Storage components

Abstract

To provide a storage member that can prevent or suppress deformation due to creep during transportation and storage and the generation of image noise.SOLUTION: A storage member 200 packages and stores an image forming unit 100 having an image carrier 110 and a rotary member 122 disposed to rotate in contact with the image carrier 110 when transporting and storing the image forming unit 100, and the storage member has a driving unit that rotates the rotary member 122 of the packaged image forming unit 100.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a storage member.

Background Art

[0002] An image forming unit includes a photoreceptor as an image carrier, and a charging unit, an exposure unit, a developing unit, and a cleaning unit disposed around the photoreceptor, and forms a toner image on the photoreceptor. The toner image formed on the photoreceptor is transferred onto a sheet which is a recording medium by a transfer unit. The cleaning unit cleans the toner (hereinafter also referred to as "remaining transfer toner") remaining on the photoreceptor after the transfer of the toner image by the transfer unit. Further, the cleaning unit has an auxiliary cleaning unit that reduces the adhesion force between the toner and the photoreceptor so as to easily clean the remaining transfer toner on the photoreceptor.

[0003] As the auxiliary cleaning unit is a brush roller can be used. A brush roller is a rotating member configured to rotate while in contact with a photosensitive material. However, if the brush roller is left in contact with the photoreceptor for a long time, it may be deformed due to creep. The brush roller being left in contact with the photoreceptor for a long time occurs, for example, when a new image forming unit is transported and stored in a packaged state. When the brush roller is deformed, when the brush roller rotates, the deformed part and the non-deformed part of the brush roller alternately contact the photoreceptor, causing the photoreceptor to vibrate. As a result, there is a possibility that noise (hereinafter referred to as "image noise") may occur in the output image.

[0004] In this regard, Patent Document 1 describes a technique for preventing deformation due to creep by configuring the brush roller to be able to move toward and away from the photoreceptor. Patent Document 2 describes a technique for preventing deformation due to creep by counting the time since the brush roller stopped in the image forming apparatus and rotating the brush roller at predetermined intervals. Patent Document 3 describes a technique for preventing a decrease in the cleaning ability of a brush roller by mixing brush fibers of different thicknesses and making the length of the brush fibers 2 mm or less. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2004-333958 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2011-191524 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2003-271032 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006] However, the technology described in Patent Document 1 has the problem of low positioning accuracy of the brush roller relative to the photoreceptor because the brush roller is configured to be able to move toward and away from the photoreceptor. In addition, the position of the brush roller relative to the photoreceptor may fluctuate due to the driving of the brush roller, which may cause image noise. Furthermore, while the technology described in Patent Document 2 can prevent deformation of the brush roller due to creep when the image forming apparatus is not in operation after the image forming unit has been incorporated into the main body of the image forming apparatus, creep during transportation and storage of the image forming unit is not considered. Therefore, there is a problem that deformation during transportation and storage of the image forming unit cannot be prevented. In the technology described in Patent Document 3, the brush roller has short brush fibers and fibers of different thicknesses are mixed together, resulting in low uniformity of contact of the brush roller with the photoreceptor, which may cause image noise. Furthermore, the rotating member is not limited to a brush roller. For example, the rotating member can be other members such as a charging roller. If the rotating member is a charging roller, and the same surface of the charging roller remains in contact with the photoreceptor for a long period of time, a bleeding phenomenon may occur in which compounding agents such as ion conductive materials contained inside the charging roller seep out onto the surface of the photoreceptor. This bleeding phenomenon can also be a cause of image noise.

[0007] This invention was made to solve such problems. That is, when transporting and storing an image forming unit... Even if the rotating member is left in contact with the photoreceptor for a long period of time The objective is to provide a storage component that can prevent or suppress the generation of image noise. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The above-mentioned problems of the present invention are solved by the following means.

[0009] (1) A storage member for packaging and storing an image forming unit, which has an image carrier and a rotating member disposed to rotate while in contact with the image carrier, during transport and storage, wherein the storage member has a drive unit for rotating the rotating member of the packaged image forming unit.

[0010] (2) The storage member according to (1) above, wherein the rotating member is a brush roller in which brushes are formed on the outer circumference of a core metal.

