JP4552967B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus in which an LED head is supported by a rotatable cover.

  In general, as an image forming apparatus, a charged photosensitive drum is irradiated with light, an electric potential of a portion irradiated with light is changed to form an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum, and a developer is applied to the electrostatic latent image. It is known that a predetermined image is formed on a sheet by transferring a developer image formed by supplying the toner onto the sheet.

  As such an image forming apparatus, conventionally, a plurality of LED heads for irradiating light to a plurality of photosensitive drums and a plurality of process units including a photosensitive drum and a toner storage chamber are alternately arranged in one direction. Is known (see Patent Document 1). In this image forming apparatus, each LED head is connected to a rotatable top cover via a support member extending in the vertical direction so that the LED head can be moved closer to and away from the photosensitive drum. It is configured.

JP-A-9-160333

  However, in the above-described prior art, since the support member extends in a substantially vertical direction, a large space is required to allow the LED head and the support member to pass as the top cover rotates, and the space in the image forming apparatus is sufficiently effective. It could not be said that it could be utilized.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides an image forming apparatus that can effectively use a space.

  The present invention that solves the above-described problems includes a plurality of process units having photoconductors arranged at intervals and forming an electrostatic latent image, and alternately arranged in the parallel direction of the plurality of process units. A plurality of exposure members for exposing each of the photoconductors, a cover in which one end side in the parallel direction of the plurality of process units is rotatable around the other end side, and a protrusion protruding from the cover The exposure member and the cover are connected by supporting the exposure member on the front end side, and the exposure member is positioned between the exposure position facing the photoreceptor and the retracted position retracted from the exposure position. A plurality of support members that can be displaced at a distance, wherein the exposure member has a farthest portion located farthest from a rotation axis of the cover of the exposure member, It is configured to be at the same position or the base end side in the protruding direction of the support member with respect to the moving axis, and when the exposure member is at the exposure position, the rotation of the cover of the support member surface is The outer surface located on the opposite side to the moving shaft is configured to be closer to the rotating shaft side than the tangent to the rotating locus of the farthest part of the exposure member.

  Here, “when the exposure member is at the exposure position, the outer surface of the support member is closer to the rotation axis than the tangent to the rotation locus of the farthest part of the exposure member” means that the outside of the support member A configuration is also included in which a part of the side surface is closer to the rotation axis than the tangent of the rotation locus of the farthest part, and the other part of the outer surface overlaps the tangent of the rotation locus of the farthest part.

  According to the present invention, the outer surface of the support member is configured to be closer to the rotation axis side of the cover than the tangent of the rotation locus of the farthest part of the exposure member. It is possible to further reduce the space for passing through. Therefore, for example, the space can be effectively used to secure the passage of air, secure the installation space for the gripping portion of the process unit, and increase the size of the toner storage portion of the process unit.

  The present invention also provides a first main body surface, a second main body surface facing the first main body surface, a third main body surface extending in a direction from the first main body surface toward the second main body surface, and a third main body. Corresponding to a plurality of photoconductors arranged in parallel in a direction from the first main body surface to the second main body surface, a main body housing having a fourth main body surface facing the surface A plurality of exposure members that expose the photoconductor to form an electrostatic latent image, and the first body surface side is rotatably supported with respect to the body housing, and the third body surface And the exposure member and the exposure member such that the exposure member rotates and moves from an exposure position at which the photosensitive member is exposed to a retracted position located closer to the third main body surface than the exposure position. A plurality of support members that connect the cover and support the exposure member; The cover has a first support surface facing the first body surface and a second support surface facing the second body surface, and is perpendicular to a first plane including the axes of the plurality of photoreceptors, and the cover The distance from the second plane including the rotation axis to the second support surface is the same or gradually decreases from the fourth main body surface to the third main body surface, and is the most in the second support surface. The third body surface side distance is formed so as to be smaller than the fourth body surface side distance.

  According to this, the distance from the second plane including the rotation axis of the cover to the second support surface is the same or gradually decreased from the fourth body surface toward the third body surface, and the second support surface Since the most distance on the third main body surface side is smaller than the distance on the fourth main body surface side, the space for the support member to pass through can be further reduced as the cover rotates. Therefore, for example, the space can be effectively used to secure the passage of air, secure the installation space for the gripping portion of the process unit, and increase the size of the toner storage portion of the process unit.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to further reduce the space for the support member to pass along with the rotation of the cover. Therefore, for example, the space can be effectively used to secure the passage of air, secure the installation space for the gripping portion of the process unit, and increase the size of the toner storage portion of the process unit.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate.
In the drawings to be referred to, FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing the overall configuration of a color printer as an example of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, the overall configuration of the color printer will be described first, and then the details of the features of the present invention will be described.

