JPS6285279A - Developing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent a developer from scattering when supplied by reducing the size of the opening of a developing container inwardly and providing an inner lid which forms a slit opening smaller than said opening nearby an opening for supply. CONSTITUTION:When toner is supplied, part of a supplementary developer container 31 is cut and opened and the container is turned over to supply toner into the developing container. The inner lid 16 is provided to prevent the falling toner from scattering as shown by a dotted-line arrow, and its slit opening is formed in a funnel shape. Consequently, the toner is easily supplied and the scattering toner moves around as shown by an arrow S and never leaks out. Further, the slit part is formed in the funnel shape, so toner falling on a slanting surface is easy to fall in the developing container.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a developing device, and particularly to a developing device that visualizes a latent image using a -component magnetic developer.

Conventionally, as dry developing methods for developing electrostatic charge patterns, there are two-component developing methods and one-component developing methods when classified based on the composition of the developer. In the former, the developer consists of a mixture of carrier particles such as iron powder or glass beads and toner particles that actually develop the electrostatic image. This two-component development method has the drawbacks of fluctuations in image density due to changes in the mixing ratio of carrier particles and toner particles, and deterioration of image quality due to deterioration of gearia particles.

On the other hand, the latter one-component development method does not have the drawbacks of the two-component development method described above because carrier particles are not present, but it is a promising development method.

Generally known and used one-component developers have magnetic properties within the toner particles due to frictional electrification due to relative movement and the need for a means to transport the developer to the development area facing the electrostatic image. It can contain powder.

However, the content of the magnetic powder is naturally limited because heat, pressure, or other means are used to fix the toner image on the transfer paper. . In practice, magnetic powder occupies 10% to 60% by weight of toner particles, but due to the difference in specific gravity between resin and magnetic powder, the volume occupancy of magnetic powder in toner particles is less than 20%. Since the volume occupancy of the magnetic powder in the toner is small, the behavior of the toner in the magnetic field is different from that of magnetic powder alone, and it is difficult to form long brushes with sparse density at the magnetic pole position. Therefore, when the thickness of a single layer of toner on a toner supporting member is restricted to several mm, the single layer of toner on the supporting member tends to become uneven and non-uniform.

The non-uniformity of this layer of toner on the support member is easily reproduced directly in the developed image, and since the toner is a dense layer, if there is variation in the layer thickness, it will come into contact with the surface of the photoconductor, which is an electrostatic image holding member. There is a risk of toner clumping or damage to the photoconductor. Therefore, in this sense, in a developing method using a one-component magnetic toner, it is necessary to form a uniform thin layer of toner on a toner support member.

Generally, in order to regulate the layer thickness of powder or granular material on a support member, a thickness regulation member is placed close to the surface of the support member to form a slit, and when the support member moves relative to the thickness regulation member, The actual thickness of the toner whose thickness is regulated is somewhat thicker than the slit gap.

For this reason, in the development of -component magnetic toner, in order to form a thin layer of toner, conventionally the thickness regulating member had to be placed extremely close to the toner supporting member, which required mechanical precision. Furthermore, toner that has aggregated due to various reasons may get stuck in the minute gaps of the slits, and a single layer of toner may not be formed in that area.

The present invention has an object of preventing scattering of developer when replenishing the developer container of a developing device, and solves the problem of scattering from the developer container.

Embodiments and examples of the present invention that achieve such objects will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the device according to the present invention.
Rotate the area around it clockwise as shown. The magnetic blade 6 provided opposite the cut pole N1 cooperates with the magnetic force of the cut pole N, and as the sleeve 2 rotates, it is surrounded by the side plates 4, 5, the front stay 10, the toner fall prevention stay 3, etc. The insulating magnetic toner T in the developing container box is applied onto the sleeve 3 to an appropriate thickness. The mechanism will be described later. The applied toner is transferred to the developing pole Sl and the photosensitive drum D.
The space is transferred to the space passing through the gap d2, and a microscopic image corresponding to the electrostatic image is obtained. (For example, patent application No. 53-92108
(see issue) At this time, the thickness of the applied toner is 50 to 100μ,
The gap d2 is 330μ or less and 100μ or more.

Next, the sleeve 2 continues to rotate, and the distance between the sleeve 2 and the L-ner fall prevention stay 3 gradually narrows until it becomes the narrowest at the bottom, and the distance remains almost the same. This interval is set so that toner not used for development can easily enter.d3=1.3~2
Approximately mm is appropriate. In the middle, the point d4 becomes extremely narrow, which prevents the toner T from falling from three sides, especially when toner is dropped from above when there is no toner inside, such as when used for the first time, and prevents the toner from spilling out in the X direction. To serve as a toilet. Note that it is better to provide a magnetic pole on the magnet inside the sleeve at a position corresponding to d4. it is,
Because the applied toner brush stands up at the magnetic pole,
Due to the synergistic effect, the toner falling from above is prevented from leaking.

”For double use, the narrower the distance d4, the better.
In reality, a suitable interval is such that toner not used for development can easily pass through, that is, about 0.7 to 1.3 mm. Note that the distance from the interval d3 to the interval d4 is 0.7.
If the magnetic poles are approximately 13 mm apart and approximately parallel to each other, the adsorption force between the toner T and sleeve 2 is weak in areas without magnetic poles (between S+ and N2, between N2 and S2), so the fallen toner will fall onto the toner fall prevention stand. The particles gradually grow on the upper side of the sleeve 3 (lower side of the sleeve 2), and when connected with the toner on the sleeve, they come to prevent the toner from being conveyed in the direction of rotation of the sleeve 2. When this increases, toner leaks in the X direction. This will be explained in detail later. After passing through the gap 764, the toner on the sleeve 2 is scraped off by a crease 11 made of a spring material such as phosphor bronze or stainless steel. The scraped toner T passes through the hole of the cleaner 11 in the Y direction. This force is due to the maximum force of the north pole and the pushing force of the toner scraped off one after another from below.

The wire 15 attached to the shaft 14 rotates clockwise,
Stir toner T. The inner lid 16 is curved (converging at the tip) and is useful when replenishing toner. The iron plate 20, which is integral with the upper lid 20, is attracted to rubber magnets 18 and 19 fixed to the side of the container around a rotating shaft 21.

Here, as described above, the developing device of the present invention is integrated with a container for replenishing developer, and is inserted from the road side into the shaft 101 of the main body of the machine so that the recesses 4-1 of the side plates 4, 5 are fitted. Generally, the developing device is inserted into the machine in the axial direction, that is, from the front to the back in the drawing. This is because coupling is easier when driving the developing device. However, in the embodiment of the developing device according to the present invention, as will be described later, the distance d2 between the photosensitive drum D and the developing sleeve 2 is always constant (for example, 3
00μ±30μ), and considering the eccentricity of the drum (generally about 70μ) and the eccentricity of the sleeve (generally about IOμ), the developing device should be fixed to the machine body as conventionally done. This means that the eccentricity is twice the eccentricity, that is, about 160μ d2
Due to the variation in the value of , it significantly exceeds the tolerance range of ±30μ. Therefore, by devising the structure, the eccentricity of the sleeve was ignored and a hanging configuration was adopted. The eccentricity of the drum is caused by its large diameter, the variation in thickness due to the photosensitive layer and insulating layer coated on the outer periphery, and the fact that the drum is pivoted with flanges on both sides to support the pipe-shaped drum. Considering the inclusion of eccentric elements, it is difficult to devise a composition. Therefore, in the present invention, in order to maintain a constant distance between the developing device and the drum surface, a central shaft 101 is provided in the main body of the machine, the developing device is inserted from above, the recess 4-1 of the developing side plate 4 is fitted therein, and the central shaft 101 is inserted into the developing device from above. The machine body is supported rotatably around a rotation center 101, and a shaft 102 provided on the machine body is rotated counterclockwise, and a leaf spring 103 applies appropriate pressure. Note that the four parts 1-1 are slightly oriented in the front-rear direction (
(shown) is given a degree of freedom to prevent the sleeve (23 in FIG. 2) from hitting the photosensitive drum unevenly. Specifically, a play of 0.2 to 0.3 mm is provided. The distance d2 between the photosensitive drum D and the sleeve 2 is kept constant by pressing the sleeve roller 23 against the end of the photosensitive drum D, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Therefore, the developing device responds to the eccentricity of the photosensitive drum D by fluctuating around the shaft 101.

The surface of the photosensitive drum D is coated with a C d S layer D-1, which is a photosensitive member, and an insulating layer D-2, and the rollers 23 are in contact with areas on both sides where only the insulating layers are coated.

This is because when the roller 23 is rotated in contact with a certain part of the CdS layer D1, since the CdS layer D1 is soft, the insulating layer on top of it is easily torn, and if the roller 23 is in contact with metal, the roller 23 will wear out. Due to reasons such as ease of use.

The material of the roller is ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene because of its durability and resistance to damaging the insulating layer of the photosensitive drum D. Naturally, the radius of the roller 23 is equal to the radius of the sleeve 2 plus the gap d2 and the thickness of the CdS layer.

The problem here is that in conventional cases (in which the developing device is inserted from the side of the machine body and the sleeve is driven from a coupling, etc. fixed to the main body), the developing device is fixed. However, in the embodiment of the present invention, the developing device is moved along the shaft 101.
Since it is supported so that it can wobble around the developing device, if it is carelessly driven, an unexpected force will be applied to the entire developing device. A specific explanation will be given with reference to FIG.

In an embodiment of the developing device according to the present invention, the photosensitive drum D and the sleeve 2 are moved in the same direction and at approximately the same circumferential speed, more precisely 2 to 3
%, the sleeve circumferential speed is made slower than the drum circumferential speed, and the toner on the sleeve is transferred to the drum by making the sum of the moving speed of the brush tip of the applied toner and the speed increase due to rolling of the brush ear match the drum speed. It is electrostatically attracted to the latent image potential above. The reason why the circumferential speed of the sleeve is made slightly slower is to match the speed of the toner on the surface of the brush formed on the sleeve with the circumferential speed of the drum D. Because of this configuration, as shown in FIG. 2, the sleeve gear G is fixed coaxially with the sleeve 2, and the drum gear G is fixed coaxially with the photosensitive drum D.
When engaged with D, the above speed can be easily achieved. However, when such a drive is adopted, the rotation center axis is 10L as shown in FIG.

In the case of , the entire developing device receives a force escaping from the drum D due to the pressure angle of the gear, while on the other hand, when the shaft is 10 f, it becomes a pressing force, and the pressing pressure of the sleeve roller 23 on the front and rear drum D is different, and the insulation of the drum is There is a possibility that the layer D-2 may be damaged, or the roller 23 may become separated from the photosensitive drum D during development, and the gap d2 between the photosensitive drum D and the sleeve 2 may widen, making it impossible to perform development. In particular, in this embodiment of the sleeve, the end felt 22 will be described below with reference to FIG.
．． 24 to prevent the toner from leaking out from around the outer edge of the sleeve, this braking force reduces the force F.
increases. When I experimented with the center of rotation at 10L2, I found that
As a result of the developing unit being subjected to a counterclockwise force due to the moment caused by the force F around this axis, the sleeve roller 23 was strongly pressed against the photosensitive drum D, causing scratches on the photosensitive drum D, making it unusable.

In this embodiment, the rotation center shaft 101 is connected to both gears (G,

G,) was placed on the axis at an angle of 20° with the tangent line. This is because the pressure angle of the gear is generally cut at 20', and the pressure angle is 1
Of course, if the gear is 4.5°, it should be installed in that direction. JIS recommends gears with a lunar force angle of 20°. Due to its configuration, the force F due to the pressure angle passes through the rotation center axis 101 of the developing device, so no matter how large the value of F is, it will not be a force applied to the developing device.The moment that tries to rotate the developing device With this configuration, the developing device set, which conventionally required the labor of inserting the developing device into the main body of the device and connecting it to a coupling, can be inserted from the top of the machine. The only thing left to do is to attach the developing device to the photosensitive drum D using the leaf spring 103 (Fig. 1).
All you have to do is force it. Furthermore, if the center of gravity of the developing device is on the left side of the rotational center axis 101 in FIG. 1, this becomes a force that presses the developing device against the photosensitive drum D, so that the leaf spring 103 can also be omitted.

Next, we will discuss the end felt, which is the main load on the developing device. Felts 22, 24 are provided on both sides of the sleeve 2 (FIGS. 1 and 8) to prevent toner from leaking to the edges. A detailed explanation will be given according to FIGS. 1, 5, and 6. As shown in FIG. 1, the felt is provided so as to cover about half of the outer circumference of the sleeve 2, and is in pressure contact with the sleeve. Specifically, the side plate 4 and sleeve 2
For a gap of 2 mm, a 2.5 mm thick felt I was adhered to the side plate, and the contact pressure was generated by the elasticity of the felt.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the felt in use.

If there is no end felt 22, the toner T will swell up at the end as shown by the broken line in FIG. This is because the magnetic field of the internal magnet 1 becomes stronger at the ends, and even if, for example, the ends of the internal magnet are chamfered or the diameter is reduced to J < at the ends, it will not escape properly. This is not noticeable and does not become a major problem when applying a thick layer (for example, 1 mm or more) onto the sleeve and performing rubbing development, as when using ordinary conductive magnetic toner. It can be applied almost uniformly up to about 15 mm outside the internal magnet. However, for example, a magnetic blade can be used to create a thin film (for example, 0.5 mm or less and 30 μ or more).
This poses a problem when used for coating and toner development. That is, there is a risk that an abnormally thick portion of the toner layer at the end will appear as a black band on the image or cause toner aggregation between the latent image forming body and the sleeve. When such aggregation occurs, the latent image forming body and sleeve are likely to be damaged. Therefore, only that part is not coated. In the present application, a Teflon felt 22 (Teflon is a trade name of tetrafluoroethylene resin) is provided here to prevent the toner T in the developer container from coming out to the end. Specifically, this Teflon felt wraps around the sleeve inside the end of the internal magnet 1. This prevents the edges from being applied in a raised manner. Further, as the sleeve rotates, the toner is drawn by the strong magnetic field at the end and gradually approaches the end after passing through the non-felt portion, that is, the magnetic blade 6 (dotted chain line in FIG. 5).

Therefore, when the sleeve after development next hits the felt, the felt is provided diagonally as shown in Figures 5 and 6, and the toner that has protruded from the edge is moved in the P direction along the diagonal line. It is structured so that it can fit in. Here, the diagonal parts are 22-, 22. It is constructed so as to connect the points, but the upper side of the felt is not diagonal but straight (22-3). This is to eliminate a gap from the part that is flush with the side plates 4 and 5 and contacts the upper magnetic blade to the part of the gap d4 for preventing the developer from falling. That is, the area on the second side of the gap d4 generally serves as a toner container, and if there is a gap in the needle in this area, toner is likely to leak. Therefore, the portion 22-2 may be slightly lower than the gap portion d4. For example, if this part is recessed from the side panel, there will be less toner (when the lid 20 is opened and closed, wind will flow through this gap and the toner will scatter. This is because the friction is large and the temperature of the sleeve increases, causing the toner to fuse to the sleeve.

Next, the structure of the developing sleeve 2 will be described. 3 and 7 show conventional examples, in which a sleeve shaft 2-2 is press-fitted or screwed into the left end of the sleeve 2, a magnet l is inserted inside, and then the sleeve shaft 2-2 is inserted into the right end. is press-fitted or screwed in, and the magnet shaft ti is fixed to the side stone with a rotation stopper 28. In this configuration, since the roller 23 is placed on the sleeve shaft on the left side, the effect of eccentricity is small, but on the right side, the roller 23 has to be placed on the magnet shaft 1-1, which is a completely different member from the sleeve 2. Therefore, bearing 26
, it is undesirable to be affected by the eccentricity of the sleeve shaft 2-2.

FIG. 8 shows an embodiment of a sleeve applied to the device according to the present invention, in which the sleeve shaft 2-2 is extended and its shaft is rotated freely by a bearing 27 with respect to the developing side plate 5 in the same way as on the left side. A roller 23 is inserted outside the supporting side plate. Magnet axis l-1
' is further stretched and fixed to the side plate 5 with a rotation stopper 28'. With this configuration, the roller 23 can be placed on the sleeve shaft 11.2-3 that is integrated with the sleeve 2.
There is almost no effect of eccentricity. Furthermore, when ball bearings are used in an atmosphere where toner is scattered, toner tends to get into the bearings and become locked, so in this embodiment the rollers are placed outside the developer container, that is, outside the side plates 4 and 5.

With this configuration, as shown in Fig. 7, there is no need to provide an oil seal 29 between the magnet 1 and the sleeve 2 (an oil seal is not required because the bearing 26' does not come into contact with the inside of the developing device, which is an atmosphere in which toner scatters). Another advantage is that there is less friction between the sleeve and sleeve. Furthermore, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the bearing 23-1 of the right roller 23 is essential;
In the embodiment of FIG. 8, the roller 23 may be integral with the sleeve 2 without the bearings 23-1. For example, even if the bearing 23-8 is locked, as mentioned above (at the outer circumference of the sleeve, more precisely at the radius added by 300μ, the circumferential speed is the same as that of the photosensitive drum D, and that position is at the outer diameter of the roller 23). In other words, the drum and roller are configured to roll at the same circumferential speed at this diameter.To make it easier to understand by giving specific values, the drum diameter is 80 mm, 80 tooth drum gear G 11
will be established. Sleeve diameter 32, 4 mm and 3
A 3-tooth sleeve gear G is provided and meshes with the drum gear. Assuming that the diameter of the roller is 33 mm, the roller also rotates once for every rotation of the sleeve. Therefore, even in a case where a heavily loaded rubber shield bearing is used for the roller bearing 231, the roller rotates at the same circumferential speed as the photosensitive drum D. In the example shown in FIG. 7, when the load on the bearing 23-1 increases, slippage occurs between the photosensitive drum D and the roller 23, leading to wear of the roller 23 or the photosensitive drum D.

In addition, the bearing 27 includes the bearing 27-1 and the oil rule 27.
-1 is integrated with acetal resin 27, and by integrating it, it is expected that gaps between each part will be reduced and assembly precision will be improved.

Next, the behavior of toner around the sleeve will be described. A conventional example is shown in FIG. 11. As the sleeve 2 rotates, the toner inside rotates approximately in the Q direction.

If the angle α (the mounting angle of the blade 6) is smaller than 90°, the toner dragged by the rotation of the sleeve 2 will collide with the magnetic blade 6 and then rotate in the Q direction, causing the toner to receive unnecessary force. tends to aggregate and solidify. Particularly unfavorable is the case where the tip has a small acute angle, the toner rotates in the Q direction with a small diameter, and since the rotation radius is small, it is also subjected to a large cohesive force, and moreover, the toner rotates many times during one rotation of the sleeve 2. Therefore, it is like a hard pencil lead (Fig. 12)
Solidified toner is formed, which gets stuck in the gap d between the sleeve 2 and the blade 6 and blocks the toner from passing through, making it impossible to apply toner onto the sleeve 2. In this embodiment, in order to prevent the toner from rotating with a small diameter, the tip of the magnetic blade 6 and the sleeve 2 are parallel to each other or are slightly widened in the direction of rotation of the sleeve 2. 9th. Referring to FIG. 10, the angle .alpha. between the surface of the magnetic blade 6 in contact with the toner and the sleeve 2 should be an obtuse angle larger than 90.degree., and the tip of the blade should preferably have a t of 0.3 to 1 mm. If 11] is narrower than this, the coating in the generatrix direction tends to be uneven, and if it is wider than this, the coating in the circumferential direction tends to be uneven.

The tip of the blade is approximately parallel to the sleeve. Here, the distance d is 240μ±30μ, N, and the pole strength is 800 Gauss at the surface magnetic powder density.In the width t part, the ears of magnetic toner are connected between the sleeve 2 and the magnetic blade 6. , when the sleeve takes one step out of this area, the curtain-like ears are cut at the surface where the magnetic force from the blade 6 and the magnetic force from the magnet ■ are antagonistic, and under the above conditions, t1 is about 50 ~! 00μ toner is applied. Next, the toner is transported as the sleeve 2 rotates, and the coat swells up to some extent at the developing pole S. However, the amount is the gap d2 (300μ±30μ)
When viewed from above, the amount of swelling is extremely small, and the amount of swelling is about a few microns of lO. Therefore, development is carried out by the toner flying through space as it is attracted by the image potential of the drum-F. Therefore, when there is no potential on the drum, the coating agent on the sleeve passes through this gap d2 without any disturbance other than rotating and rolling at the S1 pole. Next, as the sleeve 2'' rotates, the applied toner moves downward (here, the toner fall prevention stay 3 is attached to the photosensitive drum D as shown in FIG.
Stretch out straight and almost horizontally. Conventionally, this stay was provided so as to wrap around the sleeve 2 as shown by a chain line. This is because falling and scattered toner can be visually captured more easily than in the sleeve 2. However, in reality, a considerable amount of toner scatters as the toner spikes rotate on their axis at the developing pole and fly from the sleeve to the drum. Easy to hit the back (arrow R). Development pole S,
Continuing from (Continued) (For the reason described later, the space between the pole N2 and N2 must be kept wide; therefore, the magnetic force in this part is weak (the toner tends to fall when there is vibration, etc.). ~200μ) If a lump occurs nearby or is being transported from inside the toner container, it will be attracted by the strong magnetic force of the developing pole and will hardly be transported, and if it occasionally falls or is occasionally transported, the internal magnetic force In areas where the magnetic force is weak and there is no magnet, it will fall, and the fallen lumps will easily catch when the fall prevention stick 3' is close to the dotted chain line.Especially in areas where the internal magnet has poles, the applied toner swells up, so it is especially difficult to This is because toner may fall and accumulate on the fall prevention stay 3, and it is easy to connect with it.Especially, if such l-toner accumulates at the end of the sleeve, the above-mentioned problem will occur. This is because powdered magnetic 1- +- has extremely good fluidity, but agglomerated or lumped toner moves slowly. The toner stuck in the seal may obstruct the subsequent movement of the toner, and may gradually grow and cause the toner to overflow in the R direction. It touches the sleeve 2 at the lower position.This position is quite inside when viewed from the fall prevention stay, and even if the aggregated toner gets stuck here, it will not grow until it overflows.However, as shown by the dashed line, If the toner fall prevention stay 3' is configured along with the sleeve 2, an end seal like 22' must be provided (to prevent a gap between the stay and the side plate).When viewed from the toner fall prevention stay 3', the sleeve 2 is quite If the toner contacts the sleeve close to the outside and the agglomerated toner gets stuck here, it will immediately lead to leakage.Furthermore, the toner that has fallen from the sleeve will grow laterally (in the generatrix direction of the sleeve surface) with the toner stuck here. This tends to prevent the toner applied onto the sleeve from entering.

