Belt-type photoconductor replacement apparatus
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Company
InventorWayne E. Foote
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An expandable shell for changing a belt-type photoconductor in an image forming apparatus such as a laser printer. The apparatus has a two piece expandable housing which captures the belt around the housing's inner wall. Guide features are provided on each half of the housing to ensure proper belt placement. Mating guide features are located in the image forming apparatus. The guide feature in the printer nearest the idler roller is linked to the idler roller which is movable toward the drive roller to facilitate changing the belt. The belt is captured in the housing when the housing is in the collapsed position. When the housing expands, the belt becomes free from the housing and is captured by the drive and idler rollers in the printer.
Claims8
An apparatus for installing and removing a belt photoconductor in and from an image forming device which comprises:
- shell means being expandable between an expanded position and a contracted position and having an opening for receiving the belt photoconductor;
- the shell means being sized and shaped to loosely conform to the shape of the belt photoconductor when the belt photoconductor is installed in an image forming apparatus and the shell means is in its expanded position;
- the shell means being further configured to engage the belt photoconductor when the belt photoconductor is installed in an image forming apparatus and the shell means is in its contracted position;
- and
- shell expansion and contraction means for moving the shell means between its expanded and contracted positions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.