JP7191623B2 - CLEANING DEVICE, CARTRIDGE, AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cleaning device for cleaning an image bearing member carrying a developer, a cartridge provided with the cleaning device and used in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus (hereinafter referred to as an image forming apparatus), and an image forming apparatus. It is.

In a cartridge used in a general image forming apparatus, an image carrier uniformly charged by a charging means is selectively exposed to light, a latent image is formed on the surface of the image carrier, and the latent image is transferred by a developer. After being visualized as an image, the image is formed by transferring it to a recording material. Here, since the developer remaining on the image carrier after the transfer may adhere to the charging means and deteriorate the image quality, it is removed by the cleaning device and stored in the storage unit.
Further, the conventional cleaning device includes a frame and a cleaning member that contacts the image bearing member and scrapes off the residual developer, and the following is known as an example. The frame body is provided with a containing portion for containing the scraped developer, and cleaning members are provided outside the containing portion at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the containing portion (in the direction of the rotational axis of the image carrier). Fixed to the fixed part. (Patent document 1)
An electrophotographic image forming apparatus forms an image on a recording medium using an electrophotographic image forming method. Includes facsimile machines and word processors.

JP 2013-134355 A

In the conventional configuration, fixing portions are provided at both longitudinal ends of the accommodating portion and outside the accommodating portion. Therefore, the area of the accommodating portion when viewed from the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (the direction in which the cleaning member is fixed) is smaller at both ends in the longitudinal direction than in the central portion by the area occupied by the fixing portion. That is, in order to reduce the difference in accommodation space in the longitudinal direction, it is necessary to make the area of the accommodation portions on both ends in the longitudinal direction larger than the area of the accommodation portion on the central portion side. However, if the area of the accommodating portion is increased, the area occupied by the cartridge inside the main body of the image forming apparatus increases, which may lead to an increase in the size of the image forming apparatus. This may go against the recent demand for miniaturization of image forming apparatuses. Furthermore, as another means, there is a structure having a residual developer conveying means for conveying the developer to an empty space within the exclusive area of the cartridge. may lead to an increase in size and cost. The present invention has been made in view of the above problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning device, a cartridge, and an image forming apparatus in which the container space of the developer container is increased and the amount of developer to be contained is increased without increasing the external size of the device. .

In order to achieve the above object, the cleaning device of the present invention comprises:
an image carrier that carries a developer image made of a developer on its surface;
a frame that rotatably supports the image carrier;
a cleaning member that is fixed to the frame and removes the developer from the surface of the image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier with one free end;
A cleaning device comprising:
The frame is
a fixing surface facing the outside of the frame and supporting a fixed end to which the cleaning member is fixed;
a back surface facing the inside of the frame body and having a front-back relationship with the fixing surface;
a partition part protruding from the back surface to the inside of the frame and partitioning an internal space composed of the frame and the cleaning member into a plurality of developer accommodating spaces,
The partitioning portion is provided with a communication port that communicates with the plurality of developer accommodating spaces.
Further, in order to achieve the above object, the cleaning device of the present invention comprises:
A cleaning device provided in an apparatus main body of an image forming apparatus,
a rotatable image carrier provided in the apparatus main body;
a cleaning member that contacts the image carrier and removes the developer on the image carrier;
a frame that forms, together with the cleaning member, a developer containing portion that contains the developer removed by the cleaning member, and that has a fixing portion to which the cleaning member is fixed by a fixing member;
with
the frame body has a partition portion having a surface that intersects with the rotation axis direction of the image bearing member, the partition portion partitioning the developer containing portion into a plurality of spaces;
A mounting portion for mounting the fixing member to the fixing portion is exposed inside the developer containing portion and is arranged at a position overlapping with the partition portion when viewed in the rotation axis direction. Characterized by

As described above, according to the present invention, a cleaning device, a cartridge, and an image forming apparatus are provided in which the storage space of the developer storage section is increased and the amount of developer storage is increased without increasing the external size of the device. can be provided.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a cleaning device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; Schematic cross-sectional view of a cartridge according to Example 1 of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of a cartridge according to Example 1 of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cleaning device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. Sectional view of a cleaning device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention Sectional view of a cleaning device according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention Cross-sectional view of a cleaning device in a conventional configuration

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A mode for carrying out the present invention will be exemplarily described in detail below based on an embodiment with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes and relative arrangement of the components described in this embodiment should be appropriately changed according to the configuration of the device to which the invention is applied and various conditions. That is, it is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention to the following embodiments.

