JP2000035727A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the frictional resistance of the surface of an image carrier in a short time and to prevent the image carrier from being deteriorated by wear in an early stage by improving the supply performance of lubricant. SOLUTION: The lubricant 22 in a lubricant supply mechanism 12 incorporates at least PTFE(polytetrafluoroethylene) and formed by a compression molding method in a baking method. The lubricant 22 is installed for a photoreceptor 2 so that an acute angle θ formed by crossing a line parallel with the moving direction of the photoreceptor 2 with a line parallel with the material compressing direction at the time of compression-molding the lubricant 22 may be >=45 deg..

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, and the like.
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to a surface of an image carrier.

2. Description of the Related Art In an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile, a charger and an exposure unit are arranged around a photoreceptor as an image carrier. Each image forming process such as development, transfer, cleaning, and static elimination is performed. Some of the image forming units or members arranged around the photoreceptor include:
When some of the photosensitive members are in direct contact with the photosensitive member and the photosensitive layer of the photosensitive member is removed by a certain amount due to the contact friction, the photosensitive characteristics change, and a predetermined image forming process cannot be performed. In other words, the wear of the photosensitive layer leads to a reduction in the life of the photoconductor.

[0003] Among the members that come into contact with the surface of the photoreceptor, the cleaning blade is the most problematic, and wear due to contact with other members substantially affects the reduction in the life of the photoreceptor. Absent. The reason the cleaning blade is problematic is that it contacts mechanically, i.e., scrapes off, to remove residual toner on the photoreceptor. The wear caused by the cleaning blade is mainly divided into the following two forms. Abrasion caused by shearing force generated between the photoconductor and the cleaning blade Toner acts like a grindstone when the toner is sandwiched between the cleaning blade and the photoconductor, and the abrasion caused by the abrasive action causes such abrasion. Factors to be determined include the mechanical strength of the photoreceptor, the contact pressure of the cleaning blade against the photoreceptor, the composition of the toner particles, and the surface friction coefficient of the photoreceptor.

In order to suppress the wear of the photosensitive member surface due to the contact of the cleaning blade, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
As disclosed in JP-A-324603 and JP-A-6-324604, a lubricant is conventionally supplied to the surface of a photoreceptor. The lubricant is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape (bar shape), and this is scraped off little by little with a roller and then supplied to the photoreceptor surface via a rotating brush, or only the rotating brush is placed between the lubricant and the photoreceptor surface. Is provided and supplied. Also, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
Japanese Patent Publication No. 95451 discloses a technique in which the thickness of a lubricant on a roller is made constant by a scraper and the lubricant is uniformly supplied. Also, JP-A-8-54807 discloses that
A technique has been disclosed in which a roller having a surface formed of a solid lubricant is brought into direct contact with the surface of an image carrier to prevent uneven supply of the solid lubricant due to uneven wear. When the lubricant is supplied to the surface of the photoreceptor, the coefficient of friction between the cleaning blade and the photoreceptor is reduced, and the shear force generated there is also reduced, so that the amount of wear can be reduced. . As the lubricant, a solid lubricant such as zinc stearate is used.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 4-264482 discloses that a surface of a counter-type cleaning blade that contacts an image carrier is made of polytetrafluoroethylene (hereinafter, referred to as "polytetrafluoroethylene").
There is disclosed a technique in which a resin layer of “PTFE” is formed to suppress the wear of the surface of the image bearing member.

[0006]

