JP3533487B2 - Cleaning device and device for removing image forming substance from image carrier - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention sandwiches a belt-shaped member to be cleaned between a rotary driven roller-shaped cleaning member having a spiral edge on its outer peripheral portion and an opposing member. A cleaning device for removing the deposits on the object to be cleaned by the cleaning member, and a copying machine, a facsimile, a printer,
A peeling device that removes the image-forming substance that forms the image from the image carrier that is formed with an image-forming device such as a printing machine by a peeling member, and a cleaning device that removes the image-forming substance that adheres to the peeling member. The present invention relates to an apparatus for removing an image forming substance from an image carrier provided.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a cleaning device for removing deposits adhering to the surface of a belt-shaped member to be cleaned, a roller-shaped cleaning member which is driven to rotate and has a spiral edge on its outer peripheral portion, and its opposing member. There is known a cleaning device in which the cleaning member removes the adhered matter on the cleaning target object by sandwiching and passing the cleaning target object.

For example, by the applicant of the present invention, a cleaning device using a rotationally driven roller-shaped cleaning member having the spiral edge on the outer peripheral portion is used to remove an image forming substance from an image holding member by a peeling member. It has been proposed to use it as a cleaning device for removing an image forming substance as an adhering substance from a peeling member as an object to be cleaned in a forming substance removing device (see, for example, JP-A-8-335012). This cleaning device can satisfactorily remove the deposits on the peeling member even when the cleaning member is rotated at a lower rotation speed, as compared with a device in which the brush roller is strongly pressed and rotated at high speed.
It is advantageous in terms of noise.

[0004]

However, the cleaning device using the roller-shaped cleaning member having the spiral edge on the outer peripheral portion does not reach the allowable noise level in the office environment. However, further noise reduction is an issue. Therefore, when the inventors of the present invention investigated the cause of noise generated from this type of cleaning device, the main cause of noise was vibration of the object to be cleaned in the holding region between the cleaning member and the facing member and in the vicinity thereof. It turned out that

[0005]

[0006] The present invention has been made under the above background, purpose of that by suppressing the vibration of the cleaning body in clamping region and around between the cleaning member and the opposing member A cleaning device capable of preventing noise caused by vibration of the object to be cleaned, and a device for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier provided with the cleaning device.

[0007]

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the invention of claim 1 provides a rotationally driven roller-shaped cleaning member having a spiral edge on its outer peripheral portion.
In the cleaning device, the belt-shaped member to be cleaned is sandwiched between a single roller-shaped facing member and the cleaning member removes the deposits on the member to be cleaned. The object to be cleaned is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the facing member on at least one of the upstream side and the downstream side of the sandwiching region between the cleaning member and the facing member in the direction of movement. Is.

According to another aspect of the cleaning device of the present invention, at least one of the upstream side and the adjacent downstream side of the sandwiching region between the cleaning member and the facing member in the traveling direction of the belt-shaped body to be cleaned is used to clean the body to be cleaned. By pressing it against the surface of the facing member, the vibration of the object to be cleaned in the holding region and its peripheral portion is suppressed.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the cleaning device according to the first aspect, a rotating body that follows the body to be cleaned is used as the facing member.

According to another aspect of the cleaning device of the present invention, the rotating member that follows the member to be cleaned is used as the facing member that holds the member to be cleaned between the cleaning member and the cleaning member. When the body to be cleaned passes through the holding region, the surface of the facing member and the body to be cleaned are prevented from sliding.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, as the facing member,
The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a member having a curved surface that is convex toward the cleaning member is used, and the member to be cleaned is provided on the surface of the facing member on at least one of the upstream side and the downstream side of the holding region. It is characterized in that a moving path changing member for changing the moving direction of the object to be cleaned is provided so as to be brought into pressure contact with.

According to another aspect of the cleaning device of the present invention, the moving path changing member changes the moving path of the object to be cleaned on at least one of the upstream side and the downstream side of the holding area so that the object to be cleaned is placed on the surface of the facing member. By the pressure contact, the setting range of the advancing direction of the object to be cleaned toward the pressure contact start position on the surface of the facing member or the advancing direction of the object to be cleaned leaving the pressure contact end position is widened.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the cleaning device of the first aspect, the surface portion of the facing member on the cleaning member side is formed of an elastic body, and the hardness of the elastic body is set to the facing member of the cleaning member. It is characterized in that the amount of bite into is set to be larger than the surface processing error of the facing member.

According to another aspect of the cleaning device of the present invention, the hardness of the elastic body forming the surface portion of the facing member is set so that the amount of biting of the cleaning member with respect to the facing member is larger than the surface processing error of the facing member. Due to
The object to be cleaned is securely held between the cleaning member and the facing member.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the cleaning device according to the first aspect, the length of the surface of the facing member on the cleaning member side in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the object to be cleaned is the length of the object to be cleaned. It is characterized by the above settings.

