JPH02278259A - Image forming method and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To normally allow the utilization of cured microcapsules and to prevent the unnecessary breakage of the microcapsules by exposing the photosoftening microcapsules internally contg. chromogens electrostatically applied on recording paper to selectively soften the microcapsules and pressurizing the recording paper to break the softened microcapsules. CONSTITUTION:The photosetting microcapsules 76 internally contg. the chromogens electrostatically applied on the recording paper 90 are selectively softened and the recording paper 90 is pressurized to break the softened microcapsules 76. Namely, the photosoftening microcapsules 76 are applied on the recording paper. The microcapsules 76 exposed by an exposing means 108 are selectively softened during the course of or after the application. The softened microcapsules 76 are broken by a pressure developing means 18 and the images are formed by the effect of the chromogens internally included therein. The unnecessary breakage of the microcapsules is prevented in this way.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an image forming method and apparatus for forming an image on arbitrary recording paper.

[Prior Art 1 Conventionally, as an image forming apparatus using microcapsules,
It is known that a microcapsule sheet carrying microcapsules on its surface is exposed to light according to image information, and the microcapsule sheet is stacked on a developer sheet carrying a color developer and pressurized.

However, with the above image forming apparatus, it is not possible to form an image on arbitrary recording paper (hereinafter referred to as plain paper), and PET (polyethylene tele-7 talate), which is used as a base material for microcapsule sheets, cannot be used. etc. had the disadvantage that they could not be recycled and were consumable items.

Therefore, Japanese Patent Application No. 63-320242 filed by the present applicant
A device capable of solving the above-mentioned drawbacks at once is proposed according to the Memorandum and drawings attached to Book H. This device applies microcapsules and color developer directly onto plain paper, and then
Exposing and developing. Especially with this device,
Since the microcapsules are applied in #1 order, the microcapsules can be applied only to the necessary positions using zeography technology.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the above device, it is not possible to use frictional charging, which is the cheapest method, to charge the microcapsules.This is because the microcapsules are destroyed when the friction band is applied, and the desired result is not achieved. This is because an image cannot be obtained.

In addition, even if the device is not limited to the above, the microphone 11 can be used for plain paper.
Unnecessary destruction of microcapsules when applying 7 capsules becomes a serious problem.

Furthermore, the destruction of microcapsules during storage and transportation, which are used as replenishment materials for the above-mentioned equipment, is also a serious problem for the building.

The present invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems and circumstances, and includes an image forming method and an image forming method that make it possible to use normally hardened microcapsules. ! The aim is to prevent unnecessary destruction of microcapsules by providing a

[Means for solving 1ffl 1] In order to achieve the above object, the method of the present invention is to apply photo-softening microcapsules containing primary color bodies onto recording paper, selectively soften the microcapsules, and Record! The purpose of this method is to pressurize paper to destroy softened microcapsules.

Furthermore, the device of the present invention includes a microphone 117 containing primary color bodies.
The present invention includes a coating means for coating the capsules on the recording paper, an exposure means for selectively softening the microcapsules by exposing them to light, and a destruction means for pressurizing the recording paper to destroy the softened microcapsules. shall be.

[Effect 1] In the above invention, photo-softening microcapsules are applied to the recording paper. Microcapsules exposed to light during or after coating are selectively softened. The softened microcapsules are destroyed by pressure, and an image is formed by the action of the contained primary color bodies.

[Example] Hereinafter, a case in which the present invention is applied to a copying machine will be described in detail based on the drawings.

As shown in the drawing, this copying apparatus includes an original moving device r! 11
0.1 cloth 1ft! 12, an I-copy supply [114], an exposure device 16, a pressure developing device 18, a heat fixing device 20, and the like.

The document moving device 10 is provided at the upper part of the housing 24 of the copying device, and includes a g stacking table 26. The document mounting table 26 is made of a transparent material that allows light to pass through, such as lath, and is provided on the top plate 28 of the housing 24 so as to be movable in the left and right directions in the figure. Further, a cover 30 is provided on the document placing table 26, and the document r! It is designed to cover the original document 32 that has been printed.

