JP6464642B2 - Cleaning unit and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning unit including a storage unit that stores a developer and an image forming apparatus including the cleaning unit.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known an image forming apparatus that includes a storage unit that stores a developer recovered from a photoreceptor or the like. For example, housing portion of Patent Document 1 (waste toner Atsumariosame container) is disposed at one end side of the intermediate transfer drum. A developer transport unit disposed on the same end side as the storage unit is connected to the storage unit. The storage unit is configured to store the developer dropped from the developer transport unit.

JP-A-10-133534

  By the way, the belt cleaning unit is provided with an accommodating portion extending from one side in the width direction of the belt to the other side. If such a container is provided with a developer transport section as in Patent Document 1, the developer accumulates on one side of the container, so that the space on the other side in the container may not be used effectively. It was.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a cleaning unit that can effectively use a space in a storage portion and an image forming apparatus including the cleaning unit.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the cleaning unit of the present invention includes a storage unit that stores a developer, and a first transport member that transports the developer from one side of the storage unit toward the other side of the storage unit. A cleaning member that recovers the developer on the belt that contacts the photosensitive member, and a recovery port that recovers the developer recovered from a member different from the belt, and the development from the recovery port toward the housing portion. And a developer transport unit for transporting the agent.
The developer conveying portion and the cleaning member are disposed on the one side of the accommodating portion.

  According to such a configuration, the developer collected from the cleaning member and the developer collected in the developer transport unit are collected on one side of the storage unit. Since the developer collected on one side of the storage unit can be transported toward the other side of the storage unit by the first transport member, it is possible to effectively utilize the space on the other side in the storage unit. it can.

  In the above-described configuration, the developer transport unit may be connected to the storage unit from the one side with respect to the cleaning member.

  The cleaning unit includes a frame that forms the storage unit and the developer transport unit, and a second storage unit that is disposed on the one side of the frame and stores the developer overflowing from the storage unit. Can be configured.

  According to such a configuration, it is difficult for the developer to move to the second container until the developer overflows from the container.

  In the configuration including the above-described second storage portion, it is desirable that the second storage portion is partitioned by the storage portion and the developer transport portion by a wall.

  According to such a configuration, the developer in the storage portion and the developer transport portion is hardly moved to the second storage portion by the wall, so that the developer can be sufficiently stored in the storage portion.

  In the configuration in which the second storage section is partitioned by a wall, the developer transport section is disposed on one end side of the frame in the width direction of the belt, and the wall is more than the second storage section. It can be set as the structure extended to the other end side of the width direction, and the other end being arrange | positioned at intervals with the side wall of the other end side of the said width direction of the said frame.

  According to such a configuration, since the opening into which the developer overflowing from the housing portion enters between the other end of the wall and the side wall on the other end side of the frame is separated from the developer transport portion, the developer transport portion Therefore, the developer that has just been collected in the storage unit becomes difficult to move to the second storage unit.

  The cleaning unit in which the other end of the wall described above is disposed at a distance from the side wall of the frame is formed between the portion on the other end side in the width direction of the wall and the frame. A second developer transport unit that transports the developer to the second storage unit; an auger that is disposed in the second developer transport unit and transports the developer from the storage unit toward the second storage unit; It can be set as the structure provided with.

  According to such a configuration, the developer can be transported from the storage portion to the second storage portion by the auger.

  When the cleaning unit including the auger includes a second transport member that transports the developer recovered from the recovery port from the developer transport unit toward the storage unit, the auger is configured to transfer the second transport member. It is desirable that the developer transport amount is larger than that of the member.

  If the amount of developer entering the housing portion is larger than the amount of developer entering the second housing portion, the developer is likely to be clogged in the portion between the other end of the wall and the side wall on the other end side of the frame. According to this, it is possible to suppress clogging of the developer at the portion.

  The cleaning unit including the auger and the second transport member may include a gear disposed on a side surface opposite to the developer transport section in the width direction of the frame. In this configuration, the gear may be configured to transmit a driving force to the auger and the second transport member.

  In the configuration in which the gear described above transmits the driving force to the auger and the second transport member, the auger can be configured to transmit the driving force from the gear to the second transport member.

  According to such a configuration, the driving force can be transmitted to the second conveying member using the auger, so that the number of parts can be reduced.

  In the configuration including the gear described above, the cleaning member may be a cleaning roller, and the gear may be configured to transmit a driving force to the cleaning member.

  Further, the image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a photosensitive member that carries a developer image, a belt that contacts the photosensitive member, a storage portion that stores the developer, and the other of the storage portions from one side of the storage portion. A first conveying member that conveys the developer toward the side; a cleaning member that collects the developer on the belt; and a recovery port that recovers the developer recovered from the photosensitive member. A developer transport unit that transports the developer toward the housing unit, and the developer transport unit and the cleaning member are disposed on the one side of the housing unit. It can be set as the structure which has.

  According to the present invention, the space in the housing portion of the cleaning unit can be effectively utilized.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the color laser printer provided with the cleaning unit which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a perspective view of a cleaning unit. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. It is the figure which looked at the cleaning unit of the state which took the upper wall of the flame | frame from the top. An enlarged view (a) of the vicinity of the first toner conveying portion of the cleaning unit as viewed from above, a BB sectional view (b) of FIG. (A), and a CC sectional view (c) of FIG. is there. It is figure (a), (b), (c), (d) which shows operation | movement of a 1st conveyance member. It is a figure (a) equivalent to Drawing 5 (b) concerning a modification, and a figure (b) equivalent to Drawing 5 (c) concerning a modification. It is figure (a), (b) which shows the modification of a 2nd conveyance member.

  Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. In the following description, the direction will be described with reference to the user who uses the color laser printer 1. That is, the left side in FIG. 1 is “front”, the right side is “rear”, the front side of the page is “right”, and the back side is “left”. Also, the vertical direction in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the color laser printer 1 mainly includes, in a main body housing 2, a paper feeding unit 3 that supplies paper S and an image forming unit 4 that forms an image on the supplied paper S. ing. The image forming unit 4 mainly includes an exposure device 5, a process unit 6, a transfer unit 7, and a fixing unit 8.

  The paper feed unit 3 is provided at a lower portion in the main body housing 2 and mainly includes a paper feed tray 31, a paper pressing plate 32, and a paper feed mechanism 33. The sheets S in the sheet feeding tray 31 are moved upward by the sheet pressing plate 32, separated one by one by the sheet feeding mechanism 33, and supplied to the image forming unit 4.

  The exposure apparatus 5 is provided in the upper part in the main body housing 2 and includes a plurality of laser light sources, polygon mirrors, a plurality of lenses, a plurality of reflecting mirrors, and the like (not shown).

  The process unit 6 is disposed between the paper feed tray 31 and the exposure device 5, and includes a drawer 60, a photoconductor drum 61 as an example of four photoconductors arranged along the front-rear direction, and each photoconductor drum 61. Are mainly provided with a charger 62 and a developing cartridge 63 provided one by one. Each developing cartridge 63 includes a developing roller 64, a supply roller 65, a layer thickness regulating blade 66, and the like. A toner storage chamber 67 for storing toner is formed in the housing of each developing cartridge 63.

  The drawer 60 is a member that holds four photosensitive drums 61 and the like, and is supported so as to be movable in the front-rear direction with respect to the main body housing 2. The drawer 60 can be pulled out of the main body housing 2 from an opening 21 </ b> A formed by opening the front cover 21 provided on the front side of the main body housing 2.

  The transfer unit 7 is provided between the paper feed tray 31 and the process unit 6 and is configured to be detachable from the main body housing 2. The transfer unit 7 includes a driving roller 71, a driven roller 72, a conveying belt 73 as an example of an endless belt stretched between the driving roller 71 and the driven roller 72, and four transfer rollers 74. In preparation.

  The conveyor belt 73 is arranged such that the upper part of the outer peripheral surface 73 </ b> A is in contact with each photosensitive drum 61, and the transfer rollers 74 sandwich the conveyor belt 73 between the photosensitive drums 61 inside thereof. Has been.

  Below the transfer unit 7, a cleaning unit 100 for cleaning waste toner as an example of a developer on the conveyance belt 73 is disposed.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cleaning unit 100 includes a frame 101, a cleaning roller 100A as an example of a cleaning member provided on the front portion of the upper wall 101A of the frame 101, a collection roller 100B, and a blade 100C. And.

  The cleaning roller 100 </ b> A is disposed at a position where the upper surface contacts the lower portion of the outer peripheral surface 73 </ b> A of the transport belt 73 and is configured to collect waste toner on the transport belt 73. The collection roller 100B is arranged at a position where the front surface contacts the rear surface of the cleaning roller 100A, and is configured to collect waste toner on the cleaning roller 100A. As shown in FIG. 3, the blade 100C extends obliquely forward and downward from a position away from the collection roller 100B, and is disposed at a position where the tip contacts the rear surface of the collection roller 100B. The waste toner is scraped off.

  An opening 101B is formed at a position on the upper wall 101A of the frame 101 corresponding to the contact portion between the collection roller 100B and the blade 100C, and waste toner scraped off by the blade 100C will be described later through the opening 101B. It is accommodated in the accommodating part 102.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the fixing unit 8 is provided behind the process unit 6 and the transfer unit 7, and includes a heating roller 81 and a pressure roller 82 that faces the heating roller 81 and presses the heating roller 81. Mainly prepared.

  In the image forming unit 4, the surface of the photosensitive drum 61 is uniformly charged by the charger 62, and then exposed by high-speed scanning of laser light (indicated by a one-dot chain line in the drawing) from the exposure device 5. An electrostatic latent image based on the image data is formed on the drum 61. The toner in the toner storage chamber 67 is supplied to the developing roller 64 via the supply roller 65 and enters between the developing roller 64 and the layer thickness regulating blade 66 so as to form a thin layer having a constant thickness. Supported on.

  Then, the toner carried on the developing roller 64 is supplied to the electrostatic latent image formed on the corresponding photosensitive drum 61, whereby the electrostatic latent image is visualized and is transferred onto the photosensitive drum 61. A toner image is formed. Thereafter, the sheet S supplied from the sheet feeding unit 3 is conveyed on the conveying belt 73 and passes between the photosensitive drum 61 and the transfer roller 74, thereby forming a toner image formed on each photosensitive drum 61. Are sequentially superimposed and transferred onto the paper S.

  The sheet S on which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed between the heating roller 81 and the pressure roller 82, whereby the toner image is thermally fixed. The sheet S on which the toner image is heat-fixed is discharged from the inside of the main body housing 2 by the conveying roller 23 and the discharge roller 24 provided in the main body housing 2 and placed on the paper discharge tray 22.

Next, details of the cleaning unit 100 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning unit 100 has a handle 101 </ b> C that is substantially U-shaped in plan view and is arranged at the center in the left-right direction of the front end of the frame 101. As shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning unit 100 can be attached and detached after removing the process unit 6 and the transfer unit 7 from the opening 21A formed on the front side of the body housing 2 with respect to the body housing 2. It has become. That is, the main body housing 2 has an opening 21 </ b> A for attaching / detaching the cleaning unit 100 on the handle 101 </ b> C side of the attached cleaning unit 100.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, the frame 101 includes a storage unit 102, a first toner transport unit 103, a guide unit 104, a detection unit 105 as an example of a second storage unit, and a second unit. And a toner conveying unit 106. In other words, the storage unit 102, the first toner conveyance unit 103, the guide unit 104, the detection unit 105, and the second toner conveyance unit 106 are formed by walls that constitute the frame 101. In FIG. 4, the wall portions that form the storage portion 102, the first toner conveyance portion 103, the guide portion 104, the detection portion 105, and the second toner conveyance portion 106 are taken into consideration in view of the drawing. Assume that dots are finer than a seal member 114 described later.

  The frame 101 is provided with a first conveying member 120, a second conveying member 110, and an auger 130 in addition to the cleaning roller 100A, the recovery roller 100B, and the blade 100C described above.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the storage portion 102 is provided within a range corresponding to the cleaning roller 100A from the rear end of the frame 101, and is configured to store waste toner. The accommodating portion 102 is in a range from a partition wall 101E (described later) on the front side of the cleaning roller 100A of the frame 101 to the rear wall of the frame 101.

  The first toner transport unit 103 is connected to the storage unit 102 from the front side of the cleaning roller 100A, and includes a first transport unit 103A and a second transport unit 103B.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the first conveyance unit 103 </ b> A is formed to extend in the left-right direction on the front side of the cleaning roller 100 </ b> A, and the right end is left and right of the right side surface 102 </ b> A of the frame 101 corresponding to the storage unit 102. It is arranged to protrude outward in the direction, that is, on the right side. In other words, the first transport unit 103A extends in the left-right direction from the outside of the right end 73B of the transport belt 73 toward the inside of the right end 73B of the transport belt 73, that is, toward the left side.

  The second transport unit 103B extends rearward from the left end of the first transport unit 103A, that is, the inner end in the left-right direction, and is connected to the front side of the right end of the storage unit 102. The length in the left-right direction is the storage unit. It is shorter than the length of 102 in the left-right direction.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the lower part B1 of the inner surface of the second transport unit 103B is disposed below the lower part A1 of the inner surface of the first transport unit 103A. The lower part B1 on the inner surface of the second transport part 103B is connected to the lower part A1 on the inner surface of the first transport part 103A by a connection part B2.

  The connecting portion B2 is inclined so as to be positioned downward from the rear end of the lower portion A1 of the inner surface of the first transport portion 103A toward the front end of the lower portion B1 of the inner surface of the second transport portion 103B.

  As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the guide portion 104 extends upward from the right end portion of the first transport portion 103A, and a recovery port 104A for recovering waste toner is formed at the upper end. Yes. As shown in FIG. 1, the recovery port 104A is positioned above the cleaning roller 100A, and is located on the upper portion of the outer peripheral surface 73A of the conveyor belt 73, that is, on the side of the conveyor belt 73 that contacts the photosensitive drum 61. It is located below the extended surface.

  In addition, on the upper side of the guide unit 104, a photosensitive toner conveying unit 61A is provided. The photoreceptor toner transport unit 61A collects waste toner collected from the photoreceptor drum 61 by a photoreceptor cleaning blade (not shown) disposed on the rear side of the photoreceptor drum 61, and collects the waste toner into the collection port 104A. This is the part that is transported toward. The photoconductor toner transport section 61A extends in the front-rear direction and is formed in a range where the photoconductor drums 61 are arranged, and is connected to the upper end of the guide section 104, that is, the recovery port 104A at the front end. As shown in FIG. 5A, the photoreceptor toner transport unit 61A is provided with a waste toner auger 61B.

  The waste toner auger 61B extends in the front-rear direction, and is configured to convey the waste toner collected from the photosensitive drum 61 from the rear side toward the front collection port 104A.

  As shown in FIG. 5B, the guide portion 104 is lower than the upper portion 104B in the upper portion 104B in which the width in the left-right direction is substantially constant in the vertical direction and in the left-right direction in which the first transport portion 103A extends. And a lower portion 104C that becomes wider as it goes toward the center.

  As shown in FIG. 5C, the guide portion 104 becomes wider in the front-rear direction, which is the moving direction of the upper portion of the outer peripheral surface 73 </ b> A that contacts the photosensitive drum 61, of the transport belt 73 as it goes upward. . That is, the upper part 104B and the lower part 104C described above become wider as they go upward in the front-rear direction, and the upper part 104B is longer in the front-rear direction than the lower part 104C. As a result, the recovery port 104A can be widened in the front-rear direction, so that the waste toner conveyed by the waste toner auger 61B can be easily recovered at the recovery port 104A.

  As shown to Fig.5 (a), the guide part 104 is comprised so that the cross section cut by the horizontal surface of an upper end part and a lower end part may become a rectangular shape. The guide portion 104 is formed such that the first side 104D on the long side of the rectangular cross section at the lower end and the second side 104E on the long side of the rectangular cross section of the upper end extend in different directions. The first side 104D extends in the left-right direction, and the second side 104E extends in the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the detection unit 105 is an example of a wall that protrudes from the bottom wall 101 </ b> D of the frame 101 and is connected to the upper wall 101 </ b> A on the front side of the storage unit 102 and on the left side of the second transport unit 103 </ b> B. The partition wall 101E is disposed at a position separated from the accommodating portion 102. The detection unit 105 is partitioned from the second transport unit 103B by the left side wall 103C of the second transport unit 103B and a plurality of walls arranged on the left side of the side wall 103C. The side walls 103C and the plurality of walls arranged on the left side of the side walls 103C are examples of walls that partition the second transport unit 103B.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the detection unit 105 is formed to be recessed downward from the bottom wall 101 </ b> D of the frame 101. In other words, the detection unit 105 protrudes downward from the bottom wall 101D of the frame 101. The detection unit 105 is configured to accommodate a part of the waste toner, and is configured of a transparent member that can transmit light from an optical sensor (not shown). In such a detection unit 105, waste toner overflowing from the storage unit 102 is stored, and light from the optical sensor is blocked by the waste toner, so that it is possible to detect that the storage unit 102 is full. Become.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the partition wall 101E extends from the rear end of the left side wall 103C of the second transport unit 103B to a position on the left side of the detection unit 105. The left end of the partition wall 101E is arranged at a distance from the left side wall 101G of the frame 101. A portion on the left side of the detection unit 105 between the partition wall 101E and the front wall 101F of the frame 101 is a second toner conveyance unit 106.

  A toner intrusion prevention wall 101I that connects the partition wall 101E and the front wall 101F is provided between the partition wall 101E and the front wall 101F. The toner intrusion prevention wall 101 </ b> I has a recess along the peripheral surface of the rotation shaft 131 of the auger 130. A gap is formed between the rotating shaft 131 and the upper wall 101A disposed in the recess, and the waste toner can move in the second toner conveying unit 106 through the gap.

  The second toner conveyance unit 106 includes a communication unit 106A that communicates with the storage unit 102 between the left end of the partition wall 101E and the side wall 101G. Waste toner overflowing from the storage unit 102 enters the second toner transport unit 106 from the communication unit 106A.

  The second conveyance member 110 is provided in the first conveyance unit 103 </ b> A, and includes a rotation shaft 111, a first conveyance blade 112, and a second conveyance blade 113.

  The rotating shaft 111 extends in the left-right direction and is supported by the left and right side walls 103D of the first transport unit 103A.

  The first conveying blade 112 is provided so as to be spirally wound around the rotation shaft 111 from the right end to the left side of the first conveying unit 103A.

  The second conveying blade 113 is formed along the left-right direction, and extends from the rotating shaft 111 to the outside in the radial direction of the rotating shaft 111 in a plate shape. Two second conveying blades 113 are provided on both sides of the rotating shaft 111. The second transport blade 113 is disposed at a position corresponding to the second transport unit 103B in the left-right direction, and is connected to a left end portion that is an inner end portion of the first transport blade 112 in the left-right direction.

  By rotating such a second conveying member 110, waste toner is transferred to the first conveying blade 112 from the right side to the left side, that is, from the outside of the right end 73B of the conveying belt 73 toward the inside of the right end 73B of the conveying belt 73. It can be loaded and transported. Then, the second conveying member 110 can convey the waste toner by pushing it toward the rear side, that is, the second conveying unit 103B on the outer side in the radial direction of the rotating shaft 111 by the second conveying blade 113. It is possible.

  A seal member 114 made of an elastic member such as sponge is provided on the left side wall 103D side of the second transport member 110. The seal member 114 is provided around the rotation shaft 111 between the second conveying blade 113 and the left side wall 103D. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress the waste toner conveyed in the first conveyance unit 103A from leaking between the left side wall 103D and the rotation shaft 111.

  The first conveying member 120 includes a main body part 121, a crankshaft 122, a fulcrum part 123, and an extension part 124. The main body part 121, the fulcrum part 123, and the extension part 124 are integrally formed.

  The main body 121 is a lattice-shaped member, and a plurality of rectangular holes 121A penetrating vertically are formed. Of the surfaces forming the holes 121 </ b> A of the main body 121, the surface facing the rear is a first conveyance surface 121 </ b> C for conveying waste toner from the front side to the rear side.

  A plurality of supported portions 121B, which are rotatably supported by the crankshaft 122, are provided side by side in the left-right direction at the front portion of the main body 121 in the front-rear direction center.

  The crankshaft 122 extends in the left-right direction, and both end portions in the left-right direction are supported by the left and right side walls 102B of the housing portion 102. The crankshaft 122 is connected to the first gear 120A outside the left side wall 102B. A driving force is transmitted from the motor M to the first gear 120A.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the crankshaft 122 includes a rotating shaft portion 122A, an arm portion 122B, and a support portion 122C. The rotation shaft portion 122A is a shaft that rotates about the axis line X at the center thereof, and constitutes both end portions of the crank shaft 122 in the left-right direction.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the arm portion 122B extends radially outward from the inner ends of the rotating shaft portions 122A on both the left and right sides.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the support portion 122C is a shaft portion parallel to the rotation shaft portion 122A, and rotatably supports the supported portion 121B of the main body portion 121. The support portion 122C is disposed between the left and right arm portions 122B, and revolves around the axis X of the rotation shaft portion 122A as the rotation shaft portion 122A rotates.

  The fulcrum portion 123 is disposed at the rear end portion of the main body 121 and protrudes outward from the main body 121 in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 3, a first wall 102C that protrudes upward from the bottom wall 101D and a second wall 102D that protrudes downward from the upper wall 101A are provided at positions corresponding to the fulcrum 123 of the housing portion 102. It has been.

  The first wall 102C and the second wall 102D are receiving parts that receive the fulcrum part 123, and sandwich the fulcrum part 123 from above and below. The fulcrum 123 slides back and forth between the first wall 102C and the second wall 102D.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the extending portion 124 extends from the front end of the main body portion 121 in the first toner conveying portion 103, specifically along the inner surface of the second conveying portion 103 </ b> B. In addition, a plurality of rectangular holes 124A penetrating vertically are formed side by side. Of the surfaces forming the holes 124A, the surface facing the rear side is a second conveying surface 124B for conveying the waste toner from the front side to the rear side.

  In the extension part 124, the amount of waste toner transported on each second transport surface 124 </ b> B is larger than the amount of waste toner transported by the second transport member 110. For this reason, the amount of waste toner transported by the first transport member 120 is greater than the amount of waste toner moving from the first transport unit 103A.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the extension portion 124 is inclined upward with respect to the direction in which the main body portion 121 extends. In other words, the extension portion 124 is inclined upward with respect to the surface formed by the lower end portion, that is, the lower surface 124C with respect to the surface formed by the lower end portion of the main body portion 121, that is, the lower surface 121D. ing. Specifically, the extension portion 124 is configured such that a gap is provided between the lower surface 124C of the extension portion 124 and the bottom wall 101D when the front end of the lower surface 121D of the main body portion 121 is at the lowest position. . That is, the extended portion 124 is configured such that the lower surface 124C does not come into contact with the bottom wall 101D when the first transport member 120 is rotated.

  And the extension part 124 is arrange | positioned in the position where the front-end | tip does not contact the connection part B2, even if the 1st conveyance member 120 rotates. In other words, the extension part 124 is configured such that the trajectory of movement when rotating is not overlapped with the connection part B2 when viewed from the left-right direction. That is, the first transport member 120 is configured not to interfere with the connection portion B2 when rotated.

The operation of the first transport member 120 will be described with reference to FIGS.
When the rotary shaft 122A rotates counterclockwise in the figure from the state of FIG. 6D, the support part 122C revolves around the axis X counterclockwise in the figure as shown in FIG. The portion 122C moves to a position obliquely above the front of the position in FIG. Accordingly, the main body 121 and the fulcrum part 123 move to the front side, and the main body part 121 rotates upward about the fulcrum part 123, whereby the front end part of the main body part 121 moves to the front diagonally upper side.

  As shown in FIG. 6 (b), when the support portion 122C moves to a position obliquely below the front in FIG. 6 (a), the main body portion 121 and the fulcrum portion 123 move further to the front side, and the main body portion 121 becomes the fulcrum. By rotating downward about the part 123, the front end part of the main body part 121 moves to the front diagonally lower side.

  As shown in FIG. 6 (c), when the support portion 122C moves to a position obliquely below the rear in FIG. 6 (b), the main body portion 121 and the fulcrum portion 123 move to the rear side, and the main body portion 121 becomes the fulcrum. By rotating further downward about the portion 123, the front end portion of the main body 121 moves rearward and obliquely downward.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 6 (d), when the support portion 122C moves to a position obliquely rearward from the position of FIG. 6 (c), the main body portion 121 and the fulcrum portion 123 further move to the rear side, and the main body portion The front end of the main body 121 moves rearward and obliquely upward as the 121 rotates upward about the fulcrum 123.

  As described above, the main body portion 121 moves back and forth while swinging around the fulcrum portion 123, and as shown in FIGS. 6 (a), (b), (c), and (d), the extension portion After moving 124 from the position of FIG. 6 (d) to the front diagonally upper side, it moves to the front diagonally lower side and moves to the rear diagonally lower side. That is, when the extension part 124 approaches the first transport part 103A, the extension part 124 moves upward, then moves downward, and moves away from the first transport part 103A while moving downward. .

  For this reason, the first conveying member 120 moves up and down as it goes to the front side of the rotating shaft portion 122A, and rotates so as to scrape waste toner by the second conveying surface 124B and the first conveying surface 121C. Thereby, the first conveying member 120 can convey the waste toner from the front side toward the rear side.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the auger 130 includes a rotation shaft 131 provided in the second toner conveyance unit 106 and extending in the left-right direction, and a helical conveyance blade 132 provided around the rotation shaft 131. doing. The auger 130 is configured to rotate so that the waste toner is carried on the conveyance blade 132 and conveyed from the left side to the right side.

  In the auger 130, the amount of waste toner transported by the transport blade 132 is larger than the amount of waste toner transported by the second transport member 110. For this reason, the amount of waste toner transported by the auger 130 is larger than the amount of waste toner transported toward the storage unit 102.

  The rotation shaft 131 extends from the left side wall 101G of the second toner conveyance unit 106 to the vicinity of the left side wall 103C of the second conveyance unit 103B. The rotation shaft 131 has a left end connected to a second gear 130A as an example of a gear provided on the left side of the frame 101, that is, on the side surface 101H opposite to the first toner conveyance unit 103, and the right end has a second end. It is connected to a third gear 130B provided on the left side of the left side wall 103C of the transport unit 103B. Further, the fourth gear 110A connected to the left end of the rotary shaft 111 described above is disposed on the front side of the third gear 130B.

  The second gear 130A is configured such that a driving force is transmitted from the motor M via a gear train (not shown). That is, the second gear 130 </ b> A transmits a driving force to the auger 130.

  The third gear 130B is connected to the fourth gear 110A via a gear train (not shown). As a result, the auger 130 transmits the driving force from the second gear 130A to the second transport member 110 via the third gear 130B. In other words, the second gear 130 </ b> A transmits a driving force to the second transport member 110.

  The second gear 130A is also connected to a cleaning roller gear (not shown) connected to the cleaning roller 100A via a gear train (not shown) so that driving force is transmitted from the cleaning roller gear.

The operation of the cleaning unit 100 configured as described above will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, after the image formation, the waste toner adhering to the conveyance belt 73 moves to a position corresponding to the cleaning unit 100 by the rotation of the conveyance belt 73 and is collected by the cleaning roller 100A. On the other hand, the waste toner adhering to the photosensitive drum 61 is collected by the photosensitive member cleaning blade and collected in the photosensitive member toner transport unit 61A.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the waste toner collected by the cleaning roller 100A moves to a position corresponding to the collection roller 100B by the rotation of the cleaning roller 100A and is collected by the collection roller 100B. The waste toner collected on the collection roller 100B is moved to a position corresponding to the blade 100C by the rotation of the collection roller 100B and scraped off by the blade 100C, and is accommodated in the accommodation unit 102 through the opening 101B.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the waste toner collected in the photoreceptor toner transport unit 61A is transported in the front-rear direction by the waste toner auger 61B and enters the guide unit 104 from the collection port 104A. Here, since the collection port 104A is wide in the front-rear direction, even when a large amount of waste toner is conveyed by the waste toner auger 61B, the waste toner is prevented from leaking in the vicinity of the collection port 104A.

  As shown in FIG. 5B, the waste toner that has entered the guide unit 104 passes through the guide unit 104 and enters the first conveying unit 103A due to its own weight. Here, since the lower portion 104C of the guide portion 104 becomes wider as it goes downward, even when a large amount of waste toner enters the guide portion 104, clogging at the entrance of the first conveyance portion 103A is suppressed.

  By the way, since waste toner accumulates at the right end portion of the first conveyance unit 103A connected to the guide unit 104, it is necessary to convey the waste toner from the right side to the left side of the first conveyance unit 103A. For example, in a configuration in which waste toner is conveyed from the right side to the left side of the first conveyance unit 103A by using vibration or the like, the vibration easily causes a malfunction in the cleaning roller 100A portion. Note that the malfunction in the cleaning roller 100A portion is that the gear meshes poorly, the driving force from the motor is difficult to be transmitted, and the contact between the cleaning roller 100A and the surface of the conveyor belt 73 becomes unstable. , Cleaning unevenness occurs.

  However, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the waste toner that has entered the first conveyance unit 103 </ b> A is moved from the right side to the left side in the first conveyance unit 103 </ b> A by the first conveyance blade 112 of the second conveyance member 110. It is conveyed toward. Thus, the waste toner collected from the photosensitive drum 61 can be conveyed from the right side to the left side without vibrating the cleaning roller 100A.

  Then, the conveyed waste toner is conveyed toward the second conveyance unit 103B so as to be pushed out by the second conveyance blade 113. Here, since the left end of the second conveying blades 113 and the first conveying blades 112 are connected, the waste toner placed on the first conveying blades 112 is quickly delivered to the second conveying blades 113 and is smoothly second. It is conveyed to the conveyance unit 103B.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, since the lower part B1 of the inner surface of the second conveying unit 103B is located below the lower part A1 of the inner surface of the first conveying unit 103A, the waste toner is smoothly fed by its own weight to the second conveying unit 103B. Move to.

  By the way, since the 2nd conveyance part 103B connected with the accommodating part 102 is shorter than the accommodating part 102 in the left-right direction, when providing the conveying member comprised only in the main body part in the accommodating part, for example, There is a possibility that the waste toner may not be conveyed to the storage unit.

  However, in the present embodiment, the waste toner transported into the second transport unit 103B is scraped off by the second transport surface 124B of the extension unit 124 disposed in the second transport unit 103B. It is transported toward the storage unit 102. In this way, the waste toner collected from the photosensitive drum 61 is stored in the storage unit 102.

  The waste toner stored in the storage unit 102 is transported from the front side to the rear side by being scraped off by the first transport surface 121C of the main body unit 121. Thereby, since the waste toner is conveyed to the rear side of the storage unit 102, it is possible to accumulate the waste toner in order from the back, and the space in the storage unit 102 can be effectively used.

  When the waste toner accumulates in the storage unit 102, the waste toner overflowing from the storage unit 102 enters the second toner transport unit 106 from the communication unit 106A as shown in FIG. The waste toner that has entered the second toner conveyance unit 106 is conveyed from left to right by the auger 130 and enters the detection unit 105. Then, it is detected that the waste toner accumulated in the detection unit 105 blocks light from an optical sensor (not shown), and the storage unit 102 is full.

According to the above, the following effects can be obtained in the present embodiment.
Waste toner collected from the cleaning roller 100 </ b> A and waste toner collected in the first toner conveyance unit 103 are collected in the front side of the storage unit 102. Since the waste toner collected on the front side of the storage unit 102 is transported toward the rear side of the storage unit 102 by the first transport member 120, the space on the rear side in the storage unit 102 is effectively used. be able to.

  Since the waste toner is transported to the rear side opposite to the detection unit 105 by the first transport member 120, the waste toner is difficult to move to the detection unit 105 until the waste toner overflows from the storage unit 102. For this reason, it is possible to suppress erroneous detection of the accommodation unit 102 being full even though the accommodation unit 102 is not full.

  Due to the partition wall 101E and the left side wall 103C of the second conveyance unit 103B and a plurality of walls arranged on the left side of the side wall 103C, the waste toner in the storage unit 102 and the first toner conveyance unit 103 is difficult to move to the detection unit 105. Therefore, the waste toner can be sufficiently stored in the storage unit 102.

  Since the communicating portion 106A into which waste toner overflowing from the storage portion 102 enters is separated from the second transport portion 103B, the waste toner just collected in the storage portion 102 from the second transport portion 103B is difficult to move to the detection portion 105. Become.

  The auger 130 can transport waste toner from the storage unit 102 to the detection unit 105.

  By the way, if the amount of waste toner entering the storage unit 102 is larger than the amount of waste toner entering the detection unit 105, the waste toner is likely to be clogged in the communication unit 106A. However, in this embodiment, since the amount of waste toner conveyed by the auger 130 is larger than the amount of waste toner conveyed toward the storage unit 102, it is possible to suppress clogging of waste toner in the communication unit 106A.

  Since the driving force can be transmitted to the second conveying member 110 using the auger 130, the auger 130 and the second conveying member 110 can be driven by one motor M, and the number of parts can be reduced. it can.

  By the way, as shown in FIG. 4, since the auger 130 is adjacent to the second conveying unit 103B, the auger 130 penetrates the second conveying unit 103B when the second gear 130A is provided on the first toner conveying unit 103 side. In order to avoid this, it is necessary to shift the auger 130 and the second gear 130A to a position above the second transport unit 103B. Therefore, the cleaning unit 100 increases in size in the vertical direction. However, in the present embodiment, since the second gear 130A is provided on the side opposite to the first toner conveying unit 103, it is not necessary to place the auger 130 and the second gear 130A above the second conveying unit 103B. The cleaning unit 100 can be downsized and the configuration can be simplified.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment. About a concrete structure, it can change suitably in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention.

  In the embodiment, the lower portion 104C of the guide portion 104 is formed so as to become wider in the left-right direction as it goes downward. However, as shown in FIG. 7A, the guide portion 104 has an upper end in the left-right direction. You may form so that it may become wide as it goes to a lower end part from a part.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG.7 (b), the guide part 104 may be formed so that it may become wide at least as the lower part 104C goes below in the front-back direction.

  In the embodiment, the first conveying blade 112 is provided so as to wrap around the rotating shaft 111, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. One conveyance blade 115 may be provided so as to surround the periphery of the rotation shaft 111. The 1st conveyance blade 115 is comprised with the wire. Further, as shown in FIG. 8B, a plurality of first conveying blades 116 may be provided so as to wrap around the rotating shaft 111.

  In the above-described embodiment, the first toner conveyance unit 103 is configured to convey the waste toner collected from the photosensitive drum 61. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the first and second toner conveyance units 103 and 103 It may be configured to transport waste toner collected from different members.

  In the above-described embodiment, the first toner conveyance unit 103 is connected from the front side of the storage unit 102. However, the present invention is not limited to this, for example, the right side surface 102A of the storage unit 102 on the front side of the cleaning roller 100A, It may be connected to the left side.

  In the above embodiment, the lower part B1 of the inner surface of the second transport unit 103B is located below the lower part A1 of the inner surface of the first transport unit 103A. However, the present invention is not limited to this, for example, the lower part B1, A1 may be the same height.

  In the above-described embodiment, the waste toner conveyance amount of the extension portion 124 is larger than the waste toner conveyance amount of the second conveyance member 110. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the waste toner conveyance amounts are the same. May be.

  In the embodiment, the waste toner conveyance amount of the auger 130 is larger than the waste toner conveyance amount of the second conveyance member 110. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, even if each waste toner conveyance amount is the same. Good.

  In the above-described embodiment, the auger 130 is configured to transmit the driving force to the second conveying member 110. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the second conveying member 110 is interposed via a member different from the auger 130. Alternatively, the driving force may be transmitted to the vehicle.

  In the embodiment, the main body 121 and the extension 124 are integrally formed, but the present invention is not limited to this and may be a separate body. In this case, it is desirable that the driving force is transmitted from the same driving source to the member corresponding to the main body portion and the member corresponding to the extending portion. According to such a structure, it is easy to synchronize operation | movement of a main-body part and an extension part.

  In the above-described embodiment, the extension portion 124 is inclined upward with respect to the main body portion 121. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may not be inclined upward.

  In the embodiment, the detection unit 105 is formed to be recessed downward from the bottom wall 101D. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be formed to protrude forward from the front wall of the frame 101, for example. .

  In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to the color laser printer 1, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention may be applied to other image forming apparatuses such as a copying machine and a multifunction machine.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Color laser printer 61 Photosensitive drum 73 Conveying belt 100 Cleaning unit 100A Cleaning roller 101 Frame 101E Partition wall 102 Storage part 103 1st toner conveyance part 105 Detection part 106 2nd toner conveyance part 110 2nd conveyance member 120 1st conveyance member 130 auger 130A second gear

Claims (12)

An accommodating portion for accommodating the developer;
A first conveying member that conveys the developer from one side of the accommodating portion toward the other side of the accommodating portion;
A cleaning member for collecting the developer on the belt in contact with the photoreceptor;
A developer port for collecting developer collected from a member different from the belt, and a developer transport unit for transporting the developer from the recovery port toward the housing unit;
The developer conveying portion and the cleaning member are disposed on the one side of the accommodating portion ,
The developer transport section is connected to the housing section from the upstream side of the housing section in the developer transport direction by the first transport member,
The collection port is positioned outside the belt in the width direction of the belt,
A cleaning unit , wherein a connecting portion between the developer conveying portion and the accommodating portion is disposed at a position overlapping the first conveying member in the width direction .   The cleaning unit according to claim 1, wherein the developer transport unit is connected to the storage unit from the one side with respect to the cleaning member. A frame constituting the housing part and the developer transport part;
The cleaning unit according to claim 1, further comprising: a second storage unit that is disposed on the one side of the frame and stores the developer overflowing from the storage unit.   The cleaning unit according to claim 3, wherein the second storage unit is partitioned by a wall from the storage unit and the developer transport unit. The developer conveying portion is disposed on one end side of the frame in the width direction of the belt,
The wall extends to the other end side in the width direction with respect to the second housing portion, and the other end is disposed at a distance from a side wall on the other end side in the width direction of the frame. The cleaning unit according to claim 4. A second developer transport unit that is formed between a portion of the wall on the other end side in the width direction and the frame and that transports the developer from the storage unit to the second storage unit;
The cleaning unit according to claim 5, further comprising: an auger that is disposed in the second developer transport unit and transports the developer from the storage unit toward the second storage unit. A second transport member configured to transport the developer recovered from the recovery port from the developer transport unit toward the storage unit;
The cleaning unit according to claim 6, wherein the auger has a developer conveyance amount larger than that of the second conveyance member.   The cleaning unit according to claim 7, further comprising a gear disposed on a side surface opposite to the developer conveyance unit in the width direction of the frame.   The cleaning unit according to claim 8, wherein the gear transmits a driving force to the auger and the second transport member.   The cleaning unit according to claim 9, wherein the auger transmits a driving force from the gear to the second transport member. The cleaning member is a cleaning roller;
The cleaning unit according to claim 8, wherein the gear transmits a driving force to the cleaning member. A photoreceptor carrying a developer image;
A belt in contact with the photoreceptor;
An accommodating portion for accommodating the developer; a first conveying member for conveying the developer from one side of the accommodating portion toward the other side of the accommodating portion; a cleaning member for recovering the developer on the belt; A cleaning unit having a recovery port for recovering the developer recovered from the photoconductor, and having a developer transport unit for transporting the developer from the recovery port toward the housing unit;
The developer conveying portion and the cleaning member are disposed on the one side of the accommodating portion ,
The developer transport section is connected to the housing section from the upstream side of the housing section in the developer transport direction by the first transport member,
The collection port is positioned outside the belt in the width direction of the belt,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a connecting portion between the developer conveying portion and the accommodating portion is arranged at a position overlapping the first conveying member in the width direction .

Images