Image forming device

Abstract

To prevent transfer failure by irradiating a photoreceptor drum with an appropriate quantity of pre-transfer static eliminating light.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus (1) has a plurality of image forming units (17) arranged side by side in a conveyance direction of a transfer belt. The plurality of image forming units each include: a photoreceptor drum (21) that is in rotational contact with a primary transfer position of the transfer belt; and a static eliminating unit (25) that eliminates static electricity from the photoreceptor drum on the downstream side of the primary transfer position. A static eliminating unit of a predetermined image forming unit of the plurality of image forming units irradiates, with post-transfer static eliminating light, the downstream side of the primary transfer position of the photoreceptor drum in the predetermined image forming unit, and irradiates, with pre-transfer static eliminating light, the upstream side of the primary transfer position of a photoreceptor drum in another predetermined image forming unit on the downstream side in the conveyance direction. Slits for narrowing an irradiation width of the pre-transfer static eliminating light in a circumferential direction of the photoreceptor drum are provided between the predetermined image forming unit and the other image forming unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] The secondary transfer method is adopted in electrophotographic image forming devices. In the secondary transfer method, the surface of the photosensitive drum is charged, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum by exposure, and toner adheres to the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image. The toner image is then primarily transferred from the photosensitive drum to an intermediate transfer belt, and the toner image is then secondarily transferred from the intermediate transfer belt to a sheet. After the primary transfer, the photosensitive drum is irradiated with post-transfer static electricity removal light, but if an electrostatic latent image remains on the surface of the photosensitive drum, this may cause poor transfer of the toner image during the next primary transfer.

[0003] For this reason, an image forming apparatus has been proposed in which a photoconductor drum is irradiated with post-transfer static elimination light after the primary transfer and is irradiated with pre-transfer static elimination light before the primary transfer (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the image forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1, a plurality of photoconductor drums are arranged in the transport direction of the transfer belt, and a static elimination unit is provided downstream of the primary transfer position of each photoconductor drum. After the primary transfer, the static elimination unit irradiates the photoconductor drum downstream of the primary transfer position with post-transfer static elimination light, and before the next primary transfer, another static elimination unit upstream in the transport direction irradiates the photoconductor drum upstream of the primary transfer position with pre-transfer static elimination light. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-113901 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, if the amount of pre-transfer static elimination light is too large or too small, it is not possible to sufficiently prevent transfer defects. Also, when adjusting the amount of pre-transfer static elimination light, there is a limit to how much current can be supplied to the static elimination unit.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to prevent transfer defects by irradiating a photosensitive drum with an appropriate amount of pre-transfer charge eliminating light. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] An image forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention has a plurality of image forming units arranged in the transport direction of a transfer belt, the plurality of image forming units comprising a photosensitive drum that rotates in contact with a primary transfer position of the transfer belt, and a charge removal section that removes charge from the photosensitive drum downstream of the primary transfer position, the charge removal section of a predetermined image forming unit among the plurality of image forming units irradiates post-transfer charge removal light onto the downstream side of the primary transfer position of the photosensitive drum of the predetermined image forming unit, and irradiates pre-transfer charge removal light onto the upstream side of the primary transfer position of the photosensitive drum of another image forming unit downstream in the transport direction, and a slit section is provided between the predetermined image forming unit and the other image forming unit to narrow the irradiation width of the pre-transfer charge removal light in the circumferential direction of the photosensitive drum.

[0008] In the image forming device, the slit portion has a first slit formed in the specified image forming unit and a second slit formed in the other image forming unit, and the first slit and the second slit gradually narrow the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static electricity removal light in the circumferential direction of the photosensitive drum to a target width.

[0009] In the image forming device, the de-electrification section has a plurality of de-electrification light sources along the axial direction of the photosensitive drum, the first slit and the second slit correspond to the plurality of de-electrification light sources, and the slit length of the second slit is formed larger than that of the first slit in the axial direction of the photosensitive drum.