1. Overall Configuration of Color Printer 1 As shown in FIG. 1, the color printer 1 includes a paper feed unit 5 that supplies paper 51 and an image forming unit that forms an image on the fed paper 51 in a main body housing 2. 6 and a paper discharge unit 7 for discharging the paper 51 on which an image is formed. Here, the main body housing 2 includes a rear surface 2b as an example of a first main body surface, a front surface 2a as an example of a second main body surface facing the rear surface 2b, and a direction from the rear surface 2b toward the front surface 2a (front-rear direction). ) And a lower surface 2d as an example of a fourth main body surface facing the upper surface 2c.

  In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the vertical direction shown in FIG. 1 is up and down, the right side in FIG. 1 is front side, the left side is back, the back side of the paper is right, and the front side of the paper is left. Indicates. The direction here is defined with reference to the direction seen from the person standing on the front side of the color printer 1.

(1) Paper feed unit 5
In the lower part of the main body housing 2, the paper feeding unit 5 is a paper feeding tray 50 that is detachably attached to the main body housing 2, and a paper supply mechanism that transports the paper 51 from the paper feeding tray 50 to the image forming unit 6. 58.
The paper supply mechanism 58 includes a paper feed roller 52, a separation roller 53, a separation pad 54, and the like provided at the front side end of the paper feed tray 50, and the paper 51 is separated one by one by these to move upward. Sent. The paper 51 conveyed upward is removed from the paper dust in the process of passing between the paper dust removing roller 55 and the pinch roller 56, then turned to the back side through the conveyance path 57, and the belt 73. Supplied on top.

(2) Image forming unit 6
The image forming unit 6 includes a process unit 61, an LED head 62 as an example of an exposure member, a transfer unit 63, and a fixing unit 64.

[Process unit 61]
The process unit 61 includes a drum subunit 30 and a developing cartridge 40, and is arranged at a predetermined interval in the front-rear direction. The inner side surface 61a, which is the inner surface of the process unit 61, and the outer surface 61b, which is the front surface, are both formed along the vertical and horizontal directions.

A developing cartridge 40 containing toners of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black is attached to the drum subunit 30 at predetermined positions.
The drum subunit 30 includes a photosensitive drum 31 as an example of a photosensitive member, a scorotron charger (reference numeral omitted), and the like, and the developing cartridge 40 includes a developing roller (reference numeral omitted). Here, a plurality of photosensitive drums 31 are provided, and are arranged in parallel in the front-rear direction (the direction from the front surface 2a to the rear surface 2b of the main body housing 2).

  In the process unit 61, the surface of the photosensitive drum 31 is charged by the above-described scorotron charger, and the charged portion is exposed by light emitted from the LED head 62 described later, thereby lowering the potential. An electrostatic latent image based on the image data is formed on the photosensitive drum 31. Further, the toner image is carried on the photosensitive drum 31 by supplying toner charged from the developing roller to the electrostatic latent image.

[LED head 62]
A plurality of LED heads 62 are provided corresponding to each photosensitive drum 31 in order to expose each photosensitive drum 31, and are alternately arranged with each process unit 61 in the parallel direction of the plurality of process units 61. Specifically, the plurality of LED heads 62 and the plurality of process units 61 are arranged in the order of the LED head 62 and the process unit 61 from the back side. The LED heads 62 are connected to the top cover 21 that rotates about the rotation shaft 21 a provided on the back side of the main body housing 2 via the support members 22. Accordingly, each LED head 62 is movable between an exposure position for exposing each photosensitive drum 31 and a retracted position for retracting from each photosensitive drum 31 to the upper surface 2 c side of the main body housing 2. The details of the support member 22, which is a characteristic part of the present invention, will be described later.

[Transfer section 63]
The transfer unit 63 includes a driving roller 71, a driven roller 72, a belt 73, a transfer roller 74, and a cleaning unit 75.

