JPH05289513A - Developer container, developing unit, and process cartridge with them - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enhance the shape precision of a developer discharging port when a belt-like developer discharging port is formed on a sealing member at the using by sticking or thermally melt-sticking the sealing member to the periphery of a developer discharging opening part, and sealing it. CONSTITUTION:Recessed regions 141, 142, and 143 are provided in the same direction as a pulling direction P, on the sticking region 14 of the sealing member 9 provided on the bottom plate 7 of the opening edge of the discharging opening part 8 of a container main body 6. The sealing member 9 is stuck or melt-stuck to the sticking region 14, and an unsealing operational part 13 is projected from a sealing part 15 sealing the discharging opening part 8. The width of the unsealing operational part 13, a distance between outside edge lines 141A and 142B, and the width W2 of a part to be removed 16, are equal.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a developer container containing a developer for developing an electrostatic latent image, a developing device for developing the electrostatic latent image, and an image bearing member carrying the electrostatic latent image. The present invention relates to a process cartridge having a developing device and a developing device, which can be attached to and detached from an electrophotographic apparatus main body.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional developing device comprises a developer container, which is a separate member from a developing device in which a developing roller, a developing sleeve, a developing layer thickness regulating blade, etc. are incorporated as a developing member, and the container is a developing device via a bottom plate. Are integrally arranged in the section. A laterally long slit-shaped developer discharge opening is formed in the longitudinal direction of the bottom plate, and the developer discharge opening communicates with the inside of the developing unit. This developer discharge opening is sealed by a seal member to block the communication between the developer container and the developing unit, and the developer is maintained in a hermetically sealed state in the container, and the distribution and storage process of the developing device is performed. The developer is prevented from leaking out of the device, is scattered, and is moisture-proof. At the time of use, the above-mentioned sealing member is pulled out of the apparatus to open the lateral slit opening and communicate with the developing unit. The sealing member is a flexible sealing member and is easily peel-bonded to the four edges of the horizontally elongated slit opening of the bottom plate by a bonding means such as heat sealing (heat welding), impulse sealing, or high frequency welding.

Further, at least an electrophotographic photosensitive member and a developing device are integrated into a process cartridge, and the developing device is adjacent to a developing chamber in which a developing sleeve and a developing layer thickness regulating blade are incorporated, and a wall constituting the developing chamber. A container in which the developer is stored is integrally provided through a partition wall, a developer discharge opening is provided in the partition wall, and the developer discharge opening is provided with a seal member on the bottom plate of the developer container described above. A seal member is installed.

[0004]

A sheet-like sealing member for sealing the developer discharge opening of the developer container body is adhered to the container body by heat welding or the like in the adhesion region surrounding the opening, and then sealed. A developer container in which the above-mentioned opening is opened by peeling off a member from this adhesion region is known from JP-A-2-197874 and the like.

In this known technique, since it is necessary to adhere the seal member to the container body so that it can be peeled off, it is difficult to control the adhesive strength. Peeling is likely to occur and developer leakage is likely to occur. Further, due to scratches on the seal member, damage at the time of adhesion processing, etc., there are cases where the seal member is obliquely cut, torn or the like when peeled off.

As a means for solving the above-mentioned drawbacks of the known art, a seal member having directionality such as uniaxially stretched polypropylene and easy to tear along a straight line, or a seal member having perforations is formed. There is a technique of sealing the developer discharge opening described above and tearing a long strip from the seal member to form a long opening in the seal member at the time of use (see JP-A-59-13262).

However, according to this method, the strip-shaped strip of the seal member that is torn tends to gradually become thinner or thicker as the tear progresses. Therefore, the width of the opening formed in the seal member becomes nonuniform in the longitudinal direction of the opening, and the amount of developer supplied to the developing container becomes uneven depending on the location.

A technique for solving the drawbacks of this prior art is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-315779.
In this prior art, a strip-shaped tear tape is joined to the seal member, and the seal member is torn into strips by the tear tape.

However, this technique requires a step of welding the tear tape to the seal member, which causes an increase in the cost of the product.

An object of the present invention is to provide a developer container provided with a sealing means for tearing a strip-shaped portion having a substantially constant width in the longitudinal direction when the seal member is torn to form a developer discharge port. And a developing device, and a process cartridge having the same.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a sealing means at a lower cost.