[0010] In the image forming device, the multiple image forming units are equipped with a developing device that supplies toner to the photosensitive drum upstream of a primary transfer position, the first slit is formed in a drum frame that supports the photosensitive drum, and the second slit is formed in a developing device frame that supports the developing device. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, the photoconductor drums of the multiple image forming units are irradiated with post-transfer charge-removal light from the charge-removal unit, and the photoconductor drums of the other image forming units are irradiated with pre-transfer charge-removal light from the charge-removal unit of a specific image forming unit among the multiple image forming units. At this time, the photoconductor drums of the other image forming units are irradiated with post-transfer charge-removal light and pre-transfer charge-removal light, and the electrostatic latent image remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum is erased to prevent transfer failure of the toner image. In addition, the irradiation width of the pre-transfer charge-removal light on the photoconductor drum is mechanically narrowed by the slit portion. Therefore, the photoconductor drum can be irradiated with an appropriate amount of pre-transfer charge-removal light by a mechanical structure to prevent transfer failure. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming unit according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an image forming unit according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a static eliminator according to the embodiment. [Diagram 5] 5 is a schematic diagram of a pre-transfer static elimination light blocking structure of the present embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] An image forming apparatus to which the lock mechanism of this embodiment is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, a printer will be taken as an example of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the printer of this embodiment. Arrows Fr, Re, U, and Lo, which are appropriately added to each figure, indicate the front side, rear side, upper side, and lower side of the printer, respectively. In the following description, AD is added when distinguishing between image forming units, and AD is omitted when not distinguishing between image forming units.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 1, the printer 1 has a box-shaped housing 10 that houses various devices. A paper feed cassette 11 in which a stack of sheets is set is housed in the lower part of the housing 10, and a paper output tray 12 in which sheets on which images have been formed are stacked is provided in the upper part of the housing 10. Toner containers 13 containing toner are detachably set below the output tray 12 for each toner color (for example, four colors: magenta, cyan, yellow, and black). An intermediate transfer belt (transfer belt) 16 stretched around a pair of rollers 14 and 15 is provided below the multiple toner containers 13.

[0015] A plurality of image forming units 17 are arranged below the intermediate transfer belt 16 in the transport direction of the intermediate transfer belt 16. Each image forming unit 17 is provided with a rotatable photoconductor drum 21 that rotates and contacts the intermediate transfer belt 16, and a charger 22, a developing unit 23, a primary transfer roller 24, a charge removing unit 25, and a cleaning device 26 are arranged around the photoconductor drum 21 in the order of the primary transfer process. A waste toner box (not shown) is connected to the cleaning device 26. Toner is supplied to each developing unit 23 from the toner container 13 through a supply path (not shown), and waste toner is discharged from each cleaning device 26 to the waste toner box through a discharge path (not shown).

[0016] An exposure device 18 constituted by a laser scanning unit (LSU) is provided below each image forming unit 17. A sheet transport path L is formed on a side inside the housing 10 by a plurality of rollers, for transporting sheets from the paper feed cassette 11 to the paper discharge tray 12. A paper feed section 31 is provided on the upstream side (lower side) of the transport path L, and a secondary transfer roller 32 is provided on the side end of the intermediate transfer belt 16 downstream of the paper feed section 31 on the transport path L. A fixing device 33 is provided downstream of the secondary transfer roller 32 on the transport path L, and a paper discharge port 34 is provided on the downstream end side (upper side) of the transport path L.

[0017] When forming an image in the printer 1, the surface of the photoconductor drum 21 is charged by the charger 22, and then an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photoconductor drum 21 by laser light from the exposure device 18. Next, toner is attached from the developing device 23 to the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photoconductor drum 21 to form a toner image, and the toner image is primarily transferred from the surface of the photoconductor drum 21 to the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 16. A full-color toner image is formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 16 by primarily transferring the toner images of each color in each image forming unit 17 to the intermediate transfer belt 16. Note that the charge and waste toner remaining on the photoconductor drum 21 are removed by the charge removing unit 25 and the cleaning device 26.

