JP3320191B2 - Toner cartridge recycling method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a developer (hereinafter referred to as "toner").
The present invention relates to a method of regenerating a toner cartridge which uses a toner cartridge for supplying toner to an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine or a printer which forms an image by using the toner cartridge, and collects and reuses the toner cartridge.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine or a laser beam printer forms a latent image by selectively exposing a uniformly charged photosensitive drum, and forms the latent image with toner. The toner image is visualized and transferred to a recording medium to perform image recording. In such an apparatus, the toner must be replenished each time the toner runs out.However, the toner cartridge for replenishing the toner in the image forming apparatus requires a total amount of the stored toner in the toner receiving container of the image forming apparatus main body at a time. The cartridge is roughly classified into a so-called refillable cartridge for replenishing the cartridge, and a so-called stationary cartridge for replenishing the developing device with the cartridge after the cartridge is mounted in the image forming apparatus main body and then gradually using up the toner until the toner is used up.

In recent years, in order to reduce the size of an image forming apparatus, a stationary type cartridge has been used. In particular, a toner formed in a slit shape in the longitudinal direction of the cartridge by rotating when a cylindrical cartridge is mounted. In many cases, the discharge opening is set to be lateral rather than downward, and toner is pumped up by a stirring member (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 62-86382 and 62-177097).
No. 63-62857 and 63-188665).

The reason for the above-mentioned configuration is that the degree of freedom in the arrangement of the developing device and the toner cartridge is increased in order to reduce the size of the image forming apparatus, and the amount of toner in the developing device is replenished by supplying toner in an appropriate amount. Is always maintained at a constant level.

[0005]

When the charged toner is used up, the toner cartridge is replaced with a new toner cartridge, and the used toner cartridge is not reused.

Accordingly, parts such as a stirring member provided in the container or the inside of the toner cartridge or a gear portion for transmitting the drive to the stirring member can be sufficiently used even after the filled toner is used up. Nevertheless, these parts were often wasted.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to recycle a toner cartridge after using a charged toner so as to effectively use the parts such as a stirring member. It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of regenerating a toner cartridge which can perform the following.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a typical configuration according to the present invention comprises a cylindrical container for accommodating toner, a stirring member provided in the cylindrical container, and a cylindrical container. A filling port provided on a longitudinal end face for filling the toner, a cap for closing the filling port, a handle member attached to cover the cap by engaging with the cylindrical container, and the cylindrical container A toner discharge opening provided on a peripheral surface of the toner container, wherein a first step of releasing the locking state with the cylindrical container and removing the handle member; and A second step of removing the cap, a third step of sealing the toner discharge opening, a fourth step of filling the toner from the filling port, and a fifth step of closing the filling port with a cap. And having a sixth step of attaching the handle member is engaged with the cylindrical container so as to cover the cap.

In another aspect, a cylindrical container for accommodating toner, a stirring member provided in the cylindrical container, a filling port provided on a longitudinal end surface of the cylindrical container for filling the toner, A method for recycling a toner cartridge, comprising: a cap for closing a filling port, a handle member attached to the cylindrical container so as to cover the cap, and a toner discharge opening provided on a peripheral surface of the cylindrical container. A first step of filling the toner from the toner discharge opening without removing the handle member and the cap, and a second step of sealing the toner discharge opening.

[0010]

In the above construction, components such as a cylindrical container, a stirring member, and a handle member are effectively used in order to collect used toner cartridges, fill the cartridges with toner, and make the cartridges usable again. Is what is done.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, as a description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first embodiment will be described first, then other embodiments will be described, and finally the experimental results will be shown.

<< First Embodiment >> A first embodiment according to the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. Here, as an order of explanation, (1) the overall configuration of a copying machine using a developing device to which a toner cartridge is mounted,
(2) toner cartridge configuration, (3) mounting toner cartridge to developing device, (4) toner feeding operation from toner cartridge to developing device, (5) detaching toner cartridge from developing device, (6) toner A description will be given in the order of a recycling configuration for regenerating and reusing a cartridge.

[Overall Configuration of Copying Machine] FIG. 1 is an explanatory view of the overall configuration of the copying machine, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of the configuration of the developing device. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a document reading device, which irradiates a document placed on a document table glass 1a with light by an illumination lamp 1b, scans the lamp 1b and a scanning mirror 1c, and reflects reflected light from the document. The electrostatic latent image is formed by irradiating the photosensitive drum 2 as an image carrier via the mirror 1c and the reflection mirrors 1d, 1e, 1f, and further through the lens 1g having a focusing and zooming function.

The photosensitive drum 2 has a photosensitive layer on its surface, and can be rotated by the main motor 3 in the direction of the arrow in FIG. Around the photosensitive drum 2, a charging device 4, a developing device 5, a transfer device 6, and a cleaning device 7 are arranged. And the rotating photosensitive drum 2
Is uniformly charged by the charging device 4, an electrostatic latent image is formed by exposure from the document reading device 1, and the toner is transferred to the electrostatic latent image by the developing device 5 to form a toner image. I do.

The developing device 5 sends the toner in the developing chamber 5a to a developing sleeve 5c containing a fixed magnet by a toner feeding member 5b, rotates the developing sleeve 5c, and applies a triboelectric charge by a developing blade 5d. A toner layer is formed on the surface of the developing sleeve 5c, and the toner is transferred to the photosensitive drum 2 in accordance with the latent image to form a toner image and visualize the toner image.

The toner image is transferred onto a recording medium 9 conveyed by a conveying device 8 by applying a voltage to a transfer device 6. The transfer device 6 includes a transfer charger 6a and a separation charger 6b.
The recording medium 9 conveyed by applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner by the transfer charger 6a.
Then, a voltage is applied to the transferred recording medium 9 by the separation charger 6 b to separate the recording medium 9 from the photosensitive drum 2.

The toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 2 after transferring the toner image to the recording medium 9 is scraped off by a cleaning blade 7a and removed by a cleaning device 7 which collects the toner in a collected toner reservoir 7b.

On the other hand, the conveying device 8 has upper and lower cassettes 8a1 and 8a2 mounted below the main body of the apparatus, and the recording media 9 accommodated in the respective cassettes 8a1 and 8a2 are registered one by one by pickup rollers 8b1 and 8b2. 8c
It can be supplied to The recording medium 9 supplied from the cassettes 8a1, 8a2 or the manual feed tray 8d is conveyed by a pair of registration rollers 8c which rotates in synchronization with the image forming operation by the photosensitive drum 2, and as described above at the position of the transfer device 6. Is transferred to the toner image.

Then, the recording medium 9 after the image transfer is conveyed by a conveying belt 8e to a fixing device 10 comprising a driving roller 10a and a heating and pressing roller 10b having a built-in heater. The fixing means 10 applies heat and pressure to the fixing device. The transferred image is fixed, and is discharged out of the apparatus by a discharge roller pair 8f.

In the copying machine according to this embodiment, an automatic document feeder 11 is mounted on an upper portion of a document glass 1a so that a plurality of documents can be automatically separated and fed one by one. I have. Since the configuration of the automatic document feeder 11 is known, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[Toner Cartridge] Next, the structure of the toner cartridge C will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the toner cartridge C is mounted on a cartridge mounting portion 5e of a developing device 5 serving as a cartridge mounting means, and is left as it is, and the toner is gradually supplied to the developing chamber 5a until the toner is used up. This is a so-called stationary (built-in) cartridge.

As shown in the exploded view of FIG. 4, the toner cartridge C includes a toner supply container 12, flanges 13, 14, a stirring member 15, a cap 16, and a handle member 17. Less than,
Each member will be described sequentially, followed by a description of the assembling method, and further the configuration of sealing the stirring member.

<< Toner Supply Container >> First, the toner supply container 12 will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the toner supply container 12 is a cylindrical member (cylindrical container) having a slit-like toner discharge opening 12a extending in the longitudinal direction thereof. Notches 12b are provided at both ends of the cylinder for fitting and positioning with projections of flanges 13 and 14, which will be described later.

The inner length of the container 12 in the axial direction is preferably set in a range of about 160 mm to 400 mm.
More preferably about 180 mm to 330 mm, most preferably about 2 mm
It is desirable to set it to 00 mm to 310 mm.

If the inner length of the cylinder is shorter than 160 mm, the toner supplied into the developing chamber does not sufficiently reach the longitudinal end of the developing sleeve 5c, and image defects such as white spots tend to occur. . On the other hand, when the inner length of the cylinder exceeds 400 mm, the length of the developing device 5 in the container insertion direction becomes large, which is not preferable in reducing the size of the developing device 5. However, the length is determined by the recording medium 9 for recording an image.
It is preferable to appropriately change the size according to the size (A3, A4, B4 size, etc.).

The inner radius of the container 12 is about 10 mm to
It is preferably set to a range of 50 mm, more preferably about
It is desirable to set it to 15 mm to 35 mm, most preferably about 25 mm to 30 mm.

If the inner radius of the container 12 is smaller than 10 mm, the stirring member 15 mounted in the container has a reduced ability to loosen toner and a reduced ability to carry toner out of the container to the developing chamber. Not preferred. On the other hand, if the radius exceeds 50 mm, the rotation torque of the stirring member 15 mounted in the container when stirring the toner is undesirably increased.

In this embodiment, the container 12 has an inner radius thereof.
55 mm, wall thickness 0.8 mm, inner length of cylinder in the axial direction 297.5 m
m is a cylinder. The length of the toner discharge opening 12a in the longitudinal direction is substantially equal to the length of the toner supply container 12 in the longitudinal direction.
It is 96 mm, and the length in the transverse direction is 7 mm.

The toner supply container 12 is provided with a stirring member described later.
Due to the relationship with 15, it is preferable to obtain the inner diameter accuracy and the roundness of the cylinder with high accuracy. Therefore, a thermoplastic resin is most preferable as a material constituting the container 12, and acrylonitrile-styrene-butadiene copolymer (ABS) and polyester are particularly easy to obtain accuracy and relatively inexpensive. It is particularly preferable because it is also strong, and then an impact-resistant polystyrene resin (HIPS) can also be preferably used. In addition, paper, aluminum, etc. can be used other than the thermoplastic resin.

As a method of manufacturing the container 12 with a thermoplastic resin, it is preferable to form the toner discharge opening 12a and the notch 12b by extrusion after extrusion molding, and more preferably, to perform internal sizing called a core cooling type. This makes it possible to further increase the inner diameter accuracy and the roundness. As a more preferable production method, use of injection molding is mentioned, and the accuracy is further improved than in extrusion molding,
Heat sealing of film-shaped sealing members and flanges 13, 14
No deformation due to heat history such as hot melt adhesion.

When manufacturing by injection molding, Japanese Patent Application No.
As described in -64803, it is preferable to integrally mold either one of the flanges and the round tube because the number of parts and the assembly process can be reduced, and it is more preferable to use a high-speed high-pressure injection molding machine as the molding machine. preferable. In this case, the injection pressure is 5
00 to 1500 kgf / cm ² , and the filling time of the resin is preferably about 0.005 to 0.02 seconds.

The opening 12a of the toner supply container 12 is sealed by a seal member 12c. This seal member 12c is peeled off by the operator when the use of the toner cartridge C is started.

The sealing member 12c is a film-like flexible sheet, for example, polyester, nylon, polyethylene,
Laminated with ethylene vinyl acetate adhesive layer, about 50 thickness
about μm to 200 μm, more preferably 100 μm to 150 μm
The degree is preferred. The seal member 12c is fixed to the toner supply container 12 with sufficient strength to prevent toner leakage due to temperature and humidity fluctuations, air pressure fluctuations, vibrations, drop impacts, and the like in the physical distribution process, and at a peelable strength. It is desirable that the maximum peel strength be 10 kgf or less, more preferably 6 kgf or less, and most preferably 4.5 kgf or less when the seal member 12c is folded 180 degrees and pulled in the longitudinal direction.

As a method for bonding the seal member 12c to the container 12, hot plate welding, impulse sealing, ultrasonic welding, high frequency welding, or the like can be used, and hot plate welding is particularly preferable.

The total length of the seal member 12c is equal to the toner discharge opening.
It is set to be at least twice the length in the longitudinal direction of the opening 12a, and the portion not fixed around the opening 12a is folded back by 180 degrees to form a tab, and is provided by means of an adhesive, hot melt adhesive, double-sided tape or the like. , Lightly fixed to any one of the fixed portion of the seal member 12 c, the toner supply container 12, the flange 13, and the handle member 17.

{Flanges} The flanges 13 and 14 are attached to both ends of the cylindrical toner supply container 12 described above, and are made of acrylonitrile-styrene-butadiene copolymer (ABS), polyester, or high-impact polystyrene (HIPS). ) Is manufactured by injection molding of a thermoplastic resin. The flanges 13 and 14 have two projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1 and 14a2 on the peripheral surface, respectively.
13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 are cut out 12 of toner supply container 12 described above.
b.

Further, one of the flanges 13 has a filling port 13b for filling the toner, and a cross-shaped rib 13c is formed inside the filling port 13b. A shaft hole 13d for supporting the shaft is formed.
The diameter of the filling port 13b is desirably set to 50% or more, more preferably 60% or more of the inner diameter of the toner supply container 12. This is to improve the toner filling time and the filling efficiency.

The other flange 14 has a hole 14b into which the stirring member 15 is inserted.
Is provided with a ring-shaped flange portion 14c for supporting an outer peripheral surface of a gear portion 15a2 of the stirring member 15 described later. A ring-shaped rib 15 provided on the gear portion 15a2 is provided on a part of the flange portion 14c.
A claw portion 14d for locking a3 is provided.

The flanges 13 and 14 are fitted and connected to both ends of the toner supply container 12 to which the sheet member 12c is attached. As the bonding method, methods such as hot melt bonding, ultrasonic welding, and winding of an adhesive tape can be used, and particularly, hot melt bonding is preferable because it is simple and sufficient sealing property and adhesive strength can be obtained. In addition, hot melt adhesive
The method of applying the hot melt adhesive to the inner surface of the end portion of the toner supply container 12 is particularly preferable because there is no possibility that the hot melt adhesive protrudes outside.

The protrusions 13a provided on the flanges 13, 14
The height of 1, 13a2, 14a1, 14a2, the positional relationship with the toner discharge opening 12a, and the like will be described later.

{Stirring Member} The stirring member 15 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 5, the apparatus comprises a stirring shaft 15a and a stirring blade 15b attached thereto.

(Stirring Shaft) The stirring shaft 15a has, for example, a substantially H section.
It is a bar-shaped member having a U-shape, and a fitting portion 15a1 that fits into the shaft hole 13d of the flange 13 is formed at one end in the axial direction,
At the other end, a gear portion 15a2 connected to the drive system is formed. The gear portion 15a2 is provided with a ring-shaped rib 15a3 on the outer peripheral surface. Also, caulking bosses 15a4 for attaching the stirring blades 15b are formed at several places on the shaft body.

It is important that the stirring shaft 15a has a straightness. For this reason, the stirring shaft 15a has a longitudinal cross-sectional shape such as a substantially H-shaped, a substantially L-shaped, and a substantially T-shaped. However, it is most preferable that the cross section be substantially H-shaped.

The material of the stirring shaft 15a is most preferably polyacetal (POM) in consideration of the slidability and creep resistance of the shaft support portions at both ends of the shaft. As a manufacturing method, injection molding is preferably used from the viewpoint of easiness of the manufacturing method.

(Agitator Blade) The agitator blade 15b attached to the agitator shaft 15a has a wing portion extending from the shaft 15a in at least two directions. In this embodiment, a flexible main wing extends in two directions. It has a portion 15b1 and an auxiliary wing portion 15b2. The main wing portion 15b1 has an end surface over substantially the entire length of the shaft 15a, and has slits 15b3 in some places. It has a rectangular hole 15b4 communicating with the slit 15b3. The auxiliary wing portion 15b2 has an end face at a position corresponding to the slit 15b3.

A caulking hole 15b5 into which the caulking boss 15a4 of the agitating shaft 15a fits is provided at the longitudinal center of the agitating blade 15b.
Are provided.

The material constituting the stirring blade 15b is as follows.
Something with moderate elasticity and creep resistance can be used, for example, polyurethane rubber sheet or rubberized cloth,
Particularly preferred is a polyester (PET) film. The thickness is preferably about 50 μm to 500 μm, and particularly preferably about 150 μm to 300 μm. If the thickness is less than about 50 μm, the elasticity is weakened and the toner conveying force is reduced, and if the thickness is more than about 500 μm,
When the stirring blade 15b rotates by sliding against the inner wall of the container 12 due to excessive elasticity, a large rotation torque is required.
In this embodiment, the thickness is 188 μm.

As a processing method of the stirring blade 15b, it is preferable to manufacture by punching out the above-mentioned material by press working because it is high precision and inexpensive.

The stirring shaft 15a and the stirring blade 15b manufactured as described above insert the caulking boss 15a4 into the caulking hole 15b5,
In addition, the two are combined and integrated by thermal caulking or ultrasonic caulking. The stirring member 15 is inserted into the toner supply container 12, and both ends are supported by flanges 13 and 14 so as to be rotatable. The method of attaching the stirring member 15 will be described later.

Here, the shape of the stirring blade 15b will be described. The agitating blades 15b preferably extend in at least two directions from the agitating shaft 15a. In particular, as in the present embodiment, the wing portions that protrude in two directions rub against the inner wall of the toner supply container 12 respectively. It is desirable to make the lengths different. That is, although one main wing portion 15b1 is provided with slits 15b3 in some places, it has a sufficient restoring force because it extends over substantially the entire length of the stirring blade 15a, and has a high toner conveying ability. Moreover, the rotational torque is not increased by the slit 15b3 and the rectangular hole 15b4 provided in the main wing 15b1. Furthermore, the remaining amount of toner can be extremely reduced due to the auxiliary wing portion 15b2 that extends only to the portion corresponding to the position of the slit 15b3 and the hole portion 15b4. By doing so, for example, as compared with the case of a blade portion which projects evenly in two directions, the stirring blade 15b having the shape of this embodiment is used.
In this case, the rotation torque is rather small despite the high toner conveying ability.

From the viewpoint of improving the toner carrying capacity and reducing the rotational torque, the width of the slit 15b3 provided in the main wing portion 15b1 is preferably about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. The interval between the slits is about 20 mm to 60 mm, more preferably about 30 mm.
It is desirable to set the distance between mm and 55 mm, most preferably between about 34 mm and 52 mm.

The length of the rectangular hole 15b4 in the direction of the rotation axis is preferably about 20% to 80% of the interval between the slits. The stirring shaft 15a of the hole 15b4 is parallel to the shaft 15a.
It is desirable that the side closer to 15a be substantially in contact with the stirring shaft 15a.

From the viewpoint of reducing the amount of toner to be sent out and reducing the rotational torque, the length of the end face of the auxiliary wing portion 15b2 in the rotation axis direction is about 5 mm larger than the width of the slit 15b3.
It is preferable that the length is set to be about 15 mm longer.

Next, the distance between the stirring blades 15b1 and 15b2 in the radius direction of rotation will be described. This is slightly longer than the inner radius of the toner supply container 12a, and rotates while lightly rubbing the inner wall of the container 12a during rotation. Thereby, the stirring blades 15b1, 15
b2 rotates while flexing lightly, and when it is restored and projected by the elasticity of the stirring blades 15b1 and 15b2 at the toner discharge opening 12a,
By repelling the toner, the toner supply effect is enhanced.

For this purpose, the distance from the center of rotation of the stirring member 15 to the tip of the wing is about 0.5 mm to 5 mm, more preferably 1.0 mm to 4 mm, most preferably 1.5 mm or less than the inner radius of the toner supply container 12. It is desirable that the length be about 3 mm to 3 mm.

If the length is shorter than 0.5 mm, sufficient restoration of the stirring blade cannot be expected. On the other hand, if the length is longer than 3 mm, the toner conveying capacity becomes unnecessarily large. It is not preferable because not only the toner is fed to cause aggregation of the toner but also the rotational torque is increased.

In this embodiment, as described above, the stirring shaft
Although the example in which the stirring blade 15a and the stirring blade 15b are individually formed and integrated by caulking has been shown, it is preferable that the stirring shaft 15a and the stirring blade 15b are integrally formed by injection molding or the like. This arrangement is advantageous not only in reducing the number of parts and the number of assembling steps, but also in increasing the accuracy of the length from the center of the rotating shaft to the tip of the blade.

In this case, it is preferable to use a high-speed and high-pressure injection molding machine as the injection molding machine, which is suitable for simultaneously and accurately molding the thick portion of the shaft portion and the thin portion of the wing portion. For this integral injection molding, injection pressure of about 500 kgf / cm ² to 15
00 kgf / cm ² , and the filling time of the resin is preferably about 0.005 to 0.02 seconds. The stirring member 15 in which the stirring shaft 15a and the stirring blade 15b were integrated with the above value was injection-molded.
No inconvenience such as waving occurred in the portion b.

As a more preferable production method, a gas assist injection molding machine is used. In this case, since the stirring shaft 15a can be hollow, the stirring shaft 15a
It is very convenient in obtaining the straightness of, and the cross-sectional shape is most preferably a hollow two-sided circular shape. This two-way cutting is for providing a seat surface for mounting the stirring blade 15b.

{Cap} Cap 16 is a toner supply container
After the toner has been filled in 12, the filling port 13 provided in the flange 13
b is closed and is made of a member formed in a cylindrical shape having a bottom with a material such as low-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, or polypropylene (preferably low-density polyethylene).

By press-fitting the cap 16 into the filling port 13b, the filling port 13b is sealed, thereby preventing toner leakage.

{Handle Member} Next, the handle member 17 will be described. After filling the toner in the toner supply container 12, the cover member 16 covers the cap 16 that seals the filling port 13 b, and the toner cartridge C is transferred to the developing device 5. It is a handle when attaching and detaching. As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 6 which is a sectional view of the handle member, the fitting portion 17a and the handle portion
The movable lever 17c, which constitutes a locking means for preventing the rotation of the toner cartridge 17b and the toner cartridge C, is integrally formed. As a material of the handle member 17, a thermoplastic resin such as polypropylene (PP), acrylonitrile-styrene-butadiene copolymer (ABS), or impact-resistant polystyrene (HIPS) can be used. Lever 17c which is a movable part movable by
In particular, polypropylene is preferably used.

The fitting portion 17a is a portion for fitting the handle member 17 to the flange 13. The fitting portion 17a is formed in a cylindrical shape, and has a cylindrical end at a position corresponding to the protrusions 13a1 and 13a2 of the flange 13 described above. Notches 17a1 are provided, and locking claws 17a2 are provided at several places on the inner peripheral surface (three places at equal intervals in the circumferential direction in this embodiment).
Is provided. This notch 17a1 is inserted into the protrusion 13a1 of the flange 13,
The handle member 17 is locked by engaging the locking claw 17a2 with the locking concave portion 13e provided corresponding to the outer peripheral surface of the flange 13 (so-called patching stop) while positioning the locking claw 17a2. The flange 13 is fitted and locked.

The inner surface of the fitting portion 17a is provided with several ribs 17a3 (although there is no particular limitation, preferably about four). The inner diameter between the rib ends is the cap
When the handle member 17 is fitted to the flange 13, the inner diameter of the rib presses the outer peripheral surface of the cap 16. Further, a step 17a4 is provided at a predetermined position of the rib 17a3, and when the handle member 17 is fitted to the flange 13 as shown in FIG.
It is in the position to hold the end of 16.

Thus, when the handle member 17 is fitted to the flange 13, the cap 16 is completely hidden and the rib 17
The cap 16 is pressed down by a3, and the cap 16 is completely prevented from dropping from the filling port 13b.

The method of attaching the handle member 17 to the flange 13 does not need to be limited to the above-described patching, and various methods such as hot melt bonding, ultrasonic welding, press fitting, and winding of an adhesive tape are possible. It is. But,
The above-mentioned patch stop is particularly preferable because of its simplicity. Also, in the case of patching, it may be possible to make it detachable instead of the above-mentioned locking in the saddle killing state.

The movable lever 17c is formed by making a cut in a part of the fitting portion 17a so as to be movable up and down by the elasticity of the fitting portion 17a, and has a lock projection 17c1 projected at a predetermined position. The lock projection 17c1 is provided when the toner cartridge C is rotated and mounted on the developing device 5 as described later.
The toner cartridge C is locked at a predetermined position of the developing device 5 to prevent rotation of the toner cartridge C during image formation.

{Method of Assembling Toner Cartridge} Next, a procedure for assembling the toner cartridge C by assembling the above-described members will be described.

As described above, first, a sheet member 12c is attached to the opening 12a of the toner supply container 12 to close the opening 12a, and a hot melt adhesive is applied to the inner surfaces of both ends of the toner supply container 12. Then, the projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 provided on the flanges 13 and 14 are
b, and the flanges 13 and 14 are fitted and adhered to both ends of the toner supply container 12.

Next, the stirring member 15 having the stirring shaft 15a and the stirring blade 15b attached thereto is inserted into the toner supply container 12 by inserting it through the hole 14b of the flange 14;
15b is a thin flexible member and has a main wing portion 15b.
The length from the end of b1 to the end of the auxiliary wing 15b2 is the hole 14
Since it is larger than the diameter of b, it is difficult to insert it as it is.

Therefore, a jig 18 is attached to the flange 14 as shown in FIG. The jig 18 has a funnel-shaped hole 18a continuous from the large-diameter hole to the small-diameter hole, and the small-diameter portion of the funnel hole 18a is set to the same size as the hole 14b of the flange 14. When the jig 18 is attached to the flange 14, the small-diameter portion communicates with the hole 14b. For this reason, when the stirring member 15 is inserted from the funnel hole 18a of the jig 18,
15b1 and 15b2 bend along the surface of the funnel hole 18a, and are smoothly inserted into the hole 14b of the flange 14 while being guided by the hole surface.

The stirring member 15 is inserted into the toner supply container 12 as described above, and the fitting portion provided at the tip of the insertion of the stirring member 15 is provided.
15a1 is fitted into the shaft hole 13d of the flange 13. At this time, a jig 19 is attached to the flange 13 as shown in FIG.

The jig 19 has an outer diameter that can be fitted into the filling port 13b of the flange 13, and has a cross groove (not shown) cut so as to avoid the cross rib 13c provided in the filling port 13b. is there. A funnel-shaped hole 19a is formed at the insertion tip of the jig 19, and the tip has a large diameter. The diameter of the hole gradually decreases, and the smallest diameter part is continuous with the shaft hole 13d. ing. Therefore, the fitting part 15a1 at the tip of the stirring member inserted from the flange 14 side of the toner supply container 12 is
a and smoothly fits in the shaft hole 13d.

After the fitting portion 15a1 is fitted into the shaft hole 13d as described above, when the stirring member 15 is strongly pushed, the ring-shaped rib 15a3 (see FIG. 4) provided on the gear portion 15a2 is brought into contact with the claw portion of the flange 14.
14d so that it cannot be moved in the direction of the rotation axis, and the outer periphery of the gear portion 15a2 is supported by the ring-shaped flange portion 14c of the flange 14 (see FIG. 4) and cannot be moved in the radial direction of rotation. Become. For this reason, the stirring member 15 is
Both ends are supported by 3, 14 and can be rotated without rattling. When installing the stirring member 15, a flange
In order to prevent the toner from leaking between the hole 14b of the agitator 14 and the gear portion 15a2 of the stirring member 15, it is preferable to attach a toner leak prevention seal between the holes as described later.

Next, the jigs 18 and 19 are removed, and the filling port 13 is removed.
Fill the toner from b. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the toner (one-component magnetic toner in this embodiment) T can be filled by using the developing hopper 30 or the like. In the developing hopper 30, a supply port 30b for filling the toner T is formed at an upper portion of a funnel-shaped main body 30a, and a filling port 13 of the toner cartridge C is formed at a lower end portion.
The adapter 30c suitable for b is mounted. Further body
A rotatable auger 30d is arranged inside 30a, and the filling speed of the toner is adjusted by appropriately controlling the rotation of the auger 30d. If the coefficient of friction is reduced by, for example, performing a fluorine treatment on the inner surface of the main body 30a, the efficiency of filling the toner cartridge C with the toner from the developing hopper 30 can be improved. After the toner T is filled in this way, the cap 16 is press-fitted into the filling port 13b to close the filling port 13b.

Next, the projections 13a1 and 13a2 of the flange 13 are aligned with the notches 17a1 of the handle member 17, and the fitting portion 17a of the handle member 17 is pressed into the flange 13 to lock the fitting portion 17a. The pawl 17a2 is locked in the locking recess 13e of the flange 13 and is fixed so as not to fall off. As a result, the cap 16 is completely hidden as described above, and the cap 16 is fixed by the rib 17a3 (see FIG. 6).

As described above, the toner cartridge C as shown in FIG. 3 can be assembled.

{Seal Structure of Stirring Member} Here, the hole 14b of the flange 14 of the toner cartridge C and the stirring member 15
With reference to FIG. 9, a description will be given of a seal configuration for preventing toner from leaking from between the gear portions 15a2, which are drive transmission portions for transmitting rotational force to the agitating portion.

As described above, the stirring member 15 is connected to the flange 14
When pressed strongly, the claw portion 14d, which is a locking portion provided on the flange 14, locks on the ring-shaped rib 15a3, which is a locked portion provided on the gear portion 15b2, and the stirring member 15 cannot move in the rotation axis direction. Becomes Prior to insertion of the stirring member 15, the flange
A plate-shaped ring-shaped packing member 30 as a toner leakage prevention seal member is interposed around the hole 14b. Accordingly, the packing member 30 is sandwiched while being compressed between the stirring member gear portion 15a2 and the flange 14.

As the packing member 30, a material having elasticity is preferable, and foams such as polyethylene and polyurethane, rubber sponge, wool felt and the like can be used.
Wool felt is particularly preferred. The wool felt has appropriate elasticity, is excellent in durability, has relatively good slidability, can reduce the rotating torque of the stirring member 15, and is inexpensive. Therefore, in this embodiment, a wool felt having a thickness of 3.0 mm and an apparent density of 0.28 g / cm ³ was used, and this was used as the gear portion 15a2.
It is used so as to be compressed to 2.5 mm between the flange 14 and the flange 14.

If the density of the packing member 30 is too high,
It becomes difficult to obtain airtightness, and the rotational torque tends to increase. Therefore, when the packing member 30 having a high density is used, it is necessary to reduce the compression ratio and the rotational torque. The compression ratio is determined by the dimensions of the stirring member 15 and the flange 14, and the thickness of the packing member 30, and it is possible to easily increase or decrease the compression ratio, but both have certain variations. Further, since the stirring member 15 and the flange 14 are formed by injection-molding a thermoplastic resin as described above, there is a possibility that minute irregularities may be generated on the contact surface with the packing member 30. For this reason, if the density of the packing member 30 is too high, it becomes difficult to absorb them and secure the hermeticity.

On the other hand, if the density of the packing member 30 is too low, it is difficult to maintain the airtightness over a long period of time, and in the case of wool felt, there is a problem that fluff is easily generated. Therefore, packing members with too low density
In the case of 30, the above-mentioned dimensional variations and surface roughness are easily absorbed, and the sealing property is easily obtained. However, if the compressed state continues for a long period of time, permanent compression strain is generated, and the sealing property is rather deteriorated.

For the reasons described above, the packing member 30 is made of wool felt and has an apparent density of 0.
In the range of ^{20g / cm 3 ~0.35g / cm 3} , more preferably 0.25 g /
It is desirable to use one having a range of cm ^{3 to} 0.30 g / cm ³ .

The compression ratio of the packing member 30 may be appropriately set according to the material of the packing member 30 and the apparent density. In the case of wool felt having the apparent density, the compression ratio is 4%.
In the range of ~ 40%, more preferably in the range of 10% ~ 30%,
Most preferably, it is desirable to set in the range of 15% to 20%. If the compression ratio is smaller than the above range, permanent deformation occurs due to long-term compression, and the sealing performance is reduced. Conversely, if the compression ratio is larger than the above range, the sealing performance is reduced and the rotational torque is increased.

The ring-shaped ribs 14 are arranged so that the inner diameter portion of the flat ring-shaped packing member 30 abuts on the flanges 14.
e is provided. The purpose of providing the rib 14e is as follows.

The packing member 30 is sandwiched by the ribs 14e to prevent the packing member 30 from being rotated by the rotation of the stirring member 15, and to prevent the fluff generated from the wool felt from entering the toner supply container 12 as much as possible. To do that. Further, when the stirring blade 15b is inserted into the toner supply container 12, the packing member 30 is prevented from being damaged and fluffing, and serves to guide the stirring blade 15b so that the stirring blade 15b can smoothly pass through the hole 14b. is there. Further, when the process cartridge C is erroneously dropped, the impact member causes the agitating member 15 to move the gear portion 15a2 into contact with the rib 14e so that the toner supply container
It has a function of preventing the locking portion from coming out of the locking portion 12 because it cannot enter the locking portion. Also, as shown in FIG.
A space 31 is formed between the rib 14e and the gear portion 15a2, and serves as a buffer space for toner particles stirred in the toner supply container 12. That is, when the toner particles are subjected to shear stress, the shear stress is reduced by escaping into the space,
The generation of aggregated coarse particles, so-called coarse particles, is prevented.

As described above, the packing member 30 is interposed between the flange 14 attached to the toner supply container 12 and the gear portion 15a2 of the stirring member 15, so that the toner in the toner supply container 12 Can reliably be prevented from leaking. By setting the compression ratio of the packing member 30 in an appropriate range, it is possible to prevent the rotational torque of the stirring member 15 from being abnormally increased. For this reason, the rotation speed of the stirring member 15 can be increased, and the toner conveying ability can be improved, and the image forming speed can be increased.

The engaging portion between the flange member 14 and the gear portion 15a2 (the engaging portion between the claw portion 14d and the ring-shaped rib 15a3) is arranged outside the toner supply container 12 with respect to the packing member 30. Therefore, the toner in the toner supply container 12 does not leak and reach the locking portion. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the leaked toner from being rubbed and rubbed by the locking portion and generating coarse particles that aggregate. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the coarse particles from entering the developing chamber and generating white stripes, black spots, and the like during image formation.

Here, preferable values are shown for the dimensions of each part shown in FIG. Distance L ₁ between the hole 14b and the stirring member 15 is not hit the hole inside diameter be stirred member 15 is eccentric, and in order to reduce the pore size in the range of 0.3 mm to 3 mm, more preferably 0.3 to 1.5 mm It is desirable to set the range and most preferably 0.5 mm.

[0090] The locking length L ₂ of the claw portion 14d is configured to ensure the engagement state, so it is easy to so called patching stop, in the range of 0.3 mm to 3 mm, more preferably 0.7mm~
It is desirable to set it in the range of 2 mm, most preferably 1.2 mm.

The distance L between the tip of the rib 14e and the gear portion 15a2 is L.
_In order to prevent the fluff of the packing member 30 from entering the toner supply container 12 and to prevent the gear portion 15a2 from rubbing against the rib 14e, 3 is in the range of 0.3 mm to 1 mm, more preferably 0.3 mm. ~ 0.7mm range, most preferably 0.5
It is desirable to set to mm.

The thickness L _{4 of the} compressed packing member 30 is
Is preferably in the range of 1 mm to 5 mm, more preferably in the range of 2 mm to 3 mm, and most preferably in the range of 2 mm to 3 mm in order to obtain sufficient sealing properties and to prevent coarse particles from being generated in the toner.
It is desirable to set to mm.

The dimensions can be easily achieved by appropriately setting the dimensions of the flange 14, the stirring member 15, and the packing member 30. In particular, in this embodiment, the stirring member
Since the gear portion 15a2 is integrally formed with the 15 stirring shafts 15a, not only the above-mentioned dimensions can be easily set, but also the number of parts can be reduced as compared with the case where this is constituted by a separate member. Man-hours can be reduced.

[Mounting of Toner Cartridge into Developing Device] As shown in FIG.
It is inserted into the cartridge mounting portion 5e of the developing device 5 and mounted. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the developing device 5 has a cartridge mounting part 5e for mounting the toner cartridge C on the side of the developing chamber 5a, and the mounting part 5e and the developing chamber 5a
Are communicated through the opening 5f. The communication portion is provided with a shutter member 20 that can open and close the opening 5f. The shutter member 20 rotates with the attachment / detachment of the toner cartridge C.

Next, the structure of the shutter member 20 and the procedure for mounting the toner cartridge C will be described.

{Shutter Member} The shutter member 20 is provided when the toner cartridge C is not mounted on the mounting portion 5e.
As shown in FIG. 11A, the opening 5f is closed to prevent the toner from flowing back from the developing chamber 5a to the mounting portion 5e. In this closed state, the shutter member 20 is provided with a spring member 29 attached to the inner top surface of the cartridge mounting portion 5e.
To prevent slippage.

When the toner cartridge C is mounted on the mounting portion 5e, the shutter member 20 rotates, and the shutter member 20 rotates as shown in FIG.
The opening 5f is opened so that toner can be supplied from the toner cartridge C to the developing chamber 5a.

As shown in FIG. 12, the shutter member 20 has an opening 20a in a part of a semi-cylindrical surface along the peripheral surface shape of the toner supply container 12. The shape and size of the opening 20a are substantially the same as the toner discharge opening 12a of the toner supply container 12, or the opening 20a of the shutter member 20 is slightly larger.
The shutter member 20 is preferably formed by stamping and bending a sheet metal such as SUS, and a seal member 20b is attached around the inside of the opening 20a to prevent toner leakage (see FIG. 11). The seal member 20b is preferably an elastic body, and a polyester sheet or a polyurethane foam is more preferably used.

When the toner cartridge C is inserted into the mounting portion 5e, the seal member 20b comes into contact with the outer surface of the toner cartridge C to prevent the toner from leaking from between the shutter member 20 and the toner cartridge C. As shown in FIG. 11, the periphery of the opening 5f of the developing chamber 5a is
A seal member 21 similar to that described above is also provided between them to prevent toner leakage from between them.

{Procedure for Attaching Toner Cartridge} Next, the operator inserts the toner cartridge C described above into the developing device 5.
The procedure for mounting the device to the camera will be described. First, a schematic procedure for mounting the toner cartridge C will be described with reference to FIG. 13. To mount the toner cartridge C, open the side cover 22 of the copier (FIG. 13A), remove the used toner cartridge C, and The new toner cartridge C is inserted into the cartridge mounting portion 5e of the developing device 5 with the toner discharge opening 12a facing upward (FIG. 13B). Next, after the sealing member 12c closing the toner discharge opening 12a is pulled out (FIG. 13C), the toner cartridge C is removed so that the position of the toner discharge opening 12a coincides with the opening 5f of the developing device 5. (See FIG. 13D.) At this time, the toner cartridge C is
Locked so that it does not rotate with 15 rotations. Then, the side cover 22 is closed to complete the mounting of the toner cartridge C (FIG. 13E).

When the toner cartridge C is to be attached or detached, the lock is released by operating the movable lever 17c (FIG. 13 (f)). I can do it.

Next, the operation of each part when the operator mounts the toner cartridge C on the developing device 5 according to the above procedure will be described.

When the toner cartridge C is inserted into the cartridge mounting portion 5e, the insertion side end of the mounting portion 5e has
As shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B, two grooves 23a and 23c are provided at positions corresponding to the protrusions 14a1 and 14a2 provided on the flange 14. If the two do not match, the toner cartridge C can be inserted. Not to be. Protrusion 13 on flange 13
a1 and 13a2 are provided, but their angular positions are projections 14a1 and 14a1
Since the projections 13a1 and 13a2 have the same shape or the projections 13a1 and 13a2 are made smaller, respectively, the flange projections 13a1 and 13a2 can be automatically inserted into the grooves 23a and 23b. The groove 23a and the flange projection 14
By changing the shape of a1 for each type of toner cartridge C (the developing device to be used is different depending on the type of toner, etc.), it is possible to prevent erroneous mounting of a different type of toner cartridge C. I can do it.

Since the two flange projections 14a1 and 14a2 are different in size and arranged so as not to be at 180 ° opposite positions, the insertion angle of the toner cartridge C is uniquely determined. You. When the toner cartridge C is inserted, the toner discharge opening 12a is directed substantially upward. This is to prevent the toner from scattering when the toner cartridge C is attached or detached, and in particular, to prevent a small amount of toner remaining inside from spilling and scattering when the used toner cartridge C is pulled out. .

As shown in FIG. 14 (a), a guide rail 24 parallel to the cartridge insertion direction is provided on the inner surface of the cartridge mounting portion 5e, and the flange projection 14a1 is inserted along this. Therefore, if the operator does not insert the toner cartridge C to the predetermined position,
The toner cartridge C cannot be rotated in the mounting direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 14B). This guide rail 24
As shown in FIG. 14A, the cartridge mounting portion 5e
When the toner cartridge C is completely inserted to a predetermined position, the flange projection is stopped.
14a1 comes off from the guide rail 24 and the flange
The protrusion 13a2 of the thirteen is disengaged from the groove 23b, and the toner cartridge C
Can be rotated in the mounting direction.

As shown in FIG. 14A, a flange 25 is provided at the cartridge insertion side edge of the cartridge mounting portion 5e. When the operator fully inserts the toner cartridge C into the cartridge mounting portion 5e as described above, the movable lever 17c is elastically deformed and the lock projection 17c1 gets over the flange 25 as shown in FIG. As a result, even when the operator grasps the end 12c1 of the seal member 12c and pulls out the seal member 12c covering the toner discharge opening 12a, the lock projection 17c1 is moved to the flange 25c as described above.
The toner cartridge C is
There is no possibility of being pulled out from the cartridge mounting portion 5e as the 12c is pulled out.

When the toner cartridge C is completely inserted, as shown in FIG. 12, the shutter member 20 is in a state where the toner discharge opening 12a and the shutter opening 20a communicate with each other, and the flange projections 13a1, 13a2, and 14a1 are provided. , 14a2 engage with both ends of the shutter member 20 so as to sandwich the four corners of the shutter member 20, respectively. This allows the shutter member 20 to rotate integrally with the rotation of the toner cartridge C.

Here, the sealing member of the toner discharge opening 12a
12c is peeled off, but since the toner cartridge C is completely contained in the cartridge mounting portion 5e, the toner does not scatter or spill out. In particular, in order to eliminate the deviation of the toner in the toner cartridge in the longitudinal direction in the related art, it is generally practiced to shake the toner cartridge. In this manner, the toner in the toner supply container 12 is sufficiently ventilated. In the case of a toner cartridge having a low bulk density and high fluidity in the container, the effect of preventing toner scattering is remarkable when the toner cartridge is configured as in this embodiment.

When the operator peels off the seal member 12c and opens the toner cartridge C, the operator next rotates the toner cartridge C to set the toner discharge opening 12a in a predetermined direction. In this embodiment, the opening 5f of the developing device 5
Is substantially right beside the toner cartridge C, the toner discharge opening 12a is directed substantially horizontally. As previously mentioned,
Flange projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a of toner cartridge C
Since the shutter member 20 is engaged so as to sandwich the shutter member 1 and 14a2, when the toner cartridge C is rotated by holding the handle portion 17b, the shutter member 20 follows and rotates integrally. At this time, adhesion between the outer surface of the toner cartridge C and the shutter member 20 and between the developing chamber 5a and the shutter member 20 are maintained by seal members 20b and 21.

When the toner cartridge C is rotating, the projection 13a2 of the flange 13 is engaged with the step 26 provided on the cartridge mounting portion 5e as shown in FIG. Even if the toner cartridge C is to be pulled out during rotation, the protrusion 13a2 is restricted by the step 26 and cannot be pulled out.

Here, the relationship between the flange projection of the toner cartridge C and the toner discharge opening 12a in this embodiment will be described. First, the flange projection is the toner discharge opening
As long as the shutter member 20 is located at a position off the extension of the longitudinal direction of 12a, the shutter member 20 can be rotated even if it is provided on at least one of the flanges 13 and 14. However, by dispersing the operating force associated with the opening and closing of the shutter member 20 substantially equally at both ends of the shutter member 20 and the toner cartridge C in the rotation axis direction, the deformation of the toner cartridge C is reduced, and the opening and closing movement of the shutter member 20 is reduced. For smoother operation, it is preferable that at least one of the flange protrusions is provided at both ends in the rotation axis direction of the toner cartridge C. Further, as in the present embodiment, the toner is discharged to both end portions of the toner cartridge C in the axial direction. More preferably, two projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 for opening and closing are provided at opposing positions so as to sandwich the extension of the opening 12a.

The projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, 14a2 are
The toner replenishing container 12 may be formed integrally with the toner replenishing container 12 or welded or bonded as a separate member, but from the viewpoint of strength and cost, the toner replenishing container 12 is It is more preferable that the flanges 13 and 14 attached to both ends in the axial direction are integrally formed.

Further, flange protrusions 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, 14a2
The end on the toner discharge opening 12a side is a portion that engages with the shutter member 20 when the shutter member 20 is opened and closed.
This is where the action force for opening and closing the shutter is applied most. For this reason, the component force acting on the engagement surface should be as small as possible, the component force acting in the direction away from the center line of the cylinder of the toner supply container 12 and the component force acting toward the center of the cylinder. Is preferred. Therefore, the flange projections 13a1,
It is preferable that the side ends of the toner discharge openings 12a of the portions 13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 are substantially perpendicular to the tangent to the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder of the portion.

The heights of the projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 are about two times higher than the outer peripheral surface of the toner supply container 12 in order to securely engage with the shutter member 20 and open and close the shutter member 20.
It is preferable to protrude in the range of mm to 10 mm,
More preferably, it is 6 mm. If the amount of protrusion is smaller than 2 mm, the amount of engagement of the engaging portion is small, and when the shutter member 20 is opened and closed, the engaging portions of the shutter member 20 project from the projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a.
It is easy to get on a1 and 14a2 and malfunction. On the other hand, if the protrusion amount is larger than 10 mm, it is not preferable because the cartridge mounting portion 5e of the developing device 5 is prevented from being compact.

Next, the toner discharge opening 12a and the opening 12a
As shown in FIG. 16, the positional relationship between the protrusions 13a1 and 13a2 (first protrusions) and 14a1 and 14a2 (second protrusions) provided opposite to each other with respect to the toner supply container is shown in FIG. A straight line connecting the center of the cylinder 12 and the center c1 in the longitudinal direction of the toner discharge opening 12a;
The angle between a straight line connecting the side ends of the toner discharge openings 12 and 14a1 to each other is θ ₁ , a straight line connecting the center of the cylinder of the toner supply container 12 and the center c1 in the longitudinal direction of the toner discharge opening 12a and the cylinder The angle between the center and the straight line connecting the side ends of the shutter member closing operation projections 13a2 and 14a2 on the toner discharge opening side is θ _2.
If a, the angle theta ₁ is in the range of about 20 degrees to 90 degrees, more preferably about 30 to 50 degrees, most preferably be set to approximately 40 to 50 degrees is desirable. The angle θ ₂ is about 70 degrees to 1
In the range of 60 degrees, more preferably from about 105 degrees to 130 degrees, and most preferably to set at about 110 degrees to 120 degrees desired (Note, 45 ± 1 degrees the angle theta ₁ in this embodiment, theta ₂ To 1
15 ± 1 degrees).

If the angle θ ₁ is smaller than 20 degrees and the angle θ ₂ is smaller than 70 degrees, the toner discharge opening
Since the projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 are close to the projection 12a, the toner discharge opening 12a is easily deformed during the opening and closing operation of the shutter member 20, and the space for the seal member 20b provided around the shutter opening 20a is increased. It is not preferable because it cannot be obtained. The angle θ ₁ is 90 degrees,
If θ ₂ is larger than 160 degrees, the circumferential length of the shutter member 20 is inevitably increased, and the operation force for opening and closing the shutter member 20 is unnecessarily increased.

In this embodiment, as described above, a pair of projections 13a1 and 14a1 for opening the shutter member and projections 13a2 and 14a2 for closing the shutter member are provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the toner supply container 12, respectively. However, when the protrusion is provided only at one end in the longitudinal direction of the toner supply container 12, for the same reason as described above, the position of the protrusion facing the toner discharge opening 12a is located between the center of the cylinder and the toner. The angle between the straight line connecting the center of the discharge opening 12a in the longitudinal direction and the straight line connecting the center of the cylinder and the side end of the protrusion on the toner discharge opening 12a side is set in a range of about 20 degrees to 160 degrees. It is desirable to do.

When the toner cartridge C inserted in the cartridge mounting portion 5e is rotated in the mounting direction, the flange projections 13a1 and 14a1 for closing the shutter are locked to the shutter member 20 and the cartridge C and the shutter are closed. The member 20 rotates integrally. This rotation is restricted when the flange projections 13a2 and 14a2 hit the step 27 provided on the cartridge mounting portion 5e, as shown in FIG. 14A. At this time, the openings 12a and 20a of the toner supply container 12 and the shutter member 20 are oriented substantially horizontally, and communicate with the opening 5f of the developing device 5 (see FIG. 11B).

As shown in FIGS. 15B and 15C, when the toner supply container 12 is rotated to the rotation restricting position, the movable lever 17c is elastically deformed, and the lock projection 17c1 is moved to the cartridge mounting portion 5e. The end portion 25a of the provided flange portion 25 is passed over and automatically locked and locked at the end portion. Thus, even if the toner cartridge C is to be rotated clockwise in FIG. 15B, the rotation is restricted because the lock projection 17c1 is locked at the end of the flange.

The lock projection 17c1 has an inclined surface 17c2 inclined in the rotation direction so that the lock projection 17c1 can easily get over the end portion 25a when the toner cartridge C is rotated in the mounting direction. Therefore, even if the movable lever 17c is not pressed, the toner cartridge C is rotated in the mounting direction, and when the lock projection 17c1 comes into contact with the flange end 25a, the inclined surface 17c1 is rotated.
The movable lever 17c is elastically deformed along c2, and the lock protrusion 17
c1 gets over end 25a. Then, at the point when the vehicle gets over, the movable lever 17c is elastically restored and automatically locked. The click feeling at this time allows the operator to know that the toner cartridge C has been securely locked.

By mounting the toner cartridge C,
As shown in FIG. 14A, the gear portion 15a2 of the stirring member 15 is connected to the drive gear 28 on the apparatus main body side, and can be driven and rotated.

[Toner Feeding Operation] As described above, the toner cartridge C is mounted on the developing device 5 to form an image. Next, the toner feeding operation in the toner cartridge C during image forming will be described.

At the time of image formation, a driving force is transmitted to the stirring member 15, and the stirring member 15 is moved clockwise in FIG.
It rotates at a speed of 10.2 rpm. As a result, the toner in the toner supply container 12 is sufficiently agitated and uniformized by the agitating blades 15b, and, while being appropriately charged, passes through the toner discharge opening 12a, the shutter opening 20a, and the developing device opening 5f, thereby developing the developing device. 5 is sent to the developing chamber 5a. At this time, since the toner discharge opening 12a is oriented substantially in the horizontal direction, a large amount of unstirred and uncharged toner does not flood the developing device 5 at one time. As the development proceeds, the toner in the toner supply container 12 decreases, but the stirring member
Since the toner feeding force by 15 is sufficient, the toner in the developing chamber 5a of the developing device 5 is always maintained at a constant amount.

This is such that the stirring blade 15b is an elastic body, the rotation radius of the stirring blade 15b is slightly longer than the cylinder radius of the toner supply container, and the blade tip protrudes slightly outside from the toner discharge opening 12a. That is because. That is, when the stirring blade 15b is in a state of being bent and urged while rotating while rubbing against the inner wall of the container 12, when the stirring blade 15b approaches the toner discharge opening 12a, it is restored by the elasticity of the stirring blade 15b. Then, the toner is transferred to the developing device 5 by
To send it to

The toner jumping action is not remarkable when a large amount of toner is contained in the toner replenishing container 12 because a large amount of toner becomes a resistance.
To prevent agglomeration of the toner and the occurrence of image defects due to the aggregation. In addition, since the stirring blade 15b bends, an increase in rotational torque is prevented. Meanwhile, the toner supply container 12
As the amount of toner in the inside decreases, the restoring operation of the stirring blade 15b is performed smoothly, and a high toner feeding force is exhibited.

As a result, the toner in the toner supply container 12 can be sent to the developing device 5 with almost no remaining. Further, in order for the stirring blade 15b to rub against the inner wall of the container,
The generation of coarse particles of the toner is prevented.

As described above, since the stirring blade 15b rotates while rubbing against the inner wall of the toner supply container 12, the toner cartridge C may rotate with the rotation of the stirring member 15. As mentioned earlier in the example,
Since the lock projection 17c1 is locked to the flange 25 of the cartridge mounting portion 5e (see FIGS. 15B and 15C), the toner cartridge C does not hang around and the position of the toner discharge opening 12a ( In particular, the angular position of the lower edge) is always stably ensured, and the toner supply amount and image quality are stabilized.

When the lower edge of the toner discharge opening 12a is 0 degree in the horizontal direction with respect to the cylindrical axis of the toner supply container 12 in a state where the toner cartridge C is mounted, the angle range is ± 10 degrees. It is more preferable that the angle is set in the range of ± 5 degrees. In this embodiment, the angle is set to be -3.6 degrees.

[Detachment and Removal of Toner Cartridge from Developing Device] Next, when the toner cartridge C is removed from the developing device 5, the state shown in FIGS.
The operator pushes down the movable lever 17c provided on the handle member 17 toward the handle portion 17b, and the lock projection 17c1 and the end portion 25 of the flange portion 25 are pressed.
a, the toner cartridge C is rotated clockwise (the shutter member 20 is also rotated integrally) while releasing the locked state with the toner cartridge C, and the toner discharge opening 12a is returned to the upward state. Pull out from the mounting part 5e. At this time, contrary to the mounting of the toner cartridge C, the toner cartridge C cannot be pulled out unless it is rotated until the toner discharge opening 12a faces upward.

The toner cartridge C is mounted and used.
Throughout the process of attachment and detachment, the outer surface of the toner supply container 12a and the shutter member 20 are in close contact with each other, and the sealing property is maintained. Therefore, no toner adheres to the outer surface of the used toner cartridge C removed from the developing device 5,
The used toner cartridge C can be disposed of without the operator contaminating his hands and clothes with toner. Further, as described above, since the amount of toner remaining in the used cartridge C is extremely small due to the high toner feeding force of the stirring member 15, toner spills during the process of disposing of the used cartridge C, There is no scattering.

[Recycling Procedure] The toner cartridge C according to this embodiment is used for image formation as described above.
After the toner is used up, it can be collected and recycled. The recycling of the collected toner cartridge C is performed according to the following procedure.

(1) Remove the handle member 17 from the flange 13.

If this is to be pryed by hand, the grip member
The locking state of the locking claw 17a2 of 17 and the locking recess 13e of the flange 13 can be released. However, since the removal strength when the handle member 17 is pulled straight is about 30 kgf, it is preferable to remove the handle member 17 by using some jig or device.

(2) Remove the cap 16 from the flange 13.

[0135] This can also be sufficiently pulled out by hand, but can be pulled out more easily by using a tool such as pliers. However, when the cap 16 is to be reused, the cap 16 is pulled out by hand so as not to damage the cap 16, or the cap 16 is removed using a jig.

(3) The outer and inner surfaces of the toner supply container 12 are cleaned.

As the cleaning method, after air blow or vacuum suction, wiping may be performed with a rag or the like. Note that there is no problem even if the cleaning of the inner surface of the container 12 is omitted. Similarly, the handle member 17 and the cap 16 when it is reused are also cleaned.

(4) Toner discharge opening 12 of toner supply container 12
a is sealed with a sealing member 12c.

The seal member 12c is peeled off at the start of use of the toner cartridge C, and is normally discarded.
There is no seal member 12c in the collected toner cartridge C. Therefore, a new seal member 12c is attached with an adhesive or hot melt adhesive, and the toner discharge opening 12c is removed.
Seal a. It should be noted that heat sealing with a normal easy peel adhesive layer may be used.

(5) Check the tightness of the toner supply container 12.

The hole 14b of the flange 14 is closed to fill the toner filling port.
Air tightness of the toner container 12 is confirmed by a so-called air leak test in which air is blown from 13b and air leak is detected. Note that the check of the airtightness may be omitted, and the toner leakage may be checked after filling the toner, which will be described later.

(6) Check the rotational torque of the stirring member 15.

It is checked whether the rotational torque of the stirring member 15 has become too high.

(7) The toner is filled from the filling port 13b, and the cap 16 is pressed into the filling port 13b.

The toner may be filled manually, but it is preferable to use an auger-type filling machine as shown in FIG. 8 as described above. It is preferable that the toner filling amount is the same as that of a new toner, but it is possible to increase or decrease the toner filling amount.

As described above, it is preferable to reuse the cap 16 that has been pulled out in order to increase the recycling efficiency. However, a newly molded cap 16 may be used. In this case, even if the cap is not necessarily the same as the original shape, any cap having a function of sealing the filling port 13b may be used.

(8) The outer surface of the toner supply container 12 is cleaned.

In this cleaning method, similarly to the above-mentioned method (3), air blast or vacuum suction may be performed, followed by wiping with a rag or the like. This step can also be omitted.

(9) Check whether toner leakage occurs.

Although it is to confirm that the toner does not leak out of the toner supply container 12 by filling, this step can be omitted.

(10) The handle member 17 is attached.

The detached handle member 17 is pushed into the flange 13 so that the locking claw 17a2 of the member 17 is locked in the locking recess 13e which is the locked portion of the flange 13, and the handle member 17 is fixed to the flange 13.
Attach to 13. In the case where the locking claw 17a is damaged when removing the handle member 17 in the above (1), a newly formed handle member 17 may be used.

By recycling the toner cartridge C by collecting the used cartridge once and filling the toner again as described above, it is possible to save resources, save energy, and reduce dust.

<< Other Embodiments >> Next, other embodiments will be described. In the description with reference to the drawings, portions having the same functions as those of the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description is used.

{Other Embodiments of Toner Cartridge} First
Another embodiment of each part of the toner cartridge C described in the embodiment will be described in the order of the stirring member, the toner supply container, the handle member, and the recycling configuration.

(Other Embodiment of Stirring Member) First, the stirring member 15
Another example is shown in FIG. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 17, the main wing portion 15b1 and the auxiliary wing portion 15b2 are
Bends downstream with respect to the rotation direction. In the case of this shape, since the front end portion of the wing portion is oblique to the toner, there is an effect that the rotational torque of the stirring member 15 is further reduced.

Further, in the case of the stirring member 15 having the above-mentioned shape, the tip of the stirring blade approaches the toner discharge opening 12a, and the elasticity of the blade portion is released, so that the component of the force for sending the toner in the horizontal direction increases when the toner jumps. The toner supply container
In addition to pumping the toner from the bottom of 12 to the toner discharge opening 12a, the force of feeding the toner from the toner discharge opening 12a to the developing device 5 is enhanced.

Therefore, in a compact developing device in which the developing chamber 5a and the cartridge mounting portion 5e are arranged substantially horizontally, it is effective to configure the stirring blade 15b as described above. Also, as described above, if the stirring blade 15b is bent halfway, the contact angle between the tip of the stirring blade and the inner wall surface of the toner supply container 12 becomes smaller as compared with the case of the first embodiment described above. Coarse toner particles are less likely to occur.

Here, in the case where the stirring blade 15b is bent from the middle as described above, the bending angle is about 0 ° to from the viewpoint of the increase of the toner feeding force and the decrease of the rotation torque described above.
It is desirable to set the angle to 90 degrees, more preferably from about 20 degrees to 90 degrees, and most preferably from about 40 degrees to 90 degrees. Further, the bent portion of the bent wing portion is located at a position of about 50% to 95%, more preferably about 60% to 90%, and most preferably about 70% to 80%, from the rotation axis of the wing portion in the entire radial direction of rotation. It is desirable to configure so that

Further, the stirring blade 15b may be configured as shown in FIG. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 18, the main wing 15
Between the holes 15b4 provided in b1, a plurality of toner passage windows 15b6
Is provided. With this configuration, when the stirring member 15 rotates during the image formation, the toner in the toner supply container 12 is supplied not only to the hole 15b4 of the main wing portion 15b1 but also to the toner passage window.
The toner also passes from 15b6, and the rotational torque of the stirring member 15 decreases. Further, by adjusting the size of the window 15b6 to an appropriate size, the stiffness of the main wing portion 15b1 is adjusted, so that the toner can be blown off from the discharge opening 12a with an appropriate strength.

(Other Embodiment of Toner Supply Container) Next, another embodiment of the toner supply container 12 will be described. In the first embodiment described above, the toner discharge opening 12a provided in the toner supply container 12 is rectangular (see FIG. 4). However, as shown in FIG. 19, the toner discharge opening 12a is a corner of the rectangular toner discharge opening 12a. The corner (the lower corner when the toner cartridge C is attached to the developing device 5 in this embodiment) 12a1 on the side to which the handle member 17 is attached is configured to be oblique. You may comprise narrower than another opening part.

When an image is formed by attaching the toner cartridge C to the developing device 5, the corners of the toner discharge opening 12a,
In particular, the toner is easily discharged into the developing chamber from the corner on the side where the handle member 17 is attached. However, as described above, the corner on the side where the handle member 17 is attached, especially the lower portions 12a1 are formed diagonally to reduce the width. The toner discharge opening 12a having a long shape.
And the toner is uniformly discharged over the entire surface, and the toner does not spill.

In the first embodiment, when the toner cartridge C is attached or detached, the shutter member 20 can be locked to the end of the shutter member 20 in order to rotate the shutter member 20 integrally with the cartridge C. The projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, 14a2 are provided on the flanges 13, 14, respectively.
The a2, 14a1, and 14a2 may be provided not at the flanges 13 and 14 but at the longitudinal end of the toner supply container 12 as shown in FIG.

Alternatively, at least one of the flanges 13 and 14 and the toner supply container 12 may be integrally formed. In this case, as shown in FIG. 21, a flange having a filling port 13b is provided.
It is more preferable to integrally mold 13 because it can prevent the core of the mold from falling. Further, as a molding machine in this case, it is preferable to use an ultra-high-speed high-pressure injection molding machine,
Injection pressure 500kgf / cm ² ~1500kgf / cm ² at that time, the filling time of the resin is desirably set to about 0.005 seconds to 0.02 seconds.

The projections 13a1, 13a2, 14a1, and 14a2 are connected to the toner discharge opening 12 provided in the toner supply container 12 as described above.
Since the toner supply container 12 having the toner discharge opening 12a is formed integrally with the toner supply container 12 as described above, it is necessary to arrange the toner supply container 12 at a certain angular position with respect to the toner supply opening 12a (see FIG. 16). Then, the positioning can be performed more accurately and easily.

(Other Embodiments of Handle Member) Next, the handle member 17 will be described.
May be configured as shown in FIG. 22 as another embodiment. This handle member 17 shows an example in which an H-shaped rib 17d is provided at a predetermined position of the fitting portion 17a, that is, at a position opposite to the side where the toner discharge opening 12a is attached to the toner supply container 12.

With this configuration, when the toner cartridge C is inserted into the cartridge mounting portion 5e of the developing device 5 and rotated to mount the toner cartridge C as shown in FIG. The H-shaped rib 17d of 17 contacts the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge mounting portion 5e, and pushes out the toner cartridge C to the left side in FIG. 11B. As a result, the toner supply container 12 is moved from the opening 5f
The toner discharged from the toner discharge opening 12a is supplied to the developing chamber without spilling into the cartridge mounting portion 5e.

(Other Embodiment of Recycling) Next, when the used toner cartridge C is collected and recycled, the handle member 17 and the cap 16 are used in the first embodiment.
Is removed and the toner is refilled from the toner filling port 13b. However, the toner may be refilled from the toner discharge opening 12a without removing the handle member 17 and the cap 16. The recycling procedure at that time is as follows.

(1) The outer and inner surfaces of the toner supply container 12 are cleaned.

Handle for Collected Toner Cartridge C
Toner supply container with 17 and cap 16 attached
The outer surface and the inner surface of the cleaning device 12 are cleaned, and it is preferable that the cleaning method be such that the air is blown or vacuum sucked and then wiped with a rag or the like as in the first embodiment. Note that there is no problem even if the cleaning of the inner surface of the container 12 is omitted.

(2) The rotational torque of the stirring member 15 is checked.

It is checked whether the rotational torque of the stirring member 15 has become too high.

(3) Fill the toner from the toner discharge opening 12a.

A cap closing the toner filling port 13b
In order not to remove 16, toner is supplied from opening 12 a of toner supply container 12. It is preferable to use an auger-type filling machine as in the first embodiment for filling the toner, but the filling may be performed manually.

(4) Seal the toner discharge opening 12a with the seal member 12c.
Seal with.

Since the toner filling port 13 is kept sealed by the cap 16, the toner discharging opening 12a is
By sealing with c, the toner charged in the toner supply container 12 is sealed. The material and sealing method of the sealing member 12c are the same as those in the first embodiment.

(5) The outer surface of the toner supply container 12 is cleaned.

In this cleaning method, similarly to the cleaning before filling the toner, the air may be blown off or vacuumed and then wiped off with a rag or the like. This step can also be omitted.

(6) Check whether toner leakage occurs.

This is to confirm that the toner does not leak out of the toner supply container 12 by filling, but this step can be omitted.

By filling the toner from the toner discharge opening 12a provided in the toner supply container 12 as described above, the toner cartridge C can be easily recycled without removing the handle member 17 and the cap 16.

{Other Embodiments Applied to Process Cartridge} In the above-described first embodiment, the photosensitive drum 2 and the developing device 5 constituting the image forming section are provided in the apparatus main body, and the toner is supplied for toner supply. Although an example is shown in which the cartridge C is made detachable, it is intended to prevent toner from leaking from between the hole 14b of the flange 14 of the toner cartridge C and the gear portion 15a2 which is a drive transmitting portion of the stirring member 15. The seal configuration (see FIG. 9) can be similarly applied to the process cartridge.

The structure of the process cartridge is such that, for example, a photosensitive drum, a charging device, a developing device, and a cleaning device are integrally formed into a cartridge. For example, as shown in FIG. 23, the photosensitive drum 32 having a photosensitive layer is rotated,
The surface is uniformly charged by applying a voltage to a charging roller 33 serving as a charging device, and a light image from the reading device 1 is exposed to a photosensitive drum 32 via an exposure unit 34 to form a latent image.
The developing device 35 is configured to perform development. The developing device 35 is configured to stir the toner in the toner supply container 35a.
Developing sleeve with fixed magnet 35c built-in
While rotating 35d, a toner layer provided with a triboelectric charge by the developing blade 35e is formed on the surface of the developing sleeve 35d, and the toner is transferred to the photosensitive drum 32 according to the latent image to form a toner image. And visualize it. After the toner image is transferred to the recording medium 9 by applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner image to the transfer device on the apparatus main body side, the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 32 is scraped off by the cleaning blade 36a, and the cleaning sheet is removed. The residual toner on the photosensitive drum 7 is removed by a cleaning device 36 which is scooped by 36b and collected in a waste toner reservoir 36c. Each component such as the photosensitive drum 32 is housed in a housing in which the toner container 37a, the developing frame 37b and the cleaning container 37c are connected, and is made into a cartridge. The cartridge mounting means provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus It is detachably attached to.

As described above, the process cartridge P is
Not only the toner replenishing container 35a but also the photoreceptor drum 32 etc. are made into a cartridge and made replaceable, so that not only the toner replenishment becomes easy but also the maintenance of the photoreceptor drum 32 etc. becomes easy. is there.

In the process cartridge P, the stirring member 35b has a coupling gear 35b3 integrally provided at the end of the stirring shaft 35b1, and the stirring blade 35b2 similar to that of the first embodiment is attached to the stirring shaft 35b1. This is rotatably attached to the toner supply container 35a, and the toner is sent out from the toner discharge opening 35a1. The gear portion 35b3 of the stirring member 35b
The seal between the toner supply container 35a and the
By adopting the same configuration as that described with reference to FIG. 9 of the embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained.

That is, a flat ring-shaped packing member is compressed as a seal member between the gear portion 35b3, which is the drive transmission portion of the stirring member 35b, and the toner supply container 35a (for example, wool felt is compressed by 4% to 40%). The gear 35b3 and the toner replenishing container 35a are provided with a locking claw (for example, a locking claw is provided on the toner supply container 35a, and the locking claw is provided on the gear 35b3). The locking portion which is pushed into and locked to the locking portion) is arranged outside the toner container with respect to the packing member, so that toner does not leak into the locking portion during image formation, and Generation of coarse-grained toner can be prevented beforehand.

The stirring member is not limited to the case where the stirring member is a flexible member such as a stirring blade, but may be a structure as shown in FIG. That is, the stirring member 38 is formed by separately forming a rod-shaped member 38a bent to stir the toner and a gear portion 38b as a drive transmission member. 38 is inserted through the toner discharge opening 35a1, and one end thereof is inserted into the concave portion 35a2 of the toner supply container 35a. Next, a gear portion 38b is inserted through a hole 35a3 provided in the toner supply container 35 and attached to the other end of the rod-shaped member 38a, and the stirring member 38 is rotatably attached to the toner supply container 35a. At this time,
In order to prevent toner from leaking between the hole 35a3 of the container 35a and the gear portion 38b, a packing member 39 made of a flat ring-shaped wool felt is used as a seal member between the container 35a and the gear portion 38b at 4% to 40%. In order to achieve a compression ratio of

Then, the gear portion 38b and the toner supply container 35a
As shown in FIG. 24B, a locking claw 35a5 is provided at the tip of a ring-shaped flange 35a4 provided on the toner supply container 35a.
When the gear portion 38b is pushed into the flange portion 35a4, the gear portion 38b is locked by the locking claw 35a5, the packing member 39 is compressed, and the gear portion 38b does not move in the rotation axis direction.

Since the locking portion is also provided outside the toner supply container with respect to the packing member 39, the toner in the toner supply container 35a does not leak to the locking portion during image formation. Is prevented from occurring. In the configuration shown in FIG. 24, the packing member
Since the 39 seals the two surfaces of the gear member 38b, the sealing performance is enhanced, and toner leakage is more reliably prevented.

The above-mentioned process cartridge is
It is provided with, for example, an electrophotographic photosensitive member as an image carrier, and at least one of processing means. Therefore, as a mode of the process cartridge, in addition to the above-described embodiment, for example, the image carrier and the charging unit are integrally formed into a cartridge and can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. A cartridge in which the image carrier and the developing means are integrated into a cartridge, and which is detachable from the apparatus main body. A device in which the image carrier and the cleaning means are integrally formed into a cartridge and can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. Further, there is a type in which an image carrier and two or more of the above-mentioned process means are combined into a cartridge to be detachable from the apparatus main body.

That is, the above-mentioned process cartridge is one in which a charging means, a developing means or a cleaning means and an electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed into a cartridge, and this cartridge is made detachable from the image forming apparatus main body. . In addition, at least one of the charging unit, the developing unit, and the cleaning unit and the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed into a cartridge so that the cartridge can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body. Further, it means that at least the developing means and the electrophotographic photosensitive member are integrally formed into a cartridge so as to be detachable from the apparatus main body.

{Other Embodiments of Image Forming Unit} Various developing methods such as a known two-component magnetic brush developing method, a cascade developing method, a touch-down developing method, and a cloud developing method can be used as a developing method. It is.

The image carrier on which a toner image is formed by the developing device 5 is not limited to the photosensitive drum of the first embodiment described above, but includes, for example, the following. First, a photoconductor is used as a photoconductor. Examples of the photoconductor include amorphous silicon, amorphous selenium, zinc oxide, titanium oxide, and an organic photoconductor (OP).
C) and the like. The shape on which the photoconductor is mounted includes, for example, a rotating body such as a drum or a belt, and a sheet. In general, a drum-shaped or belt-shaped one is used. For example, in the case of a drum-type photoconductor, a photoconductor is deposited or coated on a cylinder of an aluminum alloy or the like. It is.

As for the structure of the charging means, the so-called contact charging method is used in the first embodiment described above. However, as another structure, a metal shield such as aluminum is provided around three sides of a conventionally used tungsten wire. It is a matter of course that a configuration may be used in which positive or negative ions generated by applying a high voltage to the tungsten wire are moved to the surface of the photosensitive drum, and the surface of the drum is uniformly charged.

The charging means may be of a blade type (charging blade), a pad type, a block type, a rod type, a wire type or the like in addition to the roller type.

As a method for cleaning the toner remaining on the photosensitive drum, the cleaning means may be constituted by using a blade, a fur brush, a magnetic brush or the like.

In the first embodiment, the developing device 5
Although a copying machine has been exemplified as an image forming apparatus using the image forming apparatus, the apparatus is not limited to the copying machine as long as it is an apparatus that forms an image using toner. For example, a laser beam printer, an LED printer, a facsimile machine, It goes without saying that the present invention can be applied even in such cases.

<< Experimental Results >> [Experiment-1] Using the toner cartridge C shown in the first embodiment described above, a cylindrical toner supply container 12 having an inner diameter of 55 mm and a total internal length of 322.5 mm as shown in FIG. The stirring member 15 was set, and 380 g of the one-component toner was charged into the stirring member 15 and mounted on the developing device 5 as shown in FIG.
The rotation speed of the stirring member 15 was 10.2 rpm. A4 size 5.
While using 24% original and outputting images in intermittent endurance mode,
The amount of toner in the developing chamber 5a and the amount of toner in the toner supply container 12 were measured.

Here, from the space in the developing chamber 5a, the appropriate amount of toner in the developing device is about 100 g. Since the inside of the developing chamber 5a is empty at the beginning of image formation, the toner is supplied from the toner supply container 12 to the developing chamber 5a steadily, and the amount of toner in the developing chamber 5a increases relatively rapidly, but reaches about 100 g. Then, it became saturated and kept a constant value.

As described above, the amount of toner in the toner supply container 12 is decreasing with the progress of image formation. Nevertheless, the amount of toner in the developing chamber 5a is maintained at around 100 g. When almost all of the toner in the toner supply container 12 was used up, the amount of toner in the developing chamber 5a began to decrease.

The toner amount detecting means disposed in the developing chamber is set to operate when the amount of toner in the developing chamber becomes 70 g or less.
g, a message prompting replacement of the toner supply container 12 is displayed. By this time, about 7,000 images had been printed.

The amount of toner in the developing chamber 5a, 70 g, is a sufficient amount to obtain a good image even if it is solid black. Is also an amount sufficient to prevent occurrence of reversal fog due to self-contamination.

[0203] The toner replenishing container for which image output has been completed in this way.
Inspection of the remaining amount of toner in No. 12 showed an extremely low level of 3 to 5 g.

When the same test was performed using an A4 size 25% original, when about 1500 images were output, the toner amount detecting means was activated. At this time, the remaining amount of toner in the toner supply container 12 was 5 to 10 g.

The relationship between the remaining amount of toner and the contamination depends on the shape of the toner supply container 12, especially the size of the toner discharge opening 12a.
When 12a is as narrow as 7 mm, if the remaining amount of toner is up to about 10 g, it is unlikely that the toner is spilled or scattered during the disposal process.

[Experiment-2] The same toner supply container 12 as in Experiment-1 was filled with 380 g of toner, and the toner discharge opening was
Stirrer 15 at 10.2 rpm without opening 12a
Rotated continuously for 10 hours.

The continuous rotation for 10 hours corresponds to the output of 7,000 images. At this time, the measurement of the rotational torque was continued, but after a slight decrease in the initial stage, the level was kept constant,
It did not rise.

After the rotation for another 10 hours, the toner supply container
The toner in No. 12 was taken out and passed through a 150-mesh (100 μm) mesh screen, and no coarse particles remained on the screen. Incidentally, the weight average particle diameter of this toner was 7.6 μm.

[Experiment-3] A similar experiment was conducted by incorporating the conventional stirring member shown in FIG. 25 into the same toner supply container 12 as in the first embodiment. The stirring member 50 has a rotating shaft
A toner feeding blade 53 is provided on one side of a 51 via a holding member 52 made of an elastic body, and a slit 54 extending in the rotation radius direction of the toner feeding blade 53 is provided. Is the same as the inner radius of the cylinder 55.

As a result, in the case of an A4 size 4% original, 6300
After the image was printed, the toner amount detecting means was activated, and the remaining amount of toner in the toner supply container at this time was 10 to 20 g.

Similarly, in the case of an A4 size 15% original, 20
~ 35 g of toner remained in the container. In this state, even if the toner supply container was slightly inclined, toner scattering occurred.

When the rotation speed of the stirring member was increased to 31.2 rpm, the remaining amount of toner decreased. However, when the same operation as in Experiment 2 was carried out, generation of a small amount of coarse particles (100 μm or more) was recognized. Was done.

[0213]

As described above, according to the present invention, the used cartridge is collected, the handle member and the cap are removed from the cylindrical container containing the toner, the toner discharge opening is sealed, and then the toner is filled with the cap. And by attaching the handle member, the toner cartridge can be reused, so that members such as the stirring member are not wasted,
Resources and energy can be saved.

Further, when the toner cartridge is regenerated, the toner is refilled from the toner discharge opening provided in the cylindrical container without removing the handle member or the cap from the cylindrical container. Easy to do.

Further, when the toner cartridge is regenerated, the rotational torque of the stirring member is checked,
It is possible to regenerate a toner cartridge that does not differ from a new toner cartridge.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the overall configuration of a copying machine.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of a developing device.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a toner cartridge.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of parts of the toner cartridge.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of a stirring member.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory sectional view of a portion to which a handle member is attached.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for assembling a stirring member to the toner supply container.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for filling a toner.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a seal configuration between a gear portion of a stirring member and a flange.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a developing device and a toner cartridge.

11A is a diagram illustrating a state in which a toner cartridge is inserted into a mounting portion, and FIG. 11B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the inserted toner cartridge is rotated to a usable state.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of a locked state between a shutter member and a projection of a toner cartridge.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing a procedure for mounting the toner cartridge.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between a toner cartridge and a cartridge mounting portion.

15A is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state where a toner cartridge is inserted into a cartridge mounting portion, and FIGS. 15B and 15C are explanatory diagrams illustrating a state where the toner cartridge is locked to the cartridge mounting portion.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing a positional relationship between a toner discharge opening and a flange protrusion.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory view of another embodiment of the stirring member.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram of a stirring member provided with a toner passage window in a main wing portion.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment in which one corner of the toner discharge opening of the toner supply container is inclined.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment in which a projection for rotating a shutter is integrally provided on the toner supply container.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment in which one flange portion is provided integrally with the toner supply container.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory view of an embodiment in which an H-shaped rib is provided on a handle member.

FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram of a configuration of a process cartridge.

FIG. 24 is an explanatory diagram of another embodiment of the stirring member attached to the process cartridge.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory view of a conventional stirring member used in an experiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

C: toner cartridge, P: process cartridge,
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Original reading apparatus, 1a ... Original table glass, 1b ... Illumination lamp, 1c-1f ... Mirror, 1g ... Lens, 2 ... Photoconductor drum, 3 ... Main motor, 4 ... Charging device, 5 ... Developing device, 5a ... Toner storage section, 5b: toner feeding member, 5c
Developing sleeve 5d Developing blade 5e Cartridge mounting section 5f Opening section 6 Transfer device 6a Transfer charger 6b Separating charger 7 Cleaning means 7
a: cleaning blade, 7b: collected toner reservoir, 8
... conveying device, 8a1, 8a2 ... cassette, 8b1, 8b2 ... pickup roller, 8c ... registration roller, 8d ... manual tray, 8e ... conveying belt, 8f ... discharge roller, 9 ... recording medium, 10 ... fixing device, 10a ... drive Roller, 10b: Heat press roller, 11: Automatic document feeder, 12: Toner supply container, 12a: Toner discharge opening, 12b: Notch, 12c: Seal member, 12c1: End, 13: Flange, 13a1, 13a2 ... Projection, 13b: Filling port, 13c: Rib, 13d: Shaft hole, 13e: Locking recess, 14: Flange, 14a1, 14a2: Projection, 14b: Hole,
14c: ring-shaped flange portion, 14d: claw portion, 14e: rib, 15: stirring member, 15a: stirring shaft, 15a1: fitting portion, 15a2: gear portion,
15a3: ring-shaped rib, 15a4: caulking boss, 15b: stirring blade, 15b1: main wing, 15b2: auxiliary wing, 15b3: slit,
15b4 ... hole, 15b5 ... caulking hole, 15b6 ... toner passage window,
16 ... cap, 17 ... handle member, 17a ... fitting part, 17a1 ... notch, 17a2 ... locking claw, 17a3 ... rib, 17a4 ... stepped part, 17b ... handle part, 17c ... movable lever, 17c1 ... lock projection, 17c2 ... Slope, 17d ... H-shaped rib, 18 ... Jig, 18a ... Funnel, 19 ...
Jig, 19a: funnel hole, 20: shutter member, 20a: opening,
20b: Seal member, 21: Seal member, 22: Side cover, 23a, 23b: Groove, 24: Guide rail, 25: Flange, 25
a ... end, 26 ... step, 27 ... step, 28 ... gear, 29 ... spring,
30… Packing member, 31… Space, 32… Photoconductor drum, 33…
Charging roller, 34: exposure unit, 35: developing device, 35a: toner supply container, 35a1: toner discharge opening, 35a2: recess, 35a3 ...
Hole, 35a4 ... flange, 35a5 ... locking claw, 35b ... stirring member, 35b1
... stirring shaft, 35b2 ... stirring blade, 35b3 ... gear, 35c ... magnet,
35d: developing sleeve, 35e: developing blade, 36: cleaning device, 36a: cleaning blade, 36b: squeeze sheet, 36c: waste toner reservoir, 37a: toner container, 37
b: developing frame, 37c: cleaning container, 38: stirring member, 38a: rod-shaped member, 38b: gear part, 39: packing member

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Kazuyuki Miyano 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (56) References JP-A-3-271782 (JP, A) JP-A-5 -165326 (JP, A) JP-A-5-6091 (JP, A) JP-A-4-337745 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 13/20 G03G 15/20

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cylindrical container for accommodating a toner, a stirring member provided in the cylindrical container, a filling port provided on an end face in a longitudinal direction of the cylindrical container for filling the toner, and closing the filling port. And a handle member attached so as to cover the cap by being locked to the cylindrical container, and a toner discharge opening provided on a peripheral surface of the cylindrical container. A first step of removing the handle member by releasing the locking state with the cylindrical container; a second step of removing the cap from the filling port; a third step of sealing the toner discharge opening; A fourth step of filling the toner from the filling port, a fifth step of closing the filling port with a cap, and a handle member locked to the cylindrical container so as to cover the cap. And a sixth step of attaching the toner cartridge. 2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of checking a rotational torque of the stirring member before the fourth step. 3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, after the third step, checking the air leakage by blowing air into the cylindrical container. 4. A cylindrical container for accommodating a toner, a stirring member provided in the cylindrical container, a filling port provided on an end face in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical container for filling the toner, and closing the filling port. And a handle member attached to the cylindrical container so as to cover the cap, and a toner discharge opening provided on a peripheral surface of the cylindrical container. And a second step of filling the toner from the toner discharge opening without removing the cap, and a second step of sealing the toner discharge opening. 5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising a step of checking a rotational torque of the stirring member before the first step.