Image forming apparatus having optical print head

• US 10,459,364 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2018
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Momoka, Toshiki, Otoguro, Yasuaki, Okada, Yuta, Aruga, Daisuke, Iwai, Hitoshi, Hosoi, Shinichiro, Imai, Yuichiro, Otsubo, Yoshitaka, Gokyu, Saimon, Ishidate, Takehiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Grainger, Quana
• Application Number:
  US16/001,319
• Publication Number:
  US 20180364608A1
• Time in Patent Office: 510 Days
• Field of Search: 399 4, 399 98, 347257
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0225 provided with means for cleaning the charging member
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/04054 by LED arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0435 by introducing an optical element in the optical path, e.g. a filter
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/087 Developer cartridges having a longitudinal rotational axis, around which at least one part is rotated when mounting or using the cartridge
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/00 Arrangements not provided for by groups G03G13/00 - G03G19/00, e.g. cleaning, elimination of residual charge
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1666 for the exposure unit

Abstract

An opening, from which a cleaning member is inserted from the outer side of a main body of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, is provided further toward the front side than an end portion of a front side of a holding member. The opening guides movement of the cleaning member in the direction of insertion as the inserted cleaning member moves toward the downstream side in the direction of insertion, so that downstream-side end portions of engaging portions in the insertion direction engage upstream-side end portions of protruding portions formed on the holding member in the direction of insertion.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus, comprising:

a photosensitive drum configured to be capable of rotating as to an apparatus main body;

an optical print head having a plurality of lenses from which light to expose the photosensitive drum is emitted;

a first rail formed on the optical print head along a longitudinal direction of the optical print head, the first rail being formed on one side of the optical print head in a perpendicular direction perpendicular to both the longitudinal direction of the optical print head and an optical axis direction of the lenses;

a second rail formed on the optical print head along a longitudinal direction of the optical print head, the second rail being formed on another side of the optical print head in the perpendicular direction; and

a guide portion into which a rod-shaped cleaning member is inserted from outside of the image forming apparatus, the guide portion guiding a move of the inserted cleaning member,

wherein the guide portion is provided as a body separate from the optical print head upstream of the first rail formed on the optical print head and the second rail formed on the optical print head in a direction of insertion of the cleaning member,

wherein the cleaning member includes

a rubbing portion that rubs and cleans light emission faces of the lenses,

a first engaging portion configured to restrict the rubbing portion from moving in a direction away from the light emission faces, by engaging the first rail and abutting the first rail from a side opposite to a side of the first rail at which the photosensitive drum is disposed, and

a second engaging portion configured to restrict the rubbing portion from moving in a direction away from the light emission faces, by engaging the second rail and abutting the second rail from a side opposite to a side of the second rail at which the photosensitive drum is disposed, and

wherein the cleaning member inserted into the guide portion moves in the direction of insertion while being guided by the guide portion, and the first engaging portion engages with the first rail in the direction of insertion and the second engaging portion engages with the second rail in the direction of insertion.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the first rail is a groove to which the first engaging portion that is a protrusion formed on the cleaning member fits, and the second rail is a groove to which the second engaging portion that is a protrusion formed on the cleaning member fits.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a lens array where a plurality of the lenses is arrayed in the longitudinal direction and integrated,

wherein the length of the first rail in the longitudinal direction and the length of the second rail in the longitudinal direction are shorter than the length of the lens array in the longitudinal direction.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the guide portion restricts the cleaning member inserted into the guide portion from moving in a direction of crossing the direction of insertion.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein an end portion of the light emission faces at the guide portion side in the longitudinal direction is disposed closer to the side where the guide portion is disposed, than an end portion of the first rail at the guide portion side in the longitudinal direction and an end portion of the second rail at the guide portion side in the longitudinal direction.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a movement mechanism configured to reciprocally move the optical print head between an exposure position where the photosensitive drum is exposed and a retracted position that is further retracted from the photosensitive drum than the exposure position.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein a protruding portion protruding toward the photosensitive drum side of the optical print head is formed in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member, facing the photosensitive drum side of the optical print head in the perpendicular direction in a state where the first engaging portion is engaging the first rail and the second engaging portion is engaging the second rail,

and wherein a gap is formed between the light emission faces and the side of the cleaning member where the rubbing portion is formed by the protruding portion abutting the optical print head, and portions of the cleaning member other than the rubbing portion do not come into contact with the light emission faces.

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the optical print head is disposed on the lower side from a rotational axis of the photosensitive drum, and exposes the photosensitive drum from below,

and wherein the movement mechanism includes

a sliding portion that is disposed on the opposite side of the optical print head from the side where the photosensitive drum is disposed, and is configured to move by sliding in the longitudinal direction, and

a link portion of which one end side is pivotably attached to the sliding portion and the other end side is pivotably attached to the optical print head, with the link portion pivoting in conjunction with sliding movement of the sliding portion, and the optical print head moving from the exposure position in a direction further away from the photosensitive drum than the exposure position in conjunction with the pivoting.

9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the optical print head is disposed on the lower side from a rotational axis of the photosensitive drum, and exposes the photosensitive drum from below,

and wherein the striking portion is situated at the lower side from one end of the optical print head in the longitudinal direction.

10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the striking portion and the guide portion are an integrally-formed molded article.

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein one end side of the movement mechanism in the longitudinal direction is attached to a support member where the guide portion and the striking portion have been formed, and

wherein the support member is fixed to a side plate disposed on a front face side of a casing making up the apparatus main body.

12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein the guide portion is a through hole, passing through the support member in the longitudinal direction for insertion of the cleaning member.

13. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the optical print head is disposed on the lower side from a rotational axis of the photosensitive drum, and exposes the photosensitive drum from below,

wherein the striking portion includes a first striking portion that is situated at the lower side from one end of the optical print head in the longitudinal direction, and a second striking portion that is situated at the lower side from the other end of the optical print head in the longitudinal direction, and

wherein the optical print head, moved by the movement mechanism from the exposure position in a direction further away from the photosensitive drum than the exposure position, strikes the first striking portion and the second striking portion in the direction of movement.

14. The image forming apparatus according to claim 12,

wherein the first striking portion and the guide portion are an integrally-formed molded article.

15. The image forming apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising:

a front-side plate disposed on the front face side of the casing making up the apparatus main body; and

a rear-side plate disposed on the rear face side of the casing making up the apparatus main body,

wherein one end side of the movement mechanism in the longitudinal direction is attached to a first support member where the guide portion and the first striking portion have been formed,

wherein the other end side of the movement mechanism in the longitudinal direction is attached to a second support member where the second striking portion has been formed, and

wherein the first support member is fixed to the front-side plate, and the second support member is fixed to the rear-side plate.

16. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:

a striking portion provided fixed to the apparatus main body, where the optical print head moved from the exposure position by the movement mechanism strikes in the direction of movement,

wherein the cleaning member is inserted into the guide portion in a state where the optical print head has struck the striking portion, with the first rail being situated on the movement path of the first engaging portion that is moving, and the second rail being situated on the movement path of the second engaging portion that is moving.

17. The image forming apparatus according to claim 16,

wherein the guide portion and the striking portion are formed integrally.