleaning blade as a cleaning member and the photosensitive drum There is a risk that they may be sandwiched between them and damage the photosensitive drum, or the cleaning blade may be pushed up to cause the toner to rub through the gap between the cleaning blade and the photosensitive drum. These have been obstructive factors when attempting to reduce running costs by improving the durability of the photosensitive drum.
[0004]
In recent years, as a countermeasure against the above problem, a method of reciprocating the cleaning blade in the thrust direction of the photosensitive drum (reciprocating operation) has been proposed. However, as the durability increases, the contact portion of the cleaning blade with the photosensitive drum is increased. Damage due to long-term rubbing has increased, and negative effects such as toner removal due to wear of the cleaning blade and damage to the photosensitive drum due to roughness of the contact surface of the cleaning blade have become apparent.
[0005]
Therefore, the control of the reciprocating operation of the cleaning blade has also been proposed. In addition to the control system for stopping the reciprocating operation of the cleaning blade at the time of the pre-rotation or post-rotation of the photosensitive drum itself, various reciprocal operation sequences are also proposed. ing.
[0006]
On the other hand, various waste toner conveying devices that collect untransferred toner and convey it have been proposed, but most of the operation sequences of this device constitute a single control system. On the other hand, in recent years, as a more advanced control system, proposals have been made to synchronize the operation of the waste toner conveying device and the reciprocating operation of the cleaning blade through a gear.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the conventional image forming apparatus, since the reciprocal operation of the cleaning blade constitutes a single control system, the reciprocal operation control of the cleaning blade and the development operation control of the developing device are appropriately handled. For this purpose, the control system has a complicated configuration or has to be a double control system, which tends to be an expensive mechanism.
[0008]
Further, when the reciprocating operation of the cleaning blade constitutes a single control system, the reciprocating operation of the cleaning blade does not stop simultaneously even if an abnormality occurs in the developing device during the image forming operation. The reciprocating operation of the cleaning blade is continued even if the photosensitive drum is damaged by the fusion of the developing device sleeve. For this reason, there arises a problem that the cleaning blade takes a long time to receive damage from the photosensitive drum.
[0009]
Therefore, it is desirable to reduce the reciprocating operation time of the cleaning blade efficiently and suppress the wear of the cleaning blade due to reciprocating rubbing as much as possible. For this purpose, a sophisticated sequence that synchronizes the developing operation and the reciprocating operation is required. It becomes necessary.
[0010]
Furthermore, in a blade reciprocating system in which the cleaning blade thrust length is longer than the thrust length of the photosensitive drum, the end of the cleaning blade is rubbed against the end of the photosensitive drum, and “egression” or the like is likely to occur. . For this reason, there are also problems such as “blade meklet” and “chatter” being likely to occur starting from this agre portion.
[0011]
On the other hand, untransferred toner on the photosensitive drum is scraped off by a cleaning blade and then collected in a waste toner box and transported by a waste toner transport device. In order to prevent vibrations and suppress vibrations applied to the apparatus, the operation time of the waste toner conveying apparatus is required to be controlled to the minimum necessary.
[0012]
However, the current waste toner conveying device has an operation sequence independent of other elements. For example, in order to shorten the operation time, a special operation is required to synchronize the operation of the waste toner conveying device with the developing operation. Sequence has been required.
[0013]
Furthermore, scraped waste toner often accumulates between the waste toner collecting member and the waste toner conveying screw in, for example, a high-temperature and high-humidity environment, and this accumulates on the edge of the cleaning blade. As a result, the appropriate amount of scraped-off waste toner is exceeded, and there is a problem in that the scraping from the blade local area is increased due to extremely low circulation.
[0014]
In addition, when the cleaning blade performs a reciprocating operation, waste toner that has run laterally accumulates at the end of the cleaning blade, and the lateral running amount of the excess toner is superimposed, so that the end of the waste toner drops off. In some cases, it was accelerated and became a major cause of in-flight contamination.
