TONER CARTRIDGE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS
First Claim
1. A toner cartridge to be mounted into an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the toner cartridge comprising:
- a toner storage chamber having toner stored therein and provided with a discharge outlet via which the toner is discharged out of the toner cartridge;
a conveying screw, provided in the toner storage chamber, which conveys the toner stored in the toner storage chamber;
a blocking wall, formed as a part of the conveying screw, which is located in a space between a toner area and the discharge outlet, thereby putting the space in a blocked state, the toner area being an area in the toner storage chamber where the toner exists; and
a driving mechanism for, when the toner cartridge has been mounted into the image forming apparatus, driving the conveying screw by power transmitted from the image forming apparatus, so as to cancel the blocked state.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A toner cartridge has a toner storage chamber, a discharge outlet, a conveying screw, and a blocking wall. The discharge outlet serves to send out toner stored in the toner storage chamber, and the conveying screw serves to convey the toner stored in the toner storage chamber. Further, before the toner cartridge mounted into an image forming apparatus, the blocking wall is located in a space between a toner area, which is an area in the toner storage chamber where the toner exists, and the discharge outlet, thereby putting the space in a blocked state. The toner cartridge further includes a driving mechanism for, when the toner cartridge has been mounted into the image forming apparatus, driving the conveying screw by power transmitted from the image forming apparatus, so as to cancel the blocked state.
14 Citations
11 Claims
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1. A toner cartridge to be mounted into an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the toner cartridge comprising:
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a toner storage chamber having toner stored therein and provided with a discharge outlet via which the toner is discharged out of the toner cartridge; a conveying screw, provided in the toner storage chamber, which conveys the toner stored in the toner storage chamber; a blocking wall, formed as a part of the conveying screw, which is located in a space between a toner area and the discharge outlet, thereby putting the space in a blocked state, the toner area being an area in the toner storage chamber where the toner exists; and a driving mechanism for, when the toner cartridge has been mounted into the image forming apparatus, driving the conveying screw by power transmitted from the image forming apparatus, so as to cancel the blocked state. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An electrophotographic image forming apparatus into which a toner cartridge is mounted, the toner cartridge comprising:
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a toner storage chamber having toner stored therein and provided with a discharge outlet via which the toner is discharged out of the toner cartridge; a conveying screw, provided in the toner storage chamber, which conveys the toner stored in the toner storage chamber; a blocking wall, formed as a part of the conveying screw, which is located in a space between a toner area and the discharge outlet, thereby putting the space in a blocked state, the toner area being an area in the toner storage chamber where the toner exists; and a driving mechanism for, when the toner cartridge has been mounted into the image forming apparatus, driving the conveying screw by power transmitted from the image forming apparatus, so as to cancel the blocked state.
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Specification