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US 8,301,059 B2Granted
Image formation apparatus and developer cartridge
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorSusumu Sakuma
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An image formation apparatus is provided, to which developing devices, each having an opening, and developer cartridges for respectively supplying a developing agent to the openings of the developing devices are mountable. The apparatus includes developing device shutters, each configured to open and close a respective one of the openings of the developing devices mounted to the apparatus; and a link mechanism configured to move the developing device shutters linked with each other.
Claims3
An image formation apparatus comprising:
- a main body;
- a plurality of developing devices, each of the developing devices including
- a photosensitive drum, a developer supporting member which is configured to supply a developer to the photosensitive drum and is configured to rotate around an axis extending in a predetermined direction, and
- a casing having a first opening and a second opening;
- an intermediate transfer belt disposed above the photosensitive drum of each of the developing devices;
- and
- a plurality of developer cartridges which is configured to be detachably attached to the main body and disposed correspondingly to the plurality of developing devices, respectively, when the plurality of developer cartridges is attached to the main body,
- wherein each of the plurality of developer cartridges is configured to store the developer,
- wherein when the plurality of developer cartridges is attached to the main body, each of the developer cartridges does not overlap with the corresponding developing device when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the predetermined direction and overlaps with both the casing of the corresponding developing device and the intermediate transfer belt when viewed in the predetermined direction,
- wherein the first opening is configured to receive the developer from the developer cartridge, and
- wherein the second opening is configured to supply the developer to the developer cartridge.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.