JP3373617B2 - Recording medium transport method and recording apparatus using the transport method - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of conveying a recording medium used in a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, a plotter, etc., and more particularly, a recording medium conveying method for conveying a recording medium by a belt, and this conveyance. Regarding a recording apparatus using the method, in detail, a recording medium conveying method for forming a region having a surface potential on a recording medium carrier and conveying the recording medium by adhering the recording medium to this region and the conveying method are used. Recording device

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a recording apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, and a plotter, a recording paper and a recording medium such as an OHP film are sent to a recording area or are recorded from the recording area. As a method of conveying a recording medium for discharging a recording medium, a conveyance method constituted by a roller and a motor driving the roller is most commonly used.

On the other hand, as a method for transporting a recording medium without using a roller, for example, JP-A-58-148133 is used.
As described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. JP-A-2003-264, there is known a "paper feeding device for an electronic copying machine" in which a gripper grips a part of a recording medium and a belt is used to convey the recording medium. When a recording medium is conveyed by a belt as in this device, the recording medium does not move as the belt moves unless the recording medium is supported on the belt. Means are required. As a means for supporting the recording medium on the belt, as shown in the publication, a suction hole is provided in the belt, and the recording medium is vacuumed from the back side of the belt to be covered on the belt. A means for sucking the recording medium is used.

[0004]

However, in the method of conveying a recording medium which is constituted by the conventional roller and the motor for driving the roller, the recording medium is conveyed by utilizing the frictional force between the roller and the recording medium. Therefore, there is a problem that slippage easily occurs between the roller and the recording medium, and an accurate amount of conveyance of the recording medium cannot be obtained. Further, in this type of recording medium conveying method, the frictional force between the roller and the recording medium differs depending on the type of the recording medium to be conveyed (OHP film, rough paper, smooth paper, etc.). There is also a problem that the amount of conveyance varies depending on the type of recording medium that is conveyed.

On the other hand, in the conventional method of conveying a recording medium disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 58-148133, an air suction means for vacuum is required, so that the apparatus becomes very large and the vacuum is large. The friction of the air at the time produces a sound, which causes a problem such as noise.

The present invention has been made in view of these drawbacks of the prior art, and according to the experiments by the present inventors,
After contacting and pressing a certain resin material with the contact member, or
After heating while contacting with the contact member or after contacting the heated resin material with the contact member, the surface of the resin material may be significantly charged by removing the contact member. The present invention is characterized by using this phenomenon as a method of transporting a recording medium.

That is, a main object of the present invention is to provide a recording medium conveying method that can convey a recording medium with a simple structure using the above phenomenon, and a recording apparatus using the conveying method. To do. Another object of the present invention is to provide a recording medium conveying method with less noise, and a recording apparatus using the conveying method. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a recording medium transportation method capable of supporting and transporting a recording medium with low energy without using a high voltage power source or the like as a means for supporting the recording medium, and a transportation method thereof. It is to provide a recording device used.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems The present invention, in order to solve the problems described above, at least part of the surface made of the resin layer, contacting the bearing member for bearing the recording material and the solid, pressurized
After pressure, by separating the above solid to form a region having a surface potential in the carrier <br/> surface, the recording material is electrostatically supported and configured to convey in this area.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is such that at least a part of the surface is made of a resin layer, and a carrier for carrying a recording medium is contacted with a solid and pressed,
A carrier charging means for forming a region having a surface potential on the surface of the carrier by separating from the solid, and a recording medium for supplying a recording medium to the region, which is downstream of the carrier charging means. The recording medium supply unit supplies the recording medium supplied by the recording medium supply unit to the recording area by the carrier to form an image on the recording medium.

Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention contacts at least a carrier carrying a recording medium with a solid, or at least contacts the surface of the carrier with a surface of the carrier. Is heated, and after cooling, a region having a surface potential corresponding to the heating temperature is formed on the surface of the carrier, and the recording medium is electrostatically carried in this region and conveyed.

Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention makes contact with a solid in a state where at least a support for supporting a recording medium is heated, or at least a surface of the support in a state of contacting with the solid. After heating and cooling the carrier, a carrier charging means for forming a region having a surface potential according to the heating temperature on the surface of the carrier, and a carrier charging means located downstream of the carrier charging means and covered in the region. A recording medium supply unit for supplying a recording medium, and the recording medium supplied by the recording medium supply unit is conveyed to a recording area by the carrier to form an image on the recording medium. The configuration.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF] According to the present invention, after bearing member for bearing the recording material is contacted with a solid, which is pressurized, by being separated from the solid, the area having a surface potential on the carrier surface The recording medium is formed, and the recording medium is electrostatically carried and conveyed in this region. Further, according to the present invention, contacting the bearing member for bearing the recording material and the solid, after being pressurized, by separating the above solid to form a region having a surface potential on the carrier surface The recording medium supplied by the recording medium supply means for supplying the recording medium to the above-mentioned area, which is downstream of the carrier charging means, conveys the supplied recording medium to the recording area by the above-mentioned recording medium, and an image is recorded on the recording medium. Is formed. Furthermore, according to the present invention, at least the surface of the carrier is heated while the carrier supporting the recording medium is heated, or at least the surface of the carrier is heated in the state of contacting the solid, and after cooling, A region having a surface potential corresponding to the heating temperature is formed on the surface of the carrier, and the recording medium is electrostatically carried and conveyed in this region. Further, according to the present invention, at least the surface of the carrier is heated in a state where the carrier supporting the recording medium is heated, or at least the surface of the carrier is heated in the state where the carrier is contacted with the solid, and after the cooling, the carrier is carried out. On the surface of the body, which is downstream of the carrier charging means for forming a region having a surface potential according to the heating temperature, and is supplied by the recording medium supplying device for supplying the recording medium to the region. The recording medium is conveyed to the recording area by the carrier, and an image is formed on the recording medium.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. First, the recording medium transport system according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 1, 1
Is a carrier for supporting the recording medium, 2 is a contact member as a solid which comes into contact with the recording medium 1, 3 is a recording medium, 4 is a pressure roller, and 5 is a recording medium facing the surface of the recording medium. A supply roller 12 as a recording medium supply means for supplying the body 3.
Reference numerals a and 12b are conveying rollers for rotating the carrier 1.

As shown in FIG. 2, the carrier 1 in this embodiment carries a base material (base film) 6 and a recording medium 3 made of a resin material and formed on the base material 6. And the carrier layer 7. As shown in FIG. 1, the contact member 2 is brought into contact with the carrier 1 from the side of the carrier layer 7 and pressure is applied by the pressure roller 4, and then the contact member 2 is removed. A large charging potential is generated in the area.

This charging method will be explained in an easy-to-understand manner. As shown in FIG. 3, a carrier 1 having a carrier layer 7 formed by coating a resin material on a base material 6 is prepared. As shown in FIG. 3A, the surface of the carrier layer 7 in this initial state has a constant intrinsic surface potential σ0 according to the film thickness of the carrier layer 7. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3B, in a state where the contact member 2 such as a metal is in contact with the carrier 1,
A part of the carrier layer 7 is pressed from the base material 6 side or the contact member 2 side. Next, when the contact member 2 was removed by removing the pressure on the supporting layer 7, the surface potential of the supporting layer 7 was measured. As a result, as shown in FIG. It was found that the surface potential σ1 slightly fluctuated, but the surface potential σ2 extremely fluctuated in the pressed portion. That is, it was confirmed that the surface potentials in the respective states of FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C have a relationship such as | σ0 | <| σ1 | <| σ2 |.

Further, the supporting layer 7 in the state shown in FIG.
As is clear from FIG. 4, the relationship between the pressing force and the surface potential of the pressurizing portion when the surface is pressed is such that the surface potential increases as the pressing force increases. However, if the applied pressure is too large, the carrier layer 7 will be destroyed, so in this embodiment, about 100 g to 10 kgf / cm 2 is appropriate.

On the other hand, as the material of the base material 6 which constitutes the carrier 1, any of an insulating substance, a conductive substance and a semi-conductive substance can be used, but particularly a uniform electric field can be formed. In terms of the above, it is desirable that the material has high conductivity. The conductivity of this base film is 101
Scm-1 or more is suitable.

A resin material (organic polymer material) is preferable as a material for the carrier layer 7 formed on the base material 6 of the carrier 1, and among them, in particular, an extremely large charging potential can be obtained. A vinyl polymer having a side chain is excellent. As a vinyl polymer material with this side chain,
Examples thereof include polyalkyl acrylate and polyalkyl methacrylate. Further, as the vinyl polymer material having this side chain, a polymer containing fluorine having a large electronegativity in the polymer is more preferable because a particularly large charging potential can be obtained.

FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the film thickness of the carrier layer 7 and the charging potential. As is clear from the figure, it is desirable that the supporting layer 7 has a large film thickness because the charging potential is high. However, if the thickness of the carrier layer 7 is too thick, the thickness of the resin layer will vary, and it will be difficult to process the resin layer itself, so that the resin layer can be easily formed. In consideration of the above, the film thickness of the supporting layer 7 is 1 μm to 50 μm.
About 0 μm is suitable.

By the way, in the present embodiment, an example in which the carrier layer 7 is directly formed on the base material 6 is shown. However, if the surface layer is composed of the above resin material, the structure of the lower layer is particularly illustrated. The configuration is not limited to the above. Therefore, the carrier 1 may have a configuration in which another resin layer such as a polyimide resin or PET is provided between the base material 6 and the carrier layer 7. As a method for producing the carrier 1 having this structure, for example, a thin layer of a metal such as Al or Au is formed on one surface of a resin film such as polyimide or PET by a thin film forming method such as vapor deposition, and the other surface is formed. It can be easily obtained by applying the above resin material. Further, in this embodiment,
Although the belt-shaped carrier 1 using a base film as the base material 6 has been taken as an example, the carrier may be a roller-shaped or drum-shaped carrier based on a metal roller. On the other hand, as the contact member 2 of the present embodiment, an insulator such as glass or resin such as polyimide, Al, Cu,
Any metal such as Au, Pt, or Ni may be used, but since the metal has a higher rate of change in potential, it is more preferable to use a metal material.

A method of transporting a recording medium using the carrier 1 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, the carrier 1 is formed in the shape of an endless belt and is held by two transport rollers 12a and 12b so as to rotate in the arrow direction. The contact member 2 is in contact with the carrier layer 7 side of the carrier 1, and the pressure roller 5 is provided on the base material 6 side of the contact portion (charging portion B). As a result, the carrier 1 is pressed by the pressure roller 5 at the charging section B thereof. The contact roller 2 and the pressure roller 4 are rotated at substantially the same speed as the carrier 1 as the carrier 1 moves. On the other hand, on the downstream side of the charging section B, a paper feed roller 5 as a recording medium supply means is provided, and by the rotation of the supply roller 5, the recording medium 3 is supplied onto the surface of the carrier 1. It

As described above, the surface of the carrier 1 which is in the low potential state (corresponding to σ0) in the initial state is pressed by the pressure roller 4 while being in contact with the contact member 2 at the charging section B. As a result, after passing through the charging section B, a large surface potential corresponding to the applied pressure is generated.

After that, the transporting rollers 12a and 12b rotate to move the charging area on the surface of the carrier 1 to the sheet feeding position. On the other hand, at approximately the same time as this, at the paper feeding position, the recording medium 3 is supplied to the surface of the carrier layer 7 by the paper feeding roller 5, whereby the recording medium 3 is moved by the electrostatic force in the charged region of the carrier 1. It is adsorbed and held on the surface of the carrier layer 7. In this state, by further rotating the transport rollers 12a and 12b, the carrier 1 can carry the recording medium 3 and carry it from the paper feeding position. Here, as an example of conveying the recording medium 3, an example in which the recording medium 3 is conveyed to the transfer portion 14 (see FIG. 5) has been shown, but this carrier 1 is for conveying the recording medium 3. It is needless to say that it can be used as any part of the recording device as the conveying means, and for example, it may be used as a paper discharging means for discharging the recording medium 3 from the transfer section 14.

(Embodiment 1) As a concrete first embodiment of the present invention, the configuration of FIG.
A Ni belt is used as the base material 6, and viscoat 17F which is a fluorine-containing acrylate monomer is used as the resin material of the carrying layer 7.
A polymer obtained by solution polymerization using (Osaka Organic Chemical Co., Ltd.) as a raw material was used. That is, a solution obtained by diluting this polymer with Freon 113 was used as a coating solution to form a carrier layer 7 on the Ni belt by blade coating, and dried by heating at 90 ° C. to prepare a carrier 1. The film thickness of the supporting layer 7 was about 100 μm.

The surface potential of the carrier 1 thus formed was measured and found to be -0.8V. In addition, an Al roller is used as the contact member 2, and the pressure roller 4 presses the surface of the carrier layer 7 at a pressure of about 1 Kgf / cm 2, while moving the carrier 1 and passing through the charging portion B thereof. When the surface potential of the supporting layer 7 was measured with a surface potential meter (manufactured by Trek),
A large change was recognized in the surface potential around −300V. Here, the surface potential of the unpressurized portion is -1 to
No significant change was seen at -8V. Further, when the carrier 1 is moved and the recording medium 3 is supplied onto the carrier 1 by the sheet feeding roller 5 at the sheet feeding position, the recording medium 3 is attracted and held on the carrier 1. I was able to. After that, by further rotating the conveying rollers 12a and 12b, the recording medium 3 can be conveyed to the separation section A in FIG. 1 while the recording medium 3 is still carried on the carrier 1. It was

Next, an embodiment of the recording apparatus of the present invention in which the above-mentioned transport method is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus will be described. First, the recording operation of this embodiment will be described.

Among the image forming processes of the recording apparatus of the present invention, various known methods and methods can be selected for charging, exposing, developing, cleaning and discharging. For example, for exposure, an analog exposure method, a laser operation exposure method, an LED exposure method, or the like is used. For the development, a one-component toner developing system, a two-component toner developing system, or the like is used. Also, for cleaning, a roller method or a rubber blade method is used, and for static elimination, lamp exposure,
Alternatively, static electricity removal or the like is used.

Regarding transfer, in the case of the present invention, as will be described later, it is not necessary to provide a transfer means such as a transfer charger, but a known corona charging transfer system, pressure transfer system, adhesive transfer system or the like is used. You may use.

On the other hand, as the photoconductor in this embodiment,
A conductive cylindrical drum provided with a photosensitive layer is used. As the photosensitive layer of this photosensitive member, a photoconductive organic photosensitive layer, selenium photosensitive layer, amorphous silicon photosensitive layer, or the like is used.

The recording apparatus of this embodiment is specifically shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, a drum-shaped photoconductor 8 which is an example of a toner image bearing rotating body, a charging charger 9 which is an example of a charging device of the photoconductor 8, an exposure device 10, a developing device 11, a transfer unit (the transfer device is (Not shown) 14, fixing device 13, static eliminator 1
5, and the cleaning device 16 and the like. Here, the photoreceptor 8 may be configured in a belt shape.

In FIG. 5, the photoreceptor 8 uniformly charged by the charger 9 is exposed by the exposure device 10 according to image information, so that a latent image is formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 8. Next, the latent image is developed by the developing device 11 to form a toner image on the photoconductor 8. This toner image reaches the transfer portion 14 as the photoconductor 8 rotates. On the other hand, the recording medium 3 such as recording paper or OHP film is, as described above,
While being carried by the carrier 1, it is conveyed to the transfer unit 14. As a result, in the transfer section 14, the toner image formed on the photoconductor 8 is transferred to the recording body 3 side, and the toner image is attached to the recording body 3. After that, the recording medium 3 is conveyed to a position just before the fixing device 13 including the fixing roller 13a and the pressure roller 13b, and the carrier 1 is conveyed.
And the toner image on the surface of the recording medium 3 is fixed to the recording medium 3 by the fixing device 13.
A recorded image is formed on top.

As a fixing method of this apparatus, a known method is appropriately used. For example, a pressure fixing method or the like may be used in addition to the heat fixing method used in this embodiment.

