JP2008122570A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce loads on an intermediate transfer body when a recording material enters, and also, to surely transfer an image to the recording material. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus of the present invention includes, as a representative constitution: an image carrier; a primary transfer part for primarily transferring a toner image formed on the image carrier to the intermediate transfer body; a secondary transfer part for transferring the toner image on the intermediate transfer body to the recording material; and a control means; wherein the second transfer part includes a secondary transfer roller that comes into contact with the intermediate transfer body and a backup roller that comes into contact with the secondary transfer roller via the intermediate transfer body, the control means controls a contact pressure between the secondary transfer roller and the backup roller in a period where the secondary transfer roller comes into contact with the backup roller, and controls a transfer bias to be applied to the secondary transfer roller or the backup roller on the basis of the contact pressure. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that forms a visible image on an image carrier and electrostatically transfers the toner image onto a recording material.

  As a conventional electrophotographic multi-color or full-color image forming apparatus, an intermediate transfer type image forming apparatus has been proposed. The intermediate transfer method is a method in which toner images of respective colors formed on a photosensitive drum are sequentially superimposed on an intermediate transfer member (intermediate transfer belt) to form a color image and then transferred to a recording material at a time. .

  In this intermediate transfer system, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum by charging means, exposure means, and developing means arranged around the photosensitive drum, and electrostatically transferred to the intermediate transfer belt by the transfer means in the primary transfer portion. . In the case of forming a color image, a full color image can be formed on the intermediate transfer belt by sequentially transferring the toner images to the intermediate transfer belt.

  The toner image transferred to the intermediate transfer belt is conveyed to the secondary transfer portion by the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt, and is electrostatically transferred to the recording medium.

  The toner image transferred to the recording medium is conveyed to a fixing unit and permanently fixed on the recording medium.

  In recent years, the types of recording media and the demands for recording media have diversified. With regard to the basis weight and rigidity of conventional recording media, it is desirable to form images on recording media with higher basis weight and stiffness using an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. Needs are growing.

  For the fixing means for these recording media, a method of controlling the roller pressure of the fixing means or the heater temperature of the heat fixing device according to the type of the recording material has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-166653

  Patent Document 1 controls the temperature or pressure of fixing. However, the secondary transfer portion where the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt is transferred to the recording medium has high rigidity and the thickness of the recording material. When a certain recording material enters, the following problems occur.

  First, when a recording material having a high rigidity or a recording material enters the secondary transfer nip, if the hardness of the intermediate transfer belt or the secondary transfer roller is soft, stress due to a paper edge (end of the recording material) occurs. . There may be a problem that the intermediate transfer belt or the secondary transfer belt is scratched or cracked due to the accumulation of the stress. In particular, in an image forming apparatus configured to transfer to the recording material at the same position each time with respect to the intermediate transfer belt, the stress of the paper edge is concentrated on the same location on the intermediate transfer belt. For this reason, stress is easily accumulated, and scratches and cracks are likely to occur. In particular, when an elastic body is used for the intermediate transfer belt, the above-described problem due to paper edge is likely to occur.

  Further, in the secondary transfer section, one of the rollers supported by the intermediate transfer belt unit that stretches the intermediate transfer belt is used as a backup roller, and the secondary transfer nip is brought into contact with the opposing secondary transfer roller. Form. The vibration generated at the moment when the edge of the recording material having a high rigidity or the thickness of the recording material enters the secondary transfer nip affects the image forming unit or the belt conveyance.

  Specifically, the vibration generated at the moment when the edge of the recording material enters the secondary transfer nip causes the photosensitive drum to vibrate through the intermediate transfer belt unit, resulting in vibration traces in the formation of a latent image, which affects the image. Alternatively, when there is an influence on the belt conveyance, a slip occurs between the photosensitive drum and the belt when the belt conveyance speed instantaneously changes in the primary transfer unit, and a slip mark is generated in the image. The vibration at this time increases as the stiffness of the recording material or the thickness of the recording material increases.

  The above two problems are also related to the contact pressure between the backup roller and the secondary transfer roller in the secondary transfer unit, and the higher the contact pressure, the more likely the above two problems occur.

