JP2867167B2 - Manufacturing method of hybrid semiconductor structure - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an inkjet image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording material using an inkjet recording unit.

[Conventional technology]

2. Description of the Related Art An image forming apparatus (e.g., an apparatus having a recording unit) such as a printer, a copier, and a facsimile is configured to form an image including a dot pattern on a recording material such as paper or a plastic thin plate based on image information. Have been.

The image forming apparatus can be classified into an ink jet type, a wire dot type, a thermal type, a laser beam type, and the like according to a recording method. Among them, the ink jet type forms an image by discharging ink on a recording material. Is configured.

In the above-described image forming apparatus, it is necessary to convey a recording material from a paper feeding unit such as a cassette to an ejection unit through an image forming unit (recording unit).

In this case, the recording material is always controlled at a fixed timing from when the recording material is fed to when an image is formed and when the recording material is discharged.

Of these, from the paper feed timing to the image formation, the position where the image is formed on the recording material is affected, so that accurate conveyance is particularly required.

In addition, during image formation, if the conveyance speed of the recording material is not constant, the magnification of the image is shifted, and the image is expanded and contracted.

In particular, in the case of an image forming apparatus in which a plurality of image forming units (recording heads) are arranged side by side, such as for a color image, deviation occurs between images recorded by the respective image forming units.

In the case of a color image recording apparatus, this shift appears as a color shift, resulting in an image defect.

In order to prevent such a problem, it is necessary to accurately transmit the conveyance force of the conveyance means, which is controlled with high accuracy, to the recording material.

Conventionally, various transport means have been proposed as a transport system taking such points into consideration.

For example, there is a method in which a recording material is sent out by a pair of rollers and is regulated in a conveying direction by a guide.

In this method, the recording material is sent out by the pressure between the rollers, so that the conveying force is strong, and it is a simple and reliable method.

However, it is necessary to arrange the roller pairs at intervals shorter than the minimum length of the recording material to be used, which is unsuitable for feeding, for example, a postcard or business card size sheet. Further, there is also a problem that it cannot be used when it is necessary to keep the recording surface in a non-contact state, such as from the time when the image is transferred by an electrophotographic drum to the time when the image is fixed.

As a transport device for solving these problems, there has been proposed a transport device using an endless belt and bringing a recording material into close contact with the endless belt by electrostatic attraction.

[Technical problem to be solved by the invention]

By the way, in the case of a belt-type transport device using electrostatic attraction, especially in the case of a color image forming device using a plurality of image forming means (recording head, transfer drum, etc.), the image forming position of each image forming means It is necessary to keep the conveying speed of the belt precise in order to make the accuracy of the belt accurate.

On the other hand, in the belt-type transfer device by the electrostatic suction,
As the rubbing member that rubs against the transport belt, for example, an electrostatic attraction unit (electrostatic attraction assisting member), and a blade or an ink absorber for cleaning (cleaning) the belt surface are used. .

The presence of these rubbing members causes a load when the belt is conveyed, and increases the rotation unevenness of the drive source, causes a slight slip between the drive roller and the belt, and causes the conveyance speed to be disturbed. .

When the conveyance speed is disturbed, for example, the image recorded by the first recording head (image forming unit) in the recording head unit (image forming unit) is added to the image by the second recording head (image forming unit). When trying to overlap, the time required for the image recorded by the first recording head to reach the second recording head changes, resulting in a recording deviation,
In the case of a color image, a color shift occurs.

In particular, if the material of the conveyor belt is a rubber-based material and the blade is also a rubber-based material, the load torque is greatly increased due to the rubbing of the two, which causes a large image shift.

The present invention has been made in view of the technical problems in such an inkjet image forming apparatus, and an object of the present invention is to reduce the transport load at the time of image formation so that the transport speed can be precisely maintained. Inkjet that can prevent stretch, shrinkage, and image shift of recorded images, and can accurately maintain the transport accuracy of the endless transport member while reliably cleaning the transport surface that electrostatically attracts the recording material. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus.

[Means for solving the problem]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink-jet image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording material using an ink-jet recording unit, the device comprising a charged conveying surface for suction-conveying the recording material. An endless transport member, a blade member that slidably rubs against the transport surface on the downstream side in the recording material transport direction of the inkjet recording unit, and a downstream side in the recording material transport direction of the blade member,
An ink absorbing member that slidably rubs on the transport surface, control for separating the blade member from the transport surface when performing image formation on the recording material by the inkjet recording unit, and cleaning of the transport surface And control means for controlling the blade member and the ink absorbing member to come into contact with the transport surface.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, the inkjet recording unit arranges an ink ejection unit that ejects inks of different colors along the recording material transport direction, or The image-recording material, after the image is formed by the inkjet recording unit, before the blade member slides on the conveyance surface of the endless conveyance member, by being configured to be separated from the conveyance surface,
The above object is achieved more efficiently.

〔Example〕

 Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration example of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial longitudinal sectional view showing a main part configuration in FIG.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 301 denotes a scanner unit that reads a document and converts it into an electric signal.

The converted signal is provided as a drive signal to the recording head unit 305 of the recording device unit 302.

The recording paper as one of the recording materials stored in the cassette 303 is sent one by one toward the belt transport unit 304 as needed.

The recording material (recording paper or the like) is recorded with an image by the recording head unit 305 when passing through the belt transport unit 304, and is sent to a tray 420 via a fixing sheet discharging unit 307.

Reference numeral 306 denotes a recovery cap unit, which has a function of keeping the recording head unit 305 in a recordable state at all times.

Here, in the print head unit 305, a plurality of (for example, four) long print heads are arranged so that the ejection openings are multi-lined in a line shape and the paper width of the recording material is covered. Full color recording is possible.

When the recording heads 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D are full-color, for example, they can be recording heads using inks of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black.

The recording head 1 (arbitrary or all of the recording heads 1A to 1D) is an inkjet recording head that discharges ink using thermal energy,
It has an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy.

In addition, the ink jet recording heads 1A to 1D perform recording by discharging ink from discharge ports by growth of bubbles due to film boiling generated by thermal energy applied by the electrothermal transducer.

In the scanner unit 301, reference numeral 401 denotes a document, and reference numeral 402 denotes a document scanning unit that scans the document.

The original scanning unit 402 includes a rod array lens 403,
1x color separation line sensor (color image sensor) 40
4. Built-in exposure means 405.

At least the document scanning unit 402
When moving and scanning in the direction of arrow A to read the image of the original, the exposure lamp in the exposure means 405 in the original scanning unit 402 is turned on, and the reflected light from the original 401 is guided by the rod array lens 403 to read the color information. The light is condensed on an equal-size color separation line sensor (hereinafter referred to as a reading sensor) 404 as a sensor, and color image information of the document 401 is read for each color and converted into an electric digital signal.

 This digital signal is sent to the recording device section 302.

Driving signals based on these signals are supplied to the recording heads 1A to 1D for each color, ink is ejected, and an image is formed.

3 and 4, the belt transport unit 304
It has a transport belt (endless belt) 201 wrapped around at least two rollers 202 and 203. An insulating layer having a volume resistance of 10 ¹⁴ Ωcm or more is formed on the surface of the transport belt 201, and the surface thereof is A fixed charge is applied by the charging roller 204.

Further, around the conveyance belt 201, suction means 206 for adsorbing the recording material on the sheet to the conveyance belt,
Cleaning means 308 for cleaning (cleaning) the surface of the transport belt 201 is provided.
A rubbing member that can be pressed against and separated from the sliding member.

In FIG. 4, the transport belt 201 has an insulating layer having a volume resistance of 10 ¹⁴ Ωcm or more on the surface as described above, and is stretched by a driving roller 202 and a driven roller 203.

The drive roller 202 is connected to a drive motor (not shown),
It is driven in the direction of arrow A.

The charging roller 204 is connected to a high-voltage power supply HV, and is pressed against the transport belt 201 by springs 205 arranged on both sides.

The driven roller 203 is electrically grounded, sandwiches the transport belt 201 between the driven roller 203 and the charging roller 204, and applies a high voltage of 1 to 2 kV to the charging roller 204 to cause the surface of the transport belt 201 to be driven. Is applied with a potential.

The suction means (suction member) 206 is electrically grounded.

In this embodiment, the suction member 206 is a conductive brush 206B.
And the resin sheet 206S, and the tips of these two products are in contact with the surface of the transport belt 201.

The transport belt 201 is located at a position facing the recording head unit 305.
The platen 207 is provided with a pin 207P for keeping a constant distance between the platen and the recording heads 1A to 1D.

The cleaning means (belt cleaning unit) 308 includes a blade 281 and an ink absorber 283, and the blade 281 and the ink absorber 283 are supported by a support 282 and a support 284, respectively.

 Next, the operation of the cleaning means 308 will be described.

First, the conveyor belt 201 is run to bring the blade 281 into contact with the conveyor belt, and after a certain period of time, the conveyor belt is stopped and the blade 281 is separated from the conveyor belt.

At this time, ink marks along the edge of the blade 281 remain on the transport belt 201.

Then, the transport belt 201 is driven again, and when the ink mark reaches the position of the ink absorber 283, the transport belt 201 is stopped again, and the ink absorber 283 is moved to the transport belt 201.
And sucks the ink trace.

Then, after a lapse of a certain time, the ink absorbing member 283 is difficult to move away from the transport belt 201, and the cleaning operation ends.

The recording material passes between the suction member 206 and the transport belt 201 after being sent out by the registration roller 20.

At this time, the transport belt 201 is charged by the charging roller 204, and the recording material is polarized and attracted by the potential.

Further, the charge is injected by the recording material and the suction unit (suction unit) 206, and the charge is further firmly suctioned to the transport belt 201.

Thereafter, the recording material is recorded with an image by a recording unit (recording head unit) 305, and then separated from the transport belt 201 on the driving roller 202 and discharged.

As described above, the image forming apparatus of the present invention, that is, the conveying means 201 for conveying the recording material, the recording means 305 for recording an image on the recording material on the conveying means, and at least one rubbing roller against the conveying means In the image forming apparatus having the two rubbing members 204, 206, and 281, at least one of the rubbing members 281 is released from the transporting unit 201 when an image is recorded by the recording unit 305. An image forming apparatus is configured.

In the above embodiment, the conveying means 201 is constituted by an endless belt wrapped around at least two rollers 202 and 203, and the recording means comprises a plurality of ink jet recording heads 1A, 1B, 1C for discharging ink. It is composed of 1D.

Further, the rubbing member includes a blade 281 as a cleaning member for cleaning the surface of the transport belt 201, a charging roller 204 for applying a charge to the transport belt 201, and a sheet-shaped recording material on the transport belt 201. It is composed of three members, that is, an electrostatic attraction assisting member (conductive brush or the like) 206B for making close contact, of which the blade 281 is configured to separate (release) from the surface of the transport belt 201 during recording.

In this case, the blade as a belt cleaning member
Preferably, 281 is formed with a rubber blade.

Further, as described above, the surface of the transport belt 201 (the surface on which the recording material is in close contact) is formed of an insulating layer capable of holding a charge, and the recording material supplied thereon is electrostatically attracted. It has a convenient structure to do.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the cleaning operation of the image forming apparatus described above.

In FIG. 1, first, when the recording button is pressed to start the recording sequence, the transport belt 201 is
Begins to move.

Here, the recording material from reaching the recording medium sensor S ₀ which is arranged immediately before the registration roller 20, conveyor belt 20
One may start moving.

Thereafter, in step F2, a blade 281 for belt cleaning is pressed against the transport belt 201 by a drive source (not shown).

The recording material is sent out by the registration roller 20,
The toner is electrostatically attracted to the conveyance belt 201 near the driven roller 203.

The recording material passed through the adsorption member 206, when the leading end at step F3 is detected by the recording material sensor S _1,
In step F4, the blade 281 is released (separated) from the conveyor belt 201.

In this case, in consideration of the distance from the sensor S ₁ to the recording head 1A of the most upstream side may be provided a time lag from detection of the sensor S ₁ to the release of the blade 281.

In this state, while the image is being formed on the recording material,
Throughout almost the entire time, the sensors S ₀ and S ₁
At least one of the recording media is detected (step F5).

Immediately after recording is completed to the rear end of the recording material, the sensor
Since both S ₁ and sensor S ₂ does not detect the recording medium,
If none of the sensors S ₁ and sensor S ₂ in step F5 is determined not by detecting the recording material, thereby again presses the blade 281 on the conveyor belt 201 at step F6.

Thereafter, in step F7, for example, the above-described cleaning operation of the surface of the transport belt 201 by the cleaning unit 308 is performed.

According to the sequence described above with reference to FIG. 1, during the recording by the recording head unit 305, the blade 281 having the largest load (frictional resistance) on the transport belt 201.
Are separated from each other, so that the conveyance accuracy of the conveyance belt 201 can be precisely maintained, and good recording without image shift can be performed.

In the case of continuous recording, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 1, after the blade 281 is pressed against the conveying belt 201 in the above-mentioned step F6, recording is performed on the set number of recording materials in step F8. Determine whether or not performed, repeat the operation of the step F3 ~ step F6 until the set number is reached,
After the set number is reached, the sequence proceeds to step F7 to enter the above-described cleaning operation.

Even in such a sequence at the time of continuous recording, as in the case described above, the load on the transport belt 201 during recording can be reduced, and good recording without image shift can be performed by maintaining the transport accuracy precisely. .

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating another example of the cleaning operation of the image forming apparatus described above.

In this embodiment, the suction member 206 is separated from the transport belt 201 in advance together with the blade 281.

In FIG. 2, first, when a recording button is pressed to start a recording sequence, in step F11, the transport belt 201 is depressed.
Start moving.

Here, the recording material from reaching the recording medium sensor S ₀ which is arranged immediately before the registration roller 20, conveyor belt 20
One may start moving.

Then, in step F12, the blade 281 for vector cleaning is pressed against the transport belt 201 by a driving source (not shown), and in step F13, the suction member 206 that has been separated in advance is also the recording material (the transport belt 201). Contact.

The recording material is sent out by the registration roller 20,
The toner is electrostatically attracted to the conveyance belt 201 near the driven roller 203.

The recording material passed through the adsorption member 206, when the tip in step F14 is detected by the recording material sensor S _1,
In step F15, first, the blade 281 is released (separated) from the transport belt 201.

Then, in step F16, it is determined whether or not a predetermined time set in the timer has elapsed, and when the predetermined time has elapsed, the suction member 206 is separated from the recording material (step F17).

This fixed time is a time from the point at which the top of the recording material, which is particularly likely to be curled, is attracted to the transport belt 201, and immediately before the top of the recording material reaches the recording head 1A on the most upstream side. Can be set in advance by a timer.

In this state, while the image is being formed on the recording material,
Throughout substantially the entire time, the sensor S ₁ and the sensor S ₂
At least one of the recording media is detected (step F18).

Immediately after recording is completed to the rear end of the recording material, the sensor
Since both S ₁ and sensor S ₂ does not detect the recording medium,
If none of the sensors S ₁ and sensor S ₂ in step F18 is determined not by detecting the recording material, the step F19
Then, the blade 281 is pressed against the conveyor belt 201 again.

Thereafter, in step F20, for example, the above-described cleaning operation of the surface of the transport belt 201 by the cleaning unit 308 is performed.

According to the sequence described above with reference to FIG. 2, the blade 281 having the largest load (frictional resistance) on the transport belt 201 during printing by the print head unit 305.
At the same time, the suction means 206 is also separated,
01 load (friction resistance) can be further reduced,
The conveyance accuracy of the conveyance belt 201 was further improved, and good recording with less image shift could be performed.

In the case of continuous recording, as shown by the broken line in FIG.
After pressing, in Step F21, it is determined whether or not recording has been performed on the set number of recording materials, and the operations of Steps F13 to F19 are repeated until the set number is reached. The sequence proceeds to step F20 to enter the above-described cleaning operation.

In the present embodiment, when the continuous conveying of the recording material, spacing the sensor S ₁ and the sensor before and after the recording material
It needs to be larger than the distance between S _2.

In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to the line type recording heads 1A to 1D covering the recording area in the paper width direction of the recording material.
Although the case where the present invention is applied to an image forming apparatus having a line-type recording device 302 using a printer has been described as an example, the present invention provides a The present invention can be applied to a recording device of another recording method such as a recording device, and can achieve the same effect.

Further, the present invention can be similarly applied to an image forming apparatus provided with a recording unit having one or a plurality of recording heads or a transfer section (image forming section), and the same effects can be obtained. .

The present invention provides an excellent effect particularly in an image forming apparatus using a bubble jet type ink jet recording apparatus proposed by Canon Inc. among the ink jet recording methods.

The representative configuration and principle are preferably carried out using the basic principle disclosed in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740,796.

This method can be applied to any of the so-called on-demand type and continuous type. In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it is arranged on a sheet or a liquid path holding a liquid (ink). By applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal transducer, which corresponds to the recorded information and provides a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling,
This is effective because thermal energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and the film is boiled on the heat-acting surface of the recording head. As a result, bubbles in the liquid (ink) can be formed in one-to-one correspondence with the drive signal.

By discharging the liquid (ink) through the discharge opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble, at least one droplet is formed.

When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of a liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,434,262 are suitable.

Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the invention relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As a configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination configuration (a linear liquid flow path or a right-angled liquid flow path) of a discharge port, a liquid path, and an electrothermal converter as disclosed in each of the above-mentioned specifications, a heat acting section A configuration using U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,600, which disclose a configuration in which the is bent, is also included in the present invention.

In addition, JP-A-59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing pressure waves of thermal energy. The present invention is also effective as a configuration based on JP-A-59-138461 which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit.

Further, as a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length can be reduced by a combination of a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above specification. Either a configuration that satisfies the above or a configuration as a single recording head that is integrally formed may be used, but the present invention can more effectively exert the above-described effects.

In addition, a replaceable chip-type recording head that can be electrically connected to the apparatus main body and supplied with ink from the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body, or provided integrally with the recording head itself The present invention is also effective when a cartridge type recording head is used.

It is preferable to add recovery means for the printhead, preliminary auxiliary means, and the like, which are provided as components of the printing apparatus of the present invention, since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized.

If these are specifically mentioned, for the recording head,
Capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, preheating means using an electrothermal transducer or another heating element or a combination thereof, and performing a predischarge mode in which discharge is performed separately from recording. Is also effective for performing stable recording.

Further, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to the printing mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but may be a printing head integrally formed or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The present invention is extremely effective for an apparatus having at least one of the full colors.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid, but the ink is solidified at room temperature or below, and is softened or liquid at room temperature, or the ink itself is 30 ° C. In general, the temperature is adjusted within a range of not more than ° C. and the temperature is controlled so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. Therefore, it is sufficient that the ink is in a liquid state when the use recording signal is applied.

In addition, positively prevent temperature rise due to thermal energy by using it as energy for changing the state of the ink from a solid state to a liquid state, or use ink that solidifies in a standing state to prevent evaporation of the ink. Or use
In any case, heat is first applied by heat energy, such as one in which ink is liquefied and ejected as an ink liquid by application in accordance with a recording signal of heat energy, and one which already starts to solidify when reaching a recording material. Use of an ink having a liquefying property is also applicable to the present invention.

In such a case, as in JP-A-54-56847, the ink is opposed to the electrothermal converter while being held as a liquid or a solid in the concave portions or through holes of the porous sheet. It is good also as a form.

In the present invention, the most effective one for the above-described ink is to execute the above-described film boiling method.

〔The invention's effect〕

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the present invention, in an ink jet image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording material using an ink jet recording unit, a charged transport for sucking and transporting the recording material is provided. An endless transport member having a surface, a blade member slidably contacting and separating from the transport surface on the downstream side of the inkjet recording unit in the recording material transport direction, and a downstream side of the blade member in the recording material transport direction. An ink-absorbing member that slidably rubs against the transport surface; a control to separate the blade member from the transport surface when forming an image on the recording material by the inkjet recording unit; And control means for controlling the blade member and the ink absorbing member to come into contact with the transport surface when performing cleaning. By the time the image formation to reduce the conveyance load, it is possible to prevent the elongation and contraction and image shift of the recorded image can be kept precisely the conveying speed, also,
Since the blade member and the ink absorbing member are brought into contact with the transport surface when performing the cleaning of the transport surface, it is possible to reliably wipe the ink wiping of the ink from the transport surface by the blade member with the ink absorber. Provided is an ink jet image forming apparatus which can maintain the transport speed of an endless transport member accurately while performing cleaning by bringing a member into contact with a transport surface.

According to the second and third aspects of the invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, the ink jet recording unit is configured to dispose an ink discharge unit that discharges ink of a different color along the recording material transport direction; Alternatively, since the recording material is configured to be separated from the conveyance surface before the blade member comes into sliding contact with the conveyance surface of the endless conveyance member after an image is formed by the inkjet recording unit,
The above effect can be achieved more efficiently.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a conveyor belt cleaning unit of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of a main part in FIG. In the following, reference numerals indicating major components in the drawings are listed. 1, 1A to 1D: Recording head, 20: Registration roller, 20
1 ... Conveying belt, 202 ... Drive roller, 203 ... Driving roller, 204 ... Charging roller, 206 ... Electrostatic attraction member, 207
…… Platen, 281… Cleaning member (blade), 301… Scanner section, 302… Recording section, 303
…… Recording material storage cassette, 304 …… Belt transporter, 305
…… Recording means (recording head), 308… Cleaning means, S ₀ , S ₁ , S ₂ … Recording material sensor, 401… Document, 4
02 Original document scanning unit.

Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Tohru Kobayashi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Masatoshi Katai 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Tatsuo Mitomi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo, Japan Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Masaharu Nemura 3-30-2, Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72 ) Inventor Yasuyuki Takanaka 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (56) References JP-A-1-249457 (JP, A) JP-A-63-71876 (JP, A) JP-A-2-163777 (JP, A) JP-A-4-219264 (JP, A) JP-A-4-28579 (JP, A) JP-A-2-179652 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int) .Cl. ⁶ , DB name) B41J 13/08 B41J 29/17

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. An ink jet image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording material using an ink jet recording means, comprising: an endless conveying member having a charged conveying surface for adsorbing and conveying the recording material; A blade member that slidably rubs against the conveyance surface on the downstream side of the recording unit in the recording material conveyance direction, and slidably rubs on the conveyance surface on the downstream side of the blade member in the recording material conveyance direction. An ink absorbing member, a control to separate the blade member from the transport surface when forming an image on the recording material by the inkjet recording unit, and the blade member and the ink when cleaning the transport surface. Control means for performing control of bringing an absorbing member into contact with the transport surface, and control means for performing the control. 2. The ink jet image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said ink jet recording means arranges ink discharge units for discharging inks of different colors along a recording material conveying direction. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording material is separated from the conveying surface before the blade member comes into sliding contact with the conveying surface of the endless conveying member after the image is formed by the ink jet recording means. The inkjet image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said ink jet recording means includes an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy used for discharging ink.
4. The inkjet image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3. 5. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said ink jet recording means discharges ink from a discharge port by growth of bubbles due to film boiling generated by thermal energy applied by said electrothermal transducer. Ink jet image forming apparatus.