Image Forming Apparatus

• US 20090035014A1
• Filed: 07/30/2008
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Sato, Shougo
• Granted Patent: US 8,086,138 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/119
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0872 the developer cartridges being generally horizontally mounted parallel to its longitudinal rotational axis
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0891 for conveying or circulating developer, e.g. augers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0896 Arrangements or disposition of the complete developer unit or parts thereof not provided for by groups G03G15/08 - G03G15/0894
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/105 Arrangements for conveying toner waste
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/12 Toner waste containers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/0135 the linear arrangement being vertical
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/0665 Generally horizontally mounting of said toner cartridge parallel to its longitudinal rotational axis
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2221/1678 Frame structures

Abstract

An image forming apparatus is provided. The image forming apparatus includes a housing which comprises a housing side opening through which waste toner passes; a plurality of developing units; a plurality of toner cartridges which correspond to the plurality of developing units comprising a first containing unit for containing the toner to be supplied to the toner carrier; wherein at least one of the toner cartridges comprises a second containing unit for containing the waste toner, the second containing unit comprises a cartridge side opening for receiving the waste toner having passed through the housing side opening, and wherein the housing side opening and the cartridge side opening are disposed to be opposite to each other along the substantially horizontal direction.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a housing which comprises a housing side opening through which waste toner passes;

a plurality of developing units which are disposed in parallel with each other in the housing, each of the developing units comprising an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, a toner carrier which carries a toner for supplying the toner to the image carrier and visualizing the electrostatic latent image to form toner image, and a developing unit side reception opening for receiving the toner; and

a plurality of toner cartridges which correspond to the plurality of developing units, the toner cartridges being disposed in parallel with each other in the housing, each of the toner cartridges comprising a first containing unit for containing the toner to be supplied to the toner carrier, and a cartridge side supply opening through which the toner passes to the respective toner carrier;

wherein at least one of the toner cartridges comprises a second containing unit for containing the waste toner,

the second containing unit comprises a cartridge side opening for receiving the waste toner having passed through the housing side opening,

wherein the developing units and the toner cartridges can be independently attached to and detached from the housing,

each of the toner cartridges is disposed to be opposite to an end of a respective one of the developing units along a substantially horizontal direction in a longitudinal direction of the toner carrier,

and wherein

the cartridge side supply opening and the developing unit side reception opening are disposed to be opposite to each other along the substantially horizontal direction,

the housing side opening and the cartridge side opening are disposed to be opposite to each other along the substantially horizontal direction.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the first containing unit and the second containing unit are disposed along a longitudinal axis of the toner cartridge.

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

a transfer unit which transfers the toner image formed by the developing unit to a recording medium, the transfer unit comprising a belt which is disposed to be opposite to the image carriers of the plurality of developing units, and a roller around which the belt is wound, and

a collecting unit which collects the waste toner remaining on the belt,

wherein the waste toner collected by the collecting unit is contained in the second containing unit.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the housing side opening is provided in the collecting unit, and the collecting unit comprises a first conveying member for conveying the collected waste toner to the housing side opening.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the belt is held between the roller and the collecting unit, and the toner cartridge closest to the housing side opening among the plurality of toner cartridges comprises the second containing unit.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the plurality of developing units are disposed in parallel along a substantially vertical direction in the housing, the plurality of toner cartridges are disposed in parallel along the substantially vertical direction in the housing, and the toner cartridge disposed lowest in the substantially vertical direction among the plurality of toner cartridges comprises the second containing unit.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the first containing unit of the toner cartridge that comprises the second containing unit contains black toner.

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the toner carrier collects toner remaining on the image carrier.

9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the toner cartridge comprises a cartridge side shutter that simultaneously opens and closes the cartridge side supply opening and the cartridge side opening.

10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the toner cartridge comprises a first agitating member that is disposed in a vicinity of the cartridge side opening in the second containing unit and rotates to agitate the waste toner.

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the developing unit comprises a second conveying member for conveying the toner received from the developing unit side reception opening along an axial direction of the toner carrier and supplying the toner to the toner carrier, and a developing unit side return opening for returning the toner conveyed by the second conveying member to the toner cartridge, and

the housing comprises a housing side shutter that simultaneously opens and closes the developing unit side reception opening and the developing unit side return opening.

12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the toner cartridge comprises a second agitating member which is disposed in a vicinity of the cartridge side supply opening in the first containing unit and rotates to agitate the toner,

the first agitating member and the second agitating member have a common rotating shaft.

13. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a housing which comprises a housing side opening through which waste toner passes;

a plurality of developing units; and

a plurality of toner cartridges which correspond to the plurality of developing units, each of the toner cartridges comprising a first containing unit for containing toner to be supplied to the toner carrier;

wherein at least one of the toner cartridges comprises a second containing unit for containing the waste toner, the second containing unit comprises a cartridge side opening for receiving the waste toner having passed through the housing side opening,

and wherein

the housing side opening and the cartridge side opening are disposed to be opposite to each other along the substantially horizontal direction.