JP2016128873A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus capable of efficiently removing toner remaining on an intermediate transfer body, with a simple configuration.SOLUTION: A digital composite machine 11 includes a first control part which performs control so that when the toner primarily transferred onto a transfer belt 35 is removed from the transfer belt 35 and when the toner passes through a position where a secondary transfer roller 38 is provided, a bias having a polarity reverse to the polarity of charged toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 by a second bias application part 44b and a second control part which performs control so that after the first control part is actuated, the bias having the same polarity as the polarity of the charged toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 by the second bias application part 44b and the bias having the polarity reverse to the polarity of the toner is applied to a pre-brush 39 by a pre-brush bias application part 44c.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.

  In an image forming apparatus typified by a digital multifunction peripheral or the like, after an image of a document is read by an image reading unit, light is irradiated to the photoconductor provided in the image forming unit based on the read image, and the photoconductor An electrostatic latent image is formed thereon. Thereafter, a developer such as charged toner is supplied onto the formed electrostatic latent image to form a visible image, and then transferred to a sheet, fixed, and discharged outside the apparatus.

  Here, some image forming apparatuses capable of forming a full-color image form a full-color image by superimposing yellow, cyan, magenta, and black colors. When a full-color image is formed, an image of each color is once formed on a photoconductor provided corresponding to each color, and is primarily transferred onto an intermediate transfer body provided in the image forming apparatus. That is, the images of the respective colors are superimposed on the intermediate transfer member. Thereafter, the full-color image formed on the intermediate transfer member is secondarily transferred to a sheet.

  In this way, the following situation arises in the system in which the formed image is temporarily transferred to the intermediate transfer member and then transferred to the paper. In an image forming apparatus, in order to adjust the image quality and the like of an image to be formed, a visible image with toner that is not transferred onto a sheet at a predetermined timing may be formed on an intermediate transfer member. A visible image formed with toner based on such a premise is not transferred to paper. After the adjustment of the image quality and the like, the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer member is removed by the cleaning blade. The same applies when a paper jam occurs when a sheet is conveyed after a full-color image is formed on the intermediate transfer member, and the operation of the apparatus is stopped.

  Here, a technique relating to removal of toner remaining on the intermediate transfer member is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-292727 (Patent Document 1). An image forming apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a primary transfer unit that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on an image carrier using toner, and transfers the visualized toner image onto an intermediate transfer member. A secondary transfer means provided with a secondary transfer roller for transferring the toner image on the intermediate transfer member to the recording medium, and a secondary transfer counter roller disposed at a position facing the secondary transfer roller across the intermediate transfer member And a secondary transfer bias applying means for applying a bias for transferring the toner image to the recording medium to the secondary transfer roller or the secondary transfer counter roller, and a transfer roller cleaning means for cleaning the toner on the secondary transfer roller. Intermediate transfer for cleaning toner on the intermediate transfer member provided between the return roller contacting the outer surface of the intermediate transfer member and the secondary transfer means and the return roller. It has a configuration and a cleaning means. Then, the image forming apparatus has no recording paper after the recording paper is detected during the conveyance of the recording medium or during the continuous image formation in the paper feed tray for storing the recording paper. And a control means for controlling the secondary transfer bias applying means so as to apply a bias having the same polarity in the recovery sequence after detecting the above.

JP 2008-292727 A

  According to the image forming apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, a transfer roller cleaning unit that cleans the toner on the secondary transfer roller is provided. Providing such a transfer roller cleaning unit may increase the cost or make the configuration of the apparatus complicated. In addition, since the toner on the intermediate transfer member is once adhered to the secondary transfer roller side, the secondary transfer roller is further contaminated. Such a situation is not preferable because it takes a long time to clean the secondary transfer roller.

  Further, when a time required for removing a visible image formed on the intermediate transfer body for adjusting the image quality and not transferred onto the sheet from the intermediate transfer body becomes longer, the image is actually formed. It will take a lot of time before it can be done. Such a situation causes, for example, a so-called first copy delay, which is not preferable for a user who uses the image forming apparatus.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of efficiently removing toner remaining on an intermediate transfer member with a simple configuration.

  In one aspect of the present invention, an image forming apparatus includes a photosensitive member, a developing unit, an intermediate transfer member, a primary transfer roller, a first bias applying unit, a secondary transfer roller, and a second bias. An application unit, a pre-brush, a pre-brush bias application unit, a cleaning blade, a first control unit, and a second control unit are provided. The developing unit supplies a charged toner to the electrostatic latent image formed on the photoconductor to form a visible image with the toner on the photoconductor. The intermediate transfer member rotates in one direction, and a visible image formed by the toner formed on the photosensitive member by the developing unit is primarily transferred thereon. The primary transfer roller primarily transfers the visible image formed by the toner formed on the photosensitive member onto the intermediate transfer member by applying a bias. The first bias applying unit applies a bias to the primary transfer roller. The secondary transfer roller secondarily transfers the visible image with the toner primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer body onto the recording medium by applying a bias. The second bias application unit applies a bias to the secondary transfer roller. The pre-brush is disposed on the downstream side of the secondary transfer roller in the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer member, and contacts the surface of the intermediate transfer member. The pre-brush bias applying unit applies a bias to the pre-brush. The cleaning blade is disposed on the downstream side of the pre-brush in the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer member, and contacts the surface of the intermediate transfer member to remove the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer member. When the toner passes through the position where the secondary transfer roller is provided when removing the toner first transferred onto the intermediate transfer member from the intermediate transfer member, the first controller applies the second bias application unit. Control is performed so that a bias having a polarity opposite to that of the charged toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller. After the first control unit operates, the second control unit applies a bias having the same polarity as the charged toner to the secondary transfer roller by the second bias application unit, and the pre-brush bias application unit The pre-brush is controlled so that a bias having a polarity opposite to that of the toner is applied to the pre-brush.

