JP5532408B2 - Lubricant coating apparatus, image forming apparatus, process unit, and solid lubricant - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a lubricant application device for applying lubricant powder obtained by scraping from a solid lubricant to an object to be applied, and an image forming apparatus and a process unit using the same. is there. The present invention also relates to a solid lubricant mounted on the lubricant application device.

  As this type of lubricant application device, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a device that applies a lubricant to a photosensitive member as an object to be coated is known. FIG. 1 is a main part configuration diagram showing a main part of a conventional lubricant application apparatus together with a photoreceptor 203. In the figure, an application brush roller 207 as an application member has a rotary shaft member 208 that is rotatably supported, and a brush roller portion 209 made up of a plurality of raised brushes erected on the peripheral surface thereof. And rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. A solid lubricant urged by a spring 219 is pressed against the application brush roller 207. The application brush roller 207 applies lubricant powder obtained by scraping from the solid lubricant 210 to the surface of the photoreceptor 203 as it rotates. The surface of the photosensitive member 203 coated with the lubricant powder weakens the physical adhesion to the toner, thereby improving the transferability of the toner image to the transfer member, improving the toner cleaning property, To suppress toner sticking to itself.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the inside of a conventional lubricant application apparatus. In the figure, the solid lubricant 210 is formed to have a length that makes contact with almost the entire region of the brush roller portion 208 of the application brush roller 207 in the rotation axis direction. Then, the thickness gradually decreases as it is scraped off by the application brush roller 207, but by being biased toward the application brush roller 207 by the spring 219, it comes into contact with the application brush roller 207 regardless of the thickness. to continue. However, if the thickness is very small, the possibility of generating cracks and chips increases. Therefore, when the thickness is reduced to a certain level, it is necessary to replace the solid lubricant 210 with a new one. In recent years when there is an increasing demand for easier maintenance and lower costs, the thickness of the solid lubricant 210 tends to increase. Increasing the thickness of the solid lubricant 210 increases the stroke length of the spring 219 from the state in which the new solid lubricant 210 is set until the solid lubricant 210 is reduced to the lifetime thickness.

  The present inventors have found through experiments that in recent years, when the stroke length tends to be larger, the solid lubricant 210 tends to cause lateral movement. Specifically, the application brush roller 207 applies a force in the brush rotation direction to the solid lubricant 210 on the rubbing surface between the application brush roller 207 and the solid lubricant 210. Depending on the heel or the like, a force in the rotational axis direction may be applied in addition to the force in the rotational direction. This force acts in a certain direction such as from one end side to the other end side in the rotation axis direction or from the other end side to one end side. If such a force continues to act on the solid lubricant 210, the solid lubricant 210 may cause a lateral movement along the rotation axis direction of the application brush roller 207 as shown in FIG. However, in the past, the spring 219 was able to exert a sufficient reaction force against the solid lubricant 210 to be laterally moved for the reason described below, so that the lateral movement could be prevented. It was. That is, in the prior art in which the amount of restoration of the spring 219 is relatively small, a spring 219 having a relatively short free length is used. On the other hand, in recent years when the amount of restoration of the spring 219 tends to be larger, it is necessary to use a spring 219 having a relatively long free length. Such a spring 219 cannot exert a sufficient resistance against the solid lubricant 210 that is going to move laterally, and it is easy to cause the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 210.

  When the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 210 occurs, the solid lubricant 210 is brought into contact with either one of both end portions in the rotation axis direction of the application brush roller 207 as shown by a dotted line in FIG. Can not be. As a result, poor application of the lubricant occurs at one end portion in the axial direction of the photosensitive member (not shown). Further, in this state, a difference occurs in the biasing direction of the biasing force against the solid lubricant 210 between the spring 219 disposed on one end side in the brush rotation axis direction and the spring 219 disposed on the other end side. It becomes easy. When a difference occurs in the urging direction, there is a difference in the lubricant pressing force per unit area against the brush between the one end side and the other end side of the application brush roller 207. Then, there is a difference in the amount of lubricant scraped per unit time at both ends. In the illustrated state, as shown in FIG. 4, the right end portion of the solid lubricant 210 in the drawing is scraped more than the left end portion. This causes a large deviation in the amount of lubricant applied in the axial direction of the photoconductor, which adversely affects image quality.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a lubricant application device and the like that can avoid the occurrence of lateral movement of a solid lubricant.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 is directed to a solid lubricant, an application member for applying a lubricant powder scraped from the solid lubricant to an application body, and a holding for holding the solid lubricant. In a lubricant application device comprising: a member; and an urging means for urging the holding member to bring the solid lubricant on the holding member into contact with the application member, the solid lubricant directed toward the application member move with the provision of the regulating portion for regulating a predetermined direction of Te, the engaging portion for engaging the regulating portion, and is characterized in that the digits set in the solid lubricant.
Moreover, invention of Claim 2 is a lubricant application apparatus of Claim 1 , Comprising: As the said application | coating member moves endlessly the own surface which each contacts a solid lubricant and a to-be-coated body, respectively. The lubricant powder scraped from the solid lubricant is applied to the object to be coated, and the regulating portion is urged toward the application member by the urging means in the solid lubricant. The solid lubricant in which a force in a direction orthogonal to the endless moving direction is applied in addition to a force in the endless moving direction on a sliding surface with the coating member moving endlessly while allowing movement in a direction toward the applying member A guide part that regulates the movement of the solid lubricant toward the application member by restricting the movement in the orthogonal direction, and the engagement part is formed by the guide part by the application member. In the direction toward Being permitted, it is characterized in that is to engage with the guide portion so as to regulate the movement in the direction of the perpendicular.
The invention of claim 3 is the lubricant application device according to claim 2, wherein the application member is a rotary shaft member that is rotatably supported, and a plurality of which are provided upright on a peripheral surface thereof. A brush roller part composed of a raised brush, and the guide part is located between one end and the other end in the rotation axis direction of the brush roller part in the entire region of the housing of the apparatus main body. It is provided in the area | region of this, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.
The invention of claim 4 is the lubricant applying device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the guide portion is provided on the housing inner wall so as to extend along the inner wall surface of the housing Or a guide groove provided on the wall of the housing so as to extend along the inner wall surface, and the engagement portion engages with the guide rail portion, or the guide. It is a convex part engaged with a groove | channel, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the lubricant application device according to the fourth aspect , the concave portion as the engaging portion that engages with the guide rail portion or the engaging portion that engages with the guide groove. Are provided on both the solid lubricant and the holding member.
Further, the invention of claim 6 is the lubricant application apparatus according to claim 5, wherein at least the recess is provided in the solid lubricant and the holding member among the recess and the protrusion, and the holding is performed. The width of the concave portion of the member is made smaller than the width of the concave portion of the solid lubricant, and among the concave portions, only the concave portion of the holding member is engaged with the guide rail portion, and the concave portion of the solid lubricant is On the other hand, the guide rail portion is received in a non-contact manner.
The invention according to claim 7 is the lubricant application device according to claim 5, wherein at least the concave portion of the concave portion and the convex portion is provided in the solid lubricant and the holding member, respectively, and the holding is performed. The width of the concave portion of the member is made larger than the width of the concave portion of the solid lubricant, and among the concave portions, only the concave portion of the solid lubricant is engaged with the guide rail portion, and the concave portion of the holding member On the other hand, the guide rail portion is received in a non-contact manner.
The invention according to claim 8 is the lubricant application device according to claim 4, wherein among the plurality of inner wall surfaces provided in the casing, the solid lubricant disposed in the casing is sandwiched relative to each other. The guide rail portion is provided for one of the two inner wall surfaces facing each other, the guide groove is provided for a position facing the guide rail portion on the other, and the solid lubricant faces the one The concave portion corresponding to the guide rail portion is provided on a surface, and the convex portion corresponding to the guide groove is provided on a surface facing the other of the solid lubricant.
The invention according to claim 9 is the lubricant application device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the guide portion is a guide rod protruding from an inner wall of the housing, and the solid lubricant The engaging portion of the agent is a hole portion that receives the guide rod.
Further, the invention of claim 10 is the lubricant application apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the holding member is provided with a through-hole for receiving the guide rod in a state of communicating with the hole of the solid lubricant. It is a feature.
The invention of claim 11 is the lubricant application device according to claim 10, wherein the diameter of the through hole of the holding member and the diameter of the hole of the solid lubricant are different from each other. Only one of the through hole and the hole is engaged with the guide rod, and the guide rod is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the other.
The invention of claim 12 is characterized in that, in the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 9 to 11, a non-circular cross-sectional shape is used as the guide rod. is there.
The invention according to claim 13 is the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the holding member is urged toward the application member together with the solid lubricant by the urging means. When the solid lubricant is consumed, the electrode member is brought into contact with or separated from the conductive portion provided in the solid lubricant or the holding member when the solid lubricant is brought close to a predetermined position with respect to the application member. And a life notification means for notifying the end of the life of the solid lubricant based on turning on and off of the conduction between the electrode member and the conductive portion, while being fixed to the guide portion. is there.
According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image carrier that carries a toner image, a toner image forming unit that forms a toner image on the surface thereof, and a lubricant application unit that applies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier. in the image forming apparatus including bets, as the lubricant application means, characterized in that with a lubricant coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 13.
According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image carrier for carrying a toner image, a lubricant application device for applying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier, and a toner image forming means for forming a toner image on the surface of the image carrier. And at least the image carrier and the lubricant applicator are held by a common holder so that they can be integrally attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body as a single unit. a process unit to the lubricant applicator is characterized in that a lubricant coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 13.
According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an application member that applies the lubricant powder scraped from the solid lubricant to the coated body as it rotates while contacting the solid lubricant and the coated body. And a holding member that holds the solid lubricant; and a biasing unit that biases the holding member to bring the solid lubricant on the holding member into contact with the application member. wherein a solid lubricant that, the recess corresponding to the guide rail in the lubricant applying apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 8, the lubricant coating apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 8 The convex portion corresponding to the guide groove in the above, or the hole portion for receiving the guide rod in the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 9 to 12 is provided. is there.

  In these inventions, a force in the direction perpendicular to the direction of endless movement of the coating member is applied from the coating member to the solid lubricant on the sliding surface between the solid lubricant and the coating member, and the holding member together with the solid lubricant If they are to move laterally in the same direction, the guide portion engaged with the engaging portion of the solid lubricant or the holding member restricts the lateral movement. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the horizontal movement of a solid lubricant can be avoided.

The principal part block diagram which shows the principal part of the conventional lubricant application apparatus with a photoconductor. The schematic block diagram which shows the inside of the same lubricant application device. Explanatory drawing for demonstrating the horizontal movement of a solid lubricant. Explanatory drawing for demonstrating the uneven wear of a solid lubricant. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a printer according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is an enlarged configuration diagram illustrating a Y process unit and a developing device in the printer. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the process unit and the developing device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the developing device. FIG. 3 is an enlarged configuration diagram showing the process unit together with an intermediate transfer belt. The assembly exploded perspective view showing the process unit. The disassembled perspective view which shows the inside of the lubricant coating device of the process unit. The expanded partial perspective view which shows the inside of the same lubricant application device partially. The expansion perspective view which shows the inside of the same lubricant application device. The side view which shows the solid lubricant and holding member of the lubricant application device. The expansion perspective view which shows the one end part of the longitudinal direction of the solid lubricant and a holding member. The assembly exploded perspective view showing the inside of the casing of the solid lubricant. The expansion disassembled perspective view explaining the setting operation of the application brush roller to the same lubricant application device. FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial perspective view showing one end portion in a longitudinal direction of a solid lubricant for Y and a holding member in a printer according to a first reference example. The assembly exploded perspective view showing the solid lubricant, holding member, and casing of the lubricant application device for Y in the printer concerning the 1st modification. FIG. 10 is an exploded exploded perspective view showing a solid lubricant, a holding member, and a casing of a lubricant application device for Y in a printer according to a second modification. The perspective view which shows the solid lubricant, a holding member, and a casing. Sectional drawing which shows the solid lubricant and a casing. (A), (b), (c) is a top view which shows an example of the cross-sectional shape of the auxiliary rail in all in the same lubricant application apparatus. The disassembled perspective view which shows the solid lubricant for Y in the printer which concerns on a 3rd modification, a holding member, and a casing. Sectional drawing which shows the solid lubricant and a casing. FIG. 14 is an exploded exploded perspective view showing a coating brush roller for Y, a solid lubricant, a holding member, and a casing in a printer according to a fourth modification. The cross-sectional view which shows the application | coating brush roller, solid lubricant, a holding member, and a casing. FIG. 10 is an exploded exploded perspective view showing guide rails and electrodes for Y in a printer according to a fifth modification. The perspective view which shows the guide rail and an electrode. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the Y application brush roller and the surrounding configuration in the printer (when the lubricant is in an initial state). The cross-sectional view which shows the application brush roller and its surrounding structure (when the lubricant is consumed to a medium level). FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the application brush roller and the surrounding configuration (when the lubricant is consumed until the end of its life). The perspective view which shows the guide rail and electrode for Y in the printer which concerns on a 6th modification. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the Y application brush roller and the surrounding configuration in the printer (when the lubricant is in an initial state). The cross-sectional view which shows the application brush roller and its surrounding structure (when the lubricant is consumed to a medium level). FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the application brush roller and the surrounding configuration (when the lubricant is consumed until the end of its life). The assembly exploded perspective view which shows the application | coating brush roller for Y, the solid lubricant, the holding member, and the casing in the printer which concerns on a 7th modification. FIG. 10 is an exploded exploded perspective view showing a coating brush roller for Y, a solid lubricant, a holding member, and a casing in a printer according to a second reference example. The assembly exploded perspective view which shows the application | coating brush roller for Y, the solid lubricant, the holding member, and the casing in the printer which concerns on an 8th modification. The assembly exploded perspective view which shows the solid lubricant for Y and the holding member in the printer which concerns on a 9th modification. Sectional drawing which shows the application | coating brush roller and its surrounding structure in the printer. (A), (b), (c), (d) is a partial perspective view which shows an example of the holding member. (A), (b), (c), (d) is an enlarged perspective view showing an example of a guide rod of a printer according to a first modification. Cross-sectional view showing the application brush roller and its surrounding configuration in the printer according to the first 2 modification. It exploded perspective view showing the holding member and the solid lubricant for Y in a printer according to the first third modification. Sectional drawing which shows the application | coating brush roller of the printer, and its surrounding structure. Solid lubricant in the printer according to the first fourth modification, exploded perspective view of the holding member, and the guide rod. Sectional drawing which shows the application | coating brush roller of the printer, and its surrounding structure. Perspective view showing a solid lubricant and a holding member for Y in a printer according to the first 5 modification. Perspective view showing a solid lubricant for Y in a printer according to the first 6 modification. It exploded perspective view showing the guide rod and the electrode for Y in a printer according to the first 7 modification. The perspective view which shows the same guide rod and an electrode. The assembly exploded perspective view showing the guide rod and electrode for Y of the printer concerning the 18th modification. The perspective view which shows the same guide rod and an electrode.

Hereinafter, as an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied, an embodiment of an electrophotographic printer (hereinafter simply referred to as a printer) will be described.
First, a basic configuration of the printer according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a printer according to the embodiment. This printer includes four image forming units 1Y, C, M, and K for yellow, magenta, cyan, and black (hereinafter referred to as Y, C, M, and K) as image forming units as toner image forming means. ing. These use Y, C, M, and K toners of different colors as image forming substances for forming an image, but the other configurations are the same. Taking an image forming unit 1Y for generating a Y toner image as an example, this has a process unit 2Y and a developing unit 25Y as shown in FIG. These units are integrally attached to and detached from the printer body as an image forming unit 1Y as shown in FIG. In a state where it is detached from the printer main body, as shown in FIG. 8, the developing unit 25Y can be attached to and detached from a process unit (2Y in FIG. 7) not shown.

  In FIG. 6 described above, the process unit 2Y includes a drum-shaped photoconductor 3Y as a latent image carrier, a drum cleaning device 4Y, a static elimination device (not shown), a charging device 20Y, and the like.

  The charging device 20Y uniformly charges the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y that is driven to rotate in the clockwise direction in the drawing by a driving unit (not shown). In the figure, a method of uniformly charging the photosensitive member 3Y by contacting or approaching the photosensitive member 3Y with a charging roller 21Y driven to rotate counterclockwise in the drawing while a charging bias is applied by a power source (not shown). The charging device 20Y is shown. Instead of the charging roller 21Y, a roller that contacts or approaches a charging brush may be used. In addition, a charger that uniformly charges the photoreceptor 3Y by a charger method, such as a scorotron charger or a corotron charger, may be used. However, since the scorotron charger system generates ozone during discharge, it has not been used much in recent years from the viewpoint of placing importance on the environment. In addition, the corotron charger system generates less ozone but charges the photoreceptor positively, so it has not been used much in recent years when the inversion phenomenon system has become mainstream. In recent years, the charging roller method is the most common method. The charging roller system includes a contact charging roller system in which the charging roller is brought into contact with the photoconductor and a non-contact charging roller system in which the charging roller is brought into contact with the photoconductor in a noncontact manner.

  In the contact charging roller method, when a charging bias applied to the charging roller is obtained by superimposing an alternating current on a direct current, a higher image quality can be obtained than when a structure consisting only of a direct current is employed. On the other hand, there is a demerit that it is easy to generate so-called filming for fixing the toner to the photosensitive member. In addition, in the case of the superimposed bias, there is a merit that the charged potential on the surface of the photosensitive member can be stabilized by controlling the alternating current at a constant current, regardless of the fluctuation of the resistance value of the charging roller due to the environmental change. There are disadvantages in that the cost of the high-voltage power supply increases and the AC high-frequency sound is loud. When a charging bias consisting of only a direct current is employed, it becomes easy to change the charging potential due to fluctuations in the resistance value of the charging roller due to changes in the environment, so a measure to change the voltage value with changes in the environment is required.

  On the other hand, in the non-contact charging roller system, if an AC voltage is used as the charging bias and constant current control is performed, unevenness in the charging potential is likely to occur due to gap fluctuation between the photosensitive member and the charging roller. It is necessary to change the voltage value. However, since it is a non-contact method, there is a margin for contamination of the charging roller than the contact method. As a method of changing the AC voltage, a method of switching the voltage value according to the result of detecting the temperature in the vicinity of the charging roller, a method of switching the voltage value according to the result of periodically detecting ground contamination on the photosensitive member, feedback For example, a method of determining an applied voltage based on a current value may be used. By adopting these methods, the surface potential of the photoreceptor is charged to about −500V to −700V.

  As a method for driving the charging roller, there are a method in which the photosensitive member is pressed against the photosensitive member and driven by a frictional force, a method in which a driving force is obtained from a photosensitive member gear, and the like. In the case of a low speed machine, the former method is often used, but in the machine that requires high speed and high image quality, the latter method is often used.

  In FIG. 6, when the surface of the charging roller 21Y is contaminated with toner, the charging ability at the contaminated portion is lowered, and it becomes difficult to charge the photoreceptor 3Y to a target potential. Therefore, the charging roller 21Y is in contact with a cleaning roller 22Y for removing the toner adhering to the surface. As the cleaning roller 22Y, a flocking roller in which fibers are electrostatically flocked on a rotating shaft member that is rotatably supported, a melamine roller in which a melamine resin is arranged on the roller around the rotating shaft member, and the like can be used. From the viewpoint of extending the life, the melamine roller is advantageous. If slip occurs between the cleaning roller 22Y and the charging roller 21Y, the toner is rubbed against the surface of the charging roller 21Y and filming is likely to occur. More preferably, the cleaning roller 22Y is driven by the charging roller 21Y as a driven roller.

  The surface of the photoreceptor 3Y uniformly charged by the charging device 20Y is exposed and scanned by a laser beam emitted from an optical writing unit to be described later, and carries a Y electrostatic latent image.

  The developing unit 25Y as developing means has a first agent accommodating portion 26Y in which a first conveying screw 28Y is disposed. Further, it also has a second agent storage portion 27Y in which a toner concentration sensor (hereinafter referred to as a toner concentration sensor) 29Y including a magnetic permeability sensor, a second transport screw 30Y, a developing roll 31Y, a doctor blade 34Y, and the like are disposed. . In these two agent storage portions, a Y developer (not shown) composed of a magnetic carrier and a negatively chargeable Y toner is included. The first transport screw 28Y is driven to rotate by a driving unit (not shown), so that the Y developer in the first agent storage unit 26Y is transported from the near side to the far side in the direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet. And it penetrates into the 2nd agent accommodating part 27Y through the communication port which is not illustrated provided in the partition wall between the 1st agent accommodating part 26Y and the 2nd agent accommodating part 27Y.

  The second transport screw 30Y in the second agent container 27Y is driven to rotate by a driving unit (not shown), thereby transporting the Y developer from the back side to the front side in the drawing. The Y developer during conveyance is detected by a toner concentration sensor 29Y fixed to the bottom of the first agent storage unit 27Y. In this way, the developing roll 31Y is arranged in a posture parallel to the second transport screw 30Y above the second transport screw 30Y that transports the Y developer. The developing roll 31Y includes a magnet roller 33Y in a developing sleeve 32Y made of a non-magnetic pipe that is driven to rotate counterclockwise in the drawing. A part of the Y developer conveyed by the second conveying screw 30Y is pumped up to the surface of the developing sleeve 32Y by the magnetic force generated by the magnet roller 33Y. Then, after the layer thickness is regulated by a doctor blade 34Y arranged so as to maintain a predetermined gap from the developing sleeve 32Y as a developing member, the layer thickness is regulated and conveyed to a developing area facing the photosensitive member 3Y. Y toner is adhered to the Y electrostatic latent image. This adhesion forms a Y toner image on the photoreceptor 3Y. The Y developer that has consumed the Y toner by the development is returned to the second conveying screw 30Y as the developing sleeve 32Y of the developing roll 31Y rotates. And if it conveys to the near end in a figure, it will return in the 1st agent accommodating part 28Y through the communication port which is not shown in figure.

