JP2005326778A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus which is equipped with a grinding belt capable of removing a filming material on an image carrier and to/from which an image carrier unit is freely attached/detached, and where the tension roller of the grinding belt is used also as the handle of the image carrier unit. <P>SOLUTION: A grinding device 100 has the grinding belt 130 and the tension roller 180 to impart tension to the grinding belt, and is placed above the image carrier unit 200. Assuming that the weight of the grinding device is W, the tension of the grinding belt is T, the friction coefficient of a driving roller 140 with the grinding belt 130 is μ<SB>1</SB>, and the friction coefficient of the grinding belt with the image carrier 6 is μ<SB>2</SB>, they are set to hold relation μ<SB>2</SB>W<μ<SB>1</SB>T. The tension roller 180 is provided to freely move between a 1st state where it imparts the tension to the grinding belt and a 2nd state where it separates from the grinding belt, and it becomes the handle of the image carrier unit 200 when it is set in the 2nd state. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including a polishing device that rubs against an image carrier such as a photosensitive member or an intermediate transfer member.

  A color image forming apparatus generally forms an image as follows. First, the surface of the photoconductor provided for each color of Y, M, C, and K is uniformly charged, and an original image is irradiated onto the surface to form an image, thereby forming an electrostatic latent image. When the photosensitive member rotates and this electrostatic latent image reaches the developing device for each color of Y, M, C, and K, it is developed with toner and visualized. The toner images for each color of Y, M, C, and K are transferred onto the intermediate transfer member, and then transferred from the intermediate transfer member to a transfer sheet as a transfer medium to transfer a color toner image on the transfer sheet. A color image is formed by fixing by heating and melting with a fixing device.

  For example, an endless belt-like member is used as the intermediate transfer member, and is wound between a plurality of rollers including a belt driving roller and a tension roller. A color toner image is repeatedly formed on the intermediate transfer member, but a small amount of toner remaining on the intermediate transfer member after transfer is removed by a cleaning device. This cleaning device includes a cleaning blade and a cleaning roller.

  However, when fine toner or toner wax dissolved by heat, pressure, or the like is generated on the photosensitive member or intermediate transfer member, it cannot be completely removed by the blade or roller in the blade cleaning method, and gradually forms a filming product. This filming product has poor toner adhesion, and a white portion appears in the image.

  In particular, in the case of the double transfer method using an intermediate transfer member, the transfer efficiency is greatly reduced by the generation of a slight filming product. Further, when a filming material is formed on the image carrier, the friction coefficient between the blade and the image carrier increases, and therefore, the blade is likely to be caught when the counter blade system is used. Further, when the image carrier is a belt member stretched between a driving roller and a driven roller, the driving roller is idled due to an increase in frictional force between the blade and the image carrier.

  As a solution to this problem, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-273893 proposes an image forming apparatus provided with a rubbing member (filming removal brush) for polishing the surface of an image carrier. . This is because a sliding member is provided so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the image carrier by a solenoid, and when the filming material is formed by detecting the formation of the filming material on the image carrier using the light emitting element and the light receiving element, The rubbing member is rotated by a motor and pressed against the image carrier by a solenoid to remove the film.

JP-A-5-273893 FIG. 1, claim 1, paragraph 0013

  However, the polishing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 uses an expensive motor, a light emitting element, and a light receiving element.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus including a polishing apparatus that can remove a filming product formed on an image carrier with an inexpensive configuration.

In order to achieve the above object, an image forming apparatus according to claim 1 of the present application includes an image carrier that carries a toner image, and remains on the image carrier after the toner image is transferred onto a transfer medium. In an image forming apparatus having a cleaning device that collects toner and a polishing device that removes filming material on the surface of an image carrier, the polishing device is wound around a plurality of rollers including a driving roller. A polishing belt; and a tension roller that applies tension to the polishing belt. The polishing device is detachably mounted above the image carrier, and the weight of the polishing device is W. When the tension is T, the friction coefficient between the driving roller and the polishing belt is μ ₁ , and the friction coefficient between the polishing belt and the image carrier is μ ₂ , the relationship of μ ₂ W <μ ₁ T holds. Said Is characterized by dynamic rollers is driven by the image bearing member.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 2 of the present application is characterized in that the tension roller applies tension to the polishing belt by its own weight.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 3 of the present application is characterized in that the tension roller applies tension to the polishing belt from the outside above the polishing belt.

