JP2004309759A - Method for manufacturing toner restricting member - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for manufacturing a toner restricting member whose friction electrifying performance does not decrease with time. <P>SOLUTION: Included are an elastic blade material manufacturing stage, a coating stage of forming a blade material having a friction electrifying layer by applying and drying friction electrifying agent liquid to a specified width by using a non-atomization film coater or roll coater for an elastic blade material, and a joining stage of joining the blade material with a high-rigidity support by forming a free end along the width so that the friction electrifying agent layer is positioned at the free end. The elastic blade 12 is joined with the high-rigidity support 16 by forming the free end F along the width and the friction electrifying agnet layer 14 is formed along the length of the free end F. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a toner regulating member used in a developing device for uniformly attaching toner to an electrostatic image formed on a photoreceptor in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
It is necessary to improve the color dullness due to magnetic powder with the development of one-component developing devices, particularly, full-color printing. Therefore, non-magnetic one-component developing devices using non-magnetic toner having high transparency have been studied. In such a one-component color developing device, a uniform and good charge amount is obtained, and a desired frictional charge is obtained by contact friction between an elastic blade of a toner regulating member and a developing roller in order to enable conveyance of a multilayer toner layer. A developing device that imparts a thickness and controls the thickness of the toner layer on the surface of the developing roller; and an elastic blade having a glass coat layer (silicon oxide film layer) formed on the surface of a rubber-like elastic material used in the developing device. The used toner regulating member is known (for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-10-186848 (Claims, paragraph 0011)
[Patent Document 2]
JP-A-11-30910 (Claims)
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the toner regulating members disclosed in Patent Literatures 1 and 2 have excellent triboelectric charging performance. However, when the toner regulating member is actually mounted on a developing device and used, the triboelectric charging performance decreases in a short time, and It turned out that it did not exhibit the function of.
[0004]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a toner regulating member whose frictional charging performance does not decrease over time.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The method for manufacturing a toner regulating member having a triboelectric charging agent layer at a free end according to the present invention is a method of manufacturing an elastic blade material, wherein the elastic blade material is rubbed at a predetermined width using a non-atomizing film coater or a roll coater. A coating step of applying and drying a charging agent liquid to form a blade material having a frictionally charged layer, and forming a free end in the width direction of the blade material so that the frictionally charged agent layer is located at a free end; It is characterized by having a joining step of joining to the support.
[0006]
According to the manufacturing method having such a configuration, it is possible to manufacture a toner regulating member in which the triboelectric charging performance does not decrease over time.
[0007]
It is not clear why the triboelectric charging agent layer decreases over time when a triboelectric charging agent layer is formed on the entire surface of the elastic body blade, but when the triboelectric charging agent layer is formed, the elasticity inherent to the elastic body decreases and the stress is reduced. Is presumed to be a major cause. According to the present invention, when a toner regulating member provided with a toner regulating blade is attached to a developing device and comes into contact with a developing roller at a predetermined contact pressure, a portion deformed by receiving the largest stress is a highly rigid supporting member. Paying attention to the part which became a free end from the end of the above, without forming the triboelectric charging agent layer on the part deformed by receiving the largest stress, forming the triboelectric charging agent layer only on the free end part It is presumed that stress relaxation can be significantly reduced by using the manufacturing method, and as a result, a toner blade in which a decrease in frictional charging performance over time has been solved can be manufactured.
[0008]
Using a coating device with a fixed width, apply a triboelectric charging agent liquid with a predetermined width and a predetermined thickness to the free end of the elastic blade by using any of the non-atomizing film coater and roll coater. Can be.
[0009]
In the above-described method of manufacturing the toner regulating member, it is preferable to include a cutting step of cutting the blade material into a predetermined shape.
[0010]
Using a non-atomizing film coater or a roll coater, the elastic blade that applies a triboelectric liquid to a predetermined width is sufficiently wider and longer than the width of the final product of the toner regulating blade. Shape, a large sheet cut into a final shape, or a long belt-shaped (long belt) cut to the same width as the final product. However, it is preferable from the viewpoint of the performance of the coater that a coating material is applied to the elastic blade of the long belt with a predetermined width, cut into a predetermined length after drying, and joined to the high rigid support.
