JP6508387B2 - Toner container - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a toner container mountable to a toner replenishing unit of an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, to a toner container capable of selectively realizing mounting compatibility with the toner replenishing unit.

  A developing device is mounted on an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. Inside the developing device, a developer containing toner is accommodated. The image forming apparatus has a toner replenishing unit to which a toner container is attached. When the toner container is attached to the toner replenishing unit, the toner can be replenished from the toner container to the developing device.

  As an example of a conventional image forming apparatus, there is known an apparatus having an incompatible structure in which only a toner container having mounting compatibility can be mounted so that toners of different colors can not be supplied to the toner supplying unit. This type of image forming apparatus is configured such that toners of different colors can not be replenished to the toner replenishment unit, and more specifically, a main body side having a compatible key corresponding to a toner container that can be attached to the toner replenishment unit. A compatible key unit is provided in the toner supply unit. On the other hand, the toner container is provided with an incompatible member which can be engaged only with the main body side compatible key portion of the toner supply unit corresponding to the toner container and can not be engaged with the other toner supply unit (FIG. See, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2008-129141 A

  However, the conventional non-compatible structure requires non-compatible members of different shapes for each color of the toner container. Therefore, for example, in a color image forming apparatus using toners of four colors of black, yellow, cyan, and magenta, four types of incompatible members have to be prepared, and the number of parts increases. is there. In addition, in the case of molding the non-compatible member with a mold, since four types of molds are required, the burden of the initial cost is large. Further, in the structure described in Patent Document 1, in addition to the toner container and the toner replenishing portion, other parts such as the identification engaging member and the identification projecting member are required. Therefore, also in the structure of Patent Document 1, it is not possible to prevent an increase in the number of parts, and the cost burden of another part is generated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is a toner which can realize incompatibility with a toner supply portion at a low cost with a simple configuration without increasing the number of parts. To provide a container.

The toner container according to one aspect of the present invention is configured to be removable from the toner replenishing unit of the image forming apparatus. The toner container includes a container body in which the toner is contained, an opening, a cover member, and a mounting portion. The opening portion is formed at an end portion of the container body with respect to the toner supply portion with respect to the insertion direction of the toner container. The cover member is provided at an end of the container main body on the insertion direction side, has a toner discharge port on a side surface, covers the opening, and covers the opening from the opening to the toner discharge port. Form a guideway that can guide the The mounting portion is engaged with a mounting portion having a projecting boss provided in the toner supply portion and having a first projecting portion disposed around the periphery to selectively mount the toner container on the toner supply portion. Make it possible. The mounting portion is integrally formed on an end surface on the insertion direction side facing the mounting portion in the cover member.
The mounting portion has a protrusion and a plurality of compatible keys. The protrusion is provided on the end surface, and is for positioning the toner container with respect to the toner supply portion by engaging with the protruding boss. The plurality of compatible keys are provided at positions where the end face does not abut the first protrusion when attached, and project from the end face toward the attached part, and attachment compatibility of the toner container with the toner supply portion To achieve
The projection can be engaged with the projection boss by cutting in advance a second projection of the same shape as the compatible key, which is provided at the end face to be in contact with the first projection when mounted. It is configured.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to realize the incompatibility of the toner container with the toner supply portion at a low cost with a simple configuration without increasing the number of parts.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a toner replenishing device provided in the image forming apparatus. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a toner container according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a cover member of the toner container. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the cover member of the toner container. FIG. 6A is a view showing the cover member before the projection is cut off. FIG. 6B is a view showing the cover member from which a part of the protrusion is cut off. FIG. 7 is a view schematically showing a cross-sectional structure of cut surface VII-VII in FIG.

  Hereinafter, the image forming apparatus 10 and the toner container 41 applied to the image forming apparatus 10 will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the vertical direction D1 is defined based on the state in which the image forming apparatus 10 is installed. Further, the front-rear direction D2 is defined with the side where the toner container 41 is inserted into the image forming apparatus 10 as the front side (front side). Further, the left-right direction D3 is defined by viewing the image forming apparatus 10 from the front side (front side).

