JP5621386B2 - Decoloring device with toner offset prevention mechanism - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention provides a paper conveyance mechanism for preventing toner offset, a erasing heat source capable of simultaneous erasing even when the erasable toner image is printed on both sides, and a erasing function with a toner offset preventing mechanism including a erasing light source. The present invention relates to a color device.

  In recent years, there has been a call for saving paper resources as part of global environmental protection. In the saving and reuse of paper resources such as image forming apparatuses, effective use of the back side of paper that has been printed on one side is already common in society. In general, the used paper is collected and used as a raw material of the paper and reused as recycled paper.

  However, when reusing paper for single-sided printing, the number of reuse is usually limited to one. In addition, when the material is reused as a raw material, energy and cost are required for the recovery itself, and energy is also applied when processing the raw material.

  Therefore, various efforts have been made to make it possible to use paper multiple times in the office. In order to reuse paper once formed with toner images as paper resources, the image on the paper formed with toner may be physically removed or decolored with light to make the paper reusable. It is considered.

  In order to physically remove the image and reuse the paper, a processing solution for removing the toner is applied to the image forming surface of the paper and heated to dissolve the toner to remove the image. There are methods such as polishing the image forming surface and scraping off the toner image. However, these methods are troublesome because they are troublesome and the paper to be reused is easily damaged.

  Further, for example, as a decoloring method using light, when an image is first formed on a sheet, the image is recorded on an OA sheet with a decoloring toner containing a near-infrared absorbing dye and a decoloring agent, and this image is recorded in the near-field. The idea of reusing paper by erasing light with a special light source such as infrared rays has already been published in a paper. (For example, refer nonpatent literature 1.)

  In the method of Non-Patent Document 1, the near-infrared absorbing dye absorbs excited near-infrared light, excites it, and reacts with a decoloring agent to make it colorless. However, since the coloring material is converted into a toner, the dye in the toner binder resin hardly shows a decoloring reaction at room temperature even when absorbing near infrared rays.

  For this reason, the general method effective for the decoloring effect | action of applying colorless heat and accelerating | stimulating reaction is performed. For example, if the fixing device for image formation and the erasing device for erasing are used in common, and the toner image is erased, the toner image is heated in advance and then the erasing light is irradiated, so that the erasing effect works effectively. Based on the commonly used technology, the heat roller pair of the fixing device used at the time of image formation is also used as a heater at the time of decoloring, and a light source for erasing the decoloring light is provided downstream of the heat roller pair in the fixing device. Arranged configurations have been proposed. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1.)

JP 07-096434 A

Kiichi Hosoda, "Application of functional dyes to toner", Journal of Electrophotographic Society, No. 31

  However, in the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 1, in addition to the problem that the temperature of the toner image is lowered before the toner image heated by the heating roller is irradiated with the decoloring light, the decoloring effect is reduced. In addition, the problem that the toner image is offset remains as a problem to be solved.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and provides a decoloring device with a toner offset prevention mechanism that prevents toner offset and enables simultaneous decoloring even when a printed image is printed on both sides. Objective.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to the first aspect of the present invention first erases a decolorable toner image printed on a recording medium conveyed through the conveyance path by heating and decoloring light irradiation. A color erasing device, comprising a erasing heat source and a erasing light source respectively disposed above and below the conveyance path, and a plurality of rollers disposed in front of and behind the conveyance path and in sliding contact with the rotation roller. And a pair of transport rollers and roller bodies that transport the recording medium along the transport path, and are arranged in parallel with the transport roller and roller bodies. Fin-shaped projections and depressions are arranged opposite to the other upper and lower fin-shaped depressions and projections, and have the same outer circumference as the conveyance linear velocity of the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path by the conveyance roller / roller body. Rotation line Configured to include a plurality of coil body to rotate in degrees, the.

  In this decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism, for example, the transport roller / roller body transports the recording medium between the plurality of coil bodies arranged above and below the transport path and the plurality of coil bodies. The plurality of coil bodies and the plurality of coil bodies prevent the recording medium from coming into contact with the erasing heat source, and the erasing heat source heats the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path. The decoloring light source is configured to irradiate the decoloring light onto the heated recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path.

Next, a decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to a second aspect of the present invention is a decoloring apparatus that decolorizes a decolorable toner image printed on a recording medium conveyed through a conveyance path by heating and decoloring light irradiation. An erasing heat source and an erasing light source respectively disposed above and below the conveying path, and a rotating roller and a plurality of rollers slidably in contact with the rotating roller respectively disposed on the upstream side and the downstream side of the conveying path. A pair of conveying rollers / rollers for conveying the recording medium along the conveying path, and a pair of upper and lower portions of the conveying path, arranged in parallel with the conveying rollers / rollers, Convex and concave are arranged opposite to the upper and lower fin-shaped concave and convex, and the outer peripheral rotational linear velocity is the same as the conveying linear velocity of the recording medium conveyed along the conveying path by the conveying roller / roller body. Rotate with double And a total of four wires arranged at positions separated from the center line of the transport path to the left and right and above and below the transport path, and on the transport path or The two wires arranged separately on the left and right of the center line of the transport path below are the transport rollers on the downstream side of the transport path from the upstream side of the transport roller roller body on the upstream side of the transport path. -Up to the downstream side of the roller body, the two wires arranged obliquely in a divergent shape at the overhead position and separated from the center line of the transport path on the upper and lower sides of the transport path are respectively a pair of upper and lower At the side surface position, the conveying roller / roller body or a plurality of coil bodies converge toward the gripping part immediately before the gripping part sandwiching the recording medium, and then the conveying roller / roller body or Wraparound multiple coil body from above and below, then configured to maintain the wraparound width immediately after the downstream side of the grip portion.

  In the decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism, for example, the conveyance roller / roller body includes the recording medium, the plurality of coil bodies arranged above and below the conveyance path, the plurality of coil bodies, and The plurality of coil bodies and the plurality of coil bodies prevent the recording medium from coming into contact with the decoloring heat source, and conveys the wire between the upper wire and the lower wire on the conveyance path. The pair of wires guides the transported tip of the recording medium to a gripping part that sandwiches the recording medium of the transporting roller / roller body or the plurality of coil bodies, and the decoloring heat source moves along the transport path. The recording medium to be conveyed is heated, and the decoloring light source is configured to irradiate the decoloring light to the heating recording medium being conveyed along the conveyance path.

  The present invention provides a paper conveyance mechanism for preventing toner offset, a erasing heat source capable of simultaneous erasing even when the erasable toner image is printed on both sides, and a erasing function with a toner offset preventing mechanism including a erasing light source. The color device can be provided.

1 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing an internal configuration of a color image forming apparatus (printer) including a decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2A is a plan view of a decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to the first embodiment, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a both-side end conveying device that nipping and conveying both ends of the sheet of the decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to the first exemplary embodiment. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a conveyance unit of the decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to the first exemplary embodiment. (a) is a plan view of a decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to the second embodiment, (b) is a cross-sectional view at the same position as the AA cross section of FIG. 2, and (c) is a BB of (a). It is sectional drawing. (a) is a plan view of a decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to a third embodiment, and (b) is a sectional view taken along the line CC of (a). It is a figure which shows an example of another form of the coil of the guide coil pair of Example 2 or 3. FIG. (a) is a top view of the lower sheet feeding cassette of the printer according to Embodiment 4, (b) is a sectional view taken along the line AA, and (c) is a sectional view taken along the line BB of (a). FIG. 8A is a drawing of the lower sheet feeding cassette pulled out from the lower sheet feeding cassette mounting portion shown in FIG. 8B, and FIG. 8B is a state in which the lower sheet feeding cassette shown in FIG. FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail. Although not described in detail, the decolorizable toner described below is prepared by kneading a near-infrared absorbing dye and a decoloring agent in a resin so that the average particle size becomes 9 μm.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing an internal configuration of a color image forming apparatus including a decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. An image forming apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as a printer) 1 having a decoloring function with a toner offset prevention mechanism shown in FIG. 1 includes a decoloring heat source and a light source made of different types of members, and has a toner offset prevention mechanism. Equipped with a erasing device.

  The printer 1 includes an endless transfer belt 3 extending in the horizontal direction at the center inside the main body housing 2. The transfer belt 3 is stretched around a drive roller 4 and a driven roller 5 while being stretched by a tension mechanism (not shown), and is driven by the drive roller 4 to circulate in a counterclockwise direction indicated by an arrow a in the figure. To do.

  Four image forming units 6 (6r, 6y, 6c, 6m) are provided above the upper circulation movement surface of the transfer belt 3. The image forming unit 6r is an image forming unit for forming an erasable toner image in which the erasable toner is accommodated in the developing unit 7, and is for forming a black image (not shown) in which the black toner is accommodated in the developing unit 7. The image forming unit 6k can be exchanged with the user arbitrarily.

  The image forming unit 6y is an image forming unit for forming a yellow color in which yellow toner is accommodated in the developing unit 7, and the image forming unit 6c is for forming a cyan color image in which cyan toner is accommodated in the developing unit 7. The image forming unit 6m is an image forming unit for forming a magenta color image in which magenta toner is accommodated in the developing device 7.

  Since the four image forming units 6 have the same structure except for the type of toner contained in the developing unit 7, the image forming unit 6r will be described below and the structure thereof is simplified. explain.

  The image forming unit 6 is provided with a photosensitive drum 8 that is in contact with the upper circulating movement surface of the transfer belt 3. A developing roller held in the lower opening of the developing unit 7 is placed adjacent to the photosensitive drum 8 so as to surround the peripheral surface thereof, followed by a cleaner, an initialization charger, and an optical writing head (not shown). 9 etc. are arranged.

  The developing roller 9 carries a thin layer of black toner or decoloring toner (hereinafter, only the decoloring toner will be described) accommodated in the developing unit 7 on the surface, and a photoconductor by an optical writing head. An image of the decolorizable toner is developed on the electrostatic latent image formed on the peripheral surface of the drum 8.

