JP4954030B2 - Cleaning medium and dry cleaning apparatus using the same - Google Patents

Description

  For example, the present invention can remove dust and powder adhering to various objects to be cleaned, such as parts having a relatively complicated shape to which toner is attached, which is used in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a laser printer. The present invention relates to a solid cleaning medium to be removed without using a solvent and a dry cleaning apparatus using the same, and more particularly to improving workability by continuously supplying and cleaning objects to be cleaned.

  Office equipment manufacturers such as copiers, facsimiles, and printers disassemble, clean, and reassemble used products and various units from users to realize a resource recycling society, and reuse them as parts. Recycling activities are actively carried out. In order to reuse the parts used in these products and various units, it is necessary to remove and clean the toner, which is fine particle powder adhering to the disassembled parts and units. Reducing the cost and environmental burden required for commercialization is a major issue.

  There is a wet cleaning method that uses water or a solvent to remove dirt such as toner adhering to these parts and units. In this cleaning method, the energy of the treatment of the waste liquid containing toner and the drying treatment after cleaning Consumption may cause an increase in cost due to environmental and energy saving measures.

  Also, in the case of dry cleaning methods using air blow, cleaning capability is not sufficient for toner with strong adhesion, and post-processing such as wiping with a manual cloth is necessary, so cleaning is a bottleneck process in product reuse and recycling It is one of. Furthermore, the blast cleaning using dry ice has a problem that the running cost is high and the environmental load is large because dry ice is consumed in large quantities.

  In order to solve these problems, the dry cleaning apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 removes electricity while stirring a charged cleaning object in a rotating cylinder together with an elastically deformable contact member and adheres to the cleaning object. The dust adhesion is weakened and removed.

  Further, as shown in Patent Document 2, a method of separating a deposit from an object to be cleaned by spraying a small piece of steel, aluminum, stainless steel spheres or wire finely cut onto a workpiece, or Patent Document 3 As shown in FIG. 2, a shot blasting method is also used in which a granular solid is mixed in a high-speed air stream and collides with the surface of the resin container to remove dirt from the resin container.

  Furthermore, in the dry cleaning method disclosed in Patent Document 4, a particulate cleaning medium that adsorbs fine particles is introduced into a container to be cleaned, a cleaning nozzle is inserted into the opening of the container to be cleaned, and a high-speed air flow is introduced into the cleaning container. Blow out the cleaning nozzle, blow up the cleaning medium in the cleaning container, remove the fine particles adhering to the inner surface of the cleaning container with the blown particulate cleaning medium, and make the cleaning medium collide with the mesh at the tip of the cleaning nozzle Then, the fine particles adsorbed on the cleaning medium are separated and filtered to regenerate the cleaning medium, and the regenerated cleaning medium is blown again with an air flow and repeatedly cleaned.

  Further, in Patent Document 5, in addition to the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 4, a configuration is also proposed in which the regeneration of the cleaning medium is performed simultaneously with the flight of the cleaning medium and the suction of the cleaning medium.

  Patent Documents 6 to 10 also propose a blast cleaning method using a flexible cleaning medium in order to make it difficult to damage the object to be cleaned or to prevent deformation due to cleaning of the object to be cleaned.

Further, Patent Document 11 proposes a cleaning method using a flaky cleaning medium in order to improve cleaning efficiency.
JP 2003-122123 A JP 2005-193958 A Japanese Patent No. 2889547 Japanese Patent No. 3468995 JP 2005-329292 A JP 2004-106100 A JP 60-188123 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 04-059087 Utility Model Registration No. 2515833 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 07-088446 JP 2007-29945 A

  The dry cleaning apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a problem that the contact force between the contact member and the object to be cleaned by stirring is not sufficient, and it is difficult to remove dust with strong adhesion.

  In the dry cleaning apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 2, it is necessary to increase the cleanliness of the cleaning medium in order to improve the cleaning quality. However, the centrifugal separation action by the swirling airflow (cyclone method) has insufficient separation performance. It was. Further, in order to further improve the cleaning quality, it is necessary to replace the cleaning medium on which the toner is adsorbed many times, and there is a problem that the cleaning efficiency is poor and a large amount of cleaning medium is required.

  Since the dry cleaning apparatus shown in Patent Document 3 and Patent Document 4 uses small pieces of metal spheres or finely cut wires or granular solids as a cleaning medium, not only removes dirt on the object to be cleaned. It was not applicable when the surface of the object to be cleaned was scraped and roughened into a satin-like shape, and scratches on the object due to cleaning were not allowed.

  The dry cleaning apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 5 performs regeneration by flying the cleaning medium and sucking the cleaning medium at the same time, and is an effective means for a small volume such as cleaning in a container. Since the energy of the cleaning medium flying is dispersed, the stagnation that the cleaning medium does not fly and stays in the cleaning tank with a large volume where the object to be cleaned is introduced and moved is There is a possibility that the regeneration is difficult to perform and the cleaning ability is reduced.

  The dry cleaning apparatuses disclosed in Patent Documents 6 to 10 have a problem that the time required for cleaning is long and sufficient cleaning cannot be performed on the adhered particles having strong adhesion.

  The dry cleaning apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 11 has a problem in that the cleaning medium and the cleaning tank wall adhere to each other in the cleaning process, thereby reducing the amount of the cleaning medium contributing to cleaning and reducing the cleaning efficiency. In addition, there is a problem in that the cleaning medium and the cleaning target are attached in the cleaning medium removing process from the cleaning target after cleaning, and the work time related to the cleaning medium removal is increased. Further, the cleaning medium may be caught between the joint of the object to be cleaned, the joint, the joint in the cleaning tank, or the joint, which may cause the same problem.

  The present invention improves such a problem and improves the cleaning quality and cleaning efficiency by increasing the movement speed and cleanliness of the dry cleaning medium. It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning medium that can be dry-cleaned without generating a cleaning residue and a dry-cleaning apparatus using the same.

  It is another object of the present invention to facilitate the removal of the cleaning medium adhering to the object to be cleaned after cleaning, and to reduce the work time related to cleaning.

The cleaning medium of the present invention is a cleaning medium that is used for removing the deposits adhered to the cleaning target object by causing the air to flow in the cleaning tank and colliding with the target object. does not contact the outer surface with the cleaning target object in contact with the cleaning target object and an inner surface, with a cylindrical shape which airflow enters from the outside to the inner surface of the cleaning medium, and have a flexible, said washing The medium is bent when it contacts or collides with the object to be cleaned .

  The cleaning medium is formed in a cylindrical shape.

  The cylinder may be formed in a cylindrical shape or a polygonal shape.

  An angle formed between the side surface of the cylinder and at least one opening surface is formed as an acute angle, one opening diameter of the cylinder is formed smaller than the other opening diameter, or a fold is formed on the side surface of the cylinder. desirable.

  Moreover, it is good to have a flexible thin piece on the side surface of the said cylinder.

  The cleaning medium is formed in a bag shape having an opening on one side.

  The bag may have a conical shape or a pyramid shape.

  It is desirable to have a fold on the side of the bag.

  Further, the cleaning medium is made of a material having an antistatic function, or at least a part of the inner surface thereof is coated with a ferromagnetic material, or formed of a material that can transmit light, and at least a part of the inner surface is self. It is desirable to be coated with a light emitting material or a light reflecting material.

  The dry cleaning apparatus of the present invention uses any one of the cleaning media described above, and circulation airflow generating means for flying with a high-speed air current in the cleaning tank, and the object to be cleaned with the high-speed airflow. Cleaning medium accelerating means for removing the adhering matter adhering to the object to be cleaned by colliding with the cleaning object, and cleaning for regenerating the cleaning medium by sucking and removing the adhering substance adhering to the cleaning medium that has collided with the object to be cleaned Medium reproducing means.

This invention has an outer surface that contacts the object to be cleaned and an inner surface that does not contact the object to be cleaned, and has a cylindrical shape in which airflow from the outside enters the inner surface and is flexible. When the flying medium is caused to fly and collide with the object to be cleaned, the adhering substance adhering to the object to be cleaned is removed by bending the cleaning medium . As a result, the cleaning area can be increased by increasing the contact area in one collision, and the cleaning medium is deflected to release the force when the contact force when colliding with the object to be cleaned increases. The object to be cleaned can be stably cleaned and reused, and energy saving can be achieved. In addition, the cleaning medium attached to the object to be cleaned after cleaning is easily removed.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of the cleaning medium of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the cleaning medium 1 is formed in a cylindrical shape and has flexibility. As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning medium 1 flows from the high-speed air flow 2 and adheres to the object to be cleaned 3 such as various kinds of dust. The deposit 4 is removed. The material, weight, size, shape, and the like of the cleaning medium 1 are characteristics such as the shape and material of the object 3 to be cleaned, the particle size and adhesion strength of the object 4 attached to the object 3 to be cleaned, etc. It is determined according to the characteristics.

  The air blowing means for generating the airflow for the cleaning medium 1 to fly is disposed at a position away from the fixed position of the cleaning object 3 by a predetermined distance. As this blowing means, a blowing means, a compressed air source, an air tube, an air blow nozzle, a spraying device, or the like can be used. As a method for generating the air flow 2 by the blowing means, any method may be used as long as the cleaning medium 1 can fly. The cleaning medium 1 may be arranged.

  As described above, when the air flow 2 is generated by the operation of the air blowing means, a large number of the cleaning media 1 existing on the flow path of the air flow 2 flies on the air flow, and most of the large number of the cleaned cleaning media 1 are to be cleaned. The surface of the cleaning object 3 is cleaned by scraping off the deposit 4 from the cleaning object 3 in contact with or colliding with the object 3. Accordingly, the cleaning medium 1 behaves as a fluid, unlike the cleaning means fixedly supported such as a brush, a wire, and a scraper, so that the cleaning effect is improved by the penetration of the cleaning medium 1 to every corner of the object 3 to be cleaned. be able to.

  By using an air blow nozzle connected to a compressed air source as a blowing means for generating an air flow 2 for flying the cleaning medium 1, a high-speed air flow 2 can be generated, and the cleaning ability of the object 3 to be cleaned is increased. Can do. Moreover, since the frequency with which the cleaning medium 1 contacts the cleaning target 3 increases by increasing the speed of the airflow 2, the cleaning time of the cleaning target 3 can be shortened and the cleaning efficiency can be improved.

  Thus, the cleaning medium 1 for cleaning the cleaning object 3 is flexible and can be bent when it contacts or collides with the cleaning object 3, so that it is given to the cleaning object 3. The impact can be reduced and the cleaning efficiency can be increased. Further, since the cleaning medium 1 has flexibility, when the contact force with respect to the cleaning object 3 is increased, the cleaning medium 1 is bent to release the force as shown in FIG. Generation | occurrence | production of the malfunction that it collides with the washing | cleaning target object 3 with the force more than necessary like the media material for barrel grinding | polishing, and the washing | cleaning target object 3 is damaged can be prevented. Further, the cleaning medium 1 is bent and becomes inelastic collision at the time of contact or collision with the cleaning object 3, and the cleaning medium 1 is less likely to rebound at the time of collision, so that the cleaning medium 1 contacts a wide area of the cleaning object 3. In addition, the cleaning medium 1 can remove many deposits 4 from the object to be cleaned 3 to increase the cleaning efficiency.

  In addition, by using a flexible cleaning medium 1 that is formed in a cylindrical shape, the cleaning performance can be dramatically improved as compared with the case where a cleaning medium having another shape is used. This is because the followability to the air current 2 (high-speed flight and complicated motion) and behavior such as edge action, sliding contact, and bending action at the time of contact or collision are superior to cleaning media of other shapes. it is conceivable that.

  The following property to the airflow 2 will be described. The flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape is easily accelerated by the air flow and flies at a high speed because the mass against the air resistance is very small when the force of the air current acts in the direction in which the projected area is large. When the force of the airflow acts in the direction where the projected area is small, the high speed movement is maintained for a long distance because the air resistance is small. The higher the speed of the cleaning medium 1, the greater the energy held, and the greater the force that acts when contacting the cleaning object 3, improving the cleaning quality and the frequency of contact with the cleaning object 3. It is possible to increase the cleaning efficiency. Moreover, since the air resistance of the cleaning medium 1 that is formed into a cylindrical shape and changes greatly depending on the posture, it can move not only along the airflow 2 but also can be complicatedly moved such as suddenly changing its direction. Turbulence is generated around the object to be cleaned 3 by the action of the high-speed airflow 2. However, the flexible cleaning medium 1 that is formed in a cylindrical shape that is more susceptible to air resistance than the mass follows the turbulence. Since it can be repeatedly contacted with the object 3 to be cleaned while being rotated by the vortex of the turbulent air flow, it has a high cleaning ability and efficiency even when cleaning the object 3 having a relatively complicated shape. Can be obtained.

  Next, the behavior at the time of contact or collision will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, when the cleaning medium 1 that is formed in a cylindrical shape collides with the object 3 to be cleaned from its end portion, the collision force concentrates on the edge, so that the mass is small. Nevertheless, the force necessary to remove the deposit 4 can be obtained. Further, in the case of the cleaning medium 1 which is formed in a cylindrical shape and has flexibility, when the collision force increases, the bending force is released and the force is released, so that the viscous resistance received from the air acts greatly, resulting in an inelastic collision and the object 3 to be cleaned. The contact time becomes longer and the cleaning ability can be improved. Furthermore, the flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape is less likely to rebound at the time of collision, and in the case of an oblique collision, as shown in FIG. Since the medium 1 comes into contact with a wide area of the cleaning object 3 and a large amount of the deposits 4 can be removed from the cleaning object 3, the cleaning efficiency can be improved.

