JP6672778B2 - Scanning optical device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a scanning optical device and an image forming apparatus.

2. Description of the Related Art An image forming apparatus typified by a copying machine includes a scanning optical device that exposes a surface of a photosensitive drum while scanning to form a predetermined electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive drum. The scanning optical device has a deflector that deflects and scans light emitted from a light source, and a scanning optical system that forms an image of the light deflected by the deflector on the surface of the photosensitive drum.

  In recent years, the number of rotations of the deflector has been increasing with the improvement of the printing speed and the resolution in the image forming apparatus. As the rotation speed of the deflector increases, heat generation due to windage becomes a problem in addition to an increase in noise. Conventionally, a deflector cover having a rectifying effect is provided around a deflector for the purpose of suppressing noise and windage loss.

  When the area around the deflector is sealed by the deflector cover, it becomes difficult to release the heat generated in the cover. For this reason, conventionally, measures have been taken to connect, for example, a deflector cover to a lid of an optical box of a scanning optical device with a heat transfer member (for example, see Patent Document 1). Thereby, the heat in the deflector cover is transmitted to the lid of the optical box, and the rise in the temperature in the cover is suppressed.

JP-A-2002-350765

  However, in the configuration disclosed in Patent Literature 1, the heat transfer member is provided over a wide range such as the entire upper surface of the deflector cover. When such a large amount of heat transfer member is required, an increase in manufacturing cost becomes a problem. If the amount of the heat transfer member is simply reduced, not only the temperature rise around the deflector cannot be sufficiently suppressed, but also the optical performance of the optical member disposed around the deflector cover may be deteriorated by heat. Examples of the optical member around the deflector cover include a light source optical element for making light from a light source incident on the deflector and a scanning optical element for forming an image of the light reflected by the deflector on the photosensitive drum.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to provide a scanning optical device and an image forming apparatus that can efficiently suppress a temperature increase due to heat generated by driving a deflector.

In order to achieve the above object, a scanning optical device according to the present invention includes a deflector having a rotation axis and deflecting and scanning light from a light source, a support portion supporting the deflector, and fixed to the support portion. A cover that covers the deflector; and a transmission that is held by at least one of the support and the cover, and transmits incident light incident on the deflector and reflected light reflected by the deflector. An optical element, a housing part for housing the support part and the cover part, a first wall part perpendicular to the rotation axis of the cover part, and a second part of the housing part opposed to the first wall part. And a heat-transfer member having no elasticity for connecting the heat-transfer member to the first wall portion, wherein the heat-transfer member is disposed at a plurality of positions including the vicinity of an outer edge portion of the first wall portion.

  According to this configuration, while reducing the amount of use of the heat transfer member, not only the heat of the first wall portion perpendicular to the rotation axis but also the heat of the wall portion parallel to the rotation axis surrounding the deflector is reduced. It can escape to the second wall. That is, according to this configuration, the temperature rise around the deflector can be efficiently suppressed.

  In the scanning optical device having the above configuration, it is preferable that the second wall is exposed to an airflow. According to this configuration, the heat radiation efficiency in the second wall increases, and the temperature rise around the deflector can be efficiently suppressed.

  In the scanning optical device having the above configuration, it is preferable that the transmission optical element forms a part of a wall of the cover. According to this configuration, the number of optical components can be reduced.

  In the scanning optical device having the above configuration, the position where the heat transfer member is disposed includes a position near an outer edge of the first wall and a position near a part holding the transmission optical element. preferable. According to this configuration, since the heat transfer member is arranged near the portion holding the transmission optical element where the temperature tends to increase, the temperature increase around the deflector can be suppressed efficiently.

  In the scanning optical device having the above configuration, the heat transfer member is disposed near an outer edge of the first wall portion and near a portion holding the transmission optical element; It is preferable to include a second heat transfer member disposed on the opposite side of the first heat transfer member with respect to the rotation shaft. According to this configuration, it is possible to reduce the temperature gradient generated around the deflector by preventing the heat transfer member from being arranged at a biased position.

