JPS6127747B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention relates to an electrophotographic apparatus.

Electrophotographic devices use the so-called PPC method, in which the original image is formed as an electrostatic latent image on a rotating photoreceptor, which is developed and then transferred to copy paper, or the electrostatic latent image formed on the photoreceptor. A known method employs a method in which a latent image is further developed as an electrostatic latent image on copy paper, and then this copy paper is developed. In any of these electrophotographic methods, because the object to be copied is paper, paper jams may occur in the copy paper transport path within the apparatus.

Incidentally, in electrophotographic apparatuses, photoreceptors are often formed into a drum shape as copying speeds increase and apparatuses become more compact. Therefore, the above
In an electrophotographic device that uses the PPC method, the original image developed on the photosensitive drum is transferred to the copy paper while the copy paper is pressed against the photosensitive drum.
Copy paper is likely to jam in this transfer area. In an example of an electrophotographic apparatus that employs the other method described above, electrostatic recording paper is used as copy paper, and the recording paper and a screen-shaped photosensitive drum are opposed to each other with a slight distance between them. In order to transfer the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum onto the recording paper by projecting a corona ion flow from the photosensitive drum side while applying a high voltage between the two, the recording paper is Due to the potential difference, the recording paper is likely to be attracted to the photosensitive drum side, which may cause paper jams in this area.

For this reason, conventionally, in order to repair the paper jam in the transfer area, methods such as opening the top of the device or opening the side wall of the device and pulling out the copy paper that is jammed in the transfer area have been used. However, none of these methods can be considered reasonable for the following reasons.

In other words, when opening the top of the device and taking out copy paper stuck in the transfer section, this open section can be made relatively wide, but in reality, this transfer section is equipped with a transfer roller or a copy paper transport roller, which will be described later. 〓〓〓〓〓
La and other structures are attached.
It is very difficult to remove the copy paper because it becomes stuck between them and there is no space to put your hand in, and sometimes it can damage the photosensitive drum. . In particular, if the transfer part is below the photosensitive drum (including diagonally below), it is difficult to create a space to take out the copy paper that is jammed, and the copy paper is removed. becomes even more difficult. In addition, when opening the side wall of the device and removing copy paper stuck in the transfer area, pull it out horizontally between the photosensitive drum and other structures, that is, perpendicular to the direction of travel of the copy paper. Therefore, it is difficult to remove the copy paper without damaging the photosensitive drum to some extent.

It is an object of the present invention to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks, and to prevent copy paper from becoming jammed during its transportation path, especially near the photoreceptor, which is the most important element in an electrophotographic apparatus, without damaging the photoreceptor. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrophotographic apparatus that can easily and safely remove copy paper.

The present invention provides an electrophotographic apparatus that has a rotating photoreceptor on which an electrostatic latent image of an original is to be formed, and uses this photoreceptor as a medium to form the original image on copy paper. Copy paper conveying means in a transfer section for transferring the image or a developed image obtained by developing this electrostatic latent image onto copy paper is formed opposite to the lower and inclined portion of the photoreceptor, and at least A structure including a copy paper conveyance means in a direction substantially perpendicular to the width direction of the photoreceptor,
It is also characterized by being configured to be movable in the horizontal direction.

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an example of an electrophotographic apparatus of the present invention. In this example, an electrostatic latent image of an original document formed on a drum-shaped photoreceptor is further transferred as an electrostatic latent image onto copy paper. Next, an electrophotographic apparatus that employs this method of developing copy paper will be shown. A document (not shown) placed on a document table 1 is illuminated by an illumination lamp 2, and the reflected light is guided to a photosensitive drum 6 via a reflection mirror 3, a shutter 4, and a projection lens 5. Further, the rotation of the photosensitive drum 6 and the sliding movement of the document table 1 are synchronized, and a first corona is located inside the photosensitive drum 6 in front of the light image irradiation section when viewed in the rotation direction. A charger 7 is arranged to uniformly charge the photosensitive drum 6. Therefore, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the original image is formed on the photosensitive drum 6 in the light image irradiation section. This electrostatic latent image is generated by modulating the flow of corona ions from the second corona charger 8 disposed inside the photosensitive drum 6 near the bottom thereof.
and is transferred to a copy sheet that is conveyed via the photosensitive drum 6 to an opposing position.

On the other hand, the rolled copy paper 9 is fed out by a paper feed roller 10 that rotates in synchronization with the rotation of the transfer photosensitive drum 6, and is cut into a desired length by a cutter 11. This cut copy paper is placed in the paper guide 12.
is guided to the transfer conveyor belt 13 via
By the ion projection from the second corona charger 8, the electrostatic latent image of the document formed on the photosensitive drum 6 is transferred.

The transfer conveyor belt 13 is arranged so that the part facing the second corona charger 8 is located below the part of the photosensitive drum 6 facing this part, and in this example, the transfer belt 13 is Conveyor belt 1
3 is provided at an angle with respect to the horizontal direction so that the copy paper is conveyed in a forward downward direction. The copy paper onto which the electrostatic latent image has been transferred passes through a developing device 14, a squeeze roller 15, a suction roller 16, a drying roller 17, and a discharge roller 18, and then is delivered to a tray 19 as a clear image. Note that reference numeral 20 is an outer box that effectively holds the above-mentioned components and also effectively blocks external light. Further, reference numeral 21 indicates, excluding the transfer portion,
This is a light-shielding partition plate that surrounds the photosensitive drum 6, and allows only the reflected light from the document to be introduced by the above-mentioned opening/closing operation of the shutter 4.

In the above-mentioned electrophotographic apparatus, in this embodiment, the copy paper including the loading section for the rolled copy paper 9 and the copy paper conveyance path near the photosensitive drum 6 until it is cut and carried into the developing device 14. The above-mentioned components placed in the delivery route are referred to as structure 2.
2, and this structure 22 is held together by the photosensitive drum 6 and the device outer box 2 in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 6 as shown by the double arrow.
It can be moved or inserted into and removed from 0. In addition, in this example, an inverter that turns on and off the power supply circuit of the device according to the movement or insertion/removal operation of the structure 22 is used.
A taro switch 23 is provided.

In the electrophotographic apparatus of the present invention shown in FIG. 1, if a paper jam occurs near the transfer area and this is detected by some detection means, if the structure 22 is moved horizontally as described above, Since the conveyance path is located below the portion of the photosensitive drum 6 that faces the photosensitive drum 6 and is inclined with respect to the moving direction of the structure 22, the photosensitivity at this transfer portion is Immediately, the space between the drum 6 and the transport path is wide open, and the left side (with respect to the figure) of the developing device 14 and the partition plate 21 is also wide open. Further, at this time, the power supply circuit is released by the operation of the switch 23, and the high voltage of the transfer portion is cut off. Therefore, at the transfer portion of the photosensitive drum 6, that is, at the opening of the partition plate 21 facing the second corona charger 8, the copy paper partially wrapped around the drum 6 can be easily and safely removed.
Furthermore, paper jams occurring in the copy paper transport path within the structure 22 and paper jams that have partially entered the developing device 14 can be easily removed.

FIG. 2 shows that after an electrostatic latent image of a document is formed on a photosensitive drum 31, a copy paper 32 is pressed against this drum 31, thereby transferring the electrostatic latent image formed on this drum 31 onto the copy paper 32. This is a diagram showing another example of the electrophotographic apparatus of the present invention which employs a method in which the copy paper is then developed through a developing device 33, and the copy paper conveyance path in the transfer section is similar to that in FIG. 1. It is located at an angle lower than the opposing portion of the drum 31. In the electrophotographic apparatus shown in FIG.
Since paper jams are likely to occur at the transfer portion where the copy paper 32 comes into pressure contact with the photosensitive drum 31, the rolled copy paper 34, paper feed roller 35, cutter 36, guide roller 37, and transfer rollers 38, 38' are shown with imaginary lines. It is held together by a structure 39, and this structure 39 is configured to be able to move or be inserted into and removed from the photosensitive drum 31 in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 31. In this way, it is possible to easily eliminate paper jams in the transfer area where the copy paper 32 comes into pressure contact with the photosensitive drum 31, as well as paper jams in the copy paper transport path leading to this area and in the developing device 33. can.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned example, and can be modified or modified in many ways. For example, in the electrophotographic apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, roll-shaped copy paper is used, but this copy paper may also be sheet-shaped. In addition, in FIGS. 1 and 2, the copy paper transport path from the paper feed section to the transfer section is made movable; however,
It is also possible to make the discharge path including the transfer portion movable depending on the formation position of the transfer portion. Furthermore, although a photosensitive drum is used in the above example, the present invention can be effectively applied even when a photosensitive belt or the like is used.

As described above, according to the present invention, the copy paper transport means 13, 38, 38' of the transfer section are disposed opposite to the lower and inclined portion of the photoreceptor, and the copy paper conveyance means 13, 38, 38' of the transfer section A structure including a conveyance means,
Since it is configured to be movable in a direction substantially perpendicular to the width direction of the photoreceptor and in a horizontal direction, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) By tilting the copy paper conveyance means in the transfer section of the photoreceptor that moves together with the structure with respect to the moving direction of the structure, the copy paper conveyance means in the transfer section and Since the distance from the photoreceptor surface can be widened, paper jams can be more easily removed without forcibly deforming the jammed copy paper and without damaging the photoreceptor.

(2) If a paper jam occurs in the transfer section where paper jams are easily agitated, the copy paper in the jammed state is on the inclined copy paper conveying means below the photoreceptor in the transfer section, so the copying in the transfer section is not possible. By moving the structure containing the paper transport means in the horizontal direction, jammed copy paper is often removed.
Since it is pulled out while it is placed on the copy paper conveying means of the transfer section, its removal can be extremely easy.

(3) In addition, by moving the structure, a relatively wide opening space can be created, so even if copy paper in a paper jam remains in the main body of the device, the copy paper can be moved in the same direction as the paper transport direction or Paper jams can be removed in the opposite direction, thus easily removing paper jams without damaging the photoreceptor.

(4) Since the structure is moved parallel to the horizontal direction, the space required for movement can be reduced compared to when the structure is rotated upward or downward, and the center of gravity shifts during movement. Extremely〓〓〓〓〓
Therefore, it can be moved smoothly with a small amount of force, and the shock associated with the movement can also be reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIGS. 1 and 2 are diagrams showing the configurations of two examples of the electrophotographic apparatus of the present invention, each employing a different electrophotographic method. 6, 31... Photosensitive drum, 9, 32... Copy paper, 1, 35... Paper feed roller, 11, 36... Cutter, 12... Paper guide, 37... Guide roller, 13... For transfer Conveyor belt, 38, 38'...
...Transfer roller, 20, 40...Outer box, 22, 39
……Structure. 〓〓〓〓〓

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In an electrophotographic apparatus that has a rotating photoreceptor on which an electrostatic latent image of an original is to be formed, and uses this photoreceptor as a medium to form the original image on copy paper, the electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor or this Copy paper conveyance means in a transfer section for transferring a developed image obtained by developing an electrostatic latent image onto a copy paper is formed opposite to a lower and inclined portion of the photoreceptor, and at least a copy paper conveying means in the transfer section is formed. A structure including a conveyance means,
The structure is configured to be movable in a direction substantially perpendicular to the width direction of the photoreceptor and in a horizontal direction, so that the distance between the photoreceptor surface and the copy paper conveying means in the transfer section is immediately expanded by movement of the structure. An electrophotographic device characterized by: