JPH11258892A - Developing roll inspecting method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a developing roll inspecting method capable of previously distinguishing the normal/defective condition of image resolution accomplished by the developing roll at the point of manufacturing the developing roll. SOLUTION: The developing roll is provided with a core bar 12 and a roll main body 16 arranged on the outer periphery of the core bar 12, and this is the method for inspecting the developing roll used in an image forming device under the condition where the outer periphery of the roll main body 16 is exposed. In this case, the method is provided with a correlation setting process of setting the correlation between the resolution and glossiness of the image, a positioning process of positioning the developing roll on an inspection position, a measuring process of measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned on the inspection position, and a judging process of judging the propriety of the image resolution accomplished by the developing roll, based on the measured glossiness.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, to a method for inspecting a developing roller provided with a core and a rubber layer formed on the outer periphery of the core. The present invention relates to a method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus in an exposed state.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an apparatus used as a process device in an image forming apparatus such as an electronic copying apparatus or a laser printer, a toner is supplied onto a photosensitive drum to form an electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum. 2. Description of the Related Art A developing device for developing (developing an image) is known.

For example, in an image forming apparatus provided with a developing device using a non-magnetic one-component toner as a developer,
As a part for conveying toner in the developing device,
In some cases, a developing roll made of a conductive rubber roll is used.

As this developing roll, a configuration is known in which a conductive rubber roll main body is disposed around the outer periphery of a metal core material and is mounted with the outer peripheral surface of the roll main body exposed. The toner is charged and attracted by the friction between the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll and the toner, and the toner is transferred to the photosensitive drum in accordance with the rotation of the developing roll through fine irregularities on the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. It is configured to be conveyed onto the outer peripheral surface of.

Here, attention has been paid to the resolution of an image achieved by a developing roll as one of the factors affecting the quality of an image formed by an image forming apparatus. This resolution cannot be measured by the developing roll alone, and is a factor measured only when the developing roll is mounted on the image forming apparatus and used in the image forming process.

For this reason, conventionally, at the time of manufacturing before mounting the developing roll to the image forming apparatus, surface roughness is set as a quality control target item, and it is determined that the surface roughness is not within a predetermined range. The quality control was performed such that the developed roll determined to be unable to achieve the desired resolution was discarded as defective (NG).

[0007]

Here, in order to inspect the surface roughness of the developing roll in this way, according to the JIS standard, the inspection needle must be brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. . As a result, even if the inspection result is determined to be “OK (OK)”, the inspection may damage the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. The attached developing roll has to be discarded as "defective (NG)".

[0008] In addition, such a surface roughness inspection takes a very long time. Specifically, the moving speed of the test needle is set to, for example, 0.3 mm / sec, and φ16 mm
When the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll is inspected over the entire circumference, the measured length is about 50.24 mm, and this inspection alone takes about 3 minutes. In this way, from the viewpoint of productivity, it is a fact that 100% inspection is impossible,
Improvement is required.

On the other hand, in order to prevent the manufactured developing roll from being damaged by inspection, the developing roll is incorporated into an image forming apparatus without performing a surface roughness test, and an actual image forming process is executed to place a predetermined amount of toner on a sheet. Inspection such as forming an image and determining its resolution (so-called "image output inspection") is performed. However, in this imaging test,
If it is confirmed that the resolution is deteriorated due to the defect of the developing roll, it is necessary to remove the defective developing roll and mount a new developing roll.
The image output test must be performed again, and a very inefficient point has been pointed out, and improvement is demanded.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a main object of the present invention is to provide a developing roller capable of determining in advance the quality of the resolution achieved by the developing roller at the time of manufacturing the developing roller. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for inspecting a roll.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of inspecting a developing roll, which can predict a resolution that cannot be measured by a developing roll alone when manufacturing the developing roll.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a method of inspecting a developing roll which can predict the resolution attained by the developing roll at the time of manufacturing without incorporating the developing roll into an image forming apparatus and performing image output. It is to provide.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method of inspecting a developing roll which can predict the resolution achieved by the developing roll in a short time and can inspect the total number of developing rolls. To provide.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a developing method capable of predicting the resolution achieved by a developing roll without contacting the surface roughness of the developing roll without contacting the developing roll. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for inspecting a roll.

[0015]

Means for Solving the Problems The above-mentioned problems are solved,
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, comprising: a cored bar; and a rubber layer formed on an outer periphery of the cored bar. A method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus in a state where the developing roller is exposed, a first step of correlating the resolution and glossiness of an image, and a second step of positioning the developing roll at a position to be inspected; A third step of measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the inspection position; and a fourth step of determining whether or not the resolution achieved by the developing roll based on the measured glossiness. It is characterized by doing.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, comprising a cored bar and a rubber layer formed on the outer periphery of the cored bar. In a method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus in an exposed state, a first step of correlating the resolution and glossiness of an image, a second step of positioning the developing roll at a position to be inspected, A third step of measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the position to be inspected, and a fourth step of predicting a resolution achieved by the developing roll based on the measured glossiness. Features.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, comprising a cored bar and a rubber layer formed on the outer periphery of the cored bar. In a method of inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus in an exposed state, a first step of positioning the developing roll at a position to be inspected and a step of measuring a glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the position to be inspected are described. And a third step of judging whether or not the resolution achieved by the developing roll is possible based on a predetermined correlation between the measured glossiness and the resolution of the image. Features.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, comprising: a cored bar; and a rubber layer formed on an outer periphery of the cored bar. In a method of inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus in an exposed state, a first step of positioning the developing roll at a position to be inspected and a step of measuring a glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the position to be inspected are described. And a third step of predicting the resolution achieved by the developing roll based on a predefined correlation between the measured gloss and the resolution of the image. I have.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the method for inspecting a developing roll, in the measuring step, the glossiness of the developing roll is measured at one location on the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. It is characterized by:

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the method for inspecting a developing roll, one of the outer peripheral surfaces of the developing roll is located substantially at the center along the axial direction of the developing roll. It is characterized by.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the measuring step, the glossiness of the developing roll is measured at a plurality of locations on the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll in the measuring step. It is characterized by:

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, wherein the developing roll is rotated around a central axis of the developing roll, and a plurality of positions are provided along a circumferential direction of the developing roll. It is characterized by measuring the glossiness.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, wherein the developing roll is moved along an axial direction of the developing roll, and a plurality of positions are moved along the axial direction of the developing roll. It is characterized by measuring the glossiness.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the method for inspecting a developing roll, in the measuring step, the glossiness of the developing roll is measured along a predetermined direction on the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. It is characterized by continuous measurement.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the method for inspecting a developing roll, the developing roll is rotated around a central axis of the developing roll, and continuously rotated along a circumferential direction of the developing roll. It is characterized by measuring the glossiness.

According to a twelfth aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a developing roll, wherein the developing roll is moved along an axial direction of the developing roll, and is continuously moved along the axial direction of the developing roll. It is characterized by measuring the glossiness.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the method of inspecting a developing roll according to the present invention, the developer is a non-magnetic one-component toner.

[0028]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present applicant has already invented a new invention that a value obtained by executing a predetermined operation on glossiness is an important index for evaluating the surface condition of a conductive roll used in an image forming apparatus. An application was filed on March 12, 1997 as Japanese Patent Application No. 9-74651 (Title of Invention: Inspection method and inspection apparatus for conductive roll for image forming apparatus).

Subsequently, as a result of earnest studies and experiments, the inventor of the present application has elucidated the correlation between the glossiness of the developing roll and the image resolution in a state further advanced from the contents of the prior application, and Utilizing this technology, we developed a technology that can predict the resolution of the image on the developing roll without having to perform a contact inspection of the surface roughness of the developing roll or without actually mounting the image on an actual machine. The correlation between the resolution of the image and the resolution of the image is clarified, and this can be used to check the quality of the image without having to perform a contact inspection of the surface roughness of the developing roll or to actually mount the image on the actual machine. Invented a technology that can be distinguished.

[0030]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, an embodiment of a developing roll inspection method according to the present invention will be described in detail.

{Description of Developing Roll 10} First, the structure of the developing roll 10 inspected by the inspection method of this embodiment will be described. For example, in an image forming apparatus such as an electronic copying machine, a laser beam printer, and an electronic facsimile machine, the developing roll 10 is provided with a developer (specifically, a photosensitive drum as an image carrier) on an outer peripheral surface thereof. In one embodiment, non-magnetic one-component toner) is supplied (conveyed).
The developing device for visualizing (ie, developing) the electrostatic latent image formed on the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor is provided as a toner supply (transport) member. As shown in FIG. 1, the developing roll 10 includes a metal core 12 and a conductive rubber roll body 16 attached to the outer periphery of the metal core 12 via a primer 14. I have.

Here, the core metal 12 may be a metal having a predetermined rigidity and sufficient conductivity, and in this embodiment, is made of an iron material. Further, in this embodiment, the roll body 16 is formed to have a size capable of forming an image on an A4 size sheet, and its outer diameter is set to φ18 mm. Further, in this embodiment, the roll body 16 is formed of conductive silicone rubber.

The developing roll 10 has a roll resistance value of 10 [3] Ω (in the following description, the number in [] represents a power of 10; 3] indicates 10 to the third power.) To 1
It is set within the range of 0 [7] Ω.

In this embodiment, eight developing rolls 10 are prepared, and these eight developing rolls 10 are used.
Experiments were performed on gloss and image resolution. Hereinafter, the configuration of the developing roll 10 according to each embodiment will be specifically described.

Example 1 A primer 14 is applied to the outer peripheral surface of an iron core 12 having an outer diameter of 17 mm, and a conductive silicone rubber (XE23-B5435; manufactured by Toshiba Silicone Co., Ltd.) is extruded through the primer 14. Then, a roll body 16 made of conductive rubber is provided on the outer periphery of the cored bar 12. Thus, the material of the developing roll 10 is formed. Then, this material is subjected to a primary vulcanization treatment in a steam pot, and then to a secondary vulcanization treatment in an oven.
Developing roll 10 to which a roll body 16 is attached via
To form a base material.

Then, the base material is made of φ18.5 mm to 1
Coarsely ground to an outer diameter of 8.6 mm.
Finish grinding was performed as a final step using a cylindrical grinder (LEO-600 F2; manufactured by Mizuguchi Seisakusho), and the developing roll 10 was finally obtained. In the following description, it is indicated as the roll number of the developing roll 10 obtained in the first embodiment.

Examples 2 to 8 The same forming steps as in Example 1 described above
Along with the processing step, the developing roll 10 is obtained through the above-described finish grinding processing, and the outer peripheral surface of the roll body 16 as the outermost peripheral surface of the developing roll 10 is subjected to a film polishing treatment as a final step, so that the developing roll 10 Finally got.
In the following description, it is referred to as the roll number of the developing roll 10 obtained in Example 2, and the same applies hereinafter.

Next, the correlation between the glossiness of the developing roll and the resolution of the image, which is the gist of the present invention, will be described in detail.

{Description of Correlation between Glossiness and Image Resolution} (Explanation of Measurement of Development Roll Glossiness) First, measurement conditions of the development roll glossiness will be described. The glossiness measurement mechanism used was VGS-1001DP manufactured by Nippon Denshoku Industries Co., Ltd.
JIS Z874 using this gloss measurement mechanism.
The 75-degree specular gloss was measured based on Method 2 in 1. When calibrating the 95% gloss, a flat plate holder was used.

In the measurement of the glossiness, the above-mentioned 8
The measurement position of the developing roll 10 is set at the center in the axial direction, and as shown in FIG.
0 is divided into four equal parts along the circumferential direction, and the measurement start position is denoted by the symbol X.
The glossiness was measured first at this X position. When the measurement of the gloss at this X position is completed,
The developing roll 10 was rotated clockwise by 90 degrees, the stop position thereof was indicated by a symbol Y, and the glossiness was measured at this Y position.

When the measurement of the glossiness at the Y position is completed, the developing roll 10 is further rotated clockwise by 90 degrees, and the stop position is indicated by the symbol X '. The gloss was measured. When the measurement of the glossiness at the X 'position is completed, the developing roll 10 is further rotated clockwise by 90 degrees, the stop position thereof is indicated by a symbol Y', and the glossiness is measured at the Y 'position. did.

That is, the measured value of each developing roll 10 is composed of four measured values (X, Y, X ', Y') shifted by 90 degrees in the circumferential direction at the central part in each axial direction. become. The average value of four measured values (X, Y, X ', Y') was adopted as the glossiness of each developing roll 10.

(Explanation of Measurement of Toner Conveying Ability of Developing Roll 10) On the other hand, an important factor for examining the resolution of an image is the conveying ability of the toner conveyed by the developing roll 10. The transport capacity includes the thickness of the toner layer carried on the surface of the developing roll 10 (that is, the thickness of the toner layer).

Therefore, the eight developing rolls 10 whose glossiness was measured by the above-described method were sequentially mounted on the cartridge, and after passing the blank paper, the developing roll was removed from the cartridge to remove the toner adhering to the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. The adhesion weight was measured by a measuring method known as a so-called "tape method". The tape used in this tape method is Sumitomo 3M
Mending tape (width 12 mm).

The measurement results of the glossiness and the toner layer thickness of each developing roll 10 are as shown in Table 1.

[0046]

[Table 1]

(Explanation of Correlation) As shown in FIG. 8, the correlation between the glossiness of the developing roll 10 and the thickness of the toner layer based on Table 1 indicates that the glossiness ranges from 0.6 to 3.5. As a result, a strong correlation that could draw a linear calibration curve was confirmed.

That is, by measuring the glossiness of the developing roll 10 in a non-contact state, the developing roll 10 can be mounted on a cartridge without conducting a paper-passing experiment, and can be contacted like a surface roughness test. Even if no test is performed, the thickness of the toner layer can be reliably predicted.

{Measurement of Surface Roughness} Next, the surface roughness of the eight developing rolls 10 was measured.

Here, the surface roughness of each developing roll 10 is as follows:
Using a surface roughness meter (Surfcom 550A: manufactured by Tokyo Seimitsu Co., Ltd.), the measurement length is 2.5 m based on the old JIS standard.
m and the moving speed of the inspection needle were measured under the measurement conditions of 0.3 mm / sec. Table 2 shows the measurement results.

[0051]

[Table 2]

As is clear from Table 2, the surface roughness of the developing roll having the outer peripheral surface film polished is smaller than that of the developing roll having no outer peripheral surface film polished. It has been found that there is a correlation that the outer peripheral surface of the developing roll 10 has a finer surface roughness than the case where the film is not polished. However, it has not been possible to specify that there is some correlation between glossiness and surface roughness.

{Explanation on Correlation between Glossiness and Image Resolution} (Explanation on Measurement of Image Resolution) {Measurement of Line Width and Line Pitch when Reproducing Fine Line} Next, eight developing rolls 10 With 1,200 dpi as the image resolution
Are sequentially mounted on a developing unit of an image evaluator (Feather 550; manufactured by Tektronix) having the ability of
An image in which a fine line with a line pitch of 175 μm was drawn was printed (printed) on A4 size paper using cyan toner. Here, the line width and the line pitch described above are, as shown in FIG. 2, the thickness of the drawn thin line (the width along the direction orthogonal to the direction in which the thin line extends) and the width of the thin line adjacent to each other. The center-to-center distances are shown.

Then, an enlarged photograph of the image output on the A4 size paper was taken at a magnification of 50 times using an optical microscope (PMG3: manufactured by Olympus Optical Industrial Co., Ltd.). First, the results (enlarged photographs) of Examples 1 to 8 are shown in FIGS. 3A to 3H, respectively. Then, on each of the photographs shown in FIGS. 3A to 3H, the line width was measured at 80 locations and the line pitch was measured at 70 locations by calipers. The measurement results for these line widths are shown in FIG.
4H show a histogram, and the measurement results regarding the line pitch are shown as histograms in FIGS. 5A to 5H for each of the eight developing rolls.

Here, in each of the enlarged photographs shown in FIGS. 3A to 3H, the thin line is developed as a black band and the interval is developed as a white band. The width was measured, and the width of the white band was measured as the interval between the thin lines.
Since the line pitch is a distance from the center line of a thin line to the center line of an adjacent thin line, it was calculated from the measured line width and interval of the thin line using the following formula. That is, line pitch = line width × (１ ／) + interval + next line width × (１ ／)
In addition, as shown in FIG. 6, when a convex part or a concave part was present in the black band, the width from the vertex of the convex part or the bottom of the concave part, that is, the boundary from the black part to the white part was measured. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7, when the boundary between the black part and the white part was unclear, an extension was drawn from a clear part before and after the boundary, and the measurement was performed after assuming the boundary from this extension.

{Evaluation of Reproducibility of Fine Lines} On the other hand, in evaluating the reproducibility of thin lines, it is possible to judge that the reproducibility of fine lines is good if the measured values have no variation and are constant. Based on the measurement results shown in FIGS. 4A to 4H and FIGS. 5A to 5H, the standard deviation for each example regarding the line width and the line pitch was calculated. Table 3 and Table 4 show the calculation results.
Shown in

[0057]

[Table 3]

[0058]

[Table 4]

From Tables 3 and 4, the correlation between the glossiness and the line width and line pitch is shown in FIG.

In evaluating the calculation results of the standard deviation shown in Table 3, when judging the reproducibility of the fine line, the optimum surface condition for improving the reproducibility of the fine line is to have a smoothness close to a mirror surface. Things are ideal. For this reason, it is possible to judge that the measured value is constant without variation, so that the reproducibility of the fine line is good.
Those having a standard deviation of 15 or more and less than 20 were determined to be good (○) for those having a standard deviation of less than 5 and less than 20.
Those having a standard deviation of 20 or more were judged to be unacceptable (x).

As a result, as shown in the comprehensive evaluation in Table 5 and FIG. 8, the glossiness of 1.3 to 3.5 in the range of good and excellent as the judgment result is called the reproducibility of the fine line. From the viewpoint, it has been found that a material having a glossiness of 1.5 to 3.0, which is in an excellent range as a result of the determination, is particularly optimum.

[0062]

[Table 5]

That is, a developing roll provided for low resolution by finish grinding is formed by using a film having a film count of 600 to 4,000, and a roll body which is the outermost peripheral surface of the developing roll 10 after finish grinding. By polishing the outer peripheral surface of the film 16, it can be used as a developing roller for high resolution, and the productivity can be improved. As a result, the manufacturing cost of the developing roller 10 can be reduced. You can do it.

The surface conditions shown in Table 5 show the results of visual observation by the observer.

Inspection device 10 for inspecting developing roll 10
Description 0 As described in detail above, by utilizing the correlation between the glossiness of the developing roll 10 and the resolution of the image, the developing roll 10 can be brought into contact with the developing roll 10 in a short time without actually outputting an image. That is, it is possible to determine the quality of the developing roll 10 only by measuring the glossiness of the developing roll in advance without actually incorporating the developing roll 10 into the image forming apparatus and performing a test run. An inspection method of the developing roll 10 which is a feature of the present invention will be described.

First, an inspection apparatus 100 for implementing the inspection method will be described with reference to FIGS.

The inspection apparatus 100 includes an apparatus main body 102 having an upper surface set horizontally. In this embodiment, for example, in this embodiment, the glossiness is measured under the provisions of JIS Z8741. The glossiness measuring mechanism 104 is housed. The gloss measuring mechanism 104 has substantially the same configuration as a gloss meter known as, for example, VGS-1001DP manufactured by Nippon Denshoku Industries Co., Ltd., and details thereof are not shown. A light-emitting unit 104a and a light-receiving unit 104b. Is set. Note that the glossiness measuring mechanism 104
Is configured such that the detection light is emitted from the light emitting unit 104a in accordance with the ON operation of the power switch (not shown).

On the front surface of the apparatus main body 102, angle setting knobs 106a and 106b for arbitrarily setting the incident angle and the reflection angle in the glossiness measuring mechanism 104 respectively swing along an arc-shaped guide groove 108. Mounted freely. On the other hand, on the upper surface of the apparatus main body 102, a light emitting unit 104a and a light receiving unit
Windows 110a and 110b for adjusting b respectively are formed to be openable.

Further, a through hole 112 for measuring the glossiness is formed in the center of the top plate of the apparatus main body 102 so as to penetrate in the thickness direction. As shown in detail in FIG. 10, this through hole 112 is in a horizontal state parallel to the detection surface, that is,
A lower linear slit 112a extending along the left-right direction of the apparatus main body 102 and opening on the lower surface of the top plate portion, and is directly adjacent to and communicates with the linear slit 112a. And an upper circular mounting hole 112b opened on the upper surface. In addition, mounting hole 1
A boss hole 114 for positioning is formed in the periphery of 12b.

On the other hand, the inspection apparatus 100 is provided with an inspection table 116 that fits tightly into the mounting hole 112b described above and is detachable. As shown in FIG. 11, the inspection table 116 has a disk-shaped main body 116a whose lower part can be tightly fitted into the mounting hole 112b, and protrudes radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the main body 116a. The boss hole 114 described above
And a positioning boss 116b for accurately defining the mounting angle of the main body 116a by fitting into the main body 116a.
The receiving groove 116c is formed on the upper surface of the developing roller 10 and is placed in a state where a substantially central portion of the roll main body 14 of the developing roll 10 extends left and right. Detection window 116 formed in a state penetrating in the direction
d.

Here, the portion of the roll main body 14 of the developing roll 10 placed in the receiving groove 116c, which faces the above-described detection window 116d, is a portion to be measured by the glossiness measuring mechanism 104. Stipulated. For this reason, the detection window 116d is configured so that the detection light from the gloss measurement mechanism 104 light-emitting unit is applied to the measured unit, and the reflected light from the measured unit is incident on the light-receiving unit. It is formed in a sufficient size. Further, the height position of the measured portion is set such that the detection light from the light emitting portion is regularly reflected toward the light receiving portion.

In this embodiment, the diameter of the above-described receiving groove 116c in the cross-sectional shape is set slightly larger than the diameter of the developing roll 10 which is mounted here and whose glossiness is detected. Specifically, the outer diameter of the developing roll 10 in this embodiment is φ16 mm as described above.
Therefore, the diameter of the receiving groove 116c is specified to be, for example, 18 mm. In addition, this detection window 11
Needless to say, 6d is formed at the bottom (bottom) of the receiving groove 116c.

On the other hand, when the positioning boss 116b is attached to the corresponding boss hole 114, the detection window 116d is placed in a horizontal direction parallel to the detection surface, that is, the left and right sides of the main body 12 of the apparatus. It is set to extend along the direction.

As shown in FIG. 9 again, this inspection apparatus 10
0 is an arithmetic unit 120 that is electrically connected to the main unit 102 having the above-described configuration via a connection line 118 in addition to the main unit 102.
It has. The arithmetic unit 120 includes therein an arithmetic unit 122 configured to calculate the measured gloss of the developing roll 10 based on the detection output from the light receiving unit 104b of the gloss measuring mechanism 104.

The arithmetic unit 120 has a 0% setting button 124 for setting the glossiness “0%” and a 95% for setting the glossiness “95%” for the calibration operation. A% setting button 126 is provided. The arithmetic unit 120 is provided with a start button 128 for instructing the start of an inspection. When the start button 128 is pressed, the light receiving unit 10
4b, based on the detection output from
The calculation operation of the glossiness is started.

Further, the arithmetic mechanism 120 is provided with the arithmetic unit 12
2 further includes a printing mechanism 130 for printing and outputting the calculation result in Step 2. This printing mechanism 130
Is a well-known configuration, and a detailed description thereof is omitted. In this embodiment, for example, the calculation result is printed on thermal paper and output (printed out).

{Description of Inspection Method for Inspecting Developing Roll 10} The gloss of the developing roll 10 is measured using the inspection apparatus 100 configured as described above, and based on this, the image resolution is estimated. The inspection method of the developing roll, which is a feature of the present invention, will be described in detail below.

First, the standard adjustment operation of the inspection apparatus 100 is executed. That is, the inspection table 116 is removed from the mounting hole 112b of the through hole 112 formed in the apparatus main body 102,
A reference device (0% reference device) that defines the glossiness “0%” is fitted into the mounting hole 112b. With the 0% reference device attached in this manner, the above-described 0% setting button 124 is pressed. As a result, the arithmetic unit 122 sets the glossiness to “0”.
% ".

Next, this 0% reference plate is attached to the mounting hole 112.
b), and a reference device (95% reference device) for specifying the glossiness “95%” is attached instead. Thus 9
With the 5% reference tool attached, the above-mentioned 95% setting button 126 is pressed. Thereby, the arithmetic unit 122 calibrates the glossiness “95%”. Thereafter, the 95% reference device is removed, and the above-described inspection table 116 is attached.

After the calibration operation of the inspection apparatus 100 is completed, the method 2 (75) in JIS Z8741 is performed.
Angle measurement knob 106 to measure the specular gloss).
a and 106b are moved along the arc-shaped guide groove 108, and the incident angle from the light emitting unit 104a and the light receiving unit 104
The reflection angles to b are set to 75 °, respectively, and the standard adjustment operation ends.

After the standard adjustment is performed in this manner, the developing roll 10 formed into a predetermined shape by a molding device (not shown) is automatically or manually transferred through a transport mechanism (not shown). It is placed on the receiving groove 116c of the inspection table 116 in a state of being left-right balanced. As a result, the lower surface of the substantially central portion of the developing roll 10 is automatically set at the fixed position.

On the other hand, when the developing roll 10 is placed on the inspection table 116 as described above, when the inspector presses the start button 128 of the arithmetic unit 120, the light is emitted from the light emitting section 104a of the glossiness measuring mechanism 104. The measurement value photoelectrically converted based on the amount of light received when the reflected light of the inspection light at the detected position is received by the light receiving unit 104b is converted into an electrical signal by the arithmetic unit 1 via the arithmetic unit 120 connection line 118.
22. The arithmetic unit 122 performs a predetermined arithmetic operation based on the transmitted electric signal to check the conductive roll 1 that has been inspected.
A gloss value of 0 is calculated. Then, the calculated glossiness is printed out by the print mechanism 130 and displayed to the inspector.

In this manner, a series of inspection operations is completed, and when the inspector determines that the displayed glossiness is within a predetermined allowable range (for example, 3 or more and 6 or less),
The conductive roll 10 is placed in an OK box (not shown) for carrying to the next step. On the other hand, if it is determined that the measured gloss is out of the predetermined allowable range, it is stored in an NG box (not shown) and disposed.

<< Explanation of Various Modifications >> It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the execution of the above-described procedure, but can be variously modified without departing from the gist of the present invention. Hereinafter, various modifications of the present invention will be sequentially described. In the following description, the same parts as those of the parts (members) used in the above-described embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the measured portion of the developing roll 10 to be inspected has been described as being one lower portion at the center, but the present invention is not limited to such a measured portion. Without being limited, the developing roll 10
May be placed at any position as long as they are placed on the inspection table 116 in a well-balanced manner, and are not limited to one position, and may be placed at a plurality of positions along the circumferential direction of the developing roll 10 in the axial direction. There may be a plurality of places along.

<< Description of First Modification >> Here, when the glossiness of the developing roll 10 is measured along its circumferential direction and axial direction, as described above, it is intermittent at a plurality of locations. Instead of measuring, it may be measured continuously.
That is, as shown as a first modified example in FIGS. 12A and 12B, the inspection apparatus 100A includes a movable base 13 supported on a top plate of the apparatus main body 10S so as to be movable in the left-right direction.
2 is provided. On the movable table 132, a pair of support rolls 134a, 134b: 136a, which rotatably support both ends of the cored bar 12 of the developing roll 10 to be inspected, respectively;
136b is provided. That is, the left end of the metal core 12 in the figure is rotatably supported while straddling a pair of support rolls 134a and 134b, and the right end of the metal core 12 in the figure is
In a state of straddling a pair of support rolls 136a and 136b,
It is rotatably supported.

The moving table 132 is driven to reciprocate by a linear moving mechanism 138 built in the apparatus main body 102. On the other hand, each pair of support rolls 13
4a; 134b; 136a;
The rotating mechanism 140 mounted on the upper part is driven to rotate along the same direction as each other. The drive of the linear moving mechanism 138 and the rotation mechanism 140 is controlled by a control mechanism 142 housed in the apparatus main body 102.

In this case, the inspection table 116 used in the above embodiment is not used in the first modification. And each pair of support rolls 134a;
4b: The height position of 136a; 136b is such that the height position of the measured portion of the developing roll 10 having the cored bar 12 supported thereon is the detection light emitted from the light emitting unit 104a of the glossiness measuring mechanism 104. It is set so as to be a position for regular reflection.

By configuring the first modification in this way, the glossiness of the developing roll 10 can be measured continuously along the circumferential direction and / or continuously along the axial direction. Can be done. This makes it possible to significantly improve the reliability of the inspection.

{Explanation of Second Modification} In the above-described embodiment, the measured glossiness is measured by the printing mechanism 13.
0, and the inspector looks at the measured gloss value displayed in the printout,
Although the description has been made to judge the acceptability, the present invention is not limited to such a procedure.
20 may be provided with a determination function so that the quality of the developing roll 10 is automatically determined.

That is, as shown in FIG. 13 as a second modification, the arithmetic unit 120B includes a comparator 144, a threshold setting unit 146, and a discriminator 14 in addition to the arithmetic unit 122 described above.
8 and a display 150.

The output terminal of the calculator 122 is connected to the comparator 14
4 is connected to one input terminal, and the other input terminal of the comparator 144 is connected to a threshold value setting device 146. Here, a predetermined allowable range of the glossiness is set in the threshold value setting device 146. The comparator 144 is a threshold setting device 1
The comparison unit 148 outputs a comparison signal obtained by comparing a predetermined allowable range as a threshold value output from the arithmetic unit 122 with the gloss level output from the calculator 122, and the discriminator 148 determines whether the gloss level is a predetermined level based on the comparison signal. When it is determined that it is within the allowable range, an OK (good) signal is output, and when it is determined that it is outside the predetermined allowable range, an NG (improper) signal is output. ing.

In the second modification, the arithmetic unit 1
The indicator 150 attached to the 20 is an OK lamp 15
0a and an NG lamp 150b.
With the output of the OK signal from 48, the OK lamp 150a
Is turned on, and the NG lamp 150b
Is turned on.

By configuring the second modification in this manner, the inspector can display the display 150 without making his own judgment.
It is sufficient to sort the development rolls 10 that have been inspected by looking at the display contents of, and the workability of the inspection is improved, and there is no risk of making a determination error, and the reliability of the inspection is significantly improved.

{Description of Third Modification} As shown in FIG. 14 as a third modification, the inspection apparatus 100C
Is a pickup mechanism 15 that can automatically pick up the developing roll 10 to be inspected and transport it to a desired position, in addition to the configuration of the second modification described above.
2, a storage stocker 154 for storing the developing roll 10 before inspection, and the developing roll 1 determined to be good by the inspection.
0 may be further provided, and an NG box 158 may be provided to accommodate the developing roll 10 that is determined to be discarded by the inspection.

By configuring the third modification in this way, the developing roll 10 to be inspected can be transferred from the storage stocker 154 to the inspection device 10 via the pickup mechanism 152.
The developer roll 10 is automatically conveyed to a position to be inspected at 0C and is positioned there, and when an OK signal is output upon completion of the inspection, the developing roll 10 is temporarily stored in an OK box 156 or directly in an image box. It will be transported to an incorporation station in the forming apparatus. On the other hand, when an NG signal is output upon completion of the inspection, the developing roll 10 can be configured to be discarded into the NG box 158 via the pickup mechanism 152. In this way, the inspection operation can be fully automated, and labor savings can be achieved.

[0097]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, there is provided a method of inspecting a developing roll which can determine in advance whether the resolution achieved by the developing roll is good or not at the time of manufacturing the developing roll. Will be.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a method of inspecting a developing roll, which can predict a resolution that cannot be measured by a developing roll alone when manufacturing the developing roll.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a method of inspecting a developing roll, which can predict the resolution attained by the developing roll at the time of manufacturing without incorporating the developing roll into an image forming apparatus to produce an image. Will be.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a method of inspecting a developing roll, which can predict the resolution attained by the developing roll in a short time and can inspect the total number of the developing rolls. Will be.

Further, according to the present invention, the inspection of the developing roll which can predict the resolution achieved by the developing roll without contacting the surface roughness of the developing roll without contacting the developing roll. A method will be provided.

[0102]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a configuration of a developing roll used in the present invention and a side position of glossiness thereof.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a line width and a line pitch of a thin line for determining the resolution of an image.

FIG. 3A is a view showing an image when the fine line shown in FIG. 2 is reproduced using the developing roll of Example 1 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3B is a diagram showing an image when the fine line shown in FIG. 2 is reproduced using the developing roll of Example 2 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3C is a diagram showing an image obtained by reproducing the fine line shown in FIG. 2 using the developing roll of Example 3 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3D is a diagram showing an image when the fine line shown in FIG. 2 is reproduced using the developing roll of Example 4 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3E is a diagram showing an image obtained by reproducing the fine line shown in FIG. 2 using the developing roll of Example 5 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3F is a diagram showing an image when the fine line shown in FIG. 2 is reproduced using the developing roll of Example 6 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3G is a diagram showing an image when the fine line shown in FIG. 2 is reproduced using the developing roll of Example 7 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 3H is a diagram showing an image when the fine line shown in FIG. 2 is reproduced using the developing roll of Example 8 by a photograph taken with an optical microscope.

FIG. 4A is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 1 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4B is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 2 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4C is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 3 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4D is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 4 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4E is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 5 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4F is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 6 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4G is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 7 over 80 locations.

FIG. 4H is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line width of a thin line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 8 over 80 locations.

FIG. 5A is a diagram showing, as a histogram, measurement results obtained by measuring the line pitch of fine lines reproduced using the developing roll of Example 1 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5B is a diagram showing, as a histogram, measurement results obtained by measuring the line pitch of fine lines reproduced using the developing roll of Example 2 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5C is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line pitch of a fine line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 3 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5D is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line pitch of a fine line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 4 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5E is a diagram showing, as a histogram, measurement results obtained by measuring the line pitch of fine lines reproduced using the developing roll of Example 5 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5F is a diagram showing, as a histogram, a measurement result obtained by measuring the line pitch of a fine line reproduced using the developing roll of Example 6 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5G is a diagram showing, as a histogram, measurement results obtained by measuring the line pitch of fine lines reproduced using the developing roll of Example 7 over 70 locations.

FIG. 5H is a diagram showing, as a histogram, measurement results obtained by measuring the line pitch of fine lines reproduced using the developing roll of Example 8 over 70 locations.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining measurement of a reproduced fine line unevenness state.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining measurement of a reproduced thin line in an unclear state;

FIG. 8 is a diagram simultaneously showing a correlation between glossiness and a toner layer thickness, and a correlation between glossiness and a standard deviation of a line width and a line pitch of a fine line.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of an inspection apparatus in which the method for inspecting a conductive roll according to the present invention is performed.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged plan view showing a through hole shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a side sectional view showing the test table shown in FIG. 9 taken out therefrom.

FIG. 12A is a front view schematically showing a configuration according to a first modified example of the inspection apparatus that performs the inspection method according to the present invention.

12B is a side view schematically showing a side shape of the inspection device shown in FIG. 12A.

FIG. 13 is a front view schematically showing a configuration according to a second modification of the inspection apparatus for performing the inspection method according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a front view schematically showing a configuration according to a third modification of the inspection apparatus for performing the inspection method according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Developing roll 12 Core 14 Primer 16 Roll main body 100 (100A, 100C) Inspection apparatus 102 Apparatus main body 104 Glossiness measuring mechanism 106a; 106b Angle setting knob 108 Guide groove 110a; 110b Window 112 Through hole 112a Straight slit 112b Mounting Hole 114 Positioning boss hole 116 Inspection table 116a Main body 116b Positioning boss 116c Receiving groove 116d Detection window 118 Connection line 120 (120B) Computing device 122 Computing unit 124 0% setting button 126 95% setting button 128 Start Button 130 Printing mechanism 132 Moving table 134a; 134b: 136a; 136b Support roll 138 Linear moving mechanism 140 Rotating mechanism 142 Control mechanism 144 Comparator 146 Threshold setting device 148 Discriminator 15 Display 152 pickup mechanism 154 storage stocker 156 OK box 158 NG box

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus with a cored bar and a rubber layer formed on the outer periphery of the cored bar, wherein the outer periphery of the rubber layer is exposed. Setting step for obtaining a correlation between the developing roller and the glossiness, a positioning step for positioning the developing roll at the position to be inspected, a measuring step for measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the inspected position, and the measured gloss A determining step of determining whether the resolution achieved by the developing roll is acceptable based on the degree. 2. A method of inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus, comprising: a cored bar; and a rubber layer formed on an outer periphery of the cored bar. Setting step for obtaining a correlation between the developing roller and the glossiness, a positioning step for positioning the developing roll at the position to be inspected, a measuring step for measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the inspected position, and the measured gloss Estimating the resolution achieved by the developing roll based on the degree. 3. A method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus with a cored bar and a rubber layer formed on the outer periphery of the cored bar, wherein the outer periphery of the rubber layer is exposed. A positioning step of positioning the developing roller positioned at the inspection position, a measuring step of measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the inspection position, and a predetermined correlation between the measured glossiness and the image resolution. A determination step of determining whether or not the resolution achieved by the developing roll is based on the developing roll. 4. A method for inspecting a developing roll used in an image forming apparatus with a cored bar and a rubber layer formed on an outer periphery of the cored bar, wherein the outer periphery of the rubber layer is exposed. A positioning step of positioning the developing roll positioned at the inspected position, a measuring step of measuring the glossiness of the developing roll positioned at the inspected position, and a predetermined correlation between the measured glossiness and the image resolution. And estimating a resolution achieved by the developing roll based on the developing roll. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein in the measuring step, the glossiness of the developing roll is determined by measuring an outer peripheral surface of the developing roll.
The method for inspecting a developing roll according to claim 1, wherein the measurement is performed at three locations. 6. The method for inspecting a developing roll according to claim 5, wherein one of the outer peripheral surfaces of the developing roll is a substantially central portion along the axial direction of the developing roll. 7. The developing roll according to claim 1, wherein in the measuring step, the glossiness of the developing roll is measured at a plurality of locations on an outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. Inspection method. 8. The developing roll according to claim 7, wherein the developing roll is rotated around its central axis, and the glossiness is measured at a plurality of positions along the circumferential direction of the developing roll. Inspection methods. 9. The developing device according to claim 7, wherein the developing roll is moved along the axial direction thereof, and the glossiness is measured at a plurality of positions along the axial direction of the developing roll. Roll inspection method. 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein in the measuring step, the glossiness of the developing roll is continuously measured along a predetermined direction on an outer peripheral surface of the developing roll. 3. The method for inspecting a developing roll described in 1. above. 11. The developing roll according to claim 10, wherein the developing roll is rotated around its central axis, and the glossiness is measured continuously along the circumferential direction of the developing roll. Inspection methods. 12. The developing device according to claim 10, wherein the developing roll is moved along the axial direction thereof, and the glossiness is continuously measured along the axial direction of the developing roll. Roll inspection method. 13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the developer is a non-magnetic one-component toner.