Patent Publication Number: US-8126375-B2

Title: Toner container and image forming apparatus

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation application of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/857,124, filed on Aug. 16, 2010, which is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/567,589, filed Dec. 6, 2006 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,853,184, issued Dec. 14, 2010), and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/850,675, filed Oct. 11, 2006 and entitled “Toner Container and Image Forming Device”, each of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     The inventions in this application are related to the inventions disclosed in the following Japanese patent applications: 2005-129866 filed Apr. 27, 2005, 2005-179200 filed Jun. 20, 2005, 2005-180082 filed Jun. 21, 2005, 2005-180153 filed Jun. 21, 2005, 2005-181371 filed Jun. 22, 2005, 2005-191090 filed Jun. 30, 2005, 2005-198355 filed Jul. 7, 2005, 2005-223438 filed Aug. 1, 2005, 2005-302636 filed Oct. 18, 2005, 2005-311112 filed Oct. 26, 2005, 2005-311787 filed Oct. 26, 2005, 2005-315311 filed Oct. 28, 2005, 2005-346038 filed Nov. 30, 2005, 2006-021362 filed Jan. 30, 2006, 2006-026258 filed Feb. 2, 2006, and 2006-029859 filed Feb. 7, 2006, and PCT patent application PCT/JP2006/308820 filed Apr. 27, 2006, each of which is incorporated herein by reference and may be utilized with any embodiment or feature disclosed herein. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention generally relates to a toner container detachably attached to the main body of an image forming apparatus to supply toner to be used in the image forming process, and the image forming apparatus including the same. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     In conventional image forming apparatuses using an electrophotographic system such as copying machines, printers, facsimiles, or multifunction products provided with these functions, a cylindrical toner container for supplying toner to a developing device is known (see, for example, Patent document 1). 
     In Patent document 1 and the like, a toner container (toner bottle) replaceably installed in a toner-container holder (bottle holder) of the main body of the image forming apparatus mainly includes a container body and a held portion (cap portion). A spiral-shaped projection is provided along the inner circumferential surface of the container body, and the toner contained in the container body is conveyed toward an opening through rotation of the container body. The held portion communicates with the opening of the container body, and it is non-rotatably held by the toner-container holder, i.e., it does not rotate with the container body. The toner output from the opening of the container body is discharged from a toner outlet provided in the held portion. Thereafter, the toner discharged from the toner outlet of the held portion is supplied to the developing device. 
     The toner container configured in the above manner can reduce toner stain upon replacement of the toner container as compared with toner containers (see, for example, Patent document 2) each of which has no held portion and directly supplies toner from the opening of the container body to the developing device. More specifically, because the toner outlet of the held portion is opened or closed in synchronization with part of attachment/detachment operation (rotating operation) of the toner container, such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet can be suppressed. Further, the toner outlet is formed downwardly in the lower part of the toner container in the vertical direction, and when the toner container is getting empty, the amount of toner near the toner outlet can be reduced due to the drop by its own weight. Therefore, the toner stain in the toner outlet upon replacement of the toner container is reduced. 
     More specifically, in Patent document 1 and the like, when the toner container is to be attached to the toner-container holder in the main body of the apparatus, at first, a main-body cover (stack portion) is opened upwardly and the toner-container holder is exposed. Then, the toner container is placed on the toner-container holder from the upper side thereof. Thereafter, a handle integrally provided to the held portion is held, so that the held portion is rotated (rotating operation). With this operation, an engaging portion formed in the end face of the held portion is engaged with a positioning member of an apparatus body, and the position of the toner container in the toner-container holder is fixed. Furthermore, the toner outlet provided in the held portion is moved to the lower part in response to the rotation of the held portion, and a shutter opens the toner outlet downwardly so as to resist the biasing force of a spring. 
     On the other hand, Patent document 3 or the like discloses a toner storage container (toner container) having a bag container and a cap member. A toner outlet of the cap member is opened/closed in synchronization with a partial operation (rotating operation of an open/close folder) of the attachment/detachment operation of the main body provided a screw pump, for the purpose of reducing toner stain (toner scatter) occurring upon the attachment/detachment operation. 
     More specifically, when the toner storage container is attached to the apparatus body, at first, an open/close holder (open/close folder) is rotated around a hinge and the upper side of the open/close holder is exposed. Then, the toner storage container is set in the open/close holder. Thereafter, the open/close holder with the toner storage container set therein is rotated (rotating operation) around the hinge. With this operation, an engaging portion provided on both side faces of a cap member so as to sandwich the toner outlet is engaged with a positioning member of the apparatus body, and the position of the toner-container holder in the apparatus body is fixed. Furthermore, a plug member (shutter member) is pushed by a nozzle (toner conveying pipe) in response to the rotation of the open/close holder so as to resist the biasing force of a spring, to open the toner outlet sealed by a packing (G seal). 
     In the toner storage container described in Patent document 3 or the like, the plug member is pushed by the nozzle (toner conveying pipe) in synchronization with the opening operation of the open/close holder to open the toner outlet sealed by the packing. It can thereby be expected to obtain the effect of reducing the occurrence of toner stain. 
     However, there is a disadvantage such that the toner amount of the toner storage container cannot be increased, which leads to an increase in the replacement frequency of the toner storage container. More specifically, the toner storage container has a bag container which contains toner and is provided along the vertical direction as its longitudinal direction. Therefore, if the toner amount is desired to be increased, the height of the toner storage container is inevitably increased. This causes the height of the open/close holder to be increased, to affect the layout in the height of the whole image forming apparatus. Therefore, the toner amount of the toner storage container cannot be increased so much, and the replacement frequency thereby increases more as compared with the toner containers (of which longitudinal direction is the horizontal direction) according to Patent document 1 and the like. 
     In conventional image forming apparatuses using an electrophotographic system such as copying machines, printers, facsimiles, or multifunction products provided with these functions, a cylindrical toner bottle for supplying toner to a developing device is known (see, for example, Patent document 4). 
     In Patent document 4 or the like, a toner bottle replaceably provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus mainly includes a bottle body (container body) and a case (container supply unit). A spiral-shaped projection is provided in the inner circumferential surface of the bottle body, and the toner contained in the bottle body is conveyed toward an opening through rotation of the bottle body. The case communicates with the opening of the bottle body, and is held by the main body of the image forming apparatus without following the rotation of the bottle body. The toner discharged from the opening of the bottle body is discharged from the toner outlet (toner supply port) provided in the case. Thereafter, the toner discharged from the toner outlet of the case is supplied to the developing device. 
     The toner bottle configured in the above manner allows improvement of the operability/workability for the user to replace toner bottles, as compared with the toner bottle (see, for example, Patent document 5) which has no case provided therein and directly supplies the toner from the opening of the bottle body to the developing device. More specifically, because the toner outlet of the case is opened/closed in synchronization with attachment/detachment operation of the toner bottle, such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet can be suppressed. 
     On the other hand, Patent document 4 discloses a technology for a toner bottle including a bottle body and a case, in which to prevent such a failure as toner leakage from a gap between the bottle body and the case, a seal member (seal) for sealing a gap between mutually opposite areas of the bottle body and the case is provided around the opening of the bottle body. Further, another technology of using a concave-shaped seal member is disclosed.
     Patent document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-287404   Patent document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-338758   Patent document 3: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-161371   Patent document 4: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-214669   Patent document 5: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-233248   

     Each of the toner containers (toner container including a container body and a held portion) disclosed in Patent document 1 or the like has features such that there is less toner stain upon replacement of the toner containers and the replacement frequency can be reduced because the toner amount in the toner container can be increased. 
     However, when the user, the seller, the distributor, and the manufacturer stock the toner containers (which are not yet used before being set in the image forming apparatus), and if the toner container is stood on a horizontal plane (an arbitrary plane for placing) with the held portion directed vertically downward, the toner on the side of the held portion may sometimes be aggregated. 
     In other words, when the held portion is directed downward, the toner is deposited on the side of the held portion by its own weight, which may lead to toner aggregation. If the toner container with the toner aggregated on the side of the held portion is set in the image forming apparatus, the toner is insufficiently discharged from the toner outlet, which also causes the toner not to be supplied sufficiently to the developing device. Furthermore, if a toner lump is produced caused by the toner aggregation, this may cause a failure in toner conveyance or an abnormal image. 
     These problems quite often occur especially when the toner container with the held portion directed vertically downward is left standing for a long time or under high-temperature and high-humidity environments. 
     The present invention has been achieved to solve at least the conventional problems, and it is an object to provide a toner container and an image forming apparatus in which toner is never aggregated on the side of its held portion when the toner container is stocked. 
     Each of the toner containers disclosed in Patent document 1 or so has less toner stain in the toner outlet as compared with that in Patent document 2 or so, and therefore, it can be expected to obtain the effect of preventing such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet. However, the toner containers in Patent document 1 or so are disadvantages in terms of operability/workability upon its attachment/detachment (replacement). 
     A first disadvantage is such that the attachment/detachment operation to/from the toner-container holder is implemented with a plurality of operations. More specifically, the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container includes the plurality of operations such as an operation of opening/closing the main-body cover, an operation of placing/removing the toner container on/from the toner-container holder, and an operation of rotating the held portion. 
     A second disadvantage is such that it is difficult for the user to check that the operation is performed properly nearly until the completion of the attachment operation. More specifically, the user cannot feel certain that the operation is correct at the point in time when the operation of opening the main-body cover and the operation of placing the toner container on the toner-container holder are complete. Thereafter, by rotating the held portion to fix the position of the held portion, the user gains a click feeling of the held portion, and feels certain that no erroneous operation is done. 
     A third disadvantage is such that the upper side of the toner-container holder is restricted in terms of layout. More specifically, to place the toner container on the toner-container holder from the upper side, the operation of opening/closing the main-body cover in the vertical direction is needed. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure space required for layout to open/close the main-body cover and place/remove the toner container. This causes reduction in operability/workability in attachment and detachment of the toner container when a scanner (document reader) or the like is provided above the toner-container holder. 
     On the other hand, in the toner storage container described in Patent document 3 or the like, the plug member is pushed by the nozzle in response to the opening operation of the open/close holder, to open the toner outlet sealed by the packing. Therefore, the effect of reducing occurrence of toner stain can be expected. However, the toner storage container according to Patent document 3 or the like also has some disadvantages in terms of operability/workability upon its attachment/detachment. 
     A first disadvantage is such that the toner amount of the toner storage container cannot be increased and the frequency of replacement of the toner storage container therefore increases. The toner storage container has a longitudinal bag container for containing toner. The bag container is arranged so that it stands vertically. Therefore, if the capacity of the bag container is to be increased, the height of the toner storage container needs to be increased. This causes the height of the open/close holder to be increased, to affect the layout in the height of the whole image forming apparatus. Therefore, the toner amount of the toner storage container cannot be increased so much, and the replacement frequency increases thereby as compared with the toner containers (in which the horizontal direction is set as the longitudinal direction) according to Patent document 1 and the like. 
     A second disadvantage is such that it is difficult for the user to feel certain that no erroneous operation is done. More specifically, because the plug member opens/closes the toner outlet in synchronization with the open/close operation of the open/close holder, it is difficult for the user to feel if the toner outlet is actually opened or closed because the user does not touch the toner storage container during the operation. 
     The present invention has been achieved to solve at least the conventional problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a toner container with high operability/workability during its replacement and capable of reliably reducing occurrence of toner stain, and an image forming apparatus including the same. 
     Because there has been the increasing awareness for protection of environmental resources, high recycling rates (easiness of recycling) are required for toner containers. More specifically, it is demanded that the toner container is configured to be easily filled with toner when it is newly produced, and that in addition to this feature, the toner container is configured to be easily filled with toner when it is recycled without main members of the container being disassembled. 
     The toner bottle described in Patent document 4 may sometimes has some advantages such that the operability/workability upon the replacement is improved as compared with that of Patent document 5, but also has some disadvantages such that toner may be leaked from a gap between the bottle body and the case after the time elapsed. 
     More specifically, the seal member, such as polyurethane foam bonded to an area of the case side which faces the opening, slidably contacts the opening of the rotating bottle body, to prevent leakage of the toner from the gap between the case and the bottle body. On the other hand, by rotating the bottle body which is held improperly as compared with the case which is firmly held by a holding portion of the main body of the image forming apparatus, the bottle body rotates while slightly vibrating in its radial direction (the direction orthogonal to the rotating-axis direction). Such vibrations in the radial direction of the bottle body are repeated over time, the sealing capability of the seal member gradually deteriorates. In other words, the opening is radially vibrated again and again, a deformed shape of the seal member having elasticity (shape to seal the gap) is not fixed, and the restoring force thereof deteriorates, which results in occurrence of a gap in the space which should be sealed. And the toner is leaked from the gap to the outside of the toner bottle. If the toner is leaked to the outside of the toner bottle in this manner, the toner is wasted, and the inside of the image forming apparatus is contaminated with the toner. 
     These problems are not negligible particularly for large-capacity toner bottles produced to reduce the running cost. In other words, to rotate such a toner bottle that the filling amount of toner is increased and the weight of the toner bottle is thereby increased, a large driving force is required. Therefore, the amount of vibration in the radial direction of the opening increases associated with an increase in the torque, uneven rotation, vibration of the bottle body. Furthermore, the operation time (life) of the toner bottle having the large capacity is increased according to the toner amount increased, which causes the time for which the vibration of the opening is affected on the seal member to be increased. 
     On the other hand, Patent document 4 or the like discloses a technology for forming a concave-shaped seal member with which the gap between the bottle body and the case is sealed. However, even if the seal member with elasticity is formed into the concave shape, this shape does not help control the radial vibration of the opening. The effect of directly resolving the problems cannot thereby be expected. 
     The present invention has been achieved to solve at least the conventional problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a toner bottle with high operability/workability during its replacement and without toner leakage over time even if it is increased in capacity, and an image forming apparatus using the same. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to at least partially solve the problems in the conventional technology. 
     According to an aspect of the present invention, a toner container detachably attached to a toner-container holder of a main body of an image forming apparatus, includes a longitudinal container body for containing toner, the container body having a first end and a second end distal to the first end in a length direction of the container body, the container body including a gear configured to engage with a drive gear provided in the main body; a held portion that is attached to the first end of the container body and configured to be detachably attached to the toner-container holder, the held portion including a toner outlet for discharging the toner contained in the container body, the held portion is configured to be held by the toner-container holder in non-rotating manner, and is biased downwardly by a force applied from the drive gear to the gear when the drive gear rotates. 
     According to another aspect of the present invention, a toner container detachably attached to a toner-container holder of a main body of an image forming apparatus, includes a longitudinal container body for containing toner, the container body having a first end and a second end distal to the first end in a length direction of the container body, the container body including a gear configured to engage with a drive gear provided in the main body; and attached to the first end of the container body and configured to be detachably attached to the toner-container holder, the held portion including a toner outlet for discharging the toner contained in the container body, the held portion is configured to be held by the toner-container holder in non-rotating manner, wherein the gear is disposed so as to engage with the drive gear at a position on an opposite side in the vertical direction to the toner outlet with the held portion being held in the toner-container holder. 
     According to still another aspect of the present invention, a toner container detachably attached to a toner-container holder of a main body of an image forming apparatus, includes a longitudinal container body for containing toner, the container body having a first end and a second end distal to the first end in a length direction of the container body; a held portion that is attached to the first end of the container body and configured to be detachably attached to the toner-container holder, the held portion including a toner outlet for discharging the toner contained in the container body, wherein the held portion is held by the toner-container holder, in which the toner container is attached to the toner-container holder along the length direction of the container body so that the held portion is located as a head of the container body in an attachment direction, and the container body is supported by a supporting portion of the toner-container holder at a position on the rear side in the attachment direction. 
     The above and other objects, features, advantages and technical and industrial significance of this invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description of presently preferred embodiments of the invention, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an overall schematic of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-section of an imaging unit in the image forming apparatus of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic of a toner supply path in the image forming apparatus of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a toner-container holder when toner containers are set therein; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a toner container to be set in the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-section of the head side of the toner container of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a front view of the toner container of  FIG. 6  when viewed from the M direction; 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the toner-container holder when the toner containers are not set therein; 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a nozzle; 
         FIG. 10  is a schematic of how the toner container is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 11  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 10 ; 
         FIG. 12  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 13  is a schematic of how the held portion of the toner container is directed vertically downward to face a horizontal plane; 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective view of a package for storing the toner container inside thereof; 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-section of the head side of a toner container according to a second embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 16A  is a schematic of how the toner container of  FIG. 15  is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 16B  is a schematic of how the toner container of  FIG. 15  is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 17A  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 16A ; 
         FIG. 17B  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 16B ; 
         FIG. 18A  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 18B  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 19  is a cross-section of a toner container according to a third embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 20  is a cross-section of a toner container according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 21  is a front view of a plate member set in the toner container of  FIG. 20 ; 
         FIG. 22  is a perspective view of a toner container to be set in the toner-container holder according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 23  is a cross-section of the head side of the toner container of  FIG. 22 ; 
         FIG. 24  is a front view of the toner container of  FIG. 23  when viewed from the direction M; 
         FIG. 25  is a schematic of how the toner container is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 26  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 25 ; 
         FIG. 27  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 28  is a cross-section of the head side of a toner container according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 29A  is a schematic of how the toner container of  FIG. 28  is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 29B  is a schematic of how the toner container of  FIG. 28  is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 30A  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 29A ; 
         FIG. 30B  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 29B ; 
         FIG. 31A  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 31B  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 32  is a cross-section of a toner container according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 33  is a cross-section of a toner container according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 34  is a front view of a plate member set in the toner container of  FIG. 33 ; 
         FIG. 35  is a schematic of a toner supply path according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 36  is a perspective view of the toner-container holder when toner containers are set therein; 
         FIG. 37  is a perspective view of how the toner containers are set in the apparatus body; 
         FIG. 38  is a perspective view of a toner container to be set in the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 39  is a cross-section of the head side of the toner container of  FIG. 38 ; 
         FIG. 40  is a front view of the toner container of  FIG. 39  when viewed from the direction M; 
         FIG. 41  is a cross-section of the rear side of the toner container; 
         FIG. 42  is a perspective view of the toner-container holder when the toner containers are not set therein; 
         FIG. 43  is a perspective view of arm pairs in the toner-container holder, 
         FIG. 44  is an exploded perspective view of the arm pair; 
         FIG. 45  is a schematic of how the toner container is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 46  is a schematic of the state of the arm pairs in  FIG. 45 ; 
         FIG. 47  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 45 ; 
         FIG. 48  is a schematic of the state of the arm pairs in  FIG. 47 ; 
         FIG. 49  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 50  is a schematic of the state of the arm pairs in  FIG. 49 ; 
         FIG. 51  is a graph indicating a change of a load applied from the arm pairs to a moving position of the toner container upon its attachment; 
         FIG. 52  is a cross-section of the head side of a toner container according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 53A  is a schematic of how the toner container of  FIG. 52  is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 53B  is a schematic of how the toner container of  FIG. 52  is attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 54A  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 53A ; 
         FIG. 54B  is a schematic of the attachment of the toner container following the state of  FIG. 53B ; 
         FIG. 55A  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 55B  is a schematic of the toner container attached to the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 56A  is a schematic of a manufacturing process when the toner container is recycled; 
         FIG. 56B  is a schematic of another manufacturing process when the toner container is recycled; 
         FIG. 57  is a cross-section of a toner container according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 58  is a cross-section of a toner container according to a twelfth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 59  is a front view of a plate member set in the toner container of  FIG. 58 ; 
         FIG. 60A  is a schematic of a toner container according to a thirteenth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 60B  is a schematic of the toner container according to the thirteenth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 61A  is a schematic of another type of the toner container; 
         FIG. 61B  is a schematic of the another type of the toner container; 
         FIG. 62A  is a schematic of still another type of the toner container; 
         FIG. 62B  is a schematic of the still another type of the toner container; 
         FIG. 63  is an overall schematic of an image forming apparatus according to a fourteenth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 64  is a cross-section of an imaging unit in the image forming apparatus of  FIG. 63 ; 
         FIG. 65  is a schematic of a toner supply portion in the image forming apparatus of  FIG. 63 ; 
         FIG. 66  is a perspective view of a toner bottle to be set in the image forming apparatus of  FIG. 63 ; 
         FIG. 67  is a cross-section of the head side of the toner bottle of  FIG. 66 ; 
         FIG. 68A  is a schematic of how the toner bottle is attached to a bottle holder; 
         FIG. 68B  is a schematic of how the toner bottle is attached to the bottle holder; 
         FIG. 69A  is a schematic of the toner bottle attached to the bottle holder; 
         FIG. 69B  is a schematic of the toner bottle attached to the bottle holder; 
         FIG. 70  is a cross-section of part of a toner bottle according to a fifteenth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 71  is a cross-section of part of a toner bottle according to a sixteenth embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 72  is a schematic of the toner container in which a plug member closes the toner outlet when viewed from the holder; 
         FIG. 73  is a schematic of the toner container when attached to the toner-container holder and the plug member opens the toner outlet when viewed from the holder; 
         FIG. 74  is a schematic of the holder and a snap mechanism for engaging the holder with the held portion; 
         FIG. 75  is a perspective view of details of the components of the holder; 
         FIG. 76  is a schematic of how the plug member is displaced and the protrusion portion slightly moves to the side where the toner outlet is opened; 
         FIG. 77  is a schematic of how a second protrusion portion closes a space between the storage portion and the protrusion portion; 
         FIG. 78A  is a perspective view of how the engaging portions of the toner container face the positioning members of the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 78B  is a side view of how the engaging portion of the toner container faces the positioning member of the toner-container holder; 
         FIG. 79A  is a perspective view of how the held portion starts to be engaged with the positioning members; 
         FIG. 79B  is a partially cross-sectional side view of how the held portion starts to be engaged with the positioning members; 
         FIG. 80A  is a perspective view of how the claw member is pushed downward to a position where the attachment of the held portion is not obstructed; 
         FIG. 80B  is a partially cross-sectional side view of how the claw member is pushed downward to the position where the attachment of the held portion is not obstructed; 
         FIG. 81A  is a perspective view of how the claw member returns to the default position so that the claw member is engaged with the engaging portion of the plug member after the push shown in  FIG. 80A  and  FIG. 80B ; 
         FIG. 81B  is a partially cross-sectional side view of how the claw member returns to the default position so that the claw member is engaged with the engaging portion of the plug member after the push shown in  FIG. 80A  and  FIG. 80B ; 
         FIG. 82  is a schematic diagram of the front portion of four toner containers as arranged within an image forming apparatus; 
         FIGS. 83A-83C  are perspective views of a cap or held portion of a black toner container; 
         FIG. 83D  is a perspective view of a black toner container; 
         FIGS. 84A-84C  are perspective views of a cap or held portion of a cyan toner container; 
         FIG. 84D  is a perspective view of a cyan toner container; 
         FIGS. 85A-85C  are perspective views of a cap or held portion of a yellow toner container; 
         FIG. 85D  is a perspective view of a yellow toner container; 
         FIGS. 86A-86C  are perspective views of a cap or held portion of a magenta toner container; 
         FIG. 86D  is a perspective view of a magenta toner container; 
         FIG. 87A  is a perspective view of an exemplary image forming apparatus which receives the toner containers of the present invention; 
         FIG. 87B  is a close-up of a perspective view of the toner containers inserted into the image forming apparatus; 
         FIG. 88A  is a schematic view of en enclosure plate; 
         FIG. 88B  is a perspective view of the enclosure plate; 
         FIG. 89A  is a perspective view of an embodiment of a toner bottle, and  FIG. 89B  is a front view of the toner bottle; 
         FIGS. 90A and 90B  are side views of a toner bottle of the present invention; 
         FIG. 91  is a side view of a variation of a toner bottle used with the invention; 
         FIGS. 92A-92E  are five views of another toner bottle which may be used with the invention; 
       FIGS.  92 F( 1 )- 92 F( 3 ) show a gear which is used with the toner bottle of  FIGS. 92A-92E ; 
         FIG. 92G  shows the toner bottle of  FIGS. 92A-92E  having the gear of FIGS.  92 F( 1 )- 92 F( 3 ) mounted thereto; and 
         FIGS. 93A-93E  are views of toner bottle according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are explained in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. In the drawings, the same or an equivalent portion is assigned with the same reference letter or numeral, and explanation of the overlapping portions are simplified or omitted if not necessary. 
     A first embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 14 . The configuration and operation of the overall image forming apparatus are explained first with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 1  is an overall schematic of a printer as the image forming apparatus,  FIG. 2  is a cross-section of an imaging unit of the image forming apparatus,  FIG. 3  is a schematic of a toner supply path thereof, and  FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a part of a toner-container holder. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , four toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K correspond to colors (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) and are detachably (replaceably) arranged in a toner-container holder  31  which is provided in the upper side of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100 . Provided in the lower side of the toner-container holder  31  is an intermediate transfer unit  15 . Imaging units  6 Y,  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K corresponding to the colors (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) are arranged in a tandem manner so as to face an intermediate transfer belt  8  of the intermediate transfer unit  15 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the imaging unit  6 Y corresponding to yellow includes a photosensitive drum  1 Y, and also includes a charger  4 Y, a developing device  5 Y (developing unit), a cleaning unit  2 Y, and a decharger (not shown), which are arranged around the photosensitive drum  1 Y. Imaging processes (charging process, exposing process, developing process, transfer process, and cleaning process) are preformed on the photosensitive drum  1 Y, and an yellow image is formed on the photosensitive drum  1 Y. 
     The other three imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K have almost the same configuration as the imaging unit  6 Y corresponding to yellow, except different toner colors to be used, and images corresponding to the respective toner colors are formed. Hereinafter, explanation of the other three imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K is omitted, and only the imaging unit  6 Y for yellow is explained below. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the photosensitive drum  1 Y is made to rotate in the clockwise in  FIG. 2  by a drive motor (not shown). The surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y is uniformly charged at the position of the charger  4 Y (charging process). Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches a position of radiating a laser light L emitted from an exposing device  7  (see  FIG. 1 ), where an exposing light is scanned to form an electrostatic latent image for yellow (exposing process). 
     Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches a position of facing the developing device  5 Y, where the electrostatic latent image is developed and a yellow toner image is formed (developing process). Then, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches a position of facing the intermediate transfer belt  8  and a primary-transfer bias roller  9 Y, where the toner image on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt  8  (primary transfer process). At this time, a slight amount of non-transferred toner remains on the photosensitive drum  1 Y. 
     Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches a position of facing the cleaning unit  2 Y, where the non-transferred toner remaining on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is mechanically collected by a cleaning blade  2   a  (cleaning process). The surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y finally reaches a position of facing the decharger (not shown), where the residual potential on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is removed. 
     The imaging processes are performed on the other imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K in the same manner as those of the yellow imaging unit  6 Y. In other words, the laser light L based on image information is radiated from the exposing device  7  provided in the lower side of the imaging unit toward each photosensitive drum of the imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K. More specifically, the exposing device  7  emits the laser light L from its light source, and radiates the laser light L onto the photosensitive drum through a plurality of optical elements while scanning the laser light L by a polygon mirror which is rotated. Then, respective color toner images formed on the photosensitive drums through the developing process are superposedly transferred on the intermediate transfer belt  8 . In this manner, a color image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt  8 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the intermediate transfer unit  15  includes the intermediate transfer belt  8 , four primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K, a secondary-transfer backup roller  12 , a cleaning backup roller  13 , a tension roller  14 , and an intermediate-transfer cleaning unit  10 . The intermediate transfer belt  8  is stretched and supported by three rollers  12  to  14 , and is endlessly moved in the direction of an allow (i.e., in the direction shown by the arrow) in  FIG. 1  by the rotation of the roller  12 . 
     The four primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K sandwich the intermediate transfer belt  8  with the photosensitive drum  1 Y and photosensitive drums  1 M,  1 C, and  1 K, to form each primary transfer nip. And the transfer bias inverse to the polarity of toner is applied to the primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K. Then, the intermediate transfer belt  8  moves along the arrow direction and sequentially passes through the primary transfer nips of the primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K. In this manner, the toner images for the colors on the photosensitive drums  1 Y,  1 M,  1 C, and  1 K are sequentially superposed on the intermediate transfer belt  8  to perform primary transfer. 
     Thereafter, the intermediate transfer belt  8  with the toner images for the colors superposedly transferred reaches the position of facing a secondary transfer roller  19 . At this position, the secondary-transfer backup roller  12  sandwiches the intermediate transfer belt  8  with the secondary transfer roller  19  to form a secondary transfer nip. The four-color toner images formed on the intermediate transfer belt  8  are transferred to a transferred material P such as a transfer paper conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip. At this time, non-transferred toner which has not been transferred to the transferred material P remains on the intermediate transfer belt  8 . 
     Thereafter, the intermediate transfer belt  8  reaches the position of the intermediate-transfer cleaning unit  10 , where the non-transferred toner on the intermediate transfer belt  8  is collected. In this manner, a series of the transfer process performed on the intermediate transfer belt  8  is completed. 
     The transferred material P conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip is conveyed thereto from a paper feed unit  26  provided in the lower side of the apparatus body  100  through a paper feed roller  27  and a registration roller pair  28 . More specifically, the transferred material P such as transfer paper is stored in plurality in the paper feed unit  26 . When the paper feed roller  27  is made to rotate in the counterclockwise of  FIG. 1 , the uppermost transferred material P is fed to the rollers of the registration roller pair  28 . 
     The transferred material P conveyed to the registration roller pair  28  once stops at the position of a roller nip between the registration roller pair  28  that stops its rotation. Then, the registration roller pair  28  is rotated in synchronization with the color images on the intermediate transfer belt  8 , and the transferred material P is conveyed toward the secondary transfer nip. In this manner, a desired color image is transferred to the transferred material P. 
     The transferred material P with the color image transferred at the position of the secondary transfer nip is conveyed to the position of a fixing unit  20 , where the color image transferred to the surface of the transferred material P is fixed on the transferred material P under heat and pressure by a fixing roller and a pushing roller. Thereafter, the transferred material P is ejected to the outside the apparatus through rollers of a paper-discharge roller pair  29 . The transferred material P ejected to the outside the apparatus by the paper-discharge roller pair  29  is sequentially stacked on the stack portion  30 , as an output image. In this manner, a series of the imaging forming processes in the image forming apparatus is completed. 
     The configuration and the operation of the developing device in the imaging unit are explained in further detail below with reference to  FIG. 2 . The developing device  5 Y includes a developing roller  51 Y that faces the photosensitive drum  1 Y, a doctor blade  52 Y that faces the developing roller  51 Y, two conveyor screws  55 Y provided in developer storage units  53 Y and  54 Y, and the density detection sensor  56 Y for detecting toner density in the developer. The developing roller  51 Y includes a magnet fixed inside thereof and a sleeve rotating around the magnet. Two-component developer G containing carrier and toner is stored in the developer storage units  53 Y and  54 Y. The developer storage unit  54 Y communicates with a toner conveying pipe  43 Y through the opening formed in the upper side of the developer storage unit  54 Y. 
     The developing device  5 Y configured in the above manner operates as follows. The sleeve of the developing roller  51 Y rotates in the arrow direction of  FIG. 2 . The developer G carried on the developing roller  51 Y by the magnetic field formed by the magnet moves along the developing roller  51 Y associated with rotation of the sleeve. 
     The developer G in the developing device  5 Y is controlled so that the proportion (toner density) of the toner in the developer is in a predetermined range. More specifically, the toner contained in the toner container  132 Y is supplied to the developer storage unit  54 Y through a toner supply device  59  (see  FIG. 3 ) according to toner consumption in the developing device  5 Y. It is noted that each configuration and operation of the toner supply device  59  and the toner container  132 Y are explained in detail later. 
     Thereafter, the toner supplied to the developer storage unit  54 Y circulates (movement in the vertical direction on the paper of  FIG. 2 ) in the two developer storage units  53 Y and  54 Y while being mixed with the developer G and stirred. The toner in the developer G is attracted to the carrier by frictional charge with the carrier, and is carried on the developing roller  51 Y together with the carrier by the magnetic force formed on the developing roller  51 Y. 
     The developer G carried on the developing roller  51 Y is conveyed in the arrow direction (counterclockwise) of  FIG. 2  to reach the position of the doctor blade  52 Y. At this position, the amount of developer is made appropriate, and then the developer G on the developing roller  51 Y is conveyed to the position (developing region) of facing the photosensitive drum  1 Y. The toner is attracted to the latent image formed on the photosensitive drum  1 Y by the electric field formed in the developing region. Then, the developer G remaining on the developing roller  51 Y reaches the upper side of the developer storage unit  53 Y associated with the rotation of the sleeve, where the developer G is separated from the developing roller  51 Y. 
     The toner supply device  59  that leads the toner contained in the toner container  132 Y (agent storage container) to the developing device  5 Y is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 3 . For easy understanding,  FIG. 3  depicts changed arrangement of the toner container  32 Y, toner supply paths  43 Y,  60 ,  70 , and  71 , and the developing device  5 Y. Actually, in  FIG. 3 , the longitudinal direction of the toner container  32 Y and part of the toner supply path is arranged in the vertical direction on the paper (see  FIG. 1 ). 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , the toner in the toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K arranged in the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100  is supplied to each of the developing devices if necessary through the toner supply paths provided for each toner color according to each toner consumption in the developing devices for the colors. The four toner supply paths have almost the same configuration as one other except different toner color used for each imaging process. 
     More specifically, the toner container  132 Y is set in the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , and a nozzle  70  of the toner-container holder  31  is connected to a held portion  134 Y (cap) of the toner container  132 Y. A plug member  34   d  (open/close member) of the toner container  132 Y opens the toner outlet (supply port) of the held portion  34 Y in this state. This allows the toner contained in a container body  133 Y of the toner container  132 Y to be conveyed into the nozzle  70  through the toner outlet. 
     On the other hand, the other end of the nozzle  70  is connected to one end of a tube  71  as a conveyor tube ( 71 ). The tube  71  is made of flexible material excellent in toner resistance, and the other end thereof is connected to a screw pump  60  (Mohno pump) of the toner supply device  59 . The tube  71  being the conveyor tube ( 71 ) is formed so that its internal diameter is 4 to 10 mm. The material of the tube  71  is allowed to use a rubber material such as polyurethane, nitrile, EPDM, and silicone, and a resin material such as polyethylene, and nylon. Such a flexible tube  71  is used to enhance flexibility in layout of the toner supply path, thus downsizing of the image forming apparatus. 
     The screw pump  60  is a suction-type uniaxial eccentric screw pump, and includes a rotor  61 , a stator  62 , a suction port  63 , a universal joint  64 , and a motor  66 . The rotor  61 , the stator  62 , and the universal joint  64  are accommodated in a casing (not shown). The stator  62  is a female screw member made of an elastic material such as rubber, and a spiral-shaped groove with double pitch is formed along the inside of the stator  62 . The rotor  61  is a male screw member in which an axis made of a rigid material such as metal is spirally formed, and is rotatably inserted in the stator  62 . One end of the rotor  61  is rotatably joined to the motor  66  through the universal joint  64 . In the first embodiment, the spiral direction (turning direction) and the rotational direction of the rotor  61  are set so as to match the spiral direction (turning direction) and the rotational direction of the projection  33   b  formed in the container body  133 Y of the toner container  132 Y. 
     The screw pump  60  configured in the above manner generates suction force at the suction port  63  (air in the tube  71  is sent out to generate a negative pressure in the tube  71 ) by rotating the rotor  61  of the stator  62  by the motor  66  in a predetermined direction (counterclockwise when viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction). This allows the toner in the toner container  132 Y with the air to be sucked to the suction port  63  through the tube  71 . The toner sucked to the suction port  63  is sent into a gap between the stator  62  and the rotor  61  and is fed to the other end side along the rotation of the rotor  61 . The toner fed is discharged from a feed port  67  of the screw pump  60 , to be supplied to the developing device  5 Y through the toner conveying pipe  43 Y (movement in the arrow direction indicated by a dotted line in  FIG. 3 ). In the first embodiment, the rotor  61  of the screw pump  60  is made to rotate in the counterclockwise viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction. The spiral direction (turning direction) of the rotor  61  is set to be a rightward direction. This setting and rotation of the rotor  61  cause a spiral air flow spiraling in clockwise to be created in the screw pump  60 . 
     The toner container is explained below with reference to  FIG. 5  to  FIG. 7 . As explained with reference to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 4 , the four substantially cylindrical toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K (toner bottles) are detachably provided in the toner-container holder  31 . The toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K are replaced with new ones when they come to the end of their lives (when almost all of toner contained is consumed and the container becomes empty). The toner of each color contained in the toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K is supplied as necessary to each developing device of the imaging units  6 Y,  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K through each toner supply path explained with reference to  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the toner container  132 Y.  FIG. 6  is a cross-section of a head side (the side where the held portion  134 Y is provided) of the toner container  132 Y.  FIG. 7  is a schematic of the toner container  132 Y of  FIG. 6  when viewed from the M direction in  FIG. 6 . The other three toner containers  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K have almost the same configuration as the toner container  132 Y containing yellow toner, except different toner colors contained and locations of a concave portion  34   m  and a convex portion  34   n . Hereinafter, explanation of the other three toner containers  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K is omitted, and only the toner container  132 Y containing yellow toner is explained below. 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , the toner container  132 Y (toner bottle) mainly includes the container body  133 Y (toner holder) and the held portion  134 Y (bottle cap, cap portion) provided in the head thereof. In the first embodiment, the held portion  134 Y is formed into the shape obtained by adding the protrusion portion being a rectangle to the cylinder, but the protrusion portion may be formed into any shape of a hemisphere, a cone, and a shape obtained by cutting off the apex of a cone by a plane parallel with its bottom or a like so as to prevent the container body  133 Y from being erected. 
     The head of the container body  133 Y includes a gear  33   c  integrally rotating with the container body  133 Y, and an opening A (see  FIG. 6 ). The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  133 Y (front end position when it is attached), and is used to discharge the toner contained in the container body  133 Y into the space (cavity) of the held portion  134 Y. 
     The gear  33   c  is engaged with a drive gear (not shown) of a drive unit provided in the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , to rotate the container body  133 Y around a rotating axis (indicated by a chain line of  FIG. 6 ). More specifically, the gear  33   c  is exposed from a notched portion  34   h  formed in the held portion  134 Y and engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  in an engagement position D shown in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7 . Part of the held portion  134 Y excluding the notched portion  34   h  serves as a guide member which covers part (portion not exposed from the notched portion  34   h ) of the gear  33   c . It is thereby possible to reduce contamination of the gear  33   c  with the toner. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , a gripper  33   d  is provided in an rear end portion (bottom) of the container body  133 Y so that the user can grip it for attachment/detachment of the toner container  132 Y. A spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is provided along the inner circumferential surface of the container body  133 Y (spiral-shaped groove when viewed from the outer peripheral side). The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is used to discharge the toner from the opening A by rotating the container body  133 Y in a predetermined direction. The container body  133 Y configured in this manner can be manufactured by blow molding after the gear  33   c  provided on its circumferential surface is formed by injection molding. The toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment has a stirring member  33   f  rotating together with the container body  133 Y provided in the opening A. The stirring member  33   f  is a rod-shaped member or a plate member which is extended from the space in the held portion  134 Y toward the container body  133 Y and is provided at an angle to the rotating axis (indicated by the chain line in  FIG. 6 ). Rotation of the stirring member  33   f  together with the container body  133 Y allows improvement of toner discharging capability from the opening A. 
     In the first embodiment, the container body  133 Y of the toner container  132 Y is made to rotate in the counterclockwise viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction. Moreover, the spiral direction (turning direction) of the projection  33   b  in the container body  133 Y is set to a rightward direction. With this setting, the rotation of the container body  133 Y causes a spiral air flow spiraling in clockwise to be created in the toner container  132 Y (the same direction as the rotational direction of the spiral air flow created in the screw pump  60 ). 
     Referring to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6 , the held portion  134 Y includes a cap main portion  34   a , a cap cover  34   b , a holder  34   c , the plug member  34   d  as the open/close member, packing  34   e , and an ID chip (electronic component)  35 . Referring to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 7 , an engaging portion  34   g  (groove portion) with which a positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  is engaged is provided on both sides of the held portion  134 Y. The concave portion  34   m  into which a fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder  31  is fitted is provided on the end face of the held portion  134 Y. The convex portion  34   n  fitting into another fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder  31  is provided on the circumferential surface of the held portion  134 Y. Further, the notched portion  34   h  from which a part of the gear  33   c  is exposed is provided on the upper side of the held portion  134 Y. 
     The held portion  134 Y communicates with the container body  133 Y through the opening A, and discharges the toner discharged from the opening A, from the toner outlet B (movement along the arrow direction indicated by the dotted line of  FIG. 6 ). In the first embodiment, the cavity (space) formed inside the held portion  134 Y is almost cylindrically formed. The toner discharge path (vertical path) from the almost cylindrical cavity formed inside the held portion  134 Y up to the toner outlet B is formed in a mortar shape. With this shape, the toner delivered through the rotation of the container body  33 Y is temporarily stacked in the mortar, and the suction force of the screw pump  60  on the side of the apparatus body  100  is transmitted to the toner efficiently stacked. Therefore, toner conveyance capability of the toner which is discharged from the toner outlet B and moves along the inside of the tube  71  is improved. 
     The held portion  134 Y does not follow the rotation of the container body  133 Y, but is held in a non-rotating manner by a holding portion  73  (see  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 8 ) of the toner-container holder  31  while the engaging portion  34   g  is engaged with the positioning member  31   c . In this manner, the engaging portion  34   g  serves as an assist element to mechanically assist the attachment operation (or attachment/detachment operation) of the toner container  132 Y to the toner-container holder  31  (to assist it on the hardware side). In the application of this invention, the expression “to mechanically assist the attachment operation of the toner container to the toner-container holder” means an assistant operation performed so that the insertion operation or the positioning operation is facilitated when the toner container is attached to the toner-container holder to fix the position thereof. Therefore, the mechanical assist element includes the engaging portion  34   g  for being engaged with the positioning member  31   c , the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  explained later, and a baffle member of the toner container (not shown). 
     In the first embodiment, the engaging portion  34   g  as the assist element is provided in the upper side in the vertical direction with respect to the toner outlet B (or plug member  34   d ). With this configuration above, even if the toner scatters from the toner outlet B to the outside of the toner container  132 Y, the scattered toner hardly reaches the position of the engaging portion  34   g  (or the positioning member  31   c ). It is therefore possible to reduce a failure in engagement between the engaging portion  34   g  and the positioning member  31   c  because of the engaging portion  34   g  (or the positioning member  31   c ) becoming stained with the scattered toner. 
     In the first embodiment, the engaging portion  34   g  being the assist element is provided in an upper side higher than the toner outlet B in the vertical direction and comparatively closer to the toner outlet B. More specifically, the engaging portion  34   g  is provided in an upper side higher than the toner outlet B in the vertical direction and in a lower side lower than the ID chip  35  (information recorded chip) in the vertical direction. With this configuration, even if there is large rattle between the engaging portion  34   g  and the positioning member  31   c , or even if the held portion  134 Y is deformed due to environmental changes, the nozzle  70  and the plug member  34   d  are hardly displaced, and such a failure that the nozzle  70  does not push the plug member  34   d  can be reduced. 
     The cap cover  34   b  of the held portion  134 Y is bonded to the circumferential surface of the cap main portion  34   a . A claw  34   b   1  is provided at the front of the cap cover  34   b . The claw  34   b   1  is engaged with an engaging member formed in the head of the container body  133 Y, and the container body  133 Y is thereby held relatively rotatably with respect to the held portion  134 Y. To smoothly rotate the container body  33 Y, the claw  34   b   1  of the held portion  134 Y and the engaging member of the container body  133 Y are engaged with each other by maintaining appropriate clearance therebetween. 
     A seal member  37  is adhered to the surface of the held portion  134 Y that faces a front end  33   a  around the opening A of the container body  133 Y. The seal member  37  is used for sealing the gap which is around the opening A and is between the surfaces of the container body  133 Y and the held portion  134 Y that mutually face each other, and is made of an elastic material such as polyurethane foam. 
     The holder  34   c  is provided in the lower side of the held portion  134 Y. Provided in the holder  134   c  is the plug member  34   d  (shutter) as the open/close member for opening/closing the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  132 Y. The packing  34   e  such as G seal is provided on the both sides of the plug member  34   d  to prevent toner leakage from near the plug member  34   d . Although it is not shown in the figure, by setting the toner container  132 Y in the toner-container holder  31 , a lever (biasing member) for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction of closing the toner outlet B is engaged with the right side of the plug member  34   d . Furthermore, the engaging portion between the holder  34   c  and the cap  34   a  is provided with the packing such as the O-ring to prevent toner leakage from both of the gaps. 
     The ID chip  35  of the held portion  134 Y is configured to face a communication circuit  74  (terminal) of the toner-container holder  31  with a predetermined distance therebetween, in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  132 Y to the toner-container holder  31 . The ID chip (electronic component)  35  may be an IC chip processed to a tag or a label used by, for example, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification: non-contact automatic recognizing technology using radio waves). More specifically, the ID chip  35  is provided on a protrusion portion  34   a   1  of the held portion  134 Y that protrudes in the direction (i.e., in the direction shown by the arrow in  FIG. 5 ) in which the held portion  34 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31 , and which is provided on the plane orthogonal to the attachment direction. In other words, the toner container  132 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  so that the ID chip  35  is located more forward than the toner outlet B. The ID chip  35  performs non-contact communication (radio communication) with the communication circuit  74  of the apparatus body while the held portion  134 Y is held in the toner-container holder  31 . The protrusion portion  34   a   1  provided in the held portion  134 Y has a wall portion  34   a   2  to cover the periphery of the ID chip  35 . By covering the ID chip  35  with the wall portion  34   a   2 , the scattered toner is hardly deposited on the ID chip  35 . 
     The ID chip  35  previously stores various types of information related to the toner container  132 Y. On the other hand, the communication circuit  74  of the toner-container holder  31  exchanges the information by radio with the ID chip  35  while the toner container  132 Y is set in the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the information stored in the ID chip  35  is transmitted to a controller  75  (see  FIG. 5 ) of the apparatus body  100  through the communication circuit  74 , or the information for the apparatus body  100  acquired by the controller  75  is transmitted to the ID chip  35  and stored therein. 
     The ID chip  35  stores information regarding toner such as toner colors, serial numbers of toner (production lot), and dates of toner production, and information regarding recycling of the toner container  132 Y such as number of times of recycling, dates of recycling, and recycling manufacturers. The ID chip  35  stores information regarding the toner container. When the toner container  132 Y is set in the toner-container holder  31 , the information stored in the ID chip  35  is transmitted to the controller  75  of the apparatus body  100  through the electric circuit  74 . The apparatus body  100  is optimally controlled based on these pieces of information. For example, if the toner color is different from the toner color that should be set in the toner-container holder, the operation of the toner supply device  59  can be stopped, or imaging conditions can be changed according to the serial number or the recycling manufacturer. 
     In this manner, the ID chip  35  serves as an assist element to electrically assist (assist on the software side) the attachment operation (or the attachment/detachment operation) of the toner container  132 Y to the toner-container holder  31 . The expression “to electrically assist the attachment operation of the toner container to the toner-container holder” in this application indicates the communication operation performed to detect (detection of setting) whether the toner container is operatively set in the toner-container holder, upon being set or thereafter. Therefore, communication of information on the toner container which is not directly related to the attachment operation indicates that it is not the one “to electrically assist the attachment operation”. 
     In the first embodiment, the ID chip  35  being the assist element is provided in the upper side vertically with respect to the toner outlet B (or the plug member  34   d ). Furthermore, the ID chip  35  is provided on the protrusion portion  34   a   1  protruded from the toner outlet B (or the plug member  34   d ), which is surrounded by the wall portion  34   a   2 . Therefore, even if the toner scatters from the toner outlet B (or the plug member  34   d ) to the outside of the toner container  132 Y, the scattered toner hardly reaches the position of the ID chip  35  (or the communication circuit  74 ). In other words, such trouble as communication trouble between the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  and leakage caused by the ID chip  35  (or the communication circuit  74 ) becoming stained with the scattered toner can be reduced. 
     Provided in the holder  34   c  of the held portion  134 Y are the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  for sliding along the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment to/from the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, a first sliding portion  34   c   1  is a flat portion formed so as to be parallel with a sliding face  31   a  (which is an upward surface; see  FIG. 8 ) of the toner-container holder  31 , the flat portion being provided in the bottom of the held portion  134 Y with which the attachment/detachment is operated. Furthermore, a second sliding portion  34   c   2  is a flat portion formed so as to be parallel with a sliding face (which is a side face) of the toner-container holder  31 , the flat portion being provided in the side portion of the held portion  134 Y with which the attachment/detachment is operated. Therefore, the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  of the toner container  132 Y slide along the toner-container holder  31 , which enables positioning of a rotation angle of the toner container  132 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 7 , the concave portion  34   m  fitted with the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder  31  is provided in a portion which is an end face of the held portion  134 Y and is near the protrusion portion  34   a   1 . The concave portion  34   m  is formed so as to be fitted with the corresponding fitting member  31   d  when the attachment operation to the toner-container holder  31  is correct (when the toner-container holder  31  is attached to the normal position). Therefore, the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  of the toner container  132 Y complete to slide along the toner-container holder  31 , which enables positioning of the toner container  132 Y in the longitudinal direction. 
     More specifically, as shown in  FIG. 7 , positions of the concave portions  34   m  are differently arranged from one another according to each color of toner contained in the toner containers (container bodies). The concave portion  34   m  (C) of the toner container corresponding to cyan and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the uppermost side, and the concave portion  34   m  (M) of the toner container corresponding to magenta and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the upper side of the middle stage. The concave portion  34   m  (Y) of the toner container corresponding to yellow and a corresponding fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder are arranged in the lower side of the middle stage, and the concave portion  34   m  (K) of the toner container corresponding to black and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the lowermost side. This configuration allows prevention of such a failure that a toner container for an inappropriate color (e.g., toner container for yellow) is set in a toner-container holder for a predetermined color (e.g., cyan toner-container holder) and this causes a desired color image not to be formed. 
     Likewise, referring to  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 7 , a convex portion  34   n  with which another fitting member (not shown) is fitted is provided on the circumferential surface of the held portion  134 Y. Like to the concave portion  34   m , the convex portion  34   n  fitted into a corresponding fitting member when the toner container is properly attached to the toner-container holder  31 . It is configured that positions of the convex portions  34   n  are arranged differently from one other according to each color of toner contained in the toner container (container body). Such a configuration as above allows prevention of miss-setting of the toner container in the toner-container holder, similarly to the concave portion  34   m.    
     In this manner, the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  provided in the held portion  134 Y serve as assist elements to mechanically assist the attachment operation of the toner container  132 Y to the toner-container holder  31 . In the first embodiment, the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  being assist elements are provided in the upper side vertically with respect to the toner outlet B (or the plug member  34   d ). Therefore, even if the toner scatters from the toner outlet B (or the plug member  34   d ) to the outside of the toner container  132 Y, the scattered toner hardly reaches the position of the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  (or the fitting member). In other words, such trouble as fitting trouble between the concave portion  34   m  or the convex portion  34   n  and the fitting member caused by the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  (or the fitting member) becoming stained with the scattered toner can be reduced. 
     In the first embodiment, as toner contained in the toner container  132 Y, spherical toner having an average sphericity of 0.90 or more is used. The spherical toner is excellent in fluidity because of its shape, and therefore, the toner can be efficiently and reliably conveyed without blocking the toner supply path such as the tube  71 . The sphericity of a toner particle is defined by the following equation.
 