Next, the conveying device for the recording medium 3 to the transfer portion 14 will be described in detail. As the structure of the carrier of the recording medium 3, the above-mentioned carrier 1 is used. As described above, the carrier 1 is provided with the contact roller as the contact member 2 and the pressure roller 4 as the pressure means at a predetermined position. The contact roller 2 is arranged in contact with the carrier layer 7 of the carrier 1, and rotates as the carrier 1 moves. Further, the pressure roller 4 is arranged in contact with the base material 6 of the carrier 1, and, like the contact roller 2, rotates with the movement of the carrier 1. Therefore, the carrier 1 is pressed by the pressure roller 4 while being in contact with the contact roller 2.
As a result, after the contact roller 2 is separated from the carrier 1,
A surface potential corresponding to the pressure applied by the pressure roller 4 is generated on the surface of the carrier 1.

The area where the surface potential of the carrier 1 is formed reaches the sheet feeding position by the rotation of the conveying rollers 12a and 12b. On the other hand, substantially simultaneously with this, the recording medium supply means 5
The recording medium 3 is fed by a paper feeding roller as a recording medium, and the recording medium 3 is placed in an area where the surface potential of the surface of the carrier 1 is formed.
Come into contact with. As a result, the recording medium 3 is electrostatically adsorbed on the surface of the carrier 1 by the surface potential of the surface of the carrier 1 and held on the carrier 1. This recording medium 3
Is further conveyed to the transfer unit 14 while being held on the carrier 1 by further rotation of the conveying rollers 12a and 12b. Then, the recording medium 3 receives the toner image transferred from the photoconductor 8 at the transfer portion 14, and thereafter, with the movement of the carrier 1, the recording medium 3 is held on the carrier 1 toward the fixing device 13. Be transported. The carrier 1 from which the recording medium 3 has been separated in the separating section A immediately before the fixing device 13 is again subjected to pressure contact charging in the charging section B.

Example 2 Recording was actually performed under the following conditions by the recording apparatus having the structure shown in FIG. Material and forming method of the carrier layer 7: Similar to Example 1, thickness of the carrier layer 7: 100 μm Feeding speed of the carrier 1 and the photoconductor 8: 50 mm / sec Pressure of the pressure roller 4: 500 gf / cm 2 Photoconductor 8: Selenium latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposing AC Recording medium 3: Ricoh type 6200 recording paper As a result, when the recording medium 3 (recording paper) is subjected to image recording through the steps of feeding, conveying and fixing, A predetermined image could be formed on the recording medium 3.

As another example of using the above-mentioned conveying means, an example in which this conveying means is used for conveying a recording medium of a serial printer is shown in FIG. In FIG. 10, 20 is a platen, 2
Reference numeral 1 is a paper discharge roller, and 22 is a recording head. Here, as the recording head 22, an inkjet type, a wire dot type, a thermal transfer type, or the like is used. For example, in the case of the inkjet system, it is an inkjet recording head having nozzles, flow paths, ink tanks, etc., and in the case of the wire dot system, it is a wire dot recording head having solenoids, wires, etc. Is a thermal transfer recording unit having a thermal head, an ink ribbon, etc. In this example, an inkjet recording head was used.

As in the case of FIG. 5, the carrier 1 of this example is contacted and pressed by the contact member 2 and the pressure roller 4, whereby the surface of the carrier layer 7 is charged. Then, the recording medium 3 fed by the sheet feeding roller 5 is electrostatically adhered to and held in the charged area of the carrier 1 so that the recording medium 3 is printed at the printing position (the platen 20 and the recording head). 22 position). At this printing position, the recording medium 3 is conveyed so as to have a space of approximately 1 to 2 mm from the nozzle surface of the recording head 22. The recording head 22 can be moved in a direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 10 by a recording head drive motor (not shown), and this movement is capable of recording one line.

In FIG. 10, when the recording medium 3 reaches the printing position, the recording head 22 is moved in accordance with predetermined image information.
As a result, an image for one line is printed on the recording medium 3. When the printing of the image for one line is completed, the conveyance rollers 12a,
12b is driven, the carrier 1 is moved by a distance corresponding to one line of the image information, and the recording medium 3 is conveyed by one line. After the conveyance of the recording medium 3 is completed, the recording head 22 starts printing the second line on the recording medium 3.

In this way, the printing on the recording medium 3 is sequentially performed, and when the tip of the recording medium 3 reaches the position immediately before the paper discharge roller 21, the curvature of the carrier 1 at the portion of the transport roller 12a. Thus, the recording medium 3 is separated from the carrier 1, and the recording medium 3 is sent toward the paper discharge roller 21. When the printing of one page on the recording medium 3 is completed, the transport rollers 12a and 12b and the paper discharge roller 21 are continuously rotated, whereby the recording medium 3 is discharged through the paper discharge roller 21. On the other hand, during this period, the charged area on the surface of the carrier 1 after the recording body 3 is separated passes through the charging section B and is charged again.

(Example 3) Recording was actually performed under the following conditions by the serial printer having the configuration shown in FIG. Material and forming method of the carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of the carrier layer 7: 100 μm Pressure of the pressure roller 4: 500 gf / cm 2 Recording head 22: Thermal inkjet recording head Recording density: 300 dpi Number of nozzles: 64 nozzles Printing pattern: Solid recording medium 3: Gilbert bond paper As a result, the recording medium 3 (recording paper) is fed, conveyed, and printed.
When an image was recorded through the steps of discharging the paper, a predetermined image could be formed on the recording medium 3.

Next, another method of transporting the recording medium of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 6, 1
Is a carrier for supporting the recording medium 3, 17 is a heating roller, 1
Reference numeral 8 is a contact member conveying roller, and 19 is a contact belt in which the contact member is formed into a belt shape. Here, the carrier 1 has the same structure as that of FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the contact belt 19 is brought into contact with the carrier 1 from the side of the carrier layer 7 and heated by the heating roller 17, and after the contact belt 19 is removed after cooling, the carrier 1 is heated. A large charging potential is generated in the area.

This charging process will be described with reference to FIG. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, a carrier material 1 was formed by applying a resin material as a carrier layer 7 on a base material 6 made of a metal substrate. As shown in FIG. 7A, the surface of the carrier layer 7 in this initial state has a constant intrinsic surface potential σ0 according to the film thickness of the carrier layer 7. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7B, a part of the carrier layer 7 is heated from the side of the base material 6 or the side of the contact belt 19 while the contact belt 19 such as metal is in contact with the carrier 1. To do. Next, after heating the supporting layer 7 and allowing it to cool naturally, the contact belt 19 was removed and the surface potential of the supporting layer 7 was measured. As a result, as shown in FIG. A slightly changed surface potential σ3 is also generated in the area of, but the surface potential σ changed very greatly in the heated part.
It turned out that 4 was generated. That is, in FIG.
It was confirmed that the surface potentials in the respective states of (b) and (c) have a relationship such as | σ0 | <| σ3 | <| σ4 |.

In addition, the carrier layer 7 in the state shown in FIG.
As is clear from FIG. 8, the relationship between the heating temperature and the surface potential of the heating portion when the surface of the is heated is such that the higher the heating temperature, the larger the surface potential. However, this heating temperature cannot be set higher than the decomposition temperature of the resin material of the carrying layer 7. Further, in order to always obtain a constant charging potential, it is necessary to set the heating temperature to about 35 ° C. or higher. That is, the heating temperature is about 35 ° C.
Above, it is desirable that it is below the decomposition temperature of the support layer 7.

On the other hand, as the material of the base material 6 which constitutes the carrier 1, any of an insulating substance, a conductive substance and a semi-conductive substance can be used, but particularly a uniform electric field can be formed. In terms of the above, it is desirable that the material has high conductivity. The specific material of the base material 6 and the physical properties thereof are the same as those in the above-mentioned embodiment. However, when another resin layer is provided between the base material 6 and the carrier layer 7, it is necessary to form this resin layer with a material having sufficient durability against the heating temperature. It is desirable to use a polyimide resin, PET, or the like for this resin layer.

Further, it is desirable that the film thickness of the carrier layer 7 formed on the base material 6 of the carrier 1 is higher because the charging potential is higher.
In order to efficiently and quickly transfer heat to the surface of the carrier layer 7 having relatively poor thermal conductivity when heated from the side of the base material 6, it is preferable that the film thickness of the carrier layer 7 be thin. Therefore,
A suitable film thickness of the carrier layer 7 is about 1 μm to 500 μm.

Further, the contact member of the present embodiment (contact belt 1
As 9), any of glass, an insulator such as a resin such as polyimide, and a metal such as Al, Cu, Au, Pt, and Ni may be used. However, since a metal has a higher rate of change in potential, a metal material is used. Is more preferable.

The method of transporting a recording medium using the carrier 1 will be described in more detail below. In FIG. 6, the carrier 1 is formed in the shape of an endless belt and is held by two transport rollers 12a and 12b so as to rotate in the arrow direction. In addition, at a predetermined position, the carrier 1
A contact belt 19 is held on the side of the carrying layer 7 by a contact member conveying roller 18 so as to be in contact therewith. A heating roller 17 is provided on the side of the base material 6 on the contact start side of the contact portion (charging portion B).
It can be heated. These contact belts 1
9 and the heating roller 17 are rotated at substantially the same speed as the carrier 1 as the carrier 1 moves. Therefore, the carrier layer 7 and the contact belt 19 heated by the heating roller 17
As they move, they are no longer heated by the heating roller 17 and are cooled by the time the contact belt 19 and the carrying layer 7 are separated, that is, the position of point C in FIG.

The structure of the charging section B is not particularly limited to the above-mentioned structure as long as the contact member and the carrying layer 7 are separated after being heated and cooled. For example, FIG. In the above configuration, the contact member transport roller 18 on the upstream side may be used as a heating roller and also as a heating means. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the supporting layer 7 can be heated only by the roller-shaped contact member 2. In this case, the contact width d between the contact member (contact roller) 2 and the carrier layer 7
Can be set to an appropriate value, or a cooling means such as a Peltier element can be provided on the downstream side of the contact member 2 as a heating roller to cool the carrier layer 7 within the contact width d.

On the other hand, on the downstream side of the charging section B, there is provided a paper feed roller 5 as a recording medium supply means, and the rotation of this supply roller 5 causes the recording medium 3 to move on the surface of the carrier 1. Is supplied to.

As described above, the surface of the carrier 1 which is in the low potential state (corresponding to σ0) in the initial state comes into contact with the contact belt 19 at the charging section B, and further the heating roller 1 is used.
After being heated by 7, the contact belt 19 is separated. Therefore, after passing through the charging section B, a large surface potential according to the heating temperature is generated on the surface of the carrier 1.

Thereafter, the carrier rollers 1 are rotated by the rotation of the conveying rollers 12a and 12b, and the charged area on the surface of the carrier 1 reaches the sheet feeding position of the recording medium 3. On the other hand, at approximately the same time as this, at the paper feeding position, the recording medium 3 is supplied to the surface of the carrier layer 7 by the paper feeding roller 5, whereby the recording medium 3 is moved by the electrostatic force in the charged region of the carrier 1. It is adsorbed and held on the surface of the carrier layer 7. In this state, the carrying rollers 12a and 12b are further rotated to allow the carrier 1 to carry the recording medium 3 from the paper feeding position while carrying the recording medium 3.

Here, as a heating source for the carrier 1, in addition to a ceramic heater, an infrared lamp or a laser can be used. Further, the cooling temperature of the carrier 1 may be lower than the softening point temperature of the resin material of the carrier layer 7, and normally, the range of room temperature to the softening point temperature is desirable.

(Embodiment 4) A solution in which a Ni belt is used as the base material 6 in the configuration of FIG. A polymer obtained by polymerization was used. A solution obtained by diluting this polymer with Freon 113 was used as a coating solution to form the supporting layer 7 on the Ni belt by blade coating.
The support 1 was prepared by heating and drying at 0 ° C. The film thickness of the supporting layer 7 was about 50 μm.

The surface potential of the carrier 1 thus formed was measured and found to be -0.6V. Further, using a Ni belt as the contact member 2, the carrier 1 is moved while heating the carrier 1 to about 50 ° C. by the heating roller 17, and the surface of the carrier layer 7 after passing through the charging section B. Was measured with a surface potential meter (manufactured by Trek), and a large change in the surface potential of about −280 V was recognized over the entire heating region. Here, the surface potential of the non-heated part which was not heated did not show a large change of -1 to -10V. Further, when the carrier 1 is moved and the recording medium 3 is supplied onto the carrier 1 by the sheet feeding roller 5 at the sheet feeding position, the recording medium 3 is attracted and held on the carrier 1. I was able to. After that, by further rotating the conveying rollers 12a and 12b, the recording medium 3 can be conveyed to the separating portion A in FIG. 6 while the recording medium 3 is still supported on the carrier 1. It was

Although the recording medium 3 is conveyed to the separating portion A as an example of conveying the recording medium 3, the carrier 1 conveys the recording medium 3. As a matter of course, it can be used for all parts of the recording apparatus, and for example, it may be used as a paper discharge unit for discharging the recording medium 3 from the transfer unit 14.

Next, an example in which the above-described transportation method is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. First, the recording operation of this embodiment will be described. Among the image forming processes of this recording apparatus, various known methods and methods can be selected for charging, exposure, development, cleaning, and charge removal. For example, regarding exposure, analog exposure method, laser operation exposure method, or LED
An exposure method or the like is used. For the development, a one-component toner developing system, a two-component toner developing system, or the like is used. Regarding cleaning, roller method,
Alternatively, a rubber blade method or the like may be used, and for charge removal, lamp exposure, charge removal by AC voltage, or the like is used.

Regarding the transfer, in the case of the present invention, as will be described later, it is not necessary to provide a transfer means such as a transfer charger, but a known corona charging transfer system, pressure transfer system, adhesive transfer system or the like is used. You may use.

On the other hand, as the photosensitive member, one having a photosensitive layer provided on a conductive cylindrical drum is used. As the photosensitive layer of this photoreceptor, a photoconductive organic photosensitive layer, a selenium photosensitive layer,
Alternatively, an amorphous silicon photosensitive layer or the like is used.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, this recording apparatus includes a drum-shaped photoconductor 8 which is an example of a toner image bearing rotating body, a charging charger 9 which is an example of a charging device of the photoconductor 8, An exposure device 10, a developing device 11, a transfer unit (a transfer device is not shown) 14, a fixing device 13, a charge removing device 15, a cleaning device 16 and the like. Here, the photoreceptor 8 may be configured in a belt shape.

In FIG. 11, the photoreceptor 8 uniformly charged by the charger 9 is exposed by the exposure device 10 according to the image information, so that a latent image is formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 8. Next, the latent image is developed by the developing device 11 to form a toner image on the photoconductor 8. This toner image reaches the transfer portion 14 as the photoconductor 8 rotates. On the other hand, the recording medium 3 such as a recording paper or an OHP film is conveyed to the transfer unit 14 while being supported by the carrier 1, as described above. As a result, at the transfer section 14, the photoconductor 8
The toner image formed above is transferred to the recording medium 3 side,
A toner image is attached on the recording medium 3. After that, the recording medium 3 is conveyed to a position just before the fixing device 13 including the fixing roller 13a and the pressure roller 13b and separated from the carrier 1, and the toner image on the surface of the recording medium 3 is fixed to the fixing device 13.
By being fixed to the recording body 3 by the above, a recorded image is formed on the recording body 3.

As a fixing method of this apparatus, a known method is used as appropriate. For example, a pressure fixing method or the like may be used in addition to the heat fixing method used in this embodiment.

Next, the conveying device for the recording medium 3 to the transfer portion 14 will be described in detail. As the structure of the carrier of the recording medium 3, the above-mentioned carrier 1 is used. As described above, on the carrier 1, the contact belt 19 as a contact member is supported at a predetermined position, the contact belt 19 is supported by a predetermined tension, and the contact belt 19 is moved as the carrier 1 moves.
A contact member transport roller 18 for transporting and a heating roller 17 as a heating unit are arranged. Contact belt 19
Is placed in contact with the carrier layer 7 of the carrier 1,
Rotates with the movement of. Further, the heating roller 17 is arranged in contact with the base material 6 of the carrier 1, and like the contact belt 19, rotates with the movement of the carrier 1. Therefore, the carrier 1 is heated by the heating roller 17 while being in contact with the contact belt 19. As a result, after the contact belt 19 is separated from the carrier 1, a surface potential according to the heating temperature of the heating roller 17 is generated on the surface of the carrier 1. Here, the heating roller 17 may not be rotated, and in this case, the heating means may be replaced with the heating roller 17 and may be a plate-shaped heating member having a built-in heater.