  A primary transfer roller (not shown) is pressed against the lower portion of the photoconductive drum 8 via the transfer belt 3 to form a primary transfer portion there. A bias voltage is supplied to the primary transfer roller from a bias power source (not shown).

  The primary transfer roller applies a bias voltage supplied from a bias power source to the transfer belt 3 at the primary transfer portion, and an image of the decolorable toner developed on the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 8 is applied to the transfer belt 3. Transcript.

  The secondary transfer roller 11 is pressed against the driven roller 5 on which the right end portion of the transfer belt 3 shown in the drawing is stretched via the transfer belt 3, thereby forming a secondary transfer portion. A bias voltage is supplied to the secondary transfer roller 11 from a bias power source (not shown).

  In the secondary transfer portion, the secondary transfer roller 11 applies a bias voltage supplied from a bias power source to the transfer belt 3, and displays an image of the decolorable toner that has been primarily transferred to the transfer belt 3 from below in the figure. Are transferred to the recording medium conveyed along the image forming conveyance path 12 as indicated by the arrow b or c.

  The recording medium 14 conveyed as indicated by the arrow c is stacked and accommodated in the upper paper feed cassette 15, taken out by the uppermost sheet by a paper feed roller (not shown), and indicated by the arrow c. As described above, the image is conveyed to the sheet feeding conveyance path, further conveyed through the image forming conveyance path 12, and the image of the erasable toner is transferred while passing through the secondary transfer portion.

  The recording medium 14 that has passed the secondary transfer portion while the image of the decolorizable toner is transferred is conveyed along the fixing conveyance path 16 to the fixing unit 17. The heating roller 18 and the pressing roller 19 of the fixing unit 17 sandwich the recording medium 14 and convey it while applying heat and pressure.

  As a result, the image of the erasable toner that has been secondarily transferred is fixed on the paper surface of the recording medium 14, and is further conveyed by the heating roller 18 and the pressing roller 19, and is formed on the upper surface of the main body housing 2. The paper is ejected to the paper ejection tray 21 that is present.

  On the other hand, the recording medium 22 conveyed as shown by the arrow b above is a recording medium on which a decoloring toner image has already been formed on the paper surface, and is taken out from the lower sheet feeding cassette 23 one by one. As shown in d, it is sent out to the paper feed path.

  In this case, the recording medium 22 is carried into the decoloring device 24. In the erasing device 24, erasing units 26 are arranged above and below the paper transport path 25. The erasing unit 26 includes a ceramic heater 27 as a erasing heat source and an LED (light emitting diode) unit 28 as a erasing light source. The LED unit 28 includes an LED light source 29 and an LED light source holding unit 31.

  Further, before and after the sheet conveyance path 25, conveyance roller / roller bodies 34 (34a, 34b) each including a rotation roller 32 and a plurality of driven rollers 33 rotating in sliding contact with the rotation roller 32 are arranged. The two sets of conveyance rollers / rollers 34 convey the recording medium 22 carried into the erasing device 24 from the upstream side (left side in the figure) to the downstream side (right side in the figure) along the paper conveyance path 25. .

  FIG. 2A is a plan view of the erasing device 24, and FIG. 2A and 2B, the same components as those of the erasing device 24 shown in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals as those in FIG.

  Further, the conveyance direction of the recording medium 22 is the conveyance from the left to the right in the case of FIG. 1, but in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), the conveyance direction is reversed from the right to the left. Show. Therefore, the arrangement of the ceramic heater 27 and the LED light source 29 is also switched.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, the ceramic heater 27 is inclined with respect to the paper transport path 25 as shown in FIG. 1, and the paper transport path is formed by the upstream transport roller / roller body 34a. The recording medium 22 immediately after being carried in 25 is continuously heated up to the middle of the paper conveyance path 25.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, a plurality of other LED light sources 29 are arranged on the LED light source holding portion 31 at a predetermined interval. Each LED light source 29 emits irradiation light 42 having a predetermined angular spread in the vertical and horizontal directions from the top and bottom of the paper transport path 25 as shown in FIGS. Irradiate obliquely toward the upstream side.

  As shown in FIG. 2 (a), the spread of the irradiation light 42 of each LED light source 29 overlaps below the ceramic heater 27, so that the sheet transport path 25 positioned below the ceramic heater 27. A strong irradiation effect is demonstrated above.

  That is, the recording medium 22 is configured so that the heating for decoloring from the ceramic heater 27 and the irradiation of the decoloring light by the irradiation light 42 from each LED light source 29 are performed simultaneously.

  The recording medium 22 on which the photo-decolorable toner image is formed is transported by the upstream transport roller / roller body 34a toward the downstream transport roller / roller body 34b via the paper transport path 25. However, if this is the case, both ends of the recording medium 22 are rounded or the leading end 22a of the recording medium 22 hangs downward as shown in FIG.