Sphericity=(Circumferential length of circle having the same area as project area of a particle)/(Circumferential length of a projected image of the particle)
 
     Therefore, when the sphericity is 1.00, the toner particle is perfectly spherical. The average sphericity of toner can be measured by a typical equipment such as Flow Particle Image Analyzer “FPIA-2100” (Manufactured by Toa-Iyo Electric, Co. Ltd.). 
     The configuration of the toner-container holder  31  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9 . Referring to  FIG. 8 , the toner-container holder  31  includes the sliding faces  31   a  each along which a sliding portion in each held portion of the four toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K slides; the holding portion  73  for fixing the positions of the holders  34   c  of the held portions; the nozzles  70 ; drive units (not shown) each for transmitting a rotational driving force to the container body; the communication circuits  74 ; arm pairs  80  for biasing the held portion toward the holding portion  73  in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container; and levers (biasing members)  76  each for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction in which the toner outlet B of the toner container is closed. 
     The holding portion  73  holds the held portions of the toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K each in the non-rotating manner. The holding portion  73  includes sliding faces contacting the holder  34   c , and a contact face contacting a part of the cap cover  34   b . Provided in the sliding faces (side faces) of the holding portion  73  are the positioning members  31   c  for positioning in synchronization with the attachment operation of the held portion  34 Y (see  FIG. 5 ). The positioning member  31   c  is a convex portion extended along the attachment/detachment direction of the toner container  132 Y. Furthermore, the communication circuit  74  and the fitting member  31   d  are provided on the surface of the holding portion  73  in its rear side. The nozzle  70  as shown in  FIG. 9  is arranged in the holding portion  73  for each toner color. Provided in the nozzle  70  is a toner supply port  70   a  communicating with the toner outlet B which is formed in the held portion  134 Y of the toner container  132 Y. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  132 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 10  to  FIG. 12 .  FIG. 10  is a schematic of how the toner container  132 Y for yellow is attached to the toner-container holder  31  when viewed from the longitudinal direction (movement in the direction of an arrow Q).  FIG. 11  is a schematic of how the attachment of the toner container  132 Y is progressed (when the toner outlet B starts to be opened) when viewed from the longitudinal direction.  FIG. 12  is a schematic of the toner container  132 Y attached to the toner-container holder  31  (when the opening of the toner outlet B is completed) when viewed from the longitudinal direction. 
     When the toner container  132 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , at first, the main-body cover (not shown) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 1 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  is opened to expose the toner-container holder  31  to the front side. Then, referring to  FIG. 10 , the toner container  132 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the direction of the arrow Q). More specifically, the toner container  132 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  133 Y (or the toner container  132 Y) so that the held portion  134 Y becomes the head of the container body  133 Y. 
     At this time, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  of the toner-container holder  31  at the head side of the toner container  132 Y, and while sliding, the toner container  132 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  with good balance by the user gripping the gripper  33   d  on the rear side of the toner container  132 Y. 
     Thereafter, when the holder  34   c  of the toner container  132 Y reaches the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31 , positioning of the held portion  134 Y is started while the second sliding portions  34   c   2  are sliding along the sliding faces (side faces) in addition to the sliding of the first sliding portion  34   c   1  along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, the engaging portions  34   g  (assist elements) of the held portion  134 Y and the positioning members  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  start to be engaged with each other. 
     Thereafter, when the attachment operation of the toner container  132 Y is further progressed, the plug member  34   d  starts to open the toner outlet B while the engaging portion  34   g  and the positioning member  31   c  are engaged with each other (the state as shown in FIG.  11 ). More specifically, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70  associated with insertion of the front end of the nozzle  70  into the hole of the holder  34   c . At this time, the arm pairs  80  bias the held portion  134 Y of the toner container  132 Y toward the holding portion  73  (biasing in the direction of the arrow Q) 
     Then, referring to  FIG. 12 , the position of the held portion  34 Y is fixed at the position where the holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73  (reference position for butting), and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B and the gear  33   c  of the toner container  132 Y is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit of the toner-container holder  31 . The ID chip  35  as an electronic substrate faces the communication circuit  74  in the position of enabling radio communication. Furthermore, the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  for securing non-compatibility of toner containers are fitted in the fitting members  31   d  and  31   e  of the apparatus body. The toner outlet B of the toner container  132 Y communicates with the toner supply port  70   a  of the nozzle  70 , and the attachment operation of the toner container  132 Y is completed. 
     When the toner container  132 Y is to be taken out (removed) from the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. In this case, the nozzle  70  also separates from the holder  34   c  in synchronization with the operation such that the toner container  132 Y separates from the holding portion  73 , and the plug member  34   d  is moved to the position of closing the toner outlet B by the biasing force of the levers (biasing members). In this manner, the detachment operation of the toner container  132 Y is completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  132 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a.    
     The toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment includes the held portion  134 Y with the toner outlet B provided vertically downward, and the toner outlet B is provided in the lower side lower than the opening A in the vertical direction. And after the plug member  34   d  is surely positioned in synchronization with the attachment operation, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70  to open the toner outlet B sealed by the packing  34   e . Therefore, there is less toner stain in the toner outlet B, and such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with the toner by touching the toner outlet B is prevented. Moreover, even if the toner is leaked from the toner outlet B, the toner stain in those, such as the ID chip  35 , the engaging portion  34   g , the concave portion  34   m , and the convex portion  34   n , is reduced to enable maintenance of their respective functions, because the ID chip  35 , the engaging portion  34   g , the concave portion  34   m , and the convex portion  34   n  which serve as the assist elements are provided in the upper side in the vertical direction with respect to the toner outlet B (direction in which the toner leaked flies against gravity). 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  132 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is performed by one action associated with sliding of the sliding portion  34   c   1 , and therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  132 Y is improved. Particularly, by providing the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the bottom of the held portion  34 Y, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  while supporting the toner container  132 Y. Moreover, the attachment operation of the toner container  132 Y is performed by starting to slide the sliding portion  34   c   1  while the user directly grips the gripper  33   d , starting positioning of the held portion  134 Y together with biasing by the arm pairs  80 , starting insertion of the nozzle  70 , and finishing the positioning of the held portion  134 Y, the insertion of the nozzle  70 , and the connection to the drive unit as soon as the sliding is finished. Therefore, the user gains a click feeling when the held portion  134 Y is positioned at the same time when the sliding of the held portion  134 Y (attachment operation by one action) is progressed, and feels certain that no erroneous operation occurs in the attachment operation. 
     Furthermore, the toner container  132 Y is not set in the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ) from the upper side thereof, but the attachment/detachment is performed from the front face of the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ), thus, enhancing the flexibility of layout for the upper side of the toner-container holder  31 . For example, even if a scanner (document reader) is disposed right above the toner-container holder, the operability/workability upon attachment/detachment of the toner container  132 Y does not deteriorate. Moreover, the flexibility of layout for the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  of the toner container  132 Y and the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  is also enhanced. The toner container  132 Y is set in the apparatus body  100  with its longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, and therefore, the toner capacity of the toner container  132 Y is increased to enable reduction in the replacement frequency without any effect on the layout in the height direction of the whole image forming apparatus  100 . 
     As explained above, in the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment, the assist elements (ID chip  35 , engaging portion  34   g , concave portion  34   m , and convex portion  34   n ) for mechanically or electrically assist the attachment operation to the toner-container holder  31  are provided in the upper side in the vertical direction with respect to the toner outlet B. Therefore, even if the toner scatters from the toner outlet B to the outside, the scattered toner hardly reaches the positions of the assist elements (ID chip  35 , engaging portion  34   g , concave portion  34   m , and convex portion  34   n ). Consequently, the operability upon the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  132 Y can be improved without reduction in the functions of the assist elements (ID chip  35 , engaging portion  34   g , concave portion  34   m , and convex portion  34   n ). The “assist element” in the toner container  132 Y is not limited to the ID chip  35 , the engaging portion  34   g , the concave portion  34   m , and the convex portion  34   n , and therefore, the present invention is applicable to any “assist element” on which scattered toner is desired not to be deposited. 
     The configuration of the most characteristic toner container in the first embodiment is explained below with reference to  FIG. 13 .  FIG. 13  is a schematic of how the held portion  134 Y of the toner container  132 Y is directed vertically downward to face a horizontal plane H (which is an arbitrary plane, outside the image forming apparatus, where the toner container  132 Y is stood). Because the image forming apparatus cannot operate if the toner container  132 Y set in the toner-container holder  31  runs out of toner, many users stock new toner containers  132 Y for future use. During the stock, to inhibit the toner container  132 Y from being stocked in such a manner that the side of the held portion  134 Y is directed downward with respect to the container body  133 Y, the standing inhibiting unit is provided in the toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment. In other words, as shown in  FIG. 13 , because the toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment includes the standing inhibiting unit, the toner container  132 Y cannot be stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward. Therefore, there is a psychological effect that the user will hesitate to stand it in the above manner because the toner container  132 Y may lose a balance and fall down in the direction of an arrow F. Consequently, there is an effect of preventing the user from standing the toner container  132 Y on the horizontal plane with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward. 
     More specifically, the toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment is configured so that the area of the contact area (protrusion portion  34   a   1 ) of the held portion  134 Y, which contacts the horizontal plane H, is made smaller than the area of the project plane (the area of the cross section orthogonal to the rotating axis) of the container body  133 Y projected to the horizontal plane H in such a manner that the held portion  134 Y is directed vertically downward (state of  FIG. 13 ). Based on the configuration above, there is a psychological effect that the user will hesitate to stand it in this manner because the toner container  132 Y, which is stood with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward, may lose its balance and may easily fall down even if it is stood on the horizontal plane H. 
     As previously explained, the wall portion  34   a   2  is formed around the protrusion portion  34   a   1 , and the ID chip  35  (electronic component), of which periphery is covered with the wall portion  34   a   2 , is provided on the protrusion portion  34   a   1  so as not to be directly contacted with the horizontal plane H. Therefore, the contact area contacting the horizontal plane is strictly the wall portion  34   a   2  of the protrusion portion  34   a   1 . 
     The ID chip  35  provided on the protrusion portion  34   a   1  also serves as the standing inhibiting unit for inhibiting the toner container  132 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward. In other words, because the ID chip  35  is an electronic component to communicate with the communication circuit of the apparatus body  100 , it looks weak for shock. Therefore, there is a psychological effect that the user will hesitate to stand the toner container  132 Y on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward, by providing the ID chip  35  on the area of the held portion which faces the horizontal plane H (when the held portion  134 Y is directed vertically downward). 
     Furthermore, the toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment is configured so that the center (geometrical center of gravity of the area of the contact area) of the contact area (protrusion portion  34   a   1 ) of the held portion  134 Y which contacts the horizontal plane H is displaced with respect to the center (rotating axis of the container body  133 Y) of the project plane of the container body  133 Y, which is projected to the horizontal plane H, in such a manner that the held portion  134 Y is directed vertically downward (state of  FIG. 13 ). Based on the configuration above, there is a psychological effect that the user will hesitate to stand it in this manner because the toner container  132 Y, which is stood on the horizontal plane with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward, may lose its balance even if it is placed on the horizontal plane H, and may easily fall down with slight shock. When the toner container  132 Y (container body  133 Y) is filled with toner (not yet used), the gravity is in the upper side higher as compared with that not filled with toner (in use) if the toner container  132 Y is tried to be stood thereon with the held portion  134 Y directed downward. Therefore, it is further difficult to maintain the toner container  132 Y to be stood thereon with the held portion  134 Y directed downward, which makes it possible to further enhance the effect of preventing the toner container  132 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward during stock of the toner container  132 Y not yet used. 
     Furthermore, in the toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment, the seal  37  being an elastic element provided between the container body  133 Y and the held portion  134 Y serves as the standing inhibiting unit. In other words, by interposing the seal  37 , which is flexible, between the container body  133 Y and the held portion  134 Y, the container body  133 Y is unsteady and becomes easily unstable even if the toner container  132 Y is tried to be properly stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward (state of  FIG. 13 ). As a result, there is a psychological effect that the user will hesitate to stand it thereon in that manner because the toner container  132 Y may easily fall down in the direction of the arrow F. 
     The toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment is configured so that it can be laid on the horizontal plane with its longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction (which is the same posture as that when it is attached to the apparatus body  100 ). More specifically, the bottom of the holder  34   c  provided in the held portion  134 Y is formed into a flat face, so that the toner container  132 Y can be laid on the horizontal plane with this face downward. With the configuration above, the user does not try to stand the toner container  132 Y thereon with the held portion  134 Y directed downward with respect to the container body  133 Y, but naturally lays the toner container  132 Y thereon with the longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction. 
     As explained so far, the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment is provided with the standing inhibiting unit in the held portion  134 Y to inhibit the toner container  132 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  133 Y. Consequently, it is possible to prevent toner aggregation in the side of the held portion  134 Y during stock of the toner container  132 Y. Therefore, the toner is discharged from the toner outlet B of the toner container  132 Y set in the main body of the image forming apparatus  100 , which can prevent such a failure as occurrence of a failure in toner supply to the developing device  5 Y or as occurrence of an abnormal image. 
     A package  40  for packing the toner container  132 Y is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 14 .  FIG. 14  is a perspective view of a package for storing the toner container inside thereof. When the toner container  132 Y stored in the package  40  is distributed, it is sometimes left standing in the package  40  and stocked. 
     The package  40  according to the first embodiment is configured so as not to be stood on the horizontal plane with the longitudinal direction of the toner container packed therein as the vertical direction. More specifically, the end face of the package  40  in the longitudinal direction is formed into an angular head  40   a . Based on the configuration above, the package  40  with the toner container  132 Y stored therein is prevented from being stood thereon with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward, which makes it possible to reliably prevent toner aggregation in the side of the held portion  134 Y during the stock of the toner container  132 Y. In the first embodiment, however, the end face of the package  40  in the longitudinal direction is formed into the angular head  40   a , but it may be formed into a slope or a sphere. In this case also, the same effect as explained above can be obtained. 
     The packing density (packing volume/whole volume) of toner contained in the container body  133 Y of the toner container  132 Y is preferably set to 0.7 or less (more preferably 0.6 or less). If the packing density of the toner exceeds 0.7, toner conveying capability with the projection  33   b  is reduced even if the container body  133 Y is rotated. As a result, the toner cannot be conveyed to the held portion  134 Y, which results in reduction in the toner amount to be discharged from the toner outlet B. However, if the packing density of the toner exceeds 0.6, a lump may easily occur in the toner having been conveyed to the held portion  134 Y even if the packing density is 0.7 or less. When the toner is discharge by using a screw pump, the toner discharge capability may deteriorate because toner lumps may get into the toner outlet B. Thus, it is more preferable that the packing density of the toner be set to 0.6 or less. 
     A manufacturing method of recycling the toner container  132 Y is explained below. The toner container  132 Y according to the first embodiment can be reused by subjecting used products (toner containers with no toner after used in the image forming apparatus) to a recycling process. 
     More specifically, there are two manufacturing methods of recycling toner containers as follows. According to a first manufacturing method of recycling, a removal process is first provided to remove the held portion  134 Y from the container body  133 Y of the toner container  132 Y recovered. Thereafter, a filling process is provided to fill the inside of the container body  133 Y with toner (or two-component developer). Lastly, a fixing process is provided to fix the held portion  134 Y to the container body  133 Y. According to a second manufacturing method of recycling, a machining process is first provided to form a through hole in a part (e.g., gripper  33   d ) of the container body  133 Y. Then, a filling process is provided to fill the inside of the container body  133 Y with toner through the through hole. Lastly, a sealing process is provided to seal the through hole (e.g., the process of bonding the seal member to the through hole). By recycling the toner container  132 Y in this manner, environment resources can be effectively used. 
     As explained above, the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment is provided with the protrusion portion  34   a   1  being the standing inhibiting unit in the held portion  134 Y to inhibit the toner container  132 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  134 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  133 Y. Consequently, it is possible to prevent toner aggregation in the side of the held portion  134 Y during stock of the toner container  132 Y. Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the gripper  33   d  of the container body  133 Y causes a psychological effect to be produced. The psychological effect due to the gripper  33   d  causes the user to prevent the toner container  132 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the container body  133 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the held portion  134 Y. Therefore, the toner is prevented from being aggregated in the side of the gripper  33   d  (rear end side) of the container body  133 Y, and this causes the user to automatically lay the toner container  132 Y on the horizontal plane H with the longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, as described above. 
     In the first embodiment, only the toner is contained in each container body of the toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K, but in the case of the image forming apparatus that supplies two-component developer containing toner and carrier to each developing device, the two-component developer can also be contained in each container body of the toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K. Even in this case, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained. 
     In the first embodiment, the projection  33   b  is integrally formed in the inner circumferential surface of the container body  133 Y, and the container body  133 Y is made to rotate. On the other hand, a coil or a screw may also be rotatably held inside the container body  133 Y, and the container body  133 Y is not rotated but the coil or the screw can be rotated by the gear  33   c . In this case also, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained. 
     In the first embodiment, the suction-type screw pump  60  for sending air to the inside of the tube  71  is provided in the toner supply device. At the same time, a discharge-type screw pump for sending air to the inside of the tube  71  can also be provided in the toner supply device. Even in these cases, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained. 
     A second embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 15  to  FIG. 18 .  FIG. 15  is a cross-section of the head side of a toner container according to the second embodiment, which corresponds to that of  FIG. 6  according to the first embodiment. 
     Referring to  FIG. 15 , a toner container  232 Y according to the second embodiment is different from that of the first embodiment in a point that a compression spring  34   f  as a biasing member is provided in a held portion  234 Y. More specifically, the compression spring  34   f  (biasing member) for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction of closing the toner outlet B is provided on the right-hand side of the plug member  34   d . The ID chip  35  as an electronic component (storage unit) is configured so as to directly contact the communication circuit  74  of the apparatus body. The protrusion portion as the standing inhibiting unit is not provided in the held portion  234 Y, but the ID chip  35  and the seal  37  serve as the standing inhibiting unit. 
     The ID chip  35  of the held portion  234 Y is configured so as to come in contact with or separate from the communication circuit  74  (connection terminal) of the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  232 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the ID chip  35  is provided on a location which is the plane of the held portion  234 Y orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction (the arrow direction of  FIG. 16A  and  FIG. 16B ) with respect to the toner-container holder  31 , and which faces the communication circuit  74  upon the attachment/detachment operation. 
     As explained above, the ID chip  35  comes in contact with the communication circuit  74  provided in the apparatus body  100  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation (linear operation) of the toner container  232 Y by one action, and this improves contact performance between the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74 . More specifically, the surface of the ID chip  35  comes in contact linearly with the communication circuit  74  fixed in the apparatus body  100  (toner-container holder  31 ), and this prevents, before occurring, such a failure that the ID chip  35  comes in contact unevenly with the communication circuit  74  to cause contact failure, or that part of the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  is worn out to give damage to some components. 
     In the second embodiment, the ID chip  35  is provided in the held portion  234 Y so as to be located in the upper side higher than the position where the plug member  34   d  is provided (upper side in the posture when the toner container  232 Y is set in the toner-container holder  31 ). Because the ID chip  35  is provided in the vertically upper side higher than the plug member  34   d , even if the toner in the toner container  232 Y is leaked from near the plug member  34   d , such a failure that the toner is adhered to the ID chip  35  to cause an erroneous operation is reduced. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  232 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 16  to  FIG. 18 .  FIG. 16A  is a schematic of how the toner container  232 Y for yellow is attached to the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the arrow direction) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 16B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  of the held portion  234 Y in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 17A  is a schematic of how the attachment of the toner container  232 Y is progressed (positioning of the held portion  234 Y is started) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 17B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 18A  is a schematic of the toner container  232 Y attached to the toner-container holder  31  (attachment is completed) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 18B  is a schematic of a portion of the holder  34   c  in that state when viewed from the upper side. 
     When the toner container  232 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , at first, the main-body cover (not shown) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 1 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  is opened to expose the toner-container holder  31  to the front side. Then, referring to  FIG. 16A  and  FIG. 16B , the toner container  232 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the arrow direction). More specifically, the toner container  232 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  233 Y (or the toner container  232 Y) so that the held portion  234 Y is located as the head of the container body  233 Y. 
     At this time, the first sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  of the toner-container holder  31  at the head side of the toner container  232 Y, and while sliding, the toner container  232 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  with good balance by the user gripping the gripper  33   d  on the rear side of the toner container  232 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 17A  and  FIG. 17B , when the holder  34   c  of the toner container  232 Y reaches the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31 , the positioning of the held portion  234 Y is started while the second sliding portions  34   c   2  are sliding along the sliding faces  31   b  in addition to the sliding of the first sliding portion  34   c   1  along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, the engaging portion  34   g  of the held portion  234 Y and the positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  start to be engaged with each other. 
     Then, the attachment operation of the toner container  232 Y is further progressed, and the plug member  34   d  starts to open the toner outlet B while the engaging portions  34   g  and the positioning members  31   c  are engaged with each other. That is, the front end of the nozzle  70  is inserted into the hole of the holder  34   c , and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70 . As shown in  FIG. 18A  and  FIG. 18B , the position of the held portion  234 Y is fixed at the position where the holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73  (reference position for butting), and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B, and the ID chip  35  is connected to the communication circuit  74 . This allows, on the hardware side, the toner outlet B of the toner container  232 Y and the toner supply port  70   a  of the nozzle  70  to communicate with each other, and on the software side, information to be exchanged between the ID chip  35  and the controller  75 , and the attachment operation of the toner container  232 Y is completed. 
     As explained above, in the second embodiment, the connection operation between the ID chip  35  of the toner container  232 Y and the communication circuit  74  of the toner-container holder  31  is completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  232 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, while the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  232 Y is caused to be sliding along the sliding face  31   a , the positioning operation of the held portion  234 Y (toner container  232 Y) is started in synchronization with the sliding, and then, the insertion operation of the nozzle  70  is started, and finally, the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  are connected to each other. With this connection, the surface of the ID chip  35  positioned comes in contact with the communication circuit  74  fixed in the apparatus body  100  (toner-container holder  31 ), and this prevents such a failure, before occurring, that the ID chip  35  comes in contact unevenly with the communication circuit  74  to cause contact failure, or that part of the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  is worn out associated with their contacting/separating operation, to give damage to some components. 
     Movement of the nozzle  70  to the inside or to the outside of the holder  34   c  and movement of the plug member  34   d  to the inside or to the outside of the holder  34   c  are performed when both of the members slidably contact the lip of the packing  34   e  of the holder  34   c . Therefore, such a failure that toner is leaked from the holder  34   c  due to insertion or removal of the nozzle  70  is prevented. 
     When the toner container  232 Y is to be taken out (removed) from the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. In this case, the nozzle  70  also separates from the holder  34   c  in synchronization with the operation such that the toner container  232 Y separates from the holding portion  73 , and the plug member  34   d  is moved to the position for closing the toner outlet B by the biasing force of the compression spring  34   f . At the same time, the ID chip  35  also separates from the communication circuit  74 . In this manner, the detachment operation of the ID chip  35  from the communication circuit  74  and the detachment operation of the toner container  232 Y are completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  232 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a.    
     The toner container  232 Y according to the second embodiment includes the held portion  234 Y with the toner outlet B provided in the lower side in the direction of gravity, and after the plug member  34   d  is surely positioned in synchronization with the attachment operation, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70 , to open the toner outlet B sealed with the packing  34   e . Therefore, there is less toner stain in the toner outlet B, and such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet B is prevented. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  232 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is performed by one action associated with the sliding of the sliding portion  34   c   1 , and therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  232 Y is improved. Particularly, by providing the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the bottom of the held portion  234 Y, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  while supporting the toner container  232 Y. Furthermore, the attachment operation of the toner container  232 Y is performed by starting to slide the sliding portion  34   c   1  while the user directly grips the gripper  33   d , starting positioning of the held portion  234 Y while sliding, starting insertion of the nozzle  70 , and finishing the positioning of the held portion  234 Y, the insertion of the nozzle  70 , and the connection of the ID chip  35  as soon as the sliding is finished. Therefore, the user gains a click feeling when the held portion  234 Y is positioned at the same time when the sliding of the held portion  234 Y (attachment operation by one action) is progressed, and feels certain that no erroneous operation occurs in the attachment operation. 
     Furthermore, the toner container  232 Y is not set in the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ) from the upper side thereof, but the attachment/detachment is performed from the front face of the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ), thus, enhancing the flexibility of layout for the upper side of the toner-container holder  31 . For example, even if a scanner (document reader) is disposed right above the toner-container holder, the operability/workability upon attachment/detachment of the toner container  232 Y does not deteriorate. The toner container  232 Y is set in the apparatus body  100  with the longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, and therefore, the toner capacity of the toner container  232 Y is increased without any effect on the layout in the height direction of the whole image forming apparatus  100 , which allows reduction in the replacement frequency. 
     As explained above, the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment is provided with the standing inhibiting unit in the held portion  234 Y for inhibiting the toner container  232 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  234 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  233 Y. Consequently, it is possible to prevent toner aggregation in the side of the held portion  234 Y during stock of the toner container  232 Y. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, the ID chip  35  storing information for the toner container  232 Y is provided in the held portion  234 Y so as to come in contact with and separate from the communication circuit  74  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  232 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31 . Therefore, the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  are surely and smoothly contacted with and separated from each other. This allows improvement of the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  232 Y even on the software side in addition to the hardware side, and the occurrence of toner stain is surely reduced. 
     A third embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 19 .  FIG. 19  is a cross-section of a toner container according to the third embodiment. The toner container according to the third embodiment has some points that a container body  333 Y with a held portion  334 Y is held by the toner-container holder  31  in the non-rotating manner, and that a coil  181 Y as the conveyor member is provided in the toner container, and these points are different from the embodiments in which the container body rotates to convey the toner contained therein to the opening A. 
     As shown in  FIG. 19 , a toner container  332 Y mainly includes the container body  333 Y and the held portion  334 Y. The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  333 Y, and the gear  33   c  is rotatably provided around the outer periphery of the opening A. The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the apparatus body  100  to rotate the coil  181 Y. 
     A rotating axis  180 Y is integrally formed with the gear  33   c , and the spiral-shaped coil  181 Y is connected to the rotating axis  180 Y. One end of the rotating axis  180 Y is supported by a bearing portion  34   a   4  of the held portion  334 Y. The coil  181 Y is extended from the opening A over the rear end (bottom) in the container body  333 Y. The gear  33   c  rotates around the container body  333 Y to rotate the rotating axis  180 Y and the coil  181 Y. 
     Therefore, the toner contained in the container body  333 Y is conveyed toward the opening A by the toner conveying force of the coil  181 Y. Because the outer diameter of the coil  181 Y is smaller than the internal diameter of the container body  333 Y, the toner conveying force can be exerted on the toner near the rotational central axis which is far from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  333 Y. Furthermore, the coil  181 Y is comparatively flexible in shape and only one end thereof is supported, thus, the position is swaying during rotation. This can totally exert the toner conveying force from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  333 Y over the rotational central axis. Therefore, even if the large amount of toner is contained in the container body  333 Y and toner aggregation occurs therein due to environmental changes or “being left too long”, the aggregation state is weakened by the toner conveying force due to the coil  181 Y, and reduction in the toner amount to be discharged can thereby be prevented. 
     The toner container  332 Y according to the third embodiment, similarly to those of the embodiments, is also provided with the standing inhibiting unit for inhibiting the toner container  332 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  334 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  333 Y. 
     As explained above, in the third embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the toner container  332 Y is inhibited from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  334 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  333 Y, and this allows prevention of toner aggregation in the side of the held portion  334 Y during stock of the toner container  332 Y. Although the coil  181 Y is used as the conveyor member in the third embodiment, a screw can also be used as the conveyor member. In this case, the same effect as that of the third embodiment can also be obtained. 
     A fourth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 20  and  FIG. 21 .  FIG. 20  is a cross-section of a toner container according to the fourth embodiment, which corresponds to  FIG. 19  according to the third embodiment. The toner container according to the fourth embodiment is different from the third embodiment in that a plate member  184 Y is used as the conveyor member. 
     As shown in  FIG. 20 , a toner container  432 Y mainly includes a container body  433 Y and a held portion  434 Y. The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  433 Y, and the gear  33   c  is rotatably provided around the outer periphery of the opening A. The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the apparatus body  100  to be rotated, similarly to the third embodiment. 
     A threaded rod  183 Y is integrally formed with the gear  33   c , and the plate member  184 Y is provided on the threaded rod  183 Y. More specifically, a male screw portion  183 Ya of the threaded rod  183 Y is screwed with a female screw portion  184 Ya in the plate member  184 Y (see  FIG. 21 ). Referring to  FIG. 21 , a notched portion is formed on the plate member  184 Y, and this notched portion is engaged with a guide portion  185 Y which is protruded from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  433 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 20 , the threaded rod  183 Y is supported at its one end by a bearing portion  34   a   4  of the held portion  434 Y, and is supported at the other end by a bearing portion provided in the rear side of the container body  433 Y. The gear  33   c  is made to rotate around the container body  433 Y, and the threaded rod  183 Y is also integrally rotated thereby. With the rotation, the plate member  184 Y engaged with the threaded rod  183 Y moves along the screw feeding direction (movement in the arrow direction toward the opening A) while being guided by the guide portion  185 Y (without being rotated following the threaded rod  183 Y). The speed of the movement of the plate member  184 Y is set comparatively slowly in accordance with the speed of toner consumption of the container body  433 Y. 
     In this manner, the toner contained in the container body  433 Y is conveyed to the opening A side by the toner conveying force of the plate member  184 Y. Here, the outer diameter of the plate member  184 Y is formed so as to be slightly smaller than the internal diameter of the container body  433 Y, and the toner conveying force can be exerted on even the toner near the rotational central axis A which is far from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  433 Y. Therefore, even if the large amount of toner is contained in the container body  433 Y and toner aggregation occurs therein due to environmental changes or “being left too long”, the aggregation state is weakened by the toner conveying force due to the plate member  184 Y, and reduction in the toner amount to be discharged can thereby be prevented. 
     The toner container  432 Y according to the fourth embodiment, similarly to those of the embodiments, is also provided with the standing inhibiting unit for inhibiting the toner container  432 Y from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  434 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  433 Y. 
     As explained above, in the fourth embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the toner container  432 Y is inhibited from being stood on the horizontal plane H with the held portion  434 Y directed vertically downward with respect to the container body  433 Y, and this allows prevention of toner aggregation in the side of the held portion  434 Y during stock of the toner container  432 Y. 
     A fifth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below. The configuration and the operation of the overall image forming apparatus are the same as those of  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 4 , and therefore, explanation thereof is omitted by referring to the explanation with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 4 . In the fifth embodiment, a screw pump is connected to the tube  71 , but a diaphragm-type air pump can also be connected to the tube  71 . 
     The toner container is explained below with reference to  FIG. 22  to  FIG. 24 . As explained with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 4 , the four substantially cylindrical toner containers  132 Y,  132 M,  132 C, and  132 K are detachably set in the toner-container holder  31 , but instead of these containers, toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K (toner bottles) are detachably set therein. The toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K are respectively replaced with new ones when they come to the end of their lives (when almost all of toner contained in a container is consumed and the container becomes empty). The toner of the colors respectively contained in the toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K is supplied as necessary to each developing device of the imaging units  6 Y,  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K through each toner supply path as explained with reference to  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 22  is a perspective view of the toner container  532 Y.  FIG. 23  is a cross-section of the head side (the side where a held portion  534 Y is provided) of the toner container  532 Y.  FIG. 24  is a schematic of the toner container  532 Y of  FIG. 23  when viewed from the direction of the arrow M. The other three toner containers  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K have almost the same configuration as the toner container  532 Y containing yellow toner, except different toner colors contained and the positions of the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n . Hereinafter, explanation of the other three toner containers  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K is omitted, and only the toner container  532 Y containing yellow toner is explained below. 
     As shown in  FIG. 22 , the toner container  532 Y mainly includes a container body  533 Y and the held portion  534 Y (bottle cap) provided in the head thereof. The head of the container body  533 Y includes the gear  33   c  integrally rotating with the container body  533 Y, and the opening A (see  FIG. 23 ). The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  533 Y (front end position when it is attached), and is used to discharge the toner contained in the container body  533 Y into the space (cavity) of the held portion  534 Y. 
     The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit provided in the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , to rotate the container body  533 Y around its rotating axis (indicated by a chain line of  FIG. 23 ). More specifically, the gear  33   c  is exposed from the notched portion  34   h  formed in the held portion  534 Y and engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  in the engagement position D shown in  FIG. 23  and  FIG. 24 . The driving force is transmitted from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c , and the container body  533 Y is thereby rotated in the direction indicated by U of  FIG. 24 . In the fifth embodiment, the drive gear  31   g  and the gear  33   c  are spur gears. 
     In the fifth embodiment, the toner container  532 Y and the apparatus body  100  are configured so that the held portion  534 Y (or the container body  533 Y) is biased downwardly by the force applied from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c  when the drive gear  31   g  rotates in the direction indicated by W of  FIG. 24  (mainly during toner supply). More specifically, referring to  FIG. 24 , the gear  33   c  and the drive gear  31   g  are engaged with each other in any position in a range from the uppermost portion of the gear  33   c  over a position thereof turning ¼ rotation. In other words, the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  and the drive gear  31   g  is provided in a range X from the uppermost portion of the gear  33   c  to the downstream side thereof turning ¼ rotation (which does not include the uppermost portion and the position of the gear  33   c  turning ¼ rotation). 
     Based on the configuration above, component force Rv acting downward in the vertical direction is produced in force R such that the drive gear  31   g  vertically acts on a gear surface of the gear  33   c  (component force Rh acting in the horizontal direction is also produced). The held portion  534 Y is biased vertically downward by the component force Rv acting vertically downward, to bring the sliding portion  34   c   1 , which serves as the contact portion, into contact with the bottom of the holding portion of the toner-container holder  31  (sliding portion  34   c   1  undergoes the reaction of the component force Rv). Furthermore, the held portion  534 Y is horizontally biased by the component force Rh acting horizontally, to bring the sliding portions  34   c   2 , which serve as contact portions, into contact with the respective side faces of the holding portion of the toner-container holder  31  (sliding portions  34   c   2  undergo the reaction of the component force Rh). Therefore, even if rotation and non-rotation of the drive gear  31   g  are repeatedly performed (toner supply operation), the held portion  534 Y does not largely and vertically move, and the seal capability for the nozzle  70  communicating with the toner outlet B is thereby maintained, thus preventing toner scattering from near the toner outlet B. However, if the engagement position D is not in the range X, the component force Rv acting vertically downward is not produced, or is small even if produced, and hence, the effect cannot be obtained. 
     Referring to  FIG. 22 , the gripper  33   d  is provided in the rear end portion (bottom) of the container body  533 Y so that the user can grip it for attachment/detachment of the toner container  532 Y. The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is provided in the inner circumferential surface of the container body  533 Y (spiral-shaped groove when viewed from the outer circumferential side). The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is used to discharge the toner from the opening A by rotating the container body  533 Y in a predetermined direction. The container body  533 Y configured in this manner and the gear  33   c  provided in its circumferential surface can be manufactured by blow molding. The toner container  532 Y according to the fifth embodiment has a stirring member  33   f  rotating together with the container body  533 Y, provided in the opening A. The stirring member  33   f  is a rod-shaped member which is extended from the space in the held portion  534 Y toward the container body  533 Y and is provided at an angle to the rotating axis (indicated by the chain line in  FIG. 23 ). Rotation of the stirring member  33   f  together with the container body  533 Y allows improvement of the capability of discharging the toner from the opening A. 
     In the fifth embodiment, the container body  533 Y of the toner container  532 Y is made to rotate in the counterclockwise when viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction. Moreover, the spiral direction (turning direction) of the projection  33   b  in the container body  533 Y is set to a rightward direction. This setting and the rotation of the container body  533 Y cause a spiral air flow spiraling in clockwise to be created in the toner container  532 Y (the same direction as the rotational direction of the spiral air flow created in the screw pump  60 ). 
     Referring to  FIG. 22  and  FIG. 23 , the held portion  534 Y includes the cap  34   a , the cap cover  34   b , the holder  34   c , the plug member  34   d  as the open/close member, the packing  34   e , and the ID chip  35 . Referring to  FIG. 22  and  FIG. 24 , the engaging portion  34   g  (groove portion) with which the positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  is engaged is provided on both sides of the held portion  534 Y. The concave portion  34   m  in which the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder  31  is fitted is provided on the end face of the held portion  534 Y. The convex portion  34   n  fitting into another fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder  31  is provided on the circumferential surface of the held portion  534 Y. Further, the notched portion  34   h  from which a part of the gear  33   c  is exposed is provided on the upper side of the held portion  534 Y. 
     The held portion  534 Y communicates with the container body  533 Y through the opening A, and discharges the toner discharged from the opening A, from the toner outlet B (movement along the arrow direction indicated by the dotted line of  FIG. 23 ). In the fifth embodiment, the cavity (space) formed inside the held portion  534 Y is almost cylindrical. The toner discharge path (vertical path) from the almost cylindrical cavity formed inside the held portion  534 Y up to the toner outlet B is formed into a mortar shape. With this shape, the spiral air flow created in the container body  533 Y by the rotation of the container body  533 Y is not disappeared but maintained, and the toner is thereby efficiently delivered toward the toner outlet B. Therefore, the toner conveyance capability of the toner which is discharged from the toner outlet B and moves along the inside of the tube  71  is improved. 
     The held portion  534 Y does not follow the rotation of the container body  533 Y, but is held in the non-rotating manner by the holding portion  73  (see  FIG. 8 ) of the toner-container holder  31  while the engaging portions  34   g  are engaged with the positioning members  31   c . The cap cover  34   b  of the held portion  534 Y is bonded to the circumferential surface of the cap  34   a . The claw  34   b   1  is provided at the front of the cap cover  34   b . The claw  34   b   1  is engaged with an engaging member formed in the head of the container body  533 Y, and the container body  533 Y is thereby held relatively rotatably with respect to the held portion  534 Y. To smoothly rotate the container body  533 Y, the claw  34   b   1  of the held portion  534 Y and the engaging member of the container body  533 Y are engaged with each other by maintaining appropriate clearance therebetween. 
     The seal member  37  is bonded to the area of the held portion  534 Y that faces the front end  33   a  around the opening A of the container body  533 Y. The seal  37  is used to seal the gap which is around the opening A and is between the areas of the container body  533 Y and the held portion  534 Y that mutually face each other, and is made of an elastic material such as polyurethane foam. 
     The holder  34   c  is provided in the lower side of the held portion  534 Y. Provided in the holder  34   c  is the plug member  34   d  (shutter) as the open/close member for opening/closing the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  532 Y. The packing  34   e  such as G seal is provided on both sides of the plug member  34   d  to prevent toner leakage from near the plug member  34   d . By setting the toner container  532 Y in the toner-container holder  31 , a lever (biasing member) for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction of closing the toner outlet B is engaged with the right side of the plug member  34   d , although this is not shown in the figure. Furthermore, the packing such as an O-ring is provided in the engaging portion between the holder  34   c  and the cap  34   a , to prevent toner leakage from both of the gaps. 
     The ID chip  35  of the held portion  534 Y is configured to face the communication circuit  74  of the toner-container holder  31  with a predetermined distance therebetween, in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  532 Y to the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the ID chip  35  is provided on the protrusion portion  34   a   1  of the held portion  534 Y which is protruded in the direction of the attachment to the toner-container holder  31  (the arrow direction of  FIG. 22 ), the protrusion portion  34   a   1  being on the plane orthogonal to the attachment direction. The ID chip  35  performs non-contact communication (radio communication) with the communication circuit  74  of the apparatus body while the held portion  534 Y is held in the toner-container holder  31 . 
     The ID chip  35  previously stores various types of information related to the toner container  532 Y. On the other hand, the communication circuit  74  of the toner-container holder  31  exchanges the information by radio with the ID chip  35  while the toner container  532 Y is set in the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the information stored in the ID chip  35  is transmitted to the controller  75  (see  FIG. 22 ) of the apparatus body  100  through the communication circuit  74 , or the information for the apparatus body  100  acquired by the controller  75  is transmitted to the ID chip  35  through the communication circuit  74  and stored therein. 
     The ID chip  35  stores information regarding toner such as a toner color, a serial number of toner (production lot), and a date of toner production, and information regarding recycling of the toner container  532 Y such as the number of times of recycling, dates of recycling, and recycling manufacturers. When the toner container  532 Y is set in the toner-container holder  31 , the information stored in the ID chip  35  is transmitted to the controller  75  of the apparatus body  100  through the communication circuit  74 . The apparatus body  100  is optimally controlled based on these pieces of information. For example, if the toner color is different from the toner color that should be set in the toner-container holder, the operation of the toner supply device can be stopped, or imaging conditions can be changed according to the serial number or the recycling manufacturer. 
     Provided in the holder  34   c  of the held portion  534 Y are the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  for sliding along the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation to/from the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the first sliding portion  34   c   1  is a flat portion formed so as to be parallel with the sliding face  31   a  (which is an upward face; see  FIG. 8 ) of the toner-container holder  31 , the flat portion being provided in the bottom of the held portion  534 Y with which the attachment/detachment is operated. Furthermore, the second sliding portion  34   c   2  is a flat portion formed so as to be parallel with the sliding face (side face) of the toner-container holder  31 , the flat portion being provided in the side portion of the held portion  534 Y with which the attachment/detachment is operated. As explained above, the part of the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  serves as a contact portion for contacting the toner-container holder  31  by the biasing force due to the drive gear  31   g.    
     Referring to  FIG. 22  and  FIG. 24 , the concave portion  34   m  fitted with the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder  31  is provided in the end face of the held portion  534 Y and near the protrusion portion  34   a   1 . The concave portion  34   m  is formed so as to be fitted with the corresponding fitting member  31   d  when the attachment operation thereof to the toner-container holder  31  is correct (when it is attached to the normal position of the toner-container holder  31 ). 
     More specifically, as shown in  FIG. 24 , positions of the concave portions  34   m  are differently arranged from one another according to each color of toner contained in the toner containers (container bodies). The concave portion  34   m  (C) of the toner container corresponding to cyan and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the uppermost side, and the concave portion  34   m  (M) of the toner container corresponding to magenta and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the upper side of the middle stage. The concave portion  34   m  (Y) of the toner container corresponding to yellow and the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder are arranged in the lower side of the middle stage, and the concave portion  34   m  (K) of the toner container corresponding to black and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the lowermost side. This configuration allows prevention of such a failure that a toner container for an inappropriate color (e.g., toner container for yellow) is set in a toner-container holder for a predetermined color (e.g., cyan toner-container holder) and this causes a desired color image not to be formed. 
     Likewise, referring to  FIG. 22  and  FIG. 24 , the convex portion  34   n  fitted in another fitting member (not shown) is provided on the circumferential surface of the held portion  534 Y. Similarly to the concave portion  34   m , the convex portion  34   n  is configured to be fitted in a corresponding fitting member when the toner container is properly attached to the toner-container holder  31 . It is configured (not shown) that positions of the convex portions  34   n  are arranged differently from one other according to each color of toner contained in a toner container (container body). Such a configuration as above allows prevention of miss-setting of the toner container in the toner-container holder, similarly to the concave portion  34   m.    
     In the fifth embodiment, as toner contained in the toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K, toner formed so that the following relations hold is used, where Dv(μm) is volume average particle size and Dn(μm) is number average particle size.
 
3 ≦Dv≦ 8  (1)
 
1.00 ≦Dv/Dn≦ 1.40  (2)
 
     Therefore, toner particles are selected according to an image pattern in the developing process and excellent image quality is thereby maintained, and satisfactory developing capability is maintained even if the toner is stirred for a long time in the developing device. Moreover, the toner can be efficiently and reliably conveyed without blocking the toner supply path such as the tube  71 . The volume average particle size and the number average particle size of toner can be measured by using a typical device such as a Coulter Counter type particle size distribution measuring device “Coulter Counter-TA-II” (manufactured by Coulter Electronics Limited) or “Coulter Multisizer II” (manufactured by Coulter Electronics Limited). 
     Furthermore, in the fifth embodiment, as toner contained in the toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K, substantially spherical toner is used, the toner being formed so that a shape factor SF-1 is in a range of 100 to 180 and a shape factor SF-2 is in a range of 100 to 180. This allows suppression of reduction in cleaning performance while high transfer efficiency is maintained. Moreover, the toner can be efficiently and reliably conveyed without blocking the toner supply path such as the tube  71 . Herein, the shape factor SF-1 indicates the sphericity of a toner particle, and it is determined by the following equation.
 
 SF -1=( M   2   /S )×(100π/4)
 
     In the equation, M is the maximum particle size (the largest particle size in uneven particle sizes) in a project plane of the toner particle, and S is a project area of the toner particle. Therefore, the toner particle whose shape factor SF-1 is 100 is perfectly spherical, and the degree of sphericity lowers as it becomes greater than 100. 
     The shape factor SF-2 indicates the irregularities of a toner particle, and it is determined by the following equation.
 
