JPH0387766A - Electrostatic recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To effectively remove ozone generated in a device, to lengthen the service life of an ozone filter and to eliminate the wasteful consumption of an ozone decomposer by providing a volatile ozone decomposer replenishing means and replenishing the ozone decomposer when the function of the filter deteriorates. CONSTITUTION:The opening part 9 of a case 8 as an ozone decomposer 5 replenishing part is initially closed by a shutter 10. When image formation is started, the ozone is generated, and when a ventilating fan actuates, the ozone flows in an exhaust duct 7 with exhaust air in the device. At the time of passing through the ozone filter 4, the ozone is removed by this, and clean air is discharged to the outside of the device. At this time, when the function of the ozone filter deteriorates and the ozone is discharged to the outside of the device, the operator notices it by smell and replenishes the ozone decomposer by using the volatile ozone decomposer replenishing means, and the ozone is decomposed and removed in the halfway of a replenishing path and at an ozone filter. Thus, the ozone decomposer is appropriately replenished.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention This invention relates to an electrostatic recording device having ozone exclusion and decomposition means.

Conventional technology In conventional electrostatic recording devices, a photoreceptor is uniformly charged by discharge from a charger, and then exposed to light to form a latent image, which is then transferred to paper through the process of development, transfer, and fixation. It is carried out.

In this process, a charger using corona discharge is used to fully charge the photoreceptor.
During discharge from the charger, the air reacts and generates ozone due to its high potential. If this ozone is left as it is, it may deteriorate the photoreceptor, so it must be discharged from the apparatus. However, if ozone is emitted in high concentrations, it may have a negative effect on the human body, so an ozone filter made of activated carbon or the like is installed in the exhaust section of the recording device, and this ozone filter removes ozone from the air exhausted by the exhaust fan. It is supposed to be done.

By the way, the ozone filter of such equipment is usually 50~
Since its performance is reduced by half in 60 hours, the ozone removal performance deteriorates and it becomes necessary to replace it.

A possible solution to this problem would be to increase the capacity of the ozone filter, but this would require a large space within the device for its installation.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention Therefore, as a measure to compensate for the deterioration of the ozone filter, a method in which a volatile ozone decomposing agent flows toward the ozone filter has been proposed.

However, in such a proposed device, the exhaust fan that guides ozone to the ozone filter is also used for the purpose of suppressing the rise in temperature within the device, so it is operated even during standby when no image is being formed. During this time, even though no ozone is generated, the ozone decomposer is volatilized, which not only wastes the ozone decomposer, but also discharges it outside the equipment, causing harm to people around the equipment. There was a problem that it caused discomfort.

Therefore, the purpose of this invention is to solve the problems of the various conventional devices as described above, to effectively remove the ozone generated in the devices, to increase the service life of the ozone filter, and to eliminate the use of ozone decomposers. To provide an electrostatic recording device that does not consume wastefully.

Means for Solving Problem 5 In order to avoid the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides an electrostatic recording device having an ozone filter with a means for replenishing a volatile ozone decomposer, so that when the performance of the ozone filter deteriorates, The ozone decomposer is replenished by the ozone decomposer replenishing means.

Further, the present invention provides an electrostatic recording device having an ozone filter, which is provided with a volatile ozone decomposer replenishing means and a detection means for detecting performance deterioration of the ozone filter, and when the ozone filter performance deteriorates below a predetermined value, The detection means detects this, and the ozone decomposer replenishing means replenishes the ozone decomposer.

Further, the present invention includes an ozone sensor for measuring the ozone concentration in exhaust gas or a means for detecting the total energization time of the ozone generating means as means for detecting performance deterioration of the ozone filter.

Function: In the electrostatic recording device of the present invention as described above, ozone is initially removed from the exhaust gas passing through the ozone filter, and as a result, the performance of the ozone filter deteriorates and ozone escapes from the device. When the ozone decomposer is discharged, the operator notices it by the smell and replenishes the ozone decomposer toward the ozone filter using the volatile ozone decomposer replenishing means. Decompose and remove.

Further, in the electrostatic recording device of the present invention, ozone is initially removed from the exhaust gas passing through the ozone filter, and when the performance of the ozone filter deteriorates, this is detected by the detection means, and this detection signal is used to detect ozone. The volatile ozone decomposing agent replenishing means is activated, and the ozone decomposing agent is replenished toward the ozone filter, and during the replenishment and in the ozone filter, it reacts with ozone to decompose and remove it.

In the above case, the performance deterioration of the ozone filter is determined by measuring the ozone concentration in the exhaust gas with an ozone sensor, or by detecting the total energization time of the ozone generating means with a detection means.