  According to such an image forming apparatus, when removing the toner primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer member from the intermediate transfer member, when the toner passes through the position where the secondary transfer roller is provided, the second bias applying unit Thus, first control is performed to apply a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the charged toner to the secondary transfer roller. Then, it is possible to reduce the electric adhesion force of the toner primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer body to the intermediate transfer body. Therefore, the toner primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer member can be physically and efficiently removed from the intermediate transfer member by the cleaning blade. In addition, after the first control, a bias having the same polarity as that of the charged toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller by the second bias applying unit, and the pre-brush bias applying unit reverses the toner polarity to the pre-brush. A second control for applying a polar bias to the pre-brush is performed. Then, when the toner passes through the position where the secondary transfer roller is provided, the toner physically attached to the secondary transfer roller side can be electrically and efficiently attached to the intermediate transfer member side. Then, a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner is applied to the pre-brush arranged on the downstream side of the secondary transfer roller with respect to the toner attached to the intermediate transfer member side, so that the toner is attached on the intermediate transfer member. The electric adhesion force of the toner to the intermediate transfer member can be reduced. Therefore, the toner adhered on the intermediate transfer member from the secondary transfer roller side can be physically and efficiently removed from the intermediate transfer member by the cleaning blade. As a result, the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer member can be efficiently removed with a simple configuration.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an external appearance of a digital multifunction peripheral when an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to the digital multifunction peripheral. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a digital multifunction peripheral when an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to the digital multifunction peripheral. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming unit provided in a digital multifunction peripheral. FIG. 3 is an external view illustrating a schematic configuration of a toner amount detection sensor. It is a figure which shows an example of the patch image for adjusting the position shift of the image to form. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the contents of processing when the toner remaining on the surface of the transfer belt is removed after the patch image shown in FIG. 5 is formed with toner using the digital multifunction peripheral according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the elapsed time in the case of performing the process shown in FIG. 6, and the bias applied to a secondary transfer roller and a prebrush. 6 is a flowchart showing the contents of processing when toner remaining on the surface of a transfer belt is removed after a paper jam occurs.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an external appearance of a digital multifunction peripheral when an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to the digital multifunction peripheral. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the digital multifunction peripheral when the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to the digital multifunction peripheral.

  1 and 2, the digital multifunction peripheral 11 includes a control unit 12 as a first and second control unit that controls the entire digital multifunction peripheral 11, and information transmitted from the digital multifunction peripheral 11 side. It includes a display screen 21 for displaying user input contents, an operation unit 13 for inputting image forming conditions such as the number of copies to be printed and gradation, power on / off, and a set document automatically to a reading unit. An image reading unit 14 that includes an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) 22 that conveys the image, and a paper feed cassette that can store a plurality of sheets as a manual feed tray 28 and a paper feed cassette group 29 for manually setting paper. 23 a, 23 b, 23 c, and a paper setting unit 19 for setting paper on which an image is to be formed, and a scanned image or a network 25. An image forming unit 15 that forms an image based on the received image data, a hard disk 16 that stores transmitted image data, input image forming conditions, and the like, and a public line 24 are connected to the facsimile transmission. And a facsimile communication unit 17 that performs facsimile reception and a network interface unit 18 for connecting to the network 25. The digital multi-function peripheral 11 includes a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) for writing and reading image data, and the illustration and description thereof are omitted. In addition, arrows in FIG. 2 indicate the flow of data regarding control signals, control, and images.

  The digital multifunction machine 11 operates as a copying machine by forming an image in the image forming unit 15 using the original read by the image reading unit 14. Further, the digital multifunction peripheral 11 forms an image in the image forming unit 15 and prints it on a sheet using image data transmitted from the computers 26a, 26b, and 26c connected to the network 25 through the network interface unit 18. It works as a printer. That is, the image forming unit 15 operates as a printing unit that prints the requested image. The digital multifunction machine 11 forms an image in the image forming unit 15 through the DRAM using the image data transmitted from the public line 24 through the facsimile communication unit 17 and is read by the image reading unit 14. By transmitting the image data of the original document to the public line 24 through the facsimile communication unit 17, the facsimile apparatus operates. The digital multifunction machine 11 has a plurality of functions such as a copying function, a printer function, and a facsimile function regarding image processing. Further, each function has functions that can be set in detail.

  An image forming system 27 including a digital multifunction peripheral 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a digital multifunction peripheral 11 having the above-described configuration and a plurality of computers 26 a and 26 b connected to the digital multifunction peripheral 11 via a network 25. 26c. In this embodiment, three computers 26a to 26c are shown. Each of the computers 26 a to 26 c can print by making a print request to the digital multi-function peripheral 11 via the network 25. The digital multi-function peripheral 11 and the computers 26a to 26c may be connected by wire using a LAN (Local Area Network) cable or the like, or may be connected wirelessly. A configuration in which a digital multifunction peripheral or a server is connected may be used.

  Next, the configuration of the image forming unit 15 provided in the digital multifunction peripheral 11 will be described in more detail. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of the image forming unit 15 provided in the digital multifunction peripheral 11. From the viewpoint of easy understanding, the members are not hatched in FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the digital multifunction machine 11 cut along a plane extending in the vertical direction.