In the cleaning device of the fifth aspect, the length of the surface of the facing member on the cleaning member side in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the object to be cleaned is set to be equal to or longer than the length of the object to be cleaned. The end of the cleaning body is surely brought into pressure contact with the surface of the facing member, and vibration at the end is suppressed.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the cleaning apparatus according to the fifth aspect, the length of the edge forming region of the cleaning member in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the object to be cleaned is shorter than the length of the object to be cleaned. It is characterized by setting.

According to another aspect of the cleaning device of the present invention, the length of the edge forming region of the cleaning member in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the object to be cleaned is set shorter than the length of the object to be cleaned. Make sure that the edge of the cleaning member does not come into contact with the edge that is easily damaged.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the cleaning device according to the fifth aspect, the surface portion of the facing member on the cleaning member side is formed of an elastic body, and faces the sandwiching region of the surface portion of the facing member. The hardness of the elastic body forming the portion is made larger than the hardness of the elastic body forming the portion extending to the outside of the holding region.

In the cleaning device according to the present invention, the hardness of the elastic body forming the portion facing the holding region with the cleaning member in the surface portion of the facing member has the hardness extending to the outside of the holding region. By making the hardness higher than that of the elastic body to be formed, most of the above-mentioned pressing force is not sandwiched between the cleaning member and the facing member without being dispersed in the portion extending outside the holding region. To act on.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a belt-like member capable of exerting a larger adhesive force on an image forming substance adhered to the image holding member than that between the image forming substance and the image holding member. A peeling device for peeling the image forming substance from the image holding body by bringing the peeling member into contact with the image forming substance on the image holding body and then separating the peeling member from the image holding body. An image forming substance removing apparatus for removing an image forming substance from an image carrier, comprising the cleaning device according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 as a cleaning device for removing the image forming substance attached to the peeling member. It is characterized by that.

In the apparatus for removing an image forming substance from an image carrier according to the present invention, the holding area between the cleaning member and the facing member in the advancing direction of the peeling member as the belt-shaped member to be cleaned is adjacent to the upstream side and By pressing the peeling member against the surface of the facing member on at least one of the adjacent downstream sides, vibration of the peeling member in the holding region and its peripheral portion is suppressed.

[0024]

[0025]

[0026]

[0027]

[0028]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. First, an embodiment of the cleaning device according to the present invention will be described. 1A and 1B are a perspective view and a front view showing a schematic configuration of the cleaning device according to the present embodiment. The cleaning device is a roller-shaped cleaning member (hereinafter referred to as “spiral roller”) that is driven to rotate and has a spiral edge 11 on the outer peripheral portion.
1) and a roller-shaped opposing member (hereinafter referred to as “opposing roller”)
It is configured such that the belt-shaped member to be cleaned 3 is sandwiched between the second member and the second member, and the spiral roller 1 removes the deposit on the member to be cleaned 3. Then, the cleaning target 3 is fixed on the surface of the counter roller 2 at the upstream side and the downstream side of the sandwiching area between the spiral roller 1 and the counter roller 2 in the traveling direction of the cleaning target body 3. The length is wrapped.

The opposing roller 2 is a member to be cleaned 3
It is a rotating body that is rotatable so as to follow. By using the rotating body in this way, when the body to be cleaned 3 passes through the nipping region between the spiral roller 1 and the counter roller 2, the surface of the counter roller 2 and the body to be cleaned 3 are cleaned.
Does not slide, the body 3 to be cleaned can be smoothly moved without performing processing such as coating on the surface of the opposed roller 2 to reduce friction with the body 3 to be cleaned. The wear of the surface of the facing roller is reduced.

A predetermined pressing force is applied between the opposed roller 2 and the spiral roller 1. As a method of applying this pressing force, a method of pressing the spiral roller 1 against the fixed roller 2 which is fixedly arranged by biasing the rotary shaft of the spiral roller 1 with a biasing means such as a spring, or a rotary shaft of the counter roller 2 It is possible to employ a method in which the opposed roller 2 is pressed against the spiral roller 1 which is fixedly arranged by urging the roller with an urging means such as a spring.

