JPH05134382A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an image forming device having a micro capsule breaking means to break a micro capsule even at low pressure. CONSTITUTION:The device consists of a micro capsule coating device 10 applying a micro capsule 1 on a supporting body 11, an exposure device 41, a pressure developing device 47 and a heat fixation device 49. The supporting body 11 consists of a base film 60 and a hyper-fine powder 61 carried on the surface.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus using photosensitive microcapsules.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a method for forming an image on an image receptor by using microcapsules whose mechanical strength changes in response to light and powder which cooperates with the inclusions of the microcapsules to form an image. Has been devised. Further, as an apparatus embodying this method, a microcapsule paper carrying microcapsules whose mechanical strength changes in response to light, and a microcapsule that develops color by reacting with a dye precursor that is an inclusion of microcapsules An apparatus for forming an image on an image receptor such as plain paper using a colorant is disclosed in JP-A-2-149847. In this apparatus, the microcapsule paper and the image receptor are superposed and pressed with a powdery color developer interposed. Then, the dye precursor flows out from the microcapsules destroyed by the pressure, reacts with the color developer to form an image-formed product, and the image-formed product is fixed on the image receiving body.
In this way, an image is formed on the image receptor which is plain paper.

Further, a toner comprising microcapsules containing a chromogen and having a change in mechanical strength in response to light is used. After the toner is applied to a support and exposed to light, the strength is weakened by applying pressure or the like. An image forming apparatus for forming an image on an image receiving paper by a developing method that destroys only toner is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. HEI-3-
It is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 80258. This image forming apparatus comprises a toner application mechanism for charging the toner to hold it on a carrier and adhering it to a support by electrostatic force, a means for exposing microcapsule toner according to image information, and a flow of the chromogen. It has a microcapsule destruction means for causing it.

[0004]

However, the microcapsule breaking means used in these image forming apparatuses is composed of a pair of pressure rollers, and the pressure required is very high.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus having a capsule breaking means for breaking a capsule even at a low pressure.

[0006]

In order to achieve this object, an image forming apparatus of the present invention uses microcapsules containing at least an image forming material such as a dye and having a mechanical strength that changes in response to light. In an image forming apparatus for forming an image on an image receiving body, an exposure unit for forming latent image nuclei on the microcapsules, a photosensitive medium carrying the microcapsules and ultrafine powder, and the photosensitive medium. And a plain paper or the like are overlapped and pressed to develop a chemical latent image.

[0007]

In the image forming apparatus of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, when the microcapsules are destroyed, the microcapsules intervene, so that the microcapsules are easily destroyed. Therefore, the developing pressure can be lowered.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an enlarged schematic sectional view of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The image forming apparatus 40 is roughly divided into four units. That is, the microcapsule coating device 10 for coating the microcapsules 1 on the support 11 and the original 4 on the support 11 (hereinafter referred to as the capsule sheet 11 ') after the microcapsules 1 are coated.
5, an exposure device 41 that exposes through 5 and the exposed capsule sheet 11 and plain paper or a color developing paper 43 to which a color developing agent is previously applied are pressure-bonded to develop color, and a color image is formed on the color developing paper or the plain paper 43. And a heat fixing device 49 for giving good color to the image formed on the color-developed paper or plain paper 43 and for giving the image surface gloss.

The exposure device 41 is located at the uppermost part of the image forming device 40, and the heat fixing device 49 is located below it.
The microcapsule coating device 10 is provided on the left side in FIG. 1, and the pressure developing device 47 is provided substantially in the center of the image forming device 40.

The exposure device 41 includes a halogen lamp 50.
Below the halogen lamp 50, a document table 52 is provided.
Is provided. The original 45 is placed on the original table 52, and the capsule sheet 11 ′ is exposed through the original 45. A guide roller 53 is provided on the right side of the original table 52, and the exposed capsule sheet 11 ′ is sent to the pressure developing device 47 via the guide roller 53.

The microcapsule coating apparatus 10 includes an electrode roller 15 having a support 11 wound on the right side in FIG.
However, a supply unit 13 for the microcapsules 1 is provided on the left side. The electrode roller 15 and the supply unit 13 are opposed to each other at a predetermined distance d. Electrode roller 1
A high-voltage power supply E is connected to 5.

The supply unit 13 has a hopper 5 for storing the microcapsules 1, a carrying roller 6 grounded, an agitator 7 for carrying the microcapsules 1 to the carrying roller 6, and the carrying roller 6. And a layer-regulating blade 14 for supporting the microcapsules 1 with a constant thickness.

The support 11 is in the form of an endless belt and has an electrode roller 15 and guide rollers 53, 5 as shown in FIG.
4 and a pressure roller 56 in the pressure developing device 47. As shown in FIG. 3, the support 11 is composed of a base film 60 and ultrafine powder 61 carried on the surface thereof. The ultrafine powder 61 may be supported on the base film 60 with a binder or the like, or may be driven by applying heat to the base film 60. However, the method of supporting the ultrafine powder 61 on the base film 60 is not limited to this. Further, it is desirable that the ultrafine powder 61 has a convex portion, and further that it is made of metal pieces or metal oxides. For example, gold,
It is possible to use silver, copper, titanium, iron oxide, titanium oxide, molybdenum oxide, aluminum oxide or the like. The size is preferably about 1/10 of that of the microcapsule 1. That is, the diameter of the microcapsule 1 is 10
If it is about μm, the diameter of the ultrafine powder 61 is preferably about 1 μm.

On the right side of the image forming apparatus 40, there is provided a cassette 44 in which a color developing paper or plain paper 43 is stored, and a developing roller 18 is fed from the upper opening of the cassette 44 by a feed roller 18. Is inserted into the pressure developing device 47 in a state of being in close contact with the capsule sheet 11 via the guide roller 55.

The pressure developing device 47 is composed of a set of pressure rollers 56 to which pressure is applied between the rollers, and an image is formed on the color paper or plain paper 43 here. Capsule sheet 1 that has passed through the pressure developing device 47
1 and color-developed paper or plain paper 43 on which an image is formed
Are separated under the pressure developing device 47, the capsule sheet 11 passes through the guide roller 54, and the broken or hardened microcapsules 1 are removed by the removing brush 42. The removed microcapsules 1 are collected in the collection box 46. Further, the color-developed paper or plain paper 43 on which the image is formed is conveyed to the thermal fixing device 49.

The heat fixing device 49 is provided with a heat source 51 which can be maintained at about 140 ° C., and the color developing paper 4 on which an image is formed.
By applying heat to 3, the fixing action of the image is performed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the microcapsule 1 is composed of an outer shell 2 and a liquid component 3 therein. The outer diameter of the microcapsule 1 is preferably about several μm to several tens of μm, but is not limited to this.

The liquid component 3 contains at least a photosensitive resin and an image forming material such as a dye.

As the image forming material, a dye precursor or the like which changes color by reacting with a dye, a pigment, a color developer or the like can be used. As the dye, xanthene-based, coumarin-based, merocyanine-based, thiazine-based, azine-based, methine-based, oxazine-based, phenylmethane-based, cyanine-based, azo-based, anthraquinone-based, pyrazoline-based, stilbene-based, quinoline-based, phthalocyanine-based, Examples thereof include leuco dyes, and examples of pigments include inorganic pigments such as carbon black, yellow lead, red iron oxide, titanium oxide, and molybdenum red, and organic pigments. Further, as the dye precursor, a diphenylmethane compound, a triphenylmethane compound, a bisphenylmethane compound, a xanthene compound, a thiazine compound,
Fluoran compounds, spiropyran compounds, etc. and mixtures thereof can be used. When the dye precursor is used as an image forming material, it is necessary to use color developing paper.

The photosensitive resin is a resin which is sensitive to light and is modified, and includes photo-softening and photo-curing resins. The photocurable resin is usually used by mixing a photoinitiator and a polymerizable substance. The photoinitiator is one that is sensitive to light and initiates polymerization of the resin, and includes, for example, benzoyl alkyl ethers such as benzophenone and benzoyl isopropyl ether, Michler's ketone, metal arene compounds, and 2,4.
-Diethylthioxanthone and the like can be mentioned.

Examples of the polymerizable substance include N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone, bisphenol A diacrylate and methacrylate, tripropylene glycol diacrylate and methacrylate, polyethylene glycol diacrylate and methacrylate, pentaerythritol triacrylate and methacrylate,
Examples include dipentaerythritol hexaacrylate and methacrylate, trimethylolpropane triacrylate and methacrylate, oligoester acrylate and methacrylate and the like. Further, these polymerizable compounds may be used alone or as a mixture of two or more kinds.

Next, the operation of this apparatus will be described.

By pressing a start button (not shown) of the image forming apparatus 40, the carrier roller 6 and the agitator 7 rotate in the direction of the arrow. Then, the microcapsules 1 stored in the hopper 5 are conveyed to the vicinity of the carrying roller 6 by the agitator 7, and then shaped into a layer having a predetermined thickness by the layer regulation blade 14 and conveyed to the transfer area 17. It At this time, the microcapsule 1 is charged by contacting and rubbing with the layer regulating blade 14 and the bearing roller 6.

Turn on the power source E connected to the electrode roller 15.
Thus, an electric field is generated in the transfer area 17.
Therefore, the charged microcapsules 1 carried by the carrying roller 6 are attracted to the electrode roller 15 according to the generated electric field. At this time, since the support 11 is wound around the electrode roller 15, the microcapsules 1 are applied to the support 11. In this way, the capsule sheet 11 'is manufactured and conveyed to below the exposure device 41.

When the capsule sheet 11 'is conveyed to below the exposure device 41, the halogen lamp 50 is turned on and the image is exposed on the capsule sheet 11' through the document 45 placed on the document table 52. The exposed capsule sheet 11 ′ passes through the guide roller 53,
It is inserted into the pressure developing device 47. On the other hand, the color-developing paper or plain paper 43 is also taken out from the cassette 44 by the feed roller 18 and conveyed to the pressure developing device 47. In this state, it is sent to the pressure developing device 47. After that, it is pressure-developed by the pressure roller 56, and when the image forming material contained in the microcapsules 1 is a dye precursor, it reacts with a developer to form a color image on the developing paper 43, and the image forming material is a dye. Alternatively, in the case of a pigment, the dye or pigment flows out and a color image is formed on the plain paper 43. At this time, since the ultrafine powder 61 is present in the support 11 to which the microcapsules 1 are applied, the microcapsules 1 are easily broken, and as a result, the pressure of the pressure roller 56 can be lowered. It will be possible. Furthermore, the image forming apparatus 40 can be downsized. The color developing paper or the plain paper 43 after the color image is formed by the pressure developing device 47 is a heat fixing device 49.
The image is fixed by the guide roller 48.
And is discharged to the outside. In addition, the pressure developing device 47
The microcapsules 1 that have been hardened or destroyed are removed from the capsule sheet 11 that has passed through by the removing brush 42.

The present invention described above is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, in the present embodiment, the microcapsules are applied to the support inside the image forming apparatus,
A capsule sheet to which microcapsules have been applied in advance may be used. In this case, it is not necessary to incorporate the microcapsule coating device, so that the device can be further downsized.

Further, in the present embodiment, a film having ultrafine powder carried thereon was used as the support, but when the microcapsules were applied, the ultrafine powder was formed between the microcapsules and the support. Any material may be used, for example, a film obtained by previously kneading ultrafine powder may be used as the support.

[0030]

As is clear from the above description,
The developing pressure can be lowered because the microcapsules are easily broken. Furthermore, the image forming apparatus can be downsized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a microcapsule.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a support.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Microcapsule 2 Outer Shell 3 Liquid Component 11 Support 43 Color Paper or Plain Paper 47 Pressure Developing Device 60 Base Film 61 Ultrafine Powder

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An image forming apparatus for forming an image on an image receptor using a microcapsule containing at least an image forming material such as a dye and having a mechanical strength that changes in response to light, wherein a latent image is formed on the microcapsule. Exposure means for forming nuclei, a photosensitive medium carrying the microcapsules and ultrafine powder, and a pressure for developing a chemical latent image by stacking pressure on the photosensitive medium and plain paper or the like. An image forming apparatus comprising: a developing unit, the microcapsule being destroyed by the pressure developing unit after the microcapsule is exposed by the exposing unit.