  In the scanning optical device having the above configuration, it is preferable that a total area of the first heat transfer member is larger than a total area of the second heat transfer member. According to this configuration, since the area of the heat transfer member is changed between a place where the temperature rise is likely to occur and a place where the temperature rise is not likely, the temperature gradient generated around the deflector can be further reduced.

  Further, in the scanning optical device having the above configuration, it is preferable that the heat transfer member is made of heat conductive silicone. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent a large load from being applied to each wall connected by the heat transfer member, and to prevent deformation of the room accommodating the deflector.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including the above-described scanning optical device.

  According to this configuration, an adverse effect due to heat generated by driving the deflector can be efficiently reduced, and a low-cost, high-quality image forming apparatus can be provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a scanning optical apparatus and an image forming apparatus capable of efficiently suppressing a temperature rise due to heat generated by driving a deflector.

1 is a partial vertical sectional view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic top view of a scanning optical device included in an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing a housing structure of a deflector in a scanning optical device provided in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic top view illustrating a housing structure of a deflector in a scanning optical device provided in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is an outline top view showing the 1st modification of an accommodation structure of a deflector. It is a schematic top view which shows the 2nd modification of the accommodation structure of a deflector. It is an outline vertical section showing the 3rd modification of an accommodation structure of a deflector. It is a schematic top view which shows the 3rd modification of the accommodation structure of a deflector. It is an outline vertical sectional view showing the composition of the comparative example different from the accommodation structure of the deflector concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic top view which shows the structure of the comparative example different from the accommodation structure of the deflector which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the following contents.

  First, the image output operation of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an example of a partial vertical sectional view of the image forming apparatus. Note that a two-dot chain line with an arrow in the drawing indicates the transport path and transport direction of the sheet.

  The image forming apparatus 1 is a so-called tandem-type color copying machine as shown in FIG. 1, and includes an image reading unit 2 that reads an image of a document, a printing unit 3 that prints the read image on a transfer material such as paper, An operation unit 4 for inputting printing conditions and displaying an operation status, and a main control unit 5 are provided.

  The image reading section 2 is a known one that reads an image of a document placed on the upper surface of a platen glass (not shown) by moving a scanner (not shown). The image of the document is separated into three colors of red (R), green (G), and blue (B), and converted into an electric signal by a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image sensor (not shown). As a result, the image reading unit 2 obtains image data for each color of red (R), green (G), and blue (B).

  The image data of each color obtained by the image reading unit 2 is subjected to various processes in the main control unit 5, and image data of each reproduction color of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) is obtained. And stored in a memory (not shown) inside the main control unit 5. The image data for each reproduced color stored in the memory is subjected to a process for correcting positional deviation, and then, in order to perform optical scanning on the photosensitive drum 21 serving as an image carrier, every scanning line is synchronized with paper conveyance. Is read out.

  The printing unit 3 forms an image by an electrophotographic method, and transfers the image to a sheet or the like. The printing unit 3 includes an intermediate transfer belt 11 in which the intermediate transfer body is formed as an endless belt. The intermediate transfer belt 11 is wound around a driving roller 12, a tension roller 13, and a driven roller 14. Tension is applied to the intermediate transfer belt 11 by urging the tension roller 13 upward in FIG. 1 by a spring (not shown). The intermediate transfer belt 11 is rotated by a driving roller 12 in a counterclockwise direction in FIG.

  A secondary transfer roller 15 opposing the drive roller 12 with the intermediate transfer belt 11 interposed therebetween is pressed. At the position of the driven roller 14, an intermediate transfer cleaning unit 16 provided to face the driven roller 14 with the intermediate transfer belt 11 interposed therebetween comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 11. The intermediate transfer cleaning unit 16 scrapes and cleans toner and the like remaining on the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 11 after the secondary transfer.