  On the other hand, a general shot material or elastic sponge tends to rebound at the time of collision, and the contact efficiency at the time of collision with the object to be cleaned 3 is lower than that of the cleaning medium 1 that is formed in a cylindrical shape and has flexibility. Furthermore, the flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape can easily apply a force parallel to the contact surface to the deposit 4 by a scraping action and a sliding action by sliding contact at the time of contact or collision. In general, it is known that the attachment 4 can be separated with a smaller force when a force is applied to the attachment 4 in a direction parallel to the attachment surface than when a force is applied in a direction perpendicular to the attachment surface. On the other hand, conventionally known granular sponges and granular foams can be deformed to have flexibility and can contact a wide area of the cleaning object 3 at the time of collision. Since the rolling easily occurs, the scraping action and the rubbing action by sliding contact cannot be obtained, and the shearing force for separating the deposit 4 from the object to be cleaned 3 cannot be obtained. The cleaning ability for the kimono 4 is inferior to that of the cleaning medium 1 which is formed in a cylindrical shape and has flexibility.

  The reason is that the flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape by the operation described above has a high cleaning ability and cleaning efficiency even with respect to the cleaning object 3 having a relatively complicated shape as compared with other cleaning media. These are epoch-making features not found in conventional blast shot materials, barrel polishing media materials, granular sponges and granular foams.

The shape of the cleaning medium 1 that is formed into a cylindrical shape and has flexibility includes a side area of 1 to 1000 mm ² and a thickness of about 1 to 500 μm. Examples of the material include a resin tube, a thermoplastic elastomer tube, a rubber tube, and a cloth. A tube, a paper tube, a metal tube, etc. are suitable, but not limited thereto, as described above, characteristics of the shape and material of the object 3 to be cleaned, particle size and adhesion of the object adhering to the object 3 to be cleaned It is determined appropriately according to characteristics such as strength.

  As the cleaning medium 1, various materials can be used as long as they have flexibility. However, in order to increase cleaning efficiency by inelastic collision caused by bending, Young's ASTM D882 is used. The rate is desirably 4 GPa or less. Moreover, in order to endure the resistance at the time of scraping by sliding contact, it is desirable that Young's modulus is 0.2 GPa or more. For example, when a general resin tube is used, since it has flexibility and durability, it can be repeatedly used for a long time without damaging the object 3 to be cleaned. Can be achieved. In addition, when a plurality of types of deposits 4 are attached to the cleaning object 3, the role of cleaning can be shared by using a plurality of materials. For example, a resin tube is not good at adsorbing and removing fat and oil stains, but it is easy to regenerate by a dry method because there are few adsorbates. Contrary to this, cloth is good at adsorbing and removing oil stains, but it is dry and difficult to recycle, so it cannot withstand repeated use. In particular, when the cleaning medium 1 is used repeatedly, its mechanical strength is required, so paper and cloth are disadvantageous, and resin and metal are advantageous. In addition, metal has a problem that it undergoes plastic deformation when subjected to repeated stress, and therefore, there are aggregates in which micro polymers such as resin tubes, thermoplastic elastomer tubes, and rubbers are entangled or bonded. It will be advantageous. In particular, the resin tube is more advantageous in terms of cleaning efficiency because it is more likely to inelastically collide with the object to be cleaned 3 than thermoplastic elastomer or rubber. Thus, since the cleaning ability with respect to the cleaning object 3 differs depending on each material, the overall cleaning ability can be enhanced by using the cleaning medium 1 in which various materials are mixed.

  Here, as a problem that occurs when the cleaning medium 1 flying by the air current 2 is used, the cleaning medium 1 is charged during the cleaning due to friction with the wall surface of the cleaning tank, the cleaning object 3 and the other cleaning medium 1. There's a problem. In particular, the frequency of friction increases as the cleaning medium 1 flies at a high speed to shorten the cleaning time, and the charge amount increases in a short time. As a result, the cleaning medium 1 and the cleaning tank wall or the cleaning object 3 may adhere to each other with an electrostatic force. In particular, in the case of the flexible cleaning medium 1p formed in a plate shape, since the shape of the cleaning medium 1p can follow the shape of the other side, as shown in FIG. 3, the surface of the cleaning medium 1p and the wall surface of the cleaning tank or There are cases where the surface of the cleaning object 3 is in close contact. Once the contact is made in this way, the gap through which the air current 2 can enter between the cleaning medium 1p and the surface of the cleaning tank wall or the surface of the object to be cleaned 3 is reduced. In addition, ions are difficult to enter between the cleaning medium 1p and the wall surface of the cleaning tank or the surface of the cleaning object 3, and the charge removal is difficult. As a result, the cleaning medium 1p and the cleaning tank wall or the cleaning object 3 remain attached.

  In addition to the above, as shown in FIGS. 4 (a) and 4 (b), if there is a gap 5 at the joint or joint 5a of the cleaning object 3 or the joint or joint within the cleaning tank, The cleaning medium 1p may be caught.

  As a result, in the cleaning process, the amount of the cleaning medium 1p that contributes to cleaning is reduced, the cleaning efficiency is lowered, and the cleaning time is increased. Further, in the process of removing the cleaning medium 1p from the cleaning target 3 after cleaning, the cleaning medium removing operation takes a long time.

  In order to solve such a problem, the cylindrical cleaning medium 1 is used so that the air flow 2 can enter the inner surface of the cylinder, and the cleaning medium 1 adheres and gets stuck as described above. In addition, the cleaning medium 1 can be re-flighted by the air flow 2 entering the inner surface of the cylinder.

  That is, in the cleaning process, as shown in FIG. 5, even if the cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape and the cleaning tank wall are attached, the air flow 2 can enter the inner surface of the cylinder. When the force of separating the airflow 2 entering the inner surface of the cylinder between the cleaning medium 1 and the wall surface of the cleaning tank overcomes the electrostatic attraction, the cleaning medium 1 and the wall surface are separated, and the cleaning medium 1 can re-fly. Accordingly, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning is not reduced, and the cleaning efficiency can be maintained. In addition, by using a corona discharge type static elimination means in combination, ions can be sent to the surface of the cleaning medium 1 on the side in contact with the wall surface of the cleaning tank to neutralize the charge, thereby enhancing the re-flying effect of the cleaning medium 1.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, even when the cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape is sandwiched between the seam of the object 3 to be cleaned, the seam in the joint or the cleaning tank, or the gap 5 of the joint, it is exposed from the seam or the joint. This prevents the cleaning medium 1 from re-flighting and accumulating due to the airflow striking the inner surface of the cleaning medium 1 that is being used.

  Further, in the step of removing the cleaning medium 1 from the cleaning target 3 after cleaning, even if the cleaning medium 1 and the cleaning target 3 are attached, an air flow toward the cylinder inner surface of the cleaning medium 1 is generated, When the force separating the cleaning medium 1 and the surface of the cleaning object 3 overcomes the electrostatic attraction, the cleaning medium 1 is separated from the cleaning object 3, and the cleaning medium 1 can be easily removed from the cleaning object 3. . Further, by using a corona discharge type static elimination means in combination, ions can be sent to the surface of the cleaning medium 1 on the side in contact with the object to be cleaned 3 to neutralize the charge, thereby increasing the cleaning medium removal effect.

  In this way, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning is not reduced in the cleaning process, and the cleaning medium 1 accumulated in the gaps between the cleaning objects 3 becomes a new cleaning medium 1 to the cleaning objects 3. Therefore, the cleaning efficiency can be maintained. Further, also in the cleaning medium removal process from the cleaning target 3 after cleaning, an air flow toward the cylinder inner surface of the cleaning medium 1 is generated, and the cleaning medium 1 is re-flighted by applying the air flow to the cleaning medium 1, so that it can be easily performed. The cleaning medium can be removed.

  In order to facilitate the re-flight of the cleaning medium 1, the width of the cleaning medium 1 is particularly greater than the width or depth of the seam or joint of the object to be cleaned 3 or the gap or depth of the seam or joint in the cleaning tank. Not limited. Moreover, as a manufacturing method of the cleaning medium 1, the cleaning medium 1 can be manufactured by cutting a tube or a cylinder into a predetermined length.

  The cylindrical cleaning medium 1 can have various shapes as long as it has flexibility. In addition to the cylinder shown in FIG. 1, as shown in FIGS. 7 (a) to 7 (c), a triangular cylinder is used. Polygonal cylinders such as square cylinders and hexagonal cylinders can be used. In particular, in the case of a cylinder, since it always collides with the cleaning object 3 in the same posture, there is an effect that variation in cleaning results is reduced. Moreover, in the case of a polygonal cylinder, a straight edge can be taken long, and the cleaning ability can be improved by taking a large contact area with the cleaning object 3.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 8A to 8C, the acute angle portion 6 is to be cleaned by forming a shape having an acute angle portion on at least one end face of the cylinder such that the cut end is inclined. The unevenness and the groove of the object 3 can enter, and the cleaning residue can be reduced. Thus, since the cleaning ability with respect to the cleaning object 3 varies depending on the shape of the cleaning medium 1, the overall cleaning ability can be enhanced by using the cleaning medium 1 in which various shapes are mixed.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, one opening diameter of the cylinder of the cleaning medium 1 may be smaller than the other opening diameter. By using the cleaning medium 1 in which one opening diameter is smaller than the other opening diameter, the uneven portion can be cleaned on the side where the opening diameter is small, and a wide area can be cleaned on the side where the opening diameter is large, One type of cleaning medium 1 can enhance the overall cleaning capability. As a method for producing the cleaning medium 1, for example, a tube or a tube formed of a heat-shrinkable material is cut into a predetermined length, and then only one opening is locally heated to reduce the opening diameter. .

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10, you may have the crease | fold 7 in the side surface of the cylinder used as the washing | cleaning medium 1. As shown in FIG. By using the cleaning medium 1 having the folds 7 on the side surfaces, the unevenness and the grooves can be cleaned at the folds 7. In addition, since the cylinder is easily crushed by the crease 7 at the time of collision with the cleaning object 3, it is possible to prevent the cleaning object 3 from being damaged and to increase the cleaning efficiency by inelastic collision. . As a method for producing the cleaning medium 1, for example, a tube or a cylinder may be once folded and a side surface is creased and then cut to a predetermined length.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B, a flexible thin piece 8 may be provided on the side surface of the cylinder that becomes the cleaning medium 1. As described above, by using the cleaning medium 1 having the flexible thin piece 8 on the side surface of the cylinder, the unevenness and the groove can be cleaned at the portion of the flexible thin piece 8. The flexible thin piece 8 may have any shape, size, and arrangement as long as the flexibility of the entire cleaning medium 1 is not impaired. For example, as shown in FIG. 12A, the cleaning medium 1 is prepared by placing a tape-shaped raw material 9 with a spacer 10 interposed therebetween, welding both sides, and then, as shown in FIG. The method of cutting and forming in length is mentioned.

  In the above description, the cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape is used to remove the deposit 4 attached to the object 3 to be cleaned, but the cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape having an opening on one side is used. Thus, the deposit 4 attached to the cleaning target 3 may be removed.

  FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape. As shown in FIG. 14, the cleaning medium 1 a is formed in a conical shape having an opening on one side, and deposits 4 such as various dusts such as toner that flow from the high-speed airflow 2 and adhere to the cleaning target 3. To be removed. The material, weight, size, shape, and the like of the cleaning medium 1a are the characteristics of the shape and material of the cleaning object 3, the particle size and the adhesion strength of the deposit 4 attached to the cleaning object 3, and the like. It is determined according to the characteristics. The cleaning medium 1a formed in the bag shape is more likely to fly because the air flow entering the inside through the opening does not escape to the outside as compared with the cleaning medium 1 formed in the cylindrical shape.

  The air blowing means for generating an air flow for the cleaning medium 1a to fly is disposed at a position away from the fixed position of the cleaning object 3 by a predetermined distance. As this blowing means, a blowing means, a compressed air source, an air tube, an air blow nozzle, a spraying device, or the like can be used. As a method for generating the air flow 2 by the blowing means, any method may be used as long as the cleaning medium 1a can fly, and the cleaning medium 1a may be discharged in a mixed state with the gas. The cleaning medium 1 may be arranged.

  As described above, when the air flow 2 is generated by the operation of the air blowing means, a large number of cleaning media 1a existing on the flow path of the air flow 2 fly on the air flow, and most of the large number of the cleaned cleaning media 1a are to be cleaned. The surface of the cleaning object 3 is cleaned by scraping off the deposit 4 from the cleaning object 3 in contact with or colliding with the object 3. Accordingly, the cleaning medium 1a behaves as a fluid, unlike the cleaning means fixedly supported such as a brush, a wire, and a scraper. Therefore, the cleaning effect is improved when the cleaning medium 1a penetrates to every corner of the object 3 to be cleaned. be able to.

  By using an air blow nozzle connected to a compressed air source as a blowing means for generating the airflow 2 for flying the cleaning medium 1a, a high-speed airflow 2 can be generated, and the cleaning ability of the object 3 to be cleaned is increased. Can do. Further, since the frequency with which the cleaning medium 1a comes into contact with the object to be cleaned 3 is increased by increasing the speed of the air flow 2, the cleaning time of the object to be cleaned 3 can be shortened and the cleaning efficiency can be improved.

