IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

• US 20070286632A1
• Filed: 03/27/2007
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Brother Industries Limited)
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Brother Industries Limited)
• Inventors: OKABE, Yasushi
• Granted Patent: US 7,720,405 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/90
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1623 Means to access the interior of the apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1867 for electrically connecting the process cartridge to the apparatus, electrical connectors, power supply
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/0141 the linear arrangement being horizontal
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2221/166 Electrical connectors
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2221/1684 using extractable subframes, e.g. on rails or hinges

Abstract

An image forming apparatus may include an apparatus body, and a photosensitive-member unit slidably attached the apparatus body and retaining a plurality of photosensitive members. The apparatus body includes side wall portions opposing each other with a unit receiving section sandwiched therebetween, and a plurality of apparatus-body-side electrode members provided on the side wall portions, and each urged inward in an opposing direction of the side wall portions. The photosensitive-member unit includes a plurality of unit-side electrode members each protruding outward in the opposite direction and a guide path comprising a flat surface formed in a flat shape so that each of the apparatus-body-side electrode members slidably contacts to the flat surface during attachment of the photosensitive-member unit with respect to the unit receiving section, and that each of the apparatus-body-side electrode members slidably contacted maintains a constant inward and outward position in the opposite direction.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising an apparatus body, and a photosensitive-member unit slidably attached to and detached from the apparatus body and retaining a plurality of photosensitive members,

wherein the apparatus body comprises

side wall portions opposing each other with a unit receiving section for removably receiving the photosensitive-member unit sandwiched therebetween, and

a plurality of apparatus-body-side electrode members provided on the side wall portions, corresponding to the plurality of photosensitive members, and each urged inward in an opposing direction of the side wall portions, and

the photosensitive-member unit comprises

a plurality of unit-side electrode members corresponding to the plurality of apparatus-body-side electrode members, respectively, connected to the respective apparatus-body-side electrode members in a state where the photosensitive-member unit is mounted in the unit receiving section, and protruding outward in the opposite direction and

a guide path comprising a flat surface formed in a flat shape so that each of the apparatus-body-side electrode members slidably contacts to the flat surface during attachment and detachment of the photosensitive-member unit with respect to the unit receiving section, and that each of the apparatus-body-side electrode members slidably contacted maintains a constant inward and outward position in the opposed direction.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide path comprises a mounting guide surface inclining from inward to outward in the opposing direction on a most downstream side in a mounting direction of the photosensitive-member unit to the unit receiving section.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the guide paths are provided so as to extend along an attachment/detachment direction of the photosensitive-member unit with respect to the unit receiving section, and be parallel to one another at intervals in a direction orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction and the opposite direction, and

the apparatus-body-side electrode members are aligned along the mounting direction, corresponding to the respective guide paths, in the direction orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction and the opposite direction.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide path comprises guide surfaces formed on a downstream side of each of the unit-side electrodes in the mounting direction of the photosensitive-member unit with respect to the unit receiving section, extending from the flat surface in a direction intersecting the mounting direction, and guiding each of the apparatus-body-side electrodes to each of the corresponding unit-side electrodes.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the guide surface inclines outward in the opposing direction from the flat surface toward the upstream side in the mounting direction.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the unit-side electrodes is arranged above the flat surface into which each of the corresponding apparatus-body-side electrodes is guided.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the unit-side electrodes comprises a wire electrode, a grid electrode, a developing roller electrode, and a cleaning electrode that are provided corresponding to each photosensitive member.