 SF -2=( N   2   /S )×(100/4π)
 
     In the equation, N is a circumferential length in the project plane of the toner particle, and S is the project area of the toner particle. Therefore, the toner particle whose shape factor SF-2 is 100 has no irregularities, and the irregularities become larger as it becomes greater than 100. The shape factor SF-1 and the shape factor SF-2 are obtained by photographing a toner particle by a scanning electron microscope “S-800” (manufactured by Hitachi, Ltd.) and analyzing the photograph of the toner particle obtained, by an image analyzer “LUSEX3” (manufactured by Nireco Corp.). 
     The configuration of the toner-container holder  31  is the same as that explained with reference to  FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9 , and therefore, explanation thereof is omitted by referring to the explanation with reference to  FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9 . 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  532 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 25  to  FIG. 27 .  FIG. 25  is a schematic of how the toner container  532 Y for yellow is attached to the toner-container holder  31  when viewed from the longitudinal direction (movement in the direction of the arrow Q).  FIG. 26  is a schematic of how the attachment of the toner container  532 Y is progressed (when the toner outlet B starts to be opened) when viewed from the longitudinal direction.  FIG. 27  is a schematic of the toner container  532 Y attached to the toner-container holder  31  (when the opening of the toner outlet B is completed) when viewed from the longitudinal direction. 
     When the toner container  532 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , at first, the main-body cover (not shown) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 1 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  is opened to expose the toner-container holder  31  to the front side. Then, referring to  FIG. 25 , the toner container  532 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the direction of the arrow Q). More specifically, the toner container  532 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  533 Y (or the toner container  532 Y) so that the held portion  534 Y is located as the head of the container body  533 Y. 
     At this time, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  of the toner-container holder  31  at the head side of the toner container  532 Y, and while sliding, the toner container  532 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  with good balance by the user gripping the gripper  33   d  on the rear side of the toner container  532 Y. 
     Thereafter, when the holder  34   c  of the toner container  532 Y reaches the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31 , positioning of the held portion  534 Y is started while the second sliding portions  34   c   2  are sliding along the sliding faces (side faces) in addition to the sliding of the first sliding portion  34   c   1  along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, the engaging portions  34   g  of the held portion  534 Y and the positioning members  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  start to be engaged with each other. 
     Thereafter, when the attachment operation of the toner container  532 Y is further progressed, the plug member  34   d  starts to open the toner outlet B while the engaging portions  34   g  and the positioning members  31   c  are engaged with each other (the state as shown in  FIG. 26 ). More specifically, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70  associated with insertion of the front end of the nozzle  70  into the hole of the holder  34   c . At this time, the arm pairs  80  bias the held portion  534 Y of the toner container  532 Y toward the holding portion  73  (biasing in the direction of the arrow Q). 
     Then, referring to  FIG. 27 , the position of the held portion  534 Y is fixed (engagement between the engaging portion  34   g  and the positioning member  31   c ) at the position where the holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73  (reference position for butting), and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B and the gear  33   c  of the toner container  532 Y is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit of the toner-container holder  31 . The ID chip  35  as an electronic substrate faces the communication circuit  74  in the position where radio communication is possible. Furthermore, the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  for securing non-compatibility of toner containers are fitted with the fitting members  31   d  and  31   e  of the apparatus body. Then, the toner outlet B of the toner container  532 Y communicates with the toner supply port  70   a  of the nozzle  70 , and the attachment operation of the toner container  532 Y is completed. 
     When the toner container  532 Y is taken out (removed) from the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. In this case, the nozzle  70  also separates from the holder  34   c  in synchronization with the operation such that the toner container  532 Y separates from the holding portion  73 , and the plug member  34   d  is moved to the position for closing the toner outlet B by the biasing force of the lever (biasing member). In this manner, the detachment operation of the toner container  532 Y is completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  532 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a.    
     The toner container  532 Y according to the fifth embodiment includes the held portion  534 Y with the toner outlet B provided vertically downward, and the toner outlet B is provided in the lower side lower than the opening A in the vertical direction. And after the plug member  34   d  is surely positioned in synchronization with the attachment operation, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70 , to open the toner outlet B sealed with the packing  34   e . Therefore, there is less toner stain in the toner outlet B, and such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet B is prevented. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  532 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is performed by one action associated with the sliding of the sliding portion  34   c   1 , and therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  532 Y is improved. Particularly, by providing the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the bottom of the held portion  534 Y, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  while supporting the toner container  532 Y. Furthermore, the attachment operation of the toner container  532 Y is performed by starting to slide the sliding portion  34   c   1  while the user directly grips the gripper  33   d , starting positioning of the held portion  534 Y while being biased by the arm pairs  80 , starting insertion of the nozzle  70 , and finishing the positioning of the held portion  534 Y, the insertion of the nozzle  70 , and the connection to the drive unit as soon as the sliding is finished. Therefore, the user gains a click feeling when the held portion  534 Y is positioned at the same time when the sliding of the held portion  534 Y (attachment operation by one action) is progressed, and feels certain that no erroneous operation occurs in the attachment operation. 
     Furthermore, the toner container  532 Y is not set in the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ) from the upper side thereof, but the attachment/detachment is performed from the front face of the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ), thus, enhancing the flexibility of layout for the upper side of the toner-container holder  31 . For example, even if a scanner (document reader) is disposed right above the toner supply device, the operability/workability upon attachment/detachment of the toner container  532 Y does not deteriorate. The flexibility of layout for the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  of the toner container  532 Y and the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  is also enhanced. The toner container  532 Y is set in the apparatus body  100  with the longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, and therefore, the toner capacity of the toner container  532 Y is increased without any effect on the layout in the height direction of the whole image forming apparatus  100 , which allows reduction in the replacement frequency. 
     As explained above, the image forming apparatus according to the fifth embodiment is configured so that the held portion  534 Y is biased downward by the force applied from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c  when the drive gear  31   g  rotates. Therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  532 Y is high, and such trouble that the toner scatters from the toner container  532 Y can be prevented even if the toner supply operation is repeated. 
     In the fifth embodiment, only the toner is contained in each container body of the toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K, but in the case of the image forming apparatus that supplies two-component developer (developer for replenishment) containing toner and carrier to each developing device, the two-component developer can also be contained in each container body of the toner containers  532 Y,  532 M,  532 C, and  532 K. Even in this case, the same effect as that of the fifth embodiment can be obtained. 
     A two-component developing device in this case is assumed as a developing device configured as follows. This developing device is based on a system of performing image formation while the state of toner concentration of 3 to 15 wt %, preferably 5 to 10 wt % is always maintained in the developing device, the toner concentration being a weight ratio of the toner to the two-component developer, and of supplying a developer for replenishment contained with carrier which does not deteriorate when toner is supplied by the amount of toner having been used for the image formation, to prolong the life of the developer. 
     This developing device includes an excessive-developer discharging mechanism for discharging some developer, which becomes excessive due to supply thereof from part of a conveyor path of the developing device, to the outside of the developing device. And with this action, the amount of developer in the developing device can be made constant. 
     Carrier concentration being a weight ratio of carrier in the developer for replenishment is preferably 3 wt % to 20 wt % from the viewpoint of compatibility between maintenance of a developer life and a replacement interval of the toner container to be prolonged. 
     In the fifth embodiment, the projection  33   b  is integrally formed in the inner circumferential surface of the container body  533 Y, and the container body  533 Y is made to rotate. On the other hand, a coil or a screw may also be rotatably held inside the container body  533 Y, and the container body  533 Y is not rotated but the coil or the screw can be rotated by the gear  33   c . In this case also, the same effect as that of the fifth embodiment can be obtained if the held portion  534 Y is biased downward by the force which the gear  33   c  rotating the coil or the screw undergoes when the drive gear  31   g  rotates. 
     In the fifth embodiment, the suction-type screw pump  60  for sending air to the inside of the tube  71  is provided in the toner supply device. At the same time, a discharge-type screw pump for sending air to the inside of the tube  71  can also be provided in the toner supply device. Furthermore, a diaphragm-type air pump can be provided instead of the screw pump. Even in these cases, the same effect as that of the fifth embodiment can be obtained if the held portion  534 Y is biased downward by the force applied from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c  when the drive gear  31   g  rotates. 
     A sixth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 28  to  FIG. 31A  and  FIG. 31B .  FIG. 28  is a cross-section of the head side of a toner container according to the sixth embodiment, which corresponds to that of  FIG. 23  according to the fifth embodiment. 
     Explanation is given with reference to  FIG. 28 . A toner container  632 Y according to the sixth embodiment is different from that of the fifth embodiment in a point that the compression spring  34   f  as a biasing member is provided in a held portion  634 Y. More specifically, the compression spring  34   f  (biasing member) for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction of closing the toner outlet B is provided on the right-hand side of the plug member  34   d.    
     The ID chip  35  as an electronic component (storage unit) is configured so as to directly contact the communication circuit  74  of the apparatus body. The ID chip  35  of the held portion  634 Y is configured so as to come in contact with or separate from the communication circuit  74  (connection terminal) of the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the ID chip  35  is provided on a location which is the plane of the held portion  634 Y orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction (the arrow direction of  FIG. 29A  and  FIG. 29B ) with respect to the toner-container holder  31 , and which faces the communication circuit  74  upon the attachment/detachment operation. 
     In this manner, the ID chip  35  comes in contact with the communication circuit  74  provided in the apparatus body  100  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation (linear operation) of the toner container  632 Y by one action, and this improves contact performance between the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74 . More specifically, the surface of the ID chip  35  comes in contact linearly with the communication circuit  74  fixed in the apparatus body  100  (toner-container holder  31 ), and this prevents, before occurring, such a failure that the ID chip  35  comes in contact unevenly with the communication circuit  74  to cause contact failure, or that part of the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  is worn out to give damage to some components. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is explained below with reference to  FIGS. 29A ,  29 B to  FIGS. 31A and 31B .  FIG. 29A  is a schematic of how the yellow toner container  632 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the arrow direction) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 29B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  of the held portion  634 Y in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 30A  is a schematic of how the attachment of the toner container  632 Y is progressed (positioning of the held portion  634 Y is started) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 30B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  of the held portion  634 Y in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 31A  is a schematic of the toner container  632 Y attached to the toner-container holder  31  (attachment is completed) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 31B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  in that state when viewed from the upper side. 
     Provided in the toner-container holder  31  are four toner-container holders corresponding to the four toner containers  632 Y,  632 M,  632 C, and  632 K, respectively. Each of the four toner-container holders includes the sliding faces  31   a  and  31   b  along which the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  of the held portion slide; the holding portion  73  for fixing the position of the holder  34   c  of the held portion; the nozzle  70  (toner conveying pipe); the drive unit (where the drive gear  31   g  is provided) for transmitting a rotational driving force to a container body; and the communication circuit  74 . The holding portion  73  includes the sliding faces  31   a  and  31   b  contacting the holder  34   c , and the contact area (not shown) contacting a part of the cap cover  34   b . Provided in the sliding face  31   b  (side face) of the holding portion  73  is the positioning member  31   c  for positioning in synchronization with the attachment operation of the held portion. The positioning member  31   c  is a convex portion extended along the attachment/detachment direction of the toner container. 
     When the toner container  632 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , at first, the main-body cover (not shown) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 1 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  is opened to expose the toner-container holder  31  to the front side. Then, referring to  FIG. 29A  and  FIG. 29B , the toner container  632 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the arrow direction). More specifically, the toner container  632 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  633 Y (or the toner container  632 Y) so that the held portion  634 Y is located as the head of the container body  633 Y. 
     At this time, the first sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  of the toner-container holder  31  at the head side of the toner container  632 Y, and while sliding, the toner container  632 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  with sufficient balance by the user gripping the gripper  33   d  on the rear side of the toner container  632 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 30A  and  FIG. 30B , when the holder  34   c  of the toner container  632 Y reaches the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31 , positioning of the held portion  634 Y is started while the second sliding portions  34   c   2  are sliding along the sliding faces  31   b  in addition to the sliding of the first sliding portion  34   c   1  along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, the engaging portion  34   g  of the held portion  634 Y and the positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  start to be engaged with each other. 
     Thereafter, when the attachment operation of the toner container  632 Y is further progressed, the plug member  34   d  starts to open the toner outlet B while the engaging portions  34   g  and the positioning members  31   c  are engaged with each other. More specifically, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70  associated with insertion of the front end of the nozzle  70  into the hole of the holder  34   c . Then, as shown in  FIG. 31A  and  FIG. 31B , the position of the held portion  634 Y is fixed in the position where the holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73  (reference position for butting), and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B and the gear  33   c  of the toner container  632 Y is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit of the toner-container holder  31 . Furthermore, the ID chip  35  is connected to the communication circuit  74 . In this manner, the toner outlet B of the toner container  632 Y and the toner supply port  70   a  of the nozzle  70  communicate with each other, and the attachment operation of the toner container  632 Y is completed. 
     As explained above, in the sixth embodiment, the positioning operation of the held portion  634 Y (toner container  632 Y) is started in synchronization with one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  632 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a , and then, the insertion operation of the nozzle  70  is started, and finally, the engagement of the gear  33   c  with the drive gear  31   g  is completed. The nozzle  70  is preferentially inserted into the held portion  634 Y at a location apart from the engagement position D of the gear  33   c , and this can prevent such a failure that an unexpected external force, produced when the nozzle  70  does not come in contact with the plug member  34   d , may be applied to the nozzle  70  to be deformed. In other words, if the connection of the gear  33   c  is preferentially performed near the held portion  634 Y rather than the insertion of the nozzle  70  into the held portion  634 Y, the toner container  632 Y may be displaced caused by inappropriate engagement between the drive gear  31   g  and the gear  33   c , which may cause the position where the nozzle  70  should be inserted to be displaced. 
     Movement of the nozzle  70  to the inside or the outside of the holder  34   c  and movement of the plug member  34   d  to the inside or the outside of the holder  34   c  are performed when both of the members slidably contact the lip of the packing  34   e  of the holder  34   c . Therefore, such a failure that toner is leaked from the holder  34   c  due to insertion or removal of the nozzle  70  is prevented. 
     When the toner container  632 Y is taken out (removed) from the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. At this time, the nozzle  70  also separates from the holder  34   c  in synchronization with the operation of the toner container  632 Y separating from the holding portion  73 , and the plug member  34   d  moves to the position for closing the toner outlet B by the biasing force of the compression spring  34   f . In this manner, the detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y is completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  632 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a.    
     The toner container  632 Y according to the sixth embodiment includes the held portion  634 Y with the toner outlet B provided vertically downward, and the toner outlet B is provided in the lower side lower than the opening A. And after the plug member  34   d  is surely positioned in synchronization with the attachment operation, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70  to open the toner outlet B sealed with the packing  34   e . Therefore, there is less toner stain in the toner outlet B, and such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet B is prevented. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is performed by one action associated with the sliding of the sliding portion  34   c   1 , and therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  632 Y is improved. Particularly, by providing the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the bottom of the held portion  634 Y, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  while supporting the toner container  632 Y. Moreover, the attachment operation of the toner container  632 Y is performed by starting to slide the sliding portion  34   c   1  while the user directly grips the gripper  33   d , starting positioning of the held portion  634 Y associated with the sliding, starting insertion of the nozzle  70 , and finishing the positioning of the held portion  634 Y, the insertion of the nozzle  70 , and the connection to the drive unit as soon as the sliding is finished. Therefore, the user gains a click feeling when the held portion  634 Y is positioned at the same time when the sliding of the held portion  634 Y (attachment operation by one action) is progressed, and feels certain that no erroneous operation occurs in the attachment operation. 
     Further, the toner container  632 Y is not set in the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ) from the upper side thereof, but the attachment/detachment is performed from the front face of the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ), thus, enhancing the flexibility of layout for the upper side of the toner-container holder  31 . For example, even if a scanner (document reader) is disposed right above the toner-container holder, the operability/workability upon attachment/detachment of the toner container  632 Y does not deteriorate. Furthermore, the flexibility of layout for the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  of the toner container  632 Y and the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  is enhanced. The toner container  632 Y is set in the apparatus body  100  with its longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, and therefore, the toner capacity of the toner container  632 Y is increased without any effect on the layout in the height direction of the whole image forming apparatus  100 , which allows reduction in the replacement frequency. 
     Referring to  FIG. 28 , in the toner container  632 Y according to the sixth embodiment, the toner outlet B is provided in a more rear side (left side of  FIG. 28 ) than the container body  633 Y (or the opening A) in the direction of the attachment to the toner-container holder  31 . This allows the toner outlet B to be smoothly and unfailingly opened/closed in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y along its longitudinal direction. In other words, when the toner container  632 Y is to be attached, the positioning of the held portion  634 Y is started, and then the nozzle  70  and the plug member  34   d  are preferentially contacted with each other. Furthermore, because the toner supply portion including the nozzle  70  can be provided in the rear side in the attachment direction (left side of  FIG. 28 ), the layout of the apparatus body  100  is simplified. 
     Further, in the toner container  632 Y according to the sixth embodiment, the toner outlet B is provided in a more rear side (left side of  FIG. 28 ), in the direction of the attachment to the toner-container holder  31 , than the gear  33   c  which is disposed on the periphery of the container body  633 Y and is near the opening A. This allows the toner outlet B to be smoothly and reliably opened/closed in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y along the longitudinal direction. In other words, when the toner container  632 Y is to be attached, the positioning of the held portion  634 Y is started, and then the nozzle  70  and the plug member  34   d  are preferentially contacted with each other, and thereafter, the gear  33   c  and the drive gear  31   g  are engaged with each other. Furthermore, in addition to the toner supply portion including the nozzle  70 , the drive unit for transmitting a rotational drive force to the gear  33   c  can also be provided in the rear side in the attachment direction (left side of  FIG. 28 ). Therefore, the layout of the apparatus body  100  can be simplified, and the toner supply portion and the drive unit can be maintained collectively from the rear side of the apparatus body  100 . 
     As explained above, in the image forming apparatus according to the sixth embodiment, similarly to the fifth embodiment, the gear  33   c  of the container body  633 Y is provided so that the gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  at the position opposite in the vertical direction to the toner outlet B of the held portion  634 Y via the opening A of the container body  633 Y. Therefore, the operation such that the toner outlet B is opened or closed and the operation such that the gear  33   c  comes in contact with or separates from the drive gear  31   g  can be smoothly and surely performed in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y. This allows improvement of the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  632 Y, and reliable reduction in the occurrence of toner stain. Furthermore, in the sixth embodiment, similarly to the fifth embodiment, the toner outlet B of the held portion  634 Y is provided in a more rear side than the container body  633 Y in the attachment direction, and hence, the toner outlet B can be smoothly and reliably opened/closed in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  632 Y. This allows improvement of the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  632 Y, and reliable reduction in the occurrence of toner stain. Furthermore, in the sixth embodiment, similarly to the fifth embodiment, the toner outlet B of the held portion  634 Y is provided in a lower side lower than the opening A of the container body  633 Y in the vertical direction, and hence, the toner can be smoothly and reliably discharged from the toner outlet B which is opened in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  632 Y. This allows improvement of the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  632 Y, and reliable reduction in the occurrence of toner stain. 
     A seventh embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 32 .  FIG. 32  is a cross-section of a toner container according to the seventh embodiment. The toner container according to the seventh embodiment has some points that a container body  733 Y together with a held portion  734 Y is held by the toner-container holder  31  in the non-rotating manner, and that the coil  181 Y as the conveyor member is provided in the container body  733 Y, and these points are different from the embodiments in which the container body rotates to convey the toner contained therein to the opening A. 
     As shown in  FIG. 32 , a toner container  732 Y mainly includes the container body  733 Y and the held portion  734 Y. The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  733 Y, and the gear  33   c  is rotatably provided around the outer periphery of the opening A. The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the apparatus body  100  to rotate the coil  181 Y. 
     The rotating axis  180 Y is integrally formed with the gear  33   c , and the spiral-shaped coil  181 Y is connected to the rotating axis  180 Y. One end of the rotating axis  180 Y is supported by the bearing portion  34   a   4  of the held portion  734 Y. The coil  181 Y is extended from the opening A over the rear end (bottom) inside the container body  733 Y. The gear  33   c  rotates around the container body  733 Y to rotate the rotating axis  180 Y and the coil  181 Y. 
     Therefore, the toner contained in the container body  733 Y is conveyed toward the opening A by the toner conveying force of the coil  181 Y. Because the outer diameter of the coil  181 Y is smaller than the internal diameter of the container body  733 Y, the toner conveying force can be exerted on the toner near the rotational central axis which is far from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  733 Y. Furthermore, the coil  181 Y is comparatively flexible in shape and is supported only at one end thereof, thus, the position is swaying during rotation. This can totally exert the toner conveying force from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  733 Y over the rotational central axis. Therefore, even if the large amount of toner is contained in the container body  733 Y and toner aggregation occurs therein due to environmental changes or “being left too long”, the aggregation status is weakened by the toner conveying force due to the coil  181 Y, and reduction in the toner amount to be discharged can thereby be prevented. 
     Similarly to the embodiments, the toner container  732 Y according to the seventh embodiment is also configured so that the held portion  734 Y is biased downward by the force applied from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c  when the drive gear  31   g  rotates. Furthermore, the gear  33   c  of the container body  733 Y is provided so that the gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  at the position opposite in the vertical direction to the toner outlet B of the held portion  734 Y via the opening A of the container body  733 Y. Further, the toner outlet B of the held portion  734 Y is provided in a more rear side than the container body  733 Y in the attachment direction. Furthermore, the toner outlet B of the held portion  734 Y is provided in a lower side lower than the opening A of the container body  733 Y in the vertical direction. 
     As explained above, in the seventh embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the operability/workability upon the replacement of the toner container  732 Y is improved, and the occurrence of toner stain can be surely reduced. The coil  181 Y is used as the conveyor member in the seventh embodiment, but a screw can also be used as the conveyor member. In this case also, the same effect as that of the seventh embodiment can be obtained. 
     An eighth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 33  and  FIG. 34 .  FIG. 33  is a cross-section of a toner container according to the eighth embodiment, which corresponds to  FIG. 32  according to the seventh embodiment. The toner container according to the eighth embodiment is different from the seventh embodiment in that the plate member  184 Y is used as the conveyor member. 
     As shown in  FIG. 33 , a toner container  832 Y mainly includes a container body  833 Y and a held portion  834 Y. The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  833 Y, and the gear  33   c  is rotatably provided around the outer periphery of the opening A. The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the apparatus body  100  to be rotated, similarly to the seventh embodiment. 
     The threaded rod  183 Y is integrally formed with the gear  33   c , and the plate member  184 Y is provided on the threaded rod  183 Y. More specifically, the male screw portion  183 Ya of the threaded rod  183 Y is screwed with a female screw portion  184 Ya in the plate member  184 Y (see  FIG. 34 ). Referring to  FIG. 34 , a notched portion is formed on the plate member  184 Y, and this notched portion is engaged with the guide portion  185 Y which is protruded from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  833 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 33 , the threaded rod  183 Y is supported at its one end by the bearing portion  34   a   4  of the held portion  834 Y, and is supported at the other end by a bearing portion provided in the rear side of the container body  833 Y. The gear  33   c  is made to rotate around the container body  833 Y, and the threaded rod  183 Y is also integrally rotated thereby. Therefore, the plate member  184 Y engaged with the threaded rod  183 Y moves along the screw feeding direction (movement in the arrow direction toward the opening A) while being guided by the guide portion  185 Y (without being rotated following the threaded rod  183 Y). The speed of the movement of the plate member  184 Y is set comparatively slowly in accordance with the speed of toner consumption of the container body  833 Y. 
     In this manner, the toner contained in the container body  833 Y is conveyed to the opening A side by the toner conveying force of the plate member  184 Y. Here, the outer diameter of the plate member  184 Y is formed so as to be slightly smaller than the internal diameter of the container body  833 Y, and the toner conveying force can be exerted on the toner near the rotational central axis A which is far from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  833 Y. Therefore, even if the large amount of toner is contained in the container body  833 Y and toner aggregation occurs therein due to environmental changes or “being left too long”, the aggregation status is weakened by the toner conveying force due to the plate member  184 Y, and reduction in the toner amount to be discharged can thereby be prevented. 
     Similarly to the embodiments, the toner container  832 Y according to the eighth embodiment is also configured so that the held portion  834 Y is biased downward by the force applied from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c  when the drive gear  31   g  rotates. Furthermore, the gear  33   c  of the container body  833 Y is provided so that the gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  at the position opposite in the vertical direction to the toner outlet B of the held portion  834 Y via the opening A of the container body  833 Y. Further, the toner outlet B of the held portion  834 Y is provided in a more rear side than the container body  833 Y in the attachment direction. Furthermore, the toner outlet B of the held portion  834 Y is provided in a lower side lower than the opening A of the container body  833 Y in the vertical direction. 
     As explained above, in the eighth embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the operability/workability upon the replacement of the toner container  832 Y is improved, and the occurrence of toner stain can be surely reduced. 
     A ninth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 35  to  FIG. 51 . The configuration and the operation of the overall image forming apparatus are the same as those in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , and therefore, explanation is given with reference to  FIG. 35  and  FIG. 36  by referring to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 , and the explanation thereof. 
     A toner supply device  59  that leads the toner contained in a toner container  932 Y to the developing device  5 Y is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 35 . For easy understanding,  FIG. 35  depicts changed arrangement of the toner container  932 Y, toner supply paths  43 Y,  60 ,  70 , and  71 , and the developing device  5 Y. Actually, in  FIG. 35 , the longitudinal direction of the toner container  932 Y and part of the toner supply path is arranged in the vertical direction on the paper (see  FIG. 1 ). Referring to  FIG. 36 , the toner in the toner container  932 Y and toner containers  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K which are arranged in a toner-container holder  931  of the apparatus body  100  is supplied to each of the developing devices if necessary through the toner supply paths provided for each toner color, according to each toner consumption in the developing devices for the colors. The four toner supply paths have almost the same configuration as one other except a different toner color used for each imaging process. 
     More specifically, the toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931  of the apparatus body  100  (see  FIG. 37 ), and the nozzle  70  of the toner-container holder  931  is connected to a held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y. At this time, the plug member  34   d  (open/close member) of the toner container  932 Y is sandwiched between the nozzle  70  and the claw member  76 , and opens the toner outlet of the held portion  934 Y in this state. Furthermore, a container body  933 Y of the toner container  932 Y is rotatably supported by a support member  78  of the toner-container holder at a position on the rear side in the attachment direction. Then, the toner contained in the container body  933 Y is discharged from the toner outlet through rotation of the container body  933 Y of the toner container  932 Y, and the toner discharged from the toner outlet is conveyed into the nozzle  70 . 
     On the other hand, the other end of the nozzle  70  is connected to one end of the tube  71  as a conveyor tube. The tube  71  is made of a flexible material excellent in toner resistance, and the other end thereof is connected to the screw pump  60  (Mohno pump) of the toner supply device. The tube  71  being the conveyor tube is formed so that its internal diameter is 4 to 10 mm. The material of the tube  71  is allowed to use a rubber material such as polyurethane, nitrile, EPDM, and silicone, and a resin material such as polyethylene, and nylon. Such a flexible tube  71  is used to enhance flexibility of layout for the toner supply path, thus, downsizing the image forming apparatus. 
     The screw pump  60  is a suction-type uniaxial eccentric screw pump, and includes a rotor  61 , a stator  62 , a suction port  63 , a universal joint  64 , and a motor  66 . The rotor  61 , the stator  62 , and the universal joint  64  are accommodated in a case (not shown). The stator  62  is a female screw member made of an elastic material such as rubber, and a spiral-shaped groove with double pitch is formed inside the stator  62 . The rotor  61  is a male screw member in which an axis made of a rigid material such as metal is spirally formed, and is rotatably inserted in the stator  62 . One end of the rotor  61  is rotatably joined to the motor  66  through the universal joint  64 . In the ninth embodiment, the spiral direction (turning direction) and the rotational direction of the rotor  61  are set so as to match the spiral direction (turning direction) and the rotational direction of the projection  33   b  formed in the container body  933 Y of the toner container  932 Y. 
     The screw pump  60  configured in the above manner generates suction force at the suction port  63  (air in the tube  71  is sent out to generate a negative pressure in the tube  71 ) by rotating the rotor  61  of the stator  62  by the motor  66  in a predetermined direction (counterclockwise when viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction). This allows the toner in the toner container  932 Y with the air to be sucked to the suction port  63  through the tube  71 . The toner sucked to the suction port  63  is sent into a gap between the stator  62  and the rotor  61 , and is fed to the other end side of the screw pump  60  along the rotation of the rotor  61 . The toner fed is discharged from a feed port  67  of the screw pump  60 , to be supplied to the developing device  5 Y through the toner conveying pipe  43 Y (movement in the arrow direction indicated by a dotted line in  FIG. 35 ). 
     In this manner, the suction force due to the screw pump  60  is used in the ninth embodiment, and the bore of the nozzle  70  (or the plug member  34   d ) can thereby be formed comparatively small, and the toner discharged from the toner outlet B of the toner container  932 Y can be sufficiently transferred to the outside without being scattered. In the ninth embodiment, the rotor  61  of the screw pump  60  is made to rotate in the counterclockwise when viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction. The spiral direction (turning direction) of the rotor  61  is set to be a rightward direction. This setting and the rotation of the rotor  61  cause a spiral air flow spiraling in clockwise to be created in the screw pump  60 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 37 , there are no drive mechanism for rotating the container body and a slip-off preventing mechanism for the toner container in the attachment/detachment direction, near the grippers  33   d  of the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K set in the apparatus body  100  (or the toner-container holder  931 ) with its main-body cover  110  opened. Therefore, a space (space for the user&#39;s hand) required for the attachment/detachment operation can be sufficiently ensured near the grippers  33   d  of the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K set in the apparatus body  100 . Furthermore, the appearance near the grippers  33   d  of the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K set in the apparatus body  100  can be made better. In other words, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus with excellent operability and design. Such a configuration as above is achieved by arranging the drive mechanism for rotating the container body and the slip-off preventing mechanism (arm pair  80  explained later) for the toner container in the attachment/detachment direction, in the rear side of the apparatus body  100 . 
     The toner container is explained below with reference to  FIG. 38  to  FIG. 41 . As explained above, the four substantially cylindrical toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K (toner bottles) are detachably provided in the toner-container holder  931 . The toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K are replaced with new ones when they come to the end of their lives (when almost all of toner contained is consumed and the container becomes empty). The toner of each color contained in the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K is supplied as necessary to each developing device of the imaging units through each toner supply path explained with reference to  FIG. 35 . 
       FIG. 38  is a perspective view of the toner container  932 Y.  FIG. 39  is a cross-section of the head side (the side where the held portion  934 Y is provided) of the toner container  932 Y.  FIG. 40  is a schematic of the toner container  932 Y of  FIG. 39  when viewed from the M direction.  FIG. 41  is a cross-section of the rear side of the toner container  932 Y. The other three toner containers  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K have almost the same configuration as the toner container  932 Y containing yellow toner, except different toner colors contained and locations of the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n . Hereinafter, explanation of the other three toner containers  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K is omitted, and only the toner container  932 Y containing yellow toner is explained below. 
     As shown in  FIG. 38 , the toner container  932 Y mainly includes the container body  933 Y and the held portion  934 Y (bottle cap) provided in the head thereof. The head of the container body  933 Y includes the gear  33   c  integrally rotating with the container body  933 Y, and the opening A (see  FIG. 39 ). The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  933 Y (front end position when it is attached), and is used to discharge the toner contained in the container body  933 Y into the space (cavity) of the held portion  934 Y. The toner is conveyed (through rotation of the container body  933 Y) from the container body  933 Y into the space of the held portion  934 Y as necessary so that the toner in the held portion  934 Y does not lower below a predetermined load line. 
     The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit provided in the toner-container holder  931  of the apparatus body  100 , to rotate the container body  933 Y around its rotating axis (indicated by a chain line of  FIG. 39 ). More specifically, the gear  33   c  is exposed from the notched portion  34   h  formed in the held portion  934 Y and engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  in the engagement position D shown in  FIG. 39  and  FIG. 40 . The driving force is transmitted from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c , and the container body  933 Y is thereby made to rotate in the direction indicated by U of  FIG. 40 . In the ninth embodiment, the drive gear  31   g  and the gear  33   c  are spur gears. 
     In the ninth embodiment, the toner container  932 Y and the apparatus body  100  are configured so that the held portion  934 Y (or the container body  933 Y) is biased downwardly by the force applied from the drive gear  31   g  to the gear  33   c  when the drive gear  31   g  rotates in the arrow direction of  FIG. 40  (mainly during toner supply). More specifically, referring to  FIG. 40 , the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  and the drive gear  31   g  is provided in the range X from the uppermost portion of the gear  33   c  to the downstream side thereof turning ¼ rotation (which does not include the uppermost portion and the position of the gear  33   c  turning ¼ rotation). Based on the configuration above, component force acting downward in the vertical direction is produced in force such that the drive gear  31   g  vertically acts on the gear surface of the gear  33   c . Therefore, seal capability for the nozzle  70  communicating with the toner outlet B is maintained without large vertical fluctuation of the held portion  934 Y, thus preventing toner scattering from near the toner outlet B. 
     Referring to  FIG. 38  and  FIG. 41 , the gripper  33   d  is provided in the rear end face (bottom in the rear side in the attachment direction) of the container body  933 Y so that the user can grip it for attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y. As shown in  FIG. 41 , a constricted portion  33   d   1  (hook portion) formed in the gripper  33   d  so that its outer diameter is getting smaller from the end face side over the side of the container body. The constricted part of the constricted portion  33   d   1  is formed so that fingers of an average person fit in the constricted part. With this formation, the user performs the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y while gripping the gripper without any uncomfortable feeling. Furthermore, the gripper  33   d  is provided so as to be on the front side (rear side in the attachment direction) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  where the user operates, and the operability/workability for the user is thereby improved. 
     The gripper  33   d  is formed so as to be point symmetry with respect to the center of the rear end face of the container body  933 Y (which is the center of rotation and the position of almost gravity center) when viewed from the attachment/detachment direction. More specifically, the gripper  33   d  is formed into a substantial circle when viewed from the attachment/detachment direction. This form allows the posture of the gripper  33   d  with respect to the user, who performs the attachment/detachment operation, to be always fixed irrespective of any posture (rotation angle) of the container body  933 Y in the rotational direction. In the ninth embodiment, the shape of the gripper  33   d  is the substantial circle when viewed from the attachment/detachment direction, but the shape of the gripper  33   d  may also be a gear shape or a petal shape when viewed from the attachment/detachment direction. 
     Moreover, the gripper  33   d  is formed so that its project plane orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction does not exceed the project plane of the container body  933 Y orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction. This form allows smooth attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y to the toner-container holder  931  without the gripper  33   d  being an obstacle (the gripper  33   d  is not caught by the toner-container holder  931 ). Furthermore, an attachment port provided in the toner-container holder  931  can be set to a minimum necessary size according to the size of the container body  933 Y and the held portion  934 Y. 
     The gripper  33   d  is formed on the rear end face of the container body  933 Y and on the central axis of rotation of the container body  933 Y (position being an almost center of gravity). The container body  933 Y is thereby smoothly rotated. In other words, if the gripper  33   d  is disposed in a position displaced from the central axis of rotation, the rotational inertia force due to the gripper  33   d  unevenly acts on the container body  933 Y. 
     The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is provided in the inner circumferential surface of the container body  933 Y (spiral-shaped groove when viewed from the outer circumferential side). The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is used to discharge the toner from the opening A by rotating the container body  933 Y in a predetermined direction. The container body  933 Y configured in this manner together with the gripper  33   d  can be manufactured by blow molding after the gear  33   c  provided on its circumferential surface is formed by injection molding. 
     The container body  933 Y configured in this manner is supported by the support member  78 , provided in the toner-container holder  931 , at two points which are in an obliquely lower side of a rear position  33 Ya of the container body  933 Y in the attachment direction while the toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931  (see  FIG. 40  and  FIG. 49 ). The held portion  934 Y is held by the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  931  in the non-rotating manner and the container body  933 Y is rotatably supported by the support member  78  at the two points, the container body  933 Y is rotated in this state when the toner is supplied. The container body  933 Y is thereby rotated with good balance and low vibration to reduce the load upon the rotation, and the damage or abnormal sound of the drive unit or the toner scattering from the toner container  932 Y can reliably be reduced. To cause the container body  933 Y to rotate with further good balance and low vibration, a roller can also be used as the support member  78 . 
     Here, the projection  33   b  is not formed in the area  33 Ya (where the container body  933 Y contacts the support member  78 ) where the container body  933 Y is supported by the support member  78  when the toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931  (see  FIG. 49 ). In other words, the projection  33   b  is not provided in the rear side of the container body  933 Y, so that the outer circumferential surface in the rear side has no irregularity. Consequently, the container body  933 Y is smoothly rotated without largely vibrating while being supported by the support member  78 . 
     The toner container  932 Y according to the ninth embodiment has the stirring member  33   f  rotating together with the container body  933 Y provided in the opening A. The stirring member  33   f  is a rod-shaped member which is extended from the space in the held portion  934 Y toward the container body  933 Y and is provided at an angle to the rotating axis (indicated by the chain line in  FIG. 39 ). Rotation of the stirring member  33   f  together with the container body  933 Y allows improvement of the capability of discharging the toner from the opening A. 
     In the ninth embodiment, the container body  933 Y of the toner container  932 Y is made to rotate in the counterclockwise when viewed from the upstream side in the toner conveying direction. Moreover, the spiral direction (turning direction) of the projection  33   b  in the container body  933 Y is set to a rightward direction. This setting and the rotation of the container body  933 Y cause a spiral air flow spiraling in clockwise to be created in the toner container  932 Y (the same direction as the rotational direction of the spiral air flow created in the screw pump  60 ). 
     Referring to  FIG. 38  and  FIG. 39 , the held portion  934 Y includes the cap  34   a , the cap cover  34   b , the holder  34   c , the plug member  34   d  as the open/close member, the packing  34   e , and the ID chip  35 . Referring to  FIG. 38  and  FIG. 40 , the engaging portion  34   g  (groove portion) in which the positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  931  is engaged is provided on both sides of the held portion  934 Y. The concave portion  34   m  in which the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder  931  is fitted is provided on the end face of the held portion  934 Y. The convex portion  34   n  fitting in another fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder  931  is provided on the circumferential surface of the held portion  934 Y. Further, the notched portion  34   h  from which a part of the gear  33   c  is exposed is provided on the upper side of the held portion  934 Y. 
     The held portion  934 Y communicates with the container body  933 Y through the opening A, and discharges the toner discharged from the opening A, from the toner outlet B (movement along the arrow direction indicated by the dotted line of  FIG. 39 ). In the ninth embodiment, the cavity (space) formed inside the held portion  934 Y is almost cylindrical. The toner discharge path (vertical path) from the almost cylindrical cavity formed inside the held portion  934 Y up to the toner outlet B is formed into a mortar shape. With this shape, the toner discharged to the held portion  934 Y through the rotation of the container body  933 Y is efficiently delivered toward the toner outlet B. Therefore, toner conveyance capability of the toner which is discharged from the toner outlet B and moves along the inside of the tube  71  is improved. 
     The held portion  934 Y does not follow the rotation of the container body  933 Y, but is held in the non-rotating manner by the holding portion  73  (see  FIG. 36  and  FIG. 42 ) of the toner-container holder  931  while the engaging portions  34   g  are engaged with the positioning members  31   c . The cap cover  34   b  of the held portion  934 Y is bonded to the circumferential surface of the cap  34   a . The claw  34   b   1  is provided in the front end of the cap cover  34   b , and this claw  34   b   1  is engaged with the engaging member formed in the head of the container body  933 Y, and the container body  933 Y is thereby held relatively rotatably with respect to the held portion  934 Y. To smoothly rotate the container body  933 Y, the claw  34   b   1  of the held portion  934 Y and the engaging member of the container body  933 Y are engaged with each other by maintaining appropriate clearance therebetween. 
     The seal  37  is adhered to the area of the held portion  934 Y that faces the front end  33   a  around the opening A of the container body  933 Y. The seal  37  is used for sealing the gap which is around the opening A and is between the areas of the container body  933 Y and the held portion  934 Y that mutually face each other, and is made of an elastic material such as polyurethane foam. 
     The holder  34   c  is provided in the lower side of the held portion  934 Y. Provided in the holder  34   c  is the plug member  34   d  (shutter) as the open/close member for opening/closing the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y. More specifically, the plug member  34   d  is movably provided in the holder  34   c  in the horizontal direction of  FIG. 38  so as to be surrounded by the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2 . A space (concave portion) is provided in the bottom face of the holder  34   c  so that the claw member  76  of the apparatus body  100  is engaged with the plug member  34   d  and the plug member  34   d  relatively moves in the space. 
     The packing  34   e  such as G seal is provided on the both sides of the plug member  34   d  to prevent toner leakage from near the plug member  34   d . The lip portion of the packing  34   e  is in slidably contact with the outer circumferential surface of the plug member  34   d  and with the outer circumferential surface of the nozzle  70  which is in tight contact with the end face of the plug member  34   d  and relatively moves, and hence, the high sealing capability can be maintained even if the toner outlet B is opened or closed. 
     Furthermore, packing such as an O-ring is provided in the engaging portion between the holder  34   c  and the cap  34   a , to prevent toner leakage from both of the gaps. The toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931 , and then the claw member  76  (see  FIG. 38  and  FIG. 46 ) is engaged with the right side of the plug member  34   d , the claw member  76  being the bias member for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction in which the toner outlet B is closed. This bias member corresponds to a plate spring  77  in a seventeenth embodiment shown in  FIG. 77 . 
     The ID chip  35  of the held portion  934 Y is configured to face the communication circuit  74  of the toner-container holder  931  with a predetermined distance therebetween, in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  932 Y to the toner-container holder  931 . More specifically, the ID chip  35  is provided on the protrusion portion  34   a   1  of the held portion  934 Y which is protruded in the direction (the arrow direction of  FIG. 38 ) in which the held portion  934 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  931 , and which is provided on the plane orthogonal to the attachment direction. The ID chip  35  performs non-contact communication (radio communication) with the communication circuit  74  of the apparatus body while the held portion  934 Y is held in the toner-container holder  931 . 
     The ID chip  35  previously stores various types of information related to the toner container  932 Y. On the other hand, the communication circuit  74  of the toner-container holder  931  exchanges the information by radio with the ID chip  35  while the toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931 . More specifically, the information stored in the ID chip  35  is transmitted to the controller  75  (see  FIG. 38 ) of the apparatus body  100  through the communication circuit  74 , or the information for the apparatus body  100  acquired by the controller  75  is transmitted to the ID chip  35  through the communication circuit  74  and stored therein. 
     The ID chip  35  stores information regarding toner such as a toner color, a serial number of toner (production lot), and a date of toner production, and information regarding recycling of the toner container  932 Y such as number of times of recycling, dates of recycling, and recycling manufacturers. When the toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931 , the information stored in the ID chip  35  is transmitted to the controller  75  of the apparatus body  100  through the communication circuit  74 . The apparatus body  100  is optimally controlled based on these pieces of information. For example, if the toner color is different from the toner color that should be set in the toner-container holder, the operation of the toner supply device can be stopped, or imaging conditions can be changed according to the serial number or the recycling manufacturer. 
     Provided in the holder  34   c  of the held portion  934 Y are the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  for sliding along the toner-container holder  931  following the attachment/detachment operation to/from the toner-container holder  931 . More specifically, the first sliding portion  34   c   1  is a flat portion formed so as to be parallel with the sliding face  31   a  (upward face; see  FIG. 42 ) of the toner-container holder  931 , the flat portion being provided in the bottom of the held portion  934 Y with which the attachment/detachment is operated. Furthermore, the second sliding portion  34   c   2  is a flat portion formed so as to be parallel with the sliding face (side face) of the toner-container holder  931 , the flat portion being provided in the side portion of the held portion  934 Y with which the attachment/detachment is operated. 
     Referring to  FIG. 38  and  FIG. 40 , the concave portion  34   m  fitted with the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder  931  is provided in the end face of the held portion  934 Y and near the protrusion portion  34   a   1 . The concave portion  34   m  is formed so as to be fitted with the corresponding fitting member  31   d  when the attachment operation thereof to the toner-container holder  931  is correct (when it is attached to the normal position of the toner-container holder  931 ). 
     More specifically, as shown in  FIG. 40 , positions of the concave portions  34   m  are differently arranged from one another according to each color of toner contained in the toner containers (container bodies). The concave portion  34   m  (C) of the toner container corresponding to cyan and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the uppermost side, and the concave portion  34   m  (M) of the toner container corresponding to magenta and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the upper side of the middle stage. The concave portion  34   m  (Y) of the toner container corresponding to yellow and the fitting member  31   d  of the toner-container holder are arranged in the lower side of the middle stage, and the concave portion  34   m  (K) of the toner container corresponding to black and a corresponding fitting member (not shown) of the toner-container holder are arranged in the lowermost side. This configuration allows prevention of such a failure that a toner container for an inappropriate color (e.g., toner container for yellow) is set in a toner-container holder for a predetermined color (e.g., cyan toner-container holder) to cause a desired color image not to be formed. 
     Likewise, referring to  FIG. 38  and  FIG. 40 , the convex portion  34   n  fitted in another fitting member (not shown) is provided on the circumferential surface of the held portion  934 Y. Similarly to the concave portion  34   m , the convex portion  34   n  is configured so as to be fitted in a corresponding fitting member when the toner container is properly attached to the toner-container holder  931 . It is configured that positions of the convex portions  34   n  are arranged differently from one other according to each color of toner contained in the toner containers (container bodies) although it is not shown. Such a configuration as above allows prevention of miss-setting of the toner container in the toner-container holder, similarly to the concave portion  34   m.    
     In the ninth embodiment, as toner contained in the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K, toner formed so that the following relations hold is used, where Dv(μm) is volume average particle size and Dn(μm) is number average particle size:
 
