Patent ID: 8224212
Filing Date: 2012-07-17
Classification: G03G

Abstract:
1. A developing apparatus comprising: a housing provided with a developer supplying and recovering portion and a developer agitating portion that are communicated with each other and form a circulating conveying path for a two-component developer including a toner and a carrier, so as to be adjacent via a partition wall having communication portions in both end portions; a developer carrier provided on an opposite side to the developer agitating portion in the developer supplying and recovering portion, and attaching the toner to a photo conductor so as to develop an electrostatic latent image on the photo conductor; a conveying member arranged in the developer supplying and recovering portion in such a manner as to extend along a direction of a rotating axis of the developer carrier, supplying the developer to the developer carrier, conveying the developer in a longitudinal direction, and delivering the developer to the developer agitating portion through the communication portion; a first agitating member arranged in the developer agitating portion so as to extend along a direction of a rotating axis of the conveying member and adjacent to the partition wall, conveying the developer in an inverse direction to a conveying direction by the conveying member while agitating, and delivering the developer to the developer supplying and recovering portion through the communication portion; a second agitating member arranged in the developer agitating portion so as to extend along a direction of a rotating axis of the first agitating member and adjacent to the first agitating member, conveying the developer in the same direction as the conveying direction by the first agitating member while agitating, and delivering the developer to the developer supplying and recovering portion through the communication portion; and a projection-shaped guide arranged in an inner bottom surface of the housing positioned between the first agitating member and the second agitating member so as to extend from one side of the direction of the rotating axis of the first agitating member and the second agitating member to the other side, wherein a cross sectional shape of the guide which is orthogonal to the axial direction of the rotating axis being a mountain shape with wide foot portion, wherein the guide is arranged in such a manner that gaps between respective outermost portions of the first agitating member and the second agitating member, and the inner bottom surface of the housing and the guide become 1.5 mm or more and 3 mm or less, wherein the first agitating member and the second agitating member rotate in the same direction respectively as viewing a rotating shaft of the first agitating member and a rotating shaft of the second agitating member from a near side in the axial direction, wherein a braking portion inhibiting the developer from being discharged is provided on a downstream side of the developer agitating portion of the housing in a developer conveying direction of the first agitating member and the second agitating member, a discharge portion is provided on a downstream side of the braking portion, and the discharge portion is provided with a developer discharge port discharging the developer coming to the discharge portion over the braking portion.