  An object of the present invention is to reduce the burden on the intermediate transfer member when the recording material enters, and to reliably perform image transfer to the recording material.

A typical configuration according to the present invention for achieving the above object is as follows:
An image carrier, a primary transfer unit that primarily transfers a toner image formed on the image carrier to an intermediate transfer member, and a secondary transfer unit that transfers the toner image on the intermediate transfer member to a recording material; And an image forming apparatus having a control unit.
The secondary transfer unit includes a secondary transfer roller that contacts the intermediate transfer member, and a backup roller that contacts the secondary transfer roller via the intermediate transfer member,
The control means controls the contact pressure between the secondary transfer roller and the backup roller while the secondary transfer roller is in contact with the backup roller,
A transfer bias applied to the secondary transfer roller or the backup roller is controlled based on the contact pressure.

  With the above-described configuration, even if a recording material having a large thickness and high rigidity is conveyed to the secondary transfer roller, problems such as scratches and cracks on the secondary transfer roller and the intermediate transfer belt are suppressed. In addition, it is possible to prevent image defects due to vibration when a recording material having a large thickness and high rigidity enters the secondary transfer nip.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to embodiments. Although these embodiments are examples of the best embodiment of the present invention, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments (outline of the image forming apparatus).
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus. This image forming apparatus is an electrophotographic image forming apparatus using an intermediate transfer belt as an intermediate transfer member. Hereinafter, the image forming apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail.

(Intermediate transfer belt)
As shown in FIG. 1, an endless intermediate transfer belt 81 that runs in the direction of arrow X is disposed in the image forming apparatus main body. The intermediate transfer belt 81 is made of a dielectric resin such as polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate resin film, polyvinylidene fluoride resin film, polyimide, ethylene tetrafluoroethylene copolymer, or the like. However, other materials, volume resistivity, and thickness may be used. Further, an intermediate transfer belt having an elastic layer as a surface layer may be used. In this embodiment, since the influence of the intermediate transfer belt having an elastic layer on the surface layer is large, an intermediate transfer belt having an elastic layer on the surface layer is used.

  The position and posture of the intermediate transfer belt 81 are controlled by the control means. Specifically, a mark (light reflector seal) serving as a reference for the image forming operation is provided on the intermediate transfer belt 81, and a sensor is provided to face the intermediate transfer belt 81 so as to detect this mark. The The control means grasps the position of the intermediate transfer belt 81 and performs image formation at the timing at which a mark that moves due to the rotation of the belt is detected.

(Image forming part)
Next, the image forming unit will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the image forming unit. As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming unit includes a drum-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member (hereinafter referred to as “photosensitive drum 1”) that is rotatably arranged.

  The photosensitive drum 1 is a cylindrical electrophotographic photosensitive member having a basic configuration of a conductive substrate 1b such as aluminum and a photoconductive layer 1a formed on the outer periphery thereof. The center has a support shaft 1c, and is driven to rotate in the direction of arrow R1 about the support shaft 1c by a driving means (not shown).

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, process devices such as a primary charger 2, an exposure unit 3, and a developing device 4 are arranged around the photosensitive drum 1.

  The primary charging device 2 is a charging roller that is in contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 and uniformly charges the surface to a predetermined polarity and potential, and is configured in a roller shape as a whole. The primary charger 2 includes a conductive roller (core metal 2c) disposed in the center and a conductive layer 2b formed on the outer periphery thereof, and both ends of the core metal 2c can be freely rotated by a bearing member (not shown). It is supported and arranged in parallel to the photosensitive drum 1. The bearing members at both ends are urged toward the photosensitive drum 1 by pressing means (not shown). Thus, the primary charger 2 is pressed against the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 with a predetermined pressing force. The primary charger 2 is driven to rotate in the direction of arrow R2 as the photosensitive drum 1 rotates in the direction of arrow R1. The metal core 2 c of the primary charger 2 is in contact with an electrical contact connected to the power source 10. A bias voltage is applied to the primary charger 2 by a power source 10, whereby the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 is uniformly contact-charged.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the developing device 4 arranged on the downstream side of the exposure unit 3 rotates about the rotation shaft 119 by 45 ° in the R4 direction. As a result, the developing devices of the respective colors can be moved to the position facing the photosensitive drum 1 in the order of 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d. By this operation, toner images are sequentially formed on the photosensitive drum.

  Hereinafter, the developing device will be described by taking the developing device 4a as an example. The other developing devices 4b, 4c, 4d have the same configuration as the developing device 4a. The difference between the developing devices 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d is that toner images of respective colors of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black are formed. It is assumed that yellow toner, magenta toner, cyan toner, and black toner are stored in the developing devices 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d, respectively.

  The developing device 4 a includes a developing container 116 that contains a two-component developer 118. A developing sleeve 111 is rotatably installed in the opening of the developing container 116 facing the photosensitive drum 1. In the developing sleeve 111, a magnet roller 112 that supports the developer on the developing sleeve 111 is fixedly disposed so as not to rotate with respect to the rotation of the developing sleeve 111. A regulating blade 115 that regulates the developer carried on the developing sleeve 111 to form a thin developer layer is installed at a position above the developing sleeve 111 of the developing container 116.

  In the developing container 116, a developing chamber r1 and a stirring chamber r2 defined by a partition wall 117 are provided in a substantially lower half portion, and a two-component developer 118 is accommodated. The developer 118 is mainly composed of toner and a carrier that is a magnetic material. Here, the toner is negatively charged and the carrier is positively charged.

  With this configuration, in the developing device 4a, first, with the rotation of the developing sleeve 111, the developer in the developing chamber r1 is pumped up by the magnetic pole of the magnet roller 112. The developer is carried on the developing sleeve 111.

  The carried developer is conveyed by the rotation of the magnet roller 112, and the toner is negatively charged in the previous conveyance process, and the developer is regulated by a regulating blade 115 arranged perpendicular to the developing sleeve 111. The Thus, a thin developer layer is formed.

  The developer formed on the thin developer layer is transported to the development area facing the photosensitive drum 1 and is sprouting by the magnetic force of the development main pole located in the development area of the magnet roller 112. The magnetic brush is formed.

  The magnetic brush rubs the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 and a developing bias voltage is applied to the developing sleeve 111 by a bias power source 121. As a result, the toner adhering to the carrier constituting the ears of the magnetic brush adheres to the visible portion (exposed portion by the laser beam) of the electrostatic latent image and is developed. Thus, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 1.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, below the photosensitive drum 1, a roller-shaped transfer device (hereinafter “transfer roller 6”) that primarily transfers the toner image formed on the developing device 4 to the intermediate transfer belt 81. Is provided).

The transfer roller 6 includes a conductive roller shaft 6a connected to a power source 11 and a conductive layer 6b formed in a cylindrical shape on the outer peripheral surface thereof. The conductive layer 6b of the transfer roller 6 has a resistance value of about 10 ⁵ to 10 ⁸ Ω · cm, and is preferably single bubble or continuous bubble EPDM, SBR, BR or the like. Both ends of the transfer roller 6 are urged toward the photosensitive drum 1 by a pressing member such as a spring (not shown), so that the conductive layer 6b of the transfer roller 6 has a predetermined pressing force. A primary transfer nip N1 is formed by pressing the intermediate transfer belt to the side.

  With the above configuration, the image forming operation by the image forming unit, the primary transfer from the image forming unit to the intermediate transfer belt 81, and the secondary transfer from the intermediate transfer belt 81 to the recording material P are performed as follows. .

  First, an image signal based on the yellow component color of an original is projected onto the photosensitive drum 1 via a polygon mirror (not shown) provided in the exposure unit 3 to form an electrostatic latent image. To this, yellow toner is supplied from the developing device 4a, and the electrostatic latent image becomes a yellow toner image.

  When this yellow toner image reaches the primary transfer nip N1 where the photosensitive drum 1 and the intermediate transfer belt 81 come into contact with the rotation of the photosensitive drum 1, the yellow toner image is transferred by the transfer bias applied to the transfer roller 6. The image is primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 81. The intermediate transfer belt 81 carrying the yellow toner image is rotated once and conveyed again to the primary transfer nip N1.

  By this time, the developing device 4 has rotated 45 ° in the R4 direction around the rotation shaft 119, moved the developing device 4b to a position facing the photosensitive drum 1, and the photosensitive drum 1 in the same manner as described above. A magenta toner image is formed thereon. The magenta toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 1 is primarily transferred onto the yellow toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 81. Similarly, a cyan toner image and a black toner image are superimposed and transferred onto the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 81 described above.

  On the other hand, the recording material P taken out from the feeding cassette 60 (see FIG. 1) serving as recording material stacking means reaches the secondary transfer section 40 until the toner image is superimposed and transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 81. Specifically, the recording material P is separated and fed one by one from the feeding cassette 60 by the pickup roller 30 and waits at a predetermined position near the registration roller pair 28 as refeeding means. Then, in synchronization with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 81, the waiting recording material S is sent out to the secondary transfer nip N <b> 2 between the intermediate transfer belt 81 and the secondary transfer roller 42. Then, the above-described four color toner images are secondarily transferred onto the recording material P by the transfer bias applied to the secondary transfer unit 40.

(Secondary transfer part)
A detailed description of the secondary transfer unit 40 will be given with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged schematic configuration diagram of the secondary transfer portion. As shown in FIG. 3, the secondary transfer unit 40 includes a backup roller 41 positioned inside the intermediate transfer belt 81 and a secondary transfer roller 42 positioned outside the intermediate transfer belt 81. The backup roller 41 backs up the contact of the secondary transfer outer roller 42 with the intermediate transfer belt 81.

The secondary transfer roller 42 is formed of a conductive shaft 42a having a diameter of 24 mm and a conductive layer 42b covering the surface thereof. The conductive layer 42b of the secondary transfer roller 42 has a resistance value of about 10 ⁵ to 10 ⁷ Ω · cm, and is preferably solid or foaming EPDM, SBR, BR, or the like. The backup roller 41 is a conductive roller, preferably having a diameter of 21 mm and a material of SUS, Al or the like. The toner on the intermediate transfer belt is transferred to the recording material P passing through the secondary transfer portion by applying a transfer bias to either the backup roller or the secondary transfer roller. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, a positive bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 42 to transfer the toner charged to (−) onto the recording material P from the intermediate transfer belt. The applied bias is applied by control by a control means (not shown).

  The secondary transfer roller 42 is detachable from the intermediate transfer belt 81, and is in a detached state when the yellow, magenta, cyan, and black toner images are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt. On the other hand, when the full color toner image on the intermediate transfer belt is transferred to the recording material P, it is in a wearing state.

  The secondary transfer roller 42 in the attached state is brought into contact with the backup roller 41 with a predetermined pressure. The contact pressure, which is the pressure at the time of contact, is the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller 42 is the transferability of the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 81 to the recording material P, specifically transfer efficiency, longitudinal transfer uniformity. In addition, it is preferable to set the pressure so as not to affect the post-transfer image.

Here, even when the pressure is set so as not to affect the image after the transfer as described above, there are the following problems. That is, particularly when a recording material having a high rigidity and a basis weight of 300 g / cm ² or more, such as thick paper, is conveyed to the secondary transfer nip N 2, the secondary transfer roller 42 and the middle are affected by the impact of the leading edge of the recording material. The transfer belt 81 is scratched or cracked. Or, there has been a problem that vibration traces appear on the image when the recording material enters.

  Therefore, in the present invention, for a specific recording material, when the leading edge of the recording material P enters the secondary transfer nip N2, the secondary transfer roller 42 and the intermediate transfer belt 81 are damaged or cracked. The contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller is not affected. After the leading edge of the recording material P enters the secondary transfer nip, the transfer performance, specifically transfer efficiency, longitudinal transfer uniformity, and other contact of the secondary transfer roller that does not affect the post-transfer image. It is characterized by changing the pressure. Furthermore, the secondary transfer bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 42 is controlled in accordance with the pressure change of the secondary transfer roller 42. Details will be described below.

(Secondary transfer unit)
FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a secondary transfer unit used in the present embodiment. The secondary transfer unit performs secondary transfer from the intermediate transfer belt 81 to the recording material P. At the same time, the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller 42 against the intermediate transfer belt 81 is adjusted.

  The secondary transfer unit pushes the support sheet metal that supports the secondary transfer roller 42 by the rotation of the eccentric cam 18, thereby abutting the secondary transfer roller 42 against the opposing backup roller 41. At this time, by pushing up through the secondary transfer frame 25, it is possible to contact the secondary transfer roller 42 with a predetermined pressure.

  The secondary transfer frame 25 is pushed up by a spring as the eccentric cam 18 rotates about the swing shaft 19. Here, the abutting roller 22 of the secondary transfer frame 25 is positioned in the V groove 27a of the opposing intermediate transfer belt unit. The abutting roller 22 is also an eccentric cam, and the position of the secondary transfer frame 25 can be determined by rotation about the swing shaft 23.In other words, the position of the secondary transfer roller 42 with respect to the backup roller 41 can be determined. I can decide.

  While the four color toner images are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 81, the secondary transfer roller 42 is not in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 81. That is, the area A of the eccentric cam 18 is in contact with the secondary transfer frame 25, and the secondary transfer frame 25 is not biased toward the intermediate transfer belt 81. The contact pressure is changed by controlling the posture of the eccentric cam 18 by a control means (not shown).

(Control of contact pressure and transfer bias)
Next, control of the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller 42 against the backup roller 41 via the intermediate transfer belt 81 and the transfer bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 42 will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a graph showing the contact pressure and transfer efficiency of the secondary transfer roller. FIG. 6 is a graph showing the presence or absence of scratches on the intermediate transfer belt formed by the leading edge of the recording material after forming 100,000 images with respect to the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller and the basis weight of the recording material. In FIG. 6, a circle in the table indicates a level at which scratches on the intermediate transfer belt do not affect the image. X in the graph indicates a level that affects the image.

As shown in FIG. 5, in order to obtain satisfactory transfer efficiency, it can be seen that a contact pressure of 4 kgf / cm ² or more is required for the recording material passing therethrough. However, as shown in FIG. 6, when the contact pressure is a contact pressure of 4 kgf / cm ² or more, in the case of a recording material having a basis weight of 250 g / m ² or more, the influence of the paper edge at the tip of the recording material is affected. It can be seen that the intermediate transfer belt is damaged. In the present embodiment, this problem is solved by setting the contact pressure to 2 kgf / cm ² at the leading end portion of the recording material by an intrusion amount determining eccentric cam and setting the contact pressure to 4 kgf / cm ² after passing the leading end. Yes.

  Next, the switching timing of the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller will be described.

  After the four color toner images have been formed on the intermediate transfer belt 81, the secondary transfer roller 42 is pressed against the intermediate transfer belt 81 as shown in FIG. On the back surface of the intermediate transfer belt, a light reflector seal (not shown) is stretched in advance at a predetermined position. Then, the control means determines the image writing timing and the like based on the timing at which the sensor detects the light reflecting sticker that moves as the intermediate transfer belt rotates. In this way, the control means determines the timing based on the light reflecting seal, so that the multicolor toner can be superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt at the determined position, and the recording material can be positioned at the determined position. Secondary transfer is possible.

  FIG. 7 is a timing chart showing the timing of change of the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller.

  After the Y, M, Cy, and Bk toner images are formed on the intermediate transfer belt 81, the control unit detects a signal from the light reflector seal on the intermediate transfer belt 81 (time A in the figure).

Before the Y, M, Cy, Bk toner images on the intermediate transfer belt 81 and the recording material P reach the secondary transfer nip N2, the control means brings the secondary transfer roller 42 into contact with the backup roller 41. Control is made so that the contact is made at a pressure of 2 kgf / cm ² (time B in the figure).

After the paper edge of the recording material P enters the secondary transfer nip N2 (time C in the figure), the control means rotates the eccentric cam 18. As a result, the amount of penetration of the secondary transfer roller 42 into the intermediate transfer belt 81 increases, and the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller 42 increases to 4 kgf / cm ² .

  After the recording material P passes through the secondary transfer nip N2, that is, after the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 81 is transferred to the recording material P, the control means rotates the eccentric cam 18. As a result, the secondary transfer roller 42 is separated from the backup roller 41 that has been in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 81.

  With this control, it is possible to suppress problems such as scratches and cracks in the secondary transfer roller 42 and the intermediate transfer belt 81, and vibration traces when entering the image.

However, in the above-described embodiment, there is a case where the time until the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller 42 increases from 2 kgf / cm ² to 4 kgf / cm ² does not end within the margin. In other words, the margin may be removed from the leading edge of the image, and the recording material image may be formed on the portion. In this case, the transfer efficiency may be insufficient until the secondary transfer nip pressure is increased to 4 kgf / cm ² . If the transfer efficiency is insufficient, an image defect may occur.

For this reason, in this embodiment, the transfer bias applied when the contact pressure is 2 kgf / cm ² is changed to the transfer bias applied when the contact pressure is 4 kgf / cm ² , thereby causing an image defect due to insufficient transfer efficiency. This is an attempt to eliminate the problem. Next, a specific description will be given.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing the relationship between the secondary transfer bias and the secondary transfer efficiency when the pressure of the secondary transfer nip is 4 kgf / cm ² and 2 kgf / cm ² . In the figure, the secondary transfer bias when the contact pressure of 4 kgf / cm ² is written with a solid line marked with ○, and the secondary transfer bias when the contact pressure of ² kgf / cm ² is written with a dotted line marked with Δ Indicates the next transfer efficiency.

As shown in FIG. 8, when a transfer bias of 2 to 3 kV is applied when the contact pressure is 4 kgf / cm ² , the transfer efficiency is 90% or more, which is appropriate. On the other hand, if the transfer bias is ² to 3 kV when the contact pressure is 2 kgf / cm ² , the transfer efficiency is reduced to 70 to 80%. Here, it can be seen that the transfer efficiency can be increased to about 90% by increasing the transfer bias to 4 kV. Therefore, in this embodiment, when the contact pressure of the secondary transfer nip N2 is 2 kgf / cm ² , the transfer bias is set to ² to 3 kV. On the other hand, when the contact pressure of the secondary transfer nip N2 is 4 kgf / cm ² , the transfer bias is set to 4 kV. As a result, image defects can be minimized.

The transfer bias is set by detecting the secondary transfer current value with respect to the applied voltage when the pressure of the secondary transfer nip is 2 kgf / cm ² and 4 kgf / cm ² when the transfer bias is set. adjust. Thereby, the transfer voltage can be adjusted for each secondary transfer nip pressure.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the control unit (not shown) first performs contact pressure between the secondary transfer roller 42 and the backup roller 41 while the secondary transfer roller 42 is in contact with the backup roller 41. To control. Further, the transfer bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 42 or the backup roller 41 is controlled based on the contact pressure. In this way, by appropriately changing the transfer bias based on the contact pressure, it is possible to reduce the burden on the intermediate transfer member when the recording material enters and to reliably transfer the image to the recording material.

  The control unit controls the contact pressure during the image forming operation to increase the contact pressure. Therefore, when image formation is not performed, the contact pressure is reduced, and the burden on the intermediate transfer belt 81 can be reduced.

  The control means controls the image forming operation based on the detection timing of the light reflecting seal (mark) by the sensor. In this way, the control means determines the timing based on the light reflecting seal, so that the multicolor toner can be superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 81 at the determined position, and the recording material is determined at the determined position. Secondary transfer is possible.

  The control means controls the contact pressure and the transfer bias based on the detection timing of the light reflecting seal. As a result, the contact pressure and transfer bias can be controlled more reliably.

  The control means controls the contact pressure according to the type of recording material. For example, the contact pressure and transfer bias suitable for the recording material are set such that the contact pressure and transfer bias are increased for a recording material having a large influence on the recording material edge and a large basis weight. Thus, by performing recording according to the appropriateness of the recording material, it is possible to maintain higher image quality.

  Further, the control unit increases the contact pressure when the recording material passes through the secondary transfer nip N2 than the contact pressure when the recording material enters the secondary transfer nip N2. As a result, the influence of the paper edge can be reduced, and the image can be transferred more reliably.

In this embodiment, the unit of the contact pressure is set to [kgf / cm ² ] of the weight unit system according to the example, but when described as [N / m ² ] of the SI unit system, All values may be multiplied by 9.80665 × 10 ⁴ . That is, 2 kgf / cm ² = 1.996133 × 10 ⁵ N / m ² and 4 kgf / cm ² = 3.992266 × 10 ⁵ N / m ² .

[Other Embodiments]
In the above-described embodiment, the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller and the secondary transfer application bias are controlled with respect to the leading end portion of the recording material, but this is not restrictive. For example, the same control may be performed at the rear end of the recording material. That is, the rear end edge of the recording material may be set to a pressure lower than the previous secondary transfer contact pressure, and the secondary transfer bias may be raised to a higher voltage. The adjustment method of the contact pressure, the applied voltage to be set, and the transfer voltage is the same as that of the above-described embodiment, and it is possible to suppress bad effects such as scratches on the intermediate transfer belt due to the trailing edge of the recording material. Further, when images are continuously formed, it is possible to suppress the adverse effect that the vibration at the moment when the trailing edge of the recording material comes off affects the next image formation.

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus in which a visible image is formed on an image carrier and the toner image is electrostatically transferred onto a recording material. It can be suitably applied to a forming apparatus or the like.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming unit. The schematic block diagram which expanded the secondary transfer part. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a secondary transfer unit. The graph which showed the contact pressure and transfer efficiency of a secondary transfer roller. The graph which showed the presence or absence of the damage | wound on an intermediate transfer belt by an endurance test. 6 is a timing chart showing the timing of change of the contact pressure of the secondary transfer roller. The graph which showed the relationship between secondary transfer bias and secondary transfer efficiency.

Explanation of symbols

N1 ... primary transfer nip, N2 ... secondary transfer nip, P ... recording material, r1 ... developing chamber, r2 ... stirring chamber, 1 ... photoconductor drum, 1a ... photoconductive layer, 1b ... conductive substrate, 1c ... spindle DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 ... Primary charger, 2b ... Conductive layer, 2c ... Core metal, 3 ... Exposure means, 4 ... Developer, 6 ... Transfer roller, 6a ... Conductor roller shaft, 6b ... Conductive layer, 10 ... Power source, 11 ... Power source, 18 ... Eccentric cam, 19 ... Oscillating shaft, 22 ... Abutting roller, 23 ... Oscillating shaft, 25 ... Secondary transfer frame, 27a ... V groove, 30 ... Pickup roller, 40 ... Secondary transfer unit, 41 ... backup roller, 42 ... secondary transfer roller, 42a ... shaft, 42b ... conductive layer, 60 ... feeding cassette, 81 ... intermediate transfer belt, 111 ... developing sleeve, 112 ... magnet roller, 115 ... regulating blade, 116 ... developing Container, 117 ... Partition wall, 118 ... Two-component developer, 119 ... Rotating shaft, 121 ... Bias power supply

Claims (7)

An image carrier, a primary transfer unit that primarily transfers a toner image formed on the image carrier to an intermediate transfer member, and a secondary transfer unit that transfers the toner image on the intermediate transfer member to a recording material; And an image forming apparatus having a control unit.
The secondary transfer unit includes a secondary transfer roller that contacts the intermediate transfer member, and a backup roller that contacts the secondary transfer roller via the intermediate transfer member,
The control unit controls a contact pressure between the secondary transfer roller and the backup roller while the secondary transfer roller is in contact with the backup roller, and the secondary transfer is performed based on the contact pressure. An image forming apparatus for controlling a transfer bias applied to a roller or the backup roller.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the contact pressure during an image forming operation. A mark disposed on the intermediate transfer member, and a sensor for detecting the mark,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the image forming operation based on a detection timing of the mark by the sensor.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control unit controls the contact pressure based on a detection timing of the mark.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control unit controls the transfer bias based on a detection timing of the mark.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the contact pressure according to a type of a recording material.   The control means makes the contact pressure when the recording material passes through the secondary transfer nip higher than the contact pressure when the recording material enters the secondary transfer nip. Item 7. The image forming apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 6.

Images