[0011]
It is preferable that the elastic blade has a multilayer structure in which a thermoplastic elastomer is laminated on a resin film, and the frictionally charged layer is formed on the thermoplastic elastomer.
[0012]
The elastic blade having such a configuration can obtain a necessary contact pressure even if it is thin, can be continuously produced using an extruder, and has a long length cut to the same width as the final product by using a slitter. This is suitable because a belt-shaped long belt can be easily manufactured.
[0013]
In the above-described method for manufacturing a toner regulating member, it is preferable that the material for forming the triboelectric charging agent layer to be used is an acrylic silicone resin or a polysiloxane resin.
[0014]
These resins are resin materials having excellent triboelectric charging performance. As the acrylic silicone resin, use of an acrylic silicone resin having a tertiary amino group is more preferable because of its excellent chargeability.
[0015]
Further, in the above-described method for manufacturing a toner regulating member, it is preferable that the friction-charging agent layer forming material further contains a silica component.
[0016]
By adding the silica component, a toner regulating member having better triboelectric charging performance can be obtained as compared with the case where only a resin material is used.
[0017]
The thickness of the triboelectric charging agent layer in the production method of the present invention is preferably 1 to 50 μm. When the thickness of the triboelectric charging agent layer is less than 1 μm, it is difficult to form a uniform film, and the charging performance becomes unstable. When the thickness is more than 50 μm, cracks and further peeling off of the triboelectric charging agent layer may become a problem. is there. More preferably, the thickness of the triboelectric charging agent layer is 3 to 40 μm.
[0018]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
The material constituting the elastic blade used in the present invention is not particularly limited, and an elastic material selected from known vulcanized rubber, polyurethane, and thermoplastic elastomer can be used, but the stress relaxation is small. Considering that adhesion to metal fittings is easy, it is preferable to use a reaction-curable polyurethane. Considering that it is easy to manufacture, has sufficient elasticity even when thin, and obtains a necessary contact pressure, it is preferable to use a laminate of a resin film and a thermoplastic elastomer.
[0019]
Polyurethane, which is a preferred elastic blade constituent material, uses a polyol compound, a polyisocyanate compound, and a chain extender as polymer constituent materials.
[0020]
Examples of the polyol compound include polyether polyols such as polyoxypropylene polyol (PPG) and polyoxytetramethylene polyol (PTMG), polyester polyols such as polyethylene adipate, polybutylene adipate, polyhexamethylene-neopentyl adipate, and polycaprolactone polyol; It is preferable to use at least one of bifunctional to trifunctional, more preferably bifunctional polyols such as polycarbonate polyols.
[0021]
As the polyisocyanate compound, a known diisocyanate compound is used. Specifically, aromatic diisocyanates such as toluene diisocyanate, diphenylmethane diisocyanate, naphthalene diisocyanate, 1,4-benzene diisocyanate, aliphatic diisocyanates such as 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate, hydrogenated MDI, 1,4-cyclohexane diisocyanate, etc. The alicyclic diisocyanate is exemplified.
[0022]
Examples of the chain extender include ethylene glycol, 1,4-butanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, and 4,4′-dichlorodiphenylmethane.
[0023]
It is preferable that the polyurethane is manufactured by a prepolymer method or a pseudo-prepolymer method, since an elastic blade with less stress relaxation can be obtained. As the elastic blade manufactured by such a manufacturing method, a commercially available elastic blade (for example, manufactured by Toyo Tire & Rubber Co., Ltd.) can be used as a cleaning blade.
[0024]
As a resin film constituting a laminate of a resin film and a thermoplastic elastomer suitable as an elastic blade, a resin film having high rigidity is preferably used. Specifically, polyester films such as PET and PBT, and polyphenylene oxide (PPO) Examples thereof include a film, a polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) film, an aramid film, and a polyimide film.
[0025]
As the thermoplastic elastomer, known thermoplastic elastomers can be used without limitation, and examples thereof include thermoplastic elastomers such as polyurethane, polyester, polyamide, and polyolefin. Among them, the use of a thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer is more preferable because of its excellent wear resistance. Among thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers, it is more preferable to use an incomplete thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer having an NCO group remaining.
[0026]
When laminating a highly rigid resin film and a thermoplastic elastomer, it is a preferable embodiment to perform a surface treatment such as a primer treatment, a corona discharge treatment, and a plasma treatment on the film surface for improving adhesiveness.
