JP3097418B2 - Playback device for recording media - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for reproducing a recording medium by removing a printing material from a recording medium such as paper on which an image is printed by an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a reproducing apparatus for removing toner from recording paper on which an image is printed by an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine,
JP-A-5-173454 discloses an apparatus in which a recording paper is immersed in a dispersant of a wet developer to release a toner image.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned regenerating apparatus, since the state of the dispersant is not managed,
If the reproducing apparatus is operated in a state where the amount or composition of the dispersant is changed, there is a problem that the reproducing state of the recording paper deteriorates or the reproducing apparatus breaks down.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, and has been made to provide a novel reproducing apparatus. The present invention relates to a method for removing a printing material from a recording medium on which an image is printed. A reproducing apparatus according to one embodiment includes a removing unit that applies a cleaning liquid to a recording medium to remove a printing material;
It has a detecting means for detecting two different states of the cleaning liquid, and a control means for controlling the state of the cleaning liquid by different methods according to two detection results of the detecting means. Second embodiment of the present invention
The regenerating apparatus according to the aspect of the invention includes a removing unit that applies a cleaning liquid to a recording medium to remove a printing material; a detecting unit that detects two different states of the cleaning liquid; And a replenishing means for replenishing different cleaning liquids to the cleaning liquid in accordance with each other. In a second embodiment of the present invention, the replenishing means replenishes the cleaning liquid with a replenishing cleaning liquid and water as different liquids. In the second embodiment of the present invention, the detecting means detects a decrease in the amount of the cleaning liquid and a decrease in the amount of water in the cleaning liquid. Further, the second aspect of the present invention
In the embodiment, the replenishing means replenishes a replenishing cleaning liquid when the detecting means detects a decrease in the amount of cleaning liquid, and replenishes water when detecting a decrease in the amount of water in the cleaning liquid. It is characterized by. Furthermore, the second embodiment of the present invention further comprises a detecting means for detecting a decrease in the cleaning efficiency and a replenishing means for replenishing the undiluted cleaning liquid. And replenish the stock solution.

[0005]

In the reproducing apparatus, a cleaning liquid is applied to a recording medium on which an image is printed. This application method may be any of immersion and application methods. The printing material to which the cleaning liquid has been applied swells and is removed from the recording medium by the removing means.

On the other hand, the detecting means detects the state of the cleaning liquid, and the control means controls the cleaning liquid according to the detection result. Specifically, when the amount of the cleaning liquid decreases, the cleaning liquid is replenished. Further, if the composition of the cleaning liquid changes, necessary components are replenished to the cleaning liquid and maintained in an appropriate state.

Therefore, the cleaning liquid is always maintained in a constant state, and the printing material on the recording medium is properly removed.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 shows the paper or OHP on which the image is printed.
1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an apparatus that removes a printing material 101 such as a toner from a recording medium 100 such as a film and reproduces the recording medium 100 in a reusable state. This playback device 1
Are an automatic supply device 2 for supplying the recording medium 100, a wet cleaner 3 for removing the printing material 101 from the recording medium 100, and a dryer for drying the recording medium from which the printing material has been removed and discharging it in a reusable state. 4 and a discharge unit 5 for accommodating the recording medium 100 from which the printing material has been removed. In addition, a display unit 6 is provided at an upper portion of the reproducing apparatus 1, and displays information such as a cleaning liquid 10 described later.

The automatic feeding device 2 comprises a box-shaped case 7 having an open top, and a supply roller 8 disposed on the top of the box-shaped case 7. The recording medium 100 loaded in the box-shaped case 7 is provided. Is sent to the cleaner 3 by the rotation of the supply roller 8.

The structure of the cleaner 3 is shown in FIG. 2, and the wall 1 on the loading side in the cleaning chamber 9 composed of a box-shaped container.
1 and the wall 12 on the discharge side are formed with openings 13 and 14 extending in the horizontal direction, respectively. A roller-type conveying device 15 is disposed near the opening 13 on the loading side, and the opening 14 on the discharge side is formed.
In the vicinity, a squeeze roller type transport device 16 composed of a pair of rollers having an elastic material such as rubber on the outer peripheral portion is arranged, and the rollers of the respective transport devices 15 and 16 are rotated in the illustrated direction by a drive source (not shown). It is. Also,
Cleaning efficiency detection sensors S1 and S2 are arranged on the sides of the transfer devices 15 and 16, respectively.

These cleaning efficiency detecting sensors S1,
S2 is an optical sensor that irradiates light to the recording member 100 introduced into the cleaning chamber 9 and the recording member 100 discharged from the cleaning chamber 9 to detect the transmitted light,
The density before processing and the density after processing are respectively detected, and the outputs of these sensors S1 and S2 are input to the CPU 200 via the I / O port 190 as shown in FIG. ing.

An open-top box 20 containing the cleaning liquid 10 is accommodated in the interior of the cleaning chamber 9, and a discharge-side wall 21 is provided at the upper end thereof so as to cover the lower part of the squeeze-roller type conveying device 16. A liquid recovery plate 22 is provided. The cleaning liquid 10 contains a swelling agent for swelling the printing material 101, and its components will be described later in detail.

