JPH07325484A - Developing device and processing unit - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a developing unit capable of preventing a foreign matter from mixing in the toner in a state where the toner bunker part of a device case is opened. CONSTITUTION:This device is provided with the device case 21 equipped with the toner bunker part 22 on the upper surface part of which the toner feeding port 24 is disposed, and the toner pack 31 which is filled with the toner for supply inside, disposed with the toner discharging port 32 for discharging the filled toner on the bottom surface part, in the same time the toner discharging port 32 is covered by the sealing sheet detachably stuck, and mounted in freely attachably and detachably on the upper side of the toner feeding port 24 of the device case 21, and moreover the cover member 62 for covering the toner feeding port 24 is disposed on the upper side of the toner feeding port 24 of the device cover 21, and the space part 63 is formed between the cover member 62 and the toner feeding port 24 in which the toner pack 31 can be inserted.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a developing device provided in an electrophotographic apparatus and a process unit equipped with the developing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A developing device provided in an electrophotographic apparatus used in a facsimile, a laser printer, or the like supplies toner to an electrostatic image forming surface of a photoconductor to visualize the electrostatic latent image and develop the electrostatic latent image. Is to do.

Some of the developing devices employ a method of replenishing the toner with a toner pack filled with the toner as the toner is used. This type of developing device has a device case in which a toner reservoir having a toner inlet is provided on the upper surface, a toner discharge port filled with replenishment toner inside, and the toner discharge port is peeled off. And a toner pack covered by a seal sheet which is adhered as much as possible. The toner pack is placed on a flange portion surrounding the toner inlet of the apparatus case and is detachably loaded.

When toner is replenished to the toner storage portion of the apparatus case by the toner pack, the toner pack is placed on the flange portion surrounding the toner discharge port of the developing device case and locked to the flange portion as described above. . In this state, the seal sheet adhered to the flange portion surrounding the toner discharge port of the toner pack is peeled off to open the toner discharge port. As a result, the toner enclosed in the toner pack is introduced into the toner reservoir of the apparatus case from the toner outlet through the toner inlet.

[0005]

In such a developing device, since the toner inlet of the device case is located on the upper surface portion, when the toner pack is not loaded and the toner inlet is opened, the device case of the device case is opened. The toner reservoir inside is exposed to the upper side through the toner inlet. Therefore, there are the following problems.

That is, when toner is supplied to the device case, the old toner pack that has been loaded in the toner input port of the device case until then is removed and a new toner pack is loaded in the toner input port. When the input port is opened, it is easy for dust and particles floating in the air to fall into the toner reservoir through the opened toner input port and enter the toner reservoir. It is easy for unwanted materials filled in to mix. Also,
Since the toner inlet of the device case is opened during toner supply, the user mistakenly supplies a toner of a different type from the toner originally used to the toner reservoir of the device case with a spoon or the like. Sometimes.

The toner used in the developing device has a special characteristic set in accordance with the developing characteristic of the developing device. When a toner having a different characteristic is mixed with the toner having this characteristic, the characteristic of the toner is changed and required. Development characteristics cannot be obtained.
However, if the development characteristics are deteriorated due to the inclusion of foreign matter or different kinds of toner in the toner as described above, not only the image quality is deteriorated, but also toner filming development occurs in which the toner is fixed to the photoconductor or the developing roller. Causes a problem that the service life of parts is significantly reduced.

Further, in the electrophotographic apparatus, a photosensitive drum for forming an image forming process and a transfer device, a developing device, a transfer device provided around the photosensitive drum,
A system in which a cleaning device is integrated into a process unit, the process unit is detachably loaded into the main body of the electrophotographic device, and the entire process unit is replaced when the photosensitive drum reaches the end of its life. There is.

However, when the process unit is adopted, when handling the process unit, the user often holds the toner pack provided in the developing device by hand and holds the entire process unit. For this reason, the toner pack is formed of a thick resin or metal having a certain degree of rigidity in order to have a strength such that the toner pack is not deformed and damaged when the toner pack is held by hand and the whole process unit is held. Therefore, there are the following problems.

That is, there is a problem that such a toner pack becomes a big social problem in dust disposal because its volume is large at the time of disposal. Further, since the toner pack is thick, the material cost is high and it is uneconomical.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a developing device for an electrophotographic apparatus in which foreign matter is unlikely to be mixed into the toner in a state where the toner reservoir of the developing device case is opened. .

