JP4468792B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a color printer, a color copying machine, a color facsimile, or a complex machine thereof.

  In recent years, an electrophotographic image forming apparatus for forming a color image on a recording material such as paper or film has been widely spread. This type of image forming apparatus is increasingly used as a printer connected to a personal computer, and so-called personalization is progressing. From the viewpoint of convenience, the image forming apparatus should be installed close to the user's location. There are many. In such a case, considering the user's workability, it is desirable that the height of the device is low, and that the device width is small considering the installation space, and from the viewpoint of personalization and reduction of maintenance costs It is desirable that the user can easily replace and maintain consumables such as toner as a developer.

  By the way, in such a color image forming apparatus, since a color image is generally formed by using toners as four color developers, the number of components is large and the size is easily increased as compared with a monochrome-only image forming apparatus. The number of sheets that can be discharged per hit, that is, the speed during color printing tends to be low. Therefore, a plurality of developing devices are arranged close to a plurality of photoconductors arranged in a row to form a single color toner image, and each toner image is sequentially transferred to transfer a color image onto a recording material. The tandem image forming apparatus is more advantageous.

In this tandem image forming apparatus, since the toner consumption generally increases, the developer supply unit that supplies the replenishment toner to the developing device is separated from the developing device, rather than being integrated with the developing device as a cartridge. In order to reduce the installation space, it is preferable to provide the recording apparatus in which the upper part of the apparatus main body is used as a printed recording material discharge / loading unit.
JP 2002-362807 A JP 2002-214868 A JP 2003-50351 A JP 2004-317883 A

  Even in the tandem image forming apparatus that can solve various problems as described above, there is a further demand for improvement in various operability of the apparatus.

  For example, the operability of inserting / removing a waste toner bottle containing waste toner after being used for image formation should be considered. However, as the inventors of the present application know, it is operated by a user who is not familiar with the device configuration, replacement operation, etc. However, no technology has been proposed to improve the arrangement of waste toner bottles, taking into account the fact that the replacement work by the user is complicated. It was rare.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides an image forming apparatus that is easy to attach and detach and replace waste toner bottles and that improves operability. .

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including a cover that can be opened and closed on a side portion of the apparatus main body, wherein the cover is provided with a handle for opening and closing, and the handle is attached to the apparatus main body. It is provided with an inclination corresponding to the access direction of the manual operation in the opening / closing operation from the front side and obliquely from above.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus of the first aspect, a waste toner tank is detachably attached to the apparatus main body inside the cover, the manual access direction to the handle, and the waste toner It is characterized in that the direction of attaching and detaching the tank with respect to the apparatus main body is matched or substantially matched.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus of the first or second aspect, the openable / closable cover is provided on the left side when viewed from the front side of the apparatus main body.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the manual access direction passes through a front-side corner portion of the apparatus main body.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, an end portion of an operation panel portion provided so that the manual access direction includes a vicinity of a front corner portion of the apparatus main body. It is characterized by passing through.

  The present invention is very easy to attach / detach and replace waste toner bottles, and has the effect of improving operability.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. In the following, a color printer (hereinafter referred to as a printer) capable of forming a full-color image employing a tandem method will be described as the image forming apparatus. However, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the illustrated one. The present invention can be applied to various apparatuses such as a copying machine, a facsimile apparatus, and a composite apparatus.

  The basic configuration and operation of the printer will be described with reference to FIGS. The printer shown in the figure has a configuration in which a paper feed unit 2 in which a paper feed cassette 45 for storing paper P as a recording material is arranged at the lower part of the apparatus main body 1 and an image forming unit 8 is arranged above the paper feed unit 45. The image forming unit 8 has four image forming units 8Y, 8C, 8M, and 8BK as a plurality of image forming means including an image carrier, and flexibility wound around the plurality of rollers 4, 5, and 6. An intermediate transfer belt 7 as an intermediate transfer member constituted by an endless belt, an optical writing unit 15 as an optical writing unit that performs optical writing on each image carrier, a fixing unit 22 that fixes a toner image on the paper P, and the like. It is provided. A conveyance path R for conveying the paper P is formed between the paper feeding unit 2 and the fixing unit 22. The roller 6 is disposed facing the conveyance path R.

  The space between the roller 4 and the roller 5 of the intermediate transfer belt 7 corresponds to the lower side belt running side of this belt. In the intermediate transfer belt 7, a secondary transfer roller 20 serving as a secondary transfer device is disposed at a portion facing the roller 6 so as to face the conveyance path R, and the belt surface is cleaned at a portion facing the roller 4. A cleaning device 21 is provided.

  The image forming unit 8 is disposed below the intermediate transfer belt 7 by being disposed so as to face the lower running side. Each image forming unit includes a photosensitive drum 10 as an image carrier that is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 7. Around each photosensitive drum 10, a charging device 11, a developing device 12, and a cleaning device 13 are arranged. A transfer roller 14 as a transfer device that performs primary transfer is provided inside the intermediate transfer belt 7 at a position where each photosensitive drum 10 is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  In this example, the image forming units 8Y, 8C, 8M, and 8BK basically have the same structure. In FIG. 1, only the structure of the image forming unit 8BK is represented by a symbol. What is different in each image forming unit is that the color of toner as a developer stored in each developing device 12 is different. The developing devices 12 of the image forming units 8Y, 8C, 8M, and 8BK store yellow, cyan, magenta, and black toners, respectively.

  In the figure, reference numeral 15 denotes an optical writing unit. The optical writing unit 15 irradiates the surface of each photosensitive drum with the light-modulated laser beam L to form a latent image for each color on the surface of the photosensitive drum. It is arranged in.

  When the image forming operation starts, the photosensitive drums 10 of the respective image forming units 8 are rotated in a clockwise direction by a driving device (not shown), and the surface of each photosensitive drum is uniformly charged to a predetermined polarity by the charging device 11. . The surface of each charged photosensitive drum is irradiated with laser light L from the optical writing unit 15 to form an electrostatic latent image on each surface. At this time, the image information to be exposed on each photosensitive drum is single-color image information obtained by separating a desired full-color image into color information of yellow, cyan, magenta, and black. The electrostatic latent image formed in this way is visualized as a toner image by the toner of each developing device 12 when passing between each photoconductor and the developing device 12.

  In the drawing, one of a plurality of rollers 4, 5 and 6 around which the intermediate transfer belt 7 is wound is driven to rotate counterclockwise by a driving device (not shown), whereby the intermediate transfer belt 7 is indicated by an arrow. Driven in the counterclockwise direction, the other rollers are driven to rotate. The yellow toner image formed by the image forming unit 8Y including the developing device 12 having yellow toner is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7 traveling in this way by the transfer roller 14. To the transferred yellow toner image, a cyan toner image formed by the image forming units 8C, 8M and 8BK, a magenta toner image, and a black toner image are sequentially superimposed and transferred by the transfer roller 14, and the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 7 is transferred. To carry a full-color toner image.

  Residual toner adhering to the surface of each photoconductor drum after the toner image is transferred is removed from the surface of each photoconductor drum by the cleaning device 13, and the surface of the photoconductor drum is discharged by a static eliminator (not shown) to reduce the surface potential. Initialization prepares for the next image formation.

  On the other hand, the sheet P fed from the sheet feeding unit 2 is fed to the transport path R, and the roller 6 and the secondary transfer are taken by the pair of registration rollers 24 arranged on the sheet feeding side with respect to the secondary transfer roller 20. The sheet is fed to a portion facing the roller 20. At this time, a transfer voltage having a polarity opposite to the toner charge polarity of the toner image on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt is applied to the secondary transfer roller 20, whereby the toner image on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 7 is collectively put on the paper P. And transcribe. The paper P, to which the toner image has been transferred, is conveyed to the fixing unit 22 and heat and pressure are applied when passing through the fixing unit 22 to melt and fix the toner image. The paper P on which the toner image is fixed, that is, the printed paper P, is conveyed to the discharge unit 23 located at the end of the conveyance path R provided near the upper part of the apparatus main body 1, and the stack formed on the upper part of the apparatus main body 1. It discharges to the part 36. The toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 7 after the toner image is transferred to the paper P is removed from the cleaning device 21.

  The printer configured in this manner is provided with four image forming units 8Y, 8M, 8C and 8BK facing the intermediate transfer belt 7, and sequentially transfers the toner images of the respective colors on the intermediate transfer belt 7. For this reason, the image forming time is significantly shortened compared to a type in which a single image forming means has a four-color developing device, transfers a toner image on an intermediate transfer belt, and then transfers it onto a sheet. be able to. In addition, since the stacking portion 36 is configured on the upper portion of the apparatus main body 1, the stacking section 36 does not jump out from the apparatus main body 1 and the installation area and the occupied area are reduced.

  Although the above description is an image forming operation when a full-color image is formed on the paper P, a single-color image is formed using any one of the image forming units of the image forming unit 8 or two colors are used. Alternatively, a three-color image may be formed. When monochrome printing is performed using the printer of this embodiment, an electrostatic latent image is formed only on the photosensitive drum 10 of the image forming unit 8BK, developed by the unit, transferred to the paper P, and fixed. Fixing may be performed by means 22.

  The discharge part 23 is formed in the upper part of the left side of the apparatus main body 1 in the figure as described above. A printer operation panel 60 and a tray 46 on which the paper P is placed are placed on the front surface of the apparatus body 1 on the exterior of the apparatus body 1, that is, on the exterior 1 </ b> A that is located on the upper right side of the discharge section 23 and covers the discharge section 23. It is arranged so that it can be operated from the right side. In this example, the right side of the apparatus main body 1 in which the discharge unit 23 is disposed is the apparatus operation side in the present example, but of course, either side may be used in the present invention.

  A partition plate 50 is provided inside the apparatus main body 1 below the loading unit 36. The partition plate 50 is disposed between the stacking portion 36 and the upper side of the intermediate transfer belt 7, and forms a storage space portion 51 for a developer storage member in the apparatus main body 1. In the storage space 51, a plurality of toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 as developer storage members are located below the stacking portion 36 in a direction toward and away from the discharge portion 23 indicated by arrows C1 and C2. In other words, the longitudinal direction of the toner bottle is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the discharge direction of the printed paper P, and the toner bottles of the respective colors are arranged along the discharge direction of the paper P, for example, as shown in the example of FIG. Color toner (four) toner bottles are arranged side by side. An arrow C <b> 1 in the drawing is a direction away from the discharge unit 23, and is also a discharge direction of the paper P discharged from the discharge unit 23 (hereinafter referred to as “discharge direction C <b> 1”). Arrow C <b> 2 is a direction approaching the discharge unit 23. In the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40, yellow, cyan, magenta, and black toners are respectively stored in order. The toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 are connected to the developing devices 12 of the image forming units 8Y, 8C, 8M, and 8BK through a toner supply path (not shown), and the toner in each developing device 12 decreases. The replenishment toner is supplied to the corresponding developing device.

  The toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 are arranged so as to become higher from the toner bottle 37 closest to the discharge unit 23 toward the toner bottle 40 located farthest from the discharge unit 23. In this example, the developer is arranged in the developer space 51 so as to be gradually increased from the toner bottle 37 toward the toner bottle 40. The discharge unit 23 is located above the toner bottle 37 and is located at substantially the same height as the toner bottle 40.

  A holder 52 for detachably holding the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, 40 is provided in the storage space 51. The holder 52 pulls up the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 upward, respectively, so that the width of the apparatus main body (hereinafter referred to as “apparatus main body width D1”) that goes straight in the same plane as the discharge direction C1. It is configured so that it can be attached and detached in the upper space in the range of The toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 are positioned in the apparatus main body 1 by being attached to the holder 52.

  The stacking unit 36 is formed in the apparatus main body 1 from the lower side of the discharge unit 23 toward the discharge direction C1 and covers the toner bottles stored in the storage space 51 so as to cover the toner bottle 1D. It consists of The stacking portion 36 is pivotally supported on the apparatus main body so as to be openable and closable with respect to the apparatus main body 1 as a cover, and an opening / closing central portion 41 is provided in the apparatus main body 1E farther than the toner bottle 40. It is. The opening / closing center part 41 is provided at a position lower than the uppermost part 40 </ b> A of the toner bottle 40. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the rotation center portion 41 has its axis positioned in the width direction of the device (hereinafter referred to as “width direction D”) indicated by an arrow D orthogonal to the discharge direction C 1 in the same plane. Thus, a shaft portion 42 provided on the apparatus main body 1 side and a bearing portion 43 provided on the end portion 36B side of the stacking portion 36 and supported by the shaft portion 42 are provided. For this reason, the stacking unit 36 constituted by the exterior 1D has a direction in which the opening and closing direction advances and retreats with respect to the apparatus operation side, that is, a direction in which the stacking unit 36 is closer to the discharge unit 23 indicated by arrows C1 and C2. The stacking portion 36 can be opened up to the upper side of the exterior 1 </ b> A provided with the operation panel 60.

  The area of the stacking unit 36 is formed to be somewhat larger than the paper size that can be fed from the sheet feeding unit 2. Further, the stacking portion 36 is formed so as to be inclined so that the end portion 36A located on the discharge portion 23 side is lower than the end portion 36B located on the side far from the discharge portion 23. The lower end 36A of the stacking portion 36 is disposed at a position lower than the discharge point of the discharge portion 23, and the upper end 36B of the stacking portion 36 is the uppermost portion 1C of the exterior 1A. The height is almost the same as the position.

  Thus, since the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, 40 can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 1 and can be attached and detached in the upper space within the range of the apparatus main body width D1, the toner bottles 37, 38 are provided. , 39 and 40 can be performed in the upper space within the range of the apparatus main body width D1, and the operability for the apparatus and the replacement work for the replacement parts are facilitated.

  Further, if the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, 40 arranged in parallel are viewed from the apparatus operation side (the discharge unit 23 side), the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, 40 arranged in parallel are arranged so as to increase from the toner bottle 37 toward the toner bottle 40. The toner bottle is shifted up and down. For this reason, the visibility to each toner bottle is improved from the apparatus operation side without being shaded by the discharge port 23, and the operability for the apparatus and the replacement work for the replacement parts are facilitated.

  Further, since the stacking part 36 can be opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body 1 by the opening / closing center part 41 provided in the apparatus main body 1E farther from the discharge part 23 than the toner bottle 40, the opening / closing center part is opened when the stacking part 36 is opened. The range where the toner bottle located on the 41 side is hidden is reduced, and the opening / closing direction of the stacking portion 36 is a direction to advance / retreat with respect to the apparatus operation side. For this reason, the operability when opening and closing the stacking unit 36 is good, and the visibility to each toner bottle is improved from the device operation side, so that the operability for the device and the replacement work for the replacement parts become easier. The opening / closing center portion 41 is disposed at a position lower than the uppermost portion 40A of the toner bottle 40 to suppress the height of the stacking portion 36, so that each toner bottle can be viewed from the device operation side while suppressing the height of the device. Can be ensured, and the operability with respect to the apparatus and the replacement work for the replacement parts can be further facilitated.

  Furthermore, since the stacking portion 36 can be opened to the upper side of the exterior 1A where the operation panel 60 is disposed, the visibility from the device operation side to each toner bottle is improved, and the operability for the device and the replacement work for the replacement parts are performed. It becomes easy.

  As shown in FIG. 3 which is a plan view (A) of the operation panel 60 alone, an enlarged plan view (B) of the display unit, and a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 61, various operation buttons 62..., LED lens 63 for power-on display, and the toner ends of each of the four toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 (which means that the stored toner has run out) And LEDs 64Y, 64C, 64M, 64BK for indicating the toner near end (also indicating that they are almost disappearing) and display portions 65Y, 65C, 65M, 65BK provided around the LEDs in the periphery, and further in the figure An operation unit display symbol 66 provided on the left side is provided.

  The general functions and operations of the operation panel components such as the liquid crystal panel 61 and the operation buttons 62 are well known and will not be described. However, the symbols of the display units 65Y, 65C, 65M, and 65BK are the toner bottle 37, 38, 39, and 40 have an elongated rounded corner shape extending in the same direction as the longitudinal direction.

  The operation panel 60 and the toner bottles 37, 38, 39, 40 are generally visible simultaneously and favorably from the front side of the apparatus main body 1 where the user is positioned, and the toner bottles 37, 38 along the paper P discharge direction. , 39 and 40 are arranged such that the LEDs 64Y, 64C, 64M and 64BK and the display units 65Y, 65C, 65M and 65BK are shown in the same order. Therefore, when any one of the LEDs 64Y, 64C, 64M, and 64BK is turned on to display the toner end or the toner near end, it is easy to see which toner bottles 37, 38, 39, and 40 are in the toner end or toner near end state. So that users can understand. Also, it becomes difficult to make a mistake as to which toner bottle is to be replaced.

  4 is a perspective view of the apparatus main body 1 as viewed from the front side with the stacking portion 36 as a cover closed from the state of FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is a side view of the same. Although omitted in FIG. 2, the left side surface as viewed from the front side of the apparatus main body 1 is provided as a side cover 70 so that it can be opened and closed laterally (the open / close mechanism and the open / closed state are not shown, but various known ones are provided). The side cover 70 includes a handle 71 for opening / closing operation. In the apparatus main body 1, a waste toner tank 72 that stores used waste toner is disposed inside the side cover 70. Since the structure and shape of the waste toner tank 72 and the mechanism for transporting the waste toner to the waste toner tank 72 are well known, illustration and description thereof are omitted.

  The handle 71 for opening / closing the side cover 70 is a direction in which the hand extends in the manual opening / closing operation of the user or the like from the front side of the apparatus main body 1 and from an oblique upper side, that is, an access direction of manual operation (arrow X in FIG. 5). Inclined to correspond to the above). Although not shown in detail, the waste toner tank 72 is provided such that the attaching / detaching direction to / from the apparatus main body 1 coincides or substantially coincides with the access direction X with respect to the handle 71. That is, the mounting direction to the apparatus main body 1 is the same as the access direction X.

  The side cover 70 is provided on the left side when viewed from the front side of the apparatus main body 1, the access direction X passes through the front side corner portion of the apparatus main body 1 (see FIG. 5), and the end of the operation panel 60 is passed. It has a configuration that also passes.

  In such a configuration, in order to take out the waste toner tank 72 from the apparatus main body 1, first, an operator standing in front of the apparatus main body 1 extends the left arm along the access direction X, grasps the handle 71 with the left hand, and continues to the side. The cover 70 is opened so as to be tilted to the left side of the apparatus main body 1 so that the waste toner tank 72 can be accessed from the outside. Then, while keeping the position of the side cover 70 while holding the handle 71 with the left hand, the right hand is also extended into the apparatus main body 1 along the access direction X, and the waste toner tank 72 is taken out. Thereafter, the side cover 70 is rotated upward with the left hand while holding the handle 71, pressed against the side of the apparatus main body 1, and closed.

  On the other hand, in order to attach the waste toner tank 72 to the apparatus main body 1, an operator standing in front of the apparatus main body 1 extends the left arm along the access direction X, grasps the handle 71 with the left hand, and directly attaches the side cover 70 to the apparatus. The main body 1 is opened so as to be tilted to the left side, and the attachment portion of the waste toner tank 72 in the apparatus main body 1 is made accessible from the outside. Then, while holding the handle 71 with the left hand and keeping the position of the side cover 70, the waste toner tank 72 held with the right hand is also put into the apparatus main body 1 along the access direction X and attached to a required part. Good. Thereafter, the side cover 70 is rotated upward with the left hand while holding the handle 71, pressed against the side of the apparatus main body 1, and closed.

  Since the operations related to the attachment / detachment of the waste toner tank 72 are performed on the left side when viewed from the front side of the apparatus main body 1, it can be said that the operation is generally easy. Since the access direction X, which is the operation direction, passes through the front corner portion of the apparatus main body 1 and the end of the operation panel 60 as described above, the operation panel 60 is opened from the front side of the apparatus main body 1. Work can be performed in almost the same operation direction and access direction as when operating, and various operations and operations can be performed without changing the posture.

1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of a printer that is an object of implementation of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the state where the loading part which is also a cover was opened. It is the top view (A) of an operation panel, the enlarged plan view (B) of a display part, and AA sectional drawing (C). FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which the stacking unit as a cover is closed from the state of FIG. It is a side view similarly.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Apparatus main body 2 Paper feeding part 4, 5, 6 Roller 7 Intermediate transfer belt 8 Image forming part 8Y, 8C, 8M, 8BK Image forming unit 10 Photosensitive drum 11 Charging device 12 Developing device 13 Cleaning device 14 Transfer roller 15 Optical writing Unit 20 Secondary transfer roller 21 Belt cleaning device 22 Fixing means 23 Discharge portion 24 Registration roller pair 36 Stacking portion 37, 38, 39, 40 Toner bottle 41 Opening / closing center portion of stacking portion 42 Similarly shaft portion 43 Similarly bearing portion 45 Paper feed Cassette 46 Tray 50 Partition plate 51 Storage space for developer storage member 52 Holder 60 Operation panel 61 Liquid crystal panel 62 Operation buttons 63 LED lens 64Y, 64C, 64M, 64BK LED
65Y, 65C, 65M, 65BK Display unit 66 Design for operation unit display 70 Side cover 71 Handle 72 Waste toner tank P Paper X Access direction

Claims (5)

In an image forming apparatus having a cover that can be opened and closed on the side of the apparatus body, the cover is provided with a handle for opening and closing, and the handle is placed in the access direction for manual operation in the opening and closing operation from the front side of the apparatus body and obliquely from above. An image forming apparatus, wherein the image forming apparatus is provided so as to be inclined correspondingly. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a waste toner tank is detachably attached to the apparatus main body inside the cover, the manual access direction to the handle, and the attachment / detachment direction of the waste toner tank to the apparatus main body. An image forming apparatus characterized in that they are matched or substantially matched. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cover that can be opened and closed is provided on the left side when viewed from the front side of the apparatus main body. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the manual access direction passes through a front corner portion of the apparatus main body. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the manual access direction passes through an end portion of an operation panel portion provided in the vicinity of a front corner portion of the apparatus main body. 5. apparatus.