Patent ID: 9348260
Filing Date: 2016-05-24
CPC Classification: G03G

Claim Text:
1. A developer container comprising: a container body including an inner circumferential section having a tubular shape extending in a first direction, an internal space defined by the inner circumferential section, and a wall section defining one end surface of the internal space in the first direction; a cap attached at an opposite end of the container body to the wall section in the first direction, closing the internal space; a developer discharge outlet through which developer is discharged, the developer discharge outlet being provided in a lower surface of the container body so as to pass through the inner circumferential section and being located in proximity to the cap or the wall section in the first direction; a shaft having an external thread on an outer circumferential surface thereof, the shaft being rotatably supported on the wall section and the cap such as to extend in the internal space in the first direction; a drive transmission member configured to transmit rotational driving force to the shaft; a moveable wall including an outer circumferential section in sealed contact with the inner circumferential section of the container body and a conveying surface at a downstream side in the first direction that, in conjunction with the inner circumferential section of the developer container, defines a containment space in which developer is contained, the moveable wall being configured to move in the first direction from an initial position at one side of the internal space to a final position at another side of the internal space while conveying the developer toward the developer discharge outlet; a bearing supporting the moveable wall and having an internal thread on an inner circumferential surface thereof that engages with the external thread of the shaft which extends through the bearing; a moveable wall stopping section located at a position corresponding to the final position of the moveable wall, the moveable wall stopping section being a section of the shaft along which the external thread is not present; and a tilt restricting mechanism configured to restrict the conveying surface of the moveable wall from tilting relative to the first direction when the moveable wall has reached the final position, wherein the tilt restricting mechanism includes at least one protrusion that protrudes from the outer circumferential surface of the shaft in a radial direction at a position downstream of the moveable wall stopping section in the first direction, when the moveable wall has reached the final position, the moveable wall is restricted from tilting due to the at least one protrusion coming into contact with the inner circumferential surface of the bearing and supporting the inner circumferential surface of the bearing, and upon rotation of the shaft, the moveable wall moves in the first direction along the shaft through engagement of the external thread with the internal thread and when the bearing reaches the moveable wall stopping section, the external thread disengages from the internal thread such that the moveable wall is stopped at the final position.