Image Forming Apparatus Having Waste Toner Collecting Function From a Plurality of Photosensitive Drums
First Claim
1. An image forming apparatus comprising:
- a main frame;
a plurality of process cartridges including a plurality of photosensitive drums and a plurality of drum-cleaning units, the plurality of process cartridges being provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of photosensitive drums, the plurality of photosensitive drums being provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of drum-cleaning units, each of the plurality of drum-cleaning units being configured to collect waste toner on a corresponding photosensitive drum;
a cartridge-supporting body configured to support the plurality of process cartridges and movable between an internal position inside the main frame and an external position outside of the main frame;
a belt configured to confront the plurality of process cartridges when the cartridge-supporting body supporting the plurality of process cartridges is in the internal position;
a waste toner cartridge configured to accommodate the waste toner collected from the plurality of photosensitive drums by the plurality of the cleaning units;
a contact-separation mechanism configured to move the cartridge-supporting body between a contact position where the plurality of the plurality of photosensitive drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the plurality of the plurality of photosensitive drums are out of contact with the belt when the cartridge-supporting body supporting the plurality of the process cartridges is in the internal position; and
a collective conveying unit provided in the main frame and configured to aggregate waste toner collected from the plurality of photosensitive drums by the plurality of drum-cleaning units and to convey collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An image forming apparatus includes a main frame, a plurality of process cartridges, a cartridge-supporting body, a belt, a waste toner cartridge, a contact-separation mechanism, and a collective conveying unit. Each process cartridge includes a photosensitive drum and a drum cleaning unit collecting waste toner on the drum. The cartridge-supporting body is movable between an internal position inside the frame and an external position outside the frame. The belt confronts the process cartridges in the internal position. The waste toner cartridge accommodates the waste toner collected from the drums. The contact-separation mechanism moves the cartridge-supporting body between a contact position where the drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the drums are out of contact with the belt. The collective conveying unit aggregates waste toner collected from drums and conveys collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge.
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Citations
40 Claims
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1. An image forming apparatus comprising:
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a main frame; a plurality of process cartridges including a plurality of photosensitive drums and a plurality of drum-cleaning units, the plurality of process cartridges being provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of photosensitive drums, the plurality of photosensitive drums being provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of drum-cleaning units, each of the plurality of drum-cleaning units being configured to collect waste toner on a corresponding photosensitive drum; a cartridge-supporting body configured to support the plurality of process cartridges and movable between an internal position inside the main frame and an external position outside of the main frame; a belt configured to confront the plurality of process cartridges when the cartridge-supporting body supporting the plurality of process cartridges is in the internal position; a waste toner cartridge configured to accommodate the waste toner collected from the plurality of photosensitive drums by the plurality of the cleaning units; a contact-separation mechanism configured to move the cartridge-supporting body between a contact position where the plurality of the plurality of photosensitive drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the plurality of the plurality of photosensitive drums are out of contact with the belt when the cartridge-supporting body supporting the plurality of the process cartridges is in the internal position; and a collective conveying unit provided in the main frame and configured to aggregate waste toner collected from the plurality of photosensitive drums by the plurality of drum-cleaning units and to convey collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 38)
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21. An image forming apparatus comprising:
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a main frame; a plurality of developing cartridges each being configured to accommodate toner therein; a drawer unit configured to support the plurality of developing cartridges and movable between an internal position inside the main frame and an external position outside of the main frame, the drawer unit being provided with a plurality of photosensitive drums, and a plurality of drum-cleaning units provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of photosensitive drums, each of the plurality of drum-cleaning units being configured to collect waste toner on a corresponding photosensitive drum; a belt configured to confront the plurality of photosensitive drums when the drawer unit is in the internal position; a waste toner cartridge configured to accommodate the waste toner collected from the plurality of photosensitive drums by the plurality of the drum-cleaning units; a contact-separation mechanism configured to move the drawer unit between a contact position where the plurality of the plurality of photosensitive drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the plurality of the plurality of photosensitive drums are out of contact with the belt when the drawer unit is in the internal position; and a collective conveying unit provided in the main frame and configured to aggregate waste toner collected from the plurality of photosensitive drums by the plurality of drum-cleaning units and to convey collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39, 40)
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Specification