Toner supply device and image forming apparatus

Abstract

To apply certain vibration strength to a toner container, thereby certainly scraping off a toner attached to an inner wall of the toner container even when the remaining amount of toner becomes small.SOLUTION: A toner supply device 50 holds a toner container 40 that is formed with recesses 48 in a cylindrical outer peripheral surface and rotates the toner container 40 in a predetermined direction to supply a toner stored in the toner container 40, and comprises: a projection 61 that is fitted into the recesses 48 in accordance with the rotation of the toner container 40 to apply vibration to the toner container 40; and an elastic member 62 that is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the toner container 40 to press and urge the toner container 40 toward the projection 61.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a toner supplying device and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to a technique for supplying toner by rotating a toner container. [Background technology]

[0002] An image forming apparatus that forms an image by electrophotography supplies toner from a toner container by rotating the toner container attached thereto. In this type of image forming apparatus, the toner contained in the toner container may aggregate and adhere to the inner wall of the toner container. The toner that adheres to the inner wall of the toner container is difficult to remove from the inner wall by simply rotating the toner container.

[0003] For this reason, a structure has been proposed in the past in which a step is formed on the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical holding member that fits into the head of the toner container and rotates with the toner container, and a recess into which the step falls is formed on the inner peripheral surface of a main body side holding member that fits into the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical holding member and rotatably supports the cylindrical holding member (for example, Patent Document 1). In this conventional technology, the step formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical holding member falls into the recess of the main body side holding member, generating vibrations that are applied to the toner container, thereby peeling off the toner adhering to the inner wall of the toner container. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-272052 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, since the weight of the toner container is used to generate vibrations, the strength of the vibrations applied to the toner container depends on the amount of toner remaining in the toner container. Therefore, when the amount of toner remaining in the toner container is small, the vibration strength is not sufficient, and there is a problem that the toner adhering to the inner wall cannot be peeled off.

[0006] To prevent this, it is conceivable to increase the vibration strength by, for example, increasing the step of the step portion and deepening the depth of the recess, thereby increasing the amount of drop when the step falls into the recess. However, if the step is made large, when the step portion rotates while contacting the inner peripheral surface of the main body side holding member other than the recess, the rotation axis of the toner container will be significantly misaligned with the rotation axis of the rotation drive system, and excessive load will be applied to the rotation drive system. Therefore, with the conventional technology, it is difficult to adopt a structure that increases the step of the step portion to increase the vibration strength.

[0007] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and aims to provide a toner supplying device and an image forming apparatus that can impart a constant vibration strength to a toner container and effectively remove toner adhering to the inner wall, even when the remaining toner is low. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 provides a toner supplying device that holds a toner container having a recess formed on its cylindrical outer peripheral surface, and supplies toner contained in the toner container by rotating the toner container in a predetermined direction, the toner supplying device comprising: a protrusion that fits into the recess as the toner container rotates and applies vibration to the toner container; and an elastic member that comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface and presses and urges the toner container toward the protrusion; a holding member for holding the toner container; Equipped with The holding member has a bottom portion supporting the lowest point of the outer circumferential surface, a first wall portion erected from one end of the bottom portion and holding the elastic member at a predetermined height position, and a second wall portion erected from the other end of the bottom portion and provided with the protrusion. This configuration is characterized by the above. The invention of claim 2 is a toner supplying device that holds a toner container having a recess formed on its cylindrical outer peripheral surface, and supplies toner contained in the toner container by rotating the toner container in a predetermined direction, comprising: a protrusion that fits into the recess as the toner container rotates to impart vibration to the toner container, and an elastic member that abuts against the outer peripheral surface and presses the toner container toward the protrusion; a linear groove formed from the outer peripheral surface toward the center is provided on the bottom surface of the toner container, and the device further comprises a drive coupling that engages with the groove to rotate the toner container.

[0009] Claim 3 The invention according to claim 1 or 2 In the toner supplying device, the protrusion and the elastic member are provided at positions facing each other with the toner container interposed therebetween.

[0010] Claim 4 The invention according to claim 1 or 3 In the toner supplying device, the protrusion is provided at a position in the longitudinal direction of the toner container different from a position where the elastic member abuts against the outer circumferential surface.

[0011] Claim 5 The invention relates to claims 1 to 5 In any one of the toner supplying devices, a height of the protrusion in a normal direction to the outer circumferential surface is greater than a depth of the recess.

[0012] Claim 6 The invention relates to claims 1 to 5 In any one of the toner supplying devices, the protrusion has a top portion that comes into contact with a bottom portion of the recess when the protrusion is fitted into the recess.

