JP5653124B2 - Color electrophotographic image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a color electrophotographic image forming apparatus that supports a plurality of developing devices and uses a rotatable rotating support (rotary).

  Conventionally, a color electrophotographic image forming apparatus that supports a plurality of developing devices and uses a rotatable rotating support (rotary) is known.

  In recent years, in order to improve the operability at the time of initial installation of the main body of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, it is generally packed and transported with a detachable developing device mounted on the main body. Yes. At that time, it is necessary to prevent deformation and breakage in the vicinity of the rotating support and the developing device due to vibration and shock during transportation. As a conventional example that realizes this, the configuration of Patent Document 1 is known.

  In Patent Document 1, a detachable regulating member regulates a gap in a direction in which the rotary support swings with respect to the apparatus main body at the time of shipment / transportation, thereby preventing deformation or breakage in the vicinity of the developing device.

JP 2010-60613 A

  However, since the posture of the apparatus main body during transportation is set in various directions, the directions of vibration and impact are also various. For example, deformation and breakage in the vicinity of the developing device may occur due to vibration and impact in the thrust direction intersecting with the swinging direction of the rotating support. Therefore, it is important to regulate the thrust direction of the rotating support. However, if a restricting member that restricts the movement of the rotating support in the thrust direction is added, the number of restricting members that need to be removed increases, and the operability at the time of initial installation of the apparatus main body is degraded. .

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to break the developing device due to vibration and shock during transportation without reducing the operability at the time of initial installation of the device main body in a form in which the developing device is packaged and transported with the developing device mounted on the main body. An image forming apparatus capable of suppressing the above is provided.

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a color electrophotographic image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium, for developing an electrophotographic photosensitive member and an electrostatic latent image formed on the electrophotographic photosensitive member. a plurality of developing devices, said plurality of developing devices and detachably supports, one of the rotary support sequentially moving either the developing position facing the electrophotographic photosensitive member of the plurality of developing devices by rotating And a regulating member that is detachably attached to the main body of the color electrophotographic image forming apparatus and regulates the movement of the rotating support in the thrust direction, and the rotating support is independent in the thrust direction. together constituting a plurality of rotating bodies movable Te, by mounting the regulating member on the apparatus main body, the rotation of the plurality of rotation of the support being attached to said plurality of developing devices It is moved independently in the thrust direction and decreases the clearance of the thrust direction.

  According to the present invention, in a form in which the developing device is packaged and transported with the developing device mounted on the apparatus main body, the developing device is damaged due to vibration and shock during transportation without deteriorating the operability at the initial installation of the device main body. Can be suppressed.

Sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the color electrophotographic image forming apparatus provided with the rotary which supports four developing devices so that attachment or detachment is possible. The perspective view of the rotary structure at the time of normal use which concerns on 1st Embodiment Sectional drawing of the rotary structure at the time of normal use which concerns on 1st Embodiment The perspective view of the rotary structure at the time of shipment and transportation concerning a 1st embodiment Sectional drawing of the rotary structure at the time of shipment and transportation according to the first embodiment Left side view of a rotary configuration according to the first embodiment The perspective view of the rotary structure at the time of normal use which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. Sectional drawing of the rotary structure at the time of normal use which concerns on 2nd Embodiment The perspective view of the rotary structure at the time of shipment and transportation concerning a 2nd embodiment Sectional drawing of the rotary structure at the time of shipment and transportation according to the second embodiment Sectional drawing of the electric power feeding structure concerning 2nd Embodiment

  Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, and relative arrangements of the components described in the following embodiments should be appropriately changed according to the configuration of the apparatus to which the present invention is applied and various conditions. Therefore, unless specifically stated otherwise, the scope of the present invention is not intended to be limited thereto.

[First Embodiment]
[Color electrophotographic image forming apparatus]
A color electrophotographic image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment will be described. Here, a color laser beam printer including four developing devices is illustrated as a color electrophotographic image forming apparatus including a plurality of developing devices. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a color laser beam printer.

