Image forming apparatus

Abstract

To suppress consumption of toner unnecessary for image formation by improving productivity as an image forming apparatus as compared with a case where a configuration for supplying toner removed from an image holding body to the image holding body is not provided.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus includes a cleaning blade that comes into contact with a surface of an image holding member and removes toner adhering to the surface of the image holding member, a storage member that stores the toner removed by the cleaning blade, and a supply unit that is disposed in the storage member and supplies the toner stored in the storage member to the surface of the image holding member on an upstream side of the cleaning blade in a rotation direction of the image holding member.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses a cleaning device comprising a cleaning blade that contacts the surface of a photosensitive drum to remove residual toner from the surface, a screw brush that has a brush section with bristles planted and a non-brush section with no bristles planted in a spiral, and that transports the toner removed from the surface of the photosensitive drum by the cleaning blade to a toner recovery section, and a housing that contains these, with the screw brush arranged so that the bristles contact the inner wall of the housing. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-182080 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In an image forming apparatus using a so-called electrophotographic system, residual toner, which is toner that remains on the image carrier without being transferred to paper, is removed by a cleaning device, and the toner removed from the image carrier is transported by a toner transport device.

[0005] In this cleaning device, toner on the image carrier is generally scraped off by a cleaning blade that contacts the image carrier, removing the toner from the image carrier. To ensure stable scraping by the cleaning blade, an external additive contained in the toner must be supplied to the contact area between the image carrier and the cleaning blade. When forming high-density images with high toner image density, a sufficient amount of residual toner and external additives are supplied to the contact area. However, when forming low-density images with low toner image density consecutively, a sufficient amount of residual toner is not supplied to the contact area. Therefore, a supply process is required to supply toner and external additives to the contact area between the formation of low-density images. This supply process interrupts the actual image formation process, reducing the productivity of the image forming apparatus. Furthermore, this supply process consumes toner that is not required for the actual image formation.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to improve the productivity of the image forming apparatus and to reduce the consumption of toner that is not necessary for image formation, compared to an apparatus that does not have a configuration for supplying toner removed from an image carrier to the image carrier. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The invention described in claim 1 is an image forming apparatus comprising a cleaning blade that contacts the surface of an image carrier to remove toner adhering to the surface of the image carrier, a storage member that stores the toner removed by the cleaning blade, and a supply unit that is disposed within the storage member and supplies the toner stored in the storage member to the surface of the image carrier upstream of the cleaning blade in the direction of rotation of the image carrier. The invention described in claim 2 is the image forming apparatus described in claim 1, characterized in that the supply section is a transport member that transports the toner stored in the storage member to a waste toner collection section. The invention described in claim 3 is the image forming apparatus described in claim 2, characterized in that the conveying member comprises a rotating body having a rotation axis and a brush that is arranged spirally in the axial direction of the rotating body and has bristles that rise radially from the rotating body, and the tip of the brush contacts the surface of the image carrier. A fourth aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect, wherein the tip of the brush contacts the inner wall of the containing member. A fifth aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect, wherein the hardness of the brush is lower than the hardness of the image carrier. The invention described in claim 6 is an image forming apparatus described in claim 1, characterized in that the supply section is a transport member located upstream of the cleaning blade in the rotation direction of the image carrier and uses a brush to transport toner removed from the image carrier by the cleaning blade. The invention described in claim 7 is the image forming apparatus described in claim 6, characterized in that the tip of the brush of the conveying member contacts the image carrier, and at the contact point between the tip of the brush and the image carrier, the conveying member rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of the image carrier. The invention described in claim 8 is the image forming apparatus described in claim 7, characterized in that the supply section rotates at a predetermined speed relative to the rotational speed of the image carrier and supplies the toner contained in the storage member. A ninth aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to the eighth aspect, wherein the predetermined speed is the same as the rotation speed of the image carrier. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the invention of claim 1, the productivity of the image forming apparatus can be improved and the consumption of toner that is not necessary for image formation can be reduced compared to when the configuration is not provided to supply toner removed from the image carrier to the image carrier. According to the invention of claim 2, it is possible to save physical space compared to when the supply section and the conveying member are different members. According to the invention of claim 3, toner can be supplied more stably than in a configuration in which the tip of the brush does not contact the surface of the image carrier. According to the invention of claim 4, the amount of toner supplied to the image carrier can be secured, compared to a configuration in which the tip of the brush does not contact the inner wall of the containing member. According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, wear on the image carrier can be reduced. According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the toner removed from the image carrier can be supplied to the contact portion between the cleaning blade and the image carrier. According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the tip of the brush can be brought into gentle contact with the image carrier, thereby facilitating the supply of toner. According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the rotation speed of the brush can be determined in accordance with the rotation speed of the image carrier. According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, wear on the image carrier can be reduced. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an image forming apparatus. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an image forming unit of the image forming apparatus. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a function of a cleaning device. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a conveying member. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams for explaining the function of a cleaning device in a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. <Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus 1> The configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 to which this embodiment is applied will be described with reference to FIGS. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an image forming apparatus 1. Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an image forming unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 1.