[Image forming apparatus]
The image forming apparatus 10 is an apparatus provided with at least a printing function, and is, for example, a color printer. The image forming apparatus 10 prints an image on a printing sheet, which is a sheet member, using a developer containing toner. A specific example of the image forming apparatus 10 is, for example, a printer, a copying machine, a facsimile, or a multifunction peripheral provided with these functions. The image forming apparatus 10 is capable of forming a color image, but may be configured to be capable of forming a monochrome image as long as the toner container 41 is used.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 10 is a so-called tandem type color image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus 10 includes a plurality of image forming units 1 to 4, an intermediate transfer unit 5, an exposure device 14, a secondary transfer device 15, a fixing device 16, and a toner replenishing unit 40 (the toner replenishing unit of the present invention An operation display unit 9 having a touch panel, a liquid crystal display unit, etc., a control unit 8, a paper feed tray 17, and a paper discharge tray 18. ing. These components are attached to a housing 11 that constitutes an external frame (not shown) or an internal frame of the image forming apparatus 10.

  The image forming units 1 to 4 form toner images of different colors on the plurality of photosensitive drums 21 arranged in parallel by a so-called electrophotographic method. The toner images are transferred so as to be sequentially superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 5A while traveling (moving). In the example shown in FIG. 1, the image forming unit 1 for black, the image forming unit 2 for yellow, the image forming unit 3 for cyan, in order from the downstream side in the moving direction (direction of arrow 19) of the intermediate transfer belt 5A. And the magenta image forming units 4 are arranged in a line in that order.

  Each of the image forming units 1 to 4 is provided below the intermediate transfer belt 5A. Each of the image forming units 1 to 4 includes a photosensitive drum 21 carrying a toner image, a charging device 22, a developing device 23, a primary transfer device 24, and the like. The surface of the photosensitive drum 21 is charged by the charging device 22, and the surface of the photosensitive drum 21 charged by the exposure device 14 is exposed and scanned. Thereby, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 21. The developing device 23 develops the electrostatic latent image with toner. Then, the toner image on the photosensitive drum 21 is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 5A by the primary transfer device 24.

  The intermediate transfer unit 5 includes an intermediate transfer belt 5A, a driving roller 7A, and a driven roller 7B. The intermediate transfer belt 5A carries a toner image composed of toner images of a plurality of colors (four colors in the present embodiment). The intermediate transfer belt 5A is rotatably supported by the driving roller 7A and the driven roller 7B, so that the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 5A can move while being in contact with the surface of each photosensitive drum 21. When the intermediate transfer belt 5A is rotationally driven, the surface passes between the photosensitive drum 21 and the primary transfer device 24. At that time, the toner images of the respective colors carried on the plurality of photosensitive drums 21 are sequentially transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 5A so as to overlap.

  A toner replenishing device 40 is provided above the intermediate transfer unit 5. The toner replenishing device 40 is configured such that four toner containers 41 corresponding to the respective colors of black, cyan, yellow and magenta are detachably attachable. The configuration of the toner supply device 40 will be described later.

  The secondary transfer device 15 transfers the toner image transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 5A to the printing paper conveyed from the paper feed tray 17. The printing sheet on which the toner image has been transferred is transported to the fixing device 16 by a transport unit (not shown). The fixing device 16 has a heating roller 16A and a pressure roller 16B. The fixing device 16 conveys the printing sheet on which the toner image has been transferred while applying heat and pressure. By this, the toner image is melted and fixed on the printing sheet. The print sheet on which the toner image is fixed is further conveyed downstream, discharged to a tray-like sheet discharge tray 18 disposed above the intermediate transfer unit 5 and held.

  The belt cleaning device 6 removes and collects waste toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 5A, and conveys the collected waste toner to a waste toner collection device 78. The belt cleaning device 6 is disposed on the front side of the intermediate transfer unit 5. The belt cleaning device 6 includes a cleaning roller 25 which is a cleaning member, a screw member 26 and a toner box 27. The cleaning roller 25 is disposed to face the driven roller 7B, and the surface thereof is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 5A. The length of the cleaning roller 25 in the front-rear direction D2 is substantially the same as that of the intermediate transfer belt 5A. The cleaning roller 25 is rotatably supported in the toner box 27. The rotational driving force is input to the support shaft of the cleaning roller 25 so that the cleaning roller 25 rotates.