  First, the schematic configuration and image forming operation of this color laser beam printer will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus A has a drum-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member (hereinafter referred to as a photosensitive drum) 2. Around the photosensitive drum 2, a charging roller 3, an exposure device 4, four developing devices 18a to 18d, and a cleaning device 6 are arranged. The charging roller 3 is a charging unit for uniformly charging the photosensitive drum 2. The exposure device 4 is an exposure unit that irradiates the photosensitive drum 2 with laser light corresponding to image information. An electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 2 by irradiating the charged photosensitive drum 2 with the laser light. The developing devices 18a to 18d are developing means for developing the latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 2 with a developer of a corresponding color to visualize the latent image. The cleaning device 6 is a cleaning unit that removes the developer remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 2.

  The developing device 18a is a yellow developing device that contains a yellow developer and develops the electrostatic latent image with the yellow developer. The developing device 18b is a magenta developing device that contains a magenta developer and develops the electrostatic latent image with the magenta developer. The developing device 18c is a cyan developing device that contains a cyan developer and develops the electrostatic latent image with the cyan developer. The developing device 18d is a black developing device that contains a black developer and develops the electrostatic latent image with the black developer. That is, the developing devices 18a to 18d develop the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 2. The four developing devices 18a to 18d are detachably supported by a rotary 102 which is a rotatable support body. As will be described later, the rotary 102 is rotatably supported by the apparatus main body 90 of the image forming apparatus A.

  First, the photosensitive drum 2 is rotated in the arrow direction (counterclockwise) in FIG. 1 in synchronization with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt (intermediate transfer member) 7. Then, the surface of the photosensitive drum 2 is uniformly charged by the charging roller 3. At the same time, a yellow image is irradiated by the exposure device 4 to form a yellow electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 2.

  Simultaneously with the formation of the electrostatic latent image, the rotary 102, which is a rotatable rotating support, is rotated by a drive transmission mechanism (not shown) to stop the yellow developing device 18a at the developing position 18X facing the photosensitive drum 2. . At the developing position 18X, the developing roller 182a included in the developing device 18a is in contact with the photosensitive drum 2. Then, a voltage having the same polarity as the charging polarity of the photosensitive drum 2 and substantially the same potential is applied to the developing roller 182a so that the yellow developer adheres to the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 2. Thereby, the electrostatic latent image is developed with a yellow developer. That is, the rotary 102 supports a plurality of developing devices 18a to 18d and rotates in the direction of the arrow r1, thereby moving the supported developing devices one by one to the developing position 18X facing the photosensitive drum 2. Move sequentially. The developing device located at the developing position 18X develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 2 in accordance with the color of the developer stored therein.

  Here, in this embodiment, as the developing rollers 182a to 182d of the developing devices, elastic rollers in which rubber is coated around a metal shaft are used. In the present embodiment, the developing rollers 182a to 182d are in contact with the photosensitive drum 2 at the developing position 18X (contact developing method). Each of the developing rollers 182a to 182d develops the electrostatic latent image while being in contact with the photosensitive drum 2. However, it is not limited to this configuration. The present invention can also be applied to a configuration in which the latent image is developed in a state where any one of the developing rollers 182a to 182d is not in contact with the photosensitive drum 2 at the developing position 18X. Even with such a configuration, the effects described below can be obtained.

  After developing the electrostatic latent image as described above, a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the developer is applied to the primary transfer roller 81 disposed inside the intermediate transfer belt 7. As a result, the yellow developer image formed on the photosensitive drum 2 is primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  As described above, the primary transfer of the yellow developer image is completed. The developing devices 18b to 18d for magenta, cyan, and black are sequentially rotated by the rotation of the rotary 102 and stopped at the developing position 18X facing the photosensitive drum 2. Then, as in the case of yellow, electrostatic latent image formation, development, and primary transfer are sequentially performed for magenta, cyan, and black. As a result, the four color developer images are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  During this time, the secondary transfer roller 82 is not in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 7. At this time, the cleaning unit 9 for removing the residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 7 is not in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 7.

