JP5040095B2 - Exposure apparatus and adjustment method of protrusion amount of positioning pin of exposure apparatus - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus and a method for adjusting a protrusion amount of a positioning pin of the exposure apparatus .

  In an image recording apparatus such as a printer or a multi-function copier, a photosensitive member is exposed by an exposure device to form a latent image on the photosensitive member. In order to reduce the size and reduce noise, an LED head using a light emitting element such as an LED as a light source may be used for the exposure apparatus.

  There has been proposed an LED head in which a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a straight line and a substrate on which driving elements for driving these light emitting elements are mounted is arranged on both sides of the light emitting elements. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  However, the LED head having such a configuration has a large size in the width direction of the LED head. For this reason, the occupied area on the photoconductor is increased, the degree of freedom of arrangement of other devices around the photoconductor is reduced, and there is a limit to downsizing of the image recording apparatus.

  In addition, a first substrate on which a light emitting element such as an LED is mounted is disposed on the lower surface of the support body, and a second substrate on which a driving element for driving the light emitting element is mounted is disposed on the side surface of the support body. A head has been proposed. (For example, refer to Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3).

  However, the LED head having such a configuration also has a wide width because the second substrate is disposed on the side surface, making it difficult to reduce the size of the device. Further, since it protrudes in the width direction, it is difficult to mount a thick part such as a connector for connecting to the outside on the second substrate. Alternatively, for the purpose of miniaturization, if the support is cut out and an attempt is made to store the second substrate, the rigidity of the support is lowered and vibrated.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 20, a configuration is proposed in which a screw portion 1022 protruding from the lower surface 1002A of the support member 1002 of the positioning pin 1012 for adjusting the distance between the LED head 1000 and the photosensitive member is fixed with a nut 1030. Yes. (For example, refer to Patent Document 4).

  However, the LED head 1000 having such a configuration has a limitation in miniaturization because the screw portion 1022 at the rear end of the positioning pin 1012 protrudes. Further, when the nut 1030 is locked up in order to fix the positioning pin 1012 to the support member 1002, the position of the positioning pin 1012 is shifted and the amount of shift is not constant. That is, it is difficult to accurately adjust the protruding amount (distance between the LED head 1000 and the photosensitive member).

In addition, an LED print head having a wedge-shaped adjusting mechanism that adjusts the distance from the photosensitive member, and a writing head that adjusts the distance from the photosensitive member by moving a contact member with a distance adjusting screw have been proposed. . However, such a configuration also has a large adjustment mechanism and is difficult to downsize. (For example, refer to Patent Document 5 and Patent Document 6).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-334141 Japanese Patent No. 3359207 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-305610 JP 2001-232847 A Japanese Patent No. 3177406 JP 2003-173073 A

The present invention has been made to solve the above problem, and an object thereof is to accurately adjust the distance between an exposure apparatus and an object to be exposed .

In order to achieve the above object, an exposure apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a substrate on which a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a line, a support member that supports the substrate, and light emitted by the light emitting elements. An imaging element that forms an image on the object to be exposed, and the support member protrudes from the surface facing the object to be exposed toward the object to be exposed, positions the distance from the object to be exposed, and protrudes A positioning pin whose amount can be adjusted, an insertion hole into which the positioning pin is slidably inserted in the protruding direction, and the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole are pressed in a direction perpendicular to the protruding direction to And a pressing means for fixing the pin.

In the exposure apparatus according to the first aspect , the positioning pin protrudes toward the object to be exposed. The distance from the object to be exposed can be adjusted by the protruding amount of the positioning pin.

  The positioning pin is inserted into the insertion hole so as to be slidable in the protruding direction. Then, the positioning pin inserted in the insertion hole is pressed in a direction perpendicular to the protruding direction by the pressing means, and the positioning pin is fixed.

  Thus, since the pressing direction is orthogonal to the protruding direction (sliding direction) of the positioning pin, when pressing and fixing, for example, the positioning pin protrudes from the surface opposite to the surface facing the object to be exposed. Compared to the configuration in which the positioning pins are fixed with bolts, the positioning pins move very little in the protruding direction (sliding direction). That is, there is very little variation in the amount of protrusion, that is, the distance between the exposure apparatus and the object to be exposed.

  Further, for example, in the configuration in which the positioning pin is projected from the surface opposite to the surface facing the object to be exposed and fixed with a bolt, the positioning pin protrudes from the opposite surface, which hinders downsizing. there were. On the other hand, the configuration in which the positioning pin is fixed by pressing in the direction orthogonal to the protruding direction does not require the positioning pin to protrude from the opposite surface, and thus can be further reduced in size.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the exposure apparatus according to the first aspect, the pressing means is a screw hole orthogonal to the insertion hole and a screw screwed into the screw hole. Yes.

The exposure apparatus according to claim 2 presses and fixes the positioning pin in the direction orthogonal to the protruding direction at the tip of the screw by screwing the screw into the screw hole orthogonal to the insertion hole.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the exposure apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the pressing means is an eccentric cam that rotates about a rotation axis parallel to the hole axis of the insertion hole. .

In the exposure apparatus according to the third aspect, the eccentric cam is rotated about the rotation axis parallel to the hole axis of the insertion hole, and the positioning pin is pressed and fixed in the direction orthogonal to the protruding direction by the eccentric cam.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the second or third aspect, the screw or the eccentric cam fixes the positioning pin with an adhesive after fixing the positioning pin.

In the exposure apparatus according to the fourth aspect, since the screw or the eccentric cam is fixed with the adhesive, the pressing force of the screw or the eccentric cam does not decrease. That is, the positioning pin is fixed more firmly.

An exposure apparatus according to a fifth aspect is characterized in that, in the configuration according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the positioning pin is provided on an outer side in a longitudinal direction of the first substrate. Yes.

The exposure apparatus according to claim 5 is narrow because the positioning pin is provided outside the first substrate in the longitudinal direction.

The exposure apparatus according to claim 6 is the configuration according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the positioning pin includes a male screw portion, and the support member is coaxial with the insertion hole. Provided with a female screw portion into which the male screw portion is screwed, and the protruding amount of the positioning pin is adjusted by the screwing amount with which the male screw portion is screwed into the female screw portion. .

The exposure apparatus according to claim 6 is the configuration according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the positioning pin includes a male screw portion, and the support member is coaxial with the insertion hole. Provided with a female screw portion into which the male screw portion is screwed, and the protruding amount of the positioning pin is adjusted by the screwing amount with which the male screw portion is screwed into the female screw portion. .

In the exposure apparatus according to the sixth aspect, the protruding amount of the positioning pin is adjusted by the screwing amount by which the male screw portion of the positioning pin is screwed with the female screw portion of the support member. Therefore, for example, a separate adjustment jig for adjusting the protrusion amount of the positioning pin is not required.

Exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein, in the structure according to claim 6, the backlash between the insertion hole and the positioning pin, is characterized in that it has less than backlash between the female screw portion and the male screw portion.

In the exposure apparatus according to the seventh aspect, since the backlash between the insertion hole and the positioning pin is smaller than the backlash between the female screw portion and the male screw portion, the inclination of the positioning pin is small even if the positioning pin is pressed and fixed. .

The adjustment method of the protrusion amount of the positioning pin of the exposure apparatus according to claim 8 is the adjustment method of the protrusion amount of the positioning pin of the exposure apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , A measuring step of measuring a focal position of the exposure apparatus; a calculating step of calculating a protruding amount of the positioning pin protruding from the support member from the measured focal position; and the positioning pin protruding so as to be the calculated protruding amount And a fixing step of pressing the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole in a direction orthogonal to the protruding direction and fixing the positioning pin by the pressing means. .

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for adjusting a projection amount of a positioning pin of an exposure apparatus, wherein a focal position of the exposure apparatus is first measured in a measurement step. From the focal position measured in the calculation step, the protrusion amount of the positioning pin protruding from the support member is calculated. The positioning pin is protruded so as to be the protrusion amount calculated in the protrusion step. In the fixing step, the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole by the pressing means is pressed in a direction orthogonal to the protruding direction, and the positioning pin is fixed.

A method for adjusting the protrusion amount of the positioning pin of the exposure apparatus according to claim 9 is an adjustment method of the protrusion amount of the positioning pin of the exposure apparatus according to claim 6 or 7 , wherein the focal position of the exposure apparatus is adjusted. A measuring step for measuring, a calculating step for calculating a protruding amount of the positioning pin protruding from the support member from the measured focal position, and the male screw portion of the positioning pin is the female screw portion of the support member A projecting step of projecting the positioning pin so that the calculated projecting amount is adjusted, and the positioning means inserted into the insertion hole by the pressing means with the projecting direction. And a fixing step of fixing the positioning pins by pressing in the orthogonal direction.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for adjusting a projection amount of a positioning pin of an exposure apparatus, wherein a focal position of the exposure apparatus is first measured in a measurement step. From the focal position measured in the calculation step, the protrusion amount of the positioning pin protruding from the support member is calculated. In the projecting step, the screwing amount of the male screw portion of the positioning pin to be screwed into the female screw portion of the support member is adjusted, and the positioning pin is projected so that the calculated projecting amount is obtained. In the fixing step, the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole by the pressing means is pressed in a direction orthogonal to the protruding direction, and the positioning pin is fixed.

As described above, according to the present invention , it is possible to accurately adjust the distance between the exposure apparatus and the object to be exposed as compared with a configuration to which the present invention is not applied.

  The LED head according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an LED head 100 is used in an image forming apparatus 10 that forms an image on a recording medium such as recording paper by an electrophotographic method.

  In the image forming apparatus 10, a drum-type electrophotographic photosensitive member as an image carrier, that is, a photosensitive drum 12, is supported so as to be rotatable about an axis G. The surface of the photosensitive drum 12 rotating in the arrow K direction is charged by the charging device 14. The charged photosensitive drum 12 is exposed to light corresponding to image information emitted from the LED head 100 as an exposure device, whereby an electrostatic latent image is formed. This electrostatic latent image is developed by the developing device 16 to form a toner image on the photosensitive drum 12.

  The recording paper stored in the paper tray (not shown) is transported along the paper transport path P. Then, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 12 described above is transferred to the conveyed recording paper by the transfer device 18. The recording paper onto which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed to a fixing device (not shown), and after the toner image is fixed, it is discharged out of the device.

  Further, the residual toner remaining without being transferred is removed by the cleaning device 20. Then, after being neutralized by the static eliminator 22, it is exposed again by the LED head 100.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the entire LED head 100 has a quadrangular prism shape, and the longitudinal direction thereof is the same as the axis G of the photosensitive drum 12. Further, the LED head 100 includes a support member 102 made of a metal, and the support member 102 includes a substrate support portion 104 having a quadrangular cross section.

  A first substrate 150 is attached to the upper surface 104 </ b> A of the substrate support portion 104. On the upper surface of the first substrate 150, LED arrays 152 as light emitting elements are mounted side by side in the longitudinal direction (in the direction of the axis G of the photosensitive drum 12). The LED array 152 is a so-called self-scanning LED (SLED) array having a PNPN structure light-emitting thyristor and having the function of a shift register.

  A self-scanning LED (SLED) array can significantly reduce the number of signal lines connected to a non-self-scanning LED array. Therefore, the first substrate 150 can be reduced in size.

  The second substrate 170 is attached to the lower surface 104B opposite to the upper surface 104A of the substrate support 104. Various electronic components 176 (see FIG. 4, capacitors and resistors) are mounted on both surfaces of the second substrate 170. A driving element 172 that drives the LED array 152 mounted on the first substrate 150 and a connector 174 that is electrically connected to the outside are mounted on the lower surface of the second substrate 170.

The width of the second substrate 170 (the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, the direction orthogonal to the direction of the rotation axis G of the photosensitive drum 12) is wider than that of the first substrate 150. (See Figure 1)
Further, the first substrate 150 and the second substrate 170 are electrically connected by a flexible wiring substrate 190. The flexible wiring substrate 190 is connected to the outer surface of both the first substrate 150 and the second substrate 170 by thermocompression bonding or thermocompression bonding of an anisotropic conductive film. Note that the LED array 152 is a self-scanning LED array, and the number of signal lines to be connected is significantly smaller than that of a non-self-scanning LED array.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3, in the second substrate 170, the joint portion 160 with the flexible wiring substrate 190 and the drive element 172 are aligned in the longitudinal direction and do not overlap in the width direction. Therefore, the second substrate 170 can be narrowed. As shown in FIG. 2, the flexible wiring board 190 is bent and disposed along the side surface of the board support portion 104, but for ease of understanding in FIG. 3, the flexible wiring board 190 is not bent. It has become.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a concave portion 104 </ b> C in which various electronic components 176 (capacitors and resistors) are received is formed on the lower surface 104 </ b> B of the substrate support portion 104. However, the recess 104C is not formed in the region where the drive element 172 is mounted. Therefore, the lower surface 104 </ b> B of the substrate support portion 104 of the support member 102 is in surface contact with the region where the driving element 172 is mounted on the upper surface of the second substrate 170. Therefore, the thermal conductivity is good and the heat dissipation effect is high.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the imaging element support portion 106 extends from the upper surface 104 </ b> A of the substrate support portion 104 toward the photosensitive drum 12 (see FIG. 1). The imaging element support unit 106 has a distributed refractive index lens for imaging the light emitted from the LED array 152 onto the photosensitive drum 12, a so-called Selfoc lens (“Selfoc” is a registered trademark of Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd.). ) Is attached.

  In addition, as shown by an imaginary line (two-dot broken line) in FIGS. 1 and 2, a resin cover 108 is also attached so that the first substrate 150 is not exposed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, insertion holes 110 and 111 penetrate vertically on the outer side in the longitudinal direction of the upper surface 104 </ b> A of the substrate support portion 104 of the support member 102 to which the first substrate 105 is attached. Positioning pins 112 and 113 are slidably inserted into the insertion holes 110 and 111, respectively.

  Further, screw holes 120 and 121 are formed in the direction orthogonal to the insertion holes 110 and 111 from the side surface of the substrate support portion 104 of the support member 102. The tips of the screw holes 120 and 121 are connected to the insertion holes 110 and 111. The set screws 122 and 123 are screwed into the screw holes 120 and 121.

  As shown in FIG. 5, by tightening the set screws 122 and 123 in a state where the positioning pins 112 and 113 protrude from the upper surface 104A of the substrate support portion 104, the distal ends of the set screws 122 and 123 become the positioning pins. The side surfaces of 112 and 113 are pressed, and the positioning pins 112 and 113 are fixed. At this time, the rear ends of the set screws 122 and 123 are in the screw holes 120 and 121, and do not protrude from the side surface of the substrate support portion 104. Further, the rear ends of the positioning pins 112 and 123 are also in the insertion holes 110 and 111, and do not protrude from the lower surface 104 </ b> B of the substrate support portion 104. In addition, the jig | tool pin 900 in a figure is required at the time of adjustment, and is removed after adjustment. Details of the jig pin 900 will be described later.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 4, biasing springs 906 and 908, which are biasing means, are biased, and the fixed tips of the positioning pins 112 and 113 are positioned at the positioning portions 902 and 904 provided in the image forming apparatus 10. The distance between the photosensitive drum 12 (see FIG. 1) and the LED head 100 is determined.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the positioning pins 112 and 113 adjust the distances between the photosensitive drum 12 and the LED head 100 by adjusting the protrusion amounts M1 and M2 protruding from the upper surface 104A of the substrate support 104. it can.

  Next, an adjustment method (a method for adjusting the distance between the photosensitive drum 12 and the LED head 100) in which the positioning pins 112 and 113 adjust the protrusion amounts M1 and M2 that protrude from the upper surface 104A of the substrate support 104 will be described.

  First, the overall flow will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 7, in step 50, the focal length of the LED head 100 is measured. (Details of the measurement method will be described later). In step 52, the projection amounts M1 and M2 of the positioning pins 112 and 13 are calculated from the focal distance and information such as the positional relationship between the positioning portions 902 and 904 (see FIG. 4) and the photosensitive drum 12 (see FIG. 1). To do. In step 54, the positioning pins 112 and 113 are slid to obtain the calculated projection amount. (Details will be described later). In step 56, the set screws 122 and 123 are tightened, the side surfaces of the positioning pins 112 and 113 are pressed, and the positioning pins 112 and 113 are fixed. (See FIG. 5).

  It is preferable to apply an adhesive as a screwing agent for preventing looseness to the set screws 122 and 123 because the positions of the positioning pins 112 and 113 are less likely to shift after being fixed. Moreover, as an adhesive agent, the anaerobic adhesive agent which hardens | cures when air is interrupted | blocked is suitable.

  Next, the measurement of the focal length of the LED head 100 performed in step 50 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a CCD camera 952 is attached to a jig 950 so as to be movable in the X direction and the Z direction. The Z direction is the vertical direction, and the X direction is the longitudinal direction of the LED head 100 (the direction in which the LED arrays 152 are arranged).

  First, the CCD camera 952 is moved to the end of the LED head 100 (in the X direction). Next, the CCD camera 952 is moved in the Z direction (up and down), and the position where the light is most focused (focal position) is measured. Then, the CCD camera 952 is slightly moved in the X direction to measure the position where the light is most focused (focal position). By performing this operation over the entire X direction (longitudinal direction), the focal position is measured. Note that this focal position differs slightly for each LED head 100 due to variations in parts, assembly variations, and the like. Moreover, it may not be horizontal but may be slightly inclined. Further, simply, the focal position may be estimated from the measurement result of the lens array 90 alone, and the protrusion amounts M1 and M2 may be calculated.

  Next, a method for setting the calculated projection amounts M1 and M2 by sliding the positioning pins 112 and 113 in step 54 (see FIG. 7) will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 5, after inserting the positioning pins 112 and 113 into the insertion holes 110 and 111, the jig pins 900 are inserted from the lower surface 104B. And the protrusion amount of the positioning pins 112 and 113 is adjusted by adjusting the insertion amount of the jig pin 900. After the adjustment, the set screws 122 and 123 are fastened and fixed. After fixing the positioning pins 112 and 113, the jig pin 900 is removed.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an angle α1 is a straight angle (fan-shaped angle) connecting both end portions in the width direction of the LED head 100 and the axis G of the photosensitive drum 12. The smaller the angle α1, the easier it is to arrange various devices (in this embodiment, the charging device 14, the developing device 16, the transfer device 18, the cleaning device 20, and the static eliminating device 22) around the photosensitive drum 12. Become. That is, the degree of freedom of design increases.

  The second substrate 170 is disposed with an interval substantially parallel to the first substrate 150. Therefore, even if the angle α1 is small, the second substrate 170 can be made wider than the first substrate 150. Further, even if a thick component such as the connector 174 is mounted on the second substrate 170, the angle α1 is not affected.

  Furthermore, the second substrate 170 can be widened without affecting the arrangement of various devices around the photosensitive drum 12 as long as it falls within the angle α1, so that it is desirable to exhibit the performance. The required number of various electronic components (capacitors, resistors, etc.) can be mounted on the second substrate 170. In addition, the number of wiring layers of the second substrate 170 can be reduced. Therefore, the cost is low.

  Further, by integrally forming the imaging element support part 106 and the substrate support part 104, a process for joining the imaging element support part 106 is not required, and the process can be simplified. Further, the positional accuracy between the LED array 152 and the lens array 90 is also improved.

  Further, since the LED array 152 is a self-scanning LED, the number of wirings is reduced. Therefore, the width of the flexible wiring board 190 can be reduced and the assembly process is facilitated.

  Further, the side surfaces of the positioning pins 112 and 113 are pressed and fixed with set screws 122 and 123. That is, the positioning pins 112 and 113 are pressed and fixed in a direction orthogonal to the sliding direction of the positioning pins 112 and 113. Therefore, when the positioning pins 112 and 113 are fixed, they do not shift in the sliding direction. That is, there is very little change in the protruding amount of the positioning pins 112 and 113 when fixing.

  Now, as shown in the graph of FIG. 10, the variation 3σ of the protrusion amount of the positioning pin 1012 of the conventional LED head 1000 shown in FIG. 20 is 13.1 μm. On the other hand, as shown in the graph of FIG. 9, in the LED head 100 of this embodiment, the variation 3σ is 7.1 μm, and it can be seen that the variation in the protrusion amount is greatly improved.

  Next, the LED head of the second embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the entire support member 202 of the LED head 200 has a tapered trapezoidal shape. Therefore, the widths of the first substrate 150 and the second substrate 170 are the same as in the first embodiment, and the angle α2 is small (α2 <α1). That is, the device is further downsized and various devices around the photosensitive drum 12 (in the present embodiment, the charging device 14, the developing device 16, the transfer device 18, the cleaning device 20, the static eliminating device 22, see FIG. 1). Is easy to arrange. In other words, the degree of freedom of design is increasing.

  Next, the LED head of the third embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the entire support member 302 of the LED head 300 is narrowed so that the second substrate 370 protrudes from the substrate support portion 304. Therefore, the angle α3 is reduced without reducing the widths of the first substrate 150 and the second substrate 370. (Α3 <α2 <α1). That is, the device is further downsized and various devices around the photosensitive drum 12 (in the present embodiment, the charging device 14, the developing device 16, the transfer device 18, the cleaning device 20, the static eliminating device 22, see FIG. 1). Is easy to arrange. In other words, the degree of freedom of design is increasing. Further, the side surface 302C of the support member 302 can be formed in parallel with the optical axis of the light emitted from the LED array 152, and the LED head 300 can be easily attached.

  Next, an LED head according to a fourth embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the flexible wiring substrate 190 is connected to the upper surface side of the substrate support portion 404 of the support body 402 of the first substrate 450. (The flexible wiring board 190 is connected to the surface opposite to the surface on which the LED array 152 is mounted).

  With such a configuration, the wires for electrically connecting the LED array 152 on the first substrate 150 and the flexible wiring substrate 190, which are necessary in the manufacturing process when connecting to the upper surface as in the first embodiment, are used. There is no need to provide a gap with the connecting portion. Therefore, the width of the first substrate 450 can be reduced and the size can be reduced. Furthermore, when attaching the 1st board | substrate 450 to the board | substrate support part 404, since the sticking jig | tool which hold | grips the 1st board | substrate 450 can hold | grip the whole circumference | surroundings of the 1st board | substrate 450, it can attach more accurately.

  Next, the LED head of the fifth embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the lower surface 504A of the substrate support portion 504 of the support member 502 of the LED head 500 is a flat surface. The second substrate 170 is attached via spacers 510, 512 and 514. Therefore, it is not necessary to form a recess (see FIG. 4) on the lower surface 504B of the substrate support portion 504 of the support member 502. Therefore, processing is easy and the support member 502 can be processed at low cost.

  Next, an LED head according to a sixth embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the screw holes 620 and 621 of the LED head 600 are formed from both outer surfaces of the positioning pins 112 and 113 in the longitudinal direction in which the LED arrays 152 are arranged, and set screws 622 are inserted into the screw holes 620 and 621. , 623 are screwed together. Therefore, the width of the LED head 600 can be reduced. Further, since the set screw 622 and 623 can be easily accessed even after the LED head 600 is attached to the image forming apparatus, the protruding amount of the positioning pins 112 and 113 can be finely adjusted.

  Next, an LED head according to a seventh embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, a space 720 is formed in the substrate support portion 704 of the support member 702 of the LED head 700. The space 720 forms a plane orthogonal to the insertion holes 110 and 111 and is connected to the insertion holes 110 and 111.

  An eccentric cam 712 is disposed in the space 720. The eccentric cam 712 rotates around a rotation shaft 710 parallel to the positioning pins 112 and 113 (hole axes of the insertion holes 110 and 111). There are two spaces 720 and two eccentric cams 712 corresponding to the positioning pins 112 and 113, respectively.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 17A, the amount of protrusion of the positioning pins 112 and 113 is adjusted at a position where the eccentric cam 712 is not in contact with the positioning pins 112 and 113, as shown in FIG. Then, the eccentric cam 712 is rotated, and the positioning pins 112 and 113 are pressed and fixed by the eccentric cam 712. Note that it is desirable to finally pour the adhesive into the space 720 and fix the eccentric cam 712.

  Next, the LED head of the eighth embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 18B, the positioning pins 812 and 813 of the LED head 800 have male screw portions 822 and 823 at the roots.

  As shown in FIG. 18A, female screw portions 830 and 832 are formed on the substrate support portion 804 of the support member 802. Then, the protruding amounts of the positioning pins 812 and 813 are adjusted by screwing the male screw portions 822 and 823 into the female screw portions 830 and 832 and adjusting the screwing amounts.

  The screwing amount is an amount of how deeply the male screw portions 822 and 823 are screwed into the female screw portions 830 and 832.

  Further, since the play between the insertion holes 820 and 822 and the positioning pins 812 and 813 is smaller than the play between the female screw portions 830 and 832 and the male screw portions 822 and 823, the positioning pins 812 and 813 are pressed and fixed. However, since the positioning pins 812 and 813 do not tilt, the amount of protrusion can be controlled with high accuracy.

  Next, the LED head of the ninth embodiment will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol and member name are attached | subjected to the member same as 1st embodiment, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The first substrate 910, the second substrate 920, and the flexible wiring substrate 930 of the LED head are an integrated flex rigid substrate 915.

  The flex-rigid board 915 is a combination of a flexible wiring board 930 based on polyimide or the like and a first board 910 and a second board 920 that are rigid boards based on glass epoxy or the like. A flexible portion (flexible wiring substrate 930) that can be bent and a rigid portion (first substrate 910 and second substrate 920) on which components are mounted are mixed in one substrate.

  When such a flex-rigid board 915 is used, a connecting portion for connecting the first board and the second board to the flexible wiring board is not necessary. Accordingly, the first base 910 and the second substrate 920 are narrowed.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said embodiment.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the object to be exposed is the drum-shaped photosensitive drum 12, but it may be a belt-shaped belt photosensitive member.

It is a figure which shows typically the principal part of an image forming apparatus provided with the LED head which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows a 2nd board | substrate typically. It is a front view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing of the LED head which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the adjustment method which adjusts the protrusion amount of a positioning pin. It is a figure explaining a mode that the focus position of a LED head is measured. It is a graph which shows the adjustment precision of the positioning pin in the LED head which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a graph which shows the adjustment precision of the positioning pin in the conventional LED head. It is a side view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 3rd embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 4th embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows typically the LED head which concerns on 5th embodiment of this invention. The LED head which concerns on 6th embodiment of this invention is shown typically, (A) is a front view, (B) is a side view. It is sectional drawing of the LED head which concerns on 7th embodiment of this invention. It is a fragmentary sectional view of the LED head concerning a 7th embodiment of the present invention, (A) is a figure in the state where an eccentric cam is not pressing a positioning pin, and (B) is a state where an eccentric cam presses a positioning pin. FIG. (A) is sectional drawing of the LED head which concerns on 8th embodiment of this invention, (B) is a figure of a positioning pin. (A) is a figure of the flex-rigid board | substrate used for the LED head which concerns on 9th embodiment of this invention, (B) is a figure of the state which expand | deployed (A). It is sectional drawing of the conventional LED head.

Explanation of symbols

12 Photosensitive drum (exposed body)
90 Lens array (imaging element)
100 LED head (exposure device)
102 Support member 104A Upper surface (first surface)
104B Lower surface (second surface)
106 Imaging Element Support Unit 110 Insertion Hole 111 Insertion Hole 112 Positioning Pin 113 Positioning Pin 120 Screw Hole 121 Screw Hole 122 Set Screw (Screw)
123 Set screw (screw)
150 First substrate 152 LED array (light emitting element)
160 Connecting Portion 170 Second Board 172 Drive Element 190 Flexible Wiring Board 510 Spacer (Mounting Member)
512 Spacer (Mounting member)
514 Spacer (Mounting member)
710 Rotating shaft 712 Eccentric cam 822 Male threaded part 823 Male threaded part 830 Female threaded part 832 Female threaded part 915 Flex rigid board

Claims (9)

  A substrate on which a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a line;
  A support member for supporting the substrate;
  An imaging element that forms an image of the light emitted from the light emitting element on an object to be exposed;
  With
  The support member is
  A positioning pin that protrudes from the surface facing the object to be exposed toward the object to be exposed, positions the distance to the object to be exposed, and the amount of protrusion can be adjusted;
  An insertion hole into which the positioning pin is slidably inserted in the protruding direction;
  A pressing means for pressing the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole in a direction orthogonal to the protruding direction, and fixing the positioning pin;
  An exposure apparatus comprising:   The pressing means is
  A screw hole orthogonal to the insertion hole;
  A screw screwed into the screw hole;
  The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:   2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pressing means is an eccentric cam that rotates about a rotation axis parallel to the hole axis of the insertion hole.   4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the screw or the eccentric cam is fixed with an adhesive after fixing the positioning pin.   The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the positioning pin is provided on an outer side in the longitudinal direction of the first substrate.   The positioning pin includes a male screw part,
  The support member is provided coaxially with the insertion hole, and includes a female screw portion into which the male screw portion is screwed.
  6. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an amount of protrusion of the positioning pin is adjusted by a screwing amount of the male screw portion screwed into the female screw portion.   The exposure apparatus according to claim 6, wherein a backlash between the insertion hole and the positioning pin is smaller than a backlash between the female screw portion and the male screw portion. A method for adjusting a protrusion amount of a positioning pin of an exposure apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A measuring step for measuring a focal position of the exposure apparatus;
A calculation step of calculating a protrusion amount of the positioning pin protruding from the support member from the measured focal position;
A projecting step of projecting the positioning pin so as to have the calculated projecting amount;
A fixing step of pressing the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole in the direction perpendicular to the protruding direction with the pressing means, and fixing the positioning pin;
A method for adjusting the amount of protrusion of a positioning pin of an exposure apparatus.   A method for adjusting a protrusion amount of a positioning pin of an exposure apparatus according to claim 6 or 7,
  A measuring step for measuring a focal position of the exposure apparatus;
  A calculation step of calculating a protrusion amount of the positioning pin protruding from the support member from the measured focal position;
  A projecting step of adjusting the screwing amount of the male screw portion of the positioning pin to be screwed into the female screw portion of the support member, and causing the positioning pin to project so as to have a calculated projecting amount;
  A fixing step of pressing the positioning pin inserted into the insertion hole in the direction perpendicular to the protruding direction with the pressing means, and fixing the positioning pin;
  A method for adjusting the amount of protrusion of a positioning pin of an exposure apparatus.

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