Wires 3 are provided on both sides of the document placement table 26 in the moving direction.
4.3G are connected and those wires 34.3
6 is wound around pulleys 38 and 40 rotatably attached to the housing 24. A pulley 40 disposed on the downstream side in the document movement direction during copying (the direction indicated by arrow A in the figure, hereinafter referred to as the copying direction) is a pulley 40 fixed to the output shaft of a drive motor 42.
4 and a belt 46, and when the pulley 40 is rotated by a drive motor 42, the original table 26 is moved in the copying direction. Further, the wire 34 is biased by a pulley 38 (not shown)! ! When the drive motor 42 is rotated in the rewinding direction, the document @ placing table 26 is at the copying start position. Been going back.

The space inside the housing 24 is partitioned! It is partitioned into an upstream portion and a downstream portion in the copying direction by 1t48, and the coating device 12 is provided upstream of the partition wall 48. The coating device 12 is equipped with an exposure device (l!50).The light source 52 of the exposure device fi50 has a long longitudinal shape in the width direction perpendicular to the copying direction, and irradiates the original 32 with light. A shielding plate 56 in which a slit 54 extending in the width direction is formed is provided in front of the document 32, so that the original 32 is irradiated with light in a band-like manner.

The reflected light from the original 32 is collected by a lens 58,
A photosensitive drum 60 provided below the lens 58 is exposed. The lens 58 is designed to invert the reflected light from the original document 32 vertically and horizontally to expose the photosensitive drum 60. The photosensitive drum 60 is made of a cylindrical member made of a metal conductor such as aluminum or copper, with selenium deposited on its surface, and is rotated clockwise in the figure at the same circumferential speed as the moving speed of the document table 26. It has become. A corotron 62 is provided in the rotation direction of the photosensitive drum 60 on the front side of the uppermost position where light from the exposure device, that is, the lens 58 hits, to uniformly charge the surface of the photosensitive drum 60. By being exposed to light by the exposure device 50, charges escape depending on the intensity of the light, and an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image on the original document 32 is formed.

A developer coating device 66 and a capsule coating device 68 are provided behind the exposure position in the rotational direction of the photosensitive drum 60, respectively. Each case 70,72 of these coating devices 66,68 contains a developer 74. A microcapsule 76 is housed therein. The microcapsules 76 contain a photo-softening resin that softens in response to light, a dye precursor dipolymerization initiator, and the like.

Examples of the photosoftening resin include polymethyl vinyl ketone, polyvinylphenyl ketone, polysulfone, 3-oximi-7-2-butanone methacrylate, and poly-4-furkylacylphenone. The Wt color cutter 74 is for coloring the dye precursor. Furthermore, the case 72 accommodates three types of microcapsules, making it possible to record color images. That is, the microcapsules R include microcapsules R that soften when exposed to red natural light, microcapsules G that soften when exposed to green natural light, and microcapsules B that soften when exposed to blue natural light. , G, and B soften in response to different colors of natural light during exposure, and the unhardened microcapsules are crushed during exposure, resulting in an image with the color of the photocured microcapsules, that is, the color of the original. is recorded. Each case 70.72 has a sleeve 78
．． 80 is provided so as to be rotatable in a counterclockwise direction around a center line parallel to the rotational center line of the photosensitive drum 60, and a color developer 74.
Microcapsules 76 are applied to the photosensitive drum 60. The color developer 74° microcapsules 76 are each charged with a different polarity from the photosensitive drum 60 by a charger (not shown), and are adhered onto the photosensitive drum 60 by electrostatic force.

