JPH06266172A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an image forming device which is miniaturized and can remarkably improve operabilities. CONSTITUTION:The image forming device forming an image on a recording medium P is provided with a loading part to which a process cartridge 100 having an image carrier 1, a developing part 3 working on the image carrier 1, a cleaning part 4 located on the same side where the developing part 3 is located, with respect to a vertical surface crossing the center of the rotation of the image carrier 1 and worked on the image carrier 1 and an exposing part located on the same side where the developing part 3 is located, with respect to the vertical surface crossing the center of the rotation of the image carrier 1 and between the developing part 3 and the cleaning part 4, to expose the image to the image carrier 1 is loadable, and a carrying means carrying the recording medium P from the lower side of the process cartridge 100 loaded to the loading part to its upper side.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus in which a process cartridge can be mounted and which forms an image on a recording medium.

Here, as the image forming apparatus, an electrophotographic copying apparatus, a sacred hall recording apparatus, a laser beam printer (LB) are used.
P) and the like are included.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art A process cartridge (hereinafter abbreviated as a cartridge) detachable type image forming apparatus is a specific device, such as an image carrier (electrophotographic photosensitive member, electrostatic recording device), among all process devices for image formation. Dielectric etc.) ・ Charging device ・
The developing device, the cleaning device, etc., are collectively assembled as a unit body that can be freely attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus body, and are assembled together in a common housing (frame body) with a predetermined mutual positional relationship. It is a device.

By adopting the cartridge attaching / detaching method as described above, the maintainability / serviceability of the image forming apparatus is improved. For example, a plurality of cartridges having different functions such as developing colors are prepared, and a cartridge having a desired function can be attached to the main body of the image forming apparatus in a replaceable manner to use the image forming apparatus in a multi-functional manner. It has already been put to practical use, for example, as one of the methods of a personal type small and lightweight image forming apparatus.

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 show an example of a main part of an electrophotographic copying machine (or LBP) of a cartridge attaching / detaching type.

In the figure, reference numeral 100 is a process cartridge, and the cartridge 100 of this embodiment is an electrophotographic photosensitive drum 1 as an example of an image carrier and a charging device for uniformly charging the peripheral surface of the drum to a predetermined polarity. The corona charger 2, the developing device 3, and the cleaning device 4 as a unit, which are collectively attached to and detachable from the copying apparatus main body (not shown) in the common housing 10. Are assembled together with a predetermined mutual arrangement relationship.

The cartridge 100 is inserted and mounted in a predetermined manner inside a main body of the copying apparatus in a predetermined manner, and conversely, can be freely removed from the main body of the copying apparatus.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a drum cover (protective cover) having an arc-shaped cross section, which opens and closes the photosensitive drum lower surface exposure opening 11 provided on the lower surface side of the housing, and has a fulcrum 12 (FIG. 8) on the end face plate of the housing 10. Freely rotatable swing arm 13
Is provided, and the side end on the rear side of the drum cover 5 is rotatably engaged with and supported by the free end 14 of the arm. Further, the pin shaft 15 provided at the side end on the front side of the drum cover 5 is engaged with and supported by the arcuate guide elongated hole 16 provided on the end face plate side of the housing 10. When the swing arm 13 is rotated counterclockwise about the fulcrum 12, the drum cover 5 is sufficiently moved to the right of the opening 11 and the opening 11 is opened as shown in FIG. On the contrary, when it is rotated clockwise, it moves to the left and the opening 11 is closed as shown in FIG.

The drum cover 5 is shown in FIG. 8 when the cartridge 100 is taken out from the main body of the copying apparatus and stored.
As shown in Fig. 5, the opening 11 is kept closed to protect the lower surface of the photosensitive drum exposed from the opening 11 from damage due to collision with other objects, dirt due to adhesion of dust, deterioration due to exposure to external light, etc. To do.

