Patent ID: 8571447

Claim:
A shutter opening/closing mechanism for opening and closing a toner supply port of a toner container as a cover of an image forming apparatus main body is moved between a closed state and an opened state, comprising: a rotary member provided in the image forming apparatus main body and rotates in one rotating direction as the cover is opened while rotating in another rotating direction as the cover is closed; a joint member that is moved forward in an advancing direction between a retracted position and an advanced position along a direction of a rotation axis of the joint member in response to a rotation of the rotary member caused by movement of the cover between the opened state and a half open state or backward in a retracting direction between the advanced position and the retracted position in response to the rotation of the rotary member caused by movement of the cover between the half opened state and the opened state, and the joint member being rotatable at the advanced position in response to a rotation of the rotary member caused by movement of the cover between the half open state and the closed state; and a coupling member rotatably provided in the toner container, the coupling member being engaged with the joint member when the joint member is at the advanced position while being disengaged from the joint member when the joint member is at the retracted position, the coupling member opening and closing the toner supply port by rotating in response to the rotation of the joint member engaged therewith at the advanced position.