JP2006091331A - Powder replenishing device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stably supply powder without being affected by a powder level even when a powder pressure is generated by the stirring of the powder by a stirring part. <P>SOLUTION: A container which is the case body of a toner cartridge 200 is formed by successively providing a cartridge body 210, a powder carrying part 220 and a powder discharging part 230 and housed toner from the cartridge body 210 is discharged from the powder discharging part 230. The cartridge body 210 is provided with the stirring part for stirring the housed toner by being rotated around a preset axis. Also, in the toner cartridge 200, one inner wall surface 220c of the powder carrying part 220 is formed at an acute angle to one inner wall surface 210c of the cartridge body 210. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a powder replenishing device for replenishing powder. The present invention relates to an apparatus and an image forming apparatus using the same.

  In a conventional image forming apparatus, fine powder (toner) is used as a developer, and a detachable toner cartridge is used to supply the toner to an internal developing device. Further, toner is supplied to the developing device by a toner replenishing device used for the toner cartridge.

  Some conventional toner cartridges prevent the toner from being biased in the toner storage portion that stores the toner by stirring the toner that is powder (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In a toner cartridge (developer supply container) described in Patent Document 1 described below, a toner storage unit (storage unit) for storing toner and a toner housed in the toner storage unit and stored in the toner storage unit And a toner stirring member (stirring section) for stirring the toner.
JP 2001-066867 A

  By the way, when the toner is replenished using the developer replenishing container described in Patent Document 1 described above, the toner powder pressure is generated in the rotation normal direction due to the rotation of the agitating portion when the toner is agitated. This toner powder pressure varies the amount and level of toner supply. For this reason, it is difficult to stably supply the toner.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a stable powder that is not affected by the powder level (toner level) even when powder pressure is generated by stirring the powder (toner) by the stirring unit. An object of the present invention is to provide a powder replenishing device and an image forming apparatus that perform supply (toner supply).

  In order to achieve the above object, a powder supply device according to the present invention includes a powder container that stores powder, a powder discharge unit that discharges powder stored in the powder container, and A powder transport unit that transports the powder from the powder storage unit to the powder discharge unit is continuously provided to form a container, and the powder storage unit has a preset axis. In the powder replenishing device provided with the stirring unit for stirring the powder rotated and stored at the center, among the inner wall surfaces of the container, at least one inner wall surface of the powder container unit formed continuously and the The powder conveying unit has an angle of 90 degrees or less with at least one inner wall surface.

  According to the present invention, among the inner wall surfaces of the container, at least one inner wall surface of the powder container formed continuously and at least one inner wall surface of the powder transport unit have an angle of 90 degrees or less. Therefore, it becomes possible to prevent the generation of vector components in the direction of pushing in the powder when the inner wall surface of the container receives the powder pressure in the normal direction of rotation generated by the rotation of the stirring unit. As a result, even when powder pressure is generated by stirring the powder by the stirring unit, it is possible to perform stable powder supply that is not affected by the powder level. In addition, it is possible to prevent the powder pressure of the powder conveying unit from increasing, and it is possible to reduce the load torque of the conveying rotation. Moreover, the conveyance amount of the powder conveyed from the said powder storage part to the said powder conveyance part can be stabilized. Note that the outside of the discharge destination from which the powder stored in the powder storage unit is discharged from the powder discharge unit refers to, for example, a developing device (see the following embodiment) inside the image forming apparatus. .

  The said structure WHEREIN: The angle with respect to the horizontal surface of the other inner wall surface among the inner wall surfaces of the said container may be larger than the repose angle of powder.

  In this case, among the inner wall surfaces of the container, the angle of the other inner wall surface with respect to the horizontal plane is larger than the angle of repose of the powder, so that the powder on the other inner wall surface can be easily conveyed to the powder discharge unit. Thus, it is possible to prevent the powder stored in the powder storage portion from being deposited (residual) on the other inner wall surface.

  The said structure WHEREIN: One inner wall surface of the said powder conveyance part may be formed toward the perpendicular downward direction.

  In this case, since the inner wall surface of the powder transport unit is formed vertically downward, it is possible to prevent powder from being deposited (residual) on the inner wall surface of the powder transport unit. It becomes.

