JP4672157B2 - Toner cartridge - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a replaceable toner cartridge that supplies toner to a developing device provided in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer.
[0002]
[Prior art]
After the toner in the developing device is consumed by image formation, an image forming device that replaces an empty toner cartridge installed in the developing device and a new toner cartridge filled with the toner to replenish the toner in the developing device Is known.
As an example, the toner cartridge includes a first cylindrical body and a second cylindrical body that covers the circumferential surface of the first cylindrical body and is provided so as to be movable in the circumferential direction. A second opening is provided, and when the second cylinder is moved in a circumferential direction by a predetermined angle with respect to the first cylinder and the first opening and the second opening overlap with each other, The toner communicates with the outside to form a toner supply port, and the toner is supplied into the developing device.
[0003]
Then, the second cylindrical body is moved in the circumferential direction to a position where the first opening and the second opening of the cartridge do not overlap with each other so as to close the toner supply port, and the cartridge which is being used is mounted or used in the developing device. When the operation of removing the toner is performed, the toner is prevented from being scattered and leaked, so that it is easy for the operator to handle.
[0004]
After the toner cartridge is mounted on the developing device, the second cylindrical body is moved at a predetermined angle with respect to the first cylindrical body, and the first opening and the second opening are overlapped. Thereafter, a new toner is pushed out from the first opening by a stirring means provided inside the toner cartridge and supplied to the developing device.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since the toner cartridge as described above is composed of a double cylinder, when using a molded product such as a mold, the inner peripheral surface and the outer peripheral surface of the two cylindrical bodies are close to each other in order to prevent toner leakage. The accuracy for forming these is required to some extent, and the cost is increased.
Furthermore, in order to reduce the thickness of the second cylindrical body and maintain a predetermined strength in order to reduce the weight of the toner cartridge, it is difficult to mold with a mold.
[0006]
SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a low-cost toner cartridge with a simple configuration and a toner cartridge that is easy to use.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has a first cylindrical body having a first opening for storing toner therein and supplying toner in the longitudinal direction, and a thickness of 0.07 to 0.5 mm. It is made of a film member, has a second opening in the longitudinal direction, and is provided so as to be movable within a predetermined angle range in the circumferential direction along the outer peripheral surface of the first cylindrical body. A second cylindrical body provided so as to be positioned at a position where the two openings overlap, a lid that closes both ends of the first cylindrical body, and an agitating unit that agitates the toner in the first cylindrical body. In the toner cartridge, a plurality of first openings are provided substantially linearly along the axial direction so as to have a preset toner supply amount, and the second openings are formed from slits having a plurality of ribs. The first opening and the second opening are overlapped, and the stirring hand Toner to form a toner supply port for supplying stirred by further on the outer peripheral surface of the lid is provided regulating member for regulating the movement of the second cylindrical body, by the second cylindrical body regulating member A reinforcing member is provided in the restricted part.
[0009]
Further, the second cylindrical body is provided so as to be wound around an outer peripheral surface of the first cylindrical body, and the first cylindrical body is formed of a paper tube.
[0010]
With such a configuration, a new toner cartridge filled with toner is mounted on the developing device, and for example, a seal blocking the first opening of the first cylindrical body is removed. The thin second cylindrical body is moved by a predetermined angle with respect to the peripheral surface of the first cylindrical body, and the first opening and the second opening are overlapped. At this position, the regulating member provided on the first cylindrical body and a part of the second cylindrical body abut against each other, and further movement of the second cylindrical body is restricted. A reinforcing member is provided in a portion of the second cylindrical body that is restricted, and even if the second cylindrical body is thin, it is reinforced by the reinforcing member and is restricted at a predetermined position.
When the toner in the toner cartridge becomes empty, the second cylindrical body is moved by a predetermined angle in the circumferential direction with respect to the first cylindrical body, and the first opening and the second opening are shifted to a position. And remove from the developing device while preventing toner leakage.
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a developing device according to the present invention. 2 is a top view of the toner cartridge, FIG. 3 is a front view of the toner cartridge, and FIG. 4 is a side view of the toner cartridge.
The developing device 1 includes a developing container 2 containing a developer made of, for example, an insulating non-magnetic one-component toner, a developing roller 3 made of an elastic material, and a developing roller arranged in contact with the developing roller 3 at an appropriate pressure. 3, a layer thickness regulating member 4 that regulates the thickness of the toner layer formed thereon, a supply roller 5 that is provided in contact with the developing roller 3 and supplies toner to the developing roller 3, and an agitation disposed behind the supply roller 5 A member 6 is provided, and a toner is supplied to the surface of the developing roller by a supply roller while applying an appropriate bias to each roller. An image is formed by a non-magnetic one-component developing method in which the developing roller 3 is developed while being in contact with the photosensitive drum 7.
[0012]
The developing device 1 is further detachably mounted with a toner cartridge 9 for supplying toner consumed in the developing device. The toner cartridge 9 has a cylindrical shape, and a toner supply port 8 is provided in a part of the peripheral surface. The toner cartridge 9 stores a toner inside and has a first cylindrical body 12 having a first opening 10 for supplying the toner in the longitudinal direction, and a first cylindrical body having a second opening 11 in the longitudinal direction. The second cylindrical body 13 is provided so as to be movable within a predetermined angle range in the circumferential direction along the outer peripheral surface of the second cylindrical body 13, and is provided so that the first opening 10 and the second opening 11 overlap each other. And have. That is, the toner supply port 8 is formed when the first opening 10 and the second opening 11 overlap.
[0013]
The first cylindrical body 12 has a main body 14 and a resin lid 15 that closes both ends of the main body 14, and the main body 14 and the lid 15 are fixed by an adhesive or the like. The main body 14 is preferably made of a paper tube in order to reduce the cost, but may be made of synthetic resin.
The main body portion of the first cylindrical body 12 has a first opening 10 provided substantially linearly along the axial direction. The size of the first opening 10 can be appropriately selected according to the relationship with the supply amount of toner. In the embodiment, the shape of the first opening 10 is a round hole, but may be another shape such as a slit shape.
The lid 15 is provided with a regulating member 16 for regulating the movement of the second cylindrical body 13 in the circumferential direction. The restricting member 16 is provided with a protrusion on a part of the outer peripheral surface of the lid body 15 so as to protrude in the radial direction, and comes into contact with a part of the second cylindrical body 13 so that the second cylindrical body 13 is surrounded. The amount of movement set in the direction is not restricted.
[0014]
The second cylindrical body 13 is provided so as to be movable in the circumferential direction of the first cylindrical body 12 and is made of a thin film material. For example, a mylar film (trade name) is preferably used. The second cylindrical body 13 is provided with a portion regulated by a regulating member 16, and in the embodiment, substantially U-shaped notches 17 are provided at both ends of the second cylindrical body 13. A restricting member abuts on the portion A of the notch 17 to restrict further movement, and the notch is approximately 50 mm (movable angle) of the second cylinder 13 with respect to the first cylinder 12. As about 45 degrees).
[0015]
The thickness of the film material is preferably 0.07 mm to 0.5 mm, and particularly if a film material having a thickness of 0.1 to 0.2 mm is used, a sufficient strain can be obtained and it is inexpensive and preferable.
The film material is wound around the first cylindrical body 12 so as to have a movable gap. The second cylindrical body 13 is formed by fixing the end portion of the film material with an adhesive or a tape. The second cylindrical body 13 is provided with a second opening 11 so that the first opening 10 overlaps. In the embodiment, a slit having a plurality of ribs is formed. Thus, a 2nd cylindrical body can be easily formed by winding a film material so that a movement is possible.
[0016]
A reinforcing member 18 is provided on the second cylindrical body 13 in order to reinforce the notch 17 that contacts the regulating member 16 provided on the first cylindrical body 12. The reinforcing member 18 has a film having an appropriate thickness attached to a portion around the notch 18 with a double-sided tape or the like. The thickness of the film is preferably 0.07 mm to 0.5 mm, but this thickness is not limited. Further, a curved thin metal plate may be used as the reinforcing member.
[0017]
Although not shown, a new toner cartridge has a seal body of a predetermined width that seals the first opening 10 attached by an adhesive or heat fusion, and after the seal body is peeled off by a winder machine or by hand. use.
