JP5891994B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus employing an electrophotographic system.

  As an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, a tandem type color printer having a plurality of photosensitive drums corresponding to each color (for example, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) is known.

  As such a tandem type color printer, a color printer including an endless belt that comes into contact with a plurality of photosensitive drums and a cleaning unit for cleaning the endless belt is known.

  Specifically, in a process frame including four photosensitive drums corresponding to each color, a belt cleaner that cleans the conveyor belt, a waste toner container that stores waste toner collected by the belt cleaner, and a waste toner from the belt cleaner There has been proposed a color laser printer provided with conveying members (first screw, second screw and lift) for conveying waste toner to a storage unit (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2010-1910112 A

  However, in the cleaning unit described in Patent Document 1 described above, the belt cleaner is separated from the transport belt when the process frame is pulled out, and the configuration of the belt cleaner is complicated.

  Therefore, it is considered to provide a waste toner storage chamber and a lift in the process frame and fix the belt cleaner to the transfer unit, particularly the driven roller side.

  However, with such a configuration, the belt cleaner may move following the operation of the driven roller in the transfer unit, and in this case, toner leakage from the connecting portion between the lift and the belt cleaner may occur. is there.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that can reliably collect deposits on an endless belt in a storage member and can easily maintain the storage member with a simple configuration.

(1) In order to achieve the above-described object, the image forming apparatus of the present invention is configured to receive an endless belt and a rotational driving force for contacting the inner surface of the endless belt and rotating the endless belt. And a driven roller configured to contact the inner surface of the endless belt and to rotate as the endless belt rotates.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus of the present invention has a cleaning member that is opposed to the driven roller with the endless belt interposed therebetween and configured to remove deposits attached to the endless belt, and a first housing that supports the driving roller. A second housing configured to support the driven roller and the cleaning member and move relative to the first housing in a predetermined direction; and provided outside the second housing and removed by the cleaning member. A storage member configured to store the deposited matter and a transport unit configured to transport the deposit removed by the cleaning member to the storage member.

  The first casing includes a first casing-side connecting portion, and the second casing has a predetermined direction of the second casing following the driven roller via an elastic member with respect to the first casing-side connecting portion. A second housing side coupling portion coupled so as to allow relative movement is provided, and the transport unit is coupled to the first housing side coupling portion so as to restrict relative movement of the transport unit in a predetermined direction. The unit side connection part is provided.

  According to such a structure, the 1st housing | casing side connection part and the 2nd housing | casing side connection part are connected via the elastic member so that the relative movement of a predetermined direction is accept | permitted.

  Therefore, even if the second casing moves following the driven roller, the deposit removed from the endless belt by the cleaning member leaks from the connecting portion between the first casing-side connecting portion and the second casing-side connecting portion. This can be suppressed.

  In addition, the first housing side connecting part and the transport unit side connecting part are connected so that relative movement in a predetermined direction is restricted.

  Therefore, the deposits removed from the endless belt by the cleaning member can be transported without leaking from the connecting portion between the first housing side connecting portion and the transport unit side connecting portion.

As a result, with a simple configuration, the deposit on the endless belt can be reliably collected in the storage member, and the storage member can be easily maintained.
(2) Moreover, either the 1st housing | casing side connection part and the 2nd housing | casing side connection part may be inserted with respect to any one.

  According to such a configuration, one of the first housing side connecting portion and the second housing side connecting portion is inserted so that the overlapping portion is configured with respect to the other, and the first housing side A connection part and a 2nd housing | casing side connection part can be connected.

Therefore, with a simple configuration, it is possible to suppress the deposits removed by the cleaning member from leaking from the connecting portion between the first housing side connecting portion and the second housing side connecting portion.
(3) Moreover, the elastic member may be formed from sponge.

  According to such a structure, the 1st housing | casing side connection part and the 2nd housing | casing side connection part are connected via sponge.

Therefore, the relative movement of the second housing side coupling portion with respect to the first housing side coupling portion can be allowed using the elastic force of the sponge.
(4) The elastic member includes a first elastic member disposed on the first housing side connecting portion side, a second elastic member disposed on the second housing side connecting portion side, and in contact with the first elastic member. May be provided.

According to such a structure, it can suppress more that the deposit | attachment removed by the cleaning member leaks in the contact part of a 1st housing | casing side connection part and a 2nd housing | casing side connection part.
(5) Further, the first casing side connecting portion, the second casing side connecting portion, and the transport unit side connecting portion are arranged on one side in the axial direction of the driven roller, and the second casing is removed by the cleaning member. You may provide the conveyance member which conveys a deposit | attachment to the one side of an axial direction.

According to such a configuration, the deposits removed by the cleaning member can be efficiently collected by being collected on one side by the conveying member.
(6) Moreover, as for the conveyance member, the one side edge part of the axial direction may protrude toward the inside of a conveyance unit side connection part from the one side edge part of the axial direction of a 2nd housing | casing side connection part.

According to such a configuration, since the transport member protrudes into the transport unit connecting portion,
The deposits removed by the cleaning member can be reliably transported to the transport unit.
(7) Moreover, the conveyance member may have flexibility, the other side in the axial direction may be supported by the second housing, and the one side in the axial direction may be supported by the conveyance unit.

  According to such a configuration, the flexible transport member can follow the movement of the second housing even when the second housing moves relative to the transport unit.

Therefore, the deposits removed by the cleaning member can be more reliably transported to the transport unit.
(8) Moreover, the conveyance unit may be comprised so that it may rotate centering | focusing on the conveyance unit side connection part.

  According to such a configuration, the second casing is connected to the first casing so as to allow movement in a predetermined direction, and the transport unit is connected to rotate with respect to the first casing. ing.

  Therefore, the transport unit can be rotated regardless of the movement of the second housing by following the driven roller.

  As a result, it is possible to suppress the deposits removed by the cleaning member from the connecting portion between the transport unit side connecting portion and the first housing side connecting portion.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the deposit on the endless belt can be reliably collected in the storage member with a simple configuration, and the storage member can be easily maintained.

FIG. 1 is a central sectional view of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the transfer unit shown in FIG. 3A and 3B are cross-sectional views of the transfer unit shown in FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C of the transfer unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4A shows a state in which the first transport unit is arranged at the coupling position, and FIG. The state arrange | positioned in a connection cancellation | release position is shown. FIG. 5 is a DD cross-sectional view of the transfer unit shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a process unit shown in FIG. 1, wherein (a) shows a side view and (b) shows a central sectional view. FIG. 7 shows a front view of the process unit shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the connection between the first transport unit and the second transport unit. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a state in which the process unit shown in FIG. 1 is arranged at the outer position.

