JP6016060B2 - Cooling device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cooling device used in an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile machine, and a copying machine, and an image forming apparatus provided with the cooling device.

  An electrophotographic image forming apparatus is known in which toner transferred onto a recording material is fixed by heating and pressing with a fixing device. If the recording material after fixing is stacked on the paper discharge tray with heat, the toner forming the toner image on the recording material stacked on the paper discharge tray is softened, and the recording materials further overlap. A pressure is generated by the weight of the recording material bundle. A phenomenon called blocking may occur in which the pressure is applied to the softened toner and the recording material sticks. If the recording material that has been stuck is forcibly removed, the toner image will be broken. In order to suppress such blocking, a cooling device for sufficiently cooling the recording material heated by the fixing device is required.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a cooling device that cools while conveying a recording material, an endless belt is provided by contacting a cooling member with an inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member on the recording material side while conveying the recording material with a rotating endless belt member. It is known to cool by absorbing heat from a recording material through a member.

  For example, Patent Document 1 describes the following cooling device. The cooling member (cooling part) is brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member on the recording material side while the recording material is nipped and conveyed by the rotating endless belt member (film belt) and the rotating body (conveying roller) facing each other. I am letting. In this way, by transporting the recording material while bringing the cooling member into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member, the recording material after being heated by the fixing device through the endless belt member is absorbed and cooled. It is.

  Patent Document 2 describes a fixing device having the following cooling device. The heating roller of this fixing device sandwiches the recording material with a pressure roller disposed above via an endless belt member (fixing belt) that spans a driven roller disposed downstream in the sheet conveying direction. The fixing nip is formed. The recording material fixed at the fixing nip portion is conveyed on a substantially horizontal extending surface supported by the heating roller and the driven roller by rotating the endless belt member. The section supported by the heating roller and the driven roller of the endless belt member to which the recording material is conveyed is provided with a cooling member (heat sink) that comes in contact from the inner peripheral side (downward), over the endless belt member. The recording material immediately after being heated by the heating roller is cooled.

  In addition, an air hole that penetrates from the surface that contacts the endless belt member of the cooling member (hereinafter referred to as the contact surface) to the opposite surface (hereinafter referred to as the opposite surface) is provided, and negative pressure is applied around the air hole on the opposite surface. The air is sucked from the air holes around the contact surface. By sucking in this way, the endless belt member is attracted to the cooling member to improve the adhesion between the endless belt member and the cooling member, and the heat of the recording material after being heated by the heating roller through the endless belt member The heat is absorbed and cooled.

  In each of the cooling devices described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, static electricity generated by frictional charging between the endless belt member and the cooling member in addition to the pressing effect on the cooling member by the tension of the endless belt member (hereinafter referred to as belt tension). It is also possible to obtain a close contact effect. By obtaining this adhesion effect due to static electricity, for example, even when the belt tension decreases or the belt tension is biased in the width direction (roller axis direction) of the endless belt member, It is possible to suppress the occurrence of a partial gap in the contact area with the member. Therefore, it is possible to avoid that a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the recording material cannot be obtained due to such a partial gap, and a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the recording material can be obtained.

  In addition, in the cooling device described in Patent Document 2, in addition to the pressing effect on the endless belt member due to the weight of the recording material, an adhesion effect can be obtained by electrostatically adsorbing the recording material with the endless belt member as follows. Is possible. The material of the cooling member and endless belt member is set so that the polarity of the endless belt member charged by frictional charging with the cooling member is opposite to the polarity generated on the surface of the recording material when the endless belt member and the recording material come into contact with each other. To do. As a result, the recording material is electrostatically adsorbed to the endless belt member to improve the adhesion, and for example, even when the recording material after fixing has some bends or the like, recording with the endless belt member is possible. Generation of a partial gap in the contact area with the material can be suppressed. Therefore, a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the recording material can be obtained.

However, in the cooling devices described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, if the charge amount due to frictional charging between the cooling member and the endless belt member is excessively increased, the attractive force between the cooling member and the endless belt member due to static electricity becomes too strong. It sticks. When sticking due to static electricity occurs in this way, the drive resistance of the endless belt member increases, and an unexpected load may be applied to the drive motor. When the load is applied in this way, the driving of the endless belt member is not stable, and the recording material cannot be stably conveyed at a desired speed.
Therefore, a configuration for eliminating static electricity generated by friction between the cooling member and the endless belt member is also conceivable. However, although the sticking due to static electricity can be prevented, the following problems may occur.

With the configuration described in Patent Document 1, it is not possible to obtain an adhesion effect due to static electricity, and a partial gap may occur in a region where the cooling member and the endless belt member are in contact with each other.
Moreover, in the structure described in patent document 2, since an endless belt member is adsorbed | sucked to a cooling member with a negative pressure, the adhesiveness of an endless belt member and a cooling member can be improved also in the structure which always discharges static electricity. However, in the configuration in which static electricity is eliminated, the recording material cannot be electrostatically attracted to the endless belt member, and there is a possibility that a partial gap is generated in a region where the endless belt member and the recording material are in contact with each other.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide the following cooling device. In a cooling device that cools while conveying a recording material with a rotating endless belt member, the driving of the endless belt member is stabilized while using static electricity to improve the adhesion between the cooling member and the endless belt member, and recording is performed. This is a cooling device capable of obtaining a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the material.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention described in claim 1 is characterized in that a recording unit conveys a recording material by an endless belt member that is stretched and rotated by a plurality of rollers, and the recording material side of the endless belt member. And a cooling member disposed so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cooling member, the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member is within a predetermined range. It is characterized in that a charge amount regulating means for regulating is provided.
In the present invention, the charge amount regulation means can regulate the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member within a predetermined range, and the charge amount increases so that the cooling member and the cooling member slide. It is possible to suppress the endless belt members that are in dynamic contact with each other from sticking to each other.
That is, until the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member exceeds a predetermined range, the cooling member is utilized by utilizing static electricity generated by frictional charging between the cooling member and the endless belt member. Adhesiveness in the contact area between the endless belt member and the endless belt member can be improved. The material of the cooling member and the endless belt member is such that the polarity of the endless belt member charged by frictional charging with the cooling member is opposite to the polarity generated on the surface of the recording material due to the contact between the endless belt member and the recording material. To improve the adhesion in the contact area between the endless belt member and the recording material. As described above, by increasing the adhesion in the contact region between the cooling member and the endless belt member or between the endless belt member and the recording material, the cooling member absorbs the heat from the recording material through the endless belt member, thereby recording the recording material. A uniform cooling effect over the entire surface can be obtained.
On the other hand, if the charge amount is likely to exceed the predetermined range, the charge amount regulating means may remove the charge amount of at least one of the endless belt member that slidingly contacts the cooling member and the cooling member within the predetermined range. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an excessive increase in the pulling force between the charged cooling member and the endless belt member. As a result, the drive resistance of the endless belt member is increased and an unexpected load on the drive motor can be suppressed, and the drive of the endless belt member is stabilized to stably feed the recording material at a desired speed. Can be done.

  The present invention provides a cooling device that cools while conveying a recording material with a rotating endless belt member, and stably drives the endless belt member while using static electricity to improve the adhesion between the cooling member and the endless belt member. And a cooling device capable of obtaining a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the recording material.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a tandem intermediate transfer belt type printer according to an embodiment. FIG. FIG. 3 is an explanatory perspective view of the cooling device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a charging state of the cooling member, the upper conveyance belt, and the surface of the paper when the cooling member and the upper conveyance belt slide. Explanatory drawing of the structure which always performs the static elimination of the cooling member and upper conveyance belt which it has in the upper conveyance part. FIG. 6 is an explanatory plan view regarding the slack of the upper conveyance belt caused by the inclination of the driven roller generated in the upper conveyance unit. Sectional explanatory drawing regarding the slack of the upper conveyance belt resulting from the inclination of the driven roller which arises in an upper conveyance part. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a charge amount regulating unit provided in the cooling device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a charge amount regulating unit provided in the cooling device according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a charge amount regulating unit provided in the cooling device according to the third embodiment. Explanatory drawing of the charge amount control means provided in the cooling device which concerns on Example 4. FIG. FIG. 10 is a control flow diagram of charge amount regulating means provided in the cooling device according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 10 is an explanatory perspective view of a cooling device according to a fifth embodiment. FIG. 10 is a perspective explanatory view of a cooling device according to a sixth embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the cooling device 100 to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings by giving a plurality of examples. First, an outline of a printer 300 that is an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment common to the respective examples will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a tandem intermediate transfer belt type printer 300 according to the present embodiment.

  In the printer 300, the intermediate transfer belt 21, which is an endless belt member, is stretched by a plurality of rollers (a first stretching roller 22, a second stretching roller 23, a third stretching roller 24, and the like). The intermediate transfer belt 21 is configured to rotate in the direction of arrow a in the drawing when one of the plurality of rollers is rotationally driven. In addition, the printer 300 has image forming process means disposed around the intermediate transfer belt 21. Here, the subscripts Y, C, M, and Bk added after the symbols indicate that the specifications are for yellow, cyan, magenta, and black.

  When the direction of rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 21 is indicated by an arrow a in the figure, an image is formed for each color between the first stretching roller 22 and the second stretching roller 23 above the intermediate transfer belt 21. As the process means, four image stations 10 (Y, C, M, Bk) are arranged. In the printer 300 shown in FIG. 1, a Y image station 10Y, a C image station 10C, an M image station 10M, and a Bk image station 10Bk are arranged in this order from the upstream side in the surface movement direction of the intermediate transfer belt 21. .

  The four image stations 10 (Y, C, M, Bk) have substantially the same configuration except that the colors of the toners used are different. In each image station 10, a charging device 5, an optical writing device 2, a developing device 3, and a photoconductor cleaning device 4 are arranged around a drum-shaped photoconductor 1. Further, a primary transfer roller 11 as a transfer unit to the intermediate transfer belt 21 is provided at a position facing the photoreceptor 1 with the intermediate transfer belt 21 interposed therebetween. Such four image stations 10 (Y, C, M, Bk) are arranged along the surface movement direction of the intermediate transfer belt 21 so as to have a predetermined pitch interval.

  In the printer 300, the optical writing device 2 is an optical system using an LED as a light source. However, the optical writing device 2 may be configured by a laser optical system using a semiconductor laser as a light source, and exposes the photoconductor 1 according to image information. .

  Below the intermediate transfer belt 21, a paper storage unit 31 for paper P, which is a sheet-like recording material, a paper feed roller 42, and a registration roller pair 41 are arranged. Further, the secondary transfer as a toner image transfer unit from the intermediate transfer belt 21 to the paper P so as to face the third stretching roller 24 that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 21 via the intermediate transfer belt 21. A roller 25 is arranged. Further, a belt cleaning device 27 for cleaning the intermediate transfer belt 21 is provided between the secondary transfer roller 25 and the first stretching roller 22 in contact with the front surface of the intermediate transfer belt 21. A cleaning counter roller 26 is provided at a position facing the belt cleaning device 27 via the intermediate transfer belt 21.

  A paper transport path 32 extending from the paper storage section 31 to the paper discharge storage section 34 extends, and a fixing device is provided downstream of the secondary transfer roller 25 in the paper transport path 32 in the paper transport direction (hereinafter simply referred to as the downstream side). 16 is arranged. On the downstream side of the sheet conveyance path 32 of the fixing device 16, an upper conveyance unit 110 having an upper conveyance belt as an endless belt member and a cooling member 111, and a lower conveyance unit having a lower conveyance belt, which will be described in detail later. A cooling device 100 that cools the sheet P while sandwiching and transporting the sheet P at 150 is disposed. Further, on the further downstream side of the cooling device 100, a paper discharge accommodating portion 34 that is a discharge portion of the paper P after toner fixing is disposed. Further, when forming an image on the back side of the paper P during the double-sided image formation, the reverse side of the double-sided image forming sheet that reverses the front and back of the paper P that has once passed through the cooling device 100 and is conveyed to the registration roller pair 41 again. A conveyance path 33 is also provided.

  The image forming process will be described with respect to one image station 10. In accordance with a general electrostatic recording system, the photowriting device 2 exposes the photosensitive member 1 uniformly charged by the charging device 5 in the dark. Thus, an electrostatic latent image is formed. The electrostatic latent image is visualized as a toner image by the developing device 3. The toner image is transferred from the photoreceptor 1 to the intermediate transfer belt 21 by the primary transfer roller 11. The surface of the photoreceptor 1 after the transfer is cleaned by the photoreceptor cleaning device 4. Such an image forming process is performed in each of the four image stations 10 (Y, C, M, Bk).

  Each of the developing devices 3 (Y, C, M, Bk) in the four image stations 10 (Y, C, M, Bk) has a visible image forming function using different four color toners. Therefore, if each image station 10 (Y, C, M, Bk) shares yellow, cyan, magenta, and black, a full color image can be formed. Each image station 10 has a primary transfer roller 11 (Y, C, M, Bk) provided to face each photoconductor 1 (Y, C, M, Bk) with the intermediate transfer belt 21 interposed therebetween. And a transfer bias is applied to each primary transfer roller 11 to form a primary transfer portion. With such a configuration, the transfer bias applied to each primary transfer roller 11 while the same image forming area of the intermediate transfer belt 21 sequentially passes through the four image stations 10 (Y, C, M, Bk). Then, the toner images are transferred so as to be superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 21 one color at a time. As a result, when the same image forming area described above passes through the primary transfer portion of each image station 10 (Y, C, M, Bk) once, a full color toner image is obtained by overlapping transfer in this same image area. be able to.

  In this way, the full color toner image formed on the intermediate transfer belt 21 is transferred onto the paper P. The intermediate transfer belt 21 after the transfer is cleaned by a belt cleaning device 27. When transferring onto the paper P, a transfer bias is applied to the secondary transfer roller 25 during transfer, and a transfer electric field is formed between the secondary transfer roller 25 and the third stretching roller 24 via the intermediate transfer belt 21. Then, the sheet P is passed through the nip portion between the secondary transfer roller 25 and the intermediate transfer belt 21. After the transfer of the full color toner image from the intermediate transfer belt 21 to the paper P, the full color toner image carried on the paper P is heated and pressed by the fixing device 16 and fixed on the paper P. A full color final image is formed. Thereafter, the paper P is cooled by the cooling device 100 and is stacked in the paper discharge accommodating portion 34. For this reason, when the paper P is stacked in the paper discharge accommodating portion 34, the toner on the paper P can be surely cured and the blocking phenomenon can be avoided.

  Next, using the static electricity generated by frictional charging between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt, which is a feature of this embodiment, the adhesion of the upper conveyance belt and the cooling member 111 is secured, and the upper conveyance belt A configuration of the cooling device 100 that stabilizes driving and obtains a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the paper P will be described in detail with reference to a plurality of embodiments.