The surface portion 21 of the opposed roller 2 is made of an elastic material such as rubber. As the elastic body forming the surface portion 21, an elastic body having a hardness such that the amount of biting of the spiral roller 1 with respect to the facing roller 2 is larger than the surface processing error of the facing roller 2 is used. As a result, even if the facing roller 2 has a surface processing error, the member to be cleaned 3 can be reliably sandwiched between the spiral roller 1 and the facing roller 2, so that good cleaning characteristics without cleaning unevenness can be obtained.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the pinching area between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 for explaining the biting of the spiral roller 1. In FIG. 2, the bite amount ΔT of the spiral roller 1 can be obtained by the formula shown in Formula 1. W in Formula 1 is the width of the holding area (nip width)
Where D1 is the outer diameter of the spiral roller 1, and D2
Is the outer diameter of the opposing roller 2. The actually measurable nip width corresponds to the arc portion of the outer peripheral surface of the spiral roller 1, but there is no problem even if it is approximated to a straight line.

## EQU1 ## ΔT = d1 + d2 = ((D1) / 2- (E
1)) + ((D2) / 2- (E2)) (E1) ² = ((D1) / 2) ^2- (W / 2) ² (E2) ² = ((D2) / 2) ^2- ( W / 2) ²

Here, the outer diameter D1 is 60 mm (processing error:
0.002-0.005 mm) spiral roller 1
And the outer diameter D2 having a surface portion made of rubber having a JIS-A hardness of 80 degrees is 36 mm (processing error: 0.028 to
The nip width W was 2.5 mm when the opposing roller 2 of 0.065 mm) was used and the pressure applied between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 was set to 10 kgf. The bite amount ΔT of the spiral roller 1 at this time was ΔT = 0.069 mm according to the equation 1. On the other hand, the maximum gap between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 when the outer peripheral surfaces of the opposing roller 2 and the outer peripheral surface of the opposing roller 2 start to contact each other at the first point is 0.07 mm when estimated from the above processing error (this maximum gap value is almost opposite to each other). It is caused by the processing error of the roller). Therefore, under the illustrated conditions, the opposing roller 2 is
JIS-A hardness is 80 as an elastic body that forms the surface of
It is preferable to use a rubber or the like having a hardness of not more than 100 degrees from the viewpoint of obtaining good cleaning characteristics.

Further, it is preferable that the elastic body forming the surface portion 21 of the opposed roller 2 has a hardness capable of obtaining sufficient durability, and thereby, good cleaning characteristics can be maintained over time. More specifically, an elastic body made of rubber having a JIS-A hardness of 20 degrees or more is used. In this case, for example, one cleaning device
Even after being operated for 60 hours, the elastic body was not damaged such as cracks. Further, even when the pressing force between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 is increased, or when the spiral roller 1 having a deep concave portion adjacent to the edge 11 is used, the elastic body does not largely deform. The wrinkle does not enter the object to be cleaned 3 and the object to be cleaned 3 does not break.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the length (width) Wb of the surface portion 21 made of the elastic body of the facing roller 2 in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the body to be cleaned 3 is the body to be cleaned in the same direction. The length (width) Wc of 3 or more is set. As a result, the end portion of the body to be cleaned 3 is surely brought into pressure contact with the surface of the facing member to suppress the vibration, so that noise due to the vibration at the end portion can be prevented.

In the cleaning device according to the comparative example shown in FIG. 9, the width Wb of the surface portion 21 of the facing roller 2 is shorter than the width Wc of the body 3 to be cleaned. Compared to the case of the cleaning device according to the embodiment, the noise during the cleaning operation in which the spiral roller 1 is rotationally driven is increased by about 2 to 5 dB.
This increase in noise is considered to be due to the vibration of the end portion A of the cleaning target body 3 in FIG. 9A. Further, in the case of the comparative example of FIG. 9, when the spiral roller 1 is not rotationally driven and only the object to be cleaned is moved, that is, in the idle mode operation, an unpleasant low-frequency drive noise due to the curvature of the object to be cleaned is generated. The noise was generated in a cycle of 2 to 5 seconds, but in the case of the cleaning device according to the present embodiment of FIG. 3, the low frequency noise was not generated at all.

The length (width) Ws of the edge forming region of the spiral roller 1 in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the body 3 to be cleaned is set shorter than the length (width) Wc of the body 3 to be cleaned. There is. As a result, the edge 11 of the spiral roller 1 does not come into contact with the edge of the object to be cleaned 3, so that the edge of the object to be cleaned 3 is prevented from being damaged, and noise caused by scraping the edge is prevented. is doing. Here, the belt-shaped member to be cleaned 3
In some cases, the object to be cleaned 3 is driven while meandering in the width direction in order to correct the conveyance trajectory of the. For example, in the case of the endless belt-shaped member to be cleaned 3 having a perimeter of about 400 to 1500 mm, it is meandered in the width direction by about 3 to 7 mm.
In such a case, the length (width) Ws of the edge forming region of the spiral roller 1 and the length (width) Wc of the body 3 to be cleaned are considered in consideration of the wobbling width of the body to be cleaned. Set.