A cartridge and an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Hereinafter, a laser beam printer will be taken as an example of an image forming apparatus, and a process cartridge used in a laser beam printer will be taken as an example of a cartridge.
In the following description, it is assumed that the longitudinal direction of the process cartridge and the cleaning member coincides with the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum, which is an image carrier and a rotatable rotating body.
Also, the reference numerals in the description are for referring to the drawings and do not limit the configuration.

<Example 1>
(Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus and Description of Image Forming Process) FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an apparatus main body A and a process cartridge (hereinafter referred to as cartridge B) of the image forming apparatus. 3 is a sectional view of the cartridge B. FIG.
Note that the apparatus main body A is a portion of the image forming apparatus excluding the cartridge B. As shown in FIG. Also, the attitude of the cartridge B in FIG. 3 is the attitude when it is mounted in the image forming apparatus as shown in FIG. indicates the positional relationship and direction in this posture. 2 and 3, the vertical direction corresponds to the vertical direction, and the horizontal direction corresponds to the horizontal direction.
First, the configuration of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG.
The image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 2 is a laser beam printer using an electrophotographic technology in which the cartridge B is detachable from the apparatus main body A. As shown in FIG. A sheet tray 40 for stacking recording media (hereinafter referred to as sheets P) on which images are to be formed is arranged below the cartridge B. As shown in FIG. Further, the apparatus main body A includes a pickup roller 41, a pair of conveying rollers 42, a transfer guide 43, a transfer roller 44, a conveying guide 45, a pair of fixing rollers 46, a pair of discharge rollers 47, and a discharge tray along the conveying direction of the sheet P. 48 and the like are arranged in sequence.

Next, an outline of the image forming process will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG.
First, based on a print start signal from a control unit (not shown), the photosensitive drum 601 as an image bearing member is rotationally driven in the direction of arrow R at a predetermined peripheral speed (process speed). A charging roller 602 to which a bias voltage is applied contacts the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 601 and uniformly charges the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 601 .
Next, the exposure device 30 outputs a laser beam L corresponding to image information to scan and expose the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 601 . As a result, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to image information is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 601 .

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. sent out.
The toner T delivered to the toner supply chamber 23 is carried on the surface of the developing roller 25 by the magnetic force of the magnet roller 24 (fixed magnet), and is triboelectrically charged by the developing blade 26 while the layer thickness of the peripheral surface of the developing roller 25 increases. Regulated.
After that, the toner T carried on the surface of the developing roller 25 is transferred to the photosensitive drum 601 according to the electrostatic latent image as the developing roller 25 rotates, and is visualized as a toner image. At this time, the photosensitive drum 601 rotates in the direction of arrow R as the developing roller 25 rotates while carrying toner (toner image).

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the sheet P stored in the lower part of the apparatus main body A is fed from the sheet tray 40 by the pickup roller 41 and the conveying roller pair 42 in conjunction with the output timing of the laser light L. .
Then, the sheet P is fed to the transfer position between the photosensitive drum 601 and the transfer roller 44 via the transfer guide 43 . At this transfer position, the toner image is sequentially transferred from the photosensitive drum 601 to the sheet P. As shown in FIG.
The sheet P to which the toner image has been transferred is separated from the photosensitive drum 601, conveyed along the conveying guide 45 to the pair of fixing rollers 46, and passes through the fixing nip portion.
The toner image is fixed on the sheet P by performing pressure/heat fixing processing at this fixing nip portion. The sheet P subjected to the toner image fixing process is conveyed to the discharge roller pair 47 and discharged to the discharge tray 48 .

After that, as shown in FIG. 3, the photosensitive drum 601 after the transfer is used again for the image forming process after removing the residual toner on the outer peripheral surface by the cleaning member 74 . The toner T removed from the photosensitive drum 601 is stored in a waste toner storage chamber 70 as a developer storage portion of the cleaning device 60, which will be described later.

