JPH02201466A - Pre-exposing device for electrophotographic device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a pre-exposing means to easily and intermittently operate a power source by connecting a joint part with the power source of a main body lower part when the pre-exposing means is attached to the main body lower part with an image carrier unit. CONSTITUTION:The pre-exposing means 26 having a light source 66 facing the image carrier 24 in the image carrier unit 21 is fixed to the image carrier unit 21, and the joint part 68 connected with the power source 17 which is provided on the main body lower part so that the joint part 68 moves toward or away from the power source 17 is fixed to the image carrier unit 21. Both ends of a cable 69 are connected with the light source 66 and the joint part 68, and the cable 69 is fixed between the image carrier unit 21 and the pre- exposing means 26. Thus, the pre-exposing means 26 can easily and intermittently operates the power source 17, and the cable 69 is prevented from loosening without using a cable holder.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] Industrial applications The present invention relates to a pre-exposure device for an electrophotographic apparatus.

Conventional technology An electrostatic latent image formed on an image carrier is developed by a developing unit, the developed image is transferred to paper by a transfer unit, the transferred image is fixed by a fixing unit, and the next image is transferred to the image carrier. In an electrophotographic device in which the residual charge on the image carrier is averaged to a low level by a pre-exposure device in order to form an image, the lower main body with an upper opening houses the transfer section, fixing section, paper conveyance path, power supply, etc. , the image carrier unit including the image carrier and the developing unit are detachably attached, and a pre-exposure device facing the image carrier is attached to the inner surface of the upper body which is vertically movably connected to the lower body. In such cases, the upper body is rotated upward to open the upper part of the lower body, and the image carrier unit and the developing unit are removed from the upper opening of the lower body to open the paper conveyance path. There is an electrophotographic device. In such an electrophotographic device,
In order to connect the pre-exposure device to the m source, the middle part of the cable connected to the power supply provided on the lower body is temporarily fixed near the rotation fulcrum of the upper body, and this cable is further extended to connected to the light source of the pre-exposure device fixed to the

Problems to be Solved by the Invention The cable from the power source to the pre-exposure device is routed through the fulcrum of the upper body, which increases the overall length, which causes slack in the cable, causing the cable to become loose when the upper body is opened and closed. If it gets caught on parts inside the main unit or the operator's hand,
Alternatively, paper may get caught in the cable during use. Therefore, a plurality of cable holders are required to fix the cables at regular intervals, which increases the number of parts and the number of assembly steps. Furthermore, when replacing the pre-exposure device, the end of the cable must be disconnected from the power supply.

Since the cable and power supply are connected by soldering, replacing the pre-exposure device is extremely troublesome.

Means for Solving the Problem An image carrier unit is provided which is detachably attached together with a developing unit to a lower body in which an upper body is rotatably held, and a light source is opposed to the image carrier of this image carrier unit. fixing a pre-exposure means having: to the image carrier unit;
A connection part provided on the lower body and removably connected to a power source is fixed to the image carrier unit, and a cable having both ends connected to the light source and the connection part is connected to the image carrier unit and the image carrier unit. It was fixed between the pre-exposure means and the pre-exposure means.

When the pre-operation exposure means is attached to the lower body together with the image carrier unit, the connecting portion is connected to the power source of the lower body. This makes it extremely easy to electrically disconnect the pre-exposure means from the power supply, and the pre-exposure means having the light source and the image carrier unit having the fixed connection part are integrally connected. Therefore, the relative position between the light source and the connecting part can be maintained constant at all times, and the total length of the cable connecting the two can be shortened. Moreover, the cable can be fixed between the pre-exposure means and the image carrier unit. This makes it possible to prevent the cable from becoming loose without using a cable holder.