The area where the surface potential of the carrier 1 is formed reaches the sheet feeding position by the rotation of the conveying rollers 12a and 12b. On the other hand, substantially simultaneously with this, the recording medium supply means 5
The recording medium 3 is fed by a paper feeding roller as a recording medium, and the recording medium 3 is placed in an area where the surface potential of the surface of the carrier 1 is formed.
Come into contact with. As a result, the recording medium 3 is electrostatically adsorbed on the surface of the carrier 1 by the surface potential of the surface of the carrier 1 and held on the carrier 1. This recording medium 3
Is further conveyed to the transfer unit 14 while being held on the carrier 1 by further rotation of the conveying rollers 12a and 12b. Then, the recording medium 3 receives the toner image transferred from the photoconductor 8 at the transfer portion 14, and thereafter, with the movement of the carrier 1, the recording medium 3 is held on the carrier 1 toward the fixing device 13. Be transported. The carrier 1 from which the recording medium 3 has been separated in the separation section A immediately before the fixing device 13 is again heated and contact-charged in the charging section B.

(Embodiment 5) Using the recording apparatus having the structure shown in FIG. 11, under the following conditions:
Actually recorded. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Feed rate of carrier 1 and photoconductor 8: 50 mm / sec Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 120 ° C Photoconductor 8: selenium Latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposing AC Recording medium 3: Ricoh type 6200 recording paper As a result, when an image is recorded on the recording medium 3 (recording paper) through the steps of feeding, conveying and fixing, A predetermined image could be formed on the recording body 3.

As another example of use of the above-mentioned conveying means, an example in which this conveying means is used for conveying a recording medium of a serial printer is shown in FIG. In FIG. 12, 20 is a platen and 2 is
Reference numeral 1 is a paper discharge roller, and 22 is a recording head. Here, as the recording head 22, an inkjet type, a wire dot type, a thermal transfer type, or the like is used. For example, in the case of the inkjet system, it is an inkjet recording head having nozzles, flow paths, ink tanks, etc., and in the case of the wire dot system, it is a wire dot recording head having solenoids, wires, etc. Is a thermal transfer recording unit having a thermal head, an ink ribbon, etc. In this example, an inkjet recording head was used.

As in the case of FIG. 6, the carrier 1 of this example is in contact with the contact belt 19 and the heating roller 17
The carrier layer 7 is contacted and heated by
Surface is charged. Then, the recording medium 3 fed by the sheet feeding roller 5 is electrostatically adhered to and held in the charged area of the carrier 1 so that the recording medium 3 is printed at the printing position (the platen 20 and the recording head). 22 position). At this printing position, the recording medium 3 is conveyed so as to have a space of approximately 1 to 2 mm from the nozzle surface of the recording head 22. Further, the recording head 22 can be moved in a direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 12 by a recording head drive motor (not shown), and by this movement, recording for one line can be performed.

In FIG. 12, when the recording medium 3 reaches the printing position, the recording head 22 is moved in accordance with predetermined image information.
As a result, an image for one line is printed on the recording medium 3. When the printing of the image for one line is completed, the conveyance rollers 12a,
12b is driven, the carrier 1 is moved by a distance corresponding to one line of the image information, and the recording medium 3 is conveyed by one line. After the conveyance of the recording medium 3 is completed, the recording head 22 starts printing the second line on the recording medium 3.

In this way, the printing on the recording medium 3 is sequentially performed, and when the tip of the recording medium 3 reaches the position immediately before the paper discharge roller 21, the curvature of the carrier 1 at the portion of the transport roller 12a. Thus, the recording medium 3 is separated from the carrier 1, and the recording medium 3 is sent toward the paper discharge roller 21. When the printing of one page on the recording medium 3 is completed, the transport rollers 12a and 12b and the paper discharge roller 21 are continuously rotated, whereby the recording medium 3 is discharged through the paper discharge roller 21. On the other hand, during this period, the charged area on the surface of the carrier 1 after the recording body 3 is separated passes through the charging section B and is charged again.

Example 6 Recording was actually carried out by the serial printer having the configuration shown in FIG. 12 under the following conditions. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 120 ° C. Recording head 22: Thermal inkjet recording head Recording density: 300 dpi Number of nozzles: 64 nozzle printing Pattern: Solid recording medium 3: Gilbert bond paper As a result, the recording medium 3 (recording paper) is fed, conveyed, and printed.
When an image was recorded through the steps of discharging the paper, a predetermined image could be formed on the recording medium 3.

By the way, in the recording apparatus of each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the carrying layer 7 and the recording medium 3 are in direct contact with each other. Further, the surface potential remains formed on the surface of the carrier layer 7 after being separated from the recording medium 3.
Therefore, when the recording medium 3 is paper, the recording medium 3
Paper dust adheres electrostatically to the surface of the carrier layer 7. Therefore, as described above, when the carrier 1 reaches the charging section B again with the paper dust remaining on the surface of the carrier layer 7 and the carrier 1 is pressurized or heated in the charging section B, The paper powder attached to the surface is buried in the carrier layer 7. In particular, when the carrier 1 is heated, the carrier layer 7 made of a resin material is softened, so that the paper powder adhering thereto is mixed into the carrier layer 7 relatively easily.

As described above, when the paper powder adheres to the surface of the carrier 1, the amount of charge in the portion where the paper powder remains decreases, or the paper powder is exposed on the surface of the carrier layer 7. When it remains in such a state, it becomes impossible to directly contact the carrier 1 and the contact member, and in the worst state, the charging layer 7 is hardly charged.

As described above, in the recording apparatus of each of the above-mentioned embodiments, while the number of conveyed recording sheets is relatively small,
Even if the carrier layer 7 has a portion having a small surface potential, the recording medium 3 can be transported by the sufficiently charged region of the carrier layer surface. However, when the number of recording papers transported increases, the carrier layer 7 has a large amount of paper powder mixed therein, that is, a region in which a sufficient surface potential of the carrier layer 7 can be obtained is reduced, and finally the recording paper cannot be held and conveyed on the surface of the carrier 1. .

The recording apparatus shown in FIG. 13 is designed to solve the problem caused by the above-mentioned adherence of paper dust, and its embodiment will be described below. The basic configuration of the recording apparatus in this embodiment is the same as that of the recording apparatus shown in FIG. 11, but in this recording apparatus, the carrier 1 is separated from the recording medium 3 and the carrier 1 from the separation section A. It is characterized in that a carrier cleaning means 23 for cleaning the carrier surface of the carrier 1 is provided on the carrier surface side of the recording medium 3 of the carrier 1 up to the charging section B where is charged. .

Therefore, according to the recording apparatus of this embodiment,
Since the carrier cleaning means 23 can remove foreign matter such as paper dust attached to the surface of the carrier layer 7,
It is possible to solve the problem that the paper dust or the like attached to the carrier 1 is mixed and remains in the carrier layer at the charging section B.

As the carrier cleaning means 23 of this embodiment, a blade or roller made of urethane rubber,
Alternatively, a method of mechanically removing the paper dust or the like with a brush or a method of applying a potential larger than the surface potential of the carrier 1 to an electrode provided facing the surface of the carrier 1 in a non-contact manner is used. A method of electrostatically sucking / removing the above, or a method of adhering / removing paper powder or the like with a roller having an adhesive surface is appropriately used.

According to this embodiment, in the charging section B, the contact belt 19 and the carrier layer 7 are always in contact with each other on the surface of the carrier 1 without any paper dust or other dust. Since the carrier 1 is heated, the problems such as the defective conveyance of the recording medium 3 due to the paper dust and the like as described above are eliminated, and the recording medium can be stably conveyed at all times.
Therefore, according to this embodiment, even if a large number of recordings are made,
The image quality is not deteriorated and a good image is always obtained. In this embodiment, the carrier 1 is charged by charging the carrier layer 7.
An example of the case where the recording medium 3 and the recording medium 3 are brought into contact with each other and heated is shown. However, as shown in FIG. 5, the carrier 1 is charged by pressing and separating the carrying layer 7 and the contact member 2. Even in the example, the same effect can be obtained by using the configuration of the present embodiment.

(Embodiment 7) Using the recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 13, under the following conditions:
100 sheets of paper (A4 vertical size) were conveyed, and whether or not conveyance was possible when an image was formed was observed, and the formed images were compared and evaluated. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 120 ° C. Photoconductor 8: Selenium latent image pattern: Solid developing bias: DC superimposing AC carrier cleaning Means 23: Urethane rubber blade Recording medium 3: Ricoh type 6200 recording paper As a result, 100 sheets of recording paper could be conveyed from paper feeding to paper ejection in approximately the same time. In addition, as a result of comparative evaluation of the first image and the 100th image, there was no difference between the two and good images were obtained.

By the way, in the recording apparatus of each of the above-described embodiments, the recording medium 3 held and conveyed on the carrier 1 is recorded.
After recording the image on the recording medium 3, the recording medium 3 is separated from the carrier 1 immediately before the fixing unit 13. Further, in the case of a serial type printer or the like, the recording medium 3 is separated from the carrier 1 in order to eject the printed sheet.

As a method of separating the recording medium 3 in these recording apparatuses, there are shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 10, FIG. 11, and FIG.
As shown by, the curvature of the carrier 1 when the carrier 1 bends along the carrier conveying roller 12a causes
The recording medium 3 is separated from the recording medium. However, in this separation method, the position where the recording medium 3 is separated is different due to the difference in electrostatic attraction between the recording medium 3 and the carrier 1.

Therefore, in these recording devices, the recording medium 3 separated from the carrier 1 at various positions as described above.
In order to reliably introduce the toner into the fixing roller or the paper discharge roller 21 of the fixing device 13, the diameter of the fixing roller or the paper discharge roller 21 of the fixing device 13 may be increased, or these rollers and the carrier carrying roller 12a may be introduced. It is necessary to make the distance to and sufficiently long. Therefore, in these recording devices, the size of the entire device may increase.

Further, in the above-described separation method, when the electrostatic attraction force between the recording medium 3 and the carrier 1 is too large, the recording medium 3 is not separated from the carrier 1 in the separating section A. In addition, there is a problem that the recording medium 3 is conveyed to the charging section B together with the carrier 1. In particular, when a resin product such as an OHP film is used as the recording medium 3, the recording medium 3 itself is extremely likely to be charged, so that the carrier 1
The electrostatic attraction force to the recording medium 3 is large and the recording medium 3 is not likely to be separated from the carrier 1 at the separation portion A.

The recording apparatus shown in FIG. 14 is designed to solve the above problems, and its embodiment will be described below. The basic structure of the recording apparatus in this embodiment is the same as that of the recording apparatus shown in FIG. 11, but in this recording apparatus, the position at which the recording medium 3 is separated from the carrier 1, that is, the carrier 1 is separated. A separating claw 24 for forcibly separating the recording medium 3 from the carrier 1 is provided at the separating portion A immediately before the fixing device 13.

In FIG. 14, when the recording medium 3 held / conveyed by the carrier 1 reaches the separation position, the separation claw 24 prevents further advance of the tip of the recording medium 3. . At this time, most of the area behind the tip of the recording medium 3 is held by the carrier 1 by electrostatic force, so that the tip of the recording medium 3 moves further downstream together with the carrier 1. Be moved. As a result, the recording body 3 is bent at the front end portion whose movement is blocked by the separation claw 24, and the rigidity (so-called waist strength) of the recording body 3 itself causes the front end portion of the recording body 3. But the separation nail 24
And is separated from the carrier 1.

Therefore, according to the recording apparatus of this embodiment, as described above, the recording medium 3 can be reliably separated from the carrier 1 at the predetermined position.

In the present embodiment, an example of charging the carrier 1 by contacting and heating the carrier layer 7 and the recording medium 3 is shown. However, as shown in FIG. Even in the example in which the charging to 1 is performed by pressurizing / separating the supporting layer 7 and the contact member 2, the same effect can be obtained by using the configuration of the present embodiment.

(Embodiment 8) Using the recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 14, under the following conditions,
100 sheets of paper (A4 vertical size) were conveyed, and whether or not conveyance was possible when an image was formed was observed, and the formed images were compared and evaluated. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 140 ° C. Photoconductor 8: Selenium drum latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposition AC recording Body 3: Ricoh type 6200 recording paper, OHP film As a result of carrying out image formation by carrying 100 sheets of each of the above-mentioned recording bodies 3, all the recording bodies 3 are not conveyed to the charging section B, All the sheets were surely separated from the carrier 1 and discharged. In addition, as a result of comparative evaluation of the first image and the 100th image, there was no difference between the two and good images were obtained.

Next, FIG. 15 shows an embodiment in which another separating method is used as the separating means for separating the recording medium 3 from the carrier 1. As shown in FIG. 16, the resin material used as the carrier layer 7 has a relatively long time in the vicinity of room temperature (usually up to 35 ° C.), that is, from the feeding of the recording medium 3 to the separation thereof. The surface potential is large enough to hold the recording medium 3 for a sufficient time to hold and convey it on the carrier 1. However, when the carrier layer 7 having this surface potential is heated without contact with the above-mentioned contact member, it passes through the conductive layer forming the base material 6,
The charges on the surface escape from the surface of the carrier layer, and the surface potential of the carrier layer 7 rapidly decreases. Also, when paper is used as the recording medium 3 and the carrier 1 is heated in contact with this paper, similarly, a rapid decrease in the surface potential of the carrier layer 7 is observed. It was clarified by the experiments by the researchers.

The recording apparatus shown in FIG. 15 is made by applying the above-mentioned phenomenon, and its embodiment will be described below. The basic structure of the recording apparatus in this embodiment is the same as that of the recording apparatus shown in FIG. 11, but in this recording apparatus, the position at which the recording medium 3 is separated from the carrier 1, that is, the carrier 1 is separated. It is characterized in that a separation heating means 25 for heating the carrier 1 is provided between the transfer part 14 and the separation part A immediately before the fixing device 13.

In FIG. 15, when the carrier 1 after image formation is heated together with the recording medium 3 by the heating means 25 for separation, the charge on the surface of the carrier 1 is removed (charged) by the above-mentioned phenomenon, and the carrier is carried. The electrostatic attraction force between the body 1 and the recording medium 3 is reduced. Therefore, according to the recording apparatus of the present embodiment, the carrier 1 and the recording medium 3 are easily separated at the predetermined separation position.

Here, if the heating temperature of the separating heating means 25 is too low, the heating time required for static elimination of the carrier layer 7 becomes long, and the heating area for that purpose needs to be made longer, so that the apparatus is This causes a problem that leads to an increase in size. Further, if the heating temperature of the heating means 25 for separation is too high,
The resin layer forming the carrier layer 7 is softened, and the recording medium 3
Will be fused to the carrier 1. Therefore, the heating temperature of the separating heating means 25 naturally has its optimum value, and is usually about 35 ° C. or higher and the softening point temperature of the support layer 7 or lower, preferably about 35 ° C. to 60 ° C. It is desirable to set the range.

The heating area of the separating heating means 25 may be set between the transfer section 14 and the separating section A. However, if the heating area is too close to the transfer section 14, the separating heating section 25 will be heated. The heat of the means 25 may be transferred to the photoconductor 8 side, and the photoconductor 8 may deteriorate, resulting in a poor recorded image. Therefore, the heating area of the heating means 25 for separation is
It is desirable to provide at least a position 10 mm or more away from the transfer portion 14.

The length of the heating region of the separating heating means 25 is determined by the heating temperature and the size of the surface potential of the carrier 1. However, if the heating region is too long, the entire apparatus will be heated. Will become bigger. Therefore, the length of the heating region of the separating heating means 25 is usually 300 mm.
It is desirable to set within the following range.

Further, in the present embodiment, the carrier carrying roller 12a on the separating section A side is constituted by a heating roller, so that the carrier carrying roller 12a is separated by the heating means 2 for separation.
It can function as 5.

In the present embodiment, an example of charging the carrier 1 by contacting and heating the carrier layer 7 and the recording medium 3 is shown, but as shown in FIG. Even in the example in which the charging to 1 is performed by pressurizing / separating the supporting layer 7 and the contact member 2, the same effect can be obtained by using the configuration of the present embodiment.

(Embodiment 9) With the recording apparatus having the structure shown in FIG. 15 as a basic structure, 100 sheets (A4 vertical size) of paper are conveyed under the following conditions,
Whether or not the image was formed can be conveyed, and the formed images are compared and evaluated. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 140 ° C. Photoconductor 8: Selenium drum latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposition AC recording Body 3: Ricoh type 6200 Length of heating means for separating recording paper 25 (heater): 100 mm Distance between heating means for separation 25 and transfer section: Approximately 50 mm Heating temperature of heating means for separation 25: 50 ° C As a result of carrying 100 sheets of each of the recording bodies 3 to form an image, all the recording bodies 3 were securely conveyed from the carrier 1 without being conveyed to the charging section B, and were discharged. . In addition, as a result of comparative evaluation of the first image and the 100th image, there was no difference between the two and good images were obtained.

By the way, as described above, the surface potential of the carrier layer 7 in each of the above-mentioned examples decreases with the passage of time, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the carrier layer 7 is once charged, and thereafter, recording (printing) is performed for a long time without performing the charging operation.
Then, due to the attenuation of the surface potential of the carrier layer 7, it becomes impossible for the carrier 1 to hold and convey the recording medium 3.

In order to solve this problem, as described in the above embodiment, the charging layer 7 may be repeatedly charged every recording operation, but the charging operation is always repeated in this way. Power consumption increases. Particularly, in the case of the method of charging the supporting layer 7 by contact / heating, more energy will be consumed. Further, as described above, when the supporting layer 7 is charged by contact / pressurization, when the charging operation is repeatedly performed, the supporting layer 7 is constantly pressed, which causes deterioration of the supporting layer 7. Becomes

The recording devices shown in FIGS. 17, 18 and 19 are made to solve the above-mentioned problems.
Each example will be described below. The recording apparatus in each example has the same basic configuration as the recording apparatus shown in FIG. 11, but in these recording apparatuses, the heating roller 17 and the contact member are used as means for bringing the contact member into contact with the carrier layer 7. Using the solenoid 28 provided on the transport roller 18,
Initially, the carrier layer 7 is charged for one rotation, and then the solenoid 28 is driven to separate the contact belt 19 from the carrier layer 7 so that the carrier layer 7 is not charged. At the same time, by turning off the heating operation of the heating roller 17, the heating energy required for heating the carrying layer 7 is reduced.

After that, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 17, every time the carrier 1 is rotated a predetermined time, and in the embodiment shown in FIG. 18, every predetermined time, while in the embodiment shown in FIG. Surface potential detection means (surface potential detection sensor or the like) for detecting the surface potential of the layer 7 is provided, and according to the surface potential detection signal of the surface potential detection means, respectively.
The contact belt 19 is again brought into contact with and heated by the carrier layer 7 to charge the carrier layer 7. Therefore, according to these embodiments, the heating roller 17 is not always heated, and the energy consumption thereof can be reduced.

Hereinafter, these examples will be described in more detail. First, the embodiment shown in FIG. 17 will be described. In FIG. 17, reference numeral 26 is a solenoid drive circuit for driving a solenoid 28 for contacting and separating a contact member (contact belt 19 in this embodiment) with respect to the carrier layer 7, 27 is a microprocessor, and 29 is a heating roller 17. It is a heater drive circuit for driving the heater.

In this embodiment, first, in FIG. 17, the solenoid drive circuit 26 turns off the solenoid 28 to bring the contact belt 19 into contact with the surface of the carrier layer 7, and in this state, the heater drive circuit 29. The heater of the heating roller 17 is turned on to charge the surface of the carrier layer 7. Next, this carrier layer 7 is used until the carrier 1 makes one revolution.
After charging to, the solenoid drive circuit 26
The solenoid 28 is turned on to contact the contact belt 19 with the carrier layer 7.
The heater of the heating roller 17 is turned off by the heater drive circuit 29 at substantially the same time. After this, the microprocessor 27 causes the subsequent carrier 1
The number of rotations is counted, and the above state is maintained until the number of rotations of the carrier 1 reaches a predetermined number of rotations.

Then, by the microprocessor 27,
When it is determined that the number of revolutions of the carrier 1 has reached a predetermined number of revolutions, the solenoid drive circuit 26 and the heater drive circuit 29 are respectively controlled again, the solenoid 28 is turned off, and the contact belt 19 is activated. The surface of the carrier layer 7 is brought into contact with the surface of the carrier layer 7, and the heater of the heating roller 17 is turned on to recharge the surface of the carrier layer 7 in this state. As described above, in this embodiment, by repeating the above-described operation, the charging operation for the carrier layer 7 can be performed every predetermined rotation of the carrier 1.

Next, the embodiment shown in FIG. 18 will be described. In FIG. 18, 30 is a timer. In this embodiment, first, the charging operation for the carrier layer 7 is performed in the same manner as in the embodiment shown in FIG. Next, the carrier layer 7 is charged until the carrier 1 makes one revolution, and then the carrier layer 7 is uncharged, that is, by the solenoid drive circuit 26.
The solenoid 28 is turned on to contact the contact belt 19 with the carrier layer 7.
The heater of the heating roller 17 is turned off by the heater drive circuit 29 at substantially the same time. Then, the microprocessor 27 uses the timer 30 to count the predetermined elapsed time after charging. During this counting, the above-mentioned non-charged state is maintained until a predetermined time elapses.

Then, by the microprocessor 27,
When it is determined that the predetermined time has elapsed, the solenoid drive circuit 26 and the heater drive circuit 29 are respectively controlled again, the solenoid 28 is turned off, and the contact belt 19 comes into contact with the surface of the carrier layer 7. At the same time, the heater of the heating roller 17 is turned on in this state to recharge the surface of the carrying layer 7. As described above, in the present embodiment, by repeating the above-described operation, the charging operation for the carrier layer 7 can be executed every predetermined time.

Next, the embodiment shown in FIG. 19 will be described. In FIG. 19, 31 is a surface potential detection circuit and 32 is a surface potential sensor. In this embodiment, first, the charging operation for the carrier layer 7 is performed in the same manner as in the embodiment shown in FIG. Next, the carrier layer 7 is charged until the carrier 1 makes one rotation, and then the carrier layer 7 is in an uncharged state, that is, the solenoid 28 is turned on by the solenoid drive circuit 26 to move the contact belt 19 to the carrier layer. 7 is separated from the surface of the heating roller 7, and substantially at the same time, the heating roller 1 is driven by the heater driving circuit 29.
Turn off the heater of 7. Then microprocessor 2
7, the surface potential detection circuit 31 and the surface potential sensor 32 are used to detect the surface potential of the surface of the carrier layer 7. The above-mentioned non-charged state is maintained while the signal equal to or higher than the detection value corresponding to the surface potential within the predetermined range is obtained from the surface potential detection circuit 31.

Then, after the signal below the detection value corresponding to the surface potential within the predetermined range is obtained from the surface potential detection circuit 31, the microprocessor 27 causes the solenoid drive circuit 2 to operate.
6, and the heater drive circuit 29 is controlled again,
When the solenoid 28 is turned off, the contact belt 19 moves the carrier layer 7
In this state, the heater of the heating roller 17 is turned on to recharge the surface of the carrier layer 7.

As described above, in the present embodiment, by repeating the above-described operation, the surface potential detection means outputs the surface potential detection signal, that is, the surface potential of the surface of the carrier 1. The charging operation of the carrier layer 7 can be executed. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, for example, after charging the surface of the carrier 1, for a while,
Even when recording is not performed, the surface of the carrier 1
As long as it has a surface potential sufficient to hold and convey the recording medium 3, the carrier 1 will not be charged immediately after the recording operation is restarted, and the carrier may be carried out if necessary. Since the charging operation to 1 is performed, the energy saving can be further promoted.