[0015]
The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to improve the durability of the cleaning device by suppressing the wear of the cleaning member without providing a reciprocating control mechanism in the cleaning device. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of shortening the toner discharge operation time and preventing contamination in the apparatus due to winding up of waste toner and dropping off of an end portion.
[0016]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, an invention according to claim 1 is directed to an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, and a rotatable development for forming a toner image by attaching the carried toner to the electrostatic latent image. An image forming apparatus comprising: a developing unit having a rotating body; a transfer unit that transfers the toner image to a transfer material; and a cleaning device that has a cleaning member that removes waste toner remaining on the image carrier after transfer. The cleaning device is disposed below the cleaning member and collects the waste toner; a waste toner box that stores the waste toner removed from the image carrier by the cleaning member; On the cleaning member , The image carrier is engaged so as to be relatively movable in the thrust direction. Was With auxiliary cleaning member Have The auxiliary cleaning member includes a reciprocating operation rotating body capable of reciprocating in the thrust direction of the image carrier, and a transmission rotating body for transmitting power from the developing rotating body to the reciprocating operation rotating body. Rotating motion of rotating body And before The reciprocating operation of the auxiliary cleaning member can be linked, The auxiliary cleaning member is a thin plate material that is disposed discontinuously facing along the thrust direction of the image carrier and faces the surface of the image carrier in a non-contact manner from the cleaning member to the collection member. The waste toner conveyed by the photosensitive drum to the position of the cleaning member during the image forming operation is removed by the reciprocating operation. It is characterized by that.
[0017]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, a waste toner discharge member that performs a waste toner discharge operation in the cleaning device is connected to the transmission rotating body,
The rotation operation of the developing rotator, the reciprocation operation of the auxiliary cleaning member, and the discharge operation of the waste toner discharge member can be interlocked.
[0018]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the auxiliary cleaning member is brought into contact with the waste toner discharge member.
[0019]
The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the auxiliary cleaning member is Said It is characterized by non-contact with the collecting member.
[0021]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0022]
[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a four-color full-color image forming apparatus (copier) which is an embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention. The image forming apparatus 100 includes an image forming apparatus main body (hereinafter referred to as “apparatus main body”). The first to fourth image forming portions Pa, Pb, Pc, and Pd are sequentially arranged from the upstream side (right side in the figure) to the downstream side (left side in the figure) of the transfer material such as paper. I have.
[0023]
These image forming portions Pa to Pd are provided with drum-type electrophotographic photosensitive members (hereinafter referred to as photosensitive drums) 1a to 1d as image carriers, and the rotation directions around them (see FIG. 2). The primary chargers 12a to 12d, the blank exposure devices 13a to 13d, the developing devices (developing means) 2a to 2d, the transfer blades (transfer means) 3a to 3d, and the cleaning devices 4a to 4d are arranged in order. Yes. Further, in the order from the upstream side along the conveyance direction of the transfer material P, the paper feed cassettes 10a, 10b, and 10c, the transfer material supply and conveyance unit 6, the transfer belt 30, the separation charger 11, the conveyance belt 32, the fixing device 18, A flapper 15 and a paper discharge tray 14 are provided. In addition, a reversing device 17 and a refeed means 16 that are not discharged to the discharge tray 14 by switching the flapper 15 are also provided.
[0024]
FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the first image forming unit Pa on the most upstream side. The configurations of the other second, third, and fourth image forming apparatuses Pb, Pc, and Pd are substantially the same as those of the first image forming unit Pa, and thus description thereof is omitted.
[0025]
As the photosensitive drum 1a of the first image forming portion Pa, a photosensitive layer having a carrier generation layer (CGL) and a carrier transport layer (CTL) on the surface of a cylindrical aluminum substrate is used, and the thickness of the carrier transport layer (CTL). Is used so that Rz (10-point average roughness), which is JIS surface roughness (B601), is 2 μm or less in the initial state.
[0026]
The photosensitive drum 1a is rotationally driven at a process speed of 160 mm / sec in the direction of arrow A by a driving unit (not shown). The photosensitive drum 1a has a diameter of 60 mm.
[0027]
Further, a primary charger 12a is disposed close to the photosensitive drum 1a, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a is uniformly charged by the primary charger 12a. The charged surface of the photosensitive drum 1a is exposed to an optical system disposed above the image forming portion Pa to form an electrostatic latent image, and then exposed to the blank exposure device 13a.
[0028]
Subsequently, the electrostatic latent image is developed as a toner image by attaching the toner in the developer by the developing device 2a. As a developer, a two-component developer mainly composed of toner and a ferrite carrier is used.
[0029]
When the toner image on the photosensitive drum 1a reaches a transfer portion where the photosensitive drum 1a and the transfer blade 3a face each other, the transfer material P fed from the transfer material feeding / conveying unit 6 (see FIG. 1) by this time is transferred. Then, it is carried on the surface of the transfer belt 30 and conveyed in the direction of arrow K. This transfer material P reaches the transfer portion in time with the toner image on the photosensitive drum 1a, and the toner image is transferred from the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a by the action of the electric field formed by the transfer blade 3a. Transferred onto P. The transfer belt 30 is configured to pass through the transfer portions of the four image forming portions Pa to Pd with the transfer material P carried on the surface thereof.
[0030]
After the toner image is transferred, residual toner that is not transferred to the transfer material P and remains on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a is scraped off and removed by the cleaning blade 43 of the cleaning device 4a. Residual charges are removed by the exposure lamp and used for the next image formation.
[0031]
As described above, the transfer material P onto which the first toner image has been transferred by the first image forming unit Pa is transported downstream by the transport belt 30, and the second image forming unit Pb and the third image are transported. The toner images are sequentially transferred onto the transfer material P by the forming portion Pc and further by the fourth image forming portion Pd as in the case of the first image forming portion Pa.
[0032]
However, the toner colors of the toner images transferred by the first to fourth image forming portions Pa to Pd are different from each other, and the four color toner images are superimposed on the surface of the transfer material P. Passes through the fixing device 18 (see FIG. 1), whereby the toner image is fixed on the transfer material P, and a four-color full-color image is formed. The edge of the cleaning blade 43 is in contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a with a contact pressure of 10 to 40 gr / cm.
[0033]
By the way, the transfer material P on which the transfer of the four color toner images has been completed is separated from the transfer belt 30 by the separation charger (see FIG. 1) 11 and is transported to the fixing device 18 by the transport belt 32. The In the fixing device 18, the toner image is fixed as described above by being heated and pressed by the fixing roller 18a and the pressure roller 18b. At this time, for example, silicon oil is applied as a releasing agent to the surface of the fixing roller 18a so that the toner on the transfer material P does not adhere to the surface of the fixing roller 18a.
[0034]
The transfer material P on which the toner image is formed on the front surface (first surface) passes over the flapper 15 and is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 14 when the image formation is on one side.
[0035]
On the other hand, when the image is formed on both sides (the first side and the second side), the transfer material P having the toner image fixed on the first side is not discharged to the paper discharge tray 14 by switching the flapper 15. To the lower refeeding means 16. Next, the transfer material P is reversed by the reversing device 17 and then supplied again to the first to fourth image forming units Pa to Pd. Then, toner images for four colors are transferred to the second surface, and after the toner image is fixed by the fixing device 18, the toner image is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 14 through the upper portion of the flapper 15, thereby Image formation is completed. During the above operation, the relative speed of the transfer belt 30 with respect to the photosensitive drum 1a is set to zero.
[0036]
Here, in the present embodiment, a sequence for performing a reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member (auxiliary cleaning member) 71 in the cleaning device 4a during the image forming operation is introduced.
[0037]
That is, as shown in FIG. 2, a cleaning blade (cleaning member) 43 for removing the waste toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 1a is disposed on the cleaning blade 43 so as to be movable relative to the cleaning blade 43 in the thrust direction of the photosensitive drum 1a. 71 is engaged. Specifically, the waste toner scraping member 71 is extended in the thrust direction by 150 mm in the longitudinal direction from the substantially central portion of the photosensitive drum 1a in the thrust direction, and the back side of the support metal plate of the cleaning blade 43 is installed as the engagement end. .
[0038]
Further, a developing sleeve driving gear (developing rotating body) 51 and a reciprocating operation gear (reciprocating operating rotating body) 61 capable of imparting a reciprocating operation in the drum thrust direction to the waste toner scraping member 71 are connected to a plurality of interlocking gears (transmission). The rotating bodies were meshed via 52-55. That is, when the reciprocating operation gear 61 rotates, the waste toner scraping member 71 performs a reciprocating operation in the drum thrust direction.
[0039]
As a result, the power of the developing sleeve drive gear 51 is transmitted to the reciprocating operation gear 61 via the plurality of interlocking gears 52 to 55, and further transmitted from the reciprocating operation gear 61 to the waste toner scraping member 71. For this reason, the developing operation of the developing device 2a and the reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 operate in synchronization, and the reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 is performed during the image forming operation.
[0040]
Here, the length in the thrust direction of each waste toner scraping member 71 is set to 345 mm, and the length in the thrust direction of the photosensitive drum 1 a is set to 340 mm. Further, the reciprocating stroke of each waste toner scraping member 71 in the thrust direction of the photosensitive drum 1a is set to ± 2 mm, and the reciprocating cycle is set to 1 Hz.
[0041]
Further, in the present embodiment, the waste toner scraping member 71 is disposed discontinuously facing along the thrust direction of the photosensitive drum 1a.
[0042]
That is, the waste toner scraping member 71 is discontinuously disposed so as to face the cleaning blade 43, for example, by partially forming a sawtooth portion along the thrust direction of the photosensitive drum 1a. In this way, chattering of the cleaning blade 43 due to insufficient amount of waste toner staying at the edge portion of the cleaning blade 43 while reducing the biasing pressure applied to the cleaning blade 43 from the waste toner scraping member 71 Can be prevented in advance.
[0043]
Thus, when the image forming operation is started, untransferred toner, foreign matters mixed in the untransferred toner, paper dust, and the like are carried to the position of the cleaning blade 43 by the photosensitive drum 1a. At this time, the waste toner scraping member 71 performing the reciprocating operation removes the non-transferred toner and the foreign matters, paper dust, and the like that are the main cause of the cleaning failure by the reciprocating operation and vibration.
[0044]
When the series of image forming operations is completed, the developing sleeve 21 stops rotating in the developing device 2a, and at the same time, the operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 performing the reciprocating operation in synchronization with the developing sleeve 21 is also stopped. Then, the photosensitive drum 1 enters the post-rotation operation region, and after the post-rotation, the rotation operation is also stopped.
[0045]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the developing operation of the developing device 2a (the rotating operation of the developing sleeve 21) and the reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 in the cleaning device 4a are synchronized. It is no longer necessary to provide a reciprocal control mechanism.
[0046]
Further, according to the present embodiment, the waste toner scraping member 71 is also driven / stopped in response to the driving / stopping of the developing device 2a, so that the reciprocating operation time of the waste toner scraping member 71 can be minimized. it can. As a result, the wear of the waste toner scraping member 71 can be controlled to improve the durability thereof, and the staying amount of the waste toner can always be stabilized at an appropriate value.
[0047]
Next, in the present embodiment, the base end side of the waste toner scraping member 71 is installed on the back side of the support metal plate of the cleaning blade 43, and the tip portion of the waste toner scraping member 71 is disposed on the waste toner conveying screw. 42 was brought into contact with 1 mm. At this time, Lumirror # 38 manufactured by Toray Industries, Inc. was used as the material of the waste toner scraping member 71 (plate thickness = 38 μm).
[0048]
According to the present embodiment, since the waste toner scraping member 71 is in contact with the waste toner conveying screw 42 and is always in contact therewith, various vibrations are transmitted from the waste toner conveying screw 42 to the waste toner scraping member 71. . The reciprocating vibration and the operational vibration of the waste toner conveying screw 42 are used to prevent the waste toner scraping member 71 from sticking to or clogging the waste toner scraping member 71 itself, and maintain high cleaning performance in the cleaning device 4a. .
[0049]
By the way, in the cleaning device 4 a, residual toner (so-called waste toner) removed from the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 a by the cleaning blade 43 is temporarily between the squeeze sheet member (collecting member) 41 and the waste toner box 44. The oil is stored and sequentially supplied to the edge of the cleaning blade 43 to act as a lubricant. Thus, the residual toner reduces the friction between the photosensitive drum 1a and the cleaning blade 43 and maintains a good cleaning action.
[0050]
However, in the cleaning process by the cleaning blade 43, the photosensitive drum 1a may be worn unevenly or damaged.
[0051]
Therefore, in the present embodiment, the waste toner scraping member 71 is disposed in a non-contact manner with respect to the squeeze sheet member 41. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the abnormal vibration from propagating from the waste toner scraping member 71 to the squeeze sheet member 41 that is always in contact with the photosensitive drum 1a, and thus it is possible to prevent the occurrence of an abnormal image due to the abnormal vibration.
[0052]
In the present embodiment, uneven wear and damage of the photosensitive drum 1a as described above are prevented by the following means.
[0053]
As described above, when image formation is performed on both surfaces of the transfer material P, when the toner image is fixed on the first surface of the transfer material P, the silicone oil adhered to the first surface is transferred to the transfer belt during image formation on the second surface. 30 is attached to the photosensitive drums 1a to 1d. Thus, the silicon oil adhering to the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 1 a to 1 d degrades the toner removing function at the edge of the cleaning blade 43.
[0054]
For example, in the case of A4 size transfer material P, when five or more transfer materials P holding 10 mg of silicon oil per sheet are continuously passed through the cleaning blade 43, the normal contact pressure (setting of the cleaning blade 43) It has been confirmed by the present inventors that defective cleaning occurs at a pressure of 10 to 40 g / cm. For this reason, when the contact pressure of the cleaning blade 43 is not changed, it is necessary to remove the silicone oil before the silicone oil reaches the cleaning blade 43.
[0055]
In view of this, the silicone oil on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a is wiped off by the transfer belt 30 on the upstream side of the cleaning device 4a in the rotational direction of the photosensitive drum 1a.
[0056]
That is, during the post-rotation of the photosensitive drum 1a at the time of non-image formation (after the image formation, the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 1a is scraped off by the cleaning device 4a and then before the photosensitive drum 1a stops). The transfer belt 30 is again brought into contact with the photosensitive drum 1a for 2.55 seconds (a time corresponding to three rotations of the photosensitive drum 1a), and then the transfer belt 30 is separated from the photosensitive drum 1a, and then the photosensitive drum 1a is rotated five times. To complete a predetermined operation. The conveyance rotation speed of the transfer belt 30 during cleaning of the photosensitive drum 1a is set to 80% of the peripheral speed of the photosensitive drum 1a.
[0057]
Here, as the transfer belt 30 in contact with the photosensitive drum 1a, a chargeable endless belt to which carbon is added is used, and the entire circumference is set to 1500 mm, the width is 40 mm, and the thickness is 200 μm. The surface roughness of the outer peripheral surface of the transfer belt 30 (that is, the surface that contacts the photosensitive drum 1a) is set to 5 μm or more.
[0058]
The surface roughness of the transfer belt 30 was measured by using a surface roughness measuring device (SE-3300 manufactured by Kosaka Laboratory Ltd.) and bringing the stylus into contact in the vertical thrust direction with respect to the running direction of the transfer belt 30. In this state, the transfer belt 30 was run and measured. Thereby, Rz (10-point average roughness) based on JIS surface roughness (B0601) was measured.
[0059]
The transfer blade 3a is disposed inside the transfer belt 30 configured as described above. The transfer blade 3a is composed of a urethane blade formed by molding urethane rubber into a plate shape having a thickness of 2 mm and a thrust length (length along the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 1a) of 360 mm. The hardness is set to about 70 °. During transfer of the toner image, a high transfer voltage is applied to the transfer blade 3a by a power source (not shown).
[0060]
Further, the transfer blade 3a is supported so as to be swingable about the base end side thereof, and is configured to selectively take either the operating position B or the retracted position C shown in FIG.
[0061]
Thus, at the time of image formation (transfer operation), the transfer blade 3a moves to the operating position B and urges the transfer belt 30 from the back surface side, and a linear pressure of 10 g is applied to the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a. Press (pressurize) to / cm. In this state, a high transfer voltage is applied to the transfer blade 3a by a power source (not shown) when the toner image is transferred.
[0062]
The linear pressure is defined as follows. That is, when the total length of the blade thrust in the transfer belt 30 uniformly contacted with the photosensitive drum 1a by the transfer blade 3a is Lcm, and the total blade pressure applied to the total length of the thrust of the photosensitive drum 1a is Pg,
Linear pressure = P / L (g / cm)
It was.
[0063]
When the transfer operation is completed, the transfer blade 3a swings in a direction away from the back surface of the transfer belt 30 and moves to the retracted position C, whereby the pressing operation of the transfer belt 30 on the photosensitive drum 1a is released.
[0064]
On the other hand, after the transfer operation is completed, the photosensitive drum 1a carrying the residual toner rotates to the cleaning device 4a, and the residual toner is scraped off by the cleaning blade 43 in the cleaning device 4a. The cleaning blade 43 is composed of a plate-like urethane blade having a thickness of 2 mm and a thrust length of 330 mm. The surface hardness is 65 °, and the contact pressure (linear pressure) against the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a is 30 g / It is set to cm.
[0065]
Thus, the transfer blade 3a is moved to the operating position B in order to bring the transfer belt 30 into contact with the photosensitive drum 1a after the residual toner is scraped off by the cleaning blade 43. As a result, the surface of the transfer belt 30 comes into contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a, and the transfer belt 30 slides on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a to wipe off the silicon oil adhering to the photosensitive drum 1a. At this time, the time during which the surface of the transfer belt 30 is in contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 1a is 2.55 sec as described above, and thereafter, the transfer blade 3a is separated from the transfer belt 30 and disposed at the retracted position C. Then, the photosensitive drum 1a is further rotated a predetermined number of times to complete the entire image forming operation.
[0066]
[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment will be described based on FIG. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the element same as the element shown in FIG. 2, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.
[0067]
In the present embodiment, the interlocking gears 55 and 56 are engaged with the rotation gear 42A of the waste toner conveying screw 42 of the waste toner box 44 of the cleaning device 4a, and the reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 and the developing operation of the developing device 2a. And the waste toner discharge operation are synchronized.
[0068]
That is, during the developing operation, the drive gear 51 of the developing sleeve 21 and the reciprocating operation gear 61 of the waste toner scraping member 71 connected via the interlocking gears 52 to 55 rotate in synchronization with the rotation of the developing sleeve 21. At the same time, the rotation of the developing sleeve 21 is transmitted to the rotating gear 42A of the waste toner conveying screw 42 via the developing sleeve driving gear 51 and the interlocking gears 52 to 56, and the waste toner conveying screw 42 is rotationally driven. Therefore, the untransferred toner scraped off by the reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 can be transported simultaneously by the waste toner transport screw 42. Thus, the untransferred toner can be discharged out of the cleaning device 4a.
[0069]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, by driving the developing device 2a, the reciprocating operation of the waste toner scraping member 71 and the discharging operation of the waste toner can be performed simultaneously, and the reciprocating operation and waste of the waste toner scraping member 71 are performed. The sequence control of the waste toner discharging operation by the toner conveying screw 42 can be omitted. Further, since the waste toner can be carried out by driving the developing device 2a, the waste toner discharge operation time can be minimized, and contamination in the apparatus due to the waste toner being rolled up can be prevented.