1. Overall Configuration of Printer As shown in FIG. 1, a printer 1 as an example of an image forming apparatus is a horizontal type direct tandem color laser printer. The printer 1 includes a main body casing 2.

  The main body casing 2 is formed in a box shape having a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from the side, and a front cover 5 for attaching / detaching a process unit 8 to be described later is provided on one side wall thereof.

  In the following description, when referring to the direction of the printer 1, the state in which the printer 1 is placed horizontally is used as a reference. Specifically, as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1, the side where the front cover 5 is provided (the right side in FIG. 1) is the front side, and the opposite side (the left side in FIG. 1) is the rear side. In addition, when the printer 1 is viewed from the front side, the left and right reference is used. That is, the front side in FIG. 1 is the left side, and the back side is the right side.

In the main casing 2, a paper feeding unit 3 for feeding the paper P and an image forming unit 4 for forming an image on the fed paper P are provided.
(1) Paper Feed Unit The paper feed unit 3 is provided in the lower end portion of the main casing 2 and includes a paper feed tray 6 that accommodates the paper P and a plurality of rollers for transporting the paper P to the image forming unit 4. I have.
(2) Image Forming Unit The image forming unit 4 includes a scanner unit 7, a process unit 8, a transfer unit 9, and a fixing unit 10.
(2-1) Scanner Unit The scanner unit 7 is provided in the upper end portion of the main body casing 2. As indicated by the solid lines, the scanner unit 7 emits laser beams to four photosensitive drums 13 (described later) based on the image data, and exposes the photosensitive drums 13 (described later).
(2-2) Process Unit The process unit 8 is disposed below the scanner unit 7 and above the transfer unit 9, and includes a process frame 11 and a plurality (four) of developing cartridges 12 corresponding to each color. It has.

  The process frame 11 is moved along the front-rear direction (predetermined direction) with respect to the main body casing 2 in the main body casing 2 (see FIG. 1) and from the inner position to the outside of the main body casing 2. It can be moved to the outer position (see FIG. 9).

  The process frame 11 holds a plurality (four) of photosensitive drums 13, a charging roller 14, and a drum cleaning unit 15.

  The plurality of photosensitive drums 13 are arranged in parallel in the order of the yellow photosensitive drum 13Y, the magenta photosensitive drum 13M, the cyan photosensitive drum 13C, and the black photosensitive drum 13K from the front side to the rear side with an interval in the front-rear direction. Yes. The photosensitive drum 13 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape that is long in the left-right direction (longitudinal direction).

  The charging roller 14 is disposed on the rear upper side of the photosensitive drum 13 and is pressed against the photosensitive drum 13 from the upper rear side. The charging roller 14 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending in the left-right direction.

  The drum cleaning unit 15 is disposed below the charging roller 14 on the rear side of the photosensitive drum 13. The drum cleaning unit 15 is in contact with the photosensitive drum 13 from the rear side. As will be described in detail later, the drum cleaning unit 15 cleans the surface of the photosensitive drum 13.

  Each of the plurality of developing cartridges 12 corresponds to each of the plurality of photosensitive drums 13 from the front side to the rear side in the order of the yellow developing cartridge 12Y, the magenta developing cartridge 12M, the cyan developing cartridge 12C, and the black developing cartridge 12K. Are arranged in parallel. The developing cartridge 12 is formed in a substantially box shape that is long in the left-right direction, and is detachably held by the process frame 11 on the front upper side of the corresponding photosensitive drum 13.

  The developing cartridge 12 includes a developing roller 16.

  The developing roller 16 is rotatably supported at the lower end portion of the developing cartridge 12 so as to be exposed toward the rear side. The developing roller 16 is in contact with the photosensitive drum 13 from the front upper side.

The developing cartridge 12 includes a supply roller 17 that is in contact with the developing roller 16 from the front upper side, and a layer thickness regulating blade 18 that is in contact with the developing roller 16 from above, and contains toner in the space above them. doing.
(2-3) Transfer Unit The transfer unit 9 is disposed above the paper feed unit 3 and below the process unit 8 in the main body casing 2. The transfer unit 9 includes a drive roller 19, a driven roller 20, a conveyance belt 21 as an example of an endless belt, and a plurality (four) of transfer rollers 22.

  The driving roller 19 and the driven roller 20 are arranged to face each other with a space in the front-rear direction.

  The conveyor belt 21 is wound around the driving roller 19 and the driven roller 20 so that the upper portion thereof is in contact with the plurality of photosensitive drums 13 from below. That is, the drive roller 19 and the driven roller 20 are in contact with the inner surface of the transport belt 21. That is, the conveyor belt 21 is rotated by the driving roller 19 to which the driving force from the outside is input so that the upper portion thereof moves from the front side toward the rear side. 20 is rotated.

  Each of the plurality of transfer rollers 22 is provided corresponding to each of the plurality of photosensitive drums 13, and is disposed below the corresponding photosensitive drum 13 so as to sandwich the upper portion of the conveyance belt 21.

A patch sensor 27 is provided in the main body casing 2 on the lower rear side of the drive roller 19.
(2-4) Fixing Unit The fixing unit 10 is disposed on the rear side of the transfer unit 9. The fixing unit 10 includes a heating roller 23 and a pressure roller 24 that is pressed against the heating roller 23 from below.
(3) Image Forming Operation The toner in the developing cartridge 12 is supplied to the developing roller 16 while being frictionally charged between the supplying roller 17 and the developing roller 16 by the rotation of the supplying roller 17.

  The toner supplied to the developing roller 16 is regulated in thickness by the layer thickness regulating blade 18 as the developing roller 16 rotates, and is carried on the surface of the developing roller 16 as a thin layer having a constant thickness.

  The surface of the photosensitive drum 13 is uniformly charged by the charging roller 14 and then exposed by the scanner unit 7. Thereby, an electrostatic latent image based on the image data is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 13.

  The toner carried on the developing roller 16 is supplied to the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 13, whereby a toner image (developer image) is carried on the surface of the photosensitive drum 13.

  The paper P stored in the paper feed tray 6 is conveyed so as to make a U-turn toward the upper rear side by the rotation of a plurality of rollers, and is fed one by one at a predetermined timing to the image forming unit 4 (photosensitive drum 13 ( The sheet is fed toward a conveyance belt 21 (described later).

  Then, the paper P is conveyed from the front side to the rear side by the conveyance belt 21 so as to sequentially pass between the photosensitive drum 13 and the transfer roller 22. At this time, the toner image carried on the photosensitive drum 13 is transferred to the paper P, and an image is formed on the paper P.

  The paper P is heated and pressurized when passing between the heating roller 23 and the pressure roller 24. At this time, the image is thermally fixed on the paper P.

Thereafter, the paper P is conveyed so as to make a U-turn toward the front upper side, and is discharged by a paper discharge roller 25 onto a paper discharge tray 26 formed on the upper surface of the main body casing 2.
2. Details of Transfer Unit As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transfer unit 9 includes a transfer frame 31 as an example of a first casing, a belt cleaner 32 as an example of a second casing, and an example of a transport unit. The 1st conveyance unit 33 is provided.
(1) Transfer Frame As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the transfer frame 31 is formed in a bottomed frame shape having a substantially rectangular shape in plan view. The transfer frame 31 is formed with an exposure opening 34, a drive roller shaft insertion hole 35, a driven roller shaft insertion opening 36, and a support portion 37 as an example of a first housing side connecting portion.

  The exposure opening 34 is formed at the rear lower end portion of the transfer frame 31 so as to open all in the left-right direction so as to face the patch sensor 27 (see FIG. 1) provided in the main body casing 2. .

  The drive roller shaft insertion hole 35 is formed in a substantially circular shape in a side view at the rear end portion of the side wall in the left-right direction of the transfer frame 31. The diameter of the drive roller shaft insertion hole 35 is substantially the same diameter (slightly larger) as the outer diameter of the drive roller shaft 39 (described later).

  The driven roller shaft insertion opening 36 is formed in the front end portion of the side wall in the left-right direction of the transfer frame 31 so as to penetrate in a substantially rectangular shape that is long in the front-rear direction. The length of the driven roller shaft insertion opening 36 in the vertical direction is substantially the same diameter (slightly larger) as the outer diameter of the driven roller shaft 41 (described later). A compression spring 29 is provided in the driven roller shaft insertion opening 36.

  The compression spring 29 is a compression coil spring extending in the front-rear direction, and its rear end is locked to the rear inner surface of the driven roller shaft insertion opening 36.

  The support portion 37 is provided in front of the driven roller shaft insertion opening 36 at the front end portion of the left wall of the transfer frame 31. The support portion 37 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending in the left-right direction so as to penetrate the right wall of the transfer frame 31. The support part 37 includes a support part side seal member 30 as an example of a first elastic member (see FIG. 5).

  The support part side seal member 30 is affixed to the inner peripheral surface of the support part side seal member 30 so as to cover the entire inner peripheral surface of the support part 37 (see FIG. 5). The support portion side seal member 30 is formed of an elastic material such as sponge or nonwoven fabric.

  Further, as described above and shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the driving roller 19, the driven roller 20, a plurality of (four) transfer rollers 22, and the conveyance belt 21 are supported on the transfer frame 31. Yes.

  The drive roller 19 includes a drive roller body 38 and a drive roller shaft 39.

  The drive roller body 38 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending in the left-right direction. The upper end portion of the drive roller body 38 is disposed above the upper end portion of the transfer frame 31. The rear lower end of the drive roller main body 38 is exposed to the rear lower side through the exposure opening 34 of the transfer frame 31. The length of the drive roller body 38 in the left-right direction is slightly shorter than the length of the transport belt 21 in the left-right direction.

  The drive roller shaft 39 is inserted into the drive roller main body 38 so that the left and right ends thereof are exposed. The drive roller shaft 39 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending along the central axis of the drive roller main body 38. The lateral length of the drive roller shaft 39 is longer than the lateral length of the transport belt 21. Note that both end portions in the left-right direction of the drive roller shaft 39 are fixed to be non-rotatable relative to both end portions in the left-right direction of the drive roller body 38 via flange members (not shown).

  The both ends in the left-right direction of the drive roller shaft 39 are inserted into the drive roller shaft insertion holes 35 on the left and right side walls of the transfer frame 31 so as to be relatively rotatable (see FIG. 4A).

  The driven roller 20 includes a driven roller body 40 and a driven roller shaft 41.

  The driven roller body 40 extends in the left-right direction and is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape having the same diameter as the drive roller body 38. The upper end portion of the driven roller body 40 is disposed at substantially the same position as the upper end portion of the drive roller body 38 in the vertical direction. The length of the driven roller body 40 in the left-right direction is slightly shorter than the length of the transport belt 21 in the left-right direction.

  The driven roller shaft 41 is inserted into the driven roller main body 40 so that the left and right ends thereof are exposed. The driven roller shaft 41 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending along the central axis of the driven roller body 40. The length of the driven roller shaft 41 in the left-right direction is longer than the length of the transport belt 21 in the left-right direction. Note that both the left and right ends of the driven roller shaft 41 are fixed to the left and right ends of the driven roller body 40 through a flange member (not shown) so as not to rotate relative to each other.

  The left and right ends of the driven roller shaft 41 are inserted into the driven roller shaft insertion openings 36 on the left and right side walls of the transfer frame 31 so as to be relatively movable in the front-rear direction and relatively rotatable ( (See FIG. 4 (a)).

  Further, both end portions in the left-right direction of the driven roller shaft 41 are in contact with the front end portion of the compression spring 29 in the corresponding driven roller shaft insertion opening 36 from the front side (see FIG. 4A). As a result, the driven roller 20 is always urged forward by the elasticity of the compression spring 29.

  Each of the plurality of transfer rollers 22 includes a transfer roller main body 42 and a transfer roller shaft 43.

  The transfer roller main body 42 is formed from a conductive resin material in a substantially cylindrical shape extending in the left-right direction. The outer diameter of the transfer roller body 42 is smaller than the outer diameters of the drive roller body 38 and the driven roller body 40. Further, the upper end portion of the transfer roller main body 42 is disposed at substantially the same position as the upper end portion of the drive roller main body 38 in the vertical direction.

  The transfer roller shaft 43 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending from a metal along the central axis of the transfer roller main body 42.

The conveyor belt 21 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape with a circumferential length that can be wound around the drive roller 19 and the driven roller 20 from a conductive resin material.
(2) Belt Cleaner The belt cleaner 32 is disposed in the front end portion of the transfer frame 31. The belt cleaner 32 includes a cleaner frame 44 and a cleaning blade 45 as an example of a cleaning member.

