JPH05188842A - Cleaning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent toner from being fused to a brush or a flicker by forming a contact part at the head part of the flicker with the brush by a lot of projections opposite to the rotating direction of a rotary body. CONSTITUTION:The projecting part of a 1st step to be first in contact with a brush 10 is almost diamond-shaped, one corner of it is arranged to the inverse rotating direction of the brush, and the corner is engraved with a curve from the apex to the back. The projecting part of a 2nd step positioned at the back of the projecting part of the 1st step is constituted by directing one corner of a solid having the bottom as an isosceles triangle toward the brush. In this case, in the case of bringing the brush 10 into contact with a flicker 12, the brush 10 is distributed to a certain area 14 excepting for the projecting parts at the head 13 of the flicker and therefore, the brush 10 can be prevented from deforming. Further, since collision energy is relaxed, toner can be prevented from being stuck to the brush 10 or the surface of a photosensitive body.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning device for removing toner adhering to a photosensitive member by a brush in an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine, and more particularly to a cleaning device for removing toner adhering to the brush by flicker. It relates to the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in electrophotographic copying machines and the like,
Regarding the cleaning of toner by a brush, there is a technique for removing the toner attached to the brush by a flicker to maintain the cleaning performance. For example, the one disclosed in JP-A-56-138769 is one in which a plurality of flicker bars 22, 23, 24 are arranged so as to sequentially bite along the rotation direction of the brush 21, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the toner adhering to the brush 21 is removed by this. In addition, JP-A-2-10
As shown in FIG. 9, the one described in the publication 9084 has a comb tooth-shaped notch at the tip end portion where a plurality of pressing plates 25, 26, 27 come into contact with the fur brush 29, and each comb tooth portion. 28 are arranged facing each other in the stacking direction at a predetermined interval so that they do not overlap each other, whereby the toner adhering to the fur brush 29 is removed.

[0003]

However, in JP-A-56-138769 shown in FIG. 8, since the flicker bars 22, 23, and 24 dig into the inside of the brush 21, the toner inside the brush 21 is also scratched. However, the tips of the flicker bars 22, 23, 24 are flat, and the brush 21 rotates to cause the flicker bars 22, 2, 24 to rotate.
8B, the brush 21 must pass over the plane of the tips of the flicker bars 22, 23, 24 in the vertical direction when passing while contacting the brushes 3, 24. Is easily deformed, the outer diameter of the brush becomes thin, and the fibers of the brush are easily broken. Further, since the brush 21 collides with the flicker bars 22, 23, 24 at a right angle from the front, the collision energy causes the toner to be adsorbed or heat-fused to the flicker bars 22, 23, 24 or the brush 21, resulting in poor cleaning. Also, there is a problem that toner adheres to the surface of the photoconductor 1. Further, in the case of the publication of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-109084 in FIG. 9, even if a plurality of pressing plates 25, 2 are used.
Even if the comb-shaped notches 6 and 27 are in contact with the fur brush 29 and have comb-teeth-shaped notches, and the comb-teeth are arranged at predetermined intervals so as not to overlap with each other, they are opposed to each other in the stacking direction. , 26, 27 are notched in a plane in parallel with the axis of the fur brush and the comb teeth of the fur brush 29 and the pressing plates 25, 26, 27 are perpendicular to each other. Since the collision from the front is similar to that of JP-A-56-138769, the fur brush 29 is caused by the collision energy.
Is easily deformed, the outer diameter of the fur brush 29 becomes thin, and the fibers of the fur brush 29 are easily broken. Further, the toner is pressed against the pressing plates 25, 26, 27 or the fur brush 2.
There is also a problem that the toner may be adsorbed or heat-sealed on the sheet 9 to cause cleaning failure or toner adhesion to the surface of the photoconductor. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and scratches the toner that has eaten into the brush without leaking, prevents deformation of the brush and breakage of the brush, and further fuses the toner to the brush and flicker. The purpose is to maintain the cleaning performance stably over a long period of time by preventing the above.

[0004]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a rotating body, a brush provided on the rotating body and in rotary contact with a photoconductor, and a flicker for removing toner adhering to the brush. In the cleaning device having the above, the tip portion of the flicker is installed so as to bite into the brush, and the contact portion of the tip portion of the flicker with the brush is formed by a large number of mountain-shaped protrusions in the direction opposite to the rotation direction of the rotating body. The cleaning device is characterized in that Also,
In a cleaning device having a rotating body, a brush provided on the rotating body for rotating contact with a photoconductor, and a flicker for removing toner adhering to the brush, the flicker has a spiral shape formed of a wire rod or a thin plate. The cleaning device is characterized in that

[0005]

In the cleaning device having the above-described structure, the brush hits the mountain-shaped projection at the tip of the flicker and is distributed to the left and right, and the brush does not get over the tip of the flicker, so the brush is deformed or broken. Can be prevented. Further, since the brushes are distributed and do not collide with the flicker in the vertical direction, the energy due to the collision between the brush and the flicker is relieved, and the toner can be prevented from being thermally fused to the brush and the flicker.

[0006]

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

A xerographic method, which is a typical electrophotographic technique in an electrophotographic copying machine as an example of an image forming apparatus, will be described with reference to FIG. First, the charger 2
The surface of the photoconductor 1 is uniformly charged by. Light is applied by the exposure device 3 to remove the charged electric charge in the exposed part to form an electrostatic latent image. Toner 5 is attached to the latent image by the developing device 4 to form a visible image. Next, the recording paper 6 is superposed on this toner image, a charge having a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner 5 is applied to the recording paper 6 from the back side of the recording paper 6 by the transfer device 7, and the toner image is formed by electrostatic force. Transfer to. The transferred toner image is fixed to the fixing device 8
Is applied with heat or pressure to fuse the recording paper 6 to form a permanent image. On the other hand, the latent image charges on the photoconductor 1 after transfer are eliminated by the light from the neutralizer 9. In addition, the photoconductor 1 is not transferred.
The toner 5 remaining on the top is removed by the cleaning devices 10 and 11. Transfer is performed by a series of processes from charging to cleaning.

Next, an embodiment of the cleaning device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention.
The figure shows the flicker 12 provided with two rows of convex portions in parallel with the tip portion 13. 1 (a) is a plan view, and FIG. 1 (b).
Is a front view, FIG. 1 (c) is a side view, FIG. 1 (d) is a perspective view,
FIG. 1E is a perspective view showing a state in which the flicker 12 is in contact with the brush 10. The first-stage convex portion that comes into contact with the brush 10 at the beginning is a substantially rhombus shape, and one of the corners is arranged in the opposite direction to the rotation direction of the brush, and the corner is curved from the apex toward the rear. Has become. The convex portion of the second step located behind the convex portion of the first step has a configuration in which one corner of a cube whose bottom surface is an isosceles triangle faces the brush. According to this configuration, when the brush 10 contacts the flicker 12, the brush 10 is distributed to the region 14 other than the convex portion in the flicker tip 13, so that the deformation of the brush 10 can be prevented and the collision energy can be mitigated. As a result, it is possible to prevent the toner from adhering to the brush 10 or the surface of the photoconductor. As shown in FIG. 1E, if the flicker 12 is configured to slide in the direction parallel to the rotating body 11, the lateral vibration of the brush 10 can be further promoted and the toner can be effectively scraped. I can drop off. Further, even if the flicker 12 is fixed and the rotating body 11 itself is slid in a parallel direction, the brush 10 is similarly used.
The vibration to the left and right of the toner can be further promoted, and the toner can be scraped off effectively. The amount of bite of the flicker tip 13 into the brush 10 is preferably about 1.0 to 1.5 mm because the toner that has entered the brush is also scraped off.

FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the present invention.
The projections of the tip portion 15 of the flicker 12 are shown in three rows. 2A is a front view, and FIG. 2B is a side view in a state of being in contact with the brush. The convex portion has a structure in which the bottom surface is divided into two equal parts by a line parallel to the direction of the rotating body, and the tip of the convex portion is carved in a curve from the vertical and horizontal directions.

Polyacetal is usually used as the material of the flicker 12, but in order to reduce friction with the brush 10 and prevent abrasion of the brush 10, Teflon or grounding removes the toner charge to remove the toner from the brush 10. Conductive carbon-containing plastics can also be used to improve scraping efficiency. Further, as the brush material, polypropylene or acrylic is used, and conductive fiber such as nylon containing carbon may be used to ground and remove the charge of the toner.

FIG. 3 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
Coiled flicker 16 and 17 are shown. According to this flicker, it is possible to smoothly enter the inside of the brush 10 with extremely small collision energy.
It should be noted that with the coil 16 having a small interval in FIG. 3A, the toner can be sufficiently scraped off even if the coil 16 is fixed, but with the coil 17 having a large interval in FIG. 3B, the toner can be removed. It is effective to rotate the coil 17 so that there is no missing leakage. Coils 16, 1
The surface of 7 can be coated with a fluorine resin or the like to prevent abrasion. Further, the coils 16 and 17 may be made of metal or plastic, but when the coils 16 and 17 are made of metal, they can be easily scraped off with charged toner if they are grounded.

FIG. 4A shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention, which shows an auger-shaped flicker 18 (a ribbon having a wide width has a spiral shape). still,
Toner 5 scraped off by a blade, a brush or the like in the electrophotographic copying machine, as shown in FIG. 5A, is obtained by using the auger 18 connected to the shaft 19 as shown in FIG. 4B. It is collected by the toner transport device 20 having the configuration. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5B, if the toner conveying device 20 is provided at a position where it comes into contact with the brush 10 so as to also serve as a flicker, the structure of the electrophotographic copying machine can be simplified and the efficiency can be improved. ..

6 and 7 show a fifth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the second flicker is provided downstream of the flicker rotating body in the rotation direction. This is because the brush is distributed to the left and right by the flicker,
After the brush is distributed, if the time to contact the photoconductor is short, the deformation of the brush does not return and the photoconductor reaches the photoconductor in the state of being divided into the left and right, resulting in a portion where the brush does not contact the photoconductor. Since the photoconductor is not cleaned,
When the toner deposits are accumulated and solidified, white spots and the like may occur in the image, which is prevented.

The above test was conducted using polypropylene (24000 lines / inch ² ) and Bertron (20,000 lines / inch ² ) which are usually used as a brush, and a low speed copying machine (peripheral speed of the photosensitive member was 100 mm / sec). Below, the brush outline is about 19 mmφ, and the brush peripheral speed is 120 mm /
In the device of (sec or less), the brush returned to the original state before contacting the photoconductor, and there was no problem. However, a medium speed copying machine (peripheral speed of the photosensitive member is about 160 mm / sec, brush outer shape is about 19 mmφ, brush peripheral speed is about 190 mm / sec), high speed copying machine (peripheral speed of the photosensitive member is about 480 mm / sec, brush outer shape is about 26 mmφ, With a device such as a brush peripheral speed of about 600 mm / sec), the brush is distributed to the left and right again,
Since the photoconductor is in contact with the photoconductor, the photoconductor is not cleaned, and the toner deposits are accumulated and solidified, resulting in white spots in the image. The reason why the brush peripheral speed must be increased as the device speed increases is that the brush peripheral speed must be increased in order to sufficiently clean the photosensitive member rotating at high speed. This is because there is a portion that does not come into contact with the toner, uneven cleaning occurs, and there is a portion where the toner remains on the photosensitive member.

It is also possible to install a flicker on the upstream side of the rotational direction of the rotary member in FIG. 4 to lengthen the time for the brush in contact with the flicker to reach the photosensitive member.
Then, the distance between the flicker and the photoconductor is too short, and the toner once scraped off may adhere to the photoconductor again or drop onto the brush. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the second flicker is provided downstream of the flicker in the rotation direction of the rotating body while keeping the flicker in the position shown in FIG.
As a result, the brush spread to the left and right by the flicker comes into contact with the second flicker, which can give an impact to the brush, so that the brush can be returned to the state before being distributed to the left and right by the flicker. ..

The second flicker may be one having a flat surface, as shown in FIG. 7 (a), as long as it can impact the brush. in this case,
The second flicker only needs to give an impact to the brush, and it is necessary to prevent the deformation of the brush. Therefore, the amount of biting of the second flicker into the brush is 0.3 to 0.5 mm.
The degree is reasonable.

FIG. 7 (b) shows a case where a second flicker having a plurality of mountain-shaped projections at the tip of the flicker is used. In this case, if the mountain-shaped protrusions 13 and 15 of the flicker upstream of the second flicker and the axial direction of the rotating body are displaced from each other, the mountain-shaped protrusions of the tip of the second flicker can be arranged. It is effective in correcting the brush shape by breaking the distribution state to the left and right.

FIG. 7C shows a second flicker provided with a large number of needle-shaped members at the tip of the flicker. By using this second flicker, the deformation of the brush can be corrected like combing hair.

It is preferable that the flicker and the second flicker be separated from each other to some extent so that the toner and the paper powder scraped off by the flicker do not adhere to the second flicker. The second flicker is preferably made of polyacetal or the like.

Further, even if the toner is not completely removed by scraping off the toner by the flicker and the toner adheres to the brush, the second flicker again impacts the brush, so that the toner is removed from the brush. Can be removed more reliably. Therefore, the second flicker can be made of metal and grounded.

As described above, according to the cleaning device of the present invention, since the rotating brush does not pass over the tip of the flicker, the brush is deformed or broken. Never. Further, since the brush and the flicker do not come into contact with each other in the vertical direction from the front and the collision energy is relieved, the toner can be prevented from being thermally fused to the brush and the flicker. Furthermore, the torque of the drive motor can be reduced based on the configuration of the present invention. Further, when the second flicker is also provided, the deformation of the brush can be corrected in a short time, the brush can be evenly contacted with the photoconductor, and the photoconductor can be reliably cleaned.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of a cleaning device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the cleaning device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the cleaning device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the cleaning device according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view showing that a cleaning device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is also used as a toner carrying device.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a cleaning device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a second flicker according to a fifth embodiment of the cleaning device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a cleaning device according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 56-138769.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a cleaning device according to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-109084.

FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing a process configuration of an electrophotographic copying machine to which the cleaning device according to the present invention is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Photoreceptor, 2 ... Charging device, 3 ... Exposure device, 4
..Developing device, 5 ... Toner, 6 ... Recording paper, 7 ...
・ Transfer device, 8 ・ ・ Fixer device, 9 ・ ・ Static discharge device, 10 ・
・ Brush, 11 ・ ・ Rotating body, 12 ・ ・ Flicker,
13 ··· Flicker tip, 14 · · Flicker tip area other than the central convex portion, 15 · · Flicker tip,
16 ・ 17 ・ ・ Coil-shaped flicker, 18 ・ ・ Auger-shaped flicker, 19 ・ ・ Shaft, 20 ・
.Toner transporting device, 21..Brush, 22, 23,
24 ··· Flicker bar, 25, 26, 27 ··· Multiple pressing plates, 28 · · Comb tooth portion, 29 · · Fur brush, 30 · · Second flicker

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A cleaning device having a rotating body, a brush provided on the rotating body and in rotary contact with a photosensitive member, and a flicker for removing toner adhering to the brush, wherein a tip of the flicker is attached to the brush. A cleaning device characterized in that it is installed so as to bite in, and the contact portion of the flicker tip portion with the brush is formed by a large number of mountain-shaped projections in the direction opposite to the rotation direction of the rotating body. 2. A cleaning device having a rotating body, a brush which is provided on the rotating body and is in rotary contact with a photosensitive member, and a flicker for removing toner adhering to the brush, wherein the flicker is formed of a wire rod or a thin plate. Cleaning device characterized by having a spiral shape. 3. A second flicker used for returning the brush spread laterally by the flicker to the original state is provided downstream of the flicker according to claim 1 or 2 in the rotation direction of the rotating body. Claim 1 characterized by the above.
And the cleaning device according to claim 2.