A corotron 82 is provided facing a portion of the photosensitive drum 60 on the side opposite to the exposure position, and a corotron 82 is provided to expose the copy paper 90 to a developer 74. The microcapsules 76 are charged with a different polarity. As a result, copy #90 has photosensitive drum 6.
The color developer 74 and microcapsules 76 attached to the paper 90 are transferred, and the color developer 74 and the microcapsules 76 are transferred to the copy paper 90.
are applied in a state corresponding to the image on the original document 32. Note that the transfer position of the photosensitive drum 60 and the corotron 6
A static eliminator 88 is provided between the two, and is designed to remove the electric charge from the photosensitive drum 60.

A copy paper supply device 14 that supplies copy paper 90 is provided below the housing 24. The copy paper 90 is ordinary paper, and is housed in a copy paper case 92 and fed by a paper feed roller 94.
The paper is sent out one by one. The copy paper 90 sent out from the copy paper case 92 is sent by a feed roller 96 between the photosensitive drum 60 and the corotron 82 . The feed roller 96 is rotated by a feed motor (not shown) at the same circumferential speed as the moving speed of the document mounting table 26 and the circumferential speed of the photosensitive drum 60.

The copy paper 90 is coated with a color developer 74. It is provided downstream from the microcapsule 7 in the copying direction of the original 32, and includes a light source 102. The light source 102 has a longitudinal shape similar to the light source 52, and a shielding plate 106 on which a slot 7) 104 is formed is disposed in front of the light source 102 so as to irradiate the document 32 with light in a band shape. The reflected light from the original 32 is imaged by the lens 108, and then the first reflecting mirror 1
10, the direction is changed by the second reflecting mirror 112 and the third reflecting mirror 113, and the light source 10 of the exposure device 16 is directed to the original 32.
The copy paper 90 is exposed at a position *''C on the upstream side in the copying direction from the position where the light is irradiated.The reason for this will be described later.

Further, the lens 108 is similar to the lens 58 described above, and the lens 108 is arranged to
It is said to invert the reflected light vertically and horizontally.

The exposed copy paper 90 is sent to the pressure developing device 18 by the feed rollers 20 and 122. The pressure developing device 18 includes a pair of pressure rollers 124 and 126. These pressure rollers 124.126 are feed rollers 98, 120.1.
22 and is rotated by the feed motor at the same circumferential speed as the feed row 296, and feeds the copy paper 90 while pressurizing it. After the copy paper 90 is pressurized, it is heated and fixed by a heat fixing device r!
The apparatus 1120 is equipped with a heater 140, and after the copy paper 90 is heated, it is sent by a feed roller 142 and discharged onto a paper discharge tray 144.

In the copying apparatus configured as described above, at the start of copying, the downstream end of the original 8I device stand 26 in the moving direction during copying is exactly at the copying start position where it is irradiated with light by the light source 52 of the coating device 12.

When the copy start switch is operated after placing the original 32 on the original placing table 26 and covering it with the cover 30, the photosensitive drum 60 is first rotated and charged by the corotron 62. The first position of the photosensitive drum 60 to be charged by the corotron 62 (band MLrW4 starting position)
When the original 32 reaches the exposure position, the feeding of the original placing table 26 is started and the original 32 is irradiated with the light 152.
The photosensitive drum 60 is exposed to light reflected from the photosensitive drum 2. Since the moving speed of the document mounting table 26 and the circumferential speed of the photosensitive drum 60 are the same, e-electronic latent images corresponding to the image of the document 32 are sequentially formed in a band shape on the photosensitive drum 60. This one
At the time of the second exposure, the developer coating device ft66 is in a coating state, but the capsule coating device 68 is in a non-coating state, and the portion where the electrostatic latent image is formed is coated with the developer coating device 66. A developer 74 is attached to form a developer image corresponding to the image of the original 32 .

This developer image is transferred to copy paper 90. The copy paper 90 is fed so that its downstream end in the copying direction reaches the transfer position exactly when the exposure start position i1 (this position is the same as the charging start position) of the photosensitive drum 60 reaches the transfer position. The color developer images are sequentially transferred onto copy paper 90.

