JP5723759B2 - Static eliminating unit, drum unit including the same, and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a static elimination unit that removes residual charges on an image carrier such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a multifunction machine thereof, and a drum unit and an image forming apparatus including the static elimination unit.

  In the image forming apparatus, a charging unit, an exposure unit, a developing unit, a transfer unit, a cleaning unit, a static elimination device, and the like are provided around the image carrier. After the surface of the image carrier is uniformly charged by the charging unit, exposure is performed by the exposure unit to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the image carrier, and the electrostatic latent image is further developed by the developing unit. The Thereafter, the developed toner image is transferred onto the recording medium by the transfer unit, and the recording medium is transported to the fixing unit and fixed, and then discharged outside the apparatus. The toner remaining on the image carrier during the transfer is removed by the cleaning unit. Further, after the transfer, the residual charge on the image carrier is removed by the static eliminator, and the image carrier is charged again by the charging unit. By removing the residual charge before charging, the subsequent surface of the image carrier can be uniformly charged. For neutralizing residual charges, neutralization with light or the like is used.

  For example, in the static eliminator described in Patent Document 1, a charge wire and a grid are provided in a housing as a charging unit, a part of the grid is extended, and a holding unit that supports the housing and the grid are electrically connected. At the same time, a connection portion for attachment to the apparatus main body is formed. The holding unit holds the static elimination lamp, and the grid and the static elimination lamp are adjusted to predetermined positions with respect to the image carrier by the urging force of the holding unit. With this configuration, the number of parts is reduced and the assembly of the parts is simplified, thereby reducing the cost of the static eliminator.

  Moreover, in order to reduce the size of the device, the static eliminator described in Patent Document 2 is a rod-shaped light guide tube that refracts and diffuses light, and is attached to one end of the light guide tube to neutralize the light guide tube. A static eliminator is composed of a light emitter that emits light, and a holder for attaching the static eliminator is provided. A concave groove parallel to the longitudinal direction is provided inside the holder, and the static eliminator is locked in the vicinity of the concave groove. A locking part is provided, and the static eliminator is attached to the groove of the holder.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-19592 (paragraphs [0010] to [0014], FIG. 1) JP 2001-337571 A (paragraphs [0029] to [0031], FIG. 5)

  However, in the static eliminator described in Patent Document 1 described above, since the holding portion and the connecting portion are integrally formed on the grid, the shape of the grid becomes complicated, leading to an increase in cost. In addition, since the holding portion and the connecting portion are integrated with the grid, the number of parts can be reduced by that amount, but there is a disadvantage that the work of attaching the grid to the housing and the apparatus main body becomes complicated.

  Further, in the static eliminator described in Patent Document 2, in order to attach the static eliminator to the concave groove portion of the holder, the static eliminator (light guide tube) is bent using the rigidity of the static eliminator (light guide tube) and inserted into the concave groove portion. Although it is fixed to the stop portion, it is necessary to bend the static eliminator within an appropriate range for assembly, and it is difficult to bend the static eliminator within an appropriate range. If the static eliminator is small in bending, the static eliminator cannot be incorporated into the holder. On the other hand, if the static eliminator is excessively bent, the static eliminator may be damaged. In particular, in a static eliminator including a substrate on which an electronic component such as a light emitting diode or a resistor is mounted, there is a disadvantage that the electronic component is damaged by bending the substrate.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and is a compact and low-cost static elimination unit that is easily assembled without damaging the substrate and components, a drum unit including the static elimination unit, and image formation An object is to provide an apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, a first invention is a static elimination unit for removing residual charges on an image carrier, which is arranged along the longitudinal direction of the image carrier, and has light on the surface of the image carrier. A light emitting member that irradiates the image bearing member, a substrate provided extending in the longitudinal direction of the image carrier and mounted with the light emitting member, and a holder to which the substrate is attached at a predetermined position. An opening that allows one end in the longitudinal direction to be inserted along the longitudinal direction, a flexible first guide formed on the opposite side of the opening, and the thickness of the substrate together with the first guide A second guide part that forms a smaller gap, and with the one end part of the board inserted into the opening part, the other end part side of the board is moved toward the other side by the bending of the first guide part. It is sandwiched in the gap between the first and second guides and is almost straight with the longitudinal direction. By inserting in the direction of the substrate it is characterized in that it is held in place.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the static eliminator unit, the holder has an intermediate holding portion that holds the lower surface of the substrate between both longitudinal end portions of the substrate.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the static eliminator, the substrate is tilted with respect to a horizontal direction and held by the holding portion, and the first and second guide portions are inclined at substantially the same inclination angle as the holding portion. It is characterized by being arranged.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the static eliminator, the substrate is formed on a first holding portion formed on an inner wall surface along a longitudinal direction of the holder and a guide surface of the second guide portion. It is held by a holding portion configured by a second holding portion, the first guide portion, and the opening, and the first holding portion and the second holding portion hold both end sides in the insertion direction of the substrate, The first guide portion and the opening hold the lower surface of the substrate.

  According to a fifth aspect of the invention, the static eliminator unit described above, the image carrier, a cleaning unit that collects the developer remaining on the image carrier, and a housing that holds at least the cleaning unit are provided. In the drum unit, the static eliminator unit is attached to the housing, the substrate has a first holding portion formed on an inner wall surface along the longitudinal direction of the holder, and a rear end portion of the housing in the insertion direction of the substrate. Is held by a holding portion formed by a second holding portion formed at a position opposite to the first guide portion, and the opening portion, and the first holding portion and the second holding portion are inserted into the substrate. The both ends of the direction are held, and the first guide part and the opening part hold the lower surface of the substrate.

  According to a sixth aspect of the invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus comprising the static elimination unit having the above-described configuration.

  According to a seventh aspect of the invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including the drum unit having the above-described configuration.

  According to the first invention, one end of the substrate is inserted into the opening of the holder, and the other end of the substrate is inserted between the first and second guides so that the other end of the substrate is the first side. The substrate is guided to a predetermined position by the first and second guide portions, and the substrate is held at the predetermined position. In this way, the substrate is assembled to the holder by a simple operation of inserting one end of the substrate into the opening of the holder and inserting the other end of the substrate along the first and second guide portions, When the substrate is incorporated in this manner, the substrate and the light emitting member are not damaged due to deformation of the substrate, and the configuration for attaching the substrate can be saved in a space-saving manner, and the static elimination unit can be downsized.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an image forming apparatus including a drum unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. Sectional drawing which shows the drum unit which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the static elimination unit which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the structure which can insert the one end part of the board | substrate of the static elimination unit which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the structure which hold | maintains the intermediate part of the board | substrate of the static elimination unit which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the structure holding the other end part of the board | substrate of the static elimination unit which concerns on 1st Embodiment. Sectional drawing which shows the structure holding the board | substrate of the static elimination unit which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. Further, the use of the invention and the terms shown here are not limited thereto.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus including a static elimination unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image forming apparatus 1 is a tandem type color printer, and the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d that are rotatable use an organic photosensitive member (OPC photosensitive member) as a photosensitive material for forming a photosensitive layer. Arranged corresponding to each color of cyan and magenta. Around the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d, developing units 2a to 2d, an exposure unit 12, charging units 13a to 13d, cleaning units 14a to 14d, and static eliminating units 60a to 60d are disposed.

  The developing units 2a to 2d are arranged to face the right sides of the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d, respectively, and supply toner to the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d. The charging units 13a to 13d are arranged on the upstream side of the developing units 2a to 2d with respect to the rotation direction of the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d and to be opposed to the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d. The surface of 11d is uniformly charged.

  The exposure unit 12 scans and exposes each of the photoconductive drums 11a to 11d based on image data such as characters and designs input to an image input unit (not shown) from a personal computer or the like. Provided below 2a to 2d. The exposure unit 12 is provided with a laser light source and a polygon mirror, and a reflection mirror and a lens are provided corresponding to each of the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d. Laser light emitted from the laser light source passes through the polygon mirror, reflection mirror, and lens from the downstream side of the charging units 13a to 13d with respect to the rotation direction of the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d. Irradiate the surface. An electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d by the irradiated laser light, and the electrostatic latent image is developed into a toner image by the developing units 2a to 2d.

  The endless intermediate transfer belt 17 is stretched around the tension roller 6, the driving roller 25, and the driven roller 27. The driving roller 25 is rotationally driven by a motor (not shown), and the intermediate transfer belt 17 is circulated and driven by the rotation of the driving roller 25.