[0027]
The laminate of the resin film and the thermoplastic elastomer can be manufactured by a known method, but it is preferable to employ a method in which the thermoplastic elastomer is extruded into a sheet in a molten state from an extruder while the resin film is being supplied and laminated. It is.
[0028]
As the material for forming the triboelectric charging agent layer, a material that is positively charged by friction is selected, and a coating material such as a polyurethane resin, an acrylic resin, a polyester resin, an acrylic silicone resin, or a polysiloxane resin can be used. It is preferable to use an acrylic silicone resin, more preferably an acrylic silicone resin containing a tertiary amino group, or a polysiloxane resin because of its excellent performance. It is more preferable to further add a silica component to the friction-charging agent layer constituting resin material because the friction charging performance can be improved.
[0029]
Acrylic silicone resin is an acrylic polymer containing an alkoxysilyl group in the molecule.For example, a vinyl monomer containing an alkoxysilyl group such as triethoxyvinylsilane or γ-triethoxysilylpropyl acrylate is mainly composed of an acrylic monomer. Can be produced by copolymerization with a monomer. Acrylic silicone resin is further copolymerized with a hydroxyl group-containing monomer such as β-hydroxyethyl methacrylate, a reaction curable type using an isocyanate group-containing compound as a curing agent, and an amino group-containing monomer, and an epoxy compound as a curing agent. The reaction curing type used may be used. Alternatively, a polymer containing a vinyl group may be of a type that is cross-linked and cured by irradiation with energy rays such as an electron beam or ultraviolet rays.
[0030]
As the polysiloxane resin, a polysiloxane resin known as a hard coat agent can be used. The triboelectric liquid containing a polysiloxane resin is composed mainly of a condensate obtained by partially hydrolyzing and condensing a combination of a dialkyl dialkoxy silane, a monoalkyl trialkoxy silane, and a tetraalkoxy silane to form an organic solvent solution. It is. It is a preferred embodiment to add an acrylic resin to the polysiloxane resin to adjust the coating film performance. Examples of such polysiloxane resins include GR-COAT (Daicel Chemical Industries), NSC (Nippon Seika), KP-80 (Shin-Etsu Chemical), Tosgard (Toshiba Silicone), and GO-150 (SX) (Fine Glass Technology). Etc. can be used as a commercial product.
[0031]
As the silica component, it is preferable to use colloidal silica. As the colloidal silica, a dispersion (catalyst chemical, Nissan Chemical) and powder (catalyst chemical) of isopropanol and the like are commercially available and are suitable for use. When mixing the colloidal silica and the resin material constituting the triboelectric charging agent layer, it is a preferable embodiment to use a silane coupling agent, and it is more possible than simply mixing the colloidal silica and the resin material composing the triboelectric charging agent layer. An effect is obtained that a triboelectric charging agent layer having excellent flexibility is formed, and cracks are hardly generated in the triboelectric charging agent layer during use.
[0032]
It is preferable to provide a primer layer between the elastic blade and the triboelectric charging agent layer, if necessary, since the adhesive strength between the elastic blade and the triboelectric charging agent layer can be increased. The material constituting the primer layer is appropriately selected and used in accordance with the combination of the material constituting the elastic blade and the material constituting the triboelectric charging agent layer. Modified acrylic polymers described in 76034 are exemplified. When polyurethane is used as the elastic blade, it is preferable to use acrylic urethane resin.
[0033]
The primer layer may be applied to the entire surface of the elastic blade as long as its constituent material does not affect stress relaxation of the elastic blade constituent material, but is preferably applied to the same width as the triboelectric charging agent layer. . As the coating method, the same coating method as that for coating the material for forming a triboelectric charging agent layer can be used.
[0034]
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view showing a toner regulating member obtained by the manufacturing method of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line XX. The toner regulating member 10 has a basic structure in which an elastic blade 12 is formed on and joined to a highly rigid support 16 at a free end F. At the free end F, a frictional charging agent layer is formed in a length direction of the elastic blade 12. 14 are provided to form a blade material. 18 is an adhesive.
[0035]
The size of the elastic blade 12 and the width of the free end F are appropriately set according to the model to be used, and are not particularly limited. However, the thickness is usually 0.5 to 5 mm, The width is 8 to 30 mm, and the width of the free end F is set to about 3 to 25 mm.
