JPH05134591A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide the image forming device with which both of a copying process using a decolorable toner and a regeneration treatment of paper formed with images can be executed with one unit. CONSTITUTION:A lamp holder 180 of a destaticizing lamp 18 is supported by a supporting shaft 72. A gear 73 meshed with a pinion 72 connected to the output shaft of a motor 70 is connected to one end of the supporting shaft 72 so that the irradiation direction of the destaticizing lamp 18 can be changed over to the surface direction of a photosensitive drum and the direction of the paper fed below the destaticizing lamp 18 by the forward and backward rotations of the motor 70. The destaticizing lamp 18 emits the light contg. about 820nm wavelength at which the image once formed by using the decolorable toner can be decolored. The changeover of the irradiation direction of the destaticizing lamp 18 is executed by a CPU which runs the motor 70 forward and backward after receiving the result of the operation of an operation panel to be made by an operator.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a copy mode in which a color erasable toner is used for a copy process, and a sheet on which an image is once formed by erasing the color erasable toner is irradiated with a color erasing light to thereby irradiate the sheet. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine in which a color erasing mode to be reproduced can be selected.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recent improvements in the performance of copying machines and their widespread use have made it possible for anyone to easily obtain a large number of copies faithful to the original. Under these circumstances, important information such as materials and various certificates that should not be copied, or copies of the document contents that have been tampered with are judged to be the original image information. , May be transmitted.

Therefore, recently, a copying machine using a decolorizable toner as a toner has been developed. This is because the use of such a color-erasable toner allows the recording paper on which an image has been formed to be erased by erasing the color-erasing light such as near-infrared rays, thereby eliminating the above-mentioned problem.

Here, the decolorizable toner contains at least a decolorizable dye and a binder resin, is blue in a state where it is not exposed to light of near infrared wavelength, and is irradiated with light of near infrared wavelength. And becomes colorless.

Examples of such decolorizable dyes are organic boron compound salts of cyanine dyes, and the following compounds can be exemplified.

[0006]

[Chemical 1]

[0007]

[Chemical 2]

[0008]

[Chemical 3]

[0009]

[Chemical 4]

[0010]

[Chemical 5]

The above decolorizable dye has an absorption maximum at a near infrared wavelength, typically 810 to 830 nm, and in particular absorbs light near 820 nm to be decolored and becomes colorless.

As the binder resin, a resin material conventionally used as a binder resin for electrophotographic toner can be used. For example, polystyrene, polystyrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-based copolymers such as styrene-acrylic copolymer, polyethylene, polyethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene-based copolymers such as polyethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer, Examples thereof include phenolic resins, epoxy resins, allyl phthalate resins, polyamide resins, polyester resins, maleic acid resins. These compounds may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0013]

By the way, the reproduction of the sheet on which the image is once formed by the color erasable toner has been conventionally performed by using a dedicated color erasing machine. Therefore, in the past,
It is necessary to install both a copying machine and a decoloring machine that use decolorizable toner in the office, and the floor becomes small,
There was a drawback that the equipment cost was high.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, and can perform both the copy mode and the erasing mode using the erasable toner by one unit, resulting in space saving in the office. It is also an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus capable of significantly reducing equipment costs.

[0015]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a copy mode using a color erasable toner and a sheet on which an image is once formed using the color erasable toner to irradiate the color erasing light. A mode setting means for setting the erasing mode for reproducing the paper to be selectable, and 82 arranged in the vicinity of the photoconductor.
A static elimination lamp that emits light including light with a wavelength near 0 nm,
A switching mechanism that switches the irradiation direction to a position toward the surface of the photoconductor and a position toward the sheet conveyed near the photoconductor, and drive control of the switching mechanism according to a mode set by the mode setting means. And a control means for
Thereby, the above object is achieved.

[0016]

According to the above construction, when the erasing mode is set by the mode setting means, the control means controls the switching mechanism,
The position of the static elimination lamp is switched to a position whose irradiation direction is directed to the direction of the sheet conveyed on the conveyance line.

Therefore, in this state, when the sheet on which the image is once formed by the color erasable toner is conveyed to the irradiation area of the static elimination lamp, the irradiation light of the static elimination lamp contains the color-erased light component having a wavelength near 820 nm. Therefore, the image on the paper changes to colorless. That is, the image once formed is erased,
Paper recycling processing is performed.

On the other hand, when the copy mode is selected by the mode setting means, the position of the discharge lamp is switched to the position where the irradiation direction is directed toward the surface of the photoconductor, so that the residual charge remaining on the photoconductor after the transfer process is generated. It is erased by the static elimination lamp.