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to use a thin toner pack in addition to the fact that foreign matter is hard to be mixed into the toner in a state where the toner storage portion of the developing device case is opened.
It is an object of the present invention to reduce the volume of a toner pack when it is disposed of and to provide an economical process unit.

[0013]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a developing device according to the invention of claim 1 is a device case having a toner storage portion and a toner inlet opening on an upper surface of the toner storage portion, The toner has a toner discharge port for discharging the toner filled in the lower surface with a replenishment toner filled therein, and the toner discharge port is covered with a peelable adhesive seal sheet and the toner charging port is provided in the device case. In a developing device including a toner pack that is removably mounted and placed on the upper side of the above, a cover member that covers the toner input port is provided above the toner input port of the device case, and the cover member A space is formed between the toner input port so that the toner pack is removably inserted and accommodated therein.

In the process unit according to the second aspect of the present invention, at least a photoreceptor and a toner reservoir are provided, and an apparatus case having a toner inlet on the upper surface of the toner reservoir and a replenishment toner are filled inside. Has a toner discharge port for discharging the toner filled in the lower surface thereof, and the toner discharge port is covered with a peelable adhesive seal sheet and is attached to and detached from the device case above the toner input port. In a process unit including a developing device including a toner pack that is mounted and loaded as much as possible, the developing device includes a cover member that covers the toner input port above the toner input port of the device case. A space is formed between the cover member and the toner inlet so that the toner pack is removably inserted and accommodated therein. To.

[0015]

The toner pack is inserted into the space formed between the toner inlet formed on the upper surface of the toner reservoir of the developing device case and the cover member provided above the toner inlet. It is detachably inserted and accommodated, and is placed and loaded in the apparatus case at a position above the toner input port. Further, since the toner input port, that is, the toner reservoir is covered from the upper side by the cover member, when the toner pack is removed from the toner input port, foreign matter such as dust and dust from the outside of the device case passes through the toner input port and the foreign matter of the device case It is possible to prevent the toner from falling into the toner reservoir and entering the toner dedicated to the developing device in the toner reservoir.

Further, when the toner pack is removed from the toner inlet, the user mistakenly uses a different kind of toner for the developing device, which is different from the toner originally used for the developing device, from the toner inlet to the toner reservoir of the device case. It is possible to suppress the supply to the section.

Further, when handling the process unit including at least the photosensitive drum and the developing device, the user holds the process unit by grasping the cover member provided in the device case of the developing device. Therefore, when handling the process unit, the toner pack loaded in the apparatus case is not gripped, and as a result, it is necessary to form the toner pack with a thick material having high rigidity for the purpose of preventing deformation of the toner pack and improving strength. As a result, the topac can be thinned, the economic efficiency is improved, and the volume can be reduced at the time of disposal.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 shows a facsimile machine equipped with an electrophotographic apparatus. This facsimile device includes a process unit A, an exposure device B, a transfer device C, a fixing device D, a paper feeding device E, and a transmission device F, which are provided in the facsimile device main body 1.

The process unit A includes the photosensitive drum 11,
Charging device 12, developing device 13 and cleaning device 1
4 is integrally formed, and together with the exposure device B, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 11 by the so-called Carlson process. The process unit A is detachably attached to the facsimile apparatus main body 1.

The exposure apparatus B is equipped with an LED head,
The photosensitive layer of the photosensitive drum 11 is exposed to form an electrostatic latent image. The transfer device C includes a transfer roller, and transfers the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 11 onto a recording paper (not shown) supplied from the recording paper cassette by the supply device E. The fixing device D fixes the toner image transferred to the recording paper. The transmission device F optically reads a transmission original and performs photoelectric conversion to generate an image signal.

The process unit A will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3. In the process unit A, a charging device 12, a developing device 13 and a cleaning device 14 are arranged along the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 11. The photosensitive drum 11, the charging device 12, the developing device 13, and the cleaning device 14 are supported and integrated by the unit plates 4 located at both left and right ends of the process unit A.

The photosensitive drum 11 has, for example, a photosensitive layer made of a photosensitive conductive material formed on the surface of an aluminum tube, and is rotated in the direction shown by a rotary drive mechanism (not shown). A well-known scorotron charging device or the like is used as the charging device 12, and uniformly charges the surface of the photoconductor drum 11 to a predetermined potential.