[0011] (3) The storage member according to (1) or (2) above, further comprising a control unit for controlling the start and stop of the rotation of the rotating member, and a timing unit for measuring the elapsed time since the rotation of the rotating member stopped, wherein the control unit controls the rotation of the rotating member if the elapsed time measured by the timing unit exceeds a predetermined time, and controls the rotation of the rotating member to stop if the elapsed time does not exceed the predetermined time.

[0012] (4) The storage member according to (1) or (2) above, further comprising an energy supply unit that supplies energy to the drive unit when the image forming unit is packaged, wherein the drive unit stores the energy supplied by the energy supply unit.

[0013] (5) The storage member according to (1) or (2) above, further comprising: an energy supply unit that supplies energy to the drive unit when the image forming unit is packaged; and a storage unit that stores the energy supplied by the energy supply unit.

[0014] (6) The storage member according to (4) above, wherein the energy supply unit has a lever for supplying energy to the drive unit by being rotated by an operator or a rotating device.

[0015] (7) The storage member as described in (4) above, wherein the energy supply unit supplies energy from vibrations acting on the storage member to the drive unit.

[0016] (8) The storage member according to (7), wherein the drive unit is a spring, and the energy supply unit has an energy transmission unit that rotates in response to vibrations acting on the storage member and stores energy in the spring, and a restricting member that restricts the rotation direction of the energy transmission unit to one direction.

[0017] (9) The driving part is a spring, and the energy supply part includes a weight, a weight holding member that holds the weight and moves according to the force acting on the weight, an energy transmission part that rotates according to the movement of the weight holding member and stores energy in the spring, and a movement path forming part that forms a movement path of the weight holding member so as to rotate the energy transmission part in one direction. The storage member according to (7) above.

[0018] (10) The relationship between the driving force Fd by the driving part and the frictional force Ff acting between the rotating member and the image carrier satisfies Fd > Ff. The storage member according to (1) or (2) above.

Advantages of the Invention

[0019] According to the present invention, the storage member has a driving part that rotates the rotating member of the image forming unit packed with a packing material. Therefore, even when the image forming unit is stored for a long period of time with the rotating member in contact with the image carrier, since the rotating member rotates during storage, When the rotating component is a brush roller, deformation and deterioration due to creep of the rotating member are prevented or suppressed. Therefore, generation of image noise caused by deformation and deterioration due to creep of the rotating member can be prevented or suppressed. Furthermore, when the rotating member is a charged roller, the bleeding phenomenon caused by the rotating member is prevented or suppressed. Therefore, the generation of image noise caused by the bleeding phenomenon can be prevented or suppressed.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0020] [Figure 1] It is a perspective view illustrating the overall configuration of the storage member in the first embodiment. [Figure 2] It is a perspective view illustrating the configuration of the image forming unit. [Figure 3] It is a view illustrating an image forming apparatus having an image forming unit. [Figure 4] It is a perspective view illustrating the schematic configuration of the energy supply part in the second embodiment. [Figure 5] It is a front view illustrating the schematic configuration of the energy supply part in the second embodiment. [Figure 6]This is a schematic diagram illustrating a method for restricting the rotation direction of the energy transfer section to one direction. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0021] Hereinafter, a storage member according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numeral, and redundant explanations are omitted. Also, the dimensional ratios in the drawings are exaggerated for illustrative purposes and may differ from the actual ratios.

[0022] (First embodiment) Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating the overall configuration of the storage member in the first embodiment, and Figure 2 is a perspective view illustrating the configuration of the image forming unit.

[0023] As shown in Figure 1, the image forming unit 100 manufactured at the factory is transported and stored before being delivered to the user, and is therefore shipped in packaging materials (cushioning member 210 and frame 220, described later).

[0024] <Image forming unit 100> The image forming unit 100 is loaded into the image forming apparatus 300 (see Figure 3), which will be described later. As shown in Figure 2, the image forming unit 100 has a photoreceptor 110 and a cleaning unit 120. The photoreceptor 110 is a cylindrical rotating body that functions as an image carrier. The cleaning unit 120 cleans any remaining toner on the photoreceptor 110 after the toner image has been transferred.

