阅读说明：本技术 显影盒 (Developing box ) 是由 黄定飞 于 2021-03-19 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明涉及可拆卸地安装在具有拨杆的激光打印机中的显影盒,所述显影盒包括壳体、位于壳体纵向末端的动力接收件和计数装置、以及与计数装置同侧设置的端盖,所述动力接收件用于接收驱动力并驱动计数装置工作；计数装置包括用于接收驱动力的被驱动件以及与被驱动件连接的拨块,随着被驱动件的旋转,拨块与拨杆相互作用,计数装置还包括与拨块结合的保持件,在计数装置的工作过程中,拨块被保持件保持在突出于端盖外表面的突出位置,即使该显影盒即使被使用多次,计数装置仍然能够稳定的工作。(The invention relates to a developing box which can be detachably installed in a laser printer with a shifting rod, wherein the developing box comprises a shell, a power receiving part and a counting device which are positioned at the longitudinal tail end of the shell, and an end cover which is arranged on the same side of the counting device, wherein the power receiving part is used for receiving driving force and driving the counting device to work; the counting device comprises a driven piece for receiving driving force and a shifting block connected with the driven piece, the shifting block interacts with the shifting rod along with the rotation of the driven piece, the counting device also comprises a retaining piece combined with the shifting block, the shifting block is retained at a protruding position protruding out of the outer surface of the end cover by the retaining piece in the working process of the counting device, and the counting device can still work stably even if the developing box is used for multiple times.)

1. The developing box is detachably installed in the laser printer with the shifting rod and comprises a shell, a power receiving piece and a counting device which are positioned at the longitudinal tail end of the shell, and an end cover which is arranged on the same side as the counting device, wherein the power receiving piece is used for receiving driving force and driving the counting device to work; the counting device comprises a driven piece for receiving driving force and a shifting block connected with the driven piece, the shifting block and the shifting rod interact with each other along with the rotation of the driven piece, and the counting device is characterized in that,

the counting device also comprises a holding piece combined with the shifting block, and the shifting block is held by the holding piece at a protruding position protruding out of the outer surface of the end cover in the working process of the counting device.

2. A developing cartridge according to claim 2, wherein the paddle interferes with an inner wall of the laser printer during mounting of the developing cartridge to the laser printer, and the paddle does not interfere with the inner wall of the laser printer when the developing cartridge is mounted to the predetermined position; when the shifting block does not interfere with the inner wall of the laser printer, a first distance is reserved between the tail end of the shifting block and the shell, when the shifting block interferes with the inner wall of the laser printer, a second distance is reserved between the tail end of the shifting block and the shell, and the first distance is larger than the second distance.

3. A developing cartridge according to claim 2, wherein the paddle is movably connected to the driven member, and one end of the holder abuts against the driven member and the other end abuts against the paddle.

4. A developing cartridge according to claim 3, wherein the paddle is rotatably mounted with respect to the driven member, and the rotational axis of the paddle is perpendicular to the mounting direction and the dismounting direction of the developing cartridge when the counting means starts counting and when the counting means completes counting.

5. A developing cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the paddle rotates in a first direction about its rotational axis during mounting of the developing cartridge, and rotates in a second direction about its rotational axis during dismounting of the developing cartridge, the first direction being opposite to the second direction.

6. A cartridge according to claim 3, 4 or 5, wherein the paddle is movable in a direction toward and away from the housing, the direction of movement of the paddle being parallel to the rotational axis of the driven member.

7. A developing cartridge according to claim 6, wherein the dial is provided with one of a rectangular hole and a post, and the driven member is provided with one of a post and a rectangular hole, the post being engaged with the rectangular hole.

8. A developing cartridge according to claim 2, wherein the paddle is fixedly connected to the driven member, and one end of the holder abuts against the bottom casing and the other end abuts against the driven member.

9. A developing cartridge according to claim 8, wherein the end cap further includes a through hole provided therein and an intermediate plate provided in the through hole, a part of the counting device being exposed through the through hole, at least a part of the dial abutting against the intermediate plate before the developing cartridge is mounted to the laser printer.

10. A developing cartridge according to claim 1, wherein said holder is a compression spring.

11. A developing cartridge according to claim 11, wherein the driven member is a counter gear, the developing cartridge further comprises a drive gear provided adjacent to the counter gear, the counter gear including a tooth portion and a tooth-missing portion, the counter gear being drivable by the drive gear when the tooth portion is opposed to the drive gear, the counter gear being held stationary when the tooth-missing portion is opposed to the drive gear.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a developing cartridge for a laser printer.

