Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The invention relates to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, and in particular, to a toner supply technology.  
         [0002]     In a high-speed image forming apparatus or a color image forming apparatus, because the capacity of its toner reservoir unit for storing toner is large, there is a problem that it sometimes happens a case where it is difficult to dispose the toner reservoir unit in the neighborhood of the development device.  
         [0003]     As regards means for solving such a problem, it has been developed a toner supply technology in which toner particles are conveyed from the toner reservoir unit to the development device by a toner conveyance method called an air conveyance method which is capable of conveying toner particles to a distant place (the publication of the unexamined patent applications H7-219329, H10-97130, H10-268641, and H10-299672).  
         [0004]     The basic structure of a toner supply device using an air conveyance method is composed of a toner reservoir unit, a fluid conveyance means for conveying a mix fluid of toner and air from the toner reservoir unit, and a toner separation unit for separating toner particles from the conveyed mix fluid.  
         [0005]     An electrophotographic image forming apparatus used as a copying machine or the like is generally composed of an image forming section for forming a toner image on a photoreceptor and transferring the toner image onto a recording sheet, a recording sheet accommodation section for accommodating recording sheets, and a sheet feed section for conveying a recording sheet from the recording sheet accommodation section to the image forming section, and the sheet feed section is disposed on one side of the recording sheet accommodation section.  
         [0006]     In an image forming apparatus described in the publication of the unexamined patent applications H7-219329, H10-97130, H10-268641, and H10-299672, a toner supply section for supplying toner to be supplied to the development means of the image forming section is disposed on the same side as the sheet feed section with respect to the recording sheet accommodation section.  
         [0007]     Because of the arrangement of the above-mentioned sheet feed section, there is little extra space at the side part of the above-mentioned recording sheet accommodation section where the above-mentioned sheet feed section is disposed; therefore, a toner reservoir unit is disposed, for example, in the upper part of the image forming apparatus. However, because the toner reservoir unit cannot be made large-sized enough, there is a problem that it is impossible to provide a toner reservoir unit having a toner accommodation capacity adapted to the high-speed performance of the image forming apparatus.  
         [0008]     In the publication of the unexamined patent application H10-268641, a toner reservoir unit separately provided outside the image forming apparatus is disclosed. However, it is not desirable to provide a toner reservoir unit separately because it makes larger the installation area occupied by the image forming apparatus. Further, it raises a problem that it makes difficult the addition of an attachment apparatus such as a recording sheet accommodation apparatus or a finisher apparatus.  
         [0009]     Further, in the publication of the unexamined patent application H11-212348, a toner reservoir unit is disposed sideward of sheet feed units, and so-called “Mono pump” is employed as a pump for conveying a toner. On the other hand, in the present application, two diaphragm type pumps are employed, one for supplying a toner and the other for collecting the toner. A toner separation section is disposed upward of a developing device.  
         [0010]     In addition, in the publication of the unexamined patent application 2000-137376, a toner reservoir section is disposed upward of a sheet feeding section and on a side of sheet conveyance section, which is different in position from that of the present application.  
         [0011]     Furthermore, in the publication of the unexamined patent application 2000-296772, a toner reservoir unit is disposed sideward of sheet feed units, and a toner is conveyed by air after the toner is conveyed by a screw from the toner reservoir unit. One pump is employed for conveying the toner. In contrast, in the present application, a toner is directly conveyed by air from a toner reservoir unit. As explained above, two pumps are employed for supplying and collecting the toner, respectively. In addition, the image forming apparatus of the present application is further provided with a toner separation section.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0012]     It is an object of the invention to solve the problem in a conventional toner supply device that its toner reservoir unit cannot be made large-sized enough.  
         [0013]     The above-mentioned object of the invention can be accomplished by any one of the structures  1  to  8 .  