[0013] Claim 7 The invention according to claim 6 In the toner supply device, the protrusion has a first inclined surface downstream of the top in the rotational direction of the toner container, the first inclined surface forming an acute angle with a tangent to the outer peripheral surface.

[0014] Claim 8 The invention according to claim 7 In the toner supply device, the protrusion portion has a second inclined surface upstream of the top in the rotation direction of the toner container, the angle between the second inclined surface and the tangent to the outer peripheral surface being larger than that of the first inclined surface.

[0015] Claim 9 The invention according to claim 6 ~ 8In any one of the toner supplying devices, the elastic member continues to be in contact with the outer circumferential surface when the top portion hits the bottom portion of the recess.

[0016] Claim 10 The invention relates to claims 1 to 9 In any one of the toner supplying devices described above, the rear side of the protrusion is formed as a vertical wall.

[0018] The invention according to claim 11 is 1 In the toner supplying device, the holding members are arranged in a plurality of positions along a horizontal direction.

[0019] The invention of claim 12 is a toner supplying device of claim 11, characterized in that the first wall portion of the adjacent holding member is joined to the back side of the second wall portion.

[0021] Claim 13 The invention according to claim 2 In the toner supplying device, the recess is formed on the outer circumferential surface at the same angular position as the recessed groove.

[0022] Claim 14 The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, comprising: 13 The toner supply device according to the present invention is characterized in that it includes any one of the above toner supply devices. Effect of the Invention

[0023] According to the present invention, even when the remaining toner amount is low, it is possible to apply a constant vibration strength to the toner container, and the toner adhering to the inner wall of the toner container can be reliably peeled off. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an external configuration of an image forming apparatus. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of a printer unit. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a toner supply device. [Figure 4] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating an example of a rotating mechanism for a toner container. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration example of a holding member. [Figure 6] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating a state in which the holding member holds the toner container. [Figure 7] 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating engagement states between a recessed groove on the bottom surface of the toner container and a protrusion of a drive coupling before and after the protrusion fits into a recessed groove. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a protrusion portion. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a protrusion portion. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure of a spiral groove. [Figure 11] 13A and 13B are diagrams showing an example in which the width of the protrusion is formed larger than the width of the spiral groove. [Figure 12] 11A to 11C are diagrams showing variations in the positions at which protrusions are provided. [Figure 13] 11 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of an arrangement of a plurality of holding members. [Figure 14] 13 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a holding member in which the second wall portion is formed to have a large thickness. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, elements common to each other are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof will be omitted.

[0026] (One embodiment of the present invention) 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. This image forming apparatus is configured as an MFP having multiple functions such as a copy function, a scan function, and a print function.

[0027] The image forming apparatus 1 is provided with a printer unit 2 in the center of the main body of the apparatus. The printer unit 2 is also provided with a paper feed cassette 3 in its lower portion. The paper feed cassette 3 is provided with a paper feed tray 10 (see FIG. 2) inside, and by pulling it out to the front side of the main body of the apparatus, a stack of sheets 9 such as printing paper can be accommodated in the paper feed tray 10. The printer unit 2 performs image formation on the sheets 9 fed from the paper feed tray 10 by an electrophotographic method, transfers a toner image based on image data to be printed onto the sheets 9, fixes the toner image onto the sheets 9, and discharges the sheets 9 onto the paper discharge tray 4. A door member 2c is provided on the front side of the printer unit 2, which can be opened and closed when replacing a toner container 40 (see FIG. 2) installed inside.

[0028] The image forming apparatus 1 is equipped with a scanner unit 5 and an operation panel 6 on top of the printer unit 2. The scanner unit 5 optically reads the image of an original document set by the user to generate image data. For example, if the job specified by the user is a copy job, the scanner unit 5 generates image data by reading the image of the original document, and the printer unit 2 forms an image on a sheet 9 based on the image data. The operation panel 6 serves as a user interface when the user operates the image forming apparatus 1. This operation panel 6 displays various screens to the user and accepts operations by the user.

[0029] 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of the printer unit 2. The printer unit 2 includes therein a sheet transport mechanism 2a that transports a sheet 9, and an image forming mechanism 2b.

[0030] The sheet transport mechanism 2a is a mechanism that takes out one sheet 9 at the top of a stack of sheets 9 stored in a paper feed tray 10, and transports the sheet 9 in the direction of an arrow F1 along a transport path 11 shown by a dashed line in the figure. The sheet transport mechanism 2a sends out one sheet 9 stored in the paper feed tray 10 to the transport path 11 by a pickup roller 12 and a paper feed roller 13. The transport path 11 is provided with a timing roller 14, a secondary transfer roller 23, a fixing unit 28, and a paper discharge roller 15. The sheet 9 transported along the transport path 11 stops once at the position of the timing roller 14, and is supplied toward the secondary transfer roller 23 in accordance with the timing at which the toner image primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 22 by the image forming mechanism 2b reaches the position of the secondary transfer roller 23. As a result, when the sheet 9 passes the position of the secondary transfer roller 23, the toner image primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 22 is secondarily transferred to the surface of the sheet 9. The sheet 9 onto which the toner image has been transferred is then subjected to a heat treatment and a pressure treatment as it passes through the fixing unit 28, and the toner image is fixed onto its surface. Then, the sheet 9 onto which the toner image has been fixed is discharged from the paper discharge rollers 15 onto the paper discharge tray 4 at the top of the printer unit 2.

[0031] The image forming mechanism 2b includes a drive roller 20, a driven roller 21, an intermediate transfer belt 22, a secondary transfer roller 23, image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, 30K individually provided corresponding to each of the colors Y (yellow), M (magenta), C (cyan), and K (black), primary transfer rollers 24Y, 24M, 24C, 24K arranged opposite each of the image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, 30K across the intermediate transfer belt 22, a toner supply device 50 supplying toner of each color to each of the image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, 30K, and joints 43Y, 43M, 43C, 43K connected to supply toner from the toner supply device 50 to each of the image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, 30K.

[0032] The driving roller 20 is provided at a position facing the secondary transfer roller 23 across the conveyance path 11 of the sheet 9, and is driven to rotate in a predetermined direction (counterclockwise direction) by a motor (not shown). The driven roller 21 is provided at a position spaced apart from the driving roller 20 at substantially the same height as the driving roller 20. The intermediate transfer belt 22 is an endless belt that is placed in a state of being stretched across the driving roller 20 and the driven roller 21. The driven roller 21 is biased in a direction away from the driving roller 20 (leftward in FIG. 2) by a spring (not shown), and applies tension to the intermediate transfer belt 22. When the driving roller 20 is driven to rotate in a predetermined direction, the intermediate transfer belt 22 moves in a circular motion in the direction of the arrow F2 in the figure, and the driven roller is also rotated by the drive roller 20.

[0033] Below the intermediate transfer belt 22, image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K for the respective colors Y, M, C, and K are arranged at predetermined intervals. The image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K only differ in the color of toner they handle, and have the same specific configuration and operation. Therefore, in the following, when there is no need to distinguish between the image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K for the respective colors, they may be collectively referred to simply as "image forming unit 30."

[0034] The image forming unit 30 includes a photoconductor drum 31 disposed at a position facing each of the primary transfer rollers 24Y, 24M, 24C, and 24K across the intermediate transfer belt 22. The photoconductor drum 31 is an image carrier having a photosensitive layer formed on the surface of a cylindrical drum. Around the photoconductor drum 31, a cleaner 35, a charging section 32, an exposure section 33, and a developing section 34 are disposed. The cleaner 35 is for removing toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 without being primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 22. The charging section 32 charges the photosensitive layer on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 to a predetermined charge. The exposure section 33 has a light source such as a semiconductor laser or a light emitting diode, and forms an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 by exposing the photosensitive layer charged to a predetermined charge based on image data to be drawn. The developing unit 34 is filled with a developer containing toner, and by applying the developer to the surface of the photoconductor drum 31, the electrostatic latent image formed by the exposure unit 33 is visualized with toner. As a result, a toner image is formed on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31.

[0035] The toner image formed on the surface of the photoreceptor drum 31 is primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 22 when the intermediate transfer belt 22 passes between the photoreceptor drum 31 and the primary transfer rollers 24Y, 24M, 24C, and 24K. This operation is performed sequentially in the image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K of each color, whereby the toner images of Y, M, C, and K are primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 22 in a sequentially superimposed manner, forming a color image. This color image is secondarily transferred to the sheet 9 when the sheet 9 passes through the nip portion between the intermediate transfer belt 22 and the secondary transfer roller 23. Note that toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 22 without being secondarily transferred to the sheet 9 is collected by a cleaning means (not shown).

