JP2017173556A - Cleaning device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To recover, into a housing, a toner removed from a surface of an image holding member with a cleaning member having a blade member attached to the leading end of a thin-plate member, and to prevent the removed toner from leaking from the housing at the ends in the longitudinal direction of the thin-plate member.SOLUTION: In a cleaning device 30 that uses a cleaning member 31 having a blade member 31b attached to the leading end of a thin-plate member 31a along the longitudinal direction, brings the blade member of the cleaning member into contact with a surface of a photoreceptor 10 to remove a toner t on the surface of the photoreceptor, and recovers the removed toner into the housing 32, sealing members 34 are attached to the ends in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member, and the sealing members are brought into pressure contact with the surface of the photoreceptor and an opposing portion 32a of the housing arranged opposite thereto to be moved together with the cleaning member.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning device in which toner on the surface of an image holding member is removed by a cleaning member, and an image forming apparatus using such a cleaning device. In particular, a cleaning member in which a blade member is attached along the longitudinal direction at the front end portion of the thin plate member is used, and the blade member in this cleaning member is brought into contact with the surface of the image holding member, so that toner on the surface of the image holding member In the cleaning device that removes and collects the removed toner in the housing, the toner removed from the surface of the image holding member by the cleaning member leaks from the housing at the longitudinal end of the thin plate member in the cleaning member. It is characterized in that it is appropriately prevented.

  Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a composite machine thereof, after transferring a toner image from an image holding member that holds and moves the toner image on the surface, the surface of the image holding member The toner remaining on the toner image is removed from the surface of the image holding member by a cleaning device. For example, after the toner image formed on the photosensitive member is transferred to an intermediate transfer member such as an intermediate transfer belt or a recording sheet, the toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive member is removed by a cleaning device, or the toner image is transferred to the intermediate transfer member. After the transferred toner image is transferred to a recording sheet, the toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer member is removed by a cleaning device.

  As such a cleaning device, conventionally, a toner image is transferred with the tip of a plate-like cleaning blade made of rubber such as urethane directed in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the image holding member. The toner remaining on the surface of the image holding member is removed from the surface of the image holding member by the cleaning blade, and the removed toner is collected in the housing. The ones made are widely used.

  Here, when the toner remaining on the surface of the image holding member is removed by bringing the tip of the plate-shaped cleaning blade made of rubber into pressure contact with the surface of the image holding member, the permanent deformation of the rubber In consideration of, for example, abrasion of rubber due to printing durability, the pressure for pressing the tip of the cleaning blade against the surface of the image holding member is increased.

  However, when the pressure that presses the tip of the cleaning blade against the surface of the image holding member is increased, for example, in the case of an image holding member made of a photoconductor, the amount by which the photosensitive layer on the photoconductor is scraped by the cleaning blade. Increases the life of the photoconductor, or the cleaning blade itself is easily bent, and the image where the tip of the cleaning blade moves due to friction between the tip of the cleaning blade and the surface of the image holding member. When pulled by the holding member, the tip portion of the cleaning blade is inverted and turned up, causing problems such as difficulty in properly cleaning the surface of the image holding member.

  Therefore, in recent years, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a blade member 31b made of an elastic material such as rubber along the longitudinal direction at the tip of a thin plate member 31a made of a metal leaf spring or the like. Is used, and the blade member 31b of the cleaning member 31 is brought into contact with the surface of the photoconductor 10 as an image holding member to remove the toner t remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 10. A cleaning device 30 has been proposed in which the removed toner t is collected in the housing 32 and discharged by the discharge member 33.

  In the cleaning device 30 as described above, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the toner t removed from the surface of the photosensitive member 10 by the blade member 31 b in the cleaning member 31 is at the end in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 31. In order to prevent leakage from the gap portion between the housing 32 and the housing 32, a seal member 34 made of a foam material is provided in the gap portion between the longitudinal end of the cleaning member 31 and the housing 32. It is done.

  However, since the thin plate member 31a and the seal member 34 rub against each other due to fine movement during cleaning of the cleaning member 31, the contact surface of the seal member 34 with the thin plate member 31a may be scraped by the thin plate member 31a. In particular, since the end portion in the longitudinal direction of the thin plate member 31a has a sharp square shape, the contact surface is likely to be scraped, and the seal durability may be greatly reduced.

  Conventionally, in the one shown in Patent Document 1, a thin plate member provided with a bent portion is used as the cleaning member, and the gap between the longitudinal end of the cleaning member and the housing is used. It has been proposed to provide a seal member for preventing the toner from leaking out, and to provide a side plate portion that slides in contact with the seal member at the longitudinal end portion of the cleaning member.

  However, when the side plate portion that slides in contact with the seal member is provided at the longitudinal end portion of the cleaning member in this way, there is a possibility that the seal member is scraped by the thin plate member in the cleaning member due to the presence of the side plate portion. Although reduced, the flexibility of the thin plate member in the cleaning member deteriorates, and there is a possibility that the toner remaining on the surface of the image holding member cannot be removed properly.

JP 2014-167551 A

  The present invention uses a cleaning member in which a blade member is attached to the front end portion of a thin plate member along the longitudinal direction. The blade member in the cleaning member is brought into contact with the surface of the image holding member to In the cleaning apparatus that removes the toner and collects the removed toner in the housing, the toner removed from the surface of the image holding member by the cleaning member is disposed at the longitudinal end portion of the thin plate member in the cleaning member. It is an object to appropriately prevent leakage from the water.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the cleaning device according to the present invention uses a cleaning member in which a blade member is attached to the front end portion of the thin plate member along the longitudinal direction. In a cleaning device that abuts to remove toner on the surface of the image holding member and collects the removed toner in the housing, a seal member is attached to the longitudinal end of the thin plate member, It is characterized in that it is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the image holding member and a facing portion of the housing facing the image holding member and moves together with the cleaning member.

  As described above, the seal member is attached to the longitudinal end portion of the thin plate member, and the seal member is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the image holding member and the portion of the housing facing the surface. The toner removed from the surface of the image holding member can be prevented from leaking from the end portion in the longitudinal direction of the thin plate member. Further, since the seal member is moved together with the cleaning member, it is possible to prevent the thin plate member and the seal member from rubbing against each other due to the fine movement of the cleaning member. As a result, the deterioration of the sealing performance due to the scraping of the seal member is eliminated, and the leakage of toner from the housing can be prevented over a long period of time.

  It is preferable that the sealing member protrude in the thickness direction and the height direction with respect to the blade portion. In this way, by projecting the seal member in the thickness direction, the seal member can be appropriately pressed against the surface of the image holding member and the portion of the housing opposite to the surface, and project in the height direction. Thus, a wall can be formed on the upper end side of the blade portion, and the toner removed by the blade member is appropriately guided along the wall to the inner side of the housing.

  The deformation amount L1 on the image holding member side of the seal member when the seal member is mounted between the image holding member and the facing portion is more than the deformation amount L2 on the facing portion side. May be larger. In this way, it is easy to adjust the amount of biting of the blade member with respect to the image holding member at the longitudinal end portion of the blade member so that the amount of biting of the blade member with respect to the image holding member is uniform over the entire length direction. become.

  Further, a convex portion can be formed on the surface of the seal member that is attached to the thin plate member so as to protrude from the surface, and the seal member can be attached to the thin plate member by the convex portion. . In this way, a cleaning member having a general shape in which the thin plate member and the blade member have the same length in the longitudinal direction can be used.

  Further, both end portions in the longitudinal direction of the thin plate member may be protruded with respect to the blade member, and the seal member may be attached to the protruding portion. In this case, since it is not necessary to form a convex portion on the seal member, the seal member can be formed in, for example, a simple rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced and the assembly of the cleaning member can be reduced. Can also be improved.

  Further, when projecting both ends of the thin plate member in the longitudinal direction relative to the blade member, forming a cut in the seal member, and inserting the protruding portion of the thin plate member into this cut, The seal member can be attached to the thin plate member.

  Moreover, a soft polyurethane foam can be used for the sealing member. Since the sealing member made of the flexible polyurethane foam can be displaced following the displacement of the cleaning member accurately, good sealing performance can be obtained.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the cleaning device as described above is used as a cleaning device for removing toner on the surface of the image holding member.

  In the cleaning device according to the present invention, the seal member is attached to the longitudinal end of the thin plate member, and the seal member is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the image holding member and the portion of the housing facing the surface. The toner removed from the surface of the image holding member by the cleaning member can be prevented from leaking out from the end portion in the longitudinal direction of the thin plate member. Further, since the seal member is made to follow the displacement of the thin plate member, the thin plate member and the seal member can be prevented from being rubbed by the fine movement of the cleaning member. As a result, the deterioration of the sealing performance due to the scraping of the seal member is eliminated, and the leakage of toner from the housing can be prevented over a long period of time.

  As a result, when the cleaning device of the present invention is used, the toner removed from the surface of the image holding member by the cleaning member is appropriately prevented from leaking from the housing at the longitudinal end of the thin plate member of the cleaning member. As a result, it is possible to prevent each device provided in the image forming apparatus from becoming dirty.

In a conventional cleaning device, a cleaning member in which a blade member is attached along the longitudinal direction at the distal end portion of a thin plate member is used, and the blade member in this cleaning member is brought into contact with the surface of the image holding member to FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory view seen from the side showing a state in which a seal member is provided between a longitudinal end of a cleaning member and a housing when removing toner on the surface. In the said conventional cleaning apparatus, it is the schematic explanatory drawing seen from the upper surface side which showed the state which provided the sealing member between the edge part of the longitudinal direction of a cleaning member, and a housing. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional explanatory view showing a usage state of an image forming apparatus using the cleaning device according to the embodiment of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The cleaning apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention is shown, (A) is the schematic explanatory drawing seen from the front side, (B) is an AA line schematic sectional drawing. It is the schematic explanatory drawing which cut off partially showing the outline | summary of the attachment location of the sealing member of the cleaning apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the schematic plan view which showed the outline | summary of the attachment location of the sealing member of the cleaning apparatus of FIG. It is the schematic explanatory drawing which showed the outline | summary of the attachment location of the sealing member of the cleaning apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is the schematic plan view which showed the outline | summary of the attachment location of the sealing member of the cleaning apparatus of FIG.

  Next, a cleaning device and an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The cleaning device and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention are not limited to those shown in the following embodiments, and can be implemented with appropriate modifications within a range that does not change the gist thereof.

  In the image forming apparatus 100 according to this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, four developing devices each containing a developer corresponding to four photoconductors (image holding members) 10 on which toner images are formed. 13, each developing device 13 uses different colors of toner in each developer, and uses black, yellow, magenta, and cyan toners.

  Here, in the image forming apparatus 100, the respective photoconductors 10 are rotated and the surfaces of the respective photoconductors 10 are charged by the charging devices 11, respectively. Each of the latent image forming devices 12 performs exposure according to the image forming information to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface of each photoconductor 10.

  Then, for each photoconductor 10 on which an electrostatic latent image is formed in this manner, a toner of a predetermined color is supplied from the corresponding developing device 13 to the electrostatic latent image on each photoconductor 10 to perform development. A toner image of each color is formed on the surface of each photoconductor 10.

  Next, the surface of the intermediate transfer belt (image holding member) 14 in the form of an endless belt that is rotated around the rotation roller 14a by transferring the color toner images formed on the respective photoreceptors 10 as described above. In addition, primary transfer is sequentially performed by the respective primary transfer rollers 15 provided to face the respective photoreceptors 10 so as to form a full-color toner image on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14.

  Further, the toner t not transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 14 but remaining on the surface of each photoconductor 10 is removed from the surface of each photoconductor 10 by the first cleaning device 30.

  The full-color toner image formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14 as described above is guided to a position facing the secondary transfer roller 16 by the intermediate transfer belt 14.

  On the other hand, the recording sheet S accommodated in the lower part of the image forming apparatus 100 is fed by the sheet feeding roller 17 and sent to the timing roller 18, and the recording sheet S is fed by the timing roller 18 to the intermediate transfer belt 14 and the secondary transfer roller. 16, the toner image formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14 is transferred to the recording sheet S by the secondary transfer roller 16. Further, the toner t remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14 without being transferred to the recording sheet S is removed from the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14 by the second cleaning device 30.

  Then, the recording sheet S to which the toner image is transferred as described above is guided to the fixing device 19, and after the transferred toner image is fixed to the recording sheet S by the fixing device 19, the toner image is thus formed. The fixed recording sheet S is discharged by a discharge roller 20.

  Here, the first cleaning device 30 that removes the toner t remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 10 without being transferred on the photoconductor 10 as described above will be described as an example. The second cleaning device 30 that removes the toner t remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 14 can be similarly configured.

  In the first cleaning device 30 according to the first embodiment, as in the conventional cleaning device 30 shown in FIG. 1, the front end of the thin plate member 31a composed of a metal plate spring or the like is disposed in the longitudinal direction. A cleaning member 31 to which a blade member 31b made of an elastic material such as rubber is attached is used. The blade member 31b of the cleaning member 31 is brought into contact with the surface of the photoconductor 10, and the surface of the photoconductor 10 The toner t remaining in the toner is removed, and the removed toner t is collected in the housing 32 and discharged by the discharge member 33. Note that the blade member 31b is disposed over the longitudinal direction in a range equal to or larger than the image forming region.

  In the first embodiment, the lower end side of the thin plate member 31 a of the cleaning member 31 is fixed to the fixing member 35 provided in the housing 32. The distance between the photosensitive member 10 and the blade member 31b is defined by the installation position and the installation angle of the fixing member 35, and the free length of the thin plate member 31a is defined from the fixing position of the thin plate member 31a with respect to the fixing member 35. The By defining the fixing position of the thin plate member 31a, the amount of deflection of the thin plate member 31a is defined, and the blade member 31b comes into contact with the photoreceptor 10 with a predetermined pressure by the action of the plate spring in the thin plate member 31a.

  Here, examples of the metal material of the thin plate member 31a include stainless steel and phosphor bronze having high corrosion resistance, and stainless steel having high strength and low fatigue is particularly suitable. The thickness of the thin plate member 31a is desirably set to about 0.03 to 0.1 mm in order to ensure good followability to the photoreceptor 10.

  Examples of the material of the blade member 31b include urethane rubber used in conventional cleaning blades. For example, fluorine rubber (FKM), styrene butadiene rubber (SBR), and acrylonitrile rubber (NBR) are also used. In addition, a material excellent in wear resistance and ozone resistance can be used. This

  An adhesive may be used for joining the thin plate member 31a and the blade member 31b. As this adhesive, a thermoplastic hot-melt adhesive can be used. Further, such an adhesive can be used for fixing the thin plate member 31 a and the fixing member 35 and fixing the fixing member 35 and the housing 32.

  Further, in the first cleaning device 30 according to the first embodiment, as in the conventional cleaning device 30 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the gap between the longitudinal end portion of the cleaning member 31 and the housing 32 is also used. A seal member 34 is provided in a gap portion between the end portion in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 31 and the housing 32 so as to prevent the toner t from leaking from the portion. The seal member 34 is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the photoconductor 10 and the facing portion 32a of the housing 32 facing the surface of the photoconductor 10, and is made to follow the displacement of the cleaning member 31. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, since the seal member 34 and the cleaning member 31 are engaged and integrated with each other, the seal member 34 and the cleaning member 31 are integrated without being in sliding contact with each other. It behaves with. When the seal member 34 is pressed between the photosensitive member 10 and the facing portion 32a, the sealing member 34 is brought into contact with the photosensitive member 10 and the facing portion 32a in the direction in which the blade member 31b contacts the photosensitive member 10. The closed space is formed between the photosensitive member 10 and the housing 32 by closely contacting each other. In this embodiment, the longitudinal end surface of the blade member 31 b is in contact with the seal member 34, and the longitudinal end surface of the thin plate member 31 a is in contact with the seal member 34.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the seal member 34 in the first cleaning device 30 in this embodiment has a vertically long rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a convex portion 34 a is formed on the surface facing the cleaning member 31. Have. That is, in the sealing member 34, a convex portion 34a is formed on the surface attached to the thin plate member 31a so as to protrude from the surface.

  A cut 34b is formed in the longitudinal direction on the substantially central side of the convex portion 34a, and the thin plate member 31a is inserted into the cut 34b. The longitudinal end of the blade member 31b is located above the convex portion 34a. The lower surface of the longitudinal end of the blade member 31b may be in contact with the upper surface of the convex portion 34a.

  The sealing member 34 is made of a foam material that can be closely attached to improve the sealing performance. And as this foaming material, the foam excellent in expansion-contraction responsiveness, for example, rubber-type urethane, a urethane foam, a melamine foam, etc. are used, It is preferable to use especially a flexible polyurethane foam. The convex portion 34a may be formed of a material different from that of the seal member 34, or may be integrally formed of the same material.

  The seal member 34 projects in the thickness direction and the height direction with respect to the blade member 31b. By projecting in the thickness direction in this way, the seal member 34 can be appropriately brought into pressure contact with the surface of the photoreceptor 10 and the facing portion 32a of the housing 32 facing the surface. Further, since the portion protruding in the height direction forms a wall on the upper end side of the blade member 31b, the toner t removed by the blade member 31b is appropriately guided to the inside of the housing 32 along the wall.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, in order to attach the seal member 34 between the photoconductor 10 and the facing portion 32a and make them closely contact with each other, the seal member 34 has a side of the photoconductor 10 side. Deformation amount L1 and deformation amount L2 on the facing portion 32a side occur. The deformation amounts L1 and L2 are subtracted values obtained by subtracting the length of the seal member 34 in close contact from the length of the seal member 34 in non-contact (see phantom line).

  The deformation amount L1 on the side of the photoconductor 10 of the seal member 34 is desirably larger than the deformation amount L2 on the side of the facing portion. Here, the deformation amount L1 of the seal member 34 on the photosensitive member 10 side is determined by the biting setting of the blade member 31b into the photosensitive member 10. In order to make the deformation amount L1 on the photosensitive member 10 side of the seal member 34 larger than the deformation amount L2 on the facing portion 32a side (L1> L2), for example, position adjustment on the housing 32 side or seal member 34 is adjusted by adjusting the protruding amount (changing the thickness of the seal member 34, changing the position of the notch 34b).

  As described above, in the cleaning device 30 according to the first embodiment, the seal member 34 is attached to the longitudinal end portion of the cleaning member 31, and the seal member 34 is attached to the surface of the photoconductor 10 and the surface thereof. The toner t removed from the surface of the photosensitive member 10 by the cleaning member 31 leaks out at the end of the thin plate member 31a in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member 31 because it is brought into pressure contact with the opposing portion 32a of the opposing housing 32. Can be prevented. Further, since the seal member 34 is made to follow the displacement of the thin plate member 31a, it is possible to prevent the thin plate member 31a and the seal member 34 from being rubbed with each other by the fine movement of the cleaning member 31. As a result, it is possible to prevent deterioration of the sealing performance due to the sealing member 34 being scraped by the thin plate member 31a of the cleaning member 31, and to prevent the toner t from leaking out of the housing 32 over a long period of time.

  Further, when the deformation amount L1 on the photoconductor 10 side of the seal member 34 is larger than the deformation amount L2 on the facing portion 32a side, the photoconductor 10 of the blade member 31b at the end in the longitudinal direction of the blade member 31b. It is easy to adjust the amount of biting to the side, and make the amount of biting of the blade member 31b to the photosensitive member 10 side constant over the entire longitudinal direction.

  When the seal member 34 is attached to the thin plate member 31a by the convex portion 34a formed on the seal member 34, the thin plate member 31a and the blade member 31b have a general shape in which the length is the same. The member 31 can be used.

  Next, the cleaning device 30 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.

  The seal member 34A used in the cleaning device 30 of the second embodiment does not have the convex portion 34a that the seal member 34 in the cleaning device 30 of the first embodiment has.

  Here, the seal member 34 </ b> A has a vertically long rectangular parallelepiped shape, and has a cut 34 b in the vertical direction at a substantially central side of the surface facing the cleaning member 31. The thin plate member 31a in the cleaning member 31A is formed longer in the longitudinal direction than the blade member 31b and protrudes with respect to the blade member 31b. The protruding portion (thin plate protruding portion) is a cut of the seal member 34A. It is inserted into the insert 34b. In this embodiment, the longitudinal end surface of the blade member 31b is brought into contact with the seal member 34A.

  Here, since the sealing member 34A does not have the convex portion 34a in the sealing member 34, the sealing member 34A can have a simple rectangular parallelepiped shape. As a result, the manufacturing cost of the cleaning device 30 can be reduced and the assemblability can be improved.

  In the cleaning device 30 of the second embodiment, as in the cleaning device 30 of the first embodiment, the toner t removed from the surface of the photoreceptor 10 by the cleaning member 31A is in the longitudinal direction of the thin plate member 31a in the cleaning member 31A. It is possible to prevent the seal member 34A from leaking out of the housing at the end of the seal. Further, the sealing performance is not deteriorated due to the cutting of the seal member 34A, and the toner t can be prevented from leaking out of the housing 32 for a long period of time.

  In Embodiments 1 and 2, the seal member 34 (34A) is attached to the thin plate member 31a of the cleaning member 31 (31A) by inserting (press-fitting) the thin plate member 31a into the notch 34b. The seal member 34 (34A) may be attached to the thin plate member 31a of the cleaning member 31 (31A) using an adhesive, a tape, or the like.

  Next, evaluation tests of the cleaning apparatuses of Embodiments 1 and 2 and the conventional cleaning apparatus were performed, and the results are shown in Table 1.

  Here, in the evaluation test, the toner leakage state after the durability evaluation and the cleaning property were evaluated using an experimental machine. As an experimental machine, a photoconductor cleaning unit (cleaning device) of bizhub C284e manufactured by Konica Minolta Co., Ltd. was modified so that a cleaning blade made of a metal thin plate member and an elastic member contact member could be installed. As an experimental method, a seal member was installed in the photoreceptor cleaning unit, and an endurance test was performed under the following conditions.

  Here, in the endurance test, 100,000 images were intermittently printed with two images corresponding to a printing rate of 5% in a room temperature and humidity environment of room temperature 23 ° C. and humidity 50% RH.

  Further, the following seal members were prepared in each experiment. The formation position of the notch 34b was adjusted based on the relationship between the deformation amount L1 on the photoconductor side and the deformation amount L2 on the facing portion 32a side. The relationship between L1 and L2 is shown in Table 1.

  Experimental examples 1, 2, and 3 correspond to Embodiment 1 using the cleaning member 31 and the sealing member 34. In these experimental examples, the sealing member 34 has a thickness of 7.4 mm, a height of 20 mm, and a width. The convex portion 34a has a thickness of 2 mm, a height of 6 mm, and a width of 5 mm.

  Experimental examples 4 and 5 correspond to the second embodiment using the cleaning member 31A and the sealing member 34A. In these experimental examples, the sealing member 34A has a thickness of 7.4 mm, a height of 20 mm, and a width of 5 mm. The protruding portion of the thin plate had a thickness of 80 μm, a free length of 14 mm, and a width of 4 mm.

  Further, under the same conditions as described above, the conventional photoreceptor cleaning unit having the structure of FIG. 1 was also evaluated. This result is shown as Comparative Example 1 in Table 1. The sealing member used in Comparative Example 1 is one in which the convex portion 34a of the first embodiment is not formed.

  Other conditions not described in Table 1 are shown below. The blade member was made of urethane rubber and had a thickness of 2 mm, a length of 8 mm, and a width of 340 mm. The thin plate member is made of SUS304 and has a thickness of 80 μm, a free length of 14 mm, and a width of 340 mm. Regarding the setting conditions, the contact pressure was 23 N / m, and the effective contact angle (θ) was 15 °. Moreover, about the sealing member, what consists of a flexible urethane foam was used. For the housing, the distance from the back of the blade was set to 3 mm.

  The evaluation of toner leakage in Table 1 is based on the endurance unit that is printed by printing a half image and the occurrence of image defects due to toner leakage in the machine (determined from the relationship between the toner accumulation position outside the housing and the half streak). Judgment was made visually, and “X” was indicated when an image defect due to toner leakage was confirmed, and “◯” (not generated) when not confirmed.

  Also, the evaluation of blade turning in Table 1 is “◎” when 50 sheets of solid white images were printed after endurance, and no blade turning occurred at the time when 50 sheets were output and there was no increase in torque. When there was no blade turning at the time of sheet output and the torque increase was slight, “◯”, and when blade turning at the time of 50 sheet output (torque sudden increase), “x”.

  As a result, in Experimental Examples 1 to 5, toner leakage and blade turning did not occur within the practical range. On the other hand, in Comparative Example 1, cracks are seen in the seal member with durability, and the toner flows out to the outside through the portion and adheres to the charging device 11 and the latent image forming device 12, thereby causing image defects. Caused.

  From the above, it can be seen that the embodiment can achieve both long-term toner sealability and blade turning resistance.

10: Photoconductor (image holding member)
11: Charging device 12: Latent image forming device 13: Developing device 14: Intermediate transfer belt 14a: Rotating roller 15: Primary transfer roller 16: Secondary transfer roller 17: Paper feed roller 18: Timing roller 19: Fixing device 20: Ejection Paper roller 30: Cleaning device 31: Cleaning member 31A: Cleaning member 31a: Thin plate member 31b: Blade member 32: Housing 33: Discharge member 34: Seal member 34A: Seal member 34a: Convex portion 34b: Cut 100: Image formation Apparatus S: Recording sheet t: Toner

Claims (8)

  Using a cleaning member having a blade member attached along the longitudinal direction at the tip of the thin plate member, the blade member in this cleaning member is brought into contact with the surface of the image holding member to remove toner on the surface of the image holding member. In the cleaning device for collecting the removed toner in the housing, a seal member is attached to the longitudinal end portion of the thin plate member, and the seal member is attached to the surface of the image holding member and the facing portion of the housing facing the surface. A cleaning device, wherein the cleaning device is moved in pressure contact with the cleaning member.   The cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the seal member protrudes in a thickness direction and a height direction with respect to the blade member.   3. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a deformation amount L <b> 1 of the seal member on the side of the image holding member when the seal member is mounted between the image holding member and the facing portion is set. The cleaning device is larger than the deformation amount L2 on the side of the facing portion.   In the cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, a convex portion is formed on the surface of the seal member that is attached to the thin plate member so as to protrude from the surface, A cleaning device in which a sealing member is attached to the thin plate member by the convex portion.   4. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein both end portions of the thin plate member in the longitudinal direction protrude from the blade member, and the seal member is attached to the protruding portion. A cleaning device.   6. The cleaning device according to claim 5, wherein a cut is formed in the seal member, and the seal member is attached to the thin plate member by inserting a protruding portion of the thin plate member into the cut. A cleaning device characterized by.   6. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the seal member is made of a soft polyurethane foam.   An image forming apparatus comprising a cleaning device for removing toner on the surface of an image holding member, wherein the cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is used.

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