JP2012041117A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus that moves a material to be transferred in a predetermined direction where a position or a posture of the material to be transferred without the need of a big airflow generator by using a plurality of compact airflow generators.SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus includes: the plurality of airflow generators 95; a plurality of detectors 97 for the material to be transferred; a transfer guide plate 91 that is horizontally disposed downstream in a position where images are written in; and a width guide member 93 that regulates the width in a transfer and perpendicular direction of the material to be transferred. The image forming apparatus includes a transfer guide device 90 that connects pipes so that airflow generated by the airflow generator 95 is guided to an airflow pitting hole 94 on the transfer guide plate 91, floats the material 9 to be transferred by the airflow and moves the material 9 to be transferred in the predetermined position/direction by changing the airflow generated by the airflow generator 95 after the width guide member 93 regulates the position of the transfer 9 to be transferred.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a fax machine, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus including a transport guide device that can change the transport path of a sheet-like transported material (recording paper). It is.

In recent years, since image forming apparatuses are required to be compact at the same time as multiple functions, the shape of the conveyance path of the recording paper has become complicated, and as the material of the recording paper as the material to be conveyed has diversified, The leading edge of the recording paper may rub at the bent portion, and the leading edge may be bent or the recording paper may be misaligned. Then, the recording paper is displaced to the transfer device with the positional deviation and the like being transferred, and the toner image on the image carrier is transferred, resulting in the formation of a fixed image with the positional deviation. Degraded images with low quality are generated.
Therefore, in order to obtain a high-quality image, it is necessary to transport the recording paper from the paper feeding unit to the transfer device without causing leading edge bending or recording paper position deviation.
For example, in Patent Document 1, a registration roller driven by a stepping motor is brought into contact with the leading edge of a recording sheet that has been transported to temporarily stop and skew correction is performed, and the toner formed on the image carrier is recorded on the toner. In the paper transport control method for transporting the image in synchronization with the timing, the recording paper is corrected by skewing against the registration roller and temporarily stopped after being bent, and then set to a speed equal to or lower than the normal paper transport linear speed. A paper conveyance control method is disclosed in which a stepping motor is driven by a predetermined number of pulses and the leading edge of the recording paper is held by the registration roller. There is a problem that the structure is complicated by detecting and controlling the number of pulses.

In addition, there is a transport unit that separates / transports a transported material by air suction, air transport, or the like, as a transport unit that hardly rubs the front end of the recording paper and is not easily bent or misaligned.
For example, in Patent Documents 2 and 3, a discharge levitation device that levitates a sheet material by discharging air onto the lower surface of the sheet material, and a positioning roll that moves in contact with the upper surface of the floated sheet material and moves the sheet material to the side. And a positioning reference stopper that is disposed on the side of the positioning roll and is contacted with a side end of the sheet material that has been moved sideways is disclosed.

  Further, in Patent Document 4, a paper feed table on which a document is placed, a feeding belt that contacts and transports the lowermost document on the paper feed table, and an air jet that blows air to the front end of the document to float the document. An automatic document feeder having an apparatus and a vacuum device for sucking a document to the feeding belt, wherein a document detector for detecting the thickness of the document is provided, and the air injection is performed according to a detection signal of the document detector The number of rotations of the blower motor of the apparatus is controlled to be switched to a predetermined level, and one original is separated and conveyed by a feeding belt by the blowing of the air injection device and the suction of the vacuum device, and the original is at least a stacked original An automatic document feeder has been disclosed in which the air jetting device and the vacuum device are temporarily stopped after they have exited the document, and then are operated again at a predetermined timing for each document.

Further, in Patent Document 5, an air levitation transport mechanism that transports a substrate in one direction while the substrate is levitated by an air levitation module, and an ink jet method that ejects ink from above the substrate transported by the air levitation transport mechanism. An image recording unit for recording an image, and in a region facing the image recording unit, the plurality of air levitation modules intersect each other in the same direction as the inkjet head with respect to the substrate transport direction, and An ink jet image recording apparatus disposed at a position not facing the ink jet head is disclosed.
However, these air suction and air conveyance are those in the conveyance path from the paper feed unit and are not performed in the register unit (immediately before).
In addition, in air suction and air transport used in the paper feed unit and the transport path, there is a problem that a large airflow generator and a suction machine are required to obtain air.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and the problem is that by using a plurality of small airflow generators, the position of the material to be conveyed and / or without requiring a large airflow generator. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that moves a posture in a preset direction.

The features of the present invention, which is a means for solving the above problems, are listed below.
The image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a plurality of air flow generators, a plurality of transported material detectors for detecting transported materials in the transport path, a transport guide plate disposed horizontally upstream of the image writing position, and the transport A width guide member that regulates a width in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the material to be conveyed on the guide plate, the air flow generator has a nozzle for air flow discharge, and a plurality of air currents in the vertical direction on the conveyance guide plate; Blow holes are provided at equal intervals in multiple rows in the direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction, piped to guide the air flow generated by the air flow generator to the air flow blow holes on the conveyance guide plate, and loaded on the conveyance guide plate. The material to be transported is levitated by the air flow generated from the air flow blowing hole by driving the air flow generator, and the position of the material to be transported is regulated by the width guide member, and then the air flow generated by the air flow generator is changed. The transported material Characterized in that it comprises a conveying guide device that moves to fit set position / direction.
The image forming apparatus of the present invention is further characterized in that the same amount of air flow from the air blowing holes arranged in the same row arranged in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the conveyed material is changed at the same time.
The image forming apparatus of the present invention is further arranged in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the material to be transported when the air flow generated by one air flow generator is guided to the plurality of air flow blowing holes of the transport guide plate. It is characterized in that a pipe connection is made to adjacent air outlet holes in the same row.
Further, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the airflow blowing holes for guiding the airflow generated by one airflow generator exceed a majority of the total number of airflow blowing holes in the same row arranged in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction. Is characterized in that the plurality of air flow blowing hole arrays and the air flow generator are connected by piping through a plurality of air flow supply paths.
Further, the image forming apparatus of the present invention further directly connects the nozzle of the airflow generator and the airflow blowout hole on the conveyance guide plate, and individually controls the airflow generator so that the airflow blowout hole It is characterized by individually controlling the air flow.
Further, the image forming apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the air flow outlet hole interval of the conveyance guide plate is the same in the conveyance direction of the material to be conveyed and the orthogonal direction to the conveyance direction.
Further, the image forming apparatus of the present invention is further characterized in that the air flow blowing hole interval of the conveyance guide plate is 50 mm or less.
In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the air flow rate blown from the air flow blowing hole of the conveyance guide plate is further set to 0.5 L / min. It is characterized by the above.
The image forming apparatus of the present invention is further characterized in that the air pressure / air volume of the air flow output from the air flow generator is changed according to the material of the material to be transported.
In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the airflow generator may further include a piezoelectric element and an air pump chamber formed using a diaphragm, and the diaphragm may be vibrated by the piezoelectric element. The volume is changed to generate an air flow, and is driven by an air flow generator drive control means at an audible frequency or higher.
In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the airflow generator drive control unit can be driven by a drive signal input from the outside, and the frequency or duty of the drive signal is changed to change the frequency. It is characterized in that the air pressure / air volume of the air current output from the air current generator is variable.
In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the airflow generator directly connected to the airflow blowing hole is a plurality of airflow generators connected in series or a plurality of airflow generators connected in parallel, thereby / The air volume can be increased.