[0011] The image forming apparatus 1 according to this embodiment includes a paper feed unit 1A that stores paper P as an example of a recording medium and supplies the paper P. It also includes a printing unit 1B that forms an image on the transported paper P. It also includes a paper discharge unit 1C that performs post-processing such as inversion on the paper P on which the image has been formed by the printing unit 1B and discharges the paper P.

[0012] The paper feed unit 1A is provided with a first paper storage section 11 to a fourth paper storage section 14 that store paper sheets P. The paper feed unit 1A is also provided with feed rolls 15 to 18 corresponding to the first paper storage section 11 to the fourth paper storage section 14, respectively. The feed rolls 15 to 18 feed the paper sheets P stored in each paper storage section to a transport path connected to the printing unit 1B.

[0013] The printing unit 1B includes an image forming section 20, a control section 21, an image processing section 22, and a UI (User Interface) 23. The control unit 21 controls various operations such as image reading and image forming operations in the image forming apparatus 1. The image processing unit 22 performs image processing on image data transmitted from the image reading device 4 or the personal computer (PC) 5. The UI 23 is composed of a touch panel or the like, and notifies the user of information and accepts information input from the user.

[0014] The image forming section 20 includes six image forming units 30T, 30P, 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as "image forming units 30") that are arranged in parallel at regular intervals.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 2, each image forming unit 30 includes an image carrier 31, a charging device 32, an exposure device 33, a developing device , and a cleaning device .

[0016] The image carrier 31 holds an image by utilizing its charging characteristics and photosensitive characteristics. The image carrier 31 is a cylindrical member. As shown in FIG. 2, the image carrier 31 rotates in the direction of arrow A, and an electrostatic latent image is formed on its surface and transferred to paper P. The charging device 32 charges the surface of the image carrier 31. The exposure device 33 exposes the image carrier 31 of each image forming unit 30 to light to form an electrostatic latent image.

[0017] The developing device 34 uses a developer to develop the electrostatic latent image formed on the image carrier 31 by the exposure device 33. This developer may be a two-component developer containing toner and carrier, or a one-component developer containing no carrier. The toner contains toner particles and external additives. The external additives serve to improve the fluidity and chargeability of the toner, the cleaning properties of the image carrier 31, and the like.

[0018] The cleaning device 50 removes residual toner, which is toner that has not been transferred to paper and remains on the image carrier 31. Details of the cleaning device 50 will be described later.

[0019] The image forming devices 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K that make up each image forming unit 30 form toner images in yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K). The image forming units 30T and 30P form toner images using special color toners. Examples of special color toners include toners corresponding to corporate colors, foam toners for Braille, fluorescent toners, and toners that improve gloss.

[0020] The image forming unit 20 also includes an intermediate transfer belt 41 , a primary transfer roll 42 , a secondary transfer roll 43 , a fixing device 44 , and a belt cleaner 45 .

[0021] Toner images of each color formed on the image carriers 31 of each image forming unit 30 are transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 41. A primary transfer roll 42 transfers the toner images of each color of each image forming unit 30 onto the intermediate transfer belt 41 at a primary transfer portion T1. A secondary transfer roll 43 transfers the toner images transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 41 all at once onto a sheet of paper P at a secondary transfer portion T2. ​​A fixing device 44 fixes the secondarily transferred image onto the sheet of paper P. A belt cleaner 45 removes toner and the like adhering to the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 41.

