JPH09185241A - Toner supplying device and developing device using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a toner supplying device which has a high sealing property and is capable of preventing reduction in productivity, regardless of the fact that strict management for the sticking position of a pad, etc., is dispensed with by providing sealing members coming into press-contact with a toner supplying roller, to make it attachable to/detachable from a toner container by sliding. SOLUTION: When the toner supplying roller 103 is rotated, the toner of a hopper part 101 is squeezed into the groove part of the periphery of the toner supplying roller 103 by a sealing member 104 on the upstream side and scraped by a sealing member 105 on the downstream side, to be supplied into a developing part. Then, for instance, a groove 107 with a wedge-shaped cross section as a sliding member receiving member is provided in the axial direction of the toner supplying roller, in a housing 110. As the sealing members 104 and 105 on the upstream and downstream sides, one on which a pad member 109 such as a sponge is fixed on a sliding member 108 is used and the sealing members 104 and 105 are constituted to be attachable to detachable from the groove 107 by sliding. Thus, the fixing positions of the sealing members can be set with high accuracy.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toner replenishing device used in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, a printer and the like, and a developing device using the device, and more particularly, to a toner containing replenishing toner. And a toner replenishing roller that is provided at the outlet of the toner container and replenishes the toner from the toner container to the developing unit. The toner replenishing roller is pressed against the toner replenishing roller to block the outlet together with the toner replenishing roller. The present invention relates to a toner replenishing device having a seal member provided at an outlet for regulating the toner replenishment amount, and a developing device using the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a toner replenishing device for replenishing toner to a developing section used in an image forming apparatus, a discontinuous protrusion on a peripheral surface of a replenishing roller as a toner replenishing member,
Alternatively, a groove is known (for example, see Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 2-29055). When replenishing the toner to the replenishing device, this device can stably supply a constant amount of toner from the protrusion or the groove.

Further, in the case of using the replenishing roller having the projections or grooves on the peripheral surface as described above, in order to prevent the toner having fine particles from leaking out excessively and being supplied to the developing section, It is known that a seal member such as an elastic body is provided on both sides (for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 54-1974).
No. 2).

Further, the first and second rollers provided on both sides of the supply roller,
Among the second seal members, there is also known one in which the first seal member is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the replenishing roller and the second seal member is formed so as to bite into the groove of the replenishing roller (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-181770). reference). According to this apparatus, since the first seal member does not bite into the groove portion of the replenishing roller, the toner in the groove portion is discharged, and the discharged toner is scraped off by the second seal member biting into the groove portion of the replenishing roller. , Supplied to the developing tank. This allows
A certain amount of toner is supplied, and the replenishment amount can be set appropriately.

[0005]

However, according to the above-mentioned structure, basically, the toner amount is regulated by the sealing member such as the sponge pad, and the toner is conveyed by the rotation of the replenishing roller. Particularly when the particle size of the toner particles is very small as in a full-color copying machine, the toner leaks out from a minute gap unless the toner regulation (sealability) by the pad is sufficient. Therefore, there arises a problem that the toner density in the developing device becomes unnecessarily high. Generally, the pad is fixed by using a double-sided tape or the like by sticking the surface opposite to the replenishing roller to the outlet of the toner hopper as a toner container, which improves the sealing property of the pad. In order to do so, it is necessary to strictly control the position where the pads are attached, which lowers the work efficiency and thus the productivity.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing device and a toner replenishing device which have a high sealing property of a sealing member and do not reduce productivity. The present invention is to provide a developing device.

[0007]

To achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 provides a toner container containing replenishment toner, and the toner container provided at the outlet of the toner container. A toner replenishing roller for replenishing the developing section with toner, and a seal provided at the outlet so as to press the toner replenishing roller and close the outlet together with the toner replenishing roller. In the toner replenishing device having a member, the sealing member is provided so as to be detachable by sliding with respect to the toner container.

In this toner replenishing device, since the seal member is detachably attached to the toner container, the seal member can be easily detached by sliding.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the toner replenishing device of the first aspect, a taper is provided in the sliding direction of the slide member, and a taper corresponding to the taper is provided at the slide member mounting portion of the toner container. It is characterized by that.

In this toner replenishing device, since the taper is provided in the sliding direction of the slide member and the taper corresponding to the taper is provided at the slide member mounting portion of the toner container, the seal member and the toner are provided. Adhesion between containers is improved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the toner replenishing device of the first or second aspect, a pad member is fixed to a slide member as the seal member, and the length of the pad member in the sliding direction is set to the toner. It is characterized in that it is made longer than the length of the container outlet in the sliding direction.