By the way, in this kind of lubricant supply, in order to prevent the abrasion deterioration of the image carrier at an early stage, it is required to improve the lubricant supply performance. In view of the prior art from this viewpoint, PTFE is more likely to be worn than zinc stearate or the like.
The use of FE makes it possible to speed up the supply of the lubricant, and to obtain excellent lubrication characteristics (wear characteristics) of PTFE. However, in the past, PTFE was merely used as one lubricant, and was not always satisfactory from the viewpoint of improving the supply performance of the lubricant.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus capable of improving the supply of PTFE and efficiently reducing the surface frictional resistance of the image carrier.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has focused on the relationship between intrinsic properties such as orientation in the manufacturing process of PTFE and lubricant supply performance. Specifically, in the invention according to claim 1, in the image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier, the lubricant contains at least polytetrafluoroethylene (hereinafter, referred to as “PTFE”). And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the image bearing member, which is formed by the compression molding method of the baking processing method and is provided so as to directly contact the image bearing member. The lubricant is disposed on the image carrier such that an acute angle formed by the intersection of the straight lines parallel to the compression direction is 45 ° or more.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier, the lubricant contains at least PTFE and is formed by a compression molding method of a firing process. And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the image carrier and a straight line parallel to the compression direction during compression molding of the lubricant are provided so as to be in direct contact with the image carrier. In addition, a configuration is adopted in which the lubricant is disposed on the image carrier.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member, the lubricant contains at least PTFE and is formed by a compression molding method of a baking process. And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the sliding member, and a compression direction at the time of compression molding of the lubricant, which is provided so as to be indirectly supplied to the image carrier via the sliding member. The lubricating material is disposed on the sliding member such that an acute angle formed by the intersection of a straight line parallel to the sliding member is 45 ° or more.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member, the lubricant contains at least PTFE and is formed by a compression molding method of a firing process. And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the sliding member, and a compression direction at the time of compression molding of the lubricant, which is provided so as to be indirectly supplied to the image carrier via the sliding member. The lubricating material is disposed on the sliding member such that a straight line parallel to the sliding member is substantially orthogonal to the sliding member.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a main part of an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, a charging roller 4, an exposure unit 6, a developing unit 8, a transfer unit 10, a cleaning blade 14, a static eliminator 16, a lubricant supply mechanism 12, etc. are provided around a photoreceptor 2 as an image carrier. Are arranged, and each image forming process such as charging, exposure, development, transfer, cleaning, and static elimination is performed with the rotation of the photoconductor 2 in the arrow direction. The exposure by the exposure unit 6 forms an electrostatic latent image of the target image on the photoreceptor 2, and the electrostatic latent image is visualized as a toner image by the developing unit 8. Thereafter, the transfer unit 10 transfers the toner image to the sheet P fed at a predetermined timing by the pair of registration rollers 18. The sheet P to which the toner image has been transferred is sent to a fixing device (not shown), where the toner image is fixed as a permanent image on the sheet P by heat and pressure. The toner remaining on the photoreceptor 2 is scraped off by the cleaning blade 14, and the residual charge is removed by the charge remover 16.

The lubricant supply mechanism 12 includes a case 20 fixed to a fixing member (not shown) of the apparatus main body,
A rectangular parallelepiped stay 25 movably accommodated within 0;
The stay 25 includes a lubricant 22 fixed to a surface of the stay 25 facing the photoconductor 2, and a spring 28 that presses the lubricant 22 against the surface of the photoconductor 2 via the stay 25 at a constant pressure.

Here, the level of the coefficient of static friction of the image carrier (photoreceptor 2), which is the object of the present invention, will be described with reference to data measured by an Euler belt method. in this case,
A medium-thick high-quality paper is stretched around the drum 1/4 of the photoreceptor 2 in such a manner that the paper gap is in the longitudinal direction, a load of 100 gr is applied to one of the belts, and a force gauge is installed to the other. Then, the force gauge is pulled, and the load at the time when the belt is moved is read and calculated by the following equation. μs = 2 / π × 1n (F / w) where μs: coefficient of static friction, F: measured value, w: load The coefficient of static friction of the surface of the photoreceptor 2 is based on the Euler belt method from the viewpoint of its wear. It was found that the effect was obtained at 0.4 or less. Therefore, in the present invention, the goal is to reduce the static friction coefficient of the photoreceptor 2 to 0.4 or less, and an example of the realization is the configuration of the lubricant supply mechanism 2. However, when the wear amount is controlled to a certain level in addition to always maintaining the value of 0.4 or less, the purpose may be such that the value may temporarily exceed 0.4 for an arbitrary time. Further, it can be controlled to 0.3 to 0.1 as a region having a higher effect on abrasion. In this case, it has been experimentally confirmed that the wear amount is further reduced. It has been experimentally confirmed that an image defect occurs when the static friction coefficient is 0.08 or less due to the influence of ionized adhered substances and the like, and it is desirable that the static friction coefficient does not decrease to 0.08 or less. . However, these values vary depending on environmental conditions and the like, so that 0.08 or less is not always defective. Therefore, the lower limit value of the coefficient of static friction may be arbitrarily set according to the environmental conditions and the like.

