JPH0356474B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a process cartridge that is removably attached to the main body of an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to a process cartridge that has a mechanism that informs an operator of the usable limit of the cartridge. It is.

Taking an electrophotographic copying machine as an example, parts that lose their functions due to deterioration of the photoreceptor, developing device, charger, etc., or due to exhaustion of consumable materials are integrated and can be replaced with the main unit. A structured process cartridge is proposed. This allows the operator to always use the copying apparatus in a stable state without requiring specialized knowledge.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a process cartridge capable of supplying consumable parts and informing an operator of the usage limit of the cartridge itself.

FIG. 1 shows an explanatory view of the main parts of an electrophotographic copying machine to which the present invention is applied.

In the figure, a photosensitive drum 1 is composed of a conductive drum and a surface photoconductive layer thereon, and rotates in the direction of the arrow. A corona discharger 2, a developing device 3, and a cleaning device 4 are arranged around the photosensitive drum 1 along the rotational direction of the drum by a frame 5.
It is supported as one. The frame body 5 can be attached to and detached from the main unit while being guided by rails 6 and 7. That is, by setting the cleaning device so that enough toner remains in the cleaning device in response to the time when the photosensitive drum 1 becomes unusable due to deterioration due to use, and replacing each frame with a new cartridge. , the copy operation can be performed again. In the present invention, a cartridge that is supported by a frame and can be removed from the main body and replaced with a new one at the end of its useful life is referred to as a process cartridge.

Image formation by the above device begins with the photosensitive drum 1.
is uniformly charged by the discharger 2, and then the lamp 8
The original image on the original platen glass 9 illuminated by
Photosensitive drum 1 via short focus optical element array 10
imaged on top. The latent image formed on the drum by the above-mentioned charging and exposure is developed with toner by a developing device 3. Thereafter, the toner image is transferred to a transfer paper 12 conveyed by a paper feeding means (not shown) using a transfer discharger 11 on the main body side. The transfer paper 12 having the toner image transferred thereon is fixed by a fixing device (not shown) on the downstream side of the feeding path, and is discharged to the outside of the main apparatus. On the other hand, residual toner on the drum 1 is cleaned by a cleaning device 4 in preparation for the next copying process.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the process cartridge.

By the way, the developing device 3 in the cartridge is as follows:
The photosensitive drum 1 is configured to be able to replenish toner consumption so that the drum can be used repeatedly as long as the photosensitive drum 1 does not deteriorate and become unusable. Third
The figure is a perspective view particularly showing the toner replenishment mechanism of the developing device 3. In order to make the explanation easier to understand, the photosensitive drum 1 and frame 5 in FIG. 1 are omitted from the drawing.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 13 denotes an outer frame of the developing device 3, which blocks areas other than those used for developing operations and toner supply. 14 is a rotating non-magnetic sleeve, and a magnet roller having a plurality of magnetic poles is fixed within this sleeve. The sleeve is rotated by the drive of the gear attached to the frame 5, and the gear on the frame 5 meshes with the gear on the main body when the prosthetic cartridge is loaded into the main unit. receives the driving force. Or, as another variation,
A gear for driving the sleeve 14 may be meshed with a gear provided on the photosensitive drum, and the process cartridge may be driven by the driving force transmitted to the drum 1 by loading the process cartridge into the main body.

A plate plate 15 at the top of the sleeve 14 is used to apply toner to a uniform thickness on the sleeve, and is fixed to the frame 13. The opening 16 on the front side of the frame is used to load a toner cartridge 17 for replenishing toner, and loading is completed by inserting the toner cartridge 17 in the direction of the arrow. Then, after turning this cartridge 17 half a turn in the loaded state,
By pulling out the sealing material 18, the toner falls into the developing device 3 through the opening 18a, completing the replenishment. When replenishing toner, turn the toner cartridge another half turn in the same direction and pull it out with the opening of the toner cartridge facing upward. Note that 19 in the figure is a handle portion, which is used for attaching/detaching and rotating the toner cartridge. Reference numeral 20 denotes a guide protrusion, which is attached to the frame 13 of the developing device.
By fitting into a notch 21 provided in the opening 16 of the toner cartridge 17, the toner cartridge 17 is fitted in a notch 21 to prevent the toner cartridge 17 from being installed or removed in the wrong direction. 22 indicates a housing of the cartridge.

Incidentally, the developing device of this embodiment is provided with a mechanism that limits the number of times toner, which is a consumable member, is replenished. This allows the user to be informed of the usage limit of the process cartridge due to deterioration of the photosensitive drum, and by replacing the process cartridge with a new one as necessary, it is possible to always obtain high-quality images. become.

Next, a mechanism for regulating the number of times a toner cartridge is loaded into a developing device as described above (hereinafter referred to as a limiting mechanism) will be explained with reference to the drawings.

The limiting mechanism of the first embodiment is provided on the back side of the toner cartridge in the loading direction. FIG. 4 is a side view of a toner cartridge, which corresponds to the toner cartridge 17 in FIG. 3. Reference numeral 23 in the figure is a bevel gear, which is fixed at the rear end of the cartridge 17a, with the smaller diameter side facing the front end.

Figure 5 shows the toner cartridge 17 shown in Figure 4 above.
5A is a plan view showing a state in which 5a is attached to a process cartridge, and 5a in the figure shows the back frame of the process cartridge. A bevel gear 24 that meshes with the bevel gear 23 on the toner cartridge side and rotates in only one direction is attached to the frame 5a. This mechanism that rotates in one direction will be explained with reference to the plan view shown in FIG. 6 showing the meshing state of both bevel gears 23 and 24, and the above-mentioned FIG. 5.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, 25 is a rotation center shaft fixed to the frame 5a, and the ratchet wheel 2 is attached to this center shaft 25.
A bevel gear 24, which is integrally formed with a bevel gear 6, is rotatably attached. A presser pawl 27 acts on the ratchet wheel 26, allowing the ratchet wheel 26 to rotate only in the counterclockwise direction. Therefore, the rotation of the toner cartridge side is caused by the ratchet wheel 26 and the pawl 27.
It is regulated by and never reverses.

By the way, one pin 28 is fixed to the bevel gear 24 on the process cartridge side.
As the bevel gear 24 rotates, this pin 28
makes contact with a stopper 29 fixed to the frame 5a,
The rotation of the bevel gear 24 is restricted. Therefore, by selecting the number of teeth of the bevel gears 23 and 24, it is possible to arbitrarily set the number of times the toner cartridge can be replaced to two or more times. Further, by slightly loosening the fixed state of one or both of the bevel gears, the meshing of both gears becomes smoother when the toner cartridge is loaded.

In this way, according to this embodiment, the bevel gear 2
By appropriately setting the number of teeth 3 and 24 and detecting the rotational movement of the toner cartridge by the bevel gear 24, it is possible to grasp the number of times the toner is replenished.

The next embodiment similarly regulates the number of times a toner cartridge is loaded into a process cartridge, and in this embodiment, a display means is provided on the process cartridge side to indicate the current number of replacements or how many more times it can be replaced. has.

FIG. 7 shows a side view of a toner cartridge 17b applied to this embodiment, and corresponds to the cartridge 17 in FIG. 3. This cartridge 17b has a bevel gear 30 fixed to a part of the circumferential surface of the casing on the handle 19 side.

FIG. 8 shows the state when the cartridge 17b is loaded on the process cartridge side. In the figure, 5b indicates the frame on the front side of the process cartridge, and this frame 5b is shown in FIG. A limiting mechanism similar to that described is installed, and like parts have been given like numbers. In this embodiment, there is an indicator 31 on the front side of the bevel gear 24a on the process cartridge side, as shown in FIG. 9, which displays the number of times the toner cartridge can be replaced. It becomes possible to observe from the opening 5a of the frame 5b. That is, the bevel gear 24 rotates only when the bevel gear 30 of the toner cartridge meshes with each other, thereby advancing the indicator. Note that the bevel gear 24a functions similarly to the bevel gear 24 of the first embodiment.