Example An embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal side view showing the overall structure. In the figure, 1 is the lower body of the electrophotographic printer, and this lower body 1 is formed by combining a base cover 2 and an upper cover 3. One end of a top cover 4 serving as an upper main body is attached to the upper part of the top cover 4 so as to be movable up and down. A power source 5 and a circuit board 6 are attached to the base cover 2. The upper cover 3 is provided with a paper transport path 8 for transporting the paper in the paper feed cassette 7, and at the end of this paper transport path 8, the paper is transported to a paper ejection tray 9 formed on the top surface of the top cover 4.
A paper ejection path 10 for ejecting the paper towards is connected to this connection portion, and a switching unit 1 for switching the paper ejection path to the side surface of the lower main body l, which is on the extension surface of the paper ejection path 10 or the paper conveyance path 8.
1 is provided.

Further, the paper conveyance path 8 includes a paper feed roller 12 that contacts the uppermost sheet of the paper feed cassette 7, a start sensor 13 that optically detects the conveyed paper, and a detection sensor 13 that detects the paper that is being conveyed. A registration roller 14 whose rotational movement is controlled by a signal, a transfer section 15 that transfers a developed image on an image carrier 24 to a sheet of paper, which will be described later, a peeling section 16 that separates the paper from the image carrier 24, and a high-voltage power source 17. and a fixing section 18 that clamps the paper that has passed through the transfer section 15 and fixes the transferred image on the paper are sequentially arranged from upstream to downstream.

Further, a basket 19 with vertical openings located above the paper transport path 8 is attached to the upper cover 3, and an image forming unit 2 is detachably housed in the basket 19.
0 consists of an image carrier unit 21 and a developing unit 22. The image carrier unit 21 includes an image carrier 24 rotatably mounted on both sides of a support 23, and a charging section 25 that charges the image carrier 24 and a waste toner container 27 attached to the support 23. , an image carrier 24 is placed in this waste toner container 27.
A blade 28 for scraping off waste toner adhering to the toner and a roller 29 for conveying the scraped off waste toner toward the back of the waste toner container 27 are attached.

A static eliminator 26 is coupled to the image carrier unit 21, which is a pre-exposure means for exposing the image carrier 24 to uniform charges on its outer periphery. The static eliminator 26, whose combined state is shown in the front view of FIG.
The housing 6 has a plurality of LEDs 66 as light sources.
3, and a substrate 65 held by claws 64 formed on the substrate 65. A terminal 68, which is a connection part, is elastically fitted into a protrusion 67 formed on one outer surface of the support body 23, and one end is connected to a conductive pattern (not shown) formed on a substrate 65. The other end of the cable 69 connected to the LED 66 via the terminal 68 is soldered to the terminal 68. The terminal 68 is connected to the power source 17 via a connector (not shown).

This connector is fixed to the lower part of the upper cover 3.

The developing unit 22 includes a developing roller 31 and a stirring blade 3 that stirs the toner in a toner container 30 containing toner.
2 (see Figure 6). Furthermore, an optical section 33 is attached to the inner surface of the top cover 4 to scan the photosensitive surface of the image carrier 24 with a beam of light.

Next, the mounting structure of the basket 19 and the image forming section 20 is shown in FIGS. 3 to 5.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional side view showing the support structure of the basket 19 and the image forming section 20, and FIG. 4 is the lower main body l and the basket 1.
9 is an exploded perspective view showing the relationship between the image forming section 20 and FIG.
FIG. As shown in these figures, a pair of handles 34 located above both ends of the image carrier 24 are integrally formed at both ends of the basket 19 . The image carrier 24 protrudes from the outside. A guide groove 36 for vertically movably guiding a bearing 35 supporting the toner container 30, and a guide groove 38 for vertically movably guiding a support shaft 37 protruding from both sides of the toner container 30 are formed. Further, the transfer portion 15 and the peeling portion 16 are positioned on a frame 39 fixed to the upper cover 3 and fixed by screws, and the bearing 35 and the support shaft 37 are positioned on this frame 39. A support portion 40.41 is formed to support the image carrier unit 21, and a stopper 42 is provided upright to abut the lower end of the support body 23 of the image carrier unit 21.

These support portions 40, 41 have a concave shape with an opening at the top and a shape that widens toward the top. Furthermore, the frame 39 is provided with a locking means 43 that elastically engages with the image carrier unit 21. This locking means 43 includes a lever 45 that rotates around a support shaft 44 and a lever 47 that rotates around a support shaft 46 . These levers 4
5.47 has its upper part urged in opposite directions by the urging force of the spring 48. A downward slope 49 for pressing the bearing 35 against the bottom of the support portion 40 of the frame 39 is formed on the upper part of one lever 45, and a slope 50 whose slope direction is changed upward from this slope 49. lever 4
7 includes a downward slope 52 that presses the bottle 51 protruding from the outer surface of the support 23 of the image carrier unit 21, and a slope 53 whose slope direction is changed upward from the slope 52.
is formed. Furthermore, the image carrier unit 2
A handle 54 is integrally formed on the housing of the static eliminator 26, which is one of the constituent members of the toner container 30, and handles 56 are integrally formed on both sides of the toner container 30. These handles 54 and 56 are so close to the handle 34 that when the handle 34 of the basket 19 is grasped, the fingers of the same hand can be hung thereon. Further, these handles 54,56 are formed with an upwardly facing suppressing portion 55,57 and downwardly facing finger hook portions 55a, 57a for hanging fingers. Further, a motor 58 for driving the developing roller 31 and the stirring blade 32 is fixed to the developing unit 22, and a power input terminal 59 connected to the motor 58
are provided protruding downward, and these power input terminals 59
A knife-shaped connector 60 that elastically clamps the frame 39 is fixed to the inner surface of the frame 39. This connector 60 is connected to a power source. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3, a proximal portion 61 is formed on the lower surface of the housing of the optical section 33, and faces the upper edge of the support 23 of the image carrier unit 21 with a predetermined gap. .

In such a configuration, when performing jam removal or maintenance, the top cover 4 is rotated upward to open the upper surface of the upper cover 3, and in this state, the handle 34 is grasped to move the basket 19 to the image carrier unit 21 and the upper cover 3. When it is pulled up together with the developing unit 22, the paper conveyance path 8 is opened. Alternatively, the image carrier unit 21 and the developing unit 22 can be moved independently with the basket 19 positioned inside the upper cover 3 by hooking the fingers on the finger hooks 55a and 57a of the handle 54 and 56 and pulling up. It can also be removed.

When disassembling a jam or assembling after maintenance, insert the bearing 35 of the image carrier unit 21 into the guide groove 36 of the basket 19 taken out from the upper cover 3, and insert the support shaft 37 of the developing unit 22 into the guide groove 38. The handle 34 of the basket 19 is grasped, and the basket 19 is housed in the upper cover 3 while the bearing 35 and the support shaft 37 are fitted into the support parts 40 and 41 of the frame 39.

Alternatively, the basket 19 stored in the upper cover 3
The image carrier unit 21 and the developing unit 22 are stored in the basket 19 without fitting the bearing 35 or the support shaft 37 into the guide groove 36, 38 and the support portion 40, 41. At this time, the bearing 35 whose movement in directions other than the vertical direction is regulated by the guide groove 36 is supported by the upward slope 50 of the lever 44, and the bottle 51 is supported by the upward slope 53 of the lever 47. It is possible to press the pressing part 55 of the handle 54 with fingers that are playing with the grip. By this operation, the lever 45 is rotated counterclockwise against the force of the spring 48 by the force generated by the contact between the bearing 35 and the slope 50, allowing the bearing 35 to move downward. Similarly, the bottle 51 is also supported by the slope 53 of the lever 47, and by pushing down the suppressing part 55 of the handle 54,
The lever 47 rotates clockwise against the force of the spring 48 due to the force generated by the contact between the bin 51 and the slope 53, allowing the bin 51 to move downward.

Then, the lever 45 returns to its original state due to the return force of the spring 48.
presses the bearing 35 against the bottom of the support 40 with its downward slope 49, and similarly the lever 47 presses the bearing 35 with its downward slope 52.
The bottle 51 is pressed downward, and the lower edges of both sides of the support body 23 are pressed against the stopper 42.

The developing unit 22 is supported by its own weight with the support shaft 37 positioned on the support portion 41. By positioning the support shaft 37 above the development roller 31 and closer to the image carrier 24 than the center of gravity of the development unit 22, , developing unit 22
The developing roller 31 rotates clockwise around the support shaft 37.
Flanges provided at both ends of the image carrier 24 abut against the outer periphery of the end portion of the image carrier 24 .

As a result, the developing unit 22 is attached to the frame 39 in a stable state with a constant gap between the image carrier 24 and the developing roller 31.

As mentioned above, the basket 19 is pulled up during jam removal and maintenance, but during this process, the bearing 35
presses the downward slope 49 of the lever 45, and the force generated by their contact causes the lever 45 to rotate counterclockwise against the force of the spring 48, allowing the bearing 35 to move upward. Similarly, the bottle 51 presses the downward slope 52 of the lever 47, and the lever 47 rotates clockwise against the force of the spring 48 due to the force generated by the contact between the two, and the bottle 51 moves upward. movement is allowed.

As described above, when the static eliminator 26 is attached to the lower body 1 together with the image carrier unit 21, the terminal 68 is connected to the lower body 1.
It is connected to the power supply 17 of. As a result, it is possible to extremely easily connect and disconnect the electricity of the static eliminator 26 to the power source 17, and the housing 6 of the static eliminator 26 having the LED 66
3 and the support body 23 of the image carrier unit 21 to which the terminal 68 is fixed are integrally connected, so the relative positions of the LED 66 of the static eliminator 26 and the terminal 68 are always maintained constant and the two are connected. The total length of the cable 69 can be shortened. Moreover, the cable 69 can be fixed between the housing 63 of the static eliminator 26 and the support body 23 of the image carrier unit 21, and thereby the cable 69 can be prevented from loosening without using a cable holder. . Therefore, when opening and closing the top cover 4, the cable 39 may get caught on parts inside the upper cover 3, or
Paper is not caught in the cable 69 during use.

Effects of the Invention Since the present invention is configured as described above, when the pre-exposure means is attached to the lower body together with the image carrier unit, the connecting portion can be connected to the power supply of the lower body, and thereby,
The electrical connection of the pre-exposure means to the power source can be extremely easily performed, and furthermore, since the pre-exposure means having the light source and the image carrier unit to which the connection portion is fixed are integrally connected, the light source The overall length of the cable connecting the two can be shortened by always maintaining a constant relative position between the two and the connecting part, and the cable can be fixed between the pre-exposure means and the image carrier unit, This prevents the cable from becoming loose without using a cable holder, and therefore prevents the cable from getting caught on parts inside the lower body when opening and closing the upper body, and prevents paper from getting caught on the cable during use. It has the following effects:

3 is a vertical cross-sectional side view showing the support structure for the basket and the image forming section, FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the relationship between the lower body and the basket, and FIG. 5 is the basket in which the image forming section is housed. FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional side view of the developing unit.

l...Lower main body, 4...Upper main body, 17...Power supply, 21...Image carrier unit, 22...Development unit, 24...Image carrier, 26...Pre-exposure means, 66
... light source, 68 ... connection part

Claims (1)

[Claims] An image carrier unit is provided which is removably attached together with a developing unit to a lower body in which the upper body is rotatably held, and a pre-exposure means having a light source facing the image carrier of the image carrier unit is provided. fixed to the image carrier unit,
A connection part provided on the lower body and removably connected to a power source is fixed to the image carrier unit, and a cable having both ends connected to the light source and the connection part is connected to the image carrier unit and the image carrier unit. A pre-exposure device for an electrophotographic apparatus, characterized in that it is fixed between a pre-exposure means and a pre-exposure means.