The lubricant 22 used in each of the above structures contains at least PTFE and is formed by a compression molding method of a firing method. Here, PTFE
The features of are described. Regarding the molding and processing and materials of general PTFE, PTFE has an extremely high melt viscosity, and it is difficult to use molding methods such as injection and extrusion used for general thermoplastic plastic materials. For this reason, as a method of molding PTFE, a powder resin is preformed (mainly at room temperature), and the powder resin is heated to a temperature of 350 ° C.
In general, a method of solid-forming the particles by sintering (baking) at 0 ° C. Examples of the processing method include a compression molding method, a ram extrusion molding method, and a paste extrusion molding method. PT used for such molding
FE materials are roughly classified into two types: molding powders and fine powders. Generally, molding powder is used for compression molding and ram extrusion molding.
Fine powder is used in paste extrusion.

[0016] The molding powder is obtained by pulverizing the raw powder obtained by suspension polymerization to a size of several tens to several hundreds of μm, and then performing granulation, pulverization, and pre-heating in a form suitable for the method of use. It is a general term for powders generated after such processing. Fine powder is obtained by coagulating and drying a latex obtained by emulsion polymerization to adjust the particle size to about 300 to 600 μm.

In addition, low molecular weight PTFE is used for other materials.
There is something called. Low-molecular-weight PTFE has a number-average molecular weight of 5 to 6,000,000 or more, whereas molding powders and fine powders, which are usually put into practical use for molding, generally have a molecular weight of several thousand to
It refers to hundreds of thousands of PTFE. Such low molecular weight P
TFE is used by being added to resin materials other than PTFE, oil, ink, paint and the like.

Next, the friction characteristics of PTFE and the characteristics of PTFE as a lubricant will be described. The molecular structure of PTFE is CF, as shown in FIGS.
_It is a perfectly symmetric linear polymer with a chemical structure in which _two units simply repeat. In addition, it is a nonpolar polymer having very high molecular symmetry, and has very weak intermolecular cohesion. Also,
The chain surface is very smooth. PTFs have low intermolecular cohesion and small irregularities on the surface of molecular chains.
It is generally described that E has a low coefficient of friction. Here, a case is considered where the mating member to be contacted is a different material. PTFE is a very soft substance, and because the cohesion between molecules is small and slippage between molecules is likely to occur, the "transfer of PTFE" phenomenon in which worn PTFE is supplied to a mating member of friction is easy. Happens. Due to this phenomenon, a PTFE layer is generated on the surface of the mating member, and the friction generated there is replaced by the friction between the PTFE, thereby lowering the friction coefficient. This is known as one factor of low frictional resistance between many materials and PTFE in a sliding state. The above-mentioned property of PTFE against friction is one of the reasons for using PTFE as a lubricant in the present invention.

As described above, the wear of the photoconductor 2 is mainly caused by the friction between the photoconductor 2 and the cleaning blade 14. Therefore, the lubricant 22 is supplied to the surface of the photoreceptor 2. To simplify the lubricant supply mechanism 12, it is desirable that the lubricant 22 be brought into direct contact with the photoreceptor 2. In this case, there is a problem as to whether or not the lubricant easily transfers to the photoconductor 2. PTFE is suitable as a lubricant for a rotating / driving member such as the photosensitive member 2 because PTFE is easily transferred to a sliding member due to its characteristics. Further, after the transfer of the PTFE, that is, after the friction between the PTFE becomes dominant, the wear of the PTFE decreases. this is,
This is because the friction coefficient between the PTFEs is extremely small, so that the shear force generated there is reduced and the wear is reduced. Therefore, when the PTFE or the lubricant 22 containing PTFE is brought into direct contact with the photoreceptor 2 to obtain the lubricating effect, the PTFE
After the transfer of E, the supply amount is automatically limited, and unnecessary supply, that is, useless supply is suppressed.

Further, collapse between molecules of PTFE can occur even after the PTFE is transferred to a counterpart member. Due to this property, the PTFE adhered on the photoreceptor 2 is repeatedly adhered and removed (moved) at a certain ratio. The removal is performed by, for example, the cleaning blade 14, the developing unit 8, the transfer paper, and the like. Normally, foreign substances, for example, ionized substances (NOx, SOx, etc.) that cause image blur are attached to the surface of the photoconductor 2. When the lubricant is not supplied, these foreign substances have been removed at the same time as the surface layer of the photoreceptor is abraded in a cleaning section or the like. If the surface of the photoreceptor is reduced by supplying the lubricant, these foreign substances cannot be removed, and an image defect may occur. However, in the case of a lubricant that is repeatedly attached and removed, such as PTFE, these foreign substances are also repeatedly attached and removed, whereby image defects on the surface of the photoconductor 2 can be reduced.

Next, the wear characteristics (mechanical characteristics) of PTFE
Will be described. Regarding the wear characteristics of PTFE,
The molecular weight of TFE has a significant effect. The mechanical strength such as general wear of a polymer is affected by its intermolecular cohesion.
This also applies to PTFE. If the intermolecular cohesion is small, intermolecular slip is likely to occur, and wear is likely to occur. In addition, the mechanical strength other than wear is also reduced when the intermolecular cohesion is small. As described above, the intermolecular cohesion of PTFE is extremely small. Therefore, PTFE has the property of being easily worn. For this reason, in order to maintain the wear performance and the mechanical performance, means for increasing the molecular weight in PTFE of the molded body is taken. This is because the PTFE molecular chains having a large molecular weight are entangled with each other in the molded article, thereby having an effect of maintaining the mechanical strength.

In the molding of PTFE, those which have been put to practical use in order to obtain the strength of molded articles include those having a molecular weight of 50%.
Often from 0 to 10 million are used. Theoretically, the higher the molecular weight, the better the mechanical properties.
However, when the molecular weight is higher than the moldable molecular weight, the influence of the difference in the molecular weight on the strength becomes smaller, and the influence of crystallinity and voids, which depend on the molding conditions, becomes larger. That is, once a certain amount of molecular weight is obtained, optimizing the molding conditions can improve the mechanical strength rather than increasing the molecular weight. Generally, it is said that the molecular weight at which the mechanical strength is stabilized is 5 to 6,000,000 or more. However, since the value may be influenced by conditions such as a filler, the value is a general theory.

Next, a compression molding method as a method for molding the lubricant 22 will be described. Compression molding methods can be broadly classified into free baking methods and hot molding methods. The difference between these methods can be said to be a difference in the process of the firing step. Since the feature of the present invention relates to compression processing during preforming before firing, the present invention can be applied to both of the above methods. Although it has already been mentioned that PTFE cannot be used in a molding method used for ordinary resin materials, a firing method is employed as an alternative molding method. The compression molding method is one of the general processing methods among these molding methods.

In the compression molding method (for example, free baking method), first, a raw material powder (molding powder or the like) is uniformly filled in a mold having a desired shape or a shape close to the shape and pressed at room temperature to be compressed. At this point, the molded article is relatively brittle. This preform (usually called a preform) is placed in a high-temperature furnace, raised to a firing temperature, maintained at an arbitrary temperature until firing is completed as a whole, and then cooled at a constant rate, Complete molding. In this case, no binding force acts on the member during firing.
Therefore, the dimensional accuracy of the molded product is not so excellent, and secondary processing is required when dimensional accuracy is required.

Next, the process of establishing the present invention will be described. For example, a sheet material or the like is processed from a block after firing processing by cutting processing. FIG. 2 shows an outline of this processing method. The firing block 50 is processed into a cylindrical or cylindrical shape in accordance with the subsequent cutting process. The compression direction during compression molding of a material is often set in the axial direction as shown in the figure. Sheet processing is performed on this firing block 50.
Is rotated in the direction of the arrow, and the cutting tool 52 is applied on the circumference to cut out the thin film. According to this processing method,
A sheet 54 having a shape as shown in FIG. 3 can be obtained. From the sheet 54, it is possible to take out the sheet A whose longitudinal length is orthogonal to the compression direction and the sheet B whose longitudinal length is parallel to the compression direction as the initial shape of the lubricant 22. FIG. 4 shows the extracted sheets A and B, respectively. As shown in FIG. 5, these sheets A and B are brought into direct contact with the photoconductor 2 as an image carrier,
When the photoreceptor 2 was rotated, as shown in FIG. 6, there was a difference in the relationship between the surface friction coefficient of the image carrier and the contact rotation time. This is because the sheet A, B
It shows that the transfer speed of the FE is different. That is,
This shows that the wear performance (lubricant supply performance) differs depending on the direction of the material in the compression direction.

As a result of the experiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the photosensitive member 2 as an image bearing member is provided with a lubricant 22 and a straight line L1 parallel to a moving direction of the image bearing member and a lubricant 22 containing PTFE. Straight line L2 parallel to the material compression direction when compression molding
It has been found that when installed such that the acute angle θ formed by the intersection of them becomes 45 ° or more, the lubricant supply performance is generally better than when the acute angle θ is smaller than 45 °. One reason for this is considered to be a difference in the crystal orientation direction and the like with respect to the compression direction during the compression molding of PTFE. For example, when the crystal is oriented in the shape as shown in FIG. 8A, as shown in FIG. 8B, the non-crystal portion is slid off by the force applied in the direction of F1, and the PTFE is supplied. It will be easier. However, regarding the direction of F2, F2
Compared to 1, the peeling is less likely to occur. Such a phenomenon is more remarkably exhibited in the case of a thin film such as a sheet material. The lubricating material supply performance is most improved because the straight line L1 parallel to the moving direction of the image carrier and the straight line L2 parallel to the material compressing direction when the lubricant 22 containing PTFE is compression-molded are substantially orthogonal to each other. This is the case where the lubricant 22 is provided for the body 2.

Based on the above experimental results, the lubricant 22 shown in FIG. 1 is formed in the same manner as the sheet B, and is in contact with the photosensitive member 2. Therefore, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the highest level of lubricant supply performance can be obtained. Thus, the straight line L1 parallel to the image carrier moving direction and the PTFE
When the lubricant 22 is installed such that the acute angle θ formed by the intersection of the straight line L2 parallel to the material compression direction when the lubricant 22 containing the Can be reduced, whereby the frictional resistance of the surface of the photoconductor 2 can be reduced in a short time, and deterioration due to wear can be prevented at an early stage.

The image bearing member to be supplied with the lubricant is not limited to the photoreceptor 2, and the same lubricant supply performance as described above can be obtained even with an intermediate transfer member. This example is shown in FIG.
Shown in FIG. 9 shows a full-color image forming apparatus.
Four developing units 3 having different colors are provided around the photoconductor 30.
2, 34, 36, and 38, the toner images of each color are transferred in a superimposed manner on an intermediate transfer belt 40 as an image carrier, and are fed at predetermined timing by a pair of registration rollers 42, 42. The toner image is collectively transferred to P by the transfer belt 44. Although not shown, a cleaning blade for cleaning the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 40 is provided between the transfer portion and the photoconductor 30, and even in such a configuration, the cleaning blade of the intermediate transfer belt 40 as the image carrier is provided. Similar problems arise due to wear.
To cope with this, a lubricant supply mechanism 12 is provided. The configuration of the lubricant supply mechanism 12 and the method of installing the lubricant 22 are the same as in the above embodiment.

In each of the above embodiments, the lubricant 22 is supplied in direct contact with the image carrier (direct supply system). However, as shown in FIG. 10, an indirect supply system may be employed. In this embodiment, the lubricant supply mechanism 12 includes a lubricant 220 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape (bar shape). The lubricant 220 is scraped off by the supply roller 24, and is further removed by the photosensitive brush by the supply brush 26 (rotary brush). 2 is supplied to the surface. The lubricant 220 contains at least PTFE, and is formed by a compression molding method of a firing processing method. The contact relationship between the lubricant 220 and the supply roller 24 is the same as the contact relationship between the lubricant 22 and the photoconductor 2 and the intermediate transfer belt 40 in the above embodiment. That is, PTFE
There is no difference in the point that the supply of water is caused by sliding with the rotating body. Therefore, depending on the manner in which the lubricant 220 is provided with respect to the supply roller 24, there is a difference in the performance of supplying the lubricant to the photoconductor 2 for the above-described reason. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the acute angle formed by the intersection of the straight line parallel to the moving direction of the supply roller 24 as the sliding member and the straight line parallel to the compression direction of the lubricant 220 during the compression molding is 4 °.
The lubricating material 220 is supplied to the supply roller 24 so as to be 5 ° or more.
Is placed against. The lubricant supply performance is highest when the lubricant 220 is supplied so that a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the supply roller 24 and a straight line parallel to the compression direction of the lubricant 220 during compression molding are orthogonal to each other. 24 is arranged.

Further, as shown in FIG.
An indirect supply system using only 6 can be used. In the case of this embodiment, the acute angle formed by the intersection of a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the supply brush 26 as a sliding member and a straight line parallel to the compression direction of the lubricant 220 during compression molding is 45 °. The lubricant 220 is arranged with respect to the supply brush 26 so as to be equal to or more than °. Also in this case, the lubricating material supply performance is highest because the lubricating material 220 is arranged such that a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the supplying brush 26 and a straight line parallel to the compressing direction of the lubricating material 220 during compression molding are orthogonal to each other. This is a case where it is arranged with respect to the supply brush 26.

Also in these indirect supply systems, the lubricant supply performance can be enhanced, whereby the frictional resistance of the surface of the photosensitive member 2 can be reduced in a short time, and deterioration due to wear can be prevented at an early stage. be able to. Note that these indirect supply methods can be similarly applied to a case where the image carrier is an intermediate transfer member, and the same lubricant supply performance as described above can be obtained.

[0032]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in the direct supply method of the lubricant, the crossing angle between the moving direction of the image carrier and the compression direction at the time of compression molding of the lubricant is 45 ° or more. In addition, since the lubricant is arranged on the image carrier, the lubricant supply performance can be improved, whereby the frictional resistance of the surface of the image carrier can be reduced in a short time, and Deterioration can be prevented at an early stage.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the direct supply system of the lubricant, the lubricant is carried on the image carrier such that the moving direction of the image carrier is substantially orthogonal to the compression direction of the lubricant during compression molding. Since it is arranged on the body, the lubricant supply performance can be maximized, which can reduce the frictional resistance of the surface of the image carrier in a short time, and the deterioration due to abrasion is an early stage. Can be prevented. Image forming device.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the indirect lubrication system, the crossing angle between the moving direction of the sliding member and the compression direction during the compression molding of the lubricant is set to 45 ° or more. Since the lubricant is arranged on the sliding member, the lubricant supply performance can be improved, and the frictional resistance of the surface of the image carrier can be reduced in a short time. It can be prevented at an early stage.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the indirect supply system of the lubricant, the lubricant is slid so that the moving direction of the sliding member and the compression direction at the time of the compression molding of the lubricant are substantially orthogonal. Since it is arranged on the sliding member, the lubricant supply performance can be maximized, and the frictional resistance of the surface of the image carrier can be reduced in a short time. Can be prevented at an early stage.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a main part of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a forming state of a lubricant.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a sheet obtained by cutting a lubricating material in a block state.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an initial shape of a lubricant taken out of the sheet shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the lubricant shown in FIG. 4 is brought into contact with the image carrier and rotated.

FIG. 6 is a graph showing a relationship between an image carrier surface friction coefficient and a contact rotation time.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a standard for setting a lubricant on an image carrier.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing a crystal state of a lubricant.

FIG. 9 is a main part side view showing another example of the direct supply system.

FIG. 10 is a side view of a main part of an embodiment of an indirect supply system.

FIG. 11 is a main part side view showing another example of the indirect supply method.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a molecular structure of PTFE.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a cross section of the molecular structure of PTFE.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Photoconductor 12 as Image Carrier 12 Lubricant Supply Mechanism 22 Lubricant 24 Supply Roller as Sliding Member 26 Supply Brush as Sliding Member 40 Intermediate Transfer Belt as Image Carrier 220 Lubricant

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor: Adult Kojima 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo, Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroshi Nagame 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yota Sakon 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo F-term in Ricoh Co., Ltd. (reference) 2H034 AA07

Claims (4)

[Claims] An image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of an image carrier, wherein the lubricant contains at least polytetrafluoroethylene (hereinafter referred to as "PTFE") and is subjected to compression molding by a firing method. And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the image carrier and a straight line parallel to the compression direction of the lubricant during compression molding. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant is disposed on the image carrier so that an acute angle formed by the intersection is 45 ° or more. 2. An image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of an image carrier, wherein the lubricant contains at least PTFE, is formed by a compression molding method of a baking process, and the image carrier has The lubricating material is provided so as to be in direct contact with the body, and such that a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the image carrier and a straight line parallel to the compression direction at the time of compression molding of the lubricating material are substantially orthogonal. An image forming apparatus, wherein the image forming apparatus is arranged on the image carrier. 3. An image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of an image carrier, wherein said lubricant contains at least PTFE, is formed by a compression molding method of a baking process, and has a sliding member. And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the sliding member and a straight line parallel to the compression direction of the lubricant during compression molding. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant is disposed on the sliding member such that an acute angle formed by the rotation is 45 ° or more. 4. An image forming apparatus having a mechanism for supplying a lubricant to the surface of an image carrier, wherein the lubricant contains at least PTFE, is formed by a compression molding method of a baking process, and has a sliding member. And a straight line parallel to the moving direction of the sliding member and a straight line parallel to the compression direction during the compression molding of the lubricant are provided indirectly through the image carrier. An image forming apparatus, wherein the lubricant is disposed on the sliding member so as to be orthogonal to the sliding member.