  The cleaning roller 25 is rotated in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 5A to remove the toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 5A after transfer by the secondary transfer device 15. Hereinafter, the toner removed by the cleaning roller 25 is referred to as “waste toner”. The waste toner is taken into the toner box 27 by the action of gravity or the rotational force of the cleaning roller 25 and collected. The waste toner collected in the toner box 27 is conveyed by the screw member 26. A discharge port (not shown) is formed on the rear end side of the bottom surface of the toner box 27. By rotating the screw member 26, the waste toner is conveyed toward the discharge port in the toner box 27.

  The waste toner collecting device 78 is provided below the toner box 27. The waste toner recovery device 78 is configured to be able to attach and remove the waste toner container 79. When the waste toner is discharged from the discharge port of the belt cleaning device 6, the waste toner is stored in the waste toner container 79 mounted on the waste toner collecting device 78. That is, the toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 5A is removed by the belt cleaning device 6 and stored in the waste toner container 79 as waste toner. In this embodiment, it is possible to use the empty toner container 41 used by the toner replenishing device 40 as the waste toner container 79.

[Toner supply device]
Hereinafter, the toner replenishing device 40 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 11. As shown in FIG. 2, the toner replenishing device 40 is composed of a toner container 41 and a container mounting unit 42 to which the toner container 41 is mounted. In each drawing, the vertical direction is the vertical direction D1 on the basis of the mounting posture in which the toner replenishing device 40 is attached to the housing 11, and the mounting and demounting direction (insertion and removal direction) of the toner container 41 with respect to the housing 11 is the front and rear direction. When viewed from the front of the toner supply device 40, the horizontal direction is D3.

  The toner container 41 contains toner for replenishing the developing device 23. In the present embodiment, four toner containers 41 corresponding to each color of black, yellow, cyan and magenta are provided in the toner replenishing device 40. Although the toner container 41 for black has a larger outer diameter than the toner containers 41 of other colors, all toner containers 41 have the same configuration except this point. Hereinafter, the toner container 41 for black will be described unless otherwise stated.

  The toner container 41 is formed in a long shape in the front-rear direction D2. The toner container 41 includes a container body 52, a drive transmission unit 55, a cover member 56, and the like. The inside of the container body 52 is a storage space capable of storing toner. The toner is contained inside the container body 52. The container main body 52 has an opening 51 (see FIG. 5) through which toner can flow in and out on one side (rear side). The opening 51 is formed at an end of the toner container 41 in the insertion direction D21 (rear side) of the toner supply device 40. The toner contained inside can flow out through the opening 51. The container main body 52 is formed in a cylindrical shape whose other side (front side) is closed.

  The rear end of the container body 52 is tapered in the insertion direction D21. An opening 51 is provided at the rear end of the container body 52 on the side of the insertion direction D21. The opening 51 is formed in a circular shape in cross section. The container main body 52 is formed by, for example, a blow molding method or an injection molding method as a synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET resin).

  The container main body 52 is formed with a spiral rib 53 (see FIG. 3) on the inner surface. The angle rib 53 projects from the inner surface of the container body 52 toward the center of the container body 52. The chevron rib 53 plays the role of transporting the toner in the container main body 52 to the opening 51 (see FIG. 5) side.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a drive transmission unit 55 is mounted on the opening 51 side of the container main body 52. The drive transmission unit 55 is fixed to the container main body 52. The drive transmission unit 55 is an annular member having a gear 54 formed on the circumferential surface. The drive transmission portion 55 is fitted to the end of the container body 52 on the opening 51 side and is fixed to the outer peripheral surface thereof. The drive transmission unit 55 receives the rotational drive force from a drive source such as a motor and transmits the rotational drive force to the toner container 41.

  In the container body 52, a cover member 56 is provided on the insertion direction D21 side (rear side) of the drive transmission unit 55. The cover member 56 covers the opening 51 and is attached to the end of the container body 52 on the side of the insertion direction D21. The cover member 56 is formed by injection molding or the like of a synthetic resin having thermoplasticity, and is a synthetic resin product.

