JPH09179364A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To inexpensively prevent toner from being splashed because the loading of a toner recovery container is forgotten. SOLUTION: A lock part 70 is pressed in a direction shown by an arrow G by a spring member 74. Therefore, the lock part 70 is rotated and engaged with a ink bar 50 by taking out the toner recovery container 32. Thus, the movement of the bar 50 is regulated and the body of the image forming device 10 cannot be opened or closed. That means, the device 10 is maintained to be opened. Besides, a slide pipe 62 is pressed in a direction shown by an arrow E by a spring member 64. Thus, the pipe 62 is held so as to press a rib 68. By opening the body of the device 10, the pipe 62 is pressed by the spring and the positions of toner discharge ports 60a and 60b are deviated so as to close the toner discharge ports.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus,
In particular, the present invention relates to a so-called clamshell type image forming apparatus which is used in a printer, a facsimile, a copying machine or the like using an electrophotographic system, and in which the apparatus body is vertically separable and can be opened and closed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional image forming apparatus of this type, in order to prevent the toner collection container from being forgotten to be attached or the toner to be scattered due to forgetting to attach the collection container, a sensor, a mechanical switch, or the like is used to remove the toner collection container. The presence or absence is detected and the detection result is notified to the user by using a lamp or the like, or the apparatus main body is controlled so as not to operate when the toner recovery container is not mounted.

[0003]

As described above, since the presence or absence of the toner recovery container is electrically detected by the sensor or the like, there is a drawback that the cost becomes high. Further, in order to operate the sensor and the like normally, it is necessary to accurately mold the toner collecting container and the holding component for positioning the toner collecting container.

Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus which is inexpensive and can prevent toner from scattering due to forgetting to install a toner recovery container.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided a cleaning means including a first portion and a second portion, the first portion and the second portion being openable and closable, and the toner remaining on the photosensitive member being scraped off. In the image forming apparatus in which the first portion is provided in the first portion, and the toner recovery container for containing the toner removed by the cleaning means is detachably provided in the second portion, in the state where the first portion and the second portion are opened, A discharge prohibiting means for prohibiting the discharge of the toner to the toner collecting container, and a closing prohibiting means for prohibiting closing the first portion and the second portion when the toner collecting container is not mounted at a predetermined position of the second portion. An image forming apparatus including:

[0006]

When the toner collecting container is taken out by opening the first and second parts, that is, when the toner collecting container is not mounted at the predetermined position of the main body of the apparatus, the locking portion is elastically urged. It is rotated by being urged, and the locking portion engages with the link rod. As a result, the movement of the link rod is restricted, and it becomes impossible to close the first portion and the second portion. Further, since the first member is urged by the elastic member, the positions of the discharge holes of the first member and the second member are displaced, so that the discharge holes of the toner are closed and the toner is collected in the toner collecting container. The discharging (falling) of is stopped.

Further, by mounting the toner collecting container at a predetermined position of the main body of the apparatus, the toner collecting container presses the locking portion, whereby the locking portion rotates to a position where it does not interfere with the link rod. Therefore, the link bar is released from the locking part,
Link bar movement is allowed. Therefore, the first portion and the second portion can be closed. Further, by closing the first part and the second part, the first member is pressed by the positioning member, and the positions of the discharge holes of the first and second members coincide with each other. Therefore, the toner will not be discharged from the discharge hole unless the apparatus main body (the first portion and the second portion) is completely closed.

[0008]

According to the present invention, the opening / closing operation of the main body of the apparatus is disabled when the toner recovery container is not attached, so that forgetting to attach the toner recovery container can be easily prevented. Therefore, toner scattering due to forgetting to attach the toner collection container is eliminated. The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments with reference to the drawings.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus 10 of this embodiment includes a photosensitive drum 12 which rotates in the direction of arrow A. A charging device 14 is provided above the photosensitive drum 12.
A developing device 16 is provided on the left side surface of the photosensitive drum 12, and a transfer device 18 and a separator 20 are provided below the photosensitive drum 12.
On the upper right side of the photoconductor drum 12, the cleaning device 22 and the static elimination lamp 24 are arranged. A document table 26 is provided above the charging device 14, and a document (not shown) is placed on the upper surface thereof. The original is illuminated by the exposure lamp 28, so that the optical image of the original is exposed on the photosensitive drum 12 through the lens 29 and the mirrors 30a to 30d.

That is, the photosensitive drum 12 is the charging device 1
4, the exposure lamp 28, the lens 29, and the mirrors 30a to 30d form an electrostatic latent image of a document image on the surface of the photoconductor drum 12 as described above. This electrostatic latent image is visualized as a toner image by pressing a developing device (roller) 16 having a thin layer of toner on the surface thereof against the surface of the photosensitive drum 12.

Subsequently, a recording paper (not shown) is superposed on the photosensitive drum 12 by the paper feeding device 31, and an electric charge is applied by the transfer device 18 from the back surface of the recording paper. Due to this discharge, the attraction force between the latent image charge and the toner is weakened, the toner moves to the recording paper, and the toner image is transferred. The toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum 12 without being transferred to the recording paper is removed by the cleaning device 22 and stored in the toner recovery container 32. Then, a voltage is applied to the recording paper onto which the toner has been transferred by the separator 20, whereby the electric charge applied by the transfer device 18 is neutralized, and the recording paper is separated from the photosensitive drum 12. afterwards,
The recording paper is conveyed to the fixing roller 34, where heat, pressure, or the like is applied to the recording paper to attract the toner to the recording paper.

The cleaning device 22 includes the photosensitive drum 1.
2 includes a cleaning blade 22b for scraping off the residual toner, and the toner wiped by the cleaning blade 22b allows the toner discharging hole 2 provided at the lower end portion of the cleaning device 22 by the conveying device 22c.
Guided to 2d. Then, the toner discharged from the toner discharge hole 22d is stored in the toner recovery container 32 arranged below the cleaning device 22 (toner discharge hole 22d).

When the toner collecting container 32 for storing the toner wiped by the cleaning device 22 is saturated and the toner collecting container 32 needs to be replaced, one end of the upper portion 38 of the main body of the image forming apparatus 10 is replaced. The main body of the apparatus 10 is opened by lifting it up. That is, the image forming apparatus 10 is a so-called clamshell type image forming apparatus that can be divided into an upper portion 38 (first portion) and a lower portion 40 (second portion) in upper and lower parts. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the lever 42 provided on the upper portion 38 is pulled in the direction of arrow B, for example, and the shaft 44 connected to the lever 42 is disengaged from the recess 46. By doing so, as shown in FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus 10 can be opened by swinging the upper portion 38 in the arrow C direction with the shaft 48 as the fulcrum.

As can be seen from FIG. 3, the upper portion 38 and the lower portion 40 are connected by a link rod 50. A convex portion 54 is provided at one end of the link rod 50, and the convex portion 54 is guided in the left-right direction by the guide groove 52. Then, the link rod 50 regulates the opening angle of the image forming apparatus 10. That is, by swinging the upper portion 38 of the main body of the apparatus 10 in the arrow C direction, the end portion 56 of the link rod 50 moves in the arrow D direction along the guide groove 52. The convex portion 54, due to its own weight, ends 58 of the guide groove 52.
(See FIG. 3), the opening angle of the image forming apparatus 10 becomes maximum. At this time, the link rod 50 is fixed and the main body of the apparatus 10 is maintained in the open state shown in FIG.

With reference to FIG. 4, as described above, the cleaning device 22 includes the carrying device 22c, and the carrying device 22c allows the cleaning blade 22b (see FIG. 1).
The toner that has been wiped off by (see) is guided to the discharge hole 22d. That is, as can be seen from FIG. 4, the cleaning device 22 is provided with, for example, a substantially cylindrical toner discharge pipe 60, and the toner discharge pipe 60 is inserted so that the conveying device 22 c is coaxial with the discharge pipe 60. It is provided. Further, the toner discharge pipe 60 includes a substantially circular toner discharge port 60a for discharging toner. The conveying device 22c has a blade formed in a spiral shape on its central axis, and by rotating the central axis, the toner passes through the inside of the toner discharging pipe 60 and the toner discharging hole 22d.
It is guided to the (toner discharge port 60a).

On the outer side of the toner discharge pipe 60, a sliding pipe 62 having the same shape and a larger diameter than that, for example, a substantially cylindrical shape, is further slidably attached to the toner discharge pipe 60. . Sliding pipe 6
As in the toner discharge pipe 60, the toner discharge port 62 a having a substantially circular shape is provided in the second unit 2. That is, the toner discharge hole 22d is the toner discharge port 60a of the toner discharge pipe 60.
And a toner discharge port 62a of the sliding pipe 62,
By aligning the respective discharge ports 60a and 62a, the toner is discharged (dropped) into the toner collecting container 32.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the sliding pipe 62 is biased in the direction of arrow E by the elastic member 64.
As a result, the sliding pipe 62 is held while pressing the rib 68 attached to the casing 66 of the image forming apparatus 10. That is, the rib 68 for positioning the sliding pipe 62 is provided on the inner surface of the image forming apparatus 10.
Thus, the sliding pipe 62 moves in the axial direction.

As can be seen from FIG. 4, the rib 68 has an inclined contact surface with the sliding pipe 62, so that the position of the sliding pipe 62 is determined according to the opening / closing angle of the image forming apparatus 10. . That is, as the image forming apparatus 10 (upper part 38) is opened, the sliding pipe 62 is gradually urged in the direction of arrow E according to the shape of the rib 68. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5, the positional relationship between the discharge port 60a of the discharge pipe 60 and the discharge port 62a of the sliding pipe 62 does not lie on a vertical line (does not match), so that the discharge pipe 60 is guided by the transport device 22c. The toner discharged from the discharge port 60a is blocked by the inner peripheral surface of the sliding pipe 62. Therefore, the toner does not scatter when the image forming apparatus 10 is open.

A locking portion 70 is provided below the cleaning device 22, and the locking portion 70 is rotatably mounted around the shaft center of the shaft 72 as shown in FIG. The locking portion 70 is further urged in the arrow G direction by the elastic member 74. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the locking portion 70 becomes non-rotatable by being locked to the casing 76. At this time, the locking portion 70 is locked by the image forming apparatus 1
It engages with the link rod 50 which is interlocked with the opening / closing operation of 0. Therefore, the link rod 50 is fixed, and the opening / closing operation of the device 10 is disabled.

That is, as shown in FIG. 5, the upper portion 38 of the main body of the apparatus 10 is lifted and opened, and the toner collecting container 32 is opened.
Is taken out upward, the locking portion 70 urged by the elastic member 74 rotates in the arrow G direction. As described above, the locking portion 70 stops rotating when one end of the locking portion 70 is locked to the casing 76. At that time, the locking portion 70 engages with the link rod 50,
Movement is regulated. Therefore, the image forming apparatus 10 is maintained in the open state.

On the other hand, by mounting the toner collecting container 32 at a predetermined position of the main body of the apparatus 10, the locking portion 70 is pressed by the projecting portion 32a of the collecting container 32 and rotated in the arrow F direction. Therefore, the movement of the link rod 50 that has been locked to the locking portion 70 is allowed. As a result, the image forming apparatus 10 (upper part 38) can be opened and closed. in this way,
When the toner collecting container 32 is not installed at a predetermined position of the main body of the image forming apparatus 10, the locking portion 70 restricts the movement of the link rod 50, and the opening / closing operation of the apparatus 10 is disabled. Therefore, it is not necessary to notify the user of forgetting to attach the toner collection container by using a sensor or the like unlike the conventional case.
The same effect can be obtained at low cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an illustrative view showing a basic operation of the embodiment in FIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is an illustrative view showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an illustrative view showing an open state of the embodiment in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an illustrative view showing one example of the relationship between the link rod and the locking portion in the closed state of the embodiment in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an illustrative view showing one example of the relationship between the link rod and the locking portion in the opened state of the embodiment in FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 ... Image forming device 22 ... Cleaning device 32 ... Toner recovery container 50 ... Link rod 60 ... Toner discharge pipe 62 ... Sliding pipes 64, 74 ... Resilient member 70 ... Locking part

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A cleaning unit including a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion and the second portion can be opened and closed, and cleaning means for scraping off the toner remaining on the photoconductor is provided in the first portion. An image forming apparatus in which a toner recovery container for containing the toner removed by the cleaning unit is detachably provided in the second portion, wherein the cleaning unit removes the toner from the cleaning unit in a state in which the first portion and the second portion are opened. Discharge prohibition means for prohibiting discharge of toner to the toner recovery container, and prohibition of closing the first part and the second part when the toner recovery container is not mounted at a predetermined position of the second part. An image forming apparatus including a closing prohibiting unit that controls the closing. 2. The closing prohibition means includes a link rod connecting the first portion and the second portion, and a locking portion that engages with the link rod and restricts the movement of the link rod. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the link bar is disengaged from the locking portion when the toner recovery container is mounted at a predetermined position of the second portion. 3. The discharge inhibiting means includes first and second members each having a discharge hole for discharging the toner, an elastic member for elastically urging the first member, and the first member.
A positioning member that presses a member to apply a pressing force to the elastic member, and the positioning member presses the first member when the first portion and the second portion are closed, The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the discharge holes of the second members overlap each other.