[0018] Meanwhile, a sheet is taken in by the paper feed unit 31 from the paper feed cassette 11 or a manual feed tray (not shown), and the sheet is transported toward the secondary transfer roller 32 in synchronization with the image forming operation. A full-color toner image is secondarily transferred from the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 16 to the surface of the sheet by the secondary transfer roller 32, and the sheet after the transfer is transported toward the fixing device 33 downstream of the secondary transfer roller 32. The toner image is fixed on the sheet in the fixing device 33, and the fixed sheet is discharged from the paper discharge port 34 onto the paper discharge tray 12. In this way, an image is formed on the surface of the sheet by the toner image transferred to the sheet passing through the fixing device 33.

[0019] Furthermore, the printer 1 erases the electrostatic latent image by irradiating the photoconductor drum 21 with pre-transfer static elimination light in addition to the post-transfer static elimination light between the end of the primary transfer and the start of the next primary transfer. If the amount of pre-transfer static elimination light is too much or too little, transfer defects may occur, so the amount of pre-transfer static elimination light needs to be adjusted to an appropriate level, but it is difficult to appropriately adjust the amount of pre-transfer static elimination light by adjusting the amount of current alone. Therefore, in the printer 1 of this embodiment, the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light is narrowed by a mechanical structure, and an appropriate amount of pre-transfer static elimination light is irradiated onto the photoconductor drum 21.

[0020] The image forming unit will be described with reference to Fig. 2 to Fig. 4. Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the image forming unit of this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the image forming unit of this embodiment. Fig. 4 is a schematic plan view of the static electricity removal section of this embodiment. For ease of explanation, Fig. 3 illustrates the photosensitive drum and static electricity removal section of the image forming unit, and the developing device of another image forming unit downstream in the transport direction, and omits other members.

[0021] 2, the photoconductor drum 21A of the image forming unit 17A is rotatably supported by a drum frame 41A. A primary transfer roller 24A is provided above the photoconductor drum 21A, sandwiching a primary transfer position PA of the intermediate transfer belt 16. The primary transfer roller 24A rolls and contacts the primary transfer position PA of the intermediate transfer belt 16 from above, and the photoconductor drum 21A rolls and contacts the primary transfer position PA of the intermediate transfer belt 16 from below. As the intermediate transfer belt 16 moves around, the photoconductor drum 21A rotates, and the primary transfer process is performed in order clockwise from the primary transfer position PA.

[0022] The downstream side of the primary transfer position PA of the photoconductor drum 21A is a first charge removal position, and the photoconductor drum 21A is charge removed by the charge removal section 25A. The charge removal section 25A of this predetermined image forming unit 17A irradiates the downstream side of the primary transfer position PA of the photoconductor drum 21A with post-transfer charge removal light, and irradiates the upstream side of the primary transfer position PB of the photoconductor drum 21B of the other image forming unit 17B downstream in the transport direction with pre-transfer charge removal light. Most of the electrostatic latent image is erased from the surface of the photoconductor drum 21A after the primary transfer by the post-transfer charge removal light, and the electrostatic latent image remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum 21B before the primary transfer is erased by the pre-transfer charge removal light.

[0023] The downstream side of the first charge removal position of the photoconductor drum 21A is a cleaning position, where toner remaining on the photoconductor drum 21A is removed by a cleaning device 26A. The downstream side of the cleaning position of the photoconductor drum 21A is a charging position, where the surface of the photoconductor drum 21A is charged by a charger 22A. The downstream side of the charging position of the photoconductor drum 21A is an exposure position, where an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photoconductor drum 21A by a laser beam from an exposure device 18 (see FIG. 1). The downstream side of the exposure position of the photoconductor drum 21A is a developing position, where toner is supplied to the surface of the photoconductor drum 21A by a developer 23A.

[0024] The downstream side of the development position of the photoconductor drum 21A, i.e., the upstream side of the primary transfer position PA of the photoconductor drum 21A, is the second charge removal position, but the photoconductor drum 21A at the most upstream in the transport direction is not irradiated with pre-transfer charge removal light. Note that a charge removal unit (not shown) may be disposed in front of the photoconductor drum 21A, and the pre-transfer charge removal light may be irradiated from this charge removal unit to the photoconductor drum 21A. As described above, the pre-transfer charge removal light is irradiated from the charge removal unit 25A to the second charge removal position of the photoconductor drum 21B. The pre-transfer charge removal light erases the electrostatic latent image that could not be completely erased by the post-transfer charge removal light from the surface of the photoconductor drum 21B.

[0025] The downstream side of the primary transfer position PA is the area from the primary transfer position PA to the exposure position approximately halfway around the photoconductor drum 21A in the clockwise direction, and the upstream side of the primary transfer position PA is the area from the primary transfer position PA to the exposure position approximately halfway around the photoconductor drum 21A in the counterclockwise direction. A first charge removal position, a cleaning position, and a charging position are located downstream of the primary transfer position PA, and a second charge removal position and a developing position are located upstream of the primary transfer position PA. The positions of the primary transfer process are not particularly limited, and it is sufficient that at least the first charge removal position is located downstream of the primary transfer position PA, and the second charge removal position is located upstream of the primary transfer position PA.

[0026] Further, a first slit 42 is formed in the drum frame 41A of the image forming unit 17A, and a second slit 46B is formed in the developer frame 45B supporting the developer 23B of the other image forming unit 17B. The first slit 42A and the second slit 46B form a slit portion that narrows the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light in the circumferential direction of the photoconductor drum 21B between the image forming unit 17A and the other image forming unit 17B. The first slit 42 and the second slit 46 narrow the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light in the circumferential direction of the photoconductor drum 21B in a stepwise manner to a target width.

[0027] As shown in Fig. 3, a plurality of first slits 42A (four in this embodiment) are formed in a horizontal row along the axial direction (left-right direction) of the photosensitive drum 21A on the upper part of the drum frame 41A. The first slits 42A are formed so that the slit length in the left-right direction is large and the slit width in the up-down direction is narrow. When the pre-transfer static elimination light passes through the first slits 42A, the irradiation angle in the up-down direction of the pre-transfer static elimination light is narrowed, and the vertical spread of the pre-transfer static elimination light is narrowed. The irradiation angle is a so-called 1 / 2 irradiation angle, which is an angle range that is 1 / 2 or more of the maximum illuminance of the illuminance distribution.

[0028] A plurality of second slits 46B are formed in the upper part of the developing unit frame 45B, facing the plurality of first slits 42A. The second slits 46B are formed to have a slit length greater than that of the first slits 42A in the axial direction (left-right direction) of the photosensitive drum 21A. Therefore, the pre-transfer charge eliminating light is irradiated uniformly in the left-right direction to the photosensitive drum 21B (see FIG. 2). In addition, the second slits 46B are partitioned by support walls 47B inclined left and right. Therefore, the area in the shade where the pre-transfer charge eliminating light is blocked by the support walls 47B is reduced, and the pre-transfer charge eliminating light is irradiated uniformly in the left-right direction to the photosensitive drum 21B.

[0029] Furthermore, when the pre-transfer static elimination light passes through the second slit 46B, the vertical irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light is narrowed, and the vertical spread of the pre-transfer static elimination light that passed through the first slit 42A is narrowed. In this manner, the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light is roughly narrowed by the first slit 42A that is distant from the photoconductor drum 21B, and the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light is finely narrowed by the second slit 46B that is close to the photoconductor drum 21. The irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light is narrowed by the first slit 42A and the second slit 46B, and the amount of the pre-transfer static elimination light for the photoconductor drum 21B is mechanically adjusted.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 4, the drum frame 41A supports a substrate 51A of the static elimination unit 25A. The substrate 51A is formed long along the photoconductor drum 21A. A plurality of (eight in this embodiment) first static elimination light sources 52A and a plurality of (four in this embodiment) second static elimination light sources (static elimination light sources) 53A are arranged in a horizontal row along the substrate 51A. The emission surface of the first static elimination light source 52A faces the photoconductor drum 21A side, and the emission surface of the second static elimination light source 53A faces the photoconductor drum 21B side. LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) are used for the first and second static elimination light sources 52A and 53A. The first static elimination light source 52A irradiates the photoconductor drum 21A with post-transfer static elimination light, and the second static elimination light source 53A irradiates the photoconductor drum 21B with pre-transfer static elimination light.

[0031] The first slit 42A and the second slit 46B are provided corresponding to the second static elimination light source 53A. The first slit 42A and the second slit 46B are formed with a large slit length in the left and right direction so as to allow the pre-transfer static elimination light to spread in the left and right direction. Normally, the illuminance of the pre-transfer static elimination light from the second static elimination light source 53A decreases as it moves away from the optical axis, but the decrease in illuminance is suppressed by the pre-transfer static elimination light from the multiple second static elimination light sources 53A interfering with each other. At this time, the intervals between the multiple second static elimination light sources 53A are adjusted so that the surface of the photoconductor drum 21B has a uniform illuminance in the left and right direction.

[0032] The pre-transfer static elimination light blocking structure will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of the pre-transfer static elimination light blocking structure of this embodiment.

[0033] As shown in Fig. 5, the pre-transfer static elimination light from the second static elimination light source 53A toward the photoconductor drum 21B is blocked by the first slit 42A of the drum frame 41A and the second slit 46B of the developing unit frame 45B. At this time, a gap C is provided between the developing unit frame 45B and the intermediate transfer belt 16 so that the developing unit frame 45B and the intermediate transfer belt 16 do not come into contact with each other. The gap C is set in an area that requires light blocking so that the photoconductor drum 21B is not irradiated with the pre-transfer static elimination light through the gap C. For this reason, the first slit 42A narrows the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light to suppress the intrusion of the pre-transfer static elimination light into the gap C.

[0034] More specifically, the optical axis of the second static elimination light source 53A is tilted downward from the horizontal, and the upper side of the pre-transfer static elimination light is shielded by the upper edge 43A of the first slit 42A. When the pre-transfer static elimination light passes through the first slit 42A, the upward spread of the pre-transfer static elimination light is suppressed, and the current pre-transfer static elimination light is shielded by the upper part of the developing unit frame 45. The upper edge 43A of the first slit 42A suppresses the upward spread of the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light to be lower than the upper surface 48B of the developing unit frame 45B. The upper edge 43A of the first slit 42A is designed with an accuracy of ±0.1 mm to ensure a necessary light-shielding area.

[0035] The second slit 46B further narrows the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light that has passed through the first slit 42A, narrowing the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light in the circumferential direction of the photoconductor drum 21B to a target width. In this way, the first slit 42A roughly narrows the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light, and the second slit 46B finely narrows the irradiation angle of the pre-transfer static elimination light, so that the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light on the photoconductor drum 21B is narrowed stepwise to the target width. In addition, since the first slit 42A is formed in the drum frame 41A and the second slit 46B is formed in the developer frame 45B, a light blocking structure is formed without providing any new components.

[0036] As described above, according to this embodiment, the photoconductor drum 21 of the multiple image forming units 17 is irradiated with post-transfer charge-removing light from the charge-removing section 25. Also, the charge-removing section 25A of a predetermined image forming unit 17A among the multiple image forming units 17 irradiates the photoconductor drum 21B of the other image forming unit 17B with pre-transfer charge-removing light. At this time, the photoconductor drum 21B is irradiated with post-transfer charge-removing light and pre-transfer charge-removing light, and the electrostatic latent image remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum 21B is erased to prevent transfer failure of the toner image. Also, the irradiation width of the pre-transfer charge-removing light on the photoconductor drum 21B is mechanically narrowed by the first slit 42A and the second slit 46B. Therefore, it is possible to prevent transfer failure by irradiating the photoconductor drum 21B with an appropriate amount of pre-transfer charge-removing light with a mechanical structure.

[0037] In this embodiment, the slit portion includes a first slit and a second slit, but the slit portion may be formed so as to narrow the irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light in the circumferential direction of the photosensitive drum between the image forming units. For example, the slit portion may be formed by a single slit.

[0038] In addition, in this embodiment, the first slit is formed in the drum frame and the second slit is formed in the developer frame, but the first slit may be formed in a member other than the drum frame and the second slit may be formed in a member other than the developer frame.

[0039] In this embodiment, the static elimination unit is provided with a plurality of first and second static elimination light sources, but the static elimination unit may be formed to be able to eliminate static electricity from the photosensitive drum with static elimination light. For example, a light guide may be provided along the photosensitive drum on a substrate of the static elimination unit, and static elimination light may be incident on an end face of the light guide from the static elimination light source. Post-transfer static elimination light is emitted from the front face of the light guide to the photosensitive drum, and pre-transfer static elimination light is irradiated from the rear face of the light guide to another photosensitive drum.

[0040] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the sheet may be any sheet-like object on which an image can be formed, and may be, for example, plain paper, coated paper, tracing paper, or an OHP (Over Head Projector) sheet.

[0041] In addition, in the present embodiment, a printer has been described as an example of an image forming apparatus, but the image forming apparatus is not limited to this configuration. The image forming apparatus may be a multifunction machine that combines a print function, a copy function, and a fax function, in addition to a copy machine and a facsimile machine.

[0042] Although the present embodiment has been described, other embodiments may be obtained by combining the above-described embodiments and modified examples in whole or in part.

[0043] In addition, the technology of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and may be variously changed, substituted, or modified within the scope of the gist of the technical idea. Furthermore, if the technical idea can be realized in a different way due to the progress of technology or another derived technology, it may be implemented using that method. Therefore, the claims cover all embodiments that can be included in the scope of the technical idea. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 1: Printer (image forming device) 16: Intermediate transfer belt (transfer belt) 17: Image forming unit 21: Photoconductor drum 23: Developer 25: Static electricity removal section 41: Drum frame 45: Developing frame 42: First slit 46: Second slit 53: Second static elimination light source (static elimination light source) P: Primary transfer position

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus in which a plurality of image forming units are arranged in a conveying direction of a transfer belt, The plurality of image forming units include a photosensitive drum that is in contact with the transfer belt at a primary transfer position; a charge removing unit that removes charge from the photosensitive drum downstream of a primary transfer position, The static elimination section of a predetermined image forming unit among the plurality of image forming units includes: A post-transfer charge-removal light is applied to a downstream side of a primary transfer position of the photosensitive drum of the predetermined image forming unit, and a pre-transfer charge-removal light is applied to an upstream side of a primary transfer position of the photosensitive drum of another image forming unit downstream in the transport direction, a slit portion for narrowing an irradiation width of pre-transfer static elimination light in a circumferential direction of the photosensitive drum is provided between the predetermined image forming unit and the other image forming unit, the slit portion has a first slit formed in the predetermined image forming unit and a second slit formed in the other image forming unit, the first slit and the second slit gradually narrow an irradiation width of the pre-transfer static elimination light in a circumferential direction of the photosensitive drum to a target width, the static elimination unit has a plurality of static elimination light sources along the axial direction of the photosensitive drum, the first slit and the second slit correspond to the plurality of static elimination light sources, 2. An image forming apparatus comprising: a photoconductor drum having a photoreceptor drum and a second slit formed thereon; a first slit formed on the photoreceptor drum;

2. The plurality of image forming units include a developing device that supplies toner to the photosensitive drum upstream of a primary transfer position; the first slit is formed in a drum frame that supports the photosensitive drum, 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second slit is formed in a developing unit frame that supports the developing unit.

Images