[0022] <Image formation operation> The image forming unit 20 performs an image forming operation based on a control signal from the control unit 21. Specifically, in the image forming unit 20, first, the image processing unit 22 performs image processing on image data input from the image reading device 4 or the PC 5. Then, the image data after image processing is supplied to the exposure device 33. Then, for example, in the yellow (Y) image forming unit 30Y, the surface of the image carrier 31 is charged by the charging device 32. Then, the exposure device 33 irradiates the image carrier 31 with laser light modulated by the image data obtained from the image processing unit 22. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the image carrier 31.

[0023] The formed electrostatic latent image is developed by the developing device 34, and a yellow toner image is formed on the image carrier 31. Similarly, magenta, cyan, and black toner images are formed in the image forming units 30M, 30C, and 30K. Also, special color toner images are formed in the image forming units 30T and 30P.

[0024] The color toner images formed by the image forming units 30 are sequentially electrostatically transferred onto an intermediate transfer belt 41 rotating in the direction of arrow B in Fig. 1 by a primary transfer roll 42. As a result, superimposed toner images are formed on the intermediate transfer belt 41.

[0025] The superimposed toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 41 is transported to a secondary transfer portion T2 constituted by a secondary transfer roll 43 and a backup roll 49 as the intermediate transfer belt 41 moves.

[0026] Meanwhile, the paper P is removed from the first paper storage unit 11 by, for example, the delivery roll 15, and then transported via the transport path to the position of the registration roll 74. When the superimposed toner image is transported to the secondary transfer unit T2, the paper P is supplied from the registration roll 74 to the secondary transfer unit T2 in time with this transport. Then, due to the action of the transfer electric field formed between the secondary transfer roll 43 and the backup roll 49 at the secondary transfer unit T2, the superimposed toner image is electrostatically transferred onto the paper P all at once.

[0027] Then, the paper sheet P onto which the superimposed toner image has been electrostatically transferred is transported to the fixing device 44. In the fixing device 44, pressure and heat are applied to the paper sheet P on which the unfixed toner image has been formed, and the toner image is fixed to the paper sheet P. Then, the paper sheet P after the fixing process passes through a curl correction section 81 provided in the paper discharge unit 1C, and is then transported to a paper stacking section (not shown).

[0028] <Function of cleaning device 50> Next, the function of the cleaning device 50 in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the function of the cleaning device 50. As shown in FIG. The cleaning device 50 is provided downstream of the primary transfer portion T1 in the rotation direction of the image carrier 31.

[0029] The cleaning device 50 includes a cleaning blade 51, a storage member 52, and a transport member 55. In this embodiment, the transport member 55 functions as a supply unit that supplies the toner stored in the storage member 52 to the image carrier 31.

[0030] The cleaning blade 51 removes toner adhering to the surface of the image carrier 31. The cleaning blade 51 has a flat plate shape extending along the rotation axis direction of the image carrier 31 (the direction from the front to the back of the paper in FIG. 3). The cleaning blade 51 is formed using an elastic material such as polyurethane rubber. The cleaning blade 51 has an edge portion 51a that contacts the surface of the image carrier 31. In this embodiment, the cleaning blade 51 is disposed so that the edge portion 51a faces in a direction opposite to the rotation direction of the image carrier 31. The edge portion 51a of the cleaning blade 51 contacts and presses against the image carrier 31 to scrape off residual toner on the image carrier 31.

[0031] Here, when the edge portion 51a of the cleaning blade 51 becomes worn excessively, poor cleaning occurs, and the cleaning blade 51 no longer functions as it should, reaching the end of its life. To extend this life, it is necessary to reduce the wear of the edge portion 51a. One method for reducing this wear is to supply toner containing an external additive to the contact area between the cleaning blade 51 and the image carrier 31. The external additive contained in this toner provides a lubricating effect, reducing wear between the cleaning blade 51 and the image carrier 31. In this embodiment, toner in the storage member 52 is stably supplied to the image carrier 31, allowing the cleaning blade 51 to stably scrape off the toner.

[0032] The storage member 52 is a member that stores the toner scraped off by the cleaning blade 51. The storage member 52 has a horizontally long container shape that extends along the rotation axis direction of the image carrier 31. The inner wall of the storage member 52 is circular from the bottom to the side so that the transport member 55 comes into contact with the inner wall. A toner recovery bottle (not shown), which is an example of a waste toner recovery unit, is connected to one end of the storage member 52 in the axial direction. A transport member 55 that transports the toner to the toner recovery bottle is provided inside the storage member 52.

[0033] <Structure of conveying member 55> FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the conveying member 55. As shown in FIG. The transport member 55 in this embodiment transports the toner stored in the storage member 52 to the toner recovery bottle, and also supplies a portion of the toner to the image carrier 31. The transport member 55 includes a rotor 60 having a rotation shaft extending along the rotation axis direction of the image carrier 31, and a brush 65 with bristles that radiate from the shaft surface of the rotor 60. The brush 65 is provided in a spiral shape in the axial direction of the rotor 60. A drive source (not shown) is connected to one end of the rotor 60 in the axial direction, and the transport member 55 is rotationally driven by the transmission of rotational power. The transport member 55 may also be configured to rotate in response to the rotation of the image carrier 31.

[0034] An example of the design of the conveying member 55 in this embodiment will be described below. In this embodiment, the diameter of the rotor 60 of the conveying member 55 can be, for example, about 5 mm. The brush 65 is a unit consisting of a bundle of about 10 bristles, each 0.2 mm in diameter, which are arranged at intervals of about 2 mm and spirally around the rotor 60. The bristles of the brush 65 can be made of, for example, polyacetal. The distance from the axial surface of the rotor 60 to the tip of the brush 65 can be, for example, about 4.5 mm. The axial spacing of the spiral of the brush 65 can be, for example, about 12 mm. According to the above design example, the outer diameter of the conveying member 55 is 14 mm.

[0035] On the other hand, in this embodiment, the inner diameter of the storage member 52 is, for example, φ13 mm, and the transport member 55 is disposed within the storage member 52 so that the tip of the brush 65 of the transport member 55 contacts the surface of the image carrier 31 and the inner wall of the storage member 52. In the above design example, the transport member 55 is disposed in a position where the tip of the brush 65 digs into the surface of the image carrier 31 and the inner wall of the storage member 52 by 0.5 mm. Note that this design example is merely an example, and the present embodiment is not limited to the above dimensions. In order to efficiently transport toner within the storage member 52, it is preferable that the tip of the brush 65 contacts the surface of the image carrier 31 and the inner wall of the storage member 52.

[0036] 3, the transport member 55 is provided upstream of the cleaning blade 51 in the rotation direction of the image carrier 31. The transport member 55 is also provided at a position where the tip of the brush 65 contacts the surface of the image carrier 31 and the inner wall of the storage member 52. The transport member 55 supplies toner in the storage member 52 to the surface of the image carrier 31 upstream of the cleaning blade 51 in the rotation direction of the image carrier 31. In this embodiment, the brush 65 has a lower hardness than the image carrier 31. This is to reduce wear on the image carrier 31 when the tip of the brush 65 contacts the surface of the image carrier 31.

[0037] <About cleaning operation> During the image forming operation, the image carrier 31 rotates in the direction of arrow A as shown in Figure 3. Toner that remains on the image carrier 31 without being transferred to the paper at the primary transfer portion T1 (so-called residual toner) is scraped off by a cleaning blade 51 and stored in a storage member 52.

[0038] Meanwhile, the transport member 55 rotates in the direction of arrow C with the tip of the brush 65 in contact with the surface of the image carrier 31. At this time, the transport member 55 rotates while holding the toner contained in the storage member 52 on the brush 65. The transport member 55 supplies the toner held on the brush 65 to the surface of the image carrier 31 at the contact portion where the tip of the brush 65 and the surface of the image carrier 31 come into contact. This allows the toner in the storage member 52 to be stably supplied to the surface of the image carrier 31. Then, external additives are supplied as the toner is supplied, stabilizing cleaning by the cleaning blade 51.

[0039] At this time, in this embodiment, the transport member 55 rotates with the tip of the brush 65 in contact with the inner wall of the storage member 52. Therefore, the toner adhering to the inner wall of the storage member 52 is scraped off by the brush 65 as the transport member 55 rotates. Then, as the transport member 55 rotates, the scraped toner moves to the contact portion where the tip of the brush 65 and the surface of the image carrier 31 come into contact, and is supplied to the surface of the image carrier 31. This prevents toner from adhering to the inside of the storage member 52, and allows the toner in the storage member 52 to be stably supplied to the surface of the image carrier 31.

[0040] 3, in this embodiment, the image carrier 31 rotates in the direction of arrow A, and the transport member 55 rotates in the direction of arrow C. In other words, at the contact portion between the tip of the brush 65 and the image carrier 31, the transport member 55 rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of the image carrier 31. In this case, compared to when the transport member 55 rotates in a direction different from the rotation direction of the image carrier 31 at the contact portion, the tip of the brush 65 can be brought into gentle contact with the image carrier 31, making it possible to promote the supply of toner.

[0041] In this embodiment, the rotation speed of the transport member 55 is set to, for example, approximately the same as the rotation speed of the image carrier 31. By setting the rotation speed of the transport member 55 and the rotation speed of the image carrier 31 to be approximately the same, wear between the transport member 55 and the image carrier 31 can be reduced. Note that the rotation speed of the transport member 55 is not limited to this. The manager of the image forming apparatus 1 or the like may determine the rotation speed of the transport member 55 and the rotation speed of the image carrier 31 in advance, taking into consideration the transport capacity of the transport member 55 to transport to the toner collection bottle.

[0042] <Modification of the supply section> Next, a modified example of the supply unit will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the function of the cleaning device 100 in the modified example. In the above, a description has been given of an embodiment in which the transport member 55 functions as a supply unit that supplies toner to the image carrier 31. In a modified example of the supply unit, the transport member 55 and the supply unit are separated and disposed inside the storage member 52. In FIG. 5, the same elements as those explained in FIG. 3 are given the same reference numerals, and the explanation thereof will be omitted.

[0043] 5 includes a supply mechanism 70 in addition to the cleaning blade 51, the storage member 52, and the transport member 55. The supply mechanism 70 functions as a supply unit that supplies toner to the image carrier 31.

[0044] For example, the supply mechanism 70 can be configured by a second rotating body 75 having a rotation axis extending along the rotation axis direction of the image carrier 31, and a second brush 80 covering the outer circumferential surface of the rotating body. However, as long as the toner held by the transport member 55 can be transported to the image carrier 31, any shape can be adopted.

[0045] 5, the transport member 55 and the supply mechanism 70 are provided upstream of the cleaning blade 51 in the rotation direction of the image carrier 31. The transport member 55 is disposed on the inner wall side of the storage member 52 so that the tip of the brush 65 contacts the inner wall of the storage member 52. The supply mechanism 70 is disposed on the image carrier 31 side relative to the transport member 55 within the storage member 52. The supply mechanism 70 is also disposed at a position where it contacts the surface of the image carrier 31.

[0046] During the image forming operation, the image carrier 31 rotates in the direction of arrow A shown in Figure 5. Residual toner on the image carrier 31 that has not been transferred to the paper at the primary transfer portion T1 is scraped off by a cleaning blade 51 and stored in a storage member 52.

[0047] Meanwhile, the transport member 55 rotates in the direction of arrow D. The transport member 55 transports the toner in the storage member 52 to the toner recovery bottle and transfers some of the toner to the supply mechanism 70. The supply mechanism 70 rotates in the direction of arrow E and supplies the toner transferred from the transport member 55 to the surface of the image carrier 31 at a contact portion where the tip of the second brush 80 contacts the surface of the image carrier 31. The supply mechanism 70 may be configured not to come into contact with the surface of the image carrier 31 as long as it can transport the toner in the storage member 52 to the image carrier 31 .

[0048] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Various modifications and alternative configurations that do not depart from the scope of the technical idea of ​​the present invention are included in the present invention.

[0049] <Additional Notes> (((1))) An image forming apparatus comprising: a cleaning blade that contacts the surface of an image carrier to remove toner adhering to the surface of the image carrier; a storage member that stores the toner removed by the cleaning blade; and a supply unit that is disposed within the storage member and supplies the toner stored in the storage member to the surface of the image carrier upstream of the cleaning blade in the direction of rotation of the image carrier. (((2))) The image forming apparatus according to ((1))) is characterized in that the supply unit is a transport member that transports the toner stored in the storage member to a waste toner recovery unit. (((3))) The image forming apparatus described in (((2))) is characterized in that the conveying member comprises a rotating body having a rotation axis and a brush that is spirally arranged in the axial direction of the rotating body and has bristles that radiate from the rotating body, and the tip of the brush contacts the surface of the image carrier. (((4))) The image forming apparatus according to (((3))) is characterized in that the tip of the brush contacts the inner wall of the storage member. (((5))) The image forming apparatus according to (((3))) or (((4))), wherein the hardness of the brush is lower than the hardness of the image carrier. (((6))) The image forming apparatus described in any one of (((1))) to (((5))), characterized in that the supply unit is a transport member that is located upstream of the cleaning blade in the rotation direction of the image carrier and transports toner removed from the image carrier by the cleaning blade using a brush. (((7))) The image forming apparatus described in any one of (((3))) to (((6))) is characterized in that the tip of the brush of the transport member contacts the image carrier, and at the contact point between the tip of the brush and the image carrier, the transport member rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of the image carrier. (((8))) The image forming apparatus described in any one of ((1))) to (((7))) is characterized in that the supply unit rotates at a predetermined speed relative to the rotation speed of the image carrier, and supplies the toner stored in the storage member. (((9))) The image forming apparatus described in (((8))) is characterized in that the predetermined speed is the same as the rotation speed of the image carrier.

[0050] According to the invention of (((1))), the productivity of the image forming apparatus can be improved and the consumption of toner that is not required for image formation can be reduced compared to when the configuration is not provided for supplying toner removed from the image carrier to the image carrier. According to the invention (((2))), physical space can be saved compared to when the supply section and the conveying member are different members. According to the invention (((3))), toner can be supplied more stably than in a configuration in which the tip of the brush does not contact the surface of the image carrier. According to the invention (((4))), the amount of toner supplied to the image carrier can be secured, compared to a configuration in which the tip of the brush does not contact the inner wall of the containing member. According to the invention (((5))), wear on the image carrier can be reduced. According to the invention (((6))), the toner removed from the image carrier can be supplied to the contact area between the cleaning blade and the image carrier. According to the invention of (((7))), the tip of the brush can be brought into gentle contact with the image carrier to promote the supply of toner. According to the invention of (((8))), the rotation speed of the brush can be determined in accordance with the rotation speed of the image carrier. According to the invention (((9))), wear on the image carrier can be reduced. [Explanation of symbols]

[0051] 1...image forming apparatus, 20...image forming unit, 21...control unit, 22...image processing unit, 23...UI, 31...image carrier, 32...charging device, 33...exposure device, 34...developing device, 50...cleaning device, 51...cleaning blade, 52...storage member, 55...conveying member, 60...rotating body, 65...brush, 70...supply mechanism

Claims

1. a cleaning blade that comes into contact with the surface of the image carrier to remove toner adhering to the surface of the image carrier; a storage member that stores the toner removed by the cleaning blade; a supply unit that is disposed within the storage member and supplies the toner stored in the storage member to a surface of the image carrier upstream of the cleaning blade in a rotation direction of the image carrier; An image forming apparatus comprising:

2. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the supply unit is a transport member that transports the toner contained in the container to a waste toner recovery unit.

3. the conveying member includes a rotating body having a rotation shaft, and a brush spirally disposed in the axial direction of the rotating body and having bristles raised radially from the rotating body; 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the tip of the brush contacts the surface of the image carrier.

4. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the tip of the brush contacts the inner wall of the container member.

5. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the hardness of the brush is lower than the hardness of the image carrier.

6. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the supply unit is a transport member located upstream of the cleaning blade in the rotation direction of the image carrier and transports the toner removed from the image carrier by the cleaning blade using a brush.

7. 7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the tip of the brush of the transport member contacts the image carrier, and the transport member rotates in the same direction as the image carrier at the contact point between the tip of the brush and the image carrier.

8. 8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the supply unit rotates at a speed that is predetermined relative to the rotation speed of the image carrier, and supplies the toner contained in the container member.

9. 9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the predetermined speed is the same as the rotation speed of the image carrier.

Images