(Description of Cleaning Device) Next, the configuration of the cleaning device, which is a feature of the present invention, will be described with reference to FIGS.
4A and 4B are explanatory diagrams of the cartridge B, FIG. 4A is a perspective view of the entire cartridge B, and FIG. It is an exploded perspective view seen from the direction, and FIG.4(c) is the figure which expanded the X section from FIG.4(b).

As shown in FIG. 4A, the cartridge B in this embodiment has a cleaning device 60 and a developing device 20 integrated therein. The cleaning device 60 has a photosensitive drum 601, a charging roller 602, and a cleaning member 74, which are supported by a frame 62, as shown in FIG. Further, the frame 62 of the cleaning device 60 is provided with a drum bearing (not shown), and the photosensitive drum 601 is rotatably supported by this drum bearing.
Also, the configuration of the cleaning member 74 provided in the cleaning device 60 will be described. As shown in FIG. 4B, the cleaning member 74 provided in the cleaning device 60 includes a plate-like support member 741 made of sheet metal or the like, and an elastic member 742 made of rubber or the like supported by the plate-like support member 741. consists of One end of the plate-like support member 741 is fixed to the fixing portion 63 of the frame, and the other end supports the elastic member 742 . and to form an abutting portion.
Of the frame 62 of the cleaning device 60, the frame 621 forms a waste toner storage chamber 70, which will be described later, together with the cleaning member 74. The frame 621 is the above-described fixing portion 63 for fixing the cleaning member. have Further, the fixing portion 63 is provided with a screw fastening portion 64 as a mounting portion for a screw 90 as a fixing member. Holes 749 are provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction of a plate-like support member 741 that is a part of the cleaning member 74, and the plate-like support member 741 is fixed to the fixing portion 63 by screws 90 that are fixing members. . A cleaning member 74 extends from one end of a plate-like support member 741 fixed to the fixing portion 63 in a direction opposite to the rotation direction of the photosensitive drum 601 at the portion with which the elastic member 742 abuts. The tip of the elastic member 742 is in contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 601 .
The above is the configuration of the cleaning member 74 in this embodiment. By placing the cleaning member 74 at a predetermined position with respect to the frame 621 and filling the gap between the cleaning member 74 and the frame 621 with sealing means (not shown), the cleaning member 74 has a frame on one side thereof. A space is created such that the walls of 621 are supported. This space becomes a waste toner storage chamber 70 as a developer storage portion.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4C, the fixed portion 63 is provided with a fixed surface 630 that abuts and supports the fixed end, which is one end of the plate-shaped support member 741 . It should be noted that the directions for the description of the configuration of the cleaning device hereinafter are defined as follows. First, the direction in which the fixing surface 630 supports both ends in the longitudinal direction of the plate-shaped support member 741 that is a part of the cleaning member 74 is set to the frame member 62 that forms the waste toner storage chamber 70 . It is the direction toward the outside of the frame 621 which is a part. Next, the waste toner storage chamber 70 of the frame 62 is formed in the direction from the surface of the plate-like support member 741 supported by the fixed surface 630 toward the waste toner storage chamber 70 described above. The direction is toward the inside of the frame 621, which is the frame portion. When the direction is defined in this way, from the longitudinal inner end of the fixing portion 63, more specifically, the fixing surface 630 described above.
A partition wall 65 is provided as a partition portion protruding toward the inside of the frame body 621 from the longitudinal inner end portion of the back surface that has a front/back relationship with the frame body 621 . The partition wall 65 is provided in a direction substantially perpendicular to the wall surface 701, which is the inner surface of the frame body 621 forming the waste toner storage chamber 70, and in a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 601. It is connected to the upper surface 701 of the frame 621 forming the chamber 70 .
The partition wall 65 divides the waste toner storage chamber 70 into a first storage chamber 71 on the central side and a second storage chamber 72 on one end side in the longitudinal direction when viewed in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 74 . Along with this, the internal space serving as the developer storage space (toner storage space) is also divided into two, one on the longitudinal direction side and the other on the central portion side. The developer storage space in the first storage chamber 71 and the developer storage space in the second storage chamber 72 communicate with each other through a portion not partitioned by the partition wall 65 described above. The portion is regarded as a communication port 654 in this embodiment. On the other hand, a partition wall 65 is similarly provided from the fixing portion 63 to the other end portion in the longitudinal direction to divide the waste toner storage chamber 70 into a first storage chamber 71 and a second storage chamber 72 . In this embodiment, the partition wall 65 is a flat surface connected to the longitudinal inner end portion of the fixing portion 63 (the back surface of the fixing surface 630), but it may be curved or stepped.

(Description of Waste Toner Storage Chamber 70) Next, the configuration of the waste toner storage chamber 70 partitioned by the partition wall 65 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 5, and 8A. 1A and 1B are cross-sectional views of the cleaning device 60 as seen from the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum 601. FIG. The cross section of 72 parts is shown.
5 is a perspective view of one longitudinal end of the cleaning device 60 viewed from the direction of the arrow Z in FIG. 4(a). In FIG. 5A, the back surface of the fixing surface 630 provided on the fixing portion 63 is provided on the wall surface of the frame facing the screw fastening portion 64 in the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 74. The opening 50 is shown. FIG. 5B shows a state after the lid portion 75 is joined onto the opening 50. FIG. 1(a) is a cross-sectional view of the cleaning device 60 cut along the dashed line α shown in FIG. 5(a), and FIG. It can also be said that this is a cross-sectional view taken along the dashed line β.
Further, FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional cleaning device, and FIG. 8(a) is a cross-sectional view taken at the same position as FIG. 1(b).

The waste toner storage chamber 70 is divided into the first storage chamber 71 and the second storage chamber 72 at one longitudinal end side and the central portion side of the cleaning member 74 as described above. The first storage chamber 71 and the second storage chamber 72 have wall surfaces on the back side and the front side along the rotation direction of the photosensitive drum 601 at the portion where the cleaning member 74 contacts the photosensitive drum 601 . In this embodiment, the toner T scraped off by the elastic member 742 of the cleaning member 74 moves along the cleaning member 74 from the front wall surface toward the rear wall surface as the photosensitive drum 601 rotates. Therefore, the front side wall surface of the first storage chamber 71 is defined as a first upstream side wall surface 709 in line with the flow of the toner T, and the rear side wall surface is defined as a first downstream side wall surface 710 . Similarly, in the case of the second storage chamber 72 , the wall surface on the front side is the second upstream side wall surface 719 and the wall surface on the back side is the second downstream side wall surface 720 .

As shown in FIG. 1A, the toner T scraped off by the elastic member 742 of the cleaning member 74 in the first storage chamber 71 moves along the cleaning member 74 as the photosensitive drum 601 rotates. More specifically, along the cleaning member 74 , the cleaning member 74 moves forward in the rotation direction of the photosensitive drum 601 at the portion where the cleaning member 74 is in contact with the photosensitive drum 601 . That is, the toner T moves in the direction away from the photosensitive drum 601 (direction of arrow F) and gradually accumulates in the first storage chamber 71 . Finally, it reaches the first downstream side wall surface 710, which is the downstream wall surface in the arrow F direction.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the toner T is stored on the photosensitive drum 601 in the second storage chamber 72 as well.
, the toner moves along the cleaning member 74 in the direction away from the photosensitive drum 601 (the arrow F direction), and gradually accumulates in the second storage chamber 72 . Finally, it reaches the second downstream side wall surface 720, which is the downstream wall surface in the arrow F direction.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, since the toner T scraped off by the elastic member 742 of the cleaning member 74 has low fluidity, it diffuses in the longitudinal direction in the vicinity of the elastic member 742. , as it goes downstream in the direction of arrow F, it becomes difficult to diffuse in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, after the toner T reaches the downstream wall surface downstream in the arrow F direction (for example, the first downstream side wall surface 710 and the second downstream side wall surface 720), the density of the toner T increases without diffusing in the longitudinal direction. becomes. As a result, the limit of the amount of toner T that can be accommodated depends on the position of the downstream wall surface at each position in the longitudinal direction.

