JPH01234861A - Image recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain the recording electrode of high resolution by arranging plural conductive electrode groups in line on an insulation substrate and exposing, laminating and forming the edge surface and the edge part of the conductive electrode groups. CONSTITUTION:An insulating substrate 1 is the nonmagnetic material of a ceramic or a glass epoxy plate, etc., and the surface is provided with the plural, independent conductive electrode groups 2 arranged in line by etching or film- making technique, etc. An insulating permeability member 3 is provided on a surface on the conductive electrode groups 2 through a binding member 4 to obtain laminating constitution at a distance about 10mum-1mm from the one edge of the conductive electrode groups 2. The recording electrode 5 is constituted on the other edge of the conductive electrode groups 2 by connecting with the output side of an integrated circuit for electrode driving on the insulating substrate 1. Thus, it becomes possible to cope with high resolution of ten or more scanning lines/mm by reducing the thickness of copper foil to be etched.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus that performs recording by directly charging toner.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, various methods have been proposed in which a recording electrode and conductive magnetic toner are brought into direct contact and a voltage is applied to the recording electrode to obtain an arbitrary recorded image. The electrodes used in these recording devices are, for example, as described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 51-46707, in which the electrode is made of a thin iron wire and the sides of the electrode are covered with epoxy resin, or as described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 51-46707. 127578
As described in the publication, a part of the copper foil laminated on the insulating sheet is selectively removed. A non-magnetic electrode formed by conventional photoetching technology is bonded to a layer of magnetically permeable material, and the copper electrode is removed. A method is known in which the end face is used as an electrode.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

This type of recording device is required to have high quality recording and high productivity. In particular, regarding printing resolution related to high-quality recording, approximately 8 to 16 lines per RA is required, and this resolution tends to increase. If this resolution is increased, for example, if the recording paper width is 200wn, and the resolution is 10 lines/rm, the total number of recording electrodes to be arranged in a row will be 2000, which is a very large number, which is difficult to mass produce. Productivity must be improved.

Furthermore, for high-quality recording, good contact between the conductive magnetic toner and the recording electrode is required.

Among the conventional techniques mentioned above, those in which the electrodes are made of iron wires connect the iron wires by soldering and then wire them to the drive circuit, so the more recording electrodes there are, the more difficult the task is. No consideration is given to the problems of increased reliability, decreased reliability due to disconnection of wiring, and increased physical size.

Another method is to form multiple electrodes by etching, adhere them to a layer of magnetically permeable material, and use the end surfaces of the electrodes as electrodes. This is achieved by providing a copper electrode or coating a copper electrode with a magnetic material. Therefore, by reducing the thickness of the copper foil to be etched, 10 lines/+ff
Although it is possible to realize a recording electrode that can handle higher resolutions of 11 or higher and has high productivity without the need for soldering for electrode wiring, only the end face is exposed and used as a recording electrode, making it difficult to No consideration was given to the contact between the conductive magnetic toner and the recording electrode, which is necessary for quality recording.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and to provide an image recording apparatus having recording electrodes with good productivity and high reliability.

[Means to solve the problem]

The above purpose is to provide an image recording apparatus in which a recording electrode directly charges magnetic toner to perform recording. A recording electrode is formed by stacking a magnetically permeable member that efficiently concentrates magnetic flux on the surface of the group with exposed end surfaces and end portions of the electrically sensitive electrode group, and the exposed portion of the recording electrode is arranged as a toner reservoir side. This is achieved by making good contact between the recording electrode and the conductive magnetic toner.

[Effect]

The recording electrode is formed by forming a plurality of conductive electrode groups arranged in a row on an insulating substrate by etching or film-forming techniques, and stacking the conductive electrode groups with their end faces and ends exposed. For this reason, 10 books/IwI! In order to realize a recording electrode with high resolution as described above, the productivity can be improved by reducing the thickness of the material to be etched or by reducing the thickness of the film formed.

In addition, the recording electrode is constructed by laminating magnetically permeable members with the end faces and end portions of the conductive electrode group exposed, and by arranging the exposed portion with the toner reservoir side, magnetic flux is concentrated at the end of the recording electrode. Good magnetic and electrical contact can be made between the conductive magnetic toner and the conductive magnetic toner.

Therefore, when a voltage is applied to the recording electrode, charge can be reliably injected into the toner, allowing high-quality recording.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an image recording apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the tip of the recording electrode in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the recording electrode.

The insulating substrate 1 shown in FIG. 3 is a non-magnetic material such as a ceramic or glass epoxy plate, and has a plurality of independent conductive electrode groups 2 arranged in rows on its surface by etching or film-forming technology. It is provided. An insulating magnetically permeable member 3 is provided in a laminated structure on the surface of the conductive electrode group 2 via an adhesive member 4 at a distance of about 10 μm to 1 m from one end of the conductive electrode group 2. The other end of the conductive electrode group 2 is connected to the output side of an electrode driving integrated circuit (not shown) on the insulating substrate 1. The recording electrode 5 is configured in this manner. The developing member 6 shown in FIG.
An insulating layer 6b having a thickness of about μm is applied. The recording electrode 5 is installed with a gap of about 20 μm to 300 μm from the developing member 6 so that the exposed portion of the conductive electrode group 2 is on the opposite side of the advancing direction of the developing member 6. A permanent magnet 7 is arranged inside the developing member 6 below the recording electrode. The toner supply means consists of a hopper 8, a magnet roll 9 and a sleeve 10 that are magnetized alternately to north and south poles, and a protruding second sleeve 11, and the hopper 8 contains conductive magnetic toner 12. It is stored. In addition, the means for removing unnecessary toner that stains the image on the developed image is
It is arranged in a position sandwiching the recording electrode 10 with respect to the toner supply means, and consists of an unnecessary toner storage container 13, a second magnet roll 14 and a sleeve 15, which are alternately magnetized to north and south poles. A conductive rubber roller 17 is pressed against the lower part of the developing member 6 with a recording paper 16 interposed therebetween. Note: The electrode drive integrated circuit (not shown) of the electrode 5 is wired for signals and power (not shown), the conductive member 6a of the developing member 6 is grounded, and the conductive rubber roller 17 is connected to toner. A transfer voltage circuit (not shown) for transferring the image from the developing member 6 to the recording paper 16 is connected.

Next, the operation of the present image recording apparatus will be explained using FIG.

The conductive magnetic toner 12 stored in the hopper 8 is conveyed on the sleeve 16, 17 by the rotation of the magnet roll 9, and reaches the toner reservoir A on the upstream side in the advancing direction of the developing member 6. Magnetic flux is concentrated on the recording electrode 5 due to the magnetic field of the permanent magnet 7, and the outer surfaces of the recording electrode 5 and the developing member 6 are connected in a chain shape, resulting in a toner chain B tilted downstream in the direction of movement of the developing member 6.
is made. At this time, as shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 2, the magnetically permeable member 3 exposes the end of the conductive electrode group 2, and the molded part is on the toner reservoir side.

Good contact between the toner chain B and the conductive electrode is achieved. With this toner chain B formed, a voltage is applied to the plurality of conductive electrode groups 2 according to the image signal. This ensures that charge is injected into the toner chain 8 portion of the conductive magnetic toner 12.

At the same time, charges of a different polarity from the charges injected into the toner 12 are induced at the boundary between the conductive member 6a and the insulating layer 6b of the developing member 6, and these two charges attract each other due to the Coulomb force. By rotating the toner chain B in the opposite direction, the toner chain B is cut and a high quality developed image is formed with the charged toner. In this device, since the conductive electrode and the toner chain B are in good contact, the charge is reliably injected. A high-quality developed image can be obtained. At this time, a part of the toner is conveyed on the developing member 6 regardless of the image due to an external force such as a conveying force due to the movement of the developing member 6, and becomes a stain on the recorded image. This unnecessary non-image toner can be selectively attracted by the magnetic attraction force of the magnet roll 14, is conveyed on the sleeve 15 by the rotation of the magnet roll 14, is stored in the unnecessary toner storage container 13, and is removed from the developing member 6. Can be removed. The developed image recorded on the developing member 6 is transferred onto the recording paper 16 by mechanical contact with the electrostatic field created by the conductive rubber roller 17, and is fixed onto the recording paper 16 by a fixing device (not shown).

According to this embodiment, since an insulating magnetically permeable member is used, it can be laminated on the conductive electrode group without an insulating member. Note that the same effect can be obtained by applying a paste-like insulating and magnetically permeable member to the same position and solidifying it, instead of adhering the plate-like insulating and magnetically permeable member.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a recording electrode according to a second embodiment of the present invention. A plurality of independent conductive electrode groups arranged in rows are provided on the surface of an insulating substrate 1 by etching or film forming techniques. The conductive electrode group 2 is exposed for a length of about 10 μm to 1 cm from one end of the conductive electrode group 2, and the conductive magnetically permeable member 3 is provided with an adhesive member 14 via an insulating film 18.

According to this embodiment, since a magnetically permeable metal foil can be used as the magnetically permeable member 3, the present invention can be carried out at low cost.

As shown in FIG. 5, if the surface of the conductive magnetic permeable member 3 is covered with an insulating material 19, it is possible to prevent electrical leakage due to contact between the end surface of the magnetically permeable member 3 and the toner. Higher image quality can be obtained.

Next, a comparative study of developed images when actually developed using an embodiment of the recording electrode in the image recording apparatus of the present invention and a conventional recording electrode will be explained with reference to FIG.

FIG. 6 shows evaluations of line breaks, black density, and background stains of developed images of each of the electrode structures shown in Arashi 1 to Nα7. N
α1 to Nα3 are the conventional electrode structures, and Nn4 to Nα7
is a recording electrode in the image recording device of the present invention. Nα
1 is a flexible printed circuit electrode (hereinafter abbreviated as FPC electrode) in which a 35 μm thick copper foil is pasted on a polyimide film, and the copper foil is selectively etched to form an electrode group with a resolution of 16 lines/m with a tip portion of 5 m exposed. F on the opposite side of the direction of movement of the developing member on a 2 nn thick iron plate with the tip cut diagonally.
They are attached so that the exposed part of the PC electrode is facing.

When this electrode is mounted on the image recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 and developed, the density is low and lines are poorly cut. There is also some dirt in the background. This is because there is an iron plate on the side in the direction of movement of the developing member, and the toner chain is formed on this iron plate, and when the developed image formed on the developing member passes through the toner chain, charge leaks. Conceivable.

Nα2 is made by bonding the same FPC electrode as Nα1 to cover the tip of a 1 nn thick iron plate. The exposed part of the electrode is on the outside. The developed image of this electrode is
The density is high, but the lines are not sharp and there is some dirt in the background.

This is considered to be because when the image recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is equipped with an electrode of Nα2, the width of the toner chain in the direction of movement of the developing member increases, and in particular, a large number of toner chains are formed on the downstream side in the direction of movement of the developing member.

Nα3 is a polyester film made by laminating a 50 μm thick permalloy electrode fabricated by etching on a glass epoxy substrate and then coating the surface with 4 μm of γ-Fez○3.The γ-Feze side of the videotape is in contact with the permalloy electrode. The electrodes are bonded together with their tips aligned as shown. The developed image of this electrode has good vertical lines but poor horizontal lines. Also, although the black density is high, there is some dirt in the background.

In the electrode of this structure, the electrical contact between the toner and the electrode is only at the end surface, and the contact is poor, so not only the image is not beautiful, but there is not much margin for the gap between the developing member and the recording electrode. When evaluated comprehensively, none of the conventional electrode structures described above can produce beautiful images.

Next, recording electrodes Nα4 to Nα7 in the image recording apparatus of the present invention will be explained.

Nα4 is a permalloy electrode with a thickness of 50 μm attached to an acrylic substrate and an insulating film on the surface of the permalloy electrode with a thickness of 50 μm.
A permalloy plate is attached to the electrode with the electrode exposed for about 200 μm from the end. The vertical lines have good line breakage, and the horizontal lines have a breakage similar to that of vertical lines, although they are a little worse than vertical lines, and the black density and background are also good.

&5, a 50 μm thick permalloy electrode is pasted on an acrylic substrate, and a videotape is attached to the surface of the γ-Fezes.
The coated side is used as the adhesive surface, and the electrodes are bonded together so that the electrodes are exposed by about 200 μm from the electrode ends. Vertical lines are good and horizontal lines are also good.

The black density is high, and there is little background dirt.

&6 has a thick gold film electrode with a thickness of 2 μm on a ceramic substrate, and a 50 μm permalloy plate is bonded to the surface of the electrode with an insulating film in between, exposing the electrode approximately 200 μm from the end of the electrode. . Line breakage is mostly good, black density is high, and background stains are minimal.

Nα7 is an electrode in which an FPC electrode is bonded to a glass epoxy substrate, and a 50 μm permalloy plate is bonded to the surface of the FPC electrode with an insulating film interposed therebetween, with the electrode exposed approximately 200 μm from the end of the electrode. Line breakage is almost good, black density,
Background stains are also good.

The above Nα4 and 5 are a combination of a magnetic electrode and a magnetic plate, and Nα6 and 7 are a combination of a nonmagnetic electrode and a magnetic plate. In either case, exposing one end of the electrode improves electrical contact between the toner and the electrode, so that charge can be reliably injected into the toner chain and a high-quality developed image can be obtained. Also, N
With the gold thick film electrode shown in α6, even with the current technology, electrodes with a high resolution of 16 pieces/square can be realized with good productivity and high reliability.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, a plurality of conductive electrode groups are provided in a row on an insulating substrate by etching or film-forming technology, and a magnetically permeable member is placed on the surface of the conductive electrode group on the end faces and edges of the conductive electrode group. The recording electrode is formed by stacking the layers with exposed parts, and the exposed part of the recording electrode is arranged as the toner reservoir side, so the contact between the recording electrode and the conductive magnetic toner is good, and the toner chain is reliably charged. can be injected and high-quality images can be obtained. Further, since the electrodes can be formed by etching or film forming techniques, productivity and reliability are high.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an image recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the tip of the recording electrode in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the structure of the recording electrode in FIG. 1. 4 is a perspective view showing the structure of a recording electrode according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the structure of a recording electrode according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The figure is a diagram showing a comparative study of developed images between a conventional recording electrode and an embodiment of the recording electrode in the image recording apparatus of the present invention. 1... Insulating substrate, 2... Conductive electrode group, 3...
Magnetically permeable member, 4... Adhesive member, 5... #i electrode,
6... Developing member, 7... Permanent magnet, 12... Conductive magnetic toner, 18... Insulating film. Play 1 Zuaki 3 Zuhiro 4 Tsukata Taro/L Hyoshin

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Toner supply for supplying conductive magnetic toner to a recording electrode, a conductive developing member having an insulating layer on the side of the recording electrode, and a recording area formed between the recording electrode and the conductive developing member. a magnetic field applying means for forming a toner chain of the conductive magnetic toner between the recording electrode in the recording area and the surface of the insulating layer of the conductive developing member; An image recording device comprising: a recording drive section that applies a voltage corresponding to a recorded image to an electrically conductive circuit formed between the conductive developing member; and a moving means that sequentially moves the recording area of the conductive developing member. The recording electrode has a structure in which a plurality of independent conductive electrode groups are provided in a row on an insulating substrate, and a magnetically permeable member is laminated so as to expose the end faces and ends of the conductive electrode group. An image recording device characterized by: