JP5709729B2 - Cartridge and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from an electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body.

Conventionally, in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic image forming process, an electrophotographic photosensitive member and process means acting on the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrated into a unit as a process cartridge. Then, a system is adopted in which the process cartridge is detachable from the image forming apparatus main body.
In such a process cartridge, a plurality of sealing members are sealed between cartridge frame bodies and parts constituting the process cartridge so that the developer (toner) accommodated in the process cartridge does not leak to the outside. It is configured as follows.

For example, a cleaning unit having a cleaning blade that removes residual developer (waste toner) on an electrophotographic photosensitive member is provided with the following seal member. It is a seal member for preventing waste toner from leaking from between the cartridge frame and the cleaning blade to the outside of the process cartridge. As such a seal member, there is provided a cleaning blade lower seal for contacting the cleaning blade in the longitudinal direction of the cartridge frame to seal the gap between the cartridge frame and the cleaning blade. In addition, longitudinal seals are provided for sealing the gap between the cartridge frame and the cleaning blade in contact with the cleaning blade at both longitudinal ends of the cartridge frame.
Here, as the sealing member, an elastic body such as urethane foam, soft rubber, or elastomer resin is used. And the said sealing member is affixed on the junction part between the said frame bodies or between components accurately (refer patent document 1).
In recent years, for the purpose of cost reduction due to increased production efficiency and quality stability during assembly, process cartridges are manufactured by an automatic machine using an apparatus in each assembly process from manual assembly work. The sealing member is also assembled by an automatic machine.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-272071

However, the above conventional configuration has the following problems.
That is, since the sealing member is a soft part, it is difficult to hold it by an automatic machine (robot), and it is difficult to attach it to the cartridge frame with high accuracy. It is also difficult to assemble the seal member to the cartridge frame by an automatic machine.
The present invention has been made in view of the circumstances as described above, as well as improving the assembling property when the sealing member is assembled into cartridges frame body, and aims to realize a highly precise assembly To do.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides:
In a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body,
A rotating body provided rotatably,
A blade member having a blade formed of rubber provided in contact with the rotating body, and a sheet metal part that supports the blade;
A frame that supports the blade member and the rotating body ;
A sealing member for filling between the blade member and the frame member at the longitudinal end of the blade member, the surface having the longitudinal length of the blade, the length in the longitudinal direction of the sheet metal part And a seal member that is injection-molded integrally with the frame so as to abut both of the surface having the thickness,
I have a,
The seal member has a length longer in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and the thickness direction of the blade than the length in the longitudinal direction, and is formed in a shape inclined from the thickness direction toward the longitudinal direction. It is characterized by having <br/>.

According to the present invention, as well as improving the assembling property when the sealing member is assembled into cartridges frame member, it is possible to realize highly accurate assembly.

Schematic cross-sectional view showing the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment Schematic sectional view of a process cartridge according to an embodiment Schematic sectional view of a photosensitive drum unit according to an embodiment Schematic front view of the seal configuration of the cleaning frame unit according to the embodiment Schematic front view of the cleaning frame unit according to the embodiment Schematic front view of the vicinity of the vertical seal of the cleaning frame unit according to the embodiment Schematic sectional view of the vicinity of the vertical seal of the cleaning frame unit according to the embodiment Schematic cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional shape of the vertical seal according to the embodiment The schematic perspective view which showed the inlet of the cleaning container which concerns on an Example The perspective view of the state which set the cleaning container which concerns on an Example to the resin injection apparatus The figure which shows the state which injects and molds resin to the cleaning container which concerns on an Example. The figure which shows the state after inject-molding resin to the cleaning container which concerns on an Example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Exemplary embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, and relative arrangements of the components described in this embodiment should be appropriately changed according to the configuration of the apparatus to which the invention is applied and various conditions. It is not intended to limit the scope to the following embodiments.
The present invention relates to a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from an electrophotographic image forming apparatus main body. Here, the electrophotographic image forming apparatus forms an image on a recording material using an electrophotographic image forming process. Examples of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus include an electrophotographic copying machine, an electrophotographic printer (for example, a laser beam printer, an LED printer, etc.), a facsimile machine, and a word processor.
The cartridge is a drum cartridge that supports an electrophotographic photosensitive drum (electrophotographic photosensitive member), a developing cartridge that supports developing means, a process cartridge in which the electrophotographic photosensitive drum and process means are integrated into a cartridge, and the like. Is a generic term. The process means acts on the electrophotographic photosensitive drum, and examples thereof include charging means, developing means, and cleaning means acting on the electrophotographic photosensitive drum.