The present invention, which is a means for solving the above problems, has the following specific effects.
In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the conveyance guide device using a plurality of small airflow generators moves the position and / or posture of the material to be conveyed in a preset direction without requiring a large airflow generator. Can do.
In addition, the width of the conveying material in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction is regulated by the air flow of the conveying guide device, and the air flow from the air flow outlet hole is controlled to guide the position of the conveying material to a preset position / direction. By moving / moving, it is possible to reduce the deviation of the image of the conveyed material while preventing deterioration of the conveyed material.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus that performs an image forming method of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration example of a conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view in a direction orthogonal to a conveyance direction of a conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the conveyance guide apparatus used for the image forming apparatus of this invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a timing chart for explaining the operation of the conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention. It is the schematic which shows the state of the to-be-conveyed material when the space | interval of an airflow ejection hole is long. It is the schematic which shows the state which supplies an airflow to several airflow blowing holes with one airflow generator. It is a figure which shows the external view of the airflow generator in the conveyance guide apparatus used for the image forming apparatus of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the state which connected the airflow generator with the attachment.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that it is easy for a person skilled in the art to make other embodiments by changing or correcting the present invention within the scope of the claims, and these changes and modifications are included in the scope of the claims. The following description is an example of the best mode of the present invention, and does not limit the scope of the claims.
The image forming apparatus forms various transport paths from feeding of a transported material to transferring, fixing, and discharging. In particular, in a small machine or a high-performance machine, a large bent part is formed in the conveyance path from the paper feeding part, and the process becomes complicated.
In many cases, the sheet conveying device to the sheet conveying device constitute the side surface of the device, and therefore, it is inevitably a curved conveying path. The unit that delivers from the paper feeding device often forms a side surface due to the size relationship between the image forming device and the paper feeding device, and the conveyance path is folded back like a U-turn from the paper feeding unit. Head to. In particular, when demand for special sheet materials such as coated paper is high, a guide plate having a large curvature radius is required so that the conveyance resistance during conveyance is low and the surface of the conveyance material is not damaged.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus for carrying out the image forming method of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a typical tandem type image forming apparatus having an intermediate transfer belt as an example, and the present invention is not limited to the following configuration.
As an example of the present invention, a full-color image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG.
An image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the image forming method of the present invention includes an automatic document feeder (ADF) 5 that automatically feeds a placed document from above, and a scanner (reading device) 4 that reads the document. An image forming unit 3 that forms a toner image, and a sheet feeding unit 2 that includes a transported material 9 such as a recording sheet and supplies the recording material are disposed below the image forming unit 3.
The image forming apparatus 1 has an image forming unit 3 disposed at the center thereof. In the image forming unit 3, four image forming units 10 as process cartridges corresponding to yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) toners are provided at approximately the center of the image forming unit 3. They are arranged in a tandem shape arranged in parallel in the horizontal direction.
Above the four image forming units 10Y, 10C, 10M, and 10K, an exposure device 12 that exposes the surface of each charged photoreceptor 11 based on image data of each color to form a latent image is provided. . Further, below the four image forming units 10Y, 10C, 10M, and 10K, endless belts made of a heat-resistant material such as polyimide or polyamide and adjusted to a medium resistance are provided on rollers 651, 652, and 653. A transfer device 60 including an intermediate transfer belt 61 that is supported by being wound and rotated is disposed.
Since any image forming unit 10 has the same configuration, in this figure, the display of Y, C, M, and K is omitted if it is not related to the distinction of colors. Each of the image forming units 10Y, 10C, 10M, and 10K includes photoreceptors 11Y, 11C, 11M, and 11K. Around each photoreceptor 11, a charging device 20 that applies a charge to the surface of the photoreceptor 11 and the photoreceptor 11 are provided. The latent image formed on the surface is developed with each color toner to form a toner image, a developing device 30 that applies a lubricant (not shown) to the surface of the photoconductor 11, and the surface of the photoconductor 11 after the toner image is transferred. A cleaning device 40 having a cleaning blade for cleaning is disposed. Thus, one image forming unit 10 is formed.

The photoconductor 11 is a metal such as amorofus silicone or selenium, or an organic photoconductor. Here, the photoconductor 11 is described as an organic photoconductor. The organic photoreceptor 11 has a resin layer in which a filler is dispersed, a photosensitive layer having a charge generation layer and a charge transport layer on a conductive support, and a protective layer in which a filler is dispersed on the surface thereof.
The photosensitive layer may be a single-layered photosensitive layer containing a charge generation material and a charge transport material, but a laminated type composed of a charge generation layer and a charge transport layer is excellent in sensitivity and durability.
In the charge generation layer, a pigment having charge generation ability is dispersed in a suitable solvent together with a binder resin as necessary using a ball mill, an attritor, a sand mill, an ultrasonic wave, etc., and this is coated on a conductive support. It is formed by drying. As binder resin, polyamide, polyurethane, epoxy resin, polyketone, polycarbonate, silicone resin, acrylic resin, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl formal, polyvinyl ketone, polystyrene, polysulfone, poly-N-vinylcarbazole, polyacrylamide, polyvinyl benzal, polyester Phenoxy resin, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl acetate, polyphenylene oxide, polyamide, polyvinyl pyridine, cellulose resin, casein, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl pyrrolidone and the like. The amount of the binder resin is suitably 0 to 500 parts by mass, preferably 10 to 300 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the charge generating material.
The charge transport layer can be formed by dissolving or dispersing the charge transport material and the binder resin in a suitable solvent, and applying and drying the solution on the charge generation layer. Charge transport materials include hole transport materials and electron transport materials. As the binder resin, polystyrene, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer, polyester, polyvinyl chloride, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl acetate, Polyvinylidene chloride, polyarate, phenoxy resin, polycarbonate, cellulose acetate resin, ethyl cellulose resin, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl formal, polyvinyl toluene, poly-N-vinyl carbazole, acrylic resin, silicone resin, epoxy resin, melamine resin, urethane resin, phenol Examples thereof include thermoplastic or thermosetting resins such as resins and alkyd resins.
In addition, a protective layer may be provided on the photosensitive layer. By providing the protective layer and improving the durability, the photosensitive member 11 having high sensitivity and no abnormal defects of the present invention can be used effectively.
Materials used for the protective layer include ABS resin, ACS resin, olefin-vinyl monomer copolymer, chlorinated polyether, allyl resin, phenol resin, polyacetal, polyamide, polyamideimide, polyacrylate, polyallylsulfone, polybutylene, Examples thereof include resins such as polybutylene terephthalate, polycarbonate, polyarylate, polyethersulfone, polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyimide, acrylic resin, polymethylbenten, polypropylene, polyvinylidene chloride, and epoxy resin. Of these, polycarbonate or polyarylate can be most preferably used. Other protective layers include fluorine resins such as polytetrafluoroethylene, silicone resins, and inorganic fillers such as titanium oxide, tin oxide, potassium titanate, and silica for the purpose of improving wear resistance. What disperse | distributed the filler etc. can be added. The filler concentration in the protective layer varies depending on the filler type used and also on the electrophotographic process conditions using the photoconductor 11, but the ratio of the filler to the total solid content on the outermost layer side of the protective layer 9 is 5% by mass or more. Preferably it is 10 mass% or more and 50 mass% or less, Preferably about 30 mass% or less is favorable.

The charging device 20 includes a charging roller 21 configured by covering a conductive core bar with a medium-resistance elastic layer as a charging member. The charging roller is connected to a power source (not shown), and is applied with a predetermined direct voltage (DC) and / or alternating voltage (AC). The charging roller 21 that discharges ions uses an elastic resin roller as a material. In addition, the charging roller 21 may contain an inorganic conductive material such as carbon black or an ionic conductive material in order to adjust electric resistance.
In addition, the charging roller 21 is disposed with a small gap with respect to the photoreceptor 11. This minute gap is set by, for example, winding a spacer member having a certain thickness around the non-image forming regions at both ends of the charging roller 21 to bring the surface of the spacer member into contact with the surface of the photoreceptor 11. can do. Further, the charging roller 21 may be brought into contact without being brought close to the photosensitive member. The photosensitive member 11 can be charged by discharging at a portion that is in a roller shape and is close to the photosensitive member 11. Further, by making them close and not in contact with each other, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of contamination due to the transfer residual toner of the charging roller 21. In addition, the charging roller 21 is provided with a charging cleaner roller (not shown) that contacts the surface of the charging roller 21 for cleaning.
In the developing device 40, a developing sleeve (not shown) including a magnetic field generating unit is disposed at a position facing the photoconductor 11. Below the developing sleeve, a stirring / conveying screw having a mechanism for mixing toner introduced from a toner bottle (not shown) with a developer and pumping the toner into the developing sleeve while stirring is provided. The two-component developer composed of the toner and the magnetic carrier conveyed by the developing sleeve is regulated to a predetermined developer layer thickness by the regulating member and is carried on the developing sleeve. The developing sleeve carries and carries the developer while supplying the toner to the photoconductor 11 while moving in the same direction at a position facing the photoconductor 11. In addition, toner cartridges for each color in which unused toner is stored are detachably stored in a space above the photoconductor 11. Toner is supplied to each developing device 40 as necessary by toner conveying means such as a mono pump or air pump (not shown). A toner cartridge for black toner that is highly consumed can be set to have a particularly large capacity.

The cleaning device 40 includes a cleaning blade and a holder for holding the blade, and removes residual toner from the photoconductor 11 by pressing the blade member against the photoconductor 11. In addition, the cleaning blade includes a mechanism for contacting / separating with the photosensitive member 11, and can be arbitrarily contacted / separated by the control unit of the image forming apparatus 1. The cleaning blade is brought into contact with the photoconductor 11 in a counter manner, whereby toner remaining on the photoconductor 11 and additives such as talc, kaolin, calcium carbonate, etc. of the transported material adhering as dirt are added to the photoconductor 11. Remove from and clean. The removed toner or the like is conveyed and stored in a waste toner container (not shown) by a waste toner collection coil (not shown).
The toner that has been cleaned by the cleaning device 40 and removed from the photoconductor 11 is collected by a serviceman or the like by a toner conveying member, or conveyed to a developing device or the like as recycled toner and used for development.