  The driving roller 71 and the driven roller 72 are spaced apart and arranged in parallel, and an endless belt 73 is stretched between them. A transfer roller 74 is disposed inside the belt 73 so as to sandwich the belt 73 between each photosensitive drum 31. A transfer bias is applied to the transfer roller 74 from a high-pressure substrate (not shown). At the time of image formation, the paper 51 conveyed by the belt 73 is sandwiched between the photosensitive drum 31 and the transfer roller 74 via the belt 73, and the toner image on the photosensitive drum 31 is transferred to the paper 51.

  The cleaning unit 75 is disposed below the belt 73, removes the toner attached to the belt 73, and drops the removed toner into the toner storage unit 76 disposed below the cleaning unit 75.

[Fixing section 64]
The fixing unit 64 is disposed on the downstream side of the transfer unit 63, that is, on the back side of the main body housing 2, and includes a heating roller 81 and a pressure roller 82.
A halogen lamp is provided in the heating roller 81, and the halogen lamp heats the surface of the heating roller 81 to a fixing temperature. The pressure roller 82 is disposed so as to be in pressure contact with the heating roller 81, and sends the paper 51 while sandwiching the paper 51 between the pressure roller 82, thereby fixing the toner image on the paper 51.

(3) Paper discharge unit 7
A plurality of transport rollers 92 that transport the paper 51 are arranged in the paper discharge unit 7. Then, the paper 51 discharged by the transport roller 92 is accumulated on the upper surface 2c (paper discharge tray) of the main body housing 2.

  Next, the structure of the characteristic part of the present invention, that is, the structure of the support member 22 will be described in detail. In the drawings to be referred to, FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view showing the structure of the support member in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the inner side surface 22a which is the surface on the back side (rotation shaft 21a side) of the support member 22 is the inner surface of the LED head 62 that rotates about the rotation shaft 21a. The side surface 62a (specifically, the inner surface 62a is formed in a cylindrical surface shape along the rotation locus IL of the nearest portion K closest to the rotation shaft 21a). Further, the outer side surface 22b which is the front side surface of the support member 22 is an outer side surface 62b which is the front side surface of the LED head 62 (specifically, the farthest part E of the outer side surface 62b farthest from the rotating shaft 21a). ) That is in contact with the rotation trajectory OL, and has a cylindrical surface that is closer to the rotation shaft 21a side than the tangent line TL that is in contact with the outer surface 62b of the LED head 62 that is exposed to the photosensitive drum 31. It is formed. Specifically, the outer surface 22 b of the support member 22 is formed so as to be positioned between the tangent line TL and the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62 b of the LED head 62.

Incidentally, in the LED head 62, the nearest portion K of the LED head 62 is in the same position in the protruding direction of the support member 22 with respect to the rotation shaft 21a, and the farthest portion E of the LED head 62 is on the rotation shaft 21a. On the other hand, it is arranged and formed so as to be on the proximal end side in the protruding direction of the support member. More specifically, the inner side surface 62 a and the outer side surface 62 b of the LED head 62 are both formed along the protruding direction (vertical direction) of the support member 22.
Here, a two-dot chain line HL in FIG. 2 is a straight line connecting the tip side surfaces of the four LED heads 62.
In addition, the tangent line TL that is in contact with the rotation locus OL at the exposure position of the farthest site E is actually inclined slightly toward the back as it goes upward. That is, the tangent line TL is slightly inclined with respect to the vertical line. In FIG. 2, a tangent line TL is drawn in the vertical direction for convenience of explanation.

  In other words, as shown in FIG. 1, an inner side surface 22a as an example of a first support surface that opposes the rear surface 2b of the main body housing 2 and a second support surface that opposes the front surface 2a. The outer side surface 22b as an example is formed under the following conditions. Here, in FIG. 1, the alternate long and short dash line along the front-rear direction indicates a virtual first plane F1 including the axes of the plurality of photosensitive drums 31, and the alternate long and short dash line is perpendicular to the first plane F1. And the virtual 2nd plane F2 containing the rotating shaft 21a of the top cover 21 is shown. The inner side surface 22a and the outer side surface 22b of the support member 22 are formed so that the distance from the second plane F2 is always gradually reduced upward. Furthermore, in other words, the support member 22 gradually increases the distance in the parallel direction of the process unit 61 between the tangent line TL and the outer side surface 22b from the distal end side to the proximal end side in the protruding direction of the support member 22. It is configured.

