JP3518265B2 - Image peeling apparatus and image carrier regenerating method using the same - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention enables the image carrier to be reused by peeling the image forming material with a peeling member from the image carrier on which an image has been formed using, for example, an electrophotographic system or a thermal transfer system. And an image carrier regenerating method. More specifically, the present invention relates to an image peeling apparatus including a cleaning member that removes the image forming material on the surface of the image peeling member that peels the image image forming material from the image holding body, and an image holding body reproducing method using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, from the viewpoint of protecting the natural environment of the whole earth, the importance of protecting forest resources has been recognized, and it has become an important issue to reduce the use of wood resources as a raw material for paper. As part of measures to reduce the use of wood resources, currently used paper etc. is not discarded as garbage,
It is being reused as recycled paper.

However, there are many problems in collecting used paper and making it into recycled paper. For example, when collecting used paper,
There is a problem that corporate confidential documents and data are leaked. Also,
There are problems such as the labor of sorting work depending on the type of paper, the transportation cost required for collection, and the collection location and management of recovered waste paper.
In addition, there are problems regarding deterioration of pulp quality when used paper is re-pulped, deinking treatment of ink or the like that constitutes the image portion, and apparatus equipment therefor.

Under these circumstances, in order to recycle the used paper, a special and expensive device must be used, and in order to keep the cost required for recycling the used paper low, a certain company The reality is that we have no choice but to depend on.

[0005] In other words, sorted collection, transportation, collection of used paper,
Unless a huge device is operated efficiently, a large amount of energy will be consumed and CO ₂ emissions will increase, resulting in an increase in CO ₂ emissions, which is one of the global environmental problems. It may further promote the global warming phenomenon.

In order to solve such a problem, a technique has recently been proposed which enables the image carrier to be easily recycled. For example, the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-250569 discloses that an image carrier on which an image is formed has water as a destabilizing agent, an aqueous solution containing a surfactant, an aqueous solution containing a water-soluble polymer, and an interface. At least one kind of water or aqueous solution selected from the group consisting of aqueous solutions containing an activator and a water-soluble polymer is held, and a peeling member is interposed, and an image forming material is heat-bonded or pressure-bonded to the peeling member. There has been proposed a technique for removing the image forming material that is peeled off from the image carrier.

Certainly, in this technique, the peeling performance of the image-forming material from the image carrier seems to have reached a certain level. However, this technique has the following problems. (1) When the image forming material is peeled from the image carrier, the image carrier holds the peeling liquid, so that a large amount of energy is required to dry the image carrier after the peeling. (2) Since the peeling liquid adheres not only to the image carrier but also to the peeling member, the peeling performance deteriorates. (3) In order to prevent deterioration of the peeling performance, it is necessary to use a material having a strong adhesive force as the peeling member, and as a result, it becomes difficult to remove the image forming material from the peeling member.

With regard to the above problem (1), in particular, if the energy required to regenerate the image carrier is larger than the energy required to collect the used paper to make recycled paper, There is no merit to recycle the image carrier, and if the cost required to recycle the image carrier is higher than the manufacturing cost of new paper, there is no merit to recycle the image carrier. There remains a real commercial problem.

Therefore, the inventors of the present invention have disclosed one of the techniques for reproducing the image carrier with a small amount of energy.
No. 710 publication. According to the technique disclosed in this publication, when the image forming material is peeled from the image carrier, a stripping solution is not used unlike the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 4-255916, so that the amount is very small. The image forming material can be peeled off from the image holding body with energy to regenerate the image holding body, and since the so-called consumable stripping solution is not used, the regeneration cost of the image holding body can be kept low. You can also

Therefore, the problem is how to remove the image forming material formed on the image carrier. However, JP-A-7
As disclosed in JP-A-56480 and JP-A-8-339140, when a peeling member for removing the image forming material formed on the image carrier is repeatedly used, an image is formed on the surface of the peeling member. Since the image forming material removed from the holding body adheres unevenly according to the image pattern, uneven peeling performance of the peeling member may occur and local peeling failure may occur. Further, if an excessive amount of the image forming material adheres to the surface of the peeling member, it becomes difficult to bring the image holding member into contact with the surface of the peeling member, and the image holding member may be jammed. is there.

From the above, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-5648
No. 0 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-339140 propose a technique for removing the image forming material attached to the peeling member. That is, in order to prevent deterioration of the peeling performance of the peeling member, a step of cleaning the peeling member or a step of uniformizing the image forming material adhered to the peeling member over the entire surface of the peeling member is provided. Is considered to be effective.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-56480 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 8-
Japanese Patent No. 339140 does not describe anything about the material, process conditions, etc. regarding the apparatus for removing the image forming material from the surface of the peeling member, so the details of the technical content are unknown, but the present inventors have When the technique disclosed in the above publication was verified as faithfully as possible, it was confirmed that the initial peeling performance could be maintained to some extent.

However, when the image forming material attached to the surface of the peeling member is removed by using the cleaning member (blade, roll, etc.) described in the above publication as an example, the adhesive force of the image forming material to the peeling member is increased. Since it is strong, the image forming material is mechanically scraped off by the cleaning member and the peeling member is damaged. For example, the peeling performance, which is important when removing the color image forming material, can be sufficiently maintained. In addition, the reproduction cost of the image carrier cannot be sufficiently reduced.

Further, since the image forming material is removed by bringing the cleaning member into contact with the surface of the peeling member, if the cleaning treatment is continuously performed, the peeling member is prematurely damaged due to frictional contact between the peeling member and the cleaning member. It has been found that not only occurs, but also the damage due to fatigue deterioration of the cleaning member occurs at an early stage, and as a result, a cleaning failure occurs that the image forming material attached to the peeling member cannot be sufficiently removed by the cleaning member. . Furthermore, it was found that secondary problems such as a decrease in peeling performance with time and an increase in recycling cost are caused by these problems.

As described above, in the image peeling apparatus and the image holding body regenerating method for peeling the image forming material from the image holding body on which the image is formed by the peeling member to enable the reusing of the image holding body, the peeling is performed. It is necessary that the sufficient peeling performance of the member is stably maintained for a long period of time.
In particular, even when a color image is solidly formed on the entire surface of the image carrier by an image forming apparatus adopting an electrophotographic system or a thermal transfer system, the image carrier can be easily recycled at a low cost. In order to achieve this, it is strongly required that the above-mentioned peeling performance be maintained stable over a long period of time.

[0016]

The present invention has been completed based on such a background, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image on an image carrier used in an electrophotographic system or a thermal transfer system. An image peeling member that comes into contact with a forming material to peel the image forming material from the image holding member, and a cleaning member that removes the image forming material transferred from the image holding member to the image peeling member from the image peeling member. An image peeling apparatus comprising: a cleaning member that does not damage the image peeling member, and that can be used for a long period of time while maintaining the peeling performance of the image peeling member; and an image using the same. A method for regenerating a holder is provided.

[0017]

The present inventor has conducted intensive studies on an image peeling device and an image holding member reproducing method using the device, and as a result, completed the present invention for achieving the above object.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, an image peeling member that comes into contact with the image forming material on the image holding member and peels the image forming material from the image holding member, and the image holding member is transferred to the image peeling member. In the image peeling apparatus including a cleaning member that removes the image forming material from the image peeling member, the cleaning member is disposed apart from an image forming material holding surface of the image peeling member. .

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to the first aspect, a heating means for heating the image forming material held by the image peeling member is provided between the cleaning member and the image peeling member. It is characterized by that.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to the second aspect, the heating means is provided on the cleaning member.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, a distance changing means for changing the distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member is provided. It is characterized by that.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the cleaning member is a rotating body.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the cleaning member is a plate-like member.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, at least a portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member is made of an elastic body. Characterize.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, a portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member is polished. Characterize.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, at least a portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member is made of a releasable material. The image peeling device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, the cleaning member is used when the image forming material is removed from the image peeling member by the cleaning member. It is characterized in that a detection means for detecting the temperature and a drive start control means for starting cleaning by the cleaning member after detecting that the set temperature is reached by the detection means are provided.

