JP5901572B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including a toner collecting mechanism that sucks and collects toner.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known an image forming apparatus provided with a toner collecting mechanism that sucks and collects toner scattered around a photosensitive drum.

  The toner recovery mechanism includes, for example, a duct provided with a suction port around the photosensitive drum, a filter provided in the duct, a suction fan for sucking toner scattered around the photosensitive drum, It has. In this toner recovery mechanism, the suction fan operates, and the toner scattered around the photosensitive drum is sucked into the duct through the suction port. The sucked toner is captured by a filter provided in the duct. In this way, the toner collecting mechanism collects the toner scattered around the photosensitive drum.

  However, if the toner collecting mechanism collects a large amount of scattered toner, the filter captures a large amount of scattered toner and causes clogging. As a result, the air suction force by the suction fan is reduced, and the toner recovery capability of the toner recovery mechanism is reduced.

  In order to solve this problem, Patent Document 1 proposes an image forming apparatus having a toner recovery mechanism in which a vibration unit is provided in a filter. The toner collecting mechanism provided with the vibrating means applies vibration to the filter by using the vibrating means, thereby removing the toner captured by the filter from the filter and suppressing clogging of the filter.

JP 2007-298782 A

  However, in the image forming apparatus having the toner recovery mechanism described in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to provide a vibration means in the toner recovery mechanism, and it is also necessary to provide a driving device for vibrating the vibration means. Therefore, there arises a problem that heat generation or abnormal noise is generated by the driving device. Further, since a space for newly providing a vibration means and a driving device is required in the toner recovery mechanism, there is a problem that the toner recovery mechanism is increased in size and cost.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus including a toner recovery mechanism that can suppress clogging of a filter.

  An image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface, a developing device for developing the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the image carrier with toner and forming a toner image on the image carrier, and the image carrier A duct provided with a suction port in the periphery of the body; the first main surface is located on the suction port side; and the second main surface is opposite to the first main surface. The filter is disposed on the side facing the second main surface of the filter, and air around the image carrier can be sucked from the suction port through the filter. And an air suction blower that can blow air toward the filter, and air around the image carrier is sucked from the suction port toward the first main surface of the filter. 1st control which controls the said air suction ventilation part, and the said filter A second control unit that controls the air suction blower so as to blow air toward the second main surface, and a portion between the filter and the suction port in the duct. A toner collecting unit provided on the image pickup device, and when the control unit performs the first control, toner contained in the air around the sucked image carrier is captured by the filter, and the control unit When the second control is performed, the present invention relates to an image forming apparatus in which the blown air hits the filter, the toner trapped in the filter is peeled off, and the peeled toner is collected in the toner collecting unit.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus including a toner recovery mechanism that can suppress clogging of a filter.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an arrangement of each component of the copier 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a state in which the toner recovery mechanism 100 in the copier 1 according to the present embodiment performs an operation of sucking toner contained in air around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. . 6 is a diagram for explaining a state in which the toner collecting mechanism 100 is performing an operation of peeling off the toner captured by the filter 120 from the filter 120 in the copier 1 of the present embodiment. FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of an image forming apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
With reference to FIG. 1, the overall structure of a copier 1 as an image forming apparatus in the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of each component of the copier 1. However, in FIG. 1, the toner collection mechanism 100 is not shown. The toner recovery mechanism 100 will be described later in the description of FIGS.

As shown in FIG. 1, a copier 1 as an image forming apparatus is disposed on an upper side in the vertical direction Z of the copier 1 and on a lower side of the copier 1 in the vertical direction Z. An apparatus main body M that forms a toner image on a sheet-like paper T based on image information read by the image reading apparatus 300.
In the description of the copying machine 1, the sub-scanning direction X is also referred to as “left-right direction” of the copying machine 1, and the main scanning direction Y (direction passing through FIG. 1) is also referred to as “back-and-forth direction” of the copying machine 1. The vertical direction Z of the copier 1 is orthogonal to the sub-scanning direction X and the main scanning direction Y.

First, the image reading apparatus 300 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, the image reading apparatus 300 includes a lid member 70 and a reading unit 301 that reads an image of a document G.
The lid member 70 is connected to the reading unit 301 so as to be opened and closed by a connecting unit (not shown). The lid member 70 has a function of protecting a reading surface 302A described later.

  The reading unit 301 includes a housing 306 and a reading surface 302 </ b> A disposed on the upper side of the housing 306. The reading unit 301 includes an illumination unit 340 including a light source, a plurality of mirrors 321, 322, and 323, and a first frame 311 and a second frame that move in the sub-scanning direction X in an internal space 304 of the housing 306. A body 312, an imaging lens 357, a CCD 358 as a reading device, and a CCD substrate 361 that performs predetermined processing on image information read by the CCD 358 and outputs the image information to the apparatus body M side. Prepare. The reading surface 302A is formed along the upper surface in the vertical direction of the contact glass 302 on which the document G is placed. The illumination unit 340 and the first mirror 321 are accommodated in the first frame 311. The second mirror 322 and the third mirror 323 are accommodated in the second frame 312.

  The reading surface 302A extends in a direction parallel to the sub-scanning direction X and the main scanning direction Y, and extends over most of the sub-scanning direction X in the reading unit 301. The document G is placed on the reading surface 302A. Each of the first frame 311 and the second frame 312 moves in the sub-scanning direction X while keeping the length of an optical path H (optical path length) to be described later constant. Thereby, the image of the original G placed on the reading surface 302A is read.

  In the internal space 304 of the housing 306, the plurality of mirrors 321, 322, and 323 form an optical path H for allowing light from the original G to enter the imaging lens 357. In addition, the first frame 311 moves at a constant speed A in the sub-scanning direction X, and the second frame 312 moves at a constant speed A / 2 in the sub-scanning direction X. The length of H is kept constant. As a result, the image of the original G placed on the reading surface 302A is read on the reading surface 302A.

Next, the apparatus main body M will be described.
The main body M of the apparatus forms an image forming unit GK that forms a predetermined toner image on the paper T based on predetermined image information, and feeds the paper T to the image forming unit GK and discharges the paper T on which the toner image is formed. A paper supply / discharge unit KH for paper.
The outer shape of the apparatus main body M is configured by a case body BD as a casing.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming unit GK includes photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d as image carriers (photosensitive members), charging units 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d, and a laser as an exposure unit. Scanner units 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d, developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d, toner cartridges 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, toner supply units 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d, drum cleaning unit 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d, static eliminators 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d, an intermediate transfer belt 7 as a transfer material, primary transfer rollers 37a, 37b, 37c, 37d, and a secondary transfer roller 8 A roller 18 and a fixing unit 9 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the paper feed / discharge unit KH includes a paper feed cassette 52, a manual paper feed unit 64, a conveyance path L for paper T, a registration roller pair 80, a first paper discharge unit 50a, 2 paper discharge unit 50b. As will be described later, the transport path L includes a first transport path L1, a second transport path L2, a third transport path L3, a manual transport path La, a return transport path Lb, and a post-processing transport path Lc. Is a collection of

Hereinafter, each configuration of the image forming unit GK and the paper supply / discharge unit KH will be described in detail.
First, the image forming unit GK will be described.
In the image forming unit GK, charging by the charging units 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d in order from the upstream side to the downstream side along the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, and the laser scanner units 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d exposure, development devices 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d development, intermediate transfer belt 7 and primary transfer rollers 37a, 37b, 37c, 37d primary transfer, static eliminators 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d And cleaning by the drum cleaning units 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d.
In the image forming unit GK, the secondary transfer by the intermediate transfer belt 7, the secondary transfer roller 8 and the opposing roller 18 and the fixing by the fixing unit 9 are performed.

  Each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d is formed of a cylindrical member and functions as a photosensitive member or an image carrier. Each of the photosensitive drums 2 a, 2 b, 2 c, and 2 d is disposed so as to be rotatable in the direction of an arrow about an axis that extends in a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the intermediate transfer belt 7. An electrostatic latent image can be formed on the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d.

  Each of the charging units 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d is disposed to face the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Each of the charging units 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d uniformly charges the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d negatively (minus polarity) or positively (plus polarity).

  The laser scanner units 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d function as exposure units, and are spaced apart from the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Each of the laser scanner units 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d includes a laser light source (not shown), a polygon mirror, a polygon mirror driving motor, and the like.

  Each of the laser scanner units 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d scans and exposes the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d based on the image information related to the image read by the reading unit 301. The scanning exposure is performed by each of the laser scanner units 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d, thereby removing the charges on the exposed portions of the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Thereby, electrostatic latent images are formed on the respective surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d.

  The developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d are provided corresponding to the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, respectively, and are disposed to face the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Each of the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d attaches toner of each color to the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, and transfers a color toner image to the photosensitive drum. 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d are formed on the respective surfaces. Each of the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d corresponds to four colors of yellow, cyan, magenta, and black. The detailed configurations of the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d will be described later.

  In the toner collecting mechanism 100 omitted in FIG. 1, the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d apply toners of respective colors to the electrostatic latent images formed on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. At the time of adhesion, it is provided to collect the toner scattered without adhering to the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d.

  The toner cartridges 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d are provided corresponding to the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d, respectively, and the toners of the respective colors supplied to the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d, respectively. To accommodate. Each of the toner cartridges 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d accommodates yellow toner, cyan toner, magenta toner, and black toner.