         [0014]     Structure  1 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus comprising an image forming section for forming a toner image on an image carrier and transferring the toner image formed onto a recording sheet, a recording sheet accommodation section for accommodating recording sheets, and a sheet feed section, disposed at the side part of the recording sheet accommodation section, for supplying a recording sheet from said recording sheet accommodation section to said image forming section, characterized by further comprising a toner reservoir unit, disposed at the side opposite to said sheet feed section with respect to said recording sheet accommodation section, for storing toner to be supplied to a development device of said image forming section, a toner separation unit disposed over said development device, a supply pipe connecting said toner reservoir unit and said toner separation unit, a collection pipe connecting said toner reservoir unit and said toner separation unit, a supply fluid conveyance means provided at a halfway point of said supply pipe, and a collection fluid conveyance means disposed at a halfway point of said collection pipe.  
         [0015]     Structure  2 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in the structure  1 , characterized by the aforesaid toner reservoir unit being provided in the lower part of said electrophotographic image forming apparatus.  
         [0016]     Structure  3 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in the structure  1  or  2 , characterized by the aforesaid supply pipe having a first vertical pipe portion extending upward from the aforesaid toner reservoir unit, and a first lateral pipe portion extending approximately horizontally and reaching the aforesaid toner separation unit, and the aforesaid supply fluid conveyance means being provided at the coupling point of said first vertical pipe portion and said first lateral pipe portion.  
         [0017]     Structure  4 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in any one of the structures  1  to  3 , characterized by the aforesaid collection pipe having a first vertical pipe portion extending upward from the aforesaid toner reservoir unit, and a first lateral pipe portion extending approximately horizontally and reaching the aforesaid toner separation unit, and the aforesaid collection fluid conveyance means being provided at the coupling point of said first vertical pipe portion and said first lateral pipe portion.  
         [0018]     Structure  5 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in any one of the structures  1  to  4 , characterized by the aforesaid toner reservoir unit having a toner reservoir chamber and a mixing chamber for mixing toner particles with air.  
         [0019]     Structure  6 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in the structure  1 ,  2 , or  5 , characterized by the aforesaid supply pipe having a second lateral pipe portion extending approximately horizontally from the aforesaid toner reservoir unit and a second vertical pipe portion extending upward and reaching the aforesaid toner separation unit, and the aforesaid supply fluid conveyance means being provided at the coupling point of said second vertical pipe portion and said second lateral pipe portion.  
         [0020]     Structure  7 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in the structure  1 ,  2 ,  5 , or  6  characterized by the aforesaid collection pipe having a second lateral pipe portion extending approximately laterally from the aforesaid toner reservoir unit, and a second vertical pipe portion reaching the aforesaid toner separation unit, and the aforesaid collection fluid conveyance means being provided at the coupling point of said second vertical pipe portion and said second lateral pipe portion.  
         [0021]     Structure  8 : An electrophotographic image forming apparatus as set forth in the structure  1 , characterized by the aforesaid supply pipe and the aforesaid collection pipe being provided at the rear side part of said electrophotographic image forming apparatus and being linearly arranged between the aforesaid toner reservoir unit and the aforesaid toner separation unit. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0022]      FIG. 1  is a drawing showing an image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention;  
         [0023]      FIG. 2  is a drawing showing a toner supply device of the embodiment of the invention;  
         [0024]      FIG. 3  is a drawing showing a toner reservoir unit;  
         [0025]      FIG. 4  is a drawing showing a pump;  
         [0026]      FIG. 5  is a drawing showing a toner separation unit;  
         [0027]      FIG. 6  is a drawing showing another example of an image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention; and  
         [0028]      FIG. 7  is a drawing showing another example of an image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [heading-0029]     (1) Image Forming Apparatus  
         [0030]      FIG. 1  is a drawing showing an example of an image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention.  
         [0031]     The image forming apparatus is equipped with an automatic document feeder  20 , a document reading section  21 , an image forming section  22 , a fixing device  8 , and a sheet feed section.  
         [0032]     In  FIG. 1 , in the automatic document feeder  20 , document sheets placed on its document feed table are fed one by one to a reading position, and the document sheets after being read are accumulated on a document output tray.  
         [0033]     The document reading section  21  reads an image on a document sheet, to generate digital image data.  
         [0034]     The image forming section  22  forms an image on a recording sheet by an electrophotographic method; in the image forming section  22 , there are arranged around a drum-shaped photoreceptor  1  as an image carrier, a charging device  2 , an exposure device  3 , a development device  4 , a transfer device  5 , and a cleaning device  7 . Under the image forming section  22 , there is provided a sheet feed section  23  equipped with plural recording sheet accommodation units and plural sheet conveyance units, to feed a recording sheet to the image forming section  22 . The numeral  10  denotes a manual sheet feed unit. A recording sheet fed from the sheet feed section  23  or the manual sheet feed unit  10  is supplied into the gap between the photoreceptor  1  and the transfer device  5  by a pair of registration rollers  11 , and is subjected to fixing processing by the fixing device  8 , to be ejected onto an output tray  12 .  
         [0035]     The sheet feed section  23  is composed of a recording sheet accommodation unit  23 A having three units of sheet feed trays  23 A 1 ,  23 A 2 , and  23 A 3 , and a sheet conveyance unit  23 B arranged in the side space of the recording sheet accommodation unit  23 A.  
         [0036]     The photoreceptor  1  rotates clockwise, and through charging by the charging device  2 , exposure by the exposure device  3 , and development by the development device  4 , a toner image is formed on the photoreceptor  1 . The toner image formed is transferred onto a recording sheet by the transfer device  5 . The recording sheet having the toner image transferred thereon is subjected to fixing processing in the fixing device  8 , and then it is ejected onto the output tray  12 .  
         [0037]     In a color image forming apparatus, there are provided an image forming section for forming a yellow image, an image forming section for forming a magenta image, an image forming section for forming a cyan image, and an image forming section for forming a black image, and each of the image forming sections has a development device.  
         [0038]     Further, as regards a transfer device for transferring a toner image formed on the image carrier onto a recording sheet, it is also possible to use a transfer device which includes a primary transfer means, an intermediate transfer member, and a secondary transfer means, transfers the toner image formed on the image carrier by means of the above-mentioned primary transfer means onto the intermediate transfer member, and transfers the toner image on the intermediate transfer member onto a recording sheet by the above-mentioned secondary transfer means.  
         [0039]     The development device  4  develops an electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor  1  with a two-component developer containing a toner and a carrier or a single-component developer not containing a carrier but containing a toner and an additive. In the development device  4 , developer of a specified amount is contained, and in a case where a two-component developer is used, the toner, having been consumed by development, is replenished from a toner reservoir unit  24  to be explained next, which maintains the toner concentration of the developer in the development device at a specified value all the time. Further, in a development device using a single component developer, the amount of developer in the development device is maintained at a specified value by similar toner replenishment.  
         [0040]     The toner reservoir unit  24  is fitted with a toner container  31 . The toner reservoir unit has a toner hopper  30  as an example of a toner storage chamber and a funnel-shaped mixing chamber  35 , and a toner separation unit  60  disposed in the neighborhood of the development device  4  is coupled with the toner reservoir unit  24  which is provided at a distant position from the development device  4  by the supply pipes  40  and  41 , and the collection pipes  42  and  43 .  
         [heading-0041]     (2) Toner Supply Device  
         [0042]      FIG. 2  shows a toner supply device of the image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention shown in  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 3  shows a toner reservoir unit.  
         [0043]     The toner supply device is composed of the toner reservoir unit  24  (composed of the toner container  31 , toner hopper  30 , and the mixing chamber  35 ), a pump  501  as a supply fluid conveyance means, a pump  502  as a collection fluid conveyance means, the toner separation unit  60 , the supply pipes  40  and  41 , and the collection pipes  42  and  43 . Each of the pumps  501  and  502  are disposed at each of the coupling points of supply pipe  40  and the collection pipe  43  as the first vertical pipe portions extending upward from the toner reservoir unit  24  to the supply pipe  41  and the collection pipe  42  respectively as the first lateral pipe portions arranged approximately horizontally. The first vertical pipe portions are arranged approximately vertically, and the first lateral pipe portions are arranged approximately horizontally. The supply pipe  40  couples the toner reservoir unit  24  and the pump  501 , and the collection pipe  43  couples the toner reservoir unit  24  and the pump  502 . Further, the supply pipe  41  couples the pump  501  and the toner separation unit  60 , and the collection pipe  42  couples the pump  502  and the toner separation unit  60 . That is, the pumps  501  and  502  each are disposed at the coupling point of the first vertical pipe portions and the first lateral pipe portions.  
         [heading-0044]     (3) Toner Reservoir Unit  
         [0045]     The toner reservoir unit  24  is basically composed of a toner storage chamber and a mixing chamber for mixing toner particles with air.  
         [0046]     In an example shown in the drawing, the toner storage chamber is composed of the toner container  31  and the toner hopper  30 , but it is also possible to make it have a structure not having the toner container  31 . That is, it is also appropriate that the toner storage chamber is made up of a toner hopper only, and toner particles are introduced from a toner container, a toner sack, or the like into the toner hopper.  
         [0047]     The toner reservoir unit  24  is disposed in the side part opposite to the side part where the sheet conveying unit  23 B is disposed with respect to the recording sheet accommodation unit  23 A.  
         [0048]     By this arrangement, it is possible to dispose the toner reservoir unit without giving an influence to the arrangement of other sections, and also it is possible to make the capacity of the toner reservoir unit sufficiently large. Further, also it is possible to dispose toner reservoir units of color toners.  
         [0049]     The toner reservoir unit  24  has the toner hopper  30  and the funnel-shaped mixing chamber  35 . The toner reservoir unit  24  is fitted with the cylindrical toner container  31 , and by the rotational driving of the toner container  31  by a motor  38 , toner particles drop down from the toner container  31  through an opening  30   a  into the toner hopper  30 . In the toner hopper  30 , there are provided a stirring member  32  having a plurality of U-shaped portions formed therein and a conveyance screw  34  located at the lower part.  
         [0050]     By the rotation of the stirring member  32  and the conveyance screw  34  actuated by the rotation of the motor  39 , toner particles drop down from the toner hopper  30  through an opening  30   b  into the mixing chamber  35 .  
         [0051]     Because air is introduced into the mixing chamber  35  through the collection pipe  43  as will be explained later, a fluid composed of toner particles and air mixed together is formed.  
         [0052]     For the fluid conveyance means, the pumps  501  and  502  each made up of a diaphragm pump shown in  FIG. 4  are used; however, it is possible to use an arbitrary pump known to the public such as a screw pump disclosed in the publication of the unexamined patent applications H7-219329 and H8-6368. The pump  501  makes up a supply fluid conveyance means for conveying a mix fluid of toner particles and air from the toner reservoir unit  24  to the toner separation unit  60 , and the pump  502  makes up a collection fluid conveyance means for collecting air from the toner separation unit  60  to the toner reservoir unit  24 . Further, in the example shown in the drawing, the pumps  501  and  502  having the same structure are used, but also it is appropriate to use pumps having different structures or of different kinds for the supply fluid conveyance means and for the collection fluid conveyance means.  
         [heading-0053]     (4) Fluid Conveyance Means  
         [0054]     In the example shown in the drawing, the fluid conveyance means are disposed over the toner reservoir unit.  
         [0055]     By such an arrangement of the fluid conveyance means, it is possible to make the supply pipe and the collection pipe linear by the disposing of the fluid conveyance means at a halfway point of the supply pipe and the collection pipe, and the conveyance system of the fluid is prevented from clogging up, while in a case where clogging up occurs, it can be easily removed.  
         [0056]     The pumps  501  and  502  will be explained with reference to  FIG. 4 . The pumps  501  and  502  each are made up of a diaphragm pump having the same structure shown in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0057]     The suction opening of the pump  501  is connected to the supply pipe  40 , and its exhaust opening is connected to the supply pipe  41 . The suction opening of the pump  502  is connected to the collection pipe  42 , and its exhaust opening is connected to the collection pipe  43 . The pump chamber formed of an outer wall  50  is partitioned into a suction chamber  50   a  and a exhaust chamber  50   b  by an inner wall; a valve  53  is provided at the suction opening of the suction chamber  50 a, and a valve  54  is provided at the vent (the vent provided in the inner wall  51 ) of the exhaust chamber  50   b.    
         [0058]     A part of the outer shell of each of the pumps  501  and  502  is formed of a diaphragm  52  made of an elastomer of a rubber, and the diaphragm  52  is driven by an eccentric rotary member  56  driven by a motor  55 , to make a deformation between the state shown by the solid line and the state shown by the dotted line.  
         [0059]     The eccentric rotary member  52  is rotated by the motor  55 , and the diaphragm  52  is deformed by this rotation between the state shown by the solid line and the state shown by the dotted line, to vary the volume of suction chamber  50   a  to increase and decrease the pressure in the suction chamber  50   a . By this increase and decrease of the pressure, the valves  53  and  54  are transferred between the state shown by the solid line and the state shown by the broken line, to convey a fluid in one direction as shown by the arrow mark.  
         [heading-0060]     (5) Toner Separation Unit  
         [0061]     The toner separation unit  60  is a portion that separates toner particles from the fluid, and supplies the toner particles to the development device, and by making the separated toner particles drop into the development device, the toner supply mechanism can be simplified. Accordingly, the toner separation unit is disposed over the development device.  
         [0062]     Next, the toner separation unit will be explained with reference to  FIG. 5 .  
         [0063]     The toner separation unit has an outer wall  61  making up the outer shell of the toner separation unit  60 , inner walls  64  and  65 , and an auxiliary wall  66  for separating the inside of the toner separation unit  60  into an introduction chamber  60 A and an exhaust chamber. The exhaust chamber is composed of an exhaust portion  60 B and a filter chamber  60 C.  
         [0064]     An air inlet  62  is provided in the introduction chamber  60 A, and an air outlet  63  is provided in the exhaust portion  60 B. The auxiliary inner wall  66  guides toner particles dropping down, and also suppresses toner particles rising upward. In the lower part of the toner separation unit  60 , there are provided a stirring member  67  having blades and a screw  68  for conveying toner particles in the axial direction. A mix fluid of toner particles and air is introduced from the air inlet  62  into the introduction chamber  60 A as shown by the arrow mark W 1 , and the toner particles drop down as shown by the arrow mark W 2 . The introduction chamber  60 A is filled with the mix fluid, which is subject to the pressure due to the fluid conveyance force by the pump  502 , and a part of it rises upward to be conveyed to the exhaust portion  60 B as shown by the arrow mark W 3 . By the effect of the specific weight of toner particles and the auxiliary wall  66 , the toner concentration in the mix fluid rising upward in the direction shown by the arrow mark W 3  is made low, and the fluid comes to be approximately composed of air only. The mix fluid in the exhaust portion  60 B is discharged from the air outlet  63  as shown by the arrow mark W 4 , while a part of it enters the filter chamber  60 C as shown by the arrow mark W 5 , and is filtrated by the filter  69  to be discharged.  
         [0065]     As shown in the drawing, a connection passage for making the fluid meander is formed by the vertical part  65 A of the inner wall  65  and the vertical part  64 A of the inner wall  64 . By such a connection passage, the toner content in the discharged air and the toner content in the fluid processed by the filter  69  is made to have a low value. The vertical part  65 A and the vertical part  64 A are cylindrical, and have a structure such that the cylinder of the vertical part  64 A is placed in the cylinder of the vertical part  65 A.  
         [heading-0066]     (Operation of Toner Supply)  
         [0067]     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the toner hopper  30  and the pumps  501  and  502 , as well as the toner separation unit  60  are coupled by the supply pipes  40 ,  41  and the collection pipes  42 ,  43 .  
         [0068]     Toner supply is carried out through a process such that, by the pump  501 , a mix fluid is conveyed from the toner hopper  30  to the pump  501  as shown by the arrow mark X 1  and from the pump  501  to the toner separation unit  60  as shown by the arrow mark X 2 , and by the pump  502 , the air is collected from the toner separation unit  60  to the pump  502  as shown by the arrow mark X 3  and from the pump  502  to the toner hopper  30  as shown by the arrow mark X 4 . Further, toner particles are separated in the toner separation unit  60 , and are supplied to the development device  4  by the screw  68 .  
         [0069]     The amount of toner in the toner hopper  30  are detected by a toner sensor  33  using a piezoelectric element, and when the level of the pile of toner particles becomes lower than the level capable of detection by the toner sensor  33 , the motor  38  is actuated to supply toner from the container  31  to the toner hopper  30 .  
         [0070]     By a supply signal for supplying toner to the development device  4  transmitted from a control means not shown in the drawing, the motor  39  shown in  FIG. 3  is actuated to drive the stirring member  32  to stir toner particles in the hopper  30  and also the screw  34  to make the toner particles drop down into the mixing chamber  35 . By the above-mentioned supply signal, the motor  55  is actuated to operate the pumps  501  and  502 . By the operation of the pumps  501  and  502 , an air flow is generated in the mixing chamber  35  to mix toner particles with air, and the mix fluid is conveyed through the supply pipes  40  and  41  to the toner separation unit  60  by the conveyance force of the pump  501 .  
         [0071]     The toner particles separated in the toner separation unit  60  are supplied to the development device  4  by the screw  68 . Further, the separated air is collected through the collection pipes  42  and  43  to the mixing chamber  35  by the conveyance force of the pump  502 .  
         [heading-0072]     (7) Another Example of Embodiment  
         [0073]      FIG. 6  is a drawing showing another example of an image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention.  
         [0074]     In this example, the pump  501  as a supply fluid conveyance means and the pump  502  as a collection fluid conveyance means are disposed under the sheet conveyance unit  23 B. Besides, the toner reservoir unit  24  is disposed in the side part of the recording sheet accommodation unit  23 A and under the fixing device  8 , that is, in the side part opposite to the sheet conveyance unit  23 B with respect to the sheet accommodation unit  23 A.  
         [0075]     The supply pipe  40  as the second lateral pipe portion and the collection pipe  43  as the second lateral pipe portion coupling the toner reservoir unit  24  to the pumps  501  and  502  respectively are disposed at the bottom part of the apparatus; the supply pipe  40  arranged approximately horizontally is coupled to the pump  501 , and the collection pipe  43  arranged approximately horizontally is coupled to the pump  502 .  
         [0076]     The supply pipe  41  as the second vertical pipe portion and the collection pipe  42  as the second vertical pipe portion coupling the pumps  501  and  502  respectively to the toner separation unit  60  are disposed in the rear side part of the sheet conveyance unit  23 B, that is, in the deep side part of the apparatus.  
         [0077]     The supply pipe  41  couples the pump  501  to the toner separation unit  60 , and is arranged approximately vertically. The collection pipe  42  couples the pump  502  to the toner separation unit  60 , and is arranged approximately vertically.  
         [0078]      FIG. 7  is another example of an image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention. In  FIG. 7 , the portions shown by the alternate long and short dash lines show that they are disposed at this side of the supply pipes  40  and  41 , and the collection pipes  42  and  43  shown by the solid lines.  
         [0079]     As shown in the drawing, the supply pipe  40  and the collection pipe  43  are disposed in the rear side part of the apparatus, that is, in the deep side part of the apparatus, extend obliquely upward from the toner reservoir unit  24 , and are coupled to the pumps  501  and  502  disposed at the middle position respectively. The supply pipe  41  and the collection pipe  42  extend obliquely upward from the pumps  501  and  502  respectively, and are coupled to the toner separation unit  60 .  
         [0080]     As clearly understood from the drawing, the supply pipes  40  and  41 , and the collection pipes  42  and  43  are formed linearly.  
         [0081]     In addition, in the example shown in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7 , by making the toner reservoir unit protrude to the side direction under the output tray  12 , the volume of the toner reservoir unit is made larger.  
         [0082]     By any one of the structures  1  to  8 , it is possible to arrange a toner reservoir unit having a large volume, in a high-speed image forming apparatus or a color image forming apparatus, it is possible to store toner of a sufficient amount in the apparatus.  
         [0083]     By the structure  3  or  6 , it is possible to make linear the supply pipes for transporting toner from the toner reservoir unit to the toner separation unit. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the toner transport system from clogging up.  
         [0084]     By the structure  4  or  7 , it is possible to make linear the collection pipes for collecting air from the toner separation unit to the toner reservoir unit. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the toner transport system from clogging up.  
         [0085]     By the structure  8 , it is possible to make linear the supply pipes for supplying toner from the toner reservoir unit to the toner separation unit and the collection pipes for collecting air from the toner separation unit to the toner reservoir unit. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the toner transport system from clogging up.

Technology Category: 3