JP4174214B2 - Rotating body mounting structure and process cartridge using the rotating body structure - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a rotating body mounting structure and a process cartridge of an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile machine.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In image forming apparatuses such as copying machines, printers, facsimiles, and the like, various rotating bodies such as gears and pulleys are used, and the rotating body is attached to a member that supports the rotating body. Are shown in FIGS.
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a rotating body mounting structure using a snap fit is a system in which a rotating body 3 provided with a snap fit member 2 on a part of a shaft portion 1 is fitted into a mounted member 4 having a hole. Although this method is easy to install, it has an inefficient structure in terms of removal. This is because, at the time of removal, it is necessary to perform the step of bending the snap fit member 2 and the step of extracting the rotating body 3 almost simultaneously, and both hands are required. Moreover, if the extraction process of the rotary body 3 is performed from the front side, the bending process of the snap fit member 2 is performed from the back side, and it is difficult to view simultaneously unless a jig is used. At present, while product reuse / reuse is being sought from the viewpoint of recycling, it is demanded to design parts that can be easily disassembled, but it can be said that the structure of FIG.
Moreover, since the conventional rotary body 3 provided with the snap fit member 2 is provided with the snap fit member 2 as a part of the shaft, the fitting length 5 necessary for supporting the rotary shaft of the rotary body 3 is sufficient. It cannot be taken and tends to tilt as shown in FIG. When the rotating body 3 is a gear, the gear teeth come into contact with each other due to the tilt of the shaft, which causes noise and tooth surface wear. When the rotating body 3 is a pulley, it causes a belt shift.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The first object of the present invention is to provide a rotating body mounting structure that can reduce the inclination of the axis of the rotating body in a small space.
The second object of the present invention is to provide a rotating body mounting structure that can be easily molded by providing a snap fit member on the rotating body.
The third object of the present invention is to provide a rotating body mounting structure that can be attached and detached from the same direction by providing a snap-fit member on the attached member side, and that has good attachment / detachment efficiency.
The fourth object of the present invention is to provide a rotating body mounting structure that is efficient in the recycling and disassembling process because the head of the locking portion can be easily pinched.
A fifth object of the present invention is to provide a rotating body mounting structure capable of easily deflecting the head portion of the locking portion with a force from one direction.
The sixth object of the present invention is that the locking portion is bent and used, so that it is easily deformed / damaged. However, even when the locking portion is deformed / damaged, only the locking member needs to be replaced. It is to provide a rotating body mounting structure.
A seventh object of the present invention is to provide a process cartridge that does not require replacement of the entire housing even when the locking portion is deformed or damaged.
An eighth object of the present invention is to provide a gear that is easy to attach and detach and has a minimum inclination of the rotating shaft.
A ninth object of the present invention is to provide a pulley that is easy to attach and detach and has a minimum inclination of a rotating shaft.
[0004]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is provided with a rotating body having a hollow cylindrical shaft body, and a bottomed mounting hole that fits the shaft body of the rotating body. A rotating body that includes a mounted member that rotatably supports and a snap-fit member that removably supports the rotating body on the mounted member, and the shaft body is fitted concentrically to the snap-fit member. a mounting structure and Features.
The invention according to claim 2 is characterized by a rotating body mounting structure in which the snap fit member is formed integrally with the rotating body.
The invention according to claim 3 is characterized by a rotating body mounting structure in which a snap-fit member is provided on the mounted member side.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a rotating body mounting structure in which a finger hook portion to be pinched by a finger or a knob jig is integrally attached to the locking portion of the snap fit member .
The invention according to claim 5 is characterized by a rotating body mounting structure in which an unlocking member is provided at a locked portion of the rotating body.
The invention according to claim 6 is characterized by a rotating body mounting structure in which the mounted member and the snap-fit member are separate parts.
The invention described in claim 7 is characterized by a process cartridge using each of the rotating body mounting structures.
The invention according to claim 8 is characterized by a rotating body mounting structure in which the rotating body is a gear.
The invention according to claim 9 is characterized by a rotating body mounting structure in which the rotating body is a pulley.
[0005]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
First, the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus to which the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIG. It should be noted that the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus shown here is not limited to this, and can be applied to any conventionally known image forming apparatus.