  On the other hand, the sheet S as a recording medium is stored in a cassette 51 provided at the lower part of the apparatus main body 90. The recording medium is for forming a developer image, and is, for example, a recording paper, an OHP sheet, or the like. The sheets S are separated and fed one by one from the cassette 51 by the feeding roller 52 and fed to the registration roller pair (conveying roller) 53. The registration roller pair 53 sends out the fed sheet S between the intermediate transfer belt 7 and the secondary transfer roller 82. Here, the secondary transfer roller 82 and the intermediate transfer belt 7 are in pressure contact (the state shown in FIG. 1).

  Further, a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the developer is applied to the secondary transfer roller 82, and the four color developer images superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 7 are collectively put on the surface of the conveyed sheet S. Is transferred (secondary transfer).

  The sheet S on which the developer image has been transferred is sent to a fixing device (fixing means) 54. In the fixing device 54, the sheet S is heated and pressurized, and the developer image is fixed on the sheet S. As a result, a color image is formed on the sheet S. Then, the sheet S is discharged from the fixing device 54 to the discharge portion of the upper cover 55 outside the apparatus main body 90.

[Configuration around the rotary]
Here, the configuration around the rotary 102 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the main part near the rotary 102, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the rotary 102 which is a rotation support body is configured by a plurality of rotation bodies provided so as to be independently movable in the thrust direction. Here, the rotary 102 is composed of two rotating bodies, a left disk 102L and a right disk 102R. The left disk 102L and the right disk 102R are movably fitted in the thrust direction (the direction of the arrow t in FIG. 3).

  The left arm 103L and the right arm 103R are rotatably supported by the drive shaft 104 that is rotatably supported by the apparatus main body 90. The left disk 103L is rotatably supported by the left arm 103L, and the right disk 102R is rotatably supported by the right arm 103R. That is, the rotary 102 is swingably supported by the apparatus main body 90. Further, developing devices 18 a to 18 d are detachably mounted between the left disc 102 </ b> L and the right disc 102 </ b> R at substantially equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the rotary 102. As the rotary 120 swings about the drive shaft 104 of the apparatus main body 90, the developing device (developing roller) swings in a direction in which the developing device (developing roller) contacts or separates from the photosensitive drum 2. A left drive gear 105 </ b> L and a right drive gear 105 </ b> R that rotate integrally with the drive shaft 104 are attached to the drive shaft 104. The left drive gear 105L meshes with the left disk 102L, and the right drive gear 105R meshes with the right disk 102R. Therefore, when the driving force of a driving source (not shown) (for example, a pulse motor) installed in the apparatus main body is transmitted to the driving shaft 104, the left driving gear 105L and the right driving gear 105R rotate together with the driving shaft 104. To do. Then, the left disk 102L meshed with the left drive gear 105L and the right disk 102R meshed with the right drive gear 105R rotate synchronously, and the rotary 102 rotates.

  The developing devices 18a to 18d are each provided with an input gear (not shown). When the driving force is transmitted to the input gear, the developing rollers 182a to 182d rotate. The input gear of each developing device is supplied with a driving force from a drive transmission shaft 121 rotatably supported by the apparatus main body 90 at the developing position 18X. Therefore, when the rotary 102 rotates and any one of the developing devices 18a to 18d moves to the developing position 18X, the developing device that has moved to the developing position 18X receives a driving force from the apparatus main body 90 and forms on the photosensitive drum 2. The developed latent image can be developed.

  Further, a left arm 103L, a left disk 102L, developing devices 18a to 18d, a right disk 102R, and a right arm 103R are disposed between the left frame 101L and the right frame 101R constituting the apparatus main body 90. These members require a predetermined amount of gap A in the thrust direction from the viewpoint of operational stability. As shown in FIG. 3, the gap between the left frame 101L and the left arm 103L is A1, the gap between the left arm 103L and the left disk 102L is A2, and the gap between the left disk 102L and the developing devices 18a to 18d is A3. A gap between the developing devices 18a to 18d and the right disk 102R is A4, a gap between the right disk 102R and the right arm 103R is A5, and a gap between the right arm 103R and the right frame 101R is A6. Then, the gap A is distributed to positions A1 to A6 while maintaining the relationship of A = A1 + A2 + A3 + A4 + A5 + A6.