According to the above, the following effects can be obtained in the present embodiment.
Since the outer surface 22b of the support member 22 is moved closer to the rotation shaft 21a than the tangent line TL, the space between the outer surface 22b of the support member 22 and the inner surface 61a of the process unit 61 can be effectively utilized. Further, since the inner side surface 22a of the support member 22 is formed so as to follow the rotation locus IL of the inner side surface 62a of the LED head 62, the space on the rotation shaft 21a side from the rotation locus IL can be utilized to the maximum extent. At the same time, the thickness of the support member 22 on the rotating shaft 21a side can be increased to the maximum, and the rigidity thereof can be improved. Note that each of the above-described spaces can be used as, for example, a passage for air, or can be used as an installation space for a gripping unit for gripping the process unit 61.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It can utilize with various forms so that it may illustrate below. Here, in FIG. 3 to FIG. 7 used for explanation of the modifications shown below, the shape of the top cover or the like is simplified for easy understanding.

In the said embodiment, although the inner surface 61a and the outer surface 61b of the process unit 61 were made into the shape along the up-down direction, this invention is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the inner side surface 65a of the process unit 65 intersects the tangent line TL, and the upper side (the base end side in the protruding direction of the support member) of the inner side surface 65a intersects the tangent line TL. You may form so that it may approach to the rotating shaft 21a side rather than tangent TL. Further, the inner side surface 65a of the process unit 65 is formed such that the distance from the second plane F2 always gradually decreases upward.
According to this, since the rotation shaft 21a side of the process unit 65 can be formed large, for example, the amount of toner to be accommodated can be increased. 3, since the LED head 62 and the process unit 65 are arranged in this order from the rotating shaft 21a side, all the inner side surfaces 65a of the plurality of process units 65 are adjacent to the support member 23. All the inner side surfaces 65a of the process unit 65 have the shape described above. However, this is not the case when the LED head 62 and the process unit 65 are arranged in reverse order. That is, in this case, the inner side surface 65a of the process unit 65 that is located closest to the rotating shaft 21a and is not adjacent to the LED head 62 may have any shape.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the inner surface 23 a of each support member 23 is formed in the same manner as in the above embodiment, and the outer surface 23 b is formed in a shape along the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62 b of each LED head 62. May be. According to this, the space outside the rotation locus OL (on the side opposite to the rotation shaft 21a) can be utilized to the maximum extent.
In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the inner side surface 23a and the outer side surface 23b of each support member 23 may be formed in a cylindrical surface shape centering on the rotation shaft 21a. According to this, the inner surface 23a and the outer surface 23b of each support member 23 can be brought closer to the shapes of the rotation trajectories IL and OL of the inner surface 62a and the outer surface 62b of each LED head 62, so that the space is maximized. Sufficient rigidity can be maintained while using as effectively as possible.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, out of the outer surfaces 65 b of each process unit 65, the outer surfaces 65 b adjacent to the support member 23 (three outer surfaces 65 b on the rotation shaft 21 a side) are connected to the inner surfaces of the adjacent support members 23. You may form in the shape along the side surface 23a. According to this, the part of the process unit 65 opposite to the rotating shaft 21a can be formed large, and for example, the amount of toner to be accommodated can be increased. In this case, the outer surface 65b of the process unit 65 farthest from the rotation shaft 21a may have any shape, and for example, may be formed in a planar shape along the vertical and horizontal directions as shown.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the inner side surface 66 a of the process unit 66 is preferably formed in a shape along the outer side surface 23 b of the adjacent support member 23. According to this, the part by the side of the rotating shaft 21a of the process unit 66 can be formed as large as possible.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the inner side surface 23a and the outer side surface 23b of each support member 23 are formed in a cylindrical surface shape around the rotation shaft 21a, and are adjacent to the support member 23 of each process unit 66. Each inner side surface 66a and each outer side surface 66b may be formed into a cylindrical surface centered on the rotation shaft 21a. According to this, since each process unit 66 and each support member 23 are arranged as close as possible in the parallel direction via the respective cylindrical surfaces, the space can be utilized to the maximum extent. In this case, the shape of the cylindrical inner side surface 66a and the outer side surface 66b of each process unit 66 varies depending on the arrangement position of each process unit 66, so that each process unit 66 has a different shape and prevents erroneous mounting. can do.

  3 and 4, the process units 65 and 66 are all formed in different shapes. However, the present invention is not limited to this and may be formed in the same shape. In this case, it is desirable to form the process unit 67 in a shape as shown in FIG. That is, the curvature of the inner side surface 67a of the plurality of process units 67 is equal to or less than the curvature of the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62b of the LED head 62 located on the farthest side from the rotation shaft 21a side among the plurality of LED heads 62. Each is formed into a cylindrical surface shape. In other words, the curvature radius r1 of each inner surface 67a of the plurality of process units 67 is equal to or larger than the curvature radius r2 of the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62b of the LED head 62 located on the side farthest from the rotation shaft 21a. Next, each inner side surface 67a is formed.

  Further, each outer surface 67b of the plurality of process units 67 has a curvature equal to or greater than the curvature of the rotation locus IL of the inner surface 62a of the LED head 62 located second from the rotation shaft 21a side among the plurality of LED heads 62. Each is formed into a cylindrical surface shape. In other words, the curvature radius r3 of each outer surface 67b of the plurality of process units 67 is equal to or less than the curvature radius r4 of the rotation locus IL of the inner surface 62a of the LED head 62 located second from the rotation shaft 21a side. In addition, each outer surface 67b is formed. According to the structure as described above, each process unit 67 has the same shape, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Further, by making the inner side surface 67a and the outer side surface 67b of each process unit 67 into a cylindrical surface shape having the curvature as described above, each process unit 67 can be compared with the case where the process unit 67 is formed in a planar shape as in the embodiment of FIG. Can be increased.

  In each said embodiment, although the supporting members 22 and 23 were all formed in different shapes, this invention is not limited to this, You may form all in the same shape. In this case, it is desirable to form the support member 24 in a shape as shown in FIG. That is, each outer surface 24b of the plurality of support members 24 has a curvature that is equal to or greater than the curvature of the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62b of the LED head 62 that is located farthest from the rotation shaft 21a side among the plurality of LED heads 62. Each is formed into a cylindrical surface shape. In other words, the curvature radius r5 of each outer surface 24b of the plurality of support members 24 is equal to or less than the curvature radius r6 of the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62b of the LED head 62 located on the side farthest from the rotation shaft 21a side. Thus, each outer surface 24b is formed.

  Each of the inner side surfaces 24a of the plurality of support members 24 has a curvature equal to or less than the curvature of the rotation locus IL of the inner side surface 62a of the LED head 62 positioned second from the rotation shaft 21a side among the plurality of LED heads 62. Each is formed into a cylindrical surface shape. In other words, the curvature radius r7 of each inner surface 24a of the plurality of support members 24 is equal to or larger than the curvature radius r8 of the rotation locus IL of the inner surface 62a of the LED head 62 located second from the rotation shaft 21a side. Next, each inner side surface 24a is formed. According to the above configuration, since each support member 24 has the same shape, the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Moreover, by making the inner side surface 24a and the outer side surface 24b of each support member 24 into a cylindrical surface shape having the curvature as described above, it is possible to maintain sufficient rigidity while effectively utilizing the space.

  Further, in order to make all the supporting members have the same shape, the shape is not limited to the shape as shown in FIG. That is, the curvature of the outer side surfaces 25b of the plurality of support members 25 is equal to or greater than the curvature of the rotation locus OL of the outer side surface 62b of the LED head 62 located closest to the rotation axis 21a side among the plurality of LED heads 62. Each is formed into a cylindrical surface shape. In other words, the curvature radius r9 of each outer surface 25b of the plurality of support members 25 is equal to or less than the curvature radius r10 of the rotation locus OL of the outer surface 62b of the LED head 62 located on the closest side from the rotation shaft 21a side. Thus, each outer surface 25b is formed.

  In addition, each inner side surface 25a of the plurality of support members 25 has a curvature equal to or less than the curvature of the rotation locus IL of the inner side surface 62a of the LED head 62 positioned farthest from the rotation shaft 21a among the plurality of LED heads 62. Each is formed into a cylindrical surface. In other words, the curvature radius r11 of each inner surface 25a of the plurality of support members 25 is equal to or larger than the curvature radius r12 of the rotation locus IL of the inner surface 62a of the LED head 62 located farthest from the rotation shaft 21a. Each inner surface 25a is formed. According to the above configuration, the inner side surface 25a and the outer side surface 25b of all the support members 25 are within the rotation trajectories IL and OL of the inner side surface 62a and the outer side surface 62b of the LED head 62. It can be used as effectively as possible.

