JPH0648529Y2 - Recovery container detection mechanism for detecting the recovery container - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION <Technical Field> The present invention relates to a collection container detection mechanism, and more specifically, a collection container for detecting a toner collection container for collecting toner removed from the surface of a photoconductor in an image forming apparatus. Regarding the detection mechanism.

<Prior Art> An image forming apparatus such as an electrostatic copying machine is equipped with a toner collecting container for collecting the toner removed from the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member. Further, in relation to this toner collection container, a collection container detection mechanism for detecting the presence or absence of the toner collection container and a collection toner detection mechanism for preventing overflow of the toner collected in the toner collection container are additionally provided.

However, the conventional collecting container detecting mechanism has the following disadvantages because the container detector for detecting the toner collecting container is composed of a contact type detecting means such as a mechanical micro switch. That is, when the presence of the toner collecting container is detected by using the contact detecting means such as a mechanical micro switch, the toner collecting container needs to press the detecting portion of the detecting means. On the other hand, when the toner recovery container presses the detection unit, the return force of the detection unit tends to push the toner recovery container back to some extent. Therefore, when the toner recovery container is pushed back by the return force of the detection unit, the relative positional relationship between the recovered toner detection mechanism and the toner recovery container changes, and when the relative positional relationship changes significantly, the recovered toner detection mechanism detects the toner. There is a problem that the toner collected in the collection container cannot be detected. Especially when an optical detector is used for the collected toner detection mechanism,
If there is a large distance between the detected part provided in the toner collection container and the optical detector consisting of the light emitting element and the attendance element, it may be erroneously detected due to the influence of ambient light. As described above, there is a limit in setting the disposition positions of the both in consideration of a large change in the relative positional relationship between the detected portion provided in the toner recovery container and the optical detector.

<Purpose of Invention> The present invention has been made in view of the above facts, and its main purpose is to provide an excellent collection container capable of reliably detecting by removing the above-mentioned adverse effects associated with the detection of the toner collection container. It is to provide a detection mechanism.

<Summary of Invention> According to the present invention, the toner recovery container is detachably mounted and is moved between a storage position for positioning the toner recovery container at a predetermined recovery position and an ejection position for allowing the toner recovery container to be detached. A freely arranged container support, a detected portion provided at the upper end of the toner recovery container so as to communicate with the inside and project from the side wall, and the container support in the storage position. A recovery container detection mechanism for detecting a toner recovery container positioned at a predetermined recovery position, the recovery toner detection mechanism including a detected portion and an optical detector disposed at a position corresponding thereto. One end is fixed to the container support, and when the toner recovery container is attached to the container support, it is elastically deformed and the other end elastically acts on the side wall of the toner recovery container in the vicinity of the detected portion. toner A first position for holding the container on the container support, and when the toner recovery container is detached from the container support, the other end is restored into the toner recovery container storage space and moved to the second position. Elastic holding member, a detected member attached to the other end of the elastic holding member, the other end of the elastic holding member is located at the first position, and the container support is located at the storage position. And a non-contact type detection means disposed at a position corresponding to the detected member in the above described state.

<Preferred Specific Example of the Invention> A specific example of the recovery container detection mechanism configured according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 1 showing a part of an electrostatic copying machine, the illustrated electrostatic copying machine has a front side plate 4 extending upward from the bottom wall 2 with a space in the front-rear direction (from the lower left to the upper right) with the bottom wall 2. And a rear side plate (not shown), and a front cover 6 is attached to the front end of the bottom wall 2 so as to be openable and closable around the lower end (in FIG. 1, the front cover 6 is in an open state). Have been). Between the front side plate 4 and the rear side plate (not shown),
Although not shown, a rotary drum having an electrostatic photoconductor on its peripheral surface, a developing device for developing an electrostatic latent image formed on the photoconductor surface of the rotary drum into a toner image, and a toner image transferred thereto. A cleaning device or the like for removing the residual toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor after being mounted is mounted as required.

In the illustrated electrostatic copying machine, the toner removed by the cleaning device (not shown) is collected in the toner collecting container 8, and the toner transferring means 10 is attached to the cleaning device. Illustrated toner transfer means
Reference numeral 10 denotes a cylindrical tubular guide body 12 extending forward (lower left in FIG. 1) from a cleaning device (not shown), and a spiral transfer member arranged in the tubular guide body 12 (see FIG. (Not shown). The cylindrical guide body 12 penetrates the front plate 4 and projects forward, and a toner discharge port (not shown) is formed at the bottom of the projecting end. Therefore, the toner removed from the photoconductor by the action of the cleaning device is transported in the direction indicated by the arrow 14 by the action of the transport member (not shown), and drops downward through the toner discharge port.

