JPH09325591A - Color image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable attaching/detaching an image forming body and respective developing devices in a state where respective toner hoppers are connected to plural developing devices and installed, besides, to easily supply toner to respective toner hoppers and also to easily replace the hopper. SOLUTION: Respective toner hoppers 200(200C, 200K, 200M and 200Y) are arranged in parallel at the end parts of respective developing devices 13(13C, 13K, 13M and 13Y) at the end part on the front side of a photoreceptor drum 10, and respective toner hoppers are directly connected to respective developing devices 13 arranged by two pairs in left and right sides of the photoreceptor drum 10, or connected through a replenishing tube T. Then, by opening the front side of the device main body, the toner is supplied to respective toner hoppers 200 from the front side, and also, the toner hopper itself is replaced from the front side in the same way as that of attaching/detaching the photoreceptor drum 10 and respective developing devices.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention mainly arranges a plurality of charging means, image exposing means and developing means on the peripheral surface of a drum-shaped image forming body to form a toner image during one rotation of the image forming body. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electrophotographic color image forming apparatus that is formed by superposing on a body.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a method of forming a multi-color image, image exposure and development of an image corresponding to each color are sequentially repeated during one rotation of an image forming body to superimpose toner images of each color on the image forming body. There is known a color image forming apparatus for forming a color image.

However, in such an apparatus, a plurality of charging means, image exposing means and developing means are arranged on the peripheral surface of the image forming body, and further, a transfer material carrying area and a cleaning means can be provided. There is a drawback in that the space on the peripheral surface is insufficient, which makes layout difficult, requires a large-sized image forming body with a long peripheral surface, and is unbalanced.

As one method for solving this shortage of space, the base of the image forming body is made transparent, each image exposing means is housed inside the image forming body, and the image is exposed from the inside of the image forming body. An apparatus that sets the transport surface of the transfer material transported from the tangential direction to the transfer area by using the intermediate transfer material at a position away from the peripheral surface of the image forming body. Proposed.

[0005]

The use of the intermediate transfer member increases the degree of freedom in the layout of the charging means, the developing means and the cleaning means on the peripheral surface of the image forming body. If the means is configured to be attachable / detachable to / from the apparatus main body, there is a problem that the layout of the toner hopper connected to each developing means and the supply of toner to the toner hopper become difficult.

As a result of solving and improving this point, the present invention provides
Focusing on the fact that a plurality of developing means can be arranged symmetrically with respect to the image forming body by accommodating the image exposing means inside the image forming body, the image forming body and the developing means can be freely attached and detached, and the toner to the toner hopper can be attached. It is an object of the present invention to provide a color image forming apparatus that can easily supply the above.

[0007]

The above object is to have a plurality of image exposing means mounted on an optical system supporting means inside a drum-shaped image forming body, and to the left and right with respect to a vertical line passing through the center of the image forming body. In a color image forming apparatus in which two developing devices are respectively arranged above and below, the image forming body or each developing device is configured to be detachable in the rotation axis direction of the image forming body, and the end of the image forming body is detached. A color image forming apparatus (invention according to claim 1), characterized in that a toner hopper is provided on one surface of the unit side in parallel with the position of each developing device, and toner is supplied to an end portion of each developing device, and , A plurality of image exposing means attached to the optical system supporting means are provided inside the drum-shaped image forming body, and two developing devices are arranged on the left and right with respect to a vertical line passing through the center of the image forming body. Color image forming device In the configuration in which the image forming body or each developing device is attachable / detachable in the rotation axis direction of the image forming body, two pieces are arranged in parallel in the rotation axis direction of the image forming body and in front and rear. The present invention is achieved by a color image forming apparatus (invention according to claim 2), characterized in that a toner hopper is provided and toner is supplied to the end portion of each developing device.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Prior to the description of each embodiment of the present invention, the configuration of a color image forming apparatus common to each invention will be described with reference to FIG.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a drum-shaped image forming body, that is, a photosensitive drum, which is coated with a transparent conductive layer and an organic photosensitive layer (OPC) on the outer periphery of a cylindrical substrate formed of a transparent member such as optical glass or transparent acrylic resin. It is driven and rotated counterclockwise. The term "transparent" as used herein means having transparency to image exposure light.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a scorotron charger (hereinafter simply referred to as a charger), which performs a charging operation on the above-described organic photoreceptor layer of the photoreceptor drum 10 by a grid held at a predetermined potential and corona discharge by a discharge wire. A uniform potential is applied to the photoconductor drum 10.