  In the image forming apparatus according to claim 4 of the present application, the image carrier is provided in an image carrier unit that can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus body, and the tension roller is placed on the polishing belt to apply tension to the polishing belt. It is provided so as to be movable between a first state and a second state separated from the polishing belt, and serves as a handle of the image carrier unit in the second state.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 5 of the present application is characterized in that the image carrier is an intermediate transfer belt.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 6 of the present application is characterized in that the image carrier is a photosensitive belt.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 7 of the present application is characterized in that the image carrier is a transfer belt.

According to the above configuration, the operation is as follows.
Toner remaining on the image carrier after transfer to a transfer medium such as transfer paper is removed by the cleaning roller and the cleaning blade of the cleaning device, but a trace amount of toner and wax that cannot be removed by these remains on the image carrier. These solidify on the image carrier to form a filming product. The filming product is removed by polishing the polishing belt of the polishing apparatus by rubbing against the image carrier.

The polishing apparatus includes a plurality of rollers including a driving roller, a polishing belt wound around these rollers, and a tension roller that applies tension to the polishing belt, and is placed on an image carrier. When the weight of the polishing apparatus is W, the tension of the polishing belt is T, the friction coefficient between the driving roller and the polishing belt is μ ₁ , and the friction coefficient between the polishing belt and the image carrier is μ ₂ , _By satisfying the relationship of ₂ W <μ ₁ T, the polishing belt stops without rotating even if the image carrier rotates, and polishes the image carrier. When the drive roller rotates, the polishing belt overcomes the friction with the image carrier and rotates. The driving roller is rotated by the image carrier to shift the contact portion between the polishing belt and the image carrier, thereby preventing a reduction in the polishing force.

  According to the present invention, since the driving roller of the polishing apparatus is driven by the image carrier, a motor is unnecessary. In addition, a light emitting element and a light receiving element are not required, the mechanism can be simplified, and an excellent effect is obtained that an inexpensive polishing apparatus can be obtained.

Further, when the weight of the polishing apparatus is W, the tension of the polishing belt is T, the friction coefficient between the driving roller and the polishing belt is μ ₁ , and the friction coefficient between the polishing belt and the image carrier is μ ₂ , Μ ₂ W <μ ₁ T holds, so that even if the image carrier rotates, the polishing belt does not rotate together, and the surface of the image carrier can be reliably polished to remove the filming matter. . If the driving roller rotates, the polishing belt can be rotated by overcoming the frictional force between the polishing belt and the image carrier.

  When the tension roller applies a tension to the polishing belt by its own weight, the configuration of the polishing apparatus can be simplified and the cost can be reduced. Further, since the polishing apparatus is detachable, the polishing apparatus can be easily replaced.

  A first state in which the image carrier is provided in an image carrier unit that can be attached to and detached from an image forming apparatus main body, and the tension roller is placed on the polishing belt to apply tension to the polishing belt; By adopting a configuration that can move between the separated second states, the tension roller in the second state can be used as a handle of the image carrier unit, and the configuration can be simplified.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a color image forming apparatus provided with a polishing apparatus of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the color image forming apparatus is called a tandem type color image forming apparatus, and includes an automatic document feeder 30, an image reading device 60, image writing devices 3Y, 3M, 3C, 3K, and a photoreceptor 1Y. , 1M, 1C, 1K, charging devices 2Y, 2M, 2C, 2K, developing devices 4Y, 4M, 4C, 4K, fixing device 24, image carrier 6 comprising an intermediate transfer belt, paper feed cassettes 20a, 20b, 20c, A conveyance system 22 and the like are included.

  5Y, 5M, 5C, and 5K are toner replenishing units that replenish new toner to the developing devices 4Y, 4M, 4C, and 4K, respectively.

  The automatic document conveying means 30 is means for automatically conveying a double-sided or single-sided original d. The image reading device 60 is a device that reads image information by a scanning optical system. The image reading device 60 reflects the contents of a large number of originals d fed from the original placement table by three movable mirrors 60c, and collects the condensing lens 60b. Thus, an image is formed on the image sensor 60a made of a CCD and read.

  The image forming unit 10Y that forms a yellow image includes a charging device 2Y, an image writing device 3Y, a developing device 4Y, and a cleaning device 8Y that are disposed around a photoreceptor 1Y as an image carrier. The image forming unit 10M that forms a magenta image includes a photoreceptor 1M as an image carrier, a charging device 2M, an image writing device 3M, a developing device 4M, and a cleaning device 8M. The image forming unit 10C that forms a cyan image includes a photoreceptor 1C as an image carrier, a charging device 2C, an image writing device 3C, a developing device 4C, and a cleaning device 8C. The image forming unit 10K that forms a black image includes a photoreceptor 1K as an image carrier, a charging device 2K, an image writing device 3K, a developing device 4K, and a cleaning device 8K. The charging device 2Y and the image writing device 3Y, the charging device 2M and the image writing device 3M, the charging device 2C and the image writing device 3C, and the charging device 2K and the image writing device 3K constitute a latent image forming unit.

  The image carrier 6 as an intermediate transfer belt is an endless belt, is stretched by a plurality of rollers, and is rotatably supported. The image carrier 6 is provided with a cleaning device 9. The cleaning device 9 includes a cleaning roller and a cleaning blade.

  A signal of image information formed on the image sensor 60a is sent to an image processing unit (not shown). The image processing unit performs analog processing, A / D conversion, shading correction, image compression processing, and the like, and then sends a signal for each color to the image writing devices 3Y, 3M, 3C, and 3K.

  In the image writing apparatuses 3Y, 3M, 3C, and 3K, a semiconductor laser is used as a laser light source, and a light beam emitted from the semiconductor laser is formed into a scanning light beam by an optical element such as a polygon mirror to be used as a photosensitive body as a scanning object. It enters the bodies 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1K, and forms an electrostatic latent image of each color.

  The respective color images formed by the image forming units 10Y, 10M, 10C, and 10K are sequentially transferred onto the rotating image carrier 6 by transfer devices 7Y, 7M, 7C, and 7K as primary transfer devices (1). Next transfer), a synthesized color image is formed. The recording paper P accommodated in the paper feed cassettes 20a, 20b, and 20c is fed by the paper feed means 21a, 21b, and 21c, passes through the transport system 22, and is timed by the registration roller 23 as a secondary transfer device. The color image is transferred onto the recording paper P (secondary transfer). The recording paper P onto which the color image has been transferred is fixed by the fixing device 24, is sandwiched between the paper discharge rollers 25, and is placed on a paper discharge tray 26 outside the apparatus.

  On the other hand, after the color image is transferred onto the recording paper P by the transfer device 7a, the image carrier 6 from which the recording paper P has been separated is cleaned by the cleaning device 9, and the filming material is polished by the polishing device 100.

  FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the image carrier 6 and the polishing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is the same view as FIG. 2 and shows a standby state. The image carrier 6 and the polishing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 2 constitute an image carrier unit 200, and the image carrier unit 200 is detachable from the image forming apparatus main body.

  As shown in these drawings, the image carrier 6 is an endless belt and is wound around a driving roller 6a, a tension roller 6b, a roller 6c, and a roller 6d facing the transfer device 7a. A driving force from a motor (not shown) is transmitted to the driving roller 6a, and the image carrier 6 rotates in the clockwise direction in the figure. The tension roller 6b is urged upward in the figure by an elastic body (not shown).

  The image carrier 6 includes transfer devices 7Y, 7M, 7C, and 7K that come into contact with and separate from the photoconductors 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1K. Of these, the transfer devices 7Y, 7M, and 7C are integrally connected by a connecting plate 7. doing. A cam 7b is provided at the lower end of the connecting plate 7, and the cam 7b is rotatable by a shaft 7d. That is, the switching means is constituted by the cam 7b, the shaft 7d, and a solenoid or motor (not shown) that rotates the shaft 7d. When the cam 7b is rotated to the position shown in FIG. 2, the connecting plate 7 is moved up to the uppermost position, and the transfer devices 7Y, 7M, and 7C are lifted all at once to come into contact with the photoconductors 1Y, 1M, and 1C. 6 goes into operation. When the cam 7b is rotated 90 ° clockwise to the position shown in FIG. 3, the connecting plate 7 is lowered to the lowest position, the transfer devices 7Y, 7M, and 7C are lowered and separated from the photoreceptors 1Y, 1M, and 1C, and the image The carrier 6 enters a standby state. Since the image carrier 6 is loosened in the standby state, the tension roller 6b is lifted to almost the same height as the drive roller 6a and applies tension so that the image carrier 6 does not loosen.

  The cleaning device 9 is the same as the conventional cleaning device, and includes a cleaning roller 9a and a cleaning blade 9b.