  The cleaner frame 44 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape with the rear lower end opened and the left and right ends closed. Specifically, the cleaner frame 44 is integrally provided with a pair of left and right side walls 46, a main body portion 47, and an upper wall 48.

  The pair of side walls 46 are opposed to each other with a gap in the left-right direction, and are formed in a flat plate shape that is substantially rectangular in a side view. The distance between the pair of side walls 46 in the left-right direction is longer than the length in the left-right direction of the driven roller body 40 and shorter than the distance between the left and right side walls of the transfer frame 31. A driven roller shaft insertion hole 50 is formed in the side wall 46 (see FIG. 3B).

  The driven roller shaft insertion hole 50 is formed in a substantially circular shape in a side view at the rear end portion of the side wall 46. The diameter of the driven roller shaft insertion hole 50 is substantially the same diameter (slightly larger) as the outer diameter of the driven roller shaft 41.

  Further, the left side wall 46 is provided with a screw insertion hole 51 and a cleaner-side supported portion 52 as an example of a second housing side connecting portion (see FIG. 3B).

  The screw insertion hole 51 is formed in a substantially circular shape in a side view at the front end portion of the side wall 46. The diameter of the screw insertion hole 51 is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the first screw 61 (described later) of the first transport unit 33.

  The cleaner-side supported portion 52 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending leftward from the peripheral portion of the screw insertion hole 51. The outer diameter of the cleaner-side supported portion 52 is smaller than the inner diameter of the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31. The cleaner-side supported portion 52 includes a cleaner-side seal member 53 as an example of a second elastic member (see FIG. 5).

  The cleaner-side seal member 53 is affixed to the outer peripheral surface of the cleaner-side supported portion 52 so as to cover the entire outer peripheral surface of the cleaner-side supported portion 52. The cleaner-side seal member 53 is formed from an elastic material such as sponge or nonwoven fabric.

  The main body 47 is constructed between the front end portions of the pair of side walls 46. The main body 47 extends in the left-right direction, and is formed in a substantially D-shaped prismatic shape with a front end curved. A collection chamber 49 is formed in the main body 47.

  The collection chamber 49 is formed as a concave groove that is recessed in a substantially U shape in a sectional view in which the rear end portion is opened from the rear end edge of the main body portion 47 toward the front side and extends in the left-right direction. The collection chamber 49 is formed over the entire left and right direction of the main body 47.

  The upper wall 48 is formed in a substantially flat plate shape extending from the upper end portion of the main body portion 47 toward the rear side. The rear end edge of the upper wall 48 is disposed on the rear side of the driven roller shaft 41 and on the front side of the foremost transfer roller 22 when projected in the vertical direction.

  The cleaning blade 45 is provided at the upper rear end of the main body 47. The cleaning blade 45 has a thickness in the front-rear direction and is formed in a substantially flat plate shape that is long in the left-right direction. The cleaning blade 45 is fixed to the upper peripheral edge of the collection chamber 49 in the upper half thereof. The lower half of the cleaning blade 45 faces the upper half of the collection chamber 49.

  The belt cleaner 32 is connected to the driven roller 20 by inserting the left and right ends of the driven roller shaft 41 into the driven roller shaft insertion holes 50 of the left and right side walls 46.

  The lower end portion of the cleaning blade 45 is opposed to the driven roller 20 from the front side with the conveyance belt 21 in between, and is in contact with the conveyance belt 21 wound around the driven roller 20 from the front side.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the belt cleaner 32 is supported by the transfer frame 31 by inserting the cleaner-side supported portion 52 into the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31 from the right side. That is, the cleaner side supported portion 52 and the support portion 37 are disposed on the left side (one side in the axial direction) of the driven roller 20.

  Here, the cleaner-side seal member 53 is in contact with the right end portion of the support portion-side seal member 30 of the transfer frame 31 (see an enlarged view of FIG. 5). The cleaner-side seal member 53 constitutes an elastic member together with the support portion-side seal member 30. The cleaner-side seal member 53 is compressible in the thickness direction (that is, the radial direction of the cleaner-side supported portion 52).

Accordingly, the belt cleaner 32 is connected to the transfer frame 31 so as to be allowed to move in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction) as the cleaner-side seal member 53 is compressed.
(3) 1st conveyance unit The 1st conveyance unit 33 is provided with the lift 62 and the 1st screw 61 as an example of a conveyance member, as shown in FIG.4 and FIG.5.

  The lift 62 is rotatably supported by the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31. The lift 62 includes a lift-side supported portion 63 and a relay conveyance portion 64 as an example of a conveyance unit-side coupling portion. In the following description of the lift 62, a description will be given on the basis of a state (see FIG. 4A) in which the lift 62 is disposed at a coupling position (described later).

  The lift-side supported portion 63 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape that extends along the left-right direction and whose left end is closed. The outer diameter of the lift-side supported portion 63 is smaller than the inner diameter of the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31 and larger than the outer diameter of the cleaner-side supported portion 52. The lift side supported portion 63 includes a lift side seal member 65.

  The lift side seal member 65 is affixed to the outer peripheral surface of the right end portion of the lift side supported portion 63 so as to cover the entire outer peripheral surface of the right end portion of the lift side supported portion 63. The lift side seal member 65 is formed of an elastic material such as sponge or nonwoven fabric.

  The relay conveyance unit 64 is continuous to the upper side of the lift side supported portion 63 at the left end portion of the lift side supported portion 63. The relay conveyance part 64 is formed in the hollow cylinder shape extended along the left-right direction. Further, the relay conveyance unit 64 is formed with a larger diameter than the lift-side supported unit 63. In addition, a connecting recess 70 is formed at the rear end of the relay conveyance unit 64. A rotating member 66 is provided in the relay conveyance unit 64.

  The connection recessed part 70 is formed in the substantially concave shape by the side view opened by the rear side. A communication port 71 and a first shutter 72 are provided on the upper wall of the connection recess 70.

  The communication port 71 is formed so as to penetrate in a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from the front in the left-right direction, and communicates the inside and outside of the relay conveyance unit 64.

  The first shutter 72 is formed in a substantially rectangular flat plate shape extending in the left-right direction when viewed from the front. The first shutter 72 is arranged in the left-right direction at a closed position (see the broken line in FIG. 5) that closes the communication port 71 and an open position (see the solid line in FIG. 5) that is disposed on the right side from the closed position and opens the communication port 71. Slide along.

  The rotating member 66 includes a rotating shaft 67, a rotating member drive gear 69, and a film member 68.

  The rotation shaft 67 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape extending along the central axis of the relay conveyance unit 64. The right end portion of the rotation shaft 67 is supported on the right wall of the relay conveyance unit 64 so as to be relatively rotatable. Further, the left end portion of the rotation shaft 67 is supported by the left wall of the relay conveyance unit 64 so as to be relatively rotatable so as to penetrate the left wall of the relay conveyance unit 64.

  The rotating member drive gear 69 is supported on the left end portion of the rotation shaft 67 so as not to rotate relative to the left side of the left wall of the relay conveyance unit 64.

  The film member 68 is provided so as to extend from the radially outer surface of the rotation shaft 67 toward the radially outer side in the relay conveyance unit 64. The film member 68 is formed in a substantially rectangular flat plate shape from a flexible film.

  The lift 62 is supported by the transfer frame 31 by inserting the lift-side supported portion 63 into the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31 from the left side. That is, the lift side supported portion 63 and the support portion 37 are disposed on the left side (one side in the axial direction) of the driven roller 20.

  Here, the right end portion of the lift side supported portion 63 and the left end portion of the cleaner side supported portion 52 are opposed to each other with a slight gap therebetween. The lift side seal member 65 is in contact with the support portion side seal member 30 of the transfer frame 31 on the left side of the cleaner side seal member 53. The lift-side seal member 65 is almost completely compressed in the thickness direction (that is, the radial direction of the cleaner-side supported portion 52), and cannot be compressed any more.

  That is, the lift 62 can rotate relative to the transfer frame 31, but cannot move relative to the radial direction.

  Thus, the lift 62 is connected to the transfer frame 31 so that relative movement is restricted in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction).

  The lift 62 includes a connecting position (see FIG. 4A) where the relay conveyance unit 64 is disposed on the upper side of the lift-side supported portion 63, and the relay conveyance unit 64 is disposed on the front side of the lift-side supported portion 63. It can be rotated around the center axis of the lift-side supported portion 63 to the connection release position (see FIG. 4B).

  The first screw 61 is a right-handed auger screw formed from a flexible resin or the like and extending in the left-right direction along the central axis of the lift-side supported portion 63. The first screw 61 is inserted through the lift-side supported portion 63 and the recovery chamber 49 of the belt cleaner 32. Note that the right end portion of the rotation shaft of the first screw 61 is rotatably supported on the right side wall 46 of the belt cleaner 32. Further, the left end portion of the rotation shaft of the first screw 61 is supported by the left wall of the lift side supported portion 63 so as to be relatively rotatable so as to penetrate the left wall of the lift side supported portion 63.

  The first screw 61 includes a screw drive gear 73 and a film member 74.

  The screw drive gear 73 is supported by the left end portion of the rotation shaft of the first screw 61 so as not to rotate relative to the left side of the left wall of the lift side supported portion 63. The screw drive gear 73 is meshed with the rotary member drive gear 69.

The film member 74 is provided in the lift-side supported portion 63 so as to extend radially outward from the radial outer surface of the rotation shaft of the first screw 61. The film member 74 is formed in a substantially rectangular flat plate shape from a flexible film.
3. Details of Process Unit (1) Process Frame The process frame 11 is formed in a substantially rectangular frame shape in plan view. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the process frame 11 includes a pair of side walls 77, a front beam 78, a rear beam 79, and a paper conveyance guide 80.

  The side walls 77 are formed in a substantially rectangular shape that is long in the front-rear direction and viewed from the side, and are opposed to each other at an interval in the left-right direction.

  Further, between the side walls 77, the above-described photosensitive drums 13, the charging rollers 14, and the drum cleaning units 15 are supported.

  The drum cleaning unit 15 includes a drum cleaner frame 86, a drum cleaning blade 87, and a drum cleaner screw 88.

  The drum cleaner frame 86 is disposed on the rear side of the photosensitive drum 13. The drum cleaner frame 86 is formed in a rectangular tube shape extending in the left-right direction, and is spanned between the side walls 77. An opening 89 is formed in the drum cleaner frame 86.

  The opening 89 is formed over the left and right direction of the drum cleaner frame 86 so as to penetrate the center in the vertical direction of the front wall of the drum cleaner frame 86.

  The drum cleaning blade 87 is provided at the upper front end of the drum cleaner frame 86. The drum cleaning blade 87 has a thickness in the front-rear direction and is formed in a substantially flat plate shape that is long in the left-right direction. The drum cleaning blade 87 is fixed to the upper peripheral edge of the opening 89 in the drum cleaner frame 86 in the upper half thereof. The lower half of the drum cleaning blade 87 faces the upper half of the opening 89 of the drum cleaner frame 86. The lower end of the drum cleaning blade 87 is in contact with the photosensitive drum 13 from the rear side.

  The drum cleaner screw 88 is a right-handed auger screw extending in the left-right direction, and is disposed in the lower end portion of the drum cleaner frame 86. The right end portion of the rotation shaft of the drum cleaner screw 88 is rotatably supported by the right side wall 77 of the process frame 11. Further, the left end portion of the rotation shaft of the drum cleaner screw 88 is inserted into a screw insertion hole 81 (described later) of the left side wall 77 of the process frame 11, and is inserted into a drum cleaner connection portion 96 (described later) of the second transport unit 91. Has been placed.

  A plurality of (four) screw insertion holes 81 are formed in the left side wall 77.

  The plurality of screw insertion holes 81 are formed in the lower portion of the side wall 77 so as to correspond to the lower end portion of the drum cleaning unit 15 at intervals in the front-rear direction. The screw insertion hole 81 is formed in a substantially circular shape in a side view, and its diameter is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the drum cleaner screw 88.

  A second transport unit 91 is provided on the left side wall 77. The second transport unit 91 includes a horizontal transport unit 92 and a curved transport unit 93.

  The horizontal conveyance unit 92 includes a horizontal unit 94, a first coupling unit 95, a plurality (four) of drum cleaner connection units 96, and a second screw 97.

  The horizontal portion 94 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape that is long in the front-rear direction.

  The first connecting portion 95 is formed so as to continuously protrude from the front end portion of the horizontal portion 94. The first connecting portion 95 is formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape whose length in the front-rear direction becomes shorter and the length in the left-right direction becomes longer as it goes upward. The first connection part 95 is provided with a communication port 98 and a second shutter 99.

  The communication port 98 is formed in the left half of the upper end portion of the first connecting portion 95 so as to penetrate in a substantially rectangular shape that is long in the left-right direction and communicates the inside and outside of the horizontal portion 94.

  The second shutter 99 is formed in a flat plate shape that is substantially rectangular in plan view and extends in the left-right direction. The second shutter 99 is arranged in the left-right direction between a closed position (see the broken line in FIG. 7) for closing the communication port 98 and an open position (see the solid line in FIG. 7) that is disposed on the right side from the closed position and opens the communication port 98. Slide along.

  The plurality of drum cleaner connection portions 96 are arranged in parallel at intervals in the front-rear direction so as to correspond to the drum cleaning unit 15. The drum cleaner connecting portion 96 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape that protrudes to the left from the peripheral edge of the screw insertion hole 81 and is curved downward as it goes to the left. The drum cleaner connecting portion 96 communicates with the upper end portion of the horizontal portion 94 at the lower end portion thereof.

  The second screw 97 is a right-handed auger screw that extends in the front-rear direction along the central axis of the horizontal portion 94. Note that the front end portion of the rotation shaft of the second screw 97 is rotatably supported by the front wall of the first connecting portion 95.

  The curved conveyance unit 93 includes a curved unit 101 and a third screw 103.

  The bending portion 101 is formed to be bendable from a flexible hose or the like. The curved portion 101 is continuous with the rear end portion of the horizontal portion 94, passes between the rear end portions of the side walls 77 of the process frame 11 while being curved, and extends toward the upper right side. A through hole 105 is formed on the front surface of the upper right side end of the bending portion 101 so as to communicate the inside and outside of the bending portion 101. The upper right end of the bending portion 101 is the second connecting portion 102.

  The third screw 103 is a spring-like screw disposed in the bending portion 101. The third screw 103 continuously extends from the rear end portion of the second screw 97 to the vicinity of the second connecting portion 102 along the curved portion 101.

  The front beam 78 is provided between the front end portions of the side walls 77 and is formed in a substantially flat plate shape extending in the left-right direction. The front beam 78 is provided with a grip 104 for a user to grip when the process frame 11 is attached to and detached from the main casing 2.

  The rear beam 79 is provided between the rear end portions of the side walls 77 and has a substantially flat plate shape extending in the left-right direction.

The sheet conveyance guide 80 is disposed at the front lower side of the process frame 11 at the front lower side of the black developing cartridge 12K, and is formed in a substantially flat plate shape that is curved so as to be recessed upward. The paper transport guide 80 is disposed at the front end thereof below the front beam 78 so as to receive the paper P transported from the paper feed tray 6, and the rear end thereof is disposed on the transport belt 21 and the photosensitive drum 13. It is arranged to face between.
(2) Developing Cartridge The developing cartridge 12 includes a developing frame 108 as shown in FIG.

  The development frame 108 is formed in a box shape extending in the left-right direction, and as described above, supports the development roller 16, the supply roller 17, and the layer thickness regulating blade 18 at the lower portion thereof, and the toner at the upper portion thereof. Is housed.

  The black developing cartridge 12K further includes a storage portion 111 as an example of a storage member.

  The accommodating portion 111 is integrally provided behind the developing frame 108 and is formed in a box shape extending in the left-right direction. The accommodating part 111 includes an accommodating part-side relay part 112 and an accommodating part screw 113.

  The accommodating portion side relay portion 112 is formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape that protrudes rearward at the upper right side end portion in the rear end portion of the accommodating portion 111. A receiving port 114 is formed in the accommodating portion side relay portion 112.

  The receiving port 114 is formed in a substantially circular shape in front view that penetrates the accommodating portion side relay portion 112 in the front-rear direction.

  Thereby, the receiving part 114 of the accommodating part side relay part 112 and the through-hole 105 of the 2nd connection part 102 are facing, and the accommodating part 111 and the 2nd conveyance unit 91 are connected.

The housing part screw 113 is a right-handed auger screw extending in the left-right direction at the rear upper side in the housing part 111. Both end portions of the rotation shaft of the accommodating portion screw 113 are rotatably supported on both side walls of the accommodating portion 111.
(3) Mounting State of Process Unit to Main Body Casing As shown in FIG. 1, the process unit 8 is arranged at the inner position, as described above, below the scanner unit 7 and above the transfer unit 9. Is arranged.

  At this time, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the first shutter 72 of the first transport unit 33 is disposed at the open position (see the solid line in FIG. 5) that opens the communication port 71, and The two shutters 99 are arranged at an open position (see a solid line in FIG. 7) where the communication port 98 is opened.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the first transport unit 33 is disposed at a connection position (see FIG. 4A) where the relay transport unit 64 is disposed above the lift-side supported portion 63. The connecting recess 70 is connected to the first connecting portion 95 of the two transport unit 91 from the front side. Thereby, the communication port 71 of the first conveyance unit 33 and the communication port 98 of the second conveyance unit 91 are communicated with each other.
4). Operation for Collecting Deposits on the Conveying Belt and the Photosensitive Drum The printer 1 first transfers the toner directly to the surface of the conveying belt 21 to form a printing pattern (patch) before performing the above-described image forming operation.

  When the print pattern is opposed to the patch sensor 27 on the lower side of the transfer unit 9 due to the circular movement of the conveyor belt 21, the patch sensor 27 reads the print pattern and measures the positional deviation and image density of each color.

  Thereafter, when the conveyor belt 21 further circulates and the printing pattern passes through the contact portion between the cleaning blade 45 and the conveyor belt 21, the adhered toner toner and paper dust adhered on the conveyor belt 21 are scraped off, It is stored in the collection chamber 49 of the cleaner frame 44.

  At this time, the belt cleaner 32 is configured to be able to move in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction) following the driven roller 20, so that it can reliably collect deposits such as residual toner adhered on the conveyor belt 21 ( Removed).

  In this way, the measurement of the positional deviation and image density of each color is completed.

  Then, as described above, the paper P is fed toward the image forming unit 4, and is sequentially passed between the photosensitive drum 13 and the transfer roller 22 by the transport belt 21 from the front side toward the rear side. The image is formed on the paper P by being conveyed.

  The printer 1 collects (removes) deposits such as residual toner deposited on the photosensitive drum 13 after the image formation and before the next image formation.

  As shown in FIG. 6, deposits such as residual toner adhering to the photosensitive drum 13 are scraped off by the drum cleaning blade 87 that is in contact with the photosensitive drum 13 from the rear side, and are stored in the drum cleaner frame 86. The

  In this way, deposits such as residual toner deposited on the conveyor belt 21 and the photosensitive drum 13 are collected (removed).

  Next, the adhering matter such as the residual toner stored in the collection chamber 49 of the cleaner frame 44 is rotated clockwise as viewed from the left side as the first screw 61 rotates, as shown in FIG. To the lift side supported portion 63 via the cleaner side supported portion 52 and the support portion 37.

  At this time, since the first screw 61 is formed of a flexible resin or the like, even if the belt cleaner 32 and the first transport unit 33 move in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction), the belt cleaner 32 is securely supported by the right side wall 46 of 32 and the left wall of the lift side supported portion 63.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the adhering matter such as residual toner conveyed to the lift-side supported portion 63 is thus pushed to the film conveying member 64 by the rotation of the first screw 61. Be transported.

  Next, the adhering matter such as residual toner conveyed to the relay conveyance unit 64 passes through the communication port 71 and the communication port 98 so as to be pushed out to the film member 68 by the rotation of the rotation member 66, and passes through the first connection unit 95. Then, it is conveyed to the horizontal part 94 of the horizontal conveyance part 92 (see FIG. 8).

  Further, the adhering matter such as residual toner stored in the drum cleaner frame 86 is conveyed to the left end portion of the drum cleaner frame 86 when the drum cleaner screw 88 rotates clockwise as viewed from the left side, and is shown in FIG. As described above, the screw passes through the screw insertion hole 81 of the left side wall 77 of the process frame 11 and is transferred to the horizontal portion 94 of the horizontal transfer portion 92 via the drum cleaner connection portion 96.

  In this way, deposits such as residual toner collected from the conveyor belt 21 and the photosensitive drum 13 and conveyed to the horizontal portion 94 of the horizontal conveyance portion 92 pass through the inside of the horizontal portion 94 by the rotation of the second screw 97. It is conveyed to the curved conveyance unit 93.

  Next, the adhering matter such as residual toner conveyed to the curved conveyance unit 93 is conveyed to the vicinity of the second coupling unit 102 through the curved unit 101 by the rotation of the third screw 103, and the second coupling unit 102 and It is conveyed to the inside of the storage unit 111 via the storage unit side relay unit 112.

In this way, deposits such as residual toner collected from the conveyor belt 21 and the photosensitive drum 13 are stored in the storage unit 111.
5. Replacing the developing cartridge To replace the developing cartridge 12, first, the process unit 8 is pulled out to the outside position.

  In order to pull out the process unit 8 to the outside position, as shown in FIG. 9, the front cover 5 of the main body casing 2 is opened to the front side with its lower end as a fulcrum.

  Then, the first shutter 72 of the first transport unit 33 is disposed at a closed position (see the broken line in FIG. 5) where the communication port 71 is closed, and the second shutter 99 of the second transport unit 91 is closed. It arrange | positions in a closed position (refer broken line of FIG. 7). Thereby, the communication between the communication port 71 of the first transport unit 33 and the communication port 98 of the second transport unit 91 is restricted.

  Next, the first transport unit 33 is rotated around the center axis of the lift-side supported portion 63 as a rotation center, and is disposed at the connection release position (see FIG. 4B). Thereby, the 1st connection part 95 and the connection recessed part 70 are isolate | separated.

  Then, the grip unit 104 is gripped and the process unit 8 is moved to the front side.

  As a result, the process unit 8 is disposed at the outer position.

  Next, the developing cartridge 12 is removed from the process unit 8.

  In order to remove the developing cartridge 12 from the process unit 8, the developing cartridge 12 is pulled up from the process unit 8.

  Here, when the black developing cartridge 12K is removed, the receiving port 114 is moved upward with respect to the through hole 105, and the second connecting portion 102 of the second transport unit 91, the receiving portion side relay portion 112 of the receiving portion 111, and the like. Are separated.

  In this way, the housing portion 111 provided integrally with the black developing cartridge 12K is detached from the process unit 8, and the housing portion 111 can be maintained.

  Further, the developing cartridge 12 is assembled to the process unit 8 by operating reversely to the above-described detachment operation.

  In order to attach the developing cartridge 12 to the process unit 8, the developing cartridge 12 is pushed into the process unit 8 from above.

  Here, when the black developing cartridge 12K is attached to the main casing 2, the receiving port 114 and the through hole 105 face each other, the second connecting portion 102 of the second transport unit 91, and the receiving portion side relay portion 112 of the receiving portion 111. And communicated with each other.

  Next, the grip unit 104 is gripped and the process unit 8 is moved to the rear side.

  And the 1st conveyance unit 33 is rotated centering | focusing on the center axis line of the lift side supported part 63, and is arrange | positioned in a connection position (refer Fig.4 (a)). Thereby, the 1st connection part 95 and the connection recessed part 70 are connected.

  Next, the first shutter 72 of the first transport unit 33 is disposed at an open position (see the solid line in FIG. 5) where the communication port 71 is opened, and the second shutter 99 of the second transport unit 91 is opened. It arrange | positions in an open position (refer the continuous line of FIG. 7). Thereby, the communication port 71 of the first conveyance unit 33 and the communication port 98 of the second conveyance unit 91 are communicated.

  Then, the front cover 5 of the main casing 2 is closed.

Thereby, the replacement operation of the developing cartridge 12 is completed.
6). Operation and Effect (1) According to the printer 1, as shown in FIG. 5, the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31 and the cleaner side supported portion 52 of the belt cleaner 32 are elastic members (support portion side seal member 30). And a cleaner-side seal member 53) are connected so as to allow relative movement in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction).

  Therefore, even if the belt cleaner 32 moves following the driven roller 20, the remaining recovered (removed) from the conveying belt 21 by the cleaning blade 45 from the connecting portion of the support portion 37 and the cleaner-side supported portion 52. Leakage of adhering substances such as toner and paper powder can be suppressed.

  Further, the support portion 37 of the transfer frame 31 and the lift-side supported portion 63 of the first transport unit 33 are coupled so that relative movement in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction) is restricted.

  For this reason, the lift-side supported portion does not leak from the connecting portion between the support portion 37 and the lift-side supported portion 63 without leaking residual toner or paper dust removed from the conveying belt 21 by the cleaning blade 45. 63 can be conveyed.

  Then, deposits such as residual toner and paper dust conveyed to the lift-side supported portion 63 can be conveyed to the storage unit 111 via the second conveyance unit 91 and stored.

As a result, deposits such as residual toner and paper dust on the conveyance belt 21 of the transfer unit 9 can be collected in the storage unit 111 of the process unit 8 with a simple configuration. Since the accommodating portion 111 can be exchanged from the printer 1 together with the black developing cartridge 12K, the accommodating portion 111 can be easily maintained.
(2) According to the printer 1, as shown in FIG. 5, the cleaner-side supported portion 52 is inserted into the support portion-side seal member 30 so as to form an overlapping portion, and the support portion 37 The cleaner-side supported portion 52 can be connected.

For this reason, it is possible to suppress the adhering matter such as residual toner and paper dust removed by the cleaning blade 45 from the connecting portion between the support portion 37 and the cleaner-side supported portion 52 with a simple configuration.
(3) According to the printer 1, as shown in FIG. 5, the support portion 37 and the cleaner-side supported portion 52 are connected via an elastic member made of an elastic material such as sponge or nonwoven fabric. .

Therefore, the relative movement of the cleaner-side supported portion 52 with respect to the support portion 37 can be allowed using the elastic force of an elastic material such as sponge or nonwoven fabric.
(4) According to the printer 1, as shown in FIG. 5, the support portion side seal member 30 disposed on the support portion 37 side and the cleaner side supported portion 52 side are disposed, and the support portion side seal member 30 is disposed. An elastic member is constituted by the cleaner-side seal member 53 that is brought into contact with the elastic member.

  Therefore, it is possible to further suppress leakage of the deposits removed by the cleaning blade 45 at the contact portion between the support portion 37 and the cleaner-side supported portion 52.

Further, when the belt cleaner 32 is assembled to the transfer frame 31, first, the support portion side seal member 30 is provided on the support portion 37 side, and the cleaner side seal member 53 is provided on the cleaner side supported portion 52 side. By assembling, it is possible to improve the assembly workability.
(5) According to this printer 1, as shown in FIG. 5, deposits such as residual toner and paper dust removed by the cleaning blade 45 are left on the left side (one side) of the cleaner frame 44 by the first screw 61. Can be collected and transported efficiently.
(6) According to this printer 1, as shown in FIG. 5, the first screw 61 protrudes into the lift-side supported portion 63, so that residual toner, paper dust, etc. removed by the cleaning blade 45 can be obtained. The deposit can be reliably transported to the first transport unit 33.
(7) According to the printer 1, the flexible first screw 61 can follow the movement of the belt cleaner 32 even if the belt cleaner 32 moves relative to the first transport unit 33. .

Therefore, the deposits removed by the cleaning blade 45 can be more reliably transported to the first transport unit 33.
(8) According to the printer 1, as shown in FIG. 4, the belt cleaner 32 is connected to the transfer frame 31 so as to allow movement in the front-rear direction (predetermined direction), and the first transport unit 33 is The transfer frame 31 is connected so as to rotate around the lift-side supported portion 63.

  Therefore, the first transport unit 33 can be rotated regardless of the movement of the belt cleaner 32 by following the driven roller 20.

As a result, it is possible to suppress the adhering matter such as residual toner removed by the cleaning blade 45 from the connecting portion between the lift-side supported portion 63 and the support portion 37.
7). In the above embodiment, the cleaner-side supported portion 52 is inserted into the support portion 37 so that the belt cleaner 32 is supported by the transfer frame 31. However, the support portion 37 is supported by the cleaner-side supported portion 52. The belt cleaner 32 can also be supported by the transfer frame 31 by being inserted into the inside.

  In this case, the support portion side seal member 30 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the support portion side seal member 30 so as to cover the entire outer peripheral surface of the support portion 37, and the cleaner side seal member 53 is the cleaner side supported portion 52. Is attached to the inner peripheral surface of the cleaner-side supported portion 52 so as to cover the entire inner peripheral surface.

  Also in such a modification, the same effect as the above-described embodiment can be obtained.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer 19 Drive roller 20 Follower roller 21 Conveyance belt 30 Support part side seal member 31 Transfer frame 32 Belt cleaner 33 First conveyance unit 37 Support part 45 Cleaning blade 52 Cleaner side supported part 53 Cleaner side seal member 61 First screw 63 Lift side supported part 111 Housing part

Claims (8)

Endless belt,
A driving roller configured to be in contact with an inner surface of the endless belt and configured to receive a rotational driving force for rotating the endless belt;
A driven roller configured to come into contact with the inner surface of the endless belt and rotate with the rotation of the endless belt;
A cleaning member configured to face the driven roller across the endless belt and remove deposits attached to the endless belt;
A first housing that supports the drive roller;
A second housing configured to support the driven roller and the cleaning member and to move relative to the first housing in a predetermined direction;
A storage member provided outside the second housing and configured to store deposits removed by the cleaning member;
A transport unit configured to transport the deposit removed by the cleaning member to the storage member;
The first housing includes a first housing side connecting portion,
The second casing is connected to the first casing-side connecting portion via an elastic member so as to allow relative movement of the second casing following the driven roller in the predetermined direction. A second housing side connecting portion;
The transport unit includes a transport unit-side connecting portion that is connected to the first housing-side connecting portion so as to restrict relative movement of the transport unit in the predetermined direction. Forming equipment.   2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one of the first housing side coupling portion and the second housing side coupling portion is inserted into one of the first housing side coupling portion and the second housing side coupling portion.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the elastic member is formed of a sponge. The elastic member is
A first elastic member disposed on the first housing side connecting portion side;
4. The image according to claim 1, further comprising a second elastic member disposed on the second housing side connecting portion side and in contact with the first elastic member. 5. Forming equipment. The first housing side connecting portion, the second housing side connecting portion, and the transport unit side connecting portion are arranged on one side in the axial direction of the driven roller,
The said 2nd housing | casing is equipped with the conveyance member which conveys the deposit | attachment removed by the said cleaning member to the said one side of the said axial direction, The Claim 1 thru | or 4 characterized by the above-mentioned. Image forming apparatus.   The conveying member has one end in the axial direction protruding from the one end in the axial direction of the second casing side connecting portion toward the inside of the conveying unit side connecting portion. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.   The said conveyance member has flexibility, the said other side of the said axial direction is supported by the said 2nd housing | casing, and the one side of the said axial direction is supported by the said conveyance unit, It is characterized by the above-mentioned. The image forming apparatus described in 1. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transport unit is configured to rotate around the transport unit side connecting portion.

Images