Here, the difference between the conventional configuration and the configuration of this embodiment will be described by comparing FIG. 8(a) and FIG. 1(b).
In the conventional configuration, a screw fastening portion 164 for attaching a screw, which is a fixing member when fixing the cleaning member 174 to the frame 162 , is arranged outside the wall surface of the frame 162 forming the waste toner storage chamber 170 . . 8A, a wall surface 1631 on the downstream side of the arrow F direction of the frame body 162 constituting the waste toner storage chamber 170 is arranged on the front side of the screw fastening portion 164 when viewed in the arrow F direction. The frame 162 is configured so that
That is, as shown in FIG. 8A, in the conventional configuration, when the fixing portion 163 for fixing the cleaning member 174 is provided to the frame 162, the fixing portion 163 is provided outside the waste toner storage chamber 170. It's becoming Therefore, it is necessary to take measures to narrow the developer storage space to the downstream side wall surface 1631 of the frame 162 constituting the waste toner storage chamber 170 in the direction of the arrow F.

In contrast, in this embodiment, the screw fastening portion 64 for fixing the cleaning member 74 to the frame 621 which is a part of the frame 62 is attached to the waste toner storage chamber 70 , particularly the second storage chamber 72 . It is arranged so that it is exposed inside. That is, of the wall surfaces of the frame body 621 that constitutes the waste toner storage chamber 70, the second downstream side wall surface 720 is behind the screw fastening portion 64 when viewed in the direction of arrow F in FIG. The frame body 621 is configured so as to be arranged on the side. Therefore, by supporting the frame 621 on the surface of the cleaning member 74 on the side where the screw fastening portion 64 is exposed, the aforementioned second storage chamber 72 is formed. That is, as shown in FIG. 1B, according to this configuration, the position of the wall surface on the downstream side in the direction of arrow F of the frame 621 constituting the second storage chamber 72 of the waste toner storage chamber 70 is the same as that of the conventional configuration. has changed from the position corresponding to Specifically, the frame 621 is configured such that the second downstream side wall surface 720 is arranged instead of the position (reference numeral 631) corresponding to the arrow F direction downstream side wall surface 1631 in the conventional configuration. ing. Therefore, since the position of the downstream side wall surface is extended to the position of the second downstream side wall surface 720, the capacity of the developer containing space on both ends in the longitudinal direction is increased by that amount. It can be increased more than the central part side.

As shown in FIGS. 1(b), 5(a), and 5(b), the rear surface of the fixing surface 630, which is the contact surface between the fixing portion 63 and the cleaning member 74, faces the frame with the screw fastening portion 64 interposed therebetween. The wall surface of the body is provided with an opening 50 that allows the second storage chamber 72 to be exposed to the outside. In the conventional configuration, such an opening was unnecessary because the screw fastening portion was provided outside the waste toner storage chamber. However, in this embodiment, such an opening is provided because it is necessary to remove residual toner from the waste toner storage chamber when, for example, the cleaning blade is replaced. Further, the lid portion 75 is joined so that the toner T filling the inside of the second containing chamber 72 does not leak out. In FIG. 1B, the lid portion 75 has a flat shape, but its material and shape are not limited to this. It may be box-shaped.

Further, a screw fastening portion 64 is provided in the second storage chamber 72, and as shown in FIG. A gap C1 is provided so that the fluid can flow sufficiently. This gap C1 serves as a developer accommodating space capable of accommodating toner T, which is a developer. 5A, in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 74, between the screw fastening portion 64 and the second storage chamber side wall surface 651, which is the wall surface of the partition wall 65 on the second storage chamber 72 side. is provided with a gap C2. Further, a space C3 is provided between the opposite side wall surface 652 of the wall surface of the frame body 62 that faces the second storage chamber side wall surface 651 and the screw fastening portion 64 . Like C1, these spaces C2 and C3 are also developer accommodating spaces capable of accommodating toner T, which is a developer. The toner T passes through the gaps C1, C2, and C3 and reaches the second downstream wall surface 720, which is the downstream wall surface in the arrow F direction.

Further, a reinforcing rib 641 is provided on the downstream side of the screw fastening portion 64 in the direction of arrow F to reinforce the screw fastening portion 64 so as not to obstruct the flow of the toner T and to prevent the screw fastening portion 64 from falling.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, unlike the prior art, the screw fastening portion 64 for screwing the cleaning member 74 to the frame 621 is mounted on the frame so as to be exposed inside the waste toner storage chamber. A body 621 is constructed. Therefore, it is possible to increase the storage space of the waste toner storage chamber 70 of the frame 621 in the cleaning device 60 without increasing the size of the apparatus main body A.
Further, if the sheet P continues to flow, the longitudinal end portions of the sheet P and the photosensitive drum 601 may be rubbed and scraped, and the amount of toner T at both longitudinal end portions may become larger than that at the central portion. Thus, even if the amount of waste toner T is not uniform in the longitudinal direction by design, the arrangement of the first downstream side wall surface 710 and the second downstream side wall surface 720 can match the capacity along each. Therefore, the exclusive area of the cleaning device 60 in the apparatus main body A can be used more efficiently. For example, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the position of the second downstream side wall surface 720 is further downstream in the direction of arrow F than the position of the first downstream side wall surface 710. . By doing so, when viewed from the one longitudinal end side of the waste toner storage chamber 70 in this embodiment, the second storage chamber 72 on the one longitudinal end side is larger than the first storage chamber 71 on the central portion side. , a large amount of waste toner T can be accommodated. This also applies to the other longitudinal end. That is, when looking at the cleaning device as a whole, the second storage chambers 72 on both ends in the longitudinal direction are closer to the direction of rotation of the photosensitive drum 601 (the direction of arrow F) than the first storage chamber 71 on the center side. ), the structure has a depth, and a larger amount of waste toner T can be accommodated.

Furthermore, by providing the above-described spaces C1, C2, and C3, even if the screw fastening portion 64 protrudes into the second storage chamber 72, the toner T reaches the second downstream side wall surface 720 without clogging on the way. It becomes possible to sufficiently fill the inside of the second storage chamber 72 . In this embodiment, three gaps C1, C2, and C3 are provided, but the configuration is not limited to this, and at least one gap among the gaps C1, C2, and C3 may be provided.

<Example 2>
Next, Example 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 8B.
Since the basic configuration of the apparatus of this embodiment is the same as that of the above-described Embodiment 1, overlapping parts will be omitted. Also, members having the same functions as those of the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals.
6A and 6B are cross-sectional views of the vicinity of the cleaning member 74. FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of the cleaning member 74 cut at the fixing screw portion and viewed from the rotating shaft direction of the photosensitive drum 601. FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view. 6A is a cross-sectional view taken along a dashed line in FIG. 6A and viewed from the X1 direction. FIG.
As described above, FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional cleaning device, and FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 6A, a sealing member 80 is provided in the gap between the elastic member 742 of the cleaning member 74 and the frame 621 to close the gap and prevent the developer from leaking. The seal member 80 has a first surface 81 that contacts the cleaning member 74 and a second surface 82 that faces the first surface 81 and contacts the wall surface of the frame 621 .
The frame 62 has a seal seat surface 820 that is a wall surface that contacts the second surface 82 of the seal member 80 . In addition, in the contact direction between the wall surface of the frame and the seal member 80, the wall surface of the frame 621 facing the seal seat surface 820 is separated from the end of the first storage chamber in the first embodiment. A communicating third storage chamber 73 is provided. Furthermore, the wall surface of the frame 621 facing the seal seat surface 820 is provided with an opening 502 that exposes the developer storage space in the third storage chamber 73 to the outside. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the opening 502 is formed by a frame facing the fixing surface to which the cleaning member 74 is fixed, with the screw fastening portion for attaching the screw 90 from the back surface having a front-to-back relationship. It is provided on the wall surface of the body 621 and is similar to the opening 50 of the first embodiment.

Here, the wall surface of the frame 621 forming the opening 502 described above is used as a first side wall, and the outer side shown in FIG. Let the wall 653 be the second side wall. Then, this second side wall portion is arranged outside the longitudinal inner end portion of the seal member 80 . Specifically, it is arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the seal seat surface 820 and in a direction perpendicular to the rotational axis of the photosensitive drum 601, and near the center between the inner end and the outer end in the longitudinal direction of the seal seat surface 820. be done. A lid portion 752 is joined to the opening 502 as in the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 8B, in the conventional configuration, when the seal seat surface 1820 is provided on the frame 162, waste toner is accommodated along the seal inner end surface 1801 at the longitudinal inner end of the seal member 180. As shown in FIG. A longitudinal outer wall 1653 of the chamber is provided. However, as shown in FIG. 6(b), in this configuration, the longitudinal outer wall 653 of the waste toner storage chamber is longitudinally outer than the seal inner end face 801 at the longitudinal inner end of the seal member 80. placed in Therefore, the storage space for the toner T can be extended in the longitudinal direction by the distance from the position where the seal inner end surface 801 is arranged to the position where the outer wall 653 is arranged.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the developer accommodating space is expanded in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 74 as compared with the conventional one. Therefore, the storage amount of waste toner, which is a developer, can be increased without increasing the cross-sectional outline of the frame 621 of the frame 62 of the cleaning device 60, which constitutes the waste toner storage chamber, when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum 601. can be increased. Furthermore, as described above, of the wall surfaces of the frame 621 , the outer wall 653 is arranged near the center between the inner and outer ends of the seal member 80 in the longitudinal direction. This allows the outer wall 653 to act as a reinforcing rib that receives the pressure that the seal seat surface 820 receives from the seal member 80 at the center in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, the sealing member 80 can exhibit stable sealing performance.

<Example 3>
Next, Example 3, which is a modification of Example 2, will be described with reference to FIG.
7A and 7B are diagrams showing a third embodiment, and FIGS. 7A and 7B are perspective views of a part of the cleaning device 60 extracted from the second surface 82 side. 7A shows an opening 503 between the seal seat surface 820, which is the wall surface in contact with the second surface 82, and the wall surface of the frame 621 at the position facing it, as in the second embodiment. FIG. 7(b) shows the state after the lid portion 753 is joined onto the opening 503, and FIG. 7(c) is a sectional view when viewed from the same direction as FIG. 6(b).

In the second embodiment, of the wall surfaces of the frame body 621 forming the opening 502, the outer wall 653 positioned furthest in the longitudinal direction is positioned along the longitudinal direction of the seal member 80 outside the inner end in the longitudinal direction of the seal member 80. It was configured to be arranged near the center of the direction. However, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7C, the outer wall 653 is not arranged on the seal seat surface 820, and the seal outer end surface, which is the surface of the longitudinal outer end of the seal member 80, is not placed on the seal seat surface 820. 802 is arranged further outside in the longitudinal direction. With such an arrangement, it is also possible to increase the number of the third accommodating portions 73 in the longitudinal direction. In this embodiment, the outer wall 653 is flat, but it may be curved or stepped.

<Other Examples>
In this embodiment, an image forming apparatus having one photosensitive drum has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to, for example, a tandem color image forming apparatus having a plurality of photosensitive drums.

60 Cleaning device 601, 1601 Photosensitive drum 62, 162 Frame 63, 163 Fixed part 630 Fixed surface 64, 164 Screw fastening part 65 Partition wall 70 Waste toner storage chamber , 71... First housing chamber 72... Second housing chamber 74, 174... Cleaning member 741... Supporting member 742... Elastic member 90... Screw

Claims (20)