[0025] The cleaning unit 120 includes a cleaning blade 121 and a brush roller (rotating member) 122. In Figure 2, the side of the photoreceptor 110 is conveniently depicted as transparent to make the shapes of the cleaning blade 121 and the brush roller 122 easier to see.

[0026] The cleaning blade 121 cleans the photoreceptor 110 by scraping off any remaining toner. The brush roller 122 reduces the adhesion of toner to the photoreceptor 110 to facilitate cleaning by the cleaning blade 121.

[0027] The brush roller 122 is configured to rotate while in contact with the photoreceptor 110. The brush roller 122 is a roller in which brush fibers are formed on the outer circumference of a core metal. The brush roller 122 can be manufactured by methods such as winding a pile fabric or electrostatic flocking, and any of these methods is acceptable.

[0028] Since the brush roller 122 is positioned to contact the photoreceptor 110, if the brush roller 122 is left stationary for a long period of time, the force generated at the contact point between the brush roller 122 and the photoreceptor 110 may cause permanent deformation of the brush roller 122.

[0029] If permanent distortion occurs in the brush roller 122, when the brush roller 122 contacts the photoreceptor 110 and rotates, uneven contact (uneven contact) may occur between the distorted portion and the photoreceptor 110. Since uneven contact can cause image noise, it is necessary to prevent permanent distortion as much as possible.

[0030] Furthermore, the image forming unit 100 is highly likely to be left with the brush rollers 122 stopped for extended periods during transportation and storage from the time it is manufactured and shipped from the factory until it reaches the user. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent the brush rollers 122 from being left stopped for extended periods during this time.

[0031] <Storage component 200> The storage member 200 includes a cushioning member 210, a frame 220, a rotary drive unit 230, an energy supply unit 240, a timing unit 250, and a control unit 260.

[0032] The cushioning member 210 mitigates impacts applied to the image forming unit 100 from the outside by covering part or all of the image forming unit 100. Since the cushioning member 210 is required to have elasticity to absorb impact, materials commonly used as elastic materials such as expanded polystyrene, bubble wrap, or cardboard can be used. The cushioning member 210 has an opening A formed therein, and is configured so that an operator (hereinafter simply referred to as "operator") who is involved in the storage of the image forming unit 100 can operate the energy supply unit 240 through the opening A.

[0033] The frame 220 supports the cushioning member 210. For example, cardboard can be suitably used as the frame 220. The cushioning member 210 and the frame 220 function as packaging material.

[0034] The rotary drive unit 230 rotates the brush roller 122 of the image forming unit 100, which is packaged in packaging material. More specifically, the rotary drive unit 230 has a drive unit 231 that provides a driving force (rotational force Fd) to rotate the brush roller 122. The drive unit 231 is connected to a drive gear unit 123 that transmits the rotational force Fd to the brush roller 122 of the image forming unit 100. The brush roller 122 rotates when the rotational force Fd from the drive unit 231 is greater than the frictional force Ff acting between the brush roller 122 and the photoreceptor 110. In other words, the relationship Fd > Ff is established between the rotational force Fd and the frictional force Ff, ensuring that the brush roller 122 rotates reliably. In this embodiment, the system is configured such that the relationship Fd > Ff is established between the rotational force Fd and the frictional force Ff.

[0035] The drive unit 231 can store energy internally and use that stored energy to convert it into a rotational force Fd, which it then applies to the brush roller 122. The drive unit 231 has, for example, a spring (for example, a coil spring) and converts the energy stored in the spring into a rotational force Fd, which it then applies to the brush roller 122.

[0036] Alternatively, the rotary drive unit 230 may have a motor as the drive unit 231 and a battery as the storage unit, and may be configured to convert the electrical energy stored in the battery into a rotational force Fd by the motor and provide the rotational force Fd to the brush roller 122. The battery can be a primary battery (e.g., a dry cell battery, a button battery, etc.) or a secondary battery.

[0037] Thus, in this embodiment, while the image forming unit 100, which is packaged in packaging material, is being transported and stored, a rotational force Fd is applied to the brush roller 122, causing it to rotate, thereby preventing or suppressing the occurrence of permanent deformation in the brush roller 122.