Reference numeral 12 is an image exposing means, that is, the photosensitive drum 1.
An exposure optical system including an LED arrayed in the 0 axis direction and a SELFOC lens (product name) which is an equal-magnification image forming system. Image signals of each color read by a separate image reading device are stored in a memory. The light is sequentially taken out and input to each of the exposure optical systems 12 as an electric signal.

Each of the exposure optical systems 12 is attached to a supporting member 20 provided as an optical system supporting means, and is housed inside the base of the photosensitive drum 10.

Reference numerals 13Y to 13K denote developing units for accommodating yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C) and black (K) developers, respectively, each having a predetermined gap with respect to the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 10. The developing sleeve 130 rotates in the same direction while maintaining the above.

Each of the developing devices is in a non-contact state by applying a developing bias voltage to the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 10 formed by the charging by the charging device 11 and the image exposure by the exposure optical system 12 described above. Reverse development with.

Next, the process of the color image forming apparatus in this apparatus will be described.

The original image is temporarily stored in an image reading device, which is separate from this apparatus, as an image read by the image pickup device or an image edited by a computer as an image signal for each color of Y, M, C and K. Are stored and stored in.

When the image recording is started, the photoconductor drive motor is started to rotate the photoconductor drum 10 in the counterclockwise direction, and at the same time, the charging action of the charger 11 (Y) starts to apply the potential to the photoconductor drum 10. It

After a potential is applied to the photosensitive drum 10, the exposure optical system 12 (Y) starts exposure by an electric signal corresponding to the first color signal, that is, the image signal of yellow (Y), and the drum is started. By rotating and scanning, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the yellow (Y) image of the original image is formed on the photosensitive layer on the surface thereof.

The latent image is reversal-developed by the developing device 13 (Y) with the developer on the developing sleeve in a non-contact state, and a yellow (Y) toner image is formed according to the rotation of the photosensitive drum 10.

Next, the photoconductor drum 10 is given a potential on the yellow (Y) toner image by the charging action of the charger 11 (M), and the second color signal of the exposure optical system 12 (M), that is, Exposure is performed by an electric signal corresponding to the magenta (M) image signal, and non-contact reversal development by the developing device 13 (M) causes a magenta (M) toner image on the yellow (Y) toner image. Will be sequentially stacked.

By the same process, the charger 11 (C),
The exposure optical system 12 (C) and the developing unit 13 (C) further form a cyan (C) toner image corresponding to the third color signal, and the charging unit 11 (K), the exposure optical system 12 (K) and the developing unit 13 (C). A black (K) toner image corresponding to the fourth color signal is sequentially superimposed and formed by the unit 13 (K), and a color toner image is formed on the peripheral surface within one rotation of the photosensitive drum 10. You.

Photoreceptor drum 1 by each of these exposure optical systems
The exposure of the organic photosensitive layer of No. 0 is performed from the inside of the drum through a substrate transparent to the above-mentioned exposure wavelength. Therefore, the exposure of the images corresponding to the second, third, and fourth color signals is performed without any influence from the previously formed toner image, and the same exposure as the image corresponding to the first color signal is performed. It is possible to form an electrostatic latent image. Each exposure optical system 1
In order to stabilize the temperature in the photosensitive drum 10 and prevent the temperature from rising due to the heat generated by 2, heat is used for the supporting member 20, a heater is used for low temperature, and a heat pipe is used for high temperature. By taking measures such as radiating heat to the outside via the, it can be suppressed to the extent that there is no problem.
Further, at the time of the developing action by each developing device, a developing bias to which a direct current or a further alternating current is applied is applied to the developing sleeve 130, and a jumping development is performed by a one-component or two-component developer contained in the developing device, so that the developing sleeve 130 is transparent. Non-contact reversal development is performed on the photosensitive drum 10 that grounds the conductive layer.

The color toner image thus formed on the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 10 is once transferred to the peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14 provided as an intermediate transfer means.

The intermediate transfer belt 14 has a thickness of 100.
The roller 14A is made of urethane rubber having an electric resistance of 10 ⁸ to 10 ¹² Ω · cm, and further has a Teflon layer of 5 to 50 μm having a similar resistance value for preventing toner filming on the surface layer. , 14B, 14C
And 14D, and is circulated clockwise in synchronization with the peripheral speed of the photosensitive drum 10 by the power transmitted to the roller 14D.

The intermediate transfer belt 14 is a roller 14A.
The belt surface between the roller 14B and the roller 14B is in contact with the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 10, while the belt surface on the outer periphery of the roller 14C is in contact with the transfer roller 15 which is a transfer member to form a toner image transfer area at each contact. ing.

The color toner image adhered to the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 10 is first intermediate-transferred by applying a bias voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner to the roller 14B at the contact point with the intermediate transfer belt 14. The image is transferred to the peripheral surface of the belt 14. That is, the color toner image on the drum is conveyed to the transfer area without scattering the toner by the guide of the roller 14A which is grounded, and is transferred to the roller 14B by 1
The transfer is efficiently performed on the intermediate transfer belt 14 side by applying a bias voltage of about 2 kV.

On the other hand, the transfer paper P is unloaded by the operation of the paper feed roller 17 of the paper feed cassette (not shown) and is fed to the timing roller 18 in synchronization with the conveyance of the color toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 14. And is fed to the transfer area of the transfer roller 15.

The transfer roller 15 is the intermediate transfer belt 14 described above.
The transfer paper P fed in the counterclockwise direction is synchronized with the peripheral speed of the intermediate transfer in the transfer area formed by the nip portion between the transfer roller 15 and the roller 14C in the ground state. The color toner images are successively transferred onto the transfer paper P by applying a bias voltage of the opposite polarity to the toner of 1 to 2 kV to the transfer roller 15 in close contact with the color toner image on the belt 14.

The transfer paper P which has received the color toner image is discharged, is conveyed to the fixing device 91 via the conveying plate 19, and is conveyed by being sandwiched between the heat roller 91A and the pressure roller 91B and heated. After the toner is fused and fixed, the toner is ejected to the outside of the apparatus via the paper ejection roller 92.

Cleaning devices 100 and 140 are installed on the photoconductor drum 10 and the intermediate transfer belt 14, respectively, and the blades of the cleaning devices 100 and 140 are constantly in pressure contact with each other to remove the remaining adhered toner, and the peripheral surfaces are always kept. It is kept clean.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the support member 20 is composed of a pair of front and rear members fixed to the rotary support shaft 30 of the photosensitive drum 10, and each exposure optical system 1
2 has both ends adjusted so that the distance to the photosensitive surface via the attaching member 21 is in a predetermined positional relationship, and is fixed to the adjustment position by bonding.

On the other hand, in the photosensitive drum 10, flange members 10A and 10B provided at both ends are rotatably supported by the support member 20 via bearings B, respectively, and a gear G provided in the flange member 10B is driven. The rotation support shaft 30 in the fixed state is rotated about the rotation center.

The rotary support shaft 30 is the photosensitive drum 10.
Each of the symmetrical front and rear side plates 40 formed in a U-shape and integrally connected while supporting each of the exposure optical systems 12.
The bearing is supported between.

The side plate 40 is provided with rail members 50 as suspending means at the front and rear connecting portions, and the rail members 50 are inserted into and engaged with a guide member 60 provided in the main body of the apparatus to bring them into a suspended state. As a result, the rotary support shaft 30, and thus the photoconductor drum 10 and each exposure optical system 12, are placed at substantially predetermined set positions.

Further, when the rotary support shaft 30 is inserted to the proper position, the shaft end portion 30B protruding from the rear side plate 40 from the above-mentioned suspended state fits into the seat 71 provided on the device substrate, Shaft end 30 protruding from the front side plate 40
Since A is supported by the screw member 82 that is taper-fitted to the seat 81 provided on the support substrate 80, the photosensitive drum 10 is accurately regulated to a regular set position and the gear G meshes with the drive-side gear. On the other hand, each exposure optical system 12 further engages the penetrating pin P1 of the shaft end portion 30B with the groove of the V-shaped cross section formed in the receiving seat 71, so that a predetermined angle with respect to the apparatus main body is obtained. It is precisely regulated in position and fixed. Thereafter, the lead wires of the respective optical systems are connected from the respective windows 20A of the support member 20 on the front side to the power supply unit through the cutouts 40A of the side plate 40.

The support substrate 80 has the upper and lower reference holes H.
1 is engaged with a pair of reference pins P2 provided on the front device board 70, the attachment position thereof is determined, and is fixed to the front device board 70 by a plurality of screwing screws. Each of the rod-shaped chargers 11 having the window 80A opened and having the above-described rod shape is inserted from the outside of the support substrate 80 to be set at a predetermined interval position with respect to the photoconductor drum 10, and a screwing screw is set in a state where the electrodes are connected. It is fixed and supported by. The charging device 11 may be integrated with the corresponding developing device 13 as in the embodiment described later.

Therefore, the support substrate 80 is used for each charger 1.
When the screw member 82 is removed in a state where 1 is removed through the window 80A, the screw member 82 is only released from a plurality of screw holes, and is separated from the device substrate 70. From this state, the side plate 40 is removed. The rail member 50 is slid under the guidance of the guide member 60 so that the photosensitive drum 10 and each of the exposure optical systems 12 are integrally moved in the horizontal direction, and can be taken out of the apparatus main body through the opening 70A of the apparatus substrate 70. Becomes

A drive motor M1 for driving the gear G and a power transmission means thereof, that is, a drive system G (T) for the gear G are mounted and supported on the rear surface of the rear side plate 40 described above (FIG. 7 ( See b)).

Prior to the start of the attachment / detachment operation of the photosensitive drum 10 supported by the side plate 40 to / from the apparatus main body, each developing device 13, the intermediate transfer belt 14 and the cleaning device 100 with respect to the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 10 are started. The pressure contact action of the blade is released in advance and the blade is retracted by about 1 to 10 mm, and after the mounting, the blade is returned to the pressure contact state again.

After the side plate 40 is removed from the apparatus main body, the rail member 50 can be placed on the lower side as shown in FIG. 4 so as to be placed in a well-balanced manner so that the photosensitive drum or the like does not come into contact with the floor surface. Function as a stand for
It is also used to protect the photoreceptor surface.

In the color image forming apparatus, the intermediate transfer belt 14 is used as the toner image transfer means, so that the transfer surface of the transfer paper P is moved to a position separated from the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 10. As a result, a new space is created on the drum circumferential surface, and the image forming equipment such as the above-mentioned developing devices, other charging devices, cleaners, etc. do not create a wasteful space and balance as shown in FIG. It is placed in a comfortable position.

That is, a cleaning device 100 for the photosensitive drum 10 is further arranged together with the intermediate transfer belt 14 in the space below the peripheral surface of the drum created by the transfer of the transfer paper P downward.

As a result, as shown in FIG. 5, each of the developing units 13Y is located to the right and left of the vertical line XX passing through the center of the photosensitive drum 10 rotating counterclockwise.
And 13M, and two developing devices 13C and 13K each,
Further, with respect to the horizontal line YY passing through the center of the photosensitive drum 10, the developing devices 13M and 13C and the developing devices 13Y and 1 are provided above and below the horizontal line YY.
It is possible to arrange two units of 3K each with a margin, so that the weight balance of the device is good and the developing device 13 and other equipment can be easily attached and detached.

The cleaning device 100 is attached to the vertical line X.
By arranging it within ± 10 degrees below X,
The intermediate transfer belt 14 can be placed in the range of 5 ° to 45 ° on the lower rotation upstream side of the vertical line XX within the range indicated by θ in the figure, whereby each developing device 13 can be placed in the vertical line XX and the horizontal line YY. On the other hand, it is possible to arrange the left, right, top, and bottom in substantially symmetrical positions, and the balance and operability are further improved.

FIG. 6A shows the sectional structure of the developing device 13. The rotating developing sleeve 130 having a magnet fixed inside is opposed to the photosensitive drum 10 with a gap of about 0.1 to 0.6 mm by an abutting roller (not shown), and in the closest developing area. Non-contact reversal development is performed by the developer adhered on the developing sleeve 130 under an applied voltage in which DC and AC are superimposed. At this time, the developing sleeve 130 is rotated so as to be in the same direction as the photosensitive drum in the developing area as shown by the arrow in FIG. Reference numeral 131 is a layer thickness regulating member that regulates the amount of developer adhering to the developing sleeve 130.
Is a stripping member for stripping off the developer adhering to the developing sleeve 130 after development, and 133 is a supply roller for supplying new developer to the developing sleeve 130. Thirteen
Denoted at 4a and 134b are two screw-shaped stirring rollers provided in parallel to circulate and stir the developer in the front-back direction.
5 is a stirring roller 13 to ensure the circulation stirring of the developer.
It is a partition plate provided between 4a and 134b.

A magnetic permeability detecting means (not shown) is provided in the developing unit 13 to detect the toner density, and based on this, the toner supply amount is controlled so as to maintain a predetermined toner density value. To be done. By the toner concentration control, the toner supplied from the toner hopper is supplied from the replenishment tube T, and the toner dropped to the end of the stirring roller 134b far from the image forming body is stirred by the stirring rollers 134a and 134b which rotate in opposite directions. The mixture is stirred and mixed, and is charged to a predetermined charge amount. The agitated two-component developer is conveyed to the developing sleeve 130 via the supply roller 133,
The developer formed into a thin layer by the layer thickness regulating member 131 is conveyed to the developing area by the rotation of the developing sleeve 130.

The developing device 13 is horizontally attached and detached from the front side of the apparatus main body in a state where the developing sleeve 130 is retracted from the photosensitive drum 10 by the guide such as a guide rail. Figure 7
(A) shows a drive system for each developing unit 13, which is driven by the developing unit drive motors M3 and M4 provided on the substrate 70. The drive motor M3 is a developing device 13Y, 13M on the right side of the vertical line XX passing through the center of the photosensitive drum 10.
The rotation of the gear G (M3) fixed to the rotation shaft of the drive motor M3 in the direction of the arrow is provided at the shaft end of the developing sleeve 130 of the developing device 13Y via the intermediate transmission gear. The power is transmitted so that the gear G (Y) and the gear (M) provided on the shaft end of the developing sleeve 130 of the developing device 13M rotate in the developing region in the same direction as the photosensitive drum 10 in the direction of the arrow. To be done.

The drive motor M4 is a developing device 13C, 1 on the left side of the vertical line XX passing through the center of the photosensitive drum 10.
In the motor for driving 3K, the rotation of the gear G (M4) fixed to the rotation shaft of the drive motor M4 in the arrow direction is applied to the shaft end of the developing sleeve 130 of the developing device 13C via the intermediate transmission gear. The gear G (C) provided and the gear G (K) provided at the shaft end of the developing sleeve 130 of the developing device 13K are rotated so as to rotate in the same arrow direction as the photoconductor drum 10 in the developing area. Is transmitted.

A clutch (not shown) is provided between the shaft end of the developing sleeve 130 of each developing device 13 and the gear G (Y, M, C, K), and each developing device 13 is attached to the front of the main body of the apparatus. When it is pulled out horizontally from the side, the power transmission system is cut off by the clutch portion, and the clutch portion is connected by inserting the developing device 13 from the front side to a predetermined position.

Further, each developing device 13 has its own charger 11 as shown in the embodiment of the developing device 13Y shown in FIG. 6B.
In addition, the developing sleeve 130 is horizontally attached and detached from the front side of the apparatus main body in a state where the developing sleeve 130 is retracted from the photosensitive drum 10 by a guide such as a guide rail.

When attaching and detaching each developing device 13, the charging device 11 is used.
The power supply circuit connected to the developing device 13 and the power transmission mechanism connected to the developing device 13 are automatically connected or disconnected.

Each of the developing devices 13 is provided with a toner hopper 200, and when the toner in the developing device 13 is consumed by the development and decreases below a predetermined amount, each toner hopper 200 starts the toner conveying operation. Then
The toner is conveyed or dropped to the developing device 13 directly or through the replenishing pipe T for conveying and replenishing the toner, and the toner replenishment is continued until the developing device 13 recovers a predetermined toner amount.

(Embodiment 1) The invention according to claim 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

The toner hopper 200 is developed at each position facing the end portion on the front surface side of the photosensitive drum 10 as in the layouts shown in the front view of FIG. 8A and the plan view of FIG. 8B. Two toner hoppers 200Y and 200M for replenishing toner to the developing devices 13Y and 13M on the right side of the photosensitive drum 10, and a toner hopper for replenishing toner to the developing devices 13C and 13K on the left side of the photoconductor drum 10 so as to be parallel to the position of the developing device 13. 200C and 200K are arranged on one end surface so as to be located, and are directly connected to the end portions of the respective developing devices 13 or via the replenishing pipe T and can be separated.

To supply the toner to the toner hoppers 200 or replace the toner hoppers 200 themselves, the photosensitive drum 10 and the developing devices 1 shown in FIG.
3, the front door 300A provided for attachment / detachment or jam handling is opened to attach / detach the photoconductor drum 10 and the developing devices 13 integrated with the optical system, which is performed from one side surface on the front side of the apparatus main body. .

Therefore, the image reading apparatus 400 is placed on the upper surface of the main body, and the color image forming apparatus of this embodiment can be used as a color copying machine for reading an original image and recording an image.

(Embodiment 2) The invention according to claim 2 will be described with reference to FIGS.

The toner hoppers 200 are arranged side by side in the front-rear direction at positions parallel to the rotation axis direction of the photosensitive drum 10, as in the layouts shown in the front view of FIG. 9A and the plan view of FIG. 9B. Two toner hoppers 200Y and 200M for supplying toner to the developing devices 13Y and 13M on the right and left sides of the photoconductor drum 10, respectively.
Toner hoppers 200C and 200K for replenishing toner to the developing devices 13C and 13K are arranged on the left side, and are connected to the end portions of the respective developing devices 13 directly or via a replenishing pipe T and can be separated. ing.

To supply the toner to each of the toner hoppers 200 or replace the toner hopper 200 itself, the front door 300A for attaching / detaching the photoconductor drum 10 integrated with the optical system shown in FIG. This is performed by opening the top door 300B provided separately from the above. Of course, it is possible to provide a lid on each toner hopper 200 without providing the upper door 300B.

Therefore, the user can easily carry out the toner supply and the replacement of the hopper from the top in a comfortable posture.

[0061]

According to the present invention, it is possible to install each toner hopper for each developing device without obstructing the attachment and detachment of the image forming body and the plurality of developing devices, and further, to supply the toner to the toner hopper or the toner hopper itself. It is possible to mount the image reading device on the upper surface of the apparatus by performing the replacement from the front side of the apparatus (the invention according to claim 1), and by performing the replacement from the upper surface side of the apparatus. A color image forming apparatus is provided in which toner replenishment or toner hopper replacement work is made easy and safe (the invention according to claim 2).

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram of a color image forming apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a support structure of a photosensitive drum.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a support structure of the photosensitive drum.

FIG. 4 is an external view of a drum unit.

FIG. 5 is a layout diagram showing a layout of an image forming unit.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram of a developing device.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram showing a power transmission system.

FIG. 8 is a front view and a plan view showing a layout of the toner hopper according to claim 1.

FIG. 9 is a front view and a plan view showing the layout of the toner hopper according to claim 2.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the device according to claim 1.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the device according to claim 2.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Photoconductor Drum 11 Charging Device 12 Exposure Optical System 13 Developing Device 14 Intermediate Transfer Belt 15 Transfer Roller 16 Paper Feed Cassette 20 Supporting Member 91 Fixing Device 100, 140, 150 Cleaning Device 200 Toner Hopper 300A Front Door 300B Top Door 400 Image Reading Device T toner supply tube

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Masayasu Onodera 2970 Ishikawacho, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo Konica Corporation (72) Inventor ▲ Hama ▼ Tajuta 2970 Ishikawacho, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo Konica Corporation ( 72) Inventor Toshihide Miura 5-14-14 Midoricho, Koganei-shi, Tokyo

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of image exposing means attached to an optical system supporting means are provided inside a drum-shaped image forming body, and two developing devices are provided on each of left and right with respect to a vertical line passing through the center of the image forming body. In a vertically arranged color image forming apparatus, in which the image forming body or each developing device is detachable in the rotation axis direction of the image forming body, each developing device is formed on one end side of the image forming body. A color image forming apparatus, characterized in that a toner hopper is provided in parallel with the container position, and toner is supplied to the end portion of each of the developing devices. 2. A plurality of image exposing means attached to an optical system supporting means is provided inside a drum-shaped image forming body, and two developing devices are provided on each of left and right with respect to a vertical line passing through the center of the image forming body. In a color image forming apparatus arranged vertically, in a configuration in which the image forming body or each developing device is detachable in the rotation axis direction of the image forming body, it is parallel to the rotation axis direction of the image forming body A color image forming apparatus, wherein two toner hoppers are provided in parallel, and toner is supplied to an end portion of each developing device.