JPH0635366A - Fixing device for electrophotographic printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the power consumption of a printer by heating a heat roller only at the area corresponding to the width of a printing paper used. CONSTITUTION:The device is provided with a width detecting means 1 detecting the width of the printing paper P used, a controlling means 2 judging the paper width and instructing the heating area of the heat roller, and a heating area dividing type heat roller 3. The width is detected by the width detecting means 1 according to the feeding of the printing paper P used, and only the specified width of the heat roller 3 is heated through the controlling means 2 instructing the heating width based on a detecting signal. Thus, unnecessary power can be restrained when the printing paper having small width is used.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fixing device for an electrophotographic printer, and more particularly to a fixing device for performing heat and pressure fixing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional fixing device for an electrophotographic printer that performs heat and pressure fixing uses a heat roller having a width corresponding to the maximum width of printing paper that can be used in the printer, and is related to the width of the printing paper. Instead, the entire width of the heat roller was heated.

[0003]

Since this conventional fixing device heats the entire width of the heat roller regardless of the width of the paper used for printing, even when using printing paper of small width, The same amount of power was wasted as when using the widest printing paper. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a fixing device capable of suppressing unnecessary power when using a printing paper having a small width in order to solve the above problems.

[0004]

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following configuration. That is, according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the width detecting means 1 for detecting the width of the printing paper P to be used, and the control means 2 for judging the paper width and designating the heating area of the heat roller. And a heating area division type heat roller 3, and the heating roller 3 is heated only in an area corresponding to the width of the printing paper P to be used.

[Use] The width detecting means 1 detects the width of the printing paper P used in accordance with the feeding of the printing paper P, and heats the heat roller 3 by a predetermined width via the control means 2 which indicates the heating width according to the detection signal. To do.

[0005]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 3 is an overall view of the first embodiment, and FIG. 4 is an electric circuit diagram thereof. In this case, the paper position reference is set to the left side in the paper running direction. Is detected, the heating area of the heat roller 33 is determined by the controller 22, and the heater of the heat roller is heated. The sheet widths A, B and C correspond to the heating areas A ′, B ′ and C ′, respectively. FIG. 5 is an overall view of the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 is an electric circuit diagram thereof, in which the paper position reference is centered.

[0006]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the heat roller is heated only in the area corresponding to the width of the printing paper used, the power consumption of the printer can be suppressed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an electric circuit diagram of the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an electric circuit diagram of a second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Width detection means 2 Control means 3 Heat roller

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In an electrophotographic printer that performs heating and pressure fixing with a heat roller, the heating area of the heat roller is divided, and the heat roller is heated only in the area corresponding to the width of the printing paper to reduce power consumption. The fixing device of the featured electrophotographic printer.