Background

As is well known, a developing cartridge includes a counting device for contacting and releasing contact with a lever provided in a laser printer, and the laser printer acquires information about the developing cartridge through interaction of the counting device and the lever during mounting of the developing cartridge to the laser printer.

An existing counting device comprises a counting gear, a shifting block and a guide block which are respectively located on two sides of the counting gear, and an elastic piece combined with the counting gear, and correspondingly, a track used for guiding the guide block is arranged on a developing box shell, the guide track is in a non-closed shape along the circumferential direction of the counting gear, and the guide track comprises an ascending section and a holding section connected with the ascending section.

In the counting process, the guide block is guided by the ascending section, so that the counting gear gradually ascends until the guide block reaches the retaining section, meanwhile, the elastic piece elastically deforms, the shifting block is in contact with the shifting rod along with the rotation of the counting gear, when the counting gear rotates until the guide block is separated from the retaining section, the counting gear integrally moves downwards under the action of elastic reset force of the elastic piece, the shifting block is separated from the shifting rod, and counting is completed.

As described above, in the counting process, the guide block needs to be precisely matched with the guide rail, and meanwhile, after the counting is completed, the guide block needs to be just separated from the guide rail, and for the developing cartridge used for many times, the shift block and the guide rail may be worn, so that the counting function of the counting gear cannot be realized.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a developing box, wherein a counting device is not provided with a guide block and a guide rail any more so as to ensure that the problem that the counting function cannot be realized even if the developing box is used for a plurality of times is solved, and the adopted technical scheme is as follows:

the developing box is detachably installed in the laser printer with the shifting rod and comprises a shell, a power receiving piece and a counting device which are positioned at the longitudinal tail end of the shell, and an end cover which is arranged on the same side as the counting device, wherein the power receiving piece is used for receiving driving force and driving the counting device to work; the counting device comprises a driven piece for receiving driving force, a shifting block connected with the driven piece, and a retaining piece combined with the shifting block, wherein the shifting block and the shifting rod interact with each other along with the rotation of the driven piece.

When the developing box is installed to a preset position, the shifting block does not interfere with the inner wall of the laser printer; when the shifting block does not interfere with the inner wall of the laser printer, a first distance is reserved between the tail end of the shifting block and the shell, when the shifting block interferes with the inner wall of the laser printer, a second distance is reserved between the tail end of the shifting block and the shell, and the first distance is larger than the second distance.

As an embodiment, the shifting block is movably connected with the driven piece, one end of the holding piece is abutted with the driven piece, and the other end of the holding piece is abutted with the shifting block.

Wherein the paddle is rotatably mounted with respect to the driven member, and a rotation axis of the paddle is perpendicular to a mounting direction and a dismounting direction of the developing cartridge when the counting device starts counting and when the counting device completes counting.

The paddle rotates in a first direction about its rotational axis during installation of the developing cartridge and rotates in a second direction about its rotational axis during removal of the developing cartridge, the first direction being opposite to the second direction.

The shifting block can also move in the direction close to the shell and the direction far away from the shell, the moving direction of the shifting block is parallel to the rotation axis of the driven piece, at the moment, the shifting block is provided with one of a long hole and a protruding column, the driven piece is provided with one of the protruding column and the long hole, and the protruding column is combined with the long hole.

In another embodiment, the dial is fixedly connected to the driven member, one end of the holder abuts against the bottom case, and the other end abuts against the driven member.

The end cap further includes a through hole provided therein and an intermediate plate provided in the through hole, a part of the counting device is exposed through the through hole, and at least a part of the dial abuts against the intermediate plate before the developing cartridge is mounted to the laser printer.

Preferably, the holder is a compression spring, the driven member is a counter gear, the developing cartridge further includes a drive gear disposed adjacent to the counter gear, the counter gear includes a tooth portion and a tooth-missing portion, the counter gear is drivable by the drive gear when the tooth portion is opposed to the drive gear, and the counter gear is held stationary when the tooth-missing portion is opposed to the drive gear.

The counting device is not provided with a guide block and a guide rail which are combined with each other, the counting gear does not need to be guided to ascend and descend in the working process of the counting device, and the counting device can still work normally even after the developing box is used for multiple times.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a developing cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an exploded schematic view of a counting device in the developing cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a counter gear in the counter device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4A is a perspective view of the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention at the start of counting.

Fig. 4B is a side view of the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention at the start of counting.

