Patent ID: 7426360

Claim:
A developing apparatus comprising: a developer carrying member for carrying thereon and conveying a developer including a toner and a carrier to a portion opposed to an image bearing member; a first chamber having said developer carrying member disposed in an opening thereof; a conveying member disposed in said first chamber for conveying the developer in a longitudinal direction of said developer carrying member; a second chamber to which the developer is supplied from said first chamber through a first communicating portion leading to said first chamber and which supplies the developer to said first chamber through a second communicating portion leading to said first chamber; an agitating and conveying member disposed in said second chamber and rotatable to thereby agitate and convey the developer, wherein said second chamber and said agitating and conveying member are disposed while being inclined with respect to a horizontal direction so that a side of said second communicating portion thereof is higher than a side of said first communicating portion thereof, wherein a side of said first communicating portion of said first chamber is higher than the side of said first communicating portion of said second chamber; and a developer supplying device for directly supplying a developer to be supplied, from just above an area of said second chamber, to which the developer supplied from said first communicating portion joins.