[0036] The toner supply device 50 is provided above the intermediate transfer belt 22. The toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K of the respective colors Y, M, C, and K can be attached to and detached from the toner supply device 50. For example, the toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K can be attached and detached to and from the toner supply device 50 by opening a door member 2c provided on the front side of the printer unit 2. The toner supply device 50 includes the toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K of the respective colors and a sub-hopper unit 41 provided below the toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K. The sub-hopper unit 41 includes sub-hoppers 42Y, 42M, 42C, and 42K corresponding to the respective colors Y, M, C, and K. The toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K of each color supply toner to the sub-hoppers 42Y, 42M, 42C, and 42K corresponding to each color. In addition, the sub-hoppers 42Y, 42M, 42C, and 42K of each color are connected to joints 43Y, 43M, 43C, and 43K for supplying toner, and the toner is supplied from the sub-hoppers 42Y, 42M, 42C, and 42K of each color to the developing units 34 of the image forming units 30Y, 30M, 30C, and 30K of each color via the joints 43Y, 43M, 43C, and 43K.

[0037] In the following, when there is no need to distinguish between the toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K of the respective colors, they will be collectively referred to as "toner container 40." In addition, in the following, when there is no need to distinguish between the sub-hoppers 42Y, 42M, 42C, and 42K of the respective colors, they will be collectively referred to as "sub-hoppers 42."

[0038] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the toner supplying device 50. For example, the toner container 40 has a generally cylindrical shape, a container body 44 that contains toner, and a cap portion 43 that is provided at the end of the container body 44. The container body 44 and the cap portion 43 are attached so as to be relatively rotatable. A knob 45 for rotating the toner container 40 is formed on the front side of the cap portion 43. When the toner container 40 is attached to the toner supplying device 50, the bottom surface 47 of the container body 44 is inserted in the X direction from the front side of the printer unit 2 with the bottom surface 47 of the container body 44 at the leading end. As a result, the cap portion 43 of the toner container 40 of each color is placed on the upper portion of the sub-hopper unit 41 in which the sub-hoppers 42 of each color are integrally formed.

[0039] A toner supply port (not shown) is formed on the inside of the cap portion 43 of the toner container 40, and when the toner container 40 is inserted in the X direction and attached, the toner supply port is located at the top of the sub-hopper 42. The outer periphery of the cap portion 43 functions as a shutter that opens and closes the toner supply port, and by rotating the outer periphery of the cap portion 43 relative to the inside, the toner supply port is opened, and the toner contained in the toner container 40 can be supplied to the sub-hopper 42. By rotating the container body 44 in this state, the toner moving toward the cap portion 43 drops from the toner supply port and is supplied to the sub-hopper 42.

[0040] The toner container 40 also has a spiral groove 46 on the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44. This spiral groove 46 forms a spiral protrusion on the inside of the container body 44, and has the function of transporting the toner inside toward the cap part 43 as the container body 44 rotates.

[0041] The toner container 40 also has a recess 48 formed linearly along the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the toner container 40 on the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44. As described below, this recess 48 is for imparting vibration to the container body 44 as the container body 44 rotates. For example, the toner container 40 of this embodiment has recesses 48 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44 at two positions rotated 180 degrees in the rotation direction of the container body 44. Therefore, the container body 44 is configured to be vibrated every time the container body 44 makes a half rotation.

[0042] A rotational holding portion 51 is provided on the bottom side of the container body 44 of the toner container 40, engaging with the bottom surface 47 of the toner container 40 to rotatably hold the container body 44. In this embodiment, an example is shown in which two rotational holding portions 51, 51 are provided on the bottom sides of four toner containers 40. One rotational holding portion 51 is configured to rotate two toner containers 40. A driving source 52 such as a motor is provided on the rear side of the rotational holding portion 51. The driving force from the driving source 52 is transmitted to a rotational driving portion 53 provided individually for each toner container 40, and the rotational driving portion 53 rotates each toner container 40 around a predetermined rotation axis.

[0043] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a rotation mechanism of the toner container 40. FIG. 4(a) shows the structure of the bottom surface 47 of the toner container 40, and FIG. 4(b) shows the structure of the rotation drive unit 53. As shown in FIG. 4(a), the bottom surface 47 of the toner container 40 is provided with two grooves 47a, 47a formed in a straight line from the outer periphery to the center. These grooves 47a, 47a are provided on a straight line connecting the recesses 48, 48 formed on the outer periphery of the container body 44 and passing through the center of the container body 44. In other words, the grooves 47a, 47a are formed at the same angular position as the recesses 48, 48 formed on the outer periphery of the toner container 40. Also, as shown in FIG. 4(b), the rotation drive unit 53 has a drive coupling 54 at its tip. When the drive force from the drive source 52 is transmitted to the rotation drive unit 53 and the rotation drive unit 53 operates, the drive coupling 54 rotates in a predetermined rotation direction R around a rotation shaft 55.

