Patent Publication Number: US-11385570-B2

Title: Powder leveler, powder container device, powder transporter, and powder handling device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is based on and claims priority under 35 USC 119 from Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-174359 filed Oct. 16, 2020. 
     BACKGROUND 
     (i) Technical Field 
     The present disclosure relates to a powder leveler, a powder container device, a powder transporter, and a powder handling device. 
     (ii) Related Art 
     Japanese Patent No. 2993623 (particularly, claim 1, paragraph 0027, and FIGS. 1 to 4) describes an electrophotographic device that includes an agitation blade, serving as an agitator, disposed in a waste toner bottle in a portion adjacent to an inlet space of a container chamber below a side space. The agitation blade rotates about a rotation axis. The agitation blade moves toner accumulated around the inlet to the side space to uniformly distribute the accumulated toner. 
     Japanese Patent No. 2993623 (particularly, claim 1, paragraph 0027, and FIGS. 1 to 4) also describes that the agitation blade is formed from a comb-like mylar blade having rectangular cuts to reduce resistance, and having such a length as to be rotatable without touching an inner wall of a toner storage chamber. 
     Japanese Patent No. 6547340 (particularly, claim 1, paragraphs 0053 to 0057, and FIGS. 1 to 5) describes a powder container and an image forming apparatus. The powder container includes a container body that accommodates powder, and a powder transporter disposed in the container body. The image forming apparatus includes a developing device that receives powder accommodated in the powder container to develop an electrostatic latent image formed on an image carrier with the powder. 
     Japanese Patent No. 6547340 (particularly, claim 1, paragraphs 0053 to 0057, and FIGS. 1 to 5) also describes a powder transporter serving as a transporter of the powder. The powder transporter includes a rotation member, a contact member, and multiple protruding portions. The rotation member rotates about an axis in the container accommodating powder. The contact member has a first end fixed to the rotation member, and a second end that is left free to bend when coming into contact with the inner wall of the container. The contact member has multiple cuts arranged in the direction in which the axis of the rotation member extends. Each cut obliquely extends with a starting point at a side closer to the second end and a terminal point closer to the rotation member. The terminal point of each of the multiple cuts is located closer to the first end than to the second end. The multiple protruding portions are arranged in the direction in which the axis of the rotation member extends, and protrude from the rotation member toward the inner wall of the container to agitate powder. The distal ends of all the protruding portions are located at the same position in the axial direction as the center of the cuts in the extension direction, and displaced from the starting points of all the cuts in the axial direction. 
     SUMMARY 
     Aspects of non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a powder leveler, a powder container device, a powder transporter, and a powder handling device that include a rotation shaft and a rotatable sheet-shaped leveling member attached to a first end of the rotation shaft, and that may vary timing when part of the leveling member makes a sound when being released after coming into contact with an obstacle disposed on the rotation path, and passing by the obstacle while being bent. 
     Aspects of certain non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure address the above advantages and/or other advantages not described above. However, aspects of the non-limiting embodiments are not required to address the advantages described above, and aspects of the non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure may not address advantages described above. 
     According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a powder leveler including: a structure having an internal space in which powder moves; a sheet-shaped leveling member that rotates while having a first end thereof attached to a rotation shaft disposed inside the structure, and that comes into contact with part of the powder accumulating at a portion inside the structure close to a free end thereof located away from the rotation shaft to level out the powder; and an obstacle located inside the structure at a position on a rotation path of the leveling member to obstruct the rotation path, the obstacle allowing the leveling member to pass thereby while the leveling member is rotating and being bent as a result of partially coming into contact with the obstacle, wherein the leveling member includes a plurality of first discontinuous portions in at least a range in which the rotation path is obstructed by the obstacle while the leveling member is rotating, the plurality of first discontinuous portions extend inward from an end closer to the free end in a direction obliquely crossing an axis of the rotation shaft, and the first discontinuous portions have terminal ends located within the range. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail based on the following figures, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic view of an inner structure of an image forming apparatus, which is an example of a powder handling device according to a first exemplary embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic view of an image forming device and its periphery in the image forming apparatus illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic view of a toner replenishment structure and a toner reclaim structure in the image forming apparatus illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a half of a disassembled container structure in a powder container device including the powder leveler in the image forming apparatus illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5A  is a schematic view of a structure of the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 4 , and  FIG. 5B  is a schematic view of the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 5A  in operation; 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic view of the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 4  when viewed from the bottom, and the structure of a leveling member; 
         FIG. 7A  is a schematic perspective view of the leveling member in the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 4  when coming into contact with an obstacle after rotation, and  FIG. 7B  is a schematic perspective view of the leveling member in  FIG. 7A  rotated further; 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a half of a disassembled container structure in a powder container device including a powder leveler according to a second exemplary embodiment; 
         FIG. 9A  is a schematic view of a structure of the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 8 , and  FIG. 9B  is a schematic view of the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 9A  in operation; 
         FIG. 10A  is a schematic perspective view of a leveling member in the powder leveler illustrated in  FIG. 8  when coming into contact with an obstacle after rotation, and  FIG. 10B  is a schematic perspective view of the leveling member in  FIG. 10A  when rotated further; 
         FIG. 11  is a schematic view of a powder transporter according to a third exemplary embodiment; 
         FIG. 12  is a schematic view of a powder coating device, which is another example of a powder handling device according to a fourth exemplary embodiment, a powder transporter, and a powder container device included in the powder coating device; and 
         FIG. 13  is a diagram illustrating another structure of a leveling member. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Forms for embodying the present disclosure (simply referred to as “exemplary embodiments”, herein) will be described below with reference to the drawings. 
     First Exemplary Embodiment 
       FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate an image forming apparatus  1 A, which is an example of a powder handling device  1  according to a first exemplary embodiment.  FIG. 1  illustrates an internal structure of the image forming apparatus  1 A, and  FIG. 2  is an enlarged diagram of part of the image forming apparatus  1 A. 
     The image forming apparatus  1 A includes an image forming member  2 A and a powder container device  6 A. The image forming member  2 A is an example of a powder applicator  2 , which applies a developer (or toner  8 A) to a sheet medium  9 A such as a paper sheet. The developer is an example of powder  8 . The sheet medium  9 A is an example of a powder receiving object. The powder container device  6 A accommodates a developer reclaimed by the image forming member  2 A. 
     The image forming apparatus  1 A according to the first exemplary embodiment forms a visible image formed from a developer on the sheet medium  9 A as an image. An example of the image forming apparatus  1 A is a printer that forms images or visible images corresponding to image information input from an external connection device such as an information terminal or a personal computer. Examples of a developer include a binary developer containing a nonmagnetic toner  8 A and a magnetic carrier. Examples of the image information include information related to images such as characters, figures, photos, and patterns. 
     The image forming apparatus  1 A includes a housing  10  having a box-shaped appearance. The housing  10  includes, for example, a support frame and an exterior panel. 
     The housing  10  includes an openable side cover, not illustrated, on one side surface. The housing  10  includes a discharge receiver  13  that receives, on its upper surface, sheet media  9 A discharged after having images formed thereon. The housing  10  also includes a container mount, not illustrated, on the inner side of the side cover. Various replaceable containers are removably attached to the container mount. 
