JP5845980B2 - Cover opening / closing mechanism and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cover opening / closing mechanism that supports a cover to be freely opened and closed with respect to an apparatus main body, and an image forming apparatus including the same.

Image forming apparatuses such as copiers are provided with a cover opening / closing mechanism that supports the exterior cover so that it can be freely opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body, and the user can store the toner mounted inside the apparatus body by opening and closing the exterior cover. Consumables such as bottles can be attached and detached.
Fig.9 (a) is a figure which shows the structural example of a cover opening / closing mechanism.
As shown in the figure, the outer cover 91 has a lower end supported rotatably on the apparatus main body 90 by a support shaft 92, and the user can close the outer cover to shield the inside of the apparatus main body 90 ( By rotating the support shaft 92 from the solid line) to a fulcrum and tilting it to an open position (broken line) that opens the inside of the apparatus main body 90, the toner containing bottle 93 as a consumable item mounted inside the apparatus main body 90 is obtained. Can be pulled out to the front side of the apparatus.

When a configuration using a single support shaft 92 as shown in FIG. 9A is taken, a space (moving space) around the support shaft 92 for the lower end portion of the exterior cover 91 to rotate around the support shaft 92. It is necessary to provide a gap D corresponding to the moving space between the exterior cover 91 and another exterior cover 94 disposed immediately below the exterior cover 91.
If a large gap D is interposed between the outer covers 91 and 94, the appearance will be poor, and if the apparatus main body has been made compact in response to the recent demand for apparatus miniaturization, such a large gap D can be removed. There may be no. If an attempt is made to take a large gap D, the entire apparatus may be increased in size in the height direction, which would be contrary to the request for downsizing the apparatus.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9B, a configuration has been proposed in which the exterior cover 91 and the apparatus main body 90 are connected via a U-shaped arm 96. With this configuration, when the exterior cover 91 is tilted from the closed position to the open position, the arm 96 rotates around the support shaft 97, and the entire exterior cover 91 is a device as shown in FIG. It looks like it has been rotated outside the main body 90.
For this reason, it is not necessary to provide a movement space for allowing the outer cover 91 to rotate around the support shaft 92 inside the apparatus main body 10 as in the configuration of FIG. Even if the large gap D is not provided between the outer cover 91 and the outer cover 91, the outer cover 91 can be supported to be opened and closed.

JP 2007-160816 A

However, in the configuration using the arm 96 in FIG. 9B, as shown in FIG. 9C, when the exterior cover 91 is stopped in the open posture, the end of the exterior cover 91 on the apparatus main body 90 side is provided. A gap d is generated in the horizontal direction between the edge (lower end) 911 and the exterior cover 94.
When the gap d is formed between the outer covers 91 and 94, when the user opens the outer cover 91 and pulls out the toner containing bottle 93 from the apparatus main body 90, the toner containing bottle 93 is not cleaned due to vibration during the operation. When the toner T existing in the toner replenishing port 95 provided on the side surface or the bottom surface falls and falls, the dropped toner T passes through the gap d and is scattered on the floor of the room where the apparatus main body 90 is installed, and the floor is soiled. There is a problem of fear.

Such a problem is not limited to the toner storage bottle, but a device in which a container that may drop powder or the like when a container such as a consumable that stores powder or liquid is taken out from the apparatus main body is attached or detached. In general, a cover opening / closing mechanism for supporting the cover on the main body so as to be freely opened and closed may be generated.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and includes a cover opening / closing mechanism that prevents a horizontal gap from being generated between the cover and the apparatus main body when the cover is opened. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, a cover opening / closing mechanism according to the present invention is a cover opening / closing mechanism that supports a cover so that the cover can be tilted to the outside of the apparatus body from a closed position that shields the inside of the apparatus body to an open position that opens. One end portion is supported by the apparatus main body so as to be rotatable about the first support shaft, and the other end portion is centered on the cover and the second support shaft located above the first support shaft. An arm that is rotatably supported, a first stopper that restricts the amount of rotation of the arm with respect to the apparatus main body, and a second stopper that restricts the amount of rotation of the cover with respect to the arm. As the cover rotates with respect to the arm, the arm starts to rotate with respect to the main body of the apparatus, and the cover is in the open position by regulating the amount of rotation of the first stopper and the second stopper. Ma When tilted and stopped, the distance from the second support shaft to the second support shaft is greater than the horizontal distance L1 from the second support shaft to the upper end of the exterior of the device body located below the cover. The positional relationship of the first stopper with respect to the arm and the second support shaft with respect to the cover and the second support shaft are such that the horizontal distance L2 to the edge of the apparatus main body side of the cover in the open posture is longer. The positional relationship between the two stoppers is determined.

