Image forming apparatus having reusable unit and reusable unit with indicator of record on use

• US 6,879,785 B2
• Filed: 03/05/2003
• Issued: 04/12/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera MITA Corporation (Kyocera Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kyocera MITA Corporation (Kyocera Corporation)
• Inventors: Ito, Yukihiro, Kitagawa, Hideki, Yonemoto, Satoru
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, HOAN H
• Application Number:
  US10/382,062
• Publication Number:
  US 20030170038A1
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 399/9, 399/24, 399/25, 399/26, 399/27, 399/109, 399/110, 399/170
• US Class Current: 399/24
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1889 for auto-setting of process parameters, lifetime, usage
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1896 mechanical or optical identification means, e.g. protrusions, bar codes

Abstract

An image forming apparatus has a unit in which at least an expendable component is incorporated. The unit is reusable by periodically replacing the expendable component. An indicator for indicating a record on use of the unit is attached to a given position on the unit. The record on use can be associated, for example, with one or more of the number of times of re-using the unit, a period lapsed from start of use of the unit, and the total number of times of using the unit with respect to image formation.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit,

wherein said record on use is associated with at least one of a period lapsed from start of use of said unit and a total number of times of using said unit with respect to image formation.

2. An image forming apparatus, comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit, said record on use being associated with at least one of a number of times of re-using said unit, a period lapsed from start of use of said unit, and a total number of times of using said unit with respect to image formation, said indication means including a sheet member on which said record on use is indicated.

3. An image forming apparatus, comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit, wherein a plurality of said units are provided, each said unit is incorporated with the expendable component having a relatively short useful life, and at least one of said plurality of units is equipped with life extending means for extending the useful life of said expendable component such that timings of replacing said expendable components incorporated in said units are set substantially identical to each other.

4. A reusable unit for use in an image forming apparatus, comprising:

an expendable component, said reusable unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit,

wherein said record on use is associated with at least one of a period lapsed from start of use of said unit and a total number of times of using said unit with respect to image formation.

5. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a) a photosensitive drum (2);

b) a charging unit (5) which is reusable by replacing an expendable component for charging a surface of said photosensitive drum (2), said charging unit including a discharging wire (51) as the expendable component, and first life extending means for extending the useful life of said discharging wire;

(c) a developing unit (6) which is reusable by replacing an expendable component for adhering toner onto an electrostatic latent image formed on the charged surface of said photosensitive drum (2) to develop the latent image into a toner image, said developing unit including second life extending means for extending the useful life of carriers in a developer contained therein;

(d) a transferring unit (7) which is reusable by replacing an expendable component for attracting said toner image formed on the surface of said photosensitive drum (2) onto a copy sheet, said transferring unit (7) including discharging wires (71a, 71b) as the expendable component, and third life extending means for extending the useful life of said discharging wires (71a, 71b); and

(e) a cleaning unit (8) which is reusable by replacing an expendable component for removing toner residuals on the surface of said photosensitive drum (2) after transferring the toner image on the copy sheet by said transferring unit (7), said cleaning unit (8) including a cleaning blade (82) for removing the toner residuals on the surface of said photosensitive drum (2), a wiping member (83) for wiping off the toner residuals that have not been removed by said cleaning blade (82), and fourth life extending means for extending the useful life of said wiping member (83), said wiping member (83) being the expendable component,

wherein said first life extending means, said second life extending means, said third life extending means, and said fourth life extending means are so constructed as to set the useful life of each of said discharging wire (51), said carriers, said discharging wires (71a, 71b) and said wiping member (83) at a predetermined value or more such that said charging unit (5), said developing unit (6), said transferring unit (7), and said cleaning unit (8) are usable until a timing before the useful life of each of said charging unit (5), said developing unit (6), said transferring unit (7), and said cleaning unit (8) exceeds a predetermined value, and such that said charging unit (5), said developing unit (6), said transferring unit (7), and said cleaning unit (8) are replaceable all at once before the useful life of each of said charging unit (5), said developing unit (6), said transferring unit (7), and said cleaning unit (8) exceeds the predetermined value.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said first life extending means includes a cleaning member (52) which reciprocates in an extending direction of said discharging wire (51) in contact therewith, said second life extending means is operative to increase the thickness of a coated layer of said carrier to extend the useful life of said carrier in said developer, said third life extending means includes a cleaning member for cleaning the surface of said discharging wire (71), and said fourth life extending means is operative to minimize an initial thickness of said wiping member (83).

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a fixing unit (9), wherein said fixing unit (9) includes a heating roller (92) and a pressing roller (93), and fifth life extending means for extending the useful life of each of said heating roller (92) and said pressing roller (93).

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said fifth life extending means includes a cleaning mechanism for cleaning the heating roller (92) and a cleaning mechanism for cleaning said pressing roller (93).

9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said charging unit (5) includes a housing (50), and indication means (25) is attached to a given position on said housing (50) to indicate the record on use of said charging unit (5).

10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said developing unit (6) includes a housing (60), and indication means (25) is attached to a given position on said housing (60) to indicate the record on use of said developing unit (6).

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said transferring unit (7) includes a housing (70), and indication means (25) is attached to a given position on said housing (70) to indicate the record on use of said transferring unit (7).

12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said cleaning unit (8) includes a housing (80), and indication means (25) is attached to a given position on said housing (80) to indicate the record on use of said cleaning unit (8).

13. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a number of replacement of the reusable unit, said indication means including an indication member having an engageable portion mounted on the reusable unit and an engaging member provided on the side of the image forming apparatus which makes engagement with the engageable portion of the indication member.

14. The image forming apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the indication member is in a form of one-way rotatable member with numerals which advances one by one when the engaging member on the side of the image forming apparatus makes contact with the engageable portion of the indication member when the reusable unit having been dismounted from the image forming apparatus is mounted back onto the image forming apparatus.

15. An image forming apparatus comprising:

an image output signal generator for generating an output signal each time an image forming operation is completed;

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

a memory chip which receives the output signal from the image output signal generator to update information regarding the times of image forming operations;

a unit information controller which receives the output signal from the output signal generator to update the information regarding the number of times of the image forming operations with the reusable unit;

a display section for displaying the information stored in the unit information controller.

16. The image forming apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the unit information controller controls the display section to display a message indicating the reusable unit needs to be replaced when the information regarding the number of times of the image forming operations stored in the memory chip exceeds a predetermined value.

17. The image forming apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the memory chip stores information indicating the number of replacement of said reusable unit and the stored information is a count value which is incremented by one when the reusable unit is replaced.

18. The image forming apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the unit information controller stores the count value stored in the memory chip of the reusable unit and controls the display section to display a message indicating the reusable unit was replaced by a time corresponding to the stored count value.

19. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit,

wherein said record on use is associated with a number of times of re-using said unit and a period lapsed from start of use of said unit with respect to image formation.

20. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit,

wherein said record on use is associated with a number of times of re-using said unit and a total number of times of using said unit with respect to image formation.

21. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a reusable unit including;

an expendable component, said unit being reusable by periodically replacing said expendable component; and

indication means for indicating a record on use of said unit,

wherein said record on use is associated with a number of times of re-using said unit, a period lapsed from start of use of said unit and a total number of times of using said unit with respect to image formation.