  Referring to FIG. 3, the image forming unit 15 includes a developing device 33, an LSU (Laser Scanner Unit) 34, a transfer belt 35 as an intermediate transfer member, and four primary transfer rollers 36a, 36b, 36c, and 36d. Including a primary transfer unit 37, a first bias applying unit 44a that applies a bias to each of the four primary transfer rollers 36a, 36b, 36c, and 36d, a secondary transfer roller 38, and a bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38. A second bias applying unit 44b, a pre-brush 39, a pre-brush bias applying unit 44c that applies a bias to the pre-brush 39, a cleaning blade 40, and a toner amount detection sensor 46. About LSU34, it has shown roughly with the dashed-dotted line. The toner amount detection sensor 46 is schematically indicated by a two-dot chain line. The digital multi-function peripheral 11 includes a so-called quad tandem image forming unit 15.

  The developing device 33 includes four photoreceptors 31a, 31b, 31c, and 31d corresponding to four colors of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black, and four developing units 32a, 32b, 32c, and 32d. In FIG. 3, the developing units 32a to 32d are schematically shown.

  The LSU 34 exposes the four photoconductors 31a to 31d based on the images read by the image reading unit 14, respectively. Electrostatic latent images are formed on the photoreceptors 31a to 31d based on the exposed light of the components of each color. Each color toner is supplied from the developing units 32a to 32d to the electrostatic latent images formed on the photoreceptors 31a to 31d. The toner is agitated in the developing units 32a to 32d and charged, for example, to have a positive charge. The charged toner is supplied to the photoconductors 31a to 31d, and visible images are formed on the photoconductors 31a to 31d. The visible images of the toner formed on the photoreceptors 31 a to 31 d in this way are primarily transferred to the transfer belt 35.

The transfer belt 35 is endless. The transfer belt 35 is rotated in one direction by the driving roller 41a and the driven roller 41b. Rotational direction of the transfer belt 35 is indicated by an arrow D ₁ of the in Figure 3. That is, with respect to the rotation direction of the transfer belt 35, the lower region where the photoconductors 31a to 31d are provided is directed from the left to the right, and the upper region where the prebrush 39 is provided is directed from the right to the left. Direction. In the rotation direction of the transfer belt 35, among the developing units 32a to 32d, the yellow developing unit 32a is disposed on the most upstream side, and the black developing unit 32d is disposed on the most downstream side. Note that the transfer belt 35 rotates from the upstream side toward the downstream side.

  The transfer belt 35 is a so-called laminated type, and is a thin elastic belt. Specifically, a material having elasticity as a material and having a thickness of about 200 μm (micrometer) coated with a resin having a thickness of about 2 to 3 μm on the front side and a back side having a thickness of about 100 μm. Used as a transfer belt 35.

  The four primary transfer rollers 36 a to 36 d are arranged at positions facing the photoconductors 31 a to 31 d of the respective colors via the transfer belt 35. The primary transfer unit 37 primarily transfers a visible image with toner formed by the four color developing units 32 a to 32 d of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black onto the transfer belt 35. Specifically, by applying a bias to each of the primary transfer rollers 36a to 36d by the first bias applying unit 44a, a visible image with toner formed on the photoreceptors 31a to 31d by the developing units 32a to 32d. Is primarily transferred onto the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35. At this time, the images of the respective colors are superimposed on the transfer belt 35 to form a full color image on the transfer belt 35.

  The secondary transfer roller 38 is provided at a position facing the driven roller 41 b via the transfer belt 35. Specifically, for example, a foamed rubber roller having conductivity is used as the secondary transfer roller 38.

  The image forming unit 15 includes a sheet conveyance path 43 a for conveying a sheet as a recording medium to a position 45 a where the secondary transfer roller 38 and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 abut. The image forming unit 15 also includes a sheet conveyance path 43b for conveying the second-transferred sheet to a fixing unit (not shown). A sheet is supplied from a sheet conveyance path 43a on the upstream side where the sheet cassette group 29 is located to a position 45a where the secondary transfer roller 38 and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 abut. A bias having a polarity opposite to that of the toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 by the second bias applying unit 44b in accordance with the timing of conveying the paper. By applying a bias to the secondary transfer roller 38, a visible image formed by the toner formed on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 is electrically drawn to the supplied paper side and is secondarily transferred to the paper. The sheet on which the visible image is transferred by the toner is conveyed to a fixing unit (not shown) using the sheet conveying path 43b.

  The pre-brush 39 is provided on the downstream side of the secondary transfer roller 38 and at a position facing the drive roller 41a with the transfer belt 35 interposed therebetween. The pre-brush 39 has a so-called brush shape, and is provided so that the tip portion of the brush contacts the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35. A bias is applied to the pre-brush 39 itself by the pre-brush bias applying unit 44c. The pre-brush 39 is used for preliminary cleaning of the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35, adjustment of charging performance of toner remaining on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35, and the like.

  The cleaning blade 40 is provided on the downstream side of the pre-brush 39 and at a position facing the driving roller 41a with the transfer belt 35 interposed therebetween. The cleaning blade 40 is provided on the upstream side of the yellow developing unit 32a. The cleaning blade 40 is composed of a rubber-like long and narrow plate-like member having elasticity. The cleaning blade 40 is attached so that the main scanning direction of the digital multi-function peripheral 11 is the longitudinal direction. The cleaning blade 40 is disposed so that its tip end is in contact with the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 in a so-called counter direction. The cleaning blade 40 is fixed at a predetermined location, and physically removes the toner adhering to the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 rotating in one direction. As a material of the cleaning blade 40, for example, urethane rubber is used.

