Patent Grant
9195214
This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the corresponding Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-220627 filed on Oct. 23, 2013, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus capable of cooling the toner containing portion containing toner used in image formation.
In general, an image forming apparatus, such as a printer, for forming an image by the electrophotography is provided with a toner containing portion for containing toner used in image formation. The toner contained in such a toner containing portion may be heated by friction between particles of toner in the toner containing portion or by heat that occurs in and transmitted from the fixing unit or the like inside the image forming apparatus. In that case, the toner may be solidified and that may lead to degradation of print quality, or a failure of the image forming apparatus due to toner clogging. On the other hand, as a related technology, there is known a technology in which air is blown to the toner containing portion to cool it, thereby suppressing the temperature rise of the toner in the toner containing portion.
An image forming apparatus according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a toner containing portion, an air blowing portion, and an air blowing control portion. The toner containing portion contains toner that is used in image formation. The air blowing portion generates an airflow that contacts an outer side surface of the toner containing portion. The air blowing control portion narrows a vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing portion and contacts the outer side surface of the toner containing portion, downward in a vertical direction in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion.
An image forming apparatus according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes a toner containing portion, an air blowing portion, and an air blowing control portion. The toner containing portion contains toner that is used in image formation. The air blowing portion generates an airflow that contacts an outer side surface of the toner containing portion. The air blowing control portion widens a vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing portion and contacts the outer side surface of the toner containing portion, upward in a vertical direction in correspondence with increase of toner amount in the toner containing portion.
This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description with reference where appropriate to the accompanying drawings. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any or all disadvantages noted in any part of this disclosure.
[First Embodiment]
The following describes an embodiment of the present disclosure with reference to the drawings, for the understanding of the disclosure. It should be noted that the following description is an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure and should not limit the technical scope of the present disclosure.
[Outlined Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus 10]
First, an outlined configuration of an image forming apparatus 10 in an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to
As shown in
As shown in
The image forming portion 3 is an image forming portion adopting the electrophotography and executes an image forming process (print process) based on the image data which is read by the image reading portion 2 or input from an external information processing apparatus such as a personal computer. Specifically, as shown in
First, the charging portion 32 charges the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 uniformly into a certain potential. Next, the exposure device 33 irradiates the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 with light based on the image data. With this operation, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image data is formed on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31. Then the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor drum 31 is developed (made visible) as a toner image by the developing device 34. It is noted that the toner (developer) is supplied to the developing device 34 from a toner containing portion 341 that is attachable/detachable to/from the image forming portion 3. Subsequently, the toner image formed on the photoconductor drum 31 is transferred to a paper sheet by the transfer roller 35. The print sheet is then conveyed to pass through between the fixing roller 37 and the pressure roller 38, where the toner image having been transferred to the print sheet is heated by the fixing roller 37 so as to be fused and fixed to the print sheet. It is noted that the toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum 31 is removed by the cleaning device 36.
The control portion 5 includes control equipment such as CPU, ROM, RAM, EEPROM, or the like. The CPU is a processor for executing various types of arithmetic processes. The ROM is a nonvolatile storage portion in which various types of information such as control programs for causing the CPU to execute various types of processes are stored in advance. The RAM is a volatile storage portion, and the EEPROM is a nonvolatile storage portion. The RAM and the EEPROM are used as a temporary storage memory (working area) for the various types of processes executed by the CPU. The control portion 5 comprehensively controls the image processing apparatus 10 by causing the CPU to execute the various types of control programs that have been stored in advance in the ROM. It is noted that the control portion 5 may be formed as an electronic circuit such as an integrated circuit (ASIC). Alternatively, the control portion 5 may be a control portion provided independently of a main control portion that comprehensively controls the image processing apparatus 10.
The operation display portion 6 includes a display portion and an operation portion. The display portion is, for example, a liquid crystal display and displays various types of information based on control instructions from the control portion 5. The operation portion is composed of, for example, hard keys or a touch panel through which various types of information are input to the control portion 5 based on user's operations.
Next, the cooling portion 7 will be described with reference to
Here, the toner containing portion 341 contains toner that is used in image formation performed by the image forming portion 3. Specifically, the toner containing portion 341 is a container made of resin and formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is provided to be attachable/detachable to/from the image forming portion 3. The toner containing portion 341 can supply toner to the developing device 34 from a toner supply port (not shown) provided on an outer side surface thereof located on the left side in
The air blowing portion 71 can blow air to an outer side surface 342, located on the right side in
The air blowing fan 711 can generate an airflow that contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341. Specifically, the air blowing fan 711 is provided on an outer surface of the image forming apparatus 10, intakes air from outside of the image forming apparatus 10, and sends the intake air into the duct 72.
The duct 72 guides the airflow generated by the air blowing fan 711, to the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341. Specifically, the duct 72 includes an air inlet (not shown) and an air outlet 721 that is opened toward the outer side surface 342.
The closing member 73 can, with its movement in a predetermined direction, gradually close the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction. Specifically, the closing member 73 is a plate-like member having a plane surface vertical to the air blowing direction of the air blowing from the air outlet 721. The closing member 73 gradually closes the air outlet 721 from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction by being moved in a direction parallel to the plane surface of the closing member 73 by a driving mechanism (not shown). It is noted that the driving mechanism is, for example, a driving mechanism that converts a rotary movement of a pinion gear generated by a motor to a linear movement of a rack, thereby moving the closing member 73 that has been fixed to the rack.
More specifically, as shown in
It is noted that, as another embodiment, the closing member 73 may be a rectangular plate-like member that is set with its position at the upper side of the air outlet 721 in the vertical direction as the home position thereof. In that case, the closing member 73 is moved downward in the vertical direction by the driving mechanism, thereby gradually closing the air outlet 721 from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction. In that case, the downward direction in the vertical direction is an example of the predetermined direction.
The detection sensor 74 is a sensor for detecting the amount of toner contained in the toner containing portion 341. Specifically, the detection sensor 74 is a pressure sensor provided on the inner bottom surface of the toner containing portion 341, and outputs to the control portion 5 an electric signal that corresponds to the amount (weight) of toner contained in the toner containing portion 341. It is noted that, as another embodiment, the image forming apparatus 10 may include an optical sensor as the detection sensor 74. For example, it is possible to detect the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341 from detection results of a plurality of optical sensors, which each determine whether or not toner exists in a plurality of translucent windows formed on the toner containing portion 341.
The rib members 75 are provided on the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, and guide the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing portion 71 and discharged from the duct 72, in the horizontal direction along the outer side surface 342. Specifically, as shown in
As described above, in the image forming apparatus 10, the toner contained in the toner containing portion 341 can be cooled by the cooling portion 7. Meanwhile, according to the above-mentioned related technology, air is blown by the cooling portion 7 always to the whole side surface of the toner containing portion 341, namely the range of the air blowing by the cooling portion 7 to the toner containing portion 341 is the whole side surface of the toner containing portion 341. As a result, when the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341 decreases, air is blown even to parts where no toner exists. On the other hand, according to the image forming apparatus 10 of the present disclosure, when the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341 decreases, the range of the air blowing to the side surface of the toner containing portion 341 is restricted, and the air is blown only to parts where toner exists. As a result, according to the image forming apparatus 10 of the present disclosure, the efficiency of cooling the toner containing portion 341 by air blowing is improved.
Specifically, as shown in
The obtaining portion 51 obtains the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. Specifically, the obtaining portion 51 obtains the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341 based on the electric signal output from the detection sensor 74. It is noted that the method by which the obtaining portion 51 obtains the amount of toner is not limited to the use of the electric signal output from the detection sensor 74. For example, the obtaining portion 51 may obtain a current amount of toner by counting the number of printing performed by the image forming portion 3 starting from the state where the toner containing portion 341 is full of toner, and calculating a prediction value of the amount of consumed toner from the counted number of printing.
The first air blowing control portion 52 executes a process of narrowing the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing portion 71 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. Specifically, the first air blowing control portion 52 narrows the vertical range of the airflow, which is discharged from the duct 72 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51. More specifically, the first air blowing control portion 52 moves the closing member 73 in the predetermined direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51 such that the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 is gradually closed from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction. For example, when the closing member 73 is disposed as shown in
The second air blowing control portion 53 can restrict either one or both of the air blowing amount and the air blowing time of the air blowing fan 711 in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51. Specifically, in the image forming apparatus 10, the second air blowing control portion 53 calculates the toner reduction amount from the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51, and reduces the power supply to the air blowing fan 711 in correspondence with the calculated toner reduction amount, thereby restricting the air blowing amount of the air blowing fan 711. It is noted that the second air blowing control portion 53 may reduce the power supply time of the power supply to the air blowing fan 711 in correspondence with the toner reduction amount, thereby restricting the air blowing time of the air blowing fan 711. Furthermore, the second air blowing control portion 53 may reduce the power supply and the power supply time of the power supply to the air blowing fan 711 in correspondence with the toner reduction amount, thereby restricting both the air blowing amount and air blowing time of the air blowing fan 711.
[Air Blowing Control Process]
The following describes an example of the procedure of the air blowing control process executed by the control portion 5 in the image forming apparatus 10, with reference to
<Step S1>
First, in step S1, the obtaining portion 51 obtains the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341, based on the electric signal output from the detection sensor 74.
<Step S2>
In step S2, based on the obtainment result in step S1, the first air blowing control portion 52 obtains information indicating a position on the movable path in which the closing member 73 can be moved. For example, the first air blowing control portion 52 obtains the information indicating a position on the movable path corresponding to the obtained toner amount, by referring to the table data that indicates the correspondence between toner amounts and positions on the movable path, the table data having been stored in the EEPROM or the like in advance.
<Step S3>
In step S3, the first air blowing control portion 52 controls the driving mechanism to cause the closing member 73 to move to a position on the movable path that corresponds to the information obtained in step S2 indicating the position on the movable path. This allows for the vertical range of the airflow, which contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, to be narrowed downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341.
Here, an explanation is given of an example of the movement control performed by the first air blowing control portion 52 on the closing member 73 in correspondence with the toner amount, with reference to
First, a movement control in the case of
Next, a movement control in the case of
Lastly, a movement control in the case of
As described above, the first air blowing control portion 52 narrows the vertical range of the airflow that contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341 to the height of the surface of the toner contained in the toner containing portion 341, in correspondence with the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. This restricts the airflow generated by the air blowing fan 711 from passing through an area in the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341 where the toner does not contact the inner surface thereof.
<Step S4>
In step S4, the second air blowing control portion 53 sets an amount of power to be supplied to the air blowing fan 711, based on the obtainment result in step S1, and drives the air blowing fan 711 by controlling a power source (not shown) such that the set amount of power is supplied to the air blowing fan 711. Specifically, the second air blowing control portion 53 restricts the air blowing amount of the air blowing fan 711 by calculating the toner reduction amount from the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51, and reducing the power supply to the air blowing fan 711 in correspondence with the calculated toner reduction amount.
It is noted that when the printing is performed continuously in the image forming process, the heating amount of the toner in the toner containing portion 341 increases accordingly. As a result, the second air blowing control portion 53 sets the time period for which to drive the air blowing fan 711, in correspondence with the number of printing performed in the image forming process, and drives the air blowing fan 711 for the set time period. After completing the driving of the air blowing fan, the second air blowing control portion 53 ends the air blowing control process.
As described above, according to the image forming apparatus 10, the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing fan 711 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, is narrowed to the height of the surface of the toner contained in the toner containing portion 341, in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. As a result, according to the image forming apparatus 10, when the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341 decreases, air is blown only to parts of the toner containing portion 341 where toner exists, thereby improving the efficiency of cooling the toner containing portion 341 by blowing air thereto.
In addition, according to the image forming apparatus 10, the air blowing amount of the air blowing fan 711 is restricted in correspondence with the restriction of the vertical range of the airflow that contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341. As a result, according to the image forming apparatus 10, when the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341 decreases, the effect of cooling the toner containing portion 341 is maintained and the power consumption by the air blowing fan 711 is restricted. It is noted that this also applies to the case where the air blowing time of the air blowing fan 711 is restricted, and to the case where both the air blowing amount and the air blowing time are restricted.
Furthermore, according to the image forming apparatus 10, with the presence of the rib members 75 provided in the toner containing portion 341, the airflow generated by the air blowing fan 711 is guided in the horizontal direction along the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341. As a result, the efficiency of cooling the toner containing portion 341 is more improved when the vertical range of the airflow, which contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, is restricted.
It is noted that in the case where the rib members 75 are provided in the image forming apparatus 10, the air blowing fan 711 may suck the air from the toner containing portion 341 and discharge the air to outside the image forming apparatus 10. That is, when the rib members 75 are provided, even when the air blowing fan 711 sucks the air from the toner containing portion 341, the rib members 75 guide the airflow in the horizontal direction along the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341. This produces the same cooling effect as in the case where the air blowing fan 711 blows air.
[Other Embodiments]
The following describes the image forming apparatus 10 in the second through fifth embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the
[Second Embodiment]
As shown in
In addition, the first air blowing control portion 52 of the control portion 5 in the second embodiment controls the closing members 731 to close the areas in sequence from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction, in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51. For example, the first air blowing control portion 52 closes the areas in sequence by controlling the driving mechanisms to move the closing members 731.
As described above, in the second embodiment, the image forming apparatus 10 closes the areas of the air outlet 721 in sequence from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction, and thereby narrows, downward in the vertical direction, the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing fan 711 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. With this configuration, the wind pressure applied to the closing member that closes the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 is dispersed. This makes it possible to restrict occurrence of a mulfunction such as a failure of the closing member and the movement mechanism thereof.
[Third Embodiment]
As shown in
In addition, in the third embodiment, the first air blowing control portion 52 of the control portion 5 causes the switch 724 to open the air outlets 723 in an order where the vertical range of the air outlets 723 is narrowed downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51. For example, the first air blowing control portion 52 may open the air outlets 723 by controlling the driving mechanism to cause the switching valve to switch between opening and closing of the internal passages of the duct 72 that respectively communicate with the air outlets 723.