  As described above, the cleaning medium 1a for cleaning the cleaning object 3 is flexible and can be deflected when it contacts or collides with the cleaning object 3, thereby giving it to the cleaning object 3. The impact can be reduced and the cleaning efficiency can be increased. In addition, since the cleaning medium 1a has flexibility, when the contact force with respect to the cleaning target 3 increases, the cleaning medium 1a is bent to release the force as shown in FIG. Generation | occurrence | production of the malfunction that it collides with the washing | cleaning target object 3 with the force more than necessary like the media material for barrel grinding | polishing, and the washing | cleaning target object 3 is damaged can be prevented. In addition, the cleaning medium 1a is bent at the time of contact with or colliding with the cleaning object 3 to be inelastic, and the cleaning medium 1a is less likely to bounce at the time of the collision, so that the cleaning medium 1a contacts a wide area of the cleaning object 3. In addition, the cleaning medium 1a can remove many deposits 4 from the object to be cleaned 3 and increase the cleaning efficiency.

  Further, by using a flexible medium formed in a bag shape as the cleaning medium 1a, it is possible to dramatically improve the cleaning performance as compared with the case where a cleaning medium having another shape is used. The reason for this is that the followability to the airflow 2 (high-speed flight and complicated motion) and the behavior such as edge action, sliding contact, and bending action at the time of contact or collision are superior to the cleaning media of other shapes. It is thought that.

  The following property to the airflow 2 will be described. When the airflow force is applied from the opening side, the cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape is easily accelerated by the airflow and flies at high speed, and the high-speed motion is maintained for a long distance. The higher the speed of the cleaning medium 1a, the greater the energy held, and the greater the force that acts when the cleaning medium 1a comes into contact with the object 3 to be cleaned. It is possible to increase the cleaning efficiency. In addition, since the air resistance of the cleaning medium 1a which is formed in a bag shape and varies greatly depending on the posture, it can move not only along the air flow 2 but also can change complicatedly. Turbulence is generated around the object to be cleaned 3 by the action of the high-speed airflow 2, but the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape has high followability to the turbulence and rotates by the vortex of the turbulence. However, since it is possible to repeatedly contact the cleaning object 3 while rotating, high cleaning ability and cleaning efficiency can be obtained even when cleaning the cleaning object 3 having a relatively complicated shape.

  Next, the behavior at the time of contact or collision will be described. As shown in FIG. 14, when the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape collides with the object 3 to be cleaned from its end, the collision force concentrates on the edge, so that the mass is small. Nevertheless, the force necessary to remove the deposit 4 can be obtained. Further, in the case of the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape, if the collision force increases, it bends and releases the force, so that the viscous resistance received from the air acts greatly, resulting in an inelastic collision and the object 3 to be cleaned. The contact time becomes longer and the cleaning ability can be improved. Further, the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape is unlikely to rebound at the time of collision, and in the case of an oblique collision, as shown in FIG. The medium 1a comes into contact with a wide area of the object 3 to be cleaned, and a large amount of deposits 4 can be removed from the object 3 to be cleaned, so that the cleaning efficiency can be improved.

  Furthermore, the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape easily applies a force parallel to the contact surface to the deposit 4 by a scraping action and a rubbing action by sliding contact at the time of contact or collision.

  The reason is that the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape by the action described above has a high cleaning ability and cleaning efficiency even with respect to the cleaning object 3 having a relatively complicated shape as compared with other cleaning media. These are epoch-making features not found in conventional blast shot materials, barrel polishing media materials, granular sponges and granular foams.

The bag-shaped flexible cleaning medium 1a has a side area of 1 to 1000 mm ² and a thickness of about 1 to 500 μm. Examples of the material include a resin tube, a thermoplastic elastomer tube, a rubber tube, and a cloth. A tube, a paper tube, a metal tube, etc. are suitable, but not limited thereto, as described above, characteristics of the shape and material of the object 3 to be cleaned, particle size and adhesion of the object adhering to the object 3 to be cleaned It is determined appropriately according to characteristics such as strength.

  As the cleaning medium 1a, various materials can be used as long as they have flexibility. However, in order to increase the cleaning efficiency due to inelastic collision caused by bending, Young's ASTM D882 is used. The rate is desirably 4 GPa or less. Moreover, in order to endure the resistance at the time of scraping by sliding contact, it is desirable that Young's modulus is 0.2 GPa or more. For example, when a general resin tube is used, since it has flexibility and durability, it can be repeatedly used for a long time without damaging the object 3 to be cleaned. Can be achieved. In addition, when a plurality of types of deposits 4 are attached to the cleaning object 3, the role of cleaning can be shared by using a plurality of materials. For example, a resin tube is not good at adsorbing and removing fat and oil stains, but it is easy to regenerate by a dry method because there are few adsorbates. Contrary to this, cloth is good at adsorbing and removing oil stains, but it is dry and difficult to recycle, so it cannot withstand repeated use. In particular, when the cleaning medium 1 is used repeatedly, its mechanical strength is required, so paper and cloth are disadvantageous, and resin and metal are advantageous. In addition, metal has a problem that it undergoes plastic deformation when subjected to repeated stress, and therefore, there are aggregates in which micro polymers such as resin tubes, thermoplastic elastomer tubes, and rubbers are entangled or bonded. It will be advantageous. In particular, the resin tube is more advantageous in terms of cleaning efficiency because it is more likely to inelastically collide with the object to be cleaned 3 than thermoplastic elastomer or rubber. Thus, since the cleaning ability with respect to the cleaning object 3 differs depending on each material, the overall cleaning ability can be enhanced by using the cleaning medium 1a in which various materials are mixed.

  Further, in the case of the cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape, as shown in FIG. 15, in the cleaning process, even if the cleaning medium 1a and the cleaning tank wall are attached, the air flow 2 may enter the inner surface of the bag. it can. When the force of separating the airflow 2 entering the inner surface of the bag between the cleaning medium 1a and the wall surface of the cleaning tank overcomes the electrostatic attraction, the wall surface of the cleaning medium 1a is separated and the cleaning medium 1a can re-fly. Therefore, it is possible to maintain the cleaning efficiency without reducing the amount of the cleaning medium 1a that contributes to the cleaning. In addition, by using a corona discharge type static elimination means in combination, ions can be sent to the surface of the cleaning medium 1a that is in contact with the wall surface of the cleaning tank to neutralize the charge, thereby enhancing the re-flying effect of the cleaning medium 1a.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 16, even when the cleaning medium 1 a formed in a bag shape is sandwiched between the seam of the object to be cleaned 3, the seam in the joint or the cleaning tank, or the gap 5 of the joint, it is exposed from the seam or the joint. This prevents airflow from entering the opening of the cleaning medium 1a, and the cleaning medium 1a re-flights to accumulate.

  Further, in the step of removing the cleaning medium 1a from the cleaning target object 3 after cleaning, even if the cleaning medium 1a and the cleaning target object 3 are attached, an air flow is generated from the opening of the cleaning medium 1a toward the inside. When the force that separates the airflow between the cleaning medium 1a and the surface of the cleaning object 3 overcomes the electrostatic attraction, the cleaning medium 1a is separated from the cleaning object 3 and the cleaning medium 1a is easily removed from the cleaning object 3. Can do. Further, by using a corona discharge type static elimination means in combination, ions can be sent to the surface of the cleaning medium 1a that is in contact with the object to be cleaned 3 to neutralize the charge, thereby increasing the cleaning medium removal effect.

  In this way, the amount of the cleaning medium 1a that contributes to cleaning is not reduced in the cleaning process, and the cleaning medium 1a accumulated in the gap between the cleaning objects 3 is a new cleaning medium 1a to the cleaning object 3. Therefore, the cleaning efficiency can be maintained. Further, also in the cleaning medium removing process from the cleaning object 3 after cleaning, an air flow is generated from the opening of the cleaning medium 1a toward the inside, and the cleaning medium 1a is re-flighted by applying the air flow to the cleaning medium 1a. The cleaning medium 1a can be easily removed.

  In order to facilitate re-flighting of the cleaning medium 1, the width of the cleaning medium 1 a is particularly greater than the width or depth of the seam or joint of the object to be cleaned 3 or the gap or depth of the seam or joint in the cleaning tank Not limited. As a method for producing the cleaning medium 1a, for example, as shown in FIG. 17, there is a method in which the sheet material 100 is produced by press molding using press dies 102 and 103 having a plurality of protrusions 101. Moreover, you may produce by other methods, such as vacuum forming and pressure forming other than press molding.

  The bag-shaped cleaning medium 1a can be used in various shapes as long as it has flexibility. In addition to the conical shape as shown in FIG. 13, as shown in FIGS. It is possible to use a polygonal pyramid such as a pyramid or a quadrangular pyramid. In particular, in the case of a cone, since it always collides with the cleaning object 3 in the same posture, there is an effect that variations in cleaning results are reduced. Moreover, in the case of a polygonal pyramid, a straight edge can be taken long, and the cleaning ability can be improved by taking a large contact area with the cleaning object 3.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 19, you may have the crease | fold 7 in the side surface of the bag used as the washing | cleaning medium 1a. By using the cleaning medium 1 having the folds 7 on the side surfaces, the unevenness and the grooves can be cleaned at the folds 7. In addition, since the bag is easily crushed by the crease 7 at the time of collision with the cleaning object 3, it is possible to prevent the cleaning object 3 from being damaged and to increase the cleaning efficiency by non-elastic collision. . Examples of a method for producing the cleaning medium 1a include a method in which a crease is formed after press-molding from the sheet-like material 100 as described above.

It is desirable that the material constituting the cleaning media 1 and 1a has an antistatic ability. In order to obtain an effective antistatic effect, the surface resistance of the cleaning media 1, 1a is preferably 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □ or less. When the cleaning medium 1 or 1a is made of metal, it has an antistatic ability by itself. In particular, the antistatic technique when the cleaning medium 1 or 1a is formed of a resin is roughly kneaded type, coating type, and 2 It is classified into three combinations.

  The kneading type is a film obtained by kneading an antistatic agent into a resin in advance, and includes a non-stretching type, a biaxial stretching type, and an inflation type. As the antistatic agent, when ionic conduction is used, a known surfactant (anionic, cationic, nonionic, amphoteric type) or a hydrophilic polymer can be used. In the case of using electronic conduction, known metal particles, conductive particles (conductive carbon, oxide semiconductor, etc.), and conductive polymers can be used as the conductive filler. The coating type forms a layer having an antistatic effect by coating the surface with an antistatic agent after film formation. As the antistatic agent, aqueous, oily, organic, inorganic, polymer Among the known ones such as a system, those suitable for coating can be used. The film thickness is usually submicron, but an effective film may be 0.1 μm or less.

  By using such cleaning media 1 and 1a, an increase in charge amount due to friction can be suppressed, so that the electrostatic force that causes the cleaning media 1 and 1a to adhere to the cleaning tank wall or the cleaning object 3 is weakened. Accordingly, the air flow 2 for separating the cleaning media 1 and 1a from the cleaning tank wall or the cleaning object 3 can be reduced, the utility scale for generating the air flow can be reduced, and the energy consumption can be reduced. It leads to reduction. Also in this case, the effect can be enhanced by using a corona discharge type static elimination means in combination.

  Further, at least a part of the inner surface of the cleaning medium 1, 1a may be coated with a ferromagnetic material. For example, magnetic powder such as iron, γ-iron oxide, cobalt-coated iron oxide, etc. applied to the inner surface of the cylinder of the cleaning medium 1 together with a synthetic resin as a binder, or after the cobalt is evaporated on the outer surface, the cylinder is turned over. The one that was made. In addition, any material having means for forming a film with a material that can be attracted by a magnet can be used as the inner surface-coated ferromagnetic material. In the case of the cleaning media 1 and 1a, it is possible to apply a force in the direction of separating the cleaning media 1 and 1a from the cleaning tank wall or the cleaning object 3 by generating a magnetic force by the magnetic force generating means. Further, in the step of removing the cleaning medium from the cleaning object 3 after cleaning, even if the cleaning medium 1, 1 a adheres to or is pinched by the cleaning object 3, the magnetic force is generated by a magnetic force generating means such as a permanent magnet or an electromagnet. By generating the airflow 2 that has entered the inner surface of the cleaning medium 1 or 1a, a magnetic force is also added to the force that separates the cleaning medium 1 or 1a from the object 3 to be cleaned, and when the electrostatic attraction is overcome, the cleaning medium 1 or 1a. Then, the cleaning object 3 is separated and the cleaning media 1 and 1a can fly again. Therefore, the air flow for separating the cleaning media 1 and 1a from the cleaning tank wall or the cleaning object 3 can be reduced, the utility scale for generating the air flow can be reduced, and the energy consumption can be further reduced. . In this case as well, the effect can be enhanced by using a corona discharge type static elimination means in combination. Since the magnetic material on the inner surfaces of the cleaning media 1 and 1a does not directly contact the cleaning object 3, it is not necessary to contaminate the cleaning object 3 with the magnetic material.

  Further, at least a part of the inner surface of the cleaning medium 1, 1a is coated with a self-luminous substance or a substance that reflects light, and the cleaning medium 1, 1a can transmit light from a substance that emits light or reflects light. You may form with a material. For example, at least a part of the inner surface of the cleaning medium 1, 1a is coated with a material having a phosphorescent property, and the cleaning medium 1, 1a emits light by irradiating the pigment with ultraviolet light before cleaning. Thereby, even if the cleaning media 1 and 1a remain on the cleaning object 3, the remaining cleaning media 1 and 1a can be quickly found by detecting the light from the cleaning media 1 and 1a. Further, the cleaning media 1 and 1a are blocked by light depending on the amount of deposits 4 such as toner, and the amount of light detected by the light detection means changes. Therefore, the contamination state of the cleaning medium 1 or 1a or the progress of the cleaning process can be detected based on the degree of change in the amount of light in the cleaning medium 1 or 1a after the cleaning. Further, when at least a part of the inner surface of the cleaning medium 1 or 1a is coated with a fluorescent material, the cleaning medium is a substance that reflects light by irradiating ultraviolet light at the time of light detection to detect only visible light. When at least a part of the inner surface of 1, 1a is covered, light is detected at the time of light detection, and the reflected light is detected to similarly detect the dirt state of the cleaning medium 1, 1a and the progress of the cleaning process. Can do. Note that the self-luminous substance or the light-reflecting substance on the inner surfaces of the cleaning media 1 and 1a does not directly contact the cleaning object 3, so that the cleaning object 3 is not contaminated with the self-luminous substance or the light-reflecting substance. .