  Below the intermediate transfer belt 11, image forming units 20Y, 20M, 20C, and 20K corresponding to respective reproduction colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) are provided. In this description, the identification symbols “Y”, “M”, “C”, and “K” are omitted, and are collectively referred to as, for example, “image forming unit 20” unless it is particularly necessary to limit the case. Sometimes. The four image forming units 20 are arranged in a line from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotation direction along the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 11. The four image forming units 20 have the same configuration, and include a photoconductor drum 21 rotating clockwise in FIG. 1 and a charging unit, a developing unit, a cleaning unit, and a primary transfer roller around the photoconductor drum 21.

  A scanning optical device 60 serving as an exposure unit is disposed below the image forming unit 20. One scanning optical device 60 corresponds to four image forming units 20. The scanning optical device 60 modulates four semiconductor lasers (not shown) according to image gradation data of each reproduction color, and emits laser light corresponding to each reproduction color.

  Above the intermediate transfer belt 11, a toner bottle 31 and a toner hopper 32 corresponding to the four reproducible color image forming units 20 are provided. The developing unit and the toner hopper 32 are provided with a toner remaining amount detecting unit (not shown) for detecting the amount of toner inside each unit. Further, a toner supply device (not shown) is provided between the developing unit and the toner hopper 32 and between the toner hopper 32 and the toner bottle 31. When the remaining amount detecting section detects a decrease in the amount of toner inside the developing section, the replenishing device is driven to supply toner from the toner hopper 32 to the developing section. Further, when the remaining amount detecting unit detects a decrease in the amount of toner inside the toner hopper 32, the replenishing device is driven to replenish the toner from the toner bottle 31 to the toner hopper 32. The toner bottle 31 is provided detachably with respect to the apparatus main body, and can be appropriately replaced with a new one.

  A paper feeding device 40 is provided below the scanning optical device 60, and the paper P is accommodated therein. The paper P stored in the paper feeding device 40 is sent out to the paper transport path Q by the supply unit 50 in order from the uppermost paper. The sheet P sent from the sheet feeding device 40 to the sheet conveying path Q reaches the registration roller pair 71. The registration roller pair 71 corrects the skew of the sheet P (skew correction) and synchronizes with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 11 to make contact with the intermediate transfer belt 11 and the secondary transfer roller 15 (secondary transfer roller 15). The paper P is sent out toward the nip portion).

  In the image forming section 20, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 21 by the laser beam irradiated by the scanning optical device 60, and the electrostatic latent image is visualized as a toner image by the developing section. . The toner image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 21 is primarily transferred to the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 11 at a position where the photosensitive drum 21 faces the primary transfer roller with the intermediate transfer belt 11 interposed therebetween. The toner image of each image forming unit 20 is sequentially transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 11 at a predetermined timing with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 11, so that the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 11 has yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. Are formed by superimposing the four color toner images.

  The color toner image primarily transferred on the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 11 is formed on the paper P sent synchronously by the pair of registration rollers 71 by the contact between the intermediate transfer belt 11 and the secondary transfer roller 15. At the secondary transfer nip.

  A fixing unit 72 is provided above the secondary transfer nip. The paper P on which the unfixed toner image has been transferred in the secondary transfer nip portion is sent to the fixing unit 72 and is sandwiched between the heating roller and the pressure roller, and the toner image is heated and pressed to be fixed on the paper P. You. The sheet P that has passed through the fixing unit 72 is discharged to a sheet discharge unit 73 provided above the intermediate transfer belt 11.

  The operation unit 4 is provided on the front side of the image reading unit 2. The operation unit 4 is used for inputting settings such as printing conditions such as the type and size of paper P used for printing by the user, enlargement / reduction, and presence / absence of double-sided printing, and inputting settings such as a fax number and a sender name in facsimile transmission. Accept. The operation unit 4 also serves as a notifying unit for notifying the user of the status of the apparatus, notes, an error message, and the like by displaying them on the display unit 4w.

  The image forming apparatus 1 is provided with a CPU, an image processing unit (not shown), and a main control unit 5 including other electronic components (not shown) for controlling the entire operation. The main control unit 5 utilizes a central processing unit (CPU) and an image processing unit to control components such as the image reading unit 2 and the printing unit 3 based on a program and data stored in a memory and input data. Image forming operation and printing operation.

  Subsequently, the configuration of the scanning optical device 60 will be described in more detail. FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of the scanning optical device 60. Note that FIG. 2 shows a state in which a lid and the like are removed to facilitate understanding of the configuration inside the housing 61 provided in the scanning optical device 60. As shown in FIG. 2, the scanning optical device 60 includes a light source unit 62, a deflector 63, and a scanning optical element unit 64 in a housing 61.

  The light source unit 62 includes four independent semiconductor lasers 62a corresponding to four image forming units 20. Further, the light source unit 62 includes a plurality of mirrors 62 b for guiding each laser beam emitted from the four semiconductor lasers 62 a to the deflector 63.

  The polarizer 63 has a rotation axis 63a and deflects and scans the laser light from the light source unit 62. The deflector 63 includes, in addition to the rotating shaft 63a, a polygon mirror 63b that is a rotating polygon mirror, and a drive motor 63c that rotates the polygon mirror 63b about the rotating shaft 63a. The drive motor 63c is illustrated in FIG. 3 described later. The laser light for each reproduction color emitted from the four semiconductor lasers 62a is guided to the same surface of the polygon mirror 63b while being shifted by a small angle in the sub-scanning direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in FIG. 2). The light is deflected at a constant angular velocity in the main scanning direction (the left-right direction in FIG. 2) based on the rotation of the mirror 63b.

  The scanning optical element unit 64 includes a plurality of lenses 64 a that form laser light for each reproduction color deflected by the deflector 63 on the photosensitive drum 21. The scanning optical element unit 64 also includes a mirror (not shown).

  The housing structure of the deflector 63 in the scanning optical device 60 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing the housing structure of the deflector 63. FIG. 4 is a schematic top view showing the housing structure of the deflector 63. FIG. 3 corresponds to a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA shown in FIG. FIG. 4 shows a state in which a lid (second wall) 92 of a later-described storage unit 90 has been removed.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the scanning optical device 60 includes a support section 80 that supports the deflector 63. The support section 80 is a circuit board on which an electronic circuit for driving the deflector 63 is formed. On the support portion 80, in addition to the deflector 63, an IC (Integrated Circuit) (not shown) for driving the deflector 63 is mounted.

  The scanning optical device 60 includes a cover unit 81 fixed to the support unit 80 and covering the deflector 63. The cover portion 81 includes a cylindrical portion 81a and a window portion 81b protruding from a side surface of the cylindrical portion 81a. The deflector 63 is housed in the cylindrical portion 81a. In a top view, the center of the cylindrical portion 81a and the rotation axis 63a of the deflector 63 are located substantially at the same position. On the side surface of the window 81b, a first transmission optical element 82 that transmits light incident on the deflector 63 from the light source 62 and a second transmission optical element that transmits light reflected by the deflector 63. The element 83 is held. The two transmission optical elements 82 and 83 form a part of a wall portion substantially parallel to the rotation axis 63a of the cover portion 81.

  The cover portion 81 is formed of, for example, resin or metal, but is preferably formed of a material that does not easily cause distortion. In the present embodiment, the transmission optical element for incident light and the transmission optical element for reflected light are separately provided. However, the transmission optical element may be one element that functions both for incident light and for reflected light. Good.

  The scanning optical device 60 includes a storage unit 90 that stores the support unit 80 and the cover unit 81. The accommodation section 90 is composed of a box-shaped polygon housing 91 and a lid (second wall) 92 in detail. A support section 80 to which a cover section 81 is fixed is disposed on a bottom surface in the polygon housing 91. By disposing the lid portion 92 on the polygon housing 91, the support portion 80 and the cover portion 81 are accommodated in the accommodation portion 90. The polygon housing 91 and the lid 92 are formed of, for example, metal or resin, but are preferably formed of a material having high thermal conductivity.

  On the side surface of the polygon housing 91, a window (not shown) for transmitting light (incident light) from the light source 62 and reflected light from the deflector 63 is formed. The lid 92 also functions as a lid that is put on the housing 61 of the scanning optical device 60. However, this is only an example, and the lid 92 may be a dedicated lid provided separately from the lid of the housing 61.

  A heat radiating member 93 is arranged on the outer bottom surface of the polygon housing 91. Note that the bottom wall of the polygon housing 91 may be formed by the heat radiating member 93. The scanning optical device 60 includes a fan (not shown). The fan sends airflow toward the heat radiating member 93 and exposes the outer surface of the lid 92 to the airflow as shown by the broken line in FIG. The fan is mounted, for example, near the corner of the housing 61 near the polygon housing 91.

  The scanning optical device 60 includes a heat transfer member 100 that connects a first wall portion 81c perpendicular to the rotation axis 63a of the cover portion 81 and a lid portion 92 of the housing portion 90 facing the first wall portion 81c. . The first wall 81c corresponds to the upper wall of the cover 81 in the present embodiment. More specifically, it corresponds to the upper wall of the cylindrical portion 81a.

  The heat transfer members 100 are arranged at a plurality of locations including the vicinity of the outer edge of the first wall 81c. More specifically, the heat transfer member 100 is divided into two portions near the outer edge of the first wall portion 81c and near the window portion 81b (the portion holding the transmission optical elements 82 and 83). Are located. Note that the heat transfer members 100 that are separately arranged at two locations may be in partial contact. In FIG. 4, the heat transfer member 100 is drawn in a circular shape, but this is merely an example. The shape of the heat transfer member 100 is not particularly limited.

  The heat transfer member 100 is formed of a member having high thermal conductivity. The heat transfer member 100 is formed of, for example, heat conductive silicone, a metal such as aluminum or copper, or a combination thereof. The heat transfer member 100 may be formed of, for example, a coil-shaped or leaf-spring-shaped metal.

  When the heat transfer member 100 is made of heat conductive silicone, there are the following advantages. At the time of assembling (before curing), the heat conductive silicone changes its shape according to the distance between the first wall 81c and the lid 92, and then cures. For this reason, by disposing the heat conductive silicone, it is possible to prevent a large load from being applied to the cover portion 81 and the housing portion 90. That is, by using heat conductive silicone as the heat transfer member 100, it is possible to suppress deterioration of assembly accuracy. It is preferable that the heat transfer member 100 does not have elasticity from the viewpoint of suppressing deterioration of assembly accuracy.

  Next, the operation and effect of the housing structure of the deflector 63 configured as described above will be described. The deflector 63 supported by the support portion 80 is double-covered by the cover portion 81 and the housing portion 90. Therefore, noise generated due to the rotation of the polygon mirror 63b can be sufficiently suppressed. Further, the cover portion 81 that covers the deflector 63 has an arc shape on the inner periphery and exhibits a rectifying effect. For this reason, windage can be suppressed. By suppressing the windage loss, it is possible to reduce the amount of electric power required for driving the deflector 63 and the amount of heat generated due to the driving of the deflector 63.

  Further, a first wall portion 81c of the cover portion 81 covering the deflector 63 is connected via a heat transfer member 100 to a lid portion 92 that is exposed to an air current. For this reason, the heat in the cover 81, which cannot be directly cooled by the airflow or the like, is released to the cover 92 by the heat transfer member 100, so that a rise in the temperature inside the cover 81 can be suppressed. Since the heat transfer member 100 is arranged at a plurality of locations, the heat transfer member 100 can be configured not to use a large amount of heat transfer member, and cost can be reduced.

  Furthermore, the position of the heat transfer member 100 is devised, and the heat transfer member 100 efficiently contributes to the suppression of temperature rise with a small amount. This will be described in comparison with a comparative example shown in FIGS. In the comparative example shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the heat transfer member 100 ′ is provided at only one central portion of the first wall portion 81 c. Except for this point, the configuration of the comparative example is the same as the configuration of the present embodiment.

