JP3320267B2 - Toner supply device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toner replenishing device for replenishing toner to a developing device in an image forming apparatus such as an electrostatic copying machine or a facsimile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a toner cartridge has an opening for dropping toner on a lower surface thereof, and a storage case for storing toner therein, and a toner cartridge which is detachably attached to the lower surface of the storage case. A sheet-shaped sealing member that closes the toner dropping opening.

[0003] After the toner cartridge is set by inserting it into the housing recess of the image forming apparatus main body, the seal member is peeled off. As a result, the toner drop opening is opened, and the toner in the storage case is dropped and supplied to the developing device of the image forming apparatus main body disposed below the storage case. When the toner in the developing device is completely consumed, the toner cartridge is removed from the storage recess, and a new toner cartridge is inserted into the storage recess and set, whereby the used toner cartridge is replaced with a new one. I try to exchange it for something.

[0004]

Incidentally, when inserting and removing the toner cartridge, there is a case where the toner cartridge is twisted and the replacement of the toner cartridge is troublesome. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a toner replenishing apparatus that allows a toner cartridge to be smoothly inserted and removed, and that facilitates replacement of the toner cartridge.

[0005]

To solve the above object, according to an aspect of the toner replenishing apparatus of the invention according to 請 Motomeko 1 includes a toner cartridge, freely withdrawn along the toner cartridge in a prescribed insertion direction into a predetermined set position A toner replenishing device having a toner replenishing device main body set to
Provided in the toner supply device main body, and a guiding position for guiding the insertion of the toner cartridge, to a retracted position retracted from the guiding position, further example Bei the rotational displacement freely guide tray around the predetermined axis, Above toner cartridge
Holds the toner inside and opens the toner drop
A toner cartridge body having a mouth and the toner car
Provided along the bottom of the cartridge body for toner drop
Close the opening and open the toner drop opening
A plate-like shutter member slidable to the open position.
For example, the guide tray prevents detachment of the shutter member
To engage with a predetermined portion of the shutter member .

According to the above configuration, insertion and removal of the toner cartridge can be guided, and a longer guiding stroke can be ensured than in the case where there is no guidance.
The toner cartridge can be inserted and removed more smoothly. In addition, when it is unnecessary, the guide tray can be retracted, so that it does not take up space and does not get in the way .

[0007]

Also , when the toner cartridge is inserted along the guide tray, the shutter member is engaged by the engagement means of the guide tray, so that the shutter member is prevented from being detached and is held by the guide tray. It is not necessary to support the shutter member by hand. The toner replenishing device of the invention according to 請 Motomeko 2, in the toner replenishing device of claim 1, wherein said shutter member in a state in the open position by rotating around the predetermined axis withdrawal side of the toner cartridge main body The guide tray and the shutter member are connected to the main body of the toner cartridge so that the toner cartridge can be retracted to the retracted position along the end surface, and the rotation axes of the guide tray and the shutter member are substantially coaxial when the toner cartridge is at the set position. It is a feature.

According to the above construction, when the toner cartridge is set at the set position, the rotation axes of the guide tray and the shutter member are substantially coaxial, so that both are collectively retracted to the retracted position. And good operability. On the other hand, when the toner cartridge is displaced from the set position, since the rotation axes of the guide tray and the shutter member are offset, both cannot be rotated to the retracted posture.

[0010]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Overall Configuration FIG 1 is a schematic block diagram showing an internal cross-section of a copying machine as an image forming apparatus to which the toner supply device including a toner cartridge of this embodiment is applied, FIG. 2 when the toner cartridge is inserted and removed FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the copying machine.

Referring to FIG. 1, a copying machine 1 according to the present invention exposes and scans a document placed on a transparent document placing plate 20 in a copying machine body 10 to expose reflected light from the document. An optical system 30 for guiding the photosensitive drum 41 to an electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 41;
3 includes an image forming unit 40 for transferring the image to a sheet after being visualized, and a fixing device 51 for heating and fixing the toner image transferred to the sheet. And a paper transport unit 50 that performs the following operations.

The image forming section 40 has a charging charger 42, a developing device 43, a transfer charger 44, and a cleaning device 45 arranged in this order around a photosensitive drum 41. The image forming unit 40 forms an electrostatic latent image by forming an original image on the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 41 uniformly charged by the charging charger 42, and then forms the electrostatic latent image by the developing device 43. The toner image is visualized as a toner image, the toner image is transferred to a sheet by a transfer charger 44, and the residual toner is collected by a cleaning device 45.

The toner supply device 100 includes a developing device 43
And supplies the toner to the developing device 43. The toner supply device 100 includes a toner cartridge 200 containing toner for replenishment, a toner cartridge 200 having a retractable guide tray 310 for guiding the insertion and removal of the toner cartridge 200 while setting the toner cartridge 200 to be able to be pulled out. Supply device body 300
And

The guide tray 310 is, as shown in FIG.
The toner cartridge 200 is guided in a horizontal posture (hereinafter, referred to as a “guidance posture”) which is tilted forward of the copying machine, and is rotated around a predetermined axis 60 to thereby set the set toner. The cartridge 200 can be retracted to a vertical position (hereinafter referred to as a “retreat position”) along the pull-out side end surface 205.

When replacing the toner cartridge 7,
As shown in FIG. 2, the opening / closing cover 12 constituting a part of the front surface 11 of the copier main body 10 is opened, and the guide tray 310 is opened.
The old and new toner cartridges 200 are inserted and removed in a state where is tilted to a horizontal guiding posture. The opening / closing cover 12 has a front surface 11
The interior of the copier main body 10 can be opened and closed by pivoting about a horizontal axis 13 along When the setting of the toner cartridge 200 is completed, the guide tray 310 is raised to a vertical retreat position along the pull-out side end surface 205 of the toner cartridge 200, and then the opening / closing cover 12 is raised to the vertical position and closed.

Even if the guide tray 310 remains in the horizontal guiding posture shown in FIG. 2, when the cover 12 is closed, the cover 12 comes into contact with the guide tray 310, The guide tray 310 can be raised to a vertical evacuation position. Toner supply device main body and then, with reference to FIG. 3, described toner supply device main body 300. In FIG. 3, the arrow X direction is the direction in which the toner cartridge 200 is inserted. The main body 300 of the toner supply device includes the guide tray 310, a tension coil spring 312 as an urging means for holding a vertical retreat posture or a horizontal guide posture in accordance with the rotation angle of the guide tray 310, A mounting portion 321 for setting the toner cartridge 200 guided to be inserted and removed by the guide tray 310 to a predetermined set position, and a drive gear 332 of the toner cartridge 200 set to the set position, which meshes with a driven gear 230 described later. A gear mechanism 331 supported by the support member 334;
A motor 333 for rotating and driving the gear mechanism 331; a hopper section 320 provided below the mounting section 321 for receiving and storing toner dropped from the set toner cartridge 200;
And a screw conveyor 340 as a transporting unit for transporting the toner to the toner feeding unit 3.

The guide tray 310 is mounted on the mounting section 32.
The front end (the end on the side opposite to the X direction) of 1 is toggled so as to be rotatable around the axis 60. This guide tray 3
Reference numeral 10 has a pair of guide grooves 311 along the X direction which is the insertion / removal direction of the toner cartridge 200 in the above-described guide posture. These grooves 311 guide a shutter member 250 of the toner cartridge 200 described later. The guide tray 310 is provided with a shutter member 2 for moving the shutter member 250 to the open position when the toner cartridge 200 is inserted.
50.

The mounting portion 321 has a pair of grooves 322 extending in the X direction, which is the direction in which the toner cartridge 200 is inserted and removed. The groove 321 guides a flange 203 of the toner cartridge 200 described later. The end of the mounting portion 321 on the opposite side in the X direction comes into contact with the end in the X direction of the shutter member 250 which has been slid and inserted on the guide tray 310, so that the shutter member 250 moves in the X direction with respect to the guide tray 310. The contact surface 504 for positioning which restricts the movement to the position is formed. Toner cartridge Next, referring to FIGS. 3-4, it will be described the toner cartridge 200. Toner cartridge 200
Is a container-shaped toner cartridge main body 201 in which a toner drop opening 202 is formed in a flange 203 forming a lower surface portion, and the toner drop opening 202 is closed while being detachably attached to the lower surface of the flange 203. A film-shaped sealing member 210, a winding shaft 220 for fixing one end of the sealing member 210, and winding the sealing member 210 while peeling off the sealing member 210 from the flange 203.
The driven gear 230 that rotates integrally with the winding shaft 220
And a shutter member 250 that is slidably fitted to the flange 203 and slides to open and close the toner drop opening 202 below the seal member 210 by sliding. Reference numeral 205 denotes a drawing-side end surface of the toner cartridge 200. A pair of recesses 502 that are recessed in the X direction are formed at the pull-out side end of the flange 203, and the inner deep surface of the recess 502 forms an engagement release contact surface 503 described later. ing.

Shutter Member Next, the shutter member 250 will be described with reference to FIGS. The shutter member 250 slides with respect to the flange 203 to close the toner dropping opening 202 (see FIG. 3) and open the toner dropping opening 202 (see FIG. 5).
Is displaced between Then, in this open position, a part of the shutter member 250 (a first part 2 described later) is used.
51) is rotated with respect to the remaining portion (a second portion 252, which will be described later), so as to be in a retracted position along the pull-out side end surface 205 of the toner cartridge 200 as shown in FIG. .

More specifically, referring to FIGS. 5 to 7, shutter member 250 is slidable along flange 203 and is connected to first portion 251 which is rotatably connected to each other. 2 portion 252. The first and second portions 251 and 252 are formed of an integrally molded product made of resin, and a portion connecting the two 251 and 252 so as to be relatively rotatable is a bent line 253 formed thinner than the other portions. Consists of In the present embodiment, the V-groove is formed on the lower surface of the shutter member 250,
The bent line 253 is formed to be thin.

At the pair of opposing edges of the first portion 251, elongated L-shaped plates 254 extending in opposite directions extend from each other. Guide grooves 25 for respectively introducing the corresponding edges
4 are formed. Also, opposite L-shaped projections 256 extend from opposite edges of the second portion 252, and each L-shaped projection 256 guides a corresponding edge of the flange 203. A groove 257 is formed. The L-shaped projections 256 are adapted to be engaged with the engagement projections 2030 at the end on the pull-out side of the flange 203 when the shutter member 250 is in the open position (see FIG. 5).

When the shutter member 250 is in the open position shown in FIG. 5, only the first portion 251 is disengaged from the toner cartridge body 201 and rotates with respect to the second portion 252. As shown in FIG. 7, the toner cartridge body 201 is retracted to a retracted posture along the pull-out side end surface 205 thereof. FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, a pair of through holes 500 is provided in the vicinity of the free end of the shutter member 250 along the width direction. Each of the through holes 500 has an inner surface which engages with an engagement surface 412 described later provided on the guide tray 310 to restrict the movement of the shutter member 250 with respect to the guide tray 310 in the direction opposite to the X direction. (See FIG. 9).

Engagement / engagement between guide tray and shutter member
Release Mechanism Next, a mechanism for engaging the guide tray 310 with the shutter member 250 and releasing the engagement will be described with reference to FIGS. Referring to FIG. 8, a pair of first pair of first support members 400 formed on a substantially U-shaped elastic support plate 400 is provided in the engagement / disengagement mechanism.
And second projections 410 and 420 are included.

Referring to FIG. 8, guide tray 310 has a pair of through holes 313 in the vicinity of the end on the drawing side. These through holes 313 are arranged at predetermined intervals in the width direction of the guide tray 310. In the guide tray 310, a through hole 314 formed by cutting and raising is formed at a central portion in the width direction and at a predetermined distance from the through hole 313 in the X direction. This through hole 31
A cut-and-raised piece 315, which is cut and raised downward and further extends in the X-direction, extends from an edge portion on the side opposite to the X direction of 4. In addition, the guide tray 310 fixes a stopper pin 316 that extends downward near the edge of the through hole 314 on the X direction side.

The elastic support plate 400 has a pair of parallel cantilever pieces 401, a connecting piece 402 connecting the corresponding ends thereof, and a central portion of the connecting piece 402 opposite to the cantilever piece 401. And an extension piece 403 extending in the direction. The extension piece 403 has a fitting hole 404 for fitting with the stop pin 316. Elastic support plate 4
Reference numeral 00 denotes a state in which the connecting piece 402 is sandwiched between the lower surface of the guide tray 310 and the cut-and-raised piece 315 in the guide posture, and is fixed by the stop pin 316 penetrating the fitting hole 404. . In this state, the free end of the cantilever 401 can be elastically moved up and down.

On the other hand, near the free end of each cantilever 401, a set of the first and second projections 410 and 420 is formed so as to protrude, and these first and second projections 410 and 4 are formed.
20 is elastically projected above the guide tray 310 through the through hole 313. The first protrusion 410 has a substantially right-angled triangular shape in a side view, and
Has a shape of an isosceles triangle in side view. The inclined surfaces of the first and second protrusions 410 and 420 on the side opposite to the X direction allow the introduction-allowing cam surfaces 411 and 42 to be formed.
1 are formed, and these introduction permitting cam surfaces 411,
421 is a shutter member 2 of the toner cartridge 200
When the guide 50 is introduced onto the guide tray 310, the cantilever 401 is bent downward by contacting the X-direction end of the shutter member 250, thereby allowing the shutter member 250 to be introduced.

The vertical engagement surface 412 on the X direction side of the first protrusion 410 is used to hold the shutter member 250 when the insertion of the shutter member 250 into the guide tray 310 is completed.
By engaging with the engagement surface 501 which is the inner surface of the through hole 500 of 50, the movement of the shutter member 250 with respect to the guide tray 310 in the anti-X direction is regulated. That is, the shutter member 250 is prevented from being pulled out of the guide tray 310. The engagement surface 412 and the engagement surface 501 are
Each of them constitutes a first engaging means.

The inclined surface on the X direction side of the second projection 420 is provided with the engaging surfaces 412 and 501 serving as the first engaging means.
A disengagement cam surface 422 for disengaging each other is constituted. When the toner cartridge 200 is pulled out, the engagement releasing cam surface 422
By engaging with the engagement release contact surface 503 of No. 03,
The cantilever 401 is bent downward, and the engaging surfaces 412, 5
01 are released from each other.

In the vicinity of the pull-out side end of the shutter member 250 and inside the guide groove 255, the engagement protrusion 2 is provided.
58 are formed. When the toner cartridge 200 is pulled out, the engagement protrusion 258
The shutter member 250 is restricted to the closed position with respect to the toner cartridge main body 201 by engaging with the engagement protrusion 2030 of No. 03. These engagement projections 258 and 203
0 constitute second engagement means. The movement of the shutter member 250 in the X direction with respect to the toner cartridge body 201 is regulated by the engagement between the engagement projections 258 and 2030. The movement of the shutter member 250 in the direction opposite to the X direction with respect to the toner cartridge body 201 is controlled by the shutter member. The end face 259 of the groove 250 on the side opposite to the X direction in the X direction is regulated by engaging with the engagement protrusion 2030 of the flange 203.

When the toner cartridge 200 is pulled out, the engagement protrusions 258 and 2 serving as the second engagement means are provided.
The engagement timing of the second engagement means 030 is earlier than the engagement timing of both the engagement-disengaging cam surface 422 and the engagement-disengagement contact surface 503 which are the engagement-disengaging means. And the positional relationship between the engagement release means. That is, as shown in FIG.
0 during the withdrawal operation of the engagement protrusions 258, 203.
With the 0s engaged, the disengaging cam surface 422 and the disengaging abutment surface 503 have not yet been engaged.

Operation Referring to FIGS. 11 to 14, toner cartridge 2
The operation of inserting and removing 00 from the toner supply device main body 300 will be described. 1) First, as shown in FIG. 11, the guide tray 310 in the standing posture is moved down to the horizontal guiding posture. 2) Next, as shown in FIG. 12, the shutter member 250 at the closed position of the new toner cartridge 200 is
With the toner cartridge 200 being introduced into the groove 311 of the guide tray 310 in the horizontal guide posture, the toner cartridge 200 is pushed in while sliding on the guide tray 310 along the X direction. 3) The entirety of the shutter member 250 is the guide tray 310.
At the time when the guide tray 310 is held, the movement in the X direction and the counter X direction with respect to the guide tray 310 is stopped. The movement in the X direction is stopped by the positioning contact surface 504 of the mounting portion 321, and the movement in the anti-X direction is stopped by the engagement between the engagement surfaces 412 and 501 as the first engagement means. . 4) When the toner cartridge main body 201 is further pushed in the X direction in a state where the movement of the shutter member 250 is stopped, the flange 203 is introduced into the groove 322 of the mounting portion 321 and guided, and the toner cartridge main body 20 is guided.
1 moves on the mounting portion 321. Then, as shown in FIG.
The shutter member 250 is set at the upper predetermined set position and the shutter member 250 is displaced to the open position. 5) At the set position, the rotation axis 60 of the guide tray 310 and the bending line 253 that is the rotation axis of the shutter member 250 are substantially coaxial, and the collective rotation of both is permitted. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14, the shutter member 250 and the guide tray 310 holding the shutter member 250 are rotated collectively, and are retracted to a standing evacuation posture. In this retracted position, as shown in detail in FIG. 15, the first portion 251 of the upright shutter member 250 comes into contact with the withdrawal side end 2031 of the flange 203 of the toner cartridge main body 201, while the tension coil spring 312 causes the first portion 251. Since the urging force acts to maintain the retracted posture of the guide tray 310 and the shutter member 310, the toner cartridge main body 2
No. 01 is prevented from being pulled out from the set position while being positioned at the set position.

It is assumed that the toner cartridge body 20
If 1 is not completely set at the set position,
Axis 6 of rotation of guide tray 310 and shutter member 250
0, 253 are shifted from each other, so that the guide tray 310
Cannot be rotated. Thereby, the operator can recognize that the toner cartridge 200 is not set correctly at the set position. 6) Next, when the toner cartridge 200 is pulled out, the toner cartridge 200 is pulled out while following the reverse operation from FIG. 14 to FIG. 11. In the process of pulling out the toner cartridge 200 from FIG. After the member 250 is locked at the closed position with respect to the toner cartridge body 201, the engagement of the shutter member 250 with the guide tray 310 is released (FIGS. 9 and 10).
reference).

According to the present embodiment, the guide tray 310
As a result, the toner cartridge 200 can be smoothly inserted and removed, so that the toner cartridge 200 can be easily replaced. In addition, since the guide tray 310 can be retracted when it is unnecessary, it does not take up space and does not get in the way. Further, since the guide tray 310 must be operated when the toner cartridge 200 is extracted, the toner cartridge is not accidentally extracted and the toner is not scattered. In addition, since the guide tray 310 also serves as a member for restricting removal of the toner cartridge 200, the structure can be simplified as compared with a case where these components are separately configured.

Further, since the shutter member 250 is held by the guide tray 310, it is not necessary to support the shutter member 250 by hand, and the operability when replacing the toner cartridge 200 is good. In addition, the toner cartridge 200
Is set to the set position, the guide tray 3
10 and the shutter member 250 can be collectively retracted to the retracted position.
Operability at the time of replacement is even better. On the other hand, when the toner cartridge 200 is displaced from the set position, the toner cartridge 200 cannot be rotated to the retreating posture, so that toner scattering due to improper mounting of the toner cartridge 200 can be prevented.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and the guide tray 310 is
Other parts may be provided to guide other parts, and various other modifications are possible within the scope of the claims.

[0036]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the insertion and removal of the toner cartridge can be guided by the guide tray, and the toner cartridge can be inserted and removed more smoothly. As a result, the replacement of the toner cartridge is facilitated. Can be done. Also, the guide tray can be evacuated when not needed, so it does not take up space and does not get in the way.

[0037]

[0038] Moreover, since the shutter member is held in the guide tray, it is not necessary to support manually the shutter member, in this regard, operability during replacement of the toner cartridge is good. According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the toner cartridge is set at the set position, both the guide tray and the shutter member can be collectively retracted to the retracted posture, and when the toner cartridge is replaced. Operability is good. On the other hand, when the toner cartridge is displaced from the set position, the two cannot be rotated to the retracted posture, so that toner scattering due to a mounting failure of the toner cartridge can be prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an internal cross section of a copying machine to which a toner cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the copying machine with a front cover opened.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a toner supply device including a toner cartridge and a toner supply device main body.

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the toner cartridge.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the toner cartridge with a shutter member opened.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the toner cartridge with the shutter member retracted.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of a shutter member.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of the guide tray.

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of a shutter member and a main part of a flange showing a state when the toner cartridge is pulled out.

FIG. 10 is a partially broken plan view of a main part of a shutter member and a flange showing a state when the toner cartridge is pulled out.

FIG. 11 is a schematic side view of the main body of the toner replenishing apparatus showing a state where the guide tray is lowered from a vertical evacuation posture to a horizontal guidance posture.

FIG. 12 is a schematic side view of the toner supply device showing a state where the shutter member of the toner cartridge has begun to be introduced into the guide tray.

FIG. 13 is a schematic side view of the toner supply device showing a state where the setting of the toner cartridge is completed.

FIG. 14 is a schematic side view of the toner supply device showing a state in which the guide tray and the shutter member are collectively retracted after the completion of setting of the toner cartridge.

FIG. 15 is a partially cutaway side view showing, on an enlarged scale, a main part of the toner replenishing device in a state where the guide tray and the shutter member are in the retracted posture.

[Explanation of symbols]

 60 Axis 100 Toner replenishing device 200 Toner cartridge 201 Toner cartridge main body 202 Toner drop opening 203 Flange 250 Shutter member 253 Bending line (axial line) 310 Guide tray 412, 501 Engagement surface

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-4-181967 (JP, A) JP-A-61-20068 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 15/08

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A toner replenishing device comprising a toner cartridge and a toner replenishing device main body for removably setting the toner cartridge at a predetermined set position along a predetermined insertion direction, wherein the toner replenishing device main body is provided on the toner replenishing device main body. a guiding position for guiding the insertion and removal of the toner cartridge, to a retracted position retracted from the guiding position, further example Bei the rotational displacement freely guide tray around the predetermined axis, the toner cartridge, the internal Contains toner and
Toner cartridge having a toner drop opening on the lower surface
Along the main body and the lower surface of the toner cartridge main body.
A closing position and a toner for closing the toner drop opening are provided.
-A plate slidable to the open position to open the drop opening
And a guide member for preventing the shutter member from being detached.
A toner replenishing device comprising an engaging means for engaging a predetermined portion of a shutter member . 2. The toner replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein said shutter member is at a predetermined axial line in an open position.
To the pull-out side of the toner cartridge body.
Set the toner cart so that it can be retracted to the retracted position along the end face.
The pivots of the guide tray and the shutter member are connected to the ridge body.
The line is roughly drawn when the toner cartridge is in the set position.
A toner supply device characterized by being coaxial .