JPS6323550B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a container for storing waste toner in an image forming apparatus.

2. Description of the Related Art Image forming apparatuses such as copying machines that use electrostatic latent images formed on photoreceptors or insulators, or magnetic latent images formed on magnetic drums are conventionally known. For example, in an electrophotographic copying machine, an electrostatic latent image on a photoreceptor is developed into a visible image, and then transferred to a transfer material to obtain a copied image. At this time, residual toner on the photoreceptor after transfer is wiped off by a cleaning device. This toner may be collected and reused, but it is generally stored in a storage container.
Once a certain amount is reached, it is discarded as waste toner. This method is normally carried out by the operator of the apparatus turning the storage container upside down and transferring the waste toner inside to another plastic bag, trash can, or the like.

However, when this process is conventionally performed, the toner tends to scatter to the surroundings, which stains the operator's hands and clothes. Furthermore, if the toner solidifies in the storage container, it cannot be completely discarded by simply turning it upside down, and the operator must scrape off the solidified toner using a stick or the like, which is very cumbersome for the operator. I was forcing myself. Moreover, this action resulted in further promoting toner scattering.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a waste toner storage container that improves the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, prevents contamination caused by scattered toner, and facilitates toner disposal.

The present invention achieves the above object, and the waste toner storage container has a main container made of a relatively robust material and a sub-container built therein made of an inexpensive material. Waste toner is stored in a sub-container, and after a certain amount is reached, the sub-container is disposed of together with the toner.

Therefore, according to the present invention, toner disposal is easy and toner does not scatter and stain clothing.

The present invention will be explained below using the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.
In the figure, 1 indicates a waste toner conveying device;
After removing residual toner on the image carrier such as a photosensitive drum or magnetic drum using a cleaning device,
This is a device that transports this to a storage device. 2 is a case of this conveyance device, and 3 is a screw which is a conveyance means. Reference numeral 2a denotes an opening hole formed in the case 2, through which the waste toner is dropped into the storage device.

In the storage device 4, 5 is a main container, 6 is an upper lid of the main container 5, and 6a is an opening hole formed in the upper lid 6 for toner passage. In the vicinity of the opening hole of the upper cover 6, the protrusion 2b around the case opening hole 2a
is loosely fitted into the upper lid opening hole 6a to form a substantially sealed state. Reference numeral 6b represents a hinge portion that connects the upper lid 6 and the main container 5, and 6c represents a locking means.

A sub-container 7 is built into the main container 5 and essentially stores toner. The sub-container 7 is a "disposable" container to facilitate the disposal of toner, and is made of a container that is currently used as packaging material.
It is made of vinyl chloride resin material with a thickness of about 0.3 to 0.7 mm, and is made by vacuum forming. In addition to the materials listed above, the materials used for this sub-container include polyacrylic,
Any material may be used as long as it is easy to process, inexpensive, and disposable, such as synthetic resin such as polypropylene, paper, or cloth.

Note that the main container 5 and the upper lid 6 are integrally molded,
It is made of polypropylene material with a thickness of 1.5 to 2.5 mm. The main container 5 is therefore more robust than the sub-container 7 and has much greater strength.

As is clear from the figure, an outer ring-shaped ridge is formed around the opening hole 6a, making it easy to displace in the vertical direction in the figure. Since the upper lid 6 always has an upward habit, it is in contact with the case 2 with light pressure.

8 is a waste toner capacity detection device. This device 8 includes a receiving plate 9 having a slightly larger area than the lower area of the sub-container 7 so that the sub-container 7 can be placed thereon, a shaft 10 that rotatably supports the receiving plate 9, and one end of the receiving plate 9. It has an arm part 9a formed in the arm part 9a, and a tension spring 12 which has one end hung on the arm part 9a and the other end hung on the side plate 11. Further, an actuating portion 9b is formed at the other end of the receiving plate 9, and is in contact with an actuator 13a of the micro switch 13. Reference numeral 14 denotes a stopper which abuts against the arm portion 9a to fix the receiving plate 9 in a fixed position. Reference numeral 15 denotes a micro switch, which is disposed at a position that emits a signal depending on the presence or absence of the main container 5.

The waste toner storage container according to the embodiment of the present invention is constructed as described above. Next, its action/
The effects will be explained in detail.

The residual toner T removed from the photosensitive drum surface is
It is transported in the direction of the arrow by the rotating screw 3. This toner T falls from the opening hole 2b of the case 2 and accumulates in the sub-container 7. At this time, the toner floats in the sub-container due to the shock caused by the fall, but since the upper part of the main container 5 is sealed with the upper lid 6, the toner does not scatter outside the container. Therefore, it is possible to prevent other members in the apparatus from being contaminated by scattered toner and a decrease in discharge efficiency due to toner staining on the corona discharge wire.

Toner is accumulated in the subcontainer 7 one after another.
The receiving plate 9 receives a load as the amount of toner increases, but does not displace until it reaches a specified weight. When the amount of waste toner further increases, the receiving plate 9 is displaced downward against the accumulated force of the spring 12. As a result, the operating portion 9b separates from the actuator 13a of the microswitch 13, generates a detection signal (or cuts off the signal), and detects that the waste toner has reached the specified amount. This signal indicates to the machine operator what to do with the waste toner or disables the copying operation.

To dispose of waste toner, first remove the main container from the device. The operator pushes the vicinity of the opening 6a of the upper lid 6 downward to release the engagement with the protrusion 2b of the case 2 and remove the main container 5. This method has the advantage that the operator can remove the container with a single touch, making the operation easier. Next, the lock 6c with the upper lid 6 is released, the upper lid is opened, and the sub-container 7 filled with waste toner is taken out. Then, wrap this secondary container in a plastic bag, etc. and throw it away. According to this method, the operator can dispose of the toner together with the container, so the operator does not get his hands dirty with toner, and maintenance is facilitated. Thereafter, the operator inserts a new sub-container 7 into the main container 5 and sets this main container 5 in the capacity detection device 8.

However, if the main container is not set and the copying operation is enabled, there is a risk that the interior of the apparatus will be significantly contaminated with waste toner. In order to prevent this, the micro switch 15 is preferably turned on when the main container 5 is set, and copying is then possible for the first time. Furthermore, if the user forgets to set the container 5, a signal from the micro switch 15 may be used to indicate this fact.

As described in detail above, the present invention provides a main container and a disposable sub-container built into the main container as a storage container for waste toner, and when a specified amount of toner is accumulated, each sub-container is used as a waste toner storage container. Since it can be disposed of easily, the operator's hands and clothes are not soiled, making the work much easier. Whether the waste toner can be collected, that is, whether the container is set or not, is determined by detecting the presence of the main container, which has a certain degree of rigidity, so its operation is more reliable. It is carried out in

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing one embodiment of the device according to the present invention. In the figure, 4... storage device, 5... main container,
6...upper lid, 7...subcontainer, 8...capacity detection device.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A waste toner storage device for collecting and storing toner removed from the surface of an image carrier, comprising: a main container having a predetermined rigidity; and a toner to be disposed of which is housed in the main container. 1. A waste toner storage device comprising: a sub-container for storing toner to be disposed of and discarded together with the toner when the toner is disposed of; and a detection means for detecting the presence of the main container.