An image forming unit 11 is disposed substantially at the center of the in-body discharge type image forming apparatus, and a sheet feeding unit 12 is disposed immediately below the image forming unit 11. The paper feed unit 12 includes a paper feed cassette 13. If necessary, another sheet feeding device can be added at the bottom. Above the image forming unit 11, a reading unit 14 that reads a document across the space S is provided. A space between the image forming unit 11 and the reading unit 14 is formed as a paper discharge storage unit 15, and an image-formed recording medium (hereinafter referred to as paper) is discharged and stored.
In the image forming unit 11, a charging device 17 that charges the surface of the photoconductor 16 around the drum-shaped photoconductor 16, an exposure device 18 that irradiates the photoconductor surface with laser light to image information, and the photoconductor 16. A developing device 19 for visualizing an electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the toner, a transfer device 20 for transferring a toner image developed on the photosensitive member 16 to a sheet, and a toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive member after transfer. A cleaning device 21 and the like to be collected are respectively arranged. A fixing device 22 for fixing the toner on the paper on which the toner image is obtained is disposed downstream in the paper conveyance path. The paper that has passed through the fixing device 22 passes through the paper discharge roller 23 and is discharged and stored in the paper discharge storage section 15 or the upper receiving tray T. It can be selected by controlling the switching guide G whether the paper is discharged to the paper discharge storage unit 15 or T.
[0006]
In the paper feed unit 12, unused paper is stored in the paper feed cassette 13, and a spring 26 is applied so that the bottom plate 24 supported so as to be pivotable in the vertical direction presses the uppermost paper against the paper feed roller 25. Press. As the paper feed roller 25 rotates, the uppermost paper is fed from the paper feed cassette and conveyed to the registration roller 27. The registration roller 27 is controlled so as to start rotation at a timing so that the conveyance of the paper is temporarily stopped and the positional relationship between the toner image on the surface of the photoreceptor and the leading edge of the paper becomes a predetermined position.
In the reading unit 14, in order to read and scan a document (not shown) placed on the contact glass 28, a reading traveling body 29 including a document illumination light source and a mirror reciprocates. Image information scanned by the reading traveling body 29 is read as an image signal into a CCD installed behind the lens 30. The read image signal is digitized and subjected to image processing. Based on the image-processed signal, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive member 16 by light emission of a laser diode (not shown) of the exposure device 18. The optical signal from the laser diode reaches the photosensitive member via a known polygon mirror or lens.
In a multi-function image forming apparatus, there may be inconvenience due to the fact that there is only one place for the discharge storage portion of the copy printed matter. For example, in a case where an image by an urgent facsimile is mixed into another copy print, or when the image forming apparatus is used by a large number of people, another person may take away the copy / print. In view of such problems, the second paper discharge device 31 is mounted separately from the paper discharge storage portion 15 of the image forming apparatus main body.
[0007]
The second paper discharge device 31 supports a switching guide G positioned downstream of the paper discharge roller 23 of the image forming apparatus main body so as to be rotatable in the direction of the arrow. According to an instruction from the operator, whether or not to switch the paper discharge to the second paper discharge device 31 is set in advance for a specific copy printed matter. When the sheet discharge is set to the second sheet discharge device 31, a signal when the sheet passes a sensor (not shown) for controlling the stop / rotation of the registration roller is received, and the switching guide G is set. A solenoid SOL for swinging and rotating is activated. FIG. 10 shows a state where the solenoid SOL is operating and sucking, and the sheet passes through the transport path 32 and is discharged in the direction of the arrow by the discharge rollers 33 and 34. Then, the image is stacked on the receiving tray T with the image surface facing down.
When the solenoid SOL is not in operation, the switching guide G is rotated counterclockwise from the state shown in FIG. 10 by spooling, which will be described later, and the sheet discharged from the discharge roller 23 is stacked on the discharge storage unit 15. In FIG. 10, PC is a process cartridge.
[0008]
FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a process cartridge PC used in the image forming apparatus. A charging roller 42 that charges the OPC photosensitive member 41 around the OPC photosensitive member 41, a developing roller 43 that holds toner and develops a latent image of the OPC photosensitive member 41, and a cleaning blade 44 that scrapes off residual toner on the OPC photosensitive member 41 are provided. Further, an agitator 45 for feeding the toner to the developing roller 43, a stirring shaft 46 for uniformly dispersing the toner, and a developing blade 47 for controlling the thickness of the toner adhering to the surface of the developing roller 43 are respectively shown in the figure. It is in the body.
Gears are attached to the photoconductor 41, the developing roller 43, the agitator 45, and the stirring shaft 46, and project from the side surface of the casing. The respective gears are connected, and the stirring shaft 46 and the two agitators 45 are aligned in the rotational direction by interposing a cantilever idler gear therebetween.
[0009]
Hereinafter, a mounting structure for a rotating body such as a gear used in the above-described image forming apparatus and process cartridge will be described.
FIG. 1 is a first example of an embodiment of a rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, 51 is a rotating body, 52 is a member to which the rotating body 51 is attached. The rotating body 51 includes a rotating body main body 53, a snap fit member 54 concentrically fixed to one side surface of the rotating body main body 53, and a hollow that is concentrically fitted to the snap fit member 54 with a gap 55 therebetween. A cylindrical shaft body 56 is provided.
The snap fit member 54 protrudes in a direction away from the rotating body main body 53 with respect to the shaft body 56, and has a diameter larger than that of the other portions and directed toward the leading end on the side away from the rotating body main body 53. A locking portion 57 having a tapered shape is provided. The snap fit member 54 may be bent when the rotating body 51 is attached to or detached from the attached member 52 from the distal end portion away from the rotating body main body 53 toward the rotating body main body 53 side. A slit 54a having a predetermined length is formed.
An attachment hole penetrating the attached member 52 is provided in the attached member 52 so that the snap fit member 54 penetrates and the engaging portion 57 protrudes to the opposite side and can be engaged with the wall surface 58 of the attached member 52. 59 and a cylindrical attachment hole 60 provided concentrically with respect to the attachment hole 59 so as to surround the attachment hole 59 so that the shaft body 56 of the rotating body 51 can be fitted thereinto. The mounting hole 60 of the mounted member 52 has a bottom and opens on the side where the rotating body main body 53 is located when the rotating body 51 is mounted.
When attaching the rotating body 51 to the attachment member 52, the locking portion 57 formed at the tip of the snap fit member 54 is pushed into the attachment hole 59 of the attachment member 52. Then, the snap fit member 54 bends so that the interval between the slits 54 a becomes small, and is inserted into the attachment hole 59, and the shaft body 56 is inserted into the attachment hole 60. Thus, when the rotating body 51 is completely attached to the mounted member 52, the cylindrical portion of the snap fit member 54 of the rotating body 51 is fitted into the mounting hole 59, and the locking portion 57 is removed from the mounted member 52. The stepped portion protrudes and is locked to the wall surface 58 of the mounted member 52, and the shaft body 56 is fitted into the mounting hole 60.
[0010]
In the illustrated example, the outer peripheral portion of the shaft body 56 integrally attached to the rotating body 51 abuts on the outer periphery of the mounting hole 60 in the mounted member 52 with a predetermined fit. 53 tilt can be prevented. The rotating body 51 is prevented from coming off by the locking portion 57 of the snap fit member 54. The point of the illustrated example is that the snap fit member 54 is caused to function at a part different from the shaft body 56. Further, since the structure is simple, the molding can be easily performed, and the rotator 51 can be attached and detached from the same direction, so that the rotator 51 can be attached and detached efficiently from the same direction.
[0011]
FIG. 2 shows a second example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention. Thus, in the illustrated example, the snap fit member 54 is provided on the attached member 52 side.
That is, a hollow cylindrical shaft body 56 is integrally provided on the side surface of the rotating body main body 53 of the rotating body 51, and the snap fit member 54 attached to the mounted member 52 is attached to the rotating body main body 53 and the shaft body 56. The attachment hole 61 is formed so that the engaging portion 57 can be engaged with the side surface of the rotating body 53 opposite to the shaft 56.
The attached member 52 is formed with a bottomed attachment hole 62 concentrically with the snap fit member 54 into which the shaft body 56 of the rotating body 51 is fitted.
When attaching the rotating body 51 to the attached member 52, the attaching hole 61 of the rotating body 51 is brought into contact with the tip of the locking portion 57 and the rotating body 51 is pushed into the attached member 52 side. Then, the snap fit member 54 bends so that the interval between the slits 54 a becomes small, and is inserted into the mounting hole 61 of the rotating body 51, and the shaft body 56 is inserted into the mounting hole 62 of the mounted member 52. Thus, when the rotating body 51 is completely attached to the mounted member 52, the cylindrical portion of the snap fit member 54 is fitted into the mounting hole 61, and the locking portion 57 protrudes from the rotating body 51 and the stepped portion is formed. The shaft body 56 is engaged with the mounting hole 62 by being locked to the outer surface of the rotating body main body 53.
In the illustrated example, the outer peripheral portion of the shaft body 56 that is integrally attached to the rotating body 51 comes into contact with the outer periphery of the mounting hole 62 in the mounted member 52 with a predetermined fit. 53 tilt can be prevented. The rotating body 51 is prevented from coming off by the locking portion 57 of the snap fit member 54. Moreover, since the snap-fit member 54 is provided in the to-be-attached member 52, the rotation body 51 can be attached or detached efficiently from the same direction.
[0012]
FIG. 3 is a third example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention, and is an example in which a finger hook portion 63 is provided at the distal end portion of the locking portion 57 of the snap fit member 54 in the rotating body 51 of FIG. In the prior art shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the locking portion is provided with an inclination so that the tip can be easily inserted into the attached portion. Not designed to pinch. The same applies to those shown in FIGS.
However, in the illustrated example, since the finger hooking portion 63 is provided at the tip of the locking portion 57, the finger hooking operation can be easily performed. Thereby, the efficiency of decomposition of the rotating body 51 in the decomposition step can be improved. Further, when the rotating body 51 is attached to the attached member 52, the outer periphery of the shaft body 56 comes into contact with the outer periphery of the attaching hole 62 provided in the attached member 52, thereby preventing the rotating body main body 53 from tilting. be able to.
[0013]
4 to 5 show a fourth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention, in which an unlocking member 64 is provided. 4 is a basic view in which an unlocking member 64 is provided, FIG. 5 is a diagram in which the unlocking member 64 is used and the snap fit member 54 is bent by a force F from one direction, and FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship of the latching | locking part 57 in the unlocking | locking member 64 shown in FIG.
The unlocking member 64 is provided with a concave hole 65 on the surface facing the locking part 57, and the opening diameter D of the concave hole 65 is equal to or larger than the inclination starting point diameter W of the locking part 57 and the hole diameter of the rotating body 53. d or less. A locking portion 66 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the unlocking member 64 so as not to be easily detached from the rotating body 1 (see FIG. 6). The rotating body main body 53 of the rotating body 1 is provided with a hollow hole 67 that can accommodate the unlocking member 64, and the hollow hole 67 is formed in such a length that the locking portion 66 can slide. .
Further, a locked portion 56a is formed at an end portion of the rotating body 51 facing the hollow hole 67 of the shaft body 56, and the unlocking member 64 is pushed in, and the snap fit member 54 is bent as shown in FIG. In this case, the distal end of the unlocking member 64 on the locked portion 56a side comes into contact with the locked portion 56a, and in this state, the rotating body 51 is pulled out so that it can be detached from the mounted member 52. .
The diameter of the hollow hole 67 of the rotating body 53 is longer than the unlocking member width h and narrower than the distance H between the locking parts, so that the unlocking member 64 is not easily pulled out. The locking portion 66 is made of a material that is easily deformed / returned so that the unlocking member 64 is united by being strongly pressed into the rotating body main body 53 of the rotating body 1. Further, the same operational effects as those of the illustrated example described above can be achieved.
[0014]
FIG. 7 shows a fifth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention. 2 to 5 and FIGS. 8 and 9 to be described later, the attached member 52 and the snap fit member 54 are integrated, but they may not be integrated. For example, when the snap fit member 54 is formed integrally with the housing of the process cartridge PC (that is, when the housing of the process cartridge PC is the attached portion 52), the snap fit member 54 is deformed or damaged. Conventionally, the entire housing had to be discarded, but by using the snap fit member 54 as a separate part as shown in FIG. 7, it is only necessary to replace the snap fit member 54, thereby reducing the discard cost. is there.
In particular, it is effective to design a component that once bends and exhibits its function, such as the snap-fit member 54, because it is easily deformed and damaged, and is designed as a separate part. In this case, the snap fit member 54 may be fixed to the attached member 52 or may not be fixed.
[0015]
FIG. 8 shows a sixth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention. By providing the rotating body main body snap fit portion of the rotating body 1 on the attached member side, the mounting and dismounting can be performed from the same direction, and the mounting efficiency is improved. A good rotating body mounting structure can be provided. 53 is a gear 53a.
FIG. 9 shows a seventh example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention. The rotating body main body 53 of the rotating body 1 is a pulley 53b. The basic structure of the rotating body mounting structure of FIGS. 8 and 9 is the same as that of FIG.
In the illustrated example of the present invention, the shape of the mounting hole into which the snap-fit member is inserted does not need to be a cylinder as long as it does not interfere with the rotation of the rotating body.
[0016]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, in any of the first to ninth aspects of the invention, it is possible to prevent the rotation body main body from being inclined.
According to the invention described in claim 2, since the snap-fit member is provided on the rotating body, the moldability is good, and according to the invention described in claim 3, the snap-fit member is provided on the attached member side. Thus, the rotating body can be attached and detached from the same direction, and the attachment and detachment efficiency is good.
According to the invention described in claim 4, since the head of the locking part is easy to pinch, the efficiency of the recycle decomposition process is good. It can be easily bent by a force from the direction. According to the invention described in claim 6, even when the locking portion is deformed or damaged, only the locking portion needs to be replaced, which is economical.
According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a process cartridge that does not need to be replaced with the entire housing even when the locking portion is deformed / damaged. A gear that minimizes the inclination of the rotating shaft body can be provided. According to the invention described in claim 9, a pulley that can be easily attached and detached and that minimizes the inclination of the rotating shaft body can be provided.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a first example of an embodiment of a rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention, and is a sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 2;
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a second example of an embodiment of a rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention, and is a sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 3;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a third example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention, and is a sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 4;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a fourth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention, and is a sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 5;
5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a snap-fit member is bent in the rotating body mounting structure shown in FIG.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the relationship between an unlocking member and a snap-fit member locking portion used in the fourth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention.
7 is a sectional view of a fifth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention, a sectional view for explaining the invention of claim 1, and a sectional view for explaining the invention of claims 1 and 6; FIG. There is a figure.
FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a sixth example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention, and is a sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 7;
FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a seventh example of the embodiment of the rotating body mounting structure according to the present invention, and is a sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 8;
FIG. 10 is a side view of an image forming apparatus to which the rotating body mounting structure of the present invention is applied, and is a cross-sectional view for explaining the inventions of claims 1 and 9;
11 is a side view of a process cartridge of the image forming apparatus of FIG.
FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional rotating body mounting structure.
13 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the rotating body is inclined in the rotating body mounting structure shown in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
51 Rotating body, 52 Mounted member, 53 Rotating body main body, 53a Gear, 53b Pulley, 54 Snap fit member, 56 Shaft body, 56a Locked portion, 57 Locking portion, 63 Finger hooking portion, 64 Unlocking member, 66 Locking part, PC process cartridge

Claims (9)

A rotating body having a hollow cylindrical shaft body, a mounting member having a bottomed mounting hole fitted to the shaft body of the rotating body and rotatably supporting the rotating body, and the rotating body to be covered And a snap fit member that is detachably supported by the mounting member, and the shaft is externally fitted concentrically to the snap fit member .   2. The rotating body mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the snap fit member is formed integrally with the rotating body.   2. The rotating body mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein a snap-fit member is provided on the mounted member side. A rotating member mounting structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, finger grips which Tsumameru by the finger or thumb jig engaging portion of the snap fit member and characterized in that is mounted integrally Rotating body mounting structure.   4. The rotating body mounting structure according to claim 1 or 3, wherein a locked portion for locking the locking portion is provided on the rotating body, and the locking portion locked by the locked portion is provided. A rotating body mounting structure comprising an unlocking member for releasing a stopped state. 6. The rotating body mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the mounted member and the snap fit member are separate parts.   A process cartridge using the rotating body mounting structure according to claim 6. Rotating body mounting structure, wherein a rotation body according to claim 1 to 7 is gear. Rotating body mounting structure, wherein a rotation body according to claim 1 to 7 are pulleys.

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