[0044] Two protrusions 54a, 54a are provided on the front side of the drive coupling 54. These two protrusions 54a, 54a fit into two recessed grooves 47a, 47a provided in the bottom surface 47 of the toner container 40, whereby the drive coupling 54 engages with the bottom surface 47 of the toner container 40. As the drive coupling 54 rotates in a predetermined rotational direction R, the toner container 40 rotates in the rotational direction R about the rotation shaft 49 as shown in FIG. 4(a).

[0045] 3, the toner supplying device 50 further includes a holding member 60 that holds the outer peripheral surface of the toner container 40 of each color. Since the toner supplying device 50 of this embodiment includes four toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K that are adjacently arranged along the horizontal direction (Y direction), the four holding members 60 are arranged along the horizontal direction (Y direction). The holding member 60 rotatably holds the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44 of the toner container 40.

[0046] 5 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the holding member 60. The holding member 60 holds the toner container 40 by contacting three points on the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44 of the toner container 40. The holding member 60 includes a bottom 63 supporting the lowest point on the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical container body 44, a first wall 64 erected from one end of the bottom 63, and a second wall 65 erected from the other end of the bottom 63. The holding member 60 is configured to hold the container body 44 between the first wall 64 and the second wall 65.

[0047] The holding member 60 has an elastic member 62 formed of a leaf spring or the like provided on a first wall portion 64, and a protrusion 61 provided on a second wall portion 65 facing the first wall portion 64. The holding member 60 holds the elastic member 62 and the protrusion 61 in a state in which they face each other. The protrusion 61 is provided on the upper part of the second wall portion 65, abuts against the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44, and applies vibration to the container body 44 by fitting into a recess 48 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44 as the toner container 40 rotates. The protrusion 61 may be formed integrally with the second wall portion 65, or may be formed separately from the second wall portion 65 and attached to the second wall portion 65. The elastic member 62 is formed into a bow shape, for example, by curving the center portion to protrude toward the second wall portion 65 and fixing both ends to the first wall portion 64. The elastic member 62 comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44 and presses and urges the container body 44 towards the protrusion 61 .

[0048] For example, the rear side of the protrusion 61 provided on the upper part of the second wall 65 is formed as a vertical wall. In addition, the rear side of the first wall 64 is also formed as a vertical wall.

[0049] 6 is a diagram showing a state in which the holding member 60 holds the toner container 40. As shown in Fig. 6(a), the holding member 60 brings the elastic member 62 into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44 of the toner container 40, and presses and urges the container body 44 as shown by the arrow F. The protrusion 61 is disposed at a position facing the elastic member 62 across the container body 44, and is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44. The protrusion 61 has a shape that protrudes in a mountain shape toward the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44, for example.

[0050] As shown in FIG. 6(a), when the container body 44 rotates in the rotation direction R with the recess 48 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44 at a position different from the protrusion 61, the recess 48 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44 eventually reaches the position of the protrusion 61. When the recess 48 rotates to the protrusion 61, the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48 as shown in FIG. 6(b). At this time, the container body 44 is pressed and urged by the elastic member 62 in the direction in which the protrusion 61 is located (the direction of the arrow F). Therefore, when the recess 48 rotates to the position of the protrusion 61, the container body 44 is displaced so that the recess 48 hits the protrusion 61 instantaneously due to the pressing force of the elastic member 62. As a result, an impact can be generated when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48, and vibration can be imparted to the container body 44. Therefore, even if the toner contained inside the container body 44 has aggregated and adhered to the inner wall of the toner container 40, the toner can be detached from the inner wall of the toner container 40 by vibrating the container body 44.

[0051] The vibration strength applied to the container body 44 depends on the pressing force of the elastic member 62. Therefore, even if the amount of toner remaining inside the toner container 40 is low, it is possible to vibrate the container body 44 with a constant vibration strength, and it is possible to reliably peel off the toner from the inner wall of the toner container 40. In other words, the toner supply device 50 of this embodiment can stabilize the vibration strength applied to the toner container 40 by pressing the toner container 40 with the elastic member 62, and realizes a vibration applying mechanism that is not dependent on the amount of toner remaining inside the toner container 40. In addition, since the vibration strength depends on the pressing force of the elastic member 62, it is not necessary to make the height of the protrusion 61 higher than necessary. For example, in order to increase the vibration strength, it is sufficient to use an elastic member 62 with a large spring constant, and the vibration strength can be adjusted by appropriately selecting the shape and material of the elastic member 62. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the positional deviation of the rotation shafts 49 and 55 when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48.

[0052] 7A and 7B are diagrams showing engagement states between the recessed grooves 47a, 47a in the bottom surface 47 of the toner container 40 and the protrusions 54a, 54a of the drive coupling 54 before and after the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48. As shown in Fig. 7A, when the container body 44 is rotating with the protrusion 61 in contact with an outer circumferential surface different from the recess 48 of the container body 44, the rotation axis 49 of the container body 44 and the rotation axis 55 of the drive coupling 54 coincide with each other.

[0053] On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7(b), when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48, the container body 44 is displaced by the pressing force of the elastic member 62, so that the rotation shaft 49 of the container body 44 and the rotation shaft 55 of the drive coupling 54 are misaligned. On the other hand, as described above, the recessed grooves 47a, 47a into which the protrusions 54a, 54a of the drive coupling 54 fit are at the same angular position as the recesses 48, 48 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44, and are formed on a straight line connecting the recesses 48, 48 of the container body 44. Therefore, when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48 and the container body 44 is displaced, the protrusions 54a, 54a of the drive coupling 54 are relatively displaced along the direction in which the recessed grooves 47a, 47a are formed, as shown in FIG. 7(b), so that the positional deviation between the rotation shaft 49 of the container body 44 and the rotation shaft 55 of the drive coupling 54 can be absorbed. That is, even if the rotating shafts 49, 55 are misaligned, the protrusions 54a, 54a of the drive coupling 54 maintain a good engagement state with the recessed grooves 47a, 47a. As a result, the drive coupling 54 can rotate the container body 44 in an eccentric state until the protrusion 61 is disengaged from the recessed portion 48. Then, when the protrusion 61 is disengaged from the recessed portion 48, the misalignment of the rotating shafts 49, 55 is eliminated.

[0054] 8 and 9 are enlarged views of the protrusion 61. As shown in FIG. 8, the protrusion 61 has a top 66 that abuts against the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44. The protrusion 61 has a first inclined surface 67 downstream of the top 66 in the rotation direction R of the container body 44, and a second inclined surface 68 upstream of the top 66. The angle α of the first inclined surface 67 with the tangent 40L to the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44 at the abutment position of the top 66 is an acute angle. By making the angle α of the first inclined surface 67 an acute angle, even if the container body 44 rotates in the rotation direction R after the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 58 as shown in FIG. 9, and the rear end 48a of the recess 48 comes into contact with the first inclined surface 67, the container body 44 can be rotated smoothly, and the protrusion 61 can be smoothly removed from the recess 48.

[0055] 8, the second inclined surface 68 is formed so that the angle β between it and the tangent line 40L is larger than the angle α of the first inclined surface 67. By making the angle β of the second inclined surface 68 larger than the angle α of the first inclined surface 67, it is possible to increase the amount of instantaneous displacement when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48, which has the advantage of increasing the impact on the container body 44. Here, the angle β of the second inclined surface 68 is preferably set to about 90 degrees.

[0056] Moreover, it is preferable that the height H of the protrusion 61 protruding in the normal direction of the outer circumferential surface of the container body 44 is greater than the depth of the recess 48. By making the height H of the protrusion 61 deeper than the depth of the recess 48, when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48, the top 66 strikes the bottom of the recess 48, making it possible to apply a strong impact to the container body 44.

[0057] In addition, the protrusion 61 can give an impact to the container body 44 when it fits into the recess 48, but does not give an impact to the container body 44 when it fits into the spiral groove 46. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure of the spiral groove 46. For example, the spiral groove 46 is composed of gently inclined surfaces 46a, 46a as shown in FIG. 10. Therefore, when the protrusion 61 fits into the spiral groove 46, it fits gently into the bottom of the spiral groove 46 along the inclined surfaces 46a, 46a, so that it does not give an impact to the container body 44. In addition, since the inclined surfaces 46a, 46a on both sides of the spiral groove 46 are gently inclined, even after the protrusion 61 enters the inside of the spiral groove 46, it is also possible for the protrusion 61 to smoothly exit from the spiral groove 46 as the container body 44 rotates.

[0058] Also, the protrusion 61 may have a structure that does not fit into the spiral groove 46. For example, as shown in Fig. 11, the width L1 of the protrusion 61 in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the toner container 40 is made larger than the width L2 of the spiral groove 46, so that the protrusion 61 does not fit into the spiral groove 46 even when the container body 44 rotates. By having the protrusion 61 not fit into the spiral groove 46, when the protrusion 61 is not fitted into the recess 48, the container body 44 can be rotated with the rotation axis 49 of the container body 44 and the rotation axis 55 of the drive coupling 54 aligned, which is advantageous in that the load on the rotation drive unit 53 can be reduced.

