Patent ID: 7263317

Claim:
A toner particle discharge apparatus comprising: one or more cylindrical toner particle discharge units having one or more toner particle dispensing outlets provided at one or more upper portions on one side of at least one of the toner particle discharge unit or units, and one or more toner particle discharge outlets provided at one or more lower portions on the other side of at least one of the toner particle discharge unit or units; and one or more conveyor screws, provided at the interior of at least one of the toner particle discharge unit or units, having one or more rotatable shafts and one or more helical conveyor vanes secured to at least one of the rotatable shaft or shafts; wherein at least one of the conveyor vane or vanes is divided, along at least one axis of at least one of the rotatable shaft or shafts, into a plurality of vane segments; and wherein there is at least one vaneless region, where no portion of the conveyor vane or vanes is present, between any two adjacent vane segments of the plurality of vane segments, the vane segments adjacent to the vaneless region convey toner particles in the same direction.