JPS646521Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention relates to a filter unit that collects toner, foreign matter, etc. floating in the air, and in particular, it is attached to the final stage of the cleaning device of a copying machine to prevent airflow from being emitted to the outside. This relates to a filter unit that purifies water.

Conventionally, as methods for cleaning toner remaining on a photoreceptor after transferring a developed image in a copying machine, blade cleaning, fur brush cleaning, web cleaning, etc. have been used. Among these, when fur brush cleaning is used, the toner remaining on the photoconductor is scraped off by the fur brush and suspended in the air stream, and the air stream containing this toner is passed through a filter to collect the toner. There is a way to do it. However, in such a method, a large amount of toner is trapped in the filter, so the filter needs to be replaced frequently.

Therefore, in order to make the filter usable for a long period of time, a method shown in FIG. 1 has been proposed. That is,
To explain the toner collecting device shown in FIG. 1, the toner 2 remaining on the toner adhesion surface 1 is scraped off by a fur brush 3 and deposited on the brush. Since the fur brush 3 is rotating, the toner that has collided with the baffle plate 4 and adhered to the tip of the brush is suspended in the air flow. The air flow containing the floating toner passes through a flow path formed between the electrode roller 5 and the counter electrode 6, but a high voltage is applied between the electrode roller 5 and the counter electrode 6, and the toner is normally If it is in a charged state, for example positively charged, it will be attracted and adhered to the electrode roller 5, which is a negative electrode. The toner adhering to the electrode roller 5 is scraped off by a blade 7 that is in sliding contact with the electrode roller 5 as the roller rotates, and is collected into a collection container 8 . The collected toner can be supplied to a developing section (not shown) and reused. On the other hand, the airflow that has passed between the electrodes is introduced into the filter chamber 9, passes through the filter 10, and is discharged to the outside.

By using a toner recovery device as shown in FIG. 1, reusable toner is separated and recovered, which is economical, and since the load on the filter 10 is eased, there is no need to frequently replace it. On the other hand, as a method for collecting floating toner in an air flow, in addition to the method of passing an air flow between a pair of opposing electrodes to which a high voltage is applied and utilizing electrostatic force due to an electric field,
There is also a method in which a deflection plate is disposed in the airflow to impact the floating toner, change its direction, and collect the toner by falling to a predetermined position.

As mentioned above, even if a toner collection device based on electrical or physical principles is installed to collect toner floating in the air flow, it is not possible to completely collect toner, and some toner passes through the toner collection device. There is. Furthermore, not only toner but also foreign matter such as brush hair and paper dust are present in the airflow, and some of these foreign matter are conductive.
In this case, it is difficult to recover by electrical means as shown in FIG. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, a filter chamber 9 is provided on the downstream side of the toner collecting device to collect the passing toner and foreign matter.
That is, a tray 10 is provided at the bottom of the filter chamber 9, which rapidly changes the direction of the airflow flowing out from the toner collecting device to collect large masses of toner, foreign matter, etc. due to the inertia of the object. Furthermore,
A filter 11 is installed in the filter chamber 9, and collects toner, foreign matter, etc. floating therein when the airflow passes through.

However, in the conventional filter chamber structure as shown in FIG. 1, when the filter 11 is removed for inspection and maintenance, for example, the collected toner may scatter and contaminate not only the device but also the surrounding area. Ta. Further, the tray 10 is also taken out from the filter chamber 9 to remove collected toner, foreign matter, etc., but in this case as well, the collected matter often scatters around. In particular, toner contains organic matter and cannot be disposed of arbitrarily, and its disposal must be carried out under controlled conditions.

The present invention was made in view of the above points, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a filter unit that facilitates the handling of recovered materials to be disposed of and can completely prevent them from scattering to the surroundings. purpose. The filter unit of the present invention does not provide the filter 11 and the saucer 10 separately as in the prior art, but forms a filter chamber by integrally forming the box and the filter, and allows air flow to flow into the filter chamber. The device is provided with an opening that can be opened and an opening/closing member that can freely open and close the opening.

Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be explained. FIG. 2 shows a state in which the filter unit 12 of the present invention is attached to the toner recovery device of FIG. 1. In FIG. 2, the same parts as in FIG. 1 are given the same numbers. This filter unit 1
2, a box 13 and a filter 11 are integrally formed as a unit, and the filter chamber 9 is formed inside the box 13 and the filter 11. In this embodiment, an opening 14a is formed in a part of the box 13, and an opening/closing member 14 that can freely open and close the opening 14a is provided. The opening/closing member 14 is bendable, and the opening 14 is closed when worn as shown in FIG.
a is opened to function as an inlet for introducing air into the filter chamber 9.

The box body 13 is provided with protrusions 13a and 13b, which are pushed into locking tools 15a and 15b, respectively, when the filter unit 12 is installed. The box body 13 can be made of any kind of material, whether conductive or insulating, but it is preferably made of something with elasticity, such as cardboard, for example. On the other hand, the filter 11 may be integrally formed by attaching nonwoven fabric, open-cell sponge rubber, filter paper, etc. to the box body 13.

Due to the need for maintenance and inspection, this filter unit 1
2, by slightly deforming the box body 13 with your fingers or the like to remove the protrusions 13a, 13b and the locking tools 15a,
By releasing the engagement with 15b, the unit 12 can be removed as a whole. In this case, if the opening/closing member 14 is provided with a characteristic that it is always closed, and the opening 14a is opened by a stopper (not shown) when the unit 12 is attached, the opening 14a is opened at the same time as the unit 12 is detached. Since it is occluded, it becomes possible to further improve the scattering prevention effect.

As described above, according to the present invention, since the filter unit is integrated, the entire device is simplified and the scattering of recovered materials such as toner is prevented. Further, although collected toner requires strict disposal management, the filter unit of the present invention greatly simplifies that management and has great practical effects. It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated example and that various modifications can be made within the technical scope of the present invention. For example, various shapes can be considered for the filter, the box, etc., and the opening position can be set at any position depending on the mounting position of the unit.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is an overall view showing the prior art, Figure 2 is an overall view showing the state in which the present filter unit is installed.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the unit in a dismounted state. Explanation of symbols of main parts, 11: Filter, 1
2: Filter unit, 13: Box body, 14: Opening/closing member, 14a: Opening.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A filter unit comprising a box body and a filter integrally formed to form a filter chamber, an opening through which an air flow can flow into the filter chamber, and an opening/closing member that can be opened and closed freely provided in the opening.