Above the box-shaped container 20, a cleaning liquid amount detection sensor S3 is provided. The sensor S3 is a so-called ultrasonic sensor, and detects the distance from the sensor S3 to the liquid level 23 of the cleaning liquid 10. Note that the sensor S3 may be a laser displacement sensor using reflection of a laser beam. At the bottom of the box-shaped container 20, a water content detection sensor S4 for measuring the water content in the cleaning liquid 10 based on a change in the dielectric constant of the cleaning liquid is provided.
The detection result obtained by the sensors S3 and S4 is, like the sensors S1 and S2, the I / O port 190.
Through the CPU 200.

The cleaning liquid circulation device 25 includes a liquid feed pipe 28 connected in series to a liquid feed pump 26 and a filter 27, and both ends of the liquid feed pipe 28 are connected to the container 20, respectively. Although the circulating device 25 is shown outside the cleaning chamber 9 in the drawing, it is desirable to provide the circulating device 25 inside the cleaning chamber 9.

In the container 20, tanks 30, 31,
32 are connected by liquid feed pipes 33, 34, 35, respectively. The tank 30 contains the cleaning liquid 10 and the tank 31.
, And a tank 32 contains a stock solution other than water of the cleaning solution 10.
Pumps P1, P2, P having a valve mechanism between the pumps 31 and 32 and operated by a signal output from the CPU 200
3 are arranged respectively.

The cleaning liquid 10 has the following composition. Fatty acid ester (tall oil fatty acid ester): 25 parts by weight, water (ion-exchanged water): 50 parts by weight,
Surfactant (sodium dialkyl sulfosuccinate):
2 parts by weight, organic solvent (CH ₄ H ₉ OCH ₂ CH ₂ OH): 1
8 parts by weight

A transfer member for transferring the printing material 101 from the recording medium 100, that is, the transfer roller 40, is covered with a coating 41 made of a material having excellent adsorbing and releasing properties of the swollen printing material 101 on its outer peripheral surface. . The material of the coating 41 will be described later in detail. The transfer roller 40 is used for the transfer device 1
About one-third to about one-half of the cleaning liquid 10 is immersed in the cleaning liquid 10 approximately in the middle of the cleaning liquids 5 and 16 from the bottom and preferably from the bottom, and rotated in the direction of the arrow by a driving source (not shown). Note that the transfer member may be one in which a belt is wound around at least two rollers arranged vertically, and in this case, a coating 41 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the belt.

Recording medium 1 inserted into cleaning chamber 9
The guide means 42 that guides 00 to the cleaning liquid 10 includes a guide plate 43 and a sheet 44 that is a winding prevention means for preventing the recording medium 100 from winding around the transfer roller 40. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the guide plate 43 is a member in which a central portion of a rectangular plate made of metal or synthetic resin is uniformly curved downward along the width direction (the direction of arrow X shown in FIG. 3). The central curved portion 45 has a plurality of openings 46 extending in the vertical direction (the direction of arrow Y shown in FIG. 3). The opening 46 supplies the cleaning liquid 10 to the region above the guide plate 43, and the shape and arrangement of the opening 46 can be freely changed. Further, it is preferable that the central curved portion 45 is designed so that the curvature at the lowermost portion thereof is substantially equal to the curvature of the transfer roller 40, and the curvatures on both sides are gradually reduced. 49 and 50 are sheets 4
4 is an upper guide plate opposed to the guide plate 43 via the upper surface 4.

The wrap prevention sheet 51 is formed of a mesh net formed by knitting metal or synthetic resin yarns, is disposed on the guide plate 43, and the loading and discharging ends 52, 53 are wires (not shown). And both ends of the guide plate 47, 48
And a gap is secured between them. Further, the transfer roller 40
An opening 54 extending in the width direction is formed at the center of the sheet 44 facing the lower surface of the sheet 44. The transfer roller 40 faces the guide plate 43 via the opening 54.

The collecting means 58 for collecting printing materials such as toner from the outer peripheral surface of the transfer roller 40 has a collecting container 59, which is arranged in parallel with the transfer roller 40. The collection container 59 has an opening 60 facing the outer peripheral surface of the transfer roller 40. The scraper 61 on the downstream side in the rotational direction of the transfer member and the tip of the drop prevention sheet 62 on the upstream side, which constitute the opening 60, are respectively disposed. It is in pressure contact with the outer peripheral surface of the transfer roller 40. The scraper 61 is preferably formed of an elastic material such as rubber or a thin metal plate. Also,
The fall prevention sheet 62 is preferably formed of a soft sheet such as a synthetic resin.

The construction of the dryer 4 is shown in FIG. 4. In the drying chamber 66, which is a box-shaped container, a wall 67 on the loading side and a wall 68 on the discharge side are provided with openings 69, horizontally extending, respectively.
A roller-type transfer device 71, 72 is disposed near each of the openings 69, 70, and the rollers of these transfer devices 71, 72 are rotated in the direction of the arrow by a drive source (not shown). is there.

The heating and drying means are heaters 73 and 74, respectively.
Are provided between the transfer devices 71 and 72 with one of them being in contact with the upper surface of the other.
The heating rollers 75 and 76 are each rotatable, and the heating rollers 75 and / or 76 are connected to a drive source (not shown). It is desirable that guide plates 77 and 78 for the recording medium be provided between the heating rollers 75 and 76 and the conveying devices 71 and 72 as shown in the figure. Further, the heating rollers 75 and 76 may be formed of a metal cylinder such as stainless steel, or may be formed of an elastic material such as silicon rubber or fluorine rubber.

The discharge section 5 is a box-shaped container 80 having an open top.
And is provided on the discharge side (the right side in the figure) of the reproducing apparatus 1. In addition, on the side wall of the reproducing device 1 facing the container 80, a discharge roller 81 facing the transport device 72 is provided.

In the reproducing apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration, the recording medium 100 such as paper or an OHP film having the printing material 101 such as toner is transferred from the loading side opening 13 of the cleaner 3 to the cleaning chamber by the transport device 15. The printing material 101 is immersed in the cleaning liquid 10 through the space between the guide plate 43 and the roll-up preventing sheet 44, and the printing material 101 swells and is easily peeled. The swollen printing material 101 is transferred to the transfer roller 4 at the sheet opening 46.
In the vicinity of the nearest portion of the transfer roller 40 and the guide plate 43, the transfer roller 40 contacts the transfer roller 40 rotating in the direction of the arrow, and is attracted and transferred to the outer peripheral surface of the transfer roller 40. Here, since the outer peripheral surface of the transfer roller 40 is covered with the coating 41 having excellent adsorption property of the printing material 101, the swollen printing material 101 is efficiently transferred to the transfer roller 40. Both sides of the recording medium 100 move while being guided by both edges 39, 39 surrounding the sheet opening 46. Therefore, the recording medium 100 does not wind around the transfer roller 40.

The printing material 10 transferred to the transfer roller 40
1 is conveyed with the rotation of the transfer roller 40, removed from the transfer roller 40 by the scraper 61,
Collected in 9 At this time, since the outer peripheral coating 41 of the transfer roller 40 is excellent in the releasability of the printing material 101,
It is easily removed by the scraper 61. Subsequently, the recording medium 100 from which the printing material 101 has been removed is continuously conveyed along the guide plate 43, and the squeeze roller type conveying device 16
The cleaning liquid 10 impregnated in the above is squeezed out and supplied to the dryer 4 from the cleaning chamber 9. The cleaning liquid 10 squeezed from the recording medium 100 is
The liquid is captured by the cleaning liquid collecting plate 22 and collected in the container 20. On the other hand, the printing material 101 dissolved in the cleaning liquid 10 without being transferred to the transfer roller 40 is transferred to the cleaning liquid 1 circulated by the pump 26 through the liquid feeding pipe 28.
When passing through the filter 27 together with 0
Is captured and recovered. Therefore, the cleaning liquid 10 can be used for a long time.

Recording medium 100 supplied to dryer 4
Is transported into the drying chamber 66 by the transport device 71, is heated and dried while being nipped and transported by rotating heating rollers 75 and 76, is discharged by the transport device 72, and is discharged by the discharge roller 81.
Is discharged and stored in the discharge section.

In the above embodiment, the mesh sheet 44 is used as a means for preventing the recording medium 100 from being wound around the transfer roller 40. However, as shown in FIG.
May be constituted by a string-like body 55 made of a plurality of wires or synthetic resin yarns along with the rod-like bodies 56 and 57 for fixing these ends.

As shown in FIG. 6, the drying means in the dryer 4 is provided with a recording medium 10 introduced into a drying chamber 66.
A pair of plate-like meshes 82 or perforated plates for guiding the nozzles 0 and a dryer 85 having a suction port 83 below the mesh 82 and a hot air exhaust port 84 above the mesh 82 may be provided. In this case, as shown in the figure, it is desirable to provide a pair of rolling rollers 86 on the downstream side of the mesh 82 for removing wrinkles of the recording medium 100 dried by the dryer 85.

Next, detecting means (sensors S1, S2, S3, S
4) and control means for the cleaning liquid 10 (CPU 20
The operation 0) will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
The CPU 200 first detects the amount of the cleaning liquid based on the signal from the sensor S3, and determines the amount of the cleaning liquid in the ROM 210.
Is smaller than the reference amount stored in the pump P1.
Is driven to replenish the cleaning liquid from the tank 30.
Next, the amount of water contained in the cleaning liquid 10 is detected based on a signal from the sensor S4, and the amount of water
If less than the reference amount stored in 10, the pump P <b> 2 is driven to refill water from the tank 31. continue,
The CPU 200 controls the recording medium 10 before being introduced into the cleaner 3 based on the signals output from the sensors S1 and S2.
0 and the recording medium 100 discharged from the cleaner 3
Is calculated, and the removal efficiency of the printing material is calculated from the difference between the concentrations. If the removal efficiency is equal to or less than the reference value stored in the ROM 210, the pump P3 is driven to remove the undiluted solution of the cleaning liquid 10 from the tank 32. refill. Finally, CP
When the above-mentioned abnormal states, that is, a decrease in the cleaning liquid level, a decrease in the amount of water, and a decrease in the cleaning efficiency are detected, the abnormal state is displayed on the display unit 6 to notify the user. The notification of the abnormal state is not limited to the visual method, and may be notified by sound (for example, a buzzer) or together with the sound.