As described above, according to the cleaning apparatus of the present embodiment, the cleaning target 3 is located on the upstream side and the downstream side of the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 in the traveling direction of the cleaning target 3. Is pressed against the surface of the opposed roller 2 to suppress the vibration of the body 3 to be cleaned in the sandwiching area and its peripheral portion, so that noise due to the vibration of the body 3 to be cleaned can be prevented. .

On the other hand, in the cleaning device according to the comparative example shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, since the body 3 to be cleaned is not wound around the outer peripheral surface of the opposed roller 2, the spiral in the traveling direction of the body 3 to be cleaned is provided. Laura 1
The portion to be cleaned vibrates on the upstream side and the downstream side (B in the figure) adjacent to the sandwiching area between the roller and the opposing roller 2, and a portion corresponding to the clearance between the edges of the spiral roller 1 in the sandwiching area. (C in the figure) causes the body to be cleaned 3 to vibrate or, as described above, the end portion A in the width direction of the body to be cleaned 3 vibrates. The vibration of the body 3 to be cleaned causes a relatively large noise.

In the above embodiment, the surface portion 21 of the opposed roller 2 is formed of an elastic body having a constant hardness. However, as shown in FIG. 4, the surface portion of the opposed roller 2 is formed of an elastic body. The hardness of the elastic body forming the portion 21a facing the sandwiching area with the spiral roller 1 of 21 is made larger than the hardness of the elastic body forming the end portion 21b extending outside the sandwiching area. You may. For example, the end 21b may be sponge or JIS-A having a low hardness (10
Less than a degree) Made of rubber material. In the case of this modification, most of the above-mentioned pressing force acts on the sandwiching region without dispersing the pressing force applied between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 to the portion extending outside the sandwiching region. Therefore, good cleaning characteristics can be obtained in the sandwiched region. Further, in order to prevent the above pressing force from being dispersed to the portion extending outside the holding region, the diameter of the axial end portion of the spiral roller 1 is made smaller than that of the portion facing the holding region. You don't even have to. Here, the diameter of the end portion 21b of the facing roller 2 is the diameter of the portion 2 facing the holding region.
Although it may be set to be the same as 1a, it may be set to be larger than the portion 21a facing the holding region as shown in FIG. For example, a step of about 2 mm or less is formed.
In the latter case, no large pressing force acts on the end 21b, so there is no problem in terms of durability.

In the above embodiment, the moving path of the body to be cleaned 3 is set so that the body to be cleaned 3 is wound around the surface of the facing roller 2 as shown in FIG. ), A winding roller 4 that changes the movement path of the body to be cleaned 3 so as to wind the body to be cleaned 3 on the surface of the facing roller 2 is provided on the body to be cleaned 3 on the downstream side of the holding region in the traveling direction. Good. Further, as shown in FIG. 5B, the winding roller 4 may be provided on both the upstream side and the downstream side of the holding region. When the winding roller 4 is provided in this way, the setting range of the advancing direction of the cleaning target 3 toward the winding roller 4 or the advancing direction of the cleaning target 3 exiting from the winding roller 4 becomes wider, so that the cleaning target is cleaned. The degree of freedom in layout design of the movement path of the body 3 is increased.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, a brush roller 5 which rotates in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the spiral roller 1 may be provided. Since the brush roller 5 removes the substance adhering to the outer peripheral surface (land portion) adjacent to the edge 11 of the spiral roller 1, it is possible to maintain good cleaning performance for the body 3 to be cleaned over time. Here, the brush roller 5
Is driven so as to move in the same direction as the outer peripheral surface of the spiral roller 1 at the contact position with the spiral roller 1, damage to the edge 11 of the spiral roller 1 by the brush roller 5 can be prevented.

Next, a description will be given of an embodiment of the image forming substance removing device from the image holding member, which is equipped with the cleaning device having the above structure. FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram of an apparatus for removing an image forming substance from an image carrier according to the present embodiment, in which an image is transferred from a transfer paper 11 as an image carrier on which an image is formed by a transfer type electrophotographic copying machine. An example of a toner removing device for removing the toner T as a forming substance is shown. This toner removing device is a paper feeding unit 100 that separates and feeds the transfer papers 11 on which toner images are stored in a stacked state one by one.
Then, the liquid application unit 200 for applying the toner removal accelerating liquid 12 composed of water or the like to the transfer paper 11 sent from the paper feeding unit 100, and the toner T is peeled off from the transfer paper 11 to which the toner removal accelerating liquid 12 is supplied. A toner peeling unit 300 as a peeling means for removing the toner, a drying unit 400 for drying the transfer paper 11 from which the toner has been removed, and a paper receiving unit 500 for receiving the transfer paper 11 discharged from the drying unit 400. There is.

In the paper feed unit 100, the transfer papers 11 stacked on the paper feed cassette 101 are fed one by one from the uppermost one by a paper feed roller 102, and the registration roller 103 and the interval and linear velocity of the transfer papers are fed. It is sent to the next step while holding. In the liquid application unit 200, the toner removal accelerating liquid 12 is applied from the application roller 202 to the transfer paper 11 while the traveling direction of the transfer paper 11 is kept constant by the drive roller 201. In the next toner peeling unit 300, the toner T on the transfer paper 11 has a belt-shaped peeling member (hereinafter, referred to as “belt” by heat and pressure) at the sandwiching portion between the pressure roller 301 having a heater and the peeling roller 302 having a heater. It is firmly adhered to the peeling surface of the peeling belt 303). Then, the separation roller 304 is moved in the substantially 9
By changing it by 0 degree, the separation belt 303 to which the toner transferred from the transfer paper 11 adheres and the transfer paper 11 are separated in curvature. The transfer paper 11 from which the toner is removed by the curvature separation from the peeling belt 303 is dry-pressed between the finishing drum 401 and the finishing belt 402 in the drying unit 400, and the paper discharge cassette 5 of the paper discharge unit 500.
Stocked on 01.

In the toner peeling unit 300 of the toner removing device, the peeling belt 303 is wound around the belt deviation correcting roller 305 and the opposing roller 2 of the cleaning device in addition to the peeling roller 302 and the separating roller 304, and the tension roller. A predetermined tension is applied at 306.

As the cleaning device for removing the adhered substances such as toner adhered to the peeling belt 303 as the member to be cleaned 3, the spiral roller 1 independently rotated and the rotatable opposite roller driven by the peeling belt 303 are used. The cleaning device shown in FIG. Adhered substances such as toner removed from the peeling belt 303 by the spiral roller 1 are collected on the receiving container 307.

As described above, according to the toner removing apparatus of the present embodiment, the peeling belt 303 is provided on the upstream side and the downstream side of the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 in the traveling direction of the peeling belt 303. Since the peeling belt 303 does not vibrate in the sandwiching area and its peripheral portion by pressing the sheet against the surface of the facing roller 2, noise due to the vibration of the peeling belt 303 can be prevented.

Table 1 shows the results of noise measurement for a more specific example of the toner removing device shown in FIG.
The spiral roller 1 has an outer diameter of 60 mmφ, a helix angle (spiral angle) of 30 degrees, a land width of 1 mm, a rake angle of 5 degrees, a blade number of 12, and an edge forming area width (blade width) of 310 mm. I used one. The opposing roller 2
Has an outer diameter of 36 mmφ and a JIS-A hardness of 40
A rubber roller having a surface portion 21 (thickness 1 mm) made of rubber having a hardness of 1 degree was used. Between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2, the total of both shaft ends is 14 kgf (137N).
Was applied (pressurizing force), and the width (nip width) of the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 at this time was about 5 mm. Also, the peeling belt 303
The winding length of the sheet around the opposing roller 2 was about 40 mm.

The noise is INTEGRAT when the distance from the toner removing device that drives only the cleaning device is 1 m.
ING SOUND LEVEL METER (manufactured by Rion Kogyo Co., Ltd., model number:
NL-01A). The noise level, which is the measured value described in Table 1, means the average noise level for 10 seconds in the A characteristic, and shows the maximum value among the three measurements. Further, at each measurement point, the difference between the noise level during the cleaning operation and the level of the background noise was 8 dB, and therefore the actual measurement value corrected by -1 dB is shown in Table 1.

[0050]

[Table 1]

In the results shown in Table 1 above, the number of revolutions of the spiral roller 1 is 100 rpm (the linear velocity is 314 mm / s).
When, the toner on the peeling belt 303 is almost 100%
It could be removed and cleaned. Therefore,
The noise during the cleaning operation in which the desired cleaning characteristic of the toner removing device according to the present embodiment is obtained is a very small value of about 35 dB in the A characteristic. In this embodiment, the spiral roller 1 having an outer diameter of 60 mmφ is rotationally driven at 100 rpm. However, even if the outer diameter is different, the circumferential edges 11 are arranged at the same intervals as in the present embodiment. Once formed, the same level of cleaning characteristics can be expected by setting the same linear velocity.

Further, as can be seen from Table 1, even when the linear velocity of the spiral roller 1 is close to 1000 mm / s, the noise level when only the cleaning device is operated is about 47 dB. On the other hand, the noise level when each of the other units of the toner removing device is operated is 51.3 dB when the toner removing unit 300 is operating.
It was 55.6 dB when the finishing unit 400 alone was in operation, and 62.6 dB when the sheet feeding / liquid application unit and other units were in operation. From this result, it is understood that the noise level of the entire toner removing device when the cleaning device according to the present embodiment is in operation and when the cleaning device is not in operation has a fluctuation of about a measurement error. When the noise level of the entire toner removing device was actually measured at a position 0.2 mm away from the entire surface of the toner removing device, it was 65.1 when the cleaning device was in operation.
dB, 65.5d when the cleaning device is not operating
It was B.