  The above is the same as the conventional image forming apparatus. The present invention is characterized by a polishing apparatus 100 that removes the filming material on the image carrier 6. The polishing apparatus 100 will be described below.

  4 is an exploded perspective view of the polishing apparatus 100, FIG. 5 is an assembly view of the polishing apparatus 100, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the swing lever 110.

  As shown in these drawings, the polishing apparatus 100 includes a left and right swing lever 110, a one-way clutch 120, an endless polishing belt 130, rollers 140 and 150 provided at both ends of the swing lever 110, The weight 160 includes two rollers, a mounting arm 170, and an E-ring 175.

  The surface of the polishing belt 130 is coated with an abrasive that can scrape off the filming material formed on the surface of the image carrier 6. The width of the polishing belt 130 has a width that can cover at least the image forming area of the image carrier 6. In the embodiment, the width is substantially the same as the width of the image carrier 6.

  The swing lever 110 has a through hole 111 at one end, and a one-way clutch 120 is attached thereto. The one-way clutch 120 fixes the shaft 141 of the roller 140 to the inner diameter 121 thereof. The shaft 141 and the roller 140 have an integral structure. The center of the roller 140 is the swing axis a. There are three through holes on the distal end side of the swing lever 110, and the shaft portions at the distal ends of the roller 150 and the two weights 160 are fitted to each other. The rollers 150 and the weight 160 may be rotatable with respect to the swing lever 110 or may be fixed. The mounting arm 170 has a through-hole 171, and the through-hole 171 and the through-hole 111 of the swing lever 110 are overlapped to be coupled in a rotatable state by an appropriate method. For example, the length in the axial direction of the one-way clutch 120 may be increased and fitted with the through hole 171 of the mounting arm 170 together with the through hole 111 of the swing lever 110.

  One of the swing levers 110 and the mounting arm 170 is coupled, and the rollers 140 and 150 and the weight 160 are attached to this, and the state shown in FIG. 4 is obtained. A polishing belt 130 is attached thereto, and the rollers 140 and 150 protruding from the front side of the polishing belt 130 and the small diameter end portions of the weight 160 are attached to the swing lever 110 and the mounting arm 170 on the opposite side, and a one-way clutch. When 120 is fitted and assembled in the state of FIG. 5, an E-ring 175 is attached to prevent it from coming off. The roller 140 is a driving roller for the polishing belt 130 and the roller 150 is a driven roller.

  The mounting arm 170 has a bearing recess 172 and a recess 173 on both sides of the through hole 171. The bearing recess 172 is fitted to a shaft 9 c provided in the cleaning device 9 and holds the polishing device 100 in a predetermined position on the image carrier 6 so as to be detachable. A tension roller 180 is inserted into the recess 173. Due to the weight of the tension roller 180, an appropriate tension is applied to the polishing belt 130. When the roller 140 rotates, the polishing belt 130 also rotates together.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing the polishing apparatus 100 and its periphery in the embodiment of the present invention. In the embodiment of the present invention, the polishing belt 130 is stopped when the image carrier 6 is rotating during operation. When the roller 140 is rotated by the swing of the swing lever 110, the roller 140 can rotate the polishing belt 130 by overcoming the frictional force between the image carrier 6 and the polishing belt 130. ing. This will be described below.

The tension of the polishing belt 130 is applied when the tension roller 180 enters the recess 173 and the weight of the tension roller 180 is applied to the polishing belt 130. This tension is T. The friction coefficient between the roller 140 serving as the driving roller and the polishing belt 130 is defined as μ ₁ .

On the other hand, the polishing apparatus 100 includes a swing lever 110, a one-way clutch 120, a polishing belt 130, rollers 140 and 150, a weight 160, a mounting arm 170, a tension roller 180, and the like. And the friction coefficient between the polishing belt 130 and the image carrier 6 is μ ₂ .

The force with which the roller 140 rotates the polishing belt 130 is μ ₁ T, and the frictional force between the polishing belt 130 and the image carrier 6 is μ ₂ W. Therefore, if the relationship of μ ₂ W <μ ₁ T is established, the polishing belt 130 stops when the image carrier 6 rotates during operation, and the image carrier 6 and the polishing belt 130 when the roller 140 rotates. Overcoming the frictional force between the rollers 140, the roller 140 can rotate the polishing belt 130.

  In order to establish the above inequality, a specific configuration of each part employed in the embodiment of the present invention will be exemplified below. As the polishing belt 130, a polyester film carrying abrasive grains having a desired particle size (ultra-precision polishing tape manufactured by Nihon Micro Coating Co., Ltd.) was used.

