Patent ID: 8515314

Claim:
A developing device, comprising: a developer conveyance path for conveying a developer containing nonmagnetic toner and magnetic carrier; a wall portion including a wall surface for defining the developer conveyance path; a developing roller for supplying the toner from the developer conveyance path to an image bearing member; a conveying member extending in the developer conveyance path for conveying the developer while agitating the developer; a toner supply port arranged above the developer conveyance path for supplying new toner into the developer conveyance path from the outside; and a scraping member arranged at a position below the toner supply port in the developer conveyance path and adapted to scrape off the toner adhering to the wall surface while sliding in contact with the wall surface of the wall portion, the scraping member including: a shaft portion extending along the developer conveyance path and rotatable about a shaft center thereof, and a blade portion provided on the shaft portion and projecting from a circumferential surface of the shaft portion toward the wall portion; and the blade portion being made of an elastic material and including: a first blade group arranged at a first position of the shaft portion and composed of a plurality of blades in the form of long, thin pieces spaced apart by a predetermined distance from each other in an axial direction of the shaft portion; and a second blade group arranged at a second position of the shaft portion spaced from the first position in a circumferential direction and composed of a plurality of blades in the form of long, thin pieces spaced apart by a predetermined distance from each other in the axial direction of the shaft portion; and the respective blades of the second blade group being arranged at positions aligned with positions between adjacent blades of the first blade group in the axial direction; and the blades of the first blade group and the second blade group scrape off the toner adhering to the wall portion while sliding in contact with the wall portion as the shaft portion is rotated.