Conveying member, conveying device and image forming apparatus

Abstract

To enable the rotational power to be efficiently transmitted to a first conveyance unit and a second conveyance unit in comparison to a case where the rotational power is input from the first conveyance unit in a conveyance member including: the first flexible conveyance unit which has a first shaft part and a blade part existing in the spiral shape on the surface thereof; and the second conveyance unit which has a second shaft part extending from one end of the first conveyance unit and a coil part existing around the second shaft.SOLUTION: A conveyance member includes: a first conveyance unit; a second conveyance unit which has a second shaft part extending from one end of a first shaft part and having the higher rigidity than that of the first shaft part and a coil part existing in the spiral shape on the surface of the second shaft part, movable in the direction being close to / apart from the surface of the second shaft part and conveying a conveyance object; and a drive object unit which is attached to a third shaft part connected to an end on the side opposite to the first shaft part of the second shaft part or the end and having the higher rigidity than that of the first shaft part, and which is driven by receiving input of the rotational power.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a conveying member, a conveying device, and an image forming apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a conveying member that is integrally molded from an elastomer and includes a shaft with a circular cross section and a helical blade that spirally wraps around the shaft and rotates with the shaft to convey an object in the axial direction. It also describes that the conveying member has a shape in which multiple blades of the helical blade are divided by multiple slits in the circumferential direction, from a tip pointing away from the shaft to a tip pointing toward the shaft, and that rotational power is input from one end of the conveying member.

[0003] Patent Document 2 describes a waste toner transport member that is rotatably disposed about its axis within a waste toner transport path, and that includes a rotary shaft operatively connected to a drive source, a transport screw journaled on the rotary shaft, and an elastic member held by the rotary shaft or the transport screw. It also describes that the elastic member is formed by a coil spring inserted into a portion of the axial direction of the rotary shaft, and that rotational power is input from the end of the transport screw opposite the elastic member.

[0004] Patent Document 3 describes a waste toner transport member that includes an auger with spiral blades on the outer periphery of a shaft, a transport coil connected to one end of the shaft, and an insert member inserted inside the transport coil. It also describes that the insert member is rod-shaped and made of a flexible material such as rubber, and that rotational power is input from the end of the auger opposite the transport coil. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2020-154199 A (claims 1 and 2, paragraph 0045, figures 2-5) [Patent Document 2] JP 2009-8852 A (claims 1, 2, figure 3) [Patent Document 3] JP 2005-25207 A (paragraphs 0035, 0037, Figure 6) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present invention provides a transport member that includes a first transport section that is flexible and has a first shaft section and spiral blades on its surface, and a second transport section that has a second shaft section that extends from one end of the first transport section and a coil section that is disposed around the second shaft, and that can transmit rotational power to the first transport section and the second transport section more efficiently than when rotational power is input from the first transport section.The present invention also provides a transport device and an image forming apparatus that use the transport member. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] This invention (1) is a first conveying section having flexibility and including a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the first shaft section to convey the object; a second conveying section including a second shaft section extending from one end of the first shaft section and having higher rigidity than the first shaft section, and a coil section spirally disposed on the surface of the second shaft section and movable in a direction approaching and separating from the surface of the second shaft section to convey the object; a driven part attached to an end of the second shaft part opposite to the first shaft part or to a third shaft part connected to the end and having higher rigidity than the first shaft part, and driven by receiving input of rotational power; The conveying member is provided with:

[0008] This invention (2) is a first conveying section having flexibility and including a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the first shaft section to convey the object; a second conveying section including a second shaft section extending from one end of the first shaft section and having higher rigidity than the first shaft section, and a coil section having a coil inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of the second shaft section and conveying the conveyed object; a driven part attached to an end of the second shaft part opposite to the first shaft part or to a third shaft part connected to the end and having higher rigidity than the first shaft part, and driven by receiving input of rotational power; The conveying member is provided with:

[0009] The present invention (3) is the conveying member according to the above invention (1) or (2), wherein one end of the coil portion is fixed to the driven portion.

[0010] This invention (4) is a conveying member according to the invention (1) or (2) above, wherein the third shaft portion is an end member fixed to the end of the second shaft portion opposite the first shaft portion, the driven portion is fixed continuously to the end of the end member opposite the second shaft portion, and one end of the coil portion is fixed to the driven portion or the end member.

[0011] The present invention (5) is a conveying member according to the above invention (1) or (2), further comprising a third conveying section having the third shaft section and a second blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the third shaft section to convey the conveyed object, the driven part is attached to an end of the third shaft part opposite to the second shaft part, The coil portion is a conveying member, one end of which is fixed to the second shaft portion or the third shaft portion.

[0012] This invention (6) is a conveying member according to any one of the above inventions (1) to (5), wherein the second shaft portion is composed of a surface layer portion made of the same material as the first conveying portion and a core material inside the surface layer portion that has higher rigidity than the first shaft portion.

[0013] The present invention (7) is the conveying member according to any one of the above inventions (3) to (6), wherein the other end of the coil portion is not fixed to the second shaft portion. This invention (8) is a conveying member according to the above invention (7), wherein the other end of the coil portion is arranged so as not to come into contact with the end portion of the blade portion in the first conveying portion on the upstream side in the conveying direction. The present invention (9) is the conveying member according to the above invention (4), wherein the driven portion and the end member are an integral structure.

[0014] Also, this invention (10) is a linear first conveying path; a second conveying passage connected to one end of the first conveying passage and having one or more bent passage portions; a conveying member disposed continuously between the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage and configured to convey the object from the first conveying passage through the second conveying passage to a destination; a power transmission unit that transmits rotational power to the conveying member outside the other end of the first conveying passage; Equipped with The conveying member is any of the conveying members of the invention (1) to (5) above except for the conveying member of the invention (1). 3 ) and (6) to ( 8 ) is a conveying member, and the second conveying section is disposed in the first conveying passage, and the first conveying section is disposed in the second conveying passage.

[0015] The present invention (11) is directed to the conveying device of the above invention (10), wherein one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is connected to the other end of the first conveying passage at a portion extending outward from the other end of the first conveying passage, and the driven portion to , or the end of the second shaft portion opposite to the first shaft portion To the department It is a fixed transport device.

[0016] Also, This invention (12) is a linear first conveying path; a second conveying passage connected to one end of the first conveying passage and having one or more bent passage portions; a conveying member disposed continuously between the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage and configured to convey the object from the first conveying passage through the second conveying passage to a destination; a power transmission unit that transmits rotational power to the conveying member outside the other end of the first conveying passage; Equipped with The conveying member is the conveying member according to the invention (4) or (9), and is used by disposing the second conveying section in the first conveying passage and disposing the first conveying section in the second conveying passage. It is a transport device. This invention (13) is a conveying device according to the above invention (12), wherein one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is fixed to the end member in a portion extending outward from the other end of the first conveying passage.

[0017] This invention (14) is the conveying device of the invention (10), a third conveying passage having a linear shape connected to an end of the first conveying passage opposite to the second conveying passage; a conveying member disposed successively in the third conveying passage, the first conveying passage, and the second conveying passage to convey the object from the third conveying passage through the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage to a destination; Equipped with The conveying member is any one of the conveying members of inventions (6) to (9) above excluding inventions (3), (4) and (5) above, and is a conveying device used by arranging the second conveying section in the first conveying passage and the first conveying section in the second conveying passage. This invention (15) is the conveying device of the invention (10), a third conveying passage having a linear shape connected to an end of the first conveying passage opposite to the second conveying passage; a conveying member disposed successively in the third conveying passage, the first conveying passage, and the second conveying passage to convey the object from the third conveying passage through the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage to a destination; Equipped with The conveying member is the conveying member of the above invention (5), and is a conveying device used by arranging the second conveying section in the first conveying passage, the first conveying section in the second conveying passage, and the third conveying section in the third conveying passage. This invention ( 16 ) is the above invention (14) or (15) In the conveying device of the above, one end of the coil portion is fixed to an end of the third shaft portion closer to the second shaft portion in the second conveying passage.

[0018] This invention ( 17 ) is the above invention (10) to ( 16 ) The conveying device according to any one of the above, further comprising: a contact member that contacts the surface of a rotating structure to remove the transported object adhering to the surface; and a removal device having a housing provided with a storage space for storing the transported object removed by the contact member; The first transport passage is a transport device provided in the accommodation space of the removal device.

[0019] Furthermore, this invention ( 18 )teeth, an image carrier having a carrier surface for carrying an image made of a developer; a cleaning device that removes and cleans the developer adhering to the holding surface of the image carrier; a storage section for storing the developer removed by the cleaning device; a conveying device that conveys the developer removed by the cleaning device to the storage unit through a linear first conveying passage and a second conveying passage connected to one end of the first conveying passage and having one or more bent passage portions; Equipped with The conveying device is the above invention (10). Any of (13) The image forming apparatus is configured with the above conveying device.

[0020] This invention ( 19 ) is the above invention ( 18 In the image forming apparatus of claim 1, the cleaning device has a housing having an opening facing the holding surface of the image carrier, a storage section for storing removed developer, and a linear discharge / transport path for transporting the stored developer so as to be discharged, and a contact member provided in the opening of the housing for contacting the holding surface of the image carrier to remove the developer, In the image forming apparatus, the discharge conveyance path is the first conveyance path, and the second conveyance portion of the conveyance member is disposed in the discharge conveyance path.

[0021] Also, this invention ( 20 )teeth, a first conveying section having flexibility and including a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the first shaft section to convey the object; a second shaft portion extending from one end of the first shaft portion and having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion, to which a coil for transporting an object to be transported can be attached; a driven part attached to an end of the second shaft part opposite to the first shaft part or to a third shaft part connected to the end and having higher rigidity than the first shaft part, and driven by receiving input of rotational power; The conveying member is provided with:

[0022] This invention ( 21 ) is the above invention ( 20) a conveying member, wherein the third shaft portion is an end member fixed to the end of the second shaft portion opposite the first shaft portion, and the driven portion is a conveying member fixed continuously to the end of the end member opposite the second shaft portion. This invention ( 22 ) is the above invention ( 20 ) The conveying member of claim 1, further comprising a third conveying section having the third shaft section and a second blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the third shaft section to convey the object to be conveyed, The driven portion is a conveying member attached to the end of the third shaft portion opposite to the second shaft portion. This invention ( 23 ) is the above invention ( 20 ) or ( 22 ) is a conveying member in which the second shaft portion is composed of a surface layer portion made of the same material as the first conveying portion and a core material inside the surface layer portion that has higher rigidity than the first shaft portion. This invention ( 24 ) is the above invention ( 21 ) In the conveying member of the above, the driven portion and the end member are an integral structure. [Effects of the Invention]

[0023] According to the conveying members of the above inventions (1) and (2), in a conveying member having a first conveying section having a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on its surface and being flexible, and a second conveying section having a second shaft section and a coil section at one end of the first conveying section, the rotational power can be transmitted to the first conveying section and the second conveying section more efficiently than when the rotational power is input from the first conveying section.

[0024] According to the above aspect (3), the rotational power can be transmitted to the first transport unit and the second transport unit more efficiently than when one end of the coil unit is fixed to a part other than the driven part. According to the above invention (4), the rotational power can be transmitted to the first conveying section and the second conveying section more efficiently than when one end of the coil section is fixed to a part other than the driven part or the end member. According to the above invention (5), the rotational power can be transmitted to the first conveying section, the second conveying section and the third conveying section more efficiently than when one end of the coil section is not fixed to the second shaft section or the third shaft section.

[0025] According to the above invention (6), the conveyance performance of the second conveying section is more stable compared to a configuration in which the second shaft does not have a core material therein that is more rigid than the first shaft. According to the above aspect (7), the second transport section can more easily apply vibrations to the transported object than when the other end of the coil section is fixed to the second shaft section. According to the above invention (8), the second conveying section can more easily impart vibration to the transported object compared to when the other end of the coil section is in contact with the upstream end of the blade section in the transport direction in the first conveying section. According to the above invention (9), the number of parts and the number of assembly steps can be reduced compared to when the driven part and the end member are separate bodies.

[0026] Furthermore, according to the conveying device of the above invention (10), the rotational power can be transmitted to the first conveying section and the second conveying section more efficiently than when the rotational power is input from the first conveying section to the conveying member, and the conveying force by the conveying member can be obtained stably. According to the above invention (11), one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is in the first conveying passage. Third shaft end member In comparison with the case where the coil portion of the second transport section is fixed to the first transport passage, vibrations are more easily applied to the transported objects from the coil portion of the second transport section, and a stable transport force can be obtained within the first transport passage.

[0027] The above invention (12) Conveyor device According to the present invention, the rotational power is input from the first conveying unit to the conveying member, and the rotational power is input from the first conveying unit to the conveying member. and the second conveying section The conveying force can be efficiently transmitted to the conveying member, and a stable conveying force can be obtained by the conveying member. According to the above invention (13), one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is in the first conveying passage. Driven part or The second shaft At the endCompared to when the coil portion of the second transport section is fixed, it is easier for the coil portion of the second transport section to vibrate the transported object, and a stable transport force can be obtained within the first transport passage.

[0028] According to the above invention (14), Compared to when rotational power is input from the first conveying section to the conveying member, the rotational power can be transmitted to the first conveying section and the second conveying section more efficiently, and the conveying force of the conveying member can be obtained stably. . According to the above invention (15), the rotational power can be transmitted to the third conveying section more efficiently than when the rotational power is input from the first conveying section to the conveying member, and the conveying force by the conveying member can be obtained stably.

[0029] the above invention( 16) According to Compared to when one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is fixed to the end of the second shaft portion in the first conveying passage, it is easier for the coil portion of the second conveying section to impart vibrations to the conveyed object, and a stable conveying force is provided in the first conveying passage. Obtained. According to the above invention (17), even when the transported objects to be removed by the removal device are transported from the first transport passage to the destination through a second transport section having one or more bent passage portions, poor cleaning of the contact member due to the transported objects filling up the first transport passage can be prevented.

[0030] Furthermore, according to the image forming apparatus of the above invention (18), the rotational power can be transmitted to the first conveying section more efficiently than when the rotational power is input from the first conveying section to the conveying member of the conveying device, and the conveying force from the conveying member can be obtained stably. The above invention ( 19 ) Even when the developer removed by the removal device is transported from the first transport passage to the storage section through the second transport section having one or more bent passage portions, poor cleaning of the contact member caused by the developer filling up the discharge transport passage can be prevented.

[0031] In addition, the above invention ( 20 ) By using the conveying member, it is possible to provide a conveying member that can transmit rotational power to the first conveying section more efficiently than when rotational power is input from the first conveying section of the conveying member.

[0032] The above invention ( 21 ) According to this, it is possible to easily manufacture a conveying member having a second conveying section that is different from the first conveying section by arranging a coil section on the second shaft section, compared to a conveying member that does not have a second shaft section. The above invention ( 22 ) makes it possible to provide a conveying member that can transmit rotational power to the third shaft portion and the second shaft portion more efficiently than when the third shaft portion is not an end member fixed to the end of the second shaft portion opposite the first shaft portion. The above invention ( 23) makes it possible to provide a conveying member that can transmit rotational power to the first conveying section, the second shaft section, and the third conveying section more efficiently than when one end of the coil section is not fixed to the second shaft section or the third shaft section. The above invention ( 24 ) makes it possible to provide a conveying member that can reduce the number of parts and assembly steps compared to when the driven portion and the end member are separate. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0033] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a transport device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2A is an external view of a conveying member according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the axis of FIG. [Figure 3] 1A is an external view of a portion of the conveying member where the first conveying section and the second conveying section are connected, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the portion of FIG. [Figure 4] 1A is an external view of a part of the second conveying portion and the driven portion of the conveying member, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of FIG. [Figure 5] 1A is an external view of a part of the second conveying portion and the driven portion of the conveying member, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the part of FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is an external view of another conveying member according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an image forming unit in the image forming apparatus of FIG. 7. [Figure 9] FIG. 10(A) is a schematic side view of a transport device according to a second embodiment, and FIG. 10(B) is a schematic plan view of the transport device of FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a cross-sectional view of a portion including a conveying member and the like in the conveying device of FIG. [Figure 11] 10 is a cross-sectional view of another part including the conveying member in the conveying device of FIG. 9. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a transport device according to a third embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is an external view of a conveying member according to a third embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is an external view of another conveying member according to the third embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is an external view of a conveying member according to a fourth embodiment. [Figure 16] 16A is an external view of a part of the second transporting portion and the driven portion of the transporting member in FIG. 15, and FIG. 16B is a cross-sectional view of the part in FIG. [Figure 17] 1A is an external view of a portion of a modified transport member, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of FIG. [Figure 18] 10A is an external view of a part of a conveying member of another modified example, and FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view of a part of FIG. [Figure 19] 10A and 10B are schematic diagrams illustrating a problem that occurs in a conveying device of a comparative example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0034] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0035] First embodiment. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of a conveying device 1A according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the appearance and cross section of a conveying member 2A according to the first embodiment, which is an example of a conveying member 2 used in the conveying device 1A.

[0036] As shown in Figure 1, the conveying device 1A includes a first conveying passage 12, a second conveying passage 13, a conveying member 2 that conveys the object 19 from the source through the first conveying passage 12 to the destination through the second conveying passage 13, and a power transmission unit 15 that transmits rotational power to the conveying member 2. The transported object 19 is an object that can be transported by the transport member 2, and is, for example, a powder formed by agglomerating powder, particles, or the like, either alone or in a mixed form.

[0037] The first transfer passage 12 is a passage in which the passage space 12a extends linearly. The first conveying passage 12 may be, for example, a tubular passage having a substantially circular cross section perpendicular to the conveying direction of the passage space 12a, or a trough-shaped passage having a substantially semicircular lower cross section and an upwardly opening upper cross section. The external shape of the first conveying passage 12 is not particularly limited as long as the passage space 12a is configured to have a predetermined shape.

[0038] The first transport path 12 is provided in a structure 81 such as a device, container, or the like that is the source of the transported objects 19. In this case, the first transport path 12 is provided inside a portion of the structure 81 where the transported objects 19 are collected, or is provided in a state connected to the outside thereof.

[0039] Reference numeral 12e shown in FIG. 1 denotes a guide surface portion provided in the passage space 12a of the first transport passage 12. Since the passage space 13a of the second transport passage 13 has a smaller cross-sectional area than the passage space 12a of the first transport passage 12, the guide surface portion 12e is a portion that guides the transported objects 19 to be easily introduced from the first transport passage 12 to the second transport passage 13 when transported by the transport member 2. The guide surface portion 12e has a curved surface that is convex downward so as to gradually approach the upper part of the passage space 13a of the second transport passage 13 from a part of the passage space 12a of the first transport passage 12, for example.

[0040] The second conveying passage 13 is a passage that opens into and is connected to one end 12b of the first conveying passage 12, and has one or more bent passage portions . The second conveying passage 13 is a tubular passage having a substantially circular or elliptical cross section perpendicular to the conveying direction of the passage space 13a. There are no particular restrictions on the external shape of the second conveying passage 13 as long as the passage space 13a is configured to have a predetermined shape.

[0041] The second conveying passage 13 in the first embodiment is configured as a passage having two bent passage portions 14A and 14B. The first bent passage portion 14A is a passage having a passage space 13a that extends slightly in a substantially horizontal direction and in a straight line from one end 12b of the first conveying passage 12 and then bends downward at a predetermined curvature. The second bent passage portion 14B is a passage having a passage space 13a that extends slightly downward in a straight line from the end of the bent passage portion 14A and then bends downward at a predetermined curvature in a substantially horizontal direction.

[0042] Further, the second conveying passage 13 in the first embodiment has a straight passage portion 13s made up of a passage space 13a that extends linearly in a substantially horizontal direction from the terminal end of the second bent passage portion 14B. Furthermore, the second transport path 13 is provided with a discharge port 13e at the end of the straight path portion 13s for discharging the transported objects 19.