FIG. 9 shows another embodiment of the cleaner in the reproducing apparatus. In this cleaner 102, a cylindrical transport roller 140 is disposed in a container 120 containing a cleaning liquid 110, and is rotated in a direction indicated by an arrow by a driving source (not shown). The bottom portion of the transport roller 140 slightly contacts the central curved portion 121 of the downwardly curved guide plate 143 or faces the same with a gap substantially equal to the thickness of the recording medium 100. The conveyance force of the conveyance roller 140 is applied to the recording medium 100 inserted between the recording medium 100 and the recording medium 100.

Each of the transfer rollers 161 and 163 has an outer peripheral surface on which a coating 16 excellent in adsorbing and releasing properties of the printing material 101 is provided.
2, 164, one of the transfer rollers 161 is pressed against the upper part of the other transfer roller 163, and is disposed downstream of the squeeze roller type transfer device 171. The rollers constituting the transfer device 171 are driven by a drive (not shown). Each source rotates in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure.

The collecting devices 165 and 168 are disposed on the sides of the transfer rollers 161 and 163, respectively, and the tips of the scrapers 167 and 170 provided on the collecting containers 166 and 169 are attached to the outer peripheral surfaces of the transfer rollers 161 and 163, respectively. We are in pressure contact.

In FIG. 9, reference numeral 175 denotes a guide plate for guiding the recording medium 100 from the squeeze roller type conveying device 171 to the transfer rollers 161 and 163;
1, 163 to the discharge side opening 107 of the cleaning chamber 9
And a guide plate for guiding to the roller-type transfer device 173 provided in the printer. In addition, the same members used in the cleaner 2 shown in FIGS.

In the cleaner 102, the transfer device 108
Accordingly, the recording medium 100 introduced between the guide plate 143 and the winding prevention sheet 144 is immersed in the cleaning liquid 110, and the printing material 101 is swelled. The recording medium 101 moving in the cleaning liquid 110 is further conveyed to the downstream side by the rotation of the conveying roller 140, and when the recording medium 101 is sent out from the cleaning liquid 110, the cleaning liquid 110 is squeezed out by the pressing roller type conveying device 143. The recording medium 100 that has passed through the squeezing roller 171 is transferred to the nip portion between the transfer rollers 161 and 163 by the printing material
After 1 has been removed, it is passed through a guide plate 176 and sent to a dryer (not shown) by a transfer device 173. Also,
Printing material 101 transferred to transfer rollers 161 and 163
Is scraped off by scrapers 167 and 170 and
6,169.

FIG. 10 shows a modified example of the cleaner shown in FIG. 9. In this apparatus, a pair of brush rollers 174 opposed to each other with a recording medium conveying path interposed between transfer rollers 161 and 163 and a discharge roller 173. , 175 are arranged to rotate in the directions of the arrows. Therefore, the recording medium 100 that has passed through the nip portion between the transfer rollers 161 and 163 has the front and rear surfaces thereof with the brush rollers 174 and 175.
And the remaining printing material 101 on the recording medium 100 is removed. The printing material 101 captured by the brush rollers 174 and 175 is applied to these brush rollers 174 and 175.
Fall into the collecting containers 180 and 181 due to the vibration when the rods 178 and 179 are engaged.

FIG. 11 shows another modification of the cleaner. In this modification, the recording medium 10 in the cleaning liquid 110 is used.
A pair of brush rollers 187, 188 opposed to each other is used as a means for conveying the recording medium 100. The recording medium 100 conveyed in the cleaning liquid 110 is transferred by the brush rollers 187, 188 in contact with the front and back surfaces thereof. Conveyed based on force. In this modification, the recording medium 10
Since 0 does not wind around the brush rollers 187 and 188, there is no need to provide a winding prevention sheet between the guide plates 143 and 50.

9 to 11, the sensors S1 to S4 for detecting the state of the cleaning liquid 110 and the cleaning liquid 1 in the same manner as the cleaner 3 shown in FIG.
CPU 200, pumps P1 to P3
Is provided, and the cleaning liquid is maintained in a good state.

A coating 4 covering the outer peripheral surface of the transfer roller 40
Materials 1, 162 and 164 include polyolefin resin, polyester resin, nitrogen-containing resin, sulfur-containing resin, fluorine resin, silicon resin, polyacetal resin, epoxy resin and polyetheretherketone resin. And at least one material selected from phenolic resins. In addition, “… resin”
It means a polymer, copolymer or mixture containing at least a resin monomer.

The above polyolefin resins include polyethylene, polypropylene, ethylene / vinyl alcohol,
Copolymers, ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymers, and poly-4-methylpentene-1. The polyester-based resin includes vinyl ester resin, polyarylate, oxybenzoyl polyester, diallyl phthalate resin, polyethylene terephthalate, and polycarbonate. The nitrogen-containing resin includes polyamide, polyparabanic acid, bismaleide triazine, polyetherimide resin, and guanamine resin. The sulfur-containing resin includes polyphenylene sulfide and polysulfone. The fluororesin includes tetrafluoride resin and polyvinylidene fluoride. Silicone resin includes silicone resin, polyacetal resin includes polyacetal, epoxy resin includes epoxy resin, polyetheretherketone resin includes polyetheretherketone, and phenolic resin includes phenol resin. These resins secure two different properties, that is, the property of adsorbing the toner swollen by the cleaning liquid and the property that the toner is easily detached.

Although the cleaning liquid used in the present invention is not particularly limited, it is preferable that the cleaning liquid contains water and a swelling agent which is compatible with water and swells the printing material 101. When the recording medium or the like is plain paper or the like, water has a function of swelling the pulp fibers of the paper and efficiently adsorbing a printing material, for example, a toner composed of resin particles, which has penetrated into the network structure, to the coating film. The content of water is 10 to 90% by weight based on the entire cleaning liquid,
Preferably it is 20 to 88% by weight. However, if the water content is less than 1% by weight, the effect of spreading the fibers may not be sufficient. Conversely, if the content of water is too large, the time for swelling the toner or the like becomes longer, the time required for cleaning greatly increases, and the cleaning efficiency per unit time decreases. Although it depends on the type of the toner, if the amount of water exceeds 90% by weight, the cleaning time rapidly increases, which is not preferable. As described above, when the amount of water is large, the bonding force (hydrogen bond) between the paper fibers is weakened, and when the paper is subjected to physical treatment for cleaning, the paper surface is damaged by pressure contact with the transfer roller, or when the paper surface is severely damaged. The water content is preferably set to 30 to 85% by weight, since there is a disadvantage that paper fibers are cut off and the paper is broken. Further, since the cleaning liquid contains water, the boiling point is increased as compared with the conventional organic solvent deinking agent, and the non-volatility is improved. As a result, toxic gas generation is reduced, the toxicity is reduced, the flammability is reduced, and the effects are obtained such that the concentration of other components of the cleaning liquid is stable and the quality is hardly changed.

Basically, the swelling agent contained in the cleaning liquid hardly dissolves the toner resin component of the toner fixed on the paper or the OHP film, the dye component such as the charge control agent, and the colorant component such as the face dye. However, a component that mainly swells the resin component to make the toner into a gel-like plastic polymer and a component that facilitates adsorption to the coating film are essential. Specifically, such a component preferably contains at least a higher fatty acid ester.

Although it is not always clear about this component, when the printed recording medium is immersed in the cleaning liquid, the resin component of the toner fixed on the paper or the OHP film absorbs the swelling agent by the action of the swelling agent. , Transforms into a very plastic viscous gel-like polymer extending from 0.5 mm to several cm. This viscous gel-like polymer greatly reduces the bonding strength to paper fibers and OHP films, and is easily separated by applying a slight physical (mechanical) stress, and is absorbed by the coating and cleaned. Was found. The cleaning action depends on the pH of the liquid, and particularly when the toner resin is a polyester resin, by making the pH of the liquid weakly alkaline of about 8 to 10, the ester bond is broken and the powder is decomposed into a fine powder. Easy to do. Furthermore, the cleaning action depends on the temperature of the liquid. Therefore, these should be combined to determine the pH and temperature of the solution.
The liquid temperature is preferably adjusted in the range of 20 to 60 ° C.
In order to obtain a stable cleaning effect, it is more preferable to maintain the pH at an optimum constant value using various pH buffers and the like. If the pH is weak acidity of 3.0 or less or strong alkalinity of 11.0 or more, the swelling action and the peeling action of the toner resin by the swelling agent are also reduced. When the liquid temperature is 20 ° C. or lower, the swelling action of the swelling agent also slows down, making it difficult to obtain a sufficiently practical cleaning efficiency. Further, when the liquid temperature is 60 ° C. or higher, the transpiration of the liquid becomes intense, the heating power becomes excessive, and the economic efficiency is poor.

The fatty acid of the higher fatty acid ester is a saturated or unsaturated fatty acid such as lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid,
Linoleic acid, erucic acid, ricinoleic acid, abietic acid,
Examples thereof include rosin acid, coconut oil, linseed oil, tallow, whale oil and the like. Higher fatty acid esters are the above fatty acids and hydroxy compounds, for example, alcohols such as ethanol and n-butanol, polyhydric alcohols such as ethylene glycol, glycerin pentaerythritol sorbitol, diethylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, glycols such as polyethylene glycol, and ethyl. The term refers to an ester with cellosolves such as cellosolve and butyl cellosolve, and a tall oil fatty acid ester is particularly preferable.

The tall oil fatty acid is one containing about 6: 4 oleic acid and linoleic acid, and also contains some palmitic acid, stearic acid, and some unsaponifiable substances. As the alcohol for esterifying the tall oil fatty acid, ethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, ethoxyethanol, butoxyethanol and the like, preferably butoxyethanol, ethylene glycol and ethoxyethanol are used. Further, the cleaning liquid of the present invention desirably contains a surfactant. The surfactant surrounds the printing material composed of the organic components such as the cleaned resin component, and the swollen printing material does not fuse with the coating,
It has the effect of ensuring detachability. Alternatively, when the recording medium is paper such as plain paper, the recording medium has a function of penetrating into the mesh structure of the paper, surrounding the printing material, and facilitating adsorption of the printing material, which has penetrated deep into the fiber, to the coating film.