In the form shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the cylindrical surface is adopted as the shape along the rotation trajectories IL and OL, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a polygonal shape, for example, may be adopted.
In each said embodiment, although the LED head and the supporting member were made into the different body, this invention is not limited to this, You may form integrally.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the LED head 62 has the closest portion K of the LED head 62 at the same position in the protruding direction of the support member 22 with respect to the rotation shaft 21 a and the farthest portion E of the LED head 62. Is arranged and formed so as to be on the proximal end side in the protruding direction of the support member 22 with respect to the rotating shaft 21a, but the present invention is not limited to this.
For example, the LED head 62 may be arranged and formed so that the nearest portion K and the farthest portion E of the LED head 62 are both on the proximal end side in the protruding direction of the support member 22 with respect to the rotation shaft 21a. Good.
Further, the LED head 62 may be arranged and formed so that the nearest part K and the farthest part E of the LED head 62 are both at the same position in the protruding direction of the support member 22 with respect to the rotation shaft 21a. .

  In each of the embodiments described above, the inner surface and the outer surface of the support member are configured such that the distance from the second plane always gradually decreases upward, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the inner surface or the outer surface of the support member is configured with a portion where the distance from the second plane is the same upward and a portion where the distance gradually decreases, and the distance on the third main body surface side is the first. You may comprise so that it may become smaller than the distance of the 4 main body surface side.

In each of the above embodiments, the top cover is rotated around the back side of the color printer. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the top cover may be rotated around the front side.
In each of the embodiments, the process units are arranged in the front-rear direction of the color printer. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the process units may be arranged in the left-right direction of the color printer. In this case, either one of the left and right ends of the top cover may be rotatably provided on the main body of the color printer.

In each of the above embodiments, the shape of the LED head 62 on the rotating shaft 21a side and the shape on the opposite side of the rotating shaft 21a are planar. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the curved shape and the irregular shape. It may be. In this case, the rotation trajectory serving as a reference for the shape of the inner surface and the outer surface of the support member and the process unit is, for example, the rotation trajectory of the nearest part closest to the rotation axis among shapes such as a curved surface shape and an uneven shape. Or it becomes a turning locus of the farthest part farthest from the turning axis.
Moreover, in each said embodiment, although the supporting member 22 is the structure fixed with respect to the cover 21, this invention is not limited to this. For example, the front end side of the support member 22 may be supported so as to be swingable in the front-rear direction (parallel direction of the process units). In such a configuration, the shape of the support member 22 according to the present invention is preferably determined based on the position where the LED head 62 is at the exposure position within the swing range of the support member 22.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing an overall configuration of a color printer as an example of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an expanded sectional view showing the structure of a support member in detail. It is a side view which simplifies and shows the form which the inner surface of the process unit mainly approached the rotating shaft side rather than the tangent. It is a side view which simplifies and shows the form in which the inner surface of a process unit follows the outer surface of a supporting member. It is a side view which simplifies and shows the form which formed the inner surface and the outer surface of each process unit with the respectively same curvature. It is a side view which simplifies and shows the 1st form which formed the inner surface and outer surface of each support member with the respectively same curvature. It is a side view which simplifies and shows the 2nd form which formed the inner surface and outer surface of each support member with the respectively same curvature.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Color printer 2 Main body housing | casing 21 Top cover 21a Rotating shaft 22 Support member 22a Inner side surface 22b Outer side surface 31 Photosensitive drum 40 Developing cartridge 61 Process unit 61a Inner side surface 61b Outer side surface 62 LED head 62a Inner side surface 62b Outer side surface IL Rotation Locus OL rotation locus TL tangent

Claims (14)

A plurality of process units having photoreceptors arranged at intervals to form an electrostatic latent image; and
A plurality of exposure members that are alternately arranged with each process unit in the parallel direction of the plurality of process units to expose each of the photoreceptors;
A cover in which one end side in the parallel direction of the plurality of process units is rotatable around the other end side;
An exposure position that is provided so as to protrude from the cover and that connects the exposure member and the cover by supporting the exposure member on a front end side, and that exposes the exposure member to the photoconductor and the exposure position A plurality of support members that can be displaced between the retracted position retracted from
In the exposure member, the farthest part located farthest from the rotation axis of the cover of the exposure member is at the same position or the base end side in the protruding direction of the support member with respect to the rotation axis. Configured as
When the exposure member is at the exposure position,
Of the surface of the support member, the outer surface located on the opposite side of the rotation axis of the cover is configured to be closer to the rotation axis side than the tangent of the rotation locus of the farthest part of the exposure member. An image forming apparatus.   The support member is configured such that the distance between the tangent and the outer surface in the parallel direction of the process unit gradually increases gradually from the front end side to the base end side in the protruding direction of the support member. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.   Of the surface of the support member, an inner surface located on the rotation axis side is formed in a shape along the rotation locus of the nearest part located closest to the rotation axis among the parts of the exposure member. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus.   Among the surfaces of the process unit, the inner side surface adjacent to the support member intersects the tangent line and the base end side in the projecting direction of the support member is more than the intersecting portion. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is formed so as to be closer to a rotating shaft side.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the inner side surface of the process unit is formed in a shape along an outer side surface of the adjacent support member.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an outer surface of the support member is formed in a shape along a rotation locus of a farthest portion of the exposure member. .   The surface of the process unit is located on the side opposite to the rotating shaft side, and the outer surface adjacent to the support member is formed in a shape along the inner surface of the adjacent support member. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6. The plurality of exposure members and the plurality of process units are arranged in the order of the exposure member and the process unit from the rotating shaft side,
The plurality of process units are all formed in the same shape,
A cylindrical surface shape in which each inner surface of the plurality of process units has a curvature equal to or less than the curvature of the rotation locus of the farthest portion of the exposure member located on the side farthest from the rotation axis side among the plurality of exposure members. Each formed with
Each outer surface of the plurality of process units has a cylindrical surface shape that has a curvature equal to or greater than the curvature of the rotation locus of the nearest part of the exposure member located second from the rotation axis side among the plurality of exposure members. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is formed. The plurality of exposure members and the plurality of process units are arranged in the order of the exposure member and the process unit from the rotating shaft side,
The plurality of support members are all formed in the same shape,
A cylindrical surface shape in which each outer surface of the plurality of support members has a curvature greater than or equal to the curvature of the rotation locus of the farthest part of the exposure member located on the farthest side from the rotation axis side among the plurality of exposure members. Each formed with
Each inner surface of the plurality of support members has a cylindrical surface shape having a curvature equal to or less than the curvature of the rotation locus of the nearest part of the exposure member located second from the rotation axis side among the plurality of exposure members. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is formed.   8. The inner surface and the outer surface of each of the plurality of support members are formed in a cylindrical surface centering on a rotation axis of the cover. The image forming apparatus described in 1.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein each of the inner surface and each outer surface of the plurality of process units is formed in a cylindrical surface shape around the rotation axis of the cover. The plurality of exposure members and the plurality of process units are arranged in the order of the exposure member and the process unit from the rotating shaft side,
The plurality of support members are all formed in the same shape,
A cylindrical surface shape in which each outer surface of the plurality of support members has a curvature equal to or greater than the curvature of the rotation trajectory of the farthest part of the exposure member located on the side closest to the rotation axis among the plurality of exposure members. Each formed with
Each inner surface of the plurality of support members is formed in a cylindrical surface shape having a curvature equal to or less than the curvature of the rotation locus of the nearest portion of the exposure member located farthest from the rotation axis among the plurality of exposure members. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. A first main body surface; a second main body surface facing the first main body surface; a third main body surface extending in a direction from the first main body surface toward the second main body surface; and a fourth opposing the third main body surface. A main body housing having a main body surface;
A plurality of photoconductors arranged in parallel in a direction from the first main body surface to the second main body surface;
A plurality of exposure members provided corresponding to the plurality of photoconductors, and exposing the photoconductor to form an electrostatic latent image;
The first main body surface side is rotatably supported with respect to the main body housing, and constitutes the third main body surface;
The exposure member and the cover are coupled so that the exposure member rotates and moves from an exposure position at which the photosensitive member is exposed to a retracted position located on the third main body surface side with respect to the exposure position. A plurality of support members for supporting the exposure member,
The support member is
A first support surface facing the first body surface and a second support surface facing the second body surface;
A distance from the second plane including the rotation axis of the cover to the second support surface is perpendicular to the first plane including the axes of the plurality of photosensitive members, and the third main body is spaced from the fourth main body surface. The distance is the same or gradually decreased toward the surface, and the distance from the third main body surface side of the second support surface is made to be smaller than the distance from the fourth main body surface side. An image forming apparatus. The support member is formed such that the distance from the second plane including the pivot axis of the cover to the second support surface always decreases gradually from the fourth main body surface to the third main body surface. The image forming apparatus according to claim 13.

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