| US 7,616,923 B2 | ||
| Power guiding device and image forming apparatus having power guiding device | ||
| Kohji Hatayama, Osaka (Japan); Tomofumi Inoue, Osaka (Japan); Takeshi Sakashita, Osaka (Japan); Yuuji Meguro, Ibaraki (Japan); and Takeru Muramatsu, Ibaraki (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Ricoh Company, Limited, Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Filed on Aug. 01, 2007, as Appl. No. 11/832,427. | ||
| Claims priority of application No. 2006-226622 (JP), filed on Aug. 23, 2006. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2008/0050158 A1, Feb. 28, 2008 | ||
| Int. Cl. G03G 15/01 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 399—358 [399/359] | 12 Claims |
| 1. 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.
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