JP2012189727A - Cleaning roller and method for manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inexpensive cleaning roller that can reliably capture fine particles adhering to a member to be cleaned and can maintain adhesion strength between a cleaning member end and a shaft, and to provide a method for manufacturing the cleaning roller.SOLUTION: The cleaning roller comprises a rod-like core material and a cleaning member helically provided along the axial direction of the core material and having a predetermined dimension of the outer shape when viewed in the axial direction of the core material. The cleaning roller has twice or more of compression magnification at both ends of the cleaning member.

Description

The present invention relates to a cleaning roller for cleaning the surface of a charging roller and a method for manufacturing the same.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, image forming apparatuses such as copying machines, printers, facsimiles, and multifunctional multifunction machines are known as apparatuses for recording an image on a recording medium by an electrophotographic method.

In such an electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the surface of a photosensitive drum as an image carrier is first charged by a charging roller, and then laser light or LED light is irradiated from a laser diode or LED from within the exposure apparatus. Then, the surface of the photosensitive drum is exposed to form an electrostatic latent image. A toner as a developer is supplied from the developing device to the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image. Thereafter, the toner image on the photosensitive drum is transferred to a recording medium, and the recording medium onto which the toner image has been transferred passes through the fixing device and is fixed on the recording medium. On the other hand, residual toner transferred to the recording medium and remaining on the photosensitive drum is removed by a cleaning blade or the like, and the photosensitive drum is again charged by the charging roller.

On the other hand, the residue on the photosensitive drum removed by the cleaning blade includes not only residual toner but also paper dust derived from the constituent material of the recording medium, fine silica, titanium oxide, wax, and the like, which are external additives for the toner. These fine particles may not be completely removed by a cleaning blade or the like.

In particular, since the charging roller is pressed against the photosensitive drum and placed in contact therewith, there is a problem in that fine particles that could not be sufficiently removed by the above-described cleaning blade are likely to adhere and cause charging failure.

For this purpose, a cleaning roller is known that captures particles adhering to the surface of the charging roller by rotating in contact with the surface of the charging roller in opposition to the charging roller.

As the cleaning roller, Patent Document 1 discloses a cleaning roller configured by spirally winding a foam urethane sponge cleaning member formed in a string shape on a shaft (see Patent Document 1).

Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a cleaning roller configured by processing a cell sheet having an open cell structure on a shaft and a flexible resin cleaning member into a foam sheet formed in a plate shape and winding it in advance. It is disclosed (see Patent Document 2).

According to these cleaning rollers, fine particles adhering to the charging roller can be captured by the flexibility of the cleaning member made of urethane foam sponge.

JP 2008-070532 A (page 8 FIG. 2) Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2010-107797 (2 pages on page 13)

  In the cleaning roller disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, since the string-like cleaning member is spirally wound around the shaft, the cleaning member intermittently makes line contact with the charging roller. Therefore, there is a problem that the cleaning member is formed in a cylindrical shape with respect to the shaft, and the cleaning performance is inferior to that of the cleaning roller that always cleans the surface of the charging roller in surface contact. Further, there is a problem that the cleaning member is string-like and has a small area of adhesion to the shaft, and the cleaning member is easily peeled off from the winding start portion and the winding end portion at both end portions of the cleaning member.

  On the other hand, the cleaning roller disclosed in Patent Document 2 is configured by winding a foam sheet formed in a plate shape around a shaft, so that it is possible to secure a wider bonding area between the cleaning member and the shaft. It is possible to ensure the reliability of the cleaning member on the shaft.

  However, since the cell skeleton having an open-cell structure and a flexible resin-made cleaning member are processed into a sheet-form foam sheet and wound, a manufacturing method is used. There is a problem in that a process for preparing manufacture of the foam sheet formed in a shape is required, which causes an increase in manufacturing cost.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described facts, and can reliably capture the fine particles adhering to the member to be cleaned, and can secure the adhesive strength between the end portion of the cleaning member and the shaft. It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning roller and a manufacturing method thereof.

  In order to solve the above problem, the cleaning roller according to claim 1 is provided with a rod-shaped core material and a spiral shape along the axial direction of the core material, and has a predetermined outer dimension as viewed in the axial direction of the core material. And a cleaning member having both ends of the cleaning member are compressed.

  The cleaning roller according to claim 2 is characterized in that the compression magnification at both ends of the cleaning member is 2 times or more.

  The manufacturing method of the cleaning roller according to claim 3, comprising: a preparation step of preparing the cleaning member; and a winding step of spirally winding the cleaning member prepared by the preparation step around the core material. In the step, both ends of the cleaning member are compressed.

  The cleaning roller manufacturing method according to claim 4 is characterized in that, in the preparation step of preparing the cleaning member, both ends of the cleaning member are compressed by a hot press.

  The cleaning roller manufacturing method according to claim 5 is characterized in that, in the preparation step of preparing the cleaning member, both ends of the cleaning member are compressed by a heating roller.

  The method for manufacturing a cleaning roller according to claim 6, comprising: a preparation step for preparing the cleaning member; and a winding step for spirally winding the cleaning member prepared in the preparation step around the core member. After the member is wound spirally around the core material, both ends of the cleaning member are compressed by a heating roller.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reliably capture the fine particles adhering to the member to be cleaned, and to secure the adhesive strength between the cleaning member end and the shaft and the adhesive strength at the interface of the adhesive layer. A cleaning roller and a manufacturing method thereof can be obtained.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus to which a cleaning roller according to the present invention is applied. Internal configuration diagram of the image forming unit Schematic configuration diagram of the cleaning roller The figure explaining the cleaning roller of 1st Embodiment, and its manufacturing method. The figure explaining the preparation process which prepares a cleaning member The figure explaining the preparation process which prepares the cleaning member of other shape The figure explaining the cleaning roller of 2nd Embodiment, and its manufacturing method The figure explaining the cleaning roller of 3rd Embodiment, and its manufacturing method

Next, examples as specific examples of embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following examples.
Also, in the description using the following drawings, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic and the ratio of each dimension and the like are different from the actual ones, and are necessary for the description for easy understanding. Illustrations other than the members are omitted as appropriate.

(1) Schematic Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an image forming apparatus to which a cleaning roller 1 according to the present invention is applied. An image forming apparatus 20 shown in FIG. 1 includes image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, which perform full color image formation using four color toners (yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K)). 21K are arranged in the horizontal direction.

  Each of the image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K has the same configuration except that it contains developers made of toners of different colors. Therefore, the configuration of one image forming unit 21Y will be described as an example.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming unit 21 </ b> Y includes a photosensitive drum 30 as an image carrier that carries an electrostatic latent image, and charging that charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 disposed in contact with the photosensitive drum 30. The roller 40, the cleaning roller 1 that rotates in contact with the charging roller 40 and cleans the surface of the charging roller 40, and the toner as the developer is supplied to the electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 to be visible. The image forming apparatus includes a developing device 50 that forms an image, a cleaning blade 60 that is disposed in contact with the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 and removes residual toner attached to the surface of the photosensitive drum 30.

  An exposure device 70 that exposes the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 to form an electrostatic latent image is disposed below the image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K. The exposure device 70 is configured to irradiate the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 with laser light or LED light from a laser diode or LED based on image data.

  Above the image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K, primary transfer rollers 22Y, 22M, 22C, and 22K are pressed against the photosensitive drums of the image forming units via the intermediate transfer belt 80. The secondary transfer roller 23 is in pressure contact with the opposed driven roller via the intermediate transfer belt 80.

  A paper feed unit 25 is disposed below the image forming apparatus 20. The paper feed unit 25 includes a recording medium storage cassette 26 that stores the recording medium P, and a delivery roller that sends the recording medium P from the recording medium storage cassette 26. 27, and a recording medium guide guide S and a pair of registration rollers 28a and 28b are disposed downstream of the delivery roller 27.