As a comparative example, Table 2 shows the noise measurement results of the toner removing device equipped with the conventional type cleaning device as shown in FIG. The toner removing device of this comparative example is different from the toner removing device of FIG. 7 according to the present embodiment in that there is a portion where the peeling belt 303 is free in the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the counter roller 2 and its periphery. The noise level shown in Table 2 is a value measured at a position 0.5 m away from the cleaning device of the toner removing device and converted into a value at a position 1 m away from the cleaning device. This conversion was performed by regarding the noise source as a linear sound source having the size of the holding region between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2. Further, at each measurement point, the difference between the noise level during the cleaning operation and the level of the background noise was 10 dB or more, so the actual measured value was not corrected.

[0054]

[Table 2]

In the comparative example of Table 2, the spiral roller 1 having an outer diameter of 24 mmφ was used. Therefore, comparative evaluation with Table 1 was attempted based on the linear velocity converted in consideration of the outer diameter. When the linear velocity of the spiral roller 1 is compared at a measurement point of 314 mm / s, the result of Table 1 according to the example is 35.1 dB, but the result of Table 2 of the comparative example is 5
It is 7.6 dB. From this comparison result, it can be seen that the toner removing device equipped with the cleaning device of the present embodiment can achieve a much lower noise level (about −22 dB) than the device of the comparative example.

When the cleaning device was observed for the toner removing device of FIG. 10 of the comparative example, two types of vibrations of the peeling belt 303 were observed. one,
As shown in FIG. 9A, it is the vibration of the peeling belt 303 at the portion (A in the figure) where the surface portion made of the rubber material of the facing roller 2 is not in contact. The other is vibration of the peeling belt 303 on the upstream side and the downstream side (B in the figure) adjacent to the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 as shown in FIG. 9B. . On the other hand, in the cleaning device according to the present embodiment, such a vibration of the peeling belt 303 was not observed, and thus the peeling belt 303 of this type was used.
It is considered that the noise due to the above-mentioned vibration could be prevented by suppressing the generation of the above-mentioned vibration.

FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration diagram of a toner removing device according to another embodiment. In this toner removing device, a toner peeling unit 300 is configured so that the toner can be removed from both front and back surfaces of the transfer paper 11. In this toner peeling unit 300, the upper and lower two peeling belts 303 are a separation roller 304, a belt deviation correction roller 305,
It is wound around the tension roller 306, the opposing roller 2 of the cleaning device, and the like. Further, in the holding and conveying section 308 in the center of the toner peeling unit 300, two peeling belts 303 are superposed on each other so that the transfer paper 11 can be held, and a plurality of heating and pressing rollers take a zigzag movement path. It is held with a predetermined pressure.

The belt deviation correction roller 305 corrects the conveyance position shift of the peeling belt 303 driven and conveyed, and the tension roller 306 prevents the peeling belt 303 from sagging, wrinkling, slipping, or the like. It gives a predetermined tension to the peeling belt 303 and is an indispensable member for the present toner removing device. However, since these rollers are biased by using a relatively weak spring and have a structure in which the axis of the roller is displaced, they are commonly used as the facing roller 2 facing the spiral roller 1. Difficult to do.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the cleaning device shown in FIG. 5B is used as the cleaning device for cleaning the upper and lower separating belts 303, and the belt deviation correction roller 305 of the toner separating unit 300 is used. They are arranged on the belt moving path between the holding and conveying section 308 and the introduction section. As described above, this cleaning device presses the peeling belt 303 (object to be cleaned 3) against the surface of the facing roller 2 by using the winding rollers 4a and 4b. Therefore, the setting range of the advancing direction of the peeling roller 303 toward the winding roller 4a and the advancing direction of the peeling roller 303 exiting from the winding roller 4b is widened, so that the cleaning target 3 is cleaned.
The degree of freedom in layout design of the movement route of the robot increases.

On the other hand, when it is attempted to press the peeling belt 303 against the surface of the facing roller 2 without using the winding rollers 4a and 4b, the moving path of the peeling belt 303 at the cleaning device is convex on the left side in the figure. Since it is necessary to set a moving path of a different shape, it is necessary to provide a space for this moving path in the toner removing device, which is disadvantageous in terms of downsizing of the device. Furthermore, since the length of wrapping of the peeling belt 303 around the belt deviation correction roller 305 becomes short and the sliding resistance between the peeling belt 303 and the roller 305 becomes small, it is difficult to correct the deviation of the conveying position of the peeling belt 303. There are also defects.