Example 1
A first example of the cooling device 100 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory perspective view of the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the charged states of the surfaces of the cooling member 111, the upper transport belt 113, and the paper P when the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 slide, and FIG. Schematic diagram, (b) is an explanatory diagram of a charge train in the material used in this example. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a configuration in which static elimination of the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 included in the upper conveyance unit 110 is always performed.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory plan view regarding the slack of the upper conveying belt 113 caused by the inclination of the upper driven roller 114 generated in the upper conveying unit 110. FIG. 5A shows the case where the upper driven roller 114 is not inclined. When the upper driven roller 114 is tilted so that the left end portion in the drawing approaches the driving roller 115 side, the upper driven roller 114 is tilted so that the right end portion in the drawing approaches the driving roller 115 side. It is explanatory drawing in the case. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional explanatory diagram regarding the slack of the upper conveying belt 113 caused by the inclination of the upper driven roller 114 generated in the upper conveying unit 110. FIG. 6A shows the case where the upper driven roller 114 is not inclined. It is explanatory drawing when the upper driven roller 114 inclines so that either edge part may approach the drive roller 115 side. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the charge amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the cooling device 100 of the present embodiment includes a sheet P conveying unit mainly including an upper conveying unit 110 and a lower conveying unit 150, a cooling member 111 that is an air-cooled heat sink, a duct 162, and And a cooling unit including a cooling fan (not shown) for blowing cooling air into the duct 162. Further, a charge amount regulating means 120 (not shown) to be described later and a control unit 130 (not shown) for controlling each part of the cooling device 100 are also provided.

  The upper transport unit 110 mainly includes a drive roller 115, a drive motor 116 that rotationally drives the drive roller 115, three upper driven rollers 114, and an upper transport belt 113 that spans the drive roller 115 and the three upper driven rollers 114. And an upper support frame (not shown). Then, when the drive roller 115 is driven to rotate by the drive motor 116, the upper conveying belt 113 rotates clockwise in FIG. 2, and the three upper driven rollers 114 also rotate clockwise in FIG. Further, the rotation shafts of the driving roller 115 and the three upper driven rollers 114 that span the upper conveyance belt 113 are rotatably supported by the upper support frame in an insulated state.

  The lower conveyance unit 150 is mainly composed of two lower driven rollers 154, a lower conveyance belt 153 stretched between the two lower driven rollers 154, and a lower support frame (not shown). The lower conveyance belt 153 contacts the upper conveyance belt 113 of the upper conveyance unit 110 rotated by the drive motor 116 directly or via the paper P, and rotates counterclockwise in FIG. The lower driven roller 154 also rotates counterclockwise in FIG.

  Then, the sheet P after fixing, which has been heated and pressurized by the fixing device 16 (see FIG. 1) and heated to a high temperature by the upper conveyance belt 113 of the upper conveyance unit 110 and the lower conveyance belt 153 of the lower conveyance unit 150. , Nipped and conveyed downstream. The upper support frame of the upper transport unit 110 is supported by the main body frame of the apparatus main body via an upper stay (not shown), and the lower support frame of the lower transport unit 150 is also supported by the main body of the apparatus main body via the lower stay (not shown). Supported by the frame. Further, the upper conveyor belt 113 and the lower conveyor belt 153 are made of a polymer material such as polyimide.

  The cooling member 111 is a heat sink made of aluminum, and a plurality of cooling fins 161 are formed on the surface (upper side) opposite to the side contacting the inner peripheral surface of the upper conveying belt 113, and a stay (not shown) It is supported by the upper support frame of the upper conveyance part 110 in the state insulated via.

  The duct 162 is a plate-like member that is bent into a shape in which the surfaces on both ends of the upper conveyance belt 113 that are opened and the surface on the side that the cooling member 111 contacts the inner peripheral surface of the upper conveyance belt 113 are opened. . Then, a predetermined gap is held so that the end of the duct 162 does not contact the upper transport belt 113, and the cooling member 111 is supported on the upper support frame of the upper transport section 110 via a stay (not shown) so as to cover the cooling member 111 from above. Has been. By configuring the duct 162 in this manner, a flow path for the airflow can be formed, and the cooling air from the cooling fan can be efficiently blown to the cooling fins 161 of the cooling member 111 to dissipate heat, thereby lowering the temperature of the cooling member 111. .

The cooling fan is configured to monitor the detection value of an in-device temperature sensor (not shown) provided in the main body of the printer 300 and the operation state of the fixing device 16 and switch the number of rotations thereof. It is controlled by the control unit 130 to stop in a standby state for a long time.
Further, in the cooling device 100 of the present embodiment, the control unit 130 of the cooling device 100 and the main body control unit that controls the four image stations 10 are provided separately, but the configuration provided in the main body control unit and other controls The structure provided integrally with a part may be sufficient.

By configuring the cooling device 100 as described above, the sheet after fixing over the upper conveyance belt 113 by the cooling member 111 disposed so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the upper conveyance belt 113 on the sheet P side. P can be cooled while being conveyed.
Since the sheet P is nipped and conveyed by a pair of conveying belts including the upper conveying belt 113 and the lower conveying belt 153, the sheet P is nipped between the cooling member provided on the inner peripheral surface of the conveying belt and the rotating body facing the conveying belt. The length in the sheet conveyance direction of the area to be cooled while nipping and conveying the sheet P can be made longer than the structure for conveying. Further, compared with a configuration in which the conveyance belt is provided only below the sheet conveyance path without holding the sheet P, for example, even when curling occurs on the sheet P after fixing, the adhesion between the conveyance belt and the sheet P is improved. Can do. Therefore, compared to a configuration in which the sheet P is not nipped and conveyed by the pair of conveying belts, it is easy to enhance the cooling effect of the sheet P through the upper conveying belt 113 by the cooling member.

  Further, in the cooling device 100 of this embodiment, the cooling member 111 is made of aluminum, and the upper transport belt 113 and the lower transport belt 153 are made of a polymer material such as polyimide. The cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 are supported in an insulated state. For this reason, as shown in the charging column which is an index of the ease of positive and negative charging in static electricity shown in FIG. 3B, the cooling member 111 of this embodiment is positively charged and the upper conveying belt 113 is negatively charged. Then, as shown in the schematic diagram of FIG. 3A, the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 are attracted and closely adhered. Further, when the paper P such as paper that is easily charged positively with respect to the upper transport belt 113 comes into contact with the negatively charged upper transport belt 113, the surface is charged positively, and the paper P and the upper transport belt 113 are in close contact with each other. When such a phenomenon occurs, the contact state between the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 and between the upper transport belt 113 and the paper P becomes good, and the cooling effect by heat conduction is enhanced.

  However, the close contact means that the driving resistance at the time of sliding between the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 increases, and the increase in the charge amount of the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 is directed to the drive motor 116. Lead to the burden of. That is, sticking between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 due to static electricity may increase the driving resistance of the upper conveyance belt 113 and cause an unexpected load on the drive motor 116. In the worst case, the driving of the upper conveying belt 113 of the upper conveying unit 110 stops due to insufficient torque of the driving motor 116.

  In order to prevent the sticking as described above, as shown in FIG. 4, the cooling member 111 is provided with a cooling member ground 121, or the upper transport belt 113 is brought into contact with the static eliminating needle 123 connected to the belt ground 126 to remove static electricity. You can prevent it. However, in the configuration in which static electricity is always discharged while the cooling device 100 is driven, there is an effect that the contact state between the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 and the upper transport belt 113 and the paper P can be improved using static electricity. It can no longer be obtained.

Further, in the configuration in which the upper conveying belt 113 is bridged between the driving roller 115 and the plurality (three) of the upper driven rollers 114 as in the present embodiment, the following problem may occur.
As shown in FIG. 5A, the upper conveyor belt 113 keeps rotating at a predetermined position when it is rotated straight around the driving roller 115 and the plurality of upper driven rollers 114. However, for example, as shown in FIG. 5B, when the left end of the upper driven roller 114 is inclined so as to approach the drive roller 115, the upper conveyor belt 113 is inclined in the B direction. End up. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5C, when the right end of the upper driven roller 114 is inclined so as to approach the drive roller 115 side, the upper conveyor belt 113 is in the C direction opposite to the B direction. I will stop by.

  In the cooling device 100 mounted on the actual machine, it is difficult to arrange all the rollers accurately and straight. For this reason, for example, any one of the upper driven rollers 114 is made movable, and the position of the upper conveyor belt 113 is sensed by the displacement sensor 118 provided at either end of the upper conveyor belt 113. . While sensing in this way, the position of the upper conveyor belt 113 is kept within a certain range by switching the angle of the upper driven roller 114 whose movable shaft is movable between the state shown in FIG. 5B and the state shown in FIG. Control to fit in.

  However, when the upper driven roller 114 whose movable shaft is movable is inclined, a difference in tension is generated in the upper conveyor belt 113, and at the end of the upper conveyor belt 113 where the tension is increased, FIG. Thus, the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 are in close contact with each other. On the other hand, when static electricity is always removed as in the configuration shown in FIG. 4, the other end portion on the other side where the tension is weaker floats as shown in FIG. Heat conduction between the conveyor belt 113 and the cooling member 111 is hindered. For this reason, the uniform cooling effect of the paper P cannot be obtained.

  In the configuration in which static electricity is always discharged as described above, the contact state between the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 and between the upper transport belt 113 and the paper P cannot be improved, and there is a possibility that a gap is generated in each contact area. is there. In order to prevent this, when the adhesion is increased by using static electricity, the charge amount of the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 is increased, and the driving resistance of the upper transport belt 113 is increased beyond a certain level. The charge of the cooling member 111 or the upper conveyance belt 113 needs to be released. That is, in the case where adhesion is enhanced by using static electricity, the charge amount of one or both of the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 is set to a predetermined charge amount at which the drive resistance of the upper transport belt 113 does not exceed a certain level. It is necessary to regulate within the range.

Therefore, in the cooling device 100 of the present embodiment, the charge amount regulating means 120 for regulating the charge amount of the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 within a predetermined charge amount range is provided, and the drive resistance of the upper transport belt 113 is determined. Was configured not to exceed a certain level. As shown in FIG. 7, in the charge amount regulating means 120 of this embodiment, a potential sensor 131 for measuring the potential of the upper transport belt 113 (hereinafter referred to as a belt potential) and a static elimination for neutralizing the charge of the upper transport belt 113. A needle 123 and a cooling member ground 121 for removing charge from the cooling member 111 were installed.
Further, as a method for regulating the upper conveyance belt 113 within a predetermined charge amount range in which the driving resistance does not exceed a certain level, a belt potential range that does not hinder the driving of the upper conveyance belt 113 is defined in advance and measured by the potential sensor 131. Based on the value of the belt potential (hereinafter referred to as the belt potential value), each static elimination unit is controlled.

  Thus, by controlling the belt potential of the upper transport belt 113 to be within a predetermined range, the drive resistance of the upper transport belt 113 can be regulated within a predetermined charge amount range that does not exceed a certain level. Depending on the reason. As the charge amount of the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 increases, the potential of the upper transport belt 113 also increases. Therefore, a potential range of the upper conveyor belt 113 in a range where the drive resistance of the upper conveyor belt 113 does not exceed a certain value is defined in advance, and when the potential range is exceeded, it is determined that the charge amount exceeds a predetermined range. can do.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, a belt switch 124 for switching connection (ON) and disconnection (OFF) of the electrode with respect to the belt ground 126 is connected to the static elimination needle 123. The cooling member 111 is connected to a cooling member switch 122 that switches connection (on) and disconnection (off) of the electrode with respect to the cooling member ground 121. Each switch and potential sensor 131 is connected to the control unit 130.
Then, an upper limit of the belt potential in a range where the drive motor 116 operates without any problem is defined as an upper limit potential: Vmax [V], and the measured belt potential value is input to the control unit 130 to obtain the input belt potential value. Based on this, each switch of the static eliminating brush 125 and the cooling member ground 121 is controlled by the control unit 130.

  The control by the control unit 130 is to turn on the belt switch 124 when the control unit 130 detects that the belt potential value measured by the potential sensor 131 is equal to or higher than the upper limit potential: Vmax [V]. Then, the charge eliminating needle 123 is operated to release the charge of the upper conveying belt 113 to the belt ground 126. At the same time, the cooling member switch 122 is turned on to operate the cooling member ground 121 to release the charge in the cooling member 111. With this configuration, the driving resistance becomes more than a certain level, and the stop of the apparatus and the speed fluctuation due to the abnormal increase in the driving force necessary for driving the upper conveying belt 113 are suppressed, and the upper conveying belt 113 is stably driven. Is possible. That is, sticking due to static electricity generated by sliding between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 can be reliably suppressed.

  In addition, after the charge is released, the cooling member switch 122 and the belt switch 124 are turned off, so that the charge gradually accumulates in the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 again. The upper conveyance belt 113 and the paper P are in close contact with each other.

  With the configuration described above, in the cooling device that cools the paper P while being transported by the rotating upper transport belt 113 and the lower transport belt 153, the adhesion between the cooling member 111 and the upper transport belt 113 is improved. It is possible to provide the cooling device 100 that stabilizes the driving of the upper conveying belt 113 while using static electricity and can obtain a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the paper P.

Further, as the charge removal means of the charge amount regulating means 120, the cooling member 111 has the cooling member ground 121 and the upper conveyance belt 113 has the charge removal needle 123. Therefore, the charge amount restriction means 120 can be configured simply. it can.
Based on the belt potential value measured by the potential sensor 131, the charge amount regulating means 120 controls the control unit 130 to turn on / off the cooling member switch 122 of the cooling member ground 121 and the belt switch 124 of the static elimination needle 123. This is a simple configuration. Thus, in the present embodiment, the charge amount regulating means 120 can be configured simply.

(Example 2)
A second example of the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment and the first embodiment, the controller 130 controls the charge removal means of the upper conveyance belt 113 provided in the charge amount restriction means 120 of the cooling device 100 and the charge removal means and the charge removal means of the cooling member 111 to control the charge removal means. Only the point relating to the input value and its detection means is different. Therefore, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and similar effects will be omitted as appropriate. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of the charge amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, a charge removal brush 125 is provided as a charge removal means for the upper conveyance belt 113 of the charge amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100. Further, as a method of regulating the upper conveying belt 113 within a predetermined charging amount range in which the driving resistance does not exceed a certain level, a range of current in the driving motor 116 (hereinafter referred to as motor current) is defined, and the motor current is measured. Based on the value of the motor current measured by the means (hereinafter referred to as the motor current value), each static elimination means is controlled.

  In addition, by controlling the belt potential of the upper transport belt 113 to be within a predetermined range, the drive resistance of the upper transport belt 113 can be regulated within a predetermined charge amount range that does not exceed a certain level. by. When the charging amount of the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 rises beyond a predetermined range, the force that the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 are attracted by static electricity increases, the driving resistance of the upper conveyance belt 113 increases, and the drive motor The drive torque of 116 also increases, and the current flowing through the drive motor 116 also increases. Therefore, a current range flowing through the drive motor 116 in a range where the drive resistance of the upper conveyance belt 113 does not exceed a certain value is defined in advance, and when the current range is exceeded, it is determined that the charge amount exceeds the predetermined range. can do.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, a belt switch for switching the connection (on) and disconnection (off) of the electrode with respect to the belt ground 126 is provided in the static elimination brush 125 as in the static elimination needle 123 of the first embodiment. 124 is connected. Similarly to the first embodiment, the cooling member 111 is connected to a cooling member switch 122 that switches connection (ON) and disconnection (OFF) of the electrode with respect to the cooling member ground 121. Each switch and means for measuring the motor current are connected to the control unit 130.
Then, an upper limit of the motor current in a range in which the drive motor 116 operates without any problem is defined as an upper limit current: Amax [A], and the measured motor current value is input to the control unit 130 to obtain the input motor current value. Based on this, each switch of the static eliminating brush 125 and the cooling member ground 121 is controlled by the control unit 130.

  The control by the control unit 130 is to turn on the belt switch 124 when the control unit 130 detects that the motor current value is equal to or greater than the upper limit current: Amax [A], and the neutralizing brush 125 is belt-grounded. 126 is connected to release the charge of the upper conveyor belt 113. At the same time, the cooling member switch 122 is turned on to operate the cooling member ground 121 to release the charge in the cooling member 111. With this configuration, the driving resistance becomes more than a certain level, and the stop of the apparatus and the speed fluctuation due to the abnormal increase in the driving force necessary for driving the upper conveying belt 113 are suppressed, and the upper conveying belt 113 is stably driven. Is possible. By configuring the charge amount regulating means 120 in this way, the same effect as that of the cooling device of the first embodiment can be obtained.

Further, since the static elimination brush 125 is used as the static elimination means for the upper transport belt 113, the charge amount regulating means 120 can be configured simply as in the static elimination needle 123 of the first embodiment.
In addition, it is possible to omit a potential measuring unit such as a potential sensor 131 that measures the potential of an endless belt member such as the upper conveyance belt 113, and the occurrence of a failure due to an abnormal increase in driving torque of the driving motor 116. It becomes possible to suppress.
Alternatively, a contact / separation mechanism may be provided on the static elimination brush 125 so that the static elimination brush 125 contacts the upper conveyance belt 113 only when static elimination is necessary. With such a configuration, it is possible to solve the problem that the upper conveying belt 113 is damaged due to sliding contact with the static elimination brush 125 or the static elimination brush 125 is worn and its life is shortened.

(Example 3)
A third example of the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment and Embodiments 1 and 2, only the points related to the charge removal means provided in the charge amount regulating means 120 of the cooling device 100, the value input to the control unit 130 for controlling the charge removal means, and the detection means thereof. Different. Therefore, the same components as those in the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and similar effects will be omitted as appropriate. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the charge amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, unlike the first and second embodiments, a spray device 128 is provided as a charge removing unit for the upper conveyance belt 113 of the charge amount regulating unit 120 provided in the cooling device 100. Further, as a method of regulating the upper transport belt 113 within a predetermined charge amount range in which the drive resistance does not exceed a certain level, the motor temperature range of the drive motor 116 is defined, and the drive motor 116 measured by the motor temperature sensor 132 is used. Based on the value of the motor temperature (hereinafter referred to as the motor temperature value), each static elimination means is controlled.

  In addition, by controlling the motor temperature of the drive motor 116 to be within a predetermined range, the drive resistance of the upper transport belt 113 can be regulated within a predetermined charge amount range that does not exceed a certain value for the following reason. . When the charging amount of the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 rises beyond a predetermined range, the force that the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 are attracted by static electricity increases, the driving resistance of the upper conveyance belt 113 increases, and the drive motor The drive torque of 116 also increases, and the motor temperature of the drive motor 116 also increases. Therefore, a motor temperature range of the drive motor 116 in a range where the drive resistance of the upper transport belt 113 does not exceed a certain value is specified in advance, and the charge amount exceeds a predetermined range when the motor temperature range is exceeded. Judgment can be made.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 9, as a charge eliminating unit for the upper conveyor belt 113, a tank that stores a liquid to be sprayed, a spray unit that sprays fine water droplets from a nozzle, and a hose that connects them. A spraying device 128. Similarly to the first and second embodiments, the cooling member 111 is connected to the cooling member 111 for switching connection (on) and disconnection (off) of the electrode with respect to the cooling member ground 121. The spray unit of the spray device 128, the cooling member switch 122, and the motor temperature sensor 132 are connected to the control unit 130.
Then, the upper limit of the motor temperature in the range where the drive motor 116 operates without problems is defined as the upper limit motor temperature: TMmax [° C.], the measured motor temperature value is input to the control unit 130, and the input motor temperature value Based on the above, the control unit 130 controls the switches of the spraying device 128 and the cooling member ground 121.

  Control by the control unit 130 is performed when the control unit 130 detects that the motor temperature value measured by the motor temperature sensor 132 is equal to or higher than the upper limit motor temperature: TMmax [° C.]. Fine water droplets are sprayed around the upper conveyor belt 113 from the nozzles. By spraying in this way, the charged charges of the upper transport belt 113 are taken away by the fine water droplets sprayed by increasing the humidity around the upper transport belt 113, and the upper transport belt 113 is neutralized. At the same time, the cooling member switch 122 is turned on to operate the cooling member ground 121 to release the charge in the cooling member 111. With this configuration, the driving resistance becomes more than a certain level, and the stop of the apparatus and the speed fluctuation due to the abnormal increase in the driving force necessary for driving the upper conveying belt 113 are suppressed, and the upper conveying belt 113 is stably driven. Is possible.

  By configuring the charge amount regulating means 120 as described above, the same effects as those of the cooling devices of the first and second embodiments can be obtained. In particular, since the motor temperature of the drive motor 116 is measured, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a failure due to an abnormal increase in the drive torque of the drive motor 116 as in the second embodiment.

  Further, since the spraying device 128 is used as the charge removing means for the upper conveyor belt 113, members that are in sliding contact with the upper conveyor belt 113, such as the charge eliminating needle 123 of the first embodiment and the charge eliminating brush 125 of the second embodiment. There is no need to provide. Therefore, even if the contact / separation mechanism is not provided as in the static elimination brush 125 of the second embodiment, there is no problem that the upper conveyance belt 113 is damaged and its life is shortened.

Example 4
The 4th Example of the cooling device 100 of this embodiment is described using figures. In the present embodiment and the first embodiment, a charging unit is provided in addition to the discharging unit for the upper conveyance belt 113 of the charging amount regulating unit 120 of the cooling device 100, and control is performed to control the discharging unit and the charging unit. Only the point relating to the value input to the unit 130 and its detection means is different. Therefore, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and similar effects will be omitted as appropriate. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the charge amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 11 is a control flow diagram of the charge amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment. .

  As described above, in this embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, the charging amount regulating means 120 provided in the cooling device 100 is provided with a charging means in addition to the charge removing means for the upper transport belt 113. Further, a means for measuring the motor current of the drive motor 116 and a paper temperature sensor 133 for measuring the temperature of the paper P after being cooled by the cooling device 100 (hereinafter referred to as paper temperature) are provided. Then, as a method for regulating the driving resistance of the upper conveying belt 113 within a predetermined charge amount range that does not exceed a certain level, a belt potential range, a motor current range, and a paper temperature range are defined. Then, based on the measured belt potential value, the motor current value, and the paper temperature value measured by the paper temperature sensor 133 (hereinafter, referred to as a paper temperature value), each static elimination unit and charging unit are controlled.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, in addition to the configuration described with reference to FIG. 7 of the first embodiment, a charging roller 141 as a charging unit, a unit for measuring a motor current value, and a sheet temperature are set. A paper temperature sensor 133 for measurement is provided. In addition, each switch, each sensor, means for measuring the motor current, and the charging roller 141 are connected to the control unit 130.
Then, based on the measured belt potential value, motor current value, and paper temperature value, the upper conveying belt 113 is fixed to each of the switches of the static elimination needle 123 and the cooling member ground 121 as the static elimination means, and the charging roller 141 as the charging means. The applied voltage is controlled by the control unit 130.

  In addition, as shown in the control flow chart of FIG. 11, the control by the control unit 130 is started after the printer 300 is turned on (S-1). Before the charging, the upper conveying belt 113 is charged by the charging roller 141 to the lower limit potential: Vmin [V], which is the lower limit of the belt potential at which the adhesion effect at each contact portion occurs (S-2). By charging the upper conveyance belt 113 in this way, the adhesion effect between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 due to static electricity and the upper conveyance belt from the start of the first sheet passing of the paper P (S-3). The close contact effect between the sheet 113 and the paper P can be quickly obtained.

  Further, the target of the sheet temperature, which is the temperature of the sheet P after cooling, is set to the upper limit temperature: Tmax [° C.] or less, and the upper limit of the motor current value at which the motor operates without problems is set to the upper limit current: Amax [A]. Yes. When the sheet temperature value set in this way and actually measured by the sheet temperature sensor 133 exceeds the upper limit temperature: Tmax [° C.] (Yes in S-4), the motor current value is the upper limit current: Amax. If it is less than [A] (No in S-6), the upper conveying belt 113 is gradually charged by ΔV [V] by the charging roller 141 (S-5). By charging in this way, the adhesion effect between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 due to static electricity is enhanced.

When the motor current value reaches the upper limit current: Amax [A] (Yes in S-6), the belt switch 124 is turned on, the charge eliminating needle 123 is operated, and the charge of the upper conveying belt 113 is changed to the belt ground 126. To escape. At the same time, the cooling member switch 122 is turned on, and the cooling member ground 121 is operated to release the charge in the cooling member 111 (S-7). With this configuration, the driving resistance becomes more than a certain level, and the stop of the apparatus and the speed fluctuation due to the abnormal increase in the driving force necessary for driving the upper conveying belt 113 are suppressed, and the upper conveying belt 113 is stably driven. Is possible.
Further, the static electricity is once canceled by the above-described static elimination, but the upper conveying belt 113 is charged again to the lower limit potential: Vmin [V] by the charging roller 141 (S-8). By charging in this way, the adhesion effect due to static electricity can be quickly obtained again.

Therefore, after the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 are neutralized by the static elimination needle 123 and the cooling member ground 121, the adhesion effect between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 due to static electricity and the upper conveyance belt 113 and the paper P are removed. The adhesion effect can be obtained quickly.
In addition, since the upper conveyance belt 113 is charged by a predetermined amount or more by the charging roller 141 and then the paper P is started to pass, the effect of the close contact between the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 due to static electricity, and the upper conveyance belt 113 The close contact effect with the paper P can be obtained from the beginning of passing the first paper P.

  Further, since the paper temperature after cooling is measured by the paper temperature sensor 133, when the paper P to be passed is thin paper or the like, the amount of heat required for cooling (the amount of heat radiated) can be reduced. Further, the charging amount of the upper transport belt 113 necessary for attracting the paper P to the upper transport belt 113 can be reduced. Therefore, when the paper P is thin paper or the like and the paper temperature value after cooling measured by the paper temperature sensor 133 falls below the target paper temperature range after cooling, the charging roller 141 causes the upper transport belt to The electric power consumption can be reduced by lowering the electric potential for charging 113 below the lower limit electric potential: Vmin [V] or by stopping the charging by the charging roller 141. Also, the power consumption can be reduced by reducing the number of rotations of the cooling fan that blows cooling air to the cooling fins 161 of the cooling member 111.

  In the present embodiment, an example in which the charging roller 141 is used as the charging unit has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and for example, a charging brush or the like may be used.

(Example 5)
The 5th Example of the cooling device 100 of this embodiment is described using figures. The present embodiment differs from the first to fourth embodiments only in the point relating to the cooling means provided in the cooling device 100. Therefore, the same components as those in the first to fourth embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the same effects will be omitted as appropriate. FIG. 12 is an explanatory perspective view of the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment.

In the first to fourth embodiments described above, the cooling member 111 arranged to slide on the inner peripheral surface on the paper P side of the upper conveying belt 113 of the upper conveying unit 110 is formed with a plurality of cooling fins 161 on the upper side. An example of a cooling device that is an air-cooled heat sink has been described.
On the other hand, in the cooling device 100 of the present embodiment, as shown in the perspective view of FIG. 12, the cooling member 111 arranged so as to slide on the inner peripheral surface of the upper transport belt 113 of the upper transport unit 110 on the paper P side is provided. And a heat pipe type having a heat pipe 171.

  More specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, the cooling member 111 of the present embodiment is made of an aluminum plate member in which the heat absorbing portion of the heat pipe 171 is built. Further, heat radiation fins 172 are connected to the two end portions of the heat pipe 171 protruding outside the front side of the cooling member 111 in FIG. Heat radiation is performed by contacting the heat radiation fins 172 with airflow in the printer 300 or air by natural convection. In this embodiment, a cooling fan (not shown) forcibly blows cooling air to the heat dissipating fins 172 to enhance the heat dissipating effect and enhance the cooling effect by the cooling member 111.

  In addition, the perspective explanatory view shown in FIG. 12 describes an example in which the heat pipe 171 is linearly projected toward the front side in FIG. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and the heat pipe 171 protruding outside the cooling member 111 may be bent in an arbitrary direction. By bending the heat pipe 171 in this way, the heat radiation fins 172 can be arranged at a desired position in the printer 300 away from the cooling member 111, and the degree of freedom in design is increased and the printer 300 is reduced in size. You can also Further, for example, the heat dissipating fins 172 may be disposed in the vicinity of the heat dissipating fan provided in the casing of the printer 300, or may be disposed in the vicinity of another cooling fan, thereby reducing the space and cost of providing the cooling fan individually. Is possible.

(Example 6)
A sixth example of the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. This embodiment differs from the first to fifth embodiments only in the point relating to the cooling unit of the cooling device 100. Therefore, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and similar effects will be omitted as appropriate. FIG. 13 is an explanatory perspective view of the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment.

In the first to fourth embodiments described above, the cooling member 111 arranged to slide on the inner peripheral surface on the paper P side of the upper conveying belt 113 of the upper conveying unit 110 is formed with a plurality of cooling fins 161 on the upper side. An example of a cooling device that is an air-cooled heat sink has been described. In the fifth embodiment, the cooling member 111 disposed so as to slide on the inner peripheral surface of the upper conveyance belt 113 of the upper conveyance unit 110 on the sheet P side is a heat pipe type cooling device having a heat pipe 171. An example was described.
On the other hand, in the cooling device 100 of the present embodiment, as shown in the perspective view of FIG. 13, the cooling member 111 arranged so as to slide on the inner peripheral surface of the upper transport belt 113 of the upper transport unit 110 on the paper P side is provided. The liquid cooling system has a cooling liquid passage therethrough. That is, the cooling device 100 according to the present embodiment is a liquid cooling type cooling device that can easily increase the cooling efficiency as compared with other air cooling type cooling devices.

  More specifically, as shown in FIG. 13, the cooling member 111 of the present embodiment is made of an aluminum liquid cooling plate member having a cooling liquid passage therethrough. An inflow port and an outflow port are formed outside the cooling member 111, and the radiator 182, the liquid feed pump 183, and the coolant tank 184 are connected to each other by a coolant transport pipe 181 made of a rubber tube or the like. Has been.

  The coolant goes into a low temperature state by passing through the radiator 182 from the coolant tank 184 by the liquid feed pump 183. In this state, the cooling liquid removes heat from the cooling member 111, passes through a passage formed in the cooling member 111, and returns to the cooling liquid tank 184. In the radiator 182, heat is dissipated by contacting the air flow in the printer 300, air by natural convection, or the like between the plurality of cooling fins in which the flow paths for allowing the coolant to pass are formed. In the present embodiment, a cooling fan (not shown) forcibly blows cooling air to the radiator 182 to enhance the heat dissipation effect and enhance the cooling effect by the cooling member 111.

  In addition, the perspective explanatory view shown in FIG. 13 shows an example in which the radiator 182, the liquid feed pump 183, and the coolant tank 184 are arranged on the front side of the cooling member 111 in FIG. 13. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and the radiator 182, the liquid feed is not limited to the range in which the coolant transport path by the transport pipe 181 is bent in an irregular manner or the transport path length is not extremely long. The pump 183 and the coolant tank 184 can be arranged at any position in the printer 300. By disposing at this arbitrary position, the radiator 182 can be disposed at a desired position in the printer 300 away from the cooling member 111, increasing design freedom and contributing to downsizing of the printer 300. You can also In addition, for example, the radiator 182 can be arranged near the heat dissipating fan provided in the housing of the printer 300, or can be arranged near another cooling fan, thereby reducing the space and cost of providing the cooling fan individually. It is.

  In addition, when the coolant passage in the cooling member 111 uses a different metal such as aluminum and copper, galvanic corrosion occurs, and a hole is formed on the side of the base metal (aluminum if aluminum and copper). May become vacant. For this reason, it is recommended that the coolant passage be made of the same metal as much as possible.

  Further, in each example of the present embodiment, the present invention is provided with the upper transport unit 110 and the lower transport unit 150, and the cooling device 100 configured to sandwich and transport the paper P between the upper transport belt 113 and the lower transport belt 153. The example applied to is described. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, for example, a configuration in which the sheet P is sandwiched and conveyed by a cooling member provided on the inner peripheral surface of the conveyance belt and a rotating body facing the conveyance belt, The present invention can also be applied to a configuration in which the conveyance belt is provided only below the sheet conveyance path without holding the sheet P. However, it is easier to enhance the cooling effect in the configuration in which the sheet P is nipped and conveyed by the pair of conveying belts than in the configuration in which the sheet P is nipped and conveyed by the pair of conveying belts.

What has been described above is merely an example, and the present invention has a specific effect for each of the following modes.
(Aspect A)
An upper conveyance unit that conveys a recording material such as paper P by an endless belt member such as an upper conveyance belt 113 and a lower conveyance belt 153 that are stretched and rotated by a plurality of rollers such as a driving roller 115 and three upper driven rollers 114. 110, a cooling device 100 including a conveying unit such as a lower conveying unit 150, and a cooling member such as a cooling member 111 disposed so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member on the recording material side. In this cooling device, there is provided a charge amount regulating means such as a charge amount regulating means 120 for regulating the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member within a predetermined range. It is a feature.
According to this, as described in the first embodiment (the first to sixth embodiments), the following cooling device can be provided. In a cooling device that cools a recording material such as paper P while being transported by an endless belt member such as a rotating upper transport belt 113 or a lower transport belt 153, a cooling member such as a cooling member 111 and an endless belt such as an upper transport belt 113 are used. A cooling device such as the cooling device 100 that stabilizes the driving of the endless belt member and obtains a uniform cooling effect over the entire surface of the recording material while using static electricity to enhance adhesion to the member.

(Aspect B)
In (Aspect A), the conveying means such as the upper conveying unit 110 and the lower conveying unit 150 are stretched by a plurality of rollers such as a driving roller 115, three upper driven rollers 114, and two lower driven rollers 154, respectively. The recording material such as paper P is sandwiched and conveyed by a pair of endless belt members such as an upper conveyance belt 113 and a lower conveyance belt 153 that are rotated, and the cooling member such as a cooling member 111 is a pair of endless belt members. The endless belt member is disposed so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface on the recording material side of at least one of the endless belt members.
According to this, as described in the first embodiment (the first to sixth embodiments), the recording by the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 is performed as compared with the configuration in which the recording material such as the paper P is not sandwiched and conveyed by the pair of conveying belts. It becomes easy to enhance the cooling effect through the endless belt member such as the upper conveying belt 113 of the material.

(Aspect C)
In (Aspect A) or (Aspect B), the charge amount restriction means such as the charge amount restriction means 120 is connected to the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 and the endless belt such as the upper conveyance belt 113 that is in sliding contact with the cooling member. It has a discharging means such as a discharging needle 123 and a cooling member ground 121 for discharging at least one of the belt members.
According to this, as described in the first embodiment (embodiments 1 to 6), the ground such as the cooling member ground 121 is transferred to the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 as the charge removal means of the charge amount regulating means. Since the endless belt member such as the belt 113 has the static elimination needle such as the static elimination needle 123, the charge amount regulating means such as the charge quantity regulating means 120 can be configured simply.

(Aspect D)
In (Aspect C), the static elimination switching means such as the belt switch 124 and the cooling member switch 122 for switching on / off of the static elimination means such as the static elimination needle 123 and the cooling member ground 121, and the endless belt member such as the upper conveyance belt 113 And a potential measuring means such as a potential sensor 131 for measuring the potential of at least one of the cooling members such as the cooling member 111, and the charge removal switching based on a potential such as a belt potential value obtained by the potential measuring means. By controlling the means, the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member is regulated within a predetermined range.
According to this, as described in the first embodiment, it is possible to reliably suppress sticking caused by static electricity caused by sliding between a cooling member such as the cooling member 111 and an endless belt member such as the upper conveyance belt 113. Can do.

(Aspect E)
In (Aspect C) or (Aspect D), the static elimination switching means such as the belt switch 124 and the cooling member switch 122 for switching on / off of the static elimination means such as the static elimination needle 123 and the cooling member ground 121, and the cooling member 111 Detecting means for detecting a current value or temperature such as a motor current value of a driving motor such as a driving motor 116 for driving an endless belt member such as an upper conveying belt 113 that is in sliding contact with the cooling member, and the detecting means Based on the current value or temperature of the drive motor detected in step 1, the charge removal switching means is controlled so that the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member is within a predetermined range. It is characterized by regulation.
According to this, as described in the second embodiment (second embodiment or third embodiment), it is possible to omit the potential measuring means such as the potential sensor 131 that measures the potential of the endless belt member such as the upper conveying belt 113. It becomes. In addition, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a failure due to an abnormal increase in drive torque of a drive motor such as the drive motor 116.

(Aspect F)
In any one of (Aspect C) to (Espect E), the charge amount regulating means such as the charge amount regulating means 120 is connected to the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 and the upper conveyance belt 113 that is in sliding contact with the cooling member. And a charging unit such as a charging roller 141 for charging at least one of the endless belt members.
According to this, as described in the fourth embodiment, the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 and the endless belt such as the upper conveyance belt 113 that is in sliding contact with the cooling member by the discharging means such as the discharging needle 123 and the cooling member ground 121 are used. After neutralizing the belt member, it is possible to quickly obtain a close contact effect between the cooling member due to static electricity and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member, and a close contact effect between the endless belt member and the recording material such as paper P.

(Aspect G)
In (Aspect F), at least one of the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 and the endless belt member such as the upper conveyance belt 113 that is in sliding contact with the cooling member is more than a predetermined amount by the charging unit such as the charging roller 141. After charging, the recording medium such as the paper P is started to pass.
According to this, as described in the fourth embodiment, the close contact effect between the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 due to static electricity and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member such as the upper conveyance belt 113, and the endless belt member And the recording material such as the paper P can be obtained from the beginning of passing the first recording material.

(Aspect H)
In (Aspect F) or (Aspect G), a temperature measuring unit such as a paper temperature sensor 133 that measures the temperature of the recording body such as the paper P after being cooled by the cooling device such as the cooling device 100 is provided. Based on the temperature such as the sheet temperature value obtained by measurement, the cooling member such as the cooling member 111 and the cooling member are discharged by the discharging unit such as the discharging needle 123 and the cooling member ground 121 and the charging unit such as the charging roller 141. The charge amount of at least one of an endless belt member such as the upper conveyance belt 113 that is in sliding contact with the member is regulated within a predetermined range.
According to this, as described in the fourth embodiment, when the cooled paper temperature value measured by the temperature measuring means such as the paper temperature sensor 133 falls below the target cooled paper temperature range. The electric power consumption can be reduced by lowering the electric potential for charging the upper conveying belt 113 by the charging roller 141 below the lower limit electric potential: Vmin [V], or by stopping the charging by the charging roller 141.

(Aspect I)
In an image forming apparatus such as a printer 300 provided with a cooling device that cools a recording material such as paper P, the cooling device 100 according to any one of (Aspect A) to (Aspect H) is used as the cooling device. A device is provided.
According to this, as described in the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus such as the printer 300 that can achieve the same effect as the cooling apparatus such as the cooling apparatus 100 according to any one of (Aspect A) to (Aspect H). Can provide.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Photoconductor 2 Optical writing device 3 Developing device 4 Photoconductor cleaning device 5 Charging device 10 Image station 11 Primary transfer roller 16 Fixing device 21 Intermediate transfer belt 22 First tension roller 23 Second tension roller 24 Third tension roller Roller 25 Secondary transfer roller 26 Cleaning counter roller 27 Belt cleaning device 31 Paper storage section 32 Paper transport path 33 Reverse paper transport path 34 Paper discharge storage section 41 Registration roller pair 42 Paper feed roller 100 Cooling device 110 Upper transport section 111 Cooling member 113 Upper conveying belt 114 Upper driven roller 115 Driving roller 116 Driving motor 118 Displacement sensor 120 Charge amount regulating means 121 Cooling member ground 122 Cooling member switch 123 Static elimination needle 124 Belt switch 125 Static elimination brush 126 Belt ground 128 Spraying device 1 0 control unit 131 potential sensor 132 motor temperature sensor 133 sheet temperature sensor 141 charging roller 150 lower conveyance unit 153 lower conveyance belt 154 lower driven roller 161 cooling fin 162 duct 171 heat pipe 172 heat radiation fin 181 conveyance tube 182 radiator 183 liquid feed pump 184 Coolant tank 300 Printer P Paper

Japanese Patent No. 4265996 JP 2009-045746 A

Claims (9)

Conveying means for conveying the recording material by an endless belt member that is stretched and rotated by a plurality of rollers, and a cooling member that is arranged so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member on the recording material side In a cooling device comprising:
A charge amount regulating means for regulating the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member within a predetermined range ;
The charge amount regulating means has a charge removing means for discharging at least one of the cooling member and an endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member,
A static elimination switching means for switching on / off of the static elimination means, and a potential measurement means for measuring the potential of at least one of the endless belt member and the cooling member,
Based on the potential obtained by the potential measuring means, the charge removal switching means is controlled to regulate the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member within a predetermined range. A cooling device characterized by that. The cooling device according to claim 1 , wherein
A static elimination switching means for switching on / off of the static elimination means, and a detection means for detecting a current value or temperature of a drive motor that drives an endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member,
Based on the current value or temperature of the drive motor detected by the detection means, the charge removal switching means is controlled to set the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member in sliding contact with the cooling member to a predetermined level. A cooling device that is regulated within a range.   Conveying means for conveying the recording material by an endless belt member that is stretched and rotated by a plurality of rollers, and a cooling member that is arranged so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member on the recording material side In a cooling device comprising:
A charge amount regulating means for regulating the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member within a predetermined range;
The charge amount regulating means has a charge removing means for discharging at least one of the cooling member and an endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member,
A static elimination switching means for switching on / off of the static elimination means, and a detection means for detecting a current value or temperature of a drive motor that drives an endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member,
Based on the current value or temperature of the drive motor detected by the detection means, the charge removal switching means is controlled to set the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member in sliding contact with the cooling member to a predetermined level. A cooling device that is regulated within a range. In the cooling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The cooling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the charge amount regulating means includes charging means for charging at least one of the cooling member and an endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member. The cooling device according to claim 4 , wherein
2. A cooling apparatus, wherein at least one of the cooling member and an endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member is charged by a predetermined amount or more by the charging unit, and then the recording material is started to be conveyed . The cooling device according to claim 4 or 5 ,
Having temperature measuring means for measuring the temperature of the recording material after being cooled by the cooling device;
Based on the temperature obtained by the measurement, the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member is regulated within a predetermined range by the charge eliminating unit and the charging unit. A cooling device characterized.   Conveying means for conveying the recording material by an endless belt member that is stretched and rotated by a plurality of rollers, and a cooling member that is arranged so as to be in sliding contact with the inner peripheral surface of the endless belt member on the recording material side In a cooling device comprising:
A charge amount regulating means for regulating the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member slidingly contacting the cooling member within a predetermined range;
The charge amount regulating means is configured to charge at least one of the cooling member, at least one of the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member, and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member. Charging means,
Having temperature measuring means for measuring the temperature of the recording material after being cooled by the cooling device;
Based on the temperature obtained by the measurement, the charge amount of at least one of the cooling member and the endless belt member that is in sliding contact with the cooling member is regulated within a predetermined range by the charge eliminating unit and the charging unit. A cooling device characterized.   The cooling device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The transport means sandwiches and transports the recording material by a pair of endless belt members that are stretched and rotated by a plurality of rollers,
The cooling device, wherein the cooling member is disposed so as to be in sliding contact with an inner peripheral surface on the recording material side of at least one of the pair of endless belt members. In an image forming apparatus provided with a cooling device that cools while conveying a recording material,
An image forming apparatus comprising the cooling device according to claim 1 as the cooling device.

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