  The toner supply units 6a, 6b, 6c, and 6d are provided corresponding to the toner cartridges 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d and the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d, respectively. The toners of the respective colors accommodated in 5d are supplied to the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d, respectively. Each of the toner supply units 6a, 6b, 6c, and 6d is connected to each of the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d by a toner supply path (not shown).

  To the intermediate transfer belt 7, the toner images of the respective colors formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d are sequentially primary-transferred. The intermediate transfer belt 7 is stretched over a driven roller 35, a counter roller 18 including a driving roller, a tension roller 36, and the like. Since the tension roller 36 biases the intermediate transfer belt 7 from the inside to the outside, a predetermined tension is applied to the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  Primary transfer rollers 37a, 37b, 37c, and 37d are arranged to face each other on the side opposite to the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d with the intermediate transfer belt 7 interposed therebetween.

  The predetermined portion of the intermediate transfer belt 7 is sandwiched between the primary transfer rollers 37a, 37b, 37c, and 37d and the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, respectively. The predetermined portion thus sandwiched is pressed against the surface of each of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Primary transfer nips N1a, N1b, N1c, and N1d are formed between the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d and the primary transfer rollers 37a, 37b, 37c, and 37d, respectively. In each of the primary transfer nips N1a, N1b, N1c, and N1d, the toner images of the respective colors developed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d are sequentially primary-transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 7, respectively. As a result, a full-color toner image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  To the primary transfer rollers 37a, 37b, 37c, and 37d, toner images of the respective colors formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d are respectively transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7 by a primary transfer bias applying unit (not shown). A primary transfer bias for transferring the toner image is applied.

  The static eliminators 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d are arranged to face the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, respectively. The static eliminators 12a, 12b, 12c, and 12d respectively irradiate the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d to irradiate light, and the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, and 2c after primary transfer is performed. 2d, each surface is neutralized (charge is removed).

  The drum cleaning units 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d are disposed to face the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, respectively. Each of the drum cleaning units 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11d removes toner and adhering matter remaining on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, and conveys the removed toner to a predetermined recovery mechanism. And collect it.

  The secondary transfer roller 8 secondarily transfers the full-color toner image primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7 onto the paper T. A secondary transfer bias for transferring a full color toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 7 to the paper T is applied to the secondary transfer roller 8 by a secondary transfer bias applying unit (not shown).

  The secondary transfer roller 8 contacts or separates from the intermediate transfer belt 7. Specifically, the secondary transfer roller 8 is configured to be movable between a contact position where the secondary transfer roller 8 is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 7 and a separation position where the secondary transfer roller 8 is separated from the intermediate transfer belt 7. Specifically, the secondary transfer roller 8 is disposed at a contact position when the full-color toner image primarily transferred onto the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 7 is secondarily transferred to the paper T, and in other cases. It is arranged at a separated position.

  A counter roller 18 is disposed on the opposite side of the intermediate transfer belt 7 from the secondary transfer roller 8. A predetermined portion of the intermediate transfer belt 7 is sandwiched between the secondary transfer roller 8 and the counter roller 18. Then, the paper T is pressed against the outer surface of the intermediate transfer belt 7 (the surface on which the toner image is primarily transferred). A secondary transfer nip N <b> 2 is formed between the intermediate transfer belt 7 and the secondary transfer roller 8. In the secondary transfer nip N2, the full-color toner image primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7 is secondarily transferred to the paper T.

  The fixing unit 9 melts and heats the toner of each color constituting the toner image secondarily transferred onto the paper T and fixes the toner on the paper T. The fixing unit 9 includes a heating rotator 9a heated by a heater and a pressure rotator 9b pressed against the heating rotator 9a. The heating rotator 9a and the pressure rotator 9b sandwich and pressurize the paper T onto which the toner image has been secondarily transferred, and convey the paper T. When the paper T is conveyed in a state of being sandwiched between the heating rotator 9a and the pressure rotator 9b, the toner transferred to the paper T is fixed to the paper T by being melted and pressed. Is done.

Next, the paper supply / discharge unit KH will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, in the lower part of the apparatus main body M, two paper feed cassettes 52 that store paper T are arranged in an up-down direction. In the paper feed cassette 52, a placement plate 60 on which the paper T is placed is disposed. The cassette paper feed unit 51 includes a forward feed roller 61 for taking out the paper T on the placement plate 60 and a paper feed roller pair 63 for feeding the paper T one by one to the transport path L. Is provided.

  A manual paper feed unit 64 is provided on the right side surface (right side in FIG. 1) of the apparatus main body M. The manual paper feed unit 64 includes a manual feed tray 65 that forms part of the right side surface of the apparatus main body M in the closed state, and a paper feed roller 66 as a feed roller.

