Developer filling method and developer filling apparatus

A developer filling apparatus comprising:

• a bag setting portion;
• a developer bag in which a developer containing toner and a carrier is sealed set in the bag setting portion, the developer bag including an accommodation portion in which the developer is accommodated and a fused portion for hermetically sealing the developer in the accommodation portion;
• an accommodation case setting portion;
• a developer accommodation case for accommodating the developer set in the accommodation case setting portion;
• a transfer path constructed to initially fill the developer accommodation case set in the accommodation case setting portion with the developer taken out of the opened developer bag while the developer bag is set in the bag setting portion;
• and
• a posture change portion which changes a posture of the bag setting portion such that a mouth of the opened developer bag is oriented to the transfer path with the developer bag being set in the bag setting portion, wherein
• the bag setting portion includes a fixing portion constructed to hold the fused portion to thereby fix the opened developer bag to the bag setting portion at a portion of the opened developer bag opposite the mouth, and
• the posture change portion includes a pivot mechanism which has the bag setting portion pivot such that the bag setting portion in a portion located on a side of the mouth is oriented to the transfer path, the pivot mechanism being located closer to the fixing portion than the mouth when the developer bag is set in the bag setting portion with the fixing portion holding the fused portion so that the mouth moves further than the fixing portion when the posture change portion changes the posture of the bag setting portion.