As described above, according to the image forming apparatus 10 of the third embodiment, the switch 724 opens the air outlets 723 in an order where the vertical range of the air outlets 723 is narrowed downward in the vertical direction, thereby the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing fan 711 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, is narrowed downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. With this configuration, it is possible to reduce the influence of the wind pressure, compared with the case where the closing member for closing the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 is provided.
[Fourth Embodiment]
As shown in
In addition, in the fourth embodiment, the first air blowing control portion 52 of the control portion 5 moves the closing member 732 in the predetermined direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51, thereby gradually closing the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction. For example, the first air blowing control portion 52 may close the air outlet 721 by controlling the driving mechanism to cause the closing member 732 to pivot around the rotational shaft from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction.
As described above, according to the fourth embodiment, the image forming apparatus 10 gradually closes the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 from the vertical up direction to the vertical down direction by moving the closing member 732 in the predetermined direction, thereby the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing fan 711 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, is narrowed downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. With this configuration, it is possible to reduce the influence of the wind pressure, compared with the case of closing the air outlet 721 of the duct 72.
[Fifth Embodiment]
As shown in
As described above, according to the fifth embodiment, the image forming apparatus 10 moves the toner containing portion 341 upward in the vertical direction and causes the closing member 733 to gradually close the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 from the vertical down direction to the vertical up direction, thereby narrowing the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing fan 711 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with reduction of toner amount in the toner containing portion 341. With this configuration, it is possible to implement the present disclosure with a simple configuration.
[Sixth embodiment]
Meanwhile, in each of the above-described embodiments, the toner containing portion 341 that contains toner used in the image forming apparatus 10 is described as an example of the toner containing portion of the present disclosure.
On the other hand, for example, a toner recovery tank can be considered as another example of the toner containing portion of the present disclosure, wherein the toner recovery tank stores waste toner that, among the toner used in an image formation, is discharged after the image formation is performed. The following describes an embodiment in the case where the toner containing portion 341 is such a toner recovery tank. Specifically, the first air blowing control portion 52 widens the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing portion 71 and contacts the outer side surface of the toner containing portion 341, upward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the increase of the toner amount in the toner containing portion 341.
In the case of the first embodiment, the first air blowing control portion 52 may widen the vertical range of the airflow, which is discharged from the duct 72 and contacts the outer side surface of the toner containing portion 341, upward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51. In particular, the first air blowing control portion 52 may gradually open the air outlet of the duct 72 from the vertical down direction to the vertical up direction by moving the closing member 73 in the predetermined direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51. That is, the movement direction of the closing member 73 is an opposite direction to the direction described in the first embodiment. In addition, in the image forming apparatus 10, the second air blowing control portion 53 may calculate the toner increase amount from the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51, and increase the power supply to the air blowing fan 711 in correspondence with the calculated toner increase amount, thereby increasing the air blowing amount of the air blowing fan 711.
In the case of the second embodiment, the duct 72 includes the partitioning portions 722 and the closing members 731. The partitioning portions 722 partition the air outlet 721, from which the airflow is discharged toward the toner containing portion 341, into a plurality of areas in the vertical direction. The closing members 731 can close the areas individually. In this case, the first air blowing control portion 52 may control the closing members 731 to open the areas in sequence from the vertical down direction to the vertical up direction, in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51.
In the case of the third embodiment, the duct 72 includes the plurality of air outlets 723 and the switch 724. The plurality of air outlets 723 differ from each other in the vertical range of the airflow, which is discharged toward the toner containing portion 341. The switch 724 can switch between opening and closing of each of the air outlets 723. In this case, the first air blowing control portion 52 may control the switch 724 to open the air outlets 723 in an order where the vertical range of the air outlets 723 is widened upward in the vertical direction, in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51.
In the case of the fourth embodiment, the first air blowing control portion 52 may move the closing member 732 in the predetermined direction in correspondence with the obtainment result of the obtaining portion 51, thereby gradually opening the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 from the vertical down direction to the vertical up direction.
In the case of the fifth embodiment, the moving portion 76 may move the toner containing portion 341 downward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the toner amount increase in the toner containing portion 341, and the closing member 733 may gradually open the air outlet 721 of the duct 72 from the vertical down direction to the vertical up direction. As a result, the vertical range of the airflow, which is generated by the air blowing fan 711 and contacts the outer side surface 342 of the toner containing portion 341, is widened upward in the vertical direction in correspondence with the toner amount increase in the toner containing portion 341.
It is to be understood that the embodiments herein are illustrative and not restrictive, since the scope of the disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than by the description preceding them, and all changes that fall within metes and bounds of the claims, or equivalence of such metes and bounds thereof are therefore intended to be embraced by the claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-220627 | Oct 2013 | JP | national |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 2005283733 | Oct 2005 | JP |
| 2012255977 | Dec 2012 | JP |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20150110519 A1 | Apr 2015 | US |
