JPH07295433A - Facsimile device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten the first printing time in a facsimile device. CONSTITUTION:A ceramic heater 4 is disposed inside an endless fixing film 5, and the fixing film 5 is pressed to the heater 4 by a pressure roller 7 on the outside. The heater 4 is heated, and recording material 6 carrying an unfixed toner image is conveyed being clamped between the fixing film 5 and the pressure roller 7 and heated to fix the toner image. The so-called startup temperature adjustment of raising the temperature of the heater 4 into the fixable state from the off-state is performed. The temperature is regulated low to prevent unnecessary heating in a receive mode (receiving time) when urgent output is unnecessary, whereas the temperature is requlated high to shorten first printing time in a copy mode (copying time) when a user waits for the output in front of the device.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus provided with an electrophotographic process such as a laser beam printer as recording means and a thermal fixing device as fixing means.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a facsimile machine, an image (toner image) formed by using an electrophotographic process such as a laser beam printer is transferred onto a recording material, and the toner image on the recording material is thermally fixed. It is known that a recording material is fixed on a recording material by heating and pressing with a container. This heat fixing device has a heater incorporated as a heating element,
In general, it is difficult for this heater to instantly raise the temperature. Therefore, at the time of fixing the toner image, a so-called startup temperature control is performed in which the temperature of the thermal fixing device is raised from the OFF state to the fixable state.

By the way, in a facsimile machine, the toner image is fixed not only during reception in the reception / recording mode, but also during communication reception (report mode) or copy (copy mode). )
The same is done in. Further, the above-mentioned startup temperature control is usually performed by a constant method regardless of these modes.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, since the same start-up temperature control is performed during reception recording and during other recording, for example, during copying, the heat fixing device during copying does not cool. It is necessary to raise the temperature of the heater in order to shorten the time (hereinafter referred to as "first printing time") from the OFF state (at low temperature) to the time when the image is heated and fixable in response to a recording request. .

That is, in general, at the time of reception, there are few cases where the user waits for reception in front of the facsimile apparatus, and it is not necessary to shorten the first print time so much. On the other hand, when copying or outputting a communication management report, the user usually performs an operation for recording directly before the facsimile, so it is necessary to shorten the first print time and output the first sheet quickly. is there.

However, if the startup temperature control during reception is the same as the startup temperature control, if the startup temperature control is adjusted to the copy time when the startup time is short, then the reception temperature will be too high and useless heating will occur. Will be done. As a result, the heat fixing device is heated to a higher temperature, the heat resistance of the components of the apparatus becomes a problem, and the life is shortened due to thermal deformation, creep, deterioration of the slidability of the driving portion, and the like. Further, if the material of the constituent members is changed to one having high heat resistance, the cost will be increased.

On the other hand, on the contrary, if the start-up temperature control is adjusted to the temperature control at the time of reception, not at the time of copying, the heating temperature is naturally low, so that even if the user performs a copy operation, especially in winter. In the case of the first recording in the morning, since the heat fixing device is completely cold, the temperature does not rise to a temperature at which fixing is possible, so the output of the first sheet is delayed and the user is made to wait.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the thermal fixing device is
A heat-resistant fixing film 5 is nipped and conveyed between a ceramic heater 4 as a heating element and a pressure roller 7 pressed against the ceramic heater 4, and a toner image is fixed on the recording material 6 via the fixing film 5. Fuser fixing device (hereinafter "surf fixing device")
Say. If the temperature of the heater 4 is set high in order to quickly complete the startup temperature control, the slidability of the sliding surface 8 between the heater 4 and the fixing film 5 deteriorates. In order to prevent this, fluorine-based grease is applied to the sliding surface 8. Even when the grease is applied, the grease quickly dries at high temperatures, and the slidability gradually deteriorates, and finally The fixing film 5 is no longer conveyed, jams, improper fixing, damage to the fixing film 5, etc. occur, resulting in a problem that durability and reliability are deteriorated.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a facsimile apparatus which solves the above-mentioned problems.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances and has a plurality of recording modes,
The image formed on the recording material by the electrophotographic process,
In a facsimile apparatus that fixes on the recording material by a heat fixing device, a control device that changes a temperature adjusting method for changing the heat fixing device from a pre-recording state to a fixable state according to the recording mode is provided. It is characterized by

The heating of the thermal fixing device may be performed at the time of recording and may be performed only at the time of recording.

Further, the thermal fixing device includes a heating member, a heat-resistant fixing film slidable with respect to the heating member, a fixing film which is pressed against the heating member, and the fixing film. It may be provided with a pressure roller for nipping and conveying the recording material. In addition, the control device can change the heating set temperature of the heating body according to the recording mode.