Further, the arm has a bent portion between the one end and the other end, and when the cover is in a closed position, each of the one end and the other end Is arranged at a position closer to the outside of the apparatus main body than the bent portion , the first stopper may be provided on the apparatus main body, and the second stopper may be provided on the arm.
Here, the first stopper may be disposed at a position facing the inner surface of the bent portion of the arm.

Here, an elastic member interposed between the inner surface of the arm and the first stopper may be provided on the arm or the first stopper.
The arm is provided with an elongated hole or notch extending along the rotation direction, and the first stopper engages with the elongated hole or notch of the arm, and the arm rotates. The amount of rotation of the arm may be regulated by contacting the end of the long hole or notch of the arm on the upstream side in the middle of the arm rotation direction.

Furthermore, when another open / close cover is arranged at a position directly below the cover, the cover in a state of being stopped in the open posture is positioned above the moving range when the other open / close cover is opened and closed. The position of the second stopper with respect to the cover in the rotation direction of the cover may be determined.
The present invention provides an image forming unit for forming an image on an image carrier with toner, a developing unit for developing an electrostatic latent image on the image carrier with toner, or a toner containing bottle for containing toner for image formation. An image forming apparatus detachably attachable to the exterior cover that is opened and closed when the image forming unit, the developing unit, or the toner containing bottle is attached and detached, and a mechanism for opening and closing the exterior cover. The above-mentioned cover opening / closing mechanism is provided.

In this way, when the cover is in the open position, the edge of the cover on the device body side enters the inside of the device body from the upper end of the exterior of the device body located below the cover. There is no gap in the horizontal direction between the cover and the exterior of the apparatus body.
Therefore, when applied to the image forming apparatus, when the user opens the cover and takes out the toner containing bottle attached to the apparatus main body, the toner falls from the replenishing port of the toner containing bottle. However, the fallen toner only needs to adhere to the cover in the open position, that is, the cover functions as a member that receives the fallen toner, so that the floor on which the image forming apparatus is installed is prevented from being stained with toner. be able to.

1 is a diagram for explaining an overall configuration of a copying machine. FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state where an upper cover of the copying machine is opened. It is a figure which shows the structure of the cover opening / closing mechanism with respect to an upper cover and a lower cover. It is an enlarged detailed view of a cover opening / closing mechanism. It is a figure for demonstrating cover opening / closing operation | movement. It is a figure which shows the modification of a cover opening / closing mechanism. It is a figure which shows another modification of a cover opening / closing mechanism. It is a figure which shows another modification of a cover opening / closing mechanism. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the conventional cover opening / closing mechanism.

Hereinafter, a case where the embodiment of the cover opening / closing mechanism according to the present invention is applied to a mechanism for opening / closing an exterior cover provided in a copying machine as an image forming apparatus will be described as an example.
(1) Configuration of Copying Machine FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the copying machine 1.
As shown in the figure, the copying machine 1 includes a scanner unit 2 and a print unit 3, and Y (yellow), M (magenta), C (cyan), and K (black) are printed on a sheet by electrophotography. A copy job for forming a color toner image with each color toner is executed.

The scanner unit 2 reads an image of a document and outputs the read image data.
The print unit 3 forms a color toner image on a sheet based on the image data from the scanner unit 2, and is not shown here, but for each of Y to K colors, a photosensitive drum, a developing device, or the like. The toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum by a developing device, and the formed toner images of the respective colors are transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt and then transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt. In other words, the toner image is transferred onto a sheet of paper in a so-called tandem configuration. Each image forming unit is also provided with a cleaner that removes and collects residual toner that is not transferred to the intermediate transfer belt but remains on the photosensitive drum during transfer from the photosensitive drum to the intermediate transfer belt. ing.

