Image Forming Apparatus and Developing Agent Cartridge
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorShougo Sato
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An image forming apparatus may include a casing, and a plurality of image carriers arranged in parallel along one direction in the casing and formed with an electrostatic latent image. The apparatus can further include a plurality of developing agent carriers opposed to the image carriers, for visualizing the electrostatic latent image by feeding a developing agent to the image carriers, and a plurality of developing agent cartridges, arranged in parallel in the one direction to be opposed to the developing agent carriers in the longitudinal direction of the developing agent carriers, and configured to be together attachable/detachable to/from the casing along the one direction, for accommodating the developing agent fed to the developing agent carriers.
Claims23
An image forming apparatus, comprising:
- a plurality of photosensitive drums arranged in a first direction, each of the plurality of photosensitive drums being configured to have an image formed thereon and to rotate about an axis extending along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction;
- a plurality of developing rollers each of which being configured to feed a developing agent to a corresponding one of the plurality of photosensitive drums;
- an intermediate transfer belt and a secondary transfer roller which are configured to transfer the image on each of the plurality of photosensitive drums onto a sheet, the intermediate transfer belt extending above the plurality of developing rollers in the first direction;
- a plurality of developing agent cartridges each of which containing a developing agent to be supplied to a corresponding one of the plurality of developing rollers;
- and
- a frame member including:
- a plurality of accommodating portions each of which being configured to accommodate a corresponding one of the plurality of developing agent cartridges;
- and
- a plurality of sectioning wall portions each of which extending vertically and defining a boundary between a corresponding pair of the plurality of accommodating portions next to each other, such that the plurality of developing agent cartridges accommodated in the plurality of accommodating portions are arranged in the first direction in which the plurality of photosensitive drums are arranged,
- wherein each of the plurality of developing agent cartridges includes an outlet through which the developing agent is to be outputted from, and
- the outlet is disposed at a corresponding position below the intermediate transfer belt.
An image forming apparatus, comprising:
- a plurality of photosensitive drums arranged in a first direction, each of the plurality of photosensitive drums being configured to have an image formed thereon and to rotate about an axis extending along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction;
- a plurality of developing rollers each of which being configured to feed a developing agent to a corresponding one of the plurality of photosensitive drums;
- an intermediate transfer belt and a secondary transfer roller which are configured to transfer the image on each of the plurality of photosensitive drums onto a sheet, the intermediate transfer belt extending above the plurality of developing rollers in the first direction;
- a plurality of developing agent cartridges each of which containing a developing agent to be supplied to a corresponding one of the plurality of developing rollers;
- and
- a frame member including:
- a plurality of accommodating portions each of which being configured to accommodate a corresponding one of the plurality of developing agent cartridges;
- and
- a plurality of sectioning wall portions each of which extending vertically and defining a boundary between a corresponding pair of the plurality of accommodating portions next to each other, such that the plurality of developing agent cartridges accommodated in the plurality of accommodating portions are arranged in the first direction in which the plurality of photosensitive drums are arranged,
- wherein each of the plurality of developing agent cartridges includes an inlet through which collected developing agent is to be inputted therein, and
- the inlet is disposed at a corresponding position below the intermediate transfer belt.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.