The transfer device 60 includes an intermediate transfer belt 61 on which toner images are stacked, a primary transfer roller 62 that transfers and stacks the toner images on the photoreceptor 11 to the intermediate transfer belt 61, and transfers the stacked toner images to the transported material 9. Secondary transfer roller 63 and the like. Further, the transfer device 60 is a portion facing the secondary transfer roller 63, and is provided inside the intermediate transfer belt 61 so that a support roller 653 serving as a facing member faces.
A primary transfer roller 62 that primarily transfers a toner image formed on the photoconductor 11 onto the intermediate transfer belt 61 is disposed at a position facing each photoconductor 11 with the intermediate transfer belt 61 interposed therebetween. The primary transfer roller 62 is connected to a power source (not shown), and is applied with a predetermined direct current voltage (DC) and / or alternating current voltage (AC). As the polarity of the voltage to be applied, the polarity is opposite to the polarity of the charge of the toner, and primary transfer is performed by drawing and moving from the photoreceptor 11 to the intermediate transfer belt 61 side. The primary transfer roller 62 is preferably semiconductive by containing an inorganic conductive material such as carbon black and an ionic conductive material in order to adjust electric resistance. Even if the resistance value of the primary transfer roller 62 is different, the transfer efficiency is hardly changed. However, if the image area ratio is different, the transfer efficiency is greatly different, so that the transfer efficiency cannot be stably maintained. This is because the current flows preferentially to the portion where the toner is not present in the transfer nip portion. As a result, when the image area ratio is small, the transfer voltage value becomes low and the electric field necessary for transfer cannot be obtained sufficiently. is there. In particular, when the resistance value of the primary transfer roller 62 is low, the influence of the resistance value of the toner interposed in the transfer portion becomes large. When constant current control is employed in this way, it is desirable to use a primary transfer roller 62 having a high resistance value. However, if the resistance value exceeds 5 × 10 ⁸ Ω, a toner image is formed due to current leakage. The risk of disturbance is increased. Therefore, it is preferable to use a primary transfer roller having a resistance value in the range of 1 × 10 ⁵ Ω to 5 × 10 ⁸ Ω. The phenomenon that the current flows preferentially to the portion where the toner does not intervene is not only due to the above-described toner resistance, but also the primary transfer voltage applied to the metal core provided at the center of the primary transfer roller 62 and the photosensitive member 11. This is also because the transfer current tends to flow toward the larger potential difference because the portion where the toner is not developed is larger than the portion where the toner is developed. This is because the toner image is the same as the charging polarity of the photoconductor 11, and the toner is developed on the photoconductor 11 where the photoconductor potential is removed by receiving the image exposure of the photoconductor 11, thereby forming a toner image on the photoconductor 11. This occurs in the case of the image forming apparatus 1 that performs this. The photosensitive member potential is high where the toner image is not formed and the photosensitive member potential is low where the toner image is formed, but the transfer potential is opposite to the photosensitive member potential, so the primary transfer voltage and the photosensitive member potential The difference is larger at the portion where the toner is not developed than at the portion where the toner is developed. In this case, the resistance value of the primary transfer roller 62 is desirably in the range of 5 × 10 ⁷ Ω to 5 × 10 ⁸ Ω.

Further, the toner image laminated on the intermediate transfer belt 61 is secondarily transferred to the transported material by the secondary transfer roller 63. Similar to the primary transfer roller 62, the secondary transfer roller 63 is connected to a power source (not shown) and is applied with a predetermined DC voltage (DC) and / or AC voltage (AC). The polarity of the voltage to be applied is opposite to the polarity of the charge of the toner, and secondary transfer is performed by drawing the intermediate transfer belt 61 toward the conveyed material to be conveyed.
The secondary transfer roller 63 includes a cylindrical metal core made of metal, an elastic layer formed on the outer peripheral surface of the metal core, and a surface layer made of a resin material formed on the outer peripheral surface of the elastic layer. Has been.
The metal constituting the metal core is not particularly limited. For example, a metal material such as stainless steel or aluminum is used. Generally, a rubber material is used for the elastic layer formed on the cored bar to form a rubber layer 65b. This is because the secondary transfer roller 63 is required to have an elastic function in order to deform the secondary transfer roller 63 and secure a secondary transfer nip portion, and the JIS-A hardness is 70 [ °] The following is desirable.
In addition, since the cleaning blade 22 is used as a cleaning means for the secondary transfer roller 63, if the elastic layer is too soft, the contact state of the cleaning blade 22 becomes unstable and an appropriate cleaning angle cannot be obtained. Therefore, the hardness of the elastic layer is preferably JIS-A 40 [°] or more.
In addition, since the secondary transfer roller 63 cannot perform the function of transferring a toner image to a recording medium when an insulator is used, it is preferably a foamed resin agent having a conductive function and a thickness of 2 mm to 10 mm. As a material imparting a conductive function, EPDM or Si rubber in which carbon black is dispersed, NBR having an ionic conductive function, urethane rubber, or the like may be used.
Since most of the foamed resin agents used for the elastic layer have high chemical affinity for the toner and a large friction coefficient, the functions required for the surface layer with which the cleaning blade 22 is in contact are low friction coefficient, toner separation. Since the moldability is required, the surface layer of the secondary transfer roller 63 is used by adjusting the resistance by adding a resistance control material to the fluororesin resin.
Further, since the secondary transfer roller 63 rotates in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 61, if a minute linear velocity difference occurs between the intermediate transfer belt 61 and the secondary transfer roller 63, the intermediate transfer belt 61. It will affect the driving of the. Therefore, since the sliding property with the intermediate transfer belt 61 is required for the surface layer of the secondary transfer roller 63, it is desirable to set the friction coefficient of the outermost surface layer to be 0.4 or less.
The intermediate transfer belt 61 is provided with an intermediate transfer belt cleaning device 64 that cleans the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 61 after the secondary transfer.
In addition, the support roller 653 includes a mechanism for contacting / separating with the intermediate transfer belt 61 and can be arbitrarily contacted / separated by the control unit of the main body of the image forming apparatus 1.

Further, the image forming apparatus 1 is provided with a lubricant applying device 67 that applies a lubricant to the intermediate transfer belt 61. The lubricant application device 67 includes a solid lubricant housed in a fixed case, a brush roller that contacts the solid lubricant, scrapes the lubricant, and is applied to the intermediate transfer belt 61 and a lubricant applied by the brush roller. A lubricant application blade for leveling is provided. The solid lubricant is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape and is urged toward the brush roller by a pressure spring. The solid lubricant is scraped off and consumed by the brush roller, and the thickness of the solid lubricant decreases with time. However, since the solid lubricant is pressurized by the pressure spring, the solid lubricant is always in contact with the brush roller. The brush roller applies the lubricant scraped off while rotating to the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 61.
Note that a lubricant application device having a similar function may be provided for the photoreceptor 11.
In this embodiment, a lubricant application blade (not shown) as a lubricant leveling means is brought into contact with the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 61 on the downstream side in the moving direction with respect to the lubricant application position by the brush roller. The lubricant application blade is made of rubber which is an elastic body, has a function as a cleaning means, and is in contact with the moving direction of the intermediate transfer belt 61 in the counter direction. As the solid lubricant, a dry solid hydrophobic lubricant can be used. In addition to zinc stearate, metal compounds having fatty acid groups such as stearic acid, oleic acid, and palmitic acid can also be used. . Further, waxes such as candelilla wax, carnauba wax, rice wax, wax, ooba oil, beeswax, and lanolin can be used.

The intermediate transfer belt 61 is composed of single layer or multiple layers of PVDF (vinylidene fluoride), ETFE (ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer), PI (polyimide), PC (polycarbonate), etc., and is made of conductive material such as carbon black. The volume resistivity is adjusted to be in the range of 10 ⁸ to 10 ¹² Ωcm, and the surface resistivity is adjusted to be in the range of 10 ⁹ to 10 ¹³ Ωcm. If necessary, a release layer may be coated on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 61. As materials used for the coating, ETFE (ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer),
PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), PVDF (vinylidene fluoride), PEA (perfluoroalkoxy fluororesin), FEP (tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene copolymer), PVF (vinyl fluoride), etc. Although a fluororesin can be used, it is not limited to this.
The method of manufacturing the intermediate transfer belt 61 includes a casting method, a centrifugal molding method, and the like, and the surface thereof may be polished as necessary.
If the volume resistivity of the intermediate transfer belt 61 exceeds the above-described range, the bias necessary for transfer increases, which increases the power supply cost, which is not preferable. Further, since the charging potential of the intermediate transfer belt 61 becomes high and the self-discharge becomes difficult in the transfer process, the transfer paper peeling process, etc., it is necessary to provide a static eliminating means. Also, if the volume resistivity and surface resistivity are below the above ranges, the charge potential decays faster, which is advantageous for static elimination by self-discharge, but toner scattering occurs because the current during transfer flows in the surface direction. End up. Therefore, the volume resistivity and the surface resistivity of the intermediate transfer belt 61 in the present invention must be within the above ranges.
The volume resistivity and surface resistivity were measured by connecting an HRS probe (inner electrode diameter 5.9 mm, ring electrode inner diameter 11 mm) to a high resistivity meter (manufactured by Mitsubishi Chemical Co., Ltd .: Hiresta IP). The measured value 10 seconds after applying the voltage of 100V (surface resistivity is 500V) to the front and back of the was used.

  In FIG. 1, a fixing device 70 is provided on the left side of the transfer device 60 to fix the toner image on the transported material 9 semi-permanently on the transported material 9. Although not shown, the fixing device 70 is mainly composed of a fixing roller 71 having a halogen heater inside, and a pressure roller 72 disposed so as to be opposed to and pressed against the fixing roller 71. The fixing device 70 is controlled by a control unit (not shown) so as to control fixing conditions based on full-color and monochrome images, single-sided or double-sided, and optimal fixing conditions according to the type of the transported material 9.

When the duplex copy mode is selected, the transported material 9 having an image fixed on one side is transported to the transported material reversing device 89 side by the switching claw 851, and is disposed within the reversing path 87 in a predetermined manner. By reciprocating the reversal conveyance path 87 formed in advance by a plurality of conveyance rollers and a guide member (not shown), reversing the vertical direction of the material surface 9 to be conveyed, and switching again with the switching claw 852, The sheet is returned to the conveyance path for image formation, conveyed on the conveyance path, and conveyed again to the conveyance guide device 90. Here, the position and direction of the material 9 to be conveyed are aligned again and sent to the registration roller 84. Therefore, even when an image is formed on the back surface of the transported material 9, the front and back images of the transported material 9 can be aligned.
Further, after being guided to the transfer device 60, this time the image is transferred and fixed on the back surface of the transported material 9, the paper is finally discharged onto the paper discharge tray 86 by the paper discharge roller 85.
At this time, when the number of the transported material 9 is one, the vertical direction of the transported material 9 surface is reversed, and then passes through the re-transport path 87 of the transported material reversing transport device 89 and again by the registration roller 84. After waiting for the image forming unit 10 to form an image, the image is formed on the transported material 9 by the transfer roller 63. This time, after the image is transferred and fixed on the back surface of the transported material 9, it is finally discharged onto the paper discharge tray 86 by the paper discharge roller 48.
When there are a plurality of transported materials 9, the transported material reversal storage device 88 in the transported material reversing transport device 89 stores one end of the transported material 9 having a toner image formed on one side of the set number of sheets. From there, the paper is fed by the paper feed roller 82, separated one by one by the separation roller 81, and again waits until the image is formed by the image forming unit 10 by the registration roller 84. An image is formed on top. This time, after the image is transferred and fixed on the back surface of the transported material 9, it is finally discharged onto the paper discharge tray 86 by the paper discharge roller 85.

Further, the image forming apparatus 1 of the present invention is provided with a conveyance guide device in front of the transfer device.
As shown in FIG. 1, a paper feed unit 80 and a paper discharge unit 86 are connected to the image forming unit 3. The transported material 9 fed from any one of the paper feeding units 80 by the pickup roller 82 is separated into one sheet by the separation roller 81, and then abuts against the resist roller 84 in a stopped state and stands by. Before reaching the registration roller 84, a conveyance guide device 90 is provided. Skew correction is performed by the conveyance guide device 90. Thereafter, the toner image is sent out at a timing coincident with the toner image on the photoconductor 11.
As can be seen from FIG. 1, the path from the paper feed unit 80 to the transport guide device 90 is a place where the transport path changes greatly.
Further, a frictional sound between the material 9 to be conveyed and the guide is generated. As a result, there was a problem that paper jams and waviness of the transported material 9 occurred. The lateral registration of the material 9 to be conveyed is regulated by the paper feed unit 80, but there is nothing to regulate in the conveyance path after being sent to the conveyance path.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram simply showing a configuration example of a conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention. The upstream of the registration roller pair 84 is taken as an example as the upstream of the image writing position on the conveyance path.
A plurality of air blowing holes 94 are provided on the surface of the conveyance guide plate 91 of the conveyance guide device 90 that conveys a sheet-like material (recording paper) 9 that is horizontally disposed upstream of the pair of registration rollers 84.
The air flow outlet 94, the air flow generator 95 on the lower surface side of the transport guide plate 91, and the tube 96 serving as a pipe are connected to guide the air flow generated by the air flow generator 95. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of air blowing holes 94 are formed on the surface of the conveyance guide plate 91. The to-be-conveyed material 9 conveyed to the conveyance guide device 90 slightly floats from the surface by the airflow from the airflow blowing holes 94 provided on the lower surface side of the conveyance guide plate 91.
The transported material 9 that has been lifted is brought close to the fixed guide side plate 92 by the width guide member 93. After approaching the guide side plate 92 on one side, the airflow in the airflow blowing hole 94 is changed to abut the tip of the transported material 9 against the registration roller pair 84.

The number (interval) of the air flow blowing holes 94 is appropriately set so that the transported material 9 can be lifted.
In FIG. 2, five rows of air flow holes 94 in the transport direction and five rows in the width direction are provided. A guide side plate 92 provided on one side of the conveyance guide device 90 is fixed, and a width guide member 93 that moves in the width direction is provided on the other side plate.
The width guide member 93 is moved in the width direction by a moving means (not shown) according to the size of the material 9 to be conveyed.
On the downstream side of the conveyance guide device 90 in the conveyance direction, a registration roller pair 84 whose height substantially coincides with the surface of the conveyance guide plate 91 is disposed.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction.
Here, an example is shown in which the air flow blowing hole 94 and the air flow generator 95 are connected by piping, and the air flow generator 95 is disposed at the bottom of the conveyance guide plate 91.
One is a case where the nozzle (discharge port) 951 of the airflow generator 95 and the airflow outlet hole 94 are directly connected. When a plurality of airflow outlet holes 94 are connected, an airflow difference from each airflow outlet hole 94 is determined. To reduce the pipe length, connect the pipe to the adjacent hole.
The airflow generator 94 shown in FIG. 3 uses a piezoelectric element. A piezoelectric element is a polycrystalline ferroelectric that is baked and hardened at a high temperature, and is subjected to a polarization treatment by applying a DC strong electric field. Crystals with the properties to be used are used. The small airflow generator utilizes the latter characteristic, and vibrates very strongly when an AC voltage (resonance frequency) matching the elastic natural frequency determined by the shape is applied to the piezoelectric element. This phenomenon is called resonance, and when this resonance is used, the electromechanical energy conversion efficiency becomes very good. The small airflow generator generates an airflow by vibrating the vibration plate constituting the pump chamber of the airflow generator by the vibration of the piezoelectric element and discharging the air in the pump chamber.
The nozzle diameter of the nozzle (discharge port) 951 is 4 mm, the air pressure (static pressure) of the generated air current is about 2 kPa, and the air volume is about 1 L / min. It is.
When the air flow generator 95 is driven, air is sucked from the back surface of the main body (side without the nozzle) and is stored in the pump chamber 952, and is discharged from the nozzle 951 to generate an air flow indicated by broken line arrows in the figure.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention. In FIG. 4, there are four rows of blowing holes 94 in the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyance guide device. In addition, it is assumed that one airflow generator 95 is connected to a plurality of airflow outlets 94 in the same row arranged orthogonal to the transport direction.
When the detector 97 of the transported material 9 provided in the transport path upstream of the transport guide plate 91 detects the passage of the transported material 9, all the airflow generators 95 are driven.
When the transported material 9 that should have been regulated in the width direction is shifted from the reference side plate position (guide side plate) 92 in the transport in the paper feeding unit 2, the transported material 9 sent from the transport roller 83 is As shown in FIG. 4A, the width guide member 93 reliably controls the width by being lifted from the guide plate 91 by the airflow of the airflow blowing hole 94.
If regulation by the width guide member 93 is performed without floating, the transported material 9 may enter the gap between the surface of the guide plate 91 and the width guide member 93, or the edge of the transported material 9 may be bent. There is a fear. If an attempt is made to use a mechanism that does not allow the transported material 9 to enter, the structure of the movable width guide member 93 becomes complicated.
When the regulation (positioning) in the width direction is finished, the transported material 9 is moved to the registration roller pair (transport direction) 84.
Here, a row of airflow holes 94 arranged in the conveying material width direction (direction orthogonal to the conveying direction) is expressed as a group.
After the material 9 to be transported rises, as shown in FIG. 4B, first, the air flow generator 95 connected to the group A of the air flow blowing holes 94 on the most downstream side of the conveyance is stopped. As a result, the air flow from the most downstream air flow outlet hole 94 stops, and the tip of the transported material 9 hangs downward as shown in the figure.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4C, the airflow in the B group of the airflow outlet holes 94 on the upstream side in the transport direction adjacent to the A group of the stopped airflow holes 94 is stopped. Simultaneously with the action of pushing the air between the lower surface of the material to be conveyed 9 and the guide plate 91 to the rear side of the material to be conveyed 9 as indicated by white arrows, the tip of the material to be conveyed 9 hangs further downward. move on. The airflow from each group of the airflow blowing holes 94 is sequentially stopped toward the upstream side in the transport direction, and finally the airflow of the D group of the airflow blowing holes 94 disposed at the uppermost stream is stopped.
By doing so, the transported material 9 is abutted against the registration roller pair 84 as shown in FIG. Although the airflow generator 95 connected to each group of the airflow blowing holes 94 is stopped, the airflow may be controlled so that the airflow is weakened to such an extent that the material to be conveyed 9 does not float.
In FIG. 4, the method of controlling each group of the air blowing holes 95 arranged in the width direction one by one toward the upstream side in the transport direction has been described. However, a method of simultaneously controlling a plurality of rows of air blowing holes 94 may be used. . In short, it is sufficient that the control is performed so that the transported material 9 moves smoothly to the registration roller pair 84.

FIG. 5 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of the conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention.
The signal S1 is a detection signal of the detector 97 of the material 9 to be conveyed, and the signals A, B, C, and D are airflows connected to the groups of airflow outlet holes 94 arranged in the width direction. This is a drive signal for the generator 95.
All the airflow generators 95 are driven after time t0 when the detection signal S1 is turned off and the transported material 9 has completely moved to the transport guide device 90.
After the material to be transported 9 floats and the regulation is finished by the width guide member 92, the airflow generator 95 of the A group is stopped. (State of FIG. 4A)
Next, the group B airflow generator 95 (FIG. 4B) is stopped when the time t1 elapses, the group C airflow generator 95 is stopped when the time t2 elapses, and the group D airflow generator 95 is stopped when the time t3 elapses. .
Here, the elapsed times t1, t2, t3, and t4 vary depending on the flying height, the position of the air blowing holes, the material 9 to be transported, the environment, and the like, and thus need to be obtained in advance.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a state of the material to be conveyed when the interval between the air flow ejection holes is long.
When the interval between the airflow ejection holes 95 is long, depending on the material of the material to be transported 9 and the amount of airflow variation from the airflow ejection holes 95, there is a difference between the location where the airflow of the material to be transported 9 is hit and the location where it is not. As shown in FIG. 6, the material to be transported 9 is curved, making it difficult to float.
FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing a state in which airflow is supplied to a plurality of airflow outlets by one airflow generator.
When supplying the airflow generated by one airflow generator 95 to the majority of the airflow outlets 94 in the same row, as shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of airflow supply paths 96 (in the case of FIG. ), The pressure loss in the supply passage 96 is reduced, and the variation in the airflow from the airflow blowing holes 94 is reduced.
Although it is preferable to provide a plurality of airflow blowing holes 94, the position and number of airflow blowing holes for generating an airflow differ depending on the size of the material 9 to be conveyed. Also, the magnitude of the air flow (wind pressure / air volume) emitted from the air flow outlet hole varies depending on the air flow generator 95, the way of piping, and the like.
In order to cope with these, the airflow generator 95 is directly connected to the airflow blowing holes 94 and driven by the driving means of the individual airflow generators 95 so that the airflows of the individual airflow blowing holes 94 can be adjusted. To do.
In order to make the area of the airflow blown from the one airflow blowing hole 94 to the conveyed material 9 the same in the conveying direction of the conveyed material 9 and the orthogonal direction of conveying, the airflow blowing hole 94 is defined as the conveying direction and the conveying direction. It is preferable to provide the same interval in the orthogonal direction.

As a result of an ascending experiment using copy paper as the transported material 9, when the distance between the air flow ejection holes 94 becomes longer, the curve as shown in FIG. 6 is obtained regardless of the size (pressure / flow rate) of the air current. Occurred in the material 9 to be conveyed.
The space | interval of the airflow ejection hole 94 was about 50 mm, and a part of curve came to contact a guide plate. In order to ensure that the transported material 9 is lifted, the interval between the air flow ejection holes 94 is set to 50 mm or less.
When the interval between the airflow ejection holes 94 is short, the transported material 9 can be floated even if the flow rate from the airflow ejection holes 94 is small.
If the interval between the air flow ejection holes 94 is about 20 mm, the flow rate is about 0.4 L / min. However, the transported material 9 has surfaced. However, piping / connecting the air flow ejection holes 94 at intervals of 20 mm not only increases the size and size of the conveyance guide device 90 but also is not appropriate in terms of cost.
The flow rate required to float the material 9 to be conveyed at an interval at which the air flow generator 95 directly connected to the conveyance guide plate 91 can be arranged is about 0.5 L / min. Met.
In order to be able to use the air flow generator 95 capable of individually controlling the flow rate of the air flow ejection holes 94, the flow rate of the air flow ejection holes 94 is set to 0.5 L / min. That's it.

The wind pressure / air volume of the air flow generated by each air flow generator 95 connected to the air flow blowing hole 94 is changed according to the type of the material 9 to be conveyed.
Specifically, the voltage / frequency of the drive signal generated by the drive means of the airflow generator 95 is increased when the wind pressure / air volume is increased, and is decreased when the wind pressure / air volume is decreased.
When the voltage is varied, a variable voltage amplifier is necessary, but a logic circuit for generating a plurality of frequencies is not necessary.
Further, when the frequency is varied, a frequency dividing circuit or the like is necessary, but a variable voltage amplifier is not necessary. A configuration suitable for the configuration of the control unit of the image forming apparatus 1 may be used.

When a fan is installed as the airflow generator 95, the conveyance guide device 90 is increased in size and power consumption in addition to an increase in cost.
Therefore, the airflow generator 95 is configured using a piezoelectric element. A piezoelectric element is used to oscillate the diaphragm of the air pump chamber to change the volume, thereby performing air suction / discharge.
The air flow generator 95 has a structure in which a high-pressure air flow can be discharged by reducing the diameter of the nozzle 951 that discharges air as compared with the pump chamber 952 that stores air.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an external view of an airflow generator in the conveyance guide device used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention.
A pump chamber 952 is configured by including a piezoelectric element, a diaphragm, and the like inside the air flow generator 95 in the transport guide device 90.
A circular air intake port 953 larger than the nozzle diameter is provided on the back side of the main body (the surface where the nozzle 951 is not formed).
The influence of sound can be reduced by driving the piezoelectric element above the human audible frequency.
Since the structure of the airflow generator 95 is small, even a plurality of airflow generators 95 can be installed in the conveyance guide device 90. Since it is small in size, it can be directly connected to the air flow ejection hole 94 and there is no need to use a duct. Since the power consumption of the piezoelectric element is low, an increase in power consumption can be prevented even if a plurality of piezoelectric elements are used, and the air flow generator 95 using the piezoelectric element has no moving parts and is highly durable.

The air flow generator 95 in the transport guide device 90 generates an air flow by vibrating the piezoelectric element.
The resonance frequency at which the piezoelectric element vibrates, that is, the driving frequency at which the airflow generator generates the maximum airflow, is determined by the piezoelectric element and the structure (airflow generator body) that supports the piezoelectric element. With the resonance frequency at the peak, the vibration becomes smaller and the airflow becomes smaller as the drive frequency moves back and forth around that frequency. The airflow generator does not generate an airflow when it is out of the range of vibration.
Therefore, the driving method of the airflow generator 95 is set as a separately excited oscillation method, and the generator is driven by a driving signal from the outside. A sine wave or a rectangular wave is used as the drive signal.
By setting the frequency of the external drive signal in the vicinity of the resonance frequency of the airflow generator 95 itself, the airflow generator 95 generates an airflow. However, the airflow is weakened away from the resonance frequency, and the drive signal Does not operate.
Thus, by changing the frequency of the drive signal, the air pressure / air volume of the air flow generator 95 is made variable.
Further, the airflow generator 95 can change the generated airflow according to the drive signal duty even if the drive signal frequency is constantly input at the resonance frequency.
When the drive signal duty is 50%, the largest airflow is generated, and when it is less than 10% (90% or more), no airflow is generated.
The air pressure / air volume of the air flow generator 95 is also variable by changing the duty of the drive signal of the air flow generator 95.

Since the airflow generator 95 directly connected to the conveyance guide plate 91 is small, a large airflow cannot be generated.
However, since it is small, it is possible to arrange a plurality of air flow generators 95 in the vicinity of the conveyance guide plate 91.
FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing a state where an airflow generator is connected in series with an attachment.
When the airflow of the airflow generator 95 directly connected to the airflow blowing holes 94 is smaller than the desired airflow, a plurality of airflow generators 95 are connected to the airflow blowing holes 94 for use.
Connect in series when wind pressure is required, and connect in parallel when air volume is required. In the case of series connection, the air flow generator 95 is connected in series with an attachment 98 or the like that does not cause airflow leakage. Further, when both are necessary, a single air flow generator 95 is configured by connection as shown in FIG.

In the image forming operation, first, an electrostatic latent image for each color formed on the surface of each photoconductor 11 is formed on the photoconductor 11 having a load electrode by the laser beam of the exposure device 12. Next, the developing device 30 develops the toner of a predetermined color having the same polarity (negative polarity) as the charged polarity of the photoconductor 11 and performs reversal development to become a visible image. At this time, the endless intermediate transfer belt 61 is supported by a plurality of rollers 651 to 653 and provided on the top of the photoreceptors 11Y, 11C, 11M, and 11K, and the photoreceptors 11Y, 11C, 11M, and 11K. It is stretched and arranged so that a part after the development process is in contact with the vehicle. The toner images formed on the photoreceptors 11Y, 11C, 11M, and 11K are transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 61 by the primary transfer rollers 62Y, 62C, 62M, and 62K, and the toner images are transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 61. Are superimposed to form an unfixed image. A belt cleaning device 64 is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the intermediate transfer belt 61 at a position facing the cleaning backup roller 641. The belt cleaning device 64 wipes off unnecessary toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 61 and foreign matters such as paper dust. Further, a secondary transfer roller 63 is provided on the outer periphery of the intermediate transfer belt 61 at a position facing the support roller 653.
At this time, a paper feeding device 80 including a paper feeding cassette 81 in which the material 9 to be conveyed can be supplied is disposed below the image forming apparatus 1. Only one sheet of the transported material 9 is reliably sent from the paper feed cassette 81 to the transport guide device 90 by the transport roller 82. Here, the position of the transported material 9 in the width direction and the transport direction is controlled to the correct positions. Further, it is sent to a registration roller 84 on the upstream side in the transport direction.
Next, by applying a bias to the secondary transfer roller 63 while passing the transported material 9 between the intermediate transfer belt 61 and the secondary transfer roller 63, the toner image carried by the intermediate transfer belt 61 is transferred to the transported material. 9 is transferred. By transporting the transported material 9 in a controlled position and direction, a high-quality transfer image with little transferred deviation or the like is obtained on the transported material 9. The polarity of the transfer voltage applied to the secondary transfer roller 63 is a positive polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner. These members related to the intermediate transfer belt 61 are integrally configured as a transfer device 60 together with the intermediate transfer belt 61, and can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus 1.
Further, the transported material 9 that has passed through the secondary transfer roller 63 is transported to the fixing device 70 provided downstream in the transport direction. The transported material 9 after fixing is discharged and stacked by a discharge roller 85 on a discharge tray 86 provided outside the image forming apparatus 1. Therefore, finally, a high-quality image with little deviation or the like is obtained on the transported material 9.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 2 Paper feed part 3 Image forming part 4 Scanner part 401 Contact glass 5 Automatic document feeder (ADF)
9 Material to be conveyed 10 Image forming unit (process cartridge)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Photoconductor 12 Exposure apparatus 13 Static elimination apparatus 20 Charging apparatus 21 Charging roller 30 Developing apparatus 40 Cleaning apparatus 60 Transfer apparatus 61 Intermediate transfer belt 62 Primary transfer roller 63 Secondary transfer roller 64 Belt cleaning apparatus 641 Cleaning backup roller 642 Rotating member 65 Roller 651 Follower roller 652 Drive roller 653 Support / tension roller 66 Conveyor belt 67 Lubricant application device 70 Fixing device 80 Paper feed cassette 81 Separating roller 82 Paper feed roller 83 Conveyance roller 84 Registration roller 85 Paper discharge roller 851,852 Switching claw 86 Exhaust Paper trays 87, 871, 872 Reversal conveyance path 88 Conveyed material storage device 89 Conveyed material reverse conveyance device 90 Conveyance guide device 91 Conveyance guide plate 92 Guide side plate 93 Width guide member 94 Air flow blowout Hole 95 Airflow generator 951 Nozzle 952 Pump chamber 953 Intake port 96 Tube 961 Joint 97 Detector 98 Attachment

JP2002-274700 JP 06-239495 A JP 06-239499 A JP 04-93956 JP2010-47355

Claims (12)

Multiple air flow generators,
A plurality of transported material detectors for detecting a transported material in the transport path;
A conveyance guide plate disposed horizontally upstream of the image writing position;
A width guide member that regulates a width in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the material to be conveyed on the conveyance guide plate;
The airflow generator has a nozzle for airflow discharge, and a plurality of airflow blowing holes are provided in the conveyance guide plate in a vertical direction at equal intervals for a plurality of rows in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction.
The air flow generated by the air flow generator is connected by piping so as to guide the air flow to the air flow blowout hole on the conveyance guide plate, and the air flow blower hole is driven by driving the air flow generator with the material to be conveyed loaded on the conveyance guide plate. The airflow generated by the airflow generator is levitated, the position of the transported material is regulated by the width guide member, and then the transported material is moved to a preset position / direction by changing the airflow generated by the airflow generator. An image forming apparatus comprising a conveyance guide device. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the same amount of air flow from the air blowing holes in the same row arranged in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the material to be conveyed is changed at the same time. When airflow generated by one airflow generator is guided to the plurality of airflow outlet holes of the conveyance guide plate, pipe connection is made to adjacent airflow outlet holes in the same row arranged in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the material to be conveyed. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. When the airflow blowing holes for guiding the airflow generated by one airflow generator exceed the majority of the total number of airflow blowing holes in the same row arranged in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction, the plurality of airflow supply paths The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the air flow blowing hole array and the air flow generator are connected by piping. The nozzle of the airflow generator and the airflow outlet hole on the conveyance guide plate are directly connected, and the airflow from the airflow outlet hole is individually controlled by individually controlling the airflow generator. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a gap between the air flow outlet holes of the conveyance guide plate is the same in a conveyance direction of a material to be conveyed and a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein an interval between air flow blowout holes of the conveyance guide plate is 50 mm or less. The air flow rate blown out from the air flow blowing hole of the conveyance guide plate is 0.5 L / min. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured as described above. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air pressure / air volume of the air current output from the air current generator is changed according to the material of the material to be transported. The air flow generator is composed of a piezoelectric element and an air pump chamber formed by using a diaphragm, and generates an air flow by changing the volume of the air pump chamber by vibrating the diaphragm by the piezoelectric element. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is driven at an audible frequency or higher by an airflow generator drive control unit. The air flow generator drive control means is configured to be able to drive the air flow generator with a drive signal input from the outside, and by changing the frequency or duty of the drive signal, the wind pressure / air volume of the air flow output by the air flow generator can be changed. The image forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the image forming apparatus is variable. The air flow generator directly connected to the air flow outlet hole is a plurality of air flow generators connected in series or a plurality of air flow generators connected in parallel, thereby enabling to increase the wind pressure / air volume of the air flow. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.

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