In the cleaning solution, the higher fatty acid ester accounts for 60 to 5% by weight, preferably 40% by weight of the total amount of the cleaning solution.
Used in the range of ２０20% by weight. When used in an amount of more than 60% by weight, the solubility in the toner is high, and it is difficult to be adsorbed.
When used in an amount less than 5% by weight, the swelling property to the toner is poor, the adsorption to the coating film is reduced, and the cleaning effect is small.

It is preferable that the cleaning liquid contains a surfactant. As the surfactant, an anionic surfactant, a nonionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, an amphoteric surfactant and the like can be used. Examples of the anionic surfactant include fatty acid salts, alkyl sulfate salts, alkyl benzene sulfonates, alkyl naphthalene sulfonates, alkyl sulfosuccinates, alkyl diphenyl ether disulfonates,
Examples thereof include alkyl phosphates, polyoxyethylene alkyl sulfate salts, naphthalenesulfonic acid formalin condensate, and polycarboxylic acid polymer surfactant.

Examples of the nonionic surfactant include polyoxyethylene alkyl ether, polyoxyethylene alkyl allyl ether, oxyethylene-oxypropylene copolymer, sorbitan fatty acid ester, polyoxyethylene sorbitan fatty acid ester, polyoxyethylene fatty acid ester, and glycerin. Fatty acid esters, polyoxyethylene alkylamines and the like can be mentioned.

Examples of the ionic surfactant and amphoteric surfactant include alkylamine salts, quaternary ammonium salts,
Alkyl betaine, amine oxide and the like can be mentioned.
Particularly preferred surfactants are those of the formula: RO (CH ₂ CH ₂
O) nH (wherein R is a nonionic surfactant of ethylene oxide added type represented by C ₁₂ -C ₂₂ alkyl or alkyl phenyl group, n represents an integer of 1 to 10.). The above surfactants can be used alone or as a mixture of two or more. Further, it is desirable that the amount of addition be about 0.01 to 10% by weight based on the entire cleaning liquid. If the amount is less than 0.01% by weight, the deinked toner film is likely to be fused. On the other hand, if it is more than 10% by weight, the adsorptivity to the coating film decreases.

Further, the cleaning liquid preferably contains an organic acid. When the printing material contains a resin component, it is necessary to allow the cleaning liquid to penetrate into the toner resin. We have found that organic acids enhance this penetration effect. Further, the cleaning time can be shortened by improving the penetration effect. Organic acids that are preferably added include various carboxylic acids such as formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, isobutyric acid, pivalic acid, methacrylic acid, acrylic acid, lactic acid, oxalic acid, tartaric acid, benzoic acid, and the like, or two kinds thereof. Mixtures of the above can be given. The organic acid is preferably added in an amount of about 2 to 15% by weight based on the entire cleaning liquid. If it is less than 2% by weight, the deinking speed may be low, and if it is more than 15% by weight, the remaining organic acid may act on the recording medium to cause deterioration of the quality.

Further, the cleaning liquid may be, for example, methanol, ethanol, n, or the like as long as the effects of the present invention are not impaired.
-Butanol, isopropanol, ethoxyethanol and the like, and xylene, toluene, acetone, T
An organic solvent that swells the toner, such as a mixture of HF, dioxane, and dichloromethane, may be contained.

As such a cleaning liquid, Toscreen D (manufactured by Choso Sangyo Co., Ltd.) is available. Toscreen D is a water-based detergent, and has an acid value of about 2.1 mg KOH /
g, specific gravity: 1.020 (20 ° C.), pH: 7 ± 0.5
It is a pale yellow transparent liquid having physical properties of (15 ° C.).
This cleaning fluid does not contain any fluorine or chlorine carbon compounds that are said to destroy the ozone layer,
Can be used without deteriorating the global environment. Further, since it is low-toxic to humans and non-flammable (no flash point), it is extremely suitable for use in a paper recycling apparatus in a normal office environment as in the present invention.

The recording medium to which the cleaning liquid is applied is not particularly limited. In addition to resin film (OHP paper) and the like, paper such as plain paper or recycled paper having a mesh structure which has been conventionally difficult to clean as described above. The cleaning effect is remarkable. Similarly, the printing material that is the object of the cleaning liquid of the present invention is not limited to water-soluble, oil-soluble ink, vermilion, markers, and the like, and particularly, for toner particles containing a resin component that has conventionally been considered difficult to clean. Also has an excellent cleaning effect.

In the present invention, as a printing material, conventionally known toners can be cleaned without limitation. Examples of resin components used include styrene resin, acrylic resin, methacrylic resin, and styrene-acrylic resin. Thermoplastic resins and thermosetting resins such as copolymer resins, styrene-butadiene copolymer resins, polyester resins, and epoxy resins are exemplified. Alternatively, 2 of these resins
A copolymer, block polymer, or graft polymer composed of at least one kind may be used, or a mixture of these resins may be used. And in such a resin, the number average molecular weight Mn is 1000 ≦ Mn ≦ 20,000, preferably 2
000 ≦ Mn ≦ 15000, and weight average molecular weight Mw
Is preferably 2 ≦ Mn ≦ 80.
Further, it is preferable to use a resin having a glass transition point of 55 to 70 ° C and a softening point of 80 to 140 ° C.