3 ≦Dv≦ 8  (1)
 
1.00 ≦Dv/Dn≦ 1.40  (2)
 
     Therefore, toner particles are selected according to an image pattern in the developing process and excellent image quality is maintained, and satisfactory developing capability is maintained even if the toner is stirred for a long time in the developing device. Moreover, the toner can be efficiently and reliably conveyed without blocking the toner supply path such as the tube  71 . The volume average particle size and the number average particle size of toner can be measured by using a typical device such as the Coulter Counter type particle size distribution measuring device: Coulter Counter-TA-II (manufactured by Coulter Electronics Limited) or Coulter Multisizer II (manufactured by Coulter Electronics Limited). 
     Furthermore, in the ninth embodiment, as toner contained in the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K, substantially spherical toner is used, the toner being formed so that the shape factor SF-1 is in a range of 100 to 180 and the shape factor SF-2 is in a range of 100 to 180. This allows suppression of reduction in cleaning performance while high transfer efficiency is maintained. Moreover, the toner can be efficiently and reliably conveyed without blocking the toner supply path such as the tube  71 . Herein, the shape factor SF-1 indicates the sphericity of a toner particle, and it is determined by the following equation.
 
 SF -1=( M   2   /S )×(100π/4)
 
     In the equation, M is the maximum particle size (the largest particle size in uneven particle sizes) in a project plane of the toner particle, and S is a project area of the toner particle. Therefore, the toner particle whose shape factor SF-1 is 100 is perfectly spherical, and the degree of sphericity lowers as it becomes greater than 100. 
     The shape factor SF-2 indicates the irregularities of a toner particle, and it is determined by the following equation.
 
 SF -2=( N   2   /S )×(100/4π)
 