According to the invention of claim 11, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, when the power supply for driving the apparatus is turned off, the distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member is reduced. It is characterized in that a drive stop control means for stopping the drive of the apparatus after the set distance or more is provided.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the image peeling apparatus according to any one of the first to eleventh aspects, when the apparatus driving power is turned off, the cleaning member is stopped after the apparatus driving is stopped. Is provided with cooling control means for lowering the temperature.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, an image peeling step of peeling the image forming material from the image holding member by bringing the image peeling member into contact with the image forming material on the image holding member, and the image holding member from the image holding member. An image carrier regenerating method including a cleaning step of removing the image forming material transferred to the peeling member from the image peeling member with a cleaning member, by separating the cleaning member from the image forming material holding surface of the image peeling member. A feature is that a cleaning process is performed.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image carrier regenerating method according to the thirteenth aspect, the image forming material held by the image peeling member is heated between the cleaning member and the image peeling member by heating means. The cleaning step is performed while heating to a temperature at which cohesive failure occurs.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image carrier regenerating method according to the fourteenth aspect, the heating means is provided on the cleaning member to perform the cleaning step.

The invention of claim 16 is based on claims 13 to 15.
In the image carrier regenerating method described in any one of the above items, the cleaning step is performed by changing a distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member by a distance changing unit.

The invention of claim 17 is based on claims 13 to 16.
In the image carrier regenerating method described in any one of the above items, the cleaning step is performed using a cleaning member made of a rotating body.

The invention of claim 18 relates to claims 13 to 17.
In the image carrier regenerating method as described in any one of the above items, the cleaning step is performed using a cleaning member made of a plate-shaped body.

The invention of claim 19 relates to claims 13 to 18.
In the image carrier regenerating method described in any one of the above items, at least a portion facing the image peeling member is made of an elastic body, and the cleaning step is performed.

The invention of claim 20 is based on claims 13 to 19.
In the method for regenerating an image carrier according to any one of the above items, the cleaning step is performed by using a cleaning member whose portion facing the image peeling member is polished.

The invention of claim 21 is from claim 13 to claim 20.
In the image carrier regenerating method described in any one of the above items, the cleaning step is performed by using a cleaning member in which at least a portion facing the image peeling member is made of a releasing material.

The invention of claim 22 is based on claims 13 to 21.
In the method for regenerating an image carrier according to any one of items 1 to 4, when the cleaning member removes the image forming material from the image peeling member, the temperature of the cleaning member reaches a preset temperature by the detection unit. The cleaning step is performed after detecting

The invention of claim 23 is based on claims 13 to 22.
In the image carrier regenerating method according to any one of items 1 to 6, the cleaning temperature for removing the image forming material held by the image peeling member from the image peeling member is It is characterized in that the cleaning step is carried out at a temperature higher than the image peeling temperature at which the image forming material is peeled from the image holding body.

The invention of claim 24 is based on claims 13 to 23.
In the method for reproducing an image carrier according to any one of items 1 to 4, when the power supply for driving the device is turned off, the drive of the device is stopped after the distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member is equal to or more than a set distance. It is characterized by

The invention of claim 25 is based on claims 13 to 24
In the image carrier regenerating method described in any one of the above items, the temperature of the cleaning member is lowered after the driving of the apparatus is stopped when the apparatus driving power supply is turned off.

The invention of claim 26 is from claim 13 to claim 25.
In the method for reproducing an image carrier according to any one of the above items, an image carrier whose surface is subjected to a release treatment is used as the image carrier.

According to the first and thirteenth aspects of the present invention, since the cleaning member does not always contact the peeling member, the stress of the peeling member and the cleaning member, which is the cause of the deterioration of the performance of the peeling member, is reduced, and the peeling performance is improved. It is possible to prevent the deterioration over time.

According to the inventions of claims 2 and 14, since the image forming material is removed by utilizing cohesive failure,
The stress that causes damage to the peeling member and the cleaning member can be significantly reduced, and the reproduction cost can be reduced when the image carrier is reproduced. Further, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the maintainability due to the breakage of the peeling member. In the conventional technique, the adhesive force between the image carrier and the image forming material is:
Adhesion of F _{p -t,} peeling member and the image forming material: F _ft, adhesive force between the cleaning member and the image-forming material: relational expression _{F p -t <F ft <F} rt holds between the F _rt However, since the present invention is not subject to these restrictions, there is also an advantage that the range of material selection for each member is widened.

According to the third and fifteenth aspects of the present invention, since an independent heating element is provided and kept at the optimum temperature for removal, it does not depend on the temperature of the image forming material on the peeling member. It is also possible to prevent defective removal of the image-forming material on the peeling member due to the temperature drop of the surface of the image-forming material on the peeling member, which occurs when the image carrier is regenerated.

According to the inventions of claims 4 and 16, when the image forming material is deposited on the peeling member to a critical value at which the peeling performance of the peeling member is lowered,
The image forming material adhered on the peeling member can be removed all at once, and the stress between the peeling member and the cleaning member can be further reduced, and the cleaning time can be shortened. It is also possible to raise.

According to the fifth and seventeenth aspects of the present invention, since the cleaning member is a rotating member such as a roll or a belt, the clean removing surface is always in contact with the peeling member, so that the image forming material on the peeling member can be removed. It can be done efficiently.

According to the sixth and eighteenth aspects of the invention, as described above, in order to remove the image forming material on the peeling member by cohesive destruction, a plate-shaped fixing member such as a blade is used. Can also be easily peeled off.

According to the inventions of claims 7 and 19, the adhesion to the image forming material on the peeling member can be improved, and the removal performance can be improved.

According to the inventions of claims 8 and 20, reliable cleaning can be performed by polishing the cross section of the cleaning member in the region where the cleaning member contacts the peeling member. Further, since there is no cleaning unevenness, it is possible to suppress the unevenness of the peeling roll and suppress the deterioration of the peeling performance.

According to the ninth and twenty-first aspects of the invention, the image forming material on the peeling member is removed by coating with a highly water-repellent material such as Teflon, which exhibits releasability for the image forming material. It is possible to prevent the transferred image forming material from adhering to the cleaning member during the operation. Further, since the image forming material does not stagnate on the cleaning member, the cleaning performance does not deteriorate and stable peeling performance can be obtained. Further, by coating the above material, it is possible to reduce the resistance due to the contact of the cleaning member when the image forming material on the peeling member is removed. Furthermore, since the material of the cleaning member is not limited as described in the description of claim 1, the material having excellent releasability is used for the cleaning member, so that the image forming material is transferred onto the cleaning member. It is also possible to easily scrape off the image forming material with a blade or the like. When the fixing member is used as the cleaning member, it is possible to use a material having excellent releasability on the surface thereof.

According to the tenth and twenty-second aspects of the invention, the heat of the cleaning member is removed to the side of the peeling member when the regenerating process is continuously performed or when the temperature of the peeling member decreases, so that the cleaning performance is improved. It is possible to prevent the deterioration.

Claims 11, 12 and 24, 25
According to the invention, once the apparatus is powered off and each member cools, damage to each member and the driving force generation device when the device is driven in a state where the peeling member and the cleaning member are firmly adhered by the image forming substance ( It is possible to prevent damage to the motor, etc.) and to prevent deterioration of the peeling performance due to damage to the members.

According to the twenty-third and twenty-sixth aspects, the image forming material on the peeling member is easily transferred to the cleaning member, so that the removing performance can be improved.

[0056]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an example of an image peeling device. This image peeling apparatus includes a peeling roll 2 arranged at an upper part and a pressure roll 4 arranged at a lower part thereof, and the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 are pressed against each other by a load. .

On the upstream side of the nip portion of these rolls,
A pair of transport rolls 6 and 8 is arranged, and a transport belt 10 is installed on these transport rolls 6 and 8. On the other hand, on the downstream side of the nip portion, a pair of transport rolls 12 and 1
4 is provided, and strip fingers 16 are provided on the upper part of the transport roll 12 such that the tip end thereof abuts on the surface of the peeling roll 2.