[0070]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the rotation operation of the developing rotator and the reciprocation operation of the auxiliary cleaning member can be interlocked, so that it is not necessary to provide a reciprocation control mechanism in the cleaning device. At the same time, the reciprocating operation time of the auxiliary cleaning member can be minimized, and the wear of the auxiliary cleaning member can be suppressed and its durability can be improved.
[0071]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the reciprocating operation of the auxiliary cleaning member and the discharging operation of the waste toner discharging member can be interlocked by the rotation operation of the developing rotator, and the reciprocating operation of the auxiliary cleaning member and the waste toner discharging member are The sequence and control of the discharge operation can be omitted, and further, the waste toner discharge operation time can be minimized to prevent in-machine contamination due to the winding up of the waste toner.
[0072]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the auxiliary cleaning member is brought into contact with the waste toner discharge member, the waste toner is discharged from the auxiliary cleaning member itself by utilizing reciprocal vibration of the auxiliary cleaning member and operation vibration of the waste toner discharge member. It can prevent sticking and clogging and maintain high cleaning performance.
[0073]
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the auxiliary cleaning member is not in contact with the collecting member that collects the untransferred residual toner, propagation of abnormal vibration to the collecting member that is always in contact with the image carrier. It is possible to prevent occurrence of abnormal images due to abnormal vibration.
[0074]
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the auxiliary cleaning member is disposed so as to be discontinuously opposed to the thrust direction of the image carrier, the chatter of the cleaning member due to a shortage of waste toner staying at the edge portion of the cleaning member. Etc. can be prevented in advance.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of one image forming unit in the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of one image forming unit in an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
1a to 1d Photosensitive drum (image carrier)
2a to 2d Developing device (developing means)
3a to 3d Transfer blade (transfer means)
4a-4d Cleaning device
21 Development sleeve (development rotating body)
41 Squee sheet member (collecting member)
42 Waste toner transport screw (waste toner discharge member)
42A Rotating gear
43 Cleaning blade (cleaning member)
44 Waste toner box
51 Development sleeve drive gear
52, 53, 54, 55, 56 Interlocking gear (transmission rotor)
61 Reciprocating gear (Reciprocating rotating body)
71 Waste toner scraping member (auxiliary cleaning member)
100 Image forming apparatus

Claims (4)

An image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed;
A developing means having a rotatable developing rotator for forming a toner image by attaching a carried toner to the electrostatic latent image;
Transfer means for transferring the toner image to a transfer material;
A cleaning device having a cleaning member for removing waste toner remaining on the image carrier after transfer,
The cleaning device is disposed below the cleaning member and collects the waste toner, a waste toner box that stores the waste toner removed from the image carrier by the cleaning member, An auxiliary cleaning member engaged with the cleaning member so as to be relatively movable in the thrust direction of the image carrier,
A reciprocating operation rotating body capable of reciprocating the auxiliary cleaning member in a thrust direction of the image carrier;
A transmission rotating body for transmitting power from the developing rotating body to the reciprocating operation rotating body;
The rotating operation of the developing rotator and the reciprocating operation of the auxiliary cleaning member can be linked,
The auxiliary cleaning member is a thin plate material that is discontinuously disposed along the thrust direction of the image carrier and faces the surface of the image carrier in a non-contact manner from the cleaning member to the collection member. The image forming apparatus, wherein the waste toner conveyed by the photosensitive drum to the position of the cleaning member during the image forming operation is removed by the reciprocating operation. A waste toner discharging member for performing a waste toner discharging operation in the cleaning device is coupled to the transmission rotating body;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotation operation of the developing rotator, the reciprocation operation of the auxiliary cleaning member, and the discharge operation of the waste toner discharge member can be interlocked.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the auxiliary cleaning member is in contact with the waste toner discharge member.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the auxiliary cleaning member is not in contact with the collecting member.

Images