[0038] The timing unit 250 measures the elapsed time since the brush roller 122 stopped rotating. The timing unit 250 can be configured using, for example, a timer IC (Integrated Circuit) that outputs pulses of a predetermined period, a counter, or the like.

[0039] If the rotation of the brush roller 122 is stopped for only a short period, the likelihood of permanent deformation occurring in the brush roller 122 is low. Furthermore, even if permanent deformation occurs, it is unlikely to be significant. In addition, the energy that the drive unit 231 or the storage unit (hereinafter also referred to as the "energy storage unit") can store is finite. Therefore, in this embodiment, by rotating the brush roller 122 intermittently at predetermined time intervals, the energy consumption due to the rotation of the brush roller 122 can be reduced. This allows for effective utilization of the energy stored in the energy storage unit.

[0040] The control unit 260 controls the start and stop of the rotation of the brush roller 122. The control unit 260 determines whether the rotation of the brush roller 122 by the rotation drive unit 230 is necessary, according to the elapsed time measured by the timing unit 250. For example, if the elapsed time exceeds a predetermined time, the control unit 260 determines that rotation of the brush roller 122 is necessary, and if the elapsed time does not exceed a predetermined time, it determines that rotation of the brush roller 122 is unnecessary. If the control unit 260 determines that rotation of the brush roller 122 is necessary, it controls the brush roller 122 to rotate, while if it determines that rotation of the brush roller 122 is unnecessary, it controls the brush roller 122 to stop. The control unit 260 can be configured, for example, by a comparator that compares the elapsed time with a predetermined time.

[0041] The timing unit 250 and the control unit 260 are embedded in the packaging material individually or as a single unit. Figure 1 illustrates a case in which the timing unit 250 and the control unit 260 are individually embedded within the cushioning member 210.

[0042] Table 1 below shows the results of an experiment conducted to verify the effect of intermittently rotating the brush roller 122 at predetermined intervals.

[0043] [Table 1]

[0044] In the above experiment, a new brush roller 122 was set in a new image forming unit 100, packaged and stored (left unattended) for one day, then the packaging was removed, and the image forming unit 100 was assembled into an image forming apparatus (AccrioPressC14000 (manufactured by Konica Minolta)) to output a halftone image. Details of the configuration of the image forming apparatus will be described later with reference to Figure 3.

[0045] Then, the image forming unit 100, after being left unattended, was visually inspected for noise in the output images for the 1st and 500th sheets of paper that had been fed. The reason for checking for noise in the output images for the 1st and 500th sheets of paper was to account for the fact that as the number of sheets of paper fed increases, the permanent distortion of the brush roller 122 is released, and image noise is reduced. Similarly, the image forming unit 100, after being packaged and stored for 45 days and 90 days (approximately one quarter), was also checked for noise in the output images for the 1st and 500th sheets of paper that had been fed.

[0046] The comparative example shows the experimental results when the image forming unit 100 was stored in conventional packaging materials. Furthermore, Example 1 shows the experimental results when the brush roller 122 was controlled to rotate continuously during storage, while Example 2 shows the experimental results when the brush roller 122 was controlled to rotate intermittently every 6 hours (a predetermined time). In Examples 1 and 2, the drive unit 231 has a mainspring and is configured to rotate the brush roller 122 by releasing the energy stored in the mainspring. In Example 1, the brush roller 122 was controlled to rotate continuously at a rotational speed of 0.5 revolutions per hour. In Example 2, the brush roller 122 was controlled to rotate 0.4 revolutions every 6 hours. The rotational speed was set to 0.067 revolutions per hour. Therefore, it took 6 hours to rotate 0.4 revolutions.

[0047] Table 1 shows the experimental results classified into three stages according to the intensity of the noise detected. Specifically, "○" indicates that no noise was detected, "△" indicates that noise could be detected upon close examination, and "×" indicates that noise was easily detected.

[0048] In the comparative example, no noise was observed in the output image after one day of storage (i.e., after one day of storage), but noise was observed in the output images after 45 days and 90 days of storage.

[0049] Furthermore, in Example 1, no noise was observed in the output images after 1 day and 45 days of storage, i.e., after 1 day and 45 days of storage, but slight noise was observed in the output image after 90 days of storage. This is thought to be because the mainspring was continuously driven to keep the brush roller 122 rotating while the image forming unit 100 was stored, and the energy stored in the mainspring was depleted. In other words, even at a low rotation speed of the brush roller 122, driving torque is required to rotate the brush roller 122, so it is thought that the energy was exhausted.

[0050] Furthermore, in Example 2, no noise was detected in the output images after being left for 1 day, 45 days, and 90 days, i.e., after being left for 1 day, 45 days, and 90 days. This is thought to be because the mainspring was able to continue releasing energy while the image forming unit 100 was stored, by intermittently rotating the brush roller 122 at predetermined intervals. In this way, the generation of image noise can be suppressed by intermittently rotating the brush roller 122 at predetermined intervals. Therefore, by supplying the necessary energy to the drive unit 231 during quarterly inventory, the generation of image noise can be suppressed even when the image forming unit 100 is used immediately after being stored for a long period (up to 90 days).

[0051] The energy supply unit 240 supplies energy to the energy storage unit (drive unit 231, or storage unit) when the image forming unit 100 is packaged. For example, if the drive unit has a mainspring, the energy supply unit 240 has a lever (e.g., a rotary lever, handle, knob, etc.) for winding the mainspring and storing energy in it. For example, when the image forming unit 100 is stored in a warehouse, an operator can operate the lever through the opening A of the cushioning member 210. By rotating the lever and winding the mainspring, the mainspring can store energy. Alternatively, the energy supply unit 240 may be configured to use the electrical energy stored in the storage unit to rotate the lever with a rotating device and wind the mainspring.

[0052] Furthermore, if the drive unit 231 has a motor and is configured to store electrical energy in a secondary battery as a storage unit, the energy supply unit 240 further has a power connector. The energy supply unit 240 may be configured to receive power from an external power source through the power connector and to charge the secondary battery of the storage unit with the external power source.

[0053] In this way, by supplying energy to the energy storage unit by the energy supply unit 240, permanent deformation of the brush roller 122 can be prevented or suppressed over a longer period of time.

[0054] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the lever can be operated and an external power supply can be supplied through the opening A while the image forming unit 100 is packaged by the storage member 200. In other words, since access to supply energy to the drive unit 231 is possible, there is no need to unpack the packaging material in order to supply energy to the drive unit 231.

[0055] Furthermore, the storage component 200 may also have a remaining charge indicator that displays the remaining battery charge. Since the operator can check the remaining battery charge displayed on the remaining charge indicator, it becomes possible to supply energy to the storage unit in a timely manner.

[0056] <Image forming apparatus 300> Figure 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus 300. The image forming apparatus 300 is a full-color tandem type image forming apparatus that performs image formation by transferring a toner image formed on a photoreceptor 1 using an electrophotographic image forming process to a recording medium such as paper and fixing it.

[0057] The image forming apparatus 300 includes an image forming unit 31, a primary transfer roller 32, an intermediate transfer belt 33, a secondary transfer roller 34, a fixing unit 35, a paper feeding unit 36, a paper transport unit 37, and a control unit 38.

[0058] The image forming unit 31 has multiple image forming units 31Y, 31M, 31C, and 31K. Each of the image forming units 31Y, 31M, 31C, and 31K corresponds to one of the basic colors: yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K).

[0059] The image forming unit 31 comprises a photoreceptor 1, a charging unit, an exposure unit, a developing unit, a cleaning unit 2, etc. (some components are not shown in the illustration). The photoreceptor 1 corresponds to the photoreceptor 110 of the image forming unit 100 in Figure 1, and the cleaning unit 2 corresponds to the cleaning unit 120 of the image forming unit 100 in Figure 1. Each image forming unit 31 has the same configuration except that the color of the toner developer contained in the developing unit is different. The charging unit uniformly charges the surface of the photoreceptor 1. The exposure unit exposes the portion of the photoreceptor 1 surface corresponding to the image to form an electrostatic latent image. The developing unit develops the electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor 1 with the charged toner to form a toner image. The photoreceptor 1 carries the toner image formed on its surface. The cleaning unit 2 cleans the remaining toner on the photoreceptor 1 after the toner image has been transferred by the secondary transfer roller 34. The cleaning unit 2 includes a cleaning blade that cleans the photoreceptor 1 by scraping off any remaining toner, and a brush roller that reduces the adhesion of toner to the photoreceptor 1 to facilitate cleaning by the cleaning blade.

[0060] The primary transfer rollers 32 include primary transfer rollers 32Y, 32M, 32C, and 32K corresponding to each basic color. The primary transfer rollers 32 transfer the toner image formed on the photoreceptor 1 onto the intermediate transfer belt 33 by the action of an electric field. The intermediate transfer belt 33 is supported by support rollers while maintaining a constant belt tension. The secondary transfer rollers 34 are positioned downstream from the primary transfer rollers 32 in the direction of movement of the intermediate transfer belt 33, and the toner images of multiple colors, which have been transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 33 by the primary transfer rollers 32 of each color, are transferred to the paper S by the action of an electric field.

[0061] The toner image transferred onto the paper S by the secondary transfer roller 34 is heated and pressurized by the fixing unit 35 and fixed to the paper S. Any remaining toner on the intermediate transfer belt 33 is cleaned and removed by the transfer belt cleaning unit (not shown).

[0062] The paper feeding unit 36 ​​supplies paper S one sheet at a time from the paper tray to the paper transport path, and the paper transport unit 37 transports the paper S to the secondary transfer roller 34.

[0063] The configurations of the image forming unit 31, primary transfer roller 32, intermediate transfer belt 33, secondary transfer roller 34, and the fixing unit 35, paper feeding unit 36, paper transport unit 37, etc., shown in Figure 3, can be arbitrarily selected and used from well-known image forming apparatus technologies.

[0064] The control unit 38 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that performs calculation control processing, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores various programs, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that stores various data, and performs control related to a series of image formation processes.

[0065] The storage member 200 of this embodiment, as described above, provides the following effects.

[0066] The storage member 200 has a rotation drive unit 230 that rotates the brush roller 122 of the image forming unit 100, which is packaged in packaging material. Therefore, even if the image forming unit is stored for a long period of time with the brush roller 122 in contact with the photoreceptor 110, the brush roller 122 rotates during storage, preventing or suppressing deformation and deterioration of the brush roller 122 due to creep. Thus, the generation of image noise caused by deformation and deterioration due to creep can be prevented or suppressed.

[0067] (Second embodiment) In the first embodiment, a configuration was described in which energy is supplied to the energy storage unit by rotating a lever. In the second embodiment, a configuration was described in which energy is supplied to the energy storage unit by utilizing vibrations acting on the storage member 200.

[0068] Figure 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the energy supply unit 270 in the second embodiment, and Figure 5 is an enlarged front view of the energy supply unit 270. In Figures 4 and 5, the packaging material for the storage member 200 is not shown. Figure 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a method for restricting the rotation direction of the energy transmission unit 275 to one direction. In the following, to avoid repetition in the explanation, detailed explanations of the same configuration as in the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0069] As shown in Figure 4, the energy supply unit 270 includes a support member 271, a deformable part 272, a weight holding member 273, a weight 274, an energy transmission unit 275, and a movement path forming unit 276. The support member 271 is fixed to packaging material (not shown) and supports the deformable part 272. The deformable part 272 has a coil spring with one end fixed to the support member 271 and the other end connected to the weight holding member 273, and the coil spring holds the weight holding member 273 and the weight 274 so that they can move in the Z or -Z direction (up and down direction in Figure 5) and the X or -X direction (left and right direction in Figure 5). The spring constant of the coil spring can be set to any size that can hold the weight 274. The weight holding member 273 is a rigid body (e.g., a rod-shaped member) with the weight 274 attached to the end opposite to the end to which the deformable part 272 is connected.

[0070] The energy transmission unit 275 transmits the energy generated by the vibration of the weight-holding member 273 to the drive unit 231. As shown in Figure 5, the energy transmission unit 275 may be, for example, a gear-shaped member with multiple protrusions formed at equal intervals on its circumference. The energy transmission unit 275 is configured to rotate counterclockwise due to the downward motion of the weight-holding member 273 and transmit the kinetic energy from the rotation to the drive unit 231. In the same figure, a part of the movement path forming unit 276 is cut out (transparent) to make the configuration of the energy transmission unit 275 easier to understand.

[0071] The weight 274 has a predetermined mass and vibrates in the Z or -Z direction, or the X or -X direction in response to vibrations acting on the storage member 200. The predetermined mass is set, for example, so that the kinetic energy of the weight holding member 273 due to the vibration of the weight 274 exceeds the energy required to rotate the energy transmission unit 275.

[0072] Furthermore, each projection of the energy transmission section 275 is formed in a hook shape to fit (match) the surface shape of the rod-shaped weight-holding member 273. Therefore, the energy transmission section 275 can reliably capture the downward motion of the weight-holding member 273 and convert it into rotational force.

[0073] In this embodiment, a mainspring can be used as the drive unit 231, similar to the first embodiment. However, when using a mainspring, it is necessary to apply rotational force to the energy transmission unit 275 in only one direction, so it is desirable to restrict the rotation direction of the energy transmission unit 275. In this embodiment, by using the movement path forming unit 276, the rotation direction of the energy transmission unit 275 can be restricted, and rotational force can be applied to the energy transmission unit 275 in only one direction.

[0074] The movement path forming section 276 may be, for example, a plate-shaped member in which a semicircular through-hole H is formed. In the examples shown in Figures 4 and 5, the through-hole H may be formed at one end of the plate-shaped member, be convex in the -X direction, and be formed so that the straight semicircular portion is parallel to the Z or -Z direction (up and down direction in Figure 5).

[0075] Since the weight-holding member 273 is inserted into the through-hole H, its movement is restricted. The arc of the through-hole H restricts the vertical and leftward movement of the weight-holding member 273, while the straight section restricts the rightward movement of the weight-holding member 273.

[0076] The weight-holding member 273 is moved downward from its home position along the straight section of the through-hole H by vibrations acting on the storage member 200. As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the home position is the position of the weight-holding member 273 when no force is acting on the storage member 200. The arc of the through-hole H prevents the weight-holding member 273 from moving upward from its home position.

[0077] The movement path forming section 276 is configured such that the weight holding member 273 follows different paths in the forward and return journeys. This is to prevent the energy transmission section 275 from rotating in the reverse direction when the weight holding member 273 moves towards the home position due to the restoring force of the deformation section 272 after moving below the home position. More specifically, the weight holding member 273 moves downward, pushing down the hook-shaped projection of the energy transmission section 275 with its downward motion. Subsequently, an upward force acts on the weight holding member 273 due to the restoring force of the deformation section 272, but the weight holding member 273 moves toward the arc of the through hole along the shape of the hook-shaped projection of the energy transmission section 275 and returns to the home position along the arc. Therefore, the weight holding member 273 is prevented from pushing up the hook-shaped projection of the energy transmission section 275 and causing the energy transmission section 275 to rotate in the reverse direction.

[0078] Furthermore, the rotation direction of the energy transmission unit 275 may be restricted to one direction by using, for example, the prior art described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2018-031614 (see Figure 6). In this case, the energy supply unit 270 has a restricting member 277 that restricts the rotation of the energy transmission unit 275 to one direction, instead of the movement path forming unit 276. The downward movement of the weight holding member 273 causes the energy transmission unit 275 to rotate counterclockwise via the restricting member 277. On the other hand, the upward movement of the weight holding member 273 does not cause the energy transmission unit 275 to rotate. In this way, the rotation of the energy transmission unit 275 is restricted to one direction.

[0079] The storage member 200 of the second embodiment described above provides the following effects.

[0080] During the transport and storage of the image forming unit 100, energy can be automatically stored in the drive unit by vibrations acting on the storage member 200.

[0081] The configuration of the storage member 200 described above is merely an explanation of the main configuration for describing the features of the first and second embodiments described above, and is not limited to the above configuration; various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims.

[0082] For example, in the first and second embodiments described above, the case where the image carrier is a photoreceptor 110 was mainly explained, but the image carrier may also be an intermediate transfer body.

[0083] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above described the case where the rotating member is a brush roller 122, the rotating member is not limited to a brush roller 122. For example, the rotating member may be another member such as a charging roller. When the rotating member is a charging roller, if the same surface of the charging roller remains in contact with the photoreceptor 110 for a long period of time, a bleeding phenomenon may occur in which compounding agents such as ion conductive material contained inside the charging roller seep out onto the surface of the photoreceptor 110. The bleeding phenomenon can also cause image noise. According to the present invention, even if the image forming unit 100 is stored for a long period of time with the charging roller in contact with the photoreceptor 110, the charging roller is configured to rotate during storage, thus preventing or suppressing the bleeding phenomenon caused by the charging roller.

[0084] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above described cases in which the cushioning member 210 and the frame 220 of the storage member 200 are used as packaging materials for packaging the image forming unit 100, the present invention is not limited to such cases. For example, consider the case where an image forming unit 100 incorporated in an image forming apparatus 300 is transported and stored. In this case, the image forming unit holding part that holds the image forming unit 100 inside the image forming apparatus 300 is considered to function as a cushioning member, and the exterior (housing) of the image forming apparatus is considered to function as a frame. That is, the present invention can also be applied to an image forming unit 100 included with the main body of the image forming apparatus 300 to have a rotating part that rotates a rotating member. [Explanation of symbols]

[0085] 1 photoreceptor, 2 Cleaning Department, 31, 31Y, 31M, 31C, 31K image forming section, 32, 32Y, 32M, 32C, 32K Primary Transfer Rollers 33 Intermediate transfer belt, 34 Secondary transfer rollers, 35 Fixing section, 36 Paper feed section, 37 Paper transport section, 38 Control unit, 100 image forming units, 110 Photoreceptor, 120 Cleaning Department, 121 Cleaning Blade, 122 brush rollers, 123 Drive gear section, 200 storage components, 210 Cushioning material, 220 frame, 230 Rotating part, 231 Drive unit, 240 Energy Supply Department, 250 timing section, 260 Control unit, 270 Energy Supply Department, 271 Support member, 272 Deformed part, 273 Weight holding member, 274 weight, 275 Energy transmission section, 276 Movement path forming section, 277 Regulating members, 300 Image forming apparatus.

Claims

1. A storage member for packaging and storing an image forming unit, which has an image carrier and a rotating member disposed to rotate while in contact with the image carrier, during transport and storage of the image forming unit, A storage member having a drive unit for rotating the rotating member of the packaged image forming unit.

2. The storage member according to claim 1, wherein the rotating member is a brush roller in which brushes are formed on the outer circumference of a core metal.

3. A control unit that controls the start and stop of the rotation of the rotating member, The system further includes a timing unit that measures the elapsed time since the rotation of the rotating member stopped, The storage member according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit controls the rotating member to rotate if the elapsed time measured by the timing unit exceeds a predetermined time, and controls the rotating member to stop if the elapsed time does not exceed the predetermined time.

4. The image forming unit, in its packaged state, further comprises an energy supply unit that supplies energy to the drive unit, The storage member according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the drive unit stores the energy supplied by the energy supply unit.

5. In the packaged state of the image forming unit, an energy supply unit supplies energy to the drive unit, The storage member according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a storage unit for storing energy supplied by the energy supply unit.

6. The storage member according to claim 4, wherein the energy supply unit has a lever for supplying energy to the drive unit by being rotated by an operator or a rotating device.

7. The storage member according to claim 4, wherein the energy supply unit supplies energy from vibrations acting on the storage member to the drive unit.

8. The aforementioned drive unit is a spring, The aforementioned energy supply unit is An energy transmission unit that rotates in response to vibrations acting on the storage member and stores energy in the spring, The storage member according to claim 7, further comprising a restricting member that restricts the rotation direction of the energy transmission section to one direction.

9. The aforementioned drive unit is a spring, The aforementioned energy supply unit is Weights and, A weight-holding member that holds the weight and moves in accordance with the force acting on the weight, An energy transmission unit that rotates in accordance with the movement of the weight-holding member and stores energy in the spring, The storage member according to claim 7, further comprising a movement path forming part that forms a movement path for the weight holding member so as to rotate the energy transmission part in one direction.

10. The storage member according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the relationship between the driving force Fd provided by the drive unit and the frictional force Ff acting between the rotating member and the image carrier satisfies Fd > Ff.

Images