  Therefore, although not shown in FIG. 1 because of a cross-sectional view in FIG. 1, the paper is not removed from the downstream transport roller / roller body 34b due to the rounding of the paper generated by heating. In order to prevent this, on both sides between the conveyance roller / roller bodies 34a and 34b (the side facing the front side in the depth direction in the figure), both-side end conveyance devices that sandwich and convey both side edge portions of the paper are installed.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a both-side end conveying apparatus that sandwiches and conveys both ends of the sheet. In the drawing, the conveyance roller / roller body 34a on the upstream side and the conveyance roller / roller body 34b on the downstream side are not shown.

  As shown in FIG. 3, on both sides of the paper transport path 25, an endless thin belt 39 having a pressing roller 38 at the center in the middle is arranged in two upper and lower stages. Both side end conveyance devices 40 are arranged. As shown in the figure, the both-side end conveying device 40 sandwiches both end portions of the recording medium 22 and conveys the recording medium 22 in the direction of the arrow d in the figure.

  As a result, it is possible to prevent such a problem that both ends of the recording medium 22 are rounded by heat, or the leading end of the recording medium 22 hangs down and comes off from the paper transport path 25.

  In FIG. 1 or 2, the ceramic heater 27 is illustrated as being far away from the paper transport path 25 for easy understanding of the inclined arrangement of the ceramic heater 27. It is arranged at a position close to the recording medium 22 conveyed along the paper conveyance path 25.

  Therefore, even if the toner image surface of the recording medium 22 is slightly wavy due to heat, the toner in a semi-molten state may come into contact with the ceramic heater 27 and toner offset may occur.

  FIG. 4 is a plan view of the conveyance unit with a toner offset prevention mechanism of the decoloring device 24 described above. Four heater contact prevention wires 35 (35a, 35b) shown in FIG. 4 are stretched on the upper and lower sides of the recording medium 22 conveyed by the conveying rollers / rollers 34a, 34b and the both-side conveying device 40, respectively. (In the figure, the upper wire is indicated by a solid line and the lower wire is indicated by a broken line).

  These heater contact preventing wires 35 a and 35 b are respectively held by wire holding portions 41 (41 a and 41 b) and fixedly arranged in the decoloring device 24.

  The heater contact prevention wires 35 (35a, 35b) prevent the recording medium 22 from coming into contact with the ceramic heater 27, and suppress the rounding of the recording medium 22 from above and below, so that the recording medium 22 is removed from the both-end conveyance device 40. Prevents falling off.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the recording medium 22 is prevented from being rounded or drooped by the heater contact preventing wire 35 that is obliquely stretched from the conveying roller / roller body 34a to the conveying roller / roller body 34b. 22 is guided.

  Since the heater contact prevention wire 35 is stretched obliquely with respect to the conveyance direction of the recording medium 22 and is disposed at a wide interval, the decoloring radiant heating from the ceramic heater 27 and the LED light source 29 are erased. It can be said that the color irradiation light 42 is not blocked at all.

  If the erasing device 24 has a erasing structure of only one side, when the recording medium 22 is accommodated in the lower paper feed cassette 23, the image surface to be erased is set to either the upper side or the lower side. Since it must be set up and housed, it becomes inconvenient. In this example, since both sides can be erased simultaneously, it is convenient.

  In addition, as a method of erasing both sides, a method of erasing one side, inverting the paper, and erasing the back side like a general printer having a double-sided printing mechanism can be considered. If heat necessary for erasing is once applied to a chromatic toner image and then erasing the erasable toner image on the opposite side, the erasing performance may be lowered.

  That is, the image on the back side is also heated when the first side is erased, the image on the back side is cooled during conveyance by inverting the recording medium 22 by the duplex printing mechanism, and erased when the back side is subsequently erased. Experience has shown that color performance is degraded. Furthermore, since the front / back decoloring process is performed twice, there is an inconvenience that the decoloring time becomes longer.

  In this example, both sides can be decolored simultaneously, so that good decoloring performance is maintained without degrading the decoloring performance, and the decoloring time is ½ compared to the case where the front and back decoloring processing is performed twice. Reduced to:

  As a guide member that does not block the irradiation light 42, it is conceivable to use a glass plate excellent in transmittance and heat resistance. However, in the case of a glass plate, the transmission efficiency of the decoloring light is reduced, and Depending on the wavelength of the colored light, the transmittance may be further reduced. Further, there is a possibility that a toner image in a semi-molten state adheres to the surface of the glass plate and toner offset occurs.

  In this respect, as in this example, a plurality of thin wires are used, and these wires are arranged obliquely with respect to the conveyance direction of the recording medium 22, and the irradiation light 42 is always applied to the toner image on the recording medium 22 being conveyed. If hitting, the irradiation efficiency of the irradiation light 42 is not hindered.

  However, since the heater contact prevention wire 35 is fixedly disposed, the toner image of the recording medium 22 to be conveyed is slidably contacted with the heater contact prevention wire 35 and a part of the toner contact adheres to the subsequent toner. There remains a possibility that the toner image is transferred to the toner image and adversely affects the entire toner image.

  FIG. 5A is a plan view of the erasing apparatus according to the second embodiment, FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view at the same position as the AA cross section of FIG. 1A, and FIG. It is BB sectional drawing of Fig.5 (a). 5A and 5B, the same components as those of the erasing device 24 shown in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals as those in FIG.