[0013]

Based on the above configuration, the control device changes the temperature adjusting method according to the recording mode such as the reception recording mode and the copy mode. This makes it possible to optimally adjust the temperature according to the usage pattern of the facsimile device.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. <Embodiment 1> FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a facsimile apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a thermal fixing device, 2 is a photosensitive drum, 2A is a charging device, 2B is a developing device, and 3 is a laser scanner.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the fixing device 1. In FIG. 2, 4 is a ceramic heater (hereinafter simply referred to as “heater”) as a heating body, and 5 is a ceramic heater 4.
It is a heat-resistant fixing film as a member to be heated for fixing the toner image formed on the recording material 6 by being pressed against. The fixing film 5 is an endless member having a small heat capacity of about 60 μm. Reference numeral 7 denotes a pressure roller that presses the fixing film 5 and the recording material 6 against the heater 4. At the pressure contact portion (hereinafter referred to as “nip portion”) between the pressure roller 7 and the fixing film 5, the surface of the recording material 6 is contacted. The transferred toner image is fixed on the recording material 6. Reference numeral 8 denotes a sliding surface of the heater 4 disposed inside the fixing film 5 with respect to the inner surface of the fixing film 5. The recording material 6 is guided by the guide member 9 to be guided to the nip portion between the pressure roller 7 and the fixing film 5, and is heated by the heater 4 to fix the toner image on the recording material 6.

The temperature of the nip portion is controlled by two thermistors, a thermistor 10 provided on the back surface of the heater 4 and a thermistor 11 pressed by the pressure roller 7. The thermistor 10 detects the temperature of the heater 4, and the thermistor 1
1 detects the temperature of the pressure roller 7, and the controller (control device) 18 more accurately estimates and controls the temperature of the nip portion based on the information of these two thermistors 10 and 11.

The recording material 6 after the fixing is guided by the guide member 12 and is stacked by the paper discharge roller 13 on the paper discharge tray 14 outside the apparatus main body.

When the facsimile apparatus receives data, the reception mode is set. The received data passes through the line 15 shown in FIG. Is stored in the memory 19. When the memory for one page is stored, the heater 4 is heated from the OFF state of the thermal fixing device 1 to prepare for recording. In this case, since it is not necessary to particularly shorten the first printing time as described above, the heater 4 is heated at a relatively low temperature of 200 ° C. and waits for the temperature of the pressure roller 7 to reach 100 ° C. When the temperature of the pressure roller 7 reaches 100 ° C, the thermistor 1
When 1 is detected, the CPU determines that fixing is possible and notifies the controller 18 that fixing is possible. afterwards,
The laser scanner 3 irradiates the photosensitive drum 2 with laser light in accordance with the data, and a latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 2 which has been uniformly charged in advance by the charger 2A. Toner is attached to the latent image by the developing device 2B to form a toner image. On the other hand, the recording material 6 is conveyed from the paper feed cassette 6A onto the photosensitive drum 2, and the transfer roller 2
After the toner image on the photosensitive drum 2 is transferred by 0, the toner image is conveyed to the above-mentioned thermal fixing device 1. The fixing operation of the toner image by the thermal fixing device 1 is as described above.

Next, when the facsimile apparatus is used as a copy, the user places the original 21 in the original conveying section 23.
When the copy button (not shown) is pressed, the copy mode is set, the document 21 is conveyed, and the image information of the document 21 is read by the contact sensor 22 as a reading unit and stored in the memory 19.

When the memory for one page is accumulated, the thermal fixing device 1 in the OFF state is
It is heated by the ceramic heater 4. However, in this case, unlike the time of reception, the user is waiting for the output of a copy in front of the facsimile apparatus, so that the time during which fixing is possible, that is, the first print time must be shortened. Therefore, when receiving the heater
The temperature is set to 230 ° C rather than 00 ° C. In this state, the pressure roller 7 waits for the temperature to reach 100 ° C., and when the thermistor 11 detects 100 ° C., fixing is possible, and recording is started in the same manner as when receiving.

However, in this case, since the temperature of the ceramic heater 4 is raised to 230 ° C., the time required for the pressure roller 7 to reach 100 ° C. is faster than the time of 200 ° C. at the time of reception, and the first print time is shortened. .

Generally, the temperature of the heater 4 reaches the target temperature in a few seconds because the heat capacity is small, but the temperature of the nip portion, which is the actual fixing surface, is greatly affected by the temperature of the pressure roller 7. Therefore, it is not possible to determine whether or not the temperature at which the nip portion can be fixed is reached based on only the temperature of the heater 4. Therefore, in the present embodiment, as described above, the temperature of the pressure roller 7 is applied by the thermistor 11. Pressure roller 7
It is determined that fixing is possible by measuring the temperature.

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of this embodiment. To briefly explain this, first, it is determined whether it is received or copied (S1). In the case of reception (S2), the temperature of the heater 4 is controlled to 200 ° C. (S3), and the pressure roller 7 is set to 10
When the temperature exceeds 0 ° C. (S4), it is determined that fixing is possible (S5), and recording is started (S6). On the other hand, in the case of copying (S7), the temperature of the heater 4 is controlled to 230 ° C (S7).
8) When the temperature of the pressure roller 7 becomes 100 ° C. or higher (S9), it is determined that fixing is possible (S5), and recording is started (S6) as in the case of reception.

Further, the control after fixing is possible, for example, the control in the case of continuously receiving or copying is performed by the same control for reception and copying, and the heater 4 and the pressure roller 7 are controlled. Are detected by the thermistors 10 and 11, respectively, and temperature control is performed so that the temperature of the nip portion becomes constant based on the detection result.

In a facsimile apparatus, the number of output sheets as a copy is generally smaller than the number of output sheets at the time of reception. Therefore, even if the heater temperature is set to a high value during copy output, there is almost no problem in terms of durability. <Embodiment 2> In Embodiment 1 described above, the copy mode was described as a mode other than the reception mode of the facsimile apparatus, but not limited to the copy mode, the report mode (when outputting the communication management report) or the memory mode (when outputting the memory). ) And the like, the same control as in the copy mode, that is, the temperature of the heater 4 is set to be high to reduce the first print time. That is, the first print time is shortened only when the user waits for recording output in front of the facsimile machine and needs recording output as soon as possible (copy, report, memory modes).
Especially in the reception mode where it is not necessary to rush the recording output,
The temperature of the heater 4 is set low. <Embodiment 3> In Embodiment 1, the heater 4 is controlled to 230 ° C. at the time of copying, no matter how many times the temperature of the pressure roller 7 is initially, for example, immediately after reception output,
When making a copy, the pressure roller 7 is originally warmed, and the first print time is not required. Therefore, the startup temperature of the heater 4 is not uniquely set to 230 ° C., but the startup temperature of the heater 4 is changed stepwise according to the temperature of the pressure roller 7 during startup. Good.

In this case, since the number of cases in which the heater 4 is controlled at a high temperature of 230 ° C. is reduced, the durability and reliability of the heater 4, the fixing film 5, and other components can be further improved. <Embodiment 4> In Embodiment 1, it is determined that fixing is possible by the thermistor 10 of the heater 4 and the thermistor 11 of the pressure roller 7.
However, it is also possible to use the thermistor 10 on the heater 4 side and the timer provided on the CPU instead of using the thermistor on the pressure roller 11 side.

For example, the heating of the heater 4 is performed at 200 ° C. for 30 seconds at the time of reception, while at 230 ° C. for 15 seconds at the time of copying, and when these heatings are completed, it is determined that fixing is possible and recording is started. May be.

For the heating time of 30 seconds and 15 seconds, the temperature of the heater 4 before heating is set to the thermistor 10.
Alternatively, the number of seconds may be changed according to the degree of cooling. For example, if the thermistor 10 before heating detects 50 ° C even at the same reception, 200 ° C
15 seconds for 10 seconds, the same 200 ℃ for 30 seconds
Seconds.

According to this embodiment, the thermal stability of the nip temperature of the heat fixing device 1 becomes slightly unstable when fixing is possible, but the thermistor 11 on the pressure roller 7 side is positively activated. Since it can be omitted, there is an effect that the entire configuration of the thermal fixing device 1 can be simplified. <Embodiment 5> In Embodiments 1 to 4, the thermal fixing device 1 is used.
As a so-called surf-fixer, which uses the ceramic heater 4 and heats the recording material 6 through the fixing film 5, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and is a halogen heater (heating body). And aluminum drum (fixing roller)
Similarly, it is also effective for the conventional fixing device using.

In particular, in a thin-wall fixing device in which the wall pressure of the aluminum drum is thinned and the start-up speed is increased, it is more effective because the heater heats the aluminum drum faster.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Depending on a plurality of recording modes (reception mode, copy mode, etc.), the optimum startup temperature control for each mode is performed. For example, by setting the startup temperature low in the reception mode and high in the copy mode, the former In the reception mode, although the first print time is somewhat delayed, unnecessary heating can be prevented and the durability and reliability of the facsimile apparatus can be improved. On the other hand, in the latter copy mode, the first print time can be shortened and the user waiting time can be shortened. Since the copy mode in which the startup time is set to a high temperature is generally used less frequently than the reception mode, there is almost no risk of impairing the durability and reliability of the device.

The above-described effect of reducing the first print time is great in the fixing device in which the heating element (heater) is turned off except during recording.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a facsimile apparatus according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the thermal fixing device according to the first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the heat fixing device of the facsimile apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Thermal Fixing Device 2 Photosensitive Drum 2A Charging Device 2B Developing Device 3 Laser Scanner 4 Heating Body (Ceramic Heater) 5 Fixing Film 6 Recording Material 7 Pressure Roller 8 Sliding Surface between Fixing Film and Heater 10, 11 Thermistor 13 Paper Ejection Roller 18 Control device (controller) 20 Transfer roller

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A facsimile apparatus having a plurality of recording modes, wherein an image formed on a recording material by an electrophotographic process is fixed on the recording material by a heat fixing device, wherein the heat fixing device is in a state before recording. A facsimile apparatus, comprising: a control device for changing a temperature adjusting method for changing from a fixing state to a fixing state according to the recording mode. 2. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heating of the thermal fixing device is performed during recording and is not performed except during recording. 3. The thermal fixing device is provided between a heating body, a heat-resistant fixing film slidable with respect to the heating body, and the fixing film when the fixing film is pressed against the heating body. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a pressure roller configured to nip and convey the recording material. 4. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control device changes a heating set temperature of the heating body according to the recording mode.