  A fixing device 90 for fixing the toner image on the recording medium P is disposed on the downstream side of the secondary transfer roller 23.

(2) Operation of Image Forming Apparatus Hereinafter, the image forming operation of the image forming apparatus will be described by taking one image forming unit 21Y as an example with reference to FIG. The photosensitive drum 30 of the image forming unit 21Y is rotated by a driving device (not shown), and the surface of the rotating photosensitive drum 30 is charged to a uniform desired potential by the charging roller 40. Then, based on image data from an image controller (not shown), the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 is irradiated from the exposure device 70 with laser light or LED light from the laser diode or LED, and the surface potential of the irradiated portion of the photosensitive drum 30 is lowered. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed. Next, a toner as a charged developer is electrostatically attached to the portion of the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 where the electrostatic latent image is formed by the developing device 50, and a yellow image is formed on the photosensitive drum 30. Is formed as a visible image.

  A voltage controlled to a polarity opposite to the toner charging polarity is applied to the primary transfer roller 22Y facing the photosensitive drum 30 of the image forming unit 21Y, and the toner image on the photosensitive drum 30 is transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 80.

  Similarly, in each of the other image forming units 21M, 21C, and 21K, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 30, and each toner image is primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 80, and then secondary onto the recording medium P. Temporarily held as a toner image to be transferred.

  After the primary transfer, untransferred toner remaining on the surface of each photosensitive drum 30 is removed by the cleaning blade 60, but is included in paper dust or toner derived from the constituent material of the recording medium that cannot be completely removed by the cleaning blade 60. Fine particles such as fine silica, titanium oxide, and wax as external additives that pass through the contact portion of the cleaning blade 60 with the photosensitive drum 30 adhere to the surface of the charging roller 40, but contact the charging roller 40. Then, it is captured and accumulated on the surface of the cleaning roller 1 that rotates.

  On the other hand, in response to a signal from the main body control unit of the image forming apparatus, the recording medium P is sent out from the recording medium storage cassette 26 that stores the recording medium P in the paper feeding unit 25 by the feeding roller 27, and along the recording medium guide guide S Thus, the recording medium P is conveyed to the nip portion between the pair of registration rollers 28a and 28b.

  Next, the toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 80 was sent from the pair of registration rollers 28a and 28b by applying a voltage controlled to a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner to the secondary transfer roller 23. Secondary transfer is performed on the recording medium P.

  The recording medium P to which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed to the fixing device 90, and the unfixed toner image on the recording medium P is pressed and heated to be fixed to the recording medium P. Thereafter, the recording medium P is sent out from the fixing device 90 and accommodated on a paper discharge tray.

  Next, the configuration of the cleaning roller 1 of the present invention will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of the cleaning roller 1 according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the cleaning roller 1 is made of a metal shaft 11 formed in a rod shape, and a cell skeleton having an open cell structure and a flexible foamed urethane formed on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 11. The elastic layer 12 is formed into a sheet shape having a compression ratio of 2 times or more.

  The urethane foam constituting the elastic layer 12 has an open cell structure. The open cell structure means a structure in which a plurality of bubbles are formed inside urethane foam and adjacent bubbles are connected to each other. The foamed urethane is obtained by reacting a polyisocyanate and a polyol to simultaneously start a polymer forming reaction and a foaming reaction, and any of a polyether-based foamed urethane and a polyester-based foamed urethane can be used.

  In particular, since the urethane foam has a hydrophilic property, it can easily adsorb fine particles on the charging roller 40 and exhibits good cleaning performance.

  On the other hand, polyether-based urethane foam does not deteriorate due to hydrolysis of acid, alkali, hot water, water vapor, etc., so that it depends on the market characteristics of the applied image forming apparatus, that is, when the usage environment is higher humidity. Is preferred.