The cleaning device 14 includes a cleaning blade 15, a waste toner storage box 16, a conveying roller 17, and a backflow prevention valve 18. The cleaning blade 15 scrapes off the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 11 even after the transfer process by the transfer device C. The waste toner storage box 16 conveys the waste toner scraped by the cleaning blade 15 to the waste toner storage box 16. The backflow prevention valve 18 prevents the toner inside the waste toner storage box 16 from backflowing to the photosensitive drum 11 side.

Next, the developing device 13 will be described with reference to FIG. The developing device 13 includes a device case 21, a toner pack 31, a supply roller 41, a developing roller 42, a developing blade 43, a receiving blade 44, a holding rod 45, and a spring member 48.

The device case 21 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin, has a length substantially the same as that of the photosensitive drum 11, and is arranged in parallel with the photosensitive drum 11. Inside the device case 21, a toner reservoir 22 and a roller placement portion 2 located between the toner reservoir 22 and the photosensitive drum 11 are disposed.
And 3 are formed. The toner reservoir 22 and the roller arrangement portion 23 are in communication with each other, and the toner reservoir 22
On the upper surface of the photosensitive drum 11, a rectangular toner inlet 24 that is open along the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 11 is formed.

Around the toner inlet 24, a horizontal flange portion 25 for mounting and loading the toner pack 31 is formed. Toner input port 24 of the flange portion 25
Walls 26 are formed upright at the edges along the longitudinal direction of the. Notches 27 are formed in the longitudinal direction of the pair of wall portions 26, respectively. A sealing member 28 having elasticity, such as sponge, is laid and adhered on the upper surface of the flange portion 25 so as to surround the toner inlet 24.

Grooves 61 for inserting and guiding the toner pack 31 are formed in the upper portions of the pair of walls 26. Further, a cover member 62 for covering the toner input port 24 from above is provided above the toner input port 24 of the apparatus case 21. The cover member 62 has a horizontally long roof shape along the longitudinal direction of the toner inlet 24, and an edge portion along the longitudinal direction is integrally connected to the pair of groove portions 61. That is, the cover member 62 is supported by the pair of groove portions 61 and is formed integrally with the device case 21. A space 63 having a size and shape that allows the toner pack 31 to be inserted and accommodated therein is formed between the toner inlet 24 of the apparatus case 21 and the cover member 62. An insertion / removal opening 64 for inserting / removing the toner pack 31 is formed at one end of the space 63 in the longitudinal direction. The cover member 62 has a strength that allows it to be held by hand and hold the entire process unit. Therefore, the wall thickness and material are set. The other end of the toner pack 31 may be open or closed.

On the other hand, the roller arrangement portion 23 of the device case 21
A supply roller 41, a developing roller 42, a developing blade 43, and a receiving blade 44 are provided in the. For example, the supply roller 41 made of foamed resin is fixed to a roller shaft 49, and the roller shaft 49 is rotatably supported on the side wall of the device case 21. The developing roller 42 made of, for example, conductive rubber is fixed to the roller shaft 50.
0 is rotatably supported on the side wall of the device case 21. The developing roller 42 is in contact with the supply roller 41 and the photosensitive drum 11.

The supply roller 41 and the developing roller 42 are
The toner that is rotated in the direction of the arrow in the drawing by a rotation drive mechanism (not shown) and is stored in the toner storage portion 22 of the apparatus case 21 is conveyed to the photosensitive drum 11 via the supply roller 41 and the developing roller 42.

The developing blade 43 is made of resin and fixed to the holding rod 45. The holding rod 45 is disposed above the developing roller 42 and in parallel with the developing blade 43 with the developing blade 43 facing down. The holding rod 45 is supported on the side wall of the device case 21 in a vertically displaceable state, and a downward force is applied by a spring member 48. Therefore, the developing blade 43 comes into contact with the surface of the developing roller 42, thins the toner carried on the developing roller 42 and is conveyed, and frictionally charges the toner to a predetermined polarity.

The receiving blade 44 is made of, for example, a resin film and has elasticity, and is attached below the developing roller 42 so as to come into contact with the peripheral surface of the developing roller 42. As a result, the receiving blade 44 can be prevented from leaking to the outside from the lower side of the developing roller 42.

The toner pack 31 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin, and is a horizontally long one having dimensions corresponding to the length and width of the toner inlet 24 of the apparatus case 21, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. A toner outlet 32 is formed on the lower surface, and a flange 33 is formed so as to surround the periphery of the toner outlet 32. Claw portions 34 are formed in the flange portion 33 on both sides along the longitudinal direction of the toner discharge port 32 in the middle of the longitudinal direction.