[0043] The conveying member 2 is disposed in series on the first conveying path 12 and the second conveying path 13, and conveys the object 19 to a desired destination in this state. The destination is, for example, a receptacle 82 such as a container or device that receives the object 19, as shown in FIG. In this conveying device 1A, as the conveying member 2, for example, a conveying member 2A having a configuration to be described later is used.

[0044] The power transmission section 15 is a section that transmits rotational power to the conveying member 2 at an outer section 18 of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12. The power transmission unit 15 is composed of a drive device such as a motor (not shown), a drive transmission mechanism such as a gear train (not shown), an output shaft coupling 15c such as a coupling, etc. The power transmission unit 15 outputs rotational power for rotating the conveying member 2 in the direction required. Furthermore, the power transmission unit 15 may be configured as an integral part of the first conveying passage 12 and the second conveying passage 13, or may be configured as a part separate from the first conveying passage 12 and the second conveying passage 13.

[0045] The power transmission unit 15 is connected to one end of the conveying member 2 via a shaft coupling 15c at an outer portion 18 of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12. The outer portion 18 is a portion having a cylindrical space capable of accommodating one end of the conveying member 2 and the shaft coupling 15c of the power transmission unit 15. In addition, when the power transmission unit 15 is configured as a separate part from the first conveying passage 12 and the second conveying passage 13, the power transmission unit 15 may have a configuration (structure) that allows it to be easily connected to one end of the conveying member 2 in a detachable manner.

[0046] Next, the conveying member 2A used in the conveying device 1A will be described.

[0047] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the conveying member 2A includes a first conveying section 23, a second conveying section 26, and a driven section 31.

[0048] 2, 3, etc., first conveying section 23 is a section having first shaft section 21 and blade section 22 that is spirally disposed on the surface of first shaft section 21 and conveys conveyed object 19. In addition, first conveying section 23 is a section that is entirely flexible.

[0049] The first shaft portion 21 is a portion configured as a rod-shaped shaft having a circular cross section. The first shaft 21 has a body portion that is elongated and cylindrical, excluding one end 21b on the second conveying section 26 side and the other end 21c on the opposite side. Incidentally, the one end 21b has a shape in which the outer diameter gradually increases, as will be described later. The other end 21c has a tapered shape in which the outer diameter gradually decreases, as shown in FIG. 2.

[0050] The blade portion 22 is a portion that extends spirally at a required pitch and spiral angle and performs a conveying function. The blades 22 are shaped to protrude at a required height from the surface of the first shaft 21. The distance between the outermost portions of the blades 22 (a dimension corresponding to the outer diameter of the blades 22) is a dimension that matches the dimension of the passage space in the conveying passage in which the first conveying section 23 is arranged. Furthermore, the blades 22 are configured so that when the conveying member 2A rotates in a required direction, the conveying direction of the conveyed object 19 is the direction indicated by arrow J2, as shown in FIG. 3(A) etc.

[0051] The flexibility of first conveying section 23 is obtained by forming first shaft section 21 and blade section 22 from a material that has a required flexibility, that is, a material that exhibits a property that makes it easy to deform elastically. The required flexibility is such that the first conveying section 23 can be bent with the required curvature, and when rotational power is applied in that bent state, it rotates around the first shaft section 21, thereby providing the conveying function of the blade section 22. The first conveying section 23 in the first embodiment is manufactured by molding synthetic resin (synthetic rubber) having elasticity, such as elastomer.

[0052] As shown in Figures 2, 3, etc., the second conveying section 26 is a section having a second shaft section 24 and a coil section 25 that conveys the conveyed object 19 while being present around the second shaft section 24.

[0053] The second shaft portion 24 is a shaft extending from one end portion 21b of the first shaft portion 21 and is configured as a shaft having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21. The higher rigidity than first shank 21 means, for example, a degree of rigidity that exhibits mechanical properties that are less flexible or less prone to bending than first shank 21. The same applies to the higher rigidity of second shank 24 in parts other than second shank 24 that are higher than first shank 21. The rigidity of the second shaft portion 24 can be obtained, for example, by forming the second shaft portion 24 from a material or structure, or both, that is different from the material (substance) or structure that forms the first shaft portion 21 in a way that increases its rigidity.

[0054] As shown in Figures 2(B), 3(B), 4(B), etc., the second shaft portion 24 in the first embodiment is composed of a surface layer 241 made of the same material as the first conveying portion 23, and a core material 242 inside the surface layer 241 that has higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21. The second shaft portion 24 has a structure in which the surface layer portion 241 and the core material 242 are combined together, and as a whole, the second shaft portion 24 has a higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21.

[0055] The surface layer 241 is made of the same material as the first conveying section 23, and is therefore flexible. Therefore, the surface layer 241 is manufactured integrally with the first conveying section 23 at the same time. As a result, the second shaft section 24 is connected to one end 21b of the first shaft section 21. On the other hand, core material 242 is a member that ensures the rigidity of second shaft portion 24, since surface layer 241 alone cannot make second shaft portion 24 a shaft having higher rigidity than first shaft portion 21. Core material 242 is, for example, a rod-shaped member made of a material such as stainless steel (SUS) and having a circular cross section. The second shaft portion 24 having the core material 242 is manufactured by, for example, insert molding.

[0056] 4(B) and the like, the second shaft portion 24 in the first embodiment has a structure in which one end 242b of the core material 242 protrudes from the end of the surface layer portion 241 at the end portion 24b opposite to the first shaft portion 21. This protruding one end portion 242b is used when attaching the driven portion 31, as will be described later.

[0057] Furthermore, because second shank 24 has a structure consisting of surface layer 241 and core material 242, its outer diameter is larger than that of first shank 21, as shown in Figures 3, 4, etc. On the other hand, first shank 21 has one end 21b on the side connecting with second shank 24, which has a shape such that its outer diameter gradually increases and then becomes the same as that of second shank 24, as shown in Figure 3(B) etc.

[0058] Coil portion 25 is a portion in which main body 25a is made of a coil (coil spring) that extends at a required pitch and helical angle. Moreover, coil portion 25 is also a portion in which main body 25a is made of a coil that exists so as to be movable in a direction approaching and moving away from the surface of second shaft portion 24.

[0059] As shown in Figure 5(A), this coil portion 25 is positioned with its main body 25a spaced from the surface of the second shaft portion 24 by the required gaps α1 and α2, thereby allowing it to move in the directions of approaching and moving away from each other. Specifically, when coil portion 25 rotates, as illustrated by the two-dot chain line in Fig. 5(B), its main body 25a can move toward the surface of second shaft portion 24 and move away from the surface of second shaft portion 24. Note that coil portion 25 is not limited to the example of movement illustrated by the two-dot chain line in Fig. 5(B), and can move in the directions of approaching and moving away all around the surface of second shaft portion 24.

[0060] In other words, as shown in Figure 5(A), the coil portion 25 is a portion whose main body 25a is made of the above-mentioned coil and is composed of a coil having a coil inner diameter D2 that is larger than the outer diameter D1 of the second shaft portion.

[0061] In other words, as shown in Figure 5(A), the coil inner diameter D2 of this coil portion 25 is larger than the outer diameter D1 of the second shaft portion 24, so that the main body 25a is positioned with the required gaps α1, α2 between it and the surface of the second shaft portion 24. The gaps α1 and α2 are set to approximately the same dimension over the entire outer periphery of the second shaft portion 24, and are, for example, approximately equal to "(D2-D1) / 2".

[0062] The coil portion 25 is made of a metal coil obtained by bending a rod-shaped member having a circular cross section made of a material such as stainless steel into a spiral shape. The outer diameter D3 of the coil portion 25 is determined to be a dimension that is adapted to the dimension of the passage space in the conveying passage in which the second conveying portion 26 is arranged. Furthermore, the coil portion 25 is configured so that when the conveying member 2A rotates in the required direction, the conveying direction of the conveyed object 19 becomes the direction indicated by the arrow J1, as shown in Figures 3(A), 4(B), etc.

[0063] The driven part 31 is the part that first receives the input of rotational power from the power transmission part 15 and is driven. As shown in FIG. 4, the driven part 31 in the first embodiment has a shaft part 31a and a joint part 31b.

[0064] The shaft portion 31a is a cylindrical portion attached to an end portion 24b of the second shaft portion 24 opposite to the first shaft portion 21 so as to be concentric with the second shaft portion 24. The shaft portion 31a has a shaft connection hole 31c at its end portion on the second shaft portion 24 side. One end 242b of the core material 242 of the second shaft portion 24 is fitted into the shaft connection hole 31c of the shaft portion 31a, whereby the shaft portion 31a is coupled to the end 24b of the second shaft portion 24.

[0065] As shown in FIG. 4, the joint portion 31b is composed of a body portion 31d and a locked portion 31e. The body portion 31d is a cylindrical portion that continues from the shaft portion 31a. Furthermore, the trunk portion 31d is provided with a cut groove 31g that is cut from the locked portion 31e toward the shaft portion 31a. The cut groove 31g is used as a portion into which the end 25e of the coil portion 25 at one end 25b is fitted and secured, as will be described later.

[0066] The locked portion 31e is a portion formed so that the cross section thereof, as viewed from the end of the body portion 31d opposite to the shaft portion 31a, resembles the letter D. When the locked portion 31e is connected to the power transmission unit 15, it engages with the shaft coupling 15c of the power transmission unit 15, allowing the input of rotational power from the power transmission unit 15. Furthermore, the locked portion 31e is provided with a hooking projection 31f at the end of its tapered end portion. The projection 31f is used for connection to a shaft coupling 15c in the power transmission portion 15, as will be described later.

[0067] Moreover, the driven portion 31 is configured as a portion having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21 as a whole. The driven part 31 in the first embodiment is manufactured by molding synthetic resin such as polycarbonate (PC) or acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (ABS).

[0068] In the conveying member 2A, the coil portion 25 in the second conveying portion 26 is disposed around the second shaft portion 24. At this time, as shown in Figures 2, 4, etc., the coil portion 25 is attached in a state where one end 25b thereof, which is on the opposite side to the first conveying portion 23, is fixed to the driven portion 31. In the first embodiment, one end 25b of the coil portion 25 is wound around the shaft portion 31a of the driven portion 31 in a reduced diameter state by wrapping it multiple times, and then the end 25e of the one end 25b is fixed by fitting it into the cut groove 31g in the shaft portion 31a.

[0069] 3A, in the conveying member 2A, the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 in the second conveying portion 26, which is on the first conveying portion 23 side, is not fixed to the second shaft portion 24. In other words, the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is a free end.

[0070] Furthermore, in the conveying member 2A, as shown in FIG. 3(A), the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is arranged so as not to come into contact with the end 22b of the blade portion 22 in the first conveying section 23 on the upstream side in the conveying direction J2. In the first embodiment, the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is spaced apart in the axial direction by a distance β from the end 22b of the blade portion 22. In order to reduce interruptions in the conveying force of the conveyed object 19, the distance β is preferably smaller than the pitch of the spiral of the coil portion 25 or the pitch of the spiral of the blade portion 22.

[0071] Now, FIG. 6 shows a carrier member 20A that can be applied to the fabrication of the carrier member 2A. This transport member 20A is a member having a configuration in which the coil portion 25 of the transport member 2A has been removed.

[0072] In detail, the conveying member 20A is a member comprising a first conveying section 23 having a first shaft section 21 and a blade section 22 and being flexible, a second shaft section 24 having higher rigidity than the first shaft section, and a driven section 31 attached to the end section 24b of the second shaft section 24 opposite the first shaft section 21. In this case, the first shaft portion 21, the blade portion 22, the second shaft portion 24 and the driven portion 31 in the conveying member 20A have the same configuration as the first shaft portion 21, the blade portion 22, the second shaft portion 24 and the driven portion 31 in the conveying member 2A already described.

[0073] Furthermore, the conveying member 2A can be manufactured by arranging and attaching the coil portion 25 of the conveying member 20A around the second shaft portion 24. Therefore, the conveying member 20A can be said to be an intermediate product in the manufacture of the conveying member 2A. However, the conveying member 20A can also be used as a normal conveying member that utilizes the conveying force of the first conveying section .

[0074] The conveying member 2A having the above-described configuration is used by being disposed in a conveying device 1A, as shown in FIG.

[0075] In this case, the conveying member 2A is used with its second conveying section 26 disposed in the first conveying passage 12 of the conveying device 1A and its first conveying section 23 disposed in the second conveying passage 13 of the conveying device 1A. To accommodate this, the dimensions of the second conveying section 26 of the conveying member 2A are set to dimensions suitable for use when placed in the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12. Also, the dimensions of the first conveying section 23 of the conveying member 2A are set to dimensions suitable for use when placed in the passage space 13a of the second conveying passage 13.

[0076] At this time, as shown in FIG. 1, the first conveying portion 23 of the conveying member 2A is disposed within the two bent passage portions 14A and 14B. At this time, the conveying member 2A is arranged in a bent state so that the flexible first conveying portion 23 follows each of the passage spaces 13a formed by the curved shapes of the two curved passage portions 14A, 14B.

[0077] Furthermore, the conveying member 2A is used by coupling the driven part 31 at the outer part 18 of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12 to the shaft coupling 15c of the power transmission part 15 of the conveying device 1A. At this time, the driven part 31 is arranged in a state where almost the entire part is accommodated in the outer part 18 of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12. Then, the driven part 31 is coupled by connecting the coupling part 31b to the shaft coupling 15c of the power transmission part 15 and by fitting and locking the locked part 31e of the coupling part 31b with a locking part (not shown) of the shaft coupling 15c.

[0078] In the transport device 1A, when transporting the transported object 19, the power transmission unit 15 starts.

[0079] As a result, in the conveying device 1A, rotational power for rotation in a required direction is input from the power transmission unit 15 to the conveying member 2A through the driven unit 31. As a result, the driven unit 31 of the conveying member 2A begins to rotate in accordance with the rotational power, and the rotational power is transmitted from the driven unit 31 to the second shaft unit 24 of the second conveying unit 26, and then from the second shaft unit 24 to the first shaft unit 21 of the first conveying unit 23.

[0080] As a result, in the conveying device 1A, the conveying member 2A starts to rotate in the required direction, and at the same time, the first conveying section 23 and the second conveying section 26 start to convey the conveyed object 19. 1, in the conveying device 1A, the object 19 present in the structure 81 that is the source of conveyance is conveyed in the conveying direction J1 by the second conveying part 26 of the conveying member 2A in the first conveying passage 12, and is finally sent toward the second conveying passage 13. Also, in the conveying device 1A, the object 19 sent from the first conveying passage 12 is conveyed in the conveying direction J2 by ​​the first conveying part 23 of the conveying member 2A in the second conveying passage 13. Finally, in the conveying device 1A, the object 19 conveyed by the first conveying section 23 is sent out from the discharge port 13e located at the terminal end of the second conveying path 13 and is received in the receiver 82.

[0081] At this time, in the conveying member 2A, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is transmitted from the driven part 31 to the second shaft part 24, which has higher rigidity than the first shaft part 21, and then transmitted from the second shaft part 24 to the first shaft part 21, which is flexible. Therefore, the conveying member 2A transmits the rotational power to the first conveying section 23 and the second conveying section 26 more efficiently than when the rotational power is input from the first shaft section 21 of the first conveying section 23.

[0082] At this time, the conveying member 2A receives rotational power, and the first conveying portion 23 is rotated in each of the curved passage spaces 13a of the two curved passage portions 14A, 14B in the second conveying passage 13. At this time, the rotational power of the conveying member 2A is efficiently transmitted to the first conveying section 23, so that the flexible first shaft section 21 in the first conveying section 23 rotates in a bent state, and the flexible blade section 22 also rotates while elastically deforming in accordance with the bent first shaft section 21.

[0083] Therefore, in this conveying device 1A, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is efficiently transmitted to the first conveying part 23 and the second conveying part 26 of the conveying member 2A, so that the conveying forces of the first conveying part 23 and the second conveying part 26 are obtained well, and the conveying force of the conveying member 2A is obtained stably. As a result, the conveyed object 19 is conveyed well from the conveying source to the conveying destination.

[0084] In the transport device 1A, the coil portion 25 in the second transport portion 26 of the transport member 2A is attached in a state in which one end 25b thereof is fixed, while the other end 25c is not fixed.

[0085] As a result, in the conveying device 1A, the rotational power input to the driven part 31 is quickly transmitted to the coil part 25 through the one end 25b of the coil part 25, compared to when the one end 25b of the coil part 25 in the second conveying part 26 is fixed to a part other than the driven part 31. Therefore, in the conveying device 1A, the rotational power is efficiently transmitted to the second conveying part 26 of the conveying member 2A and then to the first conveying part 23.

[0086] Furthermore, in the conveying device 1A, compared to when the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 in the second conveying section 26 is fixed to, for example, the second shaft portion 24, as illustrated in Fig. 5(B), the main body 25a of the coil portion 25 is more likely to move toward and away from the surface of the second shaft portion 24 within the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12. For this reason, in the conveying device 1A, movement of the coil portion 25 of the second conveying section 26 within the passage space 12a is more likely to cause vibrations to the conveyed object 19. For this reason, when the transported object 19 is, for example, a material that tends to agglomerate, such as a powder, the transported object 19 that may agglomerate in the passage space 12a of the first transport passage 12 can be transported while being broken down by the vibrations generated by the movement of the coil portion 25 of the second transport section 26. As a result, the transport device 1A can transport the transported object 19 smoothly in the first transport passage 12.

[0087] In the transport device 1A, one end 25b of the coil portion 25 of the transport member 2A is fixed to the driven portion 31 at a portion 18 continuing to the outside of the other end 12c of the first transport path 12. As a result, in the conveying device 1A, compared to when one end 25b of the coil portion 25 of the conveying member 2A is fixed to the driven part 31 in the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12, the main body 25a of the coil portion 25 can more easily move in the direction toward and away from the second shaft portion 24. In other words, the main body 25a of the coil portion 25 at this time can move in the direction toward and away from the second shaft portion 24 in the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12, with the one end 25b fixed to the driven part 31 at the position of the portion 18 continuing to the outside of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12 as a fulcrum. As a result, in the conveying device 1A, the coil portion 25 of the second conveying section 26 in the conveying member 2A makes it easier to apply vibrations to the conveyed object 19 in the first conveying passage 12, thereby obtaining a stable conveying force, particularly within the first conveying passage 12.

[0088] Furthermore, in the transport device 1A, the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 of the transport member 2A is arranged not to come into contact with the end 22b of the blade portion 22 of the first transport portion 23, as shown in FIG. 4(A). As a result, in the conveying device 1A, there is no risk that the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 will be prevented from moving in a direction approaching and moving away from the surface of the second shaft portion 24 due to contact with the end 22b of the blade portion 22, compared to when the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is in contact with the end 22b of the blade portion 22. As a result, in the conveying device 1A, the coil portion 25 of the second conveying portion 26 in the conveying member 2A can more easily apply vibrations to the conveyed object 19, and a more stable conveying force can be obtained, particularly within the first conveying passage 12.

[0089] Furthermore, in the conveying device 1A, the second shaft portion 24 in the second conveying section 26 of the conveying member 2A is composed of a surface portion 241 made of the same material as the first conveying section 23 and a core material 242 having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21. As a result, in the conveying device 1A, the second shaft portion 24 rotates stably without significant wobble, compared to a configuration in which the second shaft portion 24 does not have a core material 242 therein that is more rigid than the first shaft portion 21. Furthermore, this also reduces the risk that the coil portion 25 will move more than necessary within the passage space 13a of the second conveying passage 13 and collide with the inner wall of the passage space 13a due to wobbling rotation of the second shaft portion 24. As a result, in the transfer device 1A, the state of transfer by the second transfer section 26 in the second transfer passage 13 becomes stable.

[0090] Second embodiment. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an overview of an image forming apparatus 5 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an overview of a detachable imaging unit in the image forming apparatus 5.

[0091] As shown in Figure 7, the image forming device 5 has an internal space in a housing 51 in which equipment such as an image forming unit 60 that forms an image made of developer on a sheet-like material 9, and a supply device 70 that stores the sheet-like material 9 and supplies it to the image forming unit 60 are arranged. Of these, the housing 51 is a box-shaped structure having a required external shape, and is provided with a discharge and storage section 54 having a discharge outlet 53 for the sheet-like material 9 at the top.

[0092] Next, the image forming section 60 is a section configured to form an image by applying, for example, an electrophotographic method. 7, the image forming unit 60 has a photosensitive drum 61 supported so as to rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow, and devices such as a charging device 62, an exposure device 63, a developing device 64, a transfer device 65, and a cleaning device 66 are arranged around the photosensitive drum 61. In addition, the image forming unit 60 has a fixing device 67 arranged at a position away from the photosensitive drum 61.

[0093] The photosensitive drum 61 is an example of a structure having a holding surface 61a as a surface for holding an image made of a developer (toner) and an image carrier. The charging device 62 is a device that charges the holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61. The exposure device 63 is a device that exposes the charged holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61 based on image information input to the image forming device 5 to form an electrostatic latent image.

[0094] The developing device 64 is a device that forms a toner image by using a developer to develop the electrostatic latent image formed on the holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61. The developing device 64 is replenished with developer (toner) from a developer container 80 through a replenishing device 68 in an amount corresponding to the amount of developer consumed. The transfer device 65 is a device that transfers the toner image formed on the holding surface 61 a of the photosensitive drum 61 onto the sheet-like material 9 .

[0095] The cleaning device 66 is a device that removes unnecessary toner and the like remaining on the holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61 after it has passed through the transfer device 65, thereby cleaning the holding surface 61a. The cleaning device 66 includes a housing 66a, a contact member 66b, a sending member 66c, etc. The housing 66a has an opening facing the holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61, a storage space for storing removed unnecessary toner, etc., and a linear discharge transport path for transporting the stored unnecessary toner, etc. to be discharged. The contact member 66b is a plate-shaped member that partially covers the opening of the housing 66a and is provided so as to come into contact with the holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61, and removes unnecessary toner, etc. from the holding surface 61a. The sending member 66c is a member that sends out the unnecessary toner, etc. that has been removed by the contact member 66b and is stored inside the housing 66a. In the image forming unit 60, a collection container 57, which is an example of a container that contains unnecessary toner and the like removed by the cleaning device 66, is disposed.

[0096] The fixing device 67 is a device that applies heat and pressure to the unfixed toner image transferred onto the sheet-like material 9 to fix it to the sheet-like material 9 . The fixing device 67 has devices such as a heating rotor 67b and a pressure rotor 67c arranged in the internal space of a housing 67a that is provided with an inlet and an outlet for the sheet 9. The heating rotor 67b and the pressure rotor 67c are configured in a required form such as a roll nip form or a belt nip form.

[0097] The supply device 70 includes, for example, a container 71 that stores sheet-like materials 9, and a delivery device 72 that delivers the sheet-like materials 9 stored in the container 71 at a required timing. The container 71 and the delivery device 72 are not limited to being singular, and may be plural. 7 indicates the main transport path along which the sheet-like material 9 is transported within the housing 51. The transport path is configured by arranging a plurality of transport roll pairs 75a to 75e, a transport guide material 76, etc. The sheet-like material 9 may be any sheet-like material that can be transported within the housing 51 and onto which a toner image can be transferred and fixed, and there are no particular restrictions on the material, shape, etc.

[0098] In this image forming apparatus 5, for example, an image is formed as follows.

[0099] First, in the image forming apparatus 5, when a control means (not shown) receives a command for an operation to form an image, a charging operation, an exposure operation, a development operation, and a transfer operation are performed in the image forming unit 60. Also, in the image forming apparatus 5, an operation is performed in which the supply device 70 feeds out the sheet-like material 9 and supplies it to the transfer position of the image forming unit 60 via a conveying path. As a result, in the image forming unit 60, a toner image made of developer (toner) is formed on the image carrying surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61, and then the toner image is transferred onto the sheet-like material 9 supplied from the supply device 70. The sheet-like material 9 onto which the toner image has been transferred is sent towards the fixing device 67.

[0100] Next, in the image forming apparatus 5, a fixing operation is performed in the fixing device 67 of the image forming section 60. As a result, in the fixing device 67, the sheet-like material 9 onto which the toner image has been transferred is introduced and passed through a contact area between a heating rotor 67b and a pressure rotor 67c, which rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow, and is heated and pressurized. As a result, the toner image is fixed to the sheet-like material 9. Finally, in the image forming apparatus 5, the fixed sheet material 9 is transported from the fixing device 67 through a transport path to the discharge outlet 53, and then sent out by the transport roll pair 75e to the discharge storage section 54 and stored therein.

[0101] In addition, in this image forming apparatus 5, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, the image forming section 60, including the photosensitive drum 61, charging device 62, cleaning device 66, replenishment device 68, and collection container 57, is configured as a detachable image forming unit 50 that is integrated.

[0102] The image forming unit 50 has a housing 59 made up of left and right side surfaces 59a, 59b and a main body 59c disposed between the left and right side surfaces 59a, 59b. Inside the housing 59, the image forming unit 50 also has devices disposed therein, including a photosensitive drum 61, a charging device 62, a cleaning device 66, a replenishing device 68, and a collection container 57. The image forming unit 50 is detachably mounted to a mounting portion (not shown) provided in the housing 51 .

[0103] As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the image forming unit 50 is also equipped with a conveying device 10 that conveys transported objects 19A (see Figure 9(A)) such as unnecessary toner removed by the cleaning device 66 to a collection container 57.

[0104] When compared with the conveying device 1A of the first embodiment, the conveying device 10 differs in that the first conveying passage 12 is arranged inside the housing 66a of the cleaning device 66 and the shape of the second conveying passage 13 is partially different, but otherwise the configuration is the same. That is, the conveying device 10 includes a first conveying passage 12, a second conveying passage 13, a conveying member 2A, and a power transmission unit 55, as shown in FIGS.

[0105] 9, the first transport path 12 is provided at the bottom of the accommodation space of the housing 66a of the cleaning device 66 as a linear discharge transport path along the rotation axis of the photosensitive drum 61. Also, as shown in FIG. 7, the first transport path 12 is formed as a path whose path space 12a has a bottom with a cross-sectional shape like a semicircle slightly tilted toward the photosensitive drum 61 and is open at the top.

[0106] The second transport passage 13 is provided as a passage connected to one end 12 b of the first transport passage 12 and also connected to the collection container 57 . As shown in FIG. 9, the second conveying path 13 is made up of three curved path portions 14A, 14C, and 14D and a straight path portion 13s.

[0107] The first bent path portion 14A is a path portion bent downward from one end portion 12b of the first conveying path 12. The second bent path portion 14C is a path portion bent so as to rise obliquely from the lower end of the bent path portion 14A toward the collection container 57. The third bent path portion 14D is a path portion bent from the end of the straight path portion 13s toward the side portion of the collection container 57. The straight path portion 13s is a path portion that extends in a straight line at an angle so as to connect the end of the second bent path portion 14C and the start of the third bent path portion 14D.

[0108] The conveying member 2A has the same configuration as the conveying member 2A according to the first embodiment (see Figures 2 to 5), and is a member that includes a first conveying section 23, a second conveying section 26, and a driven section 31. Furthermore, as in the case of the conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment (see Figure 1), the conveying member 2A is used by arranging its second conveying section 26 in the first conveying passage 12 in the conveying device 10 and its first conveying section 23 in the second conveying passage 13 in the conveying device 10.

[0109] The power transmission section 55 is a section that transmits rotational power to the conveying member 2A at an outer section 66d of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12 in the conveying device . The power transmission unit 55 has a configuration substantially similar to that of the power transmission unit 15 in the conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment. The power transmission unit 55 is configured as a separate part from the first conveying path 12 and the second conveying path 13, and is disposed on the housing 51 side of the image forming device 5.

[0110] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 10, in the conveying device 10, one end 25b of the coil portion 25 of the second conveying section 26 in the conveying member 2A is fixed to the driven portion 31 of the conveying member 2A at a portion 66d that continues outward from the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12.

[0111] The portion 66d continuing to the outside is provided as part of the housing 66a of the cleaning device 66. The portion 66d continuing to the outside is provided therein with a cylindrical first space 66e and a cylindrical second space 66f whose outer end is open.

[0112] Of these, the first space portion 66e is a space through which the driven portion 31 and one end 25b of the coil portion 25 pass and are accommodated, and is a cylindrical space with an inner diameter smaller than the other end portion 12c of the first conveying passage 12. The second space 66f extends from the end of the first space 66e opposite the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12 and is a space through which the coupling 31b of the driven part 31 passes. The second space 66f is formed as a cylindrical space with a larger diameter than the first space 66e. The second space 66f also serves as a space into which the shaft coupling 55c of the power transmission part 55 is fitted.

[0113] As a result, one end 25b of the coil portion 25 in the conveying member 2A is fixed to the driven portion 31 in the first space portion 66e of the portion 66d extending outward from the other end portion 12c of the first conveying passage 12, as shown in Figures 9(B) and 10.

[0114] FIG. 10 shows a state in which the driven part 31 is coupled to a shaft coupling 55c in the power transmission part 55.

[0115] A sliding bearing 55e fitted into a second space 66f of a portion 66d continuing to the outside is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the small diameter portion on the tip side of the shaft coupling 55c in the power transmission part 55. Also, a space into which the coupling part 31b of the driven part 31 is inserted and a locking part 55d that fits into and locks onto the locked part 31e of the coupling part 31b are provided in the center of the small diameter portion on the tip side of the shaft coupling 55c. As a result, when the driven part 31 of the conveying member 2A is mounted to the mounting part of the housing 51 of the image forming unit 50, the locked part 31e of the driven part 31 is engaged with the locking part 55d of the shaft coupling 55c in the power transmission part 55, thereby connecting the driven part 31 of the conveying member 2A to the shaft coupling 55c. At this time, the locking part 55d is hooked on the protrusion 31f of the locked part 31e of the coupling part 31b of the driven part 31 and is locked.

[0116] Furthermore, in the conveying device 10, the flexible first conveying portion 23 of the conveying member 2A is disposed in the three bent passage portions 14A, 14C, and 14D of the second conveying passage 13, as shown in FIG. 9(B).

[0117] 11, the portion of the first conveying section 23 disposed in the curved passage section 14A is disposed so as to be slightly inward in the conveying direction J2 from one end 12b of the first conveying passage 12. Specifically, the end 22b of the blade 22 in the first conveying section 23 on the second conveying section 26 side is disposed so as to be slightly present within the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12. The end 22b of the blade 22 shown in FIG. 11 is disposed within the passage space 12a by about 1.5 pitches of the spiral pitch of the blade 22.

[0118] In this case, the bent passage portion 14A is connected to one end 12b of the first conveying passage 12 by a passage space 14a having a small outer diameter. The actual inner diameter of the passage space 14a is shown by the dashed line in FIG. At one end 12b of the first conveying passage 12, a guide surface portion 12e is provided to guide conveyed objects 19A such as unwanted toner conveyed in the conveying direction J1 by the second conveying section 26 through the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12 so that they are easily introduced into the passage space 14a of the bent passage portion 14A in the second conveying section 26.

[0119] The conveying device 10 is installed in the image forming apparatus 5 by mounting the image forming unit 50 in the housing 51 of the image forming apparatus 5. When the image forming unit 50 is attached to the conveying member 2A of the conveying device 10, the driven portion 31 is coupled to the shaft coupling 55c of the power transmission portion 55 as shown in FIG.

[0120] Furthermore, the conveying device 10 operates in synchronization with the image forming unit 60 when the image forming unit 60 is driven during the driving period of the image forming operation or the like. During this driving period, in the cleaning device 66 in the image forming unit 60, the conveyed object 19A such as unnecessary toner present on the image holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61 is removed by the contact member 66b and stored inside the housing 66a.

[0121] When the driving timing of the conveying device 10 arrives, the power transmission section 55 starts and the rotational power is input to the conveying member 2A. As a result, in the conveying device 10, rotational power for rotation in a required direction is input from the power transmission unit 55 to the conveying member 2A through the driven unit 31. As a result, the driven unit 31 of the conveying member 2A begins to rotate in accordance with the rotational power, and the input rotational power is transmitted from the driven unit 31 to the second shaft 24 of the second conveying unit 26, and then from the second shaft 24 to the first shaft 21 of the first conveying unit 23.

[0122] As a result, in the conveying device 10, the conveying member 2A starts to rotate in the required direction, and at the same time, the first conveying section 23 and the second conveying section 26 start to convey the conveyed object 19A. That is, in the conveying device 10, conveyed object 19A such as unnecessary toner removed by contact member 66b of cleaning device 66 and present in first conveying passage 12 inside housing 66a is conveyed in conveying direction J1 by second conveying section 26 of conveying member 2A in first conveying passage 12 and sent to second conveying passage 13. Also, in the conveying device 10, conveyed object 19A sent from first conveying passage 12 is conveyed in conveying direction J2 by ​​first conveying section 23 of conveying member 2A in second conveying passage 13. Finally, in the conveying device 10, the transported object 19, such as unwanted toner, transported by the first transport section 23 is sent out from the discharge outlet 13e located at the end side of the second transport passage 13 and stored in the collection container 57.

[0123] When this conveying device 10 conveys the object to be conveyed 19A, in the conveying member 2A, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is transmitted from the driven part 31 to the second shaft part 24, which has higher rigidity than the first shaft part 21, and then transmitted from the second shaft part 24 to the first shaft part 21, which is flexible. Therefore, in the conveying member 2A, similar to the conveying member 2A in the conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is efficiently transmitted to the first conveying section 23 and the second conveying section 26.

[0124] At this time, the conveying member 2A receives rotational power and the first conveying portion 23 is rotated in each of the curved passage spaces 13a of the three curved passage portions 14A, 14C, 14D of the second conveying passage 13. At this time, the rotational power of the conveying member 2A is efficiently transmitted to the first conveying section 23, so that the flexible first shaft portion 21 in the first conveying section 23 rotates in a bent state within the passage space 13a of each curved passage section 14A, 14C, 14D, and the flexible blade portion 22 also rotates while elastically deforming in accordance with the bent first shaft portion 21.

[0125] Therefore, in this conveying device 10, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is efficiently transmitted to the first conveying part 23 and the second conveying part 26 of the conveying member 2A, and therefore the conveying forces of the first conveying part 23 and the second conveying part 26 are obtained well, and the conveying force of the conveying member 2A is obtained stably. As a result, the conveyed object 19A, such as unwanted toner, is conveyed well from the cleaning device 66, which is the conveying source, to the collection container 57, which is the conveying destination.

[0126] Furthermore, with this conveying device 10, the above-described operational effects obtained in the case of the conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment can be obtained in substantially the same manner.

[0127] Furthermore, the transport device 10 also provides the following advantageous effects.

[0128] First, when the diameter of the first conveying passage 12 in the cleaning device 66 is forced to be reduced due to constraints such as the miniaturization of the image forming device 5, if the conveying device 100 illustrated in Figure 19 is adopted as a comparative example using a conveying member 200 configured to arrange a flexible first conveying section 23 in the first conveying passage 12 and the second conveying passage 13, the following problems may occur.

[0129] That is, in this case, it is no longer possible to increase the outer diameter (height from the shaft) of the blade portion 22 in the first conveying section 23 in order to increase the conveying capacity, and as a result, the amount of conveyed material 19A, such as unwanted toner, removed by the contact member 66b in the cleaning device 66 and stored in the housing 66a, cannot be kept up with, and the first conveying passage 12 becomes filled with the conveyed material 19A, which becomes prone to clumping. When the first conveying passage 12 becomes full, the inside of the housing 66a of the cleaning device 66 also begins to be filled with more conveyed material 19A than necessary, and the conveyed material 19A, which begins to clump in this full state, presses the contact member 66b from inside the housing 66a toward the photosensitive drum 61, as shown by arrow F. As a result, in the cleaning device 66, the contact state (posture) of the contact member 66b with the image holding surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61 is disturbed, the removal performance of the contact member 66b is reduced, and poor cleaning occurs, such as unwanted toner, etc. slipping through the contact member 66b.

[0130] In contrast to this, in the transport device 10, the second transport section 26 having the coil portion 25 of the transport member 2A is arranged in the first transport passage 12 of the cleaning device 66. As a result, in the first conveying passage 12 in the cleaning device 66, the coil portion 25 in the second conveying section 26 of the conveying member 2A moves in a direction approaching and moving away from the surface of the second shaft portion 24, so that the conveyed objects 19A such as unwanted toner in the first conveying passage 12 can be vibrated and broken down while being conveyed. As a result, the conveying device 10 can smoothly convey the objects 19A without filling up the first conveying path 12 as well as the second conveying path 13. This also prevents the cleaning device 66 from failing to clean as described above.

[0131] Third embodiment. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an overview of a conveying device 1B according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 13 is a diagram showing the appearance of a conveying member 2B according to the third embodiment, which is another example of the conveying member 2 used in the conveying device 1B.

[0132] As shown in Figure 12, the conveying device 1B includes a first conveying passage 12, a second conveying passage 13, a third conveying passage 16, a conveying member 2 that conveys the object 19 from the source through the third conveying passage 16 to the destination through the first conveying passage 12 and the second conveying passage 13, and a power transmission unit 15 that transmits rotational power to the conveying member 2. Of these, the first conveying passage 12, the second conveying passage 13 and the power transmission unit 15 have almost the same configuration as the first conveying passage 12, the second conveying passage 13 and the power transmission unit 15 in the conveying device 1A of the first embodiment (see Figure 1, etc.).

[0133] The third transfer passage 16 is a passage in which the passage space 16a extends linearly. The third transport path 16 is also an extension of the first transport path 12 to the end opposite the second transport path 13. Therefore, the third transport path 16 can also be said to be an extension of the first transport path 12 provided upstream in the transport direction J1. Similarly to the first conveying passage 12, the third conveying passage 16 is, for example, a tubular passage having a substantially circular cross section perpendicular to the conveying direction of the passage space 16a, or a trough-shaped passage having a substantially semicircular lower cross section of the passage space 16a and an upper cross section that opens upward.

[0134] The third transport path 16 is provided in a structure 81B, such as a device, container, or the like, which is the source of the transported objects 19. In this case, the third transport path 16 is provided inside a portion of the structure 81B where the transported objects 19 are collected, or is provided in a state connected to the outside. Meanwhile, the structure 81, as described in the first embodiment, is provided in the first transport path 12. Therefore, the structure 81B can also be said to be a structure arranged upstream of the structure 81.

[0135] Next, the conveying member 2 in the conveying device 1B is arranged in succession in the third conveying passage 16, the first conveying passage 12, and the second conveying passage 13, and in this state conveys the object 19 to the required destination, the receiver 82. In this transport device 1B, the transport member 2 is a transport member 2B having the following configuration.

[0136] As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the conveying member 2B includes a first conveying section 23, a second conveying section 26, a third conveying section 29, and a driven section 31. Of these, the first conveying section 23, the second conveying section 26, and the driven section 31 have substantially the same configuration as the first conveying section 23, the second conveying section 26, and the driven section 31 in the conveying member 2A according to the first embodiment (see Figures 2 to 5, etc.).

[0137] As shown in Figure 13, etc., the third conveying section 29 is a section that has a third shaft section 27 that has higher rigidity than the first shaft section 21, and a second blade section 28 that is spirally located on the surface of the third shaft section 27 and conveys the conveyed object 19.

[0138] The third shaft portion 27 is an axis extending from the end portion 24b of the second shaft portion 24 opposite the first shaft portion 21, and is configured as an axis having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21. The third shaft portion 27 in the first embodiment is composed of a surface layer 241 made of the same material as the first conveying portion 23, and a core material 242 inside the surface layer 241 that has higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21, similar to the second shaft portion 24 in the conveying member 2A (see Figure 2(B) etc.).

[0139] The second blade portion 28 is a part that extends spirally at the required pitch and spiral angle to perform the conveying function, and has a configuration that is almost the same as that of the blade portion 22 in the conveying member 2A, except for some configurations such as dimensions. The second blade portion 28 has dimensions adapted to the dimensions of the passage space 16a in the third conveying passage 16 in which the third conveying portion 29 is disposed. Furthermore, the second blade portion 28 is configured so that when the conveying member 2B rotates in the required direction, the conveying direction of the conveyed object 19 becomes the direction indicated by the arrow J3, as shown in FIG.

[0140] 13 and other figures, the coil portion 25 in the second conveying portion 26 is attached in a state in which one end 25b thereof, which is on the opposite side to the first conveying portion 23, is fixed to an end 27c of the third shaft portion 27 in the third conveying portion 29, which is closer to the second shaft portion 24, within the passage space 16a of the third conveying passage 16. In this case, the one end 25b of the coil portion 25 is fixed by, for example, inserting it toward the center inside the third shaft portion 27 to which it is attached and fastening it thereto. In addition, the other end 25c of the coil portion 25, which is on the first conveying portion 23 side, is not fixed to the second shaft portion 24, as in the case of the coil portion 25 in the conveying member 2A of the first embodiment. Furthermore, the driven part 31 is attached to the end 27b of the third shaft part 27 in the third transport part 29, on the opposite side to the second shaft part 24.

[0141] Now, FIG. 14 shows a conveying member 20B that can be applied to the manufacture of the conveying member 2B. This transport member 20B is a member having a configuration in which the coil portion 25 of the transport member 2B has been removed.

[0142] In detail, the conveying member 20B is a member comprising a first conveying section 23 having a first shaft portion 21 and a blade portion 22 and being flexible; a second shaft portion 24 having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion; a third conveying section 29 connected to the end portion 24b of the second shaft portion 24 opposite the first shaft portion 21 and having a third shaft portion 27 having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21 and a second blade portion 28; and a driven portion 31 attached to the end portion 27b of the third shaft portion 27 opposite the second shaft portion 24. In this case, the first shaft portion 21, the blade portion 22, the second shaft portion 24, the third shaft portion 27, the second blade portion 28 and the driven portion 31 in the conveying member 20B have the same configuration as the first shaft portion 21, the blade portion 22, the second shaft portion 24, the third shaft portion 27, the second blade portion 28 and the driven portion 31 in the conveying member 2B already described.

[0143] Furthermore, the conveying member 2B can be manufactured by arranging and attaching the coil portion 25 of the conveying member 20B around the second shaft portion 24. Therefore, the conveying member 20B can be said to be an intermediate product in manufacturing the conveying member 2B. However, the conveying member 20B can also be used as a normal conveying member that utilizes the conveying forces of the first conveying section 23 and the third conveying section 29.

[0144] The transport member 2B having the above-described configuration is used by being disposed in a transport device 1B as shown in FIG.

[0145] In this case, the conveying member 2B is used by arranging its second conveying section 26 in the first conveying passage 12, its first conveying section 23 in the second conveying passage 13, and its third conveying section 29 in the third conveying passage 16. To accommodate this, the dimensions of the second conveying section 26 of the conveying member 2B are set to dimensions suitable for use when placed in the passage space 12a of the first conveying passage 12. The dimensions of the first conveying section 23 are set to dimensions suitable for use when placed in the passage space 13a of the second conveying passage 13. The dimensions of the third conveying section 29 are set to dimensions suitable for use when placed in the passage space 16a of the third conveying passage 16.

[0146] Furthermore, the conveying member 2B is used by coupling the driven part 31 at the outer part 18B of the other end 16c of the third conveying passage 16 to the shaft coupling 15c of the power transmission part 15 of the conveying device 1A. At this time, the driven part 31 is arranged in a state in which the entire part is accommodated in the outer part 18B of the other end 16c of the third conveying passage 16. Then, the coupled part 31b of the driven part 31 is connected to the shaft coupling 15c of the power transmission part 15, and the locked part 31e of the coupled part 31b is fitted into and locked with a locking part (not shown) of the shaft coupling 15c, thereby being coupled (see FIG. 10).

[0147] In the transport device 1B, when transporting the transported object 19, the power transmission unit 15 starts.

[0148] As a result, in the conveying device 1B, rotational power for rotation in a required direction is input from the power transmission unit 15 to the conveying member 2B through the driven unit 31. As a result, the driven unit 31 of the conveying member 2B begins to rotate in accordance with the rotational power, and the rotational power is transmitted from the driven unit 31 to the second shaft 24 of the second conveying unit 26, and then from the second shaft 24 to the first shaft 21 of the first conveying unit 23, and further from the first shaft 21 to the third shaft 27 of the third conveying unit 29.

[0149] As a result, in the conveying device 1B, the conveying member 2B starts to rotate in the required direction, and at the same time, the first conveying section 23, the second conveying section 26 and the third conveying section 29 start conveying the conveyed object 19. 12, in the conveying device 1B, the conveyed object 19 present in the upstream source structure 81B is conveyed in the conveying direction J3 by the third conveying section 29 of the conveying member 2B in the third conveying passage 16, and is finally sent toward the first conveying passage 12. In addition, in the conveying device 1B, the conveyed object 19 sent from the third conveying passage 16 is conveyed in the conveying direction J1 by the second conveying section 26 of the conveying member 2B in the first conveying passage 12, and is finally sent toward the second conveying passage 13. In addition, in the conveying device 1B, the conveyed object 19 sent from the first conveying passage 12 is conveyed in the conveying direction J2 by ​​the first conveying section 23 of the conveying member 2B in the second conveying passage 13. Finally, in the transport device 1B, the transported object 19 transported by the first transport section 23 is sent out from the discharge port 13e located at the terminal end of the second transport path 13 and is stored in the receiver 82.

[0150] At this time, in the conveying member 2B, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is transmitted from the driven part 31 to the third shaft part 27 and the second shaft part 24, which have higher rigidity than the first shaft part 21, and then transmitted from the second shaft part 24 to the first shaft part 21, which is flexible. Therefore, the conveying member 2B transmits the rotational power to the first conveying section 23, the second conveying section 26 and the third conveying section 29 more efficiently than when the rotational power is input from the first shaft section 21 of the first conveying section 23.

[0151] At this time, the conveying member 2B receives rotational power, as in the case of the conveying member 2A, and the first conveying section 23 is rotated within each of the curved passage spaces 13a of the two curved passage sections 14A, 14B in the second conveying passage 13.

[0152] Therefore, in this conveying device 1B, the rotational power input from the driven part 31 is efficiently transmitted to the first conveying part 23, the second conveying part 26, and the third conveying part 29 of the conveying member 2B, so that the conveying forces of the first conveying part 23, the second conveying part 26, and the third conveying part 29 are obtained well, and the conveying force of the conveying member 2B is obtained stably. As a result, the conveyed object 19 is conveyed well from the conveying source to the conveying destination.

[0153] Furthermore, in this conveying apparatus 1B, the above-described operational effects obtained in the case of the conveying apparatus 1A according to the first embodiment can be obtained in substantially the same manner.

[0154] Fourth embodiment. Fig. 15 is a diagram showing the appearance of a conveying member 2C according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 16 is a diagram showing the appearance and cross section of a part of the conveying member 2C. When compared with the conveying member 2A according to the first embodiment, the conveying member 2C differs in that an end member 33 is used, but other than that, the conveying member 2C is a member having almost the same configuration as the conveying member 2A.

[0155] That is, the conveying member 2C uses an end member 33 fixed to the end 24b of the second shaft portion 24 as a third shaft portion connected to the end 24b of the second shaft portion 24 opposite to the first shaft portion 21. The end member 33 is a member having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21. In addition, the conveying member 2C has the driven portion 31B fixed continuously to the end portion 33b of the end member 33 opposite the second shaft portion 24, and one end 25b of the coil portion 25 fixed to the end member 33.

[0156] The end member 33 is provided with a notched groove 31g into which the end 25e of the one end 25b of the coil portion 25 is inserted and secured. The driven part 31B has substantially the same configuration as the driven part 31 (see FIG. 4, etc.) of the conveying member 2A. That is, the driven part 31B has a shaft part 31a and a joint part 31b. The driven part 31B also has higher rigidity than the first shaft part 21.

[0157] In the fourth embodiment, the end member 33 and the driven part 31B are manufactured by integrally molding them using the same material. Therefore, even though the conveying member 2C has the end member 33 and the driven part 31B, the two are an integral structure, so the number of parts and the number of assembly steps are reduced compared to when the two are separate. However, the end member 33 and the driven part 31B may also be configured as separate bodies that are joined together.

[0158] This conveying member 2C can be disposed in the conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment and used in place of the conveying member 2A. The end member 33 and the driven portion 31B in the fourth embodiment may be applied in place of the driven portion 31 in the conveying member 2B according to the second embodiment.

[0159] Variant. In the first, third and fourth embodiments, the conveying members 2A, 2B and 2C are exemplified as those in which the second shaft portion 24 of the second conveying section 26 is structured to be composed of a surface layer portion 241 and a core material 242. However, the second shaft portion 24 of the second conveying section 26 may be a second shaft portion 24B that is structured to be made of a material having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion 21 of the first conveying section 23, as shown in Fig. 17 which is a representative example of the case of the conveying member 2A.

[0160] In a representative conveying member 2A that employs this second shaft portion 24B, a method of connecting the second shaft portion 24B to the flexible first shaft portion 21 can be applied, for example, as shown in Figure 17, in which a connecting core material 38 is fitted into the center of each shaft portion 24B, 21 and the shaft portions are connected to each other.

[0161] As described above, in the conveying member 2A and the like, it is preferable that the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is arranged so as not to come into contact with the end 22b of the blade portion 22 on the upstream side in the conveying direction J2 in the first conveying section 23 (see FIG. 3 and the like). Another example of such a conveying member may be, for example, a conveying member 2D as shown in FIG. 18, in which the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is arranged slightly further downstream in the axial direction than the end 22b of the blade portion 22 in the conveying direction J2. 18 is an example of a case in which the other end 25c of the coil portion 25 is disposed a distance γ downstream in the conveying direction J2 from the end 22b of the blade portion 22. The distance γ is, for example, a dimension that is approximately less than one helical pitch.

[0162] The following configuration may be applied to the conveyance device 1A according to the first embodiment. That is, in the conveying device 1A, in the portion 18 continuing to the outside of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12, one end 25b of the coil portion 25 may be fixed to the end 24b of the second shaft portion 24 instead of the driven portion 31. Furthermore, in the conveying device 1A, when a conveying member 2A employing the end member 33 and driven portion 31B in the fourth embodiment is used, one end 25b of the coil portion 25 may be fixed to the end member 33 instead of the driven portion 31B in the portion 18 continuing to the outside of the other end 12c of the first conveying passage 12.

[0163] In the conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment and the conveying device 1B according to the third embodiment, a removal device such as the cleaning device 66 in the second embodiment may be applied as the structure 81 that provides the first conveying passage 12. The removal device is a device having a contact member that contacts the surface to remove the transported objects 19 adhering to the surface of the rotating structure, and a housing provided with a storage space for storing the transported objects 19 removed by the contact member. When this removal device is applied, the first transport passage 12 may be provided within the storage space of the removal device, as in the case of the cleaning device 66.

[0164] The conveying device 1A according to the first embodiment and the conveying device 1B according to the third embodiment are not limited to being applied to the image forming device 5, but can also be applied to various other devices that require transporting the object 19 from a source to a destination.

[0165] An image forming apparatus to which the conveying device 1A is applied may employ, as the image forming section 60, an intermediate transfer type image forming section that uses an intermediate transfer body such as a belt having a transfer surface, which is another example of an image bearing surface, to which the toner image on the image bearing surface 61a of the photosensitive drum 61 is temporarily transferred before being transferred to the sheet-like material 9. In the case of an image forming apparatus employing this intermediate transfer type image forming unit, a cleaning device is used to remove conveyed object 19A such as unnecessary toner present on the transfer surface of the intermediate transfer body and clean the transfer surface. Therefore, in this case of the image forming apparatus, the conveying device 1A may be a conveying device that employs a cleaning device for the intermediate transfer body as the structure 81 from which conveyed object 19A such as unnecessary toner is conveyed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0166] 1A, 1B, 10...Transportation device 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D...Transportation members 5. Image forming device 14A, 14B...Bent passage portion (an example of one or more bent passage portions) 18...Part continuing from the other end of the first conveying section to the outside 19...Transported object 20A, 20B...Transporting members 21...First shaft 21b...One end of the first shaft 22...wing part 23...First conveying section 23c...other end of the first conveying section 24, 24B...Second shaft 24b...end of the second shaft portion opposite to the first shaft portion 25...Coil section 25b...One end of the coil part 25c...other end of coil 26...Second conveying section 27...Third shaft 28...Second wing 29...Third conveying section 31,31B…Driven part 57...Collection container (an example of a storage section) 61...Photosensitive drum (an example of a structure or image carrier) 66...Cleaning device (an example of a removal device) 66b...contact member 241...Surface layer 242...Core material J1: Conveying direction of the blades of the second conveying section J2: Conveying direction of the blades of the first conveying section D1: Outer diameter of the second shaft D2: Inner diameter of coil

Claims

1. a first conveying section having flexibility and including a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the first shaft section to convey the object; a second conveying section including a second shaft section extending from one end of the first shaft section and having higher rigidity than the first shaft section, and a coil section spirally disposed on the surface of the second shaft section and movable in a direction approaching and separating from the surface of the second shaft section to convey the conveyed object; a driven part attached to an end of the second shaft part opposite to the first shaft part or to a third shaft part connected to the end and having higher rigidity than the first shaft part, and driven by receiving input of rotational power; A conveying member comprising:

2. a first conveying section having flexibility and including a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the first shaft section to convey the object; a second conveying unit including a second shaft portion extending from one end of the first shaft portion and having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion, and a coil portion having a coil inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of the second shaft portion and conveying the conveyed object; a driven part attached to an end of the second shaft part opposite to the first shaft part or to a third shaft part connected to the end and having higher rigidity than the first shaft part, and driven by receiving input of rotational power; A conveying member comprising:

3. 3. The transport member according to claim 1, wherein one end of the coil portion is fixed to the driven portion.

4. the third shaft portion is an end member fixed to an end portion of the second shaft portion opposite to the first shaft portion, the driven portion is fixed continuously to an end portion of the end member opposite to the second shaft portion, 3. The transport member according to claim 1, wherein one end of the coil portion is fixed to the driven portion or the end member.

5. a third conveying unit having the third shaft portion and a second blade portion spirally disposed on a surface of the third shaft portion to convey the object to be conveyed; the driven portion is attached to an end of the third shaft portion opposite to the second shaft portion, 3. The conveying member according to claim 1, wherein one end of the coil portion is fixed to the second shaft portion or the third shaft portion.

6. A conveying member according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the second shaft portion is composed of a surface layer made of the same material as the first conveying portion and a core material inside the surface layer having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion.

7. 7. The conveying member according to claim 3, wherein the other end of the coil portion is not fixed to the second shaft portion.

8. The conveying member according to claim 7 , wherein the other end of the coil portion is arranged so as not to come into contact with an upstream end of the blade portion in the conveying direction of the first conveying portion.

9. 5. The conveying member according to claim 4, wherein the driven portion and the end member are an integral structure.

10. a linear first conveying path; a second conveying passage connected to one end of the first conveying passage and having one or more bent passage portions; a conveying member disposed continuously between the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage and configured to convey the object from the first conveying passage through the second conveying passage to a destination; a power transmission unit that transmits rotational power to the conveying member outside the other end of the first conveying passage; Equipped with The conveying member is a conveying member described in any one of claims 1 to 3 and 6 to 8 except claim 5, and is a conveying device used by arranging the second conveying section in the first conveying passage and the first conveying section in the second conveying passage.

11. A conveying device as described in claim 10, wherein one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is fixed to the driven part or to the end of the second shaft portion opposite the first shaft portion in a portion extending outward from the other end of the first conveying passage.

12. A linear first conveying passage; a second conveying passage connected to one end of the first conveying passage and having one or more bent passage portions; a conveying member disposed continuously between the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage and configured to convey the object from the first conveying passage through the second conveying passage to a destination; a power transmission unit that transmits rotational power to the conveying member outside the other end of the first conveying passage; Equipped with 10. A conveying device in which the conveying member is the conveying member according to claim 4 or 9, and the second conveying section is disposed in the first conveying passage, and the first conveying section is disposed in the second conveying passage.

13. A conveying device as described in Claim 12, wherein one end of the coil portion of the conveying member is fixed to the end member in a portion extending outward from the other end of the first conveying passage.

14. A linear third conveying passage connected to the end of the first conveying passage opposite to the second conveying passage; a conveying member disposed successively in the third conveying passage, the first conveying passage, and the second conveying passage to convey the object from the third conveying passage through the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage to a destination; Equipped with The conveying member is a conveying member described in any one of claims 6 to 9 excluding claims 3, 4 and 5, and is used by arranging the second conveying section in the first conveying passage and the first conveying section in the second conveying passage.

15. A linear third conveying passage connected to the end of the first conveying passage opposite to the second conveying passage; a conveying member disposed successively in the third conveying passage, the first conveying passage, and the second conveying passage to convey the object from the third conveying passage through the first conveying passage and the second conveying passage to a destination; Equipped with The conveying member is the conveying member described in claim 5, and is used by arranging the second conveying section in the first conveying passage, the first conveying section in the second conveying passage, and the third conveying section in the third conveying passage.

16. A conveying device as described in claim 14 or 15, wherein one end of the coil portion is fixed to the end of the third shaft portion closer to the second shaft portion in the second conveying passage.

17. A removal device comprising: a contact member that contacts the surface of a rotating structure to remove transported objects adhering to the surface; and a housing having a storage space for storing the transported objects removed by the contact member; 17. The transfer device according to claim 10, wherein the first transfer passage is provided within the accommodation space of the removal device.

18. An image carrier having a carrier surface for carrying an image made of a developer; a cleaning device that removes and cleans the developer adhering to the holding surface of the image carrier; a storage section for storing the developer removed by the cleaning device; a conveying device that conveys the developer removed by the cleaning device to the storage unit through a linear first conveying passage and a second conveying passage connected to one end of the first conveying passage and having one or more bent passage portions; Equipped with 14. An image forming apparatus, wherein the conveying device is configured as the conveying device according to claim 10.

19. The cleaning device has a housing having an opening facing the holding surface of the image carrier, a storage section for storing the removed developer, and a linear discharge transport path for transporting the stored developer to be discharged, and a contact member provided in the opening of the housing for contacting the holding surface of the image carrier to remove the developer, 19. The image forming apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the discharge transport path is the first transport path, and the second transport portion of the transport member is disposed in the discharge transport path.

20. A first conveying section having a first shaft section and a blade section spirally disposed on the surface of the first shaft section to convey the object to be conveyed, and having flexibility; a second shaft portion extending from one end of the first shaft portion and having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion, to which a coil for transporting an object to be transported can be attached; a driven part attached to an end of the second shaft part opposite to the first shaft part or to a third shaft part connected to the end and having higher rigidity than the first shaft part, and driven by receiving input of rotational power; A conveying member comprising:

21. A conveying member as described in Claim 20, wherein the third shaft portion is an end member fixed to the end of the second shaft portion opposite the first shaft portion, and the driven portion is fixed to the end of the end member opposite the second shaft portion.

22. A third conveying unit having the third shaft portion and a second blade portion spirally disposed on the surface of the third shaft portion to convey the conveyed object, 21. The conveying member according to claim 20, wherein the driven portion is attached to an end of the third shaft portion opposite to the second shaft portion.

23. A conveying member described in any one of claims 20 to 22, wherein the second shaft portion is composed of a surface layer made of the same material as the first conveying portion and a core material inside the surface layer having higher rigidity than the first shaft portion.

24. A conveying member as described in Claim 21, wherein the driven part and the end member are an integral structure.

Images