  There is no restriction | limiting in particular as polyisocyanate and a polyol, As a polyisocyanate, toluene diisocyanate (TDI), diphenylmethane isocyanate (MDI), etc. can be used. Isocyanate may be used alone or in combination of two or more. As the polyol, a polyether polyol to which alkylene oxide is added, a condensed polyester polyol, or the like can be used.

  Next, the cleaning roller 1 described above will be specifically described as the first embodiment with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4A, the cleaning roller 1 includes a shaft 11 as a core material and an elastic layer 12 that covers the shaft 11, and the elastic layer 12 excludes both end portions of the shaft 11. Affixed to the middle part.

  The shaft 11 forms a roller body of the cleaning roller 1, and a member made of metal such as stainless steel (SUS) having a diameter of 4 mm can be used as the shaft material.

  The elastic layer 12 is configured by winding an elongated member having a substantially constant width around the intermediate portion of the shaft 11 in a spiral shape. As the urethane foam constituting the elastic layer 12, a material having an open-cell structure, a rebound resilience of 15% to 30%, and a hardness of 250N to 350N can be used. When the rebound resilience is less than 15%, when the cleaning roller 1 comes into contact with the charging roller 40, the restoring force from the compressed state is too weak to provide sufficient cleaning performance, and the rebound resilience is 30. When it is larger than%, the contact driven rotation with the charging roller 40 becomes unstable, and the reliability of the cleaning performance is lowered.

  Next, the elongated member 12a constituting the elastic layer 12 will be specifically described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4B, the elongated member 12a has a winding start portion and an end portion so that the elongated member 12a has a predetermined width set according to the charging width of the charging roller 40 after being wound around the shaft. The sheet is formed as an elongated sheet having a width W of 6 mm and a length L of 395 mm, which is cut into a triangular shape. The angle θ of the triangular portion is cut at 35 degrees so that the hypotenuse of the winding start portion is orthogonal to the axis of the shaft when the ends of the elongated member 12a are wound without gaps. The width W, the length L, and the angle θ of the triangular portion of the elongated member 12a are not limited to the above dimensions, and can be appropriately selected according to the design information of the cleaning roller in the image forming apparatus 20 to be applied.

  As shown in FIG. 4C, an adhesive layer 12c is formed on the back surface of the elongated member 12a. As the pressure-sensitive adhesive forming the adhesive layer 12c, for example, a double-sided tape (5000NS (manufactured by Nitto Denko Corporation)) using a non-woven fabric as a base material and coated with an acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesive can be used.

  As shown in FIG. 4D, the end 12d portion of the elongated member 12a is compressed to a sheet state in which the surface side of the elongated member 12a, that is, the side opposite to the adhesive layer 12c, has a compression ratio of 2 times or more. Have a step. A sheet state having a compression ratio of 2 times or more can be formed by applying heat and pressure to compress the foamed urethane of the elongated member 12a, as will be described later. As a method of compressing urethane foam by applying heat and pressure, a general hot press apparatus can be used. It is also possible to compress the roller that is a pressing jig while rotating and applying heat and a load.

  FIG. 4E shows another shape of the sheet state in which the compression ratio of the end 12d portion of the elongated member 12a is 2 times or more. The triangular end portion 12d shown in FIG. 4 (e) can be formed by applying heat and pressure and compressing urethane foam of the elongated member 12a by the manufacturing method shown in FIG. 6 to be described later. . As a method of compressing urethane foam by applying heat and pressure, a general hot press apparatus can be used. Similarly, heat can be applied to a roller as a pressing jig to perform compression while rotating the roller.

  The elastic layer 12 has a predetermined thickness depending on the design requirements of the image forming apparatus to be applied. However, the smaller the diameter of the shaft 11 used, the larger the difference in the radius of curvature between the adhesive layer side and the surface side. A larger tensile stress is generated on the outside. Further, the end 12d portion of the elongated member 12a has an acute angle at the end, and therefore tends to be a starting point for peeling of the elastic layer 12. In the cleaning roller of the present invention, the end 12d portion of the elongated member 12a is compressed to a sheet state in which the compression ratio is 2 times or more, so there is little difference in the radius of curvature between the adhesive layer side and the surface side. Generation | occurrence | production of a tensile stress can be suppressed and the adhesive force with a shaft can be improved. In addition, by forming a sheet shape with a compression ratio of 2 times or more from the open cell structure, there is less room for fine particles captured and adhered to the member to be cleaned to further improve the adhesion reliability of the adhesive layer interface. it can.

  Next, the manufacturing method of the cleaning roller 1 will be specifically described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a view for explaining a method of manufacturing the cleaning roller 1.

(Preparation process)
When manufacturing the cleaning roller 1, first, the foamed urethane block B10 is foam-molded (see FIG. 5A). In this case, the method for producing the foamed urethane block is not particularly limited and may be a conventional method. As an example, a polyol, an isocyanate, and other additives as necessary are mixed and then reacted by heating. Thus, a foamed urethane block can be obtained.

  Although there is no restriction | limiting in particular about the temperature and time at the time of mixing the polyol, isocyanate, other additive, etc. as a raw material, Usually, mixing temperature is the range of 10 to 90 degreeC. The mixing time is usually about 10 seconds to 20 minutes. There is no restriction | limiting in particular also about the foaming method, Any methods, such as the method of using a foaming agent and mixing of the bubble by mechanical stirring, can be used.

  Next, a sheet block B20 having a predetermined thickness is cut out from the foamed urethane block B10 (see FIG. 5B). As an example of the cutting process, a method of cutting in a horizontal direction or a vertical direction with a metal blade, a variety of processing methods using a heating wire, a laser, or the like can be employed.

  The adhesive layer 12c is provided on one surface of the sheet block B20 having a predetermined thickness. As the pressure-sensitive adhesive forming the adhesive layer 12c, for example, a double-sided tape (5000NS (manufactured by Nitto Denko Corporation)) in which a nonwoven fabric is used as a base material and an acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesive is applied to this can be used (FIG. 5 ( c)).

  Next, the sheet block B21 having the adhesive layer 12c on one surface and having a predetermined thickness is made to have a predetermined length in the longitudinal direction of the elongated member and a predetermined triangular angle at both ends of the elongated member. A sheet block B22 is formed into a width that allows a plurality of elongated members to be cut out with θ (see FIG. 5D). As an example of the forming process, a method of cutting in a horizontal direction or a vertical direction with a metal cutting tool, various processing methods using a heating wire line, a laser, or the like can be adopted.

  The urethane foam is compressed by applying heat and pressure from the surface side, that is, the side opposite to the adhesive layer 12c, with a predetermined width at both ends of the sheet block B22 having the adhesive layer 12c on one surface and having a predetermined thickness. Thus, the sheet block B23 is set (see FIG. 5E). As a method of compressing urethane foam by applying heat and pressure, a general hot press apparatus can be used. The hot press is performed at a temperature of 140 ° C. to 200 ° C. under conditions of about 10 seconds to 60 seconds. Furthermore, in the heating press, a spacer having a certain thickness corresponding to the initial thickness of the sheet block 22 to be compressed is interposed on the pressing surface of the heating press, so that any condition in the temperature range and the time range described above can be obtained. Even in this combination, a desired compression ratio can be stably obtained. As an example, when the initial thickness of the seat block 22 is 2 mm, the combination of any conditions of about 10 seconds to 60 seconds at a temperature of 140 ° C. to 200 ° C. by setting the spacer to 0.3 mm to 0.6 mm. Even in such a case, it was possible to form a sheet having a compression ratio of 2 times or more.

As a more specific heating method of the heating press, a method of pressing a heating plate with a built-in heater, a method of high-frequency induction heating in a state of being pressurized and compressed with a room temperature plate, or the like can be used. It is also possible to compress the roller while it is rotated by applying heat to a roller as a pressing jig. As a method of applying heat to the roller, a method of providing a heater inside the roller, a method of heating by high frequency induction heating from the outside of the roller, or the like can be used. Note that urethane foam can be compressed by applying heat and pressure from the back surface side, that is, the adhesive layer 12c side, at both end portions of the seat block B22 with a predetermined width.

  An elongated member 12a having a predetermined width is cut out from a sheet block B23 having a predetermined thickness and having an adhesive layer 12c on one surface and having a predetermined width at both ends and a compression ratio of 2 or more. (See FIG. 5 (f)). As an example of the cutting process, a method of cutting in a horizontal direction or a vertical direction with a metal blade, a variety of processing methods using a heating wire, a laser, or the like can be employed. A method of punching using a Victoria mold can also be used.

  FIG. 6 shows a manufacturing process for preparing an elongated member having a triangular end 12d shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5C, after preparing the sheet block B21 having a predetermined thickness, both ends are applied with a triangular width, and heat and pressure are applied from the surface side, that is, the side opposite to the adhesive layer 12c. Then, urethane foam is compressed into a sheet block B24 (see FIG. 6A). As a method of compressing urethane foam by applying heat and pressure, a general heating press apparatus can be used, and the heating press conditions are not particularly limited, but at a heating temperature of 140 ° C. to 200 ° C. for 10 seconds to Under the condition of about 60 seconds, the sheet can be formed into a sheet having a compression ratio of 2 times or more. It is also possible to compress the roller while it is rotated by applying heat to a roller as a pressing jig.

  An elongated member 12a having a predetermined width is formed from a sheet block B24 having a predetermined thickness and having an adhesive layer 12c on one surface and having a sheet shape with both ends having a triangular width and a compression ratio of 2 times or more. Cut out (see FIG. 6B). As an example of the cutting process, a method of cutting in a horizontal direction or a vertical direction with a metal blade, a variety of processing methods using a heating wire, a laser, or the like can be employed. A method of punching using a Victoria mold can also be used.

  In the preparation step of the seat block B24, the order is not limited, and the seat block B20 having a predetermined thickness is cut out from the foamed urethane block B10 (see FIG. 5B). After compressing both ends of B20 with a predetermined width by applying heat and pressure, the adhesive layer 12c may be provided.

(Winding process)
After the elongated member 12a is prepared, the end portion 12d of the elongated member 12a is first pressure-bonded to the shaft 11 that has been washed and heated to a predetermined temperature, and then the elongated member 12a. Is fixed in the axial direction of the shaft 11 while being spirally wound around the shaft 11. Then, the end 12d portion which is the end of the elongated member 12a is pressure-bonded to the shaft 11. In this way, the cleaning roller 1 shown in FIG. 3 can be manufactured. Note that the thickness of the elongated member 12a and the width of both end portions of the sheet shape having a compression ratio of 2 times or more can be selected as appropriate according to the design information of the cleaning roller in the image forming apparatus 20 to be applied.

  Since the cleaning roller 1 can be manufactured by such a method, fine particles adhering to the member to be cleaned can be reliably captured by the elastic layer 12 having the cleaning member made of an elongated sheet, and the cleaning can be performed. The adhesive strength between the member end and the shaft and the adhesive strength at the interface of the adhesive layer can be ensured, and as a result, the manufacturing cost of the cleaning roller 1 can be reduced.

  Next, referring to FIG. 7, the cleaning roller 2 will be described as a second embodiment. The cleaning roller 2 differs from the first embodiment in that the ends of the elongated member 22a are wound with a certain gap. Components common to the cleaning roller 1 of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, description thereof will be omitted, and differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, the cleaning roller 2 includes a shaft 11 as a core material and an elastic layer 22 that covers the shaft 11, and the elastic layer 22 excludes both end portions of the shaft 11. Affixed to the middle part. The shaft 11 can be the same as the cleaning roller 1.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 7B, the elongated member 22a is wound around the shaft and then has a winding start portion and a predetermined width set according to the charging width of the charging roller 40. The end portion is cut into a triangular shape, and is formed as an elongated sheet having a width W of 8 mm and a length L of 310 mm. The angle θ of the triangular portion is cut at 45 degrees, which is a larger angle than the elongated member 22a, because the ends of the elongated member 22a are wound with a certain gap. Note that the width W, the length L, and the angle θ of the triangular portion of the elongated member 22a are not limited to the above dimensions, and are appropriately selected according to the design information of the cleaning roller in the applied image forming apparatus 20. it can. Further, the elongated member 22a can be prepared through the same process as in the first embodiment.

After the elongated member 22a is prepared, the end portion 22d of the elongated member 22a is first pressure-bonded to the shaft 11 that has been previously cleaned and heated to a predetermined temperature, and then the elongated member 22a is attached. While being spirally wound around the shaft 11, it is bonded and fixed in the axial direction of the shaft 11. Then, the end 22d portion which is the end of the elongated member 22a is pressure-bonded to the shaft 11. In this way, the cleaning roller 2 shown in FIG. 7A can be manufactured.

  Since the cleaning roller 2 can be manufactured by such a method, the elastic layer 22 having fewer cleaning members can surely capture the fine particles attached to the member to be cleaned, and the end of the cleaning member The adhesive strength with the shaft and the adhesive strength at the interface of the adhesive layer can be ensured, and as a result, the manufacturing cost of the cleaning roller 2 can be further reduced. Furthermore, since the ends of the elongated member 22a are wound with a certain gap, the ends of the elongated member 22a do not ride on each other, and the management of the winding process can be simplified. Further manufacturing cost reduction is possible.

  Next, referring to FIG. 8, the cleaning roller 3 and the cleaning roller 4 will be described as a third embodiment. As for the cleaning roller 3 and the cleaning roller 4, after the elongated member 32a is spirally wound around the shaft 11 and bonded and fixed in the axial direction of the shaft 11, the both end portions 32d of the elongated member 32a are fixed. It differs from 1st Embodiment and 2nd Embodiment by the point made into the sheet form whose compression magnification is 2 times or more. The components common to the cleaning roller 1 of the first embodiment and the cleaning roller 2 of the second embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, the description thereof will be omitted, and differences from the first embodiment and the second embodiment will be described. The explanation is centered.

  As shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the cleaning roller 3 and the cleaning roller 4 are constituted by a shaft 11 as a core material and an elastic layer 32 covering the shaft 11, and an elastic layer. 32 is affixed to an intermediate portion excluding both ends of the shaft 11. The shaft 11 can be the same as the cleaning roller 1. As shown in FIGS. 8 (a) and 8 (b), like the cleaning roller of the first embodiment, the end portions of the elongated member 32a are wound with no gap between them and the cleaning roller of the second embodiment. Similarly, the end portions of the elongated member 32a may be wound around each other with a certain gap. Hereinafter, it demonstrates by contrast with 1st embodiment.

  After preparing the elongated member 32a whose both end portions are not compressed in advance, the elongated member 32a is spirally wound around the shaft 11 with respect to the shaft 11 which has been cleaned and heated to a predetermined temperature in advance. The adhesive is fixed in the axial direction of the shaft 11. Then, the cleaning roller 3 is rotated while pressing a roller, which is a heated pressing jig, against both end portions of the elastic layer 32, and both end portions of the elastic layer 32 are pressure bonded to the shaft 11. In addition, as a heating and pressurizing condition of the roller which is a heated pressing jig, a heating temperature of 180 ° C. to 220 ° C., a pressing force of 15 kN to 20 kN, and a sheet shape having a compression ratio of 2 times or more can be obtained. In particular, a substantially non-foamed sheet can be formed at a heating temperature of 200 ° C. to 220 ° C. and a pressure of 18 kN to 20 kN.

  Since the cleaning roller 3 and the cleaning roller 4 can be manufactured by such a method, the step of adhering and fixing the elongated member 32a to the shaft 11 while spirally winding the elongated member 32a on the shaft 11, and the cleaning The process of adhering the cleaning member end portion and the shaft to the member end portion in the form of a sheet having a compression ratio of 2 times or more is continuously performed, and the manufacturing cost of the cleaning roller can be reduced.

As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was explained in full detail, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various change is performed within the range of the summary of this invention described in the claim. It is possible.

  In the first and second embodiments described above, the end 12d portion of the elongated member 12a and the end 22d portion of the elongated member 22a are formed by applying heat and pressure and compressing urethane foam. The step of applying heat and pressure is omitted, and the elongated member 12a and the elongated member 22a are spirally wound around the shaft 11 that has been washed and heated to a predetermined temperature in a spiral manner. It is also possible to polish and thin the both end portions of the elastic layer 12 after being adhered and fixed to.

  When both ends of the elastic layer 12 are polished and thinned, the end 12d portion of the elongated member 12a and the end 22d portion of the elongated member 22a are unlikely to become the starting point of the peeling of the elastic layer 12, and the cleaning roller 1 and The manufacturing cost can be reduced while preventing the cleaning roller 2 from being peeled off during use.

  In the above-described embodiment, the charging roller 40 has been described as the member to be cleaned by the cleaning roller 1 and the cleaning roller 2. However, the member to be cleaned is not limited to the charging roller 40, and the sheet conveying belt is used. Or an intermediate transfer belt. Further, it may be arranged so as to be driven and rotated with respect to the photosensitive drum, and may be used for preventing filming of the photosensitive drum, or may be used as a cleaning roller for the conveying roller.

1, 2, 3 Cleaning roller 11 Shaft
12, 22, 32 Elastic layer
12a, 22a, 32a elongated member
12c Adhesive layer
12d, 22d End of elongated member
20 Image forming apparatus
21Y, 21M, 21C, 21K Image forming unit
22Y, 22M, 22C, 22K Primary transfer roller 23 Secondary transfer roller 25 Paper feed unit 26 Recording medium storage cassette 27 Delivery rollers 28a, 28b Registration roller 30 Photosensitive drum 40 Charging roller 50 Developing device
60 Cleaning blade
70 exposure equipment
80 Intermediate transfer belt
90 Fixing device
P Recording medium
S Recording medium guide
B10 Urethane foam block B20, B21, B22, B23, B24 Sheet block

Claims (6)

  A rod-shaped core member, and a cleaning member provided in a spiral shape along the axial direction of the core member and having a predetermined outer dimension as viewed in the axial direction of the core member, and both ends of the cleaning member are compressed A cleaning roller.   The cleaning roller according to claim 1, wherein a compression ratio of both ends of the cleaning member is 2 times or more.   A preparatory step of preparing the cleaning member; and a winding step of spirally winding the cleaning member prepared in the preparatory step around the core material, and compressing both ends of the cleaning member in the preparatory step. The method for manufacturing a cleaning roller according to claim 1, wherein:   The method of manufacturing a cleaning roller according to claim 3, wherein in the preparation step of preparing the cleaning member, both ends of the cleaning member are compressed by a hot press.   The method for manufacturing a cleaning roller according to claim 3, wherein in the preparation step of preparing the cleaning member, both ends of the cleaning member are compressed by a heating roller. A preparation step of preparing the cleaning member, and a winding step of spirally winding the cleaning member prepared in the preparation step around the core material, and spirally winding the cleaning member around the core material, 3. The method for manufacturing a cleaning roller according to claim 1, wherein both ends of the cleaning member are compressed by a heating roller.