Electrophotography – Image formation – Development
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-01
2001-05-08
Grimley, Arthur T. (Department: 2852)
Electrophotography
Image formation
Development
C399S260000, C399S263000, C222SDIG001
Reexamination Certificate
active
06229976
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a toner cartridge which is set in an image forming apparatus like a copy machine, a printer, or the like and is replaceable, and particularly to a toner cartridge of a type which drops and feeds toner toward the apparatus body through a toner supply port provided immediately under an auger.
In general, in an image forming apparatus such as a copy machine and a printer, a toner cartridge filled with toner is set to be replaceable. The toner cartridge includes a long narrow cylindrical container body containing toner and is set at a predetermined position in the apparatus body such that the lengthwise axis of the container body extends in a substantially horizontal direction.
A toner supply port for dropping toner contained in the container body in the gravitational direction to feed toner to the apparatus body is formed at a bottom portion of the container body which is set laterally. Also, an auger extending immediately above the toner supply port along the lengthwise axis of the container body is provided in the container body. The auger comprises a rotary shaft including a spiral blade which feeds the toner contained in the container body toward the toner supply port.
For example, in case where the toner supply port is formed at a position distant from an end portion of the container body in its lengthwise direction to the center, the spiral directions of spiral blades provided on the rotary shaft of the auger are opposed to each other with respect to a position immediately above the toner supply port as a boundary, and the rotary shaft of the auger is rotated in a predetermined direction, so the toner in the container is collected from both sides to the toner supply port.
However, in this case, at a connecting portion of the blades formed along the rotary shaft in the opposite direction, i.e., at a portion of the auger immediately above the toner supply port, no spiral blade is formed and the rotary shaft is exposed therefrom to drop toner smoothly toward the container body through the toner supply port. As a result, a problem arises in that toner drops through the toner supply port by its dead weight even when the auger is not being rotated. If toner drops thus toward the apparatus body by dead weight even when the auger is not being rotated, it is not possible to achieve fixed-amount supply of toner based on the feed capability depending on the speed of rotation of the auger, so the supply amount of toner cannot be controlled stably. As a result, the supply amount of toner is not stable.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems and has an object of providing a toner cartridge which can supply toner at a constant rate, without washing the toner.
To achieve the object, a toner cartridge according to the present invention comprises: a container containing toner; a supply port provided at a bottom of the container, for dropping the toner in the container in a gravity direction; an auger provided in the container so as to extend immediately above the supply port in a substantially horizontal direction, for feeding the toner in the container toward the supply port along a lengthwise direction thereof; and a regulation member provided above the auger at a position opposed to the supply port, for regulating drop of the toner in the container toward the supply port due to dead weight of the toner.
Another toner cartridge according to the present invention comprises: a container containing toner; a supply port provided at a bottom of the container, for dropping the toner in the container in a gravity direction; an auger provided in the container so as to extend immediately above the supply port in a substantially horizontal direction, for feeding the toner in the container toward the supply port along a lengthwise direction thereof; a regulation member provided above the auger at a position opposed to the supply port, for regulating drop of the toner in the container toward the supply port due to dead weight of the toner; and a stirring member for stirring the toner in the container and for moving the toner existing above the regulation member along a lengthwise direction of the auger in a direction in which the toner moves apart from the regulation member.
Further, another toner cartridge according to the present invention comprises: a substantially cylindrical container containing toner; a charge port formed at a bottom portion of a substantially circular concave recessed to inside of the container from an end of the container along a lengthwise direction of the container extending in a substantially horizontal direction; a supply port provided at a bottom of the container, for dropping and supplying the toner in the container in a gravity direction; an auger provided in the container so as to extend immediately above the supply port in the substantially horizontal direction along the lengthwise axis and having an end rotatably supported on the end of the container, for feeding the toner in the container toward the supply port along the lengthwise direction; a regulation member provided above the auger at a position opposed to the supply port, for regulating drop of the toner in the container toward the supply port due to dead weight of the toner; and a stirring member extended substantially in parallel with the auger through inside the container and having a rotary shaft rotatably supported, at an end thereof, on a substantially central position of the bottom portion of the concave, for stirring the toner in the container by rotating the rotary shaft, wherein the stirring member has a ion which acts on a groove provided outside the concave in the container vessel as the stirring member rotates.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5017966 (1991-05-01), Suga
patent: 5185616 (1993-02-01), Wilcke
patent: 5185631 (1993-02-01), Shibata
patent: 5875378 (1999-02-01), Campbell et al.
Foley & Lardner
Grimley Arthur T.
Ngo Hoang
Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha
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