JPS6232473B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an illumination/charging device formed by unitizing the illumination/charging device of an electrophotographic apparatus.

Generally, in the process of an electrophotographic apparatus, static electricity is removed by light before a charging process, and after the charging process, an exposure process is performed to form a latent image on a photoreceptor corresponding to the intensity of the light of the projected image.

In this process, the main exposure light source is generally turned off at times other than the document scanning time, so the photoreceptor is not irradiated with light. For this reason, a large amount of toner adheres to the photoreceptor during the development process, resulting in more toner being consumed than necessary. In order to eliminate this drawback, it is necessary to provide an unexposed area illumination device that illuminates the photoreceptor during the unexposed time period that occurs between main exposures.
Usually, this unexposed area illumination device is inserted between the charging process and the exposure process.

In other words, as shown in FIG.
and an unexposed area illumination device 3 are required, and the light source for illuminating the unexposed area needs to blink as the process progresses. In this configuration, in addition to the main exposure light source, there are
Since two lamps are required, the temperature inside the electrophotographic apparatus increases significantly and adversely affects the photoreceptor 4. In addition, if the diameter of the photoreceptor drum is small, photostatic charge removal,
It becomes impossible to secure sufficient space for each unit for charging and illuminating unexposed areas.

Further, considering the case of reduction copying, it is necessary to divide the light source for illuminating the unexposed area into three parts, and to control the center and left and right light sources separately. Therefore, the structure of illuminating the unexposed area becomes complicated, and maintenance is also complicated.

In order to eliminate the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, the present invention shares a light source for optical static elimination and a light source for illuminating unexposed areas, and also integrates a charging unit and the above-mentioned light source unit, thereby achieving simpler and more compact illumination and charging. It provides equipment.

The details of the present invention will be explained below based on examples.

FIG. 2 shows the structure of the illumination/charging unit according to the present invention. In FIG. 2, A is an illumination/charging unit, 5 is a tubular light source thereof, and 6 and 7 are U-shaped outer and inner reflecting plates facing each other with the tubular light source 5 in between. Further, reference numeral 8 denotes a high-voltage metal wire arranged in a space surrounded by the inner reflecting plate 7. The inner reflecting plate 7 serves as a shield electrode for the high voltage metal wire 8. Here, the high voltage metal wire 8 is fixed at both ends of the illumination/charging unit A via an insulator, and the inner reflector 7 and the tubular light source 5 are similarly fixed to the outer reflector 6 at both ends of the illumination/charging unit A. There is. Further, the entire illumination/charging unit A is arranged such that its tubular light source 5 is perpendicular to the traveling direction of the photoreceptor, and is attached to the main body of the electrophotographic apparatus by two fixing claws 9, and is connected to the rotation axis of the photoreceptor. It has a structure that allows it to be pulled out in the same direction.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of this illumination/charging unit A, showing one slit-shaped opening 12 formed between the edges of the inner reflecting plate 7 and the outer reflecting plate 6.
has an optical static elimination function, and the other opening 13, together with a shutter (not shown), has a function of illuminating an unexposed area.

Further, FIG. 4 shows a side structural diagram of the illumination/charging unit A. In FIG. 4, 14 is a handle for pulling out the entire illumination/charging unit A. Further, reference numerals 15 and 16 indicate connectors for supplying power to the tubular light source 5, and power is received from the main body of the electrophotographic apparatus through these two connectors 15 and 16. Here, the connector 16 is connected to one side of the tubular light source 5 via the lead wire 11. Structurally, it is easiest for this lead wire 11 to pass through the space between the inner reflector 7 and the outer reflector 6, but two slit-shaped openings 12, 13 are provided for the lead wire and its support structure. There must be no negative effect on the luminous flux emitted from the Therefore, the position along the tubular light source 5 can be cited as a position with the least influence. Reference numeral 10 in FIG. 3 indicates a groove provided in the inner reflecting plate 7 directly below the tubular light source 5, and a lead wire 10 is inserted into this groove 10.
1 shows an example having a structure sandwiching 1.
Furthermore, in this structure, by moving the tubular light source 5 to the position indicated by the dotted line in FIG. can. Further, the lead wire 11 may be fixedly installed along the outer reflecting plate 6 at a position directly above the tubular light source 5.

Next, reference numeral 8 in FIGS. 3 and 4 is a high voltage metal wire, which is connected to the connector 17. The inner reflecting plate 7 shown in FIG. 3 also serves as a shield electrode for the high-voltage metal wire 8, and is electrically connected to the electrophotographic apparatus as a ground via the fixing claw 9 of the outer reflecting plate 6.

As for the effects of the illumination/charging device, firstly, since the inner reflecting plate 7 also serves as the shield electrode of the charging device, the structure is simplified. In addition, the optical static eliminator, the unexposed area illumination device, and the charging unit are integrated together.
Since it can be pulled out from the main body, it is convenient for maintenance such as cleaning dirt, and it is also easy to replace the lamp. Furthermore, the illuminance of the optical charge eliminating section and the unexposed area illumination device can be easily adjusted by changing the mounting position of the lamp.

Furthermore, this illumination/charging unit also includes an optical static eliminator,
Another advantage is that the charging section and the unexposed section illumination device occupy a small space in the entire system.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a general illumination/charging device for an electrophotographic device, Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an illumination/charging unit according to the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a general illumination/charging device according to the present invention. Sectional view of unit, 4th
The figure is the same side view. A...Lighting/charging unit, 5...Tubular light source,
6... Outer reflecting plate, 7... Inner reflecting plate, 8... High voltage metal wire, 12, 13... Slit shaped opening.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 A tubular light source, a U-shaped outer reflector and an inner reflector that face each other with the tubular light source in between, and form two slit-shaped openings that serve as a light guide between their respective opposite ends; An illumination/charging unit is constructed of high-voltage metal wires placed in the space surrounded by the reflector, the inner reflector has a shielding function, and the illumination/charging unit is arranged so that the tubular light source is perpendicular to the scanning direction of the photoreceptor. 1. An illumination/charging device for an electrophotographic apparatus, characterized in that a charging unit is arranged to sequentially constitute an optical static eliminator, a charging device, and an unexposed area illumination device in the scanning direction of a photoreceptor.