  The cover member 56 has a cylindrical storage frame 58 into which the opening 51 (see FIG. 5) is inserted when the cover member 56 is attached to the container body 52. As shown in FIG. 5, the opening 51 is inserted into the housing frame 58, thereby covering the opening 51. The accommodation frame 58 rotatably supports the opening 51 in the circumferential direction. For this reason, the container main body 52 can be rotated in the circumferential direction in a state where the opening 51 is inserted into the housing frame 58. When the toner container 41 is mounted on the container mounting portion 42, the cover member 56 is fixed in the circumferential direction of the toner container 41 by the engagement of the mounting portion 80 described later and the mounting portion 90. Therefore, in a state where the toner container 41 is mounted to the container mounting portion 42, the cover member 56 supports the opening 51 side of the container main body 52 rotatably in the circumferential direction. The front end 56A of the cover member 56 has a rear end 55A (see FIG. 5) of the drive transmission portion 55 loosely fitted thereto. Therefore, when the rotational driving force is transmitted to the gear 54 in a state where the toner container 41 is attached to the container attachment portion 42, the container main body 52 is rotated by the rotational driving force indicated by the arrow D11 (see FIG. 4). Rotate in the direction. That is, the toner container 41 rotates around the longitudinal direction as a rotation center in a state where the toner can be supplied to the developing device 23. Thus, when the container main body 52 of the toner container 41 rotates, the toner is conveyed to the opening 51 side (rear side) while being pushed by the angle rib 53.

  The cover member 56 has a toner discharge port 74 (see FIG. 5). The toner discharge port 74 is for discharging the toner stored in the container main body 52 to the outside, and is provided on the outer peripheral wall of the cover member 56. The toner discharge port 74 is provided below the cover member 56 in FIG. Specifically, the toner discharge port 74 is a rectangular through hole penetrating the outer peripheral wall of the cover member 56. As shown in FIG. 5, a toner flow path 75 (an example of a guide path of the present invention) is formed in the cover member 56 between the opening 51 and the toner discharge port 74. When the toner container 41 is mounted on the container mounting portion 42 (see FIG. 2) with the toner discharge port 74 facing downward, the toner moved from the opening 51 of the container main body 52 to the toner flow passage 75 is transferred to the toner flow passage 75 And is guided downward to reach the toner discharge port 74. Then, when the toner discharge port 74 is opened, the toner is discharged from the toner discharge port 74 to the lower outside. Thus, the toner is supplied to the developing device 23. On the other hand, when the toner discharge port 74 is closed, the toner is not discharged, and the toner flow path 75 is filled with the toner.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the cover member 56 is provided with a sliding opening / closing member 76. The opening and closing member 76 is a plate-shaped member, and is supported by the cover member 56 slidably in the longitudinal direction (front and rear direction D2) of the container main body 52. The opening and closing member 76 opens and closes the toner discharge port 74 in accordance with the position of the toner container 41 with respect to the container mounting portion 42. The opening and closing member 76 opens the toner discharge port 74 when the toner container 41 is mounted on the container mounting portion 42. Specifically, when the toner container 41 is mounted on the container mounting portion 42, the pressure is applied from the container mounting portion 42 along with the mounting operation to the position (open position) where the opening / closing member 76 opens the toner discharge port 74. Be moved. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the opening and closing member 76 is moved forward to open the toner discharge port 74. When the toner container 41 is removed from the container mounting portion 42, the opening / closing member 76 is moved rearward from the open position to a position (closing position) at which the toner outlet 74 is closed. The outlet 74 is closed. The container mounting portion 42 is provided with an urging member (not shown), and the movement of the open / close member 76 from the open position to the closed position is caused by the operation of removing the toner container 41. This is done by moving the member 76 relatively backward.

