US 2018/0120755 A1Published application

Image Forming Apparatus

AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsIsao Fukuchi, Atsushi Fukui

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Abstract

An image forming apparatus has a main body, a belt unit configured to accommodate a belt, a belt cleaning member and an accommodating unit. The belt cleaning unit is configured to remove waste toner adhered on the belt. The accommodating unit is configured to accommodate the toner removed by the belt cleaning unit. The apparatus further includes a drum unit having a drum cleaning member, and a waste toner conveying mechanism configured to convey the waste toner to the collecting unit. The conveying mechanism has a drum-side conveying unit configured to be connected with the drum cleaning member. Communication between the drum-side conveying unit and the collecting unit is enabled in association with movement of the drum unit from the outside position to the inside position, and disabled in association with movement of the drum unit from the inside position to the outside position.

Claims14

Dependent claims

An image forming apparatus comprising:

a casing;
a process unit movable between an inside position which is inside the casing and an outside position which is outside the casing, the process unit including:
a first photoconductive drum;
a first drum cleaning unit configured to remove toner from the first photoconductive drum;
a second photoconductive drum;
a second drum cleaning unit configured to remove toner from the second photoconductive drum;
a process frame including a first wall and second wall, the first photoconductive drum and the second photoconductive drum being arranged between the first wall and second wall;
and
a tube in which both the toner removed from the first photoconductive drum by the first drum cleaning unit and the toner removed from the second photoconductive drum by the second drum cleaning unit conveyed, the tube including an opening and a shutter, the shutter being movable between an opened position at which the opening is opened and a closed position at which the opening is closed;
and
an accommodating unit configured to accommodate the toner conveyed in the tube,
wherein the tube is supported on the first wall of the process frame.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/854,137Filed 26 Dec 2017
Priority: JP 2013-0994409 May 2013
Published: 3 May 2018
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

G03G 21/0041
For removing solid developer or debris from the electrographic recording medium: using a band; Details of cleaning bands, e.g. band winding
G03G 21/105
Collecting or recycling waste developer: arrangements for conveying toner waste
G03G 2215/0141
Primary transfer to a recording medium carried by a transport belt: the linear arrangement being horizontal
G03G
Electrography

Family

Application14/273,575Continuation · filed 9 May 2014
Application15/392,423Continuation · filed 28 Dec 2016
Application15/854,137Continuation
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From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.