JPH04316058A - electrophotographic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simultaneously detect the presence or absence of both a drum unit and a discharged toner bottle by detecting the electric conduction between conducting members which are respectively attached to the drum unit and the discharged toner bottle. CONSTITUTION:When the drum unit 1 and the discharged toner bottle 10 are mounted in a device main body, the 1st contact 15 of the device main body is connected to the chassis 16 of the device main body being a 2nd contact through the conductive member 13 of the drum unit 1 and the conductive member 14 of the discharged toner bottle. Therefore, the conduction between the 1st and the 2nd contacts 15 and 16 of the device main body is detected by one detection means, so that the presence or absence of the drum unit 1 and the discharged toner bottle 10 is detected.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

FIELD OF INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION The present invention relates to a drum unit including at least a photosensitive drum holding an electrostatic latent image, a cleaning device, and a charger for uniformly charging the photosensitive drum;
The present invention relates to an electrophotographic apparatus using a waste toner bottle that stores waste toner removed from the photosensitive drum by the cleaning device, and in particular whether the drum unit and the waste toner bottle are attached to predetermined positions of the apparatus main body. The feature lies in the means for detecting whether

0002

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in electrophotographic devices such as laser beam printers and copying machines, for example, a photosensitive drum for holding an electrostatic latent image, a charger for uniformly charging the photosensitive drum, and a charger for uniformly charging the photosensitive drum after transfer of the photosensitive member are used. A drum unit with a cleaning device for cleaning waste toner, a waste toner bottle for storing waste toner discharged from the cleaning device, and a developing unit for visualizing the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum. In addition, the main parts are assembled into units that can be independently attached to and detached from the main body of the device, making it convenient for maintenance and the like. Further, a detection means for detecting whether each unit is installed at a predetermined position is provided on the main body side of the apparatus, and the operation cannot be started unless the installation of each unit is detected.

0003

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the past, each unit was provided with a detection means, which resulted in problems such as increased cost and complexity of the device.

0004

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve this object, the electrophotographic apparatus of the present invention includes a drum unit and a waste toner bottle each provided with a conductive member so as to be electrically conductive with each other when attached to the main body of the apparatus. The presence or absence of both conductive members is detected by detecting that both conductive members are in a conductive state.

[0005]

[Operation] According to the above structure, the presence or absence of both the drum unit and the waste toner bottle can be simultaneously detected by detecting the presence or absence of electrical continuity between the conductive members provided on the drum unit and the waste toner bottle, respectively. There is no need to provide a detection means in each unit as in the conventional case, and detection can be performed with a single detection means.

[0006]

[Embodiment] An embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings. In the figure, 1 is a drum unit configured to be detachably attached to the main body of the apparatus, and is a cleaning device consisting of a photosensitive drum 2, a charger 3 for charging the photosensitive drum 2, a cleaning blade 7, a collecting roll 8, and a conveying screw 9. It is configured. The photosensitive drum 2 is uniformly charged by a charger 3, a latent image is formed by exposure 4, and a latent image is formed by a developing device 5.
It is visualized by Then, the transfer paper 1 is transferred by the transfer device 6.
1. The waste toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 2 after the transfer is cleaned by a cleaning blade 7, collected by a collection roll 8, and discharged by a conveyance screw 9 into a waste toner bottle 10 that can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body independently of the drum unit 1. be done. Thereafter, the photosensitive drum 2 is uniformly charged again by the charger 3 and the printing process is repeated. Then, the toner image on the transfer paper 11 is fixed by a fixing device 12.

A conductive member 13 and a conductive member 14 are attached to the surface of the case of the drum unit 1 and the surface of the waste toner bottle 10, respectively. These conductive members 13 and 14 connect the drum unit 1 and the waste toner bottle 1.
0 are configured to make electrical contact with each other when they are mounted in a predetermined position. On the other hand, the main body of the apparatus has a first contact 15 and a second contact 16 (
This second contact point 16 is also provided with a chassis made of sheet metal.

With the above configuration, when the drum unit 1 and the waste toner bottle 10 are attached to the main body of the apparatus, the first contact point 15 of the main body of the apparatus is connected to the conductive member 13 of the drum unit 1.
The waste toner bottle 10 is connected via the conductive member 14 to the chassis 16 of the apparatus main body, which is a second contact point. In other words, the first contact 15 and the second contact 1 of the device body
By detecting the presence or absence of conduction with the drum unit 6, the presence or absence of the drum unit 1 and the waste toner bottle 10 can be detected by a single detection means.

[0009]

As described above, in the present invention, it is possible to detect the presence or absence of a drum unit and a waste toner bottle with a single presence/absence detection means, thereby making it possible to downsize the apparatus and reduce costs.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing an electrophotographic apparatus according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Drum unit 2 Photoreceptor 3 Charger 10 Waste toner bottle 13 Conductive member 14 Conductive member

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A drum unit including at least a photosensitive drum that holds an electrostatic latent image, a cleaning device, and a charger that uniformly charges the photosensitive drum, and configured to be detachable from an electrophotographic apparatus main body, and the cleaning device. The electrophotographic apparatus main body includes a waste toner bottle configured to be detachable independently of the drum unit so as to store waste toner removed from the photosensitive drum by the apparatus; Each bottle is attached with a conductive member that makes electrical contact with each other when each bottle is attached to a predetermined position of the electrophotographic apparatus main body, and a drum unit and a drum unit attached to a predetermined position are attached to the electrophotographic apparatus main body. First and second electrical contacts are provided that electrically contact the conductive member of the waste toner bottle, respectively, and by detecting the presence or absence of continuity between the first and second electrical contacts, the drum unit and detecting the presence or absence of the waste toner bottle.