  In addition, the cover member 56 has a cylindrical base portion 59 having a hollow inside on the insertion direction D21 side with respect to the housing frame 58. A mounting portion 80 (an example of a mounting portion of the present invention) described later is integrally formed on the base portion 59. An arch-shaped guide wall 61 protruding from the end surface 59A is provided on the end surface 59A on the side of the insertion direction D21 of the base portion 59. The hole 60 surrounded by the guide wall 61 is held by a spring seat 94 (see FIG. 7) formed on the back surface 46 of the housing portion 44 when the toner container 41 is mounted in the housing portion 44 described later. The coil spring (not shown) is a portion through which the coil spring is inserted. Further, a protrusion 93 (an example of the engaging portion of the present invention) is integrally formed at the center of the end face 59A. When the toner container 41 is attached to the housing portion 44, the projection 93 is engaged with the hole 92A of the projecting boss 92 (an example of the engaged portion of the present invention) provided on the back surface 46. Specifically, the protrusion 93 is inserted into the hole 92A. As a result, the toner container 41 is positioned with respect to the storage portion 44 by the engagement of the projection 93 and the projection boss 92. When the toner container 41 is attached to the housing portion 44, the coil spring is compressed and inserted through the hole 60. In this case, the toner container 41 is not shown so as not to be detached by the spring force of the coil spring. The toner container 41 is locked at the mounting position in the housing portion 44 by the lock mechanism.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the container mounting portion 42 has four housing portions 44 (44A to 44D). Each storage unit 44 stores a toner container 41 of a predetermined color. The toner container 41 corresponding to black is accommodated in the rightmost accommodation portion 44A. In FIG. 2, a state in which a part of the rear side of the toner container 41 corresponding to black is inserted into the housing portion 44 is shown. The housing portions 44B, 44C, and 44D disposed on the left side of the housing portion 44A are portions in which toner containers 41 corresponding to yellow, cyan, and magenta, respectively, are housed.

  The image forming apparatus 10 is configured such that the toner containers 41 of different colors can not be attached to the respective accommodating portions 44. That is, only the toner container 41 having the mounting compatibility can be mounted in the corresponding storage portion 44. That is, each accommodation portion 44 can selectively mount the toner container 41 having mounting compatibility. In the present embodiment, the mounting portion 80 is provided at the tip of the insertion direction D21 of the toner container 41, and the mounting portion 90 (this is shown in FIG. 7) on the back surface 46 (see FIG. 7) of the housing portion 44. An example of the mounting part of the invention is provided. When the toner container 41 is inserted into the housing portion 44 and the mounting portion 80 of the toner container 41 engages with the mounting portion 90, mounting of the toner container 41 is permitted. On the other hand, when the mounting portion 80 of the toner container 41 can not be engaged with the mounting portion 90, the mounting of the toner container 41 is prohibited. A structure that realizes the mounting compatibility between the mounting portion 90 and the mounting portion 80 in this manner is generally referred to as an incompatible structure.

  A general incompatible structure requires a plurality of incompatible members corresponding to each color. Therefore, for example, in the image forming apparatus 10 using four color toners of black, yellow, cyan, and magenta, four types of non-compatible members are required. Providing a plurality of incompatible members individually increases the number of parts. Further, in the case of molding a plurality of incompatible members with a mold using a resin material, since four types of molds are required, the burden of initial cost is large. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the mounting portion 80 of each of the plurality of toner containers 41 having different colors is formed in a shape common to each color, and part of the elements of the mounting portion 80 (incompatible key The above compatible structure is realized by excision. Hereinafter, the configuration of the mounting portion 90 of the housing portion 44 and the mounting portion 80 of the toner container 41 will be described in detail.

  FIG. 7 is a view schematically showing a cross-sectional structure of the cut surface VII-VII in FIG. In FIG. 7, the back surface 46 on the side of the insertion direction D <b> 21 in each accommodation portion 44 is shown. The mounting portions 90 (90A to 90B) corresponding to each of the plurality of colors are provided in each of the housing portions 44. The mounting portion 90 is provided on each back surface 46. The mounting portion 90 is a portion engaged with the mounting portion 80 provided in the toner container 41 having mounting compatibility. The mounting portion 90 enables selective mounting of the toner container 41 to the housing portion 44 by being engaged with the mounting portion 80.

  Each of the mounting portions 90 is a protrusion 91 (the first protrusion of the present invention) at any one of eight predetermined positions Pk (P1 to P8) (see dotted circle in FIG. 7) on the back surface 46. An example). The projecting portion 91 is a rod-like projecting member that protrudes from the back surface 46 in a direction perpendicular to the surface. As shown in FIG. 7, a circular projecting boss 92 is formed at the center of the back surface 46. The protruding bosses 92 are cylindrical members that project forward from the back surface 46. A hole 92A is formed at the center of the tip end surface of the projecting boss 92. The hole 92A is a portion into which the positioning projection 93 provided on the end face 59A of the cover member 56 is inserted. A spring seat 94 for holding a coil spring (not shown) is provided below the projecting boss 92 on the back surface 46. The spring seat 94 holds one end of the coil spring. The coil spring held by the spring seat 94 is inserted into the hole 60 formed in the cover member 56 of the toner container 41 when the toner container 41 is mounted in the housing portion 44. The positions P1 to P8 are defined on the circumference of a circle centered on the protruding boss 92. In the present embodiment, the positions P1 to P8 are the same in each of the four back surfaces 46, and are defined on the circumference at equal angular intervals with reference to the center point. In the example shown in FIG. 7, in the back surface 46, the position P1 is defined adjacent to the spring seat 94 in the CW direction (clockwise direction), and the positions P2 are equally spaced from the position P1 in the CW direction. ~ P8 is defined. The position P8 is a position adjacent to the spring seat 94 in the CCW direction (counterclockwise direction). As shown in FIG. 7, the positions P1 to P8 are determined so as to be symmetrical with respect to a vertical line passing through the center of the protruding boss 92.

  Each mounted portion 90 provided on each back surface 46 has four projecting portions 91. For example, a mounting portion 90A is provided on the back surface 46 of the housing portion 44A in which the black toner container 41 is mounted. The mounting portion 90A has a protrusion 91 at positions P1, P3, P5, and P7 among the positions P1 to P8. That is, in the mounting portion 90A, the projecting portion 91 is provided upright at the positions P1, P3, P5, and P7.

  A mounting portion 90B is provided on the back surface 46 of the housing portion 44B in which the yellow toner container 41 is mounted. The mounting portion 90B has a protrusion 91 at the positions P1, P2, P5, and P6. That is, in the mounting portion 90B, the projecting portion 91 is provided upright at the positions P1, P2, P5, and P6.

  A mounting portion 90C is provided on the back surface 46 of the housing portion 44C in which the cyan toner container 41 is mounted. The mounting portion 90C has a protrusion 91 at the positions P1 to P3 and P7. That is, in the mounting portion 90C, the projecting portions are provided upright at the positions P1 to P3 and P7.

  A mounting portion 90D is provided on the back surface 46 of the housing portion 44D in which the magenta toner container 41 is mounted. The mounting portion 90D has protrusions 91 at positions P1 to P4. That is, in the mounting portion 90D, the projecting portion 91 is provided upright at the positions P1 to P4.

  In the present embodiment, when the toner container 41 having mounting compatibility is inserted into the housing portion 44, the compatible key of the mounting portion 80 of the toner container 41 at the position Pk where the projecting portion 91 is not provided in the mounting portion 90. 81 enters. Then, since the compatible key 81 is not provided at a position corresponding to the position Pk having the projecting portion 91, the compatible key 81 does not abut against the projecting portion 91 and does not interfere, therefore, in the insertion direction D21. The insertion of the toner container 41 is not restricted.

  FIG. 4 shows the tip of the black toner container 41 inserted into the housing 44A corresponding to black. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, the black toner container 41 is described as the toner container 41A, and the mounting portion 80 provided thereon is described as the mounting portion 80A. As shown in FIG. 4, a mounting portion 80A is provided at the tip of the insertion direction D21 of the toner container 41A. The mounting portion 80 is provided not only in the black toner container 41A but also in each toner container 41 corresponding to yellow, cyan and magenta colors, but each mounting portion 80 is formed in a different shape . Hereinafter, the mounting unit 80A corresponding to black will be described using FIG. 4 as a representative of the mounting unit 80 corresponding to each color.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the mounting portion 80A is integrally provided on the cover member 56 of the toner container 41A. The cover member 56 has a hollow cylindrical base 59 inside the insertion direction D21 with respect to the cylindrical housing frame 58. The mounting portion 80A is provided on the end surface 59A (corresponding to the facing surface of the present invention) of the base portion 59 on the side of the insertion direction D21. The mounting portion 80A is integrally formed when the cover member 56 is molded. The mounting unit 80A has four compatible keys 81. Each of the four compatible keys 81 is provided at a position where it can be engaged with the mounted portion 90A corresponding to black. The compatible key 81 is a projecting member that protrudes from the end face 59A to the insertion direction D21 side (that is, the attached portion 90A side), and is formed in a rod shape having a circular cross section. When the compatible key 81 is integrally formed at the time of molding of the cover member 56, the inside is formed in a hollow shape so as to be able to communicate with the inside of the toner container 41A. The inside of the compatible key 81 is in communication with the toner flow passage 75 of the cover member 56, and is in communication with the inside of the toner container 41A through the toner flow passage 75.