On the other hand, the toner recovery container 8 has a container body 16 made of, for example, a transparent or translucent synthetic resin material, and an opening 18 is provided at the upper end thereof. In a specific example, such a toner collection container 8 is a container support supported by a support mechanism 20.
It is configured to be detachably attached to the 22. More specifically, the container support 22 includes a rectangular bottom wall 24 on which the container body 16 is placed, and side walls fixed to the side edges of the bottom wall 24.
26 and a pair of channel-shaped strip-shaped members 30 which are arranged at intervals in the vertical direction and whose both ends are attached to both ends of the side wall 26 by mounting screws 28. Stipulate. Further, the support mechanism 20 includes a support member 32, and the support member 32 is mounted on the front surface (outer surface) of the front side plate 4, and the support protrusions 36 projecting forward at the upper and lower ends of the mounting body portion 34. And 38, and the pair of protrusions 42 of the connecting member 40 attached to the side wall 26 between the supporting protrusions 36 and 38 are pivotally connected via the connecting pin 44. , Container support 22 is an arrow
By swiveling in the direction indicated by 46, it can be moved to the take-out position indicated by the solid line. At such a take-out position, the container support 22 is projected forward, and the toner recovery container 8 is located at a portion where the upper side is opened (in other words, the various constituent elements of the electrostatic copying machine are substantially disposed above the toner recovery container 8). It is located in a part that does not exist. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, by grasping the container body 16 and lifting it up, the toner recovery container 8 can be detached from the container support 22, and the container body 16 is accommodated from above. The toner recovery container 8 can be mounted on the container support 22 by positioning the toner collection container 8 on the bottom wall 24.
On the other hand, the container support 22 can be swung in the direction shown by the arrow 48 to be moved to the storage position shown by the chain double-dashed line. In the specific example, the support protrusions 36 and 38 of the support member 32 include a pair of protrusions provided on the connecting member 40.
There is a stop 50 on which 42 can abut, and therefore
When the pair of protrusions 42 come into contact with the stop piece 50, the turning motion beyond the storage position is reliably prevented. In this storage position, the container support 22 is rotated about 90 degrees from the extraction position and extends along the front plate 4, and the toner recovery container 8 is positioned at a predetermined recovery position. Although not shown, the toner recovery container 8 is a cylindrical guide of the toner transfer means 10 at the predetermined recovery position.
A toner discharge port (not shown) provided in the cylindrical guide body 12 and an opening 52 defined in the opening portion 18 of the toner collecting container 8 are located below the protruding portion of the front side plate 4 of the toner collection container 12. It can be aligned vertically. Therefore, the upward movement of the container body 16 is prevented by the contact of the mouth portion 18 with the tubular guide body 12, and therefore it is substantially impossible to separate the toner recovery container 8 from the container support body 22. , And a spiral transfer member (not shown) removed from the photoconductor
The toner transferred in the direction indicated by the arrow 14 by the action of the
It is collected as required in the container body 16 through the opening 52 of the. In addition, in relation to the support mechanism 20, it is preferable to additionally provide a biasing means such as a biasing spring that biases the container support 22 toward the storage position.

In the specific example, in connection with the toner recovery container 8, a specific example of the recovery container detection mechanism according to the present invention is applied.
To further explain, it is important that the recovery container detection mechanism according to the present invention includes a detected member and a non-contact type detection means for detecting the detected member in a non-contact state. The detection member is composed of a permanent magnet 54,
The non-contact detection means is composed of a reed switch 56 (which constitutes magnetic detection means) for magnetically detecting the permanent magnet 54.

