Patent ID: 7616923

Claim:
A powder guiding device comprising: a first powder guiding member and a second powder guiding member capable of being separated from each other through a relative movement in an approximately horizontal direction from a powder guiding position where a lower opening of the first powder guiding member matches with an upper opening of the second powder guiding member to allow powder to be guided and making a relative movement to the powder guiding position; and a shutter that takes a close position allowing the lower opening of the first powder guiding member to be closed when the first powder guiding member and the second powder guiding member are separated from each other and takes an open position allowing the lower opening of the first powder guiding member is opened when the first powder guiding member and the second powder guiding member occupy the powder guiding position, wherein a shape and a position of a rotational pivot of the shutter are set such that the shutter includes a pair of side plates facing each other and an open/close plate coupled to a lower portion of the pair of side plates and is rotatably supported, with an upper portion of the pair of side plates as the rotational pivot, between the close position allowing the open/close plate to close the lower opening of the first powder guiding member and the open position allowing the open/close plate to be retracted from the lower opening of the first powder guiding member, the second powder guiding member is formed of an elastic material, the shutter is formed of a material with a stiffness higher than a material of the second powder guiding member, the second powder guiding member pushes the shutter occupying the close position to bring the shutter to the open position when the first powder guiding member and the second powder guiding member make a relative movement to the powder guiding position, and a rear end of an upper surface of the open/close plate in a shutter-moving direction is positioned inside of the upper opening of the second powder guiding member when the shutter occupies the open position and the first powder guiding member and the second powder guiding member occupy the powder guiding position.