  The photosensitive drums 11a to 11d are arranged below the intermediate transfer belt 17 so as to be in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 17 along the rotation direction (arrow direction in FIG. 1). The primary transfer rollers 26a to 26d face the photosensitive drums 11a to 11d with the intermediate transfer belt 17 interposed therebetween, and are in pressure contact with the intermediate transfer belt 17 to form a primary transfer portion. In the primary transfer portion, the toner images on the photosensitive drums 11 a to 11 d are sequentially transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 17 at a predetermined timing as the intermediate transfer belt 17 rotates. As a result, a toner image is formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17 by superimposing four color toner images of magenta, cyan, yellow, and black.

  After the toner image is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 17, the toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 is cleaned and collected by the cleaning units 14a to 14d, and further, the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 is removed by the charge eliminating units 60a to 60d. Residual charges are removed.

  The secondary transfer roller 34 faces the drive roller 25 via the intermediate transfer belt 17 and presses against the intermediate transfer belt 17 to form a secondary transfer portion. In this secondary transfer portion, the toner image on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 17 is transferred to the paper P. After the transfer, the belt cleaning unit 31 cleans the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 17.

  A paper feed cassette 32 that stores paper P is disposed below the image forming apparatus 1, and a stack tray 35 that supplies manually fed paper is disposed to the right of the paper feed cassette 32. On the left side of the paper feed cassette 32, a first paper transport path 33 for transporting the paper P sent from the paper feed cassette 32 to the secondary transfer portion of the intermediate transfer belt 17 is disposed. Further, on the left side of the stack tray 35, a second paper transport path 36 for transporting the paper P fed from the stack tray 35 to the secondary transfer unit is disposed. Further, on the upper left side of the image forming apparatus 1, a fixing unit 18 that performs fixing processing of the paper P on which the toner image is formed, and a third paper transport that transports the paper P on which the fixing processing has been performed to the paper discharging unit 37. A path 39 is provided.

  The paper feed cassette 32 can be replenished by pulling it out of the apparatus (the front side of the paper surface in FIG. 1), and the stored paper P is fed one by one by the pick-up roller 33b and the separating roller 33a. The sheet is fed out to the one-sheet conveyance path 33 side.

  The first paper transport path 33 and the second paper transport path 36 merge before the registration roller pair 33c, and the registration roller pair 33c takes the timing of the image forming operation and the paper feeding operation in the intermediate transfer belt 17. Thus, the sheet P is conveyed to the secondary transfer unit. The sheet P conveyed to the secondary transfer unit is secondarily transferred with the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 17 by the secondary transfer roller 34 to which a bias potential is applied, and is conveyed to the fixing unit 18.

  The fixing unit 18 includes a fixing belt heated by a heater or the like, a fixing roller inscribed in the fixing belt, a pressure roller disposed in pressure contact with the fixing roller via the fixing belt, and the like. The fixing process is performed by heating and pressurizing the paper P on which the image is transferred. After the toner image is fixed on the paper P by the fixing unit 18, the toner image is reversed by the fourth paper conveyance path 40 as necessary, and the toner image is transferred to the back surface of the paper P by the secondary transfer roller 34. 18 is fixed. The paper P on which the toner image is fixed passes through the third paper transport path 39 and is discharged to the paper discharge unit 37 by the discharge roller pair 19a.

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a drum unit including a static eliminator unit and a photosensitive drum used in the above-described image forming apparatus 1, and is viewed from the back side of the image forming apparatus 1 shown in FIG. In the following description, the configuration of the drum unit including the photosensitive drum 11a illustrated in FIG. 1 will be described. However, the configuration of the drum unit including the photosensitive drums 11b to 11d is the same as that of the drum unit illustrated in FIG. Omitted, and reference numerals a to d indicating the photosensitive drums of the respective colors are omitted.

  The drum unit 10 includes a photosensitive drum 11 that is an image carrier, a charging unit 13, a cleaning unit 14, and a charge removal unit 60.

  The photosensitive drum 11 is rotatably held by a housing (not shown) below the intermediate transfer belt 17. The charging unit 13 is in contact with the surface of the photoconductive drum 11 to charge the surface of the photoconductive drum 11, and a cleaning roller 72 that removes toner, paper dust, and the like attached to the charging roller 71. And is held by the housing below the photosensitive drum 11. Note that the charging unit 13 may be a unit in which a charge wire is disposed in a non-contact manner with respect to the photosensitive drum 11 and the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 is charged by corona discharge.

  The cleaning unit 14 includes a cleaning blade 51 that contacts the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 and scrapes off the toner attached to the surface of the photosensitive drum 11, and a recovery screw 52 that recovers the toner scraped off by the cleaning blade 51. And disposed on the right side of the photosensitive drum 11. The cleaning blade 51 is fixed to the housing 53, and the recovery screw 52 is rotatably held by the housing 53. The housing 53 is formed in a predetermined shape with resin and is attached to the housing that holds the photosensitive drum 11 and the charging unit 13. Note that the toner attached to the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 may be scraped off by a cleaning member such as a brush or a polishing roller instead of the cleaning blade 51.

  The neutralization unit 60 is disposed above the cleaning unit 14 and below the intermediate transfer belt 17, and neutralizes charges remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 after the toner image is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 17. In order to neutralize residual charges on the surface of the photosensitive drum 11, the static elimination unit 60 includes a substrate 62 extending along the longitudinal direction (rotational axis direction) of the photosensitive drum 11, and the substrate 62 includes a light emitting member. A plurality of light emitting diodes 61 are mounted. A plurality of light emitting diodes 61 are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 62 (in the direction of the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 11) with the light emitting surface facing the surface of the photosensitive drum 11, and are connected to a driving circuit (not shown) so that a driving current is supplied. When given, the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 is irradiated with light uniformly in the rotation axis direction. By irradiating the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 with light from each light emitting diode 61, the charge remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 11 is eliminated.

  The substrate 62 on which the light emitting diode 61 is mounted is attached to the holder 65 as shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the static elimination unit 60 according to the first embodiment of the present invention in which the substrate 62 is attached to the holder 65.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the holder 65 has a substantially “F” shape in cross section and extends in the longitudinal direction (in the direction of the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 11) and is formed of resin. An opening 65 a is formed on the left wall surface of the holder 65, and a first guide portion 65 b and a second guide portion 65 c are formed on the right side of the holder 65. When the substrate 62 is attached to the holder 65, one end of the substrate 62 (left side in FIG. 3) is inserted into the opening 65a from the front side in FIG. 3, and the other end of the substrate 62 (right side in FIG. 3) is inserted. It inserts in the clearance gap between the 1st and 2nd guide parts 65b and 65c. Thereby, the board | substrate 62 is guided toward a predetermined position, and is hold | maintained by the holding | maintenance part mentioned later in a predetermined position.

  As described above, the substrate 62 is held in the holder 65 by a simple operation of inserting one end of the substrate 62 into the opening 65a and inserting the other end of the substrate 62 along the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c. In addition, when the substrate 62 is assembled in this manner, the substrate 62 and the light emitting diode 61 are not damaged due to deformation of the substrate 62, and the configuration in which the substrate 62 is attached can be accommodated in a space-saving manner. It can be made small.

  Further, a plurality of intermediate holding portions 65 d are arranged between both side portions in the longitudinal direction of the holder 65. The intermediate holding portion 65d holds the lower surface of the substrate 62, and is formed to project from the inner wall surface 65j of the holder 65 in a thin plate arc shape.

  A pair of locking portions 65e is formed at the lower central portion of the holder 65, and a pair of protrusions 65f are formed on the upper sides of both sides in the longitudinal direction of the holder 65. The locking part 65e and the protrusion part 65f position and attach the holder 65 to the housing 53 (see FIG. 2). The locking portion 65e extends from the holder 65 main body in an L shape with elasticity and has a tip formed in a hook shape. After the pair of protrusions 65f are inserted into holes (not shown) of the housing 53 and the holder 65 is positioned with respect to the housing 53, the locking portions 65e are inserted into holes (not shown) of the housing 53 against the elasticity of the locking portions 65e. Then, the locking portion 65e is locked in the hole. Thus, the holder 65 is attached to the housing 53 at a predetermined position (see FIG. 2). Instead of attaching the holder 65 to the housing 53 that holds the cleaning unit 14, the holder 65 may be attached to the housing that holds the photosensitive drum 11 and the charging unit 13 together with the cleaning unit 14.

  Specifically, the holder 65 is configured as shown in FIGS. 4 is a partial perspective view showing the configuration around the opening 65a into which one end of the substrate 62 is inserted, and FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view showing the configuration around the intermediate holding portion 65d holding the intermediate portion of the substrate 62. FIG. 6 is a partial perspective view showing the configuration around the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c that hold the other end of the substrate 62.

  As shown in FIG. 4, an opening 65 a is formed on one side surface of the holder 65 in the longitudinal direction. One end 62 a and the other end 62 b (see FIG. 6) of the substrate 62 are formed to have a width smaller than that of the central portion where the light emitting diode 61 is mounted, and the opening 65 a has a size for accommodating the one end 62 a of the substrate 62. The substrate 62 on which the light emitting diode 61 is mounted is inserted from the direction of arrow A (direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction) to the back side of the holder 65, and the one end 62a of the substrate 62 is opened to the left side of FIG. Insert into 65a. Since the substrate 62 contacts the opening inner wall surface 65m on the near side in the insertion direction A of the opening 65a, the substrate 62 does not come out of the opening 65a. The lower surface of the substrate 62 is held by the intermediate holding portion 65d.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the intermediate holding portion 65 d is provided on one end side (see FIG. 4) in the longitudinal direction of the holder 65, provided in the center portion in the longitudinal direction of the holder 65, and further in the longitudinal direction of the holder 65. Is provided on the other end side (see FIG. 6), and holds the lower surface of the substrate 62 between both end portions 62 a and 62 b of the substrate 62. With this configuration, when the static elimination unit 60 is applied to the image forming apparatus 1 that prints a large size sheet, the substrate 62 becomes longer in the longitudinal direction, but the lower surface of the substrate 62 is held by the intermediate holding unit 65d. Therefore, there is no possibility that the substrate 62 on which electronic components such as the light emitting diode 61 are mounted is bent downward due to its own weight and deformed.

  A plurality of first holding portions 65k are formed on the inner wall surface 65j formed on the inner side of the holder 65. The 1st holding | maintenance part 65k hold | maintains the both ends of the insertion direction A of the board | substrate 62 with the 2nd holding | maintenance part 65i (refer FIG. 6) mentioned later. The 1st holding | maintenance part 65k hold | maintains the front-end part of the insertion direction A of the board | substrate 62 so that contact | abutment is possible.

  As shown in FIG. 6, a first guide portion 65 b and a second guide portion 65 c are formed on the other end portion side of the holder 65 in the longitudinal direction.

  The first guide portion 65b extends from the inner wall surface 65j to the near side in the insertion direction A and is formed in a thin plate shape in the vertical direction in order to have a configuration having flexibility in the vertical direction. The first guide portion 65b is provided with a first guide surface 65g and an insertion surface 65n. The insertion surface 65n is formed in a circular arc shape on the lower side so that the other end 62b of the substrate 62 can be easily inserted. When the other end 62b of the substrate 62 is inserted, the first guide surface 65g contacts the lower surface of the substrate 62 and guides it to a predetermined holding position.

  The second guide portion 65c is disposed on the upper side in the vicinity of the end portion in the longitudinal direction with respect to the first guide portion 65b, and is formed to extend from the inner wall surface 65j to the near side in the insertion direction A. The second guide portion 65c is provided with a second guide surface 65h and a second holding portion 65i.

  When the other end 62b of the substrate 62 is inserted, the second guide surface 65h contacts the upper surface of the other end 62b of the substrate 62, and the first holding portion 65k (see FIG. 5), which is a predetermined holding position, and the second guide surface 65h. Guide to the holding portion 65i. The second guide surface 65h is provided so as to form a gap smaller than the thickness of the substrate 62 together with the first guide surface 65g. Therefore, when the substrate 62 is inserted between the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c, the first guide portion 65b is bent downward, and the substrate 62 is deformed by the bending of the first guide portion 65b. 2 It is clamped by the guide surfaces 65g and 65h and guided to the first and second holding portions 65k and 65i.