  In the present embodiment, in a state where the toner container 41A is inserted into the housing portion 44A and the mounting portion 90A and the end surface 59A are opposed, positions P2, P4, P6 at which the projecting portion 91 is not provided in the mounting portion 90A. , And P8, the compatible key 81 is provided on the end face 59A.

  As described above, since the mounting portion 80A is provided in the toner container 41A, when the toner container 41A is inserted into the corresponding storage portion 44A, the position P2 where the protrusion 91 is not provided in the mounting portion 90A, The compatible key 81 enters P4, P6 and P8. As a result, the toner container 41A can be attached to the housing portion 44A without the compatibility key 81 being obstructed by the projecting portion 91. In other words, the toner container 41A has mounting compatibility with the housing portion 44A. When the toner container 41A is mounted on the mounting portion 80, the compatible key 81 and the projecting portion 91 engage in the circumferential direction of the toner container 41A. Therefore, the cover member 56 is fixed in the circumferential direction of the toner container 41A by this engagement.

  The mounting portion 80A described above can be formed in the following manner. That is, as shown in FIG. 6A, in the base portion 59, eight projecting members 82 (one example of the key member of the present invention) having the same shape as the compatible key 81 are provided at all positions corresponding to the positions P1 to P8. The provided cover member 65 is molded. The cover member 65 is a base for forming the cover member 56 having mounting compatibility with a specific housing portion 44. In the present embodiment, a base 59 having eight projecting members 82 at the end face 59A is integrally formed with the cover member 65. The base portion 59 is a portion to be a base member for forming the mounting portion 80A. The cover member 65 has the same configuration as the cover member 56 except that the cover member 65 has eight projecting members 82, and is formed of a synthetic resin having the same plasticity as the cover member 56. In the present embodiment, based on the cover member 65, it is possible to form the cover member 56 having the mounting portion 80 having mounting compatibility corresponding to each color.

  Specifically, in the case of forming the cover member 56 attached to the toner container 41A corresponding to black from the cover member 65, the projecting portion 91 is provided from the eight projecting members 82 in the mounting portion 90A of the housing portion 44A. The four projecting members 82A (an example of the second projecting portion of the present invention) corresponding to the positions P1, P3, P5, and P7 are selected, and the projecting members 82A (see FIG. 6A) are cut away. The four projecting members 82A formed on the end face 59A corresponding to the positions P1, P3, P5 and P7 are located at the positions P1, P3, P5, It interferes with the projection 91 provided on P7. Therefore, it is possible to attach the toner container 41A to the accommodation portion 44A by cutting off the four projecting members 82A that interfere with each other and leaving only the projecting members 82 that do not interfere with each other. Engagement is possible. As a cutting method, for example, a method of cutting with an ultrasonic cutter, a method of cutting with a cutting machine using a laser beam, or the like is applicable. Alternatively, a notch may be formed at the base of the protruding member 82A at the time of molding, and the unnecessary protruding member 82A may be folded down and cut away. The protruding member 82 left after the removal becomes the compatible key 81 described above.

  The projecting member 82A thus selected interferes with the projecting portion 91 if it is not cut out. That is, when the toner container 41A includes the cover member 56 including at least one protruding member 82A in the mounting portion 80, the positions P1, P3, P5, P7 even if the toner container 41A is inserted into the housing portion 44A. The projecting member 82A abuts on any of the projecting portions 91 located on the For this reason, the projecting member 82A of the mounting portion 80 can not engage with the mounting portion 90A. Of course, since the projecting member 82A is present, the other projecting members 82 which can be engaged with the mounting portion 90A can not be engaged with the mounting portion 90A. Thus, the projecting member 82A interferes with the engagement with the mounting portion 90A by interference. By cutting the four projecting members 82A, the mounting portion 80A that can be engaged with the mounting portion 90A is formed.