     Examples of the containers include, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , replaceable (cartridge) developer containers  15 , which are examples of a powder container that accommodates a developer to be replenished (mostly, toner  8 A), first reclaim containers  61  that accommodate a developer (mostly, toner  8 A) to be reclaimed by first cleaning devices  26  described later, and a second reclaim container  65  that accommodates a developer (mostly, toner  8 A) to be reclaimed by a second cleaning device  36 , described later. 
     The developer containers  15  among these containers include four developer containers  15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K that respectively accommodate four color toners, described later. The first reclaim containers  61  include four first reclaim containers  61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, and  61 K that separately accommodate the developers reclaimed by the respective first cleaning devices  26  in four image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K), described later. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the image forming member  2 A includes, for example, the image forming devices  20 , which form visible images based on image information, an intermediate transfer device  30 , which temporarily holds the visible images formed by the image forming devices  20  and then second-transfers the visible images to the sheet media  9 A, a sheet feeding device  40 , which accommodates and feeds the sheet media  9 A that are to be fed to a second transfer position at which the intermediate transfer device  30  performs second transfer, and a fixing device  45 , which fixes the visible images second-transferred by the intermediate transfer device  30  to the sheet media  9 A. This image forming member  2 A is an image forming apparatus of an intermediate transfer system. 
     The image forming devices  20  include four image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) that dedicatedly form, with electrophotography, visible images of four colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K). 
       FIG. 2  illustrates the black image forming device  20 K by way of example. Each of these four image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) include a drum-shaped photoconductor  21 , which is an example of an image carrier driven to rotate in the direction of arrow A. Around the photoconductor  21 , devices such as a charging device  22 , an exposure device  23 , one of developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K), a first transfer device  25 , and a first cleaning device  26  are arranged. 
     The charging device  22  charges an outer peripheral surface (an image receivable surface) of the photoconductor  21  with electricity of a predetermined surface potential. The exposure device  23  exposes the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor  21  with light corresponding to image signals of color components (Y, M, C, and K) generated based on the image information to form electrostatic latent images. The developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) develop the electrostatic latent images formed on the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor  21  with the developer (toner) of the corresponding colors (Y, M, C, and K) to form toner images or visible images. 
     The first transfer device  25  electrostatically transfers toner images of the respective colors to the intermediate transfer device  30  (or to an intermediate transfer belt  31  of the intermediate transfer device  30 ). The first cleaning device  26  cleans the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor  21  by scraping unwanted matter such as unwanted toner or paper dust adhering to the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor  21  for removal. 
     The developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) have the same structure except that they handle the developers of different colors. Specifically, as the developing device  24 K illustrated in  FIG. 2  by way of example, the developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) each include, in a housing  24   a  having a container shape and having a developer containing chamber and a development opening, a developing roller  24   b , which holds the developer to feed the developer to a development portion of the photoconductor  21  facing the development opening, agitating transporting members  24   c  and  24   d  such as screw augers that transport the developer accommodated in the developer containing chamber of the housing  24   a  while agitating the developer, and an adjusting member  24   e , which adjusts the amount (thickness) of the developer held on the developing roller  24   b.    
     The developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) will be described using the developing device  24 K by way of example. A black toner charged by friction by being agitated with the agitating transporting members  24   c  and  24   d  electrostatically adheres to the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor  21  from the developing roller  24   b , to develop the electrostatic latent image to form a black toner image, which is a visible image. 
     An example used as the first transfer device  25  is a contact transfer device including a first transfer roller, which is an example of a contact transfer member receiving a first transfer current. 
     The first cleaning device  26  includes a container body  26   a , and in the container body  26   a , a contact cleaning member  26   b , which scrapes unwanted matter (mostly, toner), and a transporting member  26   c  such as a screw auger that reclaims the unwanted matter scraped by the contact cleaning member  26   b  and transports the unwanted matter to a first reclaim container  61  ( 61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, or  61 K). 
     In each of the image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K), a position where the photoconductor  21  and a first transfer roller of the first transfer device  25  faces each other (with the intermediate transfer belt  31  interposed therebetween) serves as a first transfer position TP 1  where toner images are first-transferred. 
     When each of the image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) receives a command of an image forming operation via a controller, not illustrated, in response to an instruction of image formation from, for example, an external connection device, the image forming device  20  forms a toner image of one of four colors (Y, M, C, and K) on the corresponding photoconductor  21 , and first-transfers the toner image thus formed to the intermediate transfer device  30  (the intermediate transfer belt  31  of the intermediate transfer device  30 ) at the first transfer position TP 1 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the intermediate transfer device  30  includes the intermediate transfer belt  31 , which is an example of an intermediate transfer body to which toner images are first-transferred from the photoconductors  21  of the image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) and that holds the toner images. Around the intermediate transfer belt  31 , components including first transfer devices  25 , a second transfer device  35 , and a second cleaning device  36  are arranged. 
     The intermediate transfer belt  31  is an endless belt that may electrostatically hold toner images. The intermediate transfer belt  31  is supported by multiple support rollers  32  (for example, two support rollers  32   a  and  32   b ) disposed on the inner side of the intermediate transfer belt  31 , to rotate in the direction of arrow B while sequentially passing the first transfer positions TP 1  of the image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K). 
     Each first transfer device  25  is driven to rotate on the inner side of the intermediate transfer belt  31  while having the first transfer roller pressing the intermediate transfer belt  31  against the photoconductor  21 . 
     The second transfer device  35  is disposed to allow a sheet medium  9 A to pass thereby at its outer peripheral surface supported by the support roller  32   a  of the intermediate transfer belt  31 , and to second-transfer the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt  31  to the sheet medium  9 A. An example used as the second transfer device  35  according to the first exemplary embodiment is a contact transfer device including a second transfer roller, which is an example of a contact transfer member to which a second transfer current is fed. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the second cleaning device  36  includes, inside a container body  36   a , components including a contact cleaning member  36   b  that scrapes unwanted matter (mostly, toner), and a transporting member  36   c  such as a screw auger that reclaims the unwanted matter scraped by the contact cleaning member  36   b  and transports the unwanted matter to the second reclaim container  65 . 
     In the intermediate transfer device  30 , a position where the second transfer device  35  (second transfer roller of the second transfer device  35 ) is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt  31  serves as a second transfer position TP 2  where toner images are second-transferred. 
     In the intermediate transfer device  30 , during an image forming operation, when a toner image is first-transferred to the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate transfer belt  31 , the intermediate transfer device  30  transports the toner image to the second transfer position TP 2  with rotation of the intermediate transfer belt  31 , and second-transfers the toner image to the sheet medium  9 A. 
     The sheet feeding device  40  accommodates sheet media  9 A to be fed to the second transfer position TP 2  of the intermediate transfer device  30 , and feeds the sheet media  9 A. The sheet feeding device  40  according to the first exemplary embodiment includes a drawable container  41  that accommodates a stack of the sheet media  9 A, and a pick-up device  42  that feeds the sheet medium  9 A accommodated in the container  41  one by one. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , a feed transport path Tr 1  is disposed between the sheet feeding device  40  and the second transfer position TP 2  of the intermediate transfer device  30  to allow the sheet medium  9 A to be transported to the second transfer position TP 2 . The feed transport path Tr 1  includes, for example, pairs of transport rollers  44   a  and  44   b  that transport the sheet medium  9 A while holding the sheet medium  9 A therebetween, and a guide member, not illustrated, that secures a transport space for the sheet medium  9 A to guide the sheet medium  9 A. 