(Example)
Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus and a process cartridge according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the longitudinal direction refers to a direction that intersects with the direction in which the process cartridge is mounted on the image forming apparatus main body (a direction that is substantially orthogonal, a rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum (rotation axis direction)).

(overall structure)
The overall configuration of the image forming apparatus and process cartridge of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an overall configuration of a laser beam printer which is one form of an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a process cartridge according to the present embodiment.

The overall configuration of the image forming apparatus main body A will be described according to an image forming operation. First, an image is transferred from an optical system 1 as an optical means to a drum-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member (image carrier, hereinafter referred to as “photosensitive drum”) 7. Information light based on information is irradiated. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 7, and this electrostatic latent image is developed with a developer (hereinafter referred to as “toner”), whereby a toner image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 7. The In synchronism with the formation of the toner image, the recording material (recording medium such as recording paper, OHP sheet, cloth, etc.) 2 is fed from the feeding unit (cassette) 3a by the pickup roller 3b and the pressure contact member 3c in pressure contact therewith. Separately fed one by one.
The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 7 of the process cartridge B is transferred to the recording material 2 conveyed along the conveyance guide 3f1 by applying a voltage to the transfer roller 4 as a transfer unit. .

  Further, the recording material 2 onto which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed to the fixing unit 5 along the conveyance guide 3f2. The fixing unit 5 includes a driving roller 5a and a heater 5b, and includes a fixing rotating body 5d composed of a cylindrical sheet rotatably supported by a supporting body 5c. Is applied to fix the toner image. The recording material 2 on which the toner image is fixed is conveyed by the discharge roller 3d and discharged to the discharge unit 6 through the reverse conveyance path. In this embodiment, the conveying means 3 is constituted by the pickup roller 3b, the press contact member 3c, the discharge roller 3d, etc., but this is not restrictive.

(Process cartridge configuration)
As shown in FIG. 2, the process cartridge B includes a photosensitive drum 7 and at least one process means. Examples of the process means include a charging means for charging the photosensitive drum 7 and a developing means for developing the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 7. There is also a cleaning means for cleaning (removing) toner (residual toner, waste toner, residual developer) remaining on the photosensitive drum 7 (on the image carrier).
In the process cartridge B of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a rotatable photosensitive drum 7 having a photosensitive layer is rotationally driven, and a voltage is applied to a charging roller 8 as a charging unit, whereby a photosensitive member is obtained. The surface of the drum 7 is uniformly charged. In the process cartridge B, information light (light image) based on image information from the optical system 1 is exposed to the charged photosensitive drum 7 through the exposure opening 9b, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 7 is electrostatically charged. A latent image is formed, and the electrostatic latent image is developed by developing means.

Here, the developing operation by the developing means will be described.
First, the toner in the toner container 10a is sent out toward a developing roller 10d as a developing rotator (developer carrier) having a built-in fixed magnet 10c by a rotatable feeding member 10b as a toner feeding means. .
Then, by rotating the developing roller 10d, a toner layer to which triboelectric charge is imparted by the developing blade 10e is formed on the surface of the developing roller 10d. Then, the toner formed on the surface of the developing roller 10d is transferred to the photosensitive drum 7 according to the electrostatic latent image, whereby a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 7, and the electrostatic latent image becomes a visible image. It becomes.

Then, a toner image on the photosensitive drum 7 is transferred to the recording material 2 by applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner image to the transfer roller 4. The toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 7 after the transfer is
It is scraped off by a cleaning blade 11a as a cleaning means and stored in a waste toner storage portion 11c. The squeeze sheet 11b as a thin plate member is provided in contact with the photosensitive drum 7, thereby preventing the toner stored in the waste toner storage portion 11c from leaking out of the waste toner storage portion 11c.

  The process cartridge B includes a photosensitive drum unit 11 and a developing unit 10. The photosensitive drum unit 11 includes a photosensitive drum 7, a charging roller 8, a cleaning blade 11a, a squeeze sheet 11b, and a cleaning frame unit 12. The cleaning blade 11a includes a rubber part 11a1 that comes into contact with the photosensitive drum 7 and a sheet metal part 11a2 that supports the rubber part 11a1. The developing unit 10 includes developing means.

(Cleaning frame unit seal configuration)
Next, the seal configuration of the cleaning frame unit according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the photosensitive drum unit according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of the seal configuration of the cleaning frame unit according to the present embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic front view of the cleaning frame unit according to the present embodiment with the cleaning blade attached thereto, and FIG. 6 is a schematic front view of the vicinity of the vertical seal of the cleaning frame unit according to the present embodiment. FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the vicinity of the vertical seal of the cleaning frame unit according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the cross-sectional shape of the vertical seal according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the cleaning frame unit 12 includes a cleaning container 13 having a waste toner storage portion 11c, a cleaning blade 11a, a cleaning blade lower seal 14, vertical seals 15 and 16, and an end seal 19. , 20 are provided. Here, the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 are for sealing the gap between the cleaning blade 11a and the cleaning container 13 as seal members for preventing leakage of waste toner. In particular, the cleaning blade lower seal 14 is a seal member for sealing a gap between the cleaning blade 11 a and the cleaning container 13 in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13. The vertical seals 15 and 16 are seal members for sealing the gap between the cleaning blade 11 a and the cleaning container 13 at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13. The end seals 19 and 20 are provided in the cleaning container 13 in order to seal the gap between the photosensitive drum 7 and the cleaning container 13 by contacting both ends of the photosensitive drum 7 outside the image forming area in the longitudinal direction. It has been.
Further, the cleaning container 13 is provided with a fixing member 17 for fixing the squeeze sheet 11 b to the cleaning container 13. Here, the cleaning container 13 corresponds to a cartridge frame formed of resin and supporting the cleaning blade 11a. The vertical seals 15 and 16 correspond to seal members, and the end seals 19 and 20 correspond to end seal members.

The cleaning blade lower seal 14 is provided across the blade mounting seat surfaces 21 and 22 provided at both longitudinal ends of the cleaning container 13.
The vertical seals 15 and 16 are provided in the vicinity of the blade mounting seat surfaces 21 and 22 at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13.
The cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 are integrally formed by injection molding (injection molding) on the cleaning container 13 (on the cartridge frame) using an elastic sealing material.

Next, the vertical seals 15 and 16 will be described.
The vertical seals 15 and 16 are symmetrically disposed at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13, and the configuration related to the vertical seals 15 and 16 is also symmetrical. Therefore, although the vertical seal 15 on the one end side may be described as the configuration of the vertical seals 15 and 16, the vertical seal 16 is also the same. 5 and 6, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are indicated by solid lines for convenience of explanation.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are provided in the vicinity of the blade mounting seat surfaces 21 and 22 as described above. More specifically, the vertical seals 15, 16 are on the opposite side (back side) of the surface of the cleaning blade 11 a that contacts the photosensitive drum 7 outside the image forming area of the photosensitive drum 7 in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13. It is provided in contact with the surface.
The positions where the vertical seals 15 and 16 come into contact with the cleaning blade 11a are on the inner side (longitudinal center side, image forming region side) than the longitudinal ends of the rubber part 11a1 and the sheet metal part 11a2 of the cleaning blade 11a. Configured to be located. Thereby, the contact state of the vertical seals 15 and 16 with respect to the cleaning blade 11a can be further stabilized.
Further, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are provided in a range in which the end seals 19 and 20 are provided in the longitudinal direction so that the toner does not easily pass through between the vertical seals 15 and 16 and the end seals 19 and 20. It has been. That is, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are configured such that the positions in contact with the cleaning blade 11a in the longitudinal direction overlap the positions where the end seals 19 and 20 are disposed.

3 and 7, the vertical seal 15 has a shape extending from the cleaning container 13 in the direction of the cleaning blade 11a. And the part which contact | abuts the cleaning blade 11a which is the free end side of the vertical seal | sticker 15 has the following shape. That is, it has a shape including a contact portion 15a that contacts the rubber portion 11a1 of the cleaning blade 11a and a contact portion 15b that contacts the sheet metal portion 11a2 of the cleaning blade 11a, and an inclined portion is formed between the contact portions 15a and 15b. It is connected by 15c and becomes an integral shape. In this manner, the vertical seal 15 is integrally formed with the cleaning container 13 including the contact portion 15a and the contact portion 15b.
The boundary between the rubber part 11a1 and the sheet metal part 11a2 of the cleaning blade 11a has a step, and the inclined part 15c is formed in a shape (an inclined surface shape corresponding to the step part) across the step part.

  As described above, since the contact portions 15a and 15b provided so as to correspond to the rubber portion 11a1 and the sheet metal portion 11a2 of the cleaning blade 11a are integrally formed, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are placed in the cleaning container 13 with positional accuracy. It can be provided well. As a result, high-accuracy and easy assembly can be performed, and product functions can be stabilized. In this embodiment, since the vertical seals 15 and 16 are formed of a resin material (elastic body) such as an elastomer resin, the sealing performance is higher than that in the case where a conventional urethane foam is used as a seal member. (Sealing performance) and airtightness can be improved.

As shown in FIG. 8, the vertical seals 15, 16 are configured to extend from the cleaning container 13 in the direction of the cleaning blade 11 a and to be inclined in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13.
Here, if the vertical seals 15 and 16 are not inclined in the longitudinal direction, the vertical seals 15 and 16 come into contact with the cleaning blade 11a perpendicularly. In such a case, the repulsive force (contact pressure) of the vertical seals 15 and 16 with respect to the rubber part 11a1 of the cleaning blade 11a, which is generated when the vertical seals 15 and 16 contact the cleaning blade 11a, is increased. There is concern. Further, when the vertical seals 15 and 16 are in contact with the cleaning blade 11a perpendicularly, depending on the amount of contact, the vertical seal is compressed and buckled, and the contact pressure becomes unstable. There is concern about becoming.

In the present embodiment, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are inclined in the longitudinal direction, so that the vertical seals 15 and 16 come into contact with the cleaning blade 11a at an oblique angle. Thereby, when the cleaning blade 11a is attached to the cleaning container 13, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are deformed so as to bend by contacting the cleaning blade 11a. Therefore, the repulsive force of the vertical seals 15 and 16 with respect to the rubber part 11a1 of the cleaning blade 11a, which occurs when the vertical seals 15 and 16 contact the cleaning blade 11a, can be reduced as much as possible.
Thus, in the longitudinal direction, the photosensitive drum 7 has the rubber portion 11a1 of the cleaning blade 11a at the end portion where the vertical seals 15 and 16 are provided and the other portion (between both end portions and the central portion). The difference in contact pressure received from the contact (contact pressure difference) can be reduced. As a result, the cleaning property of the surface of the photosensitive drum 7 in the longitudinal direction can be made uniform and stabilized.

The direction of inclination of the vertical seals 15 and 16 is such that the repulsive force is reduced both in the longitudinal direction (in the arrow direction shown in FIG. 8A) and in the outer direction (the arrow direction shown in FIG. 8B). Either can be used because the same effect can be obtained. Considering the compactness (miniaturization) of the positions where the vertical seals 15 and 16 contact the cleaning blade 11a in the longitudinal direction, that is, the length of the cleaning container 13 and the length of the cleaning blade 11a in the longitudinal direction, the shape is inclined inward. Is preferable.
Also, from the viewpoint of toner sealing, it is considered that the shape inclined inward is better. That is, when the vertical seals 15 and 16 are inclined inward, the vertical seals 15 and 16 come into contact with the cleaning blade 11a while being inclined in the counter direction with respect to the outflow direction of the toner. It is considered good.
Here, the inclined shape of the vertical seals 15 and 16 may be only the portion of the cleaning blade 11a that contacts the rubber portion 11a1, but the portion that contacts the sheet metal portion 11a2 may also have the same shape.

Further, the vertical seals 15 and 16 have a color different from that of the cleaning container 13. That is, the vertical seals 15 and 16 are formed of a resin having a different color from the resin (resin material) of the cleaning container 13.
Thereby, visibility can be made favorable in the inspection process of whether the vertical seals 15 and 16 are reliably formed after molding a seal on the cleaning container 13 described later. Therefore, the inspection accuracy can be improved, and the inspection process (manufacturing process) can be simplified.

In this embodiment, an elastomer resin is used as the material of the elastic sealing material. As the elastomer resin, a styrene elastomer resin made of the same material as the cleaning container 13 and having elasticity is preferable because it is excellent in disassembling workability when the process cartridge B is recycled. (Parts of the same material do not have to be disassembled.)
However, other elastomer resins other than those described above may be used as long as they have the same mechanical characteristics, and silicon rubber or soft rubber may be used. In this embodiment, the various elastomer resins and rubbers as the elastic sealing material are referred to as “elastomer resin”.

(Molding process into a cleaning container)
Next, a molding process for molding the vertical seals 15 and 16 according to the present embodiment into the cleaning container 13 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view showing the inlet of the cleaning container according to this embodiment, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the cleaning container according to this embodiment set in the resin injection device. FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state where resin is injected and molded into the cleaning container according to the present embodiment. FIG. 12 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state after resin is injected and molded into the cleaning container according to the present embodiment. In this embodiment, in addition to the vertical seals 15 and 16, the cleaning blade lower seal 14 is formed in the same process.

  As shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 11, the cleaning container 13 is provided with an injection port 25 that is a resin inflow portion into which the molten resin injected to form the lower seal 14 of the cleaning blade flows. Yes. The injection port 25 is provided on the container opposite side (the container back side) of the mold contact surface 13a with which the lower seal mold 50 engraved with the seal shape of the lower seal 14 of the cleaning blade contacts during molding, and the mold contact surface 13a. It communicates to the side.

  Similarly, the cleaning container 13 is provided with inlets 26 and 27 for forming the vertical seals 15 and 16 at both longitudinal ends of the cleaning container 13. The inlets 26 and 27 are provided on the opposite sides of the mold contact surfaces 13b and 13c with which the vertical seal dies 51 and 52 in which the seal shapes of the vertical seals 15 and 16 are engraved are abutted during molding. It communicates to the contact surfaces 13b and 13c side.

In this embodiment, the gates 41, 42, 43 for injecting the resin of the resin injection device are located at positions corresponding to the respective injection ports 25, 26, 27, and the injection direction is the same as the opening direction of each injection port. It is arranged to be. Details will be described later.
In the present embodiment, the inlets 25, 26, and 27 provided in the cleaning container 13 are arranged so that the positions in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning container 13 are different from each other.

Next, the molding process will be described.
First, as shown in FIG. 10, the cleaning container 13 is set in the resin injection device 40. The resin injection device 40 is provided with a hopper portion 46 for supplying materials for the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16. At this time, as shown in FIG. 11, the mold is clamped with the lower seal mold 50 in contact with the mold contact surface 13a of the lower seal 14 of the cleaning blade.
Similarly, the molds are clamped with the vertical seal molds 51 and 52 in contact with the mold contact surfaces 13b and 13c of the vertical seals 15 and 16, respectively.

  Each of the molds 50, 51, and 52 may be sequentially brought into contact with the cleaning container 13, or may be brought into contact with each other at the same time and clamped. Each of the molds 50, 51, 52 is in contact with the cleaning container 13 so that the resin does not leak in an injection process described later.

  Next, the gates 41, 42, and 43 of the resin injection device 40 are brought into contact with the respective injection ports 25, 26, and 27 provided in the cleaning container 13 from above as shown in FIG. In this embodiment, each inlet is disposed on the same direction side of the cleaning container 13, and the mold contact surface 13 a and the mold contact surfaces 13 b and 13 c are disposed on the same direction side of the cleaning container 13. Has been. As a result, a plurality of parts can be molded simultaneously in the same process, the assembly process can be reduced without reducing the number of parts, and the part molding time (tact) of the multi-part molding process itself can be shortened. Product costs can be reduced by reducing assembly processes. Further, since the gates 41, 42, and 43 can be brought into contact with the cleaning container 13 at the same time, the injection can be performed at the same time, and the injection end time of all the parts can be shortened.

Next, the plungers 55, 56, 57 of the resin injection device 40 are driven in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 11, and the elastomer resin which is the sealing material of the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15, 16 becomes the gates 41, 42, 43. Is injected from. The injected elastomer resin is poured into the space formed by the cleaning container 13, the lower seal mold 50, and the vertical seal molds 51 and 52.
Here, the molding of the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 may be sequentially injected, but by adopting a configuration in which they are simultaneously injected, the injection end time of all the parts as described above. Can be shortened.

  After the injection is finished, the cleaning container 13 is taken out. At this time, as shown in FIG. 12, the cleaning container 13 is retracted from the gates 41, 42, and 43 of the resin injection device 40 downward in FIG. 12. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 12, the cleaning container 13 is retracted from the lower seal mold 50 and the vertical seal molds 51 and 52 in the direction of arrow R. The arrow R direction is a mold release direction without an undercut portion with respect to the shape of the molded cleaning blade lower seal 14, and is different from the mold release direction of the cleaning container 13 (vertical direction in FIG. 12). By retracting the cleaning container 13 in such an arrow R direction, the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 can be taken out in a state of being molded into the cleaning container 13.

According to the present embodiment, the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 can be integrally formed with the cleaning container 13 by the molding process as described above. As a result, the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 can be provided with high positional accuracy with respect to the cleaning container 13, so that high-accuracy and easy assembly can be performed, and product functions can be stabilized. . Furthermore, since the assembling property of the seal member is improved, the toner sealing performance can be improved, the production efficiency can be increased, the assembly cost can be reduced, and the cost of the product can be reduced.
Further, a plurality of components (members) such as the cleaning blade lower seal 14 and the vertical seals 15 and 16 can be manufactured in the same process using the resin injection device 40 described above. That is, a plurality of parts having different functions can be manufactured in the same process, so that the assembly process can be reduced, the production efficiency can be increased, and the cost of the product can be reduced by reducing the assembly process.

  A ... image forming apparatus main body, B ... process cartridge, 7 ... photoconductor drum, 11a ... cleaning blade, 13 cleaning container, 15, 16 ... vertical seal, 51, 52 ... vertical seal type

Claims (20)

In a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body,
A rotating body provided rotatably,
A blade member having a blade formed of rubber provided in contact with the rotating body, and a sheet metal part that supports the blade;
A frame that supports the blade member and the rotating body ;
A sealing member for filling between the blade member and the frame member at the longitudinal end of the blade member, the surface having the longitudinal length of the blade, the length in the longitudinal direction of the sheet metal part And a seal member that is injection-molded integrally with the frame so as to abut both of the surface having the thickness,
I have a,
The seal member has a length longer in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and the thickness direction of the blade than the length in the longitudinal direction, and is formed in a shape inclined from the thickness direction toward the longitudinal direction. cartridge according to claim <br/> Being. In a cartridge that can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body,
A rotating body provided rotatably,
A blade member comprising a blade provided in contact with the rotating body and a support portion that supports the blade , wherein the support portion has an exposed surface that is not covered by the blade, and the blade Is a blade member having a step with respect to the exposed surface in the thickness direction;
A frame that supports the blade member and the rotating body ;
A sealing member for filling between the blade member and the frame member at the longitudinal end of the blade member, the surface having the longitudinal length of the blade, the length in the longitudinal direction of the supporting part And a seal member that is injection-molded integrally with the frame so as to abut both of the surface having the thickness,
I have a,
The seal member is formed in a shape that is longer in the longitudinal direction and in the direction perpendicular to the thickness direction of the blade than the length in the longitudinal direction, and is inclined from the thickness direction toward the longitudinal direction. cartridge according to claim <br/> things are. The cartridge according to claim 2 , wherein the blade is made of rubber. The cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the seal member is formed on one end side and the other end side of the blade member in the longitudinal direction. The rotating body is an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface,
The cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the blade contacts the surface of the image carrier and removes the developer. 6. The cartridge according to claim 5 , wherein an end seal member that abuts on the image carrier is provided on the frame body at an end portion in a longitudinal direction of the blade member. The sealing member, the cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that an elastic. The sealing member, the cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that it is formed of an elastomeric resin. The cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 8 , wherein the seal member is formed of a resin having a color different from that of the resin of the frame body. The cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 9 , wherein the seal member is formed by injecting resin into a space between the frame body and a mold in contact with the frame body. . A rotating body provided rotatably,
A blade member having a blade formed of rubber provided in contact with the rotating body, and a sheet metal part that supports the blade;
A frame that supports the blade member and the rotating body ;
A sealing member for filling between the blade member and the frame member at the longitudinal end of the blade member, the surface having the longitudinal length of the blade, the length in the longitudinal direction of the sheet metal part And a seal member that is injection-molded integrally with the frame so as to abut both of the surface having the thickness,
I have a,
The seal member has a length longer in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and the thickness direction of the blade than the length in the longitudinal direction, and is formed in a shape inclined from the thickness direction toward the longitudinal direction. an image forming apparatus comprising <br/> Being. A rotating body provided rotatably,
A blade member comprising a blade provided in contact with the rotating body and a support portion that supports the blade , wherein the support portion has an exposed surface that is not covered by the blade, and the blade Is a blade member having a step with respect to the exposed surface in the thickness direction;
A frame that supports the blade member and the rotating body ;
A sealing member for filling between the blade member and the frame member at the longitudinal end of the blade member, the surface having the longitudinal length of the blade, the length in the longitudinal direction of the supporting part And a seal member that is injection-molded integrally with the frame so as to abut both of the surface having the thickness,
I have a,
The seal member is formed in a shape that is longer in the longitudinal direction and in the direction perpendicular to the thickness direction of the blade than the length in the longitudinal direction, and is inclined from the thickness direction toward the longitudinal direction. and has <br/> that the image forming apparatus according to claim. The blades, the image forming apparatus according to claim 1 2, characterized in that it is made of rubber. The sealing member, the image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 1 to 1 3, characterized in that said formed at one end and the other end of the blade member in the longitudinal direction. The rotating body is an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface,
The blade is in contact with the surface of the image bearing member, an image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 1 to 1 4, characterized in that the removal of the developer. The image forming apparatus according to claim 15 , wherein an end seal member that abuts on the image carrier is provided on the frame body at an end portion in the longitudinal direction of the blade member. The sealing member, the image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 1 to 16, characterized in that it has elasticity. The sealing member, the image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 1 to 17, characterized in that it is formed of an elastomeric resin. The sealing member, the image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 1 to 18, characterized in that it is formed in a different color of the resin and the resin of the frame. The sealing member, according to any one of claims 1 1 to 19, characterized in that the resin is formed by injection into the space between the contact type to the frame body and the frame body Image forming apparatus.

Images