  5A and 5B, the configuration and arrangement of the transport roller / roller body 34 (34a, 34b), the ceramic heater 27 of the decoloring heat source, and the LED light source 29 of the decoloring light source are as follows. It is the same as that of Example 1 shown in FIG. In this example, the configuration of a toner offset prevention mechanism that guides conveyance of the recording medium 22 while preventing contact with the heater is different from that in the first embodiment.

  That is, as shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C, the toner offset prevention mechanism of this example forms a pair above and below the conveyance path 25 and is arranged in parallel with the conveyance roller / roller body 34. A plurality of sets (four sets in this example) of guide coil pairs 44 are included.

  The guide coil pair 44 includes a pair of coils 44a and 44b made of a spring metal wire. The pair of coils 44a and 44b are arranged so that the fin-shaped protrusions and depressions of the upper coil 44a face the fin-shaped depressions and protrusions of the lower coil 44b.

  Each of the coils 44a and 44b has one end (the upper end in the figure in FIGS. 5A and 5C) fitted on the shaft 45a and the other end (FIGS. 5A and 5C). ) Is externally fitted to a shaft 45b provided with a gear 46.

  One shaft 45a, shaft 45b, and gear 46 are mounted so that their centers coincide with the rotation center 47a of the coil 44a, and the other shaft 45a, shaft 45b, and gear 46 have their centers rotated by the coil 44b. It is attached so as to coincide with the center 47b.

  One shaft 45a of the coils 44a and 44b of the guide coil pair 44 is rotatably attached to one frame 48 of the decoloring device 43 via a bearing 49, and the other shaft 45b is the other shaft of the decoloring device 43. The frame 51 is rotatably attached via a bearing 52.

  The coils 44a and 44b are stretched to such an extent that the linear state can be maintained with a force stronger than the sagging force due to sagging, the weight of the recording medium 22, and the curl force. The guide coil pair 44 is attached so that the gear 46 meshes at a position where the outer circumferences of the upper and lower coils 44a and 44b are in contact with each other.

  In FIG. 5, four pairs of guide coil pairs 44 are arranged between the transport roller / roller body 34a and the transport roller / roller body 34b, but the present invention is not limited to this.

  The pitch between the conveyance roller / roller body 34a and the guide coil pair 44, the pitch between the guide coil pair 44 and 44, and the pitch between the guide coil pair 44 and the conveyance roller / roller body 34b are determined by curling or the like. Even if the position changes, the pitch is set so that it can be reliably conveyed. Of course, the pitch also changes depending on the diameter of the roller and the diameter of the coil.

  Pulleys 53 are respectively attached to the lower shafts of the conveying roller / roller body 34a, the guide coil pair 44, and the conveying roller / roller body 34b. The power of the motor 54 is transmitted to the pulley 53 via the timing belt 55.

  As described above, the transport roller / roller body 34a and the transport roller / roller body 34b include the rotary roller 32 driven by the motor 54 via the timing belt 55, and the driven roller that is driven to rotate while being in pressure contact with the rotary roller 32. 33.

  The guide coil pair 44 transmits the rotation from the shaft 45b of the lower coil 44b to the shaft 45b of the upper coil 44a by a gear 46.

  The recording medium 22 is conveyed from the right to the left in FIG. 5 by the conveying roller / roller body 34a, passes between the upper and lower coils 44a, 44b of the guide coil pair 44, reaches the conveying roller / roller body 34b, It is further conveyed by the conveying roller / roller body 34b.

  In this example, the guide coil pair 44 is not intended to convey the recording medium 22, but is a guide for reliably conveying the recording medium 22 from the conveying roller / roller body 34a to the conveying roller / roller body 34b. .

  The upper and lower coils 44a and 44b of the guide coil pair 44 are set to rotate at the same outer peripheral rotation linear velocity as the conveyance linear velocity of the recording medium 22 conveyed through the conveyance path 25 by the conveyance roller / roller bodies 44a and 44b. ing.

  Thus, the guide coil pair 44 guides the recording medium 22 so as not to rub the melted toner image, and suppresses the dripping or curling of the recording medium 22 to prevent the toner image from contacting the ceramic heater 27. To do. That is, toner offset is prevented.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, by adopting the conveyance guide using the coil that rotates at the same outer peripheral speed as the conveyance speed of the recording medium, the recording medium is surely removed while simultaneously erasing both surfaces of the recording medium. The effect that it can convey is produced.

  Moreover, since the range which shields decoloring light becomes narrow by the same structure, there exists an effect that a decoloring effect can be maintained highly. Further, with the same configuration, the toner image melted by the decoloring heat is not rubbed, and further, the contact area with the toner image is small, so that the toner offset can be reduced.

  Also, with the same configuration, since the contact area with the recording medium is small, the heat escaping from the recording medium due to heat conduction is reduced, thereby increasing the thermal efficiency and thus reducing the power consumption of the color erasing heat source. There is an effect that can be done.

  FIG. 6A is a plan view of the decoloring apparatus according to the third embodiment, and FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C in FIG. 6 (a) and 6 (b), the same components as those of the erasing device 43 of the second embodiment shown in FIG. Yes.

  6A and 6B, the configuration and arrangement of the transport roller / roller body 34 (34a, 34b), the ceramic heater 27 of the decoloring heat source, and the LED light source 29 of the decoloring light source are as follows. This is the same as the second embodiment shown in FIG.

  In this example, the number of guide coil pairs 44 is reduced to two, and four wires 57 (57a, 57b, 57c, 57d) for assisting the guide of the guide coil pair 44 are provided. However, this is different from the case of the second embodiment.

  The four wires 57 are located on the left and right sides of the center line (C-C cross section) of the transport path 25 as shown in FIG. 6 (a), and as shown in FIG. 6 (b). It is arranged at the position divided into the top and bottom.

  Two wires 57a and 57c or 57b and 57d (57d in FIG. 6 (b)) are arranged above and below the center line (C-C cross section) of the transport path 25 on the left or right of the transport path 25. 6 (a) is not visible because it is on the front side of the figure from the CC cross-section), at the overhead position shown in FIG. 6 (a), the conveyance path 25 from the upstream side of the conveyance roller / roller body 34a upstream of the conveyance path 25. It is arranged obliquely so as to spread toward the downstream side of the downstream side conveyance roller / roller body 34b.

  6 (b), the two wires 57a and 57c or 57b and 57d are a pair of upper and lower sides, and the conveyance roller / roller bodies 34a and 34b or a plurality of coil bodies (coils 44a and 44b). The recording medium 22 converges toward the gripping portion 68 immediately before the gripping portion 68 that holds the recording medium 22.

  After that, the transport roller / roller bodies 34a and 34b or the plurality of coil bodies (coils 44a and 44b) are wound around from above and below, and then formed and arranged so as to maintain the wrapping width immediately after the grip portion 68 on the downstream side. ing.

  The pair of upper and lower wires (wires 57a and 57c, or 57b and 57d) are recorded on the transported tip of the recording medium 22 by the transport roller / roller bodies 34a and 34b or a plurality of coil bodies (coils 44a and 44b). Guide to the gripping portion 68 that sandwiches the medium 22.

  In the second and third embodiments, the coils 44a and 44b of the guide coil pair 44 are made of spring metal wires. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other materials such as glass fiber and resin are used. Also good.

  Further, a thin plate material may be a spiral, for example, as shown in the arrow view of FIG. 7, the outer periphery of the spiral is sharpened like a jagged tooth so as to better prevent the offset of the dissolved toner. May be.

  In the first to third embodiments, the decoloring heat and the decoloring light are simultaneously radiated and irradiated from both the front and back surfaces of the recording medium 22 to decolor the decolorable toner image. There may be.

  Needless to say, the toner offset prevention mechanism of the erasing apparatus shown in the first to third embodiments may be applied to an apparatus that emits light, such as a UV irradiation apparatus, in addition to the erasing apparatus.

  By the way, as described above, in the tendency that the recording medium 22 (hereinafter, also simply referred to as “paper”) is reused by erasing, it is assumed that the paper cassette of the image forming apparatus uses new paper as usual. The main structure is to replenish a large number of sheets.

  However, when the paper is reused, it is difficult to always secure a collective quantity of paper and supply it to the paper feed cassette (lower paper feed cassette 23 in FIG. 1) because of the use of used paper.

  Therefore, when used paper is temporarily stored in a paper storage box separate from the device and replenished to the paper cassette at the timing of paper replenishment, and when used paper is generated, the paper is It may be the case of replenishing.

  However, when the paper is temporarily stored in the paper storage box, a space for installing the paper storage box is required separately from the printer main unit. Also, when using the back side of the paper, there is a problem that it is troublesome because the front and back directions of the paper must be unified and the paper must be put in the paper storage box, taking care not to make a mistake.

  Further, when paper is replenished to the paper feed cassette at the time when the used paper is generated, if the paper feed cassette is pulled out during the paper feeding operation of the printer main body device, paper jam or paper breakage occurs. Therefore, there is a problem that it is troublesome because the paper supply cassette must be replenished when the paper supply operation is completed.

  Therefore, when reusing paper, it is considered convenient if the paper can be easily inserted into the paper feed cassette of the printer main unit when used paper is generated.

  FIG. 8A is a plan view of the lower sheet feeding cassette 23 of the printer 1 according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA, and FIG. It is B sectional drawing.

  FIG. 9A is a diagram in which the lower paper cassette 23 is pulled out from the lower paper cassette mounting portion of the printer 1 shown in FIG. 8B, and FIG. 9B is the lower paper feed shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the state which the cassette 23 operate | moved to the paper feeding state.

  8 (a), (b), (c) and FIGS. 9 (a), (b), the lower paper feed cassette 23 is provided with a handle 58 on the front surface of the cassette in the same manner as a general paper feed cassette. Yes. As shown in FIG. 9A, the lower paper cassette 23 can be pulled out in front of the printer 1 and the recording medium 22 can be collected and replenished to the paper storage unit 59 by holding the handle 58. Yes.