[0012]

A first invention of the present invention has a container body and a seal member, the container body has a developer discharge opening which is in close communication with the developing device body, and the seal member is Made of sheet material having tearability along two straight lines, and provided with a sealing portion and an opening operation portion, the sealing portion being along a straight line which is easy to tear in the longitudinal direction of the developer discharge opening of the container body. The opening operation portion is adhered or welded to an adhesive region of the container body that covers the opening portion and surrounds the opening portion in a direction. In the developer container that is protruded, folded back, and overlaps and extends on the sealing portion, the adhesion region is located at a position corresponding to the position where the opening operating portion projects from the sealing portion, in the same direction as the pulling direction of the opening operating portion. Has a concave area that is depressed in the direction A developer container according to claim Rukoto.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the concave area is
A first region and a second region which are parallel to a straight line which is the direction of tearability of the seal member, and a third region which connects the first region and the second region and which intersects with the straight line. And a longitudinal one edge line of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is on an extension of an outer edge line of the first region, and another longitudinal edge line of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is the above-mentioned The developer container according to the first invention, which is on an extension of an outer edge line of the second region.

In a third aspect of the present invention, the seal member is
1st invention or 2nd which has the flat yarn cloth which has a tearability in the direction along the straight line which is the direction of the tearability of the said sealing member.
The developer container according to the invention.

In a fourth aspect of the present invention, the flat yarn cloth included in the seal member has a uniaxially stretched resin film, and a straight line whose stretching direction is the direction of tearability of the seal member. The developer container according to the third invention is characterized in that the developer container is laminated so as to meet the requirements.

A fifth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the seal member has a hot melt adhesive layer, and the seal member is heat-welded to the adhesive region via the hot melt adhesive layer. The developer container according to the fourth invention.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a developer carrying member for carrying the developer and carrying it to the developing area is disposed, and a first chamber for containing the developer to be applied to the developer carrying member, and A second chamber for accommodating the developer to be supplied to the first chamber, a developer discharge opening for discharging the development from the second chamber to the first chamber,
The container includes a container having an adhesive area surrounding the developer discharge opening, and a sealing member, and the sealing member includes a sealing portion made of a sheet material having tearability along one straight line and an opening operation portion. The sealing portion is adhered or welded to a bonding area of the container surrounding the opening while covering the opening in a direction along a straight line that easily tears in the longitudinal direction of the developer discharge opening of the container. In the developing device, wherein the unsealing operation portion is continuous with the sealing portion, protrudes on the extension of the removed portion of the sealing member to be provided in the sealing portion, is folded back, and extends over the sealing portion. Is a developing device characterized in that it has a concave-shaped region which is recessed in a direction corresponding to the direction in which the unsealing operation part projects from the sealing part, in the same direction as the pulling direction of the unsealing operation part.

In a seventh aspect of the present invention, the concave area is
A first region and a second region which are parallel to a straight line which is the direction of tearability of the seal member, and a third region which connects the first region and the second region and which intersects with the straight line. And a longitudinal one edge line of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is on an extension of an outer edge line of the first region, and another longitudinal edge line of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is the above-mentioned A developing device according to a sixth aspect of the invention, which is on an extension of the outer edge line of the second region.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, the seal member is
The developing device according to the sixth invention or the seventh invention, characterized in that the developing device has a flat yarn cloth having tearability in a direction along a straight line which is a direction of tearability of the seal member.

In a ninth aspect of the present invention, the uniaxially stretched resin film is formed on the flat yarn cloth included in the seal member in a straight line whose stretching direction is the direction of tearability of the seal member. The developing device according to the eighth invention is characterized in that it is laminated so as to follow.

A tenth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the seal member has a hot melt adhesive layer, and the seal member is heat-welded to the adhesive region through the hot melt adhesive layer. The developing device according to the ninth invention.

An eleventh invention of the present invention has an image bearing member carrying an electrostatic latent image and a developing device for developing a latent electrostatic image by applying a developer to the image bearing member in a developing area. A process cartridge attachable to and detachable from a forming apparatus, wherein a developing device is provided with a developer carrying member for carrying a developer and carrying the developer to a developing area. The developer carrying member stores a developer to be applied to the developer carrying member. A chamber, a second chamber for accommodating the developer supplied to the first chamber, a developer discharge opening for discharging the developer from the second chamber to the first chamber, and surrounding the developer discharge opening And a sealing member having a bonding region, the sealing member being made of a sheet material having tearability along a straight line, and having a sealing portion and an opening operation portion, the sealing portion of the container. In the direction along the straight line that is easy to tear in the longitudinal direction of the developer discharge opening Is adhered or welded to the adhesive region of the container that covers the opening and surrounds the opening, and the unsealing operation portion is continuous with the sealing portion and protrudes above the extension of the removed portion of the sealing member to be provided in the sealing portion. In the process cartridge that is folded back and extends over the sealing portion, the adhesive region is recessed at a position corresponding to the position where the opening operating portion projects from the sealing portion in the same direction as the pulling direction of the opening operating portion. It is a process cartridge having an oval-shaped region.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, the concave-shaped region includes first and second regions which are parallel to a straight line which is a direction of easy tearing of the seal member, and the first and second regions. A third region connecting the regions in a direction intersecting with the straight line, and one edge line in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is on an extension of the outer edge line of the first region. The other edge line in the longitudinal direction of the opening / closing operation portion of the seal member is the second
No. 11 characterized by being on an extension of an outer edge line of the region
The process cartridge according to the invention.

A thirteenth invention of the present invention is characterized in that the seal member has a flat yarn cloth having tearability in a direction along a straight line which is a direction of tearability of the seal member. It is a process cartridge according to the eleventh invention or the twelfth invention.

In a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the uniaxially stretched resin film is provided on the flat yarn cloth included in the seal member, and the stretched direction is a straight line in which the seal member is easy to tear. The process cartridge according to the thirteenth invention is characterized in that the process cartridge is laminated so as to follow the above.

A fifteenth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the seal member has a hot melt adhesive layer, and the seal member is heat-welded to the adhesive region via the hot melt adhesive layer. The process cartridge according to the fourteenth invention.

[0027]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a developing device equipped with a developer container to which the present invention can be applied. In FIG. 1, an electrostatic latent image is formed by a latent image forming unit (not shown) on the electrophotographic photosensitive member 1 which is an electrostatic latent image carrier rotating in the direction of the arrow. This electrostatic latent image is developed by the developing device D.

The developing device D has a main container 5 in which the developing roller 2 is rotatably provided. A developing chamber 1 for accommodating the developer supplied from a developer container (developer cartridge) C described later in the main container 5 and applying the developer to the developing roller 2.
There is 0. The developing roller 2 rotates in the direction of the arrow, and the developing chamber 1
The developer applied within 0 is conveyed to the development area A. In the developing area A, the developing roller 2 applies a developer to the electrostatic latent image, and the latent image is developed. The layer thickness of the developer carried and carried by the developing roller 2 in the developing area A is regulated by the doctor plate 4 fixed to the main container 5.

The developing device D includes a guide 1 provided in the main container 5.
1, the developer container C can be attached or detached. The developer container C moves in the longitudinal direction of the developing roller 2 (direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 1) and is attached to and detached from the main container 5.

Developer container C that is a cartridge
Is a container main body 6 containing the developer T, a developer discharge opening 8 for discharging the developer T between the container main bodies 6, and the opening 8 for sealing the developer before starting use. It has a sheet-shaped sealing member 9 for preventing T from leaking to the outside.

At the start of use, a part of the seal member 9 is torn and removed in a long strip shape, and a strip-shaped developer discharge port formed in the seal member 9 is opened in a strip shape parallel to the longitudinal direction. The developer T is discharged into the developing chamber 10.

The main container 5 of the developing device D is provided with an opening 12 through which the developer T discharged from the developer container C passes toward the developing chamber 10. That is, the developer container C is attached to the developing device D such that the developer discharge opening 8 and the seal member 9 are aligned with the opening 12 of the main container 5.

Incidentally, after substantially all the developer T inside has been discharged into the developing chamber 10, the developer container C is removed from the developing device D.

In the bottom plate 7 of the container body 6 in FIG. 2, a long discharge opening 8 is formed parallel to the longitudinal direction of the developing roller 2 in FIG. The discharge opening 8 is sealed with a sheet-shaped sealing member 9. The sealing member 9 is adhered to the adhesion area 14 provided on the bottom plate 7 so as to surround the entire circumference of the discharge opening 8 by a heat sealing method including a method such as impulse sealing or high frequency welding. ing. The seal member 9 may be adhered to the region 14 by an adhesive agent that does not use heat welding. The area 14 is preferably continuous over the entire circumference.

The seal member 9 is a sheet-like member that is easier to tear in the direction along one straight line than in the direction orthogonal to the straight line. Then, the sealing member 9 is bonded to the bonding region 14 of the container body 6 so that one straight line which is the direction of the tearability is along the longitudinal direction of the container body 6, in other words, the longitudinal direction of the discharge opening 8. It is fixed.

As shown in FIG. 4, the sealing member 9 is a sealing portion 15 that seals the discharge opening 8.
And an opening operation portion 13 which projects from the sealing portion 15 and can be applied with a pulling force.

