Patent ID: 7835683

Claim:
A cleaning unit, comprising: a cleaning member that contacts a surface of an object to be cleaned that moves in a given direction, the cleaning member configured to remove waste material from the surface of the object to be cleaned; an ejection member, disposed apart from the surface of the object to be cleaned and configured to transport the waste material removed from the object to be cleaned by the cleaning member to outside of the cleaning unit; a delivering member configured to deliver the waste material removed from the object to be cleaned by the cleaning member to a transport-effective area of the ejection member, the delivering member including a rotating device including a rotation axis, the rotation axis extending in a direction perpendicular to a surface moving direction of the object to be cleaned, and the rotating device being configured to rotate to deliver the waste material to the ejection member; and a transport compartment in which the ejection member is disposed, wherein the transport compartment is communicable with the delivering member, separated from the transport compartment with a wall therebetween, via an open space set over the transport compartment and the delivering member, the waste material is delivered from the delivering member to the ejection member in the transport compartment through the open space, and the transport compartment includes a cover configured to cover a downstream end side of the ejection member in the transport compartment.