Once an e-electronic latent image corresponding to the entire R document 32 is formed on the photosensitive dome 60, the document table 2G is returned to the copying start position. Further, the portion of the photosensitive drum 60 after the developer image has been transferred to the copy paper 90 is neutralized by a static eliminator 88 . If static electricity is not removed, the charge of the part where the electrostatic latent image is formed when the next time is charged will be different from that of the first time, and a difference will occur in the amount of application of the color developer 74 and the microcapsules 76. It is. The rotation of the photosensitive drum 60 is stopped when the application of the developer to the entire electrostatic latent image formed on its surface and the transfer of the developer to the copy paper are completed, and the developer application device 6 is now not applying any color. state. At this time, the upstream end of the copy paper 90 in the copying direction has been moved to the stop position, and after the photosensitive drum 60 has stopped, it is sent in the opposite direction so that the downstream end is a short distance upstream from the transfer position. It is assumed that the state is located at .

After the copy paper 90 is not moved upstream from the transfer position,
The rotation of the photosensitive drum 60 is restarted, and the Flotron 62 is activated again.
charged by. After recharging, when the second exposure start position of the photosensitive drum 60 reaches the exposure position, the original 3
2 is started again and an electrostatic latent image is formed. At the start of this second exposure, the capsule coating device 68 is in a coating state, and the microcapsules 76 are coated on the photosensitive drum 6.
A capsule image corresponding to the image of the original document 32 is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 60.

During this second exposure of the photosensitive drum 60, the copy paper 90 is fed so that its downstream end in the copying direction reaches the transfer position exactly when the exposure start position of the photosensitive drum 60 reaches the transfer position. . A capsule image is transferred onto the copy paper 90 on the developer image transferred during the first exposure, and has a shape corresponding to the image of the original 32, and the developer 74 is transferred to the copy paper 90 as shown in FIG. Microcapsules 76 are applied over the layered image corresponding image. After the photosensitive drum 60 has transferred the capsule image onto the copy paper 90, its rotation is stopped, and the capsule coating device 68 is placed in a non-coating state.

The copy paper 90 is fed as is after the capsule image has been transferred,
Exposure device 11 at an exposure position downstream from partition wall 48
1G exposure. The original 32 is coated with the coating device 12.
After the first exposure, the original 32 and the copy paper 90 are moved directly in the copying direction, so that a distance difference corresponding to one half of the circumference of the photosensitive drum 60 occurs between the original 32 and the copy paper 90. Therefore,
The irradiation position where the light source 102 of the exposure device 16 irradiates light onto the original 32 and the exposure position of the copy paper 90 are provided apart from each other by the above distance, and the first reflecting mirror 110. Second reflecting mirror 11
2 and a third reflecting mirror 113 are provided, and the direction of the reflected light from the original 32 is changed so that the image of the original 32 irradiated with light and the exposed color developer/capsule image of the copy paper 90 match. It's like that. Therefore, even if there is a misalignment in the feeding direction between the original 32 and the copy paper 90, the feeding of the original 32 is stopped and the copy paper 90 is exposed until it reaches a position directly below the reflected light from the original 32. There is no need,
Feed control can be easily performed.

In this way, copy #90 is original 32. Three types of microcapsules R are exposed by the reflected light from
. The color is developed and an image corresponding to the image of the original 32 is printed on the copy paper 90 on the original W432.
It will be recorded in this color. Furthermore, since the microcapsules 76 are coated on the color developer 74 on the copy paper 90, the exposure of the microcapsules 76 is not hindered by the opaque color developer 74. After exposure, it is pressurized, further heated by a heat fixing device 20, and discharged.

In this way, the copying apparatus of this embodiment uses the color developer 74 during copying.
Since it is equipped with a coating device fi12 for coating the copy paper 90 with the microcapsules 76, it is possible to copy onto any medium such as plain paper.

