TWI788636B - toner cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is a kind of toner cartridge, which is used for assembly with an imaging cartridge of an electronic imaging device. The imaging cartridge has a powder inlet and a first step is located beside the powder inlet. The toner cartridge includes a shell, The casing has an inner space for accommodating carbon powder, a powder outlet connecting the inner space with the outside world, and a limit hook set beside the powder outlet, when the toner cartridge is combined with the imaging cartridge , the position-limiting hook is used to hook on the step, so that the powder outlet communicates with the powder inlet. Thereby, the toner cartridge can be accurately positioned after being assembled with the imaging cartridge of the electronic imaging device, and the toner cartridge can securely seal the powder outlet before assembly or after disassembly, so as to avoid the problem of powder leakage.

Description

toner cartridge

The invention relates to an electronic imaging device, in particular to a toner cartridge for an electronic imaging device.

General electronic imaging devices, such as photocopiers or printers, etc., are all provided with an imaging cartridge with a photosensitive drum, and a toner cartridge is assembled with the imaging cartridge. The imaging cartridge has a powder inlet, and the toner cartridge is used To supply the toner of the imaging cartridge during operation, the toner cartridge has a housing, a powder outlet is arranged on the housing and docked with the powder inlet, a switch is movably arranged on the housing, A foam is arranged on the switch part, and an elastic part is arranged between the casing and the switch part, the switch part can move between a closed position and an open position relative to the casing, when the switch part is in the In the closed position, the foam can assist the switch to close the powder outlet. When the switch is in the open position, the powder outlet is not closed, and the elastic member gives the switch to the closed position. However, if the positioning of the toner cartridge is not correct when it is assembled with the imaging cartridge, the gap between the powder outlet and the powder inlet will be too large, and the problem of toner leakage will easily occur.

In addition, the thickness of the foam and the elastic member are also another potential factor that easily leads to powder leakage from the toner cartridge. If the thickness of the foam is too thin, the powder outlet cannot be closed; and if the thickness of the foam If it is too thick, the switch part will not be easily pushed when the toner cartridge is assembled, so that the switch part cannot be moved to the correct position; or the elastic part may not be reset properly due to elastic fatigue, and cannot be closed The powder outlet, the above-mentioned situation not only causes waste in use, but also makes the whole device polluted by carbon powder. Therefore, how to ensure that the toner cartridge can be accurately positioned during assembly, and how to prevent powder leakage at various stages before assembly or after disassembly, has become a technical problem to be solved by those skilled in the art.

One object of the present invention is to provide a toner cartridge, which can be reliably positioned after being assembled with the imaging cartridge of an electronic imaging device; another object of the present invention is to provide a toner cartridge, which can be reliably sealed out before assembly or after disassembly Powder mouth to avoid powder leakage.

In order to achieve the above object, the toner cartridge of the present invention is used to assemble with an imaging cartridge of an electronic imaging device, the imaging cartridge has a powder inlet, and a first step is positioned beside the powder inlet, the toner cartridge includes a The casing has an inner space for accommodating carbon powder, a powder outlet connecting the inner space with the outside world, and a limit hook set beside the powder outlet. When the toner cartridge is connected to the imaging When the cartridge is assembled, the limit hook is held on the step, so that the powder outlet and the powder inlet are connected; thereby, the toner cartridge and the imaging cartridge can be positioned accurately after being assembled, and before assembly Or after disassembly, the powder outlet can be sealed to avoid the problem of powder leakage.

The technical contents and features of the present invention will be described in detail below by using a preferred embodiment in conjunction with the drawings. As shown in Figure 1, the toner cartridge 10 provided by a preferred embodiment of the present invention is set in an imaging cartridge 1 The three-dimensional view of the imaging box 1 is set on an electronic imaging device (not shown) such as a photocopier or printer, etc., as shown in Figures 2A and 2B, the imaging box 1 has a main body 2 and a photosensitive drum 3 Provided on the main body 2, a sliding slide 7 is slidably provided on the main body 2, and an elastic member (not shown) is provided between the main body 2 and the sliding slide 7. It should be noted that the present invention defines The direction parallel to the axis of the photosensitive drum 2 toward the imaging cartridge 1 is the assembly direction D1 (as shown in FIG. 2A ), and vice versa is the disassembly direction D2 (as shown in FIG. 1 ). The end of the main body 2 is provided with a top 6, the main body 2 further has a powder inlet 4 with an opening facing upwards (as shown in Figure 6-8), and a first step 5 is arranged beside the powder inlet 4 (as shown in Figure 2A , FIG. 5), carbon powder can enter the inside of the main body 2 through the toner inlet 4 for the photosensitive drum 3 to be imaged, the step portion 5 has a downward facing step surface 5a, and the lower slide 7 has a perforation 8, And a first stopper 9 is located beside the perforation 8. In this embodiment, the first stopper 9 is formed at one end of the slide 7, and the elastic member gives the slide 7 a direction toward D2. Active force, when the sliding slide 7 is moved to a predetermined position in the direction of D2 by the action of the elastic member, the powder inlet 4 can be closed. Correspondingly, when the sliding slide 7 overcomes the action of the elastic member and moves in the direction of D1 to At another predetermined position, the perforation 8 corresponds to the position of the powder inlet 4 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , the toner cartridge 10 includes a casing 20 , an upper slide 30 , and a seal 40 .

Please refer to Figures 3 and 6 at the same time, the casing 20 has an inner space 21 for accommodating carbon powder, a powder outlet 23 connecting the inner space 21 with the outside world, and a limit hook 25 located at the powder outlet 23 and a guide portion 27 are arranged beside the powder outlet 23. In this embodiment, the powder outlet 23 is located on the bottom side 22 of the housing 20, and the stop hook 25 is integrally formed by the The side of the powder outlet 23 extends downwards and has an upward hook surface 26 at the end. The guiding portion 27 is a protruding column extending substantially along the horizontal direction.

Please refer to Fig. 4 at the same time, the upper sliding piece 30 is located on the bottom side 22 of the housing 20 and can slide between a closed position P1 and an open position P2 relative to the housing 20, the upper sliding piece 30 has a The opening 31, a second blocking portion 32 is located beside the opening 31, and an elastic arm 33 is located behind the second blocking portion 32. The elastic arm 33 has a guide groove 34 and an end 35. The guide groove 34 is located The side of the elastic arm 33 can be extended by the guide part 27 of the housing 20, and the end 35 can move downward from an original position P3 (as shown in Figure 6) to a locking position P4 (as shown in Figure 6). 8), the clamping position P4 is located below the original position P3, wherein, when the upper sliding piece 30 is located at the closed position P1, the powder outlet 23 is closed; when the upper sliding piece 30 is located at the open position P2 , the position of the opening 31 corresponds to the powder outlet 23 of the housing 20 , that is, the upper slide 30 does not close the powder outlet 23 .

The sealing member 40 is arranged between the upper sliding piece 30 and the housing 20, the sealing member 40 has a perforation 42 and its position corresponds to the powder outlet 23, in this embodiment, the sealing member 40 is a The foam is fixed on the casing 20 , and the sealing member 40 is slightly deformed by the pressure of the upper sliding piece 30 to provide a better sealing effect.

When the toner cartridge 10 has not been combined with the imaging cartridge 1, the upper slide 30 of the toner cartridge 10 is located at the closed position P1, as shown in Figures 2 and 6, the position of the opening 31 does not correspond to The powder outlet 23, at this moment, the powder outlet 23 is closed by the upper slide 30 and the seal 40, and the slide 7 under the imaging box 1 also seals the powder inlet 4; the toner cartridge 10 is along the During the process of moving in the assembly direction D1 and assembling with the imaging cassette 1, the limit hook 25 is hooked with the step portion 5, and the hook surface 26 is attached to the step surface 5a, as shown in Figures 5 and 7. As shown, the second stopper 32 pushes against the first stopper 9 and overcomes the force exerted by the elastic member on the slide 7, so that the slide 7 slides relative to the main body 2 in the assembly direction D1, When the sliding plate 7 is blocked by the main body 2 and no longer slides, the perforation 8 of the sliding plate 7 corresponds to the powder inlet 4, and the opening 31 of the upper sliding plate 30 is positioned relative to the sliding plate 7. perforation 8, as shown in Figure 7.

When the toner cartridge 10 continues to move toward the assembly direction D1, the second stopper 32 is pushed against by the first stopper 9, so that the upper slide 30 cannot move relative to the lower slide 7 but can move. Sliding relative to the housing 20 from the closed position P1 to the open position P2, when the upper sliding piece 30 is located at the open position P2, the position of the opening 31 corresponds to the powder outlet 23, so that the powder outlet 23 and The powder inlet 4 is connected, and the toner in the housing 20 can enter the imaging cartridge 1. During the sliding process of the upper slide 30 relative to the housing 20, the guide groove 34 is controlled by the guide part 27. The end 35 of the elastic arm 33 moves downward from the original position P3 to the locking position P4 under the guidance of the guide, so that the end 35 of the elastic arm 33 is in contact with the abutting portion 6, as shown in Figures 1 and 8 Show.

When the toner in the toner cartridge 10 is used up and the user intends to take out the toner cartridge 10 along the detachment direction D2, since the end 35 of the elastic arm 33 is blocked by the abutting portion 6, as shown in the first As shown in Figure 8, the upper sliding piece 30 cannot move with the housing 20, so that the upper sliding piece 30 can slide from the open position P2 to the closed position P1 relative to the housing 20, even if the sealing member 40 Due to the increased thickness or slight warping deformation, the frictional force is increased, and the structure of the present invention can also reliably move the upper slide 30 to the closed position P1, which can avoid the elastic member in the conventional structure from being unable to reliably switch the The problem of file positioning. Until the elastic arm 33 is guided by the guide part 27 and returns upward from the locking position P4 to the original position P3, as shown in FIG. The imaging cartridge 1, and then the lower slide 7 is reset by the active force of the elastic member, and the toner inlet 4 is closed again, as shown in Figure 6, the entire procedure of disassembling the toner cartridge is completed.

Since the limit hook 25 of the toner cartridge 10 is hooked on the step portion 5 of the imaging cartridge 1, not only the toner cartridge 10 can be accurately positioned in the electronic imaging device, but also the toner cartridge 10 can be Closely combined with the imaging cartridge 1, the gap between the powder outlet 23 and the powder inlet 4 is reduced to ensure that the toner cartridge 10 will not leak powder when installed in the electronic imaging device. And when dismounting this toner cartridge 10, this upper sliding plate 30 can seal this powder outlet 23 first, and then this toner cartridge 10 can be taken out by this electronic imaging device, so, no matter this toner cartridge 10 and Before the electronic imaging device is assembled, after assembly or after disassembly, it is ensured that there will be no problem of powder leakage, thereby achieving the purpose of the present invention.

It should be noted that the structure of the imaging box 1 is not the key point of this case, as long as there is a powder inlet 4 that can be docked with the powder outlet 23, and the first-stage part 5 and the limit hook 25 are mutually hooked, the rest can be There are other changes, for example, the lower slide 7 can be omitted; or the imaging cartridge 1 does not have the abutting portion 6 .

Based on the design spirit of the present invention, the structure of the toner cartridge can also have other changes, for example: the upper slide 30 or the seal 40 can be replaced by other structures that can open and close the powder outlet 23; or the guide part 27 and The position of the guide groove 34 can be interchanged, and the elastic arm 33 and the guide portion 27 can also have other design changes, as long as the elastic arm 33 can change its position under the action of the guide portion 27. Structural changes that can be easily conceived should be covered by the patent scope of the present invention.

1: Imaging cassette 2: Subject 3: photosensitive drum 4: powder inlet 5: step department 5a: step surface 6: reach the top 7: slide down 8: perforation 9: The first stop 10: Toner cartridge D1: Assembling direction D2: Removal direction 20: shell 21: Internal space 22: bottom side 23: powder outlet 25: limit hook 26: hook surface 27: Guide Department 30: upper slide 31: opening 32: The second stopper 33: elastic arm 34: guide groove 35: end P1: closed position P2: open position P3: Original position P4: snap-in position 40: Seals 42: perforation

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a toner cartridge in a preferred embodiment of the present invention installed in the imaging cartridge; Figures 2A and 2B are schematic diagrams at different angles when the toner cartridge of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is separated from the imaging cartridge; Figure 3 is an exploded view of a toner cartridge according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a side view of the upper sliding piece of the toner cartridge of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 is a partial cross-sectional view along the direction 5-5 in Figure 1; Figures 6 to 8 are cross-sectional views of a toner cartridge in different states according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

10: Toner cartridge

20: shell

22: bottom side

23: powder outlet

25: limit hook

26: hook surface

27: Guide Department

30: upper slide

31: opening

32: The second stopper

33: elastic arm

35: end

40: Seals

42: perforation

Claims (11)

A toner cartridge, used for assembly with an imaging cartridge of an electronic imaging device, the imaging cartridge has a powder inlet, and a first step is located next to the powder inlet, the toner cartridge includes: a shell, with An internal space for accommodating carbon powder, a powder outlet connecting the internal space and the outside world, and a limit hook integrally extending from the powder outlet; when the toner cartridge is combined with the imaging cartridge , the position-limiting hook is used to hook on the step, so that the powder outlet communicates with the powder inlet. The toner cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the step portion of the imaging cartridge has a downward facing step surface, the powder outlet is located on a bottom side of the casing, and the stop hook has an upward facing surface , when the toner cartridge is combined with the imaging cartridge, the hook surface is attached to the step surface. The toner cartridge as described in claim 2, wherein the toner cartridge further includes an upper sliding piece disposed on the housing, the upper sliding piece can slide between a closed position and an open position relative to the housing, the When the upper sliding piece is in the closed position, the powder outlet is closed, and when the upper sliding piece is in the open position, the powder outlet is not closed. The toner cartridge as described in claim 3, wherein the upper sliding piece is extended with an elastic arm, and one end of the elastic arm can move from an original position to a clamping position, and the housing has a bridge with the elastic arm When the upper sliding piece moves from the closed position to the open position, the elastic arm is affected by the guide part to move the end of the elastic arm from the original position to the locking position. The toner cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the clamping position is located below the original position. The toner cartridge as claimed in claim 4, wherein the elastic arm has a guide slot for the guide part of the housing to extend into. The toner cartridge as described in claim 4, wherein the imaging cartridge further has an abutting portion, when the toner cartridge is moved from the imaging cartridge along a detachment direction, the end of the elastic arm is located at the engaging position and is in contact with The abutment abuts against the top, so that the upper sliding piece slides from the open position to the closed position relative to the housing. The toner cartridge as described in claim 3, wherein the imaging cartridge has a first stopper, and the upper sliding piece has a second stopper, when the toner cartridge moves along the assembly direction and is aligned with the When the imaging cassettes are assembled, the first stopper is abutted against the second stopper, so that the upper sliding piece slides from the closed position to the open position relative to the casing. The toner cartridge according to claim 3, wherein the upper sliding piece further has an opening, and when the upper sliding piece is in the open position, the position of the opening corresponds to the powder outlet. The toner cartridge as claimed in claim 3, wherein the toner cartridge further includes a seal disposed between the upper sliding piece and the casing. The toner cartridge as described in claim 1, wherein the toner cartridge further includes an upper sliding piece disposed on the housing, the upper sliding piece can slide relative to the housing between a closed position and an open position, the When the upper sliding piece is in the closed position, the powder outlet is closed, and when the upper sliding piece is in the open position, the powder outlet is not closed.

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