[0019]

EXAMPLES Examples of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 1 shows the overall construction of a copying machine to which the present invention is applied. The configuration will be described below together with the copy process. Below the document table 1, a scanner 2 for optically scanning the document on the document table 1 is reciprocally movable. The scanner 2 has a light source lamp 20, a first mirror 21, and the like.
The light emitted from the light source lamp 20 to the original is reflected by the original, then reflected by the first reflecting mirror 21, and guided to the mirror unit 22.

The mirror unit 22 has a second mirror 23 and a third mirror 24, and converts the optical path of the reflected light guided to the mirror unit 22 by 180 °. The reflected light whose optical path is changed is guided to the fourth mirror 26 through the lens 25,
Then, the photosensitive drum 30 is exposed by the fourth mirror 26.

The photosensitive drum 30 rotates in the clockwise direction indicated by arrow A, and the main charger 31, the interimage eraser 32, the developing device 33, the transfer charger 34, and the cleaning mechanism 10 are arranged in the rotation region from the upstream side in the rotation direction. They are arranged in this order. The main charger 31 uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 prior to exposure. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the exposed portion. The inter-image eraser 32 erases the unnecessary image area.

Subsequently, the developing device 33 supplies the decolorizable toner housed therein to the electrostatic latent image, whereby a toner image is formed. Here, the color-erasable toner is made of the material described in the section of the above-mentioned prior art, and is blue in a state where light having a wavelength near 820 nm does not hit, and becomes colorless when irradiated with light having the wavelength.

The toner image on the photosensitive drum 30 is conveyed to the position of the transfer charger 34 as the photosensitive drum 30 rotates. At this position, the paper P is conveyed from the paper feeding unit 40 in synchronization with the rotation of the photosensitive drum 30. The transfer charger 34 transfers the toner image on the photoconductor drum 30 onto the sheet P conveyed to this position. The sheet P to which the toner image is transferred is conveyed to the position of the fixing device 42 by the suction conveyance section 41, and the fixing step is performed here.
The paper P having the toner image fixed thereon is ejected to the outside of the apparatus by the ejection roller 43.

On the photosensitive drum 30 after the transfer, a part of the decolorizable toner that does not contribute to the transfer remains as a waste toner, and a residual charge exists. The waste toner is removed from the surface of the photoconductor drum 30 by the cleaning mechanism 10. Further, the residual charge is erased by the static elimination lamp 18.

In this copying machine, in addition to the copy mode in which the above-described copy process is performed using the decolorizable toner, the static elimination lamp 1 is applied to the sheet P on which the image is once formed using the decolorizable toner.
8 is provided with a decoloring mode in which the decoloring light is emitted to perform the reproduction processing of the paper P. The operator selects the mode as shown in FIG.
The operation panel 50 shown in FIG. That is,
The operator presses the print key 51 on the operation panel 50
When the N operation is performed, the copy mode is selected. On the other hand, when the operator turns on the color erasing mode setting key 52 on the operation panel 50, the color erasing mode is selected.

When the erasing mode is selected, the scanner 2,
Photoconductor drum 30, charging charger 31, developing device 3
3, the driving of the transfer charger 34 and the fixing device 42 is stopped. These driving is performed by the CPU as shown in FIG.
It is controlled via a driver 61 which receives a command from 60.

In addition, in this copying machine, the static elimination lamp 18
The position of can be switched between the copy mode and the erasing mode. That is, when the copy mode is selected, the charge eliminating lamp 18 is switched to the position shown in FIG. 3A, and the light emitted from the charge eliminating lamp 18 illuminates the surface of the photosensitive drum 30 to erase the residual charge. To do.

On the other hand, when the erasing mode is selected, the static elimination lamp 18 is switched to the position shown in FIG. 3 (b), and the irradiation light is irradiated onto the paper P conveyed immediately below it. The image once formed on the paper P using the decolorizable toner is erased.

Switching of the static elimination lamp 18 is performed by the switching mechanism 7 shown in FIG. 4 in response to a control command from the CPU 60 shown in FIG. The switching mechanism 7 is connected to a lamp holder 180 that holds the static elimination lamp 18, and the lamp holder 180
A support shaft 72 that rotates together with the support shaft 72, a gear 73 that is connected to one end of the support shaft 72, and a motor 70 that connects a pinion 71 that meshes with the gear 73 to an output shaft. The motor 70 is capable of forward and reverse rotation.

The specific switching operation of the switching mechanism 7 is performed as follows. That is, when the operator turns on the erasing mode setting key 52, the CPU 60 is notified that the erasing mode has been selected. Then the CPU
60 issues a drive command to the motor 70 via the driver 61 to rotate the pinion 71 from the state shown in FIG. 4 in the counterclockwise direction indicated by arrow B. This causes the gear 73 to move to the arrow C.
Is rotated clockwise, the support shaft 72 and the lamp holder 180, that is, the static elimination lamp 18 is rotated in the same direction,
The irradiation direction of the static elimination lamp 18 is switched downward.

On the other hand, the operator presses the print key 51
When the N operation is performed, it means that the copy mode is selected
60, the CPU 60 rotates the pinion 71 of the motor 70 in the opposite direction to the direction described above, and switches the irradiation direction of the charge eliminating lamp 18 to the surface direction of the photosensitive drum 30 shown in FIG. 3A. Note that this switching may be automatically performed when the erasing mode is completed. Further, the switching mechanism 7 is not limited to the one described above, and may be a mechanism that uses ON / OFF of the solenoid.

FIG. 5 shows the control procedure of the CPU 60 in the copy mode and the erasing mode. When the operator performs the print key process shown in step S1, the CP
The U60 determines which mode is selected in step S2. When it is confirmed in step S2 that the copy mode has been selected, the process proceeds to step S3, in which the switching mechanism 7 is drive-controlled to set the irradiation position of the static elimination lamp 18 in the surface direction of the photoconductor drum 30.

Subsequently, in step S4, the paper feeding section 40 is driven to start the transportation of the paper P. Next, in step S5, the charger 31 is turned on, and in step S6, the developing device 3 is turned on.
3, the transfer charger 34 is turned on in step S7,
The static elimination lamp 18 is turned on in step S8, the cleaning mechanism 10 is driven in step S9, and the fixing device 42 is driven in step S10 to execute the copy process.

Next, in step S11, it is determined whether or not there is a next copy, and if it is confirmed that there is no next copy, the process ends at that point. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S11 that there is a next copy, steps S4 to S1.
Repeat the process of 1.

On the other hand, when it is confirmed that the erasing mode is selected in step S2, the process proceeds to step S12, in which the switching mechanism 7 is drive-controlled to set the irradiation direction of the static elimination lamp 18 to the lower position. To do. Then, step S
At 13, the pressure contact state of the pair of upper and lower fixing rollers in the fixing device 42 is released. However, this processing is not always necessary.

Next, in step S14, the scanner 2 and the charger 31 are turned off to prohibit the execution of the copy process. However, the static elimination lamp 18 is turned on. Next, in step S15, the paper feeding unit 40 is driven to drive the paper feeding unit 4
The conveyance of the sheet P, which has been set to 0 and has already been recorded, is started. Then, in step S16, the static elimination lamp 18
820 from the static elimination lamp 18 to the paper P conveyed below the
Irradiation with light including light having a wavelength in the vicinity of nm (decoloring light). As a result, the image forming portion of the paper P changes from blue to colorless,
The reproduction processing of the paper P is performed. The processed paper P is discharged outside the machine by the discharge roller 43.

Next, in step S17, it is determined whether or not there is the next paper P, and if it is confirmed that there is no next paper P, the processing ends at that point. On the other hand, if it is confirmed in step S17 that there is the next sheet P, steps S15 to S1.
Repeat the process of 7.

In the above embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a copying machine equipped with a photosensitive drum has been described.
The present invention can be similarly applied to other image forming apparatuses such as a copying machine equipped with a photosensitive belt and a printer.

[0040]

According to the above-described image forming apparatus of the present invention, a copying process using a color erasable toner and a reproduction process of a sheet on which an image is once formed using the color erasable toner are performed for one image. It can be performed in a forming device. Therefore, according to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, there is an advantage that the space of the office can be saved and the facility cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front sectional view showing the overall configuration of a copying machine to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control system.

FIG. 3 is a drawing showing a switching state of an irradiation direction of a static elimination lamp.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a switching mechanism.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a control procedure of the CPU.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Scanner 7 Switching mechanism 70 Motor 71 Pinion 72 Support shaft 73 Gear 18 Static elimination lamp 180 Lamp holder 30 Photosensitive drum 33 Developing device 40 Paper feeder 50 Operation panel 51 Print key 52 Decoloring mode setting key P Paper

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁵ Identification number Internal reference number of the agency FI technical display location G03G 15/00 302 21/00 (72) Inventor Masatomi Funato 1-2-2 Tamatsukuri, Chuo-ku, Osaka No. Mita Kogyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Masai Inoue 1-228 Tamatsukuri, Chuo-ku, Osaka Mita Kogyo Co., Ltd. (72) Kazuhiko Yamamura 1-228 Tamatsukuri, Chuo-ku, Osaka Mita Within Kogyo Co., Ltd.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A selectable copy mode using an erasable toner and an erasing mode in which a sheet on which an image is once formed using the erasable toner is irradiated with an erasing light to reproduce the sheet. A mode setting means for setting and a static elimination lamp arranged near the photoconductor for irradiating light including light having a wavelength of around 820 nm, and a position where the irradiation direction is directed to the surface of the photoconductor and the vicinity of the photoconductor. An image forming apparatus comprising: a switching mechanism that switches to a position toward the conveyed sheet; and a control unit that drives and controls the switching mechanism according to a mode set by the mode setting unit.