  When an image is formed on a sheet in the digital multi-function peripheral 11, the visible image by the toner secondarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35 is transferred to the conveyed sheet and fixed on the sheet by a fixing unit (not shown). . After fixing, the sheet is discharged out of the digital multifunction peripheral 11, specifically, the discharge tray 30. After the visible image by the toner is transferred to the paper, the toner remaining on the transfer belt 35 is physically removed by the cleaning blade 40. Then, the next image formation is performed.

  The digital multifunction machine 11 can perform monochrome printing using only the black developing unit 32d. The digital multifunction peripheral 11 can perform color printing using at least one of a yellow developing unit 32a, a magenta developing unit 32b, and a cyan developing unit 32c.

  In addition, the digital multifunction peripheral 11 includes an absolute moisture content measuring unit 20 that measures the absolute moisture content of the environment where the digital multifunction peripheral 11 is arranged. Specifically, the digital multifunction machine 11 includes a temperature / humidity sensor (not shown) that measures the temperature and humidity of the environment in which the digital multifunction machine 11 is arranged. The absolute water content is calculated based on the temperature and humidity measured by the temperature and humidity sensor in the environment where the digital multifunction peripheral 11 is arranged.

  Next, the configuration of the toner amount detection sensor 46 will be briefly described. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the toner amount detection sensor 46.

  1 to 4, the toner amount detection sensor 46 is arranged on the downstream side of the black developing unit 32 d in the rotation direction of the transfer belt 35. The toner amount detection sensor 46 receives light by a light emitting element 47a that irradiates light on the surface 42 side of the transfer belt 35, a light receiving element 47b that receives reflected light reflected from the surface 42 side of the transfer belt 35, and a light receiving element 47b. A toner amount calculation unit (not shown) that calculates the toner amount from the amount of reflected light. In this embodiment, the light emitting element 47 a and the light receiving element 47 b are installed so as to be symmetrical with respect to a plane 48 extending in a direction perpendicular to the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35. That is, the light receiving element 47b is provided at a position for receiving regular reflection light with respect to the light emitted by the light emitting element 47a. As an example of the light emitting element 47a, specifically, an infrared light emitting diode that irradiates infrared light is employed. As an example of the light receiving element 47b, specifically, an infrared light receiving element is employed.

Emitting element 47a is toward the surface 42 or visible image 50 by the toner of the transfer belt 35 is irradiated with light 49a such infrared light to the left obliquely upward direction indicated by arrow E ₁ in FIG. When the visible image 50 is not formed with toner, the light emitting element 47 a emits light 49 a toward the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35.

The light receiving element 47b is either one or toner, the reflected light 49b from the surface 42 of the reflected light 49b and the transfer belt 35 from the visible image 50 by the toner toward the lower left direction indicated by the arrow E ₂ in FIG. 4 The reflected light 49b from both the visible image 50 and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 is received. If the visible image 50 made of toner completely covers the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35, only the reflected light 49b from the visible image 50 made of toner is received. If the visible image 50 made of toner is not formed on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35, only the reflected light 49b from the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 is received. If the visible image 50 made of toner does not completely cover the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 and the amount of toner in the visible image 50 made of toner is small, the reflection from both the visible image 50 made of toner and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 will occur. The light 49b is received.

Toner amount detection sensor 46, the transfer belt 35 to a visible image 50 is formed by the toner on the surface 42 is irradiated with light 49a in the direction indicated by arrow E ₁ in FIG. The light 49 a strikes and reflects either the visible image 50 with toner and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35, or both the visible image 50 with toner and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35. The reflected reflected light 49b is received by the light receiving element 47b. The light receiving element 47b outputs a current corresponding to the amount of received light. The toner concentration calculator converts the current output from the light receiving element 47b into a voltage value. Then, the toner amount is calculated based on this voltage value. In this way, the toner amount detection sensor 46 detects the toner amount. The control unit 12 uses such a toner amount detection sensor 46 to adjust the toner density, the positional deviation of the formed image, and the like.

  Next, a patch image formed for adjusting the positional deviation of the formed image will be briefly described. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a patch image for adjusting the positional deviation of the formed image. Referring to FIG. 5, in order to adjust the positional deviation of the image to be formed, a rectangular patch image group 51 of each color and a parallelogram patch image group 52 of each color are formed. The patch image group 51 includes a yellow rectangular patch image 53a, a magenta rectangular patch image 53b, a cyan rectangular patch image 53c, and a black rectangular patch image 53d. The order of formation is yellow patch image 53a, magenta patch image 53b, cyan patch image 53c, and black patch image 53d from the upstream side. The parallelogram patch image group 52 includes a yellow parallelogram patch image 54a, a magenta parallelogram patch image 54b, a cyan parallelogram patch image 54c, and a black parallelogram patch image. 54d. The order of formation is a yellow patch image 54a, a magenta patch image 54b, a cyan patch image 54c, and a black patch image 54d, as in the rectangular shape. Each of the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d is provided at a predetermined interval in the sub-scanning direction that is the rotation direction of the transfer belt 35 of the digital multifunction peripheral 11.

  The digital multi-function peripheral 11 receives the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d at a predetermined timing, for example, every time the number of image formation reaches 10,000 or when the development units 32a to 32d are replaced. Form. The control unit 12 positions the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d to be formed, specifically positions where the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d start to be formed in the sub-scanning direction. A position or the like formed in the scanning direction is detected by a toner amount detection sensor 46. The control unit 12 adjusts the positional deviation of the formed image based on the detection result. That is, for example, when the positions of the formed patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d exceed the predetermined threshold and are formed at different positions, the correction is performed by adjusting the exposure timing so as to be an appropriate position. To do.

  Note that the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d formed for adjusting the positional deviation of the formed image are not transferred to the sheet. That is, the toner constituting the patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d remaining on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 is removed from the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35. Note that the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d formed with this toner are electrically attached and physically attached to the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 by the charged toner. .