As described above, also in this embodiment, the peeling belt 303 can be pressed against the surface of the counter roller 2 on the upstream side and the downstream side of the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the counter roller 2, so that the peeling can be performed. It is possible to prevent an increase in noise due to the vibration of the belt 303.

In this embodiment, the winding rollers are provided on both the upstream side and the downstream side of the sandwiching area between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2.
As shown in FIG. 5A, the winding roller may be provided only on the downstream side of the sandwiching region where the vibration of the peeling belt 303 is likely to occur. In addition, in the example of FIGS. 5A, 5B and 8, the winding roller 4 is provided so as to contact the counter roller, but a region where the peeling belt 303 is in pressure contact with the surface of the counter roller 2 is ensured. If possible, the winding roller may be arranged apart from the surface of the opposing roller 2.

Further, in this embodiment, the belt deviation correction roller 305 of the toner peeling unit 300 and the sandwiching and conveying section 3 are arranged.
The cleaning devices are respectively arranged on the belt movement path between the introduction paper to the introduction part 08 and the introduction part, but the arrangement is not limited to this arrangement position. Outlet section and tension roller 306
You may arrange | position between and.

Although the configuration examples of the two toner removing devices have been described above, the cleaning performance of the cleaning devices used in these toner removing devices may deteriorate over time. When the cause of the deterioration of the cleaning performance was investigated, it was found that the main cause was that the toner adhered to the outer peripheral surface of the land portion of the spiral roller 1. For example, using the spiral roller 1 in which the total deflection is 0.005 mm in the unused state, A
When toner removal processing was performed on 1000 sheets of transfer paper 11 in terms of 4 sizes, the total amount of deflection of the spiral roller 1 changed to 0.028 mm. This increase in total deflection is 0.023 mm at the land of the spiral roller 1.
It is considered that the toner is fixed at a rate of 1000 sheets. When the total deflection of the spiral roller 1 was 0.05 mm or more, defective cleaning occurred.

Further, it has been found that the accumulation of toner in the escape portion of the spiral roller 1 where the blade is not formed is one of the causes of the deterioration of the cleaning performance with the passage of time.

Therefore, in the above embodiment, in order to prevent the cleaning performance from deteriorating with time, it is preferable to provide a brush roller which is rotated in pressure contact with the spiral roller 1 as shown in FIG. For example, 0.3
Approximately 2 to 30 mm diameter nylon brushed outer diameter 20 to 30
The mmφ brush roller 5 is pressed against the spiral roller 1 by applying a load of about 3 to 7 kgf to both shaft ends. The pressure contact width in the axial direction corresponds to the edge forming region of the spiral roller 1, and is set to, for example, about 310 mm. The brush roller 5 is rotated at a higher speed than the spiral roller 1. The brush roller 5 removes the toner attached to the land portion of the spiral roller 1 and the toner accumulated in the escape portion. The rotation direction of the brush roller 5 is set so that the contact surface is in the same direction as the surface of the spiral roller 1.
This prevents the brush of the brush roller 5 from damaging the edge 11 of the spiral roller 1.

Further, in the toner removing device of each of the above-described embodiments, the pressure applied to the sandwiching region between the spiral roller 1 and the opposing roller 2 can remove almost 100% of the toner on the peeling belt 303, and the peeling belt 303 can be removed. It is desirable to set within the range that does not damage. For example, as the spiral roller 1, the outer diameter is 60 mmφ, the twist angle (spiral angle) is 30 degrees, the land width is 1 mm, the rake angle is 5 degrees, the number of blades is 12, and the width of the edge forming area (blade width)
Was 310 mm, and the facing roller 2 was a rubber roller having an outer diameter of 36 mmφ and a surface portion 21 (thickness 1 mm) made of rubber having JIS-A hardness of 20 degrees, 40 degrees, or 80 degrees. As a result of conducting an experiment on the case, it was confirmed that almost 100% of the toner on the peeling belt 303 can be removed and the peeling belt 303 is not damaged in the range of at least 0.89 to 184 kgf / cm ² . Similar results were obtained with a spiral roller having an outer diameter of 24 mmφ.

[0068]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, at least one of the adjacent upstream side and the adjacent downstream side of the sandwiching region between the cleaning member and the facing member in the traveling direction of the belt-shaped member to be cleaned is cleaned. By pressing the body against the surface of the facing member, the vibration of the body to be cleaned in the sandwiching area and its peripheral portion is suppressed, so that the noise due to the vibration of the body to be cleaned can be prevented.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the object to be cleaned passes through the holding region between the cleaning member and the opposed member which is the rotating body, the surface of the opposed member and the object to be cleaned do not slide. , For the surface of the facing member,
It is possible to smoothly move the object to be cleaned and to reduce the abrasion of the surface of the facing member without performing a process such as coating for reducing friction with the object to be cleaned.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the setting range of the advancing direction of the object to be cleaned toward the pressure contact start position on the surface of the facing member or the advancing direction of the object to be cleaned leaving the pressure contact end position is widened. Thus, there is an effect that the degree of freedom in layout design of the movement path of the object to be cleaned is increased.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, even if the facing member has a surface processing error, the member to be cleaned can be reliably sandwiched between the cleaning member and the facing member, so that good cleaning characteristics without uneven cleaning can be obtained. Is obtained.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the end of the member to be cleaned is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the opposing member to suppress the vibration, the noise due to the vibration of the end can be prevented. There is.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, since the edge of the cleaning member does not contact the edge of the object to be cleaned, damage to the edge of the object to be cleaned can be prevented and the edge can be scraped off. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the generation of noise.

According to the invention of claim 7, most of the pressing force is applied to the sandwiching region without dispersing the pressing force applied between the cleaning member and the opposing member to the portion extending outside the sandwiching region. Since it works, there is an effect that good cleaning characteristics can be obtained in the sandwiched region.

According to the invention of claim 8, at least one of the adjacent upstream side and the adjacent downstream side of the sandwiching region between the cleaning member and the facing member in the traveling direction of the peeling member as the belt-shaped member to be cleaned, By bringing the peeling member into pressure contact with the surface of the facing member, vibration of the peeling member in the sandwiching region and its peripheral portion is suppressed, so that there is an effect that noise due to vibration of the peeling member can be prevented.

[0076]

[0077]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a cleaning device according to an embodiment. (B) is a front view of the cleaning device.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a sandwiching region between a spiral roller and a facing roller.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a spiral roller and a facing roller.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a facing roller according to a modified example.

5A and 5B are front views of a cleaning device according to another modification.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a cleaning device according to another modification.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a toner removing device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a toner removing device according to another embodiment.

FIG. 9A is a perspective view of a cleaning device according to a comparative example. (B) is a front view of the cleaning device.

FIG. 10 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a toner removing device according to a comparative example.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 spiral roller 2 Opposing roller 3 Cleaning target 4 winding roller 5 brush roller 11 Transfer paper 300 toner stripping unit 301 pressure roller 302 Peeling roller 303 Peeling belt (body to be cleaned) 304 separation roller 305 Belt deviation correction roller 306 Tension roller 307 Receiving container T toner

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 21/00 G03G 21/00 550-578 G03G 21/10-21/12

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. A roller-shaped cleaning member driven to rotate having a spiral edge on the outer peripheral portion and a single roller.
In a cleaning device in which a belt-shaped object to be cleaned is sandwiched between a cleaning member and a la-shaped opposing member to remove the deposits on the object to be cleaned by the cleaning member, 2. The cleaning device, wherein the member to be cleaned is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the facing member on at least one of an upstream side and an adjacent downstream side of a sandwiching region between the cleaning member and the facing member. 2. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a rotating body driven by the body to be cleaned is used as the facing member. 3. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a member having a curved surface that is convex toward the cleaning member is used as the facing member, and at least one of an upstream side and a downstream side of the holding region is provided. A cleaning device comprising a moving path changing member for changing a moving direction of the object to be cleaned so that the object to be cleaned is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the facing member. 4. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a surface portion of the facing member on the cleaning member side is formed of an elastic body, and a hardness of the elastic body is determined by a biting amount of the cleaning member with respect to the facing member. A cleaning device, which is set to be larger than a surface processing error of a facing member. 5. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the length of the surface of the facing member on the cleaning member side in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the object to be cleaned is set to be equal to or longer than the length of the object to be cleaned. Cleaning device characterized by: 6. The cleaning device according to claim 5, wherein the length of the edge forming region of the cleaning member in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the object to be cleaned is set shorter than the length of the object to be cleaned. And a cleaning device. 7. The cleaning device according to claim 5, wherein a surface portion of the facing member on the cleaning member side is formed of an elastic body, and an elastic member is formed to form a portion of the surface portion of the facing member facing the holding region. A cleaning device characterized in that the hardness of the body is made larger than the hardness of an elastic body forming a portion extending to the outside of the holding region. 8. A belt-shaped peeling member capable of exerting an adhesion force larger than an adhesion force between the image forming substance and the image holding member to the image forming substance attached to the image holding member, From an image holding body provided with a peeling device for peeling the image forming substance from the image holding body by bringing the peeling member and the image holding body apart from each other after being brought into contact with the image forming substance on the image holding body. The image forming substance removing device according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning device removes the image forming substance attached to the peeling member.
An apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier, comprising: