Electrophotography – Having particular structure – Modular or displaceable
Reexamination Certificate
2001-09-06
2003-11-25
Braun, Fred L. (Department: 2852)
Electrophotography
Having particular structure
Modular or displaceable
C264S263000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06654578
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the configurations of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus adopting an electrophotographic image forming process such as a laser printer and an electrophotographic copying machine, and further relates to a process cartridge and the configuration of a part connecting member that is made from a synthetic resin and is for the use of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus and the process cartridge.
Hereupon, the electrophotographic image forming apparatus is a device for forming an image on a recording medium by adopting an electrophotographic image forming process. Examples of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus include, for example, an electrophotographic copying machine, an electrophotographic printer (such as a laser printer, an LED printer and the like), a facsimile machine, a word processor and the like.
Incidentally, the process cartridge is a device that is made by the integration of charging means, developing means or cleaning means, and an electrophotographic photosensitive member as a cartridge which is detachably mountable to the main body of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. And also, the process cartridge is a device that is made by the integration of at least one of charging means, developing means and cleaning means, and an electrophotographic photosensitive member as a cartridge which is detachably mountable to the main body of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. Furthermore, a device that is made by the integration of at least developing means and an electrophotographic photosensitive member as a cartridge which is detachably mountable to the main body of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus is also called as the process cartridge.
2. Description of the Related Arts
At first the outline of a conventional color laser printer is described on the basis of the cross section of FIG.
20
.
In
FIG. 20
, reference numeral
105
designates a rotary developing apparatus including developing devices
105
M,
105
C,
105
Y and
105
B equipped with a magenta toner, a cyan toner, a yellow toner and a black toner, respectively. These four color developing devices
105
M,
105
C,
105
Y and
105
B are disposed rotatably around a shaft
105
e
. Each center of the developing devices
105
M,
105
C,
105
Y and
105
B rotates in connection with a rotating gear disposed on the outer periphery of a revolving gear to keep their postures constant. Then, at the time of the formation of an image, one of the developing devices
105
M,
105
C,
105
Y and
105
B corresponding to a latent image stops at a position opposed to an image bearing member
104
, and then a developing roller
105
b
is positioned to be opposed to the surface of the image bearing member
104
with a narrow gap between them.
Then, at the time of developing, by the application of a bias voltage on the developing roller
105
b
and by the rotation driving thereof, the developing roller
105
b
develops the latent image on the image bearing member
104
to visualize the latent image as a toner image.
Now, a supply roller
105
a
rubs against a developing roller
105
b
, both being disposed in each of the developing devices
105
M,
105
C,
105
Y and
105
B. Each supply roller
105
a
scrapes off the developer that did not contribute to the last development, and fresh developer is always supplied to the developing roller
105
b
. A toner container for supplying developer to the developing roller
105
b
is integrally provided to each of the developing devices
105
M,
105
C,
105
Y and
105
B. Hereupon, a conventional toner container is described.
FIG. 1B
is a principal section showing a conventional toner container
40
. A toner container
42
and a lid
41
of the toner container are joined by the flowing of the same resin into gaps
142
a
and
142
b
formed between molded pieces in a die in conformity with the die slide injection molding method using the same die at the molding process and the forming process, which method is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Examined Patent Publication No. 2-38377.
Flanges
143
a
,
143
b
,
143
c
and
143
d
are formed on the toner container
42
and the lid
41
at the gaps
142
a
and
142
b
between the molded pieces. Moreover, portions
144
a
,
144
b
,
144
c
and
144
d
recessed or projected in a die cutting direction are formed on the back surfaces of the flanges
143
a
,
143
b
,
143
c
and
143
d
intermittently or continuously along the lengthwise direction of the die. The portions
144
a
,
144
b
,
144
c
and
144
d
are engaged with prescribed portions in the die.
Furthermore, an entrance through which a material for joining is injected into the gaps between the molded pieces, or a gate
72
in the terminology of molding techniques, is formed on substantially an extension line of the gap
142
a
, which is formed between frames, in a horizontal direction as shown in FIG.
7
. Molten resin perpendicularly flows into the gap
142
a
between the molded pieces from the horizontal direction through the gate
72
as indicated by an arrow
70
.
However, in the conventional toner container, because the position of the entrance for injecting the material for joining into the gap between the molded pieces, which entrance is called the gate in the terminology of molding techniques, should adjoin the gap, the direction of the injection of the resin is inevitably determined. Consequently, restriction on the designing of the die is tight.
The present invention is one that further improves the related art for resolving the aforesaid problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of the invention is to provide a part connecting member that realizes the improvement of molding workability, a process cartridge using the part connecting member, and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus that can detachably mount the process cartridge.
Another object of the invention is to provide a part connecting member in which the direction of the injection of resin can arbitrarily be determined, a process cartridge using the part connecting member, and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus that can detachably mount the process cartridge.
A further object of the invention is to provide a part connecting member that can improve the degree of freedom of the designing of dies to be used for molding, a process cartridge using the part connecting member, and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus that can detachably mount the process cartridge.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a part connecting member that realizes the improvement of the degree of freedom of the designing of a product, a process cartridge using the part connecting member, and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus that can detachably mount the process cartridge.
A still further object of the invention is to provide the configuration of a hollow body that is made from a resin and that has restriction on the designing of a product and the manufacturing of the product as little as possible for obtaining a product of high quality in a configuration formed by the following processes. That is, for example, at least two molded pieces obtained by the injection molding of plastic are provisionally connected by being adjacently arranged or abut against each other. The provisionally connected bodies are set in a die different from the dies used for the formation of each molded piece. Then, in a state such that each molded piece and the die are positioned, the molded pieces are joined by the injection of a molten resin material for joining into a gap formed between the opposed surfaces of the molded pieces that are adjacently arranged or abut against each other.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a part connecting member, and a process cartridge and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, both using the part connecting member made from a synthetic resin. One of the molded parts forming a gap between opposed surfaces th
Abe Kenshiro
Hiratsuka Kouichi
Suzuki Akira
Tsuda Tadayuki
Braun Fred L.
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
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