  An operation unit 4 is disposed at a position of the scanner unit 2 that is easy for the user to operate. The user can input a copy job execution instruction and the number of copies by pressing a key provided on the operation unit 4. Hereinafter, the side on which the operation unit 4 is arranged in the copying machine 1 is referred to as the apparatus front side, and the opposite side is referred to as the apparatus back side. Further, the X direction corresponds to the horizontal direction, the Y direction corresponds to the vertical direction, and the Z direction corresponds to the apparatus front-rear direction.

In addition to the above-described photosensitive drum and the like, the print unit 3 contains Y to K color toner storage bottles 6 (see FIG. 3) that store toner to be replenished in the developing unit, and residual toner collected by the cleaner. A waste toner collection bottle 8 (see FIG. 3) to be accommodated is detachably mounted.
The user can attach and detach the toner storage bottle 6 and the waste toner collection bottle 8 by opening and closing the upper exterior cover 11 and the lower exterior cover 12 provided on the front side of the apparatus. The exterior covers (hereinafter abbreviated as “covers”) 11 and 12 are each made of resin and have a rectangular shape when viewed from the front.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state in which the upper cover 11 is opened, and corresponds to the insides of four slots (openings) 5Y, 5M, 5C, and 5K provided on the front side of the apparatus main body 10, respectively. A toner containing bottle 6 of the color to be mounted is attached. This figure shows a state in which the toner containing bottle 6 is not attached.
When the user replaces the toner containing bottle 6, the cover 11 is opened to open the inside of the apparatus main body 10, and the old toner containing bottle 6 that is actually mounted inside the apparatus main body 10 is removed from the slots 5 </ b> Y to 5 </ b> K. After pulling out to the front side in the horizontal direction, the new toner containing bottle 6 can be inserted into the slots 5Y to 5K all the way toward the back of the apparatus and then the cover 11 can be closed. Hereinafter, the posture in which the cover 11 shields the inside of the apparatus main body 10 (FIG. 1) is referred to as a closed posture, and the posture in which the cover 11 is opened (FIG. 2) is referred to as an open posture.

When the user performs an operation of pulling out the old toner storage bottle 6 to the front side of the apparatus with the cover 11 opened to replace the toner storage bottle 6, due to vibration during the operation, the toner storage bottle 6 A portion of the toner remaining inside the toner containing bottle 6 may spill and fall from the toner supply port 7 (see FIG. 3) provided on the side surface (or bottom surface).
When the falling toner is scattered on the floor on which the copying machine 1 is placed, the floor is soiled. To prevent this, the cover opening / closing mechanism of the present embodiment places the cover 11 in the open position on the falling toner. It is comprised so that it can function as a receiving member.

(2) Cover Opening / Closing Mechanism FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the cover opening / closing mechanism for the covers 11 and 12, and shows a partial cross-sectional view of the copying machine 1 along the plane A in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the lower end of the cover 11 is supported by the apparatus main body 10 via a U-shaped arm 20 that opens toward the apparatus front side (outside of the apparatus main body 10).

As shown in the enlarged detail view of FIG. 4, the arm 20 has one end (lower side) 20a that can rotate in the direction indicated by arrows a1 and a2 about a support shaft 21 that extends horizontally in the apparatus body 10. The other end (upper side) 20b supports the cover 11 at a position above the support shaft 21 so as to be rotatable about the support shaft 22 along the horizontal direction in the directions indicated by arrows b1 and b2. It is a resin member.
The support shaft (first support shaft) 21 is a resin shaft fixedly supported on the apparatus body 10, and the support shaft (second support shaft) 22 is integrally formed when the resin cover 11 is molded. This is the shaft part.

One end portion 20a of the arm 20 has a bowl shape, and the other end portion 20b is provided with a through hole 20d. The end portion 20a is rotatably fitted to the support shaft 21 while the end portion 20a is rotatably fitted to the support shaft 21. The cover 11 and the apparatus main body 10 can be connected by the arm 20 by a simple operation of fitting the support shaft 22 into the through hole 20d of the portion 20b in a rotatable manner.
A stopper 23 for restricting the rotation of the arm 20 in the direction indicated by the arrow a <b> 1 is attached to the apparatus main body 10 at a position between the outer surface 20 e of the lower bent portion of the arm 20 and the apparatus main body 10. . The stopper 23 is made of an elastic body such as resin or rubber, and the position with respect to the arm 20 is determined in advance so as to contact the surface 20e of the bent portion of the arm 20 when the cover 11 is in the closed posture.

On the other hand, at a position opposite to the stopper 23 across the arm 20 (a position facing the inner surface 20f of the opening portion of the arm 20), the amount of rotation of the arm 20 in the direction indicated by the arrow a2 is regulated. The stopper (first stopper) 24 is attached to the apparatus main body 10.
Due to the stoppers 23 and 24, the arm 20 is allowed to rotate only within a region sandwiched by the stoppers 23 and 24 around the support shaft 21. Hereinafter, the rotational position of the arm 20 when the outer surface 20e of the arm 20 is in contact with the stopper 23 is the home position, and the rotational position of the arm 20 when the inner surface 20f of the arm 20 is in contact with the stopper 24. Is called the regulated position.

Returning to FIG. 3, the cover 12 disposed immediately below the cover 11 is rotatable about the support shaft 13 via a support shaft 13 that is provided at the lower end portion of the apparatus main body 10 along the horizontal direction. It is supported. The figure shows a state where the cover 12 is closed (closed posture).
The user opens the cover 12 by tilting the cover 12 to the front side of the apparatus with the support shaft 13 as a fulcrum (open posture: see FIG. 5C), and the waste toner collection bottle 8 attached to the apparatus main body 10 is opened. After removing the waste toner collection bottle 8 to the apparatus main body 10 after taking out to the front side of the apparatus, an operation of closing the cover 12 can be performed.

  In the present embodiment, the cover 11 can be opened / closed (open / close angle) so that the toner storage bottle 6 and the waste toner collection bottle 8 can be attached / detached with both the cover 11 and the cover 12 opened simultaneously. ) Is predetermined. Here, when the cover 11 and the cover 12 are in the closed position, the outer surfaces of the cover 11 and the cover 12 are flush with each other, and the upper end 12a of the exterior (outer surface) of the cover 12 in the apparatus front-rear direction. The position is referred to as an exterior position G.

(3) Description of Cover Opening / Closing Operation FIGS. 5A to 5C are diagrams for explaining the cover opening / closing operation.
FIG. 5A shows that the cover 11 starts to tilt toward the front side of the apparatus from the closed posture, and the arm 20 at the home position starts to rotate around the support shaft 21 in the direction indicated by the arrow a2 (opening direction). The first state when the inner surface 20f of the arm 20 abuts against the stopper 24 during the rotation and shifts to the restriction position (when rotated to a predetermined angle J) is shown. The predetermined angle J corresponds to the rotation angle of the arm 20 from the home position to the restriction position.

When a force in the direction of tilting toward the front side of the apparatus by the user further acts on the cover 11 in the first state, the cover 11 is shown by an arrow b2 with the support shaft 22 as the center with respect to the arm 20 whose rotation is restricted by the stopper 24. Rotate in the direction (open direction).
FIG. 5B shows a second state (corresponding to an open posture) in which the cover 11 is rotated in the opening direction by a predetermined angle K from the first state, and the rotation stop of the cover 11 is an enlarged view. As shown in FIG. 4, the lower end portion 11a, which is a folded portion on the lower end side of the cover 11, is brought into contact with the restricting surface 20c of the arm 20, and the rotation of the cover 11 in the opening direction with respect to the arm 20 is restricted. In this sense, the regulating surface 20c of the arm 20 functions as a stopper (second stopper) for regulating the amount of rotation of the cover 11 in the opening direction with respect to the arm 20. Hereinafter, the regulation surface 20c of the arm 20 is referred to as a stopper 20c.

The predetermined angle K corresponds to the rotation angle of the cover 11 until the cover 11 transitions from the first state to the second state, and is below the lowest position F of the region in which the toner containing bottle 6 moves in the horizontal direction when being attached or detached. The angle is such that the cover 11 stops. Thus, the cover 11 does not interfere with the attachment / detachment of the toner containing bottle 6.
When the cover 11 is in the second state, that is, in the open position, the vertical line passing through the support shaft 22, here the center, is S, the horizontal distance from the vertical line S to the exterior position G is L1, and the vertical line S When the horizontal distance to the vertical line T passing through the edge (end on the apparatus main body 10 side) 11e of the cover 11 in the open posture is L2, the cover 11 and the apparatus main body satisfy the relationship L1 <L2. 10, the positional relationship between the arm 20, the stopper 24, and the stopper 20c, specifically, the positional relationship between the stopper 24 with respect to the arm 20, and the positional relationship between the support shaft 22 and the stopper 20c with respect to the cover 11 are determined in advance.

With such a positional relationship, when the cover 11 is in the open position, the edge 11e of the cover 11 enters the inside of the apparatus body 10 from the exterior position G, and the upper ends of the cover 11 and the cover 12 are There is no gap in the horizontal direction between 12a.
Accordingly, even if the toner drops from the toner supply port 7 during the operation of pulling out the toner containing bottle 6 that is actually attached to the apparatus main body 10 to the front side of the apparatus, it falls on the cover 11 in the open position, and the cover 11 The falling toner is received, and it is prevented from being scattered on the floor.

Further, when the cover 11 transitions from the closed position to the open position, the support shaft 22 that is the rotation center of the cover 11 moves from the inside of the apparatus main body 10 to the front side of the apparatus (outside of the apparatus) due to the rotation of the arm 20 in the opening direction. While moving, the cover 11 rotates about the support shaft 22 with respect to the arm 20.
As a result, there is no need to provide a moving space for rotating the cover 11 around the support shaft 22 inside the apparatus main body 10, and a vertical gap between the cover 11 and the cover 12 (D in FIG. 9A). It is not necessary to take a larger value. Therefore, a large gap between the upper and lower covers does not deteriorate the appearance, and the entire apparatus does not increase in size in the height direction, and the request for downsizing the apparatus can be met.

Furthermore, if the opening / closing angle of the cover 11 is too large, the cover 11 obstructs the opening / closing of the lower cover 12 when the cover 11 is in the open position, that is, the cover 11 enters the movement (rotation) area when the cover 12 is opened / closed. Both covers interfere and the cover 12 cannot be opened or closed.
For this reason, as shown in FIG. 5C, the cover 11 by the stopper 20c is positioned so that the stop position of the cover 11 in the open posture is located above the movement range (movement locus of the upper end of the cover 12) E. , That is, the position of the stopper 20c with respect to the cover 11 in the rotation direction (opening direction) of the cover 11 is adjusted.

As a result, when the cover 11 stops in the open posture, the cover 12 can be opened and closed at the same time, and the user opens both the cover 11 and the cover 12 to open the toner containing bottle 6 and the waste toner collection bottle. The operation of exchanging them together can be performed by pulling out 8 to the front side of the apparatus.
In the state where both the cover 11 and the cover 12 are opened as shown in FIG. 5C, the exterior position G in the front-rear direction of the apparatus is lower than the cover 11 instead of the upper end 12a of the cover 12. Although the position G1 of the front surface of the main body 10 is reached, the positional relationship between the arm 20 and the stopper 24 is determined so as to satisfy the above relationship L1 <L2.

  In FIG. 5A, the cover 11 hardly rotates around the support shaft 22 with respect to the arm 20 until the cover 11 rotates from the closed position to the opening direction by a predetermined angle J. Although shown, it is not limited to this. Depending on the magnitude relationship between the frictional force in the rotation direction of the arm 20 with respect to the support shaft 21 and the frictional force in the rotation direction of the arm 20 with respect to the support shaft 22, the arm 20 opens in the opening direction with respect to the apparatus body 10 around the support shaft 21. At the same time, the cover 11 may rotate in the opening direction about the support shaft 22 with respect to the arm 20 while rotating.

  Furthermore, the stopper 20c for restricting the amount of rotation of the cover 11 with respect to the arm 20 in the opening direction is provided on the arm 20, but the present invention is not limited to this, and may be provided on the apparatus main body 10 side, for example. Specifically, the cover 11 rotates about the support shaft 22 with respect to the arm 20, and the lower portion of the outer surface of the cover 11 is the upper end 12 a of the outer surface of the cover 12 in the closed posture during the rotation. The upper end 12a of the cover 12 can be regarded as a stopper (second stopper) with respect to the arm 20 of the cover 11 when the rotation of the cover 11 with respect to the arm 20 stops and shifts to the open posture.

(Modification)
As described above, the present invention has been described based on the embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the following modifications may be considered.
(1) FIG. 6 is a view showing a modification of the cover opening / closing mechanism in which the elastic member 201 is provided on the V-shaped arm 200.

As shown in the figure, the arm 200 is provided with a notch 202 at a portion facing the stopper 240 (first stopper), and the elastic member 201 is fitted into the notch 202.
The arm 200 can rotate within a range of a predetermined angle J around the support shaft 21, and when the arm 200 is in the home position shown in the figure, the elastic member 201 has its head 203 separated from the notch 202. In a state of protruding outward, it is pressed between the arm 200 and the stopper 240 and is slightly compressed.

When the arm 200 rotates in the opening direction (arrow a2 direction), the elastic member 201 is further compressed, and the compression of the elastic member 201 is maximized when the arm 200 is rotated to the restriction position where it comes into contact with the stopper 240. It is configured.
When the arm 200 is located at the home position, the state where the arm 200 is in contact with the stopper 23 is maintained by the restoring force of the elastic member 201 interposed between the arm 240 and the arm 240 at the home position. 200 is prevented from rattling easily within the range of the predetermined angle J, and the cover 11 can be more stably maintained in the closed posture.

  The elastic member 201 can be made of, for example, rubber or a spring, but may be other materials or members. The elastic member 201 is fitted into the notch 203 of the arm 200. However, the elastic member 201 is not limited to this. For example, the elastic member 201 may be provided on the stopper 240 side, or both on the arm 200 side and the stopper 240 side. May be provided individually at each position facing each other.

(2) FIG. 7 shows a pin-shaped resin stopper provided in the apparatus main body 10 in an elongated hole 211 provided in the L-shaped arm 210 along the opening direction (arrow a2 direction: arm rotation direction). It is a figure which shows the modification of the cover opening-and-closing mechanism formed by engaging 250 (1st stopper).
As shown in the figure, the arm 210 can rotate within a range of a predetermined angle P corresponding to the stroke length of the long hole 211 provided in the arm 210 around the support shaft 21, and the stopper 250 has the long hole 211. When it is in contact with the end 212 on the downstream side in the arm rotation direction (the state in the figure), it is the home position, and when it is in contact with the upstream end 213, it is the restricting position.

Since one stopper 250 is engaged with the long hole 211 of the arm 210, it is not necessary to arrange the two stoppers 23 and 24 as described above, and the configuration can be simplified accordingly.
FIG. 8 shows a resin stopper provided in the apparatus main body 10 by providing a cutout portion 221 that is cut over a predetermined length in the arm rotation direction (arrow a2 direction) on the outer edge of the L-shaped arm 220. It is a figure which shows the modification of the cover opening-and-closing mechanism formed by engaging 260 (1st stopper) with the notch part 221. FIG.

As shown in the figure, the arm 220 can rotate within a range of a predetermined angle Q corresponding to the length in the arm rotation direction of the notch 221 around the support shaft 21, and the stopper 260 is notched at the notch. The home position is in contact with the end portion 222 on the downstream side of the arm rotation direction 221 (the state in the figure), and the restriction position is in contact with the end portion 223 on the upstream side.
Similar to the above example (2), since one stopper 260 is engaged with the notch portion 221 of the arm 220, the configuration can be simplified because two stoppers need not be arranged. .

(3) In the above embodiment, the toner containing bottle 6 is a member to be replaced, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when an image forming unit including a photosensitive drum, a developing device, and the like is configured to be detachable from the apparatus main body 10 in units, the opening and closing of a cover that is opened and closed when the image forming unit is pulled out from the apparatus main body 10. It can also be applied to mechanisms.
This is because the toner in the developing unit provided in the image forming unit may spill out due to vibration during the operation of attaching and detaching the image forming unit.

  In some cases, instead of the image forming unit, the developing device may be replaced as a developing unit, or the cleaner may be replaced as a cleaner unit. This is because the cleaner removes the residual toner on the photosensitive drum, but the removed residual toner may spill out from the inside of the cleaner unit due to vibration when the cleaner unit is attached or detached. Even in such a case, by applying the cover opening / closing mechanism in the same manner as described above, it is possible to prevent the falling toner from scattering to the floor.

(4) In the above embodiment, the conventional cover (FIG. 9A) that opens and closes with only one support shaft 13 is applied to the lower cover 12. This is because another cover is not arranged and there is a space around the support shaft 13 of the cover 12. If another cover is disposed, the same opening / closing mechanism as the cover 11 can be employed.
Moreover, although the example in the case of applying to the cover 11 on the front side of the apparatus has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and a cover that is tilted to the outside of the apparatus main body 10 with the lower side as a fulcrum from the vertical position and stopped in the horizontal position, The present invention can also be applied to a cover on the side surface of the apparatus and a cover on the back side.

  (5) In the above embodiment, the outer surface of the upper cover 11 and the outer surface of the lower cover 12 are flush with each other, and the upper end 12 a of the outer surface of the cover 12 is connected to the upper surface of the cover 11. As an upper end of the exterior on the apparatus main body 10 side positioned below, an example in which the horizontal distance from the upper end 12a (position G) to the support shaft 22 (vertical line S) is L1 has been described. Not limited. For example, when the lower cover 12 is located slightly closer to the back side (back side) of the apparatus than the upper cover 11, the upper end of the outer surface of the lower cover 12 is used as the upper end of the exterior. The horizontal distance from the upper end to the support shaft 22 is L1.

In addition, when the outer surface of the lower cover 12 is not flat, for example, when the longitudinal cross-sectional shape of the outer surface is an arcuate shape with the front side of the apparatus being convex or concave, the upper end of the arcuate shape is The upper end of the exterior can be used.
Further, for example, even when a left and right (horizontal) opening exterior cover is provided instead of the cover 12 tilting toward the front side of the apparatus, the cover 11 is more open than the moving range when the side opening cover is opened and closed. By determining the stop position, it is possible to open and close the laterally open cover while the cover 11 is in the open posture. In addition, when an exterior cover that is not opened and closed is provided directly below the cover 11 instead of the openable and closable cover 12, the upper end of the exterior cover can be the upper end of the exterior.

  (6) In the above embodiment, an example in which the cover opening / closing mechanism according to the present invention is applied to the cover opening / closing mechanism of a color copying machine as an image forming apparatus has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. Regardless of whether a color or monochrome image can be formed, the present invention can be applied to a cover opening / closing mechanism of an image forming apparatus that needs to open / close the cover in order to replace the toner containing bottle 6 or the image forming unit. it can.

  Moreover, although the example at the time of making an arm into U shape, V shape, or L shape was demonstrated, it shall not be restricted to these, but shall have the shape opened to the apparatus front side also including U-shape etc. The main body of the cover 11 in the open posture from the support shaft 22 is more than the horizontal distance (L1) from the support shaft 22 to the upper end 12a of the exterior with reference to the support shaft 22 of the cover 11 in the open posture. The distance (L2) in the horizontal direction to the side edge 11e is longer, that is, the edge (lower end) of the cover 11 in the open position is placed inside the apparatus from the upper end of the exterior of the apparatus body 10. In addition, the positional relationship between the support shafts 21 and 22 and the stoppers 24 and 20c can be determined in advance.

  Furthermore, it goes without saying that the materials of the members such as the cover 11, the arm 20, the support shafts 21 and 22, and the stopper 24 are not limited to the above, and may be made of metal, for example. Further, although one end 20a of the arm 20 is rotatably supported by the support shaft 21 provided on the apparatus main body 10 side, the present invention is not limited to this, and the support shaft is supported by the one end 20a of the arm 20. 21 and a support portion that rotatably supports the support shaft 21 may be provided on the apparatus main body 10 side. Similarly, the support shaft 22 may be provided at the other end 20b of the arm 20 and a support portion that rotatably supports the support shaft 22 may be provided on the cover 11 side.

Further, the cover is not limited to the image forming apparatus, and a cover is attached to the apparatus main body to which a container that may cause powder to fall when the container such as consumables that store powder or liquid is taken out from the apparatus main body. The cover opening / closing mechanism for supporting the opening / closing freely can be generally applied.
Further, the contents of the above embodiment and the above modification may be combined as much as possible.

  The present invention can be widely applied to a cover opening / closing mechanism that supports a cover so as to be freely opened and closed.

1 Copying machine (image forming device)
6 Toner-containing bottle 10 Device body 11, 12 Exterior cover 11e Edge of exterior cover (edge on device side)
12a Upper end of exterior 13, 21, 22 Support shaft 20, 200, 210, 220 Arm 20c, 23, 24, 240, 250, 260 Stopper 20f Arm inner surface 201 Elastic member 211 Slotted hole 213 Arm rotation of slotted hole End 221 upstream of direction 223 Notch 223 End of the notch upstream of arm rotation direction a2, b2 Open direction (arm rotation direction)
G Position of the upper end of the exterior in the longitudinal direction of the device L1 Horizontal distance from the support shaft to the upper end of the exterior L2 Horizontal distance from the support shaft to the edge of the open exterior cover

Claims (7)

A cover opening / closing mechanism that supports the cover to be tiltable to the outside of the apparatus main body from a closed position that shields the inside of the apparatus main body to an open position that opens the cover,
One end portion is supported by the apparatus main body so as to be rotatable about the first support shaft, and the other end portion is centered on the cover and the second support shaft located above the first support shaft. An arm that rotatably supports
A first stopper that regulates a rotation amount of the arm with respect to the apparatus main body;
A second stopper that regulates the amount of rotation of the cover with respect to the arm;
The cover in the closed posture rotates with respect to the arm, and accordingly, the arm starts to rotate with respect to the apparatus main body, and the cover is moved by the restriction of the rotation amount of the first stopper and the second stopper. When tilted to the open position and stopped,
More than the distance L1 in the horizontal direction from the second spindle to the upper end of the exterior of the apparatus main body located below the cover, the apparatus main body side of the cover in the open position from the second spindle The positional relationship between the first stopper with respect to the arm and the positional relationship between the second support shaft and the second stopper with respect to the cover are determined so that the horizontal distance L2 to the edge of the arm becomes longer. A cover opening and closing mechanism. The arm is
Having a bent portion between the one end and the other end;
When the cover is in a closed position, each of the one end and the other end is arranged at a position closer to the outside of the apparatus body than the bent portion ,
The first stopper is provided in the apparatus main body,
The cover opening / closing mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the second stopper is provided on the arm. The first stopper is
The cover opening / closing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the cover opening / closing mechanism is disposed at a position facing an inner surface of the bent portion of the arm.   The cover opening / closing mechanism according to claim 3, wherein an elastic member interposed between an inner surface of the arm and the first stopper is provided on the arm or the first stopper. In the arm,
A slot or notch extending along the direction of rotation is provided,
The first stopper is
The amount of rotation of the arm by engaging with the long hole or notch of the arm and contacting the end of the long hole or notch of the arm upstream in the arm rotation direction during the rotation of the arm The cover opening / closing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein When another opening / closing cover is disposed immediately below the cover,
The position of the second stopper with respect to the cover in the rotational direction of the cover is determined so that the cover in a state of being stopped in the open posture is positioned above the moving range when the other opening / closing cover is opened / closed. The cover opening / closing mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the cover opening / closing mechanism is provided. An image forming unit for forming an image on an image carrier with toner, a developing unit for developing an electrostatic latent image on the image carrier with toner, or a toner containing bottle for storing toner for image formation can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. An image forming apparatus having the configuration,
An exterior cover that is opened and closed when the image forming unit, the developing unit, or the toner containing bottle is attached or detached;
The cover opening / closing mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which is used as a mechanism for opening and closing the exterior cover;
An image forming apparatus comprising:

Images