  When configured as in the comparative example, the heat transfer member 100 ′ can collect heat from the upper wall (first wall) 81 c of the cover 81 and release the heat to the lid (second wall) 92. However, since the distance between the heat transfer member 100 ′ and the side wall of the cover 81 is long, it is considered that heat on the side wall of the cover 81 can hardly be released to the lid 92.

  On the other hand, in the configuration of the present embodiment, since the heat transfer member 100 is disposed at the outer edge of the upper wall 81c of the cover 81, the heat of the side wall of the cover 81 is also covered in addition to the heat of the upper wall 81c. It can escape to the part 92. Since the heat transfer member 100 is arranged at a plurality of locations, a relatively wide range of heat can be released to the lid 92. For this reason, in the configuration of the present embodiment, it is possible to efficiently suppress the temperature rise inside the cover portion 81 while reducing the amount of use of the heat transfer member 100.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the heat transfer member 100 is disposed near the window 81b. The window portion 81b has a more complicated airflow than other portions and faces a wide range of the polygon mirror 63b, so that the temperature is likely to rise. In the present embodiment, the heat transfer member 100 actively releases heat to the lid 92 from such a portion, and the temperature rise inside the cover 81 can be efficiently suppressed.

  Further, the window section 81b faces the light source section 62 and the scanning optical element section 64. The present embodiment is configured to actively release heat from such a portion. For this reason, the transfer of heat to the light source unit 62 and the scanning optical element unit 64 can be suppressed, and fluctuations in the optical performance of the scanning optical device 60 can be suppressed.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic top view showing a first modification of the housing structure of the deflector 63. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the lid 92 of the storage unit 90 has been removed. In the first modified example shown in FIG. 5, the heat transfer member 100 is disposed at a position near the outer edge of the first wall 81c and near the window 81b, as in the above-described embodiment. One heat transfer member 100a is included. In the first modification, the heat transfer member 100 further includes a second heat transfer member 100b arranged on the opposite side of the first heat transfer member 100a across the rotation shaft 63a of the deflector 63.

  In the present embodiment, the number of the first heat transfer member 100a and the number of the second heat transfer member 100b are both two, but this number is merely an example and may be changed as appropriate. The second heat transfer member 100b is preferably disposed near the outer edge of the first wall 81c, like the first heat transfer member 100a, but need not be near the outer edge. .

  In the configuration of the first modified example, instead of disposing the heat transfer members 100 at the biased portions of the first wall portion 81c, the heat transfer members 100 arranged at a plurality of locations are arranged as widely and uniformly as possible. Has become. For this reason, generation of a temperature gradient inside the cover portion 81 can be suppressed. That is, in the configuration of the first modified example, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of distortion in the support portion 80 and the cover portion 81 due to the temperature gradient, and to suppress the deterioration of the optical performance of the deflector 63 and the deterioration of the noise level.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic top view showing a second modification of the housing structure of the deflector 63. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the lid 92 of the storage unit 90 has been removed. In the second modified example shown in FIG. 6, similarly to the first modified example shown in FIG. 5, the heat transfer member 100 includes a first heat transfer member 100a and a second heat transfer member 100b.

  However, in the second modification, the total area of the first heat transfer member 100a is larger than the total area of the second heat transfer member 100b. Inside the cover portion 81, the temperature near the window portion 81b tends to increase. In the second modified example, the area (size) of the heat transfer members 100 arranged at a plurality of locations is changed in consideration of this point. For this reason, in the configuration of the second modified example, the temperature gradient generated inside the cover portion 81 can be further reduced as compared with the case of the first modified example.

  FIG. 7 is a schematic vertical cross section showing a third modification of the housing structure of the deflector 63. FIG. 8 is a schematic top view showing a third modification of the housing structure of the deflector 63. FIG. 8 shows a state in which the lid 92 of the storage unit 90 has been removed. The configuration of the third modified example is a configuration in which the height of the cylindrical portion 81a and the height of the window portion 81b in the cover portion 81 are the same. In such a configuration, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, the heat transfer member 100 can be arranged closer to the transmission optical elements 82 and 83. The heat transfer member 100 may be provided directly above the transmission optical elements 82 and 83.

  The configurations of the above-described embodiments and modified examples are merely examples of the present invention. The configurations of the embodiments and the modified examples may be appropriately changed without departing from the technical idea of the present invention. Further, a plurality of embodiments and modifications may be implemented in combination as far as possible.

  For example, in the above description, the transmission optical elements 82 and 83 are configured to be held by the cover 81, but this is merely an example. The transmission optical elements 82 and 83 may be configured to be held by a support 80 that supports the deflector 63. In this case, for example, the support part 80 can be box-shaped, and the cover part 81 can be plate-shaped. Further, the transmission optical elements 82 and 83 may be configured to be held by the support 80 and the cover 81. Also in the case of this configuration, the shapes of the support portion 80 and the cover portion 81 need to be appropriately changed from the configuration of the embodiment described above.

  Further, each of the support portion 80 that supports the deflector 63 and the cover portion 81 that covers the deflector 63 may be configured by a plurality of members.

  In addition, the heat transfer members 100 may be arranged at a plurality of locations including the vicinity of the outer edge of the first wall 81c, and the position and the number of the heat transfer members 100 are not limited to the configuration described above. The heat transfer member 100 may include a member arranged at a position away from the vicinity of the outer edge of the first wall 81c.

  In the above, the configuration in which the image forming apparatus 1 is an image forming apparatus for color printing that transfers a toner image onto the paper P using the intermediate transfer belt 11 has been described. However, the application of the present invention is not limited to such a model. The present invention is applicable to, for example, an image forming apparatus that does not use an intermediate transfer belt, an image forming apparatus for monochrome printing, and the like. In that case, the configuration of the scanning optical device to which the present invention is applied is appropriately changed.

  The present invention can be used in, for example, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine.

Reference Signs List 1 image forming apparatus 60 scanning optical apparatus 63 deflector 63a rotation axis 63b polygon mirror 80 support section 81 cover section 81b window section 81c first wall section 82 first transmission optical element 83 second transmission optical element 90 housing section 92 Lid (second wall)
100 heat transfer member 100a first heat transfer member 100b second heat transfer member

Claims (8)

A deflector having a rotation axis and deflecting and scanning light from a light source,
A support for supporting the deflector,
A cover portion fixed to the support portion and covering the deflector;
A transmission optical element that is held by at least one of the support portion and the cover portion, and transmits incident light incident on the deflector and reflected light reflected on the deflector.
An accommodating portion for accommodating the support portion and the cover portion,
A non- elastic heat transfer member connecting a first wall of the cover perpendicular to the rotation axis and a second wall of the housing facing the first wall;
With
The scanning optical device according to claim 1, wherein the heat transfer member is disposed at a plurality of locations including a vicinity of an outer edge of the first wall.   The scanning optical device according to claim 1, wherein the second wall is exposed to an airflow.   The scanning optical device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission optical element forms a part of a wall of the cover.   4. The position where the heat transfer member is arranged includes a position near an outer edge of the first wall and a position near a part holding the transmission optical element. The scanning optical device according to any one of the above. The heat transfer member,
A first heat transfer member disposed near an outer edge of the first wall and near a portion holding the transmission optical element;
A second heat transfer member disposed on a side opposite to the first heat transfer member with respect to the rotation shaft;
The scanning optical device according to claim 4, comprising:   The scanning optical device according to claim 5, wherein a total area of the first heat transfer member is larger than a total area of the second heat transfer member.   The scanning optical device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the heat transfer member is made of heat conductive silicone.   An image forming apparatus comprising the scanning optical device according to claim 1.

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