  A paper insertion slot 61 is provided on the front surface of the lower paper feed cassette 23. Inside the paper insertion slot 61, a pair of upper and lower conveying roller portions 62 and 63 are provided in the front and rear direction. The conveyance roller portion 62 near the paper insertion opening 61 is composed of a drive roller 64 on the printer body side and a driven roller 65 on the lower paper feed cassette 23 side.

  The conveyance roller unit 63 located behind the conveyance roller unit 62 includes a drive roller 66 on the printer main body side and a driven roller 67 on the lower paper feed cassette 23 side. The driving roller 64 of the conveying roller unit 62 and the driving roller 66 of the conveying roller unit 63 are rotationally driven by a motor (not shown) disposed on the printer 1 main body side.

  The drive roller 64 of the transport roller unit 62 and the drive roller 66 of the transport roller unit 63 are configured to be independently rotated.

  As shown in FIG. 8B, when the recording medium 22 is inserted from the paper insertion slot 61, the recording medium 22 is conveyed to the paper storage section 59 of the lower paper feed cassette 23 by the conveying roller sections 62 and 63. Stored.

  A bottom plate 68 and a lifter 69 are attached to the lower side of the sheet storage portion 59 of the lower sheet cassette 23. The bottom plate 68 rotates about the shaft 71 as a fulcrum. A shaft 72 is attached to the lifter 69.

  The shaft 72 is rotationally driven by a geared motor (not shown) disposed on the printer 1 main body side to rotate the lifter 69. The recording medium 22 is placed on the bottom plate 68.

  During the paper feeding operation, as shown in FIG. 9B, the bottom plate 68 is lifted by the lifter 69, the recording medium 22 is pushed up by the lifting of the bottom plate 68, and is pressed against the pickup roller 73 on the printer 1 main body side to feed the paper. Is done.

  A feed roller 74 and a separation roller 75 are disposed on the downstream side in the vicinity of the pickup roller 73. The recording medium 22 fed by the pickup roller 73 is separated one by one by a feed roller 74 and a separation roller 75 and sent to a paper feed path shown by an arrow d in FIG. 56).

  When the paper feeding operation is completed, the lifter 69 returns to the state before the paper feeding operation shown in FIG. The bottom plate 68 is lowered and the recording medium 22 returns to the horizontal state.

  During the paper feeding operation shown in FIG. 9B, the recording medium 22 of the lower paper cassette 23 is lifted upward, so that the conveyance path behind the conveyance roller unit 63 is blocked. Therefore, even if the recording medium 22 is inserted from the paper insertion opening 61, a jam occurs at the conveyance roller portion 63.

  Since this is inconvenient, the present embodiment is configured such that the recording medium 22 can be inserted from the paper insertion slot 61 regardless of whether or not the paper feeding operation is being performed.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 8A, a sensor 76 is provided in front of the conveyance roller unit 62, and the sensor 76 detects that the recording medium 22 has been inserted from the paper insertion opening 61. When the sensor 76 detects the insertion of the recording medium 22 into the paper insertion slot 61, the drive roller 64 is rotated and the recording medium 22 is carried into the lower paper feed cassette 23.

  In the lower paper feed cassette 23, when the paper operation is not performed, the driving roller 66 is rotated as it is to convey the recording medium 22 to the paper storage unit 59 and store it. On the other hand, when the paper feeding operation is performed, the driving roller 64 is stopped when the leading edge of the recording medium 22 comes in front of the transport roller unit 63 and waits until the paper feeding operation is completed.

  In that case, when the paper feeding operation is finished, the driving roller 64 and the driving roller 66 start to rotate, and the conveying operation of the recording medium 22 is started, and the recording medium 22 is conveyed to the paper storage unit 59 and stored. .

  Further, when the sensor 76 detects that the recording medium 22 has been inserted, even if a plurality of sheet feeding operations are necessary, it is not necessary to wait until all sheet feeding operations are completed. Since the feeding of the recording medium 22 is stopped and the recording medium 22 is transported at the time when the recording is completed, the recording medium 22 can be inserted into the paper insertion slot 61 with a short waiting time.

  As described above, according to this embodiment, the paper insertion slot is provided on the front surface of the paper feed cassette, so that the paper can be inserted into the paper feed cassette without pulling out the paper feed cassette. Accordingly, it is not necessary to temporarily store the reused paper in the paper storage box, that is, the space for installing the paper storage box can be saved.

  Since the sheet can be inserted into the sheet feeding cassette when it is thought that the sheet is no longer needed and reused, the user convenience in using the reused sheet is improved.

  The present invention provides a paper conveyance mechanism for preventing toner offset, a erasing heat source capable of simultaneous erasing even when the erasable toner image is printed on both sides, and a erasing function with a toner offset preventing mechanism including a erasing light source. It can be used for a color device.

