Image forming device

Abstract

To improve workability in assembly and maintenance of an image forming apparatus comprising a unit having a plurality of boards.SOLUTION: An electrical unit 50 has an upper stay 52, a lower stay 53, a relay board unit 54, a control board unit 55, and development high-voltage board units 56, 57, 58, 59. The upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 are connected by a relay support plate 54b and a control support plate 55b to form a structure, which is attached with development high-voltage support plates 56b-59b. The electrical unit 50 is detachably attached to a rear side plate in an image forming apparatus. The attachment of the electrical unit 50 to the rear side plate thus allows simultaneous attachment of a relay board 54a, a control board 55a, and development high-voltage boards 56a-59a. This can facilitate arrangement of a large number of electrical boards through a small number of times of operations and reduce the time required for arranging the large number of electrical boards, thereby improving workability in assembly and maintenance of the image forming apparatus.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a copier, a facsimile, or a multifunction machine. [Background technology]

[0002] Image forming devices such as printers, copiers, facsimiles, and multifunction devices include rotating bodies related to the formation of toner images, such as photosensitive drums and developing sleeves, and drive units having motors and drive gears that rotate and drive these rotating bodies. Image forming devices also include high-voltage boards for applying high voltages to, for example, charging units that charge the photosensitive drums and developing units that develop toner images on the photosensitive drums, and control circuit boards that control the drive units (Patent Document 1). Furthermore, image forming devices include various electric boards, such as a control board that performs various control processes related to the image forming operation and a relay board that relays power supplied from an external power source to the high-voltage board, control board, etc.

[0003] Conventionally, in order to reduce the size of an image forming apparatus and improve workability during assembly and maintenance, a control circuit board and a high-voltage board are sometimes integrated into one unit. In Patent Document 1, a control circuit board that controls a drive unit is stacked so that at least a portion of the control circuit board overlaps with the high-voltage board as a drive unit. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2007-316268 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] When multiple boards are stacked as in Patent Document 1, the lower board cannot be accessed unless the upper board is removed. Therefore, if an abnormality occurs in the lower board, there is a risk that the workability of replacing the board arranged below or the maintenance work during assembly or maintenance may be reduced.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of improving the workability during assembly and maintenance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] An image forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention is an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a recording material, the image forming apparatus comprising: a plurality of photoconductors, each of which rotates around a rotation axis and is arranged in an arrangement direction intersecting the rotation axis; a support frame that supports the plurality of photoconductors; and an electrical unit attached to the support frame, the electrical unit having a first electric board, a second electric board, a first support member that extends in the arrangement direction in which the plurality of photoconductors are arranged, a second support member that extends in the arrangement direction, a first support plate that holds the first electric board and connects the first support member and the second support member, and a second support plate that holds the second electric board and connects the first support member and the second support member, the first electric board being located inside the image forming apparatus compared to at least one of the first support member and the second support member in a rotation axial direction along the rotation axis. When viewed along the rotation axis direction, the first electric board and the second electric board overlap each other. It is characterized by: Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the workability during assembly and maintenance of an image forming apparatus equipped with a unit having a plurality of substrates. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an image forming system including an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an image forming apparatus. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the rear surface of the image forming apparatus before a third housing is attached. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an electrical unit according to the embodiment; [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing a mounting plate for mounting the electrical unit. [Figure 7] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing one of the developing high voltage substrate units arranged in a multi-layer structure. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the other of the developing high voltage board units arranged in a multi-layer structure. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a multi-layer structure of a developing high-voltage board unit. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an electrical unit with cables already attached. [Figure 11] Electrical wiring diagram of electrical unit using cables. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] <Image forming system> A schematic configuration of an image forming system including an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. The image forming system 1X shown in FIG. 1 includes an image forming apparatus 100 and a finisher apparatus 300. The image forming apparatus 100 and the finisher apparatus 300 are connected to each other so that a recording material S can be transferred therebetween. In this embodiment, the finisher apparatus 300 is a post-processing unit that can be attached to the image forming apparatus 100 for functional expansion, and can perform a post-processing process (described later) on the recording material S on which a toner image has been fixed by the image forming apparatus 100. The image forming apparatus 100 and the finisher apparatus 300 are connected to each other through an input / output interface so that data can be transmitted and received between them. The post-processing unit is not limited to the finisher apparatus 300.

[0011] <Image forming device> Image forming apparatus 100 is a tandem-type full-color printer of an electrophotographic system, which forms a toner image on recording material S in response to an image signal received from an original reading device 190 that reads an image signal from an original or an external device (not shown) such as a personal computer. Image forming apparatus 100 has a first housing 101a, a second housing 101b, and a third housing 101c (see FIG. 2). In first housing 101a as a support frame, various devices and members such as an image forming unit 700 that realizes the process from transporting recording material S to transferring a toner image are arranged.

[0012] In this embodiment, an image forming unit 700 that forms a toner image on a recording material S is made up of image forming sections Pa to Pd, primary transfer rollers 24a to 24d, intermediate transfer belt 130, a plurality of rollers 13 to 15, and a secondary outer transfer roller 11, which will be described later. Examples of the recording material S include plain paper, thick paper, rough paper, textured paper, coated paper, and other paper, plastic film, and cloth.

[0013] On the other hand, the second housing 101b is provided with various devices and members such as a fixing unit 800 that conveys the recording material S and performs a process of fixing the toner image. The second housing 101b also has an operation unit 200 on the front side, which has a display unit capable of displaying various information and keys that allow an operator to input various information in response to an operation by the operator. In this specification, the side on which an operator stands when operating the operation unit 200 to operate the image forming apparatus 100 is referred to as the "front" and the opposite side is referred to as the "rear".

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 100 includes image forming units Pa, Pb, Pc, and Pd that form images of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. The image forming units Pa to Pd are arranged in a line along the moving direction of an intermediate transfer belt 130 in a first housing 101a (inside a support frame). The intermediate transfer belt 130 is stretched around a plurality of rollers (13, 14, and 15) and moved in the direction of an arrow R2. The intermediate transfer belt 130 carries and transports a toner image that is primarily transferred as described below. A secondary transfer outer roller 11 is arranged at a position opposite to the secondary transfer inner roller 14 that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 130 across the intermediate transfer belt 130, forming a secondary transfer unit T2 that transfers the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 130 to a recording material S. A fixing unit 800 is arranged downstream of the secondary transfer unit T2 in the recording material transport direction (arrow X direction: width direction).

[0015] A plurality of cassettes 10 (two in this example) containing recording materials S are disposed below the image forming apparatus 100. Recording materials S of different sizes and thicknesses are contained in these cassettes 10, and the recording material S is selectively conveyed from one of the cassettes 10. The recording material S is conveyed from the cassette 10 to the registration roller 12 through a conveying path by the conveying roller 16. Thereafter, the registration roller 12 rotates in synchronization with the toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 130, so that the recording material S is conveyed toward the secondary transfer portion T2. ​​It should be noted that the recording material S is not limited to that contained in the cassette 10, and the recording material S placed on a manual feed portion (not shown) may be conveyed.

[0016] The image forming units Pa, Pb, Pc, and Pd have substantially the same configuration, except that the toner images are developed in different colors. Therefore, the yellow image forming unit Pa will be described here as a representative, and descriptions of the other image forming units Pb, Pc, and Pd will be omitted.

[0017] The image forming unit Pa is provided with a cylindrical photosensitive drum 3a as a photosensitive member. The photosensitive drum 3a is rotated by a motor (not shown). Around the photosensitive drum 3a, a charging device 2a as a charging unit, an exposure device La, a developing device 1a, a primary transfer roller 24a, and a drum cleaning device 4a are arranged.

[0018] A process of forming, for example, a full-color image by the image forming apparatus 100 will be described. First, when an image forming operation is started, the surface of the rotating photosensitive drum 3a is uniformly charged by the charging device 2a. The charging device 2a is, for example, a corona charger that irradiates charged particles associated with corona discharge in response to application of a charging voltage to charge the surface of the photosensitive drum 3a to a uniform potential. Next, the photosensitive drum 3a is scanned and exposed by a laser beam corresponding to an image signal emitted from the exposure device La. As a result, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image signal is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 3a. The electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 3a is developed into a toner image, which is a visible image, by a developer containing toner and carrier contained in the developing device 1a. In other words, the toner image is developed on the photosensitive drum 3a by supplying toner by the developing device 1a. In the developing device 1a, the developer is circulated and transported while being stirred by a transport screw (not shown), and the toner of the developer is supplied to the photosensitive drum 3 via a developing sleeve (not shown) in response to application of a developing voltage.

[0019] The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 3a is primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 130 at a primary transfer portion T1 formed between the photosensitive drum 3a and a primary transfer roller 24a disposed with the intermediate transfer belt 130 sandwiched therebetween. At this time, a primary transfer voltage is applied to the primary transfer roller 24a. The toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 3a after the primary transfer is removed by a drum cleaning device 4a.

[0020] Such an operation is performed in sequence at each of the yellow, magenta, cyan, and black image forming units Pa to Pd, and the four color toner images are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 130. Thereafter, the recording material S accommodated in the cassette 10 is conveyed to the secondary transfer unit T2 in accordance with the timing of the formation of the toner images. Then, by applying a secondary transfer voltage to the outer secondary transfer roller 11, the full-color toner images formed on the intermediate transfer belt 130 are secondarily transferred all at once to the recording material S. Note that any toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 130 after the secondary transfer is removed by a belt cleaning device (not shown).

[0021] The recording material S onto which the toner image has been transferred is transported to a fixing unit 800. The fixing unit 800 applies heat and pressure to the recording material S onto which the toner image has been transferred, thereby fixing the toner image to the recording material S. In the case of this embodiment, after heat and pressure have been applied to the recording material S by a first fixing device 81, further heat and pressure can be selectively applied to the recording material S by a second fixing device 91. The fixing unit 800 is capable of switching by a fixing switching flapper 95 between transporting the recording material S towards the second fixing device 91 after passing through the first fixing device 81, or transporting the recording material S by avoiding the second fixing device 91 after passing through the first fixing device 81.

[0022] The second fixing device 91 is disposed downstream of the first fixing device 81 in the conveying direction of the recording material S. The second fixing device 91 is selectively used for the purpose of further imparting gloss to the toner image on the recording material S fixed by the first fixing device 81. For example, when the recording material S is coated paper such as glossy paper or synthetic paper, the recording material S that has passed through the first fixing device 81 is conveyed through the fixing route 30a so that fixing is performed by both the first fixing device 81 and the second fixing device 91. On the other hand, when the recording material S is uncoated paper such as plain paper, the recording material S that has passed through the first fixing device 81 is conveyed through the fixing bypass route 30b that avoids the second fixing device 91 so that fixing is performed by the first fixing device 81 but not by the second fixing device 91.