A heating lamp 18 which constitutes a heating means is built in the peeling roll 2. Further, a heating lamp 20 is also incorporated inside the pressure roll 4. The heating lamp 18 and the heating lamp 20 can be independently heated and controlled within a temperature range of 40 to 200 ° C. by a temperature control means (not shown).

A cleaning blade 22 constituting a cleaning member is provided on the downstream side of the peeling roll 2 in the rotation direction.
The tip end portion is arranged so as to be inclined upward so as to gradually approach the peeling roll 2, and the tip end portion is arranged apart from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2. This separation distance is preferably 1 mm or less and 20 to 20
500 μm is more preferable, and 20 to 300 μm is still more preferable.

Below the cleaning blade 22, a toner recovery box 24 for storing the toner removed by the cleaning blade 22 is arranged.

In this image peeling device, the transport roll 4 on the upstream side of the nip portion is rotationally driven at the same peripheral speed in the direction opposite to the clockwise direction, and the transport belt 10 moves in the arrow direction.

As shown in FIG. 1, the image carrier 101 on which the toner 100, which is an image forming material, is fixed by the electrophotographic system or the thermal transfer system, has the surface on which the toner 100 is held arranged in the upper side. With the conveyor belt 10,
It is guided to the nip portion between the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4. In the nip portion, by the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 which are preheated to an appropriate temperature, for example, 80 to 110 ° C., where the toner 100 does not cause cohesive failure by the heating lamp 18 and the heating lamp 20,
The toner 100 on the image carrier 101 is pressurized and heated.
The toner 100 heated under pressure is peeled from the image carrier 101 and transferred to the surface of the peeling roll 2. The image holding member 101 from which the toner 100 has been peeled off from the image holding surface in this way passes between the pair of conveying rolls 12 and 14 while being prevented from being wound around the peeling roll 2 by the strip fingers 16 on the downstream side. And then discharged. As a result, the image carrier 101 that is restored to the original state before the toner 100 is fixed is obtained. This image carrier 1
01 is reused for new image formation.

Here, the cohesive failure refers to a state in which intermolecular force between molecules is reduced and it is easy to separate the molecules from each other. Since thermal characteristics are different for each toner, the temperature at which cohesive failure occurs. Is also different for each toner. Therefore, the temperature at which the cohesive failure occurs is the temperature at which the cohesive failure is actually observed, but the cohesive failure is often observed above the softening temperature (Tm) of the toner. The temperature above the softening temperature (Tm) of. On the contrary, an appropriate temperature that does not cause cohesive failure means a temperature at which the cohesive failure phenomenon is not actually observed, and roughly means a temperature equal to or lower than the softening temperature (Tm) of the toner. Further, in order to enable the transfer of the toner from the image carrier to the surface of the peeling roll, the softening temperature (T
m) The following range is preferable.

On the other hand, the toner 100 transferred to the peeling roll 2 and adhering to the peeling roll 2 reaches the predetermined height determined by the distance between the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 until the accumulated layer thickness reaches a predetermined height. After passing through the gap between the cleaning blade 22 and the cleaning blade 22 without contacting them, the next peeling process is performed. When such a peeling process is repeatedly performed and the toner layer adhered and deposited on the surface of the peeling roll 2 exceeds a predetermined height, when the toner layer passes through the gap between the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22, The cleaning blade 22 removes it. At this time, not all of the toner adhered to the peeling roll 2 is removed, but the height of the adhered toner layer is uniformly regulated to a predetermined height determined by the above-mentioned separation distance. It does not deteriorate the peeling performance.

When the cleaning blade 22 removes the toner adhering to the peeling roll 2, the temperature of the surface of the peeling roll 2 is optimum for removing the toner by the heating lamp 18, that is, the toner is aggregated. You may make it heat to the temperature which causes destruction, for example, 150-180 degreeC. In this case, the toner attached to the peeling roll 2 can be easily removed by the cleaning blade 22.

According to the image peeling apparatus described above, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 is removed by the cleaning blade 22 arranged apart from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2, so that the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade are removed. It is possible to significantly reduce the stress applied to both of them, and as a result, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 are not prematurely damaged or deteriorated, stable peeling performance is maintained for a long time, and unevenness Not good cleaning can be done. Also,
In this way, the stable peeling performance is maintained for a long period of time, so that the reproduction cost of the image carrier 101 can be reduced. Further, since the cleaning is performed in the state where the cleaning blade 22 is separated from the peeling roll 2, the range of selection of the material forming the cleaning blade 22 and the peeling roll 2 is widened, and also from this point of view, the reduction of the recycling cost can be achieved. Can be planned. Further, when the toner attached to the peeling roll 2 is heated to a temperature at which cohesive failure occurs during cleaning, the toner can be easily removed by the cleaning blade 22.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing another example of the cleaning member, which is composed of a removing unit member. The removing unit member includes an upper removing blade 25 and a lower removing assist member 26, which are provided at one end and the other end of an arm 28, respectively, and an intermediate portion of the arm 28 is rotated by a rotating shaft 30. It is possible. On the upper removal blade 25,
A heater 32 as heating means is provided.

An image peeling apparatus, wherein the cleaning member is arranged apart from the image forming material holding surface of the image peeling member. When a load (not shown) is applied to the arm 28 and the toner does not adhere to the surface of the peeling roll 2, the removal assisting member 26 moves from the surface of the peeling roll 2 as shown in FIG. They are located slightly apart. When the toner adheres and accumulates on the surface of the peeling roll 2 by performing the peeling process, as shown in FIG. 2, the arm 28 is rotated counterclockwise about the rotary shaft 30, and the removing blade 25 comes into contact with the toner layer adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2. As shown in FIG. 3C, toner cleaning is started. At this time, the removing blade 25 is designed so that they do not come into direct contact with each other even when they come closest to the peeling roll 2. This distance is 1m
m or less is preferable, 20 to 500 μm is more preferable,
20 to 300 μm is more preferable. When the removing blade 25 cleans the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 in this way, it returns to the original state even when the arm 28 rotates clockwise, as shown in FIG. .

The material forming the removal assisting member 26 is not particularly limited, and metals such as iron, stainless steel, copper and aluminum, silicon rubber, PET and the like can be used. Further, the surface of the removal assisting member 26 may be coated with Teflon or the like which has a releasability for toner. Further, if the surface of the removal assisting member 26 is smoothed by polishing, coating, or applying a material having a good releasability to toner (Teflon, silicone rubber, etc.), the stress on the toner on the peeling roll 2 is stressed. Can be further reduced. Further, if the removing assist member 26 is a rotating body and a removing roll is used instead of the removing blade 25, the stress can be further reduced.

