Electrophotography – Having particular structure – Modular or displaceable
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-20
2002-04-16
Beatty, Robert (Department: 2852)
Electrophotography
Having particular structure
Modular or displaceable
C399S111000, C399S262000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06374068
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an aid tool for aiding in replacement operation of a part to be replaced of an image forming apparatus, and also relates to an image forming apparatus to which this aid tool can be attached.
2. Description of Related Art
Removably attached to an image forming apparatus such as a facsimile or the like are a number of parts such as an image forming unit including a photoreceptor drum and a developing roller, a toner cartridge for supplying toner, and the like.
The toner cartridge is arranged to supply, as necessary, toner to the developing device. When the toner in the developing device is fully consumed, the emptied toner cartridge is replaced with a new toner cartridge, causing the toner therein to be supplied. For replacing the used toner cartridge, the operator opens, for example, the shell of the main body of the image forming apparatus. Then, the operator takes out the used toner cartridge from the predetermined cartridge fitting portion to the outside of the main body of the image forming apparatus, and then mounts a new toner cartridge on the cartridge fitting portion. This means that the used toner cartridge is temporarily placed around the image forming apparatus.
Toner is sticking to the used toner cartridge at its outer surface. Accordingly, when the used toner cartridge is placed around the image forming apparatus, this involves the likelihood that the articles therearound are made dirty with the toner. Further, in the course of the used toner cartridge from the removal to the placement, toner falls from the toner cartridge to the outside of the main body of the image forming apparatus. This results in contamination of the articles around the image forming apparatus.
Further, the longer is the path from the cartridge fitting portion to the place where the used toner cartridge is temporarily put, the higher is the possibility of the toner contaminating the articles around the path and the fingers and clothes of the operator. In particular, when there is no suitable temporarily putting place around the image forming apparatus, it is very hard to avoid toner contamination.
As to the replacement of other part to be replaced such as an image forming unit or the like, too, when there is no suitable temporarily putting place around the image forming apparatus, the replacement cannot be executed with high efficiency.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an aid tool for successfully aiding in replacement operation of a part to be replaced of an image forming apparatus, and also to provide an image forming apparatus in which a part to be replaced can successfully be replaced.
The aid tool according to the present invention comprises: a part holding unit for holding a part to be replaced; and a mounting portion for removably mounting the part holding unit on an image forming apparatus (at its main body for example).
According to the arrangement above-mentioned, when the mounting portion of this aid tool is mounted on an image forming apparatus, the part holding unit is attached thereto. Accordingly, when the aid tool is attached to the image forming apparatus at the time of part replacement, a place where the part to be replaced is to be temporarily put, can be prepared in the vicinity of the image forming apparatus. More specifically, the part to be replaced as removed from the image forming apparatus or a replacing part to be attached thereto, can be held by the part holding unit. This advantageously shortens the distance by which the part to be replaced is moved. Further, even though a suitable part temporarily putting place cannot be assured around the image forming apparatus, the part replacement can efficiently be executed.
The part to be replaced may be a toner cartridge. In this case, at the time of cartridge replacement, the used toner cartridge taken out from the image forming apparatus, can be held by the part holding unit attached thereto. This prevents the circumference around the image forming apparatus from being contaminated by the toner at the time of replacement of the toner cartridge.
The part to be replaced may be an image forming unit having a photoreceptor and a developing unit.
The part to be replaced may be a fixing roller for fixing a transferred toner image onto paper, or a recovery tank disposed at the toner recovery unit of the image forming unit for accumulating the toner collected from the photoreceptor. Often, toner is sticking to the outer surface of such a part as taken out from the image forming apparatus. Accordingly, when such a part is placed outside of the image forming apparatus, this contributes to contamination by toner. The present invention can also be applied to an aid tool for aiding in replacement of other part to be replaced than those above-mentioned, as far as such a part is removably attached to the image forming apparatus.
Preferably, the part holding unit is a part housing container having a housing space for housing the part to be replaced. According to the arrangement above-mentioned, the part to be replaced is housed in the housing space formed in the part housing container at the time of part replacement.
In the arrangement above-mentioned, the part housing container preferably also serves as a packaging container for housing a new replacing part. In this case, at the time of part replacement, the operator can attach, to the image forming apparatus, the part housing container from which a new part has been taken out, and can put the used part in the housing space thus emptied. More specifically, the used part can be held by the container in which a new part has been packaged. This enables part replacement to be executed without the circumference around the image forming apparatus contaminated.
Preferably, the part housing container comprises a main body for receiving the part to be replaced, and a lid which openably closes the housing space with respect to the main body, and the mounting portion is disposed at the main body.
According to the arrangement above-mentioned, when the mounting portion disposed at the main body is mounted on the image forming apparatus, the part housing container is attached thereto. At the time of part replacement, the part to be replaced is received by the main body.
Preferably, the part housing container also serves as a packaging container in which a new replacing part is housed. In this case; the part housing container having a housing space opened after the new part has been taken out, can be attached, as it is,to the image forming apparatus. This enables part replacement to be more rapidly executed.
By closing the lid after the used part has been housed, the used part can be handled with no trouble of toner contamination.
Preferably, the aid tool further comprises a reception portion arranged such that when the aid tool is attached to the image forming apparatus, the reception portion receives, under the path of the part to be replaced from the fitting portion of the part to be replaced in the image forming apparatus to the part holding unit, a thing falling from the part to be replaced.
According to the arrangement above-mentioned, even though a falling thing such as toner or the like falls from the part to be replaced while the same is moved from the fitting portion of the image forming apparatus to the part holding unit, this reception portion receives such a falling thing. This prevents the circumference around the image forming apparatus from being contaminated by a falling thing at the time of part replacement.
The reception portion may be disposed at the main body, and the mounting portion may be disposed at the reception portion.
An image forming apparatus of the present invention comprises an engagement portion engageable with and disengageable from the mounting portion of the part-replacement aid tool above-mentioned.
According to the arrangement above-mentioned, the mounting portion of the part-replacement aid tool is engaged with the engagement portio
Ashikari Tsutomu
Joroku Kazuo
Kawamori Yoshizo
Kayama Kiyomi
Minami Takehiro
Beatty Robert
Kyocera Mita Corporation
Smith , Gambrell & Russell, LLP
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