[0023] The first fixing device 81 and the second fixing device 91 may have the same configuration, and the first fixing device 81 will be described here as an example. The first fixing device 81 has a fixing roller 82 (or a fixing belt) that is rotatable in contact with the surface of the recording material S on which the toner image is fixed, and a pressure belt 83 (or a pressure roller) that is in pressure contact with the fixing roller 82 to form a fixing nip portion. At least one of the fixing roller 82 and the pressure belt 83 is heated by a heater (not shown). The first fixing device 81 applies heat and pressure to the recording material S on which the toner image is formed when nipping and conveying the recording material S in the fixing nip portion formed by the fixing roller 82 and the pressure belt 83, thereby fixing the toner image to the recording material S.

[0024] In the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 100 is capable of double-sided printing. In the case of single-sided printing, the recording material S on which the toner image is fixed is conveyed to the discharge conveying path 150 and discharged to the outside of the image forming apparatus 100. In the case of double-sided printing, the recording material S on which the toner image is fixed is conveyed to the double-sided inversion conveying path 600. The double-sided inversion conveying path 600 is formed across the first housing 101a and the second housing 101b. In the double-sided inversion conveying path 600, the recording material S is inverted by a switchback operation, and the front side and the back side of the recording material S are swapped. The inverted recording material S is conveyed toward the registration roller 12, and conveyed to the secondary transfer section T2 by the registration roller 12 with the back side that is not printed facing the intermediate transfer belt 130 side. In the secondary transfer section T2, the full-color toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 130 is secondarily transferred to the recording material S (back side) all at once. Thereafter, the toner image is fixed to the recording material S by the fixing unit 800, and the recording material S is discharged with the surface on which the image was just formed (image forming surface) facing upward to the outside of the image forming apparatus 100. Note that switching between the discharge conveying path 150 and the double-sided reversing conveying path 600 is performed by a conveying switching flapper 160.

[0025] A finisher device 300 is connected to the image forming apparatus 100 so as to be able to deliver the recording material S, and the recording material S discharged from the image forming apparatus 100 is transported to the finisher device 300. The recording material S transported to the finisher device 300 is subjected to post-processing such as punching processing to make holes in the recording material S, or stapling processing to bundle and staple a plurality of sheets of recording material S. In the finisher device 300, the punched recording material S is discharged to an upper discharge tray 301, and the stapled bundle of recording materials S is discharged to a lower discharge tray 302.

[0026] The first housing 101a is composed of a plurality of sheet metal members such as a front plate provided on the front side, a rear plate 211 (see Figs. 4 and 6 described later) provided on the rear side and supporting the image forming units Pa to Pd together with the front plate, stays connecting the front plate and the rear plate, and pillars supporting the rear plate. As shown in Fig. 2, the first housing 101a is covered by exterior covers that constitute the exterior of the image forming apparatus 100, such as a front cover 102 disposed on the front side and side covers 103 disposed on the left and right sides.

[0027] However, the rear side of the first housing 101a is not covered with an exterior cover. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a third housing 101c is disposed on the rear side of the first housing 101a so as to cover the rear side instead of the exterior cover. The third housing 101c is covered with an exterior cover except for the surface side facing the rear side of the first housing 101a, so that when the third housing 101c is attached to the first housing 101a, an electrical unit 50 (see FIG. 4) described below provided on the rear side of the first housing 101a is not visible from the outside. The third housing 101c can be attached to and detached from the first housing 101a by screws or the like (not shown).

[0028] 3, third housing 101c is provided with main power cord stand 201 and multiple DC power supply units 202a, 202b, 202c, and 202d. Main power cord stand 201 has an electric filter, relay, etc. (not shown), and converts AC voltage obtained from an external AC power supply through external power cable 203 connected to the external power supply into DC voltage by using these electric filters and relays. The converted DC voltage is supplied from main power cord stand 201 to each of multiple DC power supply units 202a to 202d.

[0029] The DC power supply units 202a-202d adjust the DC voltage supplied from the main power cord stand 201 and supply it to an electrical unit 50 (see FIG. 4) described later in order to operate various electric drivers (e.g., developing devices 1a-1d) provided in the image forming apparatus 100. The commercial printing image forming apparatus 100 has a faster printing speed than a home image forming apparatus, and therefore requires a large-capacity power supply device with a large electric power. However, in consideration of the large size of such power supply devices and the ease of maintenance, in this embodiment, the power supply devices such as the main power cord stand 201 and the DC power supply units 202a-202d are integrated in the third housing 101c. In other words, the third housing 101c is a power supply device in which the power supply devices are housed.

[0030] In this embodiment, when assembling the image forming apparatus 100, before the third housing 101c is attached to the first housing 101a, a large number of electric boards are disposed on the rear side of the first housing 101a. The electric boards are boards on which, for example, a CPU, a memory, electronic components, electric components, connectors, etc. are mounted. The electric boards include, for example, a control board that executes a program such as an image forming job and transmits and receives image signals and various control signals, and a plurality of high-voltage developing boards that apply developing voltages to the developing devices 1a to 1d. In addition, there are relay boards that relay DC voltages supplied from the DC power supply units 202a to 202d and supply them to the control board and the high-voltage developing board. These control boards, high-voltage developing boards, and relay boards are electrically connected so as to be able to transmit and receive electric signals. The electric boards are not limited to those described above. For example, it may be a high-voltage circuit board that applies a charging voltage to the charging devices 2a to 2d, or a drive board that drives a drive unit (not shown) having a motor, drive gears, etc. that rotates rotating bodies such as the photosensitive drums 3a to 3d (first photosensitive body, second photosensitive body).