     Examples used as the sheet medium  9 A in the image forming apparatus  1 A may be any recording medium transportable in the housing  10  and that allows toner images to be transferred or fixed thereto, such as ordinary sheets, coated sheets, or cardboard. The material or form of the sheet medium  9 A is not limited to a particular one. 
     The fixing device  45  includes, inside a housing not illustrated having an inlet port and an outlet port for the sheet medium  9 A, a heating rotator  46  having a roller form and including a heater not illustrated, and a pressing rotator  47  having a roller form. The fixing device  45  has a portion that comes into contact with the heating rotator  46  and the pressing rotator  47  serving as a nip (fixing processor) that heats and presses an unfixed toner image to fix the toner image to the sheet medium  9 A. 
     In the fixing device  45 , during the image forming operation, a sheet medium  9 A to which a toner image has been second-transferred at the second transfer position TP 2  is transported to be introduced to and pass through the nip. Thus, the toner image on the sheet medium  9 A is heated and melted at the nip to be fixed to the sheet medium  9 A. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , a discharge transport path Tr 3  is disposed between the fixing device  45  and an outlet port  14  formed in the housing  10 . The discharge transport path Tr 3  allows a sheet medium  9 A subjected to fixing to be discharged therealong to the discharge receiver  13 . The discharge transport path Tr 3  includes a pair of discharging rollers  48  in front of the outlet port  14 , and a guide member, not illustrated, that secures a transport space for the sheet medium  9 A to guide the sheet medium  9 A. 
     During the image forming operation, a sheet medium  9 A subjected to fixing by the fixing device  45  passes the discharge transport path Tr 3  and is discharged to and received in the discharge receiver  13 . 
     For example, the image forming apparatus  1 A may selectively form a multicolor image (full-color image) by operating all the four image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) to combine toner images of four colors (Y, M, C, and K), or a monochrome image (for example, black image) by operating one of the four image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) to form a toner image of a single color. 
     Structure Relating to Toner Replenishment 
     In the image forming apparatus  1 A, the developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) consume and reduce the developer (toner) through a developing operation. Thus, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) are replenished with toner accommodated in the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K). 
     Thus, each of the developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) includes a receiving portion at a portion obtained by extending one end of the agitating transporting member  24   c  toward the above-described container mount, not illustrated. The receiving portion includes a reception port and an openable lid, not illustrated. The reception port receives replenished toner. 
     As schematically illustrated in  FIG. 3 , on the container mount of the housing  10 , replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) and a driving force transmitter, not illustrated, are disposed. Each of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) connects the receiving portion of the corresponding one of the developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) and the corresponding one of the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K) to transport toner to be replenished. The driving force transmitter transmits rotation power to a discharging member disposed in each of the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K). The discharging member will be described later. 
     The replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) and the driving force transmitters protrude from the container mount, not illustrated, disposed on the side surface of the housing  10  to allow the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K) to be accommodated and mounted thereon. 
     The replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) constitute a powder transporter  7 A that transports toner, or an example of powder. The replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) each include a transport tube and a transporting member. The transport tube is an example of a transport path structure that forms a transport space connecting the receiving portion and the corresponding one of the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K). The transporting member rotates in the transport tube at desired timing to transport the toner. The reception port and the openable lid, not illustrated, are disposed at the upper surface of the end portion of the corresponding one of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) protruding from the container mount. A connection gear, not illustrated, is exposed from the end portion of the driving force transmitter protruding from the container mount. 
     The developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K) are containers with a predetermined shape. Each of the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K) includes a connection portion having an outlet port at a lower portion of the developer container  15 . The corresponding one of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) is inserted into and connected to the outlet port. A discharging member such as a screw auger is disposed in each developer container  15 . The discharging member is driven to rotate to transport toner accommodated in the container by a predetermined amount to the corresponding one of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K). 
     When each of the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K) is mounted to the container mount, the corresponding one of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K) is inserted into and connected to the connection portion of the developer container  15 , and the discharging member is connected to the driving force transmitter. 
     A controller, not illustrated, of each of the developer containers  15  ( 15 Y,  15 M,  15 C, and  15 K) controls the driving force transmitter to operate the driving force transmitter for a predetermined time period in accordance with detected information. Thus, the discharging member rotates by a predetermined amount to discharge the toner in the container to the corresponding one of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K). The discharged toner is fed to the corresponding one of the developing devices  24  ( 24 Y,  24 M,  24 C, and  24 K) with transport power of the corresponding one of the replenishment transporters  27  ( 27 Y,  27 M,  27 C, and  27 K). 
     Structure Relating to Accommodation of Reclaimed Toner 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , in the image forming apparatus  1 A, unwanted matter (mostly, toner) reclaimed by the first cleaning device  26  of each of the image forming devices  20  ( 20 Y,  20 M,  20 C, and  20 K) is accommodated in the corresponding one of the first reclaim containers  61  ( 61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, and  61 K), which is an example of a container structure. 
     The transporting member  26   c  in the first cleaning device  26  is thus disposed on a first reclaim transporter  29  ( FIG. 2 ), extending to protrude from the first cleaning device  26  toward the container mount of the housing  10 . The first reclaim transporter  29  has an outlet port and an openable lid, not illustrated, on the lower surface of the end portion protruding from the container mount. 
     The first reclaim containers  61  ( 61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, and  61 K) are containers according to the first exemplary embodiment with a predetermined shape. As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , each of the first reclaim containers  61  includes a connection portion  66  that has a reclaim port  66   b  at an upper portion of the first reclaim container  61 . The first reclaim transporter  29  is inserted into and connected to the reclaim port  66   b.    
     When each of the first reclaim containers  61  ( 61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, and  61 K) is mounted on the container mount, the distal end of the first reclaim transporter  29  is inserted into and connected to the connection portion of the container mount. 
     When the image forming device  20  is in operation, in each of the first reclaim containers  61  ( 61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, and  61 K), unwanted matter, or mostly toner, reclaimed by the corresponding first cleaning device  26  is transported by the first reclaim transporter  29 , and accommodated in the container. 
     The first reclaim containers  61  ( 61 Y,  61 M,  61 C, and  61 K) may be integrated as a single reclaim container. For a single integrated first reclaim container  61 , unwanted matter, or mostly toner, reclaimed by the respective first cleaning devices  26  is collectively accommodated in the single first reclaim container  61 . 
     In the image forming apparatus  1 A, unwanted matter (mostly, toner) reclaimed by the second cleaning device  36  in the intermediate transfer device  30  is reclaimed by the second reclaim container  65  constituting part of the powder container device  6 A. 
     Thus, the transporting member  36   c  in the second cleaning device  36  is disposed on a second reclaim transporter  37  ( FIG. 3 ), which extends to protrude from the second cleaning device  36  toward the container mount of the housing  10 , not illustrated. The second reclaim transporter  37  has an outlet port and an openable lid, not illustrated, at a lower surface of the end portion protruding from the container mount. 
     The second reclaim container  65  serves as a container structure constituting part of the powder container device  6 A and having an accommodation space CS that accommodates toner. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the second reclaim container  65  according to the first exemplary embodiment is a container with a predetermined shape such as a long box, and has a structure including a first container  65 A and a second container  65 B, or front and rear halves integrated together. The first container  65 A includes a side wall  65   b , and an upper surface  65   c , a bottom surface  65   d , and two vertical side surfaces  65   e  and  65   f  surrounding the side wall  65   b . At coupling portions  65   g  in  FIG. 4 , the first container  65 A and the second container  65 B are fastened with bolts and screws to be assembled together. 
     The second reclaim container  65  includes the connection portion  66  at an upper portion. The second reclaim transporter  37  is inserted into the connection portion  66  from the side wall  65   b  for connection. The connection portion  66  includes a cylindrical body  66   a  and a toner reclaim port  66   b  formed in the lower surface of the body  66   a  at the distal end. 
     When the second reclaim container  65  is mounted on the container mount, the distal end of the second reclaim transporter  37  is inserted into and connected to the connection portion  66  of the second reclaim container  65 . 
     When the image forming device  20  and the intermediate transfer device  30  are in operation, unwanted matter, mostly toner, reclaimed by the second cleaning device  36  is transported to the second reclaim container  65  by the second reclaim transporter  37 , and falls into the accommodation space CS through the reclaim port  66   b  of the connection portion  66  to be accommodated in the accommodation space CS. 
     Powder Container Device Including Leveler 
     Into the second reclaim container  65 , which is a container structure constituting part of the powder container device  6 A, the toner  8 A that falls into and is accommodated in a container or the accommodation space CS gradually accumulates in an arc shape. As illustrated in  FIG. 4 or 5 , the connection portion  66  in the second reclaim container  65  including the reclaim port  66   b  is located at a one-sided position (for example, a corner) with respect to an upper center of the second reclaim container  65 . 
     Thus, as illustrated in  FIG. 5A  with a two-dot chain line, the toner  8 A accommodated in the second reclaim container  65  also accumulates at a one-sided portion in the container, and part of the toner  8 A accumulating at the one-sided portion has to be leveled out. 
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 4 to 6 , the second reclaim container  65  includes a powder leveler  5 A. The powder leveler  5 A includes a rotation shaft  52  and a sheet-shaped leveling member  53 . The rotation shaft  52  is rotatably disposed inside the second reclaim container  65 . The leveling member  53  rotates while having a first end  53   a  attached to the rotation shaft  52 , to come into contact with or level out the toner  8 A accumulating at the portion near a free end  53   b , located farther from the rotation shaft  52 . 
     The powder leveler  5 A is disposed so that the rotation shaft  52  crosses the inside of the second reclaim container  65  at substantially the center portion of an upper portion of the side wall  65   b . The rotation shaft  52  rotates in the direction of arrow C upon receiving power fed from the driving force transmitter on the container mount on which the second reclaim container  65  is mounted. The rotation shaft  52  keeps rotating while the toner  8 A to be reclaimed is being received. A connection supporter  52   d  with a double-stack cylindrical shape illustrated in  FIGS. 4 and 5  and other drawings supports the rotation shaft  52  and connects the rotation shaft  52  to the driving force transmitter. 
     The leveling member  53  is attached to the rotation shaft  52  while allowing multiple headed protrusions  52   m  in the rotation shaft  52  to be inserted into mount holes  53   h  ( FIG. 6 ) formed at the first end  53   a  to prevent unlocking. The leveling member  53  is formed from, for example, a flexible sheet made of a synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). 
     The leveling member  53  of the powder leveler  5 A rotates in the direction of arrow C substantially about the rotation shaft  52 , and comes into contact with part of the toner  8 A accumulated at a portion closer to the free end  53   b  of the leveling member  53 , farther from the rotation shaft  52 , to move the toner  8 A downward in a rotation direction C to level out the toner  8 A. 
     However, this second reclaim container  65  includes a structure serving as obstacles  54  located inside to obstruct part of the rotation path (the range of the circle drawn with a dot-and-dash line in  FIGS. 5A and 5B  and other drawings) of the leveling member  53 , so that the rotating leveling member  53  passes by the obstacles  54  while being partially bent by coming into contact with the obstacles  54 . 
     The structures serving as the obstacles  54  in the second reclaim container  65  include a cylindrical protruding portion  54 A located adjacent to and obliquely below the rotation shaft  52 , and the connection portion  66  located apart from and obliquely above the rotation shaft  52 . 
     As illustrated in an upper portion in  FIG. 6 , in the second reclaim container  65 , the rotation shaft  52  is located closer to one side in the container in the front-rear direction. The reclaim port  66   b  of the connection portion  66  is located closer to one side in the container in the front-rear direction, away from the rotation shaft  52 . 
     Thus, in the leveling member  53 , the first end  53   a  is attached to the one-sided rotation shaft  52 , and the free end  53   b  has to pass at least a portion below the reclaim port  66   b  of the connection portion  66 . Thus, as illustrated in the upper portion in  FIG. 6 , the leveling member  53  has such a shape that the first end  53   a  and the free end  53   b  are displaced in the direction of an axis J of the rotation shaft  52 . 
     Specifically, the leveling member  53  has a substantially parallelogram in a plan view. In other words, the leveling member  53  is a member having a portion located further outward in the direction of the axis J of the rotation shaft  52  than the first end  53   a  attached to the rotation shaft  52 . 
     From the above description, in the powder leveler  5 A, when the leveling member  53  with the above shape rotates in the direction of arrow C about the rotation shaft  52 , the leveling member  53  comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as the obstacles  54  while rotating. Thus, as illustrated in  FIG. 5B , when coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66 , part of the leveling member  53  passes by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  while being temporarily bent backward in the direction opposite to the rotation direction C. 
     Parenthesized reference signs  53   01 ,  53   02 , and  52   06  in  FIG. 5B  denote the leveling member  53  not bent or restored after being bent. A reference sign  53   03  denotes the leveling member  53  when being bent after coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A serving as the obstacle  54 . A reference sign  53   07  denotes the leveling member  53  when being bent after coming into contact with the connection portion  66  serving as the obstacle  54 . 
     In this case, the leveling member  53  is released immediately after the portion bent by coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as the obstacles  54  passes by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66 . The portion of the leveling member  53  makes sounds when being released. The sounds are caused at the same timing, unlike in the case where the leveling member  53  has first discontinuous portions  56 , described below. The sounds are kept being caused while the leveling member  53  is rotating, and may be grating noise. 
     A parenthesized reference sign  53   04  in  FIG. 5B  denotes the leveling member  53  immediately before completely passing by the protruding portion  54 A serving as the obstacle  54  while being in contact with the protruding portion  54 A, and a reference sign  53   05  denotes the leveling member  53  while being restored after being released from the bent state immediately after passing by the protruding portion  54 A serving as the obstacle  54 . 
     As illustrated in the upper portion in  FIG. 6 , the powder leveler  5 A includes multiple first discontinuous portions  56  in a portion within a range E in which the rotation path for the leveling member  53  is at least obstructed by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles. The first discontinuous portions  56  extend inward from the end closer to the free end  53   b  in a direction D, which obliquely crosses the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 , and each have a terminal end  56   e  located within the range E. 
     Here, as illustrated in a lower portion in  FIG. 6 , the obstructed range E is a portion where the leveling member  53  positionally overlaps, for example, the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle, while rotating immediately before coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A to interfere with the protruding portion  54 A. 
     The end closer to the free end  53   b  includes the free end  53   b  and an end adjacent to or continuous with the free end  53   b.    
     Being located within the range E means that the terminal end  56   e  is located at any position within the range E instead of being located outward beyond the range E. In  FIG. 6 , the terminal ends  56   e  of the first discontinuous portions  56  are drawn as small open circles. These small open circles are formed for the processing purposes for forming the first discontinuous portions  56  and as preventive measures against expansion or breakage of the first discontinuous portions  56 . 
     The multiple first discontinuous portions  56  according to the first exemplary embodiment are cuts formed by cutting into the leveling member  53 . Specifically, the first discontinuous portions  56  are four straight cuts. 
     Thus, the range E in which at least the path for the leveling member  53  is obstructed by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle is divided with the four first discontinuous portions  56 . In the first exemplary embodiment, the range E is divided into five strips. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , each of the four first discontinuous portions  56  ( 56   01 ,  56   02 ,  56   03 , and  56   04 ) is a straight cut that extends inward in the direction D obliquely crossing the axis J from the free end  53   b  and a first adjacent end  53   c , which is adjacent to the free end  53   b  on one side, and has the terminal end  56   e  located within the range E at a position immediately before a second adjacent end  53   d , which is adjacent to the free end  53   b  on the other side and parallel to the first adjacent end  53   c.    
     The first discontinuous portion  56   04  of the four first discontinuous portions  56  extends inward from the first adjacent end  53   c.    
     As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the first discontinuous portions  56  are four straight cuts arranged equidistantly. With this relationship, the four first discontinuous portions  56  are parallel to each other. 
     As illustrated in the lower portion in  FIG. 6 , when one of the first discontinuous portions  56  is extended from the terminal end  56   e  toward the rotation shaft  52  in the form of an extension line L, a crossing angle θ 1  between the extension line L and the axis J of the rotation shaft  52  is, for example, within a range of larger than or equal to 30° and smaller than or equal to 45°. When the crossing angle θ 1  is viewed from another point using a crossing angle θ 2  between the extension line L and a flat top end surface  54 At of the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle, the crossing angle θ 2  is, for example, within a range of larger than or equal to 45° and smaller than or equal to 60°. 
     When the crossing angle θ 1  is smaller than 30°, sounds caused when the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with, passing by, and being released from the protruding portion  54 A or other portions serving as obstacles while rotating may be caused at substantially the same timing. On the other hand, also when the crossing angle θ 1  is larger than 45°, sounds caused when the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with, passing by, and being released from the protruding portion  54 A or other portions serving as obstacles while rotating may be caused at substantially the same timing. 
     As illustrated in the middle portion in  FIG. 6 , the first discontinuous portions  56  have the terminal ends  56   e  aligned on one virtual straight line F obliquely crossing the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 . 
     In the first exemplary embodiment, the terminal ends  56   e  of the first discontinuous portions  56  are located at positions the same distance inward from the linear edge of the second adjacent end  53   d  of the leveling member  53 . The terminal ends  56   e  of the first discontinuous portions  56  are preferably located at positions closer to the end (second adjacent end  53   d , in this example) of the leveling member  53  away from the first adjacent end  53   c  with respect to the middle of the width of the leveling member  53  in the direction D in which the first discontinuous portions  56  are cut. More preferably, the terminal ends  56   e  are located at such positions that the first discontinuous portions  56  are longer than or equal to ⅔ of the width of the leveling member  53 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , in the powder leveler  5 A, the leveling member  53  includes second discontinuous portions  57  in a portion that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. The second discontinuous portions  57  extend midway in a direction H crossing the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 , to partially separate the portion that comes into contact with and passes by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. 
     Here, in the first exemplary embodiment, the portion that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is a range smaller than the range E that has a part coming into contact with the connection portion  66  or a second obstacle, and another part coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A. The second discontinuous portions  57  are formed in the leveling member  53  to separate the portion that actually comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle from the portion that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A. 
     The portion that comes into contact with and passes by the protruding portion  54 A at least includes the range E. 
     The second discontinuous portions  57  according to the first exemplary embodiment are cuts in the leveling member  53 . Specifically, the second discontinuous portions  57  are two straight cuts. 
     The second discontinuous portions  57  extend in the direction H substantially perpendicular to the axis J. 
     Thus, in the leveling member  53 , the range E is divided from the portion that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A with respect to the two second discontinuous portions  57 , and the portion that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is further divided with the two second discontinuous portions  57 . In the first exemplary embodiment, the portion that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is divided into two strips. 
     Each of the two second discontinuous portions  57  ( 57   01  and  57   02 ) has a terminal end  57   e  located at a position close to the rotation shaft  52 . In the first exemplary embodiment, as illustrated in the middle portion in  FIG. 6 , the terminal ends  57   e  of the two second discontinuous portions  57  are aligned on a virtual straight line K parallel to the direction of the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 . 
     The second discontinuous portions  57  are located closer to the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. 
     The second discontinuous portion  57   01  of the two second discontinuous portions  57  ( 57   01  and  57   02 ) is located close to the top end surface  54 At of the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. The second discontinuous portion  57   01  is preferably located such that the distance from the side wall  65   b  to the leveling member  53 , when attached to the rotation shaft  52 , is slightly larger (for example, 5 to 10 mm) than the height of the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. The terminal end  57   e  of the second discontinuous portion  57   01  is located at a position close to the end of the second adjacent end  53   d  closer to the rotation shaft  52  to minimize a connection portion  53   g  between the range E of the leveling member  53  and the first end  53   a  attached to the rotation shaft  52 . 
     Subsequently, the operation of the powder leveler  5 A will be described. 
     The powder leveler  5 A keeps rotating the rotation shaft  52  while the second reclaim container  65  constituting part of the powder container device  6 A is reclaiming the toner  8 A. 
     Thus, the leveling member  53  keeps rotating in the direction of arrow C substantially about the rotation shaft  52 . After the toner  8 A reclaimed by the second cleaning device  36  is transported to the second reclaim container  65  through the second reclaim transporter  37 , the toner  8 A falls down through the reclaim port  66   b  in the connection portion  66  to be discharged to and accommodated in the second reclaim container  65 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 5A , when the toner  8 A accommodated in the second reclaim container  65  accumulates immediately below the reclaim port  66   b  in an arc form, a portion of the free end  53   b  in the rotating leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 A comes into contact with and moves part of the accumulated toner  8 A to level out part of the accumulated toner  8 A. 
     The leveling member  53  rotates while coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles. 
     When the leveling member  53  starts coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle, as illustrated in  FIG. 7A , a portion  53   p  in the leveling member  53  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is separated from a portion  53   r  in the leveling member  53  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A with respect to the second discontinuous portions  57 . 
     Specifically, in the leveling member  53  at this time, the portion  53   r  that is in contact with the protruding portion  54 A starts being bent backward (upstream side) in the rotation direction C, whereas the portion  53   p  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A passes by the protruding portion  54 A without coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and without being bent. 