Embodiment FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the internal state of a first embodiment of the present invention, in which 1 is a photosensitive drum, 2 is a charger, and 3.
Reference numeral 4 indicates an exhaust fan and ozone filter provided in the exhaust duct 7, and reference numeral 5 indicates an ozone decomposer.

2 and 3 show the details of the ozone decomposer 5 replenishment part, and 8 is a case in which the ozone decomposer 5 is stored, and it can be attached and removed over the upper opening 9 of the exhaust duct 7. It is located in The opening 9 is opened and closed by a shutter IO that slides on the exhaust duct 7 in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 3 with a pivot 12.

The operation of this embodiment will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

Initially, the opening 9 of the case 8 is closed by the jasitter 10, and when the image forming operation is started here, ozone is generated here due to the discharge to the photoreceptor drum 1 by the charger 2. Due to the operation of the fan 3, ozone flows through the exhaust duct 7 together with the exhaust air inside the device.
When the air passes through the ozone filter 5, it is removed and clean air is discharged to the outside of the apparatus. At this time, the ozone filter 4 removes 99% or more of generated ozone for a certain period of time after the start of use, but after that, its removal ability decreases.

In this case, the ozone in the exhaust gas discharged outside the device emits a smell, so when the operator smells this smell, he moves the shutter 10 to the position shown by the chain line in FIG. 3 and opens the opening 9.
The ozone decomposer 5 housed in the case 8 volatilizes and flows into the exhaust duct 7 through the opening 9, where it comes into contact with ozone and decomposes it. and unreacted ozone decomposer 5
Since the ozone often adheres to the ozone filter 4, it also reacts with ozone here, and in this way, the ozone in the exhaust gas is decomposed and removed before being discharged outside the device.

4 and 5 schematically show a second embodiment of the present invention, and most of it is the same as the first embodiment, so the different parts will be mainly explained.

FIG. 5 shows details of the supply part for the ozone decomposer 5, and 8 is a case in which the ozone decomposer 5 is stored.
The upper opening 9 is arranged adjacent to the rear end opening of the exhaust duct 7. The opening 9 is opened and closed by a shutter lO that slides back and forth using a solenoid 11.
Solenoid 11 is controlled by ozone sensor 6.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the ozone sensor 6, in which a semiconductor thin film 14 kept at a constant high temperature (approximately 400° C.) by a platinum thin film heater 13 is provided on an alumina substrate I5.
The semiconductor thin film 14 decomposes oxidizing gas and ozone (0□・0
(decomposed into) adsorption changes the resistance value. A platinum thin film electrode 16 reads the change in the resistance value of the semiconductor thin film 14.

This change in resistance value is detected as a voltage change by a constant current measurement method using a circuit as shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a control circuit for the shutter 10 using the ozone sensor 6, and 18 is an input interface;
19 represents a CPU, and 20 represents a DC control unit.

FIG. 9 shows the correlation between the output (V) of the ozone sensor and the measured amount of ozone (PPM).

FIG. 10 shows the correlation between the ozone sensor output concentration (PPM) and the ozone decomposer volatilization concentration (PPM).

The operation of this recording apparatus will be explained with reference to FIGS. 4 to 10.

Initially, the opening 9 of the case 8 is closed by the shutter 10, and when the image forming operation starts here, ozone is generated here due to the discharge to the photoreceptor drum 1 by the charger 2, but when the exhaust gas Due to the operation of the fan 3, ozone flows through the exhaust duct 7 together with the exhaust air inside the device.
When the air passes through the ozone filter 5, it is removed and clean air is discharged to the outside of the apparatus. At this time, the ozone filter 4 removes 99% or more of generated ozone for a certain period of time after the start of use, but after that, its removal ability decreases.

In this case, the ozone concentration in the exhaust gas discharged outside the device is measured by the ozone sensor 6, and the concentration is 0. IPPM
When the voltage exceeds the voltage, a voltage as shown in Figure 9 is output, which is converted into an ozone concentration by the CPU 19. Based on this ozone concentration, the amount of volatilization of the ozone decomposer is determined as shown in Figure 10. Case 8
The opening and closing of the shutter lO is controlled. This control is achieved by adjusting the opening time of the shutter lO, since the amount of volatilization is proportional to the opening time.

In this way, when the ozone removal ability of the ozone filter 4 deteriorates and the concentration of ozone emitted by the ozone sensor 6 exceeds the set value, the ozone decomposer 5 is evaporated into the exhaust gas and brought into contact with ozone in the exhaust duct to be decomposed. However, since the unreacted ozone decomposer 5 will adhere to the ozone filter 5, it will also react with ozone here, and in this way, the ozone in the exhaust gas will be decomposed and removed before being discharged outside the device. The Rukoto.