[0031] 1, each of the image forming units Pa-Pd is larger than in devices for home or office printing, and there are a greater number of units, including the electric boards, that make up the image forming apparatus 100. When assembling such an image forming apparatus 100, if multiple (four in this case) high-voltage developing boards are individually arranged for each of the developing devices 1a-1d, for example, the number of operations for arranging the high-voltage developing boards increases, and as a result, it takes more time to assemble the image forming apparatus 100.

[0032] In this embodiment, therefore, the time required for disposing the electric board when assembling the image forming apparatus 100 can be reduced. The configuration of this embodiment that realizes a reduction in the time required for disposing the electric board will be described below with reference to Figs. 4 to 11 with reference to Figs. 1, 2, and 3. Note that in the following, in order to make the description easier to understand, a high-voltage developing board that applies a developing voltage to the developing devices 1a to 1d will be described as an example of a high-voltage circuit board. Note that, for convenience of illustration, only two mounting screws 61, which will be described later, are shown in Fig. 5.

[0033] Fig. 4 is a rear view showing the image forming apparatus 100 before the third housing 101c is attached to the first housing 101a. Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the electrical component unit 50. A rear plate 211 made of sheet metal and formed to be substantially the same size as the first housing 101a is attached to the rear of the image forming apparatus 100. The electrical component unit 50 is detachably provided on this rear plate 211 with mounting screws 61 (see Fig. 5). The electrical component unit 50 has an upper stay 52 as a first support member, a lower stay 53 as a second support member, a relay board unit 54, a control board unit 55, and a plurality of (four in this case) developing high voltage board units 56, 57, 58, 59.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 5, the relay board unit 54 has a relay board 54a and a relay support plate 54b. The relay board 54a is fixed to the relay board 54a by a screw (not shown). , board It is fixed to a gold relay support plate 54b. . Medium The relay board 54a has a function of relaying the DC voltage supplied from the above-mentioned DC power supply units 202a to 202d (see FIG. 3) to the control board 55a and the development high voltage boards 56a, 57a, 58a, and 59a. For this purpose, the relay board 54a is provided with a connector (not shown) for attaching and detaching a cable electrically connected to the DC power supply units 202a to 202d. The relay board 54a is also provided with a connector (not shown) for attaching and detaching a cable electrically connected to the control board 55a and the development high voltage boards 56a to 59a.

[0035] The control board unit 55 has a control board 55a and a control support plate 55b. The control board 55a is attached to the control board 55a by screws (not shown). , board It is fixed to the gold control support plate 55b. . systemThe control board 55a has a function of transmitting and receiving various control signals to the relay board 54a and the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a. Therefore, the control board 55a is provided with a connector (not shown) for attaching and detaching a cable electrically connected to the relay board 54a and the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a. The control board 55a may also be provided with a connector for attaching and detaching a cable electrically connected to an electric driving body such as a motor or a temperature sensor (not shown).

[0036] The developing high-voltage board units 56 to 59 have developing high-voltage boards 56a to 59a and developing high-voltage support plates 56b to 59b. The developing high-voltage boards 56a to 59a are secured to each other by screws (not shown). , board Gold development high voltage support plate 56b~59b (1st support plate ~ 4th support plate) is fixed to . current High voltage image boards 56a to 59a (First electric board to fourth electric board) are high-voltage boards having a function of applying a developing voltage to the developing devices 1a-1d (first developing unit, second developing unit) of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. That is, the developing high-voltage boards 56a-59a adjust the DC voltage supplied from the DC power supply units 202a-202d to a desired voltage value according to a control signal from the control board 55a, and apply the developing voltage to the developing devices 1a-1d. For this reason, the developing high-voltage boards 56a-59a are mounted with connectors 210 for attaching and detaching cables electrically connecting to the DC power supply units 202a-202d and the control board 55a. The developing high-voltage boards 56a-59a may each be boards having the same shape and function.

[0037] The upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 are, for example, long sheet metal members having a U-shaped cross section. The relay support plate 54b, the control support plate 55b, and the developing high voltage support plates 56b to 59b are detachably mounted on the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53, which are extended in parallel, by means of support plate fixing screws 62a and 62b (see Figs. 7 to 9 described later).

[0038] As shown in Fig. 4, the relay board unit 54, the developing high voltage board unit 59 (58), the developing high voltage board unit 57 (56), and the control board unit 55 are arranged in the longitudinal direction (width direction: arrow X direction) of the long upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. The relay board unit 54 is arranged at one end in the longitudinal direction, and the control board unit 55 is arranged at the other end in the longitudinal direction, and the developing high voltage board unit 59 (58) and the developing high voltage board unit 57 (56) are arranged between the relay support plate 54b and the control support plate 55b in the longitudinal direction. In other words, in this embodiment, the developing high voltage support plates 56b to 59b are attached to a structure formed by connecting the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 with the relay support plate 54b and the control support plate 55b. In this embodiment, the relay board unit 54, the developing high voltage board unit 59 (58), the developing high voltage board unit 57 (56), and the control board unit 55 are attached to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 so as to face the rear side plate 211.

[0039] However, the relay board unit 54, the developing high voltage board unit 59 (58), the developing high voltage board unit 57 (56), and the control board unit 55 are arranged with a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction. This is because relay connectors 227, 228 for attaching and detaching cables (not shown) that electrically connect the developing high voltage boards 56a-59a and the developing devices 1a-1d are provided on the rear side plate 211, and the relay connectors 227, 228 are prevented from being hidden by the electrical component unit 50. As a result, after the electrical component unit 50 is attached to the rear side plate 211, the developing high voltage boards 56a-59a and the developing devices 1a-1d can be electrically connected by cables.

[0040] The relay board unit 54, the developing high voltage board unit 59 (58), the developing high voltage board unit 57 (56), and the control board unit 55 are disposed on the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 with the relay board 54a, the control board 55a, and the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a fixed to the relay support plate 54b, the control support plate 55b, and the developing high voltage support plates 56b to 59b in advance. That is, the boards (54a, 55a, 56a to 59a) are disposed on the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 while being held by the support plates (54b, 55b, 56b to 59b) which are more rigid than the boards. This makes it easy for an operator to attach and detach the relay board unit 54, the control board unit 55, and the developing high voltage board units 56 to 59. In addition, since tools or the like used to attach or detach them are less likely to come into contact with the boards (54a, 55a, 56a to 59a), damage to the boards (54a, 55a, 56a to 59a) caused by the tools or the like can be suppressed.

[0041] The electrical equipment unit 50, which is formed as one structure by the upper stay 52, the lower stay 53, the relay support plate 54b, and the control support plate 55b, is attached to the rear side plate 211 by the attachment screw 61 via the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53, including the development high voltage support plates 56b to 59b. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, the upper stay 52 has fastening parts 52a, 52b, 52c, and 52d in which through holes are formed to allow the attachment screw 61 to be fastened in order to fix the electrical equipment unit 50 to the rear side plate 211. The lower stay 53 has fastening parts 53a and 53b in which through holes are formed to allow the attachment screw 61 to be fastened in order to fix the electrical equipment unit 50 to the rear side plate 211. The electrical equipment unit 50 is disposed so that the longitudinal direction of the long upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 is substantially the same as the arrangement direction of the image forming units Pa, Pb, Pc, and Pd, and is attached to the rear side plate 211 by the attachment screw 61. Fastening portions 52a to 52d and fastening portions 53a, 53b are provided on upper stay 52 and lower stay 53 so as to protrude outwardly opposite the inner side where relay support plate 54b, control support plate 55b, and development high voltage support plates 56b to 59b are attached.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 6, the rear side plate 211 is provided with upper mounting plates 221, 222, 223, 224 made of sheet metal, and lower mounting plates 225, 226 made of sheet metal. The upper mounting plates 221-224 are formed with mounting portions 221a, 222a, 223a, 224a for mounting the mounting screw 61 (see FIG. 5). The lower mounting plates 225, 226 are formed with mounting portions 225a, 226a for mounting the mounting screw 61. As described above, the upper stay 52 is formed with fastening portions 52a, 52b, 52c, 52d, and the lower stay 53 is formed with fastening portions 53a, 53b (see FIG. 5). The upper stay 52 is mounted to the rear side plate 211 by fastening the fastening portions 52a-52d to the mounting portions 221a-224a of the upper mounting plates 221-224 with the mounting screws 61. The lower stay 53 is attached to the rear side plate 211 by fastening the fastening portions 53a, 53b to the mounting portions 225a, 226a of the lower mounting plates 225, 226 with mounting screws 61.

[0043] In this way, the electrical component unit 50 is attached to the rear side plate 211 via the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53, so that the relay board unit 54, the control board unit 55, and the developing high voltage board units 56-59 fixed to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 are attached integrally. This allows the worker to install a large number of electric boards at the same time by installing the electrical component unit 50.

[0044] In this embodiment, the relay board unit 54, the control board unit 55, and the developing high-voltage board units 56-59 are arranged in line with the arrangement direction of the image forming units Pa, Pb, Pc, and Pd relative to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. The relay board unit 54, the control board unit 55, and the developing high-voltage board units 56-59, which each have a different function, are arranged so that their support plates do not overlap with each other when viewed from the rear side of the image forming apparatus 100 (in the direction of the arrow Y). This allows the relay board unit 54, the control board unit 55, and the developing high-voltage board units 56-59 to be individually detached from the electrical component unit 50 while the electrical component unit 50 remains attached to the rear side panel 211.

[0045] However, in this embodiment, among the developing high-voltage board units 56-59, the developing high-voltage board units 56 and 57 that apply a developing voltage to the yellow and magenta developing devices 1a and 1b are combined in multiple layers and attached to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. Also, the developing high-voltage board units 58 and 59 that apply a developing voltage to the cyan and black developing devices 1c and 1d are combined in multiple layers and attached to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. These developing high-voltage board units 56-59 have the same function, except that the colors of the toner of the developing devices 1a-1d to which the developing voltage is applied are different. Therefore, in the electrical equipment unit 50, the developing high-voltage board units 56-59 with the same function have a multiple-layer structure in which the support plates of each are arranged to overlap when the image forming apparatus 100 is viewed from the rear side (arrow Y direction).