     In the equation, N is a circumferential length in the project plane of the toner particle, and S is the project area of the toner particle. Therefore, the toner particle whose shape factor SF-2 is 100 has no irregularities, and the irregularities become larger as it becomes greater than 100. The shape factor SF-1 and the shape factor SF-2 are obtained by photographing a toner particle by a scanning electron microscope “S-800” (manufactured by Hitachi, Ltd.) and analyzing the photograph of the toner particle obtained, by an image analyzer “LUSEX3” (manufactured by Nireco Corp.). 
     The configuration of the toner-container holder  931  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 42  to  FIG. 44 . Referring to  FIG. 42 , the toner-container holder  931  includes the sliding faces  31   a  along which the sliding portions in the respective held portions of the four toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K slide; the holding portion  73  for fixing the positions of the holders  34   c  of the held portions; the support members  78  for supporting each rear side of the container bodies; the nozzles  70 ; drive units (where each drive gear  31   g  is provided) for transmitting a rotational driving force to each of the container bodies; the communication circuits  74 ; the arm pairs  80  for biasing each of the held portions toward the holding portion  73  in synchronization with the attachment of each toner container; and the claw members (biasing members)  76  each for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction in which each toner outlet B of the toner containers is closed. 
     The holding portion  73  holds the held portions of the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K each in the non-rotating manner. The holding portion  73  includes sliding faces contacting each holder  34   c , and a contact area contacting a part of the cap cover  34   b . Provided in the sliding faces (side faces) of the holding portion  73  are the positioning members  31   c  for positioning in synchronization with the attachment operation of the held portion  934 Y (see  FIG. 38 ). The positioning member  31   c  is a convex portion extended along the attachment/detachment direction of the toner container  932 Y. 
     Provided in the sliding face (bottom) of the holding portion  73  is the claw member  76  for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction in which the toner outlet B is closed in synchronization with the detachment operation of the held portion  934 Y (see  FIG. 38 ,  FIG. 45 ,  FIG. 47 , and  FIG. 49 ). The claw member  76  is pivotally held by the toner-container holder  931  around the rotating spindle  76   a  in the direction of the double-pointed arrow of  FIG. 38 . More specifically, the claw member  76  is biased by a plate spring (not shown) in the direction in which the claw member  76  protrudes from a retracted position, which does not obstruct attachment/detachment of the held portion  934 Y, to a position for engaging the plug member  34   d  (biasing in the direction of an arrow R 2  of  FIG. 47 ). 
     Furthermore, the communication circuit  74  and the fitting member  31   d  are provided on the plate of the holding portion  73  in its rear side. The nozzle  70  as shown in  FIG. 9  is arranged in the holding portion  73  for each toner color. Provided in the nozzle  70  is the toner supply port  70   a  communicating with the toner outlet B which is formed in the held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 42  and  FIG. 43 , the arm pairs  80  are provided for each toner color near the holding portion  73  in the toner-container holder  931  (the position right before the held portion of the toner container is inserted into the holding portion). As shown in  FIG. 43 , the arm pairs  80  are disposed on both sides sandwiching the held portion of the toner container. Referring to  FIG. 44 , the arm pair  80  includes a first arm  81 , a second arm  82 , a spindle  83 , and a torsion spring  84 . The arm pair  80  is integrally provided via the spindle  83 , and affects the force on both directions in the direction of rotation around the spindle  83  by the torsion spring  84 . More specifically, the first arm  81  and the second arm  82  affect the force on both directions in the direction of rotation around the spindle  83 . The force increases more as an angle formed between the first arm  81  and the second arm  82  increases. 
     The arm pairs  80  configured in the above manner serve as a biasing member for biasing the held portion  934 Y (toner container  932 Y) toward the holding portion  73  (biasing it toward the direction of the arrow Q of  FIG. 36 ) in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  932 Y. The arm pairs  80  also serve as a second biasing member for biasing the held portion  934 Y (toner container  932 Y) in the direction in which the held portion  934 Y is separated from the holding portion  73  (the opposite direction to the arrow Q of  FIG. 36 ) in synchronization with the detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y. 
     The support member  78  is provided near the attachment port for the toner container  932 Y in the toner-container holder  931 . The toner container  932 Y is supported by the support member  78  at two points which are in its obliquely lower side in the rear position  33 Ya of the toner container  932 Y while the toner container  932 Y is set in the toner-container holder  931 . And, the held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y is held by the holding portion  73  in the non-rotating manner, and the container body  933 Y is rotated when the toner is supplied while the container body  933 Y of the toner container  932 Y is rotatably supported by the support member  78  at the two points. The container body  933 Y is thereby rotated with good balance and low vibration to reduce the load upon the rotation, and the toner scattering from the toner container  932 Y can reliably be reduced. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y to/from the toner-container holder  931  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 45  to  FIG. 50 .  FIG. 45  is a schematic of how the toner container  932 Y for yellow is attached to the toner-container holder  931  (movement in the direction of the arrow Q) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 46  is a schematic of a positional relationship between the arm pairs  80  and the held portion  934 Y (holder  34   c ) in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 47  is a schematic of how the attachment of the toner container  932 Y is progressed (the toner outlet B starts to be opened) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 48  is a schematic of a positional relationship between the arm pairs  80  and the held portion  934 Y (holder  34   c ) in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 49  is a schematic of the toner container  932 Y attached to the toner-container holder  931  (the opening of the toner outlet B is completed) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 50  is a schematic of a positional relationship between the arm pairs  80  and the held portion  934 Y (holder  34   c ) in that state when viewed from the upper side. 
     When the toner container  932 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  931  of the apparatus body  100 , at first, the main-body cover  110  (see  FIG. 37 ) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 1 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  is opened to expose the toner-container holder  931  to the front side. Then, referring to  FIG. 45 , the toner container  932 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  931  (movement in the direction of the arrow Q) by the user gripping the gripper  33   d . More specifically, the toner container  932 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  931  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  933 Y (or the toner container  932 Y) so that the held portion  934 Y is located as the head of the container body  933 Y. 
     At this time, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  of the toner-container holder  931  at the head side of the toner container  932 Y, and while sliding, the toner container  932 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  931  with good balance by the user gripping the gripper  33   d  on the rear side in the attachment direction of the toner container  932 Y. 
     Then, referring to  FIG. 46 , when the holder  34   c  (held portion  934 Y) of the toner container  932 Y reaches the position of the arm pairs  80  in the toner-container holder  931 , the first arms  81  come in contact with the front end of the holder  34   c  (held portion  934 Y) and the second arms  82  come in contact with the side faces of the holder  34   c  (held portion  934 Y), and the arm pairs  80  are thereby widened in directions of respective black arrows of  FIG. 46 . Then, by widening the arm pairs  80  in the directions of the respective black arrows, the first arms  81  affect forces on the holder  34   c  in the direction of an arrow R 1  and the second arms  82  affect forces thereon in directions of an arrow R 2 , by spring forces of the torsion springs  84 . In this case, the second arms  82  face each other on both side faces of the holder  34   c , and the forces from both directions indicated by the arrow R 2  are cancelled out. Therefore, only the forces in the direction of the arrow R 1  by the first arms  81  act on the held portion  934 Y. These forces are a force in the direction in which the toner container  932 Y is detached from the holding portion  73 . 
     Here, the held portion  934 Y (sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2 ) is configured so as not to come in contact with the support member  78  when it is attached/detached to/from the toner-container holder  931 . More specifically, referring to  FIG. 40 , the toner container  932 Y is configured so that the project plane of the held portion  934 Y, which is orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction thereof, does not exceed the project plane of the container body  933 Y in the attachment/detachment direction thereof, near the support member  78 . In other words, the toner container  932 Y is configured so that when the toner container  932 Y is viewed as a plane orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction from the side of the held portion  934 Y ( FIG. 40 ), the contact portion between the support member  78  and the container body  933 Y is visually observed (or so that the outline of the held portion  934 Y matches the contact portion). The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y is thereby smoothly performed without the support member  78  being an obstacle (without the toner container  932 Y being caught by the support member  78 ). 
     Thereafter, when the holder  34   c  of the toner container  932 Y reaches the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  931 , positioning of the held portion  934 Y is started while the second sliding portions  34   c   2  are sliding along the sliding faces (side faces) in addition to the sliding of the first sliding portion  34   c   1  along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, the engaging portion  34   g  of the held portion  934 Y and the positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  931  start to be engaged with each other. During this time, the arm pairs  80  bias the held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y toward the holding portion  73  (biasing in the direction of the arrow Q). Furthermore, during this time, the claw member  76  provided in the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  931  is retracted to the position that does not obstruct the attachment of the held portion  934 Y (which is rotation in the direction of the arrow R 1  around the rotating spindle  76   a ). That is, the claw member  76  is pushed down by the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the direction of resisting the biasing force of the plate spring. 
     Thereafter, when the attachment operation of the toner container  932 Y is further progressed, the plug member  34   d  starts to open the toner outlet B while the engaging portions  34   g  and the positioning members  31   c  are engaged with each other (the state as shown in  FIG. 47 ). More specifically, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70  associated with insertion of the front end of the nozzle  70  into the hole of the holder  34   c . At this time, the claw member  76  protrudes from the retracted position in  FIG. 45  to the position for engaging with the plug member  34   d  (which is rotation around the rotating spindle  76   a  in the direction of an arrow R 2 ). That is, the claw member  76  is released from the pushing by the sliding portion  34   c   1  and is pushed up to its default position by the biasing force of the plate spring (not shown). 
     The state as shown in  FIG. 47  is such that the plug member  34   d  is held by the nozzle  70  and the claw member  76  and its position is fixed in the toner-container holder  931  (holding portion  73 ). If the toner container  932 Y is further moved from the state of  FIG. 47  in the attachment direction (direction of the arrow Q), the toner outlet B is opened while the position of the plug member  34   d  is fixed in the holding portion  73  (the plug member  34   d  relatively moves). 
     At this time, the held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y is biased by the arm pairs  80 , serving as the biasing member, toward the holding portion  73  (biasing in the direction of the arrow Q). More specifically, referring to  FIG. 48 , the first arms  81  are widened by the front end of the holder  34   c  (held portion  934 Y) to come in contact with the side faces of the holder  34   c . At the same time, the second arms  82  start to come in contact with the rear end of the holder  34   c . During this operation, the forces by the first arms  81  from both directions indicated by the arrows R 1  are cancelled out, and only the forces by the second arms  82  from the directions indicated by the arrows R 2  are acted on the held portion  934 Y. These forces are a force in the direction in which the toner container  932 Y is biased toward the holding portion  73  (direction of the arrow Q). In this manner, in the ninth embodiment, the movement of the held portion  934 Y to the holding portion  73  and the opening of the toner outlet B of the toner container  932 Y are performed by the biasing forces of the arm pairs  80 . 
     Then, referring to  FIG. 49 , the position of the held portion  934 Y is fixed at the position where the holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73  (reference position for butting), and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B and the gear  33   c  of the toner container  932 Y is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit of the toner-container holder  931 . The ID chip  35  as an electronic substrate faces the communication circuit  74  in the position for enabling radio communication. Further, the concave portion  34   m  and the convex portion  34   n  for securing non-compatibility of toner containers are fitted with the fitting members  31   d  and  31   e  of the apparatus body. Furthermore, the area  33 Ya of the container body  933 Y which does not include the spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is rotatably supported by the support member  78 . The toner outlet B of the toner container  932 Y communicates with the toner supply port  70   a  of the nozzle  70 , and the attachment operation of the toner container  932 Y is completed. 
     At this time, referring to  FIG. 50 , the first arms  81  are in contact with the side faces of the holder  34   c , and the second arms  82  are in contact with the rear end of the holder  34   c . With this situation, only the forces by the second arms  82  in the directions of the arrow R 2  act on the held portion  934 Y. These forces are a force (positioning force) for holding the held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y in the holding portion  73 . 
     In this manner, because the arm pairs  80  provided in the rear side of the apparatus body  100  reliably prevent the toner container  932 Y from slipping off in the attachment/detachment direction, there is no need to install the mechanism, which prevents slip-off of the toner container  932 Y in the attachment/detachment direction, near (the near side to the apparatus body  100 ) the gripper  33   d  of the toner container  932 Y set in the toner-container holder  931 . This enables to ensure a sufficient space required for the attachment/detachment operation, near the gripper  33   d  of the toner container  932 Y set in the apparatus body  100 . Furthermore, the appearance near the gripper  33   d  of the toner container  932 Y set in the apparatus body  100  can thereby be improved. 
       FIG. 51  is a graph indicating a relation between a moving position of the held portion  934 Y (toner container  932 Y) and a load applied from the arm pairs  80  to the held portion  934 Y during the attachment operation of the toner container. As shown in  FIG. 51 , when the held portion  934 Y moves to the position of W 1  (positions in  FIG. 45  and  FIG. 46 ), the held portion  934 Y undergoes the force in the opposite direction to the attachment direction (direction of the arrow Q). In other words, the force in the direction of separating the toner container  932 Y from the holding portion  73  is applied to the toner container  932 Y right before being biased by the arm pairs  80  toward the holding portion  73 . This causes the user to push the toner container  932 Y into the side of the holding portion  73  with the strength overcoming the force. Therefore, the pushing strength by the user is added to the biasing force by the arm pairs  80  applied afterward to the held portion  934 Y, and the toner outlet B is thereby burst open. 
     When the held portion  934 Y further moves to the position of W 2  in  FIG. 51  (positions in  FIG. 47  and  FIG. 48 ), the held portion  934 Y undergoes the force (biasing force by the arm pairs  80 ) in the attachment direction (the direction of the arrow Q). At this time, an object to be sealed by the packing  34   e  of the held portion  934 Y is switched from the plug member  34   d  to the nozzle  70 . The switching speed is accelerated by the arm pairs  80 , and this enables reduction of the time for which sealing capability is degraded due to switching between the objects to be sealed. The position of the held portion  934 Y is fixed in the position of W 3  (position in  FIG. 49  and  FIG. 50 ) in  FIG. 51 . 
     In this manner, in the ninth embodiment, the speed of opening the toner outlet B of the toner container  932 Y is mechanically determined by the arm pairs  80  without being determined based on the user&#39;s operation speed (the speed of pushing the toner container). Therefore, the time for which the sealing capability in the held portion  934 Y is degraded is not made extremely long, but made short almost constantly at any time, and toner scattered from near the toner outlet B is thereby reduced. 
     On the other hand, when the toner container  932 Y is to be taken out (removed) from the toner-container holder  931  of the apparatus body  100 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. At first, the plug member  34   d  is biased by the claw member  76  while the position of the plug member  34   d  in the holding portion  73  is fixed by the nozzle  70  and the claw member  76 , in synchronization with separation of the toner container  932 Y from the holding portion  73  (detachment operation) by the user gripping the gripper  33   d , to close the toner outlet B (movement from the state of  FIG. 49  to the state of  FIG. 47 ). At this time, the end face of the plug member  34   d  (the right-hand side end face of  FIG. 47 ) is fitted in the fitting portion formed in the held portion  934 Y, and closing of the toner outlet B is completed by the plug member  34   d . Thereafter, when the toner container  932 Y further moves from the state of  FIG. 47  in the separating direction (the direction opposite to the arrow Q), the claw member  76  moves to the position where the separation of the held portion  934 Y is not obstructed (the state of  FIG. 45 ). After the held portion  934 Y is completely separated, the claw member  76  is released from the pushing by the sliding portion  34   c   1 , to return to the default position by the biasing force of the plate spring. The detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y is thereby smoothly performed without the support member  78  being an obstacle (without the toner container  932 Y being caught by the support member  78 ). 
     As explained above, in the image forming apparatus according to the ninth embodiment, the attachment operation and the detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y are completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door  110 ) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  932 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a , performed while the user grips the gripper  33   d . The toner container  932 Y according to the ninth embodiment includes the held portion  934 Y with the toner outlet B provided vertically downward, and the toner outlet B (or the plug member  34   d ) is provided in the lower side lower than the opening A in the vertical direction. And after the plug member  34   d  is surely positioned in synchronization with the attachment operation, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70 , to open the toner outlet B sealed with the packing  34   e . Therefore, there is less toner stain in the toner outlet B, and such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet B is prevented. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  932 Y to/from the toner-container holder  931  is performed by one action associated with the sliding of the sliding portion  34   c   1 , and therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  932 Y is improved. Particularly, by providing the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the bottom of the held portion  934 Y, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  while supporting the toner container  932 Y. Furthermore, the attachment operation of the toner container  932 Y is performed by starting to slide the sliding portion  34   c   1  while the user directly grips the gripper  33   d , starting positioning of the held portion  934 Y together with the biasing by the arm pairs  80 , starting insertion of the nozzle  70 , and finishing the positioning of the held portion  934 Y, the insertion of the nozzle  70 , and the connection to the drive unit as soon as the sliding is finished. Therefore, the user gains a click feeling when the held portion  934 Y is positioned at the same time when the sliding of the held portion  934 Y (attachment operation by one action) is progressed, and feels certain that no erroneous operation occurs in the attachment operation. 
     Furthermore, the toner container  932 Y is not set in the toner-container holder  931  (apparatus body  100 ) from the upper side thereof, but the attachment/detachment is performed from the front face of the toner-container holder  931  (apparatus body  100 ), thus, enhancing the flexibility of layout for the upper side of the toner-container holder  931 . For example, even if a scanner (document reader) is disposed right above the toner supply device, the operability/workability upon attachment/detachment of the toner container  932 Y does not deteriorate. Furthermore, the flexibility of the layout for the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  of the toner container  932 Y and the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  is enhanced. Because the toner container  932 Y is set in the apparatus body  100  with its longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, the toner capacity of the toner container  932 Y is increased without any effect on the layout in the height direction of the whole image forming apparatus  100 , which allows reduction in the replacement frequency. 
     As explained above, in the image forming apparatus according to the ninth embodiment, when the toner container  932 Y is attached/detached to/from the toner-container holder  931 , the plug member  34   d  of the held portion  934 Y opens/closes the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation along the longitudinal direction of the container body  933 Y while the user grips the gripper  33   d  provided in the rear side of the container body  933 Y. Therefore, the open/close operation of the toner outlet B is reliably and smoothly performed together with the attachment/detachment operation. Thus, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  932 Y is improved, and the occurrence of toner stain is surely reduced. 
     In the image forming apparatus according to the ninth embodiment, the toner container  932 Y is configured in such a manner that the toner container  932 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  931  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  933 Y so that the held portion  934 Y of the toner container  932 Y is located as the head of the container body  933 Y in the attachment direction and the container body  933 Y is supported by the support member  78  of the toner-container holder  931  at the rear side position in the attachment direction. The posture of the whole toner container  932 Y is thereby stabled even upon the attachment/detachment operation and upon toner supply, and the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  932 Y is improved, to surely reduce the occurrence of toner stain. 
     In the ninth embodiment, the toner-container holder  931  is configured so that the arm pairs  80  (biasing member) bias the toner container  932 Y toward the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  931  in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  932 Y. This allows reliable reduction in occurrence of toner scatter no matter how the user operates for replacement of the toner container  932 Y, without reducing the toner amount to be discharged from the toner container  932 Y and the operability upon the replacement. 
     In the ninth embodiment, only the toner is contained in each container body of the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K, but in the case of the image forming apparatus that supplies two-component developer containing toner and carrier to each developing device, the two-component developer can also be contained in each container body of the toner containers  932 Y,  932 M,  932 C, and  932 K. Even in this case, the same effect as that of the ninth embodiment can be obtained. 
     In the ninth embodiment, the projection  33   b  is integrally formed in the inner circumferential surface of the container body  933 Y, and the container body  933 Y is made to rotate. On the other hand, a coil or a screw may also be rotatably held inside the container body  933 Y, and the container body  933 Y is not rotated but the coil or the screw can be rotated by the gear  33   c . In this case also, the same effect as that of the ninth embodiment can be obtained. 
     In the ninth embodiment, the suction-type screw pump  60  for sending air to the inside of the tube  71  is provided in the toner supply device. At the same time, a discharge-type screw pump for sending air to the inside of the tube  71  can also be provided in the toner supply device. Furthermore, a diaphragm-type air pump can also be used as a pump connected to the tube  71 . Even when these pumps are used, the same effect as that of the ninth embodiment can be obtained. 
     A tenth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 52  to  FIG. 56A  and  FIG. 56B .  FIG. 52  is a cross-section of the head side of a toner container according to the tenth embodiment, which corresponds to that of  FIG. 39  according to the ninth embodiment. 
     Referring to  FIG. 52 , a toner container  1032 Y according to the tenth embodiment is different from that of the ninth embodiment in a point that the compression spring  34   f  as a biasing member is provided in a held portion  1034 Y. More specifically, the compression spring  34   f  (biasing member) for biasing the plug member  34   d  in the direction of closing the toner outlet B is provided on the right-hand side of the plug member  34   d . The ID chip  35  as an electronic substrate (storage unit) is configured so as to directly contact the communication circuit (terminal)  74  of the apparatus body. 
     The ID chip  35  of the held portion  1034 Y is configured so as to come in contact with or separate from the communication circuit  74  (connection terminal) of the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31 . More specifically, the ID chip  35  is provided on a location which is the plane of the held portion  1034 Y orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction (the arrow direction of  FIG. 53A  and  FIG. 53B ) with respect to the toner-container holder  31 , and which faces the communication circuit  74  upon the attachment/detachment operation. 
     In this manner, the ID chip  35  comes in contact with the communication circuit  74  provided in the apparatus body  100  in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation (linear operation) of the toner container  1032 Y performed by one action, and this improves contact performance between the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74 . More specifically, the surface of the ID chip  35  comes in contact linearly with the communication circuit  74  fixed in the apparatus body  100  (toner-container holder  31 ), and this prevents, before occurring, such a failure that the ID chip  35  comes in contact unevenly with the communication circuit  74  to cause contact failure, or that part of the ID chip  35  and the communication circuit  74  is worn out to give damage to some components. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 53A  and  FIG. 53B  to  FIG. 55A  and  FIG. 55B .  FIG. 53A  is a schematic of how the toner container  1032 Y for yellow is attached to the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the arrow direction) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 53B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  of the held portion  1034 Y in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 54A  is a schematic of how the attachment of the toner container  1032 Y is progressed (positioning of the held portion  1034 Y is started) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 54B  is a schematic of a portion around the holder  34   c  of the held portion  1034 Y in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 55A  is a schematic of the toner container  1032 Y attached to the toner-container holder  31  (attachment is completed), and  FIG. 55B  is a schematic of the portion of the holder  34   c  in that state when viewed from the upper side. 
     Provided in the toner-container holder  31  are four toner-container holders corresponding to four toner containers  1032 Y,  1032 M,  1032 C, and  1032 K, respectively. Each of the four toner containers includes the sliding faces  31   a  and  31   b  along which the sliding portions  34   c   1  and  34   c   2  of the held portion  1034 Y slide; the holding portion  73  for fixing the position of the holder  34   c  of the held portion  1034 Y; the nozzle (toner conveying pipe)  70 ; the drive unit (where the drive gear  31   g  is provided) for transmitting a rotational driving force to a container body  1033 Y; and the communication circuit  74 . The holding portion  73  includes the sliding faces  31   a  and  31   b  contacting the holder  34   c , and the contact area (not shown) contacting a part of the cap cover  34   b . Provided in the sliding face  31   b  (side face) of the holding portion  73  is the positioning member  31   c  for positioning in synchronization with the attachment operation of the held portion  1034 Y. The positioning member  31   c  is a convex portion extended along the attachment/detachment direction of the toner container  1032 Y. 
     When the toner container  1032 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , at first, the main-body cover  110  (see  FIG. 37 ) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 1 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  100  is opened to expose the toner-container holder  31  to the front side. Then, referring to  FIG. 53A  and  FIG. 53B , the toner container  1032 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  (movement in the arrow direction). More specifically, the toner container  1032 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1033 Y (or the toner container  1032 Y) so that the held portion  1034 Y is located as the head of the container body  1033 Y. 
     At this time, the first sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  of the toner-container holder  31  at the head side of the toner container  1032 Y, and while sliding, the toner container  1032 Y is pushed into the toner-container holder  31  with good balance by the user gripping the gripper  33   d  on the rear side of the toner container  1032 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 54A  and  FIG. 54B , when the holder  34   c  of the toner container  1032 Y reaches the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31 , the positioning of the held portion  1034 Y is started while the second sliding portions  34   c   2  are sliding along the sliding faces  31   b  in addition to the sliding of the first sliding portion  34   c   1  along the sliding face  31   a . More specifically, the engaging portion  34   g  of the held portion  1034 Y and the positioning member  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  start to be engaged with each other. 
     Then, the attachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y is further progressed, and the plug member  34   d  starts to open the toner outlet B while the engaging portions  34   g  and the positioning members  31   c  are engaged with each other. In other words, the front end of the nozzle  70  is inserted into the hole of the holder  34   c , and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70 . As shown in  FIG. 55A  and  FIG. 55B , the position of the held portion  1034 Y is fixed at the position where the holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73  (reference position for butting), and at the same time, the plug member  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B, and the gear  33   c  of the toner container  1032 Y is engaged with the drive gear  31   g  of the drive unit of the toner-container holder  31 . Further, the ID chip  35  is connected to the communication circuit  74 . In this manner, the toner outlet B of the toner container  1032 Y and the toner supply port  70   a  of the nozzle  70  communicate with each other, and the attachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y is completed. 
     In this manner, in the tenth embodiment, the positioning operation of the held portion  1034 Y (toner container  1032 Y) is started in synchronization with one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body cover  110 ) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  1032 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a , and then, the insertion operation of the nozzle  70  is started, and finally, the engagement of the gear  33   c  with the drive gear  31   g  is completed. The nozzle  70  is preferentially inserted into the held portion  1034 Y at a location apart from the engagement position D of the gear  33   c , and this can prevent such a failure that an unexpected external force, produced when the nozzle  70  does not come in contact with the plug member  34   d , may be applied to the nozzle  70  to deform the nozzle  70 . In other words, if the connection of the gear  33   c  is preferentially performed rather than the insertion of the nozzle  70  into the held portion  1034 Y, the toner container  1032 Y may be displaced caused by inappropriate engagement between the drive gear  31   g  and the gear  33   c , which may cause the position where the nozzle  70  is inserted to be displaced. 
     Movement of the nozzle  70  to the inside or to the outside of the holder  34   c  and movement of the plug member  34   d  to the inside or to the outside of the holder  34   c  are performed when both of the members slidably contact the lip of the packing  34   e  of the holder  34   c . Therefore, such a failure that toner is leaked from the holder  34   c  due to insertion or removal of the nozzle  70  is prevented. 
     When the toner container  1032 Y is to be taken out (removed) from the toner-container holder  31  of the apparatus body  100 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. In other words, the user holds the gripper  33   d  and pulls the toner container  1032 Y toward the user&#39;s side. In this case, the nozzle  70  also separates from the holder  34   c  in synchronization with the operation such that the toner container  1032 Y separates from the holding portion  73 , and the plug member  34   d  is moved to the position for closing the toner outlet B by the biasing force of the compression spring  34   f . In this manner, the detachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y is completed by one action (except the open/close operation of the main-body door  110 ) such that the sliding portion  34   c   1  of the toner container  1032 Y slides along the sliding face  31   a.    
     The toner container  1032 Y according to the tenth embodiment includes the held portion  1034 Y with the toner outlet B provided vertically downward, and the toner outlet B is provided in the lower side lower than the opening A in the vertical direction. And after the plug member  34   d  is surely positioned in synchronization with the attachment operation, the plug member  34   d  is pushed by the nozzle  70 , to open the toner outlet B sealed with the packing  34   e . Therefore, there is less toner stain in the toner outlet B, and such trouble that the user&#39;s hands become stained with toner by touching the toner outlet B is prevented. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y to/from the toner-container holder  31  is performed by one action associated with the sliding of the sliding portion  34   c   1 , and therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  1032 Y is improved. Particularly, by providing the sliding portion  34   c   1  in the bottom of the held portion  1034 Y, the sliding portion  34   c   1  slides along the sliding face  31   a  while supporting the toner container  1032 Y. Furthermore, the attachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y is performed by starting to slide the sliding portion  34   c   1  while the user directly grips the gripper  33   d , starting positioning of the held portion  1034 Y while sliding, starting insertion of the nozzle  70 , and finishing the positioning of the held portion  1034 Y, the insertion of the nozzle  70 , and the connection to the drive unit as soon as the sliding is finished. With these operations, the user gains a click feeling when the held portion  1034 Y is positioned at the same time when the sliding of the held portion  1034 Y (attachment operation by one action) is progressed, and feels certain that no erroneous operation occurs in the attachment operation. 
     Furthermore, the toner container  1032 Y is not set in the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ) from the upper side thereof, but the attachment/detachment is performed from the front face of the toner-container holder  31  (apparatus body  100 ), thus, enhancing the flexibility of layout for the upper side of the toner-container holder  31 . For example, even if a scanner (document reader) is disposed right above the toner-container holder, the operability/workability upon attachment/detachment of the toner container  1032 Y does not deteriorate. The flexibility of the layout for the engagement position D between the gear  33   c  of the toner container  1032 Y and the drive gear  31   g  of the apparatus body  100  is also enhanced. Because the toner container  1032 Y is set in the apparatus body  100  with its longitudinal direction as the horizontal direction, the toner capacity of the toner container  1032 Y is increased without any effect on the layout in the height direction of the whole image forming apparatus  100 , which allows reduction in the replacement frequency. 
     A manufacturing process when the toner container  1032 Y is recycled is explained below with reference to  FIG. 56A  and  FIG. 56B . At first, a hole  33   d   2  (through hole) communicating with the container body  1033 Y is formed in the gripper  33   d  of the toner container  1032 Y, which has been used, recovered to a recycling plant (machining process). Then, a cleaning nozzle is inserted through the hole  33   d   2  to clean the inside of the container body  1033 Y. Thereafter, referring to  FIG. 56A , the toner container  1032 Y with the hole  33   d   2  formed is set in a filling machine  201 . More specifically, the constricted portion  33   d   1  as the hook portion of the gripper  33   d  is fitted on a support portion  210  of the filling machine  201 , and the toner container  1032 Y is hung thereon so that the gripper  33   d  is positioned upward. Further, a nozzle  220  of the filling machine  201  is inserted into the toner container  1032 Y through the hole  33   d   2  thereof, to fill the toner container  1032 Y with toner from the filling machine  201  (filling process). 
     Referring to  FIG. 56B , after the filling with the toner is completed, the hole  33   d   2  is sealed with a cap  90  as a seal member. With this operation, the sealing capability of the toner container  1032 Y after being filled with toner can be ensured. In the tenth embodiment, the cap  90  covering the gripper  33   d  is used as the seal member, but a plug inserted into the hole  33   d   2  may also be used as the seal member, or a seal such as polyurethane foam covering the hole  33   d   2  can also be used as the seal member. As explained above, in the tenth embodiment, during manufacture for recycling of the toner container  1032 Y, the toner container  1032 Y can be filled with toner without disassembling the held portion  1034 Y from the container body  1033 Y. This can improve the operability upon manufacture for recycling thereof. 
     As explained above, in the tenth embodiment, similarly to the ninth embodiment, because the gripper  33   d  is provided in the opposite side in the longitudinal direction to the position where the opening A is formed, the attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  1032 Y can be smoothly and reliably performed while the user holds the gripper  33   d , and the manufacturing work of the toner container  1032 Y can efficiently be performed by using the gripper  33   d . Thus, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner container  1032 Y and its manufacture is improved, and the occurrence of toner stain can be surely reduced. 
     An eleventh embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 57 .  FIG. 57  is a cross-section of a toner container according to the eleventh embodiment. The toner container according to the eleventh embodiment has some points that a container body  1133 Y together with a held portion  1134 Y is held by the toner-container holder  31  in the non-rotating manner, and that the coil  181 Y as the conveyor member is provided in the container body, and these points are different from the embodiments in which the container body rotates to convey the toner contained therein to the opening A. 
     As shown in  FIG. 57 , a toner container  1132 Y mainly includes the container body  1133 Y and the held portion  1134 Y. The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  1133 Y, and the gear  33   c  is rotatably provided around the outer periphery of the opening A. The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the apparatus body  100  to rotate the coil  181 Y. 
     The rotating axis  180 Y is integrally formed with the gear  33   c , and the spiral-shaped coil  181 Y is connected to the rotating axis  180 Y. One end of the rotating axis  180 Y is supported by the bearing portion  34   a   4  of the held portion  1134 Y. The coil  181 Y is extended from the opening A over the rear end (bottom) inside the container body  1133 Y. The gear  33   c  rotates around the container body  1133 Y to rotate the rotating axis  180 Y and the coil  181 Y. 
     Therefore, the toner contained in the container body  1133 Y is conveyed toward the opening A by the toner conveying force of the coil  181 Y. Because the outer diameter of the coil  181 Y is smaller than the internal diameter of the container body  1133 Y, the toner conveying force can be exerted on the toner near the rotational central axis which is far from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  1133 Y. Furthermore, the coil  181 Y is comparatively flexible in shape and only one end thereof is supported, thus, the position is swaying during rotation. This can totally exert the toner conveying force from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  1133 Y over the rotational central axis. Therefore, even if the large amount of toner is contained in the container body  1133 Y and toner aggregation occurs therein due to environmental changes or “being left too long”, the aggregation state is weakened by the toner conveying force due to the coil  181 Y, and reduction in the toner amount to be discharged can thereby be prevented. 
     The toner container  1132 Y according to the eleventh embodiment, similarly to those of the embodiments, is also provided with the gripper  33   d  in the opposite side in the longitudinal direction to the position where the opening A is formed. When the toner container  1132 Y is attached/detached to/from the toner-container holder  31 , the plug member  34   d  of the held portion  1134 Y opens/closes the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation performed along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1133 Y while the user is holding the gripper  33   d  provided in the rear side of the container body  1133 Y. Moreover, the toner container  1132 Y is configured so that the held portion  1134 Y of the toner container  1132 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1133 Y so as to be located as the head of the container body  1133 Y in the attachment direction, and so that the container body  1133 Y is supported by the support member  78  of the toner-container holder  31  at the rear position in the attachment direction of the container body  1133 Y. Furthermore, the toner-container holder  31  is configured so that the toner container  1132 Y is biased by the arm pairs  80  (biasing member) toward the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  1132 Y. 
     As explained above, in the eleventh embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the operability/workability upon replacement and manufacture of the toner container  1132 Y is increased, and the occurrence of toner stain can be surely reduced. Although the coil  181 Y is used as the conveyor member in the eleventh embodiment, a screw can also be used as the conveyor member. In this case, the same effect as that of the eleventh embodiment can also be obtained. 
     A twelfth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 58  and  FIG. 59 .  FIG. 58  is a cross-section of a toner container according to the twelfth embodiment, which corresponds to  FIG. 57  according to the eleventh embodiment. The toner container according to the twelfth embodiment is different from the eleventh embodiment in that the plate member  184 Y is used as the conveyor member. 
     As shown in  FIG. 58 , a toner container  1232 Y mainly includes a container body  1233 Y and a held portion  1234 Y. The opening A is provided in the head of the container body  1233 Y, and the gear  33   c  is rotatably provided around the outer periphery of the opening A. The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the apparatus body  100  to be rotated, similarly to the eleventh embodiment. 
     The threaded rod  183 Y is integrally formed with the gear  33   c , and the plate member  184 Y is provided on the threaded rod  183 Y. More specifically, the male screw portion  183 Ya of the threaded rod  183 Y is screwed with the female screw portion  184 Ya in the plate member  184 Y (see  FIG. 59 ). Referring to  FIG. 59 , a notched portion is formed on the plate member  184 Y, and this notched portion is engaged with the guide portion  185 Y which is protruded from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  1233 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 58 , the threaded rod  183 Y is supported at its one end by the bearing portion  34   a   4  of the held portion  1234 Y, and is supported at the other end by a bearing portion provided in the rear side of the container body  1233 Y. The gear  33   c  is made to rotate around the container body  1233 Y, and the threaded rod  183 Y is also integrally rotated thereby. Therefore, the plate member  184 Y engaged with the threaded rod  183 Y moves along the screw feeding direction (movement in the arrow direction toward the opening A) while being guided by the guide portion  185 Y (without being rotated following the threaded rod  183 Y). The speed of the movement of the plate member  184 Y is set comparatively slowly in accordance with the speed of toner consumption of the container body  1233 Y. 
     In this manner, the toner contained in the container body  1233 Y is conveyed to the side of the opening A by the toner conveying force of the plate member  184 Y. Here, the outer diameter of the plate member  184 Y is formed so as to be slightly smaller than the internal diameter of the container body  1233 Y, and the toner conveying force can be exerted on the toner near the rotational central axis A which is far from the inner circumferential surface of the container body  1233 Y. Therefore, even if the large amount of toner is contained in the container body  1233 Y and toner aggregation occurs therein due to environmental changes or “being left too long”, the aggregation state is weakened by the toner conveying force due to the plate member  184 Y, and reduction in the toner amount to be discharged can thereby be prevented. 
     The toner container  1232 Y according to the twelfth embodiment, similarly to those of the embodiments, is also provided with the gripper  33   d  in the opposite side in the longitudinal direction to the position where the opening A is formed. When the toner container  1232 Y is attached/detached to/from the toner-container holder  31 , the plug member  34   d  of the held portion  1234 Y opens/closes the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation performed along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1233 Y while the user is holding the gripper  33   d  provided in the rear side of the container body  1233 Y. Moreover, the toner container  1232 Y is configured so that the held portion  1234 Y of the toner container  1232 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1233 Y so as to be located as the head of the container body  1233 Y in the attachment direction, and so that the container body  1233 Y is supported by the support member  78  of the toner-container holder  31  at the rear position in the attachment direction of the container body  1233 Y. Furthermore, the toner-container holder  31  is configured so that the toner container  1232 Y is biased by the arm pairs  80  (biasing member) toward the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  1232 Y. 
     As explained above, in the twelfth embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the operability/workability upon replacement and manufacture of the toner container  1232 Y is increased, and the occurrence of toner stain can be surely reduced. 
     A thirteenth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 60A  and  FIG. 60B  to  FIG. 62A  and  FIG. 62B .  FIG. 60A  and  FIG. 60B  to  FIG. 62A  and  FIG. 62B  are schematics of toner containers according to the thirteenth embodiment. More specifically,  FIG. 60A  is a schematic of a toner container when viewed from its rear side, and  FIG. 60B  is a schematic of the toner container when viewed from its longitudinal direction.  FIG. 61A  is a schematic of another type of the toner container when viewed from its rear side, and  FIG. 61B  is a schematic of the another type of the toner container when viewed from its longitudinal direction.  FIG. 62A  is a schematic of still another type of the toner container when viewed from its rear side, and  FIG. 62B  is a schematic of the still another type of the toner container when viewed from its longitudinal direction. The gripper  1333   d  of the toner container according to the thirteenth embodiment is different in shape from that of the embodiments. 
     As shown in  FIG. 60A  and  FIG. 60B , the gripper  1333   d  is provided in the rear end face (bottom in the rear side in the attachment direction) of a container body  1333 Y of a toner container  1332 Y so that the user holds it for performing attachment/detachment operation of the toner container  1332 Y. The gripper  1333   d  is formed into a horseshoe shape. This shape of the gripper  1333   d  is not limited to that of the  FIG. 60A  and  FIG. 60B , and so, as shown in  FIG. 61A  and  FIG. 61B , the gripper  1433   d  may be formed into a handle shape. Furthermore, as shown in  FIG. 62A  and  FIG. 62B , the gripper  1533   d  can be formed so as to be retractable into the bottom of the container body  1533 Y (the gripper  1533   d  is retracted in the arrow direction in  FIG. 62B ). When the gripper  31533   d  is formed so as to be retractable into the bottom of the container body  1533 Y in the above manner, the space used for the gripper  1533   d  upon setting of the body can be reduced, and the position of the bottom of the container body  1533 Y can be extended accordingly to the near side (the side of the main-body cover  110 ) of the apparatus body. This allows an increase in the capacity (toner amount to be contained) of the container body  1533 Y. 
     The toner container  1332 Y according to the thirteenth embodiment, similarly to those of the embodiments, is also provided with the gripper  1333   d  in the opposite side in the longitudinal direction to the position where the opening A is formed. When the toner container  1332 Y is attached/detached to/from the toner-container holder  31 , the plug member  34   d  of the held portion  1334 Y opens/closes the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation performed along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1333 Y while the user is holding the gripper  1333   d  provided in the rear side of the container body  1333 Y. Moreover, the toner container  1332 Y is configured so that the held portion  1334 Y of the toner container  1332 Y is attached to the toner-container holder  31  along the longitudinal direction of the container body  1333 Y so as to be located as the head of the container body  1333 Y in the attachment direction, and so that the container body  1333 Y is supported by the support member  78  of the toner-container holder  31  at the rear position in the attachment direction of the container body  1333 Y. Furthermore, the toner-container holder  31  is configured so that the toner container  1332 Y is biased by the arm pairs  80  (biasing member) toward the holding portion  73  of the toner-container holder  31  in synchronization with the attachment operation of the toner container  1332 Y. 
     As explained above, in the thirteenth embodiment, similarly to the embodiments, the operability/workability upon replacement and manufacture of the toner container is increased, and the occurrence of toner stain can be surely reduced. 
     A fourteenth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 63  to  FIG. 69A  and  FIG. 69B . At first, the configuration and the operation of a whole image forming apparatus are explained below with reference to  FIG. 63  to  FIG. 65 .  FIG. 63  is an overall schematic of a printer as the image forming apparatus,  FIG. 64  is a cross-section of an imaging unit thereof, and  FIG. 65  is a schematic of a toner supply portion thereof. 
     As shown in  FIG. 63 , four toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K correspond to colors (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) respectively, and are detachably (replaceably) arranged in a bottle holder  1631  which is provided in the upper side of the main body of an image forming apparatus  200 . Provided in the lower side of the bottle holder  1631  is the intermediate transfer unit  15 . The imaging units  6 Y,  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K corresponding to the colors (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) are arranged in a tandem manner so as to face the intermediate transfer belt  8  of the intermediate transfer unit  15 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 64 , the imaging unit  6 Y corresponding to yellow includes the photosensitive drum  1 Y, and also includes the charger  4 Y, the developing device  5 Y (developing unit), the cleaning unit  2 Y, and the decharger (not shown), which are arranged around the photosensitive drum  1 Y. Imaging processes (charging process, exposing process, developing process, transfer process, and cleaning process) are preformed on the photosensitive drum  1 Y, and an yellow image is formed on the photosensitive drum  1 Y. 
     The other three imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K have almost the same configuration as the imaging unit  6 Y corresponding to yellow, except different toner colors to be used, and images corresponding to the respective toner colors are formed. Hereinafter, explanation of the other three imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K is omitted, and only the imaging unit  6 Y for yellow is explained below. 
     Referring to  FIG. 64 , the photosensitive drum  1 Y is made to rotate in the clockwise in  FIG. 64  by a drive motor (not shown). The surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y is uniformly charged at the position of the charger  4 Y (charging process). Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches the position for radiating a laser light L emitted from the exposing device  7  (see  FIG. 63 ), where an exposing light is scanned to form an electrostatic latent image for yellow (exposing process). 
     Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches the position facing the developing device  5 Y, where the electrostatic latent image is developed and a yellow toner image is formed (developing process). Then, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches the position facing the intermediate transfer belt  8  and the primary-transfer bias roller  9 Y, where the toner image on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt  8  (primary transfer process). At this time, a slight amount of non-transferred toner remains on the photosensitive drum  1 Y. 
     Thereafter, the surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y reaches the position facing the cleaning unit  2 Y, where the non-transferred toner remaining on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is mechanically collected by the cleaning blade  2   a  (cleaning process). The surface of the photosensitive drum  1 Y finally reaches the position facing the decharger (not shown), where the residual potential on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is removed. In this manner, the series of imaging processes on the photosensitive drum  1 Y is completed. 
     The imaging processes are performed on the other imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K in the same manner as those of the yellow imaging unit  6 Y. In other words, the laser light L based on image information is radiated from the exposing device  7  provided in the lower side of the imaging unit toward each photosensitive drum of the imaging units  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K. More specifically, the exposing device  7  emits the laser light L from its light source, and radiates the laser light L onto the photosensitive drum through a plurality of optical elements while scanning the laser light L by a polygon mirror which is rotated. 
     Then, respective color toner images formed on the photosensitive drums through the developing process are superposedly transferred on the intermediate transfer belt  8 . In this manner, a color image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt  8 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 63 , the intermediate transfer unit  15  includes the intermediate transfer belt  8 , the four primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K, the secondary-transfer backup roller  12 , the cleaning backup roller  13 , the tension roller  14 , and the intermediate-transfer cleaning unit  10 . The intermediate transfer belt  8  is stretched and supported by three rollers  12  to  14 , and is endlessly moved in the direction of the allow of  FIG. 63  by the rotation of the roller  12 . 
     The four primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K sandwich the intermediate transfer belt  8  with the photosensitive drums  1 Y,  1 M,  1 C, and  1 K, to form each primary transfer nip. And the transfer bias inverse to the polarity of the toner is applied to the primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K. Then, the intermediate transfer belt  8  moves along the arrow direction and sequentially passes through the primary transfer nips of the primary-transfer bias rollers  9 Y,  9 M,  9 C, and  9 K. In this manner, the toner images of the colors on the photosensitive drums  1 Y,  1 M,  1 C, and  1 K are sequentially superposed on the intermediate transfer belt  8  to perform primary transfer. 
     Thereafter, the intermediate transfer belt  8  with the toner images of the colors superposedly transferred reaches the position facing the secondary transfer roller  19 . At this position, the secondary-transfer backup roller  12  sandwiches the intermediate transfer belt  8  with the secondary transfer roller  19  to form a secondary transfer nip. The four-color toner images formed on the intermediate transfer belt  8  are transferred to the transferred material P such as a transfer paper conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip. At this time, non-transferred toner which has not been transferred to the transferred material P remains on the intermediate transfer belt  8 . 
     Thereafter, the intermediate transfer belt  8  reaches the position of the intermediate-transfer cleaning unit  10 , where the non-transferred toner on the intermediate transfer belt  8  is collected. In this manner, a series of the transfer process performed on the intermediate transfer belt  8  is completed. 
     The transferred material P conveyed to the position of the secondary transfer nip is conveyed thereto from the paper feed unit  26  provided in the lower side of the apparatus body  200  through the paper feed roller  27  and the registration roller pair  28 . More specifically, a plurality of the transferred materials P such as transfer paper are stored in the paper feed unit  26 . When the paper feed roller  27  is made to rotate in the counterclockwise of  FIG. 63 , the uppermost transferred material P is fed to between the registration roller pair  28 . 
     The transferred material P conveyed to the registration roller pair  28  once stops at the position of a roller nip between the registration roller pair  28  that stops its rotation. Then, the registration roller pair  28  is rotated in synchronization with the color images on the intermediate transfer belt  8 , and the transferred material P is conveyed toward the secondary transfer nip. In this manner, a desired color image is transferred to the transferred material P. 
     Then, the transferred material P with the color image transferred at the position of the secondary transfer nip is conveyed to the fixing unit  20 , where the color image transferred to the surface of the transferred material P is fixed on the transferred material P under heat and pressure by a fixing roller and a pushing roller. Thereafter, the transferred material P is ejected to the outside of the apparatus through between the paper-discharge roller pair  29 . The transferred materials P ejected to the outside of the apparatus by the paper-discharge roller pair  29  are sequentially stacked on the stack portion  30 , as output images. In this manner, a series of the imaging processes in the image forming apparatus is completed. 
     The configuration and the operation of the developing device in the imaging unit are explained in further detail below with reference to  FIG. 64 . The developing device  5 Y includes the developing roller  51 Y that faces the photosensitive drum  1 Y, the doctor blade  52 Y that faces the developing roller  51 Y, two conveyor screws  55 Y provided in the developer storage units  53 Y and  54 Y, and the density detection sensor  56 Y for detecting toner density in the developer. The developing roller  51 Y includes a magnet fixed inside thereof and a sleeve rotating around the magnet. The two-component developer G containing carrier and toner is stored in the developer storage units  53 Y and  54 Y. The developer storage unit  54 Y communicates with the toner conveying pipe  43 Y through the opening formed in the upper side of the developer storage unit  54 Y. 
     The developing device  5 Y configured in the above manner operates as follows. The sleeve of the developing roller  51 Y rotates in the arrow direction of  FIG. 64 . The developer G carried on the developing roller  51 Y by the magnetic field formed by the magnet moves along the developing roller  51 Y associated with rotation of the sleeve. 
     The developer G in the developing device  5 Y is controlled so that the proportion (toner density) of the toner in the developer is in a predetermined range. More specifically, the toner contained in the toner bottle  1632 Y is supplied to the developer storage unit  54 Y through the toner supply portions  43 Y,  60 ,  70 , and  71  according to toner consumption in the developing device  5 Y. It is noted that the configuration and the operation of the toner bottle  1632 Y are explained in detail later. 
     Thereafter, the toner supplied to the developer storage unit  54 Y circulates (movement in the vertical direction on the paper of  FIG. 64 ) in the two developer storage units  53 Y and  54 Y while being mixed with the developer G and stirred by the two conveyor screws  55 Y. The toner in the developer G is attracted to the carrier by frictional charge with the carrier, and is carried on the developing roller  51 Y together with the carrier by the magnetic force formed on the developing roller  51 Y. 
     The developer G carried on the developing roller  51 Y is conveyed in the arrow direction of  FIG. 64  to reach the position of the doctor blade  52 Y. At this position, the amount of developer is made appropriate, and then the developer G on the developing roller  51 Y is conveyed to the position (developing region) which faces the photosensitive drum  1 Y. The toner is attracted to the latent image formed on the photosensitive drum  1 Y by the electric field formed in the developing region. Then, the developer G remaining on the developing roller  51 Y reaches the upper side of the developer storage unit  53 Y associated with the rotation of the sleeve, where the developer G is separated from the developing roller  51 Y. 
     The toner supply portions  43 Y,  60 ,  70 , and  71  that guide the toner contained in the toner bottle  1632 Y set in the bottle holder  1631  to the developing device  5 Y is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 65 . For easy understanding,  FIG. 65  depicts changed arrangement of the toner bottle  1632 Y, the toner supply portions  43 Y,  60 ,  70 , and  71 , and the developing device  5 Y. Actually, in  FIG. 65 , the longitudinal direction of the toner bottle  1632 Y and part of the toner supply portions is arranged in the vertical direction on the paper. The toner supply portions are arranged in the apparatus body  200  for each toner color. The four toner supply portions have almost the same configuration as one another except a different toner color used for each imaging process. 
     The toner supply portions supply the toner in the toner bottle  1632 Y set in the bottle holder  1631  of the apparatus body  200  into the developing device  5 Y as necessary according to toner consumption in the developing device  5 Y. More specifically, the toner bottle  1632 Y is set in the bottle holder  1631  of the apparatus body  200 , and the toner conveying pipe  70  (nozzle) of the bottle holder  1631  is connected to a case  1634 Y of the toner bottle  1632 Y. At this time, the shutter  34   d  (open/close member) of the toner bottle  1632 Y opens the toner outlet of the case  1634 Y. This allows the toner contained in the bottle body  1633 Y of the toner bottle  1632 Y to be conveyed into the toner conveying pipe  70  through the toner outlet. 
     On the other hand, the other end of the toner conveying pipe  70  is connected to one end of the tube  71 . The tube  71  is made of a flexible rubber material having a low affinity for toner, and the other end thereof is connected to the powder pump  60  (screw pump) of the toner supply portion. The powder pump  60  includes the rotor  61 , the stator  62 , the suction port  63 , the universal joint  64 , and the motor  66 . The rotor  61  is formed so that a shaft made of a metal material is spirally formed. The one end of the rotor  61  is rotatably connected to the motor  66  through the universal joint  64 . The stator  62  is made of a rubber material, and a hole thereof is formed so that its oval cross-section is spirally formed. The rotor  61  is inserted into the hole of the stator  62 . 
     The powder pump  60  configured in the above manner causes the motor  66  to rotate the rotor  61  in the stator  62  to suck the toner in the toner bottle  1632 Y to the suction port  63  through the tube  71 . The toner sucked to the suction port  63  is sent into a gap between the stator  62  and the rotor  61  and fed to the other end along the rotation of the rotor  61 . The toner fed is discharged from the feed port  67  of the powder pump  60 , to be supplied to the developing device  5 Y through the toner conveying pipe  43 Y (movement in the arrow direction indicated by a dotted line in  FIG. 65 ). 
     The toner bottle characteristic in the fourteenth embodiment is explained below with reference to  FIG. 66  to  FIG. 69A  and  FIG. 69B . As explained with reference to  FIG. 63 , the four toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K are detachably provided in the bottle holder  1631 . The toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K are replaced with new ones when they come to the end of their lives (when almost all of toner contained is consumed and the container becomes empty). The toner of the colors contained in the toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K is supplied as necessary to each developing device of the imaging units  6 Y,  6 M,  6 C, and  6 K through the toner supply portions explained with reference to  FIG. 65 . 
       FIG. 66  is a perspective view of the toner bottle  1632 Y.  FIG. 67  is a cross-section of the head side (the side where the case  1634 Y is provided) of the toner bottle  1632 Y. The other three toner bottles  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K have almost the same configuration as the toner bottle  1632 Y containing yellow toner, except different toner colors contained. Hereinafter, explanation of the other three toner bottles  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K is omitted, and only the toner bottle  1632 Y containing yellow toner is explained below. 
     As shown in  FIG. 66 , the toner bottle  1632 Y mainly includes the bottle body  1633 Y and the case  1634 Y (bottle cap) provided in the head thereof. The head of the bottle body  1633 Y includes the gear  33   c  integrally rotating with the bottle body  1633 Y, and the opening A (see  FIG. 67 ). The gear  33   c  is engaged with the drive gear of the drive unit (not shown) provided in the toner holder  1631  of the apparatus body  200 , to rotate the bottle body  1633 Y around its rotating axis (indicated by the chain line of  FIG. 67 ). The opening A is used to discharge the toner contained in the bottle body  1633 Y into the space of the case  1634 Y. 
     Referring to  FIG. 66 , the gripper  33   d  is provided in the bottom of the bottle body  1633 Y so that the user can grip it for attachment/detachment of the toner bottle  1632 Y. The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is provided from the outer circumferential surface to the inner circumferential surface of the bottle body  1633 Y. The spiral-shaped projection  33   b  is used to discharge the toner from the opening A by rotating the bottle body  1633 Y. The bottle body  1633 Y configured in this manner and the gear  33   c  can be manufactured by blow molding. 
     Referring to  FIG. 66  and  FIG. 67 , the case  1634 Y includes the cap  34   a , the cap cover  34   b , the shutter holder  34   c , the shutter  34   d  as the open/close member, and the packing  34   e . The case  1634 Y communicates with the bottle body  1633 Y through the opening A, and discharges the toner discharged from the opening A, from the toner outlet B (movement along the arrow direction indicated by the dotted line of  FIG. 67 ). The case  1634 Y does not follow the rotation of the bottle body  1633 Y, but is held by the holding portion of the bottle holder  1631 . 
     The cap cover  34   b  of the case  1634 Y is bonded to the circumferential surface of the cap  34   a . The claw  34   b   1  is provided at the front of the cap cover  34   b . The claw  34   b   1  is engaged with an engaging member formed in the head of the bottle body  1633 Y, and the bottle body  1633 Y is thereby held relatively rotatably with respect to the case  1634 Y. To smoothly rotate the bottle body  1633 Y, the claw  34   b   1  of the case  1634 Y and the engaging member of the bottle body  1633 Y are engaged with each other by maintaining appropriate clearance therebetween. 
     The shutter holder  34   c  is provided in the lower side of the case  1634 Y. Provided in the shutter holder  34   c  is the shutter  34   d  (plug) as the open/close member for opening/closing the toner outlet B in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation of the toner bottle  1632 Y. The packing  34   e  is provided on the both sides of the shutter  34   d  to prevent toner leakage from near the shutter  34   d . A compression spring for biasing the shutter  34   d  in the direction of closing the toner outlet B is provided in the right side of the shutter  34   d.    
     The case  1634 Y includes an adhesive area  34   a   3  for bonding the seal  37  thereto as a seal member. The adhesive area  34   a   3  is an area (one of opposite areas) which faces the front end  33   a  (the other one of the opposite areas) around the opening A of the bottle body  1633 Y, and is formed at the front of the cap  34   a . The seal  37  being the seal member is used to seal the gap which is around the opening A and is between the front end  33   a  of the bottle body  1633 Y and the adhesive area  34   a   3  of the case  1634 Y that mutually face each other, and is made of an elastic material such as polyurethane foam. 
     The adhesive area  34   a   3  with the seal  37  adhered serves as a control portion for controlling vibration in the radial direction of the opening A. More specifically, the adhesive area  34   a   3  of the case  1634 Y is formed so as not to be parallel with the front end  33   a  of the bottle body  1633 Y which faces this adhesive area. To be more specific, the adhesive area  34   a   3  is not a plane substantially vertical with respect to the direction of the rotating axis of the bottle body  1633 Y but is tapered. Furthermore, the area of the adhesive area  34   a   3  as one of the opposite areas is formed so as to be larger than the area of the front end  33   a  being the other opposite area. 
     Based on the configuration above, even if the front end  33   a  (opening A) is about to vibrate in the radial direction (direction orthogonal to the rotating axis) associated with the rotation of the bottle body  1633 Y, the adhesive area  34   a   3  with the seal  37  adhered controls this movement. For example, even if the front end  33   a  is going to move upward in  FIG. 67 , the force (force through the seal  37 ), in the direction of pulling the front end  33   a  downward, acts on the front end  33   a  in the upper side of the adhesive area  34   a   3 , and this causes the upward movement of the front end  33   a  to be controlled. 
     The vibration in the radial direction of the opening A of the bottle body  1633 Y is prevented, and a deformed shape (shape to seal the gap) of the seal  37  having elasticity is thereby fixed, to allow stable maintenance of the sealing capability of the seal  37  over time without reduction in its restoring force. In other words, such trouble that some clearance occurs in a seal region of the seal  37  due to the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A is prevented. As a result, toner leakage from the seal  37  is suppressed to prevent, before occurring, waste of toner and toner contamination in the main body of the image forming apparatus  200  associated with the toner leakage. 
     The attachment/detachment operation of the toner bottle  1632 Y to/from the bottle holder  1631  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 68A  and  FIG. 68B , and  FIG. 69A  and  FIG. 69B .  FIG. 68A  is a schematic of how the toner bottle  1632 Y for yellow is attached to the bottle holder  1631  (movement in the arrow direction) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 68B  is a cross-section of a portion around the shutter holder  34   c  of the case  1634 Y in that state when viewed from the upper side.  FIG. 69A  is a schematic of the toner bottle  1632 Y attached to the bottle holder  1631  (attachment is completed) when viewed from the longitudinal direction, and  FIG. 69B  is a cross-section of the portion of the shutter holder  34   c  in that state when viewed from the upper side. 
     The bottle holder  1631  includes four bottle holders corresponding to the four toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K, respectively. Each of the bottle holders includes the holding portion  73  for fixing the position of the shutter holder  34   c  of the case  1634 Y, the toner conveying pipe  70 , and the drive unit (not shown) for transmitting the rotational drive force to the bottle body  1633 Y. 
     When the toner bottle  1632 Y is attached to the bottle holder  1631  of the apparatus body  200 , at first, the main-body cover (not shown) provided on the front face (the near side on the paper of  FIG. 63 ) of the main body of the image forming apparatus  200  is opened to expose the bottle holder  1631 . Then, referring to  FIG. 68A  and  FIG. 68B , the toner bottle  1632 Y is pushed into the bottle holder  1631  (movement in the arrow direction). Then, the toner bottle  1632 Y is moving to the rear side of the bottle holder  1631  while both ends of the shutter holder  34   c  of the toner bottle  1632 Y are guided by the holding portion  73 . The shutter  34   d  is moved so as to be pushed out by the toner conveying pipe  70  associated with insertion of the front end of the toner conveying pipe  70  into the through hole of the shutter holder  34   c . The position of the case  1634 Y is fixed at the position where the shutter holder  34   c  butts against the holding portion  73 , and at the same time, the shutter  34   d  fully opens the toner outlet B. With this operation, as shown in  FIG. 69A  and  FIG. 69B , the toner outlet B of the toner bottle  1632 Y and the toner supply port  70   a  of the toner conveying pipe  70  communicate with each other, and the attachment operation of the toner bottle  1632 Y is completed. 
     When the toner bottle  1632 Y is to be taken out of the bottle holder  1631  of the apparatus body  200 , the operation is performed in the reverse of the attachment. In this case, the toner conveying pipe  70  also separates from the shutter  34   d  in synchronization with the operation such that the toner bottle  1632 Y separates from the holding portion  73 , and the shutter  34   d  is moved to the position for closing the toner outlet B by the biasing force of the compression spring. 
     As explained above, the fourteenth embodiment is provided with the adhesive area  34   a   3  for controlling, together with the seal  37 , the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A of the bottle body. Therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner bottle is improved, and toner leakage (toner scatter) which may occur with time can be prevented even if a large amount of toner is contained in the toner bottle. 
     In the fourteenth embodiment, only the toner is contained in each bottle body of the toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K, but in the case of the image forming apparatus that supplies two-component developer containing toner and carrier to each developing device, the two-component developer can also be contained in each bottle body of the toner bottles  1632 Y,  1632 M,  1632 C, and  1632 K. Even in this case, by providing the adhesive area  34   a   3  for controlling, together with the seal  37 , the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A of the bottle body, it is possible to prevent leakage of the developer from the toner bottle. 
     In the fourteenth embodiment, the control portion  34   a   3  is provided on the side of the case  1634 Y, but the control portion can also be provided on the side of the bottle body  1633 Y. Furthermore, the seal  37  can also be adhered to the front end  33   a  of the bottle body  1633 Y. Even in these cases, the same effect as that of the fourteenth embodiment can be obtained. 
     A fifteenth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 70 .  FIG. 70  is a cross-section of part of a toner bottle according to the fifteenth embodiment, which corresponds to that of  FIG. 67  according to the fourteenth embodiment. The fifteenth embodiment is different from the fourteenth embodiment in the shape of the adhesive area  34   a   3  as the control portion. 
     As shown in  FIG. 70 , a toner bottle  1732 Y according to the fifteenth embodiment includes a bottle body  1733 Y and a case  1734 Y, similarly to the fourteenth embodiment. Furthermore, the case  1734 Y has the adhesive area  34   a   3  (control portion) for bonding the seal  37  thereto as the seal member. The adhesive area  34   a   3  according to the fifteenth embodiment is formed into a V shape, which is different from that of the fourteenth embodiment. 
     The adhesive area  34   a   3  with the seal  37  bonded thereto serves as the control portion for controlling the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A. 
     More specifically, the adhesive area  34   a   3  formed into the V shape is formed so as not to be parallel with the front end  33   a  of the bottle body  1733 Y which faces this adhesive area, and so as to be larger than the area of the front end  33   a . Based on the configuration above, the adhesive area  34   a   3  with the seal  37  adhered thereto controls the movement of the front end  33   a  (opening A) which is about to vibrate in the radial direction following the rotation of the bottle body  1733 Y. For example, even if the front end  33   a  is about to move upward in  FIG. 70 , the force (force through the seal  37 ) in the direction of pulling the front end  33   a  downward is acted on the front end  33   a  at one end of the V shape of the adhesive area  34   a   3 , and this controls the upward movement of the front end  33   a.    
     The vibration in the radial direction of the opening A is controlled in this manner, to thereby enable stable maintenance of the sealing capability of the seal  37  even after time passes. As a result, toner leakage from the seal  37  is suppressed to prevent, before occurring, waste of toner and toner contamination in the main body of the image forming apparatus  200  associated with the toner leakage. 
     As explained above, the fifteenth embodiment is also provided with the adhesive area  34   a   3  for controlling, together with the seal  37 , the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A of the bottle body  1733 Y. Therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner bottle  1732 Y is improved, and toner leakage (toner scatter) which may occur with time can be prevented even if a large amount of toner is contained in the toner bottle  1732 Y. 
     A sixteenth embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 71 .  FIG. 71  is a cross-section of part of a toner bottle according to the sixteenth embodiment, which corresponds to that of  FIG. 67  according to the fourteenth embodiment. The sixteenth embodiment is different from the fourteenth embodiment in the shape of the adhesive area  34   a   3  as the control portion. 
     As shown in  FIG. 71 , a toner bottle  1832 Y according to the sixteenth embodiment includes a bottle body  1833 Y and a case  1834 Y, similarly to the fourteenth embodiment. Furthermore, the case  1834 Y has the adhesive area  34   a   3  (control portion) for bonding the seal  37  thereto as the seal member. The adhesive area  34   a   3  according to the sixteenth embodiment is tapered similarly to that of the fourteenth embodiment, but the direction of the tapered portion is formed differently from that of the fourteenth embodiment. The adhesive area  34   a   3  with the seal  37  adhered thereto serves as the control portion for controlling the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A. 
     More specifically, the adhesive area  34   a   3  formed into the taper is formed so as not to be parallel with the front end  33   a  of the bottle body  1833 Y which faces this adhesive area, and so as to be larger than the area of the front end  33   a . Based on the configuration above, the adhesive area  34   a   3  with the seal  37  adhered thereto controls the movement of the front end  33   a  (opening A) even if it is about to vibrate in the radial direction following the rotation of the bottle body  1833 Y. For example, even if the front end  33   a  is about to move upward in  FIG. 71 , the force in the direction of pulling the front end  33   a  downward is acted on the front end  33   a  in the lower side of the adhesive area  34   a   3 , and this controls the upward movement of the front end  33   a.    
     The vibration in the radial direction of the opening A is controlled in this manner, to thereby enable stable maintenance of the sealing capability of the seal  37  even after time passes. As a result, the toner leakage from the seal  37  is suppressed to prevent, before occurring, waste of toner and toner contamination in the main body of the image forming apparatus  200  associated with the toner leakage. 
     As explained above, the sixteenth embodiment is also provided with the adhesive area  34   a   3  for controlling, together with the seal  37 , the vibration in the radial direction of the opening A of the bottle body  1833 Y. Therefore, the operability/workability upon replacement of the toner bottle  1832 Y is improved, and toner leakage (toner scatter) which may occur with time can be prevented even if a large amount of toner is contained in the toner bottle  1832 Y. 
     A seventeenth embodiment is explained below with reference to  FIG. 72  to  FIG. 75 .  FIG. 72  is a schematic of the toner container  1032 Y in which a plug member  4734   d  closes the toner outlet B, and  FIG. 73  shows the same view when the plug member  4734   d  opens the toner outlet B. Although  FIG. 72  and  FIG. 73  are nearly the same as  FIG. 38  that shows the cap  34  of the ninth embodiment viewed from a downward oblique point there are points mainly different from the ninth embodiment. The points are such that grooves  34   p  are formed in a held portion  4734 Y, which corresponds to the cap  34   a  in the first embodiment, and the plug member  4734   d , which corresponds to the plug member  34   d  in the first embodiment, is differently shaped.  FIG. 74  is a schematic of the holder  34   c  provided separately from the held portion  4734 Y and not shown in  FIG. 72  and  FIG. 73 , and of a snap mechanism for engaging the holder  34   c  with the held portion  4734 Y, to make the configuration of the plug member  4734   d  easy to see.  FIG. 75  is an exploded perspective view of the holder  34   c  to explain details of the components of the holder  34   c . The configuration of the holder  34   c  is the same as that of the first embodiment. The details of these configurations and the effect due to these configurations are explained below. 
     The groove  34   p  opened downwardly is formed at two positions which are in a path of the claw member  76 . These grooves allow the claws of the claw member  76  to move into or move back along the respective grooves  34   p  during the attachment/detachment operation. A corner portion  34   p   1 , against which the claw member  76  butts, and a wall surface  34   c   3  (a part of the sliding portion  34   c   1 ) are provided at the rear end of the groove  34   p . Specifically, the wall surface  34   c   3  is used when the claw member  76  changes its posture after butting against the corner portion  34   p   1  and moves while the claws of the claw member  76  are in contact with the wall surface  34   c   3 . 
       FIG. 73  shows how the plug member  4734   d  which is pushed by the nozzle  70  opens the toner outlet B. The claw member  76  engages with the back of a protrusion portion  4734   d   1 , as explained below. The details and the effect of the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  will be explained later with reference to  FIG. 75  to  FIG. 77 . Further, the operation of the toner container  1032 Y in which the claw member  76  is engaged with the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  and the effect thereof will be explained later with reference to  FIG. 78A  to  FIG. 78B . 
     Similarly to the configuration of the ninth embodiment, the plug member  4734   d  of  FIG. 72  has a plate ((hereinafter, “protrusion portion  4734   d   1 ”) which is an engaging portion for engaging the claw member  76 , and is extended and protruded to both sides of the axis of the cylinder portion of the plug member  4734   d , the both sides being perpendicular to the axial direction of the cylinder portion. The plug member  4734   d  also has two plates (hereinafter, “second protrusion portions  4734   d   2 ”) protruded from near the both ends of the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  so as to form planes perpendicular to the plate surface of the protrusion portion  4734   d   1 . Similarly to the ninth embodiment, the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  is extended and projected to the both sides from the axis of the cylinder portion of the plug member  4734   d , and the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  is engaged with the claw member  76  at symmetrical two positions. Therefore, the force to move the plug member  4734   d  by the claw member  76  can be imparted evenly on both sides, and as a result, the closing operation of the toner outlet B can be smoothly performed. In addition to or as an alternative, a spring may be used to urge the plug member  4734   d  towards the closed position. 
     The backside  34   c   7  of the wall surface  34   c   3  has two storage portions  34   q , one on each side of the plug member  4734   d , as shown in  FIG. 75 . More specifically, the storage portion  34   q  stores both the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  and the second protrusion portion  4734   d   2  when the toner outlet B is completely closed by the plug member  4734   d  such that the claw member  76  does not contact  4734   d   1  and  4734   d   2  as the toner container is being mounted into the image forming device. By providing the storage portion  34   q  for storing the protrusion portion  4734   d   1 , the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  is not exposed to the outside when the toner outlet B is closed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent failure by the plug member  4734   d  being accidentally opened by erroneous operation by the user, namely, caused by the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  catching any projection or being moved by a user. 
     Further, the effect due to provision of the second protrusion portion  4734   d   2  is explained below with respect to  FIG. 76  and  FIG. 77 .  FIG. 76  is a schematic of how the plug member  4734   d  is displaced and the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  moves back when the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  is pushed inwardly by the nozzle  70  of the image forming apparatus, thus causing the toner outlet to open.  FIG. 52  is a schematic of how the second protrusion portion  4734   d   2  closes a space between the storage portion  34   q  and the protrusion portion  4734   d   1 . As shown in  FIG. 51 , even if the user starts the attachment operation when the plug member  4734   d  is partly displaced to the open position such that the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  is partly moved back and the toner outlet B is partly opened, the second protrusion portion  4734   d   2  closes the space between the storage portion  34   q  and the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  as shown in  FIG. 52 . Thus, when the plug member  4734   d  is partly pushed in as the toner container is being mounted, the claw member  76  slides along the bottom surface  34   c   3 , then slides along the bottom of the second protrusion portion  4734   d   2  until the claw member  76  slides past the protrusion portion  4734   d   1 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent a failure in the mounting process which opens the toner outlet B, or failure in closing thereof by the plug member  4734   d , thus preventing toner scatter. 
     The configuration of the holder  34   c  formed with another component different from the held portion  4734 Y is explained in detail below with reference to  FIG. 74  and  FIG. 75 . Independent components are the plug member  4734   d  made of resin having slidability such as polyacetal and the packing  34   e  made of rubber, of which material is different from that of the holder  34   c . And, these independent components are set in the holder  34   c  explained in the first, fifth and ninth embodiments upon assembly. Therefore, it is desired that the held portion  4734 Y and the holder  34   c  be different components. As an alternative, these components can be integrally formed and/or be the same component. For the setting, as shown in  FIG. 74 , the holder  34   c  includes two convex claws  34   c   4  for the snap mechanism at the positions on both sides of the plug member  4734   d . The held portion  4734 Y is formed with a thin plate so as to cause the positions corresponding to the convex claws  34   c   4  to have elasticity, and the thin plate has engaging portions  34   c   6  for the snap mechanism in which holes  34   c   5  are formed so that the convex claws  34   c   4  can be engaged in the holes. By fitting the holder  34   c  in the held portion  4734 Y from its lower side so that the convex claws  34   c   4  and the holes  34   c   5  are respectively engaged with each other, the holder  34   c  and the held portion  4734 Y can be assembled. The assembled state in which the convex claws  34   c   4  are respectively engaged in the holes  34   c   5  is shown in  FIG. 5  related to the first embodiment, in  FIG. 22  related to the fifth embodiment, and in  FIG. 38  related to the ninth embodiment. 
     The configuration of the holder  34   c  and the components disposed therein are explained below with reference to  FIG. 75 . The upper portion of the holder  34   c  has the mortar-shaped or funnel-shaped vertical path (opening  340   c   2 ) that forms the toner outlet B, which is explained in the first, fifth, and ninth embodiments, and the packing (O-ring  34   c   8 ) is provided around the path so as to keep the tightness between the holder  34   c  and the held portion  4734 Y. The opening  340   c   2  has the nozzle hole  340   n  into which the nozzle  70  is inserted and which is provided in its lower part in the horizontal direction, and two pieces of packing are provided in both ends of the nozzle hole  340   n . A packing  34   e   1 , also considered to be a pliable element or washer, out of the two pieces of packing, located in the side of the nozzle  70  across the holder  34   c , can be fixed in such a manner that the front side around the packing is pressed by a member  34   r  of the held portion  4734 Y. On the other hand, a packing  34   e   2  located in the side of the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  of the plug member  4734   d  across the holder  34   c  is pressed by an arch-shaped member  34   r   1  formed in the held portion  4734 Y so as to avoid the cylinder portion of the plug member  4734   d  when the holder  34   c  is set in the held portion  4734 Y from the lower side. As a member for supporting the pressing, there is a pressing support member  34   s  made of resin, which includes a ring and a plate protruded in the horizontal direction and is disposed between the packing  34   e   2  and the arch-shaped member  34   r   1 . To temporarily fix the packing  34   e   1 , the packing  34   e   2 , and the pressing support member  34   s  to the holder  34   c  upon assembly, the cylinder portion of the plug member  4734   d  is previously inserted into these components, and the holder  34   c  is simply set in the held portion  4734 Y from the lower side as shown in  FIG. 74 . 
     Further, plate member  34   c   9  that is concave-shaped in cross section extends in the axis direction of the nozzle hole  340   n  from the holder  34   c . This plate member  34   c   9  is configured to be moved by being sandwiched by the two second protrusions  34   d   2  of the plug member  34   d , and to prevent the plug member  34   d  from rotating. 
     The effect of the pressing support member  34   s  is explained below. To set the holder  34   c  in the held portion  4734 Y from the lower side, the held portion  4734 Y needs to have an arch-shaped space as explained above. In this case, if the pressing support member  34   s  is not provided, there is no member for pressing the packing  34   e   2  in the lower side of the periphery thereof. If there is no such member, the packing  34   e   2  may curl up due to friction caused by the sliding operation of the plug member  4734   d , which leads to failure in toner conveyance and causes toner scatter. Therefore, by providing the pressing support member  34   s , the whole periphery of the packing  34   e   2  can also be pressed, similarly to the packing  34   e   1 . 
     The relationship between the positioning operation of the held portion  4734 Y and the operation of the claw member  76  is explained below. The claw member  76  receives an upward force (force in the R 2  direction of  FIG. 47 ) by the plate spring  77  shown in  FIG. 77  which is the second biasing member. The upward force acts so as to push the held portion  4734 Y upward when the claw member  76  is pushed downward to the position where the attachment of the held portion  4734 Y is not obstructed. Therefore, the attachment operation may be unsuccessful depending on the arrangement of the claw member  76  in the toner-container holder  31  and the upward force of the plate spring  77 . 
     In other words, there is a case where the claw member  76  is engaged with the sliding portion  34   c   1  provided on the undersurface of the held portion  4734 Y before the positioning members  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  are engaged with the engaging portions  34   g  of the held portion  4734 Y. In this case, if the upward force is strong, the engaging portions  34   g , with which the positioning members  31   c  of the holding portion  73  on the main body of the image forming apparatus are engaged, are turned obliquely upward, and the positioning members  31   c  are inserted into the engaging portions  34   g  in that state. It is also possible for the positioning members  31   c  to fail to engage with the engaging portions  34   g . In either situation, the positioning members  31   c  are not properly engaged with the engaging portions  34   g , which causes a failure in the attachment. 
     In order to prevent improper mounting due to movement or rotation of the held portion  4734 Y, according to ninth embodiment, the relative positions of the positioning members  31   c  and the claw member  76  are arranged so that during the mounting process, the positioning members engage with the engaging portions  34   g  before the claw member  76  is engaged with or pushes upwardly on the held portion  4734 Y. Alternatively, the spring  77  which pushes up on the claw member  76  can be selected so that it has less bias on the claw member  76 . Such a smaller amount of bias or spring strength will reduce or eliminate the issue of the rotation or lifting of the held portion  4734 Y. When the toner container, or cap or held portion thereof initially contacts the claw member  76 , the weaker spring will allow the claw member  76  to move and not change the orientation or angle of the toner container. 
     Alternative ways of keeping the toner container from rotating upwardly so that container can be properly mounted include mounting a stopping or blocking device above the toner container or above the cap of the toner container within the image forming device to keep the toner container stable during mounting. The stopping device could be a flat and horizontal blocking device, for example. Alternatively, a rounded stopping device which corresponds to the shape of the cap can be installed within the image forming device to keep the toner container from raising or rotating upwardly. 
     Additionally or alternatively, the cap can be molded, machined, cut, or otherwise constructed so that it has gutters, channels, grooves or slots on the under-face, as illustrated in  FIGS. 72-81B  which are part of the thirteenth embodiment. With such a construction, portions of the claw member  76  do not exert any or sufficient upward pressure to move the toner container upwardly until the positioning members  31   c  which are part of the image forming device, engage with the corresponding slots, gutters, or channels  34   g  which are engaging portions and part of the cap of the toner container. 
     In the seventeenth embodiment, two grooves  34   p  into which the claw member  76  can enter are formed on the plane that faces the nozzle  70  upon the attachment of the held portion  4734 Y. Consequently, the connection to the held portion is performed in such a manner that the positioning members  31   c  first start to engage the engaging portions  34   g . Then, the claw member  76  contacts the held portion and exerts an upward pressure thereon. The interaction of the positioning members  31   c  and engaging portions  34   g  prevent upward movement of the container or held portion, and thus during insertion, the claw member  76  is pushed downward so as not to obstruct the attachment, and thereafter, the claw member  76  engages the plug member  4734   d , and the nozzle  70  comes in contact with the plug member  4734   d  slightly afterward. The effect of the grooves  34   p  is explained below with reference to  FIG. 53A  to  FIG. 56B . 
       FIG. 78A  is a perspective view of how the engaging portions  34   g  of the toner container  1032 Y align with the positioning members  31   c  of the toner-container holder  31  during mounting of the toner container, and  FIG. 78B  is a side view of the same.  FIG. 79A  is a perspective view of how a held portion  4743 Y starts to be engaged with the positioning members  31   c  and  FIG. 79B  is a partial cross-sectional side view of the same.  FIG. 80A  is a perspective view of how the claw member  76  is pushed down during the installation of the toner container and  FIG. 80B  is a partial cross-sectional side view of the same.  FIG. 81A  is a perspective view of how the claw member  76  returns to the default position so that the claw member  76  engages the engaging portion of the plug member  4734   d  during mounting of the toner container, and  FIG. 81B  is a partial cross-sectional side view of the same. 
     In  FIG. 78B  which shows how the positioning member  31   c  faces the engaging portion  34   g  of the toner container  32 Y when viewed from the side, it looks as if the claw member  76  touches the lower corner of the held portion  4734 Y, but actually, as shown in the perspective view of  FIG. 78A , the groove  34   p  prevents the claw member  76  from contacting the corner. 
     Thereafter, in  FIG. 79A  and  FIG. 79B  which show how the attachment is progressed, the claw member  76  is further moving into the grooves  34   p  while maintaining its default position to come in contact with the corner portions  34   p   1  at the respective rear ends of the grooves  34   p . At this time, the positioning members  31   c  already are partially engaged with the engaging portions  34   g . Therefore, even if the upward force is applied to the positioning members  31   c  in this state from the claw member  76 , the held portion  4734 Y is not rotated or turned obliquely upward because of the rigidity of the positioning members  31   c . However, the held portion  4734 Y may rise slightly due to a gap of a fit tolerance between the positioning member  31   c  and the engaging portion  34   g , but this does not cause any trouble in the insertion operation of the nozzle  70  performed afterward. 
     Then, as shown in  FIG. 80A  and  FIG. 80B , the claw member  76  butts against the corner portions  34   p   1  at the rear ends of the grooves  34   p  in the entry direction of the claw member  76 , and then, the claw member  76  goes onto the wall surface  34   c   3  and slides thereon. This causes the claw member  76  to maintain its posture such that it is pressed downward where the attachment of the held portion  4734 Y is not obstructed. 
     At this time, however, the nozzle  70  does not yet contact the plug member  4734   d . Therefore, the plug member  4734   d  is still in the closed position, and the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  and the second protrusion portions  4734   d   2  are also stored in the storage portions  34   q . Accordingly, the claw member  76  does not push the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  before the nozzle  70  contacts the plug member  4734   d . Thus, the erroneous-operation preventing function of the storage portions  34   q  is fulfilled. 
     Lastly, as shown in  FIG. 81A  and  FIG. 81B , the claw member  76  is engaged with the back of the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  when viewed from the nozzle  70 , and then, the nozzle  70  contacts the plug member  4734   d  slightly afterward and starts pushing so as to open the toner outlet B. In  FIG. 56B , because there is a slight gap G between the edge of the claw member  76  and the protrusion portion  4734   d   1  to be engaged with the claw member  76 , the edge of the nozzle  70  does not contact the plug member  4734   d  by the gap G at the point in time (gap G is 0) when the edge starts to engage the protrusion portion  4734   d   1 . 
     The plug member  4734   d  is held and fixed, at the state of  FIG. 81A , by the nozzle  70  and the claw member  76  which are components of the toner-container holder  31 , and the toner container is further pushed therein, so that the toner outlet B and the inner cylinder portion of the nozzle  70  communicate with each other. 
     Eighteenth Embodiment 
     Another feature of the invention which may be applied to any of the embodiments is explained below with reference to  FIGS. 82-88 .  FIG. 82  is a schematic of toner containers filled with toners of colors such as yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) respectively when viewed from the held portions  34  (Y, M, C, K) of the toner containers. As shown in  FIG. 82 , a convex portion (which corresponds to the convex portion  34   n  of the first embodiment) protruded from the side face of the held portion  34  is different from others in the position, the shape, and the number for each color container. 
     As shown in  FIG. 82  which is to scale, the toner container  32 K for black toner has one convex portion  34   nk  on the left side with respect to the held portion  34 K. The convex portion  34   nk  is set so that the protrusion in the horizontal direction is slightly longer than that of the convex portions for the other colors at the same height. As a result, the toner container  32 K is prevented from being inserted into the opening for insertion of another toner container. 
     The toner containers  32 Y,  32 M, and  32 C for the other three colors have two convex portions each. Each upper-side end face of the convex portions of the toner containers is formed so as to be in a plane concentric with each container body of the toner containers, and each lower-side convex portion is formed into a cuboid. The caps or held portions are formed so that the widths of the upper-side convex portions in the vertical direction are different from one another, and that the widths of the lower-side convex portions in the vertical direction are also different from one another. In other words, the height of a space between the upper-side convex portion and the lower-side convex portion of one toner container is different from that of the others. 
     For the black toner container  32 K, the single convex portion or projection is designated by  34   n K, for the yellow toner container  32 Y, the two convex portions or projections are designated by  34   n Y 1  and  34   n Y 2 , for the cyan toner container  32 C, the two convex portions or projections are designated by  34   n C 1  and  34   n C 2 , and for the magenta toner container  32 M, the two convex portions or projections are designated by  34   n M 1  and  34   n M 2 . 
       FIG. 83A  is a perspective view of the held portion or cap  34 K which is utilized with a container, also be referred to as a volume or bottle, which holds black toner. While a bottle has been illustrated in the figures, other types of volumes may be utilized. For each of the embodiments and colors, the invention includes both empty toner containers which do not contain toner, and toner containers which are filled with toner. While toner is the preferred substance to go in the containers, any desired material which is utilized to form an image on a page may be utilized including combinations including toner and developer, or ink, or any other substance which can be utilized to form an image. The cap or held portions  34  are illustrated in the shape that they are manufactured, but it is not necessary to manufacture such a held portion as shown. For example, the front portion of the held portion  34 K or cap may be formed on the front thereof and need not be separately formed. Moreover, any style or manufacturing process may be used, as long as the features expressly recited in the claims are included. 
     In  FIG. 83A , the held portion or cap  34 K includes a notched portion  34   h K through which a gear of a toner bottle protrudes or is accessible in order to drive or rotate the toner bottle within the held portion or cap. There is a cylindrical portion  34   w K which has the convex portion or protrusion  34   n K connected thereto. Regarding the convex portions or protrusions, “connected thereto” covers both integral forming of the convex portion with the held portion, or forming the convex portion or held portion separately and attaching these two elements together, for example through an adhesive, epoxy, bolts, lamination, attachment by heat, or screws, or any other manner. 
     Preventing the wrong color toner from being inserted into the image forming device prevents the contamination of the image forming apparatus, prevents avoidable service calls, and results in properly formed images. In this embodiment, the dimensions of the toner container including the held portion  34 K are set in order to prevent improper mounting by restricting the held portion  34 K from passing through the improper opening of the enclosure plate. The length of the convex portion or protrusion  34   n K along the axis of rotation of the storage volume is designated by  140 K. The length between the leading edge of the convex portion  34   n K and the front of the cylindrical portion  34   w K is  142 K. The length of the cap cover  34   b K is designated by  144 K. As illustrated in  FIG. 83B , the edges of the convex portion  34   n K are tapered in the vertical direction in order to assist in the insertion and removal of the toner container. Further, there may be a tapering of the convex portion  34   n K so that as the distance from the center of the projection along the lengthwise direction increases, the distance from the center of the cylindrical portion decreases. For example, such tapering may reduce the distance from the center by 1 or 2 mm. 
       FIG. 83C  illustrates various dimensions of the front of the black container.  120 K designates the diameter of the cap or held portion at the cylindrical portion  34   w K,  122 K designates the width of the base,  124 K designates the height from the bottom of the base  34   x K to the center of the container, also referred to as the axis of rotation.  126 K designates the diameter of the front of the cap,  128 K is the radius from the axis of rotation to the center of the projection  34   n K. If desired, this radius may decrease at the edges of the projection, for example, by 1 mm both at the top and bottom portion of the projection, for example.  130 K designates the height from the base of the container to the top of the projection  34   n K, and  132 K designates the height from the bottom of the container base to the bottom of the projection. The thickness of the projection (in the vertical direction) is  130 K minus  132 K. The various dimensions set forth in  FIGS. 83B and 83C  are set forth in the below table. 
     