  The second holding portion 65i is formed by a wall surface on the near side of a portion recessed toward the upper side with respect to the second guide surface 65h on the back side of the second guide surface 65h. The second holding portion 65i holds the other end portion 62b of the substrate 62 in the insertion direction A together with the first holding portion 65k (see FIG. 5) formed on the inner wall surface 65j. When the substrate 62 is guided by the first and second guide surfaces 65g and 65h and the rear end portion (rear end in the insertion direction A) of the substrate 62 reaches the second holding portion 65i, the bending of the first guide portion 65b is eliminated. The first guide portion 65b returns to its original shape. Accordingly, the rear end portion of the other end portion 62b of the substrate 62 is held so as to be able to contact the second holding portion 65i. Further, the front end portion of the substrate 62 is held so as to be in contact with the first holding portion 65k. Further, the lower surface of the substrate 62 is held by the first guide surface 65g of the first guide portion 65b and held by the plurality of intermediate holding portions 65d.

  As for the procedure of attaching the substrate 62 to the holder 65, as shown in FIG. 4, the substrate 62 on which the light emitting diode 61 is mounted is inserted into the inner side of the holder 65 from the arrow A direction. At this time, the substrate 62 is inserted while being inclined in the insertion direction A. That is, the one end portion 62a side of the substrate 62 is set to the back side in the insertion direction A, the other end portion 62b side of the substrate 62 is inclined to the near side in the insertion direction A, and the one end portion 62a of the substrate 62 is changed to the opening 65a. insert. Next, with the one end 62a of the substrate 62 inserted into the opening 65a, the other end 62b side of the substrate 62 is inserted between the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c as shown in FIG. Thus, the substrate 62 is sandwiched and guided by the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c by the bending of the first guide portion 65b. By further inserting the substrate 62, the substrate 62 reaches between the first holding portion 65k and the second holding portion 65i, and both ends in the inserting direction of the substrate 62 are held by the first and second holding portions 65k, 65i. The lower surface of the substrate 62 is held by the first guide surface 65g of the first guide portion 65b and the intermediate holding portion 65d.

  According to the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, when the substrate 62 is held with the rear end side of the substrate 62 inclined downward with respect to the horizontal direction, the first and second guide portions 65b, By arranging the guide surfaces 65g and 65h of 65c at substantially the same inclination angle as the first and second holding portions 65k and 65i, the substrate 62 is smoothly guided by the guide surfaces 65g and 65h, and the substrate 62 is The first and second holding portions 65k and 65i can be easily held. Even when the substrate 62 is held with the rear end side of the substrate 62 tilted upward with respect to the horizontal direction, the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c are guided by the first guide surfaces 65g and 65h. And it is good to arrange | position with the substantially same inclination | tilt angle as the 2nd holding | maintenance part 65k, 65i. Moreover, when the board | substrate 62 is hold | maintained in a horizontal direction, it is good to arrange | position each guide surface 65g, 65h in a horizontal direction.

  Further, when the substrate 62 is relatively short in the longitudinal direction, the lower wall surface of the opening 65a of the holder 65 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the one end portion 62a of the substrate 62 without providing the holder 65 with the intermediate holding portion 65d. As described above, the lower surface of the substrate 62 may be held by the lower side wall surface of the opening 65a and the first guide surface 65g of the first guide portion 65b. With this configuration, the substrate 62 does not bend downward. Retained.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration for holding the substrate 62 of the static elimination unit 60 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, the substrate 62 is held by the first holding portion 65k and the housing 53 at both ends in the insertion direction. The holding unit, which is different from the first embodiment, will be mainly described, and the description of the same part as the first embodiment will be omitted hereinafter.

  The housing 53 that holds the cleaning unit 14 is formed in an arc shape in a cross-sectional view, and further has a frame that extends downward. An outer portion 53a of the arcuate housing 53 forms a second holding portion. The first holding portion 65k is formed on the inner wall surface 65j of the holder 65 as in the first embodiment. Similar to the first embodiment, the lower surface of the substrate 62 is held on the first guide surface 65g (see FIG. 6) of the first guide portion 65b and the lower wall surface of the opening 65a (see FIG. 4). Alternatively, the lower surface of the substrate 62 may be held by the intermediate holding portion 65d (see FIG. 5).

  As for the procedure of attaching the substrate 62 to the holder 65, as shown in FIG. 4, the substrate 62 on which the light emitting diode 61 is mounted is inserted into the inner side of the holder 65 from the arrow A direction. At this time, the substrate 62 is inserted while being inclined in the insertion direction A. That is, the one end portion 62a side of the substrate 62 is set to the back side in the insertion direction A, the other end portion 62b side of the substrate 62 is inclined to the near side in the insertion direction A, and the one end portion 62a of the substrate 62 is changed to the opening 65a. insert. Next, with the one end 62a of the substrate 62 inserted into the opening 65a, the other end 62b side of the substrate 62 is inserted between the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c as shown in FIG. Thereby, the board | substrate 62 is clamped by the 1st and 2nd guide parts 65b and 65c by the bending of the 1st guide part 65b. With the one end 62a of the substrate 62 inserted into the opening 65a and the other end 62b side of the substrate 62 sandwiched between the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c, as shown in FIG. Attach to 53. By attaching the holder 65 to the housing 53, the rear end portion in the insertion direction of the substrate 62 faces the outer shape portion (second holding portion) 53 a of the housing 53, and the second holding portion 53 a further fixes the rear end portion of the substrate 62. Push to the back of the holder 65. When the substrate 62 is pushed to the back side of the holder 65, the substrate 62 reaches the first holding portion 65k, the front end portion of the substrate 62 is held so as to be in contact with the first holding portion 65k, and the rear of the substrate 62 The end is held so as to be in contact with the second holding portion 53a. The lower surface of the substrate 62 is held by the first guide surface 65g of the first guide portion 65b and the lower side wall surface of the opening 65a.

  As described above, the substrate 62 is formed by a simple operation of inserting the one end 62a of the substrate 62 into the opening 65a and inserting the other end 62b of the substrate 65 along the first and second guide portions 65b and 65c. When assembled to the holder 65 and the substrate 62 is assembled in this way, the substrate 62 and the light emitting diode 61 are not damaged due to deformation of the substrate 62, and the configuration for attaching the substrate 62 can be saved in a space-saving manner. 60 can be reduced in size.

  The present invention can be used in a charge eliminating unit that removes residual charges on an image carrier such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, and a multifunction machine thereof, and a drum unit and an image forming apparatus including the charge eliminating unit.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 10 Drum unit 11 Photosensitive drum (image carrier)
13 Charging part 14 Cleaning part 53 Housing 53a Outline part (second holding part)
60 Static elimination unit 61 Light emitting diode (light emitting member)
62 Substrate 62a One end portion 62b Other end portion 65 Holder 65a Opening portion 65b First guide portion 65c Second guide portion 65d Intermediate holding portion 65e Locking portion 65f Protruding portion 65g First guide surface 65h Second guide surface 65i Second holding portion 65j inner wall surface 65k first holding part 65m opening inner wall surface

Claims (6)

A static elimination unit for removing residual charges on the image carrier,
A light emitting member that is arranged along the longitudinal direction of the image carrier and irradiates light on the surface of the image carrier;
A substrate provided extending in the longitudinal direction of the image carrier and mounted with the light emitting member;
A holder to which the substrate is attached at a predetermined position,
The holder includes an opening that allows one end in the longitudinal direction of the substrate to be inserted along the longitudinal direction, a flexible first guide formed on the opposite side of the opening, and the first A second guide part that forms a gap smaller than the thickness of the substrate together with the guide part,
With the one end of the substrate inserted into the opening, the other end of the substrate is sandwiched in the gap between the first and second guides by the bending of the first guide and is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. By inserting in the direction, the substrate is held in place ,
The substrate includes a first holding part formed on an inner wall surface along a longitudinal direction of the holder, a second holding part formed on a guide surface of the second guide part, the first guide part, It is held in a holding part composed of an opening,
The static eliminator unit, wherein the first holding part and the second holding part hold both ends in the insertion direction of the substrate, and the first guide part and the opening hold the lower surface of the substrate .   The static eliminator unit according to claim 1, wherein the holder includes an intermediate holding portion that holds a lower surface of the substrate between both longitudinal end portions of the substrate.   2. The substrate according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is tilted with respect to a horizontal direction and held by the holding portion, and the first and second guide portions are disposed at substantially the same inclination angle as the holding portion. The static elimination unit according to claim 2. The static elimination unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the image carrier, a cleaning unit that collects developer remaining on the image carrier, a housing that holds at least the cleaning unit, In a drum unit equipped with
  The drum unit, wherein the static elimination unit is attached to the housing. An image forming apparatus comprising the static eliminator unit according to claim 1. An image forming apparatus comprising the drum unit according to claim 4.