  Next, the case where the toner remaining on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 is removed using the digital multifunction peripheral 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 6 shows the toner remaining on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 after the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d shown in FIG. 5 are formed with toner using the digital multi-function peripheral 11 according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the process in the case of removing. FIG. 7 is a graph showing the relationship between the elapsed time and the bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 and the pre-brush 39 when the processing shown in FIG. 6 is performed. The elapsed time is shown on the horizontal axis in FIG. In FIG. 7, it is assumed that time elapses from the left side to the right side. The vertical axis in FIG. 7 indicates the polarity of the bias to be applied, that is, whether the bias to be applied is plus (+) or minus (−) or no bias is applied. When no bias is applied, a numerical value of 0 is indicated. A line 56a in FIG. 7 shows a bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38, and a line 56b shows a bias applied to the pre-brush 39. Here, it is assumed that the toner that is frictionally charged in the developing units 32a to 32d is positively charged, that is, positively charged as the polarity.

  Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d are formed on transfer belt 35 (in FIG. 6, step S11, hereinafter “step” is omitted). Specifically, first, electrostatic latent images corresponding to the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d are formed on the photoreceptors 31a to 31d. Thereafter, visible images are formed by toner charged to a positive polarity on the photoreceptors 31a to 31d by the developing units 32a to 32d. Then, a predetermined bias is applied to the primary transfer rollers 36 a to 36 d by the first bias application unit 44 a, and the visible image formed by the toner is primarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35.

  Next, using the toner amount detection sensor 46, the positional deviation of the image to be formed is corrected using the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d that have been primarily transferred onto the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 (S12). In this case, by the rotation of the transfer belt 35, the primary transferred patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d sequentially reach positions where the toner amount detection sensor 46 can detect. Then, the toner amount detection sensor 46 detects positions where the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d are formed. Based on the position detected by the toner amount detection sensor 46, the control unit 12 corrects the positional deviation of the formed image.

Thereafter, the toner constituting the patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d reaches the position 45 a where the secondary transfer roller 38 and the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 come into contact with each other by the rotation of the transfer belt 35. Here, the patch image 53a~53d in position 45a, at time _{T 1} of the up time _{T 2} to which the toner reaches constituting the 54a to 54d, the second bias applying unit 44b, charged toner polarity and opposite polarity A bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 (S13). In this case, since the toner is charged on the positive side, the bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 has a negative value. Specifically, a bias current value of −40 μA is applied as the current value. In this stage, namely, at the time of reaching the time T _1, even for Pureburashi 39, the pre-brush bias applying section 44c, and applies the charged polarity and opposite polarity bias toner Pureburashi 39 (S14 ). Specifically, a bias current value of −5 μA is applied as the current value. In addition, about S13 and S14, it may be simultaneous and may shift | deviate a little in time.

  Thereafter, the toner constituting the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d sequentially reaches the position 45a. Here, since the negative bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 by the second bias application unit 44b, the toner charged on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 and charged on the positive side is charged. The amount is reduced. That is, the polarity of the toner charged on the plus side is electrically close to the 0 side. Then, the electric adhesion force of the toner to the transfer belt 35 is reduced.

  Thereafter, the toner constituting the patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d reaches the position 45 b where the pre-brush 39 is provided by the rotation of the transfer belt 35. Here, since the negative bias is applied to the pre-brush 39 by the pre-brush bias applying unit 44c, the charge amount of the toner further decreases. That is, the polarity of the toner charged on the plus side is electrically closer to the 0 side. Then, the electric adhesion force of the toner to the transfer belt 35 is further reduced.

  Thereafter, the toner constituting the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d reaches the position 45c where the cleaning blade 40 is provided by the rotation of the transfer belt 35. In this case, since the polarity of the toner charged on the plus side is substantially close to the 0 side, the electrical adhesion between the toner and the transfer belt 35 is greatly reduced. That is, the toner adhered on the transfer belt 35 is in a state of being adhered by weak electrical adhesion and weak physical adhesion. Therefore, the toner can be easily removed from the transfer belt 35 by physical removal by the cleaning blade 40. That is, the toner primarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35 can be physically and efficiently removed from the transfer belt 35 by the cleaning blade 40.

  Here, when the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d pass through the position 45a, the transfer belt 35 and the secondary transfer roller 38 are in contact with each other, so that a certain amount of toner is moved to the secondary transfer roller 38 side. Adhere to. Next, the flow of removing toner adhered to the secondary transfer roller 38 after the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d have passed through the position 45a will be described. The control so far is the first control, and the subsequent control is the second control.

Patch images 53 a to 53 d, in the which time _{T 4} after the toner time has passed the position 45a _{T 3} constituting the 54a to 54d, the second by a bias applying unit 44b, the bias of the same polarity as the polarity of the charged toner Is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 (S15). In this case, the bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 has a positive value. Specifically, a bias current value of +20 μA is applied as the current value. Then, since the polarity of the toner and the polarity of the secondary transfer roller 38 are repelled, the toner is transferred from the secondary transfer roller 38 to the transfer belt 35 side. This transfer is called retransfer.

Thereafter, the toner retransferred to the transfer belt 35 reaches the position 45 b where the pre-brush 39 is provided by the rotation of the transfer belt 35. Here, the pre-brush bias applying section 44c, biasing the minus side from time T ₁ to Pureburashi 39 because it is applied, the charge amount of the toner is re-transferred is reduced. That is, the polarity of the retransferred toner charged on the plus side is electrically close to the 0 side. Then, the electric adhesion force of the toner to the transfer belt 35 is reduced.

  Thereafter, the toner constituting the patch images 53a to 53d and 54a to 54d reaches the position 45c where the cleaning blade 40 is provided by the rotation of the transfer belt 35. In this case, since the polarity of the toner charged on the plus side is close to the 0 side, the electrical adhesion between the toner and the transfer belt 35 is greatly reduced. That is, the toner adhered on the transfer belt 35 is in a state of being adhered by weak electrical adhesion and weak physical adhesion. Therefore, the toner that has been retransferred easily can be removed from the transfer belt 35 by physical removal by the cleaning blade 40. That is, the toner adhered on the transfer belt 35 from the secondary transfer roller 38 side can be physically and efficiently removed from the transfer belt 35 by the cleaning blade 40.

Thereafter, at time _{T 6,} to stop the application of the bias to the secondary transfer roller 38 (S16), at time _{T 7} after a lapse of time _{T 6,} to stop the application of the bias to Pureburashi 39 (S17).

  According to such a digital multi-function peripheral 11, when the toner primarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35 is removed from the transfer belt 35, the second toner is passed through the position 45 a where the secondary transfer roller 38 is provided. First control is performed to apply a bias having a polarity opposite to that of the charged toner to the secondary transfer roller 38 by the bias applying unit 44b. Then, it is possible to reduce the electric adhesion force of the toner primarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35 to the transfer belt 35. Accordingly, the toner primarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35 can be physically and efficiently removed from the transfer belt 35 by the cleaning blade 40. Further, after the first control, a bias having the same polarity as that of the charged toner is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 by the second bias applying unit 44b, and the pre-brush bias applying unit 44c applies the toner to the pre-brush 39. A second control is performed in which a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity is applied to the pre-brush 39. Then, when the toner passes through the position 45a where the secondary transfer roller 38 is provided, the toner that physically adheres to the secondary transfer roller 38 side can be electrically and efficiently attached to the transfer belt 35 side. Then, a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner is applied to the pre-brush 39 disposed on the downstream side of the secondary transfer roller with respect to the toner attached to the transfer belt 35 side. It is possible to reduce the electrical adhesion of the toner to the transfer belt 35. Therefore, the toner attached on the transfer belt 35 from the secondary transfer roller 38 side can be physically and efficiently removed from the transfer belt 35 by the cleaning blade 40. As a result, the toner remaining on the transfer belt 35 can be efficiently removed with a simple configuration.

  In this case, since the toner is not forcibly adhered to the secondary transfer roller 38 and then retransferred to the transfer belt 35 side to remove the toner, the possibility of contamination of the secondary transfer roller 38 is greatly reduced. be able to. Specifically, for example, when a foamed rubber roller is used as the secondary transfer roller 38, it is possible to avoid a situation where toner is clogged on the surface of the foamed rubber roller.

  In the above embodiment, the bias is applied to the pre-brush 39 when the bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38. In doing so, it may be controlled not to apply a bias to the pre-brush 39 but to apply a bias when passing through the position 45b.

  Referring to FIG. 7 again, a line 57a indicates a bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 in this case, and a line 57b indicates a bias applied to the pre-brush 39.

As described above, upon reaching the time T _1, a negative bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 by the second bias applying portion 44b. Here, no bias is applied to the pre-brush 39 by the pre-brush bias application unit 44c. That is, at this time, no bias is applied to the pre-brush 39.

Then, the time reaches T _4, the second bias applying unit 44b, after applying a bias of the same polarity as the polarity of the toner to the secondary transfer roller 38, the distance to reach the position 45b from the position 45a, the transfer belt 35 when reaching the time T ₅ corresponding to the time required when rotating at a predetermined rotational speed, it applies the toner and opposite polarity bias Pureburashi 39 by pre-brush bias applying portion 44c. The time T ₆ for stopping the bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 and the time T ₇ for stopping the bias applied to the pre-brush 39 are the same as S16 and S17 described above.

  In this way, in consideration of the case where the secondary transfer roller 38 rotates a plurality of times, the electric adhesion force of the toner adhered on the transfer belt 35 to the transfer belt 35 can be efficiently reduced.

  Based on the above-described configuration, the effect of toner removal was confirmed using the digital multi-function peripheral 11 including the image forming unit 15 shown in FIG.

As an environment in which the digital multifunction peripheral 11 is arranged, the temperature is 10 ° C. and the humidity is 15%. The absolute water content measured by the absolute water content measuring unit 20 based on this temperature and humidity is 1.4 g / m ³ . As the toner, positively charged toner was used. Specifically, a toner having a charge amount of +30 to +40 μC / g was used. The linear velocity of the transfer belt 35 was 250 mm / second. As a material for the prebrush 39, conductive nylon (330D / kF, 120kF / inch ² ) was used. As a material for the cleaning blade 40, urethane rubber was used. As the secondary transfer roller 38, a conductive foam rubber roller was used.

The experimental conditions were as follows. As the digital multifunction peripheral 11, the digital multifunction peripheral 11 having an image formed on a sheet to some extent was used. Note that the bias current value of the secondary transfer roller 38 when the image was secondarily transferred to the paper was −40 μA. Then, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black single-color patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d were transferred to the transfer belt 35. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 7, during time T ₁ to time T ₇ , the paper is not fed, that is, the paper is not transported, and is passed through the position 45 a where the secondary transfer roller 38 is provided, so that the secondary transfer is performed. A bias was applied to the roller 38 and the pre-brush 39. Thereafter, paper was fed and it was confirmed whether the paper was dirty with toner. The confirmation results are shown in Table 1.

  Referring to Table 1, in Example 1, the bias current value applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 is set to −60 μA (microampere) which has a polarity opposite to that of the positively charged toner. The bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is set to −5 μA, which has a polarity opposite to that of the positively charged toner. According to such control, toner contamination does not occur. In the first embodiment, the bias application is controlled as shown by the lines 56a and 56b in FIG.

  In Comparative Example 1, the bias current value applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 is set to −40 μA, which has a polarity opposite to that of the positively charged toner. The bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is set to +10 μA which has the same polarity as the positively charged toner. According to such control, toner contamination has occurred.

  In Comparative Example 2, the bias current value applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 is set to −40 μA, which is the polarity opposite to that of the positively charged toner, as in Comparative Example 1. A bias is not applied to the pre-brush 39. Even with such a control, toner contamination has occurred. For Comparative Example 2 and Comparative Example 4 to be described later, bias application is controlled as shown by the lines 58a and 58b shown in FIG.

  In Comparative Example 3, the bias current value applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 is set to +20 μA, which is the same polarity as the positively charged toner. The bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is set to +5 μA which has the same polarity as the positively charged toner. Even with such a control, toner contamination has occurred.

Next, the bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 will be described. Here, the case of removing the retransferred toner will be described. The experimental conditions were as follows. A digital multifunction machine 11 having an image formed on paper to some extent was used. Note that the bias current value of the secondary transfer roller 38 when the image is secondarily transferred to the paper is −40 μA. Then, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black single-color patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d were transferred to the transfer belt 35. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 7, during time T ₁ to time T ₇ , the paper is not fed, that is, the paper is not transported, and is passed through the position 45 a where the secondary transfer roller 38 is provided, so that the secondary transfer is performed. A bias was applied to the roller 38 and the pre-brush 39. In this case, at time T _4, the bias current value to be applied during the re-transfer to the transfer belt 35 side by the secondary transfer roller 38, and all + 20 .mu.A. Thereafter, paper was fed and it was confirmed whether the paper was dirty with toner. The confirmation results are shown in Table 2.

  Referring to Table 2, in Example 2, the bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is set to −10 μA, which has a polarity opposite to that of the positively charged toner. According to such control, toner contamination does not occur. In Example 3, the bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is set to −5 μA, which has a polarity opposite to that of the positively charged toner. Even with such control, toner contamination does not occur.

  On the other hand, when no bias is applied to the pre-brush 39 as in Comparative Example 4, the bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is set to +5 μA, which is the same polarity as the positively charged toner, as in Comparative Example 5. In this case, as in Comparative Example 6, when the bias current value applied to the pre-brush 39 is +10 μA, which is the same polarity as the positively charged toner, toner contamination occurs in all cases. In Comparative Example 5 and Comparative Example 6, the bias application is controlled as shown by the lines 59a and 59b shown in FIG.

Next, the bias current value applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 will be described. The experimental conditions were as follows. A digital multifunction machine 11 having an image formed on paper to some extent was used. Then, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black single-color patch images 53 a to 53 d and 54 a to 54 d were transferred to the transfer belt 35. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 7, a bias was applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 and the pre-brush 39 from time T ₁ to time T ₇ . In this case, at time T ₄ , the bias current value applied at the time of retransfer to the transfer belt 35 side at the secondary transfer roller 38 was set to +20 μA. Thereafter, the paper was passed through a position 45a where the secondary transfer roller 38 was provided without feeding paper, that is, without carrying the paper. It was confirmed whether the paper at this time was stained with toner. The confirmation results are shown in Table 3.

Table 3 with reference to, for example 4, the bias current value to the secondary transfer roller 38 is applied at time T ₁ and -20Myuei, for example 5, the secondary transfer roller to be applied at time T ₁ The bias current value to 38 is −30 μA, and in Example 6, the bias current value to the secondary transfer roller 38 applied at time T ₁ is −40 μA, and in Example 7, the bias current value is applied at time T ₁ . The bias current value to the secondary transfer roller 38 is −50 μA, and in Example 8, the bias current value to the secondary transfer roller 38 applied at time T ₁ is −60 μA. The number of turns in Table 3 is the number of turns of the secondary transfer roller 38.

  In Example 4, although the number of laps is five, in Examples 5 to 8, the number of laps is three. The number of laps should be as small as possible. That is, it means that toner contamination is eliminated at an early stage. Therefore, the bias current value applied to the secondary transfer roller 38 is preferably set to −40 μA or less so that the number of rotations is set to 3 which is a smaller value. This current value of −40 μA is also a bias current value when the paper is transferred. That is, as the first control unit, the absolute value of the bias value applied by the second bias applying unit 44b is set to be equal to or less than the absolute value of the bias value applied when performing secondary transfer onto a sheet as a recording medium. Control.

In the above embodiment, the first and second control units may be operated when the absolute water content is 1.4 g / m ³ or less. Under such an environment, the charge amount of the toner becomes high, and the electrical adhesion to the transfer belt 35 becomes relatively strong. Accordingly, the first and second control units may be operated in such a case.

  In the above embodiment, the digital multifunction machine 11 may be configured not to include a temperature / humidity sensor that measures temperature and humidity. That is, it is good also as a structure which does not include an absolute water content measurement part. In this case, it is also possible to acquire data regarding the absolute water content from the outside via the network 25 and use the acquired data.

  In the above embodiment, the foamed rubber roller is used as the secondary transfer roller. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other types of secondary transfer rollers may be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the current value is specified when applying the bias. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the voltage value may be specified when applying the bias. Good.

  In the above embodiment, positively charged toner is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and negatively charged toner may be used. In this case, the applied bias is opposite to that of the positively charged toner.