Various known pigments and dyes can be used as the colorant. However, when a dye is used as a coloring agent, the dye may be dissolved in the deinking agent, and may reattach to the recording medium to reduce the cleaning effect. Such inconvenience is not so much a problem when a resin film or the like is used as a recording medium, but becomes a very serious problem when a paper having a mesh structure is used. Therefore, it is desirable to use a pigment as the colorant of the toner to be cleaned, so that the colorant does not dissolve during cleaning. As such a coloring pigment, carbon black, copper oxide, manganese dioxide, aniline black, activated carbon, ferrite, magnetite, or the like can be used as a black pigment.

Examples of the yellow pigment include: graphite, zinc yellow, cadmium yellow, yellow iron oxide, mineral fast yellow, nickel titanium yellow, navel yellow, naphthol yellow S, banza yellow G, banza yellow 10G, benzidine yellow G, Benzidine yellow GR, quinoline yellow lake, permanent yellow NCG, tartrazine lake and the like can be used.

Examples of the red pigment include red lead, molybdenum orange, permanent orange GTR, pyrazolone orange, vulcan orange, indaslen brilliant orange RK, benzidine orange G, indaslen brilliant orange GK, bengala, cadmium red, and leadtan. , Permanent Red 4R, Risor Red,
Pyrazolone red, watching red, lake red C, lake red D, brilliant carmine 6B, eosin lake, rhodamine lake B, alizarin lake,
Brilliant Carmine 3B, Vulcan Fast Orange GG, Permanent Red F4RH, Permanent Carmine FB and the like can be used.

As the blue pigment, navy blue, cobalt blue, alkali blue lake, Victoria blue lake,
Phthalocyanine blue and the like can be used. Note that these pigments or colorants are used as resin components 10 in the toner.
It is desirable to add 1 to 20 parts by weight, preferably 3 to 15 parts by weight based on 0 parts by weight.

[0058] The toner may include a charge control agent. Nigrosine-based EX, quaternary ammonium salts, polyamine compounds, imidazole compounds and the like can be used as a positive charge control agent for charging the toner to a positive polarity. Further, as a negative charge control agent for charging the toner to a negative polarity, a chromium complex salt type azo dye, a copper phthalocyanine dye, a chromium complex salt, a zinc complex salt, an aluminum complex salt, or the like can be used.

These charge control agents are used in an amount of 0.1 to 10 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the resin component in the toner.
Preferably, 0.5 to 5 parts by weight is added. Further, various types of charge control agents described above can be used. However, when a dye system is used as the charge control agent, as described for the colorant, the dye may be dissolved in the cleaning liquid, and may reattach to the recording medium from the transfer body, thereby reducing the cleaning effect. Therefore, it is desirable to use a non-dye-based charge control agent for the toner to be cleaned, or to use a structure containing no charge control agent at all. Alternatively, it is preferable to use a colorless or white charge control agent even when it is melted. Alternatively, the resin of the toner preferably has a polar group or a functional group, and the resin component itself is preferably configured as a charge control resin having a charge control function.

The toner may contain an offset preventing agent. As the anti-offset agent, low molecular weight polyethylene wax, low molecular weight oxidized polyethylene wax, low molecular weight polypropylene wax, low molecular weight oxidized polypropylene wax, higher fatty acid wax, higher fatty acid ester wax, sasol wax or the like alone or
It can be used as a mixture of more than one species. It is desirable to add 1 to 15 parts by weight, preferably 2 to 8 parts by weight of these offset preventing agents to 100 parts by weight of the resin component in the toner. Further, the toner according to the present invention may be configured as a magnetic toner. Magnetic toner is
Cobalt, iron, nickel, aluminum,
Lead, magnesium, zinc, antimony, beryllium, bismuth, cadmium, calcium, manganese, selenium,
Metals exhibiting magnetism such as titanium, tungsten, and vanadium; oxides and sintered bodies of these metals;
It is constituted by adding an alloy composed of more than one kind, or a mixture composed of these metals, oxides, sintered bodies, alloys and the like.

It is desirable to add these magnetic substances in an amount of 1 to 80 parts by weight, preferably 5 to 60 parts by weight, based on 100 parts by weight of the resin component in the toner. Further, the toner according to the present invention may include a fluidizing agent. As a fluidizing agent, silica fine particles, titanium oxide fine particles, alumina fine particles, magnesium fluoride fine particles, silicon carbide fine particles, boron carbide fine particles, titanium carbide fine particles,
Various inorganic material fine particles such as zirconium carbide fine particles, titanium nitride fine particles, zirconium nitride fine particles, magnetite fine particles, dimobilized molybdenum fine particles, aluminum stearate fine particles, magnesium stearate fine particles, and zinc stearate fine particles can be used. In addition, it is preferable that these inorganic material fine particles are used after being subjected to a hydrophobic treatment with a silane coupling agent, a titanium coupling agent, a higher fatty acid, silicone oil, or the like.

Further, styrene, acrylic, methacrylic, benzoguanamine, silicon, Teflon, polyethylene, polypropylene, etc. granulated by a wet polymerization method such as emulsion polymerization, soap-free emulsification weight, non-aqueous dispersion polymerization or a gas phase method. Various organic materials can be used. And it can also be used in combination with the above-mentioned inorganic material fine particles.
These fluidizing materials are used in an amount of 0.05 to 5 parts by weight, preferably 0.1 to 5 parts by weight, based on 100 parts by weight of the resin component in the toner.
It is desirable to add 1 to 3 parts by weight.