The toner discharge port 33 is covered with a seal sheet 35 made of a resin film adhered to the lower surface of the flange portion 33. The seal sheet 35 has a length more than twice the length of the toner discharge port 32. One part (sealing part) is thermocompression bonded to the flange part 33, is bent at one end of the toner pack 31, and the other part (non-sealing part) is a toner discharge port sealing part. It is located on the lower side along the longitudinal direction. In this case, the end portion 35a of the non-sealing portion of the seal sheet 35 is an end portion for peeling off the seal sheet 35. Further, at one end of the toner pack 31, a toner filling hole 36 for filling the toner T inside the toner pack 31 is formed. After the toner T is filled through the toner filling hole 36, the toner filling hole 36 is filled. The hole 36 is sealed by a seal piece 37. In this way, the toner T is placed inside the toner pack 31.
Is enclosed.

The toner pack 31 is inserted and disposed in the space 63 between the toner inlet 24 of the apparatus case 21 and the cover member 62 provided on the upper side thereof, and is positioned above the toner inlet 24 of the apparatus case 21. A case of removably mounting and loading will be described with reference to FIG.

The toner pack 31 is arranged along the longitudinal direction of the cover member 62, and the end portion of the toner pack 31 is opposed to the insertion / removal opening 64 of the cover member 62. In this case, the seal sheet 35
The end portion 35a of the non-sealing portion is set on the side opposite to the insertion / removal opening 64. Then, the claw portions 34 on both sides of the toner pack 31 in the width direction are inserted into the pair of grooves 61 formed on both sides of the device case 21 in the width direction, and the toner pack 31 is arranged along the longitudinal direction of the toner inlet 24 (cover member 62). To move. As the toner pack 31 advances, the toner pack 31 is inserted from the insertion / removal port 64 into the space 63 between the toner input port 24 and the cover member 62 provided on the upper side thereof, and is accommodated in the space 63. When the claw portion 34 of the toner pack 31 reaches the cutout portion 27 formed in the wall portion 61 of the apparatus case 21, the claw portion 33 falls into the cutout portion 27 and engages with the cutout portion 27. As a result, the toner pack 31 is placed on and locked by the seal member 28 of the flange portion 25 of the apparatus case 21.

In this case, the end portion 35a of the non-sealing portion of the seal sheet 35 extends out from the gap between the flange 4 portion 33 of the toner pack 31 and the flange portion 25 of the toner inlet 24. Then, the user uses the end portion 35 of the non-sealing portion.
When a is held by hand and pulled, the non-sealing portion of the seal sheet 35 is first pulled out from the gap between the flange portions 33 and 25, and then the seal sheet 35 adhered to the flange portion 33 of the toner pack 31. The sealing part of the flange part 33
It is peeled off and pulled out to the outside through the gap between the flange portions 33 and 25. As a result, the toner discharge port 32 of the toner pack 31 is opened, the toner T enclosed in the toner pack 31 is discharged from the toner discharge port 32, and the toner T is stored in the toner reservoir 22 of the apparatus case 21 via the toner input port 24. It is thrown in.

Here, the operation of peeling off the seal sheet 35 from the toner pack 31 will be described with reference to FIG. In this embodiment, the process unit A is attached to the main body 1 of the facsimile apparatus, and the upper casing 2 constituting the main body 1 of the apparatus is swung upward to enable maintenance such as toner filling. By allowing the seal sheet 35 to be removed from the side of the insertion / removal opening 64 of the cover member 62, the access direction of the user is unified and usability is improved.

Furthermore, it is desirable that the seal sheet 35 has a structure in which there are no obstacles in the horizontal space so that it can be removed in the horizontal direction. That is, in the example of FIG. 7, the height H1 of the front cover 3 that constitutes the apparatus main body 1 is set lower than the height H2 of the horizontal position of the seat seal 35, so that the seat seal 35 is moved horizontally. On the other hand, since it is not pulled diagonally, the pulling resistance is reduced by that amount, and the user's convenience is improved without imposing extra labor on the user. Conventionally, a strong force is required to peel off the sheet seal 35.
Could be damaged.

In the embodiment described above, the cover member 62
Since the toner input port 24, that is, the toner reservoir 22 is covered from above by the toner input port 24,
When removed from the apparatus case 21, foreign matter such as dust, dust, and the like from the outside of the apparatus case 21 passes through the toner input port 24 and the apparatus case 21.
It is possible to prevent the toner from falling into the toner reservoir 22 and entering the toner dedicated to the developing device in the toner reservoir 22.