In the specific example, the permanent magnet 54 is disposed on the container support 22. On the side wall 26 of the container support 22, one end of an elastic holding member 58, which can be formed of, for example, a leaf spring, is attached by a mounting screw 60. The elastic holding member 58 extends upward inward, that is, inclining to the accommodation space side, and the permanent magnet 54 is fixed to the outer surface of the other end with an adhesive or the like. Therefore, when the toner recovery container 8 is detachably attached to the container support 22, the side wall of the container body 16 acts on the inner surface of the other end of the elastic member 58 to elastically deform it outwardly, and the permanent magnet 54 is substantially removed. It moves horizontally and is positioned at a first position indicated by a chain double-dashed line. In this way, the toner recovery container 8 mounted on the container support 22 is held at a predetermined position by the elastic action of the elastic holding member 58. On the other hand, when the toner collecting container 8 is detached from the container support 22, the other end of the elastic holding member 58 is restored into the toner collecting container accommodating space as shown by the solid line, and the permanent magnet 54 attached to the upper end part is restored. Is displaced to the opposite of the above and is positioned at the second position indicated by the solid line.

Further, the reed switch 56 is arranged on the front surface of a predetermined portion of the front side plate 4 corresponding to the above-mentioned recovery position. In the specific example, a support plate 62 is attached to the front surface of the front side plate 4, and a reed switch 56 is attached to the support plate 62. With respect to the reed switch 56, when the container support 22 is set to the storage position, the permanent magnet 54 is set to a position substantially facing the reed switch 56.

In the specific example, a collected toner detecting mechanism is further provided in association with the toner collecting container 8. The illustrated collected toner detection mechanism includes an optical detector 68 including a combination of a light emitting element 64 and a light receiving element 66. The optical detector 68 is mounted on the support plate 62 in the vicinity of the reed switch 56. There is. On the other hand, corresponding to this optical detector 68, the container body 16
On the upper end of the elastic holding member 58, a detected part 70 is integrally provided in the vicinity of the side wall on which the upper end of the elastic holding member 58 acts. The detected portion 70 protrudes outward from the container body 16, the inside thereof is hollow, and is communicated with the inside of the container body 16, and the toner collected in the toner collecting container 8 is contained in the detected portion 70. It is designed to be able to flow in. In addition, this detected part
When the container body 16 is attached to the container support 22 and the other end of the elastic holding member 58 is positioned at the first position, the container support 22 is positioned at the storage position. The active detector 68 is positioned between the light emitting element 64 and the light receiving element 66.

In the electrostatic copying machine as described above, the container support 22 is indicated by an arrow.
When the toner recovery container 8 is detachably attached to the container support 22 by moving it in the direction indicated by 46 to the extraction position, the elastic member 58 is elastically deformed by the toner recovery container 8 and the permanent magnet 54 is removed. It is placed in the first position indicated by the dashed line. Next, when the container support 22 is swung in the direction shown by the arrow 48 to the storage position shown by the chain double-dashed line, the toner recovery container 8 is moved to the predetermined recovery position. When such a position of the toner collecting container 8 is set, the container support 22
Is pivoted about the connecting pin 44 (which constitutes a pivot axis extending substantially vertically) so that the permanent magnet 54 is moved substantially horizontally in a direction approaching the reed switch 56.
Then, when it is swung to the storage position, the permanent magnet 54
Is held in the first position, the reed switch
It is located close to and facing the detection surface of 56. Therefore, the reed switch 56 detects the permanent magnet 54 and enters a closed (ON) state, thereby detecting that the toner recovery container 8 is attached to the container support 22 and is located at a predetermined recovery position. In such a state, the detected portion 70 of the container body 16 is located between the light emitting element 64 and the light receiving element 66 of the optical detector 68, and the detected portion 70 and the optical detector 68 have a predetermined positional relationship. Held in. Therefore, as described above, a predetermined amount of toner is recovered in the toner recovery container 8 (in other words, the toner is recovered substantially completely in the toner recovery container 8).
Then, the collected toner flowing from the container body 16 into the detected portion 70 surely blocks the light from the light emitting element 64, and thus the optical detector 68 collects a predetermined amount of toner in the toner collecting container 8. Detect that.

On the other hand, when the toner collection container 8 is not attached to the container support 22 and is swung in the direction indicated by the arrow 48 to the storage position, the permanent magnet 54 is held at the second position, and therefore the reed switch is held. Opposite to the detection surface of 56, it is located relatively distant from the detection surface. Therefore, in such a case, the reed switch 56 cannot substantially detect the permanent magnet 54 and continues to be held in the open (OFF) state.

The reed switch 56 is in the open state (the permanent magnet 54 is not detected) or the optical detector 68 is in the closed state (light from the light emitting element 64 is blocked by the collected toner).
For example, it is preferable to stop the operation of the electrostatic copying machine.