Hereinafter, experimental examples in which the compositions of the film and the substrate are specifically changed will be described. The composition used is as shown in Table 1. In Experimental Examples 1 to 3, after fitting a heat-shrinkable tube made of the resin described in each of Experimental Examples on a substrate, 200 to 300 ° C.
To form a one-piece roller shape. The diameter of the substrate was about 40 mm, and the thickness of the coating was about 2 mm. On the other hand, in Experimental Examples 4 to 10, the resins shown in Table 1 were molded by injection molding into cylindrical rollers having a thickness of about 3 mm, and in Experimental Example 11, the base was aluminum. The device used in the experiment is the device described in FIG. A4 with a weighing of 64 g / m ² as a recording medium
The test chart of 7% of the character portion was cleaned with the following toner and cleaning liquid using size plain paper. The moving speed of the plain paper in the apparatus was set to 20 mm / sec, and the rotation speed of the base roller and the like were adjusted to conform to this. The peeling of the swelling toner from the coatings 162 and 164 is performed by using scrapers 167 and 17 made of polyimide.
According to 0.

The toner used in this experiment was prepared by mixing the following materials with a Henschel mixer, then mixing with a twin-screw extruder and cooling. Polyester resin (Mn: 4500, M
w: 158000, Tg: 66 ° C, Tm: 118 ° C):
100 parts by weight, carbon black (Mogul: manufactured by Cavolak): 10 parts by weight, an offset inhibitor (Viscol Ts200: manufactured by Sanyo Chemical Industries): 3 parts by weight, a charge control agent (Bontron E-84: manufactured by Orient Industries):
3 parts by weight, then coarsely pulverized the cooled product, finely pulverized by a jet pulverizer, and then processed by an air classifier to obtain a volume average particle size of 8.
3 μm toner was obtained.

The cleaning liquid used in this experiment had the following composition. Fatty acid ester (tall oil fatty acid ester): 25 parts by weight, water (ion-exchanged water): 50 parts by weight, surfactant (sodium dialkyl sulfosuccinate): 2 parts by weight, organic solvent (CH ₄ H ₉ OC)
H ₂ CH ₂ OH): 18 parts by weight

Table 1 shows the results of Experiments 1 to 11. In Table 1, ◎ indicates that the toner is sufficiently adsorbed to the film even after processing 100 sheets. ○ indicates that the adsorption capacity is slightly reduced. X indicates that the toner is hardly adsorbed. In addition, が indicates that the toner was sufficiently adsorbed to the film even after processing 100 sheets, and that the toner adsorbed by the scraper was almost peeled off, and ○ indicates that the film was slightly stained. Show things. On the other hand, x indicates that the toner has fused and is difficult to remove. From the results of the experiments shown in Table 1, it is understood that among the resins according to the present invention, particularly preferred types of resins are polyolefin resins and polyacetal resins.

[0067]

[Table 1]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a reproducing apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a cleaner.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a recording material guide unit inside the cleaner.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a dryer.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the guide means.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the dryer.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing signals input to a CPU.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the pump.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of the cleaner.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a modified example of the cleaner.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing another modified example of the cleaner.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Regeneration apparatus, 3 ... Cleaner, 10 ... Cleaning liquid,
Reference Signs List 20: container, 40: transfer roller, 41: coating, 58: collecting means, 100: recording medium, 101: printing material, S1
S4: sensor (detection means), 200: CPU (control means).

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Kaoru Furusawa Osaka International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. 2-3-1-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka (56) References JP-A-7-56481 (JP, A) JP-A-7-84488 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 21/00 570-578

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A reproducing apparatus for removing a printing material from a recording medium on which an image has been printed, a removing unit for applying a cleaning liquid to the recording medium to remove the printing material, and a cleaning device for removing two different states of the cleaning liquid. An apparatus for reproducing a recording medium, comprising: detection means for detecting; and control means for controlling the state of the cleaning liquid by different methods in accordance with two detection results of the detection means. 2. A reproducing apparatus for removing a printing material from a recording medium on which an image is printed, a removing unit for applying a cleaning liquid to the recording medium to remove the printing material, An apparatus for reproducing a recording medium, comprising: a detecting means for detecting; and a replenishing means for replenishing the cleaning liquid with different liquids according to two detection results of the detecting means. 3. The recording medium reproducing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the replenishing means replenishes a replenishing cleaning liquid and water as different liquids to the cleaning liquid. 4. The recording medium reproducing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said detecting means detects a decrease in the amount of the cleaning liquid and a decrease in the amount of water in the cleaning liquid. 5. The replenishing means replenishes a replenishing cleaning liquid when the detecting means detects a decrease in the amount of the cleaning liquid, and replenishes water when a decrease in the amount of water in the cleaning liquid is detected. The apparatus for reproducing a recording medium according to claim 4, wherein: 6. A cleaning device according to claim 2, further comprising: a detecting means for detecting a decrease in cleaning efficiency; and a replenishing means for replenishing an undiluted cleaning liquid. A recording medium reproducing apparatus for replenishing a stock solution.