The cartridge 100 is mounted in the main body of the copying apparatus after the drum cover 5 is opened by hand.
Alternatively, during the mounting process of the cartridge 100 into the main body of the copying apparatus, a means such as a cam member provided on the main body side is automatically opened in relation to the drum cover 5 and the swing arm 13.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a slit-shaped window for exposing a light image, which is formed on the top surface of the housing corresponding to the upper surface of the drum 1.
Reference numeral 7 denotes an opening / closing shutter member for the exposure window 6. When the cartridge 100 is taken out from the main body of the copying apparatus and stored, the exposure window 6 is kept closed as shown in FIG. Protected against damage due to damage, dirt from adhering foreign matter such as dust, and deterioration due to exposure to external light.

When the cartridge 100 is sufficiently inserted and mounted in the main body of the copying apparatus in a predetermined manner, the mechanical drive system / electrical circuit system on both sides of the main body of the copying apparatus and the cartridge 100 have mutual coupling members (not shown). ) To mechanically and electrically integrate them.

FIG. 7 shows a state in which the cartridge 100 is installed in the main body of the copying apparatus.
Is held open from the lower surface opening 11 of the cartridge 100, and is exposed from the opening 11 of the drum 1.
And the transfer charger 8 on the mounting body side faces each other. The shutter member 7 for the exposure window 6 is also held in the open state.

When the copy button is pressed, power is transmitted from a drive source provided in the copying machine body side (not shown).
Is transmitted to the drum 1 in the cartridge 100 and the developing roller (developing sleeve / developing cylinder) 3a of the developing device 3 through the drum 1, and the drum 1 and the developing roller 3a are rotated in the arrow directions (FIG. 7) at predetermined peripheral speeds. Driven. Further, the corona charger 2 in the cartridge 100 and the developing roller 3a of the developing device 3 are provided with a predetermined driving voltage (discharge voltage / developing bias) from a power supply circuit (not shown) provided on the copying machine main body side.
Is applied.

Thus, the drum 1 is uniformly charged with a predetermined polarity by the corona charger 2 during the rotation process, and then the exposure window 6
An image exposure device (not shown) on the main body side of the copying machine receives optical image exposure L (slit exposure of original image, laser beam scanning exposure, etc.). As a result, electrostatic latent images corresponding to the exposure image pattern are sequentially formed on the peripheral surface of the drum. The latent image is then developed as a toner image by the developing device 3, and the developed image is synchronized with the rotation of the drum 1 from a sheet feeding mechanism (not shown) via the conveyance path, and the drum 1 and the transfer charger 8 are connected. It is sequentially transferred onto the surface of the copy material P fed during the period. The transfer material P that has undergone image transfer is separated from the surface of the drum 1 and is introduced into a fixing device (not shown) to undergo image fixing, and is output outside the device as an image formed product (copy).
On the other hand, the surface of the drum 1 from which the copying material P has been separated after passing through the image transfer portion 8 passes through the position of the cleaning device 4 and is wiped with a cleaning blade 4a made of a rubber plate or the like to transfer untransferred toner and other adhering substances. After being removed, the surface is cleaned and repeatedly subjected to image formation.

In the developing device 3, 3b is a developing roller 3.
The developing device 3c accommodating a is a toner container provided on the upper side of the developing device 3b, and the toner container 3c communicates with the lower developing device 3b through a communication hole 3d provided on the bottom surface thereof. The toner t in the toner container 3c is sequentially conveyed and replenished into the developing device 3b by gravity through the communication hole 3d.

[0017]

By making the cartridge 100 as small as possible, the entire image forming apparatus including the cartridge can be made smaller, lighter, and cheaper.

The conventional cartridge 100 of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 will be described. In the cartridge, the photosensitive drum 1 as an image bearing member is arranged in the central portion of the housing 10, and the upper surface side thereof is charged. Process part, optical image exposure process part, lower surface side is transfer process part, right side is development process part,
The left side surface is used as a cleaning process unit, and the process equipments 2, 3, and 4 corresponding to the required process units are arranged facing the photosensitive drum 1 and built in the housing 10.

