TONER COLLECTING APPARATUS, CARTRIDGE, AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

• US 20110158723A1
• Filed: 12/22/2010
• Published: 06/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Finetech Incorporated (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Finetech Incorporated (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Yokokawa, Kazuki
• Granted Patent: US 8,532,556 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/358
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/105 Arrangements for conveying toner waste

Abstract

A toner collecting apparatus which transports collected toner through a discharge pipe to discharge the collected toner from a discharge port of the discharge pipe, the toner collecting apparatus including: a cover pipe having an open window and being rotatable around the discharge pipe in a substantially concentric fashion; a protective wall covering at least apart of the cover pipe; and a rotation member which rotates the cover pipe, wherein the cover pipe is rotated by the rotation member between an open position in which the open window is aligned with the discharge port and a closed position in which the open window is shifted from the discharge port so that at least the open window is covered with the protective wall.

Claims

1. A toner collecting apparatus which transports collected toner through a discharge pipe to drop and discharge the collected toner from a discharge port provided in the discharge pipe, the toner collecting apparatus comprising:

a cover pipe having an open window and being rotatable on an outer circumferential side of the discharge pipe in a substantially concentric fashion;

a protective wall covering at least a part of the cover pipe on an outer circumferential side of the cover pipe; and

a rotation member which rotates the cover pipe,

wherein in a case in which the cover pipe is rotated by the rotation member from an open position at which the open window is aligned with the discharge port of the discharge pipe to a closed position at which the open window is shifted from the discharge port of the discharge pipe, at least the open window of the cover pipe is rotated to a position at which the open window is covered with the protective wall.

2. A cartridge integrally detachably mountable to a main body of an image forming apparatus, wherein a part of the cartridge comprises a toner collecting apparatus according to claim 1.

3. A cartridge according to claim 2, comprising a lock mechanism that disables a rotation of a cover pipe of the toner collecting apparatus when the cartridge is detached from the main body.

4. A cartridge according to claim 2, comprising an intermediate gear that transmits a rotation force to a cover pipe of the toner collecting apparatus,

wherein suitability in use of the cartridge to be mounted to the main body for the main body is determined based on a mesh state between the intermediate gear and a gear of the main body.

5. An image forming apparatus, comprising a toner collecting apparatus according to claim 1.

6. An image forming apparatus, comprising a cartridge according to claim 2.

7. An image forming apparatus, comprising a cartridge according to claim 3.

8. An image forming apparatus, comprising a cartridge according to claim 4.