[0059] 12A and 12B are diagrams showing variations in the position where the protrusion 61 is provided in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the toner container 40. For example, as shown in Fig. 12A, the protrusion 61 may be provided within a range of an area RX where the pressing force of the elastic member 62 acts in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the toner container 40. However, if the protrusion 61 is provided within a range of an area RX where the pressing force of the elastic member 62 acts, when the container body 44 of the toner container 40 is inserted between the elastic member 62 and the protrusion 61, the container body 44 comes into contact with the elastic member 62 and the pressing force of the elastic member 62 acts, making it difficult to insert the container body 44 between the elastic member 62 and the protrusion 61, resulting in a problem of poor workability.

[0060] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12(b), the protrusion 61 may be provided at a position different from the position where the elastic member 62 abuts on the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44. For example, in the example of FIG. 12(b), the protrusion 61 is provided outside the range of the region RX where the pressing force of the elastic member 62 acts in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the toner container 40. More specifically, the protrusion 61 is provided at a position on the front side of the elastic member 62 in the insertion direction (X direction) in which the toner container 40 is inserted. Therefore, when the container body 44 of the toner container 40 is inserted between the elastic member 62 and the protrusion 61, the container body 44 is first inserted between the first wall portion 64 and the protrusion 61, and then the toner container 40 is pushed in, so that the container body 44 can be disposed between the elastic member 62 and the protrusion 61. In other words, by providing the protrusion 61 at a position different from the position where the elastic member 62 abuts against the outer peripheral surface of the container body 44, it becomes easier to insert the container body 44 between the elastic member 62 and the protrusion 61, which has the advantage of improving workability.

[0061] The above-mentioned holding members 60 are arranged in a plurality of positions along the horizontal direction (Y direction) and hold the four toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K at a predetermined interval. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the arrangement of the four holding members 60. In order to realize a compact image forming apparatus 1, it is preferable that the arrangement intervals of the four toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K are small. On the other hand, the first wall portion 64 and the second wall portion 65 of the holding member 60 are arranged between the toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K. Therefore, if it is desired to reduce the arrangement intervals of the four toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K, it is necessary to reduce the thickness of each of the first wall portion 64 and the second wall portion 65. However, if the thickness of the second wall portion 65 on which the protrusion portion 61 is provided becomes thin, when the protrusion portion 61 fits into the recessed portion 48 of the container body 44, the protrusion portion 61 may be displaced or deformed by the pressing force of the elastic member 62. If the protrusion portion 61 is displaced or deformed, the impact given to the container body 44 becomes weak, and the toner attached to the inner wall of the container body 44 may not be properly peeled off. Therefore, in the toner supply device 50 of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, a plurality of holding members 60 arranged adjacent to each other in the horizontal direction are installed in a state of being joined to each other. That is, the back side of the second wall portion 65 on which the protrusion portion 61 is provided is arranged in a state of being joined to the first wall portion 64 of the holding member 60 arranged adjacently. In addition, the back side of the protrusion portion 61 is also arranged in a state of being joined to the first wall portion 64 of the holding member 60 arranged adjacently. That is, the vertical wall portion on the back side of the protrusion portion 61 is arranged in a state of being joined to the vertical wall portion on the back side of the first wall portion 64 of the adjacent holding member 60. This increases the rigidity of the second wall portion 65 and the protrusion portion 61, and prevents the protrusion portion 61 from being displaced or deformed due to the pressing force of the elastic member 62 when the protrusion portion 61 fits into the recess 48 of the container body 44.

[0062] In addition to the above, the thickness of the second wall portion 65 may be increased to increase the rigidity of the second wall portion 65. Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a holding member 60 in which the thickness of the second wall portion 65 is increased. For example, as shown in Fig. 14(a), the rigidity of the second wall portion 65 may be increased by increasing the thickness of the second wall portion 65. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 14(b), the thickness of the second wall portion 65 may be increased by forming a second inclined surface 68 located below the top portion 66 of the protrusion portion 61 into a vertical surface.

[0063] 13, the holding member 60 holding the toner container 40K is located at the right end, and therefore cannot be disposed in a state in which the first wall 64 of another holding member 60 is joined to the rear surface side of the second wall 65. Therefore, by increasing the thickness of the second wall 65 of the holding member 60 located at the end among the multiple holding members 60 as shown in FIG. 14(a) or 14(b), the rigidity of the second wall 65 and the protrusion 61 can be increased, and when the protrusion 61 fits into the recess 48 of the container body 44, the protrusion 61 can be prevented from being displaced or deformed by the pressing force of the elastic member 62.