Here, since the developing device 3 and the cleaning device 4 secure their capacities to some extent or more in order to prolong the service life of the cartridge 100 as much as possible, for example, it is a much larger device than the charger 2. is there.

Therefore, the conventional cartridge 10 having the developing device 3 and the cleaning device 4 arranged on the right side and the left side with the photosensitive drum 1 inside as described above.
0 inevitably had a large width, and the plane shape was considerably large, and there was a limit to the overall size reduction.
Further, since the lateral width is large, the degree of freedom in designing the attachment / detachment method with respect to the main body of the image forming apparatus is limited.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the capacities of the developing device and the cleaning device incorporated in the cartridge are sufficiently secured to be equal to or more than those of the conventional cartridge, and moreover, the overall cartridge shape including the plane shape is more than the conventional one. Another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus to which a remarkably downsized process cartridge can be mounted.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to convey the recording medium from the lower side to the upper side of the mounted process cartridge to improve the installation stability of the apparatus and the operability of the recording medium after image formation. An object is to provide a forming device.

[0023]

According to the present invention, in an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium, (a) an image carrier, a developing portion acting on the image carrier, and rotation of the image carrier. On the same side as the developing site with respect to a vertical plane that traverses the center, and on the same side as the developing site with respect to the vertical plane that traverses the rotation center of the image carrier, with a cleaning site that acts on the image carrier. And a mounting portion for mounting a process cartridge having an exposure portion for performing image exposure on the image bearing member, which is located between the developing portion and the cleaning portion, and (b) the image bearing member. The image carrier included in the process cartridge mounted in the mounting portion, which is provided to face the image carrier on the side opposite to the side where the developing portion is provided with respect to the vertical plane that intersects the center of rotation of the body. body An image forming apparatus including: a transfer unit configured to transfer the toner image from the recording medium; and (c) a transport unit configured to transport the recording medium from below to above the process cartridge mounted in the mounting unit. is there.

Still further, according to the present invention, with respect to the process cartridge mounted in the mounting portion, the image carrying member is provided on the same side as the developing portion with respect to a vertical plane crossing a rotation center of the image carrying member. An image forming apparatus comprising: a laser light irradiation unit for irradiating a body with laser light.

Still further, according to the present invention, with respect to the process cartridge mounted on the mounting portion, the transfer is provided on a side opposite to the developing portion with respect to a vertical plane that intersects the rotation center of the image carrier. An image forming apparatus comprising: a fixing unit configured to fix the toner image transferred from the image carrier to the recording medium by a fixing unit to the recording medium.

[0026]

Since the developing portion, the cleaning portion and the exposing portion are collectively provided on the same side with respect to the vertical plane that crosses the rotation center of the image carrier, not only downsizing can be realized but also below the mounted process cartridge. Since it is possible to convey the recording medium from above to above, the stability of the apparatus and the operability of the recording medium after image formation are improved.

[0027]

EXAMPLES Now, concrete examples will be described below.

Example-1 (FIGS. 1 to 3) FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view of an example of an image forming apparatus equipped with a cartridge 100 constructed according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is seen from an exposure window side. Process cartridge 1
It is a perspective view of 00. The same components as those of the conventional cartridge 100 shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 are given the same reference numerals and the description thereof is cited.

The photosensitive drum 1 is disposed on the right side in the cartridge housing (frame) 10, and the right side surface thereof faces the outside from the housing 10 as an image transfer process portion, but the cartridge 100 is inside the main body of the image forming apparatus. When it is taken out and stored, it is concealed and protected by the drum cover 5 which is closed as shown by the solid line.

The left side surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is a light image exposure process section 19, and when the cartridge 100 is mounted in the main body of the image forming apparatus, the left side surface side of the cartridge housing 10 is moved from the image exposure apparatus on the main body side of the apparatus. The optical image exposure light L (slit exposure for document exposure, laser beam scanning exposure, etc.) that enters the housing 10 substantially horizontally is irradiated through the slit-shaped exposure window 6 provided.

The cleaning device 4 and the developing device 3 are located above and below the optical path with the substantially horizontal optical image exposure optical path 17 extending from the exposure window 6 to the optical image exposure process section 19 of the photoconductor 1. The optical path 17 is provided between the two devices 4 and 3 so as to be close to each other in the vertical direction to the utmost extent so that a required clearance space 18 can be secured.

Reference numeral 2A is a contact charging or friction charging roller as a charging device for uniformly charging the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 1 with a predetermined polarity, and the photosensitive drum 1 on the bottom surface of the cleaning device 4 is shown.
The portion closer to the surface is recessed upward, and is disposed in the recessed portion 20 so as to come into contact with the photosensitive drum surface at a position on the upstream side in the photosensitive drum rotation direction (counterclockwise direction) with respect to the optical image exposure process portion 19. ing. The charging roller 2A may use a corona charger 2 as shown in FIG.

The cleaning blade 4a of the cleaning device 4 is in contact with the upper surface of the photosensitive drum, which is upstream of the charging roller 2A in the photosensitive drum rotation direction.

The developing roller 3a of the developing device 3 contacts the lower surface of the photosensitive drum on the downstream side in the photosensitive drum rotation direction with respect to the light image exposure process portion 19 or faces the photosensitive drum lower surface portion with a predetermined small gap.

The mounting of the cartridge 100 in the image forming apparatus is performed by opening the drum cover 5 around the support shaft 5a as shown by the chain double-dashed line (shown by the solid line in FIG. 3). Alternatively, during the mounting process of the cartridge 100 in the apparatus body, the opening / closing means mechanism (not shown) on the apparatus body side automatically opens.

In the state where the cartridge 100 is mounted in the main body of the apparatus, the drum cover 5 is opened and disposed on the side of the main body of the photosensitive drum 1 exposed to the outside of the housing with respect to the right side surface which is the image transfer process side. The transferred transfer charger 8 faces the opposite side. Also, the device body and the cartridge 10
The mechanical drive system and the electric circuit system on both sides of 0 are connected through a mutual coupling member to be mechanically and electrically integrated.

When the copy button is pressed, the photosensitive drum 1, the charging roller 2A, the developing roller 3a, and the toner stirring rod 3e are rotationally driven in the directions indicated by the arrows. Charging roller 2A
In some cases, the photosensitive drum 1 may be driven to rotate, non-rotate, or rotate in the reverse direction. Required voltages are applied to the charging roller 2A and the developing roller 3a, respectively.

The rotating photosensitive drum 1 is subjected to uniform positive or negative charging by the charging roller 2A, and is subjected to optical image exposure L in the optical image exposure process section 19 to form a latent image, and the latent image is formed on the developing roller 3a. To be developed as a toner image. Then, the toner image is fed between the photosensitive drum 1 and the transfer charger 8 in the image transfer process section by the paper feeding mechanism from the lower side to the upper side of the process cartridge 100 mounted in the mounting section. And is sequentially transferred to the surface of the copy material P. The copy material P that has undergone image transfer and has been separated from the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is conveyed to a fixing device, undergoes image fixing, and is ejected as a copy. After the image is transferred, the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is cleaned by a transfer device such as a blade 4a, which wipes and removes transfer residual toner and other adhering substances, and is repeatedly used for image formation.

Here, the fixing device is provided on the side of the process cartridge 100 mounted in the mounting portion, which is opposite to the developing device, which will be described later, with respect to a vertical plane that crosses the rotation center of the photosensitive drum 1. ing.

The developing device 3 has a developing device 3b accommodating the developing roller 3a and a toner container 3c continuously provided on the left side of the developing device 3b. The developing device 3b and the toner container 3c are connected to each other by partition walls. It communicates through the hole 3d. The toner t in the toner container 3b is agitated by the stirring rod 3e being rotationally driven at a predetermined speed, and a part of the stored toner is discharged from the communication hole 3d by the rake sheet member 3f provided on the tip side of the stirring rod. The stirring rod 3e is intermittently fed into the developing device 3b every one rotation to be replenished.

FIG. 3 shows a waste toner conveyance state in the cleaning device 4. The cleaning blade 4a is
The upper surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is in contact with the drum rotation direction in the counter direction. Further, the cleaning blade 4a
A waste toner scooping sheet (flexible elastic thin sheet) 4b is disposed in contact with the upstream side of the photosensitive drum rotation direction in the forward direction with respect to the drum rotation direction.
Is connected to the inwardly curved inner surface 4c of the casing front wall of the cleaning device 4.

The transfer residual toner ta on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is
After passing through the lower surface side of the waste toner scooping sheet 4b, it is scraped off by the edge portion of the cleaning blade 4a, and is sequentially accumulated as waste toner tb between the edge portion and the scooping sheet 4b. The accumulated waste toner tb continues to be fed to the blade 4a.
The waste toner scraped off from the surface of the photosensitive drum at the edge portion of and is accumulated in sequence, receives a pressing force in the direction of the rake sheet 4b. As a result, the accumulated waste toner tb is sequentially and naturally conveyed upward along the surfaces of the rake sheet 4b and the inwardly curved inner surface 4c as waste toner conveyance guide surfaces. Then, it collects from the upper end side of the curved inner surface 4c to the base side upper surface of the blade 4a. As the amount of accumulated toner increases with time, the waste toner reservoir collapses in the direction f of the waste toner storage chamber 4d on the side opposite to the blade 4a, and the waste toner tb enters the waste toner storage chamber 4d. That is, the waste toner tb on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 scraped off by the edge portion of the blade 4a is transferred and stored in the waste toner storage chamber 4d without any trouble in the transfer process as described above.

Thus, in the process cartridge 100 of this embodiment, the cleaning device 4 and the developing device 3 are located on one side of the photosensitive drum 1 serving as an image carrier on the right and left sides thereof, that is, on the same side with respect to the vertical plane crossing the rotation center of the photosensitive drum 1. On the left side (in this example), the optical path 17 toward the optical image exposure process section 19 of the photosensitive drum 1 is arranged in a laminated manner on the upper side and the lower side of the optical path 17. Therefore, with respect to the widthwise dimension of the process cartridge 100, the cleaning device 4 and the developing device 3 are arranged on the left and right sides of the photosensitive drum 1 with the photosensitive drum 1 in the middle, as in the conventional cartridge (FIG. 7). It is greatly reduced compared to the one.

Since the space 18 for the optical path 17 toward the optical image exposure process section 19 of the photosensitive drum 1 is sufficient as a flat clearance space, the cleaning device 4 and the developing device 4 which are disposed above and below the optical path 17 with the optical path 17 in the middle. The devices 3 can be arranged vertically close to each other to the utmost limit so that a required gap space 18 can be secured as the optical path 17 therebetween. Therefore, the developing device 3 and the cleaning device 4
As a result, even if the capacity of the toner container 3c or the waste toner storage chamber 4d is set to be equal to or larger than those in the conventional cartridge, the devices 3 and 4, the photosensitive drum 1, the charging device 2, etc. It is possible to store the required equipment in a cartridge housing in a high density with a small dead space. Therefore, by arranging the both devices 4 and 3 in a vertically stacked manner, it is possible to design the cartridge while suppressing an increase in the dimension in the height direction.

That is, in combination with the above-mentioned effect, it is possible to construct a compact cartridge 100 having a small lateral dimension and a height dimension and having a long service life in terms of capacity.

The optical image exposure section 1 of the photosensitive drum 1 is formed between the cleaning device 4 and the developing device 3, and is exposed from the exposure window 6.
Since the optical path space 18 of the optical path 17 toward 9 is a flat space and has a depth, even if the cartridge 100 taken out from the inside of the main body of the image forming apparatus is stored with the exposure window 6 opened, the exposure is performed. There is no possibility that another object will enter through the window 6 to damage the surface of the photosensitive drum 1, be exposed to outside light, or be attached and stained by dust or the like. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the need for disposing the protective shutter member 7 for opening and closing the exposure window 6 as in the case of the above-described conventional cartridge (FIGS. 7 and 8), and it is possible to simplify the cartridge and reduce the cost.

By disposing the cleaning device 4 on the upper side and the developing device 3 on the lower side as in the case of the present embodiment, even if toner scattering occurs in the cleaning blade portion of the cleaning device 4 or the like, the scattered toner is down. It is housed in the developing device 3a portion of the developing device 3 on the side and leakage to the outside of the cartridge is suppressed.

As described above, the cartridge 100
Since it can be made into a compact form having a small widthwise dimension and a heightwise dimension as a whole, the degree of freedom in designing the detachable method in the image forming apparatus is increased. That is, the attaching / detaching operation direction of the cartridge with respect to the image forming apparatus main body is the longitudinal direction of the cartridge as shown by the arrow AA in FIG.
2, the cartridge up and down direction as indicated by the arrow BB, the cartridge front and rear direction as indicated by the arrow CC, or the arrow D.
It is possible to set and design the cartridge in arbitrary multiple directions such as diagonally upward and downward directions like -D.

Example-2 (FIG. 4) Like the cartridge of Example-1, the cartridge of this Example is basically a substantially horizontal surface extending from the exposure window 6 to the optical image exposure process section 19 of the photosensitive drum 1. This is another cartridge configuration in which the cleaning device 4 is arranged on the upper side of the optical path 17 and the developing device 3 is arranged on the lower side of the optical path 17.

The cartridge of this embodiment also has the same functions and effects as the cartridge of Example-1.

Example-3 (FIG. 5) The cartridge of this example is a modification of the example shown in Example-2, and the optical image exposure process section 19 is set on the lower side of the left side surface of the photosensitive drum 1. By setting the exposure window 6 on the lower side of the left side wall of the cartridge housing 10, the optical path 17 extending from the exposure window 6 to the optical image exposure process section 19 of the photosensitive drum 1 is an oblique upward optical path.

As a result, the charging device 2 is arranged so as to be lowered to the left side surface of the photosensitive drum 1 so that the waste toner storage chamber 4d of the cleaning device 4 is made wider, that is, has a larger capacity.

Contrary to the above, the exposure window 6 is set on the upper side of the left side wall of the cartridge housing 10, and the exposure window 6 is set.
From the toner container 3 of the developing device 3 by obliquely downwardly directing the optical path from the photosensitive drum 1 to the optical image exposure process unit 19 of the photosensitive drum 1.
It is possible to make c wider, that is, to have a larger capacity.

That is, the optical image exposure process section 1 of the photosensitive drum 1 is traversed from the exposure window 6 through the inside of the cartridge housing 10.
By setting the angle of the optical path to 9 the cleaning device 4
Also, the capacity ratio of the developing device 3 (the capacity ratio between the waste toner storage chamber 4d and the toner container 3c) can be distributed and set as desired. This is also an effect of the configuration in which the cleaning device 4 and the developing device 3 are arranged in a relatively vertical relationship with the optical path 17 in the middle.

Example-4 (FIG. 6) The cartridge of this example is a modification of the example shown in Example-2, in which the right side surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is the optical image exposure process section 19, and the cartridge housing. From the slit-shaped exposure window 6 provided on the right side wall of 10, the optical image exposure light L enters the cartridge 100 along the substantially horizontal optical path 17 and exposes the drum surface of the process section 19. And its optical path 1
7, the cartridge of this embodiment has a structure in which the developing device 3 is arranged above the optical path 17 and the cleaning device 4 is arranged below the optical path 17.

When the developing device 3 is arranged on the upper side and the cleaning device 4 is arranged on the lower side, the toner movement in the developing device 3 and the cleaning device 4 is naturally smoothly performed from the upper part to the lower part by the gravity action. Therefore, it is possible to omit the addition of a driving member for moving and conveying the toner against gravity, and it is possible to simplify the process cartridge 100 and reduce the cost.

According to each of the above-described embodiments, the capacity of the developing device and the cleaning device incorporated in the cartridge should be the same as or larger than that of the conventional cartridge.
Moreover, the overall cartridge shape including the planar shape can be made much smaller than the conventional one, and the size and weight of the image forming apparatus main body can be greatly reduced.

In other words, in the image forming apparatus of this embodiment, the developing device 3 and the cleaning device 4 are arranged on the same side with respect to the vertical plane that intersects the center of rotation of the photosensitive drum 1, and the developing device 3 and the cleaning device 4 are connected to each other. In between, a process cartridge configuration is provided in which an exposure portion for performing image exposure is arranged on the photosensitive drum 1, and the photosensitive drum is provided on the side opposite to the side on which the developing device 3 is provided with respect to the vertical surface. 1 is provided with a transfer charger 8 and a paper feed mechanism that conveys the copy material P from the lower side to the upper side of the mounted process cartridge. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, not only the miniaturization of the apparatus can be achieved, but also the stability of the apparatus can be achieved because, for example, the feeding cassette and the like can be arranged at the bottom of the apparatus. Moreover, since the copy material P after the image formation can be discharged above the apparatus, the operator can easily take out the copy material after the image formation, and the operability can be improved.

[0059]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, not only the miniaturization of the device can be achieved, but also the stability of the device is realized,
Furthermore, improvement in operability was achieved.

[Brief description of drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the process cartridge shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a toner movement path in a cleaning device provided in the process cartridge shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of a process cartridge to which another embodiment of the present invention is applied.

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

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional side view of a process cartridge to which another embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional side view showing a state in which the drum cover of the conventional process cartridge is open.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a state in which the drum cover of the conventional process cartridge is closed.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Photosensitive Drum 2 Charging Device 3 Developing Device 4 Cleaning Device 5 Drum Cover 6 Exposure Window 8 Image Transfer Section 10 Process Cartridge Housing 17 Optical Path 19 Optical Image Exposure Process 100 Process Cartridge

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium, comprising: (a) an image bearing member, a developing portion acting on the image bearing member, and a vertical plane crossing a rotation center of the image bearing member. A cleaning portion that is located on the same side as the developing portion and that acts on the image carrier, and a cleaning portion that is on the same side as the developing portion with respect to a vertical plane that intersects the center of rotation of the image carrier. A mounting portion, which is located between the cleaning portion and an exposure portion for performing image exposure on the image bearing member, on which a process cartridge can be mounted, and (b) a vertical surface that crosses the rotation center of the image bearing member. A toner image is transferred from the image carrier of the process cartridge mounted on the mounting portion, which is provided on the side opposite to the side where the developing portion is provided, facing the image carrier. A shooting unit, an image forming apparatus characterized by having a transport means for transporting the recording medium upward from below the process cartridge mounted to said mounting portion (c). 2. A laser beam is provided on the image carrier, which is provided on the same side as the developing portion with respect to a vertical plane that intersects the rotation center of the image carrier with respect to the process cartridge mounted on the mounting portion. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a laser beam irradiation unit for irradiating the image. 3. The transfer means, which is provided on the side of the process cartridge mounted on the mounting portion, opposite to the developing portion with respect to a vertical plane that intersects the center of rotation of the image carrier. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a fixing unit configured to fix the toner image transferred from the carrier to the recording medium onto the recording medium. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an electrophotographic copying apparatus. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is a laser beam printer.