US 12,066,770 B2
Developer container, image forming unit, and image forming apparatus
Kaori Sudo, Tokyo (JP)
Assigned to Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd., Tokyo (JP)
Filed by Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd., Tokyo (JP)
Filed on Jan. 6, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/151,124.
Claims priority of application No. 2022-046932 (JP), filed on Mar. 23, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2023/0305436 A1, Sep. 28, 2023
Int. Cl. G03G 15/08 (2006.01)
CPC G03G 15/087 (2013.01) [G03G 15/0886 (2013.01); G03G 15/0889 (2013.01); G03G 2215/0816 (2013.01)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A developer container comprising:
a container body that stores developer;
an agitating member that is rotatably disposed in the container body and rotates to agitate the developer;
a swing member that includes a fixed end, a free end, a first surface, and a second surface opposite to the first surface, and that is swung by the agitating member coming into contact with the first surface when the agitating member rotates; and
a projecting support that is disposed to face the second surface and project from a wall surface formed in the container body, and that abuts the second surface, wherein
a center of rotation of the agitating member is located below the swing member,
the swing member is divided into a plurality of segments by a plurality of slits that are located at a plurality of positions, each of the plurality of slits extending from a lower end of the swing member in a transverse direction of the swing member orthogonal to a longitudinal direction of the container body in which the lower end of the swing member extends, the plurality of positions being respectively arranged along the lower end of the swing member so that each of the plurality of segments has a segment lower end, and
each of the plurality of segments has a contact portion at the segment lower end thereof at one of two sides of the segment lower end that are opposite to each other in the longitudinal direction, the agitating member coming into contact with the contact portion.