The roller 140 as the driving roller was a stainless steel core bar with a rubber coating. As a result, the friction coefficient μ ₁ between the roller 140 and the polishing belt 130 was about 1.0. The rubber may be natural rubber or synthetic rubber.

The image carrier 6 was made of the same polyimide resin as that of a normal intermediate transfer belt, and had a volume resistance of about 1 × 10 ⁸ (Ω · cm). The coefficient of friction μ ₂ between the image carrier 6 and the polishing belt 130 was about 0.3.

On the other hand, the weight W of the polishing apparatus 100 was about 5N, and the tension of the polishing belt 130 was about 2.5N. As a result, μ ₁ T = 1 × 2.5N = 2.5N and μ ₂ W = 0.3 × 5N = 1.5N, and the relationship of μ ₂ W <μ ₁ T was established.

  FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram for explaining the movement of the polishing apparatus 100 of the present invention. In the figure, the solid line indicates the state when the image carrier 6 is in operation, and the virtual line 6 ′ indicates the state during standby. When the cam 7b is in the rotational position shown in FIG. 2, a tension is applied to the image carrier 6, and the tension roller 6b is pulled downward in the figure and comes to the position shown by the solid line in FIG.

  The polishing belt 130 is always in contact with the image carrier 6 because the swing lever 110 has a cantilever structure and has a weight 160, but the image carrier 6 is brought into contact with the lowering of the tension roller 6b. Accordingly, the polishing belt 130 is also lowered accordingly. Since the swing lever 110 is integral with the polishing belt 130, the tip end side is lowered with the one-way clutch 120 as the center. In this state, since a color image is formed, the driving roller 6a rotates in the clockwise direction, and the image carrier 6 also rotates in the clockwise direction indicated by the arrow. The polishing belt 130 is stopped while the job is being performed, and is constantly in contact with the rotating image carrier 6 to polish the surface thereof to remove the filming matter.

  When the job is completed, the cam 7b of the switching means rotates 90 ° clockwise, and the image carrier 6 enters the standby state shown in FIG. At this time, the locus of the image carrier 6 changes as indicated by a virtual line 6 ′ in FIG. 8. That is, the tension roller 6b rises to the position 6b 'indicated by the phantom line. Since the rocking lever 110 has the weight 160, it is always received from below by the image carrier 6. However, when the tension roller 6b moves to the position 6b ′, the rocking lever 110 also moves from the rotation position indicated by the solid line. The center of the one-way clutch 120 is rotated around the rotation position of 110 ′ indicated by the phantom line. At this time, the one-way clutch 120 rotates idly without transmitting the rotation to the roller 140.

  When the next job is started, the cam 7b rotates 90 ° counterclockwise, and the image carrier 6 is in the operating state shown in FIG. Accordingly, the tension roller 6b is lowered from the position of the phantom line 6 'in FIG. 8 to the position of the solid line 6, and the swing lever 110 is also rotated in the clockwise direction from the imaginary line 110' to the rotation position of the solid line 110. At this time, the one-way clutch 120 transmits the rotation of the swing lever 110 to the roller 140. Since an appropriate tension is applied to the polishing belt 130 by the tension roller 180, the rotation of the roller 140 is transmitted to the polishing belt 130 as it is, and the polishing belt 130 rotates slightly. As a result, the portion of the polishing belt 130 that has been in contact with the image carrier 6 moves, and the new portion comes into contact with the image carrier 6. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the polishing ability from being reduced due to contact of the same part by rotating the polishing belt 130 intermittently. Thereafter, each time a new job is started, the polishing belt 130 rotates slightly, and the contact portion is shifted for each job and contacts the image carrier 6.

  In this embodiment, the one-way clutch 120 transmits rotation to the polishing belt 130 during standby → operation, but conversely, rotation may be transmitted during operation → standby.

  As can be seen from the above description, the swing lever 110 and the one-way clutch 120 constitute an intermittent drive means of the polishing apparatus 100 and are driven by the movement of the image carrier 6.

  Further, as a method of swinging the swing lever 110, in the above-described embodiment, the locus of the intermediate transfer belt is changed. However, it is not limited to this configuration. For example, even if a protrusion or the like is provided at one position of the image carrier 6 and is swung every time it passes through the rocking lever 110, it can be driven intermittently. Although the intermediate transfer belt is exemplified as the image carrier 6, the image carrier 6 can be similarly applied to the photosensitive belt. Even a drum-type photoreceptor can be applied by changing the distance between the polishing apparatus at the operating position and the standby position, or by providing a protrusion and swinging the swing lever with this protrusion. is there. Furthermore, the present invention can also be applied to a belt that conveys a transfer medium such as transfer paper.