     Thus, the portion  53   p  in the leveling member  53  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is not bent while passing by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. The portion  53   p  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A thus does not exhibit behaviors such as being restored or released from being bent. 
     Subsequently, when the leveling member  53  passes by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle while coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A, as illustrated in  FIG. 7B , in the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A, the strips divided at the four first discontinuous portions  56  are individually bent while being slightly separated from each other, and move while being elastically deformed. When the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A passes by the protruding portion  54 A, the strips divided at the four first discontinuous portions  56  are sequentially released from being bent step by step. 
     Thus, immediately after the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle passes by the protruding portion  54 A, the bent strips divided at the four first discontinuous portions  56  are sequentially released step by step to be restored.  FIG. 7B  illustrates a state before the portion of the leveling member  53  defined by the first discontinuous portion  56   04  and the second discontinuous portion  57   01  firstly passes by the protruding portion  54 A to be released. 
     The strips divided at the first discontinuous portions  56  in the leveling member  53  accumulate lower energy (restoring force) when being bent than that accumulated by the first discontinuous portion  56  not divided into strips. 
     After passing by the protruding portion  54 A, the rotating leveling member  53  rotates while coming into contact with the connection portion  66  serving as an obstacle. 
     When the leveling member  53  starts coming into contact with the connection portion  66 , in the portion  53   p  of the leveling member  53  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A, a portion between the second discontinuous portion  57   01  and the first discontinuous portion  56   04  that is located a relatively long distance away from the rotation shaft  52  in the radial direction comes into contact with and passes by the connection portion  66 . Here, the portion that does not come into contact with the connection portion  66  (portion above the second discontinuous portions  57   02  in  FIG. 7 ) and the portion that comes into contact with the connection portion  66  (portion between the second discontinuous portion  57   01  and the first discontinuous portion  56   04 ) are separated from each other with respect to the second discontinuous portions  57   02 . 
     Here, in the leveling member  53 , the portion that does not come into contact with the connection portion  66  is not bent while passing by the connection portion  66 . Thus, the portion that does not come into contact with the connection portion  66  does not exhibit behaviors such as being restored or released from being bent. 
     On the other hand, in the leveling member  53 , the portion that comes into contact with the connection portion  66  is bent by coming into contact with the connection portion  66 , and then released after passing by the connection portion  66 . The portion  53   p  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is divided (into two pieces) by the second discontinuous portions  57  (actually, the second discontinuous portion  57   02 ). Thus, the portion that comes into contact with the connection portion  66  accumulates lower energy (restoring force) when being bent, and thus is restored with weak force after being released. 
     Subsequently, the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A comes into contact with and passes by the connection portion  66 . 
     Substantially similarly to the case where the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A passes by the protruding portion  54 A while being in contact with the protruding portion  54 A, when the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  passes by the connection portion  66 , the strips divided at the four first discontinuous portions  56  are sequentially released from being bent step by step. 
     As described above, the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 A makes one rotation while coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles, and repeats the rotations to keep leveling out the accumulating toner  8 A. 
     In the powder leveler  5 A, when coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles on the rotation path, a portion of the leveling member  53  passes by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  while being bent, and is then released. Here, the multiple first discontinuous portions  56  and the second discontinuous portions  57  are released at different timings between the portions of the leveling member  53 , and thus the leveling member  53  as a whole is gradually released step by step. 
     Thus, in the powder leveler  5 A, sounds caused when portions of the leveling member  53  are released from the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  after passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  vary in time. In the powder leveler  5 A, timings when portions of the leveling member  53  are released from the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  after passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  vary, so that the sounds caused at the portions released at different timings are muffled. 
     In the powder leveler  5 A, compared to a structure where the four first discontinuous portions  56  are not equidistantly arranged, portions of the leveling member  53  bent by coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles are released, at regularly different and smoothly varying timings, from the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  after passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66 , to cause sounds at different timings. 
     In the powder leveler  5 A, compared to a structure where the terminal ends  56   e  of the first discontinuous portions  56  are not located on the straight line F obliquely crossing the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 , sounds caused when the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with and passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles while being bent are uniformly muffled with the force exerted when the leveling member  53  is released being substantially similarly reduced. 
     Compared to a structure where the leveling member  53  does not have the second discontinuous portions  57 , in the powder leveler  5 A, the portion of the leveling member  53  that is bent by coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles is reduced. Thus, the sounds caused when the leveling member  53  is released after passing by the obstacles while being bent is reduced as a whole. 
     Compared to a structure where the terminal ends  57   e  of the second discontinuous portions  57  are not located at positions close to the rotation shaft  52 , the portion  53   p  of the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 A that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles has a lower ratio of a portion continuous with the first end  53   a  attached to the rotation shaft  52  (width of the connection portion  53   g  illustrated in the lower portion in  FIG. 6 ), and passes by the obstacles without being bent. Thus, the sounds caused when the leveling member  53  is released are muffled as a whole. 
     In the powder leveler  5 A, compared to a structure where the second discontinuous portions  57  is not located closer to the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle, the portion of the leveling member  53  that is bent while passing by the obstacle is reduced, and the sounds caused when the leveling member  53  is released are also muffled as a whole. 
     In the powder leveler  5 A, compared to a structure where the leveling member  53  does not have a shape (such as a parallelogram or a trapezoid) having a portion located on the outer side of the first end  53   a  in the direction of the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 , the leveling member  53  is more easily bent by coming into contact with and passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles, and sounds caused when part of the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with and passing by the obstacles while being bent vary in time. 
     Compared to a structure where the first discontinuous portions  56  are not disposed in a portion located on the outer side of the leveling member  53  in the direction of the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 , the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 A is more easily bent by coming into contact with and passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles, and sounds caused when part of the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with and passing by the obstacles while being bent vary in time. 
     Second Exemplary Embodiment 
       FIG. 8  illustrates a powder container device  6 A including a powder leveler  5 B according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. 
     The powder container device  6 A has the same structure as the powder container device  6 A according to the first exemplary embodiment except that the powder container device  6 A according to the second exemplary embodiment includes a powder leveler  5 B formed by adding a release adjusting member  58  to the powder leveler  5 A according to the first exemplary embodiment. 
     At a portion of the second reclaim container  65  of the container structure located downstream of the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle in the rotation direction C of the leveling member  53 , the release adjusting member  58  supports the bent portions of the leveling member  53 , bent as a result of passing by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle, to sequentially release the portions divided at the first discontinuous portions  56 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 8 or 9 , the release adjusting member  58  includes a plate body  58   a , a support portion  58   b  that supports the end portion of the body  58   a  opposite to the side wall  65   b , a starting end  58   c  that is an end portion of the release adjusting member  58  located upstream in the rotation direction C, and a terminal end  58   d  that is an end portion of the release adjusting member  58  located downstream in the rotation direction C. The support portion  58   b  supports a portion of the leveling member  53  bent when being released. 
     The release adjusting member  58  according to the second exemplary embodiment is disposed between the protruding portion  54 A, serving as an obstacle, and the connection portion  66  located downstream from the protruding portion  54 A in the rotation direction C. The release adjusting member  58  is formed from a bent plate member. The release adjusting member  58  is formed from a material such as acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene resin (ABS). 
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the release adjusting member  58  according to the second exemplary embodiment has a portion (support portion  58   b ) that supports the bent portion of the leveling member  53 . The support portion  58   b  is disposed to gradually increase a distance R between itself and the rotation shaft  52  toward the downstream side in the rotation direction C of the leveling member  53 . The distance R indicated with double-pointed arrows in  FIG. 9A  gradually increases by a predetermined ratio from the starting end  58   c  of the release adjusting member  58  toward the terminal end  58   d  on the downstream side in the rotation direction C. The distance R is determined, for example, in the following manner. Firstly, for example, the minimum distance at the starting end  58   c  of the release adjusting member  58  is determined to be larger than or equal to 3 mm, since the support portion  58   b  has to have at least such a dimension as to be capable of supporting the portion of the leveling member  53  bent when passing by an obstacle. For example, the maximum distance at the terminal end  58   d  of the release adjusting member  58  is determined to be smaller than or equal to 30 mm, since the distance has to be at least shorter than a dimension from the end  53   a  of the leveling member  53  attached to the rotation shaft to the free end  53   b . The support portion  58   b  of the release adjusting member  58  may increase the distance R stepwise. 
     The height of the support portion  58   b  in the release adjusting member  58  (dimension protruding inward from the side wall  65   b ) is the same throughout from the starting end  58   c  to the terminal end  58   d . The height is the same as or smaller than the height (distance by which it is spaced inward from the side wall  65   b ) of the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle at which the starting end  58   c  is disposed. 
     Thus, the support portion  58   b  in the release adjusting member  58  has a shape of a curved end with a variable radius that increases gradually. 
     The powder container device  6 A including the powder leveler  5 B including the release adjusting member  58  operates similarly to the powder container device  6 A according to the first exemplary embodiment, and has substantially the same effects from the operation except that the leveling member  53  of the powder leveler  5 B operates in the following manner and has the following effects. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 9B , in the powder leveler  5 B, the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  rotates in the direction of arrow C and comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle. Thus, the four strips divided at the first discontinuous portions  56  move while being slightly separated from each other and individually bent to be elastically deformed. Then, the four strips are to be released from being bent stepwise when passing by the protruding portion  54 A. The leveling member  53  here is the leveling member  53  denoted with reference signs  53   03  and  53   04  in  FIG. 9B . 
     In the powder leveler  5 B, the release adjusting member  58  is disposed between the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle to the connection portion  66 , which is the following obstacle downstream in the rotation direction C. Thus, as illustrated in  FIGS. 9B and 10B , the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that is in contact with the protruding portion  54 A is kept being supported by the support portion  58   b  of the release adjusting member  58  while retaining the height substantially the same as the height of the protruding portion  54 A. Here, a portion of the second adjacent end  53   d  in the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that is in contact with the protruding portion  54 A is also kept being supported by the support portion  58   b  of the release adjusting member  58 . The leveling member  53  denoted with reference signs  53   05 ,  53   08 , and  53   09  in  FIG. 9B  indicates the states while being supported by the support portion  58   b  of the release adjusting member  58 . 
     Thus, the portion  53   r  bent by coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is somewhat retained as being bent without being completely released and restored until arriving at the next connection portion  66 . Strictly, the portion  53   r  bent by coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is gently released as it passes by the support portion  58   b  of the release adjusting member  58 , which is a curve with a variable radius that increases gradually, downstream in the rotation direction C, and starts being restored gradually. 
     Thus, the leveling member  53  is not completely released from being bent and restored when it passes by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle, and reduces sounds caused when being released. 
     As in the case of the first exemplary embodiment, the portion  53   p  of the leveling member  53  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A is separated, with the second discontinuous portions  57 , from the portion  53   r  that comes into contact with the protruding portion  54 A, as illustrated in  FIG. 10A . Thus, the portion  53   p  passes by the protruding portion  54 A without being bent as a result of coming into contact with the protruding portion  54 A. 
     In the powder leveler  5 B, the leveling member  53  then passes by the connection portion  66  serving as an obstacle. Here, the portion  53   r  of the leveling member  53  that is in contact with the protruding portion  54 A is bent by coming into contact with the connection portion  66 . As in the case of the first exemplary embodiment, when being bent and passing by the connection portion  66 , portions of the contact portion  53   r  divided at the four first discontinuous portions  56  are released stepwise. 
     As in the case of the first exemplary embodiment, the portion  53   p  of the leveling member  53  that does not come into contact with the protruding portion  54 A passes while being partially bent by coming into contact with the connection portion  66 . 
     Thus, in the powder leveler  5 B, the portion of the leveling member  53  bent as a result of being supported by the release adjusting member  58  after passing by the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle is retained without being completely released. Thus, compared to a structure not including the release adjusting member  58 , the sounds caused when the powder leveler  5 B is released after coming into contact with and passing by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles while being bent are muffled when passing by the protruding portion  54 A. 
     Modification Example of Second Exemplary Embodiment 
     In the second exemplary embodiment, as an example of the release adjusting member  58  in the powder leveler  5 B, a release adjusting member including a support portion  58   b  that supports a bent portion of the leveling member  53  may have a height in the direction of the axis J of the rotation shaft  52  that decreases on a side downstream of the protruding portion  54 A serving as an obstacle in the direction in which the bent portion passes. 
     Here, preferably, the support portion  58   b  of the release adjusting member  58  gradually decreases its height toward downstream in the rotation direction C. Instead, the height may decrease stepwise toward downstream in the rotation direction C. 
     The second exemplary embodiment has described an example structure where the release adjusting member  58  is disposed between the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  (or  54 B) serving as two obstacles. However, the release adjusting member  58  may be disposed downstream of the connection portion  66  serving as an obstacle in the rotation direction C, or disposed between the protruding portion  54 A and a position in front of the connection portion  66  (before arriving at the connection portion  66 ). 
     When the structure includes a single obstacle, the release adjusting member  58  is disposed downstream of the obstacle in the rotation direction C. 
     Third Exemplary Embodiment 
       FIG. 11  illustrates a powder transporter  7  according to a third exemplary embodiment. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 11 , the powder transporter  7  includes a transport path structure  70  that includes a transport space HS to which the powder  8  falls and is transported, a powder leveler  5 C that includes a sheet-shaped leveling member  53 , and an obstacle  54  disposed in the transport path structure  70  at such a position as to obstruct part of the rotation path of the leveling member  53 . The leveling member  53  rotates while having a first end  53   a  attached to a rotation shaft  52  disposed inside the transport path structure  70 , and comes into contact with part of the powder  8  accumulating at a position closer to a free end  53   b , located farther from the rotation shaft  52 , to level out the powder  8 . When brought into contact with part of the rotating leveling member  53 , the obstacle  54  allows the rotating leveling member  53  to pass thereby while the rotating leveling member  53  is bent. 
     The transport path structure  70  forms part of the path along which the powder  8  is transported, and may have any shape or structure. The transport path structure  70  according to the third exemplary embodiment is connected, at its upper portion, to a powder feeder  72  that feeds powder, and, at its lower portion, to a transport path  73  along which the powder  8  is transported to a destination. Thus, the powder transporter  7  is used as a relay device located between the powder feeder  72  and the transport path  73  to transport the powder  8 . 
     For example, as illustrated in  FIG. 11 , the transport path structure  70  includes an inclined inner wall  70   s . The powder transporter  7  levels out (moves for removal) powder  8   t  accumulating on the inclined inner wall  70   s  with a leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 C. 
     The powder transporter  7  includes, as the powder leveler  5 C, a powder leveler that includes multiple first discontinuous portions  56  in at least the range E where the rotation path for the leveling member  53  is obstructed by the protruding portion  54 A and the connection portion  66  serving as obstacles. The multiple first discontinuous portions  56  extend inward from the end closer to the free end  53   b  in a direction D obliquely crossing the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 , and have terminal ends  56   e  located within the range E. Specifically, the powder leveler  5 C is partially or entirely formed based on the powder levelers  5 A and  5 B according to the first and second exemplary embodiments. 
     The powder transporter  7  may include part or entirety of the replenishment transporter  27  according to the first exemplary embodiment, if the powder transporter  7  is to include the powder leveler  5 A or  5 B in the replenishment transporter  27  that performs toner replenishment according to the first or second exemplary embodiment. 
     Compared to a structure where, for example, the multiple first discontinuous portions  56  according to the first exemplary embodiment are not disposed in the range (E) where at least part of the rotation path for the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 C is obstructed by the obstacles  54  located on part of the rotation path, the sounds caused in the powder transporter  7  including the powder leveler  5 C when part of the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with and passing by the obstacles  54  while being bent vary in time. Thus, the sounds caused during transportation of the powder  8  are reduced. 
     Fourth Exemplary Embodiment 
       FIG. 12  illustrates a powder coating device  1 B, which is another example of the powder handling device  1  according to a fourth exemplary embodiment. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 12 , the powder coating device  1 B includes a powder application device  2 B, which is another example of the powder applicator  2  that applies powder paint  8 B to a to-be-coated sheet  9 B, a powder-paint transporting device  7 B that transports the powder paint  8 B to the powder application device  2 B, and a transporting device  18  that transports the to-be-coated sheet  9 B to the powder application device  2 B. The powder paint  8 B is another example of powder. The to-be-coated sheet  9 B is another example of a powder-receiving object  9 . 
     For example, the powder application device  2 B electrostatically applies the powder paint  8 B to the to-be-coated sheet  9 B with, for example, an application roller  28 . Examples of the to-be-coated sheet  9 B include a metal sheet. 
     The transporting device  18  may be any device capable of transporting the to-be-coated sheet  9 B to the powder application device  2 B. For example, the transporting device  18  may be a belt conveyer that transports the to-be-coated sheet  9 B while holding the to-be-coated sheet  9 B on an endless belt  18   a  that rotates while being supported by multiple support rollers  18   b  and  18   c . The transporting device  18  includes a third cleaning device  19  that removes the powder paint  8 B left on the outer peripheral surface of the endless belt  18   a  to clean the outer peripheral surface. The third cleaning device  19  may be, for example, the second cleaning device  36  according to the first exemplary embodiment. 
     A container portion  72 B in  FIG. 12  accommodates the powder paint  8 B for replenishment. The container portion  72 B is formed from, for example, a fixed containing hopper or a removable replaceable container. 
     As an example of the powder-paint transporting device  7 B, the powder transporter  7  according to the third exemplary embodiment is used. Specifically, the powder-paint transporting device  7 B includes the powder leveler  5 C. The powder leveler  5 C is used to level out the powder paint accumulating in the transport path structure  70  of the powder-paint transporting device  7 B. 
     The powder coating device  1 B includes the powder-paint transporting device  7 B including the powder leveler  5 C. Thus, compared to a structure where, for example, the multiple first discontinuous portions  56  according to the first exemplary embodiment are not disposed in the range (E) where at least part of the rotation path for the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 C is obstructed by the obstacles  54  located on part of the rotation path, the sounds caused when part of the leveling member  53  is released after coming into contact with and passing by the obstacles  54  while being bent vary in time. Thus, the sounds caused during transportation of the powder paint  8 B is reduced. 
     The powder coating device  1 B includes a powder paint container device  6 B, which is another example of a powder container device  6  that accommodates the powder paint  8 B reclaimed by the third cleaning device  19  of the transporting device  18  or the powder application device  2 B. The powder paint container device  6 B is formed based on, for example, part or entirety of the powder container device  6 A according to the first or second exemplary embodiment. Specifically, the powder paint container device  6 B is formed as a container device including the powder leveler  5 A or  5 B. 
     Thus, the powder coating device  1 B includes the powder-paint transporting device  7 B including the powder leveler  5 A or  5 B. Thus, the sounds caused when part of the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 A or  5 B is released after coming into contact with and passing by the obstacles  54  while being bent vary in time. Thus, the sounds caused during reclaim of the powder paint  8 B is reduced. 
     Other Modification Examples 
     In the first, second, and other exemplary embodiments, a parallelogrammatic sheet member has been described as an example of the leveling member  53  in the powder leveler  5 A or  5 B. The leveling member  53  is not limited to this example, and may be, for example a leveling member  53 B formed from a trapezoidal sheet member, as illustrated in  FIG. 13 . 
     The leveling member  53 B illustrated in  FIG. 13  by way of example includes multiple (three) first discontinuous portions  56  ( 56   10 ,  56   11 , and  56   12 ) that extend inward from the end close to the free end  53   b  in the direction obliquely crossing the axis J of the rotation shaft. The first discontinuous portions  56  have terminal ends  56   e  located in the range E where the rotation path for the leveling member  53 B is obstructed by the obstacles  54 . The leveling member  53 B also includes one second discontinuous portion  57 . 
     In the first, second, and other exemplary embodiments, cuts are described as examples of the first discontinuous portions  56  and the second discontinuous portions  57  of the leveling member  53 . Instead, the first discontinuous portions  56  and the second discontinuous portions  57  may be slits with a predetermined width. The first discontinuous portions  56  and the second discontinuous portions  57  may be an appropriate combination of cuts and slits. The number of the first discontinuous portions  56  and the number of the second discontinuous portions  57  are not limited to particular ones. 
     The multiple first discontinuous portions  56  in the leveling member  53  or  53 B may be also referred to as discontinuous portions formed in the range E and extending from the inner side of the range E to the free end  53   b  in the direction D obliquely crossing the axis J of the rotation shaft  52 . In the range E, at least the rotation path for the leveling member  53  or  53 B is obstructed by the obstacles  54 . 
     The first, second, and other exemplary embodiments each include two obstacles  54  in the powder leveler  5 A or  5 B by way of example. However, the powder leveler may have one obstacle  54  or three or more obstacles  54 . 
     The first and second exemplary embodiments have described the image forming apparatus  1 A including four image forming members  2 A, as an example of the powder handling device  1 . However, the image forming apparatus  1 A may include one image forming member  2 A, or three, five, or more image forming members  2 A. Instead, a direct transfer image forming apparatus may be used as the image forming apparatus  1 A. 
     The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure has been provided for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the disclosure and its practical applications, thereby enabling others skilled in the art to understand the disclosure for various embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the disclosure be defined by the following claims and their equivalents.