[0018]
The operation will be described with such a configuration. The remaining amount of toner in the developing device is detected by a sensor or the like, and the toner cartridge 9 is replaced with a new one based on this detection signal. The new toner cartridge 9 is located at a position where the first opening 10 and the second opening 11 do not overlap each other, and a seal body that closes the first opening 10 is provided. The guide member 19 of the toner cartridge 9 is attached to a predetermined position of the developing device 1 along a guide (not shown) provided in the developing device 1.
[0019]
Next, the first opening 10 is opened by pulling the end of the sealing body or winding the sealing body with a winding device or the like to peel off the sealing body. In this state, since the first opening 10 and the second opening 11 do not overlap, toner is not supplied into the developing device. Then, the second cylindrical body 13 is moved along the peripheral surface of the first cylindrical body 12 until one end of the notch 17 abuts against the regulating member 16. By this movement, the first opening 10 and the second opening 11 overlap with each other to form the toner supply port 8 so that the inside of the toner cartridge 9 and the inside of the developing container 2 communicate with each other. A stirring means (not shown) provided in the toner cartridge 9 from the toner supply port 8 rotates in response to a signal indicating no toner, and pushes the toner in the toner cartridge 9 from the first opening 10 to develop the developing device 1. Toner is supplied inside.
[0020]
Even if the notch 17 of the second cylindrical body 13 abuts against the regulating member 16, the reinforcing member 18 is provided around the notch 17, so that the second cylindrical body 13 is not displaced at a predetermined position. The thin film material can be positioned without deformation.
[0021]
When the sensor in the developing device 1 detects the absence of toner and the toner cartridge 9 runs out of toner, the second cylindrical body 13 is replaced with the first cylindrical body 12 at the other end of the notch 17. The first opening 10 and the second opening 11 are moved to a position where the first opening 10 and the second opening 11 do not overlap. Even in this state, the second cylindrical body 13 can be positioned at a predetermined position without being deformed by the action of the reinforcing member 18 provided around the notch 17.
Next, the toner cartridge 9 is removed from the developing device 1 along the guide. In this state, the toner replenishing port 8 is closed, and the toner remaining slightly in the toner cartridge 9 does not leak from the first opening 10 and contaminate the outside.
Next, a new toner cartridge is again guided along the guide and attached to the developing device according to the above-described operation.
[0022]
【The invention's effect】
The toner does not leak when the toner cartridge is replaced, and an inexpensive toner cartridge can be provided with a simple structure by using a film material for the second cylindrical body.
The restriction of the movement of the second cylinder by the restriction member provided on the first cylinder is restricted by the notch and the reinforcing member provided around the notch, so that the second cylinder can be reliably moved. .
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a developing device to which a toner cartridge is attached.
FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of a toner cartridge.
FIG. 3 is a schematic front view of a toner cartridge.
FIG. 4 is a schematic side view of a toner cartridge.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Developing Device 8 Toner Supply Port 9 Toner Cartridge 10 First Opening 11 Second Opening 12 First Cylindrical Body 13 Second Cylindrical Body 15 Lid 16 Restricting Member 17 Notch 18 Reinforcing Member

Claims (3)

A first cylindrical body having a first opening for storing toner therein and supplying the toner in the longitudinal direction; and a film member having a thickness of 0.07 to 0.5 mm. An opening is provided so as to be movable within a predetermined angle range in the circumferential direction along the outer peripheral surface of the first cylindrical body, and the first opening and the second opening are overlapped by the movement. In a toner cartridge comprising: a second cylindrical body provided to be positioned ; a lid body that covers both ends of the first cylindrical body; and a stirring unit that stirs the toner in the first cylindrical body.
A plurality of the first openings are provided substantially linearly along the axial direction so as to have a preset supply amount of the toner,
The second opening is formed from a slit having a plurality of ribs,
The first opening and the second opening are overlapped to form a toner supply port for supplying the toner stirred by the stirring means,
Furthermore, a regulating member for regulating the movement of the second cylindrical body is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the lid ,
A toner cartridge, wherein the second cylindrical body is provided with a reinforcing member at a portion restricted by the restricting member.    2. The toner cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the second cylindrical body is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the first cylindrical body so as to be movable.    3. The toner cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the first cylindrical body is formed of a paper tube.

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