[0046] This is mainly due to the following reasons. The developing high voltage boards 56a-59a that control high voltages are large, and the developing high voltage board units 56-59 are also large accordingly. If such developing high voltage board units 56-59 are simply arranged side by side, the electrical component unit 50 itself becomes large. Due to the size of such electrical component unit 50, it may become necessary to enlarge the image forming apparatus 100 in order to secure the installation space, but this goes against the recent demand for miniaturization even for commercial printing. Therefore, in order to suppress an increase in the space for installing the electrical component unit 50 and prevent the image forming apparatus 100 from becoming large, the developing high voltage board units 56-59 are appropriately combined and attached to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 in multiple layers.

[0047] In this embodiment, in order to realize the above-mentioned multi-layer structure, the yellow and cyan developing high voltage board units 56, 58 arranged at the rear side have the same structure, and the magenta and black developing high voltage board units 57, 59 arranged at the front side have the same structure. As a representative example, Fig. 7 shows the magenta developing high voltage board unit 57, Fig. 8 shows the yellow developing high voltage board unit 56, and Fig. 9 shows a multi-layer structure combining them. Note that in Fig. 9, the support plate fixing screws 62a, 62b are shown only on the left side to make the drawing easier to see.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 7, the developing high voltage support plate 57b of the developing high voltage board unit 57 has a holding portion 571 for holding the developing high voltage board 57a, and an attachment portion 572 for attachment to the upper stay 52 by the support plate fixing screw 62a (see FIG. 9). The developing high voltage support plate 57b also has an attachment portion 573 for attachment to the lower stay 53 by the support plate fixing screw 62a. The attachment portions 572 and 573 are erected from both ends of the holding portion 571 in the vertical direction intersecting the longitudinal direction of the upper stay 52, and are formed into a substantially L-shape with their respective tips bent in directions away from each other. At the tip of the attachment portion 572 bent into a substantially L-shape, a through hole 574 for fastening the support plate fixing screw 62a and a through hole 577 for fitting with a boss 576 (see FIG. 8) for positioning are formed at positions spaced apart in the longitudinal direction. On the other hand, at the tip of the mounting portion 573 which is bent into a substantially L-shape, through holes 575 for fastening the support plate fixing screws 62a are formed separately at positions spaced apart in the longitudinal direction.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 8, the developing high voltage support plate 56b of the developing high voltage board unit 56 has a holding portion 561 for holding the developing high voltage board 56a, and a mounting portion 562 for mounting to the upper stay 52 with the support plate fixing screws 62a, 62b (see FIG. 9). The developing high voltage support plate 56b also has a mounting portion 563 for mounting to the lower stay 53 with the support plate fixing screws 62a, 62b. The mounting portions 562 and 563 are erected from both ends of the holding portion 561 in the same manner as the above-mentioned mounting portions 572 and 573, and are formed into a substantially L-shape with their respective tips bent in directions away from each other. The tip of the mounting portion 562 has a through hole 564 for fastening the support plate fixing screws 62a, 62b, and a boss 576 for positioning by fitting with a through hole 577 (see FIG. 7). As shown in the figure, four through holes 564 and two bosses 576 are formed at the tip of the mounting portion 562. In addition, two through holes 578 are formed at the tip of the mounting portion 562 for fitting with bosses (not shown) provided on the upper stay 52 for positioning. On the other hand, four through holes 565 are formed at the tip of the mounting portion 563 for fastening the support plate fixing screws 62a, 62b.

[0050] 9, developing high-voltage support plate 57b and developing high-voltage support plate 56b are positioned by boss 576 and through hole 577 and are attached to upper stay 52 and lower stay 53 by support plate fixing screws 62a and 62b in a state where they are stacked in multiple layers. In the case of this embodiment, when image forming apparatus 100 is viewed from the rear side (arrow Y direction), developing high-voltage board unit 56 is attached to the rear side and developing high-voltage board unit 57 is attached to the front side.

[0051] The holding portion 561 of the developing high voltage board unit 56 is formed with a width in the vertical direction that allows it to pass between the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. As the developing high voltage board unit 56 moves to the rear side, the holding portion 561 passes between the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53, and the tips of the mounting portions 562 and 563 abut against the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53, respectively. The developing high voltage board unit 56 is attached to the upper stay 52 by the support plate fixing screws 62b using the outer ones of the eight through holes 564 formed in the mounting portion 562 in a state in which the through holes 578 are fitted into the bosses (not shown) provided on the upper stay 52. ​​The developing high voltage board unit 56 is attached to the lower stay 53 by the support plate fixing screws 62b using the outer ones of the four through holes 565 formed in the mounting portion 563.

[0052] The developing high voltage board unit 57 is attached to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 after the developing high voltage board unit 56 is attached. That is, the holding portion 571 of the developing high voltage board unit 57 is formed so that the width in the vertical direction can pass between the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 and is smaller than the width of the holding portion 561. As the developing high voltage board unit 57 moves to the rear side, the holding portion 571 passes between the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53, and the tip portions of the mounting portions 572 and 573 abut on the tip portions of the mounting portions 562 and 563 of the developing high voltage board unit 56, respectively. At this time, the four through holes 574 of the mounting portion 572 overlap with the remaining two through holes 564 of the mounting portion 562 that were not used to attach the developing high voltage board unit 56 among the through holes 564 of the mounting portion 562 described above. Also, the through hole 577 of the mounting portion 572 fits into the boss 576 of the mounting portion 562. In this manner, the through holes 577 of the mounting portion 572 and the bosses 576 of the mounting portion 562 are fitted together, whereby the developing high voltage board unit 57 is positioned relative to the developing high voltage board unit 56. The two through holes 575 of the mounting portion 573 overlap with the remaining two through holes 565 of the mounting portion 562 described above that are not used to mount the developing high voltage board unit 56.

[0053] Then, in a state where the through hole 577 of the mounting portion 572 and the boss 576 of the mounting portion 562 are fitted together, the developing high voltage board unit 57 is attached to the upper stay 52 by the support plate fixing screw 62a using the two through holes 574 formed in the mounting portion 572. At this time, the support plate fixing screw 62a is attached to the upper stay 52 through the two through holes 574 of the mounting portion 572 and the above-mentioned remaining two through holes 564 of the through holes 564 of the mounting portion 562. Also, the developing high voltage board unit 57 is attached to the lower stay 53 by the support plate fixing screw 62a using the two through holes 575 formed in the mounting portion 573. At this time, the support plate fixing screw 62a is attached to the lower stay 53 through the two through holes 575 of the mounting portion 573 and the above-mentioned remaining two through holes 565 of the through holes 565 of the mounting portion 563.

[0054] In this manner, the developing high voltage board unit 56 and the developing high voltage board unit 57 are combined and provided in multiple layers on the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. Similarly, the developing high voltage board unit 58 and the developing high voltage board unit 59 are combined and provided in multiple layers on the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53.

[0055] With the multi-layer structure described above, even when the electrical component unit 50 is attached to the rear side plate 211 (see FIG. 4), the developing high voltage board units 56-59 can be attached and detached from the electrical component unit 50. For example, when the image forming apparatus 100 is viewed from the rear side, the developing high voltage board unit 57 arranged on the front side can be separated from the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 by removing the support plate fixing screw 62a. After the developing high voltage board unit 57 is separated, the developing high voltage board unit 56 can be separated from the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 by removing the support plate fixing screw 62b.

[0056] As described above, in this embodiment, the development high voltage support plates 56b to 59b are attached to a structure formed by connecting the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 with the relay support plate 54b and the control support plate 55b, forming the electrical component unit 50. The electrical component unit 50 is detachably provided on the rear side plate 211. Therefore, when the image forming apparatus 100 is assembled, when the electrical component unit 50 is attached to the rear side plate 211, a large number of electrical boards such as the relay board 54a, the control board 55a, and the development high voltage boards 56a to 59a are attached at once. That is, when the image forming apparatus 100 is assembled, it is easy to arrange a large number of electrical boards in a small number of times. Therefore, in this embodiment, the time required for arranging a large number of electrical boards can be shortened, and therefore the assembly efficiency of the image forming apparatus 100 can be improved. In addition, since the electrical equipment unit 50 is formed by attaching other support plates to a structure formed by the upper stay 52, the lower stay 53, and some of the support plates, the electrical equipment unit 50 is inexpensive.

[0057] Furthermore, with the electrical unit 50 attached to the rear side plate 211, the developing high voltage support plates 56b-59b are detachable from the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. This allows only the developing high voltage support plates 56b-59b to be removed and replaced, shortening the time required for maintenance. That is, even if an abnormality occurs in the developing high voltage boards 56a and 58a at the rear, these boards can be easily replaced, improving the workability during maintenance.

[0058] <Other embodiments> Regarding the above-mentioned multi-layer structure, for example, the developing high-voltage board unit 56 and the developing high-voltage board unit 57 provided in multiple layers on the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 may be detachable as a unit from the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53 in a state where they are attached to the rear side plate 211. That is, the developing high-voltage board unit 57 may be fixed to the developing high-voltage board unit 56, and the developing high-voltage board unit 56 may be attached to the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. In this case, the developing high-voltage board unit 57 is detached from the developing high-voltage board unit 56 after the developing high-voltage board unit 56 is detached from the upper stay 52 and the lower stay 53. In this way, the time required for maintenance of the image forming apparatus 100 can be shortened.

[0059] It is preferable that the electrical unit 50 is mounted on the rear panel 211 with a plurality of cables already attached to it, which electrically connect the various boards. Fig. 10 is a perspective view showing the electrical unit 50 with the cables already attached, and Fig. 11 is an electrical wiring diagram of the electrical unit 50 using the cables.

[0060] As shown in Fig. 10, the electrical unit 50 has a first cable bundle 231, which is a DC power line arranged along the upper stay 52, and a second cable bundle 241, which is a signal line arranged along the lower stay 53. The first cable bundle 231 and the second cable bundle 241 are bundled with a plurality of cables as described below. The relay board 54a is mounted with a connector 220 for attaching and detaching a cable electrically connected to the control board 55a and the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a as described below. The control board 55a is mounted with a connector 230 for attaching and detaching a cable electrically connected to the relay board 54a and the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a as described below.

[0061] 11, power supplied from the power supply units 202a to 202d is temporarily relayed to the relay board 54a. Then, power is supplied from the relay board 54a to the control board 55a via a power cable 232 of a first cable bundle 231 connected to the connectors 220 and 230. In addition, power is supplied from the relay board 54a to the development high voltage boards 56a, 57a, 58a, and 59a via power cables 233, 234, 235, and 236 of the first cable bundle 231 connected to the connector 210.

[0062] A control signal is transmitted and received between the control board 55a and the relay board 54a via a signal cable 242 of the second cable bundle 241. A control signal is transmitted and received between the control board 55a and the development high-voltage boards 56a, 57a, 58a, and 59a via signal cables 243, 244, 245, and 246 of the second cable bundle 241.

[0063] Further, the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a are provided with cables 271, 272, 273, and 274 having lengths reaching relay connectors 227 and 228 provided on the rear side plate 211 in order to connect the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a to the developing devices 1a to 1d.

[0064] As described above, in the electrical component unit 50 to which a plurality of cables are attached in advance, tests of power supply and control signal transmission / reception through each board can be performed before the electrical component unit 50 is attached to the rear side plate 211. As shown in FIG. 11, power is supplied from the jig (IN261) to the relay board 54a, and one end of the cable already connected to the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a is connected to the jig boards (OUT262, 263, 264, 265), so that the output voltage of the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a can be inspected. In this way, it is possible to ensure the connection of the electrical component unit 50 alone, for example, with the relay board 54a and the control board 55a related to the output of the developing high voltage boards 56a to 59a. Therefore, when assembling the image forming apparatus 100, the electrical component unit 50 with the guaranteed connection can be attached to the rear side plate 211 as it is, and there is no need to test the electrical component unit 50 after attachment, which is advantageous.

[0065] In the embodiment described above, the electrical unit 50 is fixed to the rear side plate 211 by fastening the mounting screws 61 to the fastening portions 52a, 52b, 52c, and 52d formed on the upper stay 52 and the fastening portions 53a and 53b (see FIG. 5) formed on the lower stay 53. However, this is not limited thereto, and for example, in order to fix the electrical unit 50 to the rear side plate 211, fastening portions to which the mounting screws 61 can be fastened may be provided on the relay support plate 54b or the control support plate 55b.

[0066] In the above-described embodiment, a configuration has been described in which the first fixing unit 81 and the second fixing unit 91 are provided in the second housing 101b, but the second housing 101b may also be configured to include one fixing unit and a cooling unit that cools the sheet after fixing. [Explanation of symbols]

[0067] 1a (1c)...first developing unit (developing device), 1b (1d)...second developing unit (developing device), 3a (3c)...first photoconductor (photosensitive drum), 3b (3d)...second photoconductor (photosensitive drum), 50...electrical unit, 52...first support member (upper stay), 53...second support member (lower stay), 54a... Relay board, 5 5a… Control board, 56a...first electric board (developing high voltage board), 56b...first support board (developing high voltage support board), 57a...second electric board (developing high voltage board), 57b...second support board (developing high voltage support board), 58a ...Third electric board (developing high voltage board), 58b ...Third support plate (developing high voltage support plate), 59a ...fourth electric board (developing high voltage board), 59b ...fourth support plate (developing high voltage support plate), 100...image forming apparatus, 101a...support frame (first housing), 233, 234, 235, 236 (243, 244, 245, 246)...cable, S...recording material

Claims

1. In an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording material, A plurality of photoconductors each rotating about a rotation axis and arranged in an arrangement direction intersecting the rotation axis; A support frame for supporting the plurality of photoconductors; an electrical equipment unit attached to the support frame, The electrical equipment unit includes: A first electrical substrate; A second electrical board; A first support member extending in the arrangement direction of the plurality of photoconductors; A second support member extending in the arrangement direction; a first support plate that holds the first electric board and connects the first support member and the second support member; a second support plate that holds the second electric board and connects the first support member and the second support member; the first electric board is located on an inner side of the image forming apparatus compared to at least one of the first support member and the second support member in a rotation axis direction along the rotation axis, When viewed in a direction along the rotation axis, the first electric board and the second electric board overlap each other.

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

2. the electrical unit is detachable from the support frame as a whole in a state in which the first support plate and the second support plate are connected to the first support member and the second support member, 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

3. The electrical equipment unit includes: A third electrical board; a third support plate that holds the third electric board and connects the first support member and the second support member.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is a recording medium.

4. The third support plate is disposed so as not to overlap the first support plate and the second support plate when viewed along the rotation axis direction.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3.

5. the third support plate is detachable from the first support member and the second support member in a state in which the first support member and the second support member are attached to the support frame body.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image forming apparatus is a multi-color image forming apparatus.

6. the electrical equipment unit further includes a fourth electric board and a fourth support plate to which the fourth electric board is fixed, The fourth support plate is disposed so as to overlap with the third support plate when viewed from a viewpoint along the rotation axis direction.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image forming apparatus is a recording medium.

7. the fourth support plate is detachable while the third support plate remains on the first support member and the second support member in a state in which the electrical equipment unit is attached to the support frame.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6,

8. the fourth support plate is detachable together with the third support plate from the first support member and the second support member in a state in which the electrical equipment unit is attached to the support frame.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6,

9. a first developing unit provided within the support frame and configured to form a toner image on a first photoreceptor; a second developing unit provided within the support frame adjacent to the first developing unit in the arrangement direction, the second developing unit forming a toner image on a second photoconductor; the first electric board is a high voltage board that supplies a voltage to the first developing unit; the second electric board is a high voltage board for supplying voltage to the second developing unit; 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

10. A relay board that relays a voltage supplied from an external source to the first electrical board and the second electrical board; A control board for controlling the first electric board and the second electric board.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

11. The electrical equipment unit has a plurality of cables electrically connecting the first electrical board and the second electrical board.

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

Images