  Next, a dry cleaning apparatus using the cleaning medium 1 or the cleaning medium 1a (hereinafter referred to as the cleaning medium 1) will be described. 20 and 21 show the configuration of the dry cleaning apparatus 11, FIG. 20 is a front sectional view of the dry cleaning apparatus 11, and FIG. As shown in the figure, the dry cleaning apparatus 11 includes a cleaning tank 12, a cylindrical mesh 13, a type 1 nozzle 14, a corner block 15, a type 2 nozzle 16, a type 2 nozzle rotating motor 17 and a type 2 nozzle. A nozzle moving motor 18, a work holding means 19, a work horizontal rotation motor 20, a work swinging motor 21, timing belts 22 and 23, a transmission gear 24 and a swing link mechanism 25 are provided.

  The cleaning tank 12 is formed in a box shape that accommodates the cleaning object 3 and the cleaning medium 1 (both not shown), and opens and closes the lid 12a provided on the upper part to carry in and out the cleaning object 3. Then, as shown in FIG. 21, as shown in FIG. 21, a right-angled corner or It is desirable that there are no acute corners, and the corner block 15 is provided to connect the connecting portion between the bottom surface 12b and the wall surface 12c with an obtuse or smooth connection. It is designed to be lifted up. Therefore, the cleaning medium 1 dropped on the bottom surface of the cleaning tank 12 can be easily floated and diffused. Here, as shown in the partial cross-sectional view of FIG. 22, the bottom surface 12b of the cleaning tank 12 is formed with a plurality of R-shaped grooves formed of a cylindrical curved surface or a recessed surface 12d formed of a concave curved surface, and the air flow of the type 1 nozzle 14 is transferred to the bottom surface 12b. It may be configured to spray toward With this configuration, an upward air flow is generated along the R groove or the recess 12d provided in the bottom surface 12b, and the effect of floating and diffusing the cleaning medium 1 falling on the bottom surface 12b of the cleaning tank 12 is increased. The cleaning medium 1 can collide with the object 3 to be cleaned and can be cleaned efficiently. As this concave curved surface, any part such as a part of a spherical surface or a part of a spheroid surface may be adopted as necessary.

  One wall surface 12 c of the cleaning tank 12 is provided with an exhaust port 12 e for discharging the deposit 4 removed from the cleaning object 3 from the cleaning tank 12. The exhaust port 12e is connected to a filter, a dust collector and the like (not shown). A cylindrical mesh 13 is provided at the exhaust port 12e to prevent the cleaning medium 1 from being discharged from the cleaning tank 12. The cylindrical mesh 13 is formed of a metal mesh or the like having a large number of openings that can pass the dust 4 or the like removed from the object 3 to be cleaned but cannot pass the cleaning medium 1, and has low ventilation resistance. A material to which the deposit 4 is difficult to adhere is preferable. When the cleaning medium 1 is sucked and brought into contact with the cylindrical mesh 13, the adhering matter 4 such as dust adhering to the cleaning medium 1 is scraped or knocked off and separated from the cleaning medium 1, and the cylindrical mesh. 13 passes through the exhaust port 12e and is discharged out of the cleaning tank 12.

  The type 1 nozzle 14 serves to prevent the clogging of the cylindrical mesh 13 and to float and diffuse the cleaning medium. That is, in order to float and diffuse the cleaning medium 1 into the cleaning tank 12, it is formed by an air blow nozzle in which a large number of small holes are formed along the axial direction of the hollow cylinder. The nozzle 14 includes nozzle position / posture changing means, and is driven by a motor (not shown) during the cleaning operation to rotate or reciprocate, and compressed air is supplied through a rotary joint. When rotated as shown, the air flow from the nozzle 14 indicated by the arrow B can cause an air current to act on all locations of the cleaning tank 12, and the cleaning medium 1 dropped on the cleaning tank bottom surface 12b can be cleaned. As indicated by an arrow C along the bottom surface 12b and the wall surface 12c, it can be swung up again in the cleaning tank 12. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the cleaning medium 1 from accumulating at a specific location in the cleaning tank 12 and not floating and diffusing. Further, the nozzle 14 is installed inside the cylindrical mesh 13, and also has a function of dispersing the cleaning medium 1 collected by being sucked by the cylindrical mesh 13 into the cleaning tank 12 again. That is, the cleaning medium 1 is sucked and adhered to the cylindrical mesh 13 to prevent the mesh 13 from being completely blocked.

  The type 2 nozzle 16 serves both as a cleaning medium acceleration function and a cleaning medium floating diffusion function. A number of nozzles 16 of this type 2 are arranged in the cleaning tank 12 in order to accelerate the cleaning medium 1 that has floated and diffused in the cleaning tank 12 toward the object 3 to be cleaned. A general air blow nozzle may be used as the nozzle 16, but it is desirable to use an injection nozzle using the Coanda effect in order to suppress the air consumption due to the use of a large number of nozzles 16. In the case of an air nozzle using the Coanda effect, an air flow that is several to tens of times the consumption flow rate can be generated, and a large amount of the cleaning medium 1 can be accelerated with a small amount of air consumption. There are various known examples of injection nozzles using the Coanda effect, and FIG. 23 shows an example thereof. As shown in FIG. 23, a suction part 162 having a suction port 161 with a large diameter and a discharge part 164 having a compressed air supply port 163 provided on the outer peripheral part on the outlet side of the suction part 162 are provided to supply compressed air. The air flow is sucked from the suction unit 162 by the high-speed air flow supplied from the port 163 and generated toward the discharge port 165 of the discharge unit 164, and the amount of compressed air supplied from the compressed air supply port 163 is several to ten times the amount Is discharged from the discharge port 165. Since the cleaning medium 1 passes through the nozzle 16, the cleaning medium 1 can be accelerated efficiently and reliably. As described above, since the cleaning medium 1 is efficiently accelerated, a necessary cleaning ability can be obtained even with a small amount of supplied air. Further, if the supply air amount is the same, a higher cleaning ability can be obtained than a general air blow nozzle. In the case of the type 2 nozzle 16, unlike the type 1 nozzle 14, there is nothing to block between the nozzle 16 and the cleaning object 3, so that the accelerated air current and the energy of the cleaning medium 1 are supplied to the cleaning object 3. It can be made to act directly, and the removal capability of the deposit | attachment 4, ie, the cleaning capability, can be obtained. Further, by changing the nozzle position and orientation of the nozzle 16 to change at least one of the spray position and the spray direction of the nozzle, cleaning can be eliminated and cleaning can be completed in a shorter time.

  In order to change the nozzle position and orientation of this type 2 nozzle 16, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, the nozzles 16 arranged on the bottom surface 12 b and the side surface 12 c of the cleaning tank are rotated or swung by a nozzle rotation motor 17. As shown in FIG. 21, the nozzle 16 disposed in the cleaning tank lid 12a reciprocates linearly by a nozzle moving motor (not shown). An example of a rotation mechanism for rotating the nozzle 16 is shown in FIG. The nozzles 16 disposed on the bottom surface 12 b and the side surface 12 c of the cleaning tank are held by a hollow nozzle rotating shaft 25 connected to the rotary joint 24. The nozzle rotation shaft 25 has a timing pulley 26 around which a timing belt 27 rotated by a nozzle rotation motor 17 is wound. The nozzle 16 swings or rotates by driving the nozzle rotation motor 17 while supplying the compressed air from the compressed air supply pipe 28 to the nozzle 16 through the rotary joint 24 and the hollow nozzle rotating shaft 25. Therefore, the nozzle 16 can be freely moved, rotated, and rearranged.

  The work holding means 19 has, for example, five work holders 19a for holding the cleaning object 3 on the rotary shaft 19b. The workpiece holding means 19 is held by a rotatable hollow shaft 29, and the rotational torque of the workpiece horizontal rotation motor 20 attached to the cleaning tank bottom 12 b is transmitted to the hollow shaft 29 via the timing belt 22 to be transferred to the workpiece holding means 19. Rotate in a horizontal plane. Further, the torque of the workpiece swinging motor 21 is transmitted to the coaxial shaft 30 in the hollow shaft 29 via the timing belt 23, and as indicated by an arrow D in FIG. 20 via the transmission gear 24 and the swinging link mechanism 25. The work holder 19a is swung. Thus, since the posture change of the work holder 19a has two or more degrees of freedom, the cleaning medium 1 can be applied to the cleaning target 3 from various angles, and even the cleaning target 3 having a complicated shape can be used evenly. It can be cleaned in a short time.

  The operation when cleaning is performed by removing the deposit 4 from the object 3 to be cleaned by the cleaning medium 1 in the dry cleaning apparatus 11 in the order of steps.

Floating diffusion / accelerated collision process of the cleaning medium (1) The cleaning medium 1 in the cleaning tank 12 is charged, and the cleaning tank 12 is closed with the lid 12a of the cleaning tank 12 closed with the cleaning object 3 attached to the work holding means 19 Compressed air is supplied to the nozzles 14 and 16 directed to the bottom surface 12b, and the cleaning medium 1 that has fallen on the bottom surface 12b of the cleaning tank 12 rises along the cleaning tank bottom surface 12b and the wall surface 12c to float and diffuse.
(2) As shown in the schematic diagram of FIG. 25, the compressed air is supplied to the nozzle 16 directed to the object to be cleaned 3 to accelerate the cleaning medium 1 floating in the cleaning tank 12, for example, 10 m / s. It is made to collide with the cleaning object 3 at a high speed.
(3) The nozzle 16 directed toward the cleaning object 3 is swung or reciprocated to change the position and posture (spraying direction) of the nozzle 16 to clean the entire surface of the cleaning object 3 without unevenness. By changing the position or posture (spraying position and direction) of the nozzle 16, the single nozzle 16 can exhibit both the floating diffusion function and the accelerated collision function of the cleaning medium 1.
(4) Further, the workpiece holding means 19 is rotated horizontally and the workpiece holder 19a is swung to change the positional relationship between the nozzle 16 and the object 3 to be cleaned, so that the cleaning medium 1 is evenly distributed over the entire surface of the object 3 to be cleaned. Contact collision.

Cleaning Step by Contact of Cleaning Medium (5) When the cleaning medium 1 contacts or collides with the object to be cleaned 3 at a high speed, the deposit 4 attached to the object to be cleaned 3 is knocked down. The deposit 4 that has been knocked down passes through the cylindrical mesh 13, rides on the flow of airflow toward the exhaust port 12 e, passes through the cylindrical mesh 13, and is discharged from the cleaning tank 12.
(6) Further, due to the contact or collision between the cleaning object 3 and the cleaning medium 1, a part of the deposit 4 attached to the cleaning object 3 adheres to the cleaning medium 1. The cleaning medium 1 is sucked by the cylindrical mesh 13 along the flow of airflow toward the exhaust port 12e.

Step of removing dust adhering to the cleaning medium (7) The cleaning medium 1 sucked by the cylindrical mesh 13 comes into contact with and collides with the mesh 13 and the adhering matter 4 attached to the cleaning medium 1 is separated from the cleaning medium 1. And discharged from the cleaning tank 12. In addition, you may provide a static elimination means (for example, ionizer which produces | generates ionized air) in the vicinity of the mesh 13. FIG. Thus, by neutralizing the cleaning medium 1 with the charge eliminating means, the electrostatic attractive force between the cleaning medium 1 and the deposit 4 is weakened, and the deposit 4 is more easily separated.
(8) The cleaning medium 1 attached to the mesh 13 by the suction action from the exhaust port 12 e is diffused again into the cleaning tank 12 by the rotation of the nozzle 14.

  By repeating this process, the deposit 4 can be effectively removed from the cleaning object 4 while circulating the cleaning medium 1 in the cleaning tank 12. Further, even dust that has a relatively strong adhesive force and is difficult to remove by air blow alone can be separated from the cleaning object 3 by contact and collision with the cleaning medium 1 flying at high speed. Further, the deposit 4 adhering to the cleaning medium 1 is effectively removed by the cylindrical mesh 13 and the cleanliness of the cleaning medium 1 is always maintained. 4 does not reattach to the cleaning object 3, and high cleaning quality can be obtained.

  Here, the step (1) and the step (2) may be performed alternately or simultaneously. When alternately performed, since the compressed air is not used at the same time for the floating diffusion of the cleaning medium 1 and the acceleration of the cleaning medium 1, sufficient floating diffusion effect and acceleration of the cleaning medium 1 can be achieved even when the compressed air supply capability is limited. An effect can be obtained. Further, when the compressed air supply capability is sufficient, a large amount of the cleaning medium 1 can be easily supplied by performing the floating diffusion and acceleration of the cleaning medium 1 at the same time. In addition to cleaning, uneven cleaning can be reduced.