In this embodiment, deterioration in the performance of the ozone filter 4 was discovered by measuring the ozone concentration using the ozone sensor 6 as described above, but in addition to this, although not shown in the figure, the entire ozone generation means, that is, the charger 2 was detected. This can also be done by detecting the energization time. In this case, the time required for the performance deterioration of the ozone filter 4 is set in advance, and when the total energization time exceeds this set time, the ozone decomposer is volatilized.

As described above, the ozone decomposing agent is volatilized to compensate for the deterioration in the performance of the ozone filter, but in this case, ozone is generated only when it is applied to the charger 2, and other than that, ozone is generated only when it is applied to the charger 2. It is preferable that the shutter lO closes the opening 9 when no image is being formed.

In addition, since the ozone sensor 6 is heated to about 400°C as mentioned above, if the exhaust air directly hits the sensor 6, the temperature will drop and it will be difficult to make accurate measurements. It is good to do something.

Further, as the volatile ozone decomposer, a known terpenoid ozone decomposer is suitable.

A third embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 11, and the difference between this embodiment and the second embodiment is that the ozone sensor 6 is located between the exhaust fan 3 and the ozone filter 4 in the exhaust duct. 7, and a case 8 for the ozone decomposer 5 is arranged above the exhaust duct 7 behind the ozone filter 6. However, since its operation is almost the same as that of the second embodiment, its explanation will be omitted.

Effects of the Invention This invention is as described above, in which an electrostatic recording device having a conventional ozone filter is provided with means for replenishing a volatile ozone decomposing agent, and when the performance of the ozone filter deteriorates, the ozone decomposing agent is exhausted. It is designed to be replenished inside the
Initially, ozone is removed only by the ozone filter, and the ozone decomposer is replenished only when its performance deteriorates, so ozone can be effectively removed over a long period of time, and the service life of the ozone filter will be extended. This has the effect of lengthening the time and not wasting the ozone decomposer.

In addition, deterioration in the performance of the ozone filter is detected by the detection means, so the deterioration in performance is accurately detected and the ozone decomposer is replenished. Since deterioration in the performance of the ozone filter is automatically detected by detecting the total energization time, it is possible to replenish the ozone decomposer at the optimum time and in just the right amount.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the main parts of the same, FIG. Schematic sectional view of the second embodiment, fifth
The figure is an enlarged sectional view of the main parts of the same as above, Figure 6 is a perspective view of an example of an ozone sensor, Figure 7 is a circuit diagram of an example of a control circuit using an ozone sensor, and Figure 8 is a diagram of an ozone decomposer replenishing means. Control circuit diagram, Fig. 9 is a correlation diagram between the ozone sensor output and the ozone amount, Fig. 10 is a correlation diagram between the ozone sensor output concentration and the ozone decomposer volatilization concentration, and Fig. 11 is a third embodiment of the present invention. This is a drawing similar to FIG. 2 of . 1... Photosensitive drum 3... Exhaust fan 5... Ozone decomposer 7... Exhaust duct 9... Opening 11... Solenoid 2... Charger 4... Ozone filter 6 ... Ozone sensor 8 ... Case 10 ... Shutter Figure 9 Ozone amount (PPM) Ozone sensor output concentration (PPM)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In an electrostatic recording device in which an ozone filter is provided in the exhaust section of the electrostatic recording device main body, and the ozone filter removes ozone from the air exhausted by the exhaust fan, volatile An electrostatic recording device characterized in that an ozone decomposing agent replenishing means is provided, and the ozone decomposing agent is replenished when the performance of the ozone filter deteriorates. 2. In an electrostatic recording device in which an ozone filter is provided in the exhaust section of the electrostatic recording device body, and the ozone filter removes ozone from the air discharged by an exhaust fan, a means for replenishing volatile ozone decomposer is used. , a detection means for detecting performance deterioration of the ozone filter is provided, and when the performance of the ozone filter deteriorates below a predetermined value, the detection means detects this and the ozone decomposer replenishing means replenishes the ozone decomposer. An electrostatic recording device characterized by: 3. Claim 2, wherein the means for detecting performance deterioration of the ozone filter comprises an ozone sensor that measures ozone concentration in exhaust gas.
The electrostatic recording device described in . 4. The electrostatic recording device according to claim 2, wherein the means for detecting performance deterioration of the ozone filter comprises means for detecting the total energization time of the ozone generating means.