Fig. 4C is a simplified diagram of the force applied to the shift block during the mounting process in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 5A is a schematic view of a state at the end of counting by the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5B is a side view of the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention at the start of counting.

Fig. 6 is an exploded schematic view of a counting device in the developing cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a counter gear in the counter device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8A is a schematic view of a position state of a dial in the counting device when counting by the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present invention is started.

Fig. 8B is a schematic view of fig. 8A with the end cap hidden.

Fig. 9A is a schematic view of a position state of a dial in the counting device when counting by the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present invention is completed.

Fig. 9B is a schematic view of fig. 9A with the end cap hidden.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Example one

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a developing cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention; fig. 2 is an exploded schematic view of a counting device in a developing cartridge according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 3 is a perspective view of a counting gear in the counting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

The developing cartridge 1 can be installed in the installation direction a toward the laser printer provided with the shift lever and can be taken out in the direction opposite to the installation direction a, the developing cartridge 1 includes a casing 2, a developing roller 3 in the casing 2, an end cover 6 mounted on the casing 2, and a power receiving member 5 and a counting device 4 at the longitudinal ends of the casing, the casing 2 is used for containing toner, the developing roller 3 is rotatably mounted and can supply the toner to an external photosensitive drum (not shown), the power receiving member 5 and the counting device 4 can be located at the same longitudinal end of the casing 2 or at the two longitudinal ends of the casing 2 respectively, the power receiving member 5 is used for receiving driving force from the laser printer and driving the counting device 4 to rotate to work, and the power receiving member 5 and the counting device 4 expose a part through the end cover 6, when the counting device 4 receives the driving force of the power receiving member 5, the counting device 4 starts to rotate and interacts with a toggle lever in the laser printer.

In the embodiment of the present invention in which the counting device 4 is located at the same longitudinal end of the housing 2 as the power receiving element 5, as shown in fig. 2, the end cap 6 has a first through hole 62 and a second through hole 63 provided therein and an outer surface 61 facing outward, a part of the power receiving element 5 is exposed through the second through hole 63, and a part of the counting device 4 is exposed through the first through hole 62; further, the end cover 6 further includes first and second projecting plates 62a and 63a provided in the circumferential direction of the first through hole 62 and the circumferential direction of the second through hole 63, respectively, the first and second projecting plates 62a and 63a protecting the counting device 4 and the power receiving member 5 in the circumferential direction, respectively.

As further shown in fig. 2, the developing cartridge 1 further includes a drive gear 7 disposed adjacent to the counting device 4, the casing 2 having a distal end face 21 and first, second, and third projections 22, 23, and 24 projecting from the distal end face 21 in a direction away from the casing, the counting device 4 being mounted on the distal end face 21; the counting device 4 includes a counter gear 41, a dial 42 coupled to the counter gear 41, an elastic member 43 abutting against the dial 42, and a fixing member 44 for fixing the counter gear 41 to the housing, the counter gear 41 being rotatable about an axis L1 of the first protrusion 22, the dial 42 rotating together with the counter gear 41, the elastic member 43 serving as a kind of holding member for holding the dial 42 at a protruding position protruding from the outer surface 61 of the cap.

As shown in fig. 3, the counter gear 41 includes a gear body having a tooth portion 41a and a tooth missing portion 41b, a support portion 41d and a stopper portion 41e provided on the gear body, wherein the support portion 41d protrudes from an upper surface 41c of the gear body in a direction away from the housing, the dial 42 is supported by the support portion 41d, the counter gear 41 is driven to rotate when the tooth portion 41a meshes with the drive gear 7, and the counter gear 41 is not driven to rotate and is kept stationary when the tooth missing portion 41b meshes with the drive gear 7. The shifting block 42 is movably connected with the counting gear 41, preferably, the shifting block 42 can rotate around a rotation axis L3 perpendicular to the rotation axis L1, the rotation axis L3 is parallel to the upper surface 41C of the gear body but does not pass through the center C of the gear body, therefore, the movable range of the shifting block 42 is maximized, when the shifting block 42 interferes with the inner wall of the laser printer during the installation and the disassembly of the developing box 1, the shifting block 42 rotates around the rotation axis L3, even if the shifting block 42 is greatly acted by the inner wall of the laser printer, the shifting block 42 can press the elastic piece 43 along an axis L2 parallel to the rotation axis L1, and the smooth installation and the disassembly of the developing box are ensured.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the dial 42 has a main body 420, and a coupling portion 421 and a toggle portion 422 provided on the main body 420, the coupling portion 421 is coupled to a coupled portion 41g provided on a support portion 41d, the toggle portion 422 protrudes from the main body 420 in a direction away from the housing 2 for interacting with a toggle lever in a laser printer, and the toggle portion 422 has a tip 423, preferably, the coupling portion 421 is a long hole, the coupled portion 41g is a protruding column protruding from the support portion 41d, conversely, the coupling portion 421 may also be a protruding column protruding from the main body 420, the coupled portion 41g is a long hole provided on the support portion 41d, the protruding column enters the long hole 421, and the dial 42 is movable in an extending direction of the long hole (a direction in which the rotation axis L2 is located).

