Konica Minolta, Inc.

Toyokanetsu Kabushiki Kaisha

Hiroki Shinohara

Katsumi Ishihara

Takenori Suenaga

Naoto Tokutake

Hiroshi Takao

Toshiomi Hoshi

A developer storage container includes a container body, a discharging member, and a regulating member. The regulating member is disposed in a space formed by the container body and the discharging member, and partitions the space into a storage space to store developer in the container body and a discharging side space to store developer to be discharged from a discharging port. Further, the regulating member forms a passage hole to allow developer to pass through and regulates an amount of developer to be conveyed from the storage space to the discharging side space.

Developer storage container

A change-over device is provided for a sorting conveyor. Projected members of slats forming the sorting conveyor are made of ferromagnetic substance such as iron alloy. Those projected members are guided by a guide rail which is installed on the rear side of the conveyor. The guide rail is made up of a main rail and a branch rail. The side wall of the branch rail is partially omitted near at the inlet of the branching portion of the guide rail where the branch rail branches from the main rail, and instead an upper side wall and a lower side wall are formed there by an electromagnet and a permanent magnet, respectively. When the electromagnet is energized, each projected member is attracted towards the upper side wall, and is then allowed to move along the lower side wall, thus being led into the branch rail. Thus, the articles on the conveyor are suitably sorted while being conveyed to the selected branch conveying path.

Sorting apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Hiroki Shinohara