  The result of detecting the magnetic permeability of the Y developer by the toner concentration sensor 29Y is sent as a voltage signal to a control unit (not shown). Since the magnetic permeability of the Y developer has a correlation with the Y toner concentration of the Y developer, the toner concentration sensor 29 outputs a voltage having a value corresponding to the Y toner concentration. The control unit includes a RAM, in which a Y Vtref which is a target value of the output voltage from the toner density sensor 29Y and a C, M, K toner density sensor mounted on another developing unit. The data of C Vtref, M Vtref, and K Vtref, which are target values of the output voltage, are stored. For the Y developing unit 25Y, the value of the output voltage from the toner density sensor 29Y is compared with the Y Vtref, and a Y toner supply device (not shown) is driven for a time corresponding to the comparison result. With this driving, an appropriate amount of Y toner is supplied to the Y developer whose Y toner density has been reduced by the consumption of Y toner accompanying development in the first agent container 26Y. For this reason, the Y toner concentration of the Y developer in the second agent container 27Y is maintained within a predetermined range. Similar toner supply control is performed for the developers in the process units (1C, M, K) for other colors.

  The Y toner image formed on the photoreceptor 3Y is intermediately transferred to an intermediate transfer belt described later. The drum cleaning device 4Y of the process unit 2Y removes the toner remaining on the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y after the intermediate transfer process. As a result, the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y that has been subjected to the cleaning process is neutralized by a neutralizing device (not shown). By this charge removal, the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y is initialized and prepared for the next image formation.

  In FIG. 5, the C, M, and K toner images are similarly formed on the photoreceptors 3C, M, and K in the image forming units 1C, M, and K for other colors, and the intermediate transfer belt. 61 is superimposed and transferred.

  An optical writing unit 40 is disposed below the image forming units 1Y, 1C, 1M, and 1K in the drawing. The optical writing unit 40 serving as a latent image forming unit irradiates the photoconductors 3Y, C, M, and K of the image forming units 1Y, 1C, 1M, and 1K with a laser beam L emitted based on the image information. Thereby, electrostatic latent images for Y, C, M, and K are formed on the photoreceptors 3Y, 3C, 3M, and 3K. The optical writing unit 40 deflects the laser light L emitted from the light source by the polygon mirror 41 that is rotationally driven by a motor, and passes through the photoreceptors 3Y, 3C, 3M, and 3K via a plurality of optical lenses and mirrors. Is irradiated. In place of such a configuration, an optical scanning device using an LDE array may be employed.

  A first paper feed cassette 51 and a second paper feed cassette 52 are arranged below the optical writing unit 40 so as to overlap in the vertical direction. In each of these paper feed cassettes, a plurality of recording papers P as recording members are accommodated in a stack of recording papers. The uppermost recording paper P includes a first paper feed roller 51a, The second paper feed rollers 52a are in contact with each other. When the first paper feed roller 51a is driven to rotate counterclockwise in the figure by driving means (not shown), the uppermost recording paper P in the first paper feed cassette 31 is vertically oriented on the right side of the cassette in the figure. The paper is discharged toward a paper feed path 53 disposed so as to extend. Further, when the second paper feed roller 52 a is driven to rotate counterclockwise in the drawing by a driving means (not shown), the uppermost recording paper P in the second paper feed cassette 52 is directed toward the paper feed path 53. Discharged.

  A plurality of transport roller pairs 54 are disposed in the paper feed path 53, and the recording paper P fed into the paper feed path 53 is sandwiched between the rollers of the transport roller pair 54 while being fed between the paper feed paths 53. 53 is conveyed from the lower side to the upper side in the figure.

  A registration roller pair 55 is disposed at the end of the paper feed path 53. The registration roller pair 55 temporarily stops the rotation of both rollers as soon as the recording paper P fed from the conveying roller pair 54 is sandwiched between the rollers. Then, the recording paper P is sent out toward a later-described secondary transfer nip at an appropriate timing.

  Above the image forming units 1Y, 1C, 1M, and 1K, a transfer unit 60 that is endlessly moved counterclockwise in the drawing while an intermediate transfer belt 61 that is an endless moving body is stretched is disposed. The transfer unit 60 serving as a transfer unit includes an intermediate transfer belt 61, a belt cleaning unit 62, a first bracket 63, a second bracket 64, and the like. Also provided are four primary transfer rollers 65Y, 65C, 65M, 65K, a secondary transfer backup roller 66, a drive roller 67, an auxiliary roller 68, a tension roller 69, and the like. The intermediate transfer belt 61 is endlessly moved counterclockwise in the figure by the rotational driving of the driving roller 67 while being stretched around these eight rollers. The four primary transfer rollers 65Y, 65C, 65M, 65K sandwich the intermediate transfer belt 61 moved endlessly in this manner from the photoreceptors 3Y, 3C, 3M, and 3K to form primary transfer nips. ing. Then, a transfer bias having a polarity opposite to that of the toner (for example, plus) is applied to the back surface (loop inner peripheral surface) of the intermediate transfer belt 61. The intermediate transfer belt 61 sequentially passes through the primary transfer nips for Y, C, M, and K along with the endless movement thereof, and on the photoreceptor 3Y, C, M, and K on the front surface. The Y, C, M, and K toner images are superimposed and primarily transferred. As a result, a four-color superimposed toner image (hereinafter referred to as a four-color toner image) is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 61.

  The secondary transfer backup roller 66 sandwiches the intermediate transfer belt 61 with the secondary transfer roller 70 disposed outside the loop of the intermediate transfer belt 61 to form a secondary transfer nip. The registration roller pair 55 described above feeds the recording paper P sandwiched between the rollers toward the secondary transfer nip at a timing at which the recording paper P can be synchronized with the four-color toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 61. The four-color toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 61 is affected by the secondary transfer electric field formed between the secondary transfer roller 70 to which the secondary transfer bias is applied and the secondary transfer backup roller 66, and the influence of the nip pressure. The secondary transfer is batch-transferred onto the recording paper P in the secondary transfer nip. Then, combined with the white color of the recording paper P, a full color toner image is obtained.

  Untransferred toner that has not been transferred to the recording paper P adheres to the intermediate transfer belt 61 after passing through the secondary transfer nip. This is cleaned by the belt cleaning unit 62. The belt cleaning unit 62 has a cleaning blade 62a in contact with the front surface of the intermediate transfer belt 61, thereby scraping off and removing the transfer residual toner on the belt.

  The first bracket 63 of the transfer unit 60 swings at a predetermined rotation angle about the rotation axis of the auxiliary roller 68 as the solenoid (not shown) is turned on / off. When forming a monochrome image, the printer according to the embodiment rotates the first bracket 63 slightly in the counterclockwise direction in the drawing by driving the solenoid described above. This rotation causes the Y, C, and M primary transfer rollers 65Y, C, and M to revolve counterclockwise in the drawing about the rotation axis of the auxiliary roller 68, thereby causing the intermediate transfer belt 61 to move in the Y, C, and C directions. , M is separated from the photoconductors 3Y, 3C, 3M. Of the four image forming units 1Y, 1C, 1M, and 1K, only the K image forming unit 1K is driven to form a monochrome image. Accordingly, it is possible to avoid wear of the image forming units due to unnecessary driving of the Y, C, and M image forming units when forming a monochrome image.

  A fixing unit 80 is disposed above the secondary transfer nip in the drawing. The fixing unit 80 includes a pressure heating roller 81 that contains a heat source such as a halogen lamp, and a fixing belt unit 82. The fixing belt unit 82 includes a fixing belt 84 as a fixing member, a heating roller 83 containing a heat source such as a halogen lamp, a tension roller 85, a driving roller 86, a temperature sensor (not shown), and the like. Then, the endless fixing belt 84 is endlessly moved in the counterclockwise direction in the drawing while being stretched by the heating roller 83, the tension roller 85, and the driving roller 86. In the process of endless movement, the fixing belt 84 is heated from the back side by the heating roller 83. A pressure heating roller 81 that is driven to rotate in the clockwise direction in the drawing is in contact with the surface of the fixing belt 84 that is heated in this manner from the front side. Thus, a fixing nip where the pressure heating roller 81 and the fixing belt 84 abut is formed.

  A temperature sensor (not shown) is disposed outside the loop of the fixing belt 84 so as to face the front surface of the fixing belt 84 with a predetermined gap, and the fixing belt 84 just before entering the fixing nip. Detect surface temperature. This detection result is sent to a fixing power supply circuit (not shown). The fixing power supply circuit performs on / off control of power supply to the heat generation source included in the heating roller 83 and the heat generation source included in the pressure heating roller 81 based on the detection result of the temperature sensor. Accordingly, the surface temperature of the fixing belt 84 is maintained at about 140 [°].

  The recording paper P that has passed through the secondary transfer nip is separated from the intermediate transfer belt 61 and then fed into the fixing unit 80. Then, in the process of being conveyed from the lower side to the upper side in the figure while being sandwiched by the fixing nip in the fixing unit 80, the full-color toner image is fixed by being heated or pressed by the fixing belt 84.

  The recording sheet P subjected to the fixing process in this manner is discharged outside the apparatus after passing between the rollers of the discharge roller pair 87. A stack unit 88 is formed on the top surface of the printer body, and the recording paper P discharged to the outside by the discharge roller pair 87 is sequentially stacked on the stack unit 88.

  Above the transfer unit 60, four toner cartridges 100Y, 100C, M, and K that store Y, C, M, and K toners are disposed. The Y, C, M, and K toners in the toner cartridges 100Y, 100C, 100M, and 100K are appropriately supplied to the developing units 25Y, 25C, 25M, and 25K of the image forming units 1Y, 1C, 1M, and 1K. The toner cartridges 100Y, 100C, 100M, and 100K are detachable from the printer main body independently of the image forming units 1Y, 1C, 1M, and 1K.

  FIG. 9 is an enlarged configuration diagram showing the Y process unit 2 </ b> Y together with the intermediate transfer belt 61. FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing the process unit 2Y. FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view showing the inside of the lubricant application device 6Y of the process unit 2Y. In these drawings, residual toner that has not been transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 61 is attached to the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y after passing through the primary transfer nip for Y in contact with the intermediate transfer belt 61. This transfer residual toner is removed by the drum cleaning device 4Y of the process unit 2Y.

  In the drum cleaning device 4Y, the free end side of the cleaning blade 5Y that is cantilevered is brought into contact with the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y in the counter direction, and the transfer residual toner is scraped off from the surface of the photoreceptor 3Y by the blade edge. The residual toner that has been scraped off falls onto a collecting coil in the drum cleaning device 4Y and is discharged out of the drum cleaning device 4Y. The discharged transfer residual toner falls into a waste toner bottle (not shown).