The elastic member 43 is preferably a compression spring, one end of which abuts against the gear body and the other end of which abuts against the dial 42, and when the dial 42 is combined with the counting gear 41, the dial 42 is urged by the compression spring 43 in a direction away from the housing 2 and is held in this position, and during the operation of the counting device 4, the dial 42 held away from the housing 2 can be more sufficiently in contact with the shift lever in the laser printer.

Further, the counter gear 41 further includes a force receiving portion 41f provided on the gear body, and when the developing cartridge 1 is mounted to the laser printer and starts operating, the drive gear 7 forces the counter gear 41 to rotate by applying a driving force to the force receiving portion 41f, so that the tooth portion 41a engages with the drive gear 7.

It is realized that the structure of the counting device 4 can be further optimized, for example, it is not necessary to provide a support portion on the gear body, but the dial 42 is directly combined with the gear body, during the installation of the developing cartridge, as long as the dial 42 can avoid the interference with the inner wall of the laser printer, and when the developing cartridge is installed to the predetermined position of the laser printer, the interference of the dial 42 with the inner wall of the laser printer disappears.

The operation of the counting device 4 is described below with reference to fig. 4 and 5. Fig. 4A is a perspective view of the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention at the start of counting; fig. 4B is a side view of the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention at the start of counting; FIG. 4C is a simplified diagram of the force applied to the shift block during the installation process in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention; fig. 5A is a schematic view of a state at the end of counting by the counting means in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention; fig. 5B is a side view of the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the first embodiment of the present invention at the start of counting.

As shown in fig. 4A, the counting device 4 is in an initial state of starting counting or in a reset state of being reset, the limit portion 41e is blocked by the second protrusion 23 and does not rotate reversely, the driving portion 71 of the driving gear 7 is opposite to the force receiving portion 41f of the counting gear, the driving gear 7 starts rotating as the power receiving member 5 starts receiving driving force from the laser printer, the driving portion 71 pokes the force receiving portion 41f to rotate the counting gear 41 in the direction indicated by r around the rotation axis L1, the tooth portion 41a starts to engage with the driving gear 7, the dial 42 rotates along with the counting gear 41, and the rotating dial 42 always remains outside the outer surface 61 of the end cover 6, so that the rotating dial 42 can interact with the dial in the laser printer and complete counting.

As shown in fig. 4B, in the initial state or the reset state, the rotation axis L3 of the dial 42 is inclined with respect to the mounting direction a, since the dial 42 is urged by the elastic member 43 and is always kept protruding from the outer surface 61 of the end cap 6, during the mounting of the developing cartridge 1 in the mounting direction a, the inner wall of the laser printer will interfere with the dial 42, as shown in fig. 4C, the force receiving point E of the dial 42 will receive a first acting force f1 opposite to the mounting direction a, the first acting force f1 can be resolved into a first component force f11 and a second component force f12 along the direction of the rotation axis L3 and the direction perpendicular to the rotation axis L3, respectively, wherein the angle between the line of the first acting force f1 and the rotation axis L3 is a1, the angle between the line of the mounting direction a and the rotation axis L3 is B1, the first component force f12 has a tendency of urging the dial 42 to rotate around the rotation axis L3, as f12 is f1 sina1, it is found that the greater the angle a1, the greater the second component force f12, the more easily the shift block 42 is turned in the direction opposite to the mounting direction a, or the shift block 42 is more easily turned around the rotation axis L3, preferably, the angle a1 is 90 °, and in this case, the rotation axis L3 is perpendicular to the mounting direction a. That is, during the mounting of the developing cartridge 1, the dial 42 is rotatable about the rotational axis L3 in the direction opposite to the mounting direction a, so that the developing cartridge 1 can be smoothly mounted; meanwhile, during the rotation of the shifting block 42, the shifting block 42 may also need to move towards the direction close to the housing 2, at this time, the elastic member 43 is compressed, the shifting block 42 moves along the extending direction of the elongated hole 421, and when the interference between the shifting block 42 and the inner wall of the laser printer disappears, the shifting block 42 returns to the protruding position protruding out of the outer surface 61 of the end cover under the elastic force of the elastic member 43; it will be understood that the paddle 42 in the present embodiment is provided only to be movable in the direction approaching the casing 2 and away from the casing 2 along the axis L2 to achieve smooth attachment and detachment of the developing cartridge 1, that is, the paddle 42 may be rotatably connected to the counter gear 41 and may be movable along the axis L2 to the counter gear 41. As shown in fig. 5A, when the counting device finishes counting, the tooth-missing part 41b is opposed to the driving gear 7, and at this time, the driving force of the driving gear 7 cannot be transmitted to the counting gear 41, the counting gear 41 stops rotating, and the stopper part 41e is blocked by the third projection 24 and held at the rest position, even if the counting device 4 is subjected to other external force, and is held still, thereby preventing the unnecessary rotation of the counting gear 41.

As shown in fig. 5B, the rotation axis L3 of the dial 42 is substantially perpendicular to the mounting direction a, and during the process of removing the developing cartridge 1 in the removing direction a' opposite to the mounting direction a, the inner wall of the laser printer interferes with the dial 42 again, the dial 42 can be tilted/flipped about the rotation axis L3 toward the mounting direction a and approaches the housing 2, and when the dial 42 is out of contact with the inner wall of the laser printer, the dial 42 is centered by the elastic member 43 and returns to the position protruding from the outer surface 61 of the end cap.

When the counter device 4 needs to be reset, the fixing of the fixing member 44 to the counter gear 41 needs to be released, the operator lifts the entire counter gear 41 along the rotation axis L1 so that the stopper portion 41e passes through the third protrusion 24 and the second protrusion 23 in order, and finally returns to the initial position shown in fig. 4, and then fixes the counter gear 41 by the fixing member 44.

Example two

Fig. 6 is an exploded schematic view of a counting device in a developing cartridge according to a second embodiment of the present invention; fig. 7 is a perspective view of a counter gear in the counter device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

In the present embodiment, the counting device 4 includes a counting gear 41 having a tooth portion 41a and a tooth-missing portion 41b, a dial 42 extending from an upper surface 41c of the counting gear 41 in a direction away from the housing 2, and an elastic member 45 located between the gear body and the housing 2; similarly, the end cover 6 is also provided with the first through hole 62, the second through hole 63, the first protruding plate 62a and the second protruding plate 63a, and a part of the counting device 4 and a part of the power receiving element 5 are respectively exposed from the first through hole 62 and the second through hole 63, as shown in fig. 6, the end cover 6 further includes an intermediate plate 65 extending from the first protruding plate 62a to the first through hole 62 and a limit plate 64 connected to the intermediate plate 65, the counting gear 41 abuts against the limit plate 64 under the elastic action of the elastic element 45, and the dial 42 protrudes from the end cover outer surface 61 through the first through hole 62; alternatively, the first projecting plate 62a may be eliminated, and at this time, the intermediate plate 65 extends directly from the main body of the end cover 6 toward the first through hole 62, that is, the end cover outer surface 61 is flush with the first through hole 62, and the paddle 42 is held by the holder 45 at a projecting position projecting from the first through hole 62, and thus, the size of the developing cartridge 1 in the length direction may be reduced; alternatively, the first projecting plate 62a is not eliminated, but the connecting plate 65 does not extend from the first projecting plate 62a to the first through hole 62, but extends from the end cover main body to the first through hole 62, at which time the dial 42 projects to the outside of the connecting plate 65, which structure is applicable to a developing cartridge having substantially the same internal structure as the developing cartridge relating to the present invention, but having a larger size in the longitudinal direction than the developing cartridge relating to the present invention.

Preferably, the dial 42 is formed integrally with the counter gear 41, that is, the dial 42 itself in this embodiment is no longer able to rotate about the rotation axis, but rotates about the rotation axis L1 of the counter gear 41 with the rotation of the counter gear 41; under the elastic action of the elastic member 45, the counter gear 41/the dial 42 no longer needs to be guided by the guide block and the guide rail, but always maintains a protruding position protruding from the outer surface 61 of the end cap, and thus, the dial 42 can be brought into good contact with the dial in the laser printer. As shown in fig. 7, the counter gear 41 further includes a flange 41h projecting radially outward therefrom, and preferably, the flange 41h projects radially outward from the upper surface 41 c.

Fig. 8A is a schematic view showing a position state of a dial in the counting device when counting by the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present invention is started; FIG. 8B is a schematic view of FIG. 8A with the end cap hidden; fig. 9A is a schematic view showing a position state of a dial in the counting device when counting by the counting device in the developing cartridge according to the second embodiment of the present invention is completed; fig. 9B is a schematic view of fig. 9A with the end cap hidden.

As shown in fig. 8A and 8B, before the counting device 4 starts counting, or before the developing cartridge 1 is mounted to the laser printer, the dial 42 is pressed lower than the intermediate plate 65, and at least a part of the dial 42 abuts against the intermediate plate 65, at which time the dial 42 is pressed by the intermediate plate 65 so as not to protrude, the toothed portion 41a meshes with the drive gear 7, and the flange 41h abuts against the top of the drive gear 7, so that the count gear 41 is restricted from continuing to move in a direction approaching the casing 2, and the positioning of the count gear 41 and the dial 42 along the rotation axis L1 is made more accurate. When the power receiving part 5 receives the driving force to start rotating, the driving gear 7 drives the counting gear 41 to rotate around the rotation axis L1 in the direction shown by r, the shifting block 42 rotates along with the counting gear 41, when the shifting block 42 rotates and is not abutted to the middle plate 65 any more, under the elastic force of the elastic piece 45, the counting gear 41 drives the shifting block 42 to move along the rotation axis L1 in the direction away from the shell 2, the shifting block 42 returns to the protruding position protruding out of the outer surface 61 of the end cover, and the shifting block 42 interacts with a shifting rod in the laser printer in the rotation process of the counting gear 4.

As shown in fig. 9A and 9B, when the counting device 4 finishes counting, the dial 42 located at the protruding position contacts the intermediate plate 65, the tooth-missing portion 41B of the counting gear 41 faces the driving gear 7, and at this time, the driving force of the driving gear 7 cannot be transmitted to the counting gear 41 any more, and thus, the counting gear 41 remains stationary, and at this time, since the intermediate plate 65 contacts the dial 42, which corresponds to the counting gear 41, and is restricted, the dial 42/the counting gear 41 do not rotate any more even if the counting gear 41 receives other external force.

The dial 42 for interacting with the dial in the laser printer in this embodiment is configured such that, during the counting process of the counting device 4, the dial 42 is urged by the elastic member 45 to be held at the protruding position protruding from the outer surface 61 of the end cap, the dial 42 can be sufficiently contacted with the dial, even if the dial 42 interferes with the inner wall of the laser printer, the dial 42 can press the elastic member 45 by the counting gear 41 to be close to the housing 2, and when the interference between the dial 42 and the inner wall of the laser printer disappears, the dial 42 returns to the protruding position protruding from the outer surface 61 of the end cap again under the elastic action of the elastic member 45.

Alternatively, the driving gear 7 and the tooth 41a of the counting gear 41 may be combined with each other by other means to transmit the driving force, for example, at least one of the driving gear 7 and the tooth 41a may be replaced by rubber, or the driving force may be transmitted between the driving gear 7 and the counting gear 41 by a link driving method, so that the driving gear 7 may be referred to as a driving member, the counting gear 41 may be referred to as a driven member, and the driven member may include a portion capable of receiving the driving force from the driving member and a portion incapable of receiving the driving force from the driving member.

As described above, the counting device 4 according to the present invention is not provided with the guide block and the guide rail which are combined with each other, and the counting gear 41 does not need to be guided to ascend and descend during the operation of the counting device 4, and the counting device 4 can still operate normally even after the developing cartridge is used for a plurality of times; further, in the counting process, the dial 42 of the counting device is held by the elastic member (holder) 43/45 at a protruding position protruding from the outer surface 61 of the end cap, and as long as the counting gear 41 rotates to a predetermined angle, the dial 42 interacts with the dial, as measured in the direction of the rotation axis L1, and when the dial 42 does not interfere with the inner wall of the laser printer, the end 423 of the dial 42 has a first distance from the housing 2, and when the dial 42 interferes with the inner wall of the laser printer, the end 423 of the dial 42 has a second distance from the housing 2, and the first distance is greater than the second distance.

In the present invention, the precision requirement of the counting device 4 is greatly reduced, and even if the dial 42 interferes with the inner wall of the laser printer during the mounting and dismounting of the developing cartridge 1, the counting gear 41 can move towards the direction close to the housing 2 by rotating around the rotation axis L3 or pressing the elastic member 45, so that the developing cartridge 1 can be smoothly mounted and dismounted.