JPS5890645A - Electrostatic recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an electrostatic recording device of small-sized, lightweight constitution which performs transfer and fixation stably and speedily by composing a toner image carrier of a belt having an elastic layer, and an intermediate transfer body of a roll. CONSTITUTION:A toner image formed on a beltlike toner carrier 1 consisting of a photoreceptor layer 11, a metallic intermediate layer 1b for preventing extension and a temperature rise, an elastic material layer 1c of silicone rubber, etc., is transferred to an intermediate transfer body which is a metallic roll incorporating a heat source 5a and having a high-resisting resin layer 5c on the surface. Then, this transferred image is fixed once transferred to a transfer material P heated by a transfer material heat plate 7 through a roll 4 and a fixing press roll 6 incorporating a heat source 6a pressed against the roll 4. This lightweight, small-sized constitution realizes an electrostatic recording device which performs transfer and fixation stably and speedily.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention The present invention relates to an electrostatic recording device that transfers a toner image on a toner image carrier onto an intermediate transfer member, and transfers and fixes the toner image on the intermediate transfer member onto a transfer material. Regarding improvements.

Conventionally, as for the above-mentioned electrostatic recording device, patents of 88%-
No. III47, JP-A No. 4N-711! No. 19, JP-A No. SR-100! There are many known endless belt-shaped books in which the toner image carrier is drum-shaped and the intermediate transfer body is likely to come in close contact with the surface of the toner image carrier, as described in publications such as Itko. This device makes it easy to obtain high-quality recorded images, and also employs the so-called retention method, in which a latent image is formed once on a toner image carrier, and multiple identical recorded images are obtained by repeatedly developing and transferring the latent image. It is also easy to perform high-speed recording. Furthermore, even when -component conductive toner is used as a developing toner, it can be transferred and fixed onto a transfer material made of plain paper, thereby simplifying the developing system and improving image quality. There is also the advantage that it can be done. but,
There is a problem in that at least two rotating rolls are required to drive the belt of the intermediate transfer member, which hinders the reduction in size and weight of the recording apparatus.

On the other hand, as an electrostatic recording device that is easy to achieve compactness and weight reduction,
Special public show%-1/4? ? No., Special Public Shoq-san 5tir No., Utility Model 1816-'1911! It is also known that the intermediate transfer body is structured as a roll, as described in various publications of F Gogo. In particular, in such an apparatus, a heat source for fixing the toner image on the transfer material is provided inside the roll-shaped intermediate transfer member in order to achieve further reduction in size and weight. Then, a device using an intermediate transfer body is used.
& Place it on the toner image carrier O Since the toner image must be reliably transferred onto the intermediate transfer member, the contact between the toner image carrier surface and the intermediate transfer member surface must be uniform over the entire width or be made uniform by pressure. As is done, the rolled intermediate transfer member also includes a layer of elastic material below the surface transfer layer. When such an elastic material layer is provided on the intermediate transfer member, even if a heating source is provided inside, the waiting time from the start of heating until transfer and fixing can be performed becomes longer. In order to shorten this waiting time, the thickness of the metal roll that forms the core of the intermediate transfer body should be made as thin as possible within a range that does not deform due to pressure for transfer.
Furthermore, the elastic material layer of the intermediate transfer body must also be made as thin as possible. Even so, the surface of the intermediate transfer member is designed to receive toner images made of silicon-based or fluorine-based resin of less than SOOμm in order to ensure that the toner images are transferred from the toner image carrier to the transfer material. Since it has traditionally been the case that a transfer layer is provided to improve transferability, it is quite difficult to shorten the waiting time. Namely. In practice, the combination of a toner image bearing member whose surface has little elastic deformation and an intermediate transfer member allows the device to be made smaller and lighter, and toner image transfer and fixation are performed stably and reliably. Moreover, it is extremely difficult to realize an electrostatic recording device that can shorten the waiting time.

The present invention provides an electrostatic recording device which can solve the above-mentioned difficulties, and which transfers a toner image formed on a toner image carrier onto an intermediate transfer member, and transfers the toner image on the intermediate transfer member. In an electrostatic recording device that transfers and fixes onto a transfer material, the toner image carrier is configured as a belt having an elastic material layer,
The electrostatic recording device is characterized in that the intermediate transfer body is configured as a roll.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the main part configuration showing an example of the recording device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1, and FIG. be.

In the electrostatic recording device shown in FIG. 1, a belt-shaped toner image bearing member 1 is rotated by a drive roll and a tension roll 3 that rotate in the direction of the hour hand, and is rotated by a transfer pressure roll IIIK that also rotates in a clockwise direction. The intermediate transfer member jK is brought into pressure contact with the intermediate transfer member jK.

Although not shown, along the rotation path of the toner image carrier l, a cleaning machine similar to that in a conventional electrostatic recording device
The surface of the toner image carrier l is cleaned by the cleaning mechanism, and an electrostatic latent image is formed by the electrostatic latent image forming mechanism. A toner image is applied by development by the toner developing mechanism, and the toner image is transferred to the intermediate transfer body 1 by the transfer press roll 41. Intermediate transfer body! rotates counterclockwise at the same speed as the toner image carrier l, and the transferred toner image is pinched between the intermediate transfer member j and the fixing press roll t, which rotates clockwise at the same speed. The transfer material PK transferred is transferred. The transferred toner image on the transfer material PK is heated by the heat of the transfer material P heated by the transfer material heating plate 7, the heat from the heat source jL built in the intermediate transfer body j, and the heat built in the fixing press roll B. source j
The toner is melted by the heat from a side and the outside, and is thus fixed on the transfer material P.

and ＼, as shown in Figure 2,) the image-rejecting body l is,
On the surface, there is a photoreceptor layer made of opa, selenium, or amorphous silicon, and in the middle there is a layer of nickel steel or stainless steel that prevents elongation or dissipates heat to prevent temperature rise, and also serves as an electrode. It has a structure having a metal layer /b exposed from a sheet such as, or a vapor-deposited layer of aluminum or the like, and an elastic material layer /Q made of silicone rubber, ethylene propylene rubber or sponge material on the back side.

Note that it is preferable that the elastic material layer 10 contains conductive powder such as carbon black or metal powder to make the layer a conductive layer to facilitate grounding or voltage application. Further, the intermediate transfer member j is provided with a heating lja such as a heat-resistant heater inside a metal roll jb made of aluminum, stainless steel, etc. Transfer layer jci
It consists of a structure with Therefore, the toner image bearing member L and the intermediate transfer member S are uniformly brought into close contact with each other with a uniform pressure over the entire width by the elastic material layer /Q of the toner image bearing member F, as shown in Fig. J. As a result, the toner image is reliably transferred from the toner image carrier l to the intermediate transfer member j. As mentioned above, the thin transfer layer jc is provided on the surface of the metal roll sb that forms the core, so that the heat from the internal heating can be transmitted to the surface very easily. The toner image can be transferred and fixed from the intermediate transfer body j to the transfer material P in an extremely short waiting time after the heating by the source j is started. Note that silicone-based or fluorine-based rubber or resin is preferably used for the transfer layer 5c.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the metal roll tb shown in FIG. 2 is made of stainless steel and has a cylindrical portion with an outer diameter of , B is an increase curve of the surface temperature due to the heat source 7k of the intermediate transfer body j whose transfer body layer SC is made of a fluorine-based resin with a layer thickness of 200 μm, and B is a surface temperature increase curve due to the heat source 7k of the transfer body layer jc described above.
This is a surface temperature increase curve due to the above-mentioned heat source ja, which corresponds to a conventional roll-shaped intermediate transfer body provided with an elastic material layer made of Jwx silicone rubber. That is, in the conventional roll-shaped intermediate transfer member, the surface temperature does not reach io0°C even after y seconds have passed from the start of heating, whereas the toner image carrier l has an elastic material layer on the back side of the belt-like member. By doing so, we were able to create an intermediate transfer body with a structure in which a thin transfer layer was provided on the surface of a metal roll! In this case, the surface temperature sufficiently exceeds 100° C. in 3 seconds from the start of heating, and at this stage it is possible to completely fix the toner image on the transfer material P. Therefore, considering the time limit for forming a toner image on the toner image carrier l, the operation of the electrostatic recording device requires the following:
Almost no waiting time is required for fixation.

First, the belt-shaped toner image carrier l can be stretched not only horizontally as shown in the stg' diagram, but also in various shapes by using appropriate tension rolls. There is no particular problem in reducing the size and weight of the toner image carrier compared to the conventional drum-shaped toner image carrier. Therefore, the advantage that the roll-shaped intermediate transfer member can be easily reduced in size and weight is not lost.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to achieve compactness and weight reduction, and toner image transfer and fixation are performed stably and reliably, and furthermore, the heating waiting time for fixing is extremely short. An electrographic recording device is obtained.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated example; for example, the fixing press roll may not have a built-in heating source, or the transfer material heating plate may be omitted. Additionally, in the illustrated embodiment,
The toner image is transferred to the intermediate transfer body by pressure-adhesive transfer, but electrostatic transfer involves applying a voltage between the photoreceptor and the intermediate transfer body to move the toner to the intermediate transfer body. It is possible to use the present invention in many cases.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the main part configuration showing an example of the recording device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1, and FIG. be. l...Toner image carrier, /a...Photoreceptor layer, /b
...metal layer, IC...elastic material layer, 2...[movement roller, 3...tension roll, ri...transfer pressure roll, ! ...intermediate transfer body, ja-...heat source,
sb...metal roll, SC...transfer layer, 6...fixing pressure roll, 6a...heat source, 7...transfer material heating plate, P...transfer material. Patent Applicant Roku Konishi Photo Industry Co., Ltd. Figure 1 Figure 7 Figure 3 C 01020504050 SEC. Procedural amendment January 7, 1980 Kazuo Tomi Wakasugi, Director of the Japan Patent Office 1, Indication of the case 1981 Patent l11 No. 1117854 3,
Relationship with the case of the person making the amendment Patent applicant ivt 1-26-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Name (
Name) (127) Konishiroku Photo Industry Co., Ltd. 6. Number of inventions increased by amendment None 7. Subject of amendment
,,-...2, (1) "That is," on page 4, line 5 of the specification is corrected to "that is,". (2) On page 8, line 6, ``instead of'' is corrected to ``in addition to.'' (5) Delete "Therefore, it will no longer be done." from lines 17 to 1 of page 9 of the same page. Above (2)

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] t. An electrostatic recording device that transfers a toner image formed on a toner image carrier onto an intermediate transfer member, and transfers and fixes the toner image on the intermediate transfer member onto the transfer material, An electrostatic recording apparatus characterized in that the toner image bearing member is configured as a belt having an elastic material layer, and the intermediate transfer body is configured as a roll. 2. The electrostatic recording device according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate transfer body is formed by providing a thin transfer layer on the outer periphery of a metal roll.