Further, the coating device 12 of this embodiment applies the original f! to the copy paper 90.
Color developer 74.% is applied only to the portion corresponding to the image of 32.
Since the microcapsules 76 are applied, the amount of the microcapsules 76 used is smaller than that of the color developer 74, and copying costs can be reduced.

Note that when the color developer 74 and microcapsules 76 are attached to the photosensitive drum 60 and coated on the copy #90 as in the above embodiment, the color developer 74 is attached to the photosensitive drum 60.
An image-corresponding image may be formed using only one of the microcapsules 76 and the other, and the other may be uniformly applied to the surface of the charged photosensitive drum 60. In this case, the photosensitive drum 60 may be coated with the microcapsules 76 and the other. Either of the color developer 74 and the color developer 74 may be applied first, and the transfer to the copy paper 90 may be performed each time the color developer 74 and one microcapsule 76 are coated, or may be performed all at once. If the color developer 74 and the microcapsules 76 are transferred to the copy paper 90 all at once, the number of transfers can be reduced, and the copying time can be shortened. However, if the color developer is opaque, place the copy paper 90 so that the color developer is under the microcapsules.
It is necessary to be transcribed into

Alternatively, an image may be formed on the photosensitive drum 60 using only one of the developer 74 and the microcapsules 76, and the other may be applied directly to the copy paper 90.

Furthermore, without forming an image corresponding to the IiI image, copy 11
Both the color developer 74 and the microcapsules 76 may be uniformly applied to the color developer 90. In this case, a support is used,
After the support is charged and the color developer 74 and microcapsules 76 are attached, the color developer M74 and the microcapsules 76 may be transferred to the copy paper 90, or the color developer M74 and the microcapsules 76 may be directly transferred to the copy paper 90.
iBucell 76 may also be applied.

Note that when applying the opaque color developer 74 to the copy paper 90 in a direct-seeding manner, it is applied onto the microcapsules 76 after the capsule image coated on the copy paper 90 is exposed but before development. It's okay.

Further, in the above embodiment, the color developer 74 and the microcapsules 76 are housed in separate cases 70 and 72 to develop electrostatic latent images separately.
4. The microcapsules 76 may be housed in one case and development may be performed only once. In this way, the electrostatic latent image only needs to be formed once, reducing the copying time, and There is no need to match the transfer positions of the developer image and the capsule image to the copy #90, and the effect of simplifying control can be obtained.

Furthermore, the photosensitive substance contained in the microcapsules may be a photosensitive resin whose hardness softens when irradiated with light.Furthermore, the present invention is capable of exposing the microcapsules to light based on image data in addition to a copying device. It can also be applied to devices that record images.

Although not illustrated in detail, the present invention can be implemented in various modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

[Advantageous Effects of the Invention 1] As detailed above, since the method and apparatus of the present invention use photo-softening microcapsules, there is no unnecessary destruction and stable image formation is possible.

Furthermore, it is economical since there are few consumables, and furthermore, replenishment of microcapsules, etc. is easy.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawing shows a copying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 18 is a pressure developing device corresponding to the pressure developing means;
0 is a photosensitive drum corresponding to a photosensitive member, 78 is a sleeve corresponding to a charging means, 90 is copy paper corresponding to recording paper, 10
8 is a lens constituting the exposure means.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Electrostatically applying photo-softening microcapsules containing primary color bodies onto a recording paper, exposing the microcapsules to light to selectively soften them, and applying pressure to the recording paper to soften them. An image forming method characterized by destroying microcapsules. 2. A coating means for applying photo-softening microcapsules containing primary color bodies onto a recording paper, an exposure means for selectively softening the microcapsules by exposing them to light, and applying pressure to the recording paper to soften the microcapsules. 1. An image forming apparatus comprising: a pressure developing means that is destroyed. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the coating means includes: a charging means for triboelectrically charging the microcapsules; and a photoreceptor on which an electrostatic latent image is formed according to the formed image; An image forming apparatus characterized in that microcapsules charged by the charging means are attached to the electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor, and then the attached microcapsules are transferred to recording paper.