A first junction P1 and a second junction P2 are provided in the middle of the first transport path L1. A first branch portion Q1 is provided in the middle of the third transport path L3.
The first joining part P1 is a joining part where the manual feed path La joins the first transport path L1. The second junction P2 is a junction where the return conveyance path Lb merges with the first conveyance path L1.
The first branch portion Q1 is a branch portion where the post-processing transport path Lc branches from the third transport path L3. A rectifying member 58 is provided in the first branch portion Q1. The rectifying member 58 rectifies the transport direction of the paper T carried out from the fixing unit 9 to the third transport path L3 toward the first paper discharge section 50a or the post-processing transport path Lc toward the second paper discharge section 50b ( Switch).

  In the middle of the first transport path L1 (specifically, between the second joining portion P2 and the secondary transfer roller 8), a sensor for detecting the paper T and correction of skew (oblique paper feeding) of the paper T In addition, a registration roller pair 80 is arranged for matching the timing with the formation of the toner image in the image forming unit GK.

  A sheet detection sensor S is disposed in the middle of the third transport path L3 (specifically, between the fixing unit 9 and the first branching unit Q1). The sensor S is disposed on the downstream side of the fixing unit 9 in the transport direction of the paper T. The sensor S outputs a detection signal when the printed paper T passes.

  On the opening side of the first paper discharge section 50a, a paper discharge stacking section M1 is formed. The paper discharge stacking unit M1 is formed on the upper surface (outer surface) of the apparatus main body M.

Next, a paper jam (JAM) in the main transport path L1 to L3 (the first transport path L1, the second transport path L2, and the third transport path L3 are collectively referred to as “main transport path” hereinafter) and the return transport path Lb. A structure for eliminating the problem will be briefly described.
A cover body 40 is provided on the left side of the apparatus body M (left side in FIG. 1) so as to form a part of the side surface of the apparatus body M. The cover body 40 is connected to the apparatus main body M via a fulcrum shaft 43 at the lower end thereof. The fulcrum shaft 43 is disposed along the direction in which the axial direction crosses the main transport paths L1 to L3 and the return transport path Lb. The cover body 40 is configured to be rotatable between a closed position (position shown in FIG. 1) and an open position (not shown) with the fulcrum shaft 43 as a center.

  The cover body 40 includes a first cover portion 41 that is rotatably connected to the apparatus main body M by a fulcrum shaft 43, and a second cover portion 42 that is rotatably connected to the apparatus main body M by the same fulcrum shaft 43. It consists of and.

  The copying machine 1 of the present embodiment includes the cover body 40 having such a configuration, so that when a paper jam (JAM) occurs in the main transport paths L1 to L3, the cover body 40 is closed as shown in FIG. By rotating from the position to an open position (not shown) to open the main transport paths L1 to L3, it is possible to process paper jammed in the main transport paths L1 to L3. On the other hand, when a paper jam occurs in the return conveyance path Lb, the cover body 40 is rotated to the open position, and then the second cover portion 42 is moved to the apparatus main body M side (right side in FIG. ) To open the return conveyance path Lb, the paper jammed in the return conveyance path Lb can be processed.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 3, the toner recovery mechanism 100, which is a characteristic part of the copier 1 of the present embodiment, will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a state in which the toner recovery mechanism 100 is operating to suck toner contained in the air around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d in the copier 1 of the present embodiment. FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a state in which the toner recovery mechanism 100 is performing an operation of removing the toner captured by the filter 120 from the filter 120 in the copier 1 of the present embodiment.

The toner recovery mechanism 100 is provided around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. When the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d attach the toners of the respective colors to the electrostatic latent images formed on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the toner collecting mechanism 100 is provided. The toner scattered without adhering to 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d is collected.
One or more toner collecting mechanisms 100 are provided around the four photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Even when two or more are provided, each has the same configuration, and therefore, one toner collecting mechanism 100 will be described here.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the toner recovery mechanism 100 according to the present embodiment includes a duct 110, a filter 120, a fan 130 as an air suction air blowing unit, a control unit 140, and a toner recovery as a toner recovery unit. A box 150 and a valve 160 are provided.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the duct 110 includes a first body part 111 and a second body part 112.
The first body 111 has a hollow inside and extends in the lateral direction. Further, both ends of the first body portion 111 are open. An opening at one end of the first body portion 111 is a suction port 113 of the duct 110. The suction port 113 is disposed around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d (see FIG. 1) (not shown in FIGS. 2 and 3). Therefore, the first body portion 111 extends in the lateral direction from the periphery of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d.

The “periphery” of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d is a region where the toner recovery mechanism 100 can achieve the effects of the present invention. That is, the suction port 113 is disposed in an area where the toner recovery mechanism 100 can achieve the effects of the present invention.
In the present embodiment, the suction port 113 is downstream in the rotation direction of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d (see FIG. 1) with respect to the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d (see FIG. 1). In this case, it is arranged upstream of the transfer position where the toner is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7. More specifically, the suction port 113 is disposed between the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d and the intermediate transfer belt 7 around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the first body portion 111 may extend straight in the horizontal direction, or may extend in the horizontal direction in a partially or entirely bent shape. For example, the first body portion 111 may have a portion having a portion extending in the vertical direction and a portion extending in the horizontal direction.

  The second body portion 112 has a hollow inside and extends in the vertical direction. The second body portion 112 has a bottom portion 114 on the lower side. The second body portion 112 has an opening on the side surface above the bottom portion 114.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the second body portion 112 may extend straight in the vertical direction, or may extend in the vertical direction in a partially or entirely bent shape. For example, the second body portion 112 may have a portion having a portion extending in the horizontal direction and a portion extending in the vertical direction.
Further, the bottom portion 114 of the second body portion 112 may be a flat surface as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 or a curved surface.

  The opening at the other end of the first body portion 111 and the opening provided on the side surface of the second body portion 112 are connected. The opening at the other end of the first body part 111 and the opening provided on the side surface of the second body part 112 are connected, so that the first body part 111 and the second body part 112 are entirely As shown in FIG. Since the first body portion 111 extends in the lateral direction and the second body portion 112 extends in the vertical direction, the duct 110 has a bent shape as a whole. That is, the duct 110 extends in the horizontal direction from the periphery of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, and changes its direction in the middle and extends in the vertical direction.

  2 and 3, the duct 110 may be bent so as to form a right angle, but may be bent so as to form an obtuse angle, or may be bent smoothly. There may be.

  The connection portion 115, which is a portion where the first body portion 111 and the second body portion 112 are connected, is located above the bottom portion 114 of the second body portion 112. Therefore, the region from the bottom 114 to the connecting portion 115 in the second body portion 112 is a box-shaped region.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the filter 120 has a sheet-like shape having a first main surface 121 and a second main surface 122. The second main surface 122 is the opposite surface of the first main surface 121. The filter 120 is formed from a material (for example, activated carbon fiber, porous glass, etc.) suitable for capturing the toner. In the second body portion 112, the filter 120 is disposed so that the first main surface 121 is located on the suction port 113 side. More specifically, the first main surface 121 faces downward, and the second main surface 122 faces upward.

  The filter 120 is disposed in the second body portion 112 so that almost no gap is formed between the inner surface of the second body portion 112. Therefore, the space below the first main surface 121 of the filter 120 and the space above the second main surface 122 of the filter 120 are hardly connected without passing through the filter 120. Therefore, the toner hardly goes to the space above the second main surface 122 of the filter 120.

  As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the fan 130 is disposed on the side facing the second main surface 122 of the filter 120 and is disposed and fixed in the second body portion 112. For example, the fan 130 is disposed so as to face the second main surface 122 of the filter 120. The planar shape of the fan 130 may be substantially the same as the cross-sectional shape in the lateral direction of the second body portion 112. Therefore, the fan 130 can sufficiently suck the air in the duct 110 and can sufficiently blow the air toward the filter 120. Further, the fan 130 is configured to change the rotation direction and the number of rotations per unit time.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the control unit 140 is electrically connected to the fan 130. The controller 140 controls the rotation direction of the fan 130 and the number of rotations per unit time. More specifically, the control unit 140 controls the fan 130 to rotate in the first direction at the first rotation speed. Further, the control unit 140 controls the fan 130 to rotate in the second direction at the second rotation number. The second direction is a direction opposite to the first direction. The first rotation speed and the second rotation speed are rotation speeds per unit time, respectively. The first rotation speed and the second rotation speed may be the same or different.
The control unit 140 is configured by a drive circuit that outputs, for example, a signal corresponding to the rotation direction and the number of rotations, which are signals necessary for rotating the fan 130. When the control unit 140 is configured as described above, the control unit rotates the fan 130 by outputting a signal necessary for rotating the fan 130 to the fan 130.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the toner collection box 150 exists in the second body portion 112. As described above, the region from the bottom portion 114 to the connection portion 115 in the second body portion 112 is a box-shaped region. This box-shaped region becomes the toner recovery box 150. Therefore, the toner collection box 150 is located in the portion between the filter 120 and the suction port 113 in the second body portion 112. The toner collection box 150 is a place where toner is stored.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the valve 160 is disposed in the connection portion 115. The valve 160 opens as shown in FIG. 2 when the control unit 140 performs the first control, and closes as shown in FIG. 3 when the control unit 140 performs the second control.
The valve 160 may be disposed closer to the first body part 111 than the connection part 115.

  The valve 160 is formed by a member that opens by the suction force of the fan 130 and closes by the air blown by the fan 130, for example, a plate-like elastic body. When the valve 160 is formed of an elastic body, the valve 160 is opened and closed using deformation of the elastic body.

  Next, the operation of the toner recovery mechanism 100 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the state of the copying machine 1 according to the present embodiment in which the toner recovery mechanism 100 operates to suck toner contained in the air around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. FIG.
In the toner recovery mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 140 performs the first control so that the fan 130 rotates in the first direction. For example, the control unit 140 performs the first control when an image forming operation is performed in the copying machine 1, for example, when a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Do.
When the fan 130 rotates in the first direction, the fan 130 sucks the air in the duct 110 through the filter 120, so that the air in the duct 110 flows in the direction of the arrow α. As a result, the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110 is sucked into the duct 110 and travels toward the first main surface 121 of the filter 120. The air sucked into the duct 110 strikes the first main surface 121 of the filter 120 disposed in the second body portion 112 constituting the duct 110.

  The valve 160 is closed when the fan 130 is not rotating in the first direction. When the fan 130 rotates in the first direction and sucks air in the duct 110, the air pressure of the second body portion 112 becomes smaller than the air pressure of the first body portion 111. The valve 160 is elastically deformed from the first body part 111 toward the second body part 112 as shown in FIG. 2 due to a difference in atmospheric pressure between the first body part 111 and the second body part 112. , Bend. As a result, the valve 160 will open. That is, when the fan 130 rotates in the first direction, the valve 160 opens, and when the fan 130 stops rotating in the first direction, the valve 160 closes.

In the vicinity of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d where the suction port 113 of the duct 110 is disposed, there is toner scattered without adhering to the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Therefore, scattered air is contained in the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110.
When the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110 is sucked into the duct 110, the scattered toner is sucked into the duct 110 together with the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110. The toner sucked into the duct 110 passes through the first body portion 111 and enters the second body portion 112, and the first main surface of the filter 120 disposed in the second body portion 112. It hits 121. Since the filter 120 is formed of a material suitable for capturing toner, the toner that has hit the first main surface 121 of the filter 120 is captured by the filter 120.

  Although there may be toner that is not captured by the filter 120, the toner that is not captured will fall after being applied to the filter 120 and accumulate in the toner collection box 150. In addition, the filter 120 is disposed in the second body portion 112 so that a gap is hardly formed between the filter 120 and the side surface of the second body portion 112. For this reason, the toner that is not trapped hardly goes to the space above the filter 120.

  The valve 160 is opened so that the air around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d is directed to the filter 120 by the suction force of the fan 130 while the control unit 140 performs the first control.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a state in which the toner recovery mechanism 100 is performing an operation of removing the toner captured by the filter 120 in the copying machine 1 of the present embodiment.
In the toner recovery mechanism 100 shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 140 performs the second control so that the fan 130 rotates in the second direction. For example, the control unit 140 performs the second control when the image forming operation is not performed in the copying machine 1, for example, when a toner image is not formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. Do.
When the fan 130 rotates in the second direction, the fan 130 blows air toward the second main surface 122 of the filter 120. Therefore, the air in the duct 110 flows in the direction of the arrow β.

  When the fan 130 blows air toward the second main surface 122 of the filter 120, the filter 120 is vibrated by the blown air. When the filter 120 vibrates, the toner captured by the filter 120 is peeled off and falls into the toner recovery box 150.

  While the control unit 140 performs the second control, toner is scattered in the region below the first main surface 121 of the filter 120. It is necessary to suppress the scattered toner from passing through the first body portion 111 constituting the duct 110 toward the suction port 113. This is because when the scattered toner travels toward the suction port 113, the scattered toner is discharged from the suction port 113 to the periphery of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d.

  The valve 160 is provided to prevent the scattered toner from going to the suction port 113. When the fan 130 is not rotating in the first direction, there is no difference in atmospheric pressure between the first body portion 111 and the second body portion 112, and thus the valve 160 is closed without bending. While the control unit 140 performs the second control, the fan 130 does not rotate in the first direction, and therefore does not bend and is closed as shown in FIG. As a result, the scattered toner does not go to the suction port 113 of the duct 110.

The filter 120 is formed of a material suitable for capturing toner. Therefore, even when the fan 130 blows air toward the second main surface 122 of the filter 120 and vibrates the filter 120, the toner captured by the filter 120 may not be peeled off.
More specifically, when the control unit 140 controls the first rotational speed of the fan 130 in the first control to be the same as the second rotational speed of the fan 130 in the second control, the fan 130 is controlled. May not be able to blow air that causes the filter 120 to vibrate enough for the toner to peel off.

  In order to prevent the trapped toner from being peeled off from the filter 120, the second rotation speed of the fan 130 in the second control is larger than the first rotation speed of the fan 130 in the first control. As described above, the control unit 140 sets the rotation speed of the fan 130. More specifically, when the control unit 140 performs the second control on the fan 130, the second rotation number is set to be larger than the first rotation number for a predetermined time, for example, one minute. The fan 130 is controlled. Note that the control unit 140 may control the fan 130 so that the second rotational speed is always greater than the first rotational speed.

  The control unit 140 controls the fan 130 so that the second rotation speed is higher than the first rotation speed, and therefore the air per unit time of the fan 130 when the control unit 140 performs the second control. Is larger than the air suction amount per unit time of the fan 130 when the control unit 140 performs the first control. Therefore, the filter 120 vibrates more greatly, and the toner captured by the filter 120 is easily peeled off. For example, the supply amount of air per unit time of the fan 130 when performing the second control is set to be twice or more the air suction amount per unit time of the fan 130 when performing the first control. The control unit 140 controls the fan 130.

Further, when the control unit 140 performs the first control again after performing the second control, the toner collected in the toner collection box 150 is sucked again toward the first main surface 121 of the filter 120. It can be done. However, it is possible to reduce the amount of toner that is sucked again by designing the toner collection box 150 in an appropriate configuration in advance. For example, the distance between the connecting portion 115 and the bottom portion 114 is designed to be large so that the toner collection box 150 has a deep bottom and a large volume. Further, a member made of a material suitable for capturing the toner (for example, activated carbon fiber, porous glass, etc.) may be separately disposed in the toner recovery box 150.
However, it is not necessarily a big problem that the toner is sucked again toward the first main surface 121 of the filter 120. This is because the control unit 140 performs the second control so that the toner is peeled off from the filter 120 once. Therefore, the clogging of the filter 120 is suppressed as compared with the case where the control unit 140 does not perform the second control. Because.

According to the toner recovery mechanism 100 in the copier 1 of the present embodiment, for example, the following effects are exhibited.
In the present embodiment, when the control unit 140 performs the first control on the fan 130, the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110 is sucked into the duct 110 and the first main surface of the filter 120. It hits 121. Therefore, the scattered toner contained in the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110 also hits the filter 120, and the toner is captured by the filter 120. Further, when the control unit 140 performs the second control on the fan 130, the fan 130 blows air toward the second main surface 122 of the filter 120. Therefore, the filter 120 vibrates and the toner captured by the filter 120 is peeled off.
Therefore, the toner recovery mechanism 100 can suppress clogging of the filter 120.

Further, in the present embodiment, the control is performed so that the supply amount of air per unit time of the fan 130 in the second control is larger than the suction amount of air per unit time of the fan 130 in the first control. The unit 140 controls the fan 130.
Therefore, in the second control, the toner captured by the filter 120 can be removed more effectively.

In the present embodiment, air is sucked and blown by one fan 130.
Therefore, the toner recovery mechanism 100 has a simple configuration.

In this embodiment, a valve 160 is provided between the suction port 113 and the toner collection box 150 in the duct 110. The valve 160 is opened when the control unit 140 performs the first control, and is closed when the control unit 140 performs the second control.
Therefore, when the control unit 140 performs the first control, the toner included in the air around the suction port 113 of the duct 110 can be captured by the filter 120, and the control unit 140 performs the second control. When the toner is removed, the toner peeled off from the filter 120 can be prevented from flowing back through the duct 110 toward the suction port 113.

In this embodiment, when a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the control unit 140 performs the first control, and the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and When the toner image is not formed in 2d, the control unit 140 performs the second control. When toner images are formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the amount of scattered toner is relatively large. Therefore, if the control unit 140 performs the first control when toner images are formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the filter 120 can capture more scattered toner. Further, when toner images are not formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the amount of scattered toner is relatively small.
Therefore, if the control unit 140 performs the second control when no toner image is formed on the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the filter 120 does not reduce the amount of trapped toner, and the filter 120 120 clogging can be suppressed.

  In the present embodiment, the suction port 113 of the duct 110 is disposed downstream of the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d in the rotation direction of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. . A large amount of toner scatters in the downstream space in the rotational direction of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d with respect to the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d. Therefore, by disposing the suction port 113 of the duct 110 on the downstream side in the rotation direction of the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d with respect to the developing devices 16a, 16b, 16c, and 16d, more toner is scattered. It can be captured by the filter 120.

As mentioned above, although preferred embodiment of this invention was described, this invention can be implemented with a various form, without being limited to embodiment mentioned above.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, one fan 130 is used as the air suction air blowing unit. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, two fans may be used as the air sucking and blowing unit, and air may be sucked by one fan and blown by the other fan.
Further, the fan 130 may not be disposed in the second body portion 112. As long as it functions as an air suction blower, it may be disposed outside the second body 112.

  Furthermore, in the embodiment, the fan 130 is disposed so as to face the second main surface 122 of the filter 120, but is not limited thereto. For example, when the second body portion 112 is bent on the upper side of the filter 120 and has a portion extending in the lateral direction, the fan 130 may be disposed in the portion extending in the lateral direction. If the fan 130 can suck the air around the photosensitive drums 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d from the suction port 113 through the filter 120 and can blow the air toward the filter 120. The second main surface 122 of the filter 120 does not need to be opposed to the second main surface 122 of the filter 120 and may be located on the second main surface 122 side of the filter 120.

In the above-described embodiment, the valve 160 is opened by the suction force of the fan 130 and closed by the air blown by the fan 130. However, the configuration is not limited thereto.
For example, the valve 160 may be a member that is controlled by the control unit 140 or the like and mechanically opens and closes. Examples of the member that opens and closes mechanically include a plate-like member in which a rotation shaft is fixed to a part of the inner wall of the first body portion 111 and rotates around the rotation shaft. When the control unit 140 performs the first control, the valve 160, which is a plate-like member, is controlled by the control unit 140 or the like to rotate around the rotation axis, and the second body unit 112 side or suction It will open to the mouth 113 side. When the control unit 140 performs the second control, the valve 160, which is a plate-like member, is controlled by the control unit 140 and the like, rotates about the rotation axis, and closes.

  In the above-described embodiment, one filter 120 is disposed in the duct 110, but two or more filters may be disposed.

The above-described embodiment is a color indirect transfer type image forming apparatus that transfers a plurality of color toner images onto the paper T using the intermediate transfer belt 7. However, the type of the image forming apparatus is not limited thereto. . For example, a direct transfer type image forming apparatus that does not use an intermediate transfer belt, or an image forming apparatus for monochrome printing may be used.
Since the above-described embodiment is an image forming apparatus of a color indirect transfer system, the intermediate transfer belt 7 is cited as a material to be transferred, but is not limited thereto. The transfer material may be paper, a film sheet, or the like.

  The type of the image forming apparatus of the present invention is not particularly limited, and may be a color copier, a printer, a facsimile, or a complex machine thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Copy machine (image forming apparatus), 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d ... Photosensitive drum (image carrier), 7 ... Intermediate transfer belt (transfer material), 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d ... Developing device, 100... Toner recovery mechanism, 110... Duct, 120... Filter, 121... First main surface, 122. ... Control unit, 150 ... Toner collection box (toner collection unit), 160 ... Valve

Claims (6)

An image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface;
A developing device for developing the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the image carrier with toner and forming a toner image on the image carrier;
A duct provided with a suction port around the image carrier;
A filter disposed in the duct, the first main surface is located on the suction port side, and the second main surface is disposed as an opposite surface of the first main surface;
The filter is provided on the side facing the second main surface of the filter, and air around the image carrier can be sucked from the suction port through the filter, and the filter An air suction blower unit capable of blowing air toward,
A first control for controlling the air suction blower so that air around the image carrier is sucked from the suction port toward the first main surface of the filter; and the second control of the filter. A second control that controls the air suction blower so as to blow toward the main surface;
A toner recovery part that is branched from the portion of the duct between the filter and the suction port and extends downward ;
A valve formed of a plate-like elastic body provided between the suction port and the toner recovery portion in the duct and between the suction port and the filter ;
When the controller performs the first control, toner contained in the air around the sucked image carrier is captured by the filter,
When the control unit performs the second control, the blown air hits the filter and the toner captured by the filter is peeled off, and the peeled toner is collected by the toner collecting unit ,
When the control unit performs the first control, the valve opens so that the air around the image carrier is directed to the filter by the pressure of the air sucked by the air suction air blowing unit, and the control unit when performing the second control, the valve is an image forming apparatus air blown by the pressure of the air blown by the air suction blower is that closed as not directed to the suction port of the duct. The supply amount of air per unit time of the air suction blower in the second control is larger than the amount of air suction per unit time of the air suction blower in the first control. Image forming apparatus. The air suction blower unit includes a fan,
When the control unit performs the first control, the fan rotates in a first direction and sucks air around the image carrier from the suction port through the filter, and the control unit 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the second control is performed, the fan rotates in a second direction opposite to the first direction and blows air toward the filter. 4. . 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the number of rotations per unit time when the fan rotates in the second direction is larger than the number of rotations per unit time when the fan rotates in the first direction. . The first control is performed when a toner image is formed on the image carrier, and the second control is performed when a toner image is not formed on the image carrier. 5. The image forming apparatus according to any one of items 1 to 4 . The suction port of the duct is disposed downstream of the developing device in the rotation direction of the image carrier and upstream of a transfer position where toner is transferred to a transfer material. The image forming apparatus according to any one of 1 to 5 .

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