  The surface of the photoreceptor 3Y after the cleaning process by the drum cleaning device 4Y is subjected to the lubricant application process and the lubricant leveling process by the lubricant application device 6Y. The lubricant application device 6Y has a brush tip of an application brush roller 7Y that includes a rotary shaft member 8Y that is rotatably supported and a brush roller portion 9Y that includes a plurality of raised brushes that are erected on the peripheral surface thereof. It is rotated in the clockwise direction in the figure while being brought into contact with the photoreceptor 3Y. A solid lubricant 10Y urged toward the application brush roller 7Y is pressed against the application brush roller 7Y together with the holding member 17Y by the coil spring 19Y. The application brush roller 7 </ b> Y applies lubricant powder obtained by scraping from the solid lubricant 10 </ b> Y to the surface of the photoreceptor 3 </ b> Y as it is rotationally driven. As a result, the surface frictional resistance of the photoreceptor 3Y is reduced to improve the cleaning property, the transfer property, and the suppression of filming.

  As raising | lifting used for the brush roller part 9Y of the application brush roller 7Y which is an application | coating member, what consists of an insulating or electroconductive polyethylene terephthalate, an acrylic fiber, etc. can be illustrated. Instead of the application brush roller 7Y, an application sponge roller having a sponge roller portion may be used.

  As solid lubricant 10Y, what consists of various fatty acid salts and what consists of zinc stearate can be illustrated. Other examples include fatty acids such as stearic acid, palmitic acid, myristic acid, oleic acid, and fatty acid metal salts composed of metals such as zinc, aluminum, calcium, magnesium, iron, and lithium as main components. You can also. In particular, zinc stearate is suitable.

Next, a characteristic configuration of the printer according to the embodiment will be described.
FIG. 12 is an enlarged partial perspective view partially showing the inside of the Y lubricant application device 6Y. FIG. 13 is an enlarged perspective view showing the inside of the lubricant applying device 6Y. In these drawings, the solid lubricant 10Y is fixed to the surface of a holding member 17Y made of C-type steel by a double-sided tape or the like. A coil spring 19Y is pressed against the back surface of the lubricant fixing surface of the holding member 17Y. The coil spring 19Y urges the solid lubricant 10Y in the direction of arrow A in the drawing toward the application brush roller (not shown) via the holding member 17Y. This arrow A direction is a direction along an orthogonal virtual plane orthogonal to the rotation axis direction of the application brush roller 7Y and toward the center of the application brush roller 7Y.

The solid lubricant 10Y is formed into an elongated block shape so as to contact almost the entire region in the longitudinal direction of the brush roller portion of the application brush roller 7Y. As shown in FIG. 14, the width C ₁ is shorter dimension in the block-shaped solid lubricant 10Y is set to a value larger than the width C ₂ of the holding member 17Y. For this reason, the solid lubricant 10Y protrudes in the width direction from the holding member 17Y on the surface of the holding member 17Y. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 15, a recess 11 </ b> Y like a notch is formed on the side surface of the protruding lubricant portion.

  On the other hand, among the plurality of inner walls in the casing of the lubricant application device 6Y, the inner wall Sa (see FIG. 11) facing the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y has an arrow A direction in the figure, as shown in FIG. That is, the guide rail portion GL extending in the spring biasing direction is integrally formed with the casing. The solid lubricant 10Y is set in such a posture that the recess 11Y as its engaging portion is engaged with the guide rail portion GL. In the engaged state, the guide rail portion GL moves in the direction toward the application brush roller 7Y in the solid lubricant 10Y urged toward the application brush roller 7Y by the coil spring 19Y, that is, an arrow in the figure. Allow slide movement in direction A. On the other hand, the same direction in the solid lubricant 10Y in which a force in a direction (arrow B direction in the figure) perpendicular to the rotation direction is applied in addition to the force in the rotation direction on the sliding surface with the rotating application brush roller 7Y. Regulate movement to In this way, the guide rail portion GL functions as a guide portion that guides the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y toward the application brush roller 7Y.

In such a configuration, the guide rail portion GL guides the movement toward the coating brush roller 7Y while restricting the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 10Y in the direction of the arrow B in the drawing, so that solid lubrication is achieved. Occurrence of the lateral movement of the agent 10Y can be avoided. Also, the solid lubricant 10Y was Deppara from the holding member 17Y are larger than the width _{C 2} of the holding member 17Y width _{C 1} of the solid lubricant 10Y, as shown in FIG. 15, the concave portion 11Y in the position of the ledge By providing, it becomes possible to make only the solid lubricant 10Y rub against the guide rail portion GL. Since the solid lubricant 10Y itself is a substance having a very small surface frictional resistance, a very smooth sliding movement can be achieved by rubbing only the solid lubricant 10Y.

  When assembling the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y in the apparatus, as shown in FIG. 16, the solid lubricant 10Y is held while engaging the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y with the guide rail portion GL of the casing. Push together with the member 17Y toward the bottom plate of the casing. At this time, since it is pushed against the drag of a spring (not shown), the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y are ejected from the casing by the spring when the hand is released. For this reason, simultaneously with releasing the hand, as shown in FIG. 17, the application brush roller 7Y is set in the bearing while the solid lubricant 10Y is continuously pushed by the application brush roller 7Y.

  Although the Y-lubricant application device 6Y has been described in detail, the lubricant application devices for other colors also avoid the lateral movement of the solid lubricant by the same configuration. As the rotation direction of the application brush roller 7Y, any of a counter direction and a forward direction at the contact portion with the photoreceptor 3Y may be employed.

Next, printers according to reference examples and modifications of the printer according to the embodiment will be described. Unless otherwise specified, the configurations of the reference examples and the modified examples are the same as those in the embodiment.
[First Reference Example]
FIG. 18 is an enlarged exploded perspective view showing the solid lubricant 10Y for Y and the holding member 17Y in the printer according to the first reference example. In the figure, the width C ₁ of the solid lubricant 10Y is contrary to the embodiment, is smaller than the width C ₂ of the holding member 17Y. For this reason, contrary to the embodiment, the holding member 17Y protrudes in the width direction from the solid lubricant 10Y. And the recessed part 18Y engaged with the guide rail part of the casing which is not shown in figure is formed in the protruding part. By engaging the concave portion 10Y with the guide rail portion, the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 10Y can be avoided by restricting the lateral movement of the holding member 17Y that intends to move laterally together with the solid lubricant 10Y. By making the guide rail portion non-contact with the solid lubricant 10Y, the solid lubricant 10Y can be prevented from cracking or chipping due to the guide rail portion being pressed strongly.

[First Modification]
The solid lubricant 10Y protrudes in the width direction as compared with the holding member 17Y as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 15, or the holding member 17Y is changed into the solid lubricant as in the first modification shown in FIG. If it protrudes more in the width direction than 10Y, the dead space in the apparatus will be increased. This is because, in the protruding area, only the movable range of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y becomes an effective area in the height direction, and the other area becomes a dead space where it is not effectively used.

Therefore, in the printer according to the first modification, as shown in FIG. 19, the width C ₁ of the solid lubricant 10Y, and the width C ₂ of the holding member 17Y at substantially the same. And the recessed part for making the guide rail GL of a casing accept is provided in the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y, respectively (11Y, 18Y). And the width _{W 1} of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, the width _{W 2} of the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y are both being greater than the width _{W 3} of the guide rail. Thereby, the guide rail GL can be received in any of the recesses (11Y, 18Y).

The width W ₁ of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, the magnitude relation between the width W ₂ of the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y, among the damage prevention and the pressing problem-preventing lubricant, according to one or to preferentially It is desirable to select appropriately. Specifically, if you want to give priority to preventing damage of the solid lubricant 10Y is a width _{W 2} of the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y, and smaller than the width _{W 1} of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, the holding member Only the concave portion 18Y of 17Y is engaged with the guide rail GL. For the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, the guide rail GL is received therein, but a predetermined gap is formed between the inner wall and the side surface of the guide rail GL. Thereby, damage of solid lubricant 10Y by pressing guide rail GL against solid lubricant 10Y can be prevented.

On the other hand, when it is desired to prioritize the pressing problem-preventing solid lubricant 10Y is a width _{W 1} of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, and smaller than the width _{W 2} of the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y, the solid lubricant 10Y Only the recess 11Y is engaged with the guide rail GL. About the recessed part 18Y of the holding member 17Y, although the guide rail GL is received in the inside, a predetermined gap is formed between the inner wall and the side surface of the guide rail GL. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of poor pressing of the solid lubricant 10Y against the application brush roller due to the small protrusions on the surface of the holding member 17Y having a relatively large surface frictional resistance being hooked on the surface of the guide rail GL.

Further, when the damage prevention and the pressing failure inhibition wants to perform the same level, setting the width W ₁ and the width W ₂ to the same value. Thus, the surface friction resistance of the guide rail GL is lowered by bringing the inner wall of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y into contact with the guide rail GL and attaching the lubricant powder to the side surface of the guide rail GL. Then, the concave portion 18Y of the holding member 17Y can be smoothly slid on the guide rail GL, and the occurrence of pressing failure can be suppressed.

[ Second Modification]
FIG. 20 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the solid lubricant 10Y for Y, the holding member 17Y, and the casing in the printer according to the second modification. As shown in the drawing, in the printer according to the second modified example, as in the first modified example, the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y are provided with recesses (11Y, 18Y), respectively. The point that the auxiliary rail Pr is provided on the inner wall surface Sa of the casing is different from the first modified example.

The auxiliary rails Pr are disposed on both sides of the guide rail GL at a predetermined distance from the guide rail GL. The protrusion amount T ₂ of the from the inner wall surface Sa of the two auxiliary rails Pr is smaller than the protrusion amount T ₁ of the from the inner wall surface Sa of the guide rail GL. 21 and 22, the guide rail GL is received in the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y or the recess (not shown) of the holding member 17Y, and the tip of the auxiliary rail Pr is moved to the solid lubricant. It abuts against the side surface of 10Y or holding member 17Y. In the state where the auxiliary rail Pr is not present, the entire side surface of the solid lubricant 10Y and the entire side surface of the holding member 17Y are rubbed against the inner wall surface Sa of the casing. There is no contact between these sides. Since only the front end of the auxiliary rail Pr is rubbed against the side surfaces of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y, the rub resistance is greatly reduced as compared with the second modification. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the lubricant press defect by catching can be prevented.

  Note that the guide rail GL and the auxiliary rail Pr are not limited to a rectangular cross section, but are round or polygonal as shown in FIGS. 23 (a), 23 (b), and 23 (c). Alternatively, an elliptical shape may be employed.

[ Third Modification]
FIG. 24 is an exploded perspective view showing the solid lubricant 10Y for Y, the holding member 17Y, and the casing in the printer according to the third modification. The printer according to the third modification differs from the second modification in that an auxiliary rail portion Pr made of a lubricant is provided on the side surface of the solid lubricant 10Y, not on the inner wall surface Sa of the casing. For projecting amount T ₃ from the lubricant side of the auxiliary rail section Pr is smaller than the protrusion amount T ₁ of the guide rail GL. As a result, as shown in FIG. 25, only the auxiliary rail portion Pr made of a lubricant can be rubbed against the inner wall surface Sa of the casing to prevent the occurrence of a lubricant pressing failure due to the catch.

  In addition to or instead of providing the auxiliary rail portion in the solid lubricant 10Y, the auxiliary rail portion may be provided in the holding member 17Y.

[ Fourth Modification]
FIG. 26 is an exploded perspective view showing the Y application brush roller 7Y, the solid lubricant 10Y, the holding member 17Y, and the casing in the printer according to the fourth modification. In this lubricant application device, the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y and the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y are provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction. For this reason, the inner wall surface Sa of the casing is provided with two guide rails GL respectively corresponding to the concave portions. In such a configuration, as compared with an embodiment in which only one guide rail GL or concave portion is provided in the central portion of the solid lubricant 10Y in the longitudinal direction, the runout at both longitudinal ends of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y is reduced. Can be suppressed.

As shown in FIG. 26, the longitudinal dimensions of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y are substantially the same as the dimensions of the brush roller portion of the application brush roller 7Y in the rotational axis direction. For this reason, each of the recesses 11Y provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the solid lubricant 10Y and the recesses 18Y provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the holding member 17Y are both ends of the brush roller portion in the rotation axis direction. And the other end. Similarly, the two guide rails GL provided on the inner wall surface Sa of the casing are located in a region between one end and the other end in the rotation axis direction of the brush roller portion of the application brush roller 7Y. In other words, in the embodiments , modifications, and reference examples described so far, the guide means including the guide rail GL and the concave portion is arranged between one end and the other end in the rotation axis direction of the brush roller portion. Has been established. In such a configuration, for example, as in the configuration in which abutting members that respectively abut against both ends of the brush roller portion are disposed, the lubricant applying device is compared with the case where the guide means is provided in a region outside the both ends of the brush roller portion. It is possible to reduce the size in the roller rotation axis direction. The size of the lubricant applicator in the roller axis direction affects not only the lubricant applicator itself, but also the size of the process unit and development unit. Therefore, the size reduction of the former reduces the size of the process unit and development unit. Sizing can also be possible.

  The electrode 16Y is fixed to one of the two guide rails GL. As shown in FIG. 27, the electrode 16Y is received together with the guide rail GL in the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y. A CPU is electrically connected to the electrode 16Y. In addition, a metal holding member 17Y is electrically connected to the CPU via a metal coil spring 19Y.

  While the thickness of the solid lubricant 10Y is sufficiently large, the electrode 16Y is in contact with the inner wall of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, but does not reach the holding member 17Y. Therefore, the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y are not electrically connected. When the solid lubricant 10Y is consumed and its thickness gradually decreases, the holding member 17Y comes closer to the application brush roller 7Y than in the illustrated state. Then, the concave portion of the holding member 17Y gradually approaches the electrode 16Y. When the thickness of the solid lubricant 10Y is reduced to almost the lifetime, the recess of the holding member 17Y reaches the electrode 16Y, and the inner wall of the recess contacts the electrode 16Y. Thereby, the CPU serving as the life notification means detects the conduction between the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y, and notifies the user of the end of the life of the solid lubricant 10Y by display display. Thus, in the fifth modification, the cost can be reduced by using the guide rail GL as a support member for the life detection electrode.

[ Fifth Modification]
FIG. 28 is an exploded perspective view showing the Y guide rail GL and the electrode 16Y in the printer according to the fifth modification. FIG. 29 is a perspective view showing the guide rail GL and the electrode 16Y. Also in the printer according to the fifth modification, the electrode 16Y is fixed to the guide rail GL as in the fourth modification. The difference from the fourth modification is that the electrode 16Y is inclined. The inclination is such that the electrode locations farther away from the application brush roller (not shown) are further away from the guide rail GL.

  When the solid lubricant is set in such a state that the electrode 16Y is fixed, as shown in FIG. 30, in the rail extending direction of the electrode 16Y, the electrode tip that is farthest from the application brush roller 7Y is the holding member. It contacts the inner wall of the recess 18Y of 17Y. Thereby, the conduction between the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y is detected by a CPU (not shown). The CPU that has detected conduction determines that the solid lubricant 10Y is set correctly. That is, by detecting the continuity when the solid lubricant 10Y is in the initial state, it is possible to detect not only the life but also whether or not it is set correctly.

  When the solid lubricant 10Y is consumed and the thickness thereof is reduced, as shown in FIG. 31, the inner wall of the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y is not at the tip of the electrode 16Y in the rail extending direction but at the center. To come into contact. Even in this state, since the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y are conductive, the CPU determines that the lifetime of the solid lubricant 10Y has not yet been reached.

  When the solid lubricant 10Y is consumed almost to the end of its life, as shown in FIG. 32, the concave portion 18Y of the holding member 17Y comes to a position around the base portion in the rail extending direction of the electrode 16Y. In this state, the recess 18Y cannot contact the electrode 16Y, and the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y are in a non-conductive state. Then, the CPU determines that the lifetime of the solid lubricant 10Y has been reached, and notifies the user accordingly. Thereafter, when the solid lubricant 10Y is replaced with a new one by the work of the user or service person, the state shown in FIG. 30 is obtained again, and the CPU detects the continuity between the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y. Then, it is grasped that the new solid lubricant 10Y is set correctly.

[ Sixth Modification]
FIG. 33 is a perspective view showing the guide rail GL for Y and the electrode 16Y in the printer according to the sixth modification. In this printer, two guide rails GL are provided on the inner wall Sa of the casing. These guide rails GL are received in recesses provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction with respect to a solid lubricant and a holding member (not shown).

Electrodes 16Y are fixed to the two guide rails GL, respectively. These electrodes 16Y are provided with an inclination, but the inclination is opposite to that of the printer according to the fifth modification. Specifically, the inclination is such that the electrode locations closer to the application brush roller (not shown) are further away from the guide rail GL.

  The solid lubricant is set in a state where the electrode 16Y having such an inclination is fixed to the guide rail GL. Then, as shown in FIG. 34, in the rail extending direction of the electrode 16Y, the electrode tip portion that is the portion closest to the application brush roller 7Y contacts the inner wall of the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y. In this state, the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y are in a non-conductive state.

  As the solid lubricant 10Y is consumed and its thickness decreases, the holding member 17Y gradually approaches the application brush roller 7Y. When the thickness of the solid lubricant 10Y is reduced to near the end of its life, as shown in FIG. 35, the tip of the electrode 16Y and the inner wall of the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y come into contact with each other, and both become conductive. Thereafter, when the solid lubricant 10Y is further consumed, as shown in FIG. 36, the tip end portion of the electrode 16Y is detached from the inner wall of the recess portion 18Y of the holding member 17Y, and instantaneously toward the outside of the recess portion 18Y by the restoring force. Move to. As a result, the electrode 16Y and the holding member 17Y are brought into a non-conductive state again.

  The CPU is in a state in which at least one of the electrodes 16Y is conductive with respect to the holding member 17Y from the initial state where both the two electrodes 16Y are not conductive with respect to the holding member 17Y (state of FIG. 34). When the state changes to (the state of FIG. 35), the user is informed that the solid lubricant 10Y is about to reach the end of its life. Thereafter, when the electrode 16Y, which has been in a conductive state with respect to the holding member 17Y, is again in a non-conductive state (the state shown in FIG. 36), the CPU notifies the user that the solid lubricant Y has reached the end of its life.

  In such a configuration, before the solid lubricant 10Y reaches the end of its life, the user can be notified that the end of the life will soon be reached, and the user can be prepared for replacement. Moreover, even if the solid lubricant 10Y causes uneven wear at one end in the longitudinal direction for some reason, it is possible to appropriately detect the end of life at the one end by the electrode 16Y corresponding to the one end. Furthermore, when the solid lubricant 10Y reaches the end of its life, the end of the electrode 16Y is released from the holding member 17Y by virtue of the principle of the leaf spring and becomes non-conductive, so that the end of life can be detected reliably.

[ Seventh Modification]
FIG. 37 is an exploded perspective view showing the Y application brush roller 7Y, the solid lubricant 10Y, the holding member 17Y, and the casing in the printer according to the seventh modification. This lubricant application device is different from the printer according to the fourth modification in the following points. That is, two guide grooves GD are provided on the inner wall surface Sa of the casing instead of the two guide rails. Of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y, only the solid lubricant 10Y is provided with two protrusions 111Y for individually engaging with the two guide grooves GD. For the same reason as the printer according to the fourth modified example, each of the convex portions 111Y provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the solid lubricant 10Y has one end in the rotational axis direction of the brush roller portion of the application brush roller 7Y. It will be located in the area between the other end. Further, the two guide grooves GD provided on the inner wall surface Sa of the casing are also positioned in a region between one end and the other end in the rotation axis direction of the brush roller portion of the application brush roller 7Y. Even in this configuration, it is possible to reduce the size of the lubricant application device in the roller rotation axis direction as compared with the case where the guide means is provided in a region outside the both ends of the brush roller portion.

[ Second Reference Example]
FIG. 38 is an exploded perspective view showing the Y application brush roller 7Y, the solid lubricant 10Y, the holding member 17Y, and the casing in the printer according to the second reference example. This lubricant application device is different from the seventh modification in that a convex portion 118Y for engaging with the guide groove GD is provided not on the solid lubricant 10Y but on the holding member 17Y.

In the printer according to the seventh modification described above, the convex portion 118Y made of the lubricant provided in the solid lubricant 10Y exhibits a very low frictional resistance against the inner wall of the guide groove GD, so that the solid lubricant The agent 10Y itself can be smoothly slid in the extending direction of the guide groove GD. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of poor pressing of the solid lubricant 10Y against the brush and the failure of sliding movement due to the protrusion 111Y being hooked on the minute protrusion on the inner wall of the guide groove GD. However, when the solid lubricant 10Y tries to move laterally with a strong force, the convex portion 118Y is strongly pressed against the inner wall of the guide groove GD. There is. On the other hand, in the printer according to the second reference example, even if the solid lubricant 10Y tries to move laterally with a strong force, it is not the solid lubricant 10Y but the rigid lubricant that strongly presses against the inner wall of the guide groove GD. Since it is the convex part 118Y of the holding member 17Y made of metal, the solid lubricant 10Y is not cracked or chipped. On the other hand, there is a risk that a pressing failure of the solid lubricant 10Y against the brush and a sliding movement failure may occur due to the protrusion 118Y being hooked on a minute protrusion on the inner wall of the guide groove GD.

  In addition, you may provide the convex part for engaging with the guide groove GD in both the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y. In this case, the width of each convex part is set to the same value. Thereby, compared with the case where only one of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y is provided with a convex portion, the solid lubricant 10Y with respect to the brush of the solid lubricant 10Y is suppressed while suppressing the occurrence of cracking and chipping. Occurrence of pressing failure and sliding movement failure can be suppressed.

[ Eighth Modification]
FIG. 39 is an exploded perspective view showing the Y application brush roller 7Y, the solid lubricant 10Y, the holding member 17Y, and the casing in the printer according to the eighth modification. In this lubricant application device, of a plurality of inner wall surfaces in a casing as a casing of the lubricant application device, two inner wall surfaces Sa1 and inner surfaces facing each other across the solid lubricant 10Y disposed in the casing. Two guide rails GL are provided for the inner wall surface Sa2 which is one of the wall surfaces Sa2. Further, in the inner wall surface Sa1, which is the other, guide grooves GD are respectively provided at positions facing the two guide rails GL of the inner wall surface Sa2.

  In the solid lubricant 10Y, two convex portions 111Y for individually engaging with the two guide grooves GD of the inner wall surface Sa1 of the casing are provided at both ends in the lubricant longitudinal direction. Further, two concave portions 11Y for individually engaging with the two guide rails GL of the inner wall surface Sa2 of the casing are provided at both ends in the lubricant longitudinal direction. In the longitudinal direction of the lubricant, the position of the convex portion 111Y provided on one side surface in the width direction and the position of the concave portion 11Y provided on the other side surface are the same, and the convex portion 111Y and the concave portion 11Y are the lubricant. It faces in the width direction via.

  In the holding member 17Y, a recess 18Y for engaging with the guide rail GL or for receiving the guide rail GL in a non-contact manner is provided at a position communicating with each of the two recesses 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y. .

As described above, in the printer according to the eighth modification, among the two side surfaces arranged in the width direction of the solid lubricant 10Y, the convex portion 111Y is provided on one side surface, and the concave portion 11Y is provided on the other side surface. And the convex part 111Y and the recessed part 11Y are provided in the position which can mutually oppose in the width direction. The reason for adopting such a configuration is as follows. That is, it is assumed that only the convex portion 111Y is provided among the convex portion 111Y and the concave portion 11Y shown in FIG. Then, the dimension in the width direction of the solid lubricant 10Y varies depending on the position in the longitudinal direction of the lubricant. Specifically, in the lubricant longitudinal direction, the basic width dimension of the solid lubricant 10Y becomes the dimension in the width direction as it is at a place where the convex portion 111Y is not provided. On the other hand, in the longitudinal direction of the lubricant, in the location where the convex portion 111Y is provided, the width direction dimension of the solid lubricant 10Y is the basic width dimension described above and the amount of protrusion from the lubricant side surface of the convex portion 111Y. The value obtained by adding. That is, the dimension in the width direction is larger at the location where the convex portion 111Y is provided than at the location where the convex portion 111Y is not provided. The difference in dimension is directly the difference in the amount of lubricant scraped, and as a result, the difference in the amount of lubricant applied. In the rotation axis direction of the application brush roller 7Y, the lubricant application amount at a location corresponding to the convex portion 111Y of the solid lubricant 10Y is larger than the lubricant application amount at a location not corresponding to the convex portion 111Y. is there. In this way, when the lubricant application amount is different, there is a possibility of causing unevenness in the image quality of the formed image.

  Further, it is assumed that only the concave portion 11Y is provided among the convex portion 111Y and the concave portion 11Y shown in FIG. Then, in the rotation axis direction of the application brush roller 7Y, the lubricant application amount at a location corresponding to the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y becomes smaller than the lubricant application amount at a location not corresponding to the recess 11Y. In this way, even when the lubricant application amount is different, there is a risk of causing unevenness in the image quality of the formed image.

Therefore, the convex portion 111Y is provided on one of the two side surfaces in the width direction of the solid lubricant 10Y, and the other side is opposed to the convex portion 111Y via the solid lubricant 10Y. A recess 11Y is provided on the surface. In such a configuration, as compared with the case where only the convex portion 111Y or only the concave portion 11Y is provided, the variation in the lubricant width direction in the lubricant longitudinal direction can be reduced, and the above-described unevenness in image quality can be suppressed. In the printer according to the eighth modification, the protruding amount of the convex portion 111Y and the concave amount of the concave portion 11Y are the same, and therefore, in the lubricant longitudinal direction, the portion where the convex portion 111Y and the concave portion 11Y are provided. The width of the lubricant is the same in the places where it is not provided. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of the above-described image quality unevenness.

[ Ninth Modification]
FIG. 40 is an exploded perspective view showing the solid lubricant 10Y for Y and the holding member 17Y in the printer according to the ninth modification. In the printer according to the ninth modification, a guide bar GB is provided instead of the guide rail as a guide portion for guiding the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y. The guide rod GB is provided in a posture that projects straight toward the solid lubricant on the bottom wall surface (Sb in FIG. 11) of the casing. In this example, the guide rod GB is integrally formed with the bottom wall of the casing, but may be formed separately. In this case, the guide rod GB can be made of a material (for example, metal) different from that of the casing.

  The solid lubricant 10Y is provided with two holes 112Y for receiving the guide rod GB provided on the bottom wall of the casing. These holes 112Y are provided so as to be individually located at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the solid lubricant 10Y. Two guide rods GB described above are provided on the bottom wall of the casing so as to be individually inserted into the two holes 112Y.

  The holding member 17Y is also provided with through holes 119Y for receiving the two guide rods GB individually at both ends in the longitudinal direction.

  When assembling the lubricant application device, first, the coil spring 19Y is inserted into the guide rod GB. Further, the solid lubricant 10Y is fixed to the holding member 17Y. At this time, the solid lubricant 10Y is fixed to the holding member 17Y in such a posture that the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y communicates with the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y. Next, the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y are set in the casing while the guide rod GB is inserted into the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y and the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y. Thereafter, an application brush roller (not shown) is set. Since the outer diameter of the coil spring 19Y is larger than the inner diameter of the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y, the coil spring 19Y is not inserted into the through hole 119Y. The coil spring 19Y inserted into the guide bar GB urges the holding member 19Y toward a coating brush roller (not shown) while being interposed between the bottom wall surface of the casing and the bottom back surface of the holding member 19Y. By inserting the coil spring 10Y into the guide rod GB, the occurrence of buckling of the coil spring 10Y can be avoided.

  Each of the holes 112Y provided at both ends of the solid lubricant 10Y, the through-holes 119Y provided at both ends of the holding member, and the two guide rods GB provided on the bottom wall of the casing are both applied brushes (not shown) It is located in the area | region between the one end and the other end of the rotation axis direction in the brush roller part of a roller. Therefore, in the same manner as the printers according to the embodiments and the modifications described so far, compared to the case where the guide means including the guide rod GB is provided in the region outside the both ends of the brush roller portion, The size can be reduced in the roller rotation axis direction.

FIG. 41 is a cross-sectional view showing an application brush roller 7Y and its surrounding configuration in a printer according to a ninth modification. As the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, a through-hole penetrating from the lower end to the upper end in the thickness direction is provided. The distance L1 from the rotation center of the application brush roller 7Y to the tip of the guide bar GB protruding from the bottom wall surface of the casing is set to a value larger than the radius r1 of the application brush roller 7Y. Therefore, regardless of the thickness of the solid lubricant 10Y, the tip of the guide rod GB is positioned in the hole 112Y below the upper end surface of the solid lubricant 10Y.

  The solid lubricant 10Y or the holding member 17Y engages the guide rod GB with the hole 112Y or the through-hole 119Y as its engaging portion. In this engaged state, the guide bar GB moves in the direction toward the application brush roller 7Y in the solid lubricant 10Y urged toward the application brush roller 7Y by the coil spring 19Y, that is, the arrow A in the figure. Allow sliding movement in the direction. On the other hand, the movement in the same direction in the solid lubricant 10Y in which the force in the direction orthogonal to the rotation direction is applied in addition to the force in the rotation direction on the rubbing surface with the rotating application brush roller 7Y directly or It regulates via the holding member 17Y. Thus, the guide bar GB functions as a guide portion that guides the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y toward the application brush roller 7Y.

  In such a configuration, the guide rod GB guides the movement toward the application brush roller 7Y while restricting the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 10Y, thereby avoiding the occurrence of the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 10Y. Can do. Note that the diameter of the hole 112Y and the diameter of the through hole 119Y have the same value. Moreover, as the hole part 112Y and the through-hole 119Y, the thing of a perfect circular cross-sectional shape is provided, respectively, However, The thing of an elliptical cross-sectional shape and a polygonal cross-sectional shape may be provided.

Although an example using a plate-like member as the holding member 17Y has been described, a C-shaped steel member as shown in FIG. 42 (a) is used in the illustrated posture as in the embodiment, and solid lubrication is provided thereon. The agent may be fixed. Further, as shown in FIG. 42 (b), a C-shaped steel member may be used as the holding member 17Y in an upside down orientation with respect to FIG. 42 (a), and a solid lubricant may be fixed thereon. Further, as shown in FIG. 42C, an L-shaped steel member may be used as the holding member 17Y in the illustrated posture, and a solid lubricant may be fixed thereon. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 42 (d), an L-shaped steel member may be used as the holding member 17Y in an upside-down posture with respect to FIG. 42 (c), and a solid lubricant may be fixed thereon. The same applies to the embodiment and the first to eighth modifications.

First 0 Modification]
Printer according to a first 0 modification only in that described below is different from the printer according to the ninth modification. That is, the diameter of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y and the diameter of the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y are different from each other. Which of these diameters is to be made larger is appropriately selected depending on which of the lubricant prevention and pressing failure prevention is prioritized.

  Specifically, when priority is given to preventing the solid lubricant 10Y from being damaged, the diameter of the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y is made smaller than the diameter of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, so that the holding member 17Y Only the through hole 119Y is engaged with the guide rod GB. For the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, the guide rod GB is received therein, but a predetermined gap is formed between the inner wall and the guide rod GB. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the solid lubricant 10Y from being damaged due to the guide rod GB being pressed against the solid lubricant 10Y.

  On the other hand, when priority is given to preventing the pressing failure of the solid lubricant 10Y, the diameter of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y is made smaller than the diameter of the through-hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y, so that the hole of the solid lubricant 10Y is obtained. Only the portion 112Y is engaged with the guide rod GB. As for the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y, the guide rod GB is received therein, but a predetermined gap is formed between the inner wall and the guide rod GB. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a pressing failure of the solid lubricant 10Y against the application brush roller due to the small protrusion on the surface of the holding member 17Y having a relatively large surface friction resistance being hooked on the surface of the guide rod GB.

In the printer according to the ninth modification, both the hole 112Y and the through hole 119Y are brought into contact with the guide rod GB, so that the lubricant powder adheres to the guide rod GB and the surface friction resistance of the guide rod GB is reduced. By lowering the guide rod GB against the through-hole 119Y, the guide rod GB is prevented from being pushed against the solid lubricant 10Y with an excessive force. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of a press defect can be suppressed, aiming at prevention of failure | damage of a lubricant.

First Modified Example 1]
The printer according to the first modification is different from the printer according to the ninth modification only in the points described below. That is, in the printer according to the ninth modification, a guide rod GB having a perfect circular cross section is employed. On the other hand, in the printer according to the first modification, a non-circular cross-sectional shape is adopted as the guide rod GB. For example, a flower shape as shown in FIG. 43 (a), a triangle shape as shown in FIG. 43 (b), an ellipse shape as shown in FIG. 43 (c), and FIG. 43 (d). Such as the star-shaped one shown. The non-circular shape reduces the contact area between the inner wall of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y and the inner wall of the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y, and reduces the frictional resistance with them. Smoother slide movement can be realized.

[First Modification 2 ]
FIG. 44 is a cross-sectional view showing the application brush roller 7Y and its surrounding configuration in the printer according to the first and second modifications. This printer is different from the printer according to the ninth modification only in the points described below. In other words, the hole 112Y provided in the solid lubricant 10Y is not a through hole, but a digging hole that does not reach the upper end of the solid lubricant 10Y. The distance L1 from the rotation center of the application brush roller 7Y to the tip of the guide rod GB is set larger than the radius r1 of the application brush roller 7Y, as in the printer according to the ninth modification. Therefore, regardless of the thickness of the solid lubricant 10Y, the tip of the guide rod GB is positioned in the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y.

When the solid lubricant 10Y is in the initial state, as shown in FIG. 44, the hole 112Y does not reach the upper end of the solid lubricant 10Y. Thereafter, as the upper portion of the solid lubricant 10Y is shaved, the distance between the upper end of the hole 112Y and the upper end of the solid lubricant 10Y gradually approaches, and eventually the hole 112Y relates to the ninth modification. Like a printer, it is a through hole. Thus, if it becomes a through-hole, in the location which provided the hole part 112Y in the lubricant longitudinal direction, the application quantity of lubricant powder will reduce by the part of the area of the hole compared with another location. However, until the hole 112Y is made a through hole, that is, within a certain period from the initial state, the hole is not penetrated, and the scraping surface of the solid lubricant 10Y is a surface without a hole. The coating amount can be made uniform regardless of the position in the longitudinal direction of the lubricant.

[First Modification 3 ]
Figure 45 is an exploded perspective view showing the holding member 17Y and the solid lubricant 10Y for Y in a printer according to the first third modification. Printer according to the first third modification, only the points which will be described is different from the printer according to a ninth modification shown in FIG. 40 above. That is, in the printer according to the ninth modification, only one hole 112Y and one through-hole 119Y are provided at each of the longitudinal ends of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y. In the lubricant width direction (short direction), the position where the hole 112Y and the through hole 119Y are provided is the center position in the lubricant width direction. In contrast, in the printer according to the first third modification, it is provided in the longitudinal ends of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y, two by two holes 112Y and the through hole 119Y respectively. In the lubricant width direction, the positions where the holes 112Y and the through holes 119Y are provided are near both ends in the lubricant width direction. Thus, at both ends in the longitudinal direction, the hole 112Y and the through-hole 119Y are provided at both ends in the width direction, and four guide rods GB for engaging with them are provided. In such a configuration, compared with the printer according to the ninth modification, the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y that is about to rotate about the central portion in the longitudinal direction is well regulated, and the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding lubricant are retained. The deflection of the member 17Y can be suppressed more favorably.

  As for the way of setting the coil spring 19Y with respect to the two guide rods GB at both ends in the longitudinal direction, as shown in FIG. 46, one coil spring 19Y may be passed through the two guide rods GB, or the two guide rods Individual coil springs 19Y may be passed through GB.

[First Modification 4 ]
In the printer according to the first third modification shown in FIG. 45, as already described, respectively, in both longitudinal ends of the solid lubricant 10Y, is provided with the two holes 112Y aligned in the width direction, they It is desirable to arrange the two holes 112 as far apart as possible. This is because if the distance between the two hole portions 112 is too small, cracks are likely to occur between the hole portions. However, depending on the width of the solid lubricant 10Y, the distance between the two holes 112Y may not be increased to a desired value. In such a case, if the width of the solid lubricant 10Y is increased, the same distance can be set to a desired value, but this increases the size of the apparatus.

Therefore, in the printer according to the first fourth modification, as shown in FIG. 47 and FIG. 48, as the hole 112, rather than the round hole whose interior is surrounded all the solid lubricant 10Y in the circumferential direction, the circumferential A semi-circular shape lacking about half of the direction is provided. Even in such a semi-circular hole 112Y, the holes 112 are provided at both ends in the width direction, so the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y in the width direction is the same as that of the round hole. It is possible to regulate with the bar GB.

  In such a configuration, the impact resistance of the solid lubricant 10Y can be increased by increasing the distance between the two hole portions 112Y arranged in the width direction as compared with the case where the circular hole portion 112Y is provided.

[First Fifth Modification]
Figure 49 is a perspective view showing a solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y for Y in a printer according to the first 5 modification. This printer only in that described below is different from the printer according to the first fourth modification. That is, in the printer according to the first fourth modification, as shown in FIG. 47, a through hole 119Y provided in the holding member 17Y is also provided as a semi-circle shape. In contrast, in the printer according to the first 5 variation, for through-hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y as shown in FIG. 49, are provided as a round hole-like.

First 6 Modification
Figure 50 is a perspective view showing a solid lubricant 10Y for Y in a printer according to the first 6 modification. This printer only in that described below is different from the printer according to the first fourth modification. That is, the positions of the hole 112Y provided at one end in the width direction of the solid lubricant 10Y and the hole 112Y provided at the other end are shifted in the longitudinal direction. Thus shifting it in, as compared with the printer according to the first 4 variation, and a greater distance between the two holes 112Y, it is possible to further increase the impact resistance of the solid lubricant 10Y. Further, in the longitudinal direction, the position of the hole 112Y at one end in the width direction and the position of the hole 112Y at the other end are not synchronized, thereby reducing a decrease in the coating amount due to the presence of the hole 112Y. Thus, it is possible to reduce as compared with the printer according to the first fourth modification, the variation in the longitudinal direction of the lubricant coating weight due to the provision of the hole 112Y to the solid lubricant 10Y.

First 7 Modification]
Figure 51 is an exploded perspective view showing the guide rod GB and the electrode 16Y for Y in a printer according to the first 7 modification. FIG. 52 is a perspective view showing the guide rod GB and the electrode 16Y. Printer according to the first 7 variation, only a point described below is different from the printer according to a ninth modification shown in FIG. 40. That is, to the guide rod GB, an electrode 16Y having two blade portions formed in a shape that expands away from an application brush roller (not shown) is fixed. This electrode 16Y becomes conductive with a holding member (not shown) according to the thickness of a solid lubricant (not shown) according to the same principle as the electrode of the printer according to the fifth modification shown in FIGS. 30 to 32 previously. Or become non-conductive. Specifically, when the solid lubricant is in the initial state, the electrode 16Y is brought into conduction by bringing the tip of the blade portion into contact with the holding member. When the solid lubricant is consumed and the thickness thereof is reduced, not the tip of the blade part of the electrode 16Y but the center part of the blade part comes into contact with the holding member. Even in this state, since the electrode 16Y and the holding member are conductive, the CPU determines that the lifetime of the solid lubricant has not yet been reached. After that, when the solid lubricant is consumed almost to the end of its life, the holding member is separated from the blade portion of the electrode 16Y and the both become non-conductive. Then, the CPU determines that the lifetime of the solid lubricant has been reached, and notifies the user accordingly. When the solid lubricant is replaced with a new one by the work of the user or service person, the CPU detects the conduction between the electrode 16Y and the holding member and grasps that the new solid lubricant is set correctly. To do.

[ 18th modification]
FIG. 53 is an exploded perspective view showing the Y guide rod GB and the electrode 16Y of the printer according to the eighteenth modification. FIG. 54 is a perspective view showing the guide rod GB and the electrode 16Y. Printer according to the eighteenth modification, only in that described below is different from the printer according to the first 7 modification. That is, the mounting posture with respect to the guide rod GB electrode 16, the first 7 modification is that it turned upside down. The electrode 16Y attached in such a posture is not shown in accordance with the thickness of the solid lubricant (not shown) according to the same principle as the electrode of the printer according to the seventh modification shown in FIGS. 34 to 36 previously. The holding member becomes conductive or non-conductive. Specifically, when the thickness of the solid lubricant is in the initial state, the tip of the blade portion of the electrode 16Y contacts the inner wall of the hole portion of the solid lubricant. In this state, the electrode 16Y and the holding member are in a non-conductive state. When the solid lubricant is consumed and its thickness is reduced to near the end of its life, the tip of the blade portion of the electrode 16Y and the inner wall of the through hole of the holding member come into contact with each other, and both become conductive. Thereafter, when the solid lubricant is further consumed, the tip of the blade portion of the electrode 16Y is detached from the inner wall of the through hole of the holding member, and instantaneously moves toward the outside of the through hole by the restoring force. As a result, the electrode 16Y and the holding member are brought into a non-conductive state again.

  The CPU notifies the user that the solid lubricant will soon reach the end of its life when the state changes from the initial state where the electrode 16Y is non-conductive to the holding member to the state where the electrode 16Y is conductive to the holding member. Thereafter, when the electrode 16Y that has been in a conductive state with respect to the holding member is again in a non-conductive state, the CPU notifies the user that the solid lubricant Y has reached the end of its life.

  So far, the present invention has been described by taking a printer that forms a color image by the so-called tandem method as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to an image forming apparatus that forms a monochrome image.

  As described above, in the printer according to the embodiment and each modified example, the rotating shaft member 8Y that is rotatably supported and the brush roller portion 9Y that includes a plurality of raised brushes erected on the peripheral surface of the rotating shaft member 8Y. The coating brush roller 7Y provided is used. Then, the guide rail GL, the guide groove GD or the guide rod as the guide portion is a region between one end and the other end in the rotation axis direction of the brush roller portion 9Y in the entire region in the casing (casing) of the apparatus main body. Provided. In such a configuration, the lubricant application device can be reduced in size as compared with the case where the guide rail GL, the guide groove GD, or the guide rod is provided outside the aforementioned region.

In the printers according to the embodiment, the first to eighth modifications , the first reference example, and the second reference example , the guide rail GL that extends along the inner wall surface Sa of the casing as the guide portion. Alternatively, a guide groove GD extending along the inner wall surface Sa is provided. As the engaging portion, a concave portion that engages with the guide rail GL or a convex portion that engages with the guide groove GD is provided in the solid lubricant 10Y or the holding member 17Y. In such a configuration, the solid lubricant 10Y engaged with the guide rail GL or the guide groove GD is moved along the rail or the groove, thereby guiding the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y toward the application brush roller 7Y. By avoiding the lateral movement or moving the holding member 17 engaged with the guide rail GL or the guide groove GD along the rail or the groove, the solid lubricant 10Y is directed toward the application brush roller 7Y. Lateral movement can be avoided while indirectly guiding the movement.

Further, in the printer according to the first modified example, the concave portions that engage with the guide rail portion GL are provided in both the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y (11Y, 18Y). In such a configuration, for the reasons already described, cracking or chipping of the solid lubricant 10Y occurs compared to a configuration in which the recess is engaged with only one of the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y. It is possible to suppress the occurrence of pressing failure of the solid lubricant 10Y against the brush and occurrence of sliding movement failure. It should be noted that the same effect can be obtained by providing convex portions for engaging with the guide grooves GD on both the solid lubricant 10Y and the holding member 17Y.

Further, in the printer according to the first modification, the width of the concave portion 18Y of the holding member 17Y is made smaller than the width of the concave portion 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, and only the concave portion 18Y of the holding member 17Y among these concave portions is a guide rail. When the guide rail GL is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the recess 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y by engaging with the portion GL, the following becomes possible. That is, it is possible to prevent the solid lubricant 10Y from being damaged due to the guide rail GL being pressed against the solid lubricant 10Y.

Further, in the printer according to the first modification, the width of the concave portion 18Y of the holding member 17Y is made larger than the width of the concave portion 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, and only the solid lubricant concave portion 11Y of these concave portions is a guide rail. When the guide rail GL is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the recess 18Y of the holding member 17Y by engaging with the GL, the following becomes possible. That is, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a pressing failure of the solid lubricant 10Y against the application brush roller due to the small protrusion on the surface of the holding member 17Y having a relatively large surface frictional resistance being hooked on the surface of the guide rail GL.

Further, in the printer according to the eighth modification, of the plurality of inner wall surfaces in the casing as the casing of the lubricant applying device, two inner surfaces facing each other with the solid lubricant 10Y disposed in the casing interposed therebetween. Two guide rails GL are provided for the inner wall surface Sa2 which is one of the wall surface Sa1 and the inner wall surface Sa2. Further, in the inner wall surface Sa1, which is the other, guide grooves GD are respectively provided at positions facing the two guide rails GL of the inner wall surface Sa2. Further, in the solid lubricant 10Y, two convex portions 111Y for individually engaging with the two guide grooves GD of the inner wall surface Sa1 of the casing are provided at both ends in the lubricant longitudinal direction. Further, two concave portions 11Y for individually engaging with the two guide rails GL of the inner wall surface Sa2 of the casing are provided at both ends in the lubricant longitudinal direction. In such a configuration, as already described, in the longitudinal direction of the lubricant, the difference in the amount of lubricant scraping between the locations where the concave portions 11Y and the convex portions 111Y are formed and other locations in the longitudinal direction of the lubricant is reduced. Further, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of lubricant application unevenness in the rotation axis direction of the application brush roller 7Y.

In the printers according to the ninth to eighteenth modified examples, a guide bar GB protruding from the inner wall of the casing is provided as a guide portion. A hole 112Y that receives the guide rod GB is provided in the solid lubricant 10Y as an engaging portion. In such a configuration, it is possible to avoid the lateral movement of the solid lubricant 10Y while guiding the movement of the solid lubricant 10Y toward the application brush roller 7Y by the guide rod GB.

Further, in the printer according to the ninth to eighteenth modified examples, since the holding member 17Y is provided with the through-hole 119Y that receives the guide rod GB in a state of communicating with the hole 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, the holding member The guide rod GB passed through the through hole 110Y of 17Y can be inserted into the hole 11Y of the solid lubricant 10Y held on the holding member 17Y.

Further, in the printer according to the first 0 modification, the diameter of the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y, and smaller than the diameter of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, among the through hole 119Y and the hole 112Y, When only the holding member 17Y is engaged with the guide rod GB and the guide rod GB is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the solid lubricant 10Y, the guide rod GB is pressed against the solid lubricant 10Y. It is possible to prevent the solid lubricant 10Y from being damaged.

Further, in the printer according to the first 0 modification, the diameter of the through hole 119Y of the holding member 17Y, and larger than the diameter of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y, among the through hole 119Y and the hole 112Y, When only the solid lubricant 10Y is engaged with the guide rod GB and the guide rod GB is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the holding member 17Y, the surface of the holding member 17Y having a relatively large surface frictional resistance is obtained. Occurrence of poor pressing of the solid lubricant 10Y against the application brush roller caused by hooking the minute protrusions on the surface of the guide rod GB can be prevented.

Further, in the printer according to the first modification, the guide rod GB has a non-circular cross-sectional shape, and for the reason described above, the inner wall of the hole 112Y of the solid lubricant 10Y and The contact area of the holding member 17Y with the inner wall of the through hole 119Y can be reduced, the frictional resistance with them can be reduced, and a smoother sliding movement can be realized.

Also, and the first modification to the sixth modification, urging in the printer according to the first 7 modification to eighteenth modification, the biasing means serving coil spring 19Y toward the applying brush roller 7Y together with the solid lubricant 10Y When the holding member 17Y is brought close to a predetermined position with respect to the application brush roller 7Y as the solid lubricant 10Y is consumed, the conductive portion (the inner wall of the recess or the inner wall of the through-hole) provided in the holding member 17Y. The electrode 16Y for contact or separation is fixed to the guide rail GL or the guide rod GB as a guide portion, and the life of the solid lubricant 10Y is reached based on the on / off of conduction between the electrode 16Y and the conductive portion. A CPU serving as a life notification means for notifying is provided. With such a configuration, it is possible to automatically notify the user that the solid lubricant 10Y has been consumed until the end of its life. In addition, you may provide the electroconductive part for electrically conducting to the electrode 16Y in the solid lubricant 10Y instead of the holding member 17Y.

7Y: Application brush roller (application member)
8Y: Rotating shaft member 9Y: Brush roller part 10Y: Solid lubricant 11Y: Recessed part (engagement part)
111Y: Convex part (engagement part)
112Y: Hole 16Y: Electrode (electrode member)
17Y: Holding member 18Y: Recessed portion (engagement portion)
118Y: Convex part (engagement part)
119Y: Through-hole 19Y: Coil spring (biasing means)
GL: Guide rail (guide part)
GD: Guide groove (guide part)
GB: Guide rod (guide part)
Sa: Inner wall surface

JP 2007-79468 A

Claims (16)

Solid lubricant,
An application member for applying the lubricant powder scraped from the solid lubricant to an object to be applied;
A holding member for holding the solid lubricant;
In a lubricant application device comprising: an urging unit that urges the holding member to bring the solid lubricant on the holding member into contact with the application member;
While providing a restricting portion for restricting movement of the solid lubricant toward the application member in a predetermined direction,
Lubricant applicator, characterized in that the engagement portion for engaging the regulating portion, provided on the solid lubricant. The lubricant application device according to claim 1,
The coating member applies the lubricant powder scraped from the solid lubricant to the coated body as the surface of the coating member moves endlessly in contact with the solid lubricant and the coated body. ,
The rubbing surface with the coating member moving endlessly while allowing the movement of the solid lubricant biased toward the coating member by the biasing means in the direction toward the coating member. In the solid lubricant to which a force in a direction orthogonal to the endless movement direction is applied in addition to the force in the endless movement direction, the movement of the solid lubricant in the orthogonal direction is regulated and directed toward the application member of the solid lubricant. It is a guide part that guides the movement of
The engaging portion engages with the guide portion so that the guide portion is allowed to move in the direction toward the application member while being restricted from moving in the orthogonal direction. A lubricant application device characterized by that. The lubricant application device according to claim 2,
The coating member is a coating brush roller including a rotating shaft member that is rotatably supported, and a brush roller unit that includes a plurality of raised brushes erected on the peripheral surface thereof.
The lubricant is characterized in that the guide portion is provided in a region between one end and the other end in the rotation axis direction of the brush roller portion in the entire region in the housing of the apparatus main body. Coating device. A lubricant applying apparatus according to claim 2 or 3,
A guide rail provided on the housing wall so as to extend along the inner wall surface of the housing, or a guide groove provided on the housing wall so as to extend along the inner wall surface. ,
And the said engaging part is a recessed part engaged with the said guide rail part, or a convex part engaged with the said guide groove, The lubricant coating device characterized by the above-mentioned. In the lubricant application device according to claim 4,
A concave portion as the engaging portion that engages with the guide rail portion or a convex portion as the engaging portion that engages with the guide groove is provided on both the solid lubricant and the holding member. A lubricant applicator characterized. In the lubricant application device according to claim 5,
Of the recesses and the protrusions, at least the recesses are provided in the solid lubricant and the holding member, respectively.
The width of the concave portion of the holding member is made smaller than the width of the concave portion of the solid lubricant, and among these concave portions, only the concave portion of the holding member is engaged with the guide rail portion,
In addition, the lubricant application apparatus is characterized in that the guide rail portion is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the concave portion of the solid lubricant. In the lubricant application device according to claim 5,
Of the recesses and the protrusions, at least the recesses are provided in the solid lubricant and the holding member, respectively.
The width of the concave portion of the holding member is larger than the width of the concave portion of the solid lubricant, and among these concave portions, only the concave portion of the solid lubricant is engaged with the guide rail portion,
In addition, the lubricant application device is characterized in that the guide rail portion is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the concave portion of the holding member. In the lubricant application device according to claim 4,
Among the plurality of inner wall surfaces provided in the housing, the guide rail portion is provided for one of the two inner wall surfaces facing each other with the solid lubricant disposed in the housing interposed therebetween, and The guide groove is provided at a position facing the guide rail portion,
And while providing the said recessed part corresponding to the said guide rail part in the surface facing the said one in the said solid lubricant, providing the said convex part corresponding to the said guide groove in the surface facing the said other in the said solid lubricant A lubricant application device characterized by that. The lubricant application device according to claim 2 or 3,
The guide portion is a guide rod protruding from the inner wall of the housing;
In addition, the lubricant application device, wherein the engaging portion of the solid lubricant is a hole portion that receives the guide rod. In the lubricant application device according to claim 9,
The lubricant application device according to claim 1, wherein the holding member is provided with a through-hole that receives the guide rod in a state where the solid lubricant is communicated with the hole. In the lubricant application device according to claim 10,
The diameter of the through hole of the holding member is different from the diameter of the hole of the solid lubricant, and only one of the through hole and the hole is engaged with the guide rod. And the guide bar is received in a non-contact manner with respect to the other. In the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 9 to 11,
A lubricant coating apparatus using a non-circular cross-sectional shape as the guide rod. The lubricant application device according to any one of claims 1 to 12,
When the holding member biased toward the application member together with the solid lubricant by the biasing means is brought close to a predetermined position with respect to the application member as the solid lubricant is consumed, While fixing the electrode member for contacting or separating the solid lubricant or the conductive portion provided in the holding member to the guide portion,
A lubricant applicator comprising a life notification means for notifying the end of the life of the solid lubricant based on on / off of conduction between the electrode member and the conductive portion. An image forming apparatus comprising: an image carrier that carries a toner image; a toner image forming unit that forms a toner image on a surface of the image carrier; and a lubricant application unit that applies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier.
As the lubricant application means, the image forming apparatus characterized by using the lubricant coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 13. Used in an image forming apparatus comprising: an image carrier that carries a toner image; a lubricant application device that applies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier; and a toner image forming unit that forms a toner image on the surface of the image carrier. ,
At least a process unit configured such that the image carrier and the lubricant application device are held by a common holder and can be integrally attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus main body as a unit.
Process units the lubricant coating device, characterized in that it is a lubricant coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 13. An application member that applies the lubricant powder scraped from the solid lubricant to the object to be coated as it rotates while contacting the solid lubricant and the object to be coated, and a holder that holds the solid lubricant. A solid lubricant mounted on a lubricant application device comprising: a member; and an urging means for urging the holding member to bring the solid lubricant on the holding member into contact with the application member,
The recess corresponding to the guide rail in the lubricant applying apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein the convex corresponding to the guide groove in the lubricant applying apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 8 Or a hole for receiving the guide rod in the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 9 to 12.

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