1. Image forming device with erasing function (printer)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 Main body apparatus housing | casing 3 Transfer belt 4 Drive roller 5 Driven roller 6 (6r (6k), 6y, 6c, 6m) Image formation unit 7 Developer 8 Photoconductor drum 9 Development roller 11 Secondary transfer roller 12 Image formation conveyance path DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 14 Recording medium 15 Upper sheet cassette 16 Fixing conveyance path 17 Fixing part 18 Heating roller 19 Pressing roller 21 Paper discharge tray 22 Recording medium 23 Lower sheet feeding cassette 24 Decoloring device 25 Paper conveyance path 26 Decoloring unit 27 Ceramic heater 28 LED (Light emitting diode) unit 29 LED light source 31 LED light source holding portion 32 rotating roller 33 driven roller 34 (34a, 34b) conveying roller roller body 35 (35a, 35b) heater contact prevention wire 36 driving roller 37 driven roller 38 pressing roller 39 Thin belt 40 Both-side end conveying device 4 (41a, 41b) Wire holding part 42 Irradiation light 43 Decoloring device 44 Guide coil pair 44a, 44b Coil 45a, 45b Shaft 46 Gear 47a, 47b Coil rotation center 48, 51 Frame 49, 52 Bearing 53 Pulley 54 Motor 55 Timing Belt 56 Decoloring device 57 (57a, 57b, 57c, 57d) Wire 58 Handle 59 Paper storage part 61 Paper insertion slot 62, 63 Conveyance roller part 64, 66 Drive roller 65, 67 Driven roller 68 Bottom plate 69 Lifter 71 Shaft 72 Shaft 73 Pickup roller 74 Feed roller 75 Separate roller 76 Sensor

Claims (4)

A decoloring device for decoloring a decolorizable toner image printed on a recording medium conveyed through a conveyance path by heating and decoloring light irradiation,
A decoloring heat source and a decoloring light source respectively disposed above and below the transport path;
A conveying roller roller body that is arranged before and after the conveying path, includes a rotating roller and a plurality of rollers that are in sliding contact with the rotating roller, and conveys the recording medium along the conveying path;
A pair of upper and lower sides of the transport path are arranged in parallel with the transport roller roller, and the upper and lower fin-shaped projections and recesses are arranged to face the other upper and lower fin-shaped recesses and projections, A plurality of coil bodies that rotate at the same outer peripheral rotation linear velocity as the conveyance linear velocity of the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path by the conveyance roller roller body;
A decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism, comprising: The conveyance roller roller body conveys the recording medium between the plurality of coil bodies and the plurality of coil bodies arranged above and below the conveyance path,
The plurality of coil bodies and the plurality of coil bodies prevent the recording medium from contacting the decoloring heat source,
The color erasing heat source heats the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path,
The decoloring light source irradiates the decoloring light to the recording medium being heated that is conveyed along the conveyance path.
The decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to claim 1 . A decoloring device for decoloring a decolorizable toner image printed on a recording medium conveyed through a conveyance path by heating and decoloring light irradiation,
A decoloring heat source and a decoloring light source respectively disposed above and below the transport path;
A conveying roller roller body that is arranged on the upstream side and the downstream side of the conveying path, includes a rotating roller and a plurality of rollers that are in sliding contact with the rotating roller, and conveys the recording medium along the conveying path;
A pair of upper and lower sides of the transport path are arranged in parallel with the transport roller roller, and the upper and lower fin-shaped projections and recesses are arranged to face the other upper and lower fin-shaped recesses and projections, A plurality of coil bodies that rotate at the same outer peripheral rotation linear velocity as the conveyance linear velocity of the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path by the conveyance roller roller body;
A total of four wires arranged at positions separated on the left and right of the center line of the transport path and on the top and bottom of the transport path;
Have
Two wires arranged separately on the left and right of the center line of the transport path above or below the transport path are arranged on the transport path from the upstream side of the transport roller roller body on the upstream side of the transport path. Up to the downstream side of the transport roller roller body on the downstream side, it is arranged obliquely in a divergent shape at the overhead view position,
Two wires arranged separately on the left and right of the center line of the transport path above and below the transport path are a pair of top and bottom, and at the side surface position, the recording of the transport roller / roller body or a plurality of coil bodies. Converge toward the gripping unit immediately before the upstream side of the gripping unit that holds the medium, and then wrap around the conveyance roller / roller body or a plurality of coil bodies from above and below, and then maintain the wrapping width immediately after the downstream side of the gripping unit. To
A decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism. The transport roller / roller body is configured to connect the recording medium between the plurality of coil bodies and the plurality of coil bodies arranged above and below the transport path, and between a wire above and below the transport path. Transport between
The plurality of coil bodies and the plurality of coil bodies prevent the recording medium from contacting the decoloring heat source,
The pair of upper and lower wires guides the transported leading end portion of the recording medium to a gripping portion that sandwiches the recording medium of the transporting roller / roller body or a plurality of the coil bodies,
The color erasing heat source heats the recording medium conveyed along the conveyance path,
The decoloring light source irradiates the decoloring light to the recording medium being heated that is conveyed along the conveyance path.
The decoloring apparatus with a toner offset prevention mechanism according to claim 3 .