JPH04362961A - Process cartridge and image forming device capable of loading the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the exchange of a process cartridge by joining and assembling a case and enabling it to be disassembled, besides. CONSTITUTION:An upper and a lower frame bodies A and B are coupled by a pawl 250 and a screw 251. That means, they are coupled by elastically engaging the pawl 250 provided on the frame body A with an aperture 251 provided on the frame body B. Sealing members 213b and 214b are respectively interposed by the frame bodies A and B. A toner housing part 242 is formed by coupling the frame bodies A and B to a blade holder 241a holding a regulating blade 241. Then, a sealing member 214a is provided at the coupled part so as to prevent toner from being leaked from the coupled part. Besides, the discharge toner housing part 232 of a cleaning device is formed by coupling the frame bodies A and B to a cleaning holder holding the frame body A and a cleaning blade 230.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a process cartridge and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed. Here, the image forming apparatus includes, for example, a copying machine, a laser beam printer, etc. to which an electrophotographic method, an electrostatic recording method, or the like is applied.

0002

[Background Art] When an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine is used for a long period of time, the photosensitive drum serving as the image bearing member is replaced, the developing device is replaced, developer (toner) is replenished, and the charger is discharged. It is necessary to clean the wires, replace the cleaning device that is full of waste toner, and adjust or replace other equipment surrounding the photosensitive drum.

[0003] However, performing such maintenance work requires specialized skills and knowledge, which is not easy for general users.

[0004] Therefore, the photosensitive drum and process means such as a developing device, a charging device, and a cleaning device are integrally assembled in a cartridge container, and the process cartridge is removably attached to the main body of an image forming apparatus, and the above-mentioned process equipment is used. It has been proposed and implemented to facilitate maintenance by replacing the entire process cartridge when maintenance is required.

FIG. 17 shows the structure of this process cartridge.
Shown below. As shown in the figure, a cleaning device 13 and a developing device 11 are provided on both sides of the photosensitive drum 10. A toner container 11 is located approximately above the developing device 11.
0 is connected to the developing device 11. Furthermore, charging device 1
2 is arranged substantially above the photosensitive drum 10. The cleaning device 13 cleans residual toner on the circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum 10 to prepare the photosensitive drum 10 for the next image formation. This cleaning device 13
The cleaner container 13a collects waste toner, the cleaning blade 131 rubs against the photosensitive drum 10 to scrape off the residual toner on the circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum 10, and the cleaner container 13a collects the waste toner scraped off by the cleaning blade 131. 13a, and a stirring member (not shown) that conveys the waste toner in the cleaner container 13a into the cleaner container 13a.

On the other hand, the developing device 11 supplies toner to the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 10 to make the latent image visible. The structure includes a developing container 11a that constitutes a developing chamber, a developing sleeve 112 that supplies toner to the circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum 10, and a toner that rubs against the developing sleeve 112 to charge the toner and simultaneously apply the toner onto the circumferential surface of the developing sleeve 112. The developing blade 11b forms a toner layer of a constant thickness. Further, an opening 11c is provided on the surface of the developer container 11a opposite to the photosensitive drum 10, and the developer container 11a and the toner container are connected to each other so as to engage with an opening (not shown) of a toner container 110 containing toner. 110 are connected.

[0007]

However, in the conventional example described above, when the toner in the toner container 110 is used up, it becomes necessary to replace the process cartridge. Therefore, it is necessary to change the life span of the process cartridge. For example, in the case of a high-speed copying machine, the monthly copy volume is large and process cartridges must be replaced frequently. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the toner capacity and extend the life of the process cartridge. on the other hand,
In the case of small-sized copying machines, the monthly copy volume is small, and the main body of the machine is required to be lightweight and compact. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the toner capacity and make the process cartridge smaller. In this way, it is necessary to prepare process cartridges for each type of image forming apparatus main body.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems.

[0009]

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a process cartridge that allows multiple types of cartridges with different lifespans to be easily assembled when manufacturing process cartridges in a factory, and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed. It is to be.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a process cartridge that is extremely easy to assemble and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a process cartridge that is extremely easy to disassemble and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a process cartridge that is easy to disassemble and assemble, allows easy reuse of each component, and does not pollute the natural environment, and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed. It is to provide.

