Image forming apparatus, toner supply unit, and toner bottle attached thereto

A toner supply unit, comprising:

• a toner bottle having a toner discharging port formed in a middle of an end of a cylindrical body of said toner bottle;
• bottle holding means for holding said toner bottle substantially horizontally in a state in which toner can be introduced from said toner discharging port into a toner introducing portion of a developing unit;
• and
• rotational driving scans for rotating said toner bottle held by said bottle holding means around a central axis of said toner bottle extending in a longitudinal direction of said toner bottle;
• wherein said toner bottle can be attached to and detached from a body of said toner supply unit in the direction of the central axis in a state in which said toner bottle is held by said bottle holding means.

A toner bottle, comprising:

• a cylindrical body as a container for containing a toner;
• a bottom portion with which an end of said body is closed;
• and
• a port for discharging a toner, said port being narrowly formed in another end opposite to the end of said bottom portion;
• said cylindrical body having a spiral groove formed in an inner wall of said cylindrical body, said spiral groove spirally and consecutively extending from a side of said bottom portion toward said port so as to convey a toner through said spiral groove and discharge the toner from said port in accordance with rotation of said toner bottle;
• wherein projections extending in a longitudinal direction of said toner bottle are formed to communicate a rotational force to said toner bottle on an outer surface of said bottom portion and away from a line of a central axis of said cylindrical body.