       
         
           
               
            
               
                   
               
               
                 Black Container 
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 Description 
                 Ref. No. 
                 Size (mm) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 diameter of cap 
                 120K 
                 65 
               
               
                   
                 width of base 
                 122K 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 height to center of container 
                 124K 
                 36.3 
               
               
                   
                 diameter of front of cap 
                 126K 
                 42 
               
               
                   
                 radius to projection 
                 128K 
                 43 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 
                 130K 
                 63.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 
                 132K 
                 54.5 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 
                   
                 9 
               
               
                   
                 length of projection 
                 140K 
                 37 
               
               
                   
                   
                 142K 
                 19 
               
               
                   
                   
                 144K 
                 42.3 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
       FIGS. 83A-83C ,  84 A- 84 C,  85 A- 85 C,  86 A- 86 C,  88 A and  88 B are drawn to scale. Therefore, any measurement not contained in any of the tables or otherwise described can be determined by appropriately measuring the drawings. 
       FIG. 83D  is a perspective view of the black toner container. 
       FIGS. 84A-84D  are a cap for a cyan toner container and the cyan toner container, and generally correspond to  FIGS. 83A-83D  and explanations of the same components are omitted. A difference between the cyan toner container and the black toner container is that the cyan toner container includes two convex protrusions or projections  34   n C 1  and  34   n C 2  whereas the black toner container includes one projection  34   n K. The dimensions for the cyan toner container are set forth below. 
     
