Toner cartridge and image forming apparatus

A toner cartridge for supplying toner to outside, comprising:

• a toner accommodating chamber for accommodating toner;
• a toner discharge chamber having a smaller volume than the toner accommodating chamber;
• a communication passage for fluid communication between the toner accommodating chamber and the toner discharge chamber;
• a discharge opening which is provided in the toner discharge chamber and through which the toner is capable of discharging from the toner discharge chamber to the outside of the toner cartridge;
• a coupling for receiving a driving force from outside;
• a feeding member for feeding the toner from the toner accommodating chamber to the toner discharge chamber through the communication passage in an axial direction of the coupling;
• and
• a plurality of sheets which are provided in the toner discharge chamber in a state of overlapping each other and rotatable about a rotation axis to discharge the toner to the outside of the toner cartridge through the discharge opening,
• wherein as viewed along the rotation axis with the toner cartridge in an orientation with the discharge opening facing downward, the rotation axis is closer to a central portion of the toner cartridge than the discharge opening in a horizontal direction, the plurality of the sheets are configured to be flexed by contacting an inner wall of the toner discharge chamber and then be released from flexure, when the sheets make one full rotation about the rotation axis, and
• wherein the plurality of sheets include (i) a first sheet and (ii) a second sheet which is placed upstream of the first sheet in a rotation direction thereof, and in a state that flexures of the first sheet and the second sheet are released, a distance from the rotation axis to a free end of the second sheet is longer than a distance from the rotation axis to a free end of the first sheet.

A toner cartridge for supplying toner to outside, comprising:

• a toner accommodating chamber for accommodating toner;
• a toner discharge chamber having a smaller volume than the toner accommodating chamber;
• a communication passage for fluid communication between the toner accommodating chamber and the toner discharge chamber;
• a discharge opening which is provided in the toner discharge chamber and through which the toner is capable of discharging from the toner discharge chamber to the outside of the toner cartridge;
• a coupling for receiving a driving force from outside;
• a feeding member for feeding the toner from the toner accommodating chamber to the toner discharge chamber through the communication passage in an axial direction of the coupling;
• and
• a plurality of sheets which are provided in the toner discharge chamber and rotatable about a rotation axis to discharge the toner to the outside of the toner cartridge through the discharge opening,
• wherein as viewed along the rotation axis with the toner cartridge in an orientation with the discharge opening facing downward, the rotation axis is closer to a central portion of the toner cartridge than the discharge opening in a horizontal direction,
• wherein the plurality of sheets include (i) a first sheet and (ii) a second sheet which is placed upstream of the first sheet in a rotation direction thereof, and in a state that flexures of the first sheet and the second sheet are released, a distance from the rotation axis to a free end of the second sheet is shorter than a distance from the rotation axis to a free end of the first sheet,
• wherein the plurality of the sheets are configured to be flexed by contacting an inner wall of the toner discharge chamber and then be released from flexure, when the sheets make one full rotation about the rotation axis,
• wherein the first sheet is configured to be flexed by contacting an inner wall of the toner discharge chamber and then be released from flexure, when the first sheet makes one full rotation about the rotation axis, and
• wherein the second sheet is configured to come into contact with the first sheet from an upstream side in the rotation direction of the first sheet and the second sheet while the first sheet moves toward the discharge opening after releasing from the flexure.