[Rotary form for shipping and transportation]
Next, the form at the time of shipment and transportation around the rotary 102 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. 4 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the rotary 102 at the time of shipment / transportation, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the developing devices 18 a to 18 d are mounted on the rotary 102 inside the apparatus main body 90 at the time of shipment / transportation. When an external force is applied by vibration and impact during transportation, the developing devices 18a to 18d can move relative to the device main body 90 if there is the above-described gap A in the thrust direction (see FIG. 3). Therefore, the developing devices 18a to 18d collide with the rotary 102 and a large force is applied.

  Here, the restriction in the thrust direction of the developing devices 18a to 18d will be described. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a removable restricting member 132 is mounted between the left frame 101L and the left disk 102L at the time of shipment. The thrust member width C in the thrust direction is set to be larger than the thrust arm width D in the left arm 103L (C> D). Therefore, the gap A shown in A1 to A6 in FIG. 3 can be reduced. That is, the regulating member 132 detachably attached to the apparatus main body 90 moves the rotary 120 in a state where the developing devices 18a to 18d are attached in the thrust direction, thereby reducing the gap A in the thrust direction. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the force applied to the developing devices 18a to 18d by vibration and shock in the thrust direction, and it is possible to suppress damage to the developing device due to vibration and shock during transportation. In this embodiment, the gap B between the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R is larger than the sum of the gap A3 between the left disk 102L and the developing devices 18a to 18d and the gap A4 between the right disk 102R and the developing devices 18a to 18d. Is set large (A3 + A4 <B). Therefore, as described above, when the regulating member 132 is attached to the apparatus main body 90 and the gap A in the thrust direction is reduced, the gap B is always larger than zero. Therefore, even when the restriction member 132 is attached and the gap A in the thrust direction is reduced as described above, the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R do not hit each other.

  In addition, in the configuration in which the rotary 102 is integrated with the left and right, it is necessary to attach the regulating members to at least two places on the inner side (A3, A4) of the rotary 102 and the outer side (A1, A2, A5, A6) of the rotary 102. In the present embodiment, the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R constituting the rotary 102 can move independently with respect to the thrust direction (axial direction). Therefore, by attaching the regulating member 132 at any one of the gap A1 to the gap A6, the gap from A1 to A6 can be simultaneously reduced by one regulating member. Thereby, when the user removes the regulating member 132 during the initial use of the apparatus, only one place needs to be accessed, and the operability during the initial installation of the apparatus main body is not deteriorated and the usability is improved.

  In the present embodiment, the restriction member 132 is attached between the left frame 101L and the left disk 102L. However, the same effect can be obtained by attaching it to other positions (gap) such as A1 to A6. Further, the regulating member 132 or the component on the apparatus main body 90 side may be elastic and supported elastically in the thrust direction. When elastically supported, the gap A can be set to 0, and the developing devices 18a to 18d do not move relative to the apparatus main body 90 during transportation.

  Next, regulation of the swing direction of the developing devices 18a to 18d will be described. FIG. 6A is a side view of the vicinity of the rotary 102 in a normal use state. The swinging direction represents a direction in which the rotary 102 rotates around the drive shaft 104. In the swing direction as well as in the thrust direction, a clearance is required for operation, but a large force is applied to the developing devices 18a to 18d due to external force during transportation. FIG. 6B is a side view of the vicinity of the rotary 102 during shipping and transportation. As shown in FIG. 6B, by attaching the regulating member 132, the rotary 102 moves in the swinging direction toward the abutting member 131 fixed to the apparatus main body 90, and the gap E is reduced.