With the above configuration, the operator can use the index to predict the usable limit of a process cartridge before it reaches its usable limit, so by preparing a new process cartridge, even if the cartridge in use becomes unusable, the operator can By replacing the process cartridge with a new one, the copier can be used continuously. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, by loosening the attachment of the bevel gear 24a to the shaft 25, both the bevel gears 24a and 30
The dentition becomes smoother.

In the above embodiment, the process cartridge has a developing device, and the number of toner replenishments to the developing device is related to the life of the process cartridge. With this configuration, multiple toner supplies can be provided during the life of the process cartridge, so there is no need to set a large amount of toner storage. Therefore, the volume of the process cartridge can be made as small as possible, and a large amount of toner is not exposed to the atmosphere, so that it is possible to prevent the toner from being adversely affected by moisture absorption or the like.

When determining the lifespan of the process cartridge, consideration is given to deterioration and abrasion of the photoreceptor due to repeated use, abrasion of the blade of the cleaning device, and the like.
Further, when the cleaning device is disposed within the process cartridge, the container containing the collected toner may be taken out from the cartridge. However, such trouble of taking out the toner can be eliminated by setting the toner collecting container of the cleaning device to a size that can accommodate the amount of toner collected during the period when the toner cartridge can be replaced.

As a modification of the above embodiment, the process cartridge may have only a developing device and a photosensitive drum. Of course, the developing device used here is not limited to one using a one-component developer using magnetic insulating toner, but may also use a two-component developer consisting of a magnetic carrier and toner. In the latter case, not only the toner but also the carrier may be replenished together with the toner.

As a modification of the present invention, in addition to limiting the number of times the toner cartridge is loaded, the photosensitive drum of the process cartridge may also be a consumable member that can be replaced repeatedly. In this case, the number of times the photosensitive drum and, if necessary, the toner cartridge can be replaced is set in accordance with the surface deterioration of the toner conveying sleeve (14 in FIG. 3) of the developing device. Of course, a cleaning device may be provided in the process cartridge to deal with the deterioration of the sleeve and the cleaning blade.

As described above, according to the present invention, consumable parts can be supplied to the process cartridge that is replaced in the main unit, so there is no need to unnecessarily increase the capacity of the process cartridge, or
Even if the durability of each component mounted on a process cartridge, such as a charger or developer, differs, the process cartridge can be replaced according to the lifespan of the component with the longest durability, making it economical. The effect is also large. And since the process cartridge side determines the number of times consumable parts can be replaced,
This eliminates the possibility of obtaining low-quality images due to mistaken use of a process cartridge that has reached the end of its useful life. Furthermore, even if a process cartridge is taken out of the main unit, the number of times it has been replaced is stored in the cartridge, so even if process cartridges with different developing colors are loaded into the same main unit, no problem will occur. No problems will occur.

The process cartridge described in the present invention can be used in image forming apparatuses other than copying machines that apply electrophotography as in the embodiments.
It can also be applied to recording devices that use LED element arrays and laser beams, and can also be applied to facsimile devices and recording devices by replacing the photoreceptor with a dielectric and having a multi-stylus head act from the main device side. can.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the relationship between the process cartridge and the main unit, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the same cartridge, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the process cartridge and the toner supply cartridge, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the process cartridge and the toner supply cartridge. is a side view of the toner cartridge, FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the state in which the toner cartridge and process cartridge are coupled, FIG. 6 is a front view of the meshing state of the bevel gears of both cartridges, and FIG. 7 is another FIG. 8 is a side view of the toner cartridge, FIG. 8 is a plan view showing an example of engagement when a bevel gear is located on the front side of the toner cartridge in another embodiment, and FIG. 9 shows an index portion of the bevel gear in FIG. FIG. In the figure, 1 is a photosensitive drum, 3 is a developing device, and 5 is a photosensitive drum.
is a process cartridge frame, 17, 17a, 1
7b is a toner cartridge, 24 and 24a are bevel gears showing a part of the limiting mechanism, 28 is a pin, and 29 is a stopper.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a process cartridge that is removable from an image forming apparatus, a means for detecting the operation of replenishing consumable members to the process cartridge to know the number of times the consumable members are replenished, and a means for detecting the number of times the consumable members are replenished after a predetermined number of replenishments. A process cartridge comprising: means for disabling replenishment of components.