  9 and 10 are diagrams showing the upper part of the image carrier unit 200. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a first state in which the tension roller 180 applies tension to the polishing belt 130. FIG. It is a figure of the 2nd state used as the handle of the support body unit.

  The image carrier unit 200 has plate-like frames 201 on both sides, and the image carrier 6, the driving roller 6a, the tension roller 6b, the rollers 6c and 6d, and the transfer devices 7Y, 7M, 7C, and 7K described above are interposed therebetween. Etc. are erected. As shown in FIG. 5, the tension roller 180 enters the recesses 173 of the left and right mounting arms 170, but protrudes from the recesses 173 to both sides of the frame 201, and the shaft portion 181 at the tip penetrates the long hole 211 of the link 210. Thus, the inside of the long hole 211 is locked in a slidable state. The link 210 is slidably locked to the frame 201 by a locking pin 220 erected on the frame 201 passing through the long hole 211. In the frame 201, upper and lower pins 230 and 240 are erected on both sides of the locking pin 220.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the link 210 is in contact with the lower pin 230 in the first state in which the tension roller 180 is accommodated in the recess 173 of the mounting arm 170 and tension is applied to the polishing belt 130.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the tension roller 180 is in the second state, the tension roller 180 comes out of the recess 173 and moves above the polishing belt 130, so that the link 210 is in a substantially vertical state. At this time, the upper pin 240 contacts the link 210 and stabilizes the link 210. The image carrier unit 200 can be lifted or carried by grasping the tension roller 180 by hand.

  The polishing apparatus 100 can be attached to and detached from the image carrier unit 200 with one touch. However, the attachment and detachment is performed when the tension roller 180 is in the second state shown in FIG.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the number of parts can be reduced and the cost can be reduced by using the tension roller 180 that applies tension to the polishing belt 130 as a handle of the image carrier unit 200.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the color image forming apparatus provided with the grinding | polishing apparatus of this invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a part of the image carrier and the polishing apparatus in FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the image carrier and the polishing apparatus in FIG. 1, and shows a standby state. It is a disassembled perspective view of a grinding | polishing apparatus. It is an assembly drawing of a grinding | polishing apparatus. It is a perspective view of a rocking lever. It is a figure which shows typically the polish apparatus and its periphery in the Example of this invention. It is a mimetic diagram explaining movement of a polish device of the present invention. It is a figure of the 1st state in which the tension roller is adding tension to the polishing belt. FIG. 6 is a diagram of a second state in which the tension roller is a handle of the image carrier unit.

Explanation of symbols

a swing shaft 6 image carrier 7b cams 7b, 7c switching means 9 cleaning device 100 polishing device 130 polishing belt 140 roller (drive roller)
150 Roller 180 Tension roller 200 Image carrier unit

Claims (7)

An image carrier that carries a toner image, a cleaning device that collects toner remaining on the image carrier after the toner image is transferred onto a transfer medium, and a filming material on the surface of the image carrier. In an image forming apparatus having a polishing apparatus,
The polishing apparatus includes a plurality of rollers including a driving roller, a polishing belt wound around the rollers, and a tension roller that applies tension to the polishing belt,
The polishing apparatus is detachably mounted above the image carrier,
When the weight of the polishing apparatus is W, the tension of the polishing belt is T, the friction coefficient between the driving roller and the polishing belt is μ ₁ , and the friction coefficient between the polishing belt and the image carrier is μ ₂ , The relationship of μ ₂ W <μ ₁ T holds,
An image forming apparatus, wherein the driving roller is driven by the image carrier.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the tension roller applies tension to the polishing belt by its own weight.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the tension roller applies tension to the polishing belt from an outer side above the polishing belt.   A first state in which the image carrier is provided in an image carrier unit that can be attached to and detached from an image forming apparatus main body, and the tension roller is placed on the polishing belt to apply tension to the polishing belt; The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image forming apparatus is provided so as to be movable between the separated second states and serves as a handle of the image carrier unit in the second state.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image carrier is an intermediate transfer belt.   5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image carrier is a photosensitive belt.   5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image carrier is a transfer belt for a transfer medium.

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