       
         
           
               
            
               
                   
               
               
                 Cyan Container 
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 Description 
                 Ref. No. 
                 Size (mm) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 diameter of cap 
                 120C 
                 59 
               
               
                   
                 width of base 
                 122C 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 height to center of container 
                 124C 
                 36.3 
               
               
                   
                 diameter of front of cap 
                 126C 
                 42 
               
               
                   
                 radius to projection 
                 128C 
                 40 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 1 
                 130C 
                 64.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 1 
                 132C 
                 50 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 1 
                   
                 14.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 2 
                 134C 
                 43 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 2 
                 136C 
                 28.5 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 2 
                   
                 14.5 
               
               
                   
                 Distance of outer edge of 
                 138C 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 projection 2 from center 
               
               
                   
                 length of projections 
                 140C 
                 37 
               
               
                   
                   
                 142C 
                 19 
               
               
                   
                   
                 144C 
                 42.3 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
       FIGS. 85A-85D  illustrate features of the yellow toner container and have the dimensions as set forth below. 
     
       
         
           
               
            
               
                   
               
               
                 Yellow Container 
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 Description 
                 Ref. No. 
                 Size (mm) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 diameter of cap 
                 120Y 
                 59 
               
               
                   
                 width of base 
                 122Y 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 height to center of container 
                 124Y 
                 36.3 
               
               
                   
                 diameter of front of cap 
                 126Y 
                 42 
               
               
                   
                 radius to projection 
                 128Y 
                 40 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 1 
                 130Y 
                 64.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 1 
                 132Y 
                 43 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 1 
                   
                 21.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 2 
                 134Y 
                 36 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 2 
                 136Y 
                 28.5 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 2 
                   
                 7.5 
               
               
                   
                 Distance of outer edge of 
                 138Y 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 projection 2 from center 
               
               
                   
                 length of projections 
                 140Y 
                 37 
               
               
                   
                   
                 142Y 
                 19 
               
               
                   
                   
                 144Y 
                 42.3 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
       FIGS. 86A-86D  illustrate features of the magenta toner container and descriptions of the same portions which have already been described above with respect to the other toner containers are omitted. The dimensions for the magenta toner container are as set forth below: 
     
       
         
           
               
            
               
                   
               
               
                 Magenta Container 
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 Description 
                 Ref. No. 
                 Size (mm) 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
            
               
                   
                 diameter of cap 
                 120M 
                 59 
               
               
                   
                 width of base 
                 122M 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 height to center of container 
                 124M 
                 36.3 
               
               
                   
                 diameter of front of cap 
                 126M 
                 42 
               
               
                   
                 radius to projection 
                 128M 
                 40 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 1 
                 130M 
                 64.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 1 
                 132M 
                 57 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 1 
                   
                 7.5 
               
               
                   
                 height to top of projection 2 
                 134M 
                 50 
               
               
                   
                 height to bottom of project. 2 
                 136M 
                 28.5 
               
               
                   
                 thickness of projection 2 
                   
                 21.5 
               
               
                   
                 Distance of outer edge of 
                 138M 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 projection 2 from center 
               
               
                   
                 length of projections 
                 140M 
                 37 
               
               
                   
                   
                 142M 
                 19 
               
               
                   
                   
                 144M 
                 42.3 
               
               
                   
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The perspective view of the toner container set forth in  FIGS. 83D ,  84 D,  85 D, and  86 D may include bottles which have a substantially constant radius, or the radius may be different for different portions of the bottle. 
       FIG. 87A  illustrates an image forming apparatus which utilizes the toner containers of the invention. The opening  110  at the front portion is the region at which the toner containers are inserted into the image forming device  100 .  FIG. 87B  is a close-up of the region  110  and shows the four toner containers  32 K,  32 Y,  32 C, and  32 M, each having a gripper  33   d  which allows a user to hold the rear of the toner container during the insertion and removal process. Also shown in  FIG. 87B  is a plate  910 , discussed below with respect to  FIGS. 85A and 88B  which restricts which color toner container is inserted into which position. 
       FIG. 88A  shows a front view of the plate  910 . Because the image forming apparatus  100  uses four different color toner containers, the plate  910  has four openings for receiving the four different color toner containers, although the plate can be constructed to receive more or less toner containers, as desired. 
     The four openings in  FIG. 88A  are shown as  912 K for the black container,  912 Y for the yellow container,  912 C for the cyan container, and  912 M for the magenta. The opening  912 K for the black container includes a protrusion portion  916 K for accepting the one protrusion of the black toner container. The opening  912 K contains a substantial portion which is circular in shape, and has a radius  914 K which is designed to accommodate the black toner container, and also serves to restrict the other toner containers. The openings for the yellow, cyan, and magenta toner containers each include two projections for receiving a corresponding projections on the toner containers. The opening  912 Y for the yellow container contains a radius of  914 Y, and protrusion portions  916 Y 1  and  916 Y 2 . The shapes and positions of the protrusion portions of the openings configured to receive the cyan and magenta containers also contain two protrusion portions, but the size and position of those protrusion portions are different for each toner container. 
     A perspective view of the plate  910  is shown in  FIG. 88B . Depending on the construction of the machine, the plate may have a substantially flat or two-dimensional structure, or may be constructed to have a three-dimensional structure, as shown in  FIG. 88B . The plate  910  shown in  FIG. 88B  may be mounted at the front of the image forming apparatus, as shown in  FIG. 87A , and the enlargement in  FIG. 87B . Alternatively or additionally, the plate may be mounted at an interior portion of the image forming apparatus, for example, at or near a position which results in the protrusions of the toner containers remaining at an interior of the holes  912  of the plate  910  when the toner containers are in use. 
     According to an embodiment of the invention, the radius  914  of the holes  912  in the plate  910  are 32.5 mm for the cyan, magenta, and yellow holes, and 35.5 mm for the black hole in the plate  910 . Also according to the preferred commercial embodiment, the radius of the cyan, magenta, and yellow container body or bottle is 31.5 mm and the radius of the black container body or bottle is 34.5 mm. Since black toner is generally consumed at a higher rate than the other colors, it is preferable for the black container to hold more toner. The present inventors have found that by setting the various dimensions of the frame to be 2 mm larger than the corresponding dimensions of the bottle and/or the cap, the toner container can be properly inserted into its corresponding opening in the image forming apparatus, while preventing the wrong color toner bottle from being inserted into a non-corresponding portion. However, as long as the relative sizes of the frame openings and the toner containers appropriately prevent a container from being inserted at an improper position, the differences between the toner container size and frame may be changed, as desired. 
     Various dimensions of the components of the invention have been provided herein, but those dimensions in relationships to each other are not required by the invention, unless specifically recited in the claims. Further, the invention includes a changing of any of the dimensions, for example, by increasing or decreasing any of the dimensions by 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, or 35%, or any value in between, for example. Further, the dimensions and the relative relations can be changed even more, if desired, as long as the system functions in the desired manner. 
     Various dimensions and relations may be utilized in order to prevent the wrong color toner from being used in an improper position in the image forming apparatus. For example, for the cyan, yellow, and magenta color toner containers, there are two projections. When viewed in the vertical direction, the thickness of the projections (reference number  130  minus  132 , and  134  minus  136 ) are configured such that a sum of a thickness of the two projections in the vertical direction is less than or equal to a radius of the cylindrical-shaped portion of the cap. Further, an outer edge of at least one of the projections has a minimum distance from a center of the cylindrical-shaped portion which is greater than a larger radius of a cylindrical-shaped portion of any other toner container used in the machine. Additionally, the container may be arranged such that a distance from the center of the cylindrical-shaped cap portion to an outer edge of each of the two projections is at least 15%, 25%, or 35% greater than the radius of the cylindrical-shaped portion. Further, for any embodiments of the invention, the invention includes both an empty toner container, and the toner container filled with toner and/or a mixture of toner and other components such as developer, agitating or mixing particles, charging particles, or any desired feature. 
     According to another embodiment of the invention, the projection on the exterior of the cap or held portion is configured such that a distance from a center of the cylindrical-shaped cap portion to an outer edge of the projection is at least 15% greater than a radius of a cylindrical-shaped portion. Moreover, a distance from a center of the cylindrical-shaped cap portion to an outer edge of projection on the cap is at least 15%, 25%, or 35% greater than a radius of the cylindrical-shaped portion. Moreover, the cap may include a second projection, and the distance from a center of the cylindrical-shaped cap portion to an outer edge of the second projection is at least 15% greater than the radius of the cylindrical-shaped portion. Moreover, a distance from a center of the cylindrical-shaped cap portion to an outer edge of each of the two projections may be arranged to be 25% or 35% greater than the radius of the cylindrical-shaped portion. 
     According to another embodiment of the invention, a thickness in the vertical direction of a first projection plus the thickness in the vertical direction of a second projection for each of the three containers is within 30%, 20%, 10%, or is even the same as a predetermined number. Thus, while the various projections of the cyan, yellow, and magenta toner containers are different, a sum of their thicknesses may be the same as each other, or within a predetermined tolerance. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, there are least two toner containers used with the invention, each toner container having two projections. The thickness of the projection in the vertical direction of the first projection of the first toner container corresponds to the thickness in the vertical direction of the second or lower projection of the second container, and the same holds true for the upper projection of the second container and the lower projection of the first container. Moreover, these dimensions may vary by 30%, 20%, 10%, or be set to exactly the same. Such features correspond to the magenta and yellow bottles disclosed herein. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the projection on the exterior of the cap corresponds to a particular color toner and the length of the projection along a line parallel to the axis of rotation of the toner bottle is within 25%, 15%, or 5% of a distance from the axis of rotation to an outer edge of the projection. 
     According to another embodiment of the invention, the projection of the cap of the toner container is arranged such that the toner container can only be inserted through a plate having an opening which corresponds to the shape of the projection. Further, the opening of the plate corresponds to a circumferential shape of the container. Moreover, there may be two projections, and these two projections correspond to the holes in the plate. 
     Further, the invention includes an image forming apparatus containing the toner containers and the plate having various features as described above. 
       FIG. 89A  and  FIG. 89B  are perspective and front views of an embodiment of the toner bottle  32 Y. A bottle gear  33   c , integrally molded with the bottle  32 Y, is disposed near the opening of the toner bottle  32 Y. Alternatively, the gear  33   c  may be formed separately from the bottle  32 Y. As shown in  FIG. 89B , when viewing the toner bottle  32 Y from the bottle opening side, the portion of the bottle opening which has the smallest inner diameter is the opening (called the gear opening)  33   ci  at the bottle gear  33   c . As an example, if the gear  33   c  is set back 1.5 centimeters (cm) from the opening end of the bottle  32 Y, the gear opening  33   ci  will be set back inside of the bottle on the order of 1.5 cm from the opening end of the bottle. 
     The toner bottle of the present embodiment is provided with two toner guiding portions  95 Y near the gear opening  33   ci , and each toner guiding portion  95 Y serves to move the toner from inside the toner bottle beyond the raised portion to the toner outlet when the bottle is rotated. The toner guiding portion  95 Y is provided in the container to cause the toner inside the toner bottle to be moved to the toner outlet beyond the small-diameter portion of the bottle gear by rotation of the toner bottle. The toner guiding portions  95 Y may be manufactured in any desired manner. For example, they may be integrally formed with the bottle or formed separately. The toner guiding portions  95 Y may be formed together, and further formed to a ring which fits inside the mouth of the bottle  32 Y in order to securely hold the toner guiding portions  95 Y. 
     The construction of the bottle causes the toner to be scooped upwardly. Alternatively to or in addition to the scooping, the toner may be pushed forward and upward by grooves, such as the grooves  33   b . A toner guiding inner wall  950 Y is near the gear opening  33   ci  and the wall in toner bottle  32 Y pushes out the toner, or allows the toner to slide thereon and to the toner guiding portions  95 Y. 
     Features and descriptions of any one of the bottles shown in  FIGS. 89A-91  are applicable to other bottles disclosed herein. A complete description of the reference numbers of the bottle shown in  FIGS. 89A and 89B  is provided below with respect to  FIGS. 90A-91 . 
       FIG. 90A  and  FIG. 90B  are side views of different rotational orientations of the toner bottle  32 Y. The toner guide  33   b  for toner delivery is formed by a double helix type of structure, and pushes toner towards the bottle opening parallel to the axis of rotation of the container. 
     It is desirable that the bottle gear  33   c  is formed so that its gear teeth do not project too much from the peripheral surface of the toner bottle  32 Y. This is also desirable for device miniaturization. In addition, it is desirable for stabilization of the toner supply that the bottle gear  33   c  is provided near the toner outlet. For this reason, even if the diameter of the opening is smaller than the inner diameter of the toner bottle  32 Y in the position of the bottle gear  33   c , it is desirable for the toner to smoothly pass through the raised portion of the inner wall of the toner bottle. 
     From the grooves  33   b , the toner is pushed to toner scoops T 1  and T 2 , also referred to as toner conveyance devices or raised portions. The toner scoops T 1  and T 2  are raised outwardly, located at the shoulder portion of the bottle, and scoop or convey toner upwardly as the container is rotated. 
     Toner guiding inner walls  950 Y are respectively formed along on each of inner wall surfaces of each of the raised portions T 1  and T 2 . While  FIGS. 89A ,  90 A, and  90 B show reference characters  950 Y, in these figures  950 Y is designating the outside or backside of the inner walls. The inner walls  950 Y appear, when looking into the mouth of the bottle  32 Y as viewed in  FIG. 89B , as inward-raised portions that are raised inwardly when viewed from the bottle opening. With the use of the toner guiding inner walls  950 Y in the toner guide  33   b , it is possible for the toner inside the toner bottle to be moved to the toner outlet beyond the small-diameter portion of the bottle gear by rotation of the toner bottle. Even when the bottle gear  33   c  is provided near the toner outlet, the structure disclosed above such as the toner guide, scoop, inner walls, and/or the toner guiding portions enable the internal toner to transfer to the toner outlet beyond the gear opening  33   ci  by the rotation of the bottle. Summarizing toner conveyance within the bottle, toner is pushed forward within the main body of the bottle by the toner guide(s)  33   b . From the end of the toner guides  33   b , toner is scooped upwardly by the scoops T 1  and T 2  due to the rotation of the bottle. From the scoops T 1  and T 2 , toner slides along the inner walls  950 Y. From the inner walls  950 Y, the toner slides to the toner guiding portions  95 Y which convey the toner outside of the container. 
       FIG. 91  is a side view of a variation of the toner bottle  32 Y, when viewed from the side surface of the  32 Y. In this modification, the shoulder edge of the two raised portions T 1  and T 2  in the shoulder unit T of toner bottle  32 Y shown in  FIG. 90A  and  FIG. 90B  is beveled, and has a sloping shoulder. Except for this sloping or beveling at the shoulder T, the bottle of  FIG. 91  has the same construction as that illustrated in  FIG. 89A  and  FIG. 89B , and a description thereof will be omitted. The toner bottle is not required to have the raised portion or scoops T 1  and T 2  as described in the above embodiments, but may alternatively or additionally have sloping-shoulders. 
       FIGS. 92A-92E  are an alternative bottle, container, or volume that may be used with the invention. In  FIGS. 92A-92E ,  32  designates the bottle,  33   i  is a base portion, and  33   ct  are tabs on the bottle. A gear may be secured to the bottle so that it rests against the base portion  33   i  and is secured by the tabs  33   ct . Alternatively and/or additionally, the gear may mount around the circumferential surface of the base portion  33   i  while being secured by the tabs  33   ct.    
     FIGS.  92 F( 1 )- 92 F( 3 ) show the gear  33   c  which is secured to the base  33   i  of the bottle  32  shown in  FIGS. 92A-92E . In FIGS.  92 F( 1 )- 92 F( 3 ), the gear  33   c  has two notches  33   cn  which respectively mate with the tabs  33   ct  of the bottle  32 . The tabs  33   ct  snap into or interact with the notches  33   cn  in order to secure the gear  33   c  to the base  33   i  and the bottle  32 . 
     FIG.  92 F( 1 ) shows a bottom view of the gear  33   c . The bottom of the gear is the portion of the gear which first slips over the mouth of the bottle  32 Y when the gear  33   c  is mounted to the bottle  32 Y. FIG.  92 F( 2 ) shows a cross-section view of the gear  33   c  along the line  92 F( 2 )- 92 F( 2 ) of FIG.  92 F( 1 ). The left side of FIG.  92 F( 2 ) is the bottom of the gear  33   c , and the right side is the top of the gear  33   c . FIG.  92 F( 3 ) is a perspective view showing the top of the gear  33   c . In FIG.  92 F( 3 ), one of the two notches  33   cn  is visible in the bottom portion of the gear. 
     The tabs  33   ct  and base portion  33   i , while being part of this embodiment, are optional. Moreover, a gear such as the gear disclosed in other embodiments may be integrally formed with the bottle which would eliminate the need for the base  33   i  and separate gear  33   c , and the tabs  33   ct  and notches  33   cn  which connect the gear  33   c  to the base  33   i . While two notches  33   cn  and two tabs  33   ct  are used with this embodiment, any number of notches/tabs may be used. Moreover, notches and tabs are not required to mount the gear to the bottle/base, and any other suitable and/or conventional structure can be used to secure the gear. For example, a press fit, a key/notch structure, and/or screws can be used to secure the gear to the bottle. The bottle of  92 A- 92 E may be used with the held portion or cap  34 K,  34 Y,  34 M, or  34 C of this invention, may be used with any type of cap, or may be used without any cap. 
       FIG. 93A  to  FIG. 93E  represent another embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 93A  is a perspective view of a toner bottle when viewed from its cap side.  FIG. 93B  is a perspective view of the toner bottle when viewed from a gripper  133   d .  FIG. 93C  is a side view of the gripper  133   d .  FIG. 93D  is a side view of an end portion of a container body before the gripper  133   d  is attached thereto.  FIG. 93E  is a perspective view of how toner containers are set in the main body of the image forming apparatus at an opening  110 . 
     The toner container according to this embodiment has the gripper  133   d  separately formed from the toner bottle, as shown in  FIG. 93C , and is fitted over the end portion of a container body  133  and into a groove  1331 , as shown in  FIG. 93D . According to other embodiments of the invention which have been explained above, the container body and the gripper are integrally formed as a single unit or component. According to this embodiment, an engagement claw  1330  of the gripper  133   d  is firmly engaged in the groove  1331  of the container body  133 . The container body  133  and the gripper  133   d  may have the same color as each other, but alternatively, the container body  133  and the gripper  133   d  may have different colors in order to change the appearance of the toner container. It is thereby possible to improve the recognizability of the containers containing different colors of toner such that an operator can easily recognize the toner container when the toner container set in the main body of the image forming apparatus is replaced. In this case, by changing the color of the gripper  133   d  to one matching each of the toner colors, it is possible to prevent erroneous replacement which may occur between different toner containers having different toner colors. 
     Moreover, a decal, seal, label, or other indicia  1335  (representing  1335 K,  1335 Y,  1335 C, and  1335 M of  FIG. 93E ) indicating the color of toner contained within the bottle may be attached to or integrally formed on the end face of the gripper  133   d  (represented by  133   d K,  133   d Y,  133   d C, and  133   d M for the different toner bottles), as shown in  FIG. 93E . The indication seal  1335  is, according to one embodiment, a round seal, preferably having the same color as the toner color within the container, and, according to one embodiment, has a sign with six circles triangularly arranged which represents toner, a letter representing a toner color (e.g., K, Y, C, or M), and “&gt;PS&lt;” indicating the container body and/or the gripper is made of polystyrene. The container body and the gripper  133   d  may be made out of other types of material such as As ABS (acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer), PP (polypropylene), cardboard, paper, or any plastic, resin or metal. The seal  1335  also helps enhance the effect of recognizing the toner container when the toner container is replaced. 
     It is obvious that the present invention is not limited by the embodiments and that the embodiments can be changed as necessary, other than the suggestion in the embodiments, within the scope of the technological idea of the present invention. Furthermore, each number, position, and shape of the components are not limited by the embodiments, and therefore, these can be changed to those which are appropriate for implementation of the present invention. 
     The invention includes the assist element provided in the held portion to mechanically or electrically assist the attachment operation to the toner-container holder, and the assist element is provided in the upper side in the vertical direction with respect to the toner outlet. 
     The assist element is an electronic component that stores information related to the toner container. 
     The electronic component performs non-contact communication with the communication circuit provided in the toner-container holder while the held portion is held in the toner-container holder. 
     The electronic component is attached to the toner-container holder so as to be located more forward than the toner outlet. 
     The held portion includes the protrusion portion protruding in the direction of the attachment to the toner-container holder, and the electronic component is provided on the plane which is the protrusion portion and is orthogonal to the attachment direction. 
     The protrusion portion includes the wall portion covering around the electronic component. 
     The electronic component stores at least one of the information related to toner contained in the container body and the information related to recycling. 
     The assist element is an engaging portion engaged with the positioning member provided in the toner-container holder. 
     The engaging portion is engaged with the positioning member in synchronization with the attachment operation to the toner-container holder. 
     The engaging portion is provided near the toner outlet. 
     The assist element is the convex portion or the concave portion provided in a different position according to the type of toner container. 
     The convex portion or the concave portion is fitted with the fitting member provided in the toner-container holder when the attachment operation to the toner-container holder is correct. 
     The convex portion or the concave portion is provided in a different location according to a color of toner contained in the container body. 
     The package for packing the toner container is configured so as not to be stood on the horizontal plane with the longitudinal direction of the toner container packed therein as the vertical direction. 
     The end face of the package in the longitudinal direction is formed into any one of a slope, a sphere, and an angular head. 
     The manufacturing method for recycling the toner container includes the removal process for removing the held portion from the container body, the filling process for filling the inside of the container body with toner or developer after the removal process, and the fixing process for fixing the held portion to the container body after the filling process. 
     The other manufacturing method of recycling the toner container includes the machining process for forming a through hole in the container body, the filling process for filing the inside of the container body with toner or developer through the through hole, and the sealing process for sealing the through hole after the filling process. 
     The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening and that has the gear engaged with the drive gear in the main body of the image forming apparatus; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and that is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the held portion is biased downwardly by the force applied from the drive gear to the gear when the drive gear rotates. 
     The gear of the container body and the drive gear are engaged with each other in any position in a range from the uppermost portion of the gear to a position thereof turning ¼ rotation. 
     The held portion includes the contact portion biased downwardly by the force applied to the gear to contact the toner-container holder. 
     The held portion includes the sliding portion sliding along the toner-container holder in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation to/from the toner-container holder, and the contact portion is the sliding portion. 
     The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening and has the gear engaged with the drive gear in the main body of the image forming apparatus; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the gear is disposed so as to be engaged with the drive gear at the position on the opposite side in the vertical direction to the toner outlet through the opening. 
     The toner outlet is provided in the lower side with respect to the opening in the vertical direction, and the gear is provided so as to be engaged with the drive gear in the upper side with respect to the opening in the vertical direction. 
     The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the toner outlet of the held portion is provided in a more rear side than the container body in the direction of the attachment to the toner-container holder. 
     The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the toner outlet of the held portion is provided in a lower side lower than the opening of the container body in the vertical direction. 
     The held portion is attached to the toner-container holder so as to be located as the head of the container body. 
     The opening is provided at the position so as to be head of the container body upon the attachment operation to the toner-container holder. 
     The gear, to which the rotational drive force is transmitted from the main body of the image forming apparatus, is provided on the circumferential surface of the container body and near the opening. 
     The container body conveys the toner contained therein toward the opening in synchronization with the rotation of the gear by the rotational drive force transmitted thereto. 
     The container body includes a conveyor member for conveying the toner contained therein toward the opening in synchronization with the rotation of the gear by the rotational drive force transmitted thereto. 
     The toner is formed so that the following relations hold,
 
3 ≦Dv≦ 8
 
1.00 ≦Dv/Dn≦ 1.40
 
where Dv(μm) is volume average particle size and Dn(μm) is number average particle size.
 
     The toner is formed so that the shape factor SF-1 is in a range of 100 to 180 and the shape factor SF-2 is in a range of 100 to 180. 
     In the image forming apparatus, the toner container is detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus. The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the container body is attached to the toner-container holder along the longitudinal direction of the container body so that the held portion is located as the head of the container body in the attachment direction, the held portion includes the open/close member for opening/closing the toner outlet in synchronization with the attachment/detachment operation to/from the toner-container holder, and the container body includes the gripper in the rear side in the attachment direction. 
     The gripper is provided in the rear end face of the container body. 
     The gripper is formed so as to be point symmetry with respect to the center of the rear end face when viewed from the attachment/detachment direction. 
     The gripper is formed so that the project plane thereof orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction does not exceed the project plane of the container body orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction. 
     The container body includes the spiral-shaped projection in the inner circumferential surface, is rotatable, and conveys the toner contained therein toward the opening in synchronization with its rotation, while the gripper is formed on the rotational central axis of the container body. 
     The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the container body includes the gripper provided on the opposite side in the longitudinal direction to the position where the opening is provided. 
     The toner container is attached to the toner-container holder so that the held portion is located as the head of the container body and the gripper is in the rear end of the container body. 
     The gripper has a hole communicating with the inside of the container body. 
     The gripper has a seal member for sealing the hole. 
     The gripper includes a hook portion for hanging the container body on the filling machine when the container body is filled with toner through the hole. 
     The toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, in which the toner container is attached to the toner-container holder along the longitudinal direction of the container body so that the held portion is located as the head of the container body in its attachment direction, and the container body is supported by the support member of the toner-container holder at a position on the rear side in the attachment direction. 
     The container body is attached to the toner-container holder with the longitudinal direction of the container body as the horizontal direction, and the support member supports the container body at two points which are in an obliquely lower side of the container body. 
     The held portion does not touch the support member when the attachment/detachment is performed to/from the toner-container holder. 
     The project plane of the held portion orthogonal to the attachment/detachment direction does not exceed the project plane of the container body in the attachment/detachment direction near the support member. 
     The container body includes the spiral-shaped projection in the inner circumferential surface, is rotatable, and conveys the toner contained therein toward the opening in synchronization with its rotation, while the container body has no projection in a region where it is rotatably supported by the support member. 
     The plug member relatively moves along the attachment/detachment direction of the held portion to open/close the toner outlet. 
     The plug member is provided in the lower side of the opening. 
     The held portion has packing slidably contacting the outer circumferential surfaces of the plug member and the nozzle. 
     The toner outlet is provided in a more rear side than the container body in the direction of the attachment to the toner-container holder. 
     The container body includes the gear on the circumferential surface of the container body and near the opening. 
     The method of manufacturing the toner container detachably provided in the toner-container holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus is such that the toner container includes the container body that discharges the toner contained therein from the opening; and the held portion that discharges the toner discharged from the opening of the container body, from the toner outlet and is held by the toner-container holder in the non-rotating manner, the container body includes the gripper provided on the opposite side in the longitudinal direction to the position where the opening is provided, and the method includes the machining process of forming a hole in the gripper so that the hole communicates with the inside of the container body; and the filling process of filling the container body with toner through the hole. 
     The method of manufacturing the toner container further includes the sealing process of sealing the hole after the filling process. 
     In the filling process, the toner container is hung on the filling machine using the hook portion of the gripper. 
     The toner bottle detachable provided in the bottle holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus includes the bottle body that is rotatable and conveys the toner contained therein toward the opening in synchronization with its rotation; the case that communicates with the bottle body through the opening, discharges the toner discharged from the opening, from the toner outlet, and is held by the bottle holder without following the rotation of the bottle body; the seal member that seals a gap which is around the opening and is between mutually opposite areas of the bottle body and the case; and the control portion for controlling, together with the seal member, the vibration in the radial direction of the opening. 
     The mutually opposite areas of the bottle body and the case are formed so as not to be parallel with each other, and are formed so that the area of one of the opposite areas is larger than the area of the other opposite area. The control portion is one of the opposite areas formed in the case or the bottle body, and controls, together with the seal member, the movement of the other opposite area in its radial direction. 
     One of the opposite areas is tapered. 
     One of the opposite areas is formed into a V shape. 
     The seal member is adhered to the control portion. 
     In the image forming apparatus, the toner bottle is detachably attached to the bottle holder of the main body of the image forming apparatus, and the bottle holder includes the holding portion for fixing the position of the case, and the drive unit for rotating the bottle body. 
     Because the present invention includes the standing inhibiting unit for inhibiting the toner container from being stood on the horizontal plane with the held portion directed vertically downward with respect to the container body, the present invention can provide the toner container and the image forming apparatus which prevent toner aggregation on the side of the held portion during stock of the toner container. 
     Although the invention has been described with respect to a specific embodiment for a complete and clear disclosure, the appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that may occur to one skilled in the art that fairly fall within the basic teaching herein set forth.