Cartridge Guide with Chamfered Surface for Stable Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing cartridges for image forming apparatuses face issues with stabilization and damage when placed on a horizontal surface, as the memory contact area is prone to electrical damage and the guides can deform or break when in contact with the surface, leading to instability and potential harm to the photosensitive drum.
Innovation Solution
A cartridge design featuring a guide with a chamfered surface at the bottom to stabilize the cartridge on a horizontal surface, combined with an inclined memory contact surface to prevent rotational motion and reduce the risk of damage, ensuring the cartridge remains secure and functional.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the cartridge is placed on a horizontal surface with the guide contacting the surface, then the cartridge can be stored conveniently, but the guide may deform or break and the photosensitive drum may become unstable
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the problematic function of the guide (supporting the cartridge on horizontal surfaces) and assigns it to a dedicated supporting portion with a chamfered surface. This separates the guiding function (aligning contacts during mounting) from the supporting function (stabilizing the cartridge during storage), allowing each to be optimized independently without compromising reliability or ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom surface of the cartridge is segmented into distinct functional zones: a chamfered supporting portion for stable horizontal placement, and a raised portion for the memory contact. This segmentation ensures that when the cartridge rests on its side, only the chamfered surface contacts the horizontal surface, preventing damage to the guide and memory contact while maintaining storage convenience
2Ease of operation
If the memory contact area is positioned to facilitate electrical connection, then mounting is improved, but the area becomes prone to electrical damage when the cartridge is misplaced
Solution Approach 1:
The memory contact is preliminarily positioned on a raised portion that is higher than the chamfered supporting surface. This preliminary positioning ensures that during normal handling and storage, the elevated memory contact remains above the horizontal surface, preventing electrical damage before it can occur. The raised position is maintained while still allowing proper electrical connection during mounting
Solution Approach 2:
The chamfered supporting portion acts as a protective feature that prevents the cartridge from being placed on its end with the memory contact touching the surface. The chamfered design provides a stable resting position that cushioningly prevents misplacement, reducing the risk of electrical damage to the memory contact area
Data Source
AI summary
A cartridge mountable to and dismountable from a main assembly of an image forming apparatus includes a memory, a guide configured to guide a portion-to-be-guided provided in the main assembly and to guide a main assembly contact provided in the main assembly to a memory contact of the memory when the cartridge is mounted in the main assembly, and a grip portion. The guide is provided at a bottom of the cartridge when the cartridge is hung by gripping the grip portion and constitutes a part of a supporting portion configured to support the cartridge when the cartridge is placed on a horizontal placement surface. The guide has a chamfered surface formed by being chamfered. When the cartridge is supported at the supporting portion, the chamfered surface opposes the horizontal placement surface, and a surface of the memory contact is inclined with respect to the horizontal placement surface.