As described above, in the container detection mechanism of the specific example, since the permanent magnet 54 is detected in the non-contact state using the reed switch 56, there is substantially no return force or the like accompanying the detection of the toner recovery container 8, It is possible to reliably detect by eliminating the adverse effect of detection.

Further, when the container body 16 is mounted on the container support 22, the other end of the elastic holding member 58 elastically acts on the side wall of the container body 16, and the other end of the elastic holding member 58 is Since it acts in the vicinity of the detected part 70, the detected part 70 is always reliably held in a predetermined position. Therefore, the positional relationship between the detected part 70 and the optical detector 68, and the permanent magnet 54 and the reed switch.
The positional relationship with 56 is always maintained normally. Therefore, it is possible to reliably detect whether or not the toner recovery container 8 is mounted and whether the amount of toner in the toner recovery container 8 has reached a predetermined amount.

Also, when positioning the container support 22 in the storage position,
The permanent magnet 54 is moved substantially horizontally towards the reed switch 56 and, therefore, in this connection, the reed switch 56 and the optical detector 68 are in close proximity to one another as shown in one support plate 62. Can be easily installed in
The configuration can be simplified.

Although the specific examples of the recovery container detection mechanism configured according to the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these specific examples, and various modifications and corrections can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. It is possible.

For example, in the specific example, the detected member is composed of the permanent magnet 54 and the non-contact detection means is composed of a reed switch, but the invention is not limited to this, and the detected member is composed of an iron piece. The non-contact type detection means may be composed of a detection coil.

Further, for example, in the specific example, the description is applied to the electrostatic copying machine, but similarly, the invention can be applied to other image forming apparatuses such as an electrostatic printing machine and a laser printer.

<Effect of the Invention> The recovery container detection mechanism according to the present invention includes an elastic holding member that elastically acts on the side wall of the toner recovery container having one end fixed to the container support and the other end attached to the container support. The other end of the elastic holding member is configured to act in the vicinity of a detected portion provided on the side wall of the toner recovery container in order to detect the amount of toner in the toner recovery container, and Since the member to be detected for detecting the presence / absence of attachment is attached to the other end of the elastic holding member, the toner collecting container is always reliably held at a predetermined position of the container support by the elastic action of the elastic holding member. Therefore, the positional relationship between the detected portion that detects the amount of toner in the toner recovery container and the optical detector and the positional relationship between the detected member that detects the presence or absence of the toner recovery container and the non-contact detection means are always Since the toner is normally held, it is possible to reliably detect whether the toner recovery container is mounted and whether the amount of toner in the toner recovery container has reached a predetermined amount.

Further, since the presence or absence of the toner recovery container is detected by the detection target member and the non-contact detection means, the returning force or the like accompanying the detection does not substantially act on the toner recovery container. Is always held at a predetermined position, and erroneous detection can be prevented in advance.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a part of an electrostatic copying machine equipped with a first concrete example of a recovery container detecting mechanism according to the present invention. 4 ... Front plate 8 ... Toner collection container 16 ... Container body 22 ... Container support 54 ... Permanent magnet 56 ... Reed switch 58 ... Elastic member 68 ... Optical detector

Claims (2)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A toner collection container is detachably mounted, and the toner collection container is movably arranged between a storage position for positioning the toner collection container at a predetermined collection position and an extraction position for allowing the toner collection container to be detached. A container support, a detected part provided at the upper end of the toner collection container so as to communicate with the inside and project from the side wall, and corresponds to the detected part when the container support is positioned at the storage position. A recovery toner detection mechanism including an optical detector disposed at a position, and a recovery container detection mechanism for detecting a toner recovery container positioned at a predetermined recovery position, wherein one end of the container support is When the toner recovery container is fixed and attached to the container support, it is elastically deformed, and the other end elastically acts on the side wall of the toner recovery container in the vicinity of the detected portion, and the toner recovery container is attached to the container. support A first position for holding it on the body, and an elastic holding member for moving the toner collecting container to the second position by restoring the other end to the toner collecting container housing space when the toner collecting container is detached from the container support, The detection target member mounted on the other end of the elastic holding member, and the detection target member with the other end of the elastic holding member positioned at the first position and the container support positioned at the storage position. A collection container detection mechanism, comprising: a detection member and a non-contact detection unit arranged at a position corresponding to the detection member. 2. The recovery container detection mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the member to be detected is a permanent magnet, and the non-contact type detection means is a magnetic detection means.