  Here, there is a problem that the cleaning medium 1 is charged by friction with the wall surface 12 c of the cleaning tank 12, the cleaning object 3, and another cleaning medium 1 during the cleaning by flying the cleaning medium 1. In particular, the frequency of friction increases as the cleaning medium 1 flies at a high speed to shorten the cleaning time, and the charge amount increases in a short time. As a result, the cleaning medium 1 adheres to the cleaning tank wall surface 12c or the cleaning object 3 with electrostatic force. In particular, in the case of the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility, since the shape of the cleaning medium 1 can follow the shape of the counterpart, the surface of the cleaning medium 1 and the surface of the cleaning tank wall surface 12c or the surface of the cleaning object 3 are in close contact with each other. . Once there is a close contact, there is no gap between the cleaning medium 1 and the cleaning tank wall surface 12c or the object 3 to be cleaned. Since ions cannot enter between the tank wall surface 12c or the object 3 to be cleaned, it becomes difficult to remove electricity. As a result, the cleaning medium 1 and the cleaning tank wall 12c or the cleaning object 3 remain attached. Thereby, in the cleaning process, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning is reduced, the cleaning efficiency is lowered, and the cleaning time is increased. Further, in the cleaning medium removing process from the cleaning target 3 after the cleaning, the cleaning medium removing operation takes a long time. Accordingly, by using the cleaning medium 1 shown in any of FIGS. 1 and 7 to 11 or the cleaning medium 1 shown in any of FIGS. 13, 18, or 19, the cleaning medium 1 becomes the cleaning tank wall 12 c or the like. Even if it adheres to the surface, the air flow also enters the inner surface, and when the force that separates the air flow between the cleaning medium 1 and the cleaning tank wall surface 12c overcomes the electrostatic attraction force, the cleaning medium 1 is removed from the cleaning tank wall surface 12c. It is possible to fly away from etc. Accordingly, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning is not reduced, and the cleaning efficiency can be maintained. Further, the effect can be enhanced by providing a corona discharge type neutralization means on the cleaning tank wall surface 12c, and by discharging ions to the surface of the cleaning medium 1 on the side in contact with the cleaning tank wall surface 12c. Moreover, by using the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility, high cleaning quality and cleaning efficiency can be obtained, and an excellent effect that the cleaning target object 3 is not damaged can be exhibited.

  Further, the work holding means 19 is rotated horizontally, the work holder 19a holding the object to be cleaned 3 is swung, and the nozzle 16 directed to the object to be cleaned 3 is swung or reciprocated so that the position and posture of the nozzle 16 is reached. By changing the (spraying direction), the cleaning medium 1 can be collided and brought into contact with all surfaces of the cleaning object 3 from various directions, and even with the cleaning object 3 having a complicated shape, the cleaning unevenness is small. Can be cleaned in a short time. In addition to this, one degree of freedom may be added, and the workpiece holding means 19 holding the cleaning target 3 may be slowly moved up and down.

  Although the case where the nozzle 16 is rotated / moved has been described here, it is the same as the case where the nozzle 16 is rotated / moved by providing many nozzles 16 having different positions from the spraying direction and switching the nozzles 16 to be used. It is possible to fulfill the functions.

  Next, another dry cleaning apparatus 11a using the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility will be described. As shown in FIG. 26, the second dry drying apparatus 11a includes a cleaning tank 41, a circulating airflow generation means 42, a cleaning medium acceleration means 43, and a cleaning medium regeneration means 44.

  The cleaning tank 41 is formed of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped hollow body, has a cleaning object input port 45 through which the cleaning object 3 is input on the upper surface, is formed with an open bottom, and opens and closes with the cleaning object input port 45. A free lid 46 is provided, and a cleaning medium regeneration means 44 is provided at the bottom opening. As shown in FIG. 27, a part of the inner wall surface of one side surface of the cleaning tank 41 is provided with a circulation airflow generating means 42, and a circulation path of the circulation airflow on both side surfaces, the bottom surface and the inner wall surface of the upper surface. Is forming. As shown in FIG. 27 (a), the corners of the inner wall surface forming the circulation path of the circulation airflow are connected at a constant angle θ as shown in FIG. It is formed to circulate the airflow efficiently. By setting the constant angle θ to 120 degrees to 150 degrees, the resistance applied to the circulation airflow can be reduced and the circulation can be performed.

  The circulation air flow generation means 42 uses, for example, an injection nozzle that uses the Coanda effect shown in FIG. The medium can be circulated, the negative pressure inside the cleaning tank 41 can be easily maintained, and leakage of dust and the like to the outside of the cleaning tank 41 can be prevented. Note that various gases such as an inert gas such as nitrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas, and argon gas may be supplied instead of compressed air. The circulation airflow generation means 42 is disposed in the vicinity of the bottom of one side wall forming the circulation path of the circulation airflow in the cleaning tank 41 with the suction port up and the discharge port down.

  As shown in FIG. 26, the cleaning medium acceleration means 43 has a plurality of arrayed acceleration nozzles 431a on the surface orthogonal to the inner wall surface forming the circulation path of the circulation airflow, and the wall surface on which the acceleration nozzles 431a are provided. A plurality of accelerating nozzles 431b in the form of an array are provided on the back surface facing each other, and compressed air supplied from a compressed air source such as a compressor or a pressure tank is ejected from each accelerating nozzle 431 into the cleaning tank 41 to thereby supply the cleaning medium 1. Collide with the object to be cleaned 3. As the accelerating nozzles 431a and 431b, a jet nozzle similar to the circulation airflow generation means 42 may be used.

  As shown in the perspective view of FIG. 28A and the partial cross-sectional view of FIG. 28B, the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 forms a closed space with a separation member 441 and a hood 442 arranged on the bottom inner wall of the cleaning tank 41. The formed closed space is connected to a dust collector having a negative pressure generation source by a suction pipe 47 such as a hose, and the inside of the hood 442 is made negative pressure. The separation member 441 has a large number of small holes and slits 443 through which gas or powder can pass but the cleaning medium 1 cannot pass through. For example, the separation member 441 is formed of a porous member such as a wire net, a plastic net, a mesh, a punch metal plate, a slit plate, or the like. Then, the deposit 4 separated from the object to be cleaned 3, the cleaning medium 1 that collides with the object to be cleaned 3 and wears or chipped, and the cleaning medium 1 whose elasticity has deteriorated due to long-term use are discharged.

  As shown in the block diagram of FIG. 29 and the piping system diagram of FIGS. 30 (a) and 30 (b), the control device 50 of the dry cleaning apparatus 11a is supplied from the pressurized gas supply device 56 to the circulating airflow generation means 42. Airflow circulation solenoid valve 52 for conducting and non-conducting the compressed air supply pipe to be supplied, accelerating solenoid valve 53 for conducting and non-conduction of the compressed air supply pipe supplied to the cleaning medium accelerating means 43, and cleaning The accelerating air flow switching control valve 54 for switching the compressed air supplied to the accelerating nozzle 431 provided on both wall surfaces of the medium accelerating means 43 in two directions, and the suction pipe 47 connecting the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 and the dust collecting device 57 are connected. Regenerative solenoid valves 55 that perform non-conduction are connected to each other, and the operation of each solenoid valve is controlled by a drive signal from the starting means 52.

  In the dry cleaning apparatus 1a, the object 3 to be cleaned held by the work holding means 48 is put into the cleaning tank 41 by the work moving means 49, and the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility is circulated in the cleaning tank 41 for cleaning. The operation of removing the adhering material 4 such as the toner adhering to the object 3 will be described with reference to the time chart of FIG.

  The cleaning object 1 held by the work holding means 48 in a state where the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility is put into the cleaning tank 41 and stacked on the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 is moved by the work moving means 21. The object to be cleaned is introduced from the cleaning object inlet 45 of the cleaning tank 41 and positioned at the initial position, and the object to be cleaned inlet 45 is closed by the lid 46 to seal the cleaning tank 41. In this state, when the starter 51 is operated and a cleaning start signal is input to the control device 50, the control device 50 first opens the airflow circulation electromagnetic valve 52 to circulate from the pressurized gas supply device 56 such as a compressor. For example, compressed air is supplied to the airflow generation means 42, and the circulation airflow generation means 42 generates a circulation airflow that flows along the circulation path of the inner wall surface of the cleaning tank 41. This circulating airflow flows along the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regenerating means 44, and as shown in FIG. 32 (a), is formed into a cylindrical shape stacked on the separation member 441 and has a flexible cleaning medium 1. As shown in FIGS. 32 (b) and 32 (c), an air current acts from the lateral direction and lifts and gradually transports along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning tank 41 while gradually destroying the deposition from the upper layer of the deposited cleaning medium 1. Let it fly. Since the circulation airflow for causing the cleaning medium 1 to fly is directly jetted from the circulation airflow generating means 42 into the cleaning tank 41, a large impact force can be applied to the deposited cleaning medium 1, and the cleaning deposited by the circulation airflow is applied. The medium 1 can surely fly.

  However, there is a problem that the cleaning medium 1 is charged by friction with the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41, the cleaning object 3 or another cleaning medium 1 during cleaning. In particular, the frequency of friction increases as the cleaning medium 1 flies at a high speed to shorten the cleaning time, and the charge amount increases in a short time. For this reason, the cleaning medium 1 and the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 or the cleaning object 3 adhere to each other by electrostatic force. In particular, in the case of the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility, since the shape of the cleaning medium 1 can follow the shape of the counterpart, the surface of the cleaning medium 1 and the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 or the surface of the cleaning object 3 are in close contact. End up. Once there is a close contact, there will be no gap between the cleaning medium 1 and the wall of the cleaning tank 41 or the object 3 to be cleaned. Since ions cannot enter between the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 or the object 3 to be cleaned, it is difficult to remove electricity. As a result, the cleaning medium 1 and the wall surface of the cleaning tank 21 or the cleaning object 3 remain attached, and the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning decreases in the cleaning process, resulting in a decrease in cleaning efficiency. It takes a long time for cleaning. Further, in the cleaning medium removing process from the cleaning target 3 after the cleaning, the cleaning medium removing operation takes a long time. Therefore, by using the cleaning medium 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 7 to 11, or 13, 18, or 19, the cleaning medium 1 adheres to the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 or the cleaning object 3. Even if the airflow enters the inner surface, and the force that separates the airflow entering the inner surface from the cleaning medium 1 and the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 or the object to be cleaned 3 overcomes the electrostatic attraction, the cleaning medium 1 is cleaned. It is possible to fly away from the wall surface 41 or the cleaning object 3 again. Accordingly, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning is not reduced, and the cleaning efficiency can be maintained. Further, the effect can be enhanced by providing a corona discharge type static elimination means on the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 and feeding ions to the surface of the cleaning medium 1 on the side in contact with the wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 to eliminate static electricity. Further, even if the cleaning medium 1 is sandwiched between the joint of the object to be cleaned 1, the joint or the joint in the cleaning tank, or the joint, the cleaning medium 1 is caused by the airflow hitting the inner surface of the cylinder exposed from the joint or the joint. Prevents re-flight and accumulation. Therefore, in the cleaning process, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that contributes to cleaning is not reduced, and the cleaning medium 1 accumulated in the gaps of the cleaning object 3 blocks the incidence of the new cleaning medium 1 on the cleaning object 3. Therefore, the cleaning efficiency can be maintained. Also, in the cleaning medium removal step from the cleaning target 3 after cleaning, an air flow directed toward the inner surface of the cylinder is generated, and the cleaning medium 1 is re-flighted by applying the air flow to the cleaning medium 1 to easily remove the cleaning medium. can do.

  In the case where the flexible cleaning medium 1 deposited in this way is transported by an air stream and is allowed to fly, for example, as shown in FIG. 33A, the flexible cleaning medium 1 deposited on the separation member 441 is applied to the flexible cleaning medium 1. On the other hand, when an air flow perpendicular to the deposition direction of the cleaning medium 1 is applied from the slit 443, energy of compressed air that lifts all the accumulated cleaning medium 1 is required, as shown in FIG. Thus, it becomes difficult to move as the deposition amount of the cleaning medium 1 increases. Further, even though the cleaning medium 1 immediately above the slit 443 that ejects the airflow can be moved, the fluidity of the accumulated cleaning medium 1 having flexibility is poor, so as shown in FIG. Even if there is a mortar-shaped inclination around the cleaning medium 1, the cleaning medium 1 around the slit 443 remains as it is without breaking, and it is difficult to fly all the accumulated cleaning medium 1. On the other hand, the circulation airflow generating means 42 generates a circulation airflow that flows along the circulation path of the inner wall surface of the cleaning tank 41 and causes the airflow to act from the lateral direction of the cleaning medium 1 deposited on the separation member 441. As a result, the cleaning medium 1 deposited with a small amount of energy can be reliably ejected, and the amount of compressed air supplied to the circulation airflow generation means 42 can be reduced. Further, when the cleaning medium 1 is transported by airflow, the cleaning medium 1 may be clogged with the duct or hose when transported using a duct or hose. Therefore, the cleaning medium 1 can fly in the cleaning tank 41 without the possibility of the cleaning medium 1 being clogged in the circulation path.

  The circulation airflow generating means 42 for generating the circulation airflow is disposed near the bottom of one side wall that forms the circulation path of the circulation airflow of the cleaning tank 41 with the suction port up and the discharge port down. Therefore, even at a position away from the discharge port, a strong air current force along the bottom surface can be applied to the cleaning medium 1 deposited on the separation member 441 at the bottom of the cleaning tank 41, and a large amount of cleaning medium 1 can be carried along the wall surface of the washing tank 41. Further, since the cleaning medium 1 entering the suction port is dispersed and the spatial density is small, the suction port can be avoided from being blocked, and a circulation airflow can be stably generated. That is, when the suction port is directed downward and disposed near the bottom of the cleaning tank 41, the force of the suction airflow acts only on the cleaning medium 1 near the suction port, and a large amount of cleaning accumulated in the bottom of the cleaning tank 41 Although it is difficult to transport the medium 1, when the accumulated cleaning medium 1 is sucked in a large amount by the suction port, the spatial density of the cleaning medium 1 at the suction port becomes excessive and the suction port is likely to be blocked. It is possible to prevent such a problem from occurring.

  When a predetermined time set in advance elapses, the controller 50 closes the airflow circulation solenoid valve 52 to stop the circulation airflow generated by the circulation airflow generation means 42, as shown in FIG. 34 (a). While the workpiece moving means 49 is gradually lowered from the initial position by the workpiece moving means 49, the acceleration electromagnetic valve 53 is opened and the cleaning medium acceleration means 43 from the pressurized gas supply device 56 via the acceleration airflow switching control valve 54 is opened. Compressed air is supplied to the cleaning medium accelerating means 43, and the compressed air is ejected from one of the accelerating nozzles 431a of the cleaning medium accelerating means 43, and the regenerating electronic valve 55 is opened to bring the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 into conduction with the dust collecting device 57. Make the inside negative pressure. When the circulation airflow generated by the circulation airflow generation means 42 is stopped, the cleaning medium 1 flying by the circulation airflow falls down. The falling cleaning medium 1 collides with the object to be cleaned 3 by the compressed air ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a and removes the object 4 such as toner adhering to one surface of the object 3 to be cleaned.

  The dust removed from the cleaning object 3 and the cleaning medium 1 that has collided with the cleaning object 3 and has adhered to the dust fall by gravity and are separated by the negative pressure in the hood 442 and the separating member of the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 that is sucked in. It falls on 441. The dust falling on the separation member 441 and the dust adhering to the cleaning medium 1 are sucked into the hood 442 by the negative pressure in the hood 442 and collected in the dust collector 57, and the cleaning medium 1 with the dust attached thereto is removed. Play efficiently.

  When the compressed air is ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a for a predetermined time, the control device 50 closes the acceleration electromagnetic valve 53 and the regeneration electronic valve 55 and operates the cleaning medium acceleration means 43 and the cleaning medium regeneration means 44. Stop. When the regeneration electronic valve 55 is closed, the negative pressure in the hood 442 is eliminated, the suction force on the hood 442 side with respect to the cleaning medium 1 accumulated on the separation member 441 is lost, and the separation member 441 is separated by the next circulation airflow. The Accordingly, the mesh or the like of the separating member 441 is not covered with the cleaning medium 1 and sealed, and the cleaning medium 1 and dust can be continuously separated. Therefore, it is not necessary to replace the cleaning medium 1, and it is sufficient to add the portion of the cleaning medium 1 that has been reduced due to breakage or the like, so that the cleaning medium 1 can be used effectively and maintainability can be improved.

  After that, the airflow circulation electromagnetic valve 52 is opened again, the circulation airflow generation means 42 generates the circulation airflow, and the cleaning medium 1 deposited and regenerated on the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44 is regenerated for a predetermined time T1. The acceleration solenoid valve 53 and the regeneration electronic valve 55 are opened and the acceleration airflow switching control valve 54 is switched to the acceleration nozzle 431b side to remove the dust from the object to be cleaned 3 and regenerate the cleaning medium 1. Processing is performed for a predetermined time. The dust removal process from the cleaning object 3 and the regeneration process of the cleaning medium 1 are set longer than the time during which the circulation airflow is generated, so that a wide range of the cleaning object 3 can be cleaned. Further, since the compressed air is alternately ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a and the acceleration nozzle 431b, the air currents ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a and the acceleration nozzle 431b are prevented from interfering with each other, and the cleaning medium 1 reliably collides with the object 3 to be cleaned. The cleaning effect of the cleaning medium 1 can be enhanced.

  The generation of the air flow for circulation, the dust removal process from the cleaning target object 3, and the regeneration process of the cleaning medium 1 are repeated while gradually lowering the cleaning target object 3 from the initial position, as shown in FIG. 34 (b). In addition, when the cleaning object 3 reaches the return position, the workpiece moving means 49 stops the cleaning object 3 from descending and gradually raises the cleaning object 3. Even when the cleaning object 3 is gradually rising, the control device 50 alternately repeats the generation of the air flow for circulation, the dust removal process from the cleaning object 3 and the regeneration process of the cleaning medium 1, and the cleaning object 1. The deposit 4 is removed from the entire surface of 3. Then, as shown in FIG. 34 (c), when the cleaning object 3 reaches the initial position which is the rising end, the control device 50 stops the cleaning operation. When the cleaning operation is stopped, the lid 46 of the cleaning tank 41 is opened, the cleaning object 3 held by the work holding means 48 is taken out from the cleaning tank 41 by the work moving means 49, replaced with a new cleaning object 3 and cleaned again. Start operation.

  In the above description, the case where the entire surface of the cleaning object 3 is cleaned by alternately ejecting compressed air from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 71b of the cleaning medium accelerating means 43 has been described. However, as shown in FIG. By adjusting the injection angle of the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b, compressed air may be simultaneously injected from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. In addition, when dust is attached only to one surface of the cleaning object 3, the compressed air may be jetted from either one of the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b.

  In the above description, the case where the circulation path of the circulation airflow generated by the circulation airflow generation means 42 is formed by the flat inner surface of the cleaning tank 41 has been described. However, as shown in FIG. A groove 58 formed of a plurality of squares or curved surfaces along the flow direction of the circulation airflow may be provided on the wall surface 411 of the cleaning tank 41 forming the above. The width of the groove 58 is made smaller than the outer diameter of the cleaning medium 1 so that the cleaning medium 1 does not fall into the groove 58. By providing the groove 58 in this way, a space can be formed between the wall surface 411 of the cleaning tank 41 and the cleaning medium 1 to reduce the contact resistance between the wall surface 411 and the cleaning medium 1, and the inside of the groove 58 can be reduced. By flowing the circulation airflow, the cleaning medium 1 can be efficiently transported and a large amount of the cleaning medium 1 can be transported. In addition, the circulation airflow is rectified by the plurality of grooves 58 so that turbulent flow is less likely to occur, and the force of the airflow is less likely to be attenuated, so that the cleaning medium 1 can be efficiently transported and flying, thereby further improving the cleaning efficiency. be able to. The height of the groove 58 only needs to allow airflow to pass. For example, when the groove 58 has a height of about 0.1 mm to 1 mm, it can be easily processed.

  Moreover, you may form the wall surface 411 which forms the circulation path | route of the airflow for a circulation of the washing tank 41 in a concave curved surface, as shown in FIG.36 (b). By forming the wall surface 411 forming the circulation path in the concave curved surface in this way, it is possible to prevent the circulation airflow from diffusing, efficiently transporting a large amount of the cleaning medium 1, It is possible to increase the cleaning efficiency by scattering the cleaning tank 41.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 37A and 37B, air flow rectification that guides the cleaning medium 1 toward the cleaning medium accelerating means 43 on the upper surface or upper side surface of the cleaning tank 41 that forms the circulation path of the circulating air flow. Means 59 may be provided. By providing the airflow rectifying means 59 in the circulation path of the circulation airflow in this way, the cleaning medium 1 can be scattered in a large amount between the cleaning medium acceleration means 43 and the cleaning target object 3, and the cleaning effect can be enhanced. it can. Further, the cleaning medium 1 whose flow direction has been changed by the airflow rectifying means 59 can also directly collide with the object to be cleaned 3 for cleaning. The air flow rectifying means 59 is preferably adjusted to change the angle of changing the flow of the air flow depending on the shape and position of the cleaning object 3.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 38A and 38B, an inclined surface 412 having an opening is provided at the bottom of the cleaning tank 41 without forming the cleaning tank 41 in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped, and a cleaning medium is provided on the inclined surface 412. The regenerating unit 44 may be provided, the circulation airflow generation unit 42 may be provided at the lower end of the inclined surface 412, and the circulation airflow may flow along the inclined surface 412 from the circulation airflow generation unit 42. With this configuration, when the cleaning medium 1 collides with the object to be cleaned 3 and removes the deposit 4 and then falls onto the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regenerating means 44, the discharge of the circulation airflow generating means 42 occurs. A large amount of cleaning medium 1 can be collected with a small amount of compressed air supplied by generating a circulating airflow from the circulating airflow generating means 42 and transporting the cleaning medium 1 to the collected cleaning medium 1 easily in the vicinity of the outlet. Can be transported and energy saving can be achieved. Further, by using the place where the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 is installed as a place where the cleaning medium 1 is collected, the regeneration time of the cleaning medium 1 can be increased, and the regeneration efficiency of the cleaning medium 1 can be increased.

  In the above description, the case where one circulation airflow generation means 42 is provided in the cleaning tank 41 has been described. However, as shown in FIG. 42a and 42b may be arranged symmetrically with the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44 interposed therebetween. In FIG. 39, two circulation airflow generating means 42 a and 42 b are arranged outside the cleaning tank 41, a discharge port is provided in the lower part of the cleaning tank 41, and a suction port is located above the cleaning tank 41 via a duct hose 60. Connect to In this case, as shown in the block diagram of FIG. 40, the control device 50 includes the air circulation circuit 52, the acceleration solenoid valve 53, the acceleration air flow switching control valve 54, and the regeneration electronic valve 55 together with the piping system of FIG. As shown in the figure, the operation of the circulating airflow switching control valve 61 for switching the compressed air supplied to the circulating airflow generating means 42a and 42b is also controlled. When the circulation airflow is generated in the cleaning tank 41 and the cleaning medium 1 is caused to fly, the circulation airflow switching control valve 61 is controlled by the control device 50 to alternately generate the circulation airflow from the circulation airflow generation means 42a and 42b. As a result, the cleaning medium 1 in the cleaning tank 41 is easily collected and retained, and the cleaning medium 1 in the cleaning tank 41 can be used effectively for cleaning. The frequency of collisions can be increased and cleaning can be performed efficiently. Further, by connecting the suction port to the upper portion of the cleaning tank 41 via the duct hose 60, an ascending air current can be generated in the cleaning tank 41, and the cleaning medium 1 is suspended for a long time. The amount of the cleaning medium can be increased, and the cleaning performance can be improved by increasing the number of cleaning media 1 that collide with the object to be cleaned 3 by the compressed air ejected from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. Even if the suction port is connected to the cleaning tank 41 via the duct hose 60, the duct hose 60 is connected to the upper side of the cleaning tank 41 where the spatial density of the cleaning medium 1 is small. Therefore, the duct hose 60 and the circulating airflow generation means 42a and 42b can be prevented from being clogged.

  In the above description, the cleaning tank 41 is provided with one cleaning medium regeneration means 44. However, a plurality of cleaning medium regeneration means 44 are provided at the bottom of the cleaning tank 41, for example, as shown in FIG. In addition to the cleaning medium regeneration means 44, cleaning medium regeneration means 44a to 44d may be provided above and below the array-like acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b of the cleaning medium acceleration means 43. In this case, as shown in the block diagram of FIG. 43, the control device 50 includes an airflow circulation electromagnetic valve 52, an acceleration electromagnetic valve 53, an acceleration airflow switching control valve 54, a regeneration electronic valve 55, and a circulation airflow switching control valve 61. In addition, as shown in the piping system diagram of FIG. 44, the suction air flow switching control valve 62 for switching the suction to the cleaning medium regeneration means 44, the cleaning medium regeneration means 44a and 44b provided on the surface of the cleaning tank 41, and the back surface are provided. The operation of the suction airflow switching control valve 63 that switches the suction to the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c and 44d is also controlled. Then, as shown in FIG. 45, when the cleaning target 3 is cleaned by jetting compressed air from the acceleration nozzle 431a provided on the surface of the cleaning tank 41, the control device 50 regenerates the suction airflow switching control valve 62. Connected to the means 44, the suction air flow switching control valve 63 is connected to the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c, 44d provided on the back surface, and compressed air is ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431b provided on the back surface of the cleaning tank 41 to be cleaned. When cleaning 3, the suction air flow switching control valve 63 is connected to cleaning medium regeneration means 44 a and 44 b provided on the surface. In this way, the deposit 4 and the cleaning medium 1 soared by the compressed air ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a are sucked to the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c and 44d. When the deposit 4 and the cleaning medium 1 are sucked to the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c and 44d, the airflow from the acceleration nozzle 431a acts on the deposit 4 and the cleaning medium 1 in addition to the suction flow of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c and 44d. Therefore, the flow velocity in the mesh portion of the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c, 44d can be dramatically increased, and the ability to remove the deposit 4 attached to the cleaning medium 1 can be greatly increased. The cleaning medium 1 can be reliably regenerated. In addition, after stopping the ejection of compressed air from the acceleration nozzle 431a, the suction of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c, 44d is stopped at a certain timing, and the cleaning medium 1 sucked by the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c, 44d is removed. The cleaning medium regenerating means 44c and 44d can be reliably separated from each other.

  Further, the accelerated nozzles 431a and 431b and the object to be cleaned are discharged when compressed air is ejected from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b without the waste that the washed-up cleaning medium 1 falls without being accelerated by the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. 3 can supply a large amount of the cleaning medium 1, and the cleaning efficiency can be improved. That is, when cleaning is performed by causing the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility to collide with the object to be cleaned 3, the cleaning quality is substantially proportional to the frequency at which the cleaning medium 1 collides with the object to be cleaned 3 at a predetermined speed or more. Therefore, if the supply amount of the cleaning medium 1 is increased, the cleaning quality can be improved, the cleaning time can be shortened, and the energy consumption can be reduced.

  Further, the cleaning using the cleaning medium 1 can be performed after the rough cleaning is performed using the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b and the cleaning medium regenerating means 44a to 44d. The operation when rough cleaning is performed in this way will be described with reference to the time chart of FIG.

