JPH0736327A - Image forming material removing device from image holding body by use of adhesive unstabilizing solution, and image holding body processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a transfer paper regenerating device capable of supplying a prescribed processing solution to remove a toner from a transfer paper without damaging the paper fiber, and drying the transfer paper from which the toner is removed without corrugating it. CONSTITUTION:A drying unit for supplying a prescribed processing solution to unstabilize the adhered state of toner to a transfer paper, and removing the processing solution from the transfer paper released by the adhesion of the toner on the release roller side has a pair of belts 438, 424 driven in such a manner as to be traveled in parallel to each other in the state where the transfer paper is nipped by the mutual surfaces over a prescribed area. The belt 438 situated above in the nipping area is formed of an air permeable material, and the belt 424 situated below is formed of, for example, a metal material having good heat conductivity. A face heater 425 for heating the transfer paper carried in the nipping area is provided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method in which an image forming material such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, a printer, a printing machine, or the like is stably attached to an image forming body, and then the image forming material is adhered to the image forming body. The present invention relates to an image carrier processing device such as a device for removing an image forming substance from an image carrier by applying an instability destabilizing liquid to the image carrier to remove the image forming substance.
The present invention relates to an image carrier processing apparatus capable of removing at least a