  The restricting member 132 restricts the movement of the rotary 120 in the swing direction in a state where the developing device 18 a to 18 d is mounted and the developing device is separated from the photosensitive drum 2. That is, the regulating member 132 regulates the movement of the rotary 102 in the swing direction and the thrust direction with one component. Therefore, the user only needs to remove the restricting member 132 when using the apparatus. The restricting member 132 is fixed to the apparatus main body 90 after being attached (not shown). In this embodiment, the left disk 102L is supported by the restricting member 132. However, the same effect can be obtained at other positions such as the arm 103 that swings around the drive shaft 104. Further, the regulating member 132 or the component on the apparatus main body 90 side may be elastic and supported elastically in the swing direction. When elastically supported, the gap E can be set to 0, and the developing devices 18a to 18d do not move relative to the apparatus main body 90 during transportation.

[Second Embodiment]
A color electrophotographic image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8 show the configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment. The following description is based on these drawings, but the image forming procedure is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the same components and functions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. FIG. 7 is a diagram for comparison with FIG. 2 in the first embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram for comparison with FIG. 3 in the first embodiment.

  In this embodiment, a power supply rod 122 as a power supply unit is installed on the apparatus main body 90 side, and contacts 106a to 106d as power supply contact units are provided on the left disk 102L at positions corresponding to the developing devices 18a to 18d, respectively. It has. The configuration of the power feeding unit will be described later.

  Further, a compression spring 107 as a pressing means is installed between the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R constituting the rotary 120. The compression spring 107 generates a force that presses the left disk 102L toward the left frame 101L installed in the apparatus main body 90 and the right disk 102R toward the right frame 101R installed in the apparatus main body 90. That is, the compression spring 109 presses the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R on one side and the other side (reverse direction) in the thrust direction, respectively. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8, the left disc 102L and the left arm 103L are clogged to the left frame 101L without a gap, and the right disc 102R and the right arm 103R are clogged to the right frame 101R without a gap. (F1 = F2 = F5 = F6 = 0).

  The rotary 120 has a support portion G that supports the mounted developing devices 18a to 18d so as not to move in the thrust direction. Here, the support portion G is provided on the right disk 102R which is the other-side rotating body. Thus, the developing devices 18a to 18d mounted on the rotary 120 are supported by the support portion G of the right disk 102R so as not to move in the thrust direction (F4 = 0).

  That is, according to the above configuration, in the present embodiment, the positions in the thrust direction of the left arm 103L, the left disk 102L, the developing devices 18a to 18d, the right arm 103R, and the right disk 102R during normal use are maintained.

  However, at the time of transportation, the self-weight direction and acceleration of each component change due to the direction of the installation surface and the external force of vibration and impact, and it is difficult to prevent the movement of each component only by pressing the compression spring 107. Therefore, it is necessary to regulate movement around the rotary 102 during transportation.

[Rotary form for shipping and transportation]
Next, the form at the time of shipment and transportation around the rotary 102 will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. 9 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the rotary 102 at the time of shipment / transportation, and FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

  Here, the restriction in the thrust direction of the developing devices 18a to 18d will be described. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a removable restricting member 132L is mounted between the left frame 101L and the left disk 102L at the time of shipment. The width I of the restricting member 132L in the thrust direction is set larger than the width J of the left arm 103L in the thrust direction (I> J). Therefore, the gap F3 in FIG. 8 can be reduced. That is, the regulating member 132L detachably attached to the apparatus main body 90 moves the rotary 120 with the developing devices 18a to 18d attached thereto in the thrust direction, thereby reducing the thrust gap C3. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the force applied to the developing devices 18a to 18d by vibration and shock in the thrust direction, and it is possible to suppress damage to the developing device due to vibration and shock during transportation. In this embodiment, the gap H between the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R is set larger than the gap F3 between the left disk 102L and the developing devices 18a to 18d (F3 <H). Therefore, as described above, when the regulating member 132L is mounted and the gap F3 in the thrust direction is reduced, the gap H is always larger than zero. Therefore, even when the restriction member 132L is attached and the gap F3 in the thrust direction is reduced as described above, the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R do not collide.

  Also in the present embodiment, the left disk 102L and the right disk 102R constituting the rotary 102 can move in the thrust direction (axial direction) independently on the left and right. Therefore, by attaching the restricting member 132L to any one of F1 to F6, the gap from F1 to F6 can be reduced at the same time, and usability when removing the restricting member 132L is improved.

  Next, the regulation of the swinging direction of the developing devices 18a to 18d in the present embodiment will be described. A right abutting member (not shown) is provided at a position facing the left abutting member 131L in the thrust direction. The left abutting member 131L has a shape that regulates the thrust direction of the developing devices 18a to 18d between the left frame 101L and the left disk 102L. However, during normal use, the left abutting member 131L and the left disc 102L are separated from each other and are not regulated in the thrust direction. Then, only when the restricting member 132L is attached and the rotary 102 is moved in the swinging direction, the left abutting member 131L and the left disk 102L come into contact with each other to restrict the thrust direction. Therefore, only when the regulating member 132L is mounted, the gap in the thrust direction can be reduced at a plurality of positions, and the force applied to the developing devices 18a to 18d can be more reliably suppressed.

  Next, a power supply configuration to the developing device will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11A is a cross-sectional view in the arrow K direction shown in FIG. 8 in a normal use state. FIG. 11B is a cross-sectional view in the direction of arrow L shown in FIG.

  The left disk 102 </ b> L, which is a rotating body on one side, includes contacts 106 a to 106 d as power feeding contact portions that can come into contact with the power feeding rod 122 installed in the apparatus main body 90. The developing devices 18a to 18d are provided with developing contacts 183a to 183d as power feeding receiving portions that can come into contact with the contacts 106a to 106d provided on the left disk 102L. The developing contacts 183a to 183d of each developing device are brought into pressure contact with the contacts 106a to 106d, respectively, by connecting the developing device to the rotary, and are electrically connected. The power feeding rod 122 is pressed by the power feeding spring 123 from one side in the thrust direction to the other side, and is guided by the power feeding rod guide 124 so as to be movable in the thrust direction. The power supply rod 122 installed in the apparatus main body 90 is in pressure contact with any of the contacts 106a to 106d at the developing position 18X, and supplies power to the developing rollers 182a to 182d via the developing contacts 183a to 183d. However, if the supply voltage contacts (power supply rod 122, contacts 106a to 106d, development contacts 183a to 183d) are in contact with each other during transportation, there is a possibility that vibrations and impacts during transportation may lead to the occurrence of sliding scratches, failure, etc. There is.

  Here, a power supply configuration at the time of shipment / transportation will be described with reference to FIG. At the time of shipment / transportation, the left disk 102L is regulated in the thrust direction by the left regulating member 132L and the left abutting member 131L, and moves to the inside of the apparatus main body 90. That is, the left disk 102L, which is the one-side rotating body, is moved toward the direction in which the contacts 106a to 106d provided on the left disk 102L are separated from the power supply rod 122 (the other side in the thrust direction). On the other hand, the developing devices 18a to 18d are supported by the support portion G of the right disk 102R, which is the other side of the rotating body, and abut against the right frame 101R side by the compression spring 107, and therefore do not move. Therefore, the contacts 106a to 106d and the developing contacts 183a to 183d are separated from each other. Further, at this time, the power feeding rod 122 moves inward together with the left disk 102L, but when it abuts against the power feeding rod guide 124, the power feeding rod 122 does not move any further, and the power feeding rod 122 and the contacts 106a to 106d are separated. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a sliding scratch at the supply voltage contact portion due to vibration and impact during transportation, failure, and the like. In the present embodiment, the supply voltage contact portion is separated during transportation. However, the occurrence of sliding scratches, failure, etc. can also be suppressed by widening the operating length of the power supply spring 123 to reduce the contact pressure. .

  The restriction member 132L moves the left disk 102L toward the other side in the thrust direction and restricts it in the thrust direction, thereby moving the contacts 106a to 106d away from the power supply rod 122 to reduce the contact pressure ( Or separated). Thereby, the generation | occurrence | production and failure | failure, etc. of the sliding contact of the supply voltage contact part by the vibration and impact at the time of transportation can be prevented.

  Further, the restricting member 132L moves the left disk 102L toward the other side in the thrust direction, thereby reducing the gap F3 with the developing device supported by the support portion G of the right disk 102R and developing contact 183a. -183d and the contacts 106a-106d are separated. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production and failure | failure, etc. of the sliding contact of the supply voltage contact part by the vibration and impact at the time of transportation can be prevented more reliably.

Other Embodiment
In the above-described embodiment, four developing devices that can be attached to and detached from the rotating support are used. However, the number of the used developing devices is not limited, and may be set as necessary.

  In the above-described embodiment, the printer is exemplified as the image forming apparatus, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the image forming apparatus may be another image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a facsimile machine, or another image forming apparatus such as a multi-function machine combining these functions. Alternatively, an image forming apparatus that uses a recording medium carrier and sequentially superimposes and transfers the toner images of the respective colors onto the recording medium carried on the recording medium carrier. The same effect can be obtained by applying the present invention to an image forming apparatus provided with a rotating support that removably supports a plurality of developing devices.

A ... Image forming apparatus G ... Supporting part S ... Sheet 2 ... Photoconductor drum 18X ... Developing positions 18a to 18d ... Developing apparatus 90 ... Main body 101L ... Left frame 101R ... Right frame 102 ... Rotary 102L ... Left disk 102R ... Right disk 103L ... Left arm 103R ... Right arm 104 ... Drive shaft 105L ... Left drive gear 105R ... Right drive gears 106a to 106d ... Contact 107 ... Compression spring 121 ... Drive transmission shaft 122 ... Power supply rod 131L ... Left abutting member 132 ... Regulating member 132L ... Left regulating member 182a-182d ... Developing roller 183a-183d ... Developing contact

Claims (4)

In a color electrophotographic image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium,
An electrophotographic photoreceptor;
A plurality of developing devices for developing the electrostatic latent image formed on the electrophotographic photosensitive member;
One rotating support that supports the plurality of developing devices in a detachable manner and sequentially moves one of the plurality of developing devices to a developing position facing the electrophotographic photosensitive member; and
A regulating member that is detachably attached to the main body of the color electrophotographic image forming apparatus and regulates the movement of the rotating support in the thrust direction;
Have
The rotating support is composed of a plurality of rotating bodies that can move independently in the thrust direction,
By mounting the restriction member on the apparatus main body, the plurality of rotating bodies of the rotation support body in a state in which the plurality of developing devices are mounted are moved independently in the thrust direction so that a gap in the thrust direction is formed. A color electrophotographic image forming apparatus characterized in that it is reduced.   The rotating support is supported by the apparatus main body so as to swing in a direction in which the developing device contacts or separates from the electrophotographic photosensitive member, and the regulating member includes the plurality of regulating members. The rotation support with the developing device mounted is also restricted in movement of the rotation support in the abutting or separating direction with the developing device being separated from the electrophotographic photosensitive member. The color electrophotographic image forming apparatus according to claim 1. A power receiving portion provided on one side in the thrust direction of the developing device;
A power supply contact portion provided on a rotary body on one side in a thrust direction of the rotary support, and capable of contacting the power supply receiving portion;
A power supply unit provided in the apparatus main body, in contact with the power supply contact unit, and configured to supply power to the developing device via the power supply receiving unit;
Have
The regulating member moves the rotating body on one side toward the other side in the thrust direction, and moves the feeding contact portion in a direction away from the feeding portion to reduce the contact pressure. The color electrophotographic image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. And a support portion that is provided on the rotating body on the other side in the thrust direction of the rotating support and supports the developing device so as not to move in the thrust direction.
The regulating member moves the one-side rotator toward the other side in the thrust direction to reduce a gap with the developing device supported by a support portion of the other-side rotator, and The color electrophotographic image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the power supply receiving unit and the power supply contact unit are separated from each other.

Images