IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND PROCESS CARTRIDGE USED THEREIN
First Claim
1. A process cartridge having a constitution for returning waste toner collected from an image carrier to developing means, comprising:
- an image carrier unit including said image carrier;
a developer carrier unit including said developing means; and
a waste toner conveyance unit having a built-in waste toner conveyance mechanism,wherein said three units are assembled detachably.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An operation to recycle a process cartridge comprising a mechanism for returning waste toner not used in image formation from an image carrier to a developing device can be performed easily, and situations in which an image creating element that has not reached the end of its life is discarded together with an image creating element that has reached the end of its life, making reuse thereof impossible, can be suppressed. The process cartridge comprises an image carrier unit including an image carrier, a developer carrier unit including developing means, and a waste toner conveyance unit having a built-in waste toner conveyance mechanism. These three units are assembled detachably.
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Citations
12 Claims
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1. A process cartridge having a constitution for returning waste toner collected from an image carrier to developing means, comprising:
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an image carrier unit including said image carrier; a developer carrier unit including said developing means; and a waste toner conveyance unit having a built-in waste toner conveyance mechanism, wherein said three units are assembled detachably. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An image forming apparatus having a process cartridge, wherein said process cartridge comprises:
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an image carrier unit including an image carrier; a developer carrier unit including developing means; and a waste toner conveyance unit having a built-in waste toner conveyance mechanism, and said three units are assembled detachably.
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- 11. A developer carrier unit in which a development roller, a new toner accommodating space, a waste toner accommodating space, and a flexible partitioning member for partitioning said new toner accommodating space and said waste toner accommodating space are provided in a housing.
Specification