[0036]
The triboelectric charging agent layer 14 does not need to be formed on the entire surface of the free end F, but may be formed in a belt-like shape in the length direction at a contact portion with a developing roller used in a developing device. The width of the triboelectric charging agent layer 14 is appropriately set according to the outer diameter of the developing roller to be used. Further, the distance t2 between the triboelectric charging agent layer 14 and the edge E of the high-rigidity support 16 needs to satisfy t2> 0. When t2 ≦ 0, stress relaxation occurs when the free end F abuts on the developing roller and is deformed. It is more preferable that t2 ≧ 0.5 mm.
[0037]
The frictional electrification agent layer 14 may be formed up to the front end side of the free end F, and may be t1 = 0. There may be a portion where there is no triboelectric layer 14.
[0038]
Known materials can be used as the material constituting the high-rigidity support without any limitation. Specifically, metal materials such as iron, stainless steel, aluminum, and phosphor bronze, and resin materials such as PBT, PPO, and PPS are used. It can be exemplified as a usable high rigid support member constituent material.
[0039]
Joining of the elastic blade and the high-rigidity support can be performed by a known method. Specific examples include a method of applying and bonding an adhesive, a method of bonding using a double-sided pressure-sensitive adhesive tape, and a method of bonding using a hot melt adhesive or an instant adhesive.
[0040]
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example in which the toner regulating member of the present invention is brought into contact with the developing roller at a predetermined contact pressure. The developing roller includes a shaft 21 and a metal sleeve 23 such as an aluminum sleeve. The developing roller may be provided with a sleeve made of vulcanized rubber.
[0041]
FIG. 4 schematically shows a coating process of applying and drying a triboelectric charging agent liquid to a long belt of an elastic blade using a non-atomizing film coater. Non-atomized film coaters are also referred to as curtain coaters. The elastic body blade long belt 36 that has been prepared in advance and wound up as the roll body 35 is rewound and sent to the conveyor 39, and on the conveyor 39 from the non-atomizing film coater 30 to a predetermined width and a predetermined thickness. The supplied triboelectric liquid 41 is applied. After the coating, it is dried in a dryer 40 and wound up as a roll 37. The roll body 37 is sent to a cutting process and cut into a predetermined length to be a blade material. The cutting can be performed by a known cutting device, for example, a cutting device such as punching with a Thomson blade, a water jet cutter, a laser cutter, or a rotary blade, and it is particularly preferable to use a cutting device capable of precision cutting. FIG. 4B is a perspective view showing a painting state.
[0042]
As the non-atomizing film coater, it is preferable to use a commercially available product such as a micro coating system or a Nordson Select Coat system (Nordson).
[0043]
FIG. 5 shows the state of the triboelectric liquid during coating with a non-atomizing coater. FIG. 5A is a diagram in the width direction of the elastic blade, and FIG. 5B is a diagram in the length direction. The triboelectric charging agent liquid 41 is fed by air pressure or the like and discharged from the nozzle 32 at the same time, becomes wide in the width direction, becomes a thin film in the thickness direction, and moves the elastic blade or the non-atomizing coater at a constant speed. Painting is performed on the elastic blade 36 with a predetermined width and a predetermined thickness.
[0044]
FIG. 6 schematically shows a coating step of coating and drying the triboelectric liquid using a roll coater. The elastic blade long belt 36 wound up as the roll body 35 is rewound and sent to a conveyor 39, and is supplied on the conveyor 39 from the non-atomizing film coater 30 at a predetermined width and a predetermined thickness. The triboelectric liquid 41 is applied. After the coating, it is dried in a dryer 40 and wound up as a roll 37. The roll body 37 is sent to a cutting process and cut into a predetermined length to be a blade material.
[0045]
FIG. 6B is a perspective view showing a painting situation. The illustrated roll coater is composed of two rolls, and the first roll comes into contact with and adheres to the surface of the triboelectric liquid stored in the tank, and is controlled by the blade 52 to a predetermined thickness. The layer is transferred to a second roll. The second roll is set to have a predetermined application width, and the transferred triboelectric liquid having a predetermined thickness is transferred and applied from the second roll to the elastic blade 36.
[0046]
【Example】
Hereinafter, examples and the like that specifically show the configuration and effects of the present invention will be described.
(Example 1)
The non-atomized film shown in FIG. 5 as an elastic blade at a position 2 to 6 mm from the end of a polyurethane blade (manufactured by Toyo Tire & Rubber Co., Ltd.) having a Shore A hardness of 70, a thickness of 1.5 mm, a length of 70 mm and a width of 10 mm. Using a coater, Select Coat System (Nordson), an acrylic silicone resin coating solution containing 30% by weight of colloidal silica as a resin for forming a triboelectric charging agent layer is applied as a triboelectric layer forming material, and dried at 80 ° C. for 30 minutes. Thus, a triboelectric charging agent layer having a dry film thickness of 10 μm and a width of 4 mm was formed. The resulting polyurethane blade having a triboelectric charging agent layer was coated on a metal support having the shape shown in FIG. 1 using a hot-melt adhesive so that the width of the free end was 7 mm (t2 = 1.0 mm). Then, a toner regulating member sample was prepared.
[0047]
(Example 2)
A toner regulating member sample was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a polysiloxane resin GO-150 (SX) (fine glass technology) was used as a material for forming a triboelectric charging agent layer, and coating was performed so that the dry film thickness became 10 μm. Was prepared.
[0048]
(Example 3)
A toner regulating member sample was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 except that an acrylic urethane resin primer was applied so as to have a dry film thickness of 10 μm before applying the triboelectric charging agent layer forming material.
[0049]
(Comparative Example 1)
A toner regulating member sample was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the entire surface of the polyurethane blade was applied by a spray coating device without masking.
[0050]
(Evaluation)
(1) Measurement of Stress Relaxation As shown in FIG. 7, the sample was set so that an initial load of 2N was generated at the tip of the toner regulating member sample, and the stress relaxation was measured. The measurement results of the stress relaxation are shown in the graph of FIG.
[0051]
(2) Adhesion of Friction Charge Agent Layer The toner regulating member having the friction charge agent layer formed on the polyurethane blade was stretched in the length direction to a length of 150% (1.5 times the original length). The state of the triboelectric layer at that time was visually evaluated. As a result of the evaluation, in any of the toner regulating members of Examples 1 to 3 and Comparative Example 1, there was no practical problem in floating or peeling of the triboelectric charging agent layer from the polyurethane blade.
[0052]
From the evaluation results of FIG. 8, it can be seen that the toner regulating member provided with the toner regulating member of the present invention does not cause at least a decrease in the triboelectric charging performance due to stress relaxation, and also has good adhesion between the triboelectric charging agent layer and the elastic blade. It turns out to be something. Further, when the triboelectric charging agent layer is formed using a non-atomizing film coater, a toner regulating member having a triboelectric charging layer of a predetermined width and not causing a reduction in triboelectric charging performance due to stress relaxation can be easily and quickly formed. I was able to.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of a toner regulating member of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a used state of the toner regulating member. FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a coating process of forming a triboelectric charging layer using a non-atomizing film coater. FIG. 5 is a view showing a coating state using a non-atomizing film coater. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing friction using a roll coater. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a coating process for forming a charged layer. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a method of measuring stress relaxation. FIG. 8 is a graph illustrating a measurement result of stress relaxation.
Reference Signs List 10 Toner regulating member 12 Elastic blade 14 Friction electrification agent layer 16 High rigid support F Free end

Claims (5)

Elastic blade material manufacturing process, a coating process of applying a triboelectric charging agent liquid to the elastic blade material at a predetermined width using a non-atomizing film coater or a roll coater and drying to form a blade material having a triboelectric charging layer And a joining step of forming the free end in the width direction such that the friction material layer is located at the free end and joining the blade material to a high rigid support. A method for producing a toner regulating member having a layer. 2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a cutting step of cutting the blade material into a predetermined shape. The toner regulating member according to claim 1, wherein the elastic blade has a multilayer structure in which a thermoplastic elastomer is laminated on a resin film, and the frictionally charged layer is formed on the thermoplastic elastomer. Production method. The method for manufacturing a toner regulating member according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the frictional charging agent layer forming material is an acrylic silicone resin or a polysiloxane resin. The method for producing a toner regulating member according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the constituent material of the triboelectric charging agent layer further contains a silica component.

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