CLEANING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCLUDING SAME

摘要

A cleaning device includes a housing, a cleaning member, a cleaning blade, a collection member, a seal member, and a protection member. The housing is disposed above an image carrier, and an opening is formed in a face thereof facing the image carrier. The cleaning member rotates contacting a surface of the image carrier and the image carrier contact each other, and thereby, residual toner adhered to the image carrier is removed downstream of the image carrier in the rotation direction of the image carrier. The seal member is disposed at an upstream-side edge of the opening of the housing with respect to the rotation direction of the image carrier, and the seal member prevents leakage of waste toner through a gap between the housing and the image carrier. The protection member is disposed above the seal member with an interval therebetween, and the protection member contacts the cleaning member.

主权项

1. A cleaning device, comprising:
a housing that is disposed above a cylindrical image carrier on an outer circumferential surface of which a toner image is carried, the housing having an opening formed in a face thereof facing the image carrier; a cleaning member that is disposed in vicinity of the opening of the housing, and that removes residual toner adhered to the image carrier downstream of the image carrier in the rotation direction of the image carrier by rotating in contact with the outer circumferential surface of the image carrier in a direction same as a rotation direction of the image carrier as seen at a contact surface where the cleaning member and the image carrier contact each other; a cleaning blade that contacts the outer circumferential surface of the image carrier at a position downstream of the cleaning member with respect to the rotation direction of the image carrier, and that removes residual toner adhered to the image carrier; a collection member that collects waste toner inside the housing to convey the waste toner to outside the housing; a seal member that is disposed at an upstream-side edge of the opening of the housing with respect to the rotation direction of the image carrier, and that prevents leakage of waste toner through a gap between the housing and the image carrier by contacting the outer circumferential surface of the image carrier at a position upstream of the cleaning member; and a protection member that is disposed above the seal member with an interval therebetween, and that contacts the cleaning member.