  The said structure WHEREIN: The dimension of the longitudinal direction in the boundary surface of the said powder storage part and the said powder conveyance part may be smaller than the dimension of the longitudinal direction in the boundary surface of the exterior and the said powder storage part.

  In this case, since the dimension in the longitudinal direction at the boundary surface between the powder container and the powder carrier is smaller than the dimension in the longitudinal direction at the boundary surface between the outside and the powder container, the powder container It is possible to increase the flow resistance of the powder at the boundary surface between the powder and the powder conveying section. Therefore, for example, even when the powder is about to leak due to vibration, the weight of the powder, etc., it is possible to suppress the leakage of the powder by increasing the flow path resistance of the powder.

  In the above configuration, a bottom wall surface may be formed in the vicinity of the powder conveyance unit of the powder storage unit in a vertically upward direction, and the bottom wall surface may be formed to be inclined with respect to a horizontal plane.

  In this case, since the bottom wall surface of the powder container is formed to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, the powder deposited (residual) on the bottom wall surface is conveyed in the direction toward the powder conveyance path. It becomes possible, and it becomes possible to use the powder accommodated in the said conveyance accommodating part to the last.

  The said structure WHEREIN: The angle with respect to the horizontal surface of the said bottom wall surface may be smaller than the repose angle of powder.

  In this case, since the angle of the bottom wall surface formed in the powder container with respect to the horizontal plane is smaller than the angle of repose of the powder, the volume of the powder container in a state where the height of the powder container is suppressed. Can be increased. As a result, it is possible to reduce the size of the powder supply device itself. In addition, since the agitation unit is provided in the powder container, even when the angle of the bottom wall surface with respect to the horizontal plane is smaller than the repose angle of the powder, the powder is deposited (residual) on the bottom wall surface. ) Can be prevented.

  In the above configuration, the stirring unit includes a rotating shaft and a stirring blade that supports a base end on the rotating shaft and rotates a tip in the one direction around the rotating shaft, and the powder transport unit. At least one inner wall surface of the powder storage unit in the vicinity may be formed in a shape along the rotation orbit of the tip of the stirring blade.

  In this case, the agitation unit includes the rotation shaft and the agitation blade, and at least the vicinity of the powder conveyance unit on one inner wall surface of the powder container is along a rotation trajectory at the tip of the agitation blade. Therefore, the powder deposited (residual) on at least one inner wall surface of the powder container in the vicinity of the powder transport unit is transported in the direction toward the powder transport path by the rotation of the stirring blade. Thus, the powder stored in the powder storage unit can be used to the end.

  The said structure WHEREIN: The said stirring blade may be inclined and supported with respect to the rotation direction centering on the said rotating shaft.

  In this case, since the blade surface of the stirring blade is supported while being inclined with respect to the rotation direction about the rotation shaft, the powder accumulated (residual) on the wall surface of the powder container is positively retained. Can be conveyed to the powder conveying unit.

  In order to achieve the above object, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the powder supply device according to the present invention is used as a cartridge for supplying powder to a developing device.

  According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, since the above-described powder supply device according to the present invention is used as a cartridge for supplying powder to the developing device, the same effects as those of the above-described powder supply device are obtained. It is possible to have the following effects.

  According to the powder replenishing apparatus and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, stable powder supply can be performed without being affected by the powder level even when powder pressure is generated by stirring the powder by the stirring unit. It becomes possible.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to toner as powder is shown.

-Description of the entire image forming device-
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of an image forming apparatus of the present invention.

  An image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 is a color tandem type image forming apparatus that forms multicolor and single color images on recording paper (sheet) in accordance with image data transmitted from the outside, and is an exposure. Unit 1, developing devices 2a to 2d, photosensitive drums 3a to 3d, chargers 5a to 5d, cleaner units 4a to 4d, intermediate transfer belt 7, intermediate transfer belt unit 8, fixing unit 12, paper transport path S, paper feed The tray 10 and the paper discharge tray 15 are configured.

  Image data handled in the image forming apparatus 100 corresponds to a color image using each color of black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y). Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 1, the developing units 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d, the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d, the chargers 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, and the cleaner units 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d Four are provided so as to form four types of latent images corresponding to the respective colors (K, C, M, Y). These members constitute four image stations Sa, Sb, Sc, Sd corresponding to the respective colors (K, C, M, Y). In each code, “a” corresponds to black, “b” corresponds to cyan, “c” corresponds to magenta, and “d” corresponds to yellow. The image stations Sa to Sd have substantially the same configuration.

  The photosensitive drums 3 a to 3 d are disposed on the upper part of the image forming apparatus 100.

  The chargers 5a to 5d are charging means for uniformly charging the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d to a predetermined potential, and include a saw blade-shaped discharge electrode, a mesh grid, and a case that covers the discharge electrode. It has a scorotron charger. In this example, two chargers 5a having the same shape are arranged in the black (K) image station Sa, and other cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y) color images. One charging device 5b, 5c, 5d is arranged in each of the stations Sb, Sc, Sd.

  Here, the two chargers 5a and 5a for black (K) and the chargers 5b, 5c and 5d for each color of cyan (C), magenta (M) and yellow (Y) have a case width of 14 mm. The same shape is used. Further, the chargers 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d are made common so that they can be used for other types of image forming apparatuses having different process speeds.

  Further, the two chargers 5a and 5a arranged in the black image station Sa are respectively supplied with high-voltage power from individual high-voltage power supplies. ON / OFF of the high voltage output from these high voltage power supplies to the chargers 5a, 5a is controlled by switching of the low voltage primary side of the high voltage power supply (not shown).

  As the charger, in addition to a corona charger such as a scorotron charger, a contact charger such as roller charging or brush charging may be used.

  The exposure unit 1 exposes the charged photosensitive drums 3a to 3d in accordance with input image data, whereby electrostatic latent images corresponding to the image data are formed on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d. It has the function to form. As the exposure unit 1, a laser scanning unit (LSU) including a laser irradiation unit 1a and a reflection mirror 1b is used. As the exposure unit 1, for example, an EL or LED writing head in which light emitting elements are arranged in an array may be used.

  The developing devices 2a to 2d visualize the electrostatic latent images formed on the respective photosensitive drums 3a to 3d with toners of respective colors (K, C, M, and Y). The cleaner units 4a to 4d are for removing and collecting toner remaining on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d after development and image transfer.

  The intermediate transfer belt unit 8 is disposed above the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d. The intermediate transfer belt unit 8 includes intermediate transfer rollers 6 a to 6 d, an intermediate transfer belt 7, an intermediate transfer belt drive roller 71, an intermediate transfer belt driven roller 72, an intermediate transfer belt tension mechanism 73, and an intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 9. ing. The intermediate transfer rollers 6a to 6d, the intermediate transfer belt driving roller 71, the intermediate transfer belt driven roller 72, the intermediate transfer belt tension mechanism 73, and the like stretch the intermediate transfer belt 7 and place the intermediate transfer belt 7 in the direction of arrow B. Is driven to rotate.

  The intermediate transfer rollers 6a to 6d are rotatably supported by an intermediate transfer roller mounting portion (not shown) of the intermediate transfer belt tension mechanism 73 of the transfer belt unit 8, and the toner images on the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d are transferred. A transfer bias for transferring onto the intermediate transfer belt 7 is provided.

  The intermediate transfer belt 7 is provided so as to be in contact with the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d, respectively, and sequentially transfers the toner images of the respective colors formed on the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d onto the intermediate transfer belt 7. Thus, a color toner image (multicolor toner image) is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 7. The intermediate transfer belt 7 is endlessly formed using a film having a thickness of about 100 to 150 μm. Note that only black (K) photosensitive drum 3 a contacts the intermediate transfer belt 7 during monochrome printing described later.

  Transfer of the toner image from the photosensitive drums 3 a to 3 d to the intermediate transfer belt 7 is performed by intermediate transfer rollers 6 a to 6 d that are in contact with the back side of the intermediate transfer belt 7. To the intermediate transfer rollers 6a to 6d, a high-voltage transfer bias (a high voltage having a polarity (+) opposite to the charging polarity (-) of the toner) is applied to transfer the toner image.

  The intermediate transfer rollers 6a to 6d are based on a metal (for example, stainless steel) shaft having a diameter of 8 to 10 mm, and the surface thereof is covered with a conductive elastic material (for example, EPDM, urethane foam, or the like). With this conductive elastic material, a high voltage can be uniformly applied to the intermediate transfer belt 7. In this example, the intermediate transfer rollers 6a to 6d are used as the transfer electrodes, but a brush or the like may be used instead.

  As described above, the electrostatic images visualized according to the hues on the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d are stacked on the intermediate transfer belt 7 and become image information input to the apparatus. The image information thus laminated is transferred onto the recording sheet by the transfer roller 11 disposed at the contact position between the recording sheet and the intermediate transfer belt 7 described later by the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  At this time, the intermediate transfer belt 7 and the transfer roller 11 are pressed against each other at a predetermined nip, and a voltage for transferring the toner onto the recording paper is applied to the transfer roller 11 (what is the toner charging polarity (−))? Reverse polarity (+) high voltage). Further, in order to obtain the nip constantly, the transfer roller 11 uses either the transfer roller 11 or the intermediate transfer belt driving roller 71 as a hard material (metal or the like), and the other as a soft material such as an elastic roller (for example, elastic A rubber roller or a foaming resin roller is preferable.

  Further, as described above, the toner adhering to the intermediate transfer belt 7 due to contact with the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d or the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 7 without being transferred onto the recording paper by the transfer roller 11 Since it causes a color mixture of toner in the next process, the intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 9 removes and collects the toner.

  The intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 9 includes a member that contacts the intermediate transfer belt 7, for example, a cleaning blade as a cleaning member. The intermediate transfer belt 7 that contacts the cleaning blade is moved from the back side by an intermediate transfer belt driven roller 72. It is supported.

  The paper feed tray 10 is a tray for storing recording paper (recording sheets) used for image formation, and is provided below the exposure unit 1 of the image forming apparatus 100. A paper discharge tray 15 provided on the upper part of the image forming apparatus 100 is a tray for placing printed recording paper face down.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus 100 is provided with a substantially vertical sheet conveyance path S for sending the recording sheet in the sheet feeding tray 10 to the sheet discharge tray 15 via the transfer unit 11 and the fixing unit 12. . Further, a pickup roller 16, a registration roller 14, a transfer roller 11, a fixing unit 12, and transport rollers 21 to 28 for transporting recording paper are arranged in the vicinity of the paper transport path S from the paper feed tray 10 to the paper discharge tray 15. Has been.

  The transport rollers 21 to 26 are small rollers used for promoting and assisting the transport of the recording paper, and a plurality of the transport rollers 21 to 26 are provided along the paper transport path S.

  The pickup roller 16 is provided at the end of the paper feed tray 10. The pickup roller 16 is a drawing roller that supplies recording sheets from the sheet feeding tray 10 to the sheet conveyance path S one by one. The registration roller 14 temporarily holds the recording sheet conveyed through the sheet conveying path S, and transfers the recording sheet to the transfer roller 11 at a timing when the leading edge of the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 7 is aligned with the leading edge of the recording sheet. Transport to.

  The fixing unit 12 includes a heat roller 12a and a pressure roller 12b. The heat roller 12a and the pressure roller 12b rotate with the recording paper interposed therebetween.

  The heat roller 12a is set to have a predetermined fixing temperature by control based on a signal from a temperature detector (not shown), and is transferred to the recording paper by thermocompression bonding of the recording paper together with the pressure roller 12b. The multicolored toner image is melted, mixed, and pressed, and thermally fixed to the recording paper.

  Note that the recording paper after the fixing of the multicolor toner image is conveyed to the reverse paper discharge path of the paper conveyance path S by the conveyance rollers 22 and 23 and is reversed (with the multicolor toner image facing downward). The paper is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 15.

  By the way, in this image forming apparatus 100, the powder supply device according to the present invention is applied to a toner cartridge that supplies toner to each of the developing devices 2a to 2d. Next, the toner cartridge will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the toner cartridges described here have substantially the same configuration. Therefore, here, a toner cartridge that supplies toner to the developing device 2a will be described as an example, and description of other toner cartridges will be omitted.

-Description of toner cartridge-
FIG. 2 is a schematic side sectional view of the toner cartridge according to the present embodiment. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the toner cartridge shown in FIG.

  As shown mainly in FIG. 2, the toner cartridge 200 includes a cartridge main body 210 (powder storage portion referred to in the present invention) that stores toner that is powder. A cylindrical powder discharge unit 230 arranged in the lateral direction is provided via the body transport unit 220. The toner cartridge 200 is detachably attached to an apparatus main body (not shown). The cartridge main body 210, the powder transport unit 220, and the powder discharge unit 230 are continuously provided to form a container which is a housing of the toner cartridge 200, and the toner contained from the cartridge main body 210 is discharged into the powder. The sheet is discharged (supplied) from the unit 230 to the developing device 2 a inside the image forming apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. 3, the longitudinal dimension “a” at the boundary surface between the cartridge main body 210 and the powder conveyance unit 220 is set smaller than the longitudinal dimension “b” at the boundary surface between the outside and the cartridge main body 210. Yes.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cartridge main body 210 is provided with an agitation unit that agitates toner accommodated by rotating around a preset axis. The stirring unit includes a rotating shaft 250 and a stirring blade 240 that supports the base end 241 on the rotating shaft 250 and rotates the tip 242 in one direction around the rotating shaft 250. The stirring blade 240 is supported by the rotating shaft 250 with its blade surface along the axial direction of the rotating shaft 250. A rotating shaft 250 that rotates while supporting the stirring blade 240 at the center of the cartridge main body 210 passes through the inner wall surfaces 210 a and 210 b before and after the cartridge main body 210. The rear end portion 250b of the rotating shaft 250 protruding from the rear inner wall surface 210b is provided with a concave groove-like fitting gear 260 that can be engaged with and disengaged from the gear 620 linked to the drive source 610. The gear 620 and the fitting gear 260 linked to the driving source 610 constitute a clutch mechanism that transmits the driving force. A first gear 270 is attached to the tip 250a of the rotary shaft 250 protruding from the front inner wall surface.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a bottom wall surface 210 e is formed in the vicinity of the powder conveyance unit 220 of the cartridge main body 210 in the vertically upward direction. The bottom wall surface 210e is formed to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane. The angle of the bottom wall surface 210e with respect to the horizontal plane is set to be smaller than the repose angle of the toner.

  In the toner cartridge 200, as shown in FIG. 3, one inner wall surface 220c on one side surface of the powder conveying section 220 is formed at an acute angle with respect to one inner wall surface 210c on one side surface of the cartridge body 210. Further, one inner wall surface 220c of the powder conveying unit 220 is formed in the vertically downward direction. Of the inner wall surface from the cartridge main body 210 of the toner cartridge 200 to the powder conveying unit 220, the angle of the other inner wall surfaces 210d and 220d on the other side surface with respect to the horizontal plane is set larger than the repose angle of the toner. Further, one inner wall surface 210 c of the cartridge main body 210 in the vicinity of the powder conveying unit 220 has a shape along the rotation trajectory of the tip 242 of the stirring blade 240.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a conveying screw 300 having a helical conveying blade 320 fixed to the rotating shaft 310 is arranged inside the cylindrical powder discharge unit 230. The rear end portion 310 b of the rotary shaft 310 is rotatably supported so as to be fitted into a concave portion 230 b formed inside the front end surface of the powder discharge portion 230, and the front end portion 310 a is a front side wall of the cartridge main body 210. It is rotatably supported so as to penetrate 210a. A third gear 290 is attached to the tip 310a of the rotating shaft 310 protruding from the front side wall 210a. A second gear 280 that links the third gear 290 and the first gear 270 is attached to the front side wall 210a. In other words, the conveying screw 300 is configured to transmit the driving force from the driving source 610 via the rotating shaft 250 of the stirring blade 240 and the first to third gears 270 to 290.

  The powder discharge part 230 having such a configuration is provided with a powder discharge port 350 at the lower part of the peripheral side surface of the tip part. In addition, a cylindrical shutter portion 400 is attached to the powder discharge portion 230 so as to cover the outer peripheral surface thereof.

  The shutter portion 400 is provided with an opening 410 for opening and closing the powder discharge port 350 of the powder discharge portion 230 on the peripheral side surface thereof. The shutter portion 400 is arranged in the axial direction X of the powder discharge portion 230. It is provided to be movable while rotating spirally along (X1, X2).

  As described above, according to the toner cartridge 200 of the present invention, the inner wall surface 220c of the powder transport unit 220 is formed at an acute angle with respect to the inner wall surface 210c of the cartridge body 210. Generation of a vector component in the direction in which the toner is pushed in when the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge 200 receives the powder pressure in the normal direction of the rotation generated by the rotation can be prevented. As a result, even when the powder pressure is generated by the stirring of the toner by the stirring blade 240, it is possible to supply the toner stably without being affected by the toner level. Further, it is possible to prevent the powder pressure of the powder conveying unit 220 from increasing, and it is possible to reduce the load torque of the conveying rotation. In addition, the amount of toner transported from the cartridge body 210 to the powder transport unit 220 (the amount of fall in this embodiment) can be stabilized. Further, according to the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, since the toner cartridge 200 described above is used as a cartridge for supplying toner to the developing devices 2a to 2d, the same effects as those of the toner cartridge 200 are obtained. It can have an operational effect.

  Further, since the angle of the other inner wall surfaces 210d and 220d with respect to the horizontal surface of the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge 200 is larger than the repose angle of the toner, the toner on the other inner wall surfaces 210d and 220d is easily conveyed to the powder discharge unit 230. It is possible to prevent the toner stored in the cartridge body 210 from being deposited (residual) on the other inner wall surfaces 210d and 220d.

  Further, since the inner wall surface 220c of the powder transport unit 220 is formed vertically downward, it is possible to prevent toner from being deposited (residual) on the inner wall surface 220c of the powder transport unit 220. .

  Further, since the longitudinal dimension a at the boundary surface between the cartridge main body 210 and the powder conveying section 220 is smaller than the longitudinal dimension a at the boundary surface between the outside and the cartridge main body 210, the cartridge main body 210 and the powder conveying section. The flow path resistance of the toner at the interface with 220 can be increased. Therefore, for example, even when the toner is about to leak due to vibration or the weight of the toner, the leakage of the toner can be suppressed by increasing the resistance of the toner flow path.

  Further, since the bottom wall surface 210e of the cartridge main body 210 is formed to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, the toner deposited (residual) on the bottom wall surface 210e can be conveyed in the direction toward the powder conveyance path unit 220, The toner contained in the cartridge body 210 can be used to the end.

  Further, the angle of the bottom wall surface 210e formed on the cartridge main body 210 with respect to the horizontal plane is smaller than the repose angle of the toner, so that the volume of the cartridge main body 210 can be increased while the height of the cartridge main body 210 is suppressed. As a result, the toner cartridge 200 itself can be reduced in size. In addition, since the cartridge body 210 is provided with a stirring portion including the rotating shaft 250 and the stirring blade 240, even if the angle of the bottom wall surface 210e with respect to the horizontal plane is smaller than the repose angle of the toner, the bottom wall surface 210e It is possible to prevent toner from being deposited (residual).

  The agitation unit includes a rotation shaft 250 and an agitation blade 240, and the vicinity of the powder conveyance unit 220 on one inner wall surface 210 c of the cartridge body 210 has a shape along the rotation trajectory of the tip 242 of the agitation blade 240. Therefore, the toner accumulated (residual) on the inner wall surface 210c of the cartridge main body 210 in the vicinity of the powder conveyance section 220 can be conveyed in the direction toward the powder conveyance path section 220 by the rotation of the stirring blade 240. The toner contained in the toner can be used to the end.

  In the present embodiment, the present invention is applied to one inner surface of the toner cartridge 200 as shown in FIG. 3, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the toner cartridge is continuously formed on the inner wall surface of the toner cartridge. The position and size (range) of the inner surface can be arbitrarily set.

  In the present embodiment, the inner wall surface 220c of the powder transport unit 220 is formed at an acute angle with respect to the inner wall surface 210c of the cartridge main body 210. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It suffices if the inner wall surface of the formed cartridge main body and the inner wall surface of the powder conveying section have an angle of 90 degrees or less. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the inner wall surface 220 c of the powder conveyance unit 220 may be formed at a right angle with respect to the inner wall surface 210 c of the cartridge body 210.

  Moreover, in this Embodiment, although the stirring blade 240 is supported by the rotating shaft 250 in the state where the blade surface was along the axial direction of the rotating shaft 250, it is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the stirring blade 240 may be supported such that its blade surface is inclined with respect to the rotation direction about the rotation shaft 250. In particular, as shown in FIG. 5, when the stirring blade 240 is supported with an inclination with respect to the rotation shaft 250, the toner accumulated (residual) on the bottom wall surface 210e is positively conveyed to the powder conveyance unit 220. Is preferable.

  Moreover, you may provide a film in the front-end | tip 242 of the stirring blade 240 concerning this Embodiment. By providing a film at the tip 242 of the stirring blade 240, the tip 242 can be rubbed against the bottom wall surface 210e, which is preferable for removing toner accumulated (residual) on the bottom wall surface 210e. Moreover, it is preferable to use a polyethylene terephthalate as a film.

  In addition, the present invention can be implemented in various other forms without departing from the spirit or main features thereof. Therefore, the above-described embodiment is merely an example in all respects and should not be interpreted in a limited manner. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims, and is not restricted by the text of the specification. Further, all modifications and changes belonging to the equivalent scope of the claims are within the scope of the present invention.

  The powder replenishing apparatus according to the present invention can be applied to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus used for a copying machine, a laser printer, a facsimile, or the like. In particular, the present invention can be applied to a transport mechanism that transports a developer or a waste developer.

1 is a schematic side sectional view showing a structure of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment. FIG. 3 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of the toner cartridge according to the exemplary embodiment. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the toner cartridge shown in FIG. 2 taken along line AA. FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a toner cartridge according to another embodiment. FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a stirring unit of a toner cartridge according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

100 Image forming apparatus 200 Toner cartridge (powder supply apparatus)
210 Cartridge body (powder container)
210c, 220d One inner wall surface 210d, 220d Other inner wall surface 210e Bottom wall surface 220 Powder conveying unit 230 Powder discharging unit 240 Agitation blade 241 Base end 242 Tip 250 Rotating shaft

Claims (9)

A powder container for storing powder, a powder discharge part for discharging the powder stored in the powder container to the outside, and a powder for conveying powder from the powder container to the powder discharge part And a body transport unit are continuously provided to form a container, and the powder storage unit is provided with a stirring unit that rotates around a preset axis to stir the stored powder In the powder supply device,
Of the inner wall surface of the container, at least one inner wall surface of the powder container formed continuously and at least one inner wall surface of the powder transport unit have an angle of 90 degrees or less. Body supply device.   The powder replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein an angle of the other inner wall surface with respect to a horizontal plane among the inner wall surfaces of the container is larger than a repose angle of the powder.   The powder replenishing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein one inner wall surface of the powder conveying unit is formed vertically downward.   4. A dimension in a longitudinal direction at a boundary surface between the powder container and the powder carrier is smaller than a dimension in a longitudinal direction at a boundary surface between the outside and the powder container. The powder supply device according to any one of the above. A bottom wall surface is formed in the vicinity of the powder conveying portion of the powder containing portion in a vertically upward direction,
The powder replenishing device according to claim 1, wherein the bottom wall surface is formed to be inclined with respect to a horizontal plane.   6. The powder replenishing device according to claim 5, wherein an angle of the bottom wall surface with respect to a horizontal plane is smaller than a repose angle of the powder. The stirring unit includes a rotation shaft and a stirring blade that supports a base end on the rotation shaft and rotates a tip in the one direction around the rotation shaft.
The powder according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein at least one inner wall surface of the powder container in the vicinity of the powder conveying unit has a shape along a rotation orbit at the tip of the stirring blade. Body supply device.   The powder replenishing device according to claim 7, wherein the stirring blade is supported such that the blade surface is inclined with respect to a rotation direction about the rotation shaft.   9. An image forming apparatus, wherein the powder replenishing device according to claim 1 is used as a cartridge for supplying powder to a developing device.

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