[0013]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and provides an image forming apparatus comprising an image bearing member and a process means capable of acting on the image bearing member. A process cartridge that can be installed in a process cartridge, comprising: a first housing that includes the image carrier and the process means; a second housing that can be engaged with and separated from the first housing and has a developer storage means; A process cartridge and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed are characterized in that the process cartridge has a housing.

[0014]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Examples of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, an outline of an image forming apparatus into which a process cartridge to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIG. In the figure, reference numeral 10 denotes an image carrier, such as a photosensitive drum, and around the photosensitive drum 10 are a developing device 11 and a charger 1.
2. Image forming process means such as a cleaning device 13 are provided. and photosensitive drum 10
These process means are integrally assembled in plastic process cartridge casings 14a and 14b, and are removably disposed within the apparatus main body 1 as a process cartridge 14 to facilitate maintenance. . The housing structure of this process cartridge will be described in detail later. A transfer charger 15 is disposed in the lower part of the apparatus main body where the photosensitive drum 10 in the process cartridge 14 mounted in the apparatus main body is located. Further, a paper feed tray 16, a paper feed roller 17, and a registration roller 18 are arranged on the paper feed side of the transfer charger 15. On the other hand, a paper guide 19, a fixing device 20, a paper discharge roller 21, and a paper discharge tray 22 are arranged on the paper discharge side.

Further, above the process cartridge 14, an illumination lamp 23 for illuminating the document and the illumination lamp 23 are provided.
The reflected image light of the light irradiated onto the original 0 is transferred to the photosensitive drum 1.
A short focus optical element array 24 for exposure to zero is provided. Further, a document table 25 is provided at the top of the apparatus main body 1 and is movable back and forth in the direction of arrow A in the figure. Note that 26 is a document pressure bonding plate.

Now, when the reflected image light of the light irradiated onto the document 0 from the illumination lamp 23 is irradiated onto the photosensitive drum 10 uniformly charged by the charger 12 via the short focus optical element array 24, this An electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 10 according to document information. The electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 1.
0 is sent to a position opposite to the developing device 11 as it rotates,
Toner t is supplied by the developing device 11 and converted into a toner image. Then, the transfer paper P is sent to the registration rollers 18 via the paper feed tray 16 and the paper feed roller 17, and is conveyed between the photosensitive drum 10 and the transfer charger 15 with the timing adjusted by the registration rollers 18. Then, by the action of the transfer charger 15, the photosensitive drum 10 is placed on the transfer paper P.
The upper toner image is transferred. The transfer paper P carrying the transferred toner image is sent to a fixing device 20, where the toner image is fixed as a permanent image, and then stacked on a paper ejection tray 22 by a paper ejection roller 21. Further, the photosensitive drum 10 after the transfer is cleaned of residual toner by a cleaning device 13, and is prepared for the next image formation. Note that 30a and 30b are process cartridges 14.
This is a guide that serves as a mounting means for mounting the device on the main body.

Next, the process cartridge 14 of this embodiment will be explained in more detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 2A, 2B, and 2C.

The casing of the process cartridge 14 to which this embodiment is applied includes an upper casing A (14a) and a lower casing B.
(14b), and housing A and housing B are joined,
It has a structure that can be disassembled. Here, the casings A and B are both manufactured by integral molding of plastic and have elasticity.