an image carrier that carries a developer image made of a developer on its surface;
a frame that rotatably supports the image carrier;
a cleaning member that is fixed to the frame and removes the developer from the surface of the image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier with one free end;
A cleaning device comprising:
The frame is
a fixing surface facing the outside of the frame and supporting a fixed end to which the cleaning member is fixed;
a back surface facing the inside of the frame body and having a front-back relationship with the fixing surface;
a partition part protruding from the back surface to the inside of the frame and partitioning an internal space composed of the frame and the cleaning member into a plurality of developer accommodating spaces,
The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the partition section is provided with a communication port communicating with the plurality of developer accommodating spaces. 2. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the frame body has an opening for exposing the developer containing space to the outside in a first side wall portion facing the back surface. The frame has a lid that closes the opening,
3. A cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein said developer accommodating space is formed between said lid portion and said rear surface. further comprising a seal member provided between an end portion of the cleaning member and the frame in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member for sealing developer leakage;
4. The cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the opening is arranged inside in the longitudinal direction of a portion where the frame is in contact with the seal member. A second side wall portion connected to the first side wall portion in which the opening is formed and connecting the first side wall portion and the back surface is formed in the longitudinal direction of the portion where the frame is in contact with the seal member. 5. The cleaning device according to claim 4, wherein the cleaning device is provided longitudinally outwardly of the directionally inner end. 6. The second side wall portion according to claim 5, wherein the second side wall portion is provided further outward in the longitudinal direction than the longitudinal outer end portion of the portion where the frame body is in contact with the seal member. cleaning equipment. A cleaning device provided in an apparatus main body of an image forming apparatus,
a rotatable image carrier provided in the apparatus main body;
a cleaning member that contacts the image carrier and removes the developer on the image carrier;
a frame that forms, together with the cleaning member, a developer containing portion that contains the developer removed by the cleaning member, and that has a fixing portion to which the cleaning member is fixed by a fixing member;
with
the frame body has a partition portion having a surface that intersects with the rotation axis direction of the image bearing member, the partition portion partitioning the developer containing portion into a plurality of spaces;
A mounting portion for mounting the fixing member to the fixing portion is exposed inside the developer containing portion and is arranged at a position overlapping with the partition portion when viewed in the rotation axis direction. A cleaning device characterized by: With respect to the rotational axis direction, the developer accommodating portion is divided into a first accommodating chamber and a second accommodating chamber by the partition portion, and the second accommodating chamber is closer to the end than the first accommodating chamber. 8. The cleaning device of claim 7, wherein a cleaning device is provided. 9. A cleaning device according to claim 8, wherein said attachment portion is provided in a region corresponding to said second storage chamber. 10. The cleaning device according to claim 8, wherein the partition portion is provided with a communication port for communicating the first storage chamber and the second storage chamber. the fixed part has a fixed surface supporting a fixed end to which the cleaning member is fixed;
11. The partitioning portion partitions the developer accommodating portion into a plurality of spaces by a surface connected to the fixing surface and extending perpendicularly to the fixing surface. 10. A cleaning device according to claim 1. The cleaning member
a plate-like support member fixed to the fixing portion; and an elastic member supported by the plate-like support member and in contact with the image carrier,
one end of the plate-like support member is fixed to the fixing portion and the other end supports the elastic member;
a direction in which the plate-shaped support member extends from the one end to the other end is opposite to a rotation direction of the image carrier at a portion where the elastic member contacts the image carrier,
The developer containing portion is
The frame is supported by the surface of the cleaning member on the side where the mounting portion is exposed inside the developer containing portion, so that the frame and the mounting portion are positioned inside the developer containing portion. (8) a developer containing space for containing the developer removed from the image bearing member by the cleaning member; Cleaning device as described. The developer accommodation space is
13. A cleaning device according to claim 12 , wherein said plate-shaped support member also extends behind said mounting portion in a direction extending toward said image carrier. further comprising a seal member provided between an end portion of the cleaning member and the frame in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member for sealing developer leakage;
The developer accommodation space is
14. A cleaning device according to claim 12 or 13 , wherein a portion of said frame body that abuts said sealing member extends outward from said longitudinally inner end portion. The developer accommodation space is
15. The cleaning device according to claim 14 , wherein the portion of the frame in contact with the seal member extends further outward than the longitudinal outer end portion. Between the frame supported on the surface of the cleaning member on the side where a part of the fixed member of the cleaning member is exposed to the inside of the developer container, and an attachment portion for attaching the fixed member to the fixed portion. 16. The cleaning device according to any one of claims 12 to 15 , wherein the developer accommodating space is formed. The frame body is formed such that the size of the developer accommodating portion on both ends in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member is larger than that of the developer accommodating portion on the central portion in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member. The cleaning device according to any one of claims 12 to 16 , characterized in that. 12. The frame supported on one surface of the cleaning member is provided with an opening for exposing the developer containing space to the outside and a lid for closing the opening. 18. The cleaning device according to any one of Claims 1-7 . A cartridge that can be attached to and detached from an apparatus main body of an image forming apparatus,
a developing device that supplies a developer to the image carrier;
a cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 18 ;
A cartridge comprising: An image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording material,
An image forming apparatus comprising the cartridge according to claim 19 .

Images