  As described above, the projecting member 82A has the same shape as the compatible key 81, and the inside is hollow. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6 (B), when the protruding member 82A is cut off, an opening 85 appears on the cut surface. Since the opening 85 is in communication with the toner flow passage 75, the toner in the toner flow passage 75 leaks from the opening 85 to the outside. Therefore, the opening 85 is closed by heat welding after the projecting member 82A is cut off. FIG. 4 shows a closed portion 85A in which the opening 85 is closed by heat welding. Since the cover member 65 is made of a synthetic resin having thermoplasticity, the edge of the opening 85 is melted and the opening 85 is filled, for example, by thermally welding the cut surface using an impulse welding machine. The openings 85 are closed by subsequent cooling.

  So far, the example of forming the cover member 56 corresponding to black from the cover member 65 has been described, but the cover member 56 having the mounting portion 80 having mounting compatibility with the other mounting portion 90 from the cover member 65 It is also possible to form That is, among the eight projecting members 82 of the cover member 65, the projecting member 82 corresponding to the position at which the projecting portion 91 is provided in the mounting portion 90 which is desired to obtain mounting compatibility is selectively cut off. Leaving a projecting member 82 corresponding to the position where no is provided. Thus, the mounting portion 80 having mounting compatibility with the mounting portion 90 can be formed. Then, in the case of the toner container 41 to which the cover member 56 having the mounting portion 80 is attached, the toner can be attached to the accommodating portion 44 corresponding to the color of toner, and attached to the accommodating portions 44 of other colors It is possible to realize prohibited incompatibilities.

  As described above, since various mounting portions 80 can be formed from one type of cover member 65, mounting portions having different shapes for each color of the toner container 41 can be provided as long as the cover member 65 is prepared as a molded product. A cover member 56 having an 80 can be easily produced from the cover member 65. Thereby, the number of parts can be reduced as compared to the case where the cover members 56 are individually formed. In addition, in the case of molding the cover member 56 with a mold, the burden of the initial cost can be suppressed because only one mold for molding the cover member 65 is required.

  In the above embodiment, the mounting portion 90 having four protrusions 91 is illustrated, and the mounting portion 80 having four compatible keys 81 is illustrated, but the number and positions of the protrusions 91 and the compatible keys 81 are It is not restricted to the above-mentioned composition. In the above embodiment, the cover member 56 is provided with the mounting portion 80. For example, if the toner container 41 does not include the cover member 56, the container main body 52 of the toner container 41 is used. The mounting portion 80 may be integrally formed.

10: image forming apparatus 40: toner replenishment device 41: toner container 42: container mounting portion 44: housing portion 56: cover member 59: base 65: cover member 80: mounting portion 81: compatible key 82, 82A: projecting member 85: Opening 90: Mounting part 91: Projection part

Claims (2)

A toner container configured to be removable from a toner supply unit of an image forming apparatus, the toner container comprising:
A container main body in which toner is stored;
An opening formed at an end of the container body on the insertion direction side of the toner container with respect to the toner supply portion;
A guide provided at an end of the container body on the insertion direction side, having a toner discharge port on a side surface, covering the opening and guiding the toner in the container body from the opening to the toner discharge port A cover member forming a passage;
Attachment that enables selective mounting of the toner container with respect to the toner replenishing portion by engaging with a mounting portion having a projecting boss provided in the toner replenishing portion and having a first protrusion disposed around the periphery thereof With the department,
The mounting portion is integrally formed on an end face on the insertion direction side facing the mounting portion in the cover member,
A projection provided on the end face for positioning the toner container with respect to the toner supply portion by engaging the projecting boss;
A plurality of positions are provided at positions where the end surface does not abut the first projecting portion at the time of mounting, and which project from the end surface toward the mounting portion to realize mounting compatibility of the toner container with the toner supply portion. With a compatible key,
The projection can be engaged with the projection boss by cutting in advance a second projection of the same shape as the compatible key, which is provided at the end face to be in contact with the first projection when mounted. Toner container configured. The cover member is a member made of resin,
The inside of the second projection is hollow so as to be able to communicate with the guide path of the cover member,
The toner container according to claim 1, wherein the mounting portion is formed by closing the opening that appears when the second protrusion is cut off by heat welding.

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