| US 7,558,522 B2 | ||
| Image forming apparatus having toner cleaner and toner cleaning method | ||
| Masato Ogasawara, Katsushika-ku (Japan); and Kazufumi Ishida, Sunto-Gun (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, Tokyo (Japan); and Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha, Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Filed on Apr. 04, 2006, as Appl. No. 11/397,435. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2007/0230990 A1, Oct. 04, 2007 | ||
| Int. Cl. G03G 21/00 (2006.01); G03G 15/16 (2006.01); G03G 15/20 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 399—358 [399/101; 399/123] | 19 Claims |
| 1. An image forming apparatus comprising:
an image carrier; and
a cleaning device for cleaning a developer left on a surface of the image carrier,
the cleaning device including:
a casing having a rotational shaft;
pressurizing means for applying a force about the rotational shaft to the casing;
a cleaning member provided in the casing for cleaning the developer left on the surface of the image carrier by being partly
pressed against the surface of the image carrier by the force about the rotational shaft;
transporting means accommodated in the casing for transporting the cleaned developer collecting within the casing to a predetermined
position outside of the casing; and
drive providing means for providing a driving force to the transporting means,
wherein a direction of the driving force is a direction from an application point of the driving force substantially toward
a rotational support of the rotational shaft or a direction opposite thereto.
|