Further, the toner pack 31 is attached to the toner inlet 2
When it is removed from the toner cartridge 4, the user mistakenly uses a spoon or the like to fill the toner reservoir 22 of the apparatus case 21 with a toner of a different type from the toner exclusively used for the developing device, and It is possible to suppress mixing in the toner for exclusive use of the developing device in the reservoir portion 22.

Therefore, not only the foreign matter or different kind of toner is mixed into the toner to deteriorate the developing characteristics, but also the image quality is deteriorated, and the toner filming development in which the toner is fixed to the photosensitive member or the developing roller is generated. It is possible to solve the problem that the life of the parts is significantly reduced.

When removing the toner pack 31,
The toner pack 31 is lifted by the reverse operation to the above-mentioned operation to release the fitting between the claw portion 34 and the cutout portion 27, and is pulled out along the groove portion 61.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the developing case 2 of this structure is used.
The process unit A including 1 is configured to be detachable from the main body 1 of the facsimile apparatus.
If a recording paper jam occurs just below the unit, remove the unit A from the apparatus main body 1 and release the recording paper jam.
It is necessary to mount the unit A again.

When handling the process unit A in this way, the user holds the cover member 62 provided on the upper side of the developing case 21 and lifts the entire process unit A. Therefore, it is not necessary to grasp the toner pack 31 when handling the process unit A, and as a result, the toner pack 3 is aimed at preventing deformation of the toner pack 31 and improving strength.
There is no need to form 1 with a thick material with high rigidity,
As a result, the thickness of the toe pack 31 can be reduced, the economic efficiency can be improved, and the volume at the time of disposal can be reduced. Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment and can be implemented in various modifications. can do.

[0045]

As described above, according to the developing device of the first aspect of the invention, a cover member is provided above the toner inlet formed in the upper surface of the toner reservoir of the device case of the developing device. In the space formed between the toner input port,
The toner pack is loaded and arranged so that it can be inserted and removed. Since the cover member covers the toner input port, that is, the toner reservoir, even when the toner pack is not loaded and the toner input port is open, foreign matter such as dust and dirt is prevented from entering the developing device. Not only can this be done, but it is possible to prevent the user from inadvertently filling in different types of toner. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the original characteristics of the toner from changing and the developing characteristics to deteriorate, and it is possible to secure stable high image quality for a long period of time.

According to the process unit of the second aspect of the present invention, when handling the process unit, the user holds the cover unit by hand and holds the process unit. Therefore, the toner pack is not grasped when handling the process unit, and as a result, it is not necessary to form the toner pack with a thick material having high rigidity for the purpose of preventing deformation of the toner pack and improving strength. It is possible to reduce the wall thickness, improve the economic efficiency, and reduce the volume at the time of disposal.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a developing device and a process unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a facsimile apparatus equipped with the process unit of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a toner pack loading portion in the developing device of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a toner pack in the developing device of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing the toner pack.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a toner pack and a toner pack loading section in the developing device of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which the seal sheet is peeled off from the toner pack loaded in the toner pack loading unit in the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... Photosensitive drum, 12 ... Charging device, 13
... developing device, 14 ... cleaning device,
21 ... Device case, 22 ... Toner reservoir,
24 ... Toner input port, 31 ... Toner pack,
32 ... Toner discharge port, 35 ... Seal sheet,
62 ... Cover member, 63 ... Space part, 64 ...
Insertion and removal, A ... Process unit.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A device case provided with a toner reservoir and having a toner inlet on the upper surface of the toner reservoir, and a toner outlet for discharging the toner filled on the lower surface with replenishment toner inside. And a toner pack in which the toner discharge port is covered with a peelably adhered seal sheet and is detachably mounted on the device case above the toner input port. In the device case, a cover member for covering the toner input port is provided above the toner input port, and a space for inserting and receiving the toner pack is formed between the cover member and the toner input port. The developing device is characterized by being provided. 2. An apparatus case having at least a photoconductor, a toner reservoir, and a toner inlet on the upper surface of the toner reservoir, and a toner for replenishing the interior of the toner, and the toner on the lower surface of the toner. A toner pack that has a toner discharge port for discharging and that is covered by a peelable seal sheet and that is detachably mounted on the device case is located above the toner charging port. In the developing device, the developing device is provided with a cover member for covering the toner input port above the toner input port of the device case, and the cover member and the toner input port are provided. A process unit, wherein a space is formed between the toner pack and the toner pack so that the toner pack can be inserted and received.