Toner container and image forming apparatus using the same
AssigneeRicoh Company, Ltd.
InventorsKazuhisa Sudo, Yoshio Hattori
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A toner container of the present invention stores powdery toner to be replenished via a toner outlet thereof and includes a container body. A shutter device is positioned in the toner outlet for selectively opening or closing the toner outlet. The shutter device includes an opening/closing member, a resilient member constantly biasing the opening/closing member from the inside toward the outside of the container body, and a support member supporting the resilient member and opening/closing member. The toner container is simple and easy to mount and dismount from an image forming apparatus while surely preventing the toner from leaking.
Claims39
A toner container storing powdery toner to be replenished via a toner outlet thereof, said toner container comprising:
- a container body;
- and
- shutter means positioned in the toner outlet for selectively opening or closing said toner outlet;
- said shutter means comprising an opening/closing member, a resilient member constantly biasing said opening/closing member from an inside toward an outside of said container body, and a support member supporting said resilient member and said opening/closing member.
A toner container storing powdery toner to be replenished via a toner outlet thereof, said toner container comprising:
- a container body;
- and
- shutter means positioned in the toner outlet for selectively opening or closing said toner outlet;
- said shutter means comprising an opening/closing member, a resilient member constantly biasing said opening/closing member from an inside toward an outside of said container body, and a support member supporting said resilient member and said opening/closing member;
- wherein said opening/closing member is mounted on said support member in such a manner as to slide between an opening position for opening the toner outlet and a closing position, which is different from said opening position, for closing said toner outlet.
A toner container storing toner and removably mounted to a body of an image forming apparatus, said toner container comprising:
- a deformable container body tapered toward a toner outlet, which faces downward when said toner container is mounted to the body of the image forming apparatus;
- a passage formed in said container body and communicated to an outside;
- shutter means disposed in said container body;
- a resilient member disposed in said container body and constantly biasing said shutter means from an inside toward an outside of said container body;
- and
- preventing means adjoining said shutter means for preventing the toner from staying.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.