  The cleaning object 1 held by the work holding means 48 in a state where the cleaning medium 1 having flexibility is put into the cleaning tank 41 and stacked on the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regenerating means 44 is moved by the work moving means 49. The object to be cleaned is introduced from the cleaning object inlet 45 of the cleaning tank 41 and positioned at the initial position, and the object to be cleaned inlet 45 is closed by the lid 46 to seal the cleaning tank 41. In this state, when the starter 51 is operated and a cleaning start signal is input to the control device 50, the control device 50 opens the acceleration electromagnetic valve 53 and switches the acceleration airflow switching control valve 54 at a constant cycle to accelerate the acceleration nozzle. Acceleration nozzles 431a, 431a, 431a, 431a, 431b alternately eject compressed air, and switch the pressurized air flow switching control valve 54 in synchronization with switching of the ejection of compressed air from the acceleration nozzles 431a, 431b. The suction of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44a, 44b and the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c, 44d provided on the surface opposite to 431b is switched. That is, when compressed air is ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a provided on the surface of the cleaning tank 41, suction is performed by the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c and 44d provided on the back surface of the cleaning tank 41. By this operation, the compressed air ejected from the accelerating nozzle 431a hits the object 3 to be cleaned, and the dirt and the adherent 4 with weak adhesion attached to the object 3 to be cleaned are mostly removed, and the object 3 to be cleaned is roughly cleaned. . Thereafter, a circulation airflow is generated from the circulation airflow generation means 42, the cleaning medium 1 deposited on the separation member 441 of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44 is transported and flying, and the cleaning medium 1 flying is used. Wash. When the cleaning with the flying cleaning medium 1 is finished, the compressed air is alternately ejected from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b again, and the acceleration airflow switching control is synchronized with the switching of the ejection of the compressed air from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. The suction of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44a, 44b and the cleaning medium regeneration means 44c, 44d provided on the surface facing the acceleration nozzles 431a, 431b from which the compressed air is ejected by switching the valve 54 is switched to the object 3 to be cleaned. The cleaning medium 1 adhered by static electricity is removed, the cleaning operation is completed, the lid 46 of the cleaning tank 41 is opened, and the cleaning object 3 held by the work holding means 48 is taken out from the cleaning tank 41 by the work moving means 49, A new cleaning object 3 is replaced and the cleaning operation is started again. As described above, by performing the rough cleaning or the cleaning-off operation of the cleaning medium 1, the cleaning speed and the cleaning quality can be improved.

  In the above description, the case where the cleaning medium regenerating means 44a to 44d are provided on the front surface and the back surface of the cleaning tank 41 has been described. However, as shown in FIG. The inclined surface 412 is provided with a cleaning medium regeneration unit 44 on each of the inclined surfaces 412, and circulation airflow generating means 42 a and 42 b are provided at the lower end of the inclined surface 412, and the inclined airflow is generated from the circulation airflow generating units 42 a and 42 b. Alternatively, the circulation airflow may be caused to flow alternately along the line 412. Also in this case, an air flow rectifying means 59 for guiding the cleaning medium 1 toward the cleaning medium accelerating means 43 may be provided on the upper surface or upper side surface of the cleaning tank 41 that forms the circulation path of the circulating air flow.

  In this way, when the cleaning medium 1 is made to fly and the cleaning medium 1 that is flying collides with the object 3 to be cleaned, the cleaning medium 1 is damaged by the collision with the object 3 to be cleaned, and the cleaning medium regeneration means. The cleaning medium 1 in the cleaning tank 41 is reduced by being discharged to the dust collecting device 57 through the mesh portion of the separation member 441 of 44. When the cleaning medium 1 in the cleaning tank 41 decreases and the amount of scattering in the cleaning tank 41 decreases, the cleaning effect decreases. In some cases, a plurality of objects to be cleaned 3 may be held by the work holding means 48 and placed in the cleaning tank 41 for cleaning. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 48, when the cleaning medium flying amount measuring means 64 is provided in the cleaning tank 41, and the cleaning object detection means 65a and 65b are provided at regular intervals above and below the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. good. For example, as shown in FIG. 49, the cleaning medium flying amount measuring means 64 uses a photoelectric sensor 641 arranged so that the optical axis is orthogonal to the circulation direction of the cleaning medium 1, and the cleaning object detection means 65a, 65b is composed of, for example, a photoelectric sensor having a light projecting / receiving unit 651 and a reflecting plate 652, and the light projecting / receiving unit 651 is attached to the front or back surface of the cleaning tank 41 via a transparent window so that the cleaning medium 1 does not interfere with the reflecting plate. Reference numeral 652 denotes an inner wall surface opposite to the light projecting / receiving unit 651, and is arranged so that the optical axis crosses the cleaning tank 41. The cleaning medium flying amount measuring means 64 and the cleaning object detection means 65a and 65b are connected to the control device 50 as shown in the block diagram of FIG. The control device 50 measures the number of times the optical axis of the photoelectric sensor 641 that is the medium flying amount measuring means 64 is interrupted to quantify the flying amount of the cleaning medium 1 in a certain time, and determines which of the cleaning object detecting means 65a and 65b. On the other hand, the cleaning operation is controlled when the cleaning object 3 is detected.

  The cleaning operation when the cleaning medium flying amount measuring means 64 and the cleaning object detection means 65a and 65b are provided in the cleaning tank 41 will be described with reference to the time chart of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 47, after a plurality of objects to be cleaned 3 are held by the work holding means 48 and put into the cleaning tank 41, when a cleaning start signal is inputted, a circulation airflow is generated from the circulation airflow generation means 42. The cleaning medium 1 deposited on the cleaning medium regeneration means 44 is transported and scattered in the cleaning tank 41. The amount of the cleaning medium 1 scattered is detected by the photoelectric sensor 641 which is the medium flying amount measuring means 64 and input to the control device 50. The control device 50 compares the inputted amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1 for a predetermined time with a preset threshold value, and starts the cleaning operation when the amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1 exceeds the threshold value. If the amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1 is less than or equal to the threshold, a cleaning medium shortage alarm is generated and the cleaning operation is stopped. Thereafter, when the cleaning medium 1 is replenished by a certain amount or shortage from a hopper and the cleaning start signal is input again and the cleaning medium 1 is scattered, the cleaning operation is started when the amount of the cleaning medium 1 exceeds the threshold. .

  Thus, since the amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1 is detected and the cleaning medium 1 exceeding a certain amount is used for cleaning, the cleaning can be performed with good cleaning quality. Further, the amount of the cleaning medium 1 that collides with the cleaning object 3 is proportional to the amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1. Therefore, the control device 50 can also evaluate the cleaning quality from the amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1 every fixed time. Furthermore, by recording the change in the amount of scattering of the cleaning medium 1, the cleaning quality can be accurately quantified.

  When the cleaning operation is started, the workpiece moving means 49 moves the plurality of objects to be cleaned 3 from the top to the bottom of the work holding means 48, and the first object to be cleaned 3 is disposed on the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. When the cleaning object detection signal is input to the control device 50 from the cleaning object detection means 65a when reaching the position where the optical axis of the object detection means 65a is blocked, the control device 50 detects the moving speed of the cleaning object 3 and the cleaning object detection. The jet of compressed air from one of the acceleration nozzles 431a and the cleaning medium regeneration means are added at a timing when a time delay for the cleaning object 3 to reach the position of the acceleration nozzles 431a, 431b is added from the distance between the means 65a and the acceleration nozzles 431a, 541b. 44 is determined, the circulation airflow is stopped at that timing, compressed air is ejected from the acceleration nozzle 431a, and cleaning is performed. Performing first wash washing objects 3 to start suction body reproducing means 44. When the cleaning object detection signal is not input from the cleaning object detection means 65a in this state, the control device 50 performs the cleaning from the moving speed of the cleaning object 3 and the distance between the cleaning object detection means 65a and the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. The jet of compressed air from the accelerating nozzle 431a and the suction of the cleaning medium regeneration means 44 are stopped at the timing of adding a time delay for the object 3 to reach the positions of the accelerating nozzles 431a and 431b, and the circulation airflow generating means 42 Generate airflow. This control is repeated each time a cleaning object detection signal is input from the cleaning object detection means 65a, and the plurality of cleaning objects 3 are sequentially cleaned. When the cleaning object 3 reaches the turn-back position and starts to rise, the control device 50 performs the control each time a cleaning object detection signal is input from the cleaning object detection means 65b disposed under the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b. Repeatedly, compressed air is sprayed from the acceleration nozzle 431b to clean the entire surface of the plurality of objects to be cleaned 3.

  Thus, since compressed air is injected from the acceleration nozzles 431a and 431b that consume a large amount of compressed air in accordance with the position of the object to be cleaned 3, energy consumption can be reduced by reducing the amount of compressed air used.

  In the above description, the case where the photoelectric sensor 641 is used as the medium flying amount measuring means 64 has been described. However, the method of integrating the impact force of the cleaning medium 1 against the cleaning target object 3 by the force sensor, and at the end of the process using the weight sensor A method for measuring the amount of accumulation at the bottom of the cleaning tank 41 using weight measurement, a distance sensor, or the like may be used. When the impact force of the cleaning medium 1 is integrated, the cleaning quality can be evaluated from the integrated number of impacts.

  As shown in FIG. 52, a workpiece posture changing means 66 is provided between the workpiece moving means 49 and the workpiece holding means 48 to rotate the workpiece holding means 48 around the longitudinal axis by a motor, an air cylinder or the like. A plurality of, for example, three sets of array-like acceleration nozzles 431 are provided as cleaning medium accelerating means 43 on one side surface of the tank 41 forming the circulation airflow. May be arranged differently. Then, the cleaning object 3 held by the work holding means 48 and put into the cleaning tank 41 is moved up and down while being rotated by the work posture changing means 66, and the injection of compressed air from a plurality of sets of acceleration nozzles 431 is alternately performed. The object 3 to be cleaned is cleaned by switching. Thus, the entire surface of the cleaning object 3 having a complicated shape can be reliably cleaned by moving the cleaning object 3 in the vertical direction while rotating and injecting compressed air from different directions.

  In the above description, the dry toner (average particle size of about 5 to 10 μm) used in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a laser printer is assumed as the deposit 4 to be removed from the cleaning object 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be similarly applied to cleaning of general powder and dust deposits. In this case, the type of the cleaning medium 1 and the flow velocity and flow rate of the air flow may be appropriately selected according to the properties of the cleaning object 3 and the deposit 4. For example, when the cleaning object 3 is easily damaged, the cleaning medium 1 is flexibly bent by using a flexible material such as a resin and a thin cylindrical material as the cleaning medium 1. Don't hurt.

First, in order to observe the influence of the adhesion force of the toner which is the deposit 4 to be removed by the dry cleaning method, the toner is adhered to the toner cartridge of the copying machine and then heated at a predetermined temperature for 1 hour. Three different types of samples (weak adhesion, medium adhesion, strong adhesion) were prepared. The toner adhering to this sample was cleaned by the dry cleaning apparatus 1. A plurality of Silvent air nozzles SL-920A were arranged as blowing means, and the compressed air pressure was set to be constant at 0.2 MPa, and each was washed for 2 minutes.
Here, the following four types of cleaning media 1 formed in a cylindrical shape and having flexibility were used.
(1) Polyethylene cylinder with wall thickness of 30 μm, outer diameter of 5 mm, and length of 10 mm (2) PET (polyethylene terephthalate) cylinder with wall thickness of 30 μm, outer diameter of 5 mm, and length of 10 mm (3) Wall thickness of 100 μm, outer diameter of 5 mm , 10 mm long polyethylene cylinder (4) wall thickness 100 μm, outer diameter 5 mm, length 10 mm PET cylinder
(5) Dry cleaning using only air blow without using a cleaning medium and dry cleaning using various granular cleaning media as cleaning media were performed. The following four types of granular cleaning media were used.
(6) 2 mm square nylon (7) Nylon sphere with 2 mm diameter (8) Urethane sponge sphere with 5 mm diameter (9) PET cylinder with 5 mm diameter and 10 mm length (no flexibility)
The cleaning results are shown in Table 1 below.

  As shown in Table 1, a dry cleaning method using a flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylindrical shape can obtain better cleaning results than a dry cleaning method using a conventional granular cleaning medium. Is clear. Further, among the cleaning media that are formed into a cylindrical shape and have flexibility, the cleaning media that are easy to bend have better cleaning results.

Next, an experimental result when dry cleaning is repeatedly performed using the cleaning medium 1 is shown.
After the toner was adhered to the toner cartridge of the copying machine, the sample was heated at a predetermined temperature for 1 hour to prepare a sample having a medium adhesion. A plurality of air nozzles SL-920A manufactured by Silvent were arranged as blowing means, and the compressed air pressure was set to be constant at 0.2 MPa, and washing was performed for 2 minutes. At this time, the cleaning medium 1 was not changed for each sample, and the transition of the cleaning result with the increase in the number of sample treatments when the same cleaning medium 1 was continuously used was compared. Here, the following five types of cleaning media 1 formed in a cylindrical shape and having flexibility were used.
(1) Polyethylene cylinder with wall thickness 30 μm, outer diameter 5 mm, length 10 mm (2) PET cylinder with wall thickness 30 μm, outer diameter 5 mm, length 10 mm (3) Wall thickness 100 μm, outer diameter 5 mm, length 10 mm Nylon cloth cylinder (4) Thickness 100 μm, outer diameter 5 mm, length 10 mm paper cylinder piece (5) Thickness 100 μm, outer diameter 5 mm, length 10 mm aluminum cylinder piece This cleaning result is shown in Table 2 below.

  As shown in Table 2, it was found that good cleaning results can be obtained in repeated use, particularly when the material of the cleaning medium 1 is resin.

In order to clarify the difference in cleaning ability, after attaching the toner to the toner cartridge of the copying machine, the sample was heated at a predetermined temperature for 1 hour to increase the adhesive force (during the adhesive force). It was cleaned with a dry cleaning device 11a. The air blow was used by arranging a plurality of air nozzles SL-920A manufactured by Silvent, and washing was performed for 1 minute each so that the compressed air pressure was constant at 0.2 MPa. The following three types of cleaning media 1 formed in a cylindrical shape and having flexibility were used.
(1) PET cylinder with the shape shown in FIG. 1 having a wall thickness of 30 μm, outer diameter of 5 mm, and length of 10 mm. (2) PET square with the shape of FIG. 5B having a wall thickness of 30 μm, 5 mm square, and length of 10 mm. Cylinder (3) PET cylinder with a thickness of 30 μm, an outer diameter of 5 mm, and a length of 10 mm having a flexible thin piece with a thickness of 30 μm on the side surface in the shape of FIG. 9A. Washing was performed under conditions.
(4) 30 μm thick, 5 mm square PET film (5) Dry cleaning only by air blow without using a cleaning medium (6) 2 mm square cubic nylon (7) 2 mm diameter nylon sphere (8) 5 mm diameter urethane Sponge sphere (9) PET cylinder with a diameter of 5 mm and a length of 10 mm (no flexibility)
The cleaning results are shown in Table 3 below. In Table 3, the double circle mark of the toner cleaning result indicates that it is very clean, the single circle mark indicates that it is almost clean, and the triangle mark indicates that there is a part of the cleaning residue. The cross mark indicates that dirt is hardly removed.

  As shown in Table 3, it is clear that the result of dry cleaning using the cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylinder and having flexibility is better than the conventional dry cleaning. In addition, since the superiority or inferiority of the cleaning result due to the shape of the flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in a cylinder shape varies depending on the target item, a desired cleaning result can be obtained by selecting a shape suitable for the item to be regarded as important. Can be obtained. Needless to say, the flexible cleaning medium 1 formed in different shapes of cylinders may be used at the same time, or the cleaning process may be divided into a plurality of processes, and the shape of the cleaning medium 1 may be changed for each process.

First, in order to observe the influence of the adhesion force of the toner which is the deposit 4 to be removed by the dry cleaning method, the toner is adhered to the toner cartridge of the copying machine and then heated at a predetermined temperature for 1 hour. Three different types of samples (weak adhesion, medium adhesion, strong adhesion) were prepared. The toner adhering to this sample was cleaned by the dry cleaning device 11a. A plurality of Silvent air nozzles SL-920A were arranged as blowing means, and the compressed air pressure was set to be constant at 0.2 MPa, and each was washed for 2 minutes.
Here, the following four types of cleaning media 1a formed in a bag shape and having flexibility were used.
(1) Polyethylene cone with a wall thickness of 30 μm, bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, and length of 10 mm (2) PET (polyethylene terephthalate) cone with a wall thickness of 30 μm, bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, and a length of 10 mm (3) Wall thickness of 100 μm, bottom surface diameter of 5 mm 10 mm long polyethylene cone (4) 100 μm thick, bottom diameter 5 mm, 10 mm long PET cone As a comparative example,
(5) Dry cleaning using only air blow without using a cleaning medium and dry cleaning using various granular cleaning media as cleaning media were performed. The following four types of granular cleaning media were used.
(6) 2 mm square nylon (7) Nylon sphere with 2 mm diameter (8) Urethane sponge sphere with 5 mm diameter (9) PET cone with 5 mm bottom diameter and 10 mm length (no flexibility)
The washing results are shown in Table 4 below.

  As shown in Table 4, a dry cleaning method using a flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape can obtain better cleaning results than a dry cleaning method using a conventional granular cleaning medium. Is clear. Further, among the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape, a cleaning medium that is easy to bend has a better cleaning result.

Next, an experimental result when dry cleaning is performed by repeatedly using the cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape and having flexibility is shown.
After the toner was adhered to the toner cartridge of the copying machine, the sample was heated at a predetermined temperature for 1 hour to prepare a sample having a medium adhesion. A plurality of air nozzles SL-920A manufactured by Silvent were arranged as blowing means, and the compressed air pressure was set to be constant at 0.2 MPa, and washing was performed for 2 minutes. At this time, the cleaning medium 1 was not changed for each sample, and the transition of the cleaning result with the increase in the number of sample treatments when the same cleaning medium 1 was continuously used was compared. Here, the following five types of cleaning media 1a formed in a bag shape and having flexibility were used.
(1) Polyethylene cone with a wall thickness of 30 μm, bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, and length of 10 mm (2) PET cone with a wall thickness of 30 μm, bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, and a length of 10 mm (3) Wall thickness of 100 μm, bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, length of 10 mm Nylon Cloth Cone (4) Thickness 100 μm, Bottom Diameter 5 mm, Length 10 mm Paper Cone (5) Thickness 100 μm, Bottom Diameter 5 mm, Length 10 mm Aluminum Cone This cleaning result is shown in Table 5 below.

  As shown in Table 5, it was found that good cleaning results can be obtained in repeated use, particularly when the material of the cleaning medium 1a is resin.

In order to clarify the difference in cleaning ability, after attaching the toner to the toner cartridge of the copying machine, the sample was heated at a predetermined temperature for 1 hour to increase the adhesive force (during the adhesive force). It was cleaned with a dry cleaning device 11a. The air blow was used by arranging a plurality of air nozzles SL-920A manufactured by Silvent, and washing was performed for 1 minute each so that the compressed air pressure was constant at 0.2 MPa. The following three types of cleaning media 1 formed in a bag shape and having flexibility were used.
(1) PET cone with the shape shown in FIG. 13 having a wall thickness of 30 μm, a bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, and a length of 10 mm. (2) The shape shown in FIG. 18B, made of PET with a wall thickness of 30 μm, a bottom surface of 5 mm square, and a length of 10 mm. Square cone (3) PET cone having a shape of FIG. 19 with a fold on the side and a thickness of 30 μm, a bottom surface diameter of 5 mm, and a length of 10 mm Further, as a comparative example, cleaning was performed under the following six conditions.
(4) 30 μm thick, 5 mm square PET film (5) Dry cleaning only by air blow without using a cleaning medium (6) 2 mm square cubic nylon (7) 2 mm diameter nylon sphere (8) 5 mm diameter urethane Sponge sphere (9) PET cone with bottom diameter of 5mm and length of 10mm (no flexibility)
The washing results are shown in Table 6 below. In Table 6, the double circle mark of the toner cleaning result indicates that it is very clean, the single circle mark indicates that it is almost clean, and the triangle mark indicates that there is a part of the cleaning residue. The cross mark indicates that dirt is hardly removed.

  As shown in Table 6, it is clear that the result of dry cleaning using a flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape is better than that of conventional dry cleaning. In addition, the superiority or inferiority of the cleaning result due to the shape of the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape varies depending on the target item. Can be obtained. Of course, the flexible cleaning medium 1a formed in a bag shape having different shapes may be used simultaneously, or the cleaning process may be divided into a plurality of parts, and the shape of the cleaning medium 1a may be changed for each process.

It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the washing | cleaning medium of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which removes deposits, such as dust which adhered to the washing | cleaning target object with the cleaning medium which is formed in a cylinder shape and has flexibility. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which the washing | cleaning medium formed in plate shape adhered to the washing | cleaning target object. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state into which the washing | cleaning medium formed in plate shape entered the clearance gap between washing | cleaning objects. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which the washing | cleaning medium formed in the cylinder shape adhered to the washing | cleaning target object. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which the cleaning medium formed in the cylinder shape entered into the clearance gap between cleaning objects. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium formed in the square cylinder shape. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium which has an acute angle at one edge part. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium which made one opening diameter small. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium which has a crease | fold. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium which has a thin piece. It is a schematic diagram which shows the preparation methods of the washing | cleaning medium which has a thin piece. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium formed in the bag shape. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which removes deposits, such as dust which adhered to the washing | cleaning target object with the flexible cleaning medium formed in a bag shape. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which the cleaning medium formed in the bag shape adhered to the washing | cleaning target object. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which the cleaning medium formed in the bag shape entered into the clearance gap between cleaning objects. It is a schematic diagram which shows the preparation methods of the washing | cleaning medium formed in the bag shape. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium in which the shape of the bag was formed in the shape of a pyramid. It is a perspective view which shows the washing | cleaning medium which is formed in a bag shape and has a fold. It is front sectional drawing which shows the structure of a dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus. It is side surface principal part sectional drawing which shows the structure of a dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the hollow of the bottom face of a washing tank. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of a nozzle. It is a block diagram which shows the rotation mechanism of a nozzle. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which makes a washing | cleaning medium collide with a washing | cleaning target object with the airflow from a nozzle. It is a block diagram of the 2nd dry cleaning apparatus. It is sectional drawing which shows the shape of the washing tank in a 2nd dry cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram of a washing | cleaning medium reproduction | regeneration means. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the drive control part of a 2nd dry cleaning apparatus. It is a piping system diagram of the drive part of the 2nd dry cleaning equipment. It is a time chart which shows cleaning operation of the 2nd dry cleaning equipment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which conveys the cleaning medium laminated | stacked on the cleaning medium reproduction | regeneration means by the airflow for circulation. It is a schematic diagram which shows the comparative example which conveys the laminated | stacked washing | cleaning medium with the airflow for circulation. It is process drawing which shows the washing | cleaning operation | movement of the washing | cleaning target object. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which makes a washing | cleaning medium collide with a washing | cleaning target object with the airflow which ejects from the acceleration nozzle of a washing | cleaning medium acceleration means. It is a block diagram of the inner wall face of the washing tank which forms the circulation path of the airflow for circulation. It is sectional drawing of the washing tank which provided the airflow rectification | straightening means in the circulation path | route of the airflow for circulation. It is sectional drawing of the washing tank which provided the inclined surface in the bottom part. It is a block diagram of the 3rd dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the drive control part of a 3rd dry cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the drive part of a 3rd dry cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram of the 4th dry cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the drive control part of a 4th dry cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the drive part of a 4th dry cleaning apparatus. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state which makes a washing | cleaning medium collide with a washing | cleaning target object with a 4th dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus. It is a time chart of cleaning operation including rough cleaning operation and wiping off operation. It is a block diagram of the 5th dry cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the outline | summary of the 6th dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus which has a washing | cleaning medium flying amount measurement means and a washing | cleaning target object detection means. It is a block diagram of the photoelectric sensor which comprises a cleaning medium flying amount measurement means. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the drive control part of the dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus which has a washing | cleaning medium flying amount measurement means and a washing | cleaning target object detection means. It is a time chart which shows operation | movement of a 6th dry-type washing | cleaning apparatus. It is a block diagram of the 7th dry cleaning apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

1; cleaning medium, 2; high-speed air flow, 3; object to be cleaned, 4; deposit, 5; gap,
6; acute angle part, 7; crease, 8; flake, 9; tape-shaped raw material, 10; spacer,
11; Dry cleaning device, 12; Cleaning tank, 13; Cylindrical mesh, 14; Nozzle,
15; Corner block, 16; Nozzle, 17; Motor for nozzle rotation,
18; motor for moving the nozzle, 19; work holding means,
20; Work horizontal rotation motor, 21; Work swing motor 22, 23; Timing belt, 24; Transmission gear, 25; Swing link mechanism,
41; cleaning tank, 42; circulation airflow generation means, 43; cleaning medium acceleration means,
44: Cleaning medium regeneration means.

Claims (15)

A cleaning medium used for removing adhering matter adhering to the object to be cleaned by flying with an air current in the cleaning tank and colliding with the object to be cleaned,
The cleaning medium is
It has an outer surface that contacts the object to be cleaned and an inner surface that does not contact the object to be cleaned,
In tubular shape airflow enters from the outside to the inner surface of the cleaning medium, and have a flexible,
A cleaning medium that bends when the cleaning medium contacts or collides with the object to be cleaned . A cleaning medium 請 Motomeko 1,
A cleaning medium, wherein the cylinder has a cylindrical shape. The cleaning medium according to claim 1 ,
A cleaning medium, wherein the cylinder is formed in a polygonal shape. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
A cleaning medium, wherein an angle formed between a side surface of the cylinder and at least one opening surface is formed as an acute angle. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
A cleaning medium, wherein one opening diameter of the cylinder is formed smaller than the other opening diameter. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
A cleaning medium having a fold on a side surface of the cylinder. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
A cleaning medium comprising a flexible thin piece on a side surface of the cylinder. The cleaning medium according to claim 1,
The cleaning medium is formed in a bag shape having an opening on one side. A cleaning medium according to claim 8 ,
The cleaning medium is characterized in that the bag has a conical shape. A cleaning medium according to claim 8 ,
The shape of the said bag is a pyramid shape, The washing | cleaning medium characterized by the above-mentioned. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 8 to 10 ,
A cleaning medium having a fold on a side surface of the bag. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 11 ,
The cleaning medium is made of a material having an antistatic function. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 12 ,
The cleaning medium is characterized in that at least a part of an inner surface thereof is coated with a ferromagnetic material. A cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 11 ,
The cleaning medium, wherein the cleaning medium is formed of a material that can transmit light, and at least a part of the inner surface thereof is coated with a substance that emits light or a substance that reflects light. A dry cleaning apparatus using the cleaning medium according to any one of claims 1 to 14 ,
Circulating airflow generating means for flying with a high-speed air current in the cleaning tank, and a cleaning medium for removing the adhered dust and powder adhering to the cleaning object by colliding the flying cleaning medium with the cleaning object by the high-speed air current A dry cleaning apparatus comprising: an accelerating unit; and a cleaning medium regenerating unit that regenerates the cleaning medium by sucking and removing the adhering matter adhering to the cleaning medium colliding with the object to be cleaned.

Images