By using such a removing unit, the stress with the peeling roll 2 can be reduced,
Further, since the toner on the peeling roll 2 can be appropriately removed as necessary, the peeling performance of the peeling roll 2 can be stably maintained for a long period of time.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing another example of the image peeling apparatus. In this example, instead of the cleaning blade shown in FIG. 1 as the cleaning member, a cleaning roll 34 is used. It is configured similarly to the device of FIG. The surface of the cleaning roll 34 is arranged apart from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2. This separation distance is preferably 1 mm or less, more preferably 20 to 500 μm, and 20 to 300 μm.
m is more preferred. A removal blade 36 is provided on the cleaning roll 34. The cleaning roll 34 is rotationally driven in a direction opposite to the rotation direction of the peeling roll 2. In this apparatus, when the toner layer transferred from the image carrier 101 to the surface of the peeling roll 2 and adhered exceeds a predetermined height defined by the gap between the cleaning roll 34 and the cleaning roll 34, a gap between the toner roll and the cleaning roll 34 is generated. When passing through the stripping roll 2, the cleaning roll 34 uniformly removes the stripping roll 2
The peeling performance of is maintained stable. Cleaning roll 3
The toner adhering to No. 4 is removed by the removing blade 36 and collected in the toner collecting box 24. As described above, even when the cleaning roll 34 is used, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning roll 34 are not prematurely damaged or deteriorated, stable peeling performance is maintained for a long time, and good cleaning without unevenness is performed. It can be carried out. The cleaning roll 34 is the peeling roll 2
It may be configured to be driven to rotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing still another example of the image peeling apparatus. In this example, three rolls 38, 40, 42 are used as the cleaning member instead of the cleaning blade shown in FIG. The configuration is the same as that of the apparatus in FIG. 1 except that the cleaning belt 44 that is driven to rotate by. The cleaning belt 44 is
It is arranged so as to be moved away from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2. The minimum separation distance between the cleaning belt 44 and the holding surface of the peeling roll 2 is
It is preferably 1 mm or less, more preferably 20 to 500 μm, still more preferably 20 to 300 μm. The cleaning belt 44 is provided with a removal blade 46.
The three rolls 38, 40, 42 are rotationally driven in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the peeling roll 2, and thereby the cleaning belt 44 is rotationally moved in the direction of the arrow. Three
Of the two rolls, a heating lamp as a heating means is provided inside the roll 38 that sets the minimum distance from the peeling roll 2. In this apparatus, when the toner layer transferred from the image holding member 101 to the surface of the peeling roll 2 and adhered exceeds a predetermined height determined by the gap between the cleaning belt 44 and the cleaning belt 44, a gap between the toner belt and the cleaning belt 44 is generated. When it passes through, the cleaning belt 44 uniformly removes it, and the peeling performance of the peeling roll 2 is stably maintained. The toner attached to the cleaning belt 44 is removed by the removal blade 46 and collected in the toner collection box 24. Even when the cleaning belt 44 is used in this way, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning belt 44 do not suffer early damage or early deterioration, stable peeling performance is maintained for a long period of time, and good cleaning is performed without unevenness. be able to. The three rolls 38, 40, and 42 are rotationally driven in the same direction as the rotation direction of the peeling roll 2, so that the cleaning belt 44 is also rotated in the same direction as the rotation direction of the peeling roll 2. You can also

In both the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, a heating means is arranged inside the image peeling member, and the image forming material attached to the surface of the image peeling member is heated by using this heating means. Although it is melted and removed by a cleaning member, like the device shown in FIGS. 2 and 5,
If the heating member is provided in the cleaning member and the temperature of the cleaning member is optimally controlled independently of the image peeling member, the temperature of the cleaning member is controlled independently of the surface temperature of the image peeling member. Therefore, the surface temperature of the image peeling member is the optimum temperature for peeling the image forming material from the image carrier, that is, the temperature at which cohesive failure of the image forming material does not occur, for example, 80 to
While maintaining at 110 ℃, the temperature of the cleaning member,
Since the optimum temperature for removing the image forming material from the image peeling member, that is, the temperature at which cohesive failure of the image forming material occurs, for example, 150 to 180 ° C., the peeling treatment of the image forming material can be performed. Thus, the removal process can be efficiently performed.

Further, a distance changing means for changing the distance (cleaning interval) between the cleaning member and the image peeling member may be provided. If such a configuration is adopted, when the cleaning is not necessary, the image is formed on the surface of the image peeling member up to the critical value where the peeling performance of the image peeling member is lowered with the cleaning distance being slightly widened by the distance changing means. The forming material is adhered and deposited, and then the cleaning interval is preferably 1 mm or less by the distance varying means,
More preferably 20 to 500 μm, even more preferably 2
Since the image forming material attached to the image peeling member can be collectively removed by the cleaning member at a predetermined interval of 0 to 300 μm, stress between the image peeling member and the cleaning member is further reduced. In addition to this, the cleaning time can be shortened, and the reproduction processing time of the image carrier can be shortened.

As the material of the cleaning member, metals such as iron, stainless steel and aluminum, heat resistant resins and plastics can be used. For example, when the cleaning member is a blade, a commercially available metal plate, a gap gauge stainless plate, or the like can be used. As a characteristic of the cleaning member, a certain degree of bending strength is required. Whether or not the bending occurs depends on the method of supporting the cleaning member. However, when the bending occurs, the width of the gap between the cleaning member and the peeling member may not be constant, and cleaning may not be performed uniformly. is there. Further, the cleaning member is required to have high thermal conductivity. The heat of the cleaning member is transferred to the toner,
Alternatively, since it escapes into the air, it is better that heat is efficiently transferred from the heating element to the cleaning member to compensate for this heat radiation. The material of the cleaning member is not particularly limited as long as it satisfies the above characteristics, but metal is preferable in view of cost and workability.

In the cleaning member, at least a portion facing the image peeling member may be made of an elastic body. Adopting such a configuration improves the adhesion between the cleaning member and the image forming material attached to the image peeling member,
The performance of removing the image forming material can be further improved. Examples of such an elastic body include metals such as SUS, aluminum and copper, and organic polymer materials such as silicone rubber and silicone resin.

The portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member may be polished. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to perform a reliable cleaning in the cleaning region, as a result, cleaning unevenness does not occur, there is no fear of unevenness on the image peeling member,
It is possible to suppress deterioration of the peeling performance. Such surface treatment is preferably performed by a method such as lapping, polishing, buffing, polishing, and grinding with a grindstone, and polishing is preferably performed to a roughness of several μm or less.

At least the portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member may be made of a releasable material. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the image forming material transferred to the cleaning member from being fixed when the image forming material attached to the surface of the image peeling member is removed by the cleaning member. Further, since the image forming material does not stagnate on the cleaning member, the cleaning performance is not deteriorated, and stable release performance can be obtained. Further, the stress between the image peeling member and the cleaning member can be reduced, and the early fatigue deterioration of the cleaning member can be suppressed. Further, when the image forming material is removed from the cleaning member, the removal becomes easy. As such a release material, a highly water-repellent material such as Teflon, which exhibits releasability with respect to the image forming material, can be used.

A detecting means for detecting the temperature of the cleaning member when the image forming material is removed from the image peeling member by the cleaning member may be provided. By adopting such a configuration, it becomes possible to maintain the temperature of the cleaning member at the optimum temperature for cleaning, and even when the regenerating process is continuously performed, when the temperature of the image peeling member decreases. It is possible to effectively prevent a situation in which heat is taken from the device and cleaning performance is deteriorated.

Next, a method of reproducing the image carrier using the apparatus of FIG. 1 will be described. (Image peeling step) The power switch of the apparatus is turned on, and the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 are heated by the heating lamps 18 and 20. Both rolls have an appropriate temperature, that is, a temperature at which cohesive failure of toner does not occur, for example, 80 to 1
After reaching 10 ° C., the image carrier 101 on which the toner 100 has been fixed is supplied with its toner holding surface as the upper surface, and this is rotated and the transport belt 10 is moved along with the rotation of the upstream transport rollers 6 and 8. Thus, the image carrier 101 is guided to the nip portion between the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4.

By rotating the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4, the image holding member 101 is discharged from the nip portion, so that the toner 100 on the image holding member 101 is peeled off.
Of the toner 100 on the image holding member 101 is softened by the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 which are heated to an appropriate temperature, and the softened toner 100 is attached to the surface of the peeling roll 2. Transfer. The image holding member 101 after the toner 100 is peeled off is forcibly peeled off from the peeling roll 2 by the strip finger 16, and the image holding member 101 is discharged by the transport rollers 12 and 14 on the downstream side.

The above steps can be repeated a suitable number of times before the next cleaning step. That is, the image peeling step can be repeated until the peeling performance of the peeling roll 2 is reduced to a critical value, that is, until the amount of toner deposited and deposited on the surface of the peeling roll 2 reaches a predetermined height. .

(Cleaning Step) When the amount of toner deposited and deposited on the surface of the peeling roll 2 exceeds the predetermined height by the above image peeling step, the tip end thereof is separated from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2. The cleaning blade 22 arranged removes the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2, and the removed toner is collected by the toner collecting box 24. The separation distance between the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 at the time of cleaning is
It is preferably 1 mm or less, more preferably 20 to 500 μm, still more preferably 20 to 300 μm.

At this time, not all of the toner adhered to the peeling roll 2 is removed, but the height of the adhered toner is uniformly regulated to a predetermined height determined by the above-mentioned separation distance, so the peeling roll 2 No peeling performance of No. 2 is deteriorated. Further, when the toner attached to the peeling roll 2 is removed by the cleaning blade 22, the temperature of the surface of the peeling roll 2 is the optimum temperature for removing the toner by the heating lamp 18, that is, the toner causes cohesive failure. You may make it heat at such temperature, for example, 150-180 degreeC. In this case, the toner attached to the peeling roll 2 can be easily removed by the cleaning blade 22.

According to the above-described image carrier regenerating method, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 is removed by the cleaning blade 22 which is arranged apart from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2. The stress applied to both of the cleaning blades 22 can be significantly reduced, and as a result, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blades 22 do not suffer early damage or early deterioration, and stable peeling performance is maintained for a long period of time. Good cleaning can be performed without unevenness. In addition, since the stable peeling performance is maintained for a long period of time in this manner, the cost for reproducing the image carrier can be reduced. Further, since the cleaning is performed while the cleaning blade 22 is separated from the peeling roll 2,
The range of selection of the materials forming the cleaning blade 22 and the peeling roll 2 is widened, and the recycling cost can be reduced also from this viewpoint. Further, when the toner attached to the peeling roll 2 is heated to a temperature at which cohesive failure occurs during cleaning, the toner can be easily removed by the cleaning blade 22.

Also in the image carrier regenerating method using the apparatus shown in FIGS. 2, 4 and 5, the cleaning member is basically the same as the above although there is a difference in the configuration of the cleaning member as described above. is there.

At the time of cleaning by the cleaning member, after the temperature of the cleaning member reaches an appropriate temperature for cleaning, that is, a temperature at which cohesive failure of the image forming material occurs, for example, 150 to 180 ° C., The image forming material may be removed from the image peeling member by the cleaning member. If such a configuration is adopted, the image forming material is not firmly fixed to the image peeling member when cleaning is performed, and the image peeling member is apt to occur when the temperature is lowered and the image peeling member is fixed. It is possible to effectively prevent damage, damage to the cleaning member, and damage to driving equipment such as a motor.

When the power switch of the image peeling device is turned off, the cleaning member may be separated from the surface of the image peeling member by a sufficient distance, and then the driving of the device may be stopped. With such a configuration, when the power switch of the image peeling device is turned off, the temperature lowers and the image forming material attached to the image peeling member or the cleaning member adheres. Since it is sufficiently separated from the peeling member, the cleaning member and the image peeling member will not be damaged due to the fixed image forming material even when the power switch of the image peeling device is turned on and driving is started. .

When turning off the main power of the image peeling apparatus,
Control may be performed such that the temperature of the cleaning member is lowered after the operation of the driving device such as the motor is stopped, that is, the heating of the cleaning member is stopped. By adopting such a configuration, when the temperature of the cleaning member is lowered and the image forming material is fixed, the driving device is not operated, and the cleaning member or the cleaning member is caused by the fixed image forming material. The image peeling member will not be damaged.

As the surface material of the image peeling member, for example, a metal such as aluminum, iron, stainless steel or copper, or an organic polymer material such as polyimide, nylon or polyester can be used.

In particular, as the surface material of the image peeling member having a high affinity for the image forming material, for example, polystyrene resin, acrylic resin, methacrylic resin, styrene-butyl acrylic copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer,
Polyester resin, epoxy resin, and various heat-resistant metals that can also be used as a base material for image peeling members, such as aluminum, nickel, platinum, zinc, copper, iron, stainless steel, alloys of these, and oxidation of these surfaces. A treated product, a sintered body such as aluminum oxide, titanium oxide, zirconium oxide, calcium phosphate, barium titanate, or the like, a heat-resistant polyimide, polyamide, polycarbonate, polyphenylene sulfide, a resin such as polyethylene terephthalate, a film, or the like can be used. .

A pressure sensitive adhesive (adhesive) may be used as the surface material of the image peeling member. Examples of such a material include rubber-based adhesives, acrylic-based adhesives,
Examples thereof include vinyl ether polymer adhesives and silicone adhesives.

In order to enhance the effect of preventing the image holding member from being wrapped around the image peeling member, the surface of the image peeling member may be a fluorine-based material having a releasing property such as a fluorine-based oil, silicone-based oil, silicone rubber, or the like. It may be composed of a silicon-based material having a releasability, wax, or the like. These materials may be used alone or in an appropriate mixture. Further, the smaller the adhesive force between the image peeling member and the image forming material, the better the cleaning property. In particular, at the time of cooling, due to the adhesive force between the image peeling member and the image forming material, there is a noticeable difference in cleaning property.

In the image peeling member, the composition ratio of the material having a high affinity for the image forming material and the mold releasing material in the surface layer depends on the kind of each material, but the mold releasing material is 5 to 5. It is 75% by weight, preferably 25 to 50% by weight. When the amount of the releasable material is less than 5% by weight, the material having a high affinity has a strong function, so that the image carrier is easily wrapped around the image peeling member, and the cleaning member removes the image forming material from the image peeling member. It becomes difficult to remove, and as a result, the image forming material adheres and deposits on the surface of the image peeling member, and the peeling performance of the image peeling member is likely to deteriorate. On the other hand, when the amount of the releasable material exceeds 75% by weight, the function of the releasable material is strong, so that it becomes difficult to peel off the image forming material from the image carrier.

Examples of the fluorine compound include fluorine-based polymers and fluorine-based oils. Specific examples of the fluorine-based polymer include vinylidene fluoride, trifluoroethylene, chlorotrifluoroethylene, tetrafluoroethylene, pentafluoropropylene, and polymers and copolymers synthesized from fluorine-containing monomers such as hexafluoropropylene, the fluorine-containing monomer. There are polymers having a perfluoroaliphatic ring structure such as copolymers of ethylene with (perfluoro) alkyl vinyl ether or acrylic resin, and polymers obtained by cyclopolymerizing perfluoroalkenyl vinyl ether. Further, those obtained by converting these polymers into elastomers (rubbers) and fluorine-based oils can also be used.

As the fluorine-based oil, X-CF₂ (O
C₂ F_Four )_p(OCH₂ )_qOCF ₂ -X
-Fluoropolyether, specifically X is OCN-C
₆ H ₃ (CH₃ ) Isocyanate represented by NHCO-
Modified product, modified product of carboxyl group represented by -COOH,
-CH₂ OH, -CF₂ CH₂ (OCH₂ CH₂ )_nO
Alcohol-modified product represented by H or the like, represented by -COOR
Ester modified products and the like.

Examples of the silicon compound include organic silicon compounds, silicone rubbers, silicone resins and silicone oils, and examples of the organic silicon compounds include silane compounds and
There are fluorine-containing silane compounds and isocyanate silane compounds. By mixing these with a silicone-based oil, which will be described later, the releasability is dramatically improved, although the reason is unknown.

As the silane compound, Si (OCH₃ )
_Four , CH₃ Si (OCH₃ )₃ , (2H₃ )₂ Si (O
CH₃ )₂ , C₆ H_Five Si (OCH₃ )₃ , Si (OC
₂ H _Five )_Four , CH₃ Si (OC₂ H_Five )₃ , (CH₃ )
₂ Si (OC₂ H_Five )₂ , C ₆ H_Five Si (OC₂ H_Five )
₃ , (CH₃ )₂ CHCH₂ Si (OCH₃ )₃ Etc.
Lucoxysilanes, (CH₃ )₃ SiNHSi (CH
₃ )₃ Silazanes such as ((CH₃ ) SiNH)₂ C
O, tert-C_Four H₉ (CH₃ )₂ Special such as SiCl
Silylating agents, silane coupling agents and HSC₃ H₆ 
Si (OCH)₃ Silane compounds such as
Examples include decomposed products and partial condensates. Silane coupling
Examples of stiffening agents include vinyltrichlorosilane and vinyltrichlorosilane.
Su (β-methoxyethoxy) silane, vinyl triethoxy
Vinylsilane such as silane, vinyltrimethoxysilane
, Γ-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, etc.
Acrylic silanes, β- (3,4-epoxycyclohexyl)
Xyl) ethyltrimethoxysilane, γ-glycidoxy
Propyltrimethoxysilane, γ-glycidoxypropyi
Epoxysilanes such as rumethyldiethoxysilane, N-
β- (aminoethyl) γ-aminopropyltrimethoxy
Silane, N-β- (aminoethyl) γ-aminopropyl
Methyldimethoxysilane, γ-aminopropyltrieth
Xysilane, N-phenyl-γ-aminopropyl trime
There are aminosilanes such as toxysilane.

The fluorine-containing silane compound has releasability
Contains a perfluoroalkyl group to improve
Fluorine-containing silicon compounds are preferable, and specifically, C
₆ F ₁₃C₂ H_Four Si (OCH₃ )₃ , C₇ F₁₅CONH
(CH₂ )₃ Si (OC₂ H _Five )₃ , C₈ F₁₇C₂ H_Four 
Si (OCH₃ )₃ , C₈ F₁₇C₂ H_Four SiCH₃ (O
CH₃ )₂ , C₈ F₁₇C₂ H_Four Si (ON = C (CH
₃ ) (C₂ H_Five ))₃ , C₉ F₁₉C₂ H_Four Si (OCH
₃ )₃ , C₉ F₁₉C₂ H_Four Si (NCO)₃ , (NC
O)₃ SiC₂ H_Four C₆ F₁₂C₂ H_Four Si (NCO)
₃ , C₉ F₁₉C₂ H_FourSi (C₂ H_Five ) (OCH₃ )
₂ , (CH₃ O)₃ SiC₂ H_Four C₈ F₁₆C₂ H _Four Si
(OCH₃ )₃ , (CH₃ O)₂ (CH₃ ) SiC₉ F
₁₈C₂ H_Four Si (CH₃ ) (CH₃ O)₂ Etc. and this
Examples thereof include hydrolyzates and partial condensates.

Isocyanate silane compounds include
(CH ₃ ) ₃ SiNCO, (CH ₃ ) ₂ Si (NCO) ₂
, CH ₃ Si (NCO) ₃ , vinylsilyltriisocyanate, C ₆ H ₅ Si (NCO) ₃ , Si (NCO)
₄ , C ₂ H ₅ OSi (NCO) ₃ , C ₈ H ₁₇ Si (NC
O) ₃ , C ₁₈ H ₃₇ Si (NCO) ₃ and (NCO) ₃ S
_{iC 2 H 4 Si (NCO)} 3 and the like.

Examples of the silicone oil include dimethylpolysiloxane and methylphenylpolysiloxane type silicone oils, methylhydrogen silicone oils, and reactive silicone oils having a reactive group introduced into the molecule. Amino-modified silicone oil, epoxy-modified silicone oil, carboxyl-modified silicone oil, carbinol-modified silicone oil, methacryl-modified silicone oil, mercapto-modified silicone oil, phenol-modified silicone oil, fluorine-modified silicone oil and the like can be exemplified. By using these silicone oils mixed with the silane compound, the releasability of the image peeling member is dramatically improved.

The silicone rubber can be roughly classified into a millable type and a liquid type. The millable type silicone rubber is a linear type having a high degree of polymerization such as dimethyl type, methyl vinyl type, methyl phenyl vinyl type and methyl fluoroalkyl type. There is a product obtained by using polyorganosiloxane as a main raw material, mixing a reinforcing filler and various additives, and then adding a vulcanizing agent and heating and curing. Liquid silicone rubbers include condensation type silicone rubbers that cure at room temperature, addition type silicone rubbers that heat cure using a platinum-based catalyst, and ultraviolet curable silicone rubbers. Further, there is also a silicone rubber in which the silane compound is made into an elastomer.

Examples of the wax include low molecular weight polyethylene wax, low molecular weight oxidized polyethylene wax, low molecular weight polypropylene wax, low molecular weight oxidized polypropylene wax, higher fatty acid wax, higher fatty acid ester wax, and sazol wax.

The composition ratio of the material having a high affinity for the image forming material and the releasing material of the releasing member surface layer is 5 to 75% by weight of the releasing material, though it depends on each kind. It is preferably 25 to 50% by weight. When it is less than 5%, the material having a high affinity has a strong function, and the image recording material strongly wraps around the peeling member. Even if the wrapping can be avoided, the image forming material on the peeled peeling member is However, the image forming material is deposited on the surface of the peeling member, and the initial peeling performance cannot be maintained. On the other hand, if it exceeds 75%, the releasability, which is a function of the releasable material, becomes strong, so that the image forming material cannot be separated and removed from the image recording body.

As other materials having a high affinity with the image-forming material, various heat-resistant metals that can be used as the base material of the peeling member, for example, aluminum, nickel, platinum, zinc, copper, iron and stainless alloys thereof are also used. Or the one whose surface is further oxidized, aluminum oxide,
Examples include sintered bodies of titanium oxide, zirconium oxide, calcium phosphate, barium titanate, and the like. In addition, resins and films such as heat resistant polyimide, polyamide, polycarbonate, polyphenylene sulfide, and polyethylene terephthalate can be effectively used.

As the image holding member, a member whose image holding surface has been subjected to release treatment may be used. By using such an image carrier, the image forming material can be peeled off more easily. As a method for imparting releasability to the image holding surface of the image holding member, the above-mentioned releasing material may be used.

Further, the image peeling apparatus of the present invention may be used alone, but may also be used by incorporating it in a general-purpose copying machine.

[0109]

EXAMPLES Examples of the present invention will be specifically described below. The present invention is not limited to the examples shown below. In the following, "part" means "part by weight".

Example 1 "Organics SIC-434" which is a silane compound
500 parts (manufactured by Matsumoto Trading Co., Ltd.) and 500 parts of ethyl acetate were mixed and stirred to obtain a coating liquid. This coating solution was impregnated in "J paper" A4 size manufactured by Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd., air dried for 5 minutes, and then heat-treated in an oven at a temperature of 120 ° C. for 10 seconds to prepare an image carrier having releasability for toner. .

On this image carrier, a color copying machine "A Color 935" manufactured by Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. was used to obtain a fixing sample containing characters and a solid image. The toner used had a Tg of 60 ° C. and a Tm of 110 ° C.

Next, using this fixing sample, a test for actually peeling the fixed toner by the image peeling apparatus shown in FIG. 1 was conducted. Here, the total load between the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 is 10 kgf, and the linear velocity of both rolls is 6 kgf.
The temperature of both rolls was 0 mm / sec and 90 ° C. As the peeling roll 2, an aluminum roll whose surface was matt-processed and coated with a polyester resin was used. The cleaning blade 22 is made of aluminum. As a result, the toner on the image carrier softens and can be easily peeled off,
The image carrier similar to the original blank sheet could be reproduced.

Further, after the temperature of the peeling roll 2 was raised to 150 ° C., the tip of the cleaning blade 22 made of an aluminum blade was positioned at a distance of 200 μm from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2, and the peeling roll 2
When was rotated, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 was sufficiently removed by the cleaning blade 22.

Next, the temperature of the peeling roll 2 was returned to 90 ° C., and a fixing toner peeling test was conducted using the same fixing sample as described above. As a result, the toner on the image carrier softened easily It could be peeled off, and the image carrier similar to the original blank paper could be regenerated. Further, when the temperature of the peeling roll 2 was raised to 150 ° C. and cleaning was performed in the same manner, the toner attached to the surface of the peeling roll 2 was sufficiently removed by the cleaning blade 22.

When the above peeling and removing operations are repeated about 100,000 times, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 are not damaged, and the toner can be peeled and removed stably. It was possible to reproduce the image carrier similar to the original blank state.

Example 2 A fixing sample containing characters and a solid image was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the toner having Tg of 100 ° C. and Tm of 150 ° C. was used.

Next, using this fixing sample, a test for actually peeling the fixed toner by the image peeling apparatus shown in FIG. 1 was conducted. Here, the total load between the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 is 10 kgf, and the linear velocity of both rolls is 6 kgf.
0 mm / sec, the temperature of both rolls was 130 ° C. As the peeling roll 2, an aluminum roll whose surface was matt-processed and coated with a polyester resin was used. The cleaning blade 22 is made of aluminum. As a result, the toner on the image carrier softens and can be easily peeled off,
The image carrier similar to the original blank sheet could be reproduced.

After the temperature of the peeling roll 2 was raised to 180 ° C., the peeling roll 2 was placed with the tip of the cleaning blade 22 made of an aluminum blade positioned at a distance of 200 μm from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2.
When was rotated, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 was sufficiently removed by the cleaning blade 22.

Next, the temperature of the peeling roll 2 was returned to 130 ° C., and a test for peeling the fixed toner was carried out using the same fixing sample as described above. As a result, the toner on the image carrier softened easily. It could be peeled off, and the image carrier similar to the original blank paper could be regenerated. Also,
After the temperature of the peeling roll 2 was raised to 180 ° C. and the cleaning was performed in the same manner, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 was sufficiently removed by the cleaning blade 22.

When the above peeling and removing operations are repeated about 100,000 times, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 are not damaged, and the toner can be peeled and removed stably. It was possible to reproduce the image carrier similar to the original blank state.

Comparative Example 1 A test was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a scraper blade was used instead of the cleaning blade 22 and was placed in contact with the surface of the peeling roll 2. Was able to remove the toner on the surface of the peeling roll 2, but the peeling and removing operation was performed for about 100 times.
When repeated, the surface of the peeling roll 2 and the scraper blade were damaged at several places.
It became difficult to sufficiently remove the toner on the surface of the peeling roll 2, and due to the deterioration of the peeling performance of the peeling roll 2, there was a reproduction failure in which the toner remained on the reproduced image carrier.

Example 3 In Example 1, the surface temperature of the peeling roll 2 was maintained at 90 at all times.
The temperature is maintained at 0 ° C., and a cleaning rubber heater made by 3M is attached to the cleaning blade 22 to clean the cleaning blade 2.
When the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times in the same manner except that the temperature of the tip of No. 2 was kept at 150 ° C., the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 were not damaged, and the toner was removed. It was possible to stably perform the peeling and removal, and it was possible to regenerate the image carrier similar to the state of the original blank paper. Further, since it is not necessary to raise the surface temperature of the peeling roll 2 to 150 ° C. or lower it to 90 ° C., the regeneration treatment could be efficiently performed in a shorter time than in the case of Example 1.

Example 4 The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that the peeling unit shown in FIG. 2 was used instead of the cleaning blade 22, and the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times. By the way, the peeling roll 2 and the removing blade 25
No damage was caused, the toner could be peeled off and removed stably, and the image carrier similar to the original blank sheet could be regenerated.

Example 5 A test was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the image peeling apparatus shown in FIG. 4 was used. Here, the total load between the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 is 10 kgf, the linear velocity of both rolls is 60 mm / sec, and the temperature of both rolls is 90 ° C.
And As the peeling roll 2, an aluminum roll whose surface was matt-processed and coated with a polyester resin was used. In addition, the cleaning roll 34
As the material, an aluminum product was used. as a result,
The toner on the image carrier softened and could be easily peeled off, and the image carrier similar to the original state of blank paper could be regenerated.

Further, after the temperature of the peeling roll 2 is raised to 150 ° C., the surface of the cleaning roll 34 made of an aluminum roll is separated from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 20 by 20.
When the peeling roll 2 was rotated while being positioned at an interval of 0 μm, the toner attached to the surface of the peeling roll 2 was sufficiently removed by the cleaning roll 34.

Further, when the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times in the same manner as in Example 1, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning roll 34 were not damaged, and the peeling and removal of the toner were stabilized. The same image carrier as in the original blank can be reproduced.

Example 6 A test was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the image peeling apparatus shown in FIG. 5 was used. Here, the total load between the peeling roll 2 and the pressure roll 4 is 10 kgf, the linear velocity of both rolls is 60 mm / sec, and the temperature of both rolls is 90 ° C.
And As the peeling roll 2, an aluminum roll whose surface was matt-processed and coated with a polyester resin was used. Also, the cleaning belt 44
As the material, a nickel material was used. As a result, the toner on the image carrier was softened and could be easily peeled off, and the image carrier similar to the original state of the blank paper could be reproduced.

Further, after the temperature of the peeling roll 2 is raised to 150 ° C., the surface of the cleaning belt 44 made of a nickel belt is 200 μm from the toner holding surface of the peeling roll 2.
When the peeling roll 2 was rotated while being positioned at an interval of m, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roll 2 was sufficiently removed by the cleaning belt 44.

Further, when the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times in the same manner as in Example 1, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning belt 44 were not damaged, and the peeling and removal of the toner were stabilized. The same image carrier as in the original blank can be reproduced.

Example 7 In Example 3, as the cleaning blade 22,
An iron blade with a rubber heater for heating made by 3M Co., the tip of which was polished (a thickness gauge made by Riken Sokken Co., thickness 0.3 mm) was used, and the temperature of the tip of the cleaning blade 22 was set to 150. When the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times in the same manner except that the temperature was kept at 0 ° C., the cleaning performance was further superior to that in Example 3, and the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 were used. No damage was caused, the toner could be peeled off and removed stably, and the image carrier similar to the original blank sheet could be regenerated.

Embodiment 8 In Embodiment 7, distance varying means is provided so that the cleaning blade 22 can be moved toward or away from the peeling roll 2 so that the toner layer adhered and deposited on the peeling roll 2 has a predetermined size. Until the thickness, for example, 300 μm is reached, the cleaning blade 22 is spaced far away from the peeling roll 2 with a separation distance of 300 μm or more,
When the thickness of the toner layer adhered and deposited on the peeling roll 2 reaches a predetermined thickness, for example, 300 μm, the cleaning blade 22 is moved toward the peeling roll 2 so as to have a predetermined gap of 50 μm. A similar test was performed except that cleaning was performed, and as compared with the case of Example 7, cleaning of the toner deposited and deposited on the peeling roll 2 can be collectively performed at one time. The cleaning efficiency was improved, and the efficiency of the recycling process was improved. When the peeling and removing operations are repeated about 100,000 times, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 22 are not damaged, and the toner can be peeled and removed stably. It was possible to reproduce the same image carrier as in the above condition.

Example 9 In Example 5, instead of the aluminum roll, φ
Silicone rubber (JIS A hardness 30, thermal conductivity 1.5 x
(10 ⁻³ cal / cm · sec · ° C.) is used in the same manner except that a cleaning roll 34 having a dip processed is used and an image carrier on which black and white and color images are fixed is used.
When the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times, the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning roll 34
No damage was caused, the toner could be peeled off and removed stably, and the image carrier similar to the original blank sheet could be regenerated.

Embodiment 10 In Embodiment 3, a temperature sensor (thermocouple, non-contact thermometer, etc.) for detecting the temperature of the cleaning blade 22 is provided, and the data from this temperature sensor is fed back to the temperature controller for cleaning. Except that the temperature of the blade 22 was maintained at a predetermined temperature, for example, 150 ° C., the peeling and removing operations were repeated about 100,000 times in the same manner. Cleaning defects that are likely to occur due to
The toner could be peeled off and removed stably, and the image carrier similar to the original blank sheet could be regenerated.

Embodiment 11 As an operation mode of the apparatus, there is a mode of operating the apparatus during the day and stopping the operation of the apparatus at night. In such an operation mode, the apparatus is operated as when the operation of the apparatus is started. In some cases, the peeling member and the pressing member, and the peeling member and the cleaning member are firmly adhered to each other by the image forming material adhered on these members. I have been doing. When the drive type of the device is operated in such a state, there is a possibility that each member will be damaged and the drive device will be damaged.

Therefore, in the third embodiment, the power switch of the apparatus is turned off, and the peeling roll 2 and the cleaning blade 2 are
After the temperature of 2 decreased to room temperature, the operation test of the device was conducted in the stress mode in which the power switch of the device was turned on again, and the maintainability of each member was investigated. That is, while controlling the process so that the drive system does not move until the temperature of each member reaches a predetermined value, first turn on the power switch of the device with the drive system of the device stopped to reproduce the image carrier. The power switch of the device was turned off every time one sheet was made, and after the temperature of each member of the device reached 20 ° C., the process of turning on the power switch again was repeated, and the maintainability of each member was investigated. As a result, if the drive system is rotated after the temperature of each member reaches a predetermined temperature, each member will not be damaged even if the above stress mode is performed for about 10,000 times. .

On the other hand, when the drive system of the apparatus was rotated before the temperature of each member reached a predetermined value, the cleaning member and the peeling member were damaged. When the broken portion was examined, it was observed that the peeling member and the cleaning member were bonded by the image forming material.

Twelfth Embodiment In the eleventh embodiment, when the apparatus is stopped, the cleaning member is separated from the peeling member and the peeling member is separated from the pressing member. The power switch of the device is turned off and the temperature of the device is changed. When the operating temperature of the device is turned on again, the operation test of the device is performed again. When the drive system is operated after reaching the specified temperature, and when the power switch is turned on, the drive system is driven immediately. The sustainability of each member was investigated in two ways when the system was operated. As a result, in each case, the damage of each member did not occur.

Example 13 In the image peeling apparatus shown in FIG. 1, when the power switch of the apparatus is turned off, the temperature of the cleaning blade 22 in contact with the toner 100 on the peeling roll 2 is stopped after the driving system of the apparatus is stopped. The control was carried out by lowering and the maintainability of each member was investigated. If such a configuration is adopted, the cleaning blade 22 and the peeling roll 2 are prevented from being firmly adhered by the toner, and when the same process is repeated about 10,000 times, each member is damaged. There wasn't.

On the other hand, the power switch of the apparatus was turned off, and the drive system was stopped after the temperature of each member decreased while the drive system was still rotating, but the cleaning blade 22 was cooled before the temperature of each member decreased. Is damaged. When the surface of the peeling roll 2 was observed, it was found that the toner was strongly adhered to the surface and stress was generated where the cleaning blade 22 and the peeling roll 2 were close to each other, whereby the cleaning blade 22 was damaged.

[0140]

According to the present invention, an image reproducing device for reproducing an image holding member by peeling an image forming material from an image holding member on which an image is formed by using an electrophotographic method or a thermal transfer method by a peeling member. When removing the image forming material on the surface of the peeling member, the image forming material can be removed by drastically reducing the stress generated between the peeling member and the cleaning member. Can be dramatically extended and the peeling performance can be maintained for a long time. Further, it is possible to reduce the reproduction cost of the image carrier. In addition, the effect that the image is removed and the image carrier is reproduced repeatedly with good stability is also recognized. Furthermore, not only black and white, but also an image carrier on which a color image is fixed can be sufficiently reproduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an example of an image peeling device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing another example of the image peeling apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing an operating state of a cleaning member used in the image peeling apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing another example of the image peeling device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing still another example of the image peeling device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 peeling roll 4 pressure roll 6,8,12,14, 38, 40, 42 Transport rolls 10 Conveyor belt 16 strip fingers 18,20 Heating lamp 22 Cleaning blade 24 Toner collection box 25 Upper removal blade 26 Lower removal assist member 28 arms 30 rotation axis 32 heater 34 cleaning roll 36 removal blade 44 cleaning belt 46 removal blade 100 Toner that is an image forming material 101 image carrier

Continuation of the front page (56) Reference JP-A-6-324601 (JP, A) JP-A-8-339140 (JP, A) JP-A-7-56480 (JP, A) JP-A-7-28368 (JP , A) JP 61-114284 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 21/00

Claims (26)

(57) [Claims] 1. An image peeling member for peeling the image forming material from the image holding member by contacting the image forming material on the image holding member, and the image forming material transferred from the image holding member to the image peeling member. An image peeling apparatus comprising: a cleaning member that removes the image peeling member from the image peeling member; wherein the cleaning member is arranged apart from an image forming material holding surface of the image peeling member. 2. The image peeling device according to claim 1, further comprising heating means provided between the cleaning member and the image peeling member for heating the image forming material held by the image peeling member. apparatus. 3. The image peeling apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the heating unit is provided on the cleaning member. 4. The image peeling device according to claim 1, further comprising a distance changing unit that changes a distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member. 5. The image peeling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning member is a rotating body. 6. The image peeling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning member is a plate-shaped member. 7. The image peeling device according to claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member is made of an elastic body. 8. The image peeling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member is polished. 9. The image peeling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the cleaning member facing the image peeling member is made of a releasable material. 10. A detection unit for detecting the temperature of the cleaning member when the image forming material is removed from the image peeling member by the cleaning member, and a cleaning unit after detecting that the set temperature is reached by the detection unit. The image peeling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising drive start control means for starting cleaning by a member. 11. When switching off the device driving power supply,
11. The drive stop control means for stopping the drive of the apparatus after the distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member is equal to or greater than a set distance, and the drive stop control means is provided. Image peeling device. 12. When switching off the device driving power supply,
The image peeling apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, further comprising cooling control means for lowering the temperature of the cleaning member after the driving of the apparatus is stopped after the cleaning step is ended. . 13. An image peeling step of bringing an image peeling member into contact with the image forming material on the image holding member to peel the image forming material from the image holding member, and transferring from the image holding member to the image peeling member. And a cleaning step of removing the image forming material from the image peeling member with a cleaning member, wherein the cleaning step is performed by separating the cleaning member from the image forming material holding surface of the image peeling member. An image carrier regenerating method characterized by the above. 14. The cleaning step is performed between the cleaning member and the image peeling member while heating the image forming material held by the image peeling member to a temperature at which cohesive failure occurs by a heating unit. The image carrier regenerating method according to claim 13. 15. The image carrier regenerating method according to claim 14, wherein the heating unit is provided on the cleaning member to perform the cleaning step. 16. The cleaning process according to claim 13, wherein the distance changing unit changes the distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member to perform the cleaning step. Image carrier reproduction method. 17. The image carrier regenerating method according to claim 13, wherein the cleaning step is performed using a cleaning member made of a rotating body. 18. The image carrier regenerating method according to claim 13, wherein the cleaning step is performed using a cleaning member made of a plate-shaped body. 19. The image holding device according to claim 13, wherein the cleaning step is performed by using a cleaning member having at least a portion facing the image peeling member made of an elastic body. Body regeneration method. 20. The image carrier according to claim 13, wherein the cleaning step is performed using a cleaning member whose portion facing the image peeling member is polished. How to play. 21. The cleaning step is performed by using a cleaning member having at least a portion facing the image peeling member and made of a releasing material.
21. The image carrier regenerating method according to any one of 3 to 20. 22. When the cleaning member removes the image forming material from the image peeling member, the cleaning step is performed after the detection unit detects that the temperature of the cleaning member reaches a set temperature. The image carrier regenerating method according to any one of claims 13 to 21. 23. The cleaning temperature for removing the image forming material held on the image peeling member from the image peeling member is brought into contact with the image forming material on the image holding member to form the image from the image holding member. The image carrier regenerating method according to any one of claims 13 to 22, wherein the cleaning step is performed at a temperature higher than an image peeling temperature at the time of peeling the material. 24. When the device driving power supply is turned off,
The image carrier regenerating method according to any one of claims 13 to 23, wherein the driving of the apparatus is stopped after the distance between the cleaning member and the image peeling member becomes equal to or more than a set distance. 25. When the device driving power supply is turned off,
25. The image carrier regenerating method according to claim 12, wherein the temperature of the cleaning member is lowered after the driving of the apparatus is stopped. 26. The image carrier regenerating method according to any one of claims 13 to 25, wherein an image carrier whose surface is subjected to a release treatment is used as the image carrier.