On the other hand, the sealing portion 15 includes a strip-shaped removed portion 16 which is to be torn and removed from the sealing body 15 and which is long in the longitudinal direction of the container body 6. The width W ₂ of the removed portion 16 in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is equal to the width W ₂ of the discharge opening portion 8.
Is smaller than the width W _{1 in} the vertical direction of the longitudinal direction. For example, the width W ₁ is 60 mm and the width W ₂ is 20 mm.

The opening operation portion 13 is an extension of the removed portion 16 and its width is equal to W ₂ . Then, the unsealing operation portion 13 has its protruding base portion 13 ′ from the sealing portion 15.
The part is folded back in the pulling direction P.

The pulling direction P is the direction in which the removed portion 16 is torn from the sealing portion 15, and is therefore the direction along which the seal member 9 is easily torn.

When the operator grips the tip of the unsealing operation portion 13 and pulls it in the direction of arrow P, the removed portion 16 is torn from the sealing portion 15 in the direction of arrow P in a band shape, and the sealing portion 1
Removed from 5. As a result, a developer discharge port is formed in the sealed portion 15 where the removed portion 16 is removed.

The operator guides the developer container C into the guide 11
The removal target portion 16 can be removed from the sealing portion 15 by pulling the unsealing operation portion 13 during or after loading the developing device D along the direction.

As shown in FIG. 3, the above-mentioned bonding area 14 is formed.
Has a concave region depressed in the P direction at a position corresponding to the position where the unsealing operation portion 13 of the seal member 9 projects from the sealing portion 15.

The P concave region is a straight line L in the P direction.
The first and second regions 141 and 142 parallel to the
And a third region 143 that connects the second regions 141 and 142 in a direction intersecting with the straight line L, and one edge line 13A in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion 13 of the seal member 9 is the above-mentioned. The outer edge line 141A of the first region 141 is extended, and the other edge line 13B in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion 13 of the sealing member 9 is the outer edge line 142B of the second region 142.
Is an extension of. Therefore, the distance between the outer edge lines 141A and 142B is W ₂ which is the same as the width of the unsealing operation portion 13. Needless to say, the outer edge lines 141A and 142B are boundary lines between the bonded portion and the non-bonded portion of the sealing material 9 to the container body 6.

When the unsealing operation portion 13 is pulled in the direction of arrow P, the sealing portion 15 is adhesively fixed to the container body 6 in the regions 141 and 142, so that the portion to be removed 16 has the two outer edge lines 141A and 142B. It is torn from the sealing portion 15 at the location. That is, the filtering unit 16 is initiated tear has a width W _2, substantially the width W ₂ over the entire length of the sealing portion 15
Is torn into strips. (Note that, in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6, the opening operation portion 13 is not shown in a folded state, but it is actually folded as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4.) In the example, in the removal end side of the removed portion 16 from the sealing portion 15, the removed portion 16 is provided in the adhesion region 14.
Areas 144 and 145 are provided so as to sandwich the area. Area 1
44 and 145 are inclined with respect to the P direction, and the regions 144 and 145 are connected to the region 146 perpendicular to the P direction. The regions 144 and 145 reduce the force applied to the adhesive region 14 when the to-be-removed portion 16 is completely torn from the sealing portion 15, and the end portion of the to-be-removed portion 16 has the width W ₂ and is more smoothly opened. It makes it possible to get away from.

In the example of FIG. 6, the sealing portion 15 of the removed portion 16
From the termination end side of the
Areas 141 ', 142', 143 'similar to 2, 143'
According to the pulling direction P consisting of
4 is provided. This example also has the same effect as in FIG.

Now, as shown in FIG. 8, the seal member 9 of the above embodiment has a relatively wide flat yarn b2.
And a relatively narrow flat yarn b1 are woven so as to be substantially orthogonal to each other. Polyurethane can be used as the material of the flat yarn, but is not limited thereto.

The flat yarn cloth b has an easiness of tearing in a direction along a straight line (a straight line (P) in FIG. 8) perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the flat yarn b1 of the narrow yarn, and the flat yarn of the narrow yarn is It is difficult to tear in the longitudinal direction of b1.

In order to further improve the tearability, it is preferable to seal the flat yarn cloth b with polyethylene or silicone resin.

It is difficult to weld the polyurethane flat yarn cloth b, which is sealed with polyethylene or silicone resin, directly to the container body due to insufficient heat resistance during heat sealing. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, thermoplastic resin films a and c such as uniaxially stretched polypropylene or polyethylene terephthalate were dry laminated on both sides of the flat yarn cloth b to supplement heat resistance. At this time, the important thing is the polypropylene flat yarn cloth b
The direction of easy tearing (the direction perpendicular to the thinner flat yarn) and the stretching direction of the film to be dry laminated are made to coincide with each other. The reason for this is that the uniaxially stretched film has an easy tear property in the stretching direction and a difficult tear property in the perpendicular direction.

Then, a polyolefin hot melt adhesive d is extruded and laminated on one surface of the laminate composed of the films a, b and c, for example, the surface of the film c.
That is, wet lamination is performed to form the seal member 9.

Then, the hot-melt adhesive d layer of the seal member 9 is brought into contact with the container body 6 and heat-welded to the container body 6 at the adhesion region 14.

The polyolefin hot melt adhesive used here must adhere to the container body 6 stronger than the tear strength of the seal member 9. And seal member 9
It must be laminated to a thickness that does not significantly affect the tear strength of the. At that time, the thickness of the hot melt adhesive d layer is about 20 to 100 microns. However, the polypropylene flat yarn cloth has a tear strength of 50 to 200 g, and the uniaxially stretched polypropylene or polyethylene terephthalate film has a very low tear strength of 50 g or less. It is possible to choose.

If the material of the flat yarn cloth b is one that can sufficiently withstand the heat at the time of heat sealing, the film a and / or c of FIG. 7 is unnecessary. Further, when the seal member 9 is adhered to the container body 6 with an adhesive that does not rely on heat melting, the hot melt adhesive d is unnecessary, and the films a and / or c are also unnecessary.

[Example 1] As shown in FIG. 8, the seal member 9 comprises a weft flat yarn b2 having a width of 1.8 mm, a width of 1.
A thermoplastic polymer film uniaxially stretched on both sides of a flat yarn cloth (thickness 110 micron) b of a base material obtained by plain-weaving flat yarns b1 of warp yarns of 2 mm (flat yarns made of polypropylene, respectively) For example, polypropylene film (TOYOBOP
YLEN (product name) EM-H (product code) 20 μm thick films a and c were laminated by dry lamination. Then, on the surface of the film c, a polyolefin hot melt adhesive (content of ethylene vinyl acetate 20
%) D was extruded and laminated to a thickness of 50 microns.

Next, this laminated body is cut as shown in FIG. 4 to form a sealing member 9, and a bonding region 1 of a bottom plate 7 of a developer container body 6 obtained by injection molding polyphenylene oxide.
Heat sealed to 4. The heat seal pattern at this time is as shown in FIG.

Example 2 The same material as in Example 1 was used, and the heat seal pattern was as shown in FIG.

[Example 3] Using the same material as in Example 1, the heat seal pattern was as shown in FIG.

[Comparative Example] Polyolefin hot melt adhesive (ethylene vinyl acetate content 20%) on a uniaxially stretched polypropylene film (25 microns).
Was extruded to form a laminated body having a thickness of 50 μm.

This laminate was cut into the shape shown in FIG. 4 to form a seal member, which was heat-welded to the container body. The heat seal pattern at that time is the area 141, 142, 14 of FIG.
3 is eliminated and the entire bonding area is rectangular.

In each of the examples and comparative examples, the results obtained when the tip of the unsealing operation portion 13 was pulled in the direction of arrow P at a speed of 200 mm / min to remove the removed portion 16 from the sealing portion 15 are shown in the table. In the table, “A” is a tear start region of the removed portion 16, “C” is a tear end region, and “B” is an intermediate region between both regions.

In the first, second and third embodiments, the regions 141 and 14
Since 2 is provided, the removed portion 16 of the seal member 9 can be removed from the sealing portion 15 as if a paper is applied to the ruler and the tear is performed. Therefore, the tearing direction at the start of tearing and the tearing width are stable, so that the strip-shaped removed portion 1
It can be removed from the seal 15 with a substantially equal width up to the end of 6.

On the other hand, in the comparative example, the tearing direction and the tearing width at the start of tearing from the sealed portion of the removed portion are not stable, and the formed opening width varies in the longitudinal direction.

In the above example, the developer container is detachably attached to the developing device. However, the present invention can be applied to the process cartridge or the developing device detachably attached to the main body of the image forming apparatus.

In FIG. 9, the image forming apparatus main body 30 has an optical device, a transfer material conveying device, a transfer device, a fixing device, and a guide member 31 for guiding the process cartridge 20 to and from the main body 30 described below. To do.

The process cartridge 20 is formed on the photoconductor 1. The electrophotographic photoconductor 1 is an image carrier that carries an electrostatic latent image that rotates in the direction of the arrow, and the charger 21 that uniformly charges the photoconductor 1. The developing device D'for developing the electrostatic latent image and the cleaning device 22 for removing the toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 1 after the transfer of the developed image are provided. It is supported. Then, the process cartridge 20 slides along the guide member 31 in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. As a result, when the developer in the developing device D'is exhausted, the process cartridge 20 is taken out of the main body 30 by the operator, and instead, the developing device D'is replaced.
The process cartridge 20 having the developer previously filled therein can be loaded into the main body 30 by the operator. Further, by loading the process cartridge 20 containing the developer of the desired color in the main body 30, it is possible to output the image of the desired color.

The developing device D'is provided with a developing roller 2 as a developer carrying member for carrying the developer T and carrying it to the developing area A, and a first chamber for containing the developer T applied to the developing roller 2. Developing chamber 10 and a developer storage chamber 19 serving as a second chamber for containing the developer T supplied to the developing chamber 10,
The container 5 ′ is provided with a developer discharge opening 8 ′ for discharging the developer T from the developer storage chamber 19 to the developing chamber 10. The discharge opening 8'is provided in the developing chamber 10 and the developer storage chamber 1
It is provided on a partition wall 18 that partitions the partition 9.

A stirring member 17 rotatably provided in the storage chamber 19.

The stirring member 17 rotates in the direction of the arrow to stir the developer T in the developer storage chamber 19 and conveys it to the development chamber 10 through the developer discharge opening 8'provided in the partition wall 18 of the container 5 '. To do. The developing roller 2 carries the developer T carried into the developing chamber 10 and rotates in the direction of the arrow to rotate the photosensitive member 1.
Then, the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface is transferred to a developing area A where the electrostatic latent image is developed.

In the unused process cartridge 20, the seal member 9 in which the removed portion 16 has not been removed is adhered to the partition wall 18 of the container 5'in the same manner as described above. 9 seals the discharge opening 8 ', and prevents the developer T from leaking out of the container 5'and polluting the inside and outside of the process cartridge 20, resulting in unnecessary loss of the developer T. At the start of use of the process cartridge 20, the operator pulls the unsealing operation portion 13 whose front end portion is out of the frame 32 before or after the process cartridge 20 is loaded into the main body 30. The portion to be removed 16 of the seal member 9 is removed from the sealing portion 15 to open the discharge opening 8 ', and the developer T
Can be set to be movable from the developer storage chamber 19 to the developing chamber 10.

Next, the image forming operation will be described. The photoconductor 1 is first charged by the charger 21, and then the laser beam 34 modulated according to the image information signal to be recorded.
Is scanned and exposed to form an electrostatic latent image. The laser beam 34 is formed by a known optical device 35 including a semiconductor laser, a rotary polygon mirror, an f-θ lens, etc., and the mirror 3
It is reflected by 6 toward the photoreceptor 1.

The electrostatic latent image is developed by the developing device D'as described above. The toner image thus obtained is transferred onto a transfer material such as paper by the action of the transfer charger 37, and then the transfer material is separated from the photoconductor 1 by the action of the separation charge eliminator 38.

The apparatus for conveying the transfer material conveys the cassette 39 containing the transfer material, the pickup roller 40 for feeding the transfer material from the cassette 39, and the transfer material to the transfer area in synchronization with the movement of the toner image. It has a registration roller 41 and conveyance guides 42, 43, 44.

The transfer material separated from the photoreceptor 1 is a guide 4
Then, the toner image is fixed to the transfer material there. The transfer material after fixing is discharged onto the tray 46.

In the illustrated example, the photoconductor 1 is exposed to the laser beam, but the photoconductor may be exposed by the radiation light of the light emitting diode array driven by the image signal.
The image of the original may be directly exposed on the photoconductor through the lens. In addition, the charger 21 and / or the cleaning device 2
Process cartridges without 2 can also be used.

In FIG. 10, members and means having the same functions as those in FIG. 9 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description of the operation of each member and means is omitted.

In FIG. 10, unlike FIG. 9, the developing device D ′ can be attached / detached to / from the image forming apparatus main body 30 independently of the photosensitive member 1 and the like by being slidably guided by the guide member 31. This allows
When the developer T in the developing device D'is exhausted, the developing device D'is taken out of the main body 30 by the operator, and instead, the developer T is previously stored in the developer storage chamber 19. The filled developing device D ′ can be loaded into the main body 30 by an operator. Further, by loading the developing device D ′ containing the developer of the desired color in the main body 30, a developed image of the desired color can be formed. Figure 10
Since the structure relating to the developing device D'of No. 1 can be the same as that already described, the description thereof will be omitted.

[0078]

【The invention's effect】

(1) The present invention is a process cartridge having a developer container, a developing device, and a developing device, and a sealing member which is easily tearable in the same direction as the longitudinal direction of the developer discharge opening is adhered or welded around the opening. In the above, the adhesive region around the seal member and the developer discharge opening has a recessed region recessed in the same direction as the pulling direction of the unsealing operation unit at a position corresponding to the position where the unsealing operation unit projects from the sealing unit. For,
The opening can be formed as if a ruler was hit with a piece of paper and torn, and the developer discharge port formed in the sealing member is of equal width and parallel to the developing member. (2) The present invention according to the above (1), wherein the concave region includes first and second regions which are parallel to a straight line which is a direction in which the seal member is easily torn, and the first and second regions. And a third region in a direction intersecting with the straight line, which connects the regions of FIG. And the other edge line in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is the second
If it is on the extension of the outer edge line of the area, the tear area of equal width is cut before opening the developer discharge port formed in the seal member, so the adhesive area is peeled off with the same width. Therefore, it is possible to reliably form a developer discharge port having a uniform width and parallel to the developing roller. (3) In the above (1) and (2), when the seal member has a flat yarn cloth having tearability in a direction along a straight line which is a direction of tearability of the seal member, a sheet member is provided. Is capable of easily opening only a certain width with a light force, and the dimensional accuracy of the opening width is extremely high. Since the tearing direction is constant and the beginning of tearing is accurately formed in each of the above inventions, a developer discharge port having a uniform width and a predetermined width is formed over the entire length. Further, since the base material used in the present invention is made of polypropylene, it is relatively inexpensive. (4) In the flat yarn cloth included in the seal member in the above (3), the uniaxially stretched resin film has its stretching direction along a straight line in which the seal member is easy to tear. In addition, when laminated, the tear direction of the seal member is stable, and the edge of the developer discharge port is smooth and has good linearity. (5) In the above (4), the seal member has a hot-melt adhesive layer, and when the seal member is heat-welded to the adhesive region via the hot-melt adhesive layer, heat-sealing is performed. The adhesive strength is constant, and a uniform drag force against peeling is generated in the adhesive region, and the seal member moves to the developer discharge port accurately along with the unidirectional tearability. Further, unlike the general easy peel film, it is possible to heat-bond directly to the peripheral edge of the developer discharge opening having a large opening to narrow the opening to a predetermined width. Therefore, the bottom plate used conventionally can be dispensed with. Moreover, the unsealing strength is less affected by the heat welding conditions. On the other hand, it becomes easy to prevent the toner from scattering from the end portion after opening the sheet member. Further, unlike the conventional combination of the tear tape and the cover film, it is possible to use the laminate alone, so that the cost can be reduced by omitting the step of welding the tear tape and the cover film. ..

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of an example of a developing device in which the present invention can be used.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a developer container according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the developer container of FIG. 2 on the discharge opening side.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an example of a seal member.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a discharge opening of a developer container according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a developer container according to still another embodiment of the present invention on a discharge opening side.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a laminate used as a seal member in the example of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a flat yarn cloth.

FIG. 9 is a vertical sectional view of an example of the process cartridge of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a vertical sectional view of an example of a developing device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 6 Container Main Body 7 Bottom Plate 8 Developer Discharge Aperture 9 Seal Member 14 Adhesive Area 141, 142, 143 Area

Claims (15)

[Claims] 1. A sheet having a container body and a seal member, the container body having a developer discharge opening in close communication with the developing device body, and the seal member having a tearability along a straight line. It is made of material and has a sealing part and an opening operation part,
The sealing portion is adhered or welded to a bonding region of the container body surrounding the opening and covering the opening along a straight line which is easy to tear in the longitudinal direction of the developer discharge opening of the container body. In the developer container, wherein the unsealing operation portion is continuous with the sealing portion, protrudes on the extension of the removed portion of the sealing member to be provided in the sealing portion, is folded back, and extends over the sealing portion. A developer container characterized in that it has a concave region that is recessed in the same direction as the pulling direction of the unsealing operation unit at a position corresponding to the position where the unsealing operation unit projects from the sealing unit. 2. The concave-shaped region connects the first and second regions, which are parallel to a straight line in the direction of tearability of the seal member, and the straight line connecting the first and second regions. And a third region in a direction intersecting with, and one edge line in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is on an extension of the outer edge line of the first region, and the unsealing of the seal member is performed. The developer container according to claim 1, wherein the other edge line in the longitudinal direction of the operation portion is on an extension of the outer edge line of the second region. 3. The seal member according to claim 1, wherein the seal member has a flat yarn cloth having tearability in a direction along a straight line which is a direction of tearability of the seal member. Developer container. 4. The flat yarn cloth included in the seal member has a uniaxially stretched resin film laminated so that the stretching direction is along a straight line in which the seal member is easy to tear. The developer container according to claim 3, wherein the developer container is provided. 5. The seal member has a hot-melt adhesive layer, and the seal member is heat-welded to the bonding region via the hot-melt adhesive layer. The developer container described. 6. A developer carrying member for carrying a developer and carrying it to a developing area is arranged, and a first chamber for containing a developer to be applied to the developer carrying member, and a first chamber for supplying the developer to the first chamber. A container having a second chamber for accommodating the developer, a developer discharge opening for discharging the developer from the second chamber to the first chamber, and an adhesive region surrounding the developer discharge opening, and a seal And a sealing member made of a sheet material having a tearability along a straight line and having a sealing portion and an opening operation portion, the sealing portion extending in the longitudinal direction of the developer discharge opening of the container. A seal which is to be adhered or welded to a bonding area of the container surrounding the opening and covering the opening in a direction along a straight line that easily tears, and the unsealing operation portion is provided in the sealing portion continuously to the sealing portion. It is projected on the extension of the removed part of the member and is folded back In the developing device that extends over the sealing portion, the adhesive region has a concave region that is recessed in the same direction as the pulling direction of the opening operating portion at a position corresponding to the position where the opening operating portion projects from the sealing portion. A developing device having. 7. The concave-shaped region connects the first and second regions, which are parallel to a straight line in the direction of tearability of the seal member, with the straight line connecting the first and second regions. And a third region in a direction intersecting with, and one edge line in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is on an extension of the outer edge line of the first region, and the unsealing of the seal member is performed. 7. The developing device according to claim 6, wherein the other edge line in the longitudinal direction of the operating portion is an extension of the outer edge line of the second region. 8. The seal member according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the seal member has a flat yarn cloth having tearability in a direction along a straight line which is a direction of tearability of the seal member. Developing device. 9. The flat yarn cloth included in the seal member is laminated with a uniaxially stretched resin film so that the stretching direction is along a straight line in which the seal member is easy to tear. The developing device according to claim 8, wherein 10. The seal member has a hot-melt adhesive layer, and the seal member is heat-welded to the bonding region via the hot-melt adhesive layer. The described developing device. 11. An image bearing member carrying an electrostatic latent image, and a developing device for developing a electrostatic latent image by applying a developer to the image bearing member in a developing area, which is attachable to and detachable from an image forming apparatus. In the process cartridge, the developing device is provided with a developer carrying member for carrying the developer and carrying it to the developing area, and a first chamber for containing the developer to be applied to the developer carrying member; A second chamber for accommodating the developer to be supplied to the chamber; a developer discharge opening for discharging the developer from the second chamber to the first chamber; and an adhesive region surrounding the developer discharge opening. The container includes a container and a seal member, and the seal member is made of a sheet material having tearability along a straight line, and includes a sealing portion and an opening operation portion, the sealing portion including a developer discharging opening portion of the container. If the opening is covered in a direction along a straight line that easily tears in the longitudinal direction The opening operation portion is adhered or welded together to the adhesion region of the container surrounding the opening, and the opening operation portion is continuous with the sealing portion and protrudes on the extension of the removed portion of the sealing member to be provided in the sealing portion, and is folded and sealed. In the process cartridge formed to extend over the portion, the adhesive region has a concave-shaped region recessed in the same direction as the pulling direction of the unsealing operation unit at a position corresponding to the position where the unsealing operation unit projects from the sealing unit. Process cartridge. 12. The concave-shaped region connects the first and second regions, which are parallel to a straight line in the direction of tearability of the seal member, with the straight line connecting the first and second regions. And a third region in a direction intersecting with, and one edge line in the longitudinal direction of the unsealing operation portion of the seal member is on an extension of the outer edge line of the first region, and the opening and closing of the seal member is performed. The process cartridge according to claim 11, wherein the other edge line in the longitudinal direction of the operation portion is on an extension of the outer edge line of the second region. 13. The seal member according to claim 11, wherein the seal member has a flat yarn cloth having tearability in a direction along a straight line which is a direction of tearability of the seal member. Process cartridge. 14. The flat yarn cloth included in the seal member has a uniaxially stretched resin film laminated so that the stretching direction is along a straight line in which the seal member is easy to tear. 14. The process cartridge according to claim 13, wherein the process cartridge is provided. 15. The seal member according to claim 14, wherein the seal member has a hot-melt adhesive layer, and the seal member is heat-welded to the bonding region via the hot-melt adhesive layer. Process cartridge described.