Next, the angular relationship between the development pole Sl and the next pole N2 will be described.

If the angle between them is narrow, for example at position N2', the height of the spike of applied toner increases at the location where the pole is, and the spike swells up as shown by the two-dot chain line and rotates on its axis. This action makes it easier for the toner at the tips of the ears to jump out. If the N2 pole is located near the outside of the anti-scattering stay 3, the toner that has blown out is likely to scatter and easily jump over the anti-scattering stay 3.

In the developing device according to this embodiment, the S, pole and N2 frame have opposite polarities, the angle β is set to 700 or more, and the N2 frame is set to opposite polarity.
Angle γ between the two poles and the end of the anti-scattering stay 3 = 30° or more
I'm taking two. If both angles were smaller than this, the lower surface of the anti-scattering stay 3 would become completely black due to the scattered toner.

Particularly when β=50° or less, severe scattering occurred.

The reason why the S1 pole and the N2 pole are made to have opposite polarities is that when they have the same polarity, toner tends to fall due to a repulsive magnetic field around the midpoint between the two poles.

Although the angle between the poles is shown as the angle between the center lines of the poles, in reality there is an angle of 11] between the poles, and since the toner starts to rotate and the spikes start to stand at the extreme ends, the magnetic force is more precisely the angle between the center lines of the poles. ``If we define the point where the magnetic force becomes Z as the extreme part, then the S1 pole and the N
Good results were obtained if the angle δ between the ends of the two poles was 500 or more (Fig. 13). Here, the angle ε formed between the end of the anti-scattering stay 3 and the N2 extreme part must be 20' or more.

Next, how to fix the magnetic blade 6 and the sleeve 2 will be explained. In this embodiment, the distance between the magnetic blade 6 and the sleeve 2 is as narrow as 240μ, and there is no dust, clips, etc.
Agglomerated toner, etc. gets stuck or gets stuck. At this time, it is best to remove the blade 6 and/or sleeve 2 from the developing device main body and clean it. However, these must be easy to remove and install without any adjustment.

In this embodiment, by satisfying the following conditions, the structure is such that assembly and adjustment are facilitated, and attachment and detachment are also facilitated.

(Sleeve side) (1) The end felts 22 and 24 (Fig. 8) have a structure that wraps around the sleeve about half a circumference, and are made of a material that has some elasticity, so even if it is wrapped slightly more than half a circumference, it will remain elastic. This will not hinder the removal of the sleeve. Also, insert and remove the sleeve from the remaining half circumference of the side where the end felt is not wrapped.

(2) The distance between the scattering prevention stay 3 and the magnetic blade on the lower side of the sleeve (l in FIG. 9) is larger than the diameter of the sleeve 2.

(3) A configuration in which a side plate is provided with a slit wide enough for the shafts on both sides of the sleeve to pass through and a round hole with a diameter larger than the width, and a bearing is inserted into the round hole in the side plate to support the sleeve rotatably.

To explain in detail with reference to FIG. 14, the slit 5- of the side plate 5
1, and insert the shaft 2-3 of the sleeve 2 into the round hole 5-2, insert the bearing 27 in the axial direction, and fix the sleeve 2 to the side plate 5. Note that if the bearing 27 is marked 27-3 and assembled at the same position before and after removing the sleeve, the distance d2 between the sleeve 2 and the magnetic blade 6 can be reproducible even if the bearing 27 is largely eccentric. In addition, if the sleeve is configured such that one end is used with the magnet shaft fixed to the side plate as shown in Figure 7, one end, that is, the side that does not take the drive, is not a rotatably supported bearing but a stepped pipe shape. It's fine to use one. With this structure, the sleeve can be easily removed from the developing device main body by removing the bearings supporting the shafts at both ends. Naturally, in a sleeve configured such that one end is the sleeve shaft 2-1 and the other end is the magnet shaft t-i, the magnet shaft side does not need to be a bearing, and the magnet shaft 1
-1 and the round hole 5-2 of the developing side plate 5 may be fitted with members that fit on the inner and outer diameters.

(Blade Side) To explain with reference to FIGS. 9 and 15, the hole 6-1 of the magnetic blade 6 is inserted into the dowel 7 caulked to the blade mounting plate 10. This backlash may be zero, but in consideration of ease of assembly, installation, and removal, there may be a play of about 1 mm. However, when installing, be attracted by the cut magnetic pole N, and always keep the clearance of this play on the lower side as shown in the figure. In other words, adjust the blade so that the upper side of the turbo 7 and the upper end of the hole 6-1 of the blade 6 are in contact with each other. The plate 8 is integrated. Integration is screw 9
At first, tighten the screws loosely (and then pull the adjustment plate 8 upwards, as the blade 6 will be drawn to the cut magnetic pole N1 to obtain the spacing between the sleeve 2 and the magnetic blade 6, 240μ). If you go, the top surface of dowel 7 and hole 6-1 will be automatically connected.
The top surfaces touch. Here, screws 9 and 30 can be tightened when the specified distance of 240μ is achieved.

Also, when moving the adjustment plate 8, the direction in which the blade tip moves is between the center O of the sleeve and the blade tip P.
It is preferable that the tightening direction of the screws 9, 30 and the dowel 7 is perpendicular to that direction.

The reason for this is that since the adjustment is made with the screws 9 and 30 tightened, there is inevitably a gap between the magnetic blade 6, adjustment plate 8, and front stay 10. This gap can be reduced to zero by tightening the screws 9 and 30, but in the configuration shown in FIG. 16, tightening the screws 9 and 30 would make the gap for dl narrow, which is not preferable. However, in the configuration according to this embodiment, the -magnetic blade 6 only moves parallel to the sleeve surface, and the gap d is not affected.To remove the magnetic blade 6, remove the screw 9. Good. When resetting, the blade will be pulled towards the cut pole N, and the clearance of the hole 6-1 will be on the lower side with respect to the dowel 7, so just tighten the screw 9. Of course. However, the screw 9 may be screwed into the front stay 10 instead of the adjustment plate 8.In short, it is sufficient to fit the dowel 7 as described above and finally tighten it.Since it is configured in this way, the same adjustment etc. It is possible to remove the sleeve 2 and the blade 6 independently and remove the dirt accumulated on the gear 7161 portion of both without the need for the sleeve 2 and the blade 6.

Next, we will discuss some ideas for replenishing the developer container with replenishment developer.

Conventionally, the lid of a developer container has generally been opened and closed in a hinge type from the viewpoint of ease of operation and cost.

In FIG. 17, a part of the replenishment developer container 31 is cut open and turned upside down, and toner is replenished into the developer container. At this time, if there is no inner lid 16, the toner that falls will bounce off the bottom and fly up as shown by the dotted arrow, staining the top and inside of the machine. Also, if the opening is too wide, you won't know which side to aim for when refilling. In this embodiment, an inner lid 16 as shown in FIGS. 17 to 19 is provided, a slit-shaped opening is provided in the funnel-shaped member 16, and a replenishing developer container 31 is provided therein.
Insert the toner and replenish the toner. By doing this, it becomes easy to replenish toner, and the toner that flies up does not rotate as shown by arrow S and leak outside. Furthermore, since the slit portion is funnel-shaped, toner that has accidentally landed on this slope easily falls into the developer container. Also, having such an inner lid is inconvenient when replacing or disposing of the toner inside. Therefore, in the developing device of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 18, a stopper is formed by a plate spring I7, and the inner lid 16 is normally fixed at the position shown in the figure, and the plate spring 17 is moved forward as necessary. It can be removed by removing it from the recess of the stay 10.

Next, the sealing between the lid 20 and the developer container will be described. When the toner level in the developer container is up to 11 degrees,
The toner will not leak when you open and close the lid 20, but if the toner is in a very small amount (for example, up to level 12), it will be a problem. air is sent into the developing container in the U direction.At this time, in order to seal the lid and developing container, as in the past, surround the opening of the container with maltbren, etc. As a result, air tries to come out from the gap between the lower toner fall prevention stay 3 and the sleeve 2, and the small amount of toner remaining inside is attracted by the air and flies out in the X direction. Scattered toner is not trivial and can adhere to the optical charger etc. and cause various mischief.Such toner scattering is inevitable due to the gap between the sleeve 2 and the scattering prevention stay 3 in the one-component development method which has a development gap. This is a serious problem if a hinge-like lid is provided.Furthermore, even if air tries to escape upward, it is difficult to completely eliminate the gap between the lid 20 and the developing container. Therefore, the toner flying up from that part also tries to scatter.

In the embodiment, the above-mentioned drawbacks are solved, and the iron plate 20-1 embedded in the lid 20 and the rubber magnet 1 affixed to the upper surface of the developer container are used.
8. 19. The suction force of 18' ensures a tight seal between the lid 20 and the developer container. If a rubber magnet is used, even if there is a gap between the iron plate 20-1 of the lid 20 and the magnet, the scattered toner will be easily captured by the rubber magnet and will not escape to the outside because it is a magnetic substance. Here, if there is a rubber magnet 19' in FIG. 19, there is no place for the injected air to escape, so the toner will be pushed out from the bottom. Therefore, in this embodiment, the rubber magnet is removed to allow air to escape from it. In addition, since the inner lid 16 is provided, it is highly unlikely that the toner inside the developer container will fly away. The reason for eliminating the rubber magnet 19' in this embodiment is to allow air to escape, but the reason for choosing the magnet at this location is as follows:
In FIG. 20, when the copying machine is divided into upper and lower parts to handle jammed paper, etc., and opened in a hinge shape around the shaft 106, the - component developer T has good fluidity, so If the upper side 105 of the copying machine is tilted, as shown in the figure, the toner will bulge up on the right side when viewed from the developing unit.Therefore, if there is an air vent gap on this side, it will be bad.Also, the end felt 22 is used as the developer side plate 4 at least in the portion of the developer container, that is, the portion above the gap d4.

If the felt 22 were retracted, the gap d4 in the area outside the toner scattering prevention stay 3 would be 2 mm, which is the thickness of the area where the felt is pushed in, and the developing side plate 4, sleeve 2, and Since a tunnel-like space is formed in the area where the felt is retracted, toner is likely to scatter from this area.

The above is an explanation of the embodiment of the developing device (example) based on the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto (extending to the scope of the claims), each of which has preferable effects and effects as described above. It is something that produces an effect.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an embodiment of a developing device according to the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the sleeve and the photosensitive drum, Fig. 3 is a partial vertical sectional view thereof, Fig. 4 is a schematic illustration of its cross section, and Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the end of the sleeve. partial front view,
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the felt at the end of the sleeve;
8 is a vertical sectional view of the sleeve shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view thereof, and FIG.
0 and 11 are partial explanatory views, FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the toner mass, FIG. 13 is a partial explanatory view of FIG. 9, and FIGS. 14 and 15 are partial explanatory views of the sleeve end of FIG. 8. Perspective view, No. 16
The figure is a side view of Figure 15, Figure 17 is a sectional view of the device shown in Figure 1 with the outer lid open, and Figures 18 and 19 are of the developer supply container shown in Figure 17. The perspective view of FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram of the image forming apparatus to which the developing device shown in FIG. 1 is applied, divided into upper and lower parts. T... Toner, D... Photosensitive drum, 1... Magnet roll, 2... Sleeve, 6... Blade.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a developing device having a developer container having an opening for replenishing powder developer and an opening/closing lid, the developer container has a size of the opening that decreases toward the inside of the developer container. A developing device comprising an inner lid that forms a slit-shaped opening smaller than the replenishment opening in the vicinity of the replenishment opening.