In this toner replenishing device, a pad member is fixed to the slide member as the seal member, and the length of the pad member in the sliding direction is longer than the length of the toner container outlet in the sliding direction. Therefore, the surplus portion of the pad member is compressed, and both ends are brought into close contact with the inner wall surface of the toner container.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a developing section for forming a visible image by adhering toner in the developer to the latent image on the image carrier, a toner container containing replenishment toner, A toner replenishing roller that is provided at the outlet of the toner container and replenishes the toner from the toner container to the developing unit; and a port at which the toner replenishing roller is pressed into contact with the toner replenishing roller to close the outlet. A developing device having a toner replenishing device including a seal member for controlling the toner replenishment amount,
It is characterized in that the toner replenishing device of 2 or 3 is used as the toner replenishing device.

In this developing device, the developing device according to claim 1 or 2,
Alternatively, since the toner replenishing device according to claim 3 is used as the toner replenishing device, when the toner replenishing device according to claim 1 is used, the seal member can be easily slid and detached. When a replenishing device is used, the adhesion between the seal member and the toner container increases,
When the toner replenishing device according to the third aspect is used, the surplus portion of the pad member is compressed and both ends are in close contact with the inner wall surface of the toner container.

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a developing device used in an electrophotographic copying machine (hereinafter referred to as a copying machine) which is an image forming apparatus will be described below. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the developing device according to the present embodiment. In the developing unit 1 of this developing device, a developing roller 2 as a developer carrying member is arranged so that a part thereof is exposed from an opening of the developing unit 1 toward the photosensitive drum 20 as an image carrying member. ing. Further, inside the developing unit 1, a developing impeller 3, a mixing roller 4, a separator 5, a horizontal stirring screw 6, and a density sensor 7 for detecting the toner density inside the developing device located immediately below the mixing roller 4. , Horizontal stirring fin 8
Etc. are provided. A toner replenishing device 10 for replenishing the developing unit 1 with toner is attached to the developing unit 1.

The developer conveyed to the horizontal stirring fin 8 from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction of the developing device, for example, a two-component developer composed of toner and carrier, is rotated by the horizontal stirring fin 8 and the horizontal stirring screw 6 to the rotary shaft of the photosensitive drum. In the direction (hereinafter referred to as "rotational axis direction of the photoconductor"). Since the stirring of the developer by the horizontal stirring fin 8 and the horizontal stirring screw 6 in the direction of the rotation axis of the photoconductor is well known, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The toner replenishing device 10 includes a hopper 101 for storing a predetermined amount of toner and replenishing the developing unit with toner as needed, and a toner receiving unit (not shown) for discharging toner from a toner bottle (not shown). A toner conveying member 102 that conveys the toner discharged to the toner receiving portion in the rotation axis direction, a toner replenishing roller 103 as a toner replenishing member, and a toner replenishing roller for keeping a constant amount of toner replenished to the developing portion. Upstream side seal member 104,
Also, it has a downstream seal member 105 and the like. Further, above the toner receiving portion of the toner replenishing device 10, a toner bottle (not shown) that accommodates toner therein and is configured to be detachable from the toner replenishing device 10 is mounted.

Further, in this embodiment, a structure is adopted in which both the sealing property and the productivity of the sealing member can be secured. 2A is a front view showing the outline of the toner supply device of FIG. 1, and FIG. 2B is a plan view showing the outline of the toner supply device. When replenishing the toner in the hopper unit 101, the drive of a motor (not shown) is transmitted to the toner replenishing roller 103 via the gear 106, and the toner replenishing roller 103 rotates in the arrow direction. At this time, the upstream side seal member 104 pushes the toner in the hopper section 101 into the groove provided on the peripheral surface of the toner supply roller 103, and the downstream side seal member 105.
As a result, the toner in the groove is scraped off and replenished into the developing section. Further, one side wall 111 of the outlet housing (hereinafter referred to as housing) 110 of the toner hopper 101 is a plate-shaped member, and is screwed after the seal material and the toner supply roller are installed.

In the toner replenishing device of this embodiment,
As shown in FIG. 3, for example, a groove 107 having a wedge-shaped cross section as a slide member receiving portion is provided in the housing 110 in the axial direction of the toner supply roller, and the upstream side seal member or
As a downstream side seal member (hereinafter, both are collectively referred to as a seal member), a slide member 108 to which a pad member 109 such as sponge is fixed is used, and the seal member is configured to be slidable in the groove portion 107 so as to be detachable. There is.

With such a structure, the pad member 1 is previously prepared.
09 is provided with a slide member 108 and a housing 110.
Since the positional accuracy of the seal member can be obtained by the shape accuracy of the structure of the slide member receiving portion on the side, high sealing performance can always be maintained. Moreover, since it is easy to install the seal member on the housing 110, the work efficiency at the time of assembling the seal member is improved, and the productivity can be improved. In the above embodiment, as the structure of the slide member receiving portion, a structure having a groove with a wedge-shaped cross section that narrows toward the opening is adopted, while as the slide member 108, a plate-shaped member having a rectangular cross section is adopted. doing. As a result, the slide member 108 does not easily come off from the slide member receiving portion, and the contact area between the receiving portion and the slide member 108 is reduced to reduce the resistance at the time of mounting the slide and make it easier to install. . Further, in the above-described embodiment, the sliding direction is configured to be the same as the axial direction of the toner replenishing roller, but the same effect can be obtained by configuring the sliding direction to be perpendicular to the axial direction of the toner replenishing roller. Can be obtained.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a construction may be adopted in which the slide member 108 is tapered in the sliding direction and the slide member receiving portion is also similarly tapered. With such a configuration, the close contact between the seal member and the housing 110 is improved, and not only the displacement of the fixed position of the slide member 108 in the vertical direction but also the displacement of the fixed position in the axial direction of the toner supply roller are prevented. Therefore, the sealing property can be further improved.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the length of the pad member 109 in the sliding direction is set to be longer than the length of the housing 110 in the sliding direction, and the side wall 1
Excessive length (2d) when 11 is screwed
May be compressed. With this configuration, the pad member is compressed at both end portions and comes into close contact with the housing 110, so that the sealability between the end portion of the seal member and the inner surface of the housing 110 is improved, and toner is prevented from leaking out more. be able to.

In the embodiment described above, since the seal member is removable by sliding, it is not only easy to install, but also when the seal member is replaced due to wear or the like. Easy to work.

[0024]

According to the invention of claims 1 to 4, since the seal member is provided so as to be detachable by sliding with respect to the toner container, the seal member can be easily detached by sliding. You can With this, the fixing position of the seal member can be determined with high accuracy,
In particular, a sufficiently high sealing property can be secured even in a full-color copying machine having a small toner particle size. Moreover, since the work efficiency at the time of assembling the seal member is increased, there is an excellent effect that the productivity is also improved.

Further, according to the invention of claims 2 to 4, the taper is provided in the sliding direction of the slide member, and the taper corresponding to the taper is provided at the slide member mounting portion of the toner container. Further, there is an excellent effect that the adhesion between the seal member and the toner container is improved and the sealability can be further improved.

Further, according to the inventions of claims 3 and 4, since the surplus portion of the pad member is compressed and both ends are in close contact with the inner wall surface of the toner container, the sealing property at both end parts of the pad member is improved. There is an excellent effect that it is possible to prevent the toner from leaking through between the both end portions and the inner wall surface of the toner container.

In particular, according to the invention of claim 4, since the toner replenishing device of claim 1, 2 or 3 is used as the toner replenishing device, the sealing property of the seal member is sufficiently high,
Since a constant amount of toner can be stably supplied without the toner leaking into the developing device, good development can be performed. Furthermore, the work efficiency when assembling the seal member is improved,
There is an excellent effect that productivity can be improved.

[0028]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a developing device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2A is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a toner replenishing device of the developing device. FIG. 2B is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the toner supply device.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a seal member of the toner supply device.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a seal member and its vicinity of a toner replenishing device according to another embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a seal member and its vicinity of a toner replenishing device according to another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Developing Device 2 Developing Roller 3 Developing Impeller 4 Mixing Roller 5 Separator 6 Horizontal Stirring Screw 7 Concentration Sensor, 8 Horizontal Stirring Fin 10 Toner Replenishing Device 101 Hopper Part 102 Toner Conveying Member 103 Toner Replenishing Roller 104 Upstream Sealing Member 105 Downstream Side seal member 106 Gear 107 Groove 108 Slide member 109 Pad member 110 Housing 111 Side wall 20 Photoreceptor drum

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A toner container for containing replenishment toner, and a toner replenishing roller which is provided at an outlet of the toner container and replenishes toner from the toner container to a developing section.
A toner replenishing device, comprising: a seal member for pressing the toner replenishing roller so as to block the outlet together with the toner replenishing roller, for controlling the toner replenishing amount; The toner replenishing device is characterized in that it is detachably attached to the toner container by sliding. 2. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein a taper is provided in a sliding direction of the slide member, and a taper corresponding to the taper is provided at a slide member mounting portion of the toner container. Toner replenishing device. 3. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein a pad member is fixed to a slide member as the seal member, and the length of the pad member in the sliding direction is the same as that of the toner container outlet. Toner replenishing device characterized by being made longer than the length in the sliding direction 4. A developing section for forming a visible image by adhering toner in a developer to a latent image on an image carrier, a toner container containing replenishment toner, and an outlet of the toner container. And a toner replenishing roller for replenishing the toner from the toner container to the developing section, and the toner replenishing roller provided at the outlet so as to press the toner replenishing roller and close the outlet together with the toner replenishing roller. A developing device having a toner replenishing device including a seal member for regulating the replenishing amount, wherein the toner replenishing device according to claim 1, 2 or 3 is used as the toner replenishing device. apparatus.