  In the above embodiment, the transfer belt is applied as the transfer body. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other transfer bodies may be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the patch image formed with toner is primarily transferred onto the transfer belt 35 and the toner constituting the patch image is removed from the transfer belt 35 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, after primary transfer of an image formed with toner onto the transfer belt 35, the operation of the apparatus is stopped due to a paper jam, and the toner constituting the primary transferred image is removed from the transfer belt 35. It also applies to

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the contents of the processing when the toner remaining on the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 is removed after the paper jam occurs. The flowchart shown in FIG. 8 corresponds to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  Referring to FIG. 8, after digital multifunction peripheral 11 receives a request for printing on paper, photoreceptors 31 a to 31 d and developing units 32 a to 32 d form images with toner. The formed image is primarily transferred onto the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35 by the primary transfer rollers 36a to 36d.

  Thereafter, the digital multi-function peripheral 11 detects that the paper to be transported from the paper transport path 43a is not transported at a predetermined timing due to paper jam. That is, a paper jam is detected (S21).

  Then, the digital multi-function peripheral 11 stops its operation and displays a screen on the display screen 21 that prompts the user to remove the jammed paper. Thereafter, the digital multifunction peripheral 11 detects that the jammed paper has been removed by the user (S22).

  Then, the digital multifunction machine 11 resumes operation. That is, an attempt is made to request printing on the requested paper again. In this case, since the toner image is primarily transferred onto the surface 42 of the transfer belt 35, the toner constituting the primary transferred image is removed. Specifically, the same steps as S13 to S17 are performed in S23 to S27. That is, the primary transferred image is removed in the same manner as the patch image described above. You may decide to comprise in this way.

  It should be understood that the embodiments and examples disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and are not restrictive in any respect. The scope of the present invention is defined by the scope of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the scope of the claims.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention is particularly effectively used when it is required to remove the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer member efficiently with a simple configuration.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Digital multifunction device, 12 Control part, 13 Operation part, 14 Image reading part, 15 Image formation part, 16 Hard disk, 17 Facsimile communication part, 18 Network interface part, 19 Paper setting part, 20 Absolute moisture content measurement part, 21 Display Screen, 22 ADF, 23a, 23b, 23c Paper cassette, 24 Public line, 25 Network, 26a, 26b, 26c Computer, 27 Image forming system, 28 Manual feed tray, 29 Paper feed cassette group, 30 Eject tray, 31a, 31b , 31c, 31d Photoconductor, 32a, 32b, 32c, 32d Development unit, 33 Developer, 34 LSU, 35 Transfer belt, 36a, 36b, 36c, 36d Primary transfer roller, 37 Primary transfer unit, 38 Secondary transfer roller, 39 Rebrush, 40 Cleaning blade, 41a Driving roller, 41b Driven roller, 42 Surface, 43a, 43b Paper transport path, 44a First bias applying unit, 44b Second bias applying unit, 44c Pre-brush bias applying unit, 45a, 45b , 45c position, 46 toner amount detection sensor, 47a light emitting element, 47b light receiving element, 48 plane, 49a, 49b light, 50 visible image, 51, 52 patch image group, 53a, 53b, 53c, 53d, 54a, 54b, 54c , 54d patch images, lines 56a, 56b, 57a, 57b, 58a, 58b, 59a, 59b.

Claims (5)

A photoreceptor,
A developing unit for supplying a charged toner to the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive member to form a visible image on the photosensitive member;
An intermediate transfer member that rotates in one direction and is primarily transferred onto the visible image of the toner formed on the photosensitive member by the developing unit;
A primary transfer roller that primarily transfers a visible image formed by the toner formed on the photosensitive member onto the intermediate transfer member by applying a bias;
A first bias applying unit that applies a bias to the primary transfer roller;
A secondary transfer roller that secondary-transfers a visible image of the toner that has been primary-transferred onto the intermediate transfer body by applying a bias onto a recording medium;
A second bias applying unit for applying a bias to the secondary transfer roller;
A pre-brush disposed on the downstream side of the secondary transfer roller in the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer member, and abutting against the surface of the intermediate transfer member;
A pre-brush bias application unit for applying a bias to the pre-brush;
A cleaning blade disposed on the downstream side of the pre-brush in the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer body, and abutting against the surface of the intermediate transfer body to remove toner remaining on the intermediate transfer body;
Upon removal of the toner first transferred onto the intermediate transfer member from the intermediate transfer member, the toner was charged by the second bias applying unit when the toner passed through the position where the secondary transfer roller was provided. A first controller that controls to apply a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner to the secondary transfer roller;
After the first control unit operates, the second bias application unit applies a bias having the same polarity as the charged toner to the secondary transfer roller, and the pre-brush bias application unit An image forming apparatus comprising: a second control unit that controls the prebrush so that a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner is applied to the prebrush. When the toner passes through the position where the secondary transfer roller is provided, the first control unit applies a bias having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner to the prebrush by the prebrush bias applying unit. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is controlled to be applied to the image forming apparatus. The first control unit controls the absolute value of the bias value applied by the second bias applying unit to be equal to or less than the absolute value of the bias value applied when secondary transfer is performed on the recording medium; The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second control unit controls the bias application by the pre-brush bias application unit to be 40 μA or more as an absolute value of a current value. . An absolute water content measurement unit that measures the absolute water content of the environment in which the image forming apparatus is disposed;
The first and second control units operate when the absolute moisture content in the environment where the image forming apparatus is measured, which is measured by the absolute moisture content measurement unit, is 1.4 g / m ³ or less. Item 5. The image forming apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 4.

Images