As shown in the figure, a toner container 110 serving as a developer storage container is integrally formed on the right side of the housing A, and a lid 111 is welded to the top to store toner t. A sealing member 113 is attached to the opening 111a of the toner container 110 on the side facing the developing device 11, as shown in FIG. 2C. One end thereof is folded back, protrudes outside the housing A, and is joined to the handle 114. That is, when the operator grasps the handle 114 and pulls it out, the sealing member 113 is peeled off from the opening 111a, and the toner t can be supplied to the developing sleeve 112. Further, on the lower side of the toner container 110, a connecting claw 2 is provided for connecting the housing A and the lower housing B.
7 is provided, and by engaging the claw 27 provided integrally with the case A and the opening 28 provided integrally with the case B, the upper case A and the lower case B are connected. can be easily combined. (Note that the claws 27 and openings 28 are provided at four locations in the depth direction in the drawing). More specifically, the opening 28 is engaged along the slope 27a of the claw 27 and the opening 28 is closed.
One end 28a is locked by the lower surface 27b of the claw 27. Here, since the claw 27 has elasticity, it can smoothly engage and disengage from the opening 28, and when engaged with the opening 28, the engagement between the two becomes stronger. Further, on the left side of the housing A, as shown in the figure, a waste toner container 130 is formed as a developer storage container. Then, one end of the housing A is bent to form a part 14a1 of the bottom surface of the container 130.
The lower casing B extends to a position overlapping the bottom surface 14a1, and is fixed with screws 29 in an overlapping manner. Therefore, container 1
The bottom surface of 30 is constructed by housing A and housing B working together. Further, an exposure opening 141 is provided in a portion of the housing A facing above the photosensitive drum 10. Seal members 26a and 26b made of, for example, foamed polyurethane are provided around the openings of the toner container and the cleaning container to prevent leakage of toner from the respective containers to the outside.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the housing B has a shape that covers the lower side of the process cartridge 14, and walls 102a and 102b rise from the side surfaces and extend to the lower surface of the housing A. Side walls 102a, 1 of this housing B
Support shafts 103a and 103b that rotatably support the photosensitive drum 10 are fixed to the support shaft 02b with screws 106a and 106b. Further, the lower side of the photosensitive drum 10 of the housing B is provided with a drive device (not shown) provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus for transferring the toner image on the photosensitive drum 10 onto the transfer paper P and for driving the photosensitive drum 10. An opening 101 is provided for receiving the . Further, above the side wall 102a of the housing B is a charging case 122 of the charger 12.
is supported via a fixing pin 125. A pin 128 is integrally formed at the other end of the charging case 122, and is fitted into a hole 129 in the side wall 102b of the housing B and supported. A spring 12 is installed inside the charging case 122.
Bearings 123a and 123b are provided via 4a and 124b, and the charging roller 121 is
The charging roller 121 supports the shaft 130 of the photosensitive drum 10 and urges the charging roller 121 toward the photosensitive drum 10. Further, one end of the charging case 122 extends outside the housing B, contains an electrode plate 126 for supplying power to the charging roller 121, and is connected to a power supply contact of the image forming apparatus main body (not shown). There is.

Next, the cleaning device 13 and the developing device 12 will be explained in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2B. In the housing B, there is a cleaning blade 131 that rubs against the photosensitive drum 10 to scrape off residual toner on the circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum 10.
Seat surfaces 133a and 133b are formed for attaching the cleaning blade 131 to the seat surfaces 133a and 133b.
is fixed with screws 135. Also, housing B
A pick sheet 132 is attached to one longitudinal end of the opening 101 on the lower side. Further, the side wall of the housing B is bent inward from the photosensitive drum 10 to the toner container 110 side, and at this part, the sleeve bearings 117a and 117b that support the developing sleeve 112 are connected to the springs 118a and 117b.
18b. And developing sleeve 11
Gap retaining members 116a and 116b are attached to 2 to maintain a constant gap between the photosensitive drum 10 and the developing sleeve 112, and biased against the photosensitive drum by springs 118a and 118b. Further, a gear 119 is attached to one end of the developing sleeve 112 in mesh with a drum gear 104 attached to the photosensitive drum 10, and is driven to rotate in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1 as the photosensitive drum 10 rotates. Ru. Further, a cylindrical magnet roller 115 having a plurality of magnetic poles on the circumference is disposed inside the developing sleeve 112.
The shafts at both ends are supported by the housing B. Also,
Above the developing sleeve 112, a developing blade 120 is attached to a seat surface (not shown) that protrudes from the side walls 102a, 102b of the housing B.

In this way, the photosensitive drum 10 is installed in the lower housing B.
, cleaning blade 131, scraper sheet 132,
Charger 12, developing sleeve 112, developing blade 120
is installed. Therefore, since the positional accuracy of each component relative to the photosensitive drum can be determined with the accuracy of the housing B,
Positioning becomes easy and highly accurate.

Further, in the process cartridge 14 according to this embodiment, the upper case A and the lower case B can be disassembled, as described above. Therefore, the process cartridge 14 in which the toner in the toner container 110 has been used up is collected and disassembled into casing A and casing B. After cleaning the housing A, a new sealing material 113 is applied, the toner cap 31 is removed and toner is refilled from the filling port 31a, and the toner cap 31 is then press-fitted again. On the other hand, worn parts, creeped rubber parts, etc., which cannot be reused in the housing B can be replaced, and both the housings can be reassembled and shipped.

[0025] Furthermore, the above-mentioned casing B to which the process equipment is attached
By joining the casing 14c with the casing 14c, which has a shape as shown in FIG. 1 and has a larger toner capacity and discharged toner capacity than the above-mentioned casing B, a longer life span that can be used with different types of image forming apparatus bodies can be achieved. Easily manufacture different types of process cartridges.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment according to the present invention.

In the figure, 138 is a pipe for discharging waste toner from the process cartridge 14, and is connected to a waste toner bottle (not shown) provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus. A spiral waste toner feeder 139 is disposed within the waste toner container 130 for guiding and discharging the waste toner to a discharge pipe 138, one end of which is connected to a drive gear (not shown). The drive gear is driven by the drum gear 104 and rotated. In this case, the upper housing A only needs to be provided with the toner container 110;
There is no need to have a waste toner container (because the waste toner capacity does not vary depending on the toner capacity). In this embodiment, the waste toner container is formed by joining a housing A and a housing B.

Further, 14c represents another type of shape of the housing A. According to the housing 14c, the toner container 11
0 is located further down, and a toner conveying means (not shown) is provided within the toner container 110. Toner container 1
A housing B extends from both sides of the housing 10 and is coupled to coupling claws 27 provided at both ends of the toner container 110 of the housing A.

By the way, in the above embodiment, a process cartridge having a developing means was exemplified, but it goes without saying that the present invention may be applied only to the waste toner container of the cleaning means in a process cartridge in which the developing means is separate. be.

Further, other embodiments of the present invention will be explained using FIG. 5 and FIGS. 6(A) and 6(B). Furthermore, Figure 5
6(A) is a side sectional view of a process cartridge to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied; FIG. 6(A) is a perspective view of the upper housing; FIG. 6(B) is a side sectional view of a process cartridge to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied.
is a perspective view of the lower housing.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, in addition to the engagement between the claw and the opening, screw fastening was used to assemble the casing A and the casing B, but the embodiment described next uses the engagement between the claw and the opening. The housing A and the housing B can be assembled by simply putting them together.

[0032] Note that the same drawing numbers are given to the same members as in the above embodiment, and the description thereof is referred to. Further, the aa sectional view, bb sectional view, and cc sectional view shown in FIG. 5 refer to the aforementioned FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C. Furthermore, this embodiment can also be attached to an image forming apparatus, as shown in FIG.

In this embodiment, the casings A and B are locked together by engagement between the claws 27b and the openings 29, instead of the screws 29 used in the previous embodiments. That is, in this embodiment, four claws 27b are provided on the lower side of the bottom surface 14a1 of the waste toner container 130 formed on the left side of the housing A in the figure.
is provided. On the other hand, in case B, there is a bottom surface 14a of case A.
Four openings 29 are provided in the portion overlapping with 1. Therefore, similarly to the toner container 110 side, the waste toner container 13
On the 0 side as well, the claw 27b on the housing A side and the opening 29 on the housing B side engage, and the housings A and B are assembled. Note that 27C is the slope of the claw 27b, and 29a is the locking end of the opening 29. In this embodiment, the claws 27 on the toner container 110 side and the claws 27b on the waste toner container 130 side both have their toes facing outward, that is, their toes are in opposite directions. Therefore, the elasticity of the plastic casings A and B, that is, the elastic force of the claws 27 and 27b, complement each other and the opening 28
・Since it engages with 29, the connection between the two casings A and B becomes stronger.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the process cartridge can be disassembled more easily.

That is, in this embodiment, the upper case A and the lower case B are connected by connecting claws 27 and 27b. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, by setting the process cartridge 14 in the disassembly tool 200, protruding the rods 201 and 202 and pushing the claws 27 and 27b, both the casings A and B can be easily disassembled. .

Furthermore, the casings A and B can be disassembled by pressing the pawls 27 and 27b without using such a tool, but in this case it is preferable to press a plurality of pawls at the same time. It is not as easy as using it.

Further, another embodiment of the process cartridge to which the present invention is applied will be described. Each of the embodiments described below is an example in which a sealing member is further provided to prevent the developer from leaking to the outside of the cartridge.

First, a cartridge provided with a sealing member will be explained using FIGS. 8 to 11.

FIG. 8 shows a cross section of the process cartridge of this embodiment. This process cartridge 20
Reference numeral 1 denotes a photosensitive drum 202 as an image carrier, and a cleaning device 203 as a process means disposed around the photosensitive drum 202.
, the developing device 204 and the charging device 205 are connected to the cartridge frame 20.
1a, and these are integrally attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus as a unit. When the photosensitive drum 202 or the developing device 204 reaches the end of its life, the cleaning device 203 is full of waste toner, or the developing device 204 is used up, the entire process cartridge 201 is replaced with a new one. This facilitates maintenance by replacing the process cartridge with a new one. In this embodiment, a well-known corona charger is shown as the charger 205, but the charger 205 is a well-known corona charger.
A contact charger as described in No. 60 may also be used.

The cleaning device 203 is the photosensitive drum 202
The cleaning blade 230 removes waste toner (waste developer) from the toner, a scooping sheet 231 prevents the removed waste toner from leaking outside, and a waste toner storage section 232 stores the waste toner inside. There is. This waste toner storage section 232 is formed by coupling a cleaning container 203a and a blade holder 230a to a cartridge frame 201a via a sealing member 213.
This seal member 213 prevents toner from leaking from the joint.

Further, the developing device 204 rotates in a fixed direction,
The toner (developer) held on the outer periphery of the photosensitive drum 2
A regulating blade 24 that regulates the layer thickness of the developing sleeve 240 and the toner on the developing sleeve 240 that is supplied to the developing sleeve 240.
1, stores toner inside and transfers it to the developing sleeve 240.
It is composed of a toner storage section 242 and the like that supplies toner. This toner storage portion 242 is formed by connecting the toner storage container 212 and the developer container 204a with a seal member 214 with a screw or the like so that it can be disassembled and cleaned. This seal member 214 prevents toner from leaking from the joint.

In the process cartridge configured as described above, the photosensitive drum 202 is uniformly charged by the charger 205.
When exposed to image light, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 202. The electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 202.
As the developer rotates, it moves toward the developing device 204, and the developing device 2
The toner is supplied by the developing sleeve 240 of No. 04 and is visualized as a toner image. The toner image is transferred onto the transfer paper via a transfer charger (not shown), and the remaining toner is transferred to the photosensitive drum 202 after the transfer.
It is removed by a cleaning blade 230 that rubs against the surface, and is prepared for the next image formation. Note that the waste toner removed by the cleaning blade 230 is accumulated in the waste toner storage section 232 of the cleaning device 203 via a scooping sheet 231 that also rubs against the photosensitive drum 202.

[0043] Here, the seal members 213 and 21 described above
4 will be further explained using FIGS. 9 and 10.

The sealing member in this embodiment has a material R made of two-component urethane rubber on each of the coupling surface 201b (FIG. 9) of the cartridge frame 201a and the coupling surface 212a (FIG. 10) of the toner storage container 212. Inject from nozzle 215. Since this material R is a foamable material, it solidifies while foaming on the bonding surfaces 201b and 212a approximately 30 seconds to 10 minutes after injection, and becomes an elastic elastomer.

The injection route for the material R starts from (a) in FIG. 9, proceeds in the directions of arrows 216 and 217, and overlaps at the original point (a) to form a closed loop route. Figure 10
Similarly, regarding the sealing member 214 shown in FIG.
is injected via the route back to. Since the surfaces to be injected, that is, the bonding surfaces 201b and 212a, have grooves 211 formed in advance as shown in FIG. 11, the material R that will become the sealing member
The seal material easily flows into the groove and then solidifies into an elastic elastomer, so the seal material does not easily come off from the bonding surface or shift laterally.

The sealing members 213 and 214 solidified on the coupling surface in this manner are attached to the cartridge frame 20, respectively.
1a, by connecting the cartridge frame 201a and the toner storage container 212 to the cleaning container 203a and the developing container 204a, respectively, while attached to the toner storage container 212, the sealing members 213 and 214 prevent toner from leaking from this joint. plays a role in preventing The height h (
Since the containers shown in FIG. 11) are made higher than the gap C (FIG. 8) after the containers are combined, the containers can be crushed to the height of the gap C and filled in by combining the containers.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the injection route, injection speed, and injection flow rate of the injection nozzle for the material R are completely automatically controlled, so that the sealing member can be reliably and easily formed along the bonding surface. , there is no problem even with a complicated route as shown in FIG.

In the above explanation, foamed polyurethane rubber was used as the material R of the sealing member, but the material is not limited to this, and elastomers (elastic polymeric substances) such as soft rubber such as silicone rubber and soft plastics may also be used. Similar effects can be obtained by using

In this way, a liquid elastomer such as foamed polyurethane rubber is solidified as a sealing member at the joint of a plurality of parts forming the toner storage section and waste toner storage section of the developing device 204 and the cleaning device 203 in the process cartridge. Since the toner is used in a container having a complicated shape, it is possible to easily and reliably seal the joint portion of a container with a complicated shape. Furthermore, since a closed loop of the injection path can be easily formed, toner leakage from the joints of the sealing member, which has been a problem in the past, can be prevented.

Next, a process cartridge showing another embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. 12, 13, and 14.

FIG. 12 shows a process cartridge formed by combining an upper frame member A and a lower frame member B. As shown in FIG. In this figure, the same elements as in FIG. 8 are designated by the same reference numerals.

The process cartridge shown in FIG. 12 is similar to that shown in FIG.
As shown in 3, the upper and lower frame bodies A and B have claws 250 and screws 251.
are combined with. That is, the claw 2 provided on the upper frame body A
50 elastically engages with an opening 251 provided in the lower frame body B, and the upper frame body A and the lower frame body B are combined. Upper and lower frames A, B
sandwich seal members 213b and 214b, respectively. The toner storage section 242 includes upper and lower frames A and B, and a blade holder 241 that holds the upper frame A and the regulating blade 241.
A sealing member 214a is provided at this joint portion to prevent toner from leaking from the joint portion. Further, the waste toner storage section 232 of the cleaning device 203 has upper and lower frames A and B, and a cleaning holder 230a that holds the upper frame A and the cleaning blade 230.
A sealing member 213a is provided at this joint to prevent toner from leaking from the joint.

Here, the inside of the upper frame body A in FIG.
FIG. 14 shows a view from this direction. In this example, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, a material R made of two-component urethane rubber is injected from a nozzle 215 onto the joining surfaces of the upper and lower frames of the toner storage section and the waste toner storage section. Since this material R is a foaming material, the bonding surfaces 201b and 212 are bonded in approximately 30 seconds to 10 minutes after injection.
It becomes an elastic elastomer while foaming on a. The injection path starts at (a), proceeds to arrows 216 and 217, and overlaps at the original point (a) to form a closed loop path. Surface to be implanted, that is, bonding surface 201b/212
Since the groove a is pre-formed, the material R easily flows into the groove and solidifies into an elastic elastomer, so the sealing member does not easily come off or shift laterally. The seal members 213 and 214 solidified on the container in this way are attached to the upper frame body A and combined with the lower frame body B, so that the seal members 213 and 214
serves to prevent toner leakage from the toner storage section and waste toner storage section. In addition, since the height h (see Fig. 11) of the solidified elastic sealing members 213 and 214 is higher than the gaps C1, C2, C3, and C4 (Fig. 12) after the frames are combined, it is possible to It can be crushed to the height of the gaps C1 to C4 to fill the gaps.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, as in the previous embodiment, the injection path of the injection nozzle, the injection speed of the material R, and the injection flow rate are completely automatically controlled to ensure that the sealing member is easily attached to the bonding surface. It is possible to inject along. moreover,
Since the injection points can be grouped together on one frame side,
Since injection can be performed with one positioning, the number of work steps can be significantly reduced.

Further, as the material R that can be used, elastomers such as soft rubber and soft plastic can be selected as in the above embodiments.

By the way, in the above embodiment, it was shown that the liquid elastomer was injected into the bonding surface, but here,
A system for mixing a two-component reactive liquid as a liquid elastomer and discharging it from a nozzle 215 will be described with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 15, precision metering pumps 262 and 26 are used to obtain the optimum mixing ratio for the two-liquid reaction from tanks A60 and B61 containing liquids A and B, respectively.
3, liquid A and liquid B are sent to the mixing and stirring section 264, respectively. In the mixing/stirring section 264, forced stirring is performed by a motor so that liquid A and liquid B are mixed uniformly. Since it takes at least about 30 seconds for these two liquids to react and solidify to become an elastic elastomer, the liquid elastomer is discharged from the nozzle 215 of the discharge section 265 in the middle of the reaction. Then, the mixing and stirring section 264 and the discharge section 26
5. The injection head including the nozzle 215 injects the liquid elastomer into the injection member while moving in three axial directions of X, Y, and Z according to the shape of the injection member such as the container described above.

The measurement of the mixing ratio of the two liquids by the metering pumps 262 and 263 for liquids A and B, the mixing agitation speed, the travel path of the injection head in the X, Y, and Z directions, the injection speed, etc. are based on industrial specifications (not shown). The injection process is automatically controlled under optimal conditions according to the content pre-programmed into the robot's controller.

Regarding the materials injected in this way, the materials adopted in the above-mentioned embodiments are as follows.

[0060]

[Table 1]

Next, as a liquid elastomer, instead of using the two-part reactive liquid of this example, N2 is added to the one-component reactive liquid.
A system in which gas is mixed and forcibly foamed, and the foam is discharged from the nozzle 15 will be described with reference to FIG. 16.

In FIG. 16, a liquid elastomer mainly made of polyurethane is heated to 70°C to 10°C in a heater 267.
While heating it to 0° C., it is pumped from the stored tank 266 to a foam mix machine 268. In the foam mix machine 268, the liquid sent out from the tank 266 is mixed with N2 gas from the device 269 to undergo a foaming reaction, and before the liquid elastomer solidifies, it is poured from the nozzle 215 of the discharge part 270 into an injection member such as a container. Liquid elastomer is injected.

Here, the mixing of N2 gas, the delivery of the raw materials, the travel path of the injection head in the X, Y, and Z directions, the injection speed, etc. are handled by an industrial robot (not shown) as in the case of the two-component reaction liquid. The injection process is automatically controlled by the controller to maintain optimal conditions.

The physical properties of the elastomer in this example include an elongation of 100 to 200% and a hardness (Asker C) of 4.
~15, it is preferable that the elastic elastomer exhibits a compression recovery value of 90% or more and is sufficient to function as a sealing member.

In the above-mentioned embodiments, the process cartridge has both the waste toner storage section of the cleaning means and the toner storage section of the developing means, but the present invention is not limited to this. Of course, the present invention may also be applied.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the liquid elastomer is injected into the joining part of the plurality of members forming the developer accommodating part of the process cartridge and solidified to form the sealing member. It is possible to prevent leakage of developer more easily and reliably than with other methods, and it is possible to cope with complex shapes of joints.

Furthermore, since the liquid elastomer injection can be automatically controlled, the ease of assembling the process cartridge is improved.

The above-mentioned process cartridge may be one that integrally has at least one of an image carrier and a process means that acts on the image carrier. More specifically, the above-mentioned process cartridge is a cartridge in which a charging means, a developing means, or a cleaning means and an electrophotographic photoreceptor are integrated into a cartridge, and this cartridge is used in the main body of an image forming apparatus (for example, a copying machine, an LBP, etc.). It can be attached to and detached from the An image forming apparatus (
For example, a copying machine, an LBP, etc.) can be attached to and detached from the main body.

As explained above, according to each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the housing of the process cartridge is divisible, one housing supports the image bearing member and the process means that acts on it, and the other housing supports the image bearing member and the process means acting on it. The following effects can be obtained by integrally attaching a toner container pre-filled with toner and/or a container for storing waste toner to the body, and by joining the casing to make it possible to assemble and further disassemble it.

1. By replacing the housing containing the toner container, which is a developer storage container, process cartridges with different lifespans and cross-sectional shapes can be easily supplied.

2. Production management is simplified because the image carrier and the casing that supports the process means can be unified.

3. Furthermore, if the process cartridge that has used up the toner in the toner container is collected, the housing is disassembled, parts that have exceeded their service life are replaced, and the housing with the toner container that has been refilled with new toner is joined together, the process can be completed. Cartridges can be easily reused.

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a process cartridge with improved ease of assembly and an image forming apparatus into which the process cartridge can be installed.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of a process cartridge to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2A is a sectional view taken along line a-a in FIG. 1. B is a cross-sectional view taken along line bb in FIG. 1. C is a sectional view taken along line cc in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an image forming apparatus in which a process cartridge of the present invention can be freely attached and detached.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a process cartridge representing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a process cartridge to which still another embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 6 (A) is a perspective view of the upper casing. (B) It is a perspective view of the lower casing.

FIG. 7 is a state diagram when disassembling the process cartridge.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a process cartridge to which the present invention can be applied.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a state in which liquid elastomer is injected into the coupling surface of the cartridge frame.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state in which liquid elastomer is injected into the joint surface of the toner storage container.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which liquid elastomer is injected into the bonding surface.

FIG. 12 is a sectional view of a process cartridge showing an embodiment to which the present invention is applied.

13 is a sectional view showing a state in which the process cartridge shown in FIG. 12 is separated into an upper frame body and a lower frame body.

14 is a perspective view showing a state in which liquid elastomer is injected into the joint surface of the upper frame shown in FIG. 13. FIG.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating a liquid elastomer injection system.

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating a liquid elastomer injection system.

FIG. 17 is a side sectional view of a conventional process cartridge.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Photosensitive drum 11 Developing device 12 Charger 13 Cleaning devices 14a, 14b Process cartridge housing 14
Process cartridge 27, 27b Claw 29 Opening 201 Process cartridge

Claims (12)

[Claims] Claims: 1. A process cartridge, which includes an image carrier and a process means capable of acting on the image carrier, and is mountable in an image forming apparatus, the process cartridge having the image carrier and the process means. a first casing, and a second casing that can be engaged with and separated from the first casing and has a developer storage means.
A process cartridge comprising: a housing; 2. The process cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the developer accommodating means stores a developer to be supplied to the developing means. 3. The process cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the developer storage means can store the developer removed from the image carrier. 4. The process cartridge is characterized in that a charging means, a developing means, or a cleaning means and an electrophotographic photoreceptor are integrated into a cartridge, and the cartridge is removably attached to the main body of an image forming apparatus. The process cartridge according to claim 1. 5. The process cartridge is characterized in that at least one of a charging means, a developing means, and a cleaning means and an electrophotographic photoreceptor are integrated into a cartridge, which is removably attached to the main body of an image forming apparatus. The process cartridge according to claim 1. 6. An image forming apparatus into which a process cartridge can be installed and which performs recording on a recording medium, comprising: a first casing having an image bearing member and a process means, the first casing being engaged with the first casing; - A second housing that is separable and has a developer storage means, a means for mounting a process cartridge, and a conveyance means for conveying the recording medium. image forming device. 7. A process cartridge that includes an image carrier and a process means that acts on the image carrier and is removably attached to an image forming apparatus, a first process that supports the image carrier and the process means. a cartridge housing;
a second process cartridge housing provided with a developer storage container, and a process cartridge is configured by joining the first process cartridge housing and the second process cartridge housing. cartridge. 8. The process cartridge according to claim 7, wherein the developer storage container is a container that stores developer used for development. 9. The process cartridge according to claim 7, wherein the developer storage container is a container for storing waste developer. 10. The process cartridge according to claim 7, wherein the developer storage container includes a container for storing developer used for development and a container for storing waste developer. 11. The first process cartridge housing is capable of being selectively joined to at least two second process cartridge housings provided with developer storage containers having different developer storage capacities. The process cartridge according to claim 7. 12. The process cartridge includes a first;
The process cartridge according to claim 7, wherein the process cartridge is recyclable after the second process cartridge housing is disassembled.