[0064] As described above, the toner supply device 50 of the present embodiment includes the protrusion 61 that fits into the recess 48 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the toner container 40 as the toner container 40 rotates to impart vibration to the toner container 40, and the elastic member 62 that is disposed at a position facing the protrusion 61 across the toner container 40 and abuts against the outer peripheral surface of the toner container 40 to press and urge the toner container 40 toward the protrusion 61. Therefore, even when the amount of toner remaining inside the toner container 40 is low, a certain vibration strength can be imparted to the toner container 40, so that the toner adhering to the inner wall of the toner container 40 can be reliably peeled off.

[0065] Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be applied.

[0066] For example, in the above embodiment, a description has been given of an example in which a plurality of holding members 60 each holding one toner container 40 are arranged in the horizontal direction to hold four toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K of Y, M, C, and K. However, the present invention is not limited to the above. For example, as shown in FIG. 13, a plurality of holding members 60 arranged in the horizontal direction may be configured as a single unit.

[0067] In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which a bow-shaped leaf spring is provided as the elastic member 62. However, the shape of the elastic member 62 is not necessarily limited to a bow shape. Furthermore, the elastic member 62 is not limited to a leaf spring. For example, the elastic member 62 may be formed of a coil spring, rubber, or the like.

[0068] In the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 1 is exemplified as being capable of forming color images by mounting toner containers 40Y, 40M, 40C, and 40K of four colors, Y, M, C, and K. However, the image forming apparatus 1 is not limited to being capable of forming color images. In other words, the image forming apparatus 1 may be a monochrome-only machine that forms only monochrome images. [Explanation of symbols]

[0069] 1. Image forming device 40(40Y,40M,40C,40K) Toner container 47 Bottom 47a Groove 48 Recess 50 Toner supply device 54 Drive coupling 60 Retaining member 61 Protrusion 62 Elastic member 63 Bottom 64 1st wall 65 2nd wall section 66 Top 67 1st slope 68 Second slope

Claims

1. A toner supplying device that holds a toner container having a recess formed on an outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical shape, and supplies toner contained in the toner container by rotating the toner container in a predetermined direction, a protrusion that fits into the recess as the toner container rotates to impart vibration to the toner container; an elastic member that contacts the outer circumferential surface and presses and biases the toner container toward the protrusion; a holding member for holding the toner container; Equipped with The holding member is A bottom portion supporting the lowest point of the outer circumferential surface; a first wall portion that stands from one end of the bottom portion and holds the elastic member at a predetermined height; a second wall portion provided with the protrusion and standing from the other end of the bottom portion; A toner supplying device comprising:

2. A toner supplying device that holds a toner container having a recess formed on an outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical shape, and supplies toner contained in the toner container by rotating the toner container in a predetermined direction, a protrusion that fits into the recess as the toner container rotates to impart vibration to the toner container; an elastic member that contacts the outer circumferential surface and presses and biases the toner container toward the protrusion; Equipped with The bottom surface of the toner container is provided with a linear groove extending from the outer periphery toward the center, a drive coupling that engages with the groove to rotate the toner container;

3. 3. The toner supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion and the elastic member are provided at positions facing each other with the toner container interposed therebetween.

4. 4. The toner supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is provided at a position in the longitudinal direction of the toner container different from a position where the elastic member abuts against the outer circumferential surface.

5. 5. The toner supplying device according to claim 1, wherein a height of the protrusion in a normal direction to the outer circumferential surface is greater than a depth of the recess.

6. 6. The toner supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion has a top portion that comes into contact with a bottom portion of the recess when the protrusion is fitted into the recess.

7. 7. The toner supply device according to claim 6, wherein the protrusion has a first inclined surface downstream of the top in the rotation direction of the toner container, the first inclined surface forming an acute angle with a tangent to the outer circumferential surface.

8. 8. The toner supply device according to claim 7, wherein the protrusion has a second inclined surface upstream of the top in the rotation direction of the toner container, the second inclined surface forming an angle with the tangent to the outer peripheral surface that is larger than that of the first inclined surface.

9. 9. The toner supplying device according to claim 6, wherein the elastic member continues to be in contact with the outer circumferential surface when the top portion hits the bottom portion of the recess.

10. 10. The toner supplying device according to claim 1, wherein a rear side of the protrusion is formed as a vertical wall.

11. 2. The toner supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the holding members are arranged in a plurality of positions along a horizontal direction.

12. 12. The toner supplying device according to claim 11, wherein the first wall of the adjacent holding member is joined to a rear surface side of the second wall.

13. 3. The toner supplying device according to claim 2, wherein the recess is formed in the outer circumferential surface at the same angular position as the recessed groove.

14. 14. An image forming apparatus comprising the toner supply device according to claim 1.

Images