On the other hand, for the predetermined time in the embodiment shown in FIG. 18, the surface potential of the charged carrier layer 7 decays to the surface potential necessary for attaching / transporting the recording medium 3 to the carrier 1. Depending on the time required until the above, and the predetermined number of rotations in the embodiment shown in FIG. 17, the surface potential of the charged carrier layer 7 is necessary for the recording medium 3 to be attached to and carried by the carrier 1. Time required to decay below the surface potential,
And the rotational speed of the carrier 1, respectively.

(Embodiment 10) With the recording apparatus having the structure shown in FIG. 17 as a basic structure, 100 sheets (A4 vertical size) of paper are conveyed under the following conditions,
Whether or not the image was formed can be conveyed, and the formed images are compared and evaluated. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 140 ° C. Photoconductor 8: Selenium drum latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposition AC recording Body 3: Ricoh type 6200 Recording paper carrier 1 moving speed: 2.5 to 100 mm / sec Number of times charging operation is carried out: 2, 5, 30, 50 rotations 100 sheets of the above-mentioned recording material 3 are conveyed respectively. As a result of the image formation, all the recording mediums 3 were not conveyed to the charging section B, and were all discharged from the carrier 1. In addition, as a result of comparative evaluation of the first image and the 100th image, there was no difference between the two and good images were obtained. Furthermore, when the heating energy in the case of performing the charging operation every time and the heating energy in the case of this example were compared, the heating energy of this example was significantly reduced. In addition, as a result of continuously forming images with the carrier 1 charged only once in the initial stage,
The recording paper after the 1000th sheet could not be conveyed. From this, the charging of the carrier 1 is usually 2 to
It is desirable to perform every 1000 rotations.

(Embodiment 11) With the recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 18 as a basic configuration, 100 sheets (A4 vertical size) of paper are conveyed under the following conditions,
Whether or not the image was formed can be conveyed, and the formed images are compared and evaluated. Material and forming method of the carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of the carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of the heating roller 17: 140 ° C. Photoconductor 8: Selenium drum latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposed AC recorded Body 3: moving speed of Ricoh type 6200 recording paper carrier 1: 2.5 to 100 mm / sec Interval of charging operation execution time: every 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10 minutes. As a result of carrying 100 sheets of each and forming an image, all of the recording mediums 3 were reliably conveyed from the carrier 1 without being conveyed to the charging section B. In addition, as a result of comparative evaluation of the first image and the 100th image, there was no difference between the two and good images were obtained. Further, when the heating energies of the case where the charging operation is performed every time and the case of the present example are compared, the heating energy of the present example is significantly reduced. In addition, as a result of continuously forming images with the carrier 1 charged only once in the initial stage,
The recording paper after about 30 minutes could not be conveyed. From this, it is generally desirable to set the charging interval of the carrier 1 to 30 minutes or less.

(Embodiment 12) With the recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 19 as a basic configuration, 100 sheets (A4 vertical size) of paper are conveyed under the following conditions,
Whether or not the image was formed can be conveyed, and the formed images are compared and evaluated. Material and forming method of carrier layer 7: Same as in Example 1 Thickness of carrier layer 7: 50 μm Heating temperature of heating roller 17: 140 ° C. Photoconductor 8: Selenium drum latent image pattern: Solid development bias: DC superimposition AC recording Body 3: Moving speed of Ricoh type 6200 recording paper carrier 1: 2.5 to 100 mm / sec Charging operation execution condition: When the detected surface potential is reduced to 50% or less of the charge amount immediately after the charging operation is performed, or When the absolute value of the surface potential is reduced to 100 V or less, 100 sheets of each of the recording mediums 3 are conveyed to form an image, and as a result, all the recording mediums 3 are not conveyed to the charging section B. All the sheets were reliably discharged from the carrier 1. In addition, as a result of comparative evaluation of the first image and the 100th image, there was no difference between the two and good images were obtained. Furthermore, when the heating energy in the case of performing the charging operation every time and the heating energy in the case of this example were compared, the heating energy of this example was significantly reduced.

[0112]

According to the present invention, the recording medium can be securely held and conveyed. Further, the amount of conveyance does not vary depending on the type of recording medium conveyed. Furthermore, the device does not become large and noise does not occur.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of recording medium conveying means for explaining a charging system and a recording medium conveying system in a recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a carrier in the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining a charging method used in the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the pressure applied when the surface of the carrier layer is pressed and the surface potential of the pressing section in the recording apparatus of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording device.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a recording medium conveying means for explaining another charging system and a recording medium conveying system in the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram for explaining another charging method used in the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the relationship between the heating temperature and the surface potential of the heating portion when the surface of the carrier layer in the recording apparatus of the present invention is heated.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a heating section of another heating means for heating the surface of the carrier layer in the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of an embodiment in which the present invention is used to convey a recording medium of a serial printer.

FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration diagram of another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of another embodiment in which the present invention is used to convey a recording medium of a serial printer.

FIG. 13 is a schematic configuration diagram of still another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

FIG. 14 is a schematic configuration diagram of still another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

FIG. 15 is a schematic configuration diagram of still another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the time decay of the surface potential of the resin material used for the carrying layer of the recording medium transporting means in the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a schematic configuration diagram of still another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

FIG. 18 is a schematic configuration diagram of still another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

FIG. 19 is a schematic configuration diagram of still another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electrophotographic recording apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Carrier 2 Contact member (contact roller) 3 Recording material 4 pressure roller 5 Recording medium supply means (paper feed roller) 6 base material 7 Support layer 8 photoconductor 9 Charger 10 Exposure equipment 11 Developing device 12a, 12b transport rollers 13 Fixing device 14 Transfer part 15 Static eliminator 16 Cleaning device 17 Heating roller 18 Contact member transport roller 19 contact belt 20 Platen 21 Paper ejection roller 22 recording head 23 Carrier cleaning means 24 separated nails 25 Heating means for separation 26 Solenoid drive circuit 27 microprocessors 28 Solenoid 29 Heater drive circuit 30 timer 31 Surface potential detection circuit 32 Surface potential sensor A separation section B charging section d Contact width σ0 intrinsic surface potential

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65H 5/00 G03G 15/00 510

Claims (10)

(57) [Claims] 1. At least a part of the surface is made of a resin layer,
The carrier for supporting the recording medium is contacted with the solid and pressed.
After that, by separating from the solid, a region having a surface potential is formed on the surface of the carrier, and a medium to be recorded is electrostatically carried in this region and is conveyed, and the medium is conveyed. Method. 2. A resin layer on at least a part of the surface,
The carrier for supporting the recording medium is contacted with the solid and pressed.
After that, the carrier charging means for forming a region having a surface potential on the surface of the carrier by separating from the solid, and for supplying a recording medium to the region, which is downstream of the carrier charging means. And a recording medium supply unit for conveying the recording medium supplied by the recording medium supply unit to the recording area by the carrier to form an image on the recording medium. apparatus. 3. At least a carrier for supporting a recording medium is heated in contact with a solid, or at least the surface of the carrier is heated in contact with a solid, and after cooling,
A recording medium conveying method, wherein a region having a surface potential corresponding to a heating temperature is formed on the surface of the carrier, and the recording medium is electrostatically supported and conveyed in this region. 4. A carrier for supporting at least a recording medium is heated in contact with a solid, or at least the surface of the carrier is heated in contact with a solid, and after cooling,
A carrier charging means for forming a region having a surface potential according to the heating temperature on the surface of the carrier, and a member for supplying a recording medium to the region, which is downstream of the carrier charging means. A recording apparatus comprising: a recording medium supply unit, wherein the recording medium supplied by the recording medium supply unit is conveyed to a recording area by the carrier to form an image on the recording medium. 5. A cleaning means for cleaning the surface of the carrier is provided.
Alternatively, the recording device according to claim 4. 6. The recording apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a separating means for separating the carrier from the recording medium. 7. The recording apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the separating means is a heating means for heating the carrier. 8. A recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the step of charging the carrier by the carrier charging means is performed every predetermined rotation of the carrier. 9. The recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the step of charging the carrier by the carrier charging means is performed every predetermined time. 10. A surface potential detecting means for detecting the surface potential of the carrier, wherein the step of charging the carrier by the carrier charging means is performed according to a signal from the surface potential detecting means. The recording apparatus according to claim 2 or 4, characterized in that