HOUSING STRUCTURE, ELECTRONIC APPARATUS, AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

• US 20160170368A1
• Filed: 12/10/2015
• Published: 06/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: ISHIDA, Masahiro, MATSUDA, Naoki
• Granted Patent: US 9,869,962 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1619 Frame structures
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/206 Conducting air through the machine, e.g. for cooling, filtering, removing gases like ozone

Abstract

A housing structure includes a housing, a cover, and a plurality of paths of gas. The cover spatially partitions an inside and an outside of the housing. The plurality of paths of gas connect the inside and the outside of the housing and include a plurality of bypass portions. Two or more paths of gas of the plurality of paths of gas communicate with an outside of the cover via a single housing opening that communicates an inside and the outside of the cover with each other.

Claims

1. A housing structure, comprising;

a housing;

a cover to spatially partition an inside and an outside of the housing; and

a plurality of paths of gas connecting the inside and the outside of the housing and including a plurality of bypass portions,

two or more paths of gas of the plurality of paths of gas communicating with an outside of the cover via a single housing opening that communicates an inside and the outside of the cover with each other.

2. The housing structure according to claim 1, further comprising an inner member inside the cover,

wherein at least one of the two or more paths of gas is disposed in a gap between the inner member and the cover.

4. The housing structure according to claim 2, wherein the cover forming the gap is a stationary cover fixed to the housing.

5. The housing structure according to claim 4, wherein the gap has a size that allows variations in component tolerances.

6. The housing structure according to claim 2, wherein at least one cover member of the cover forming the gap is an openable cover member.

7. The housing structure according to claim 6, wherein, with respect to a position of the opening-and-closing cover in a state in which closing of the opening-and-closing cover is completed, the gap is greater than a pushing amount as an amount of movement up to a position movable by pushing at the time of closing.

8. The housing structure according to claim 6, wherein the gap has a size that allows variations in component tolerances and clearance of a movable part.

9. The housing structure according to claim 2, wherein the cover includes a plurality of cover members to form the gap between the cover and the inner member,

wherein two adjacent cover members of the plurality of cover members are opening-and-closing covers openable and closable from any of the two adjacent cover members.

10. The housing structure according to claim 1, further comprising an inner cover member inside the cover and spatially partitions an inside and an outside of the inner cover member.

11. The housing structure according to claim 10, further comprising a plurality of inner cover openings communicating the inside and the outside of the inner cover member with each other,

wherein the plurality of inner cover openings communicate with the outside of the cover via respective paths of gas of the plurality of paths of gas that are different from each other.

12. The housing structure according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of inner cover members inside the cover,

wherein a gap is disposed between adjacent inner cover members of the plurality of inner cover members, to communicate an inside and an outside of the plurality of inner cover members with each other, and, and at least one of the two or more paths of gas is disposed in the gap between the inner cover members.

13. The housing structure according to claim 12, wherein the gap has a size that allows variations in component tolerances.

14. The housing structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of bypass portions are disposed at three or more positions.

15. The housing structure according to claim 1, wherein the bypass portions are disposed near the housing opening.

16. The housing structure according to claim 1, wherein the cover includes a plurality of cover members,

wherein the housing opening is a gap between adjacent cover members of the plurality of cover members.

17. The housing structure according to claim 1, wherein an opening area of the housing opening is larger than a cross-sectional area of each of the plurality of paths of gas.

18. An electronic apparatus, comprising:

a sound source device to generate sound during operation; and

a housing covering the sound source device and having the housing structure according to claim 1.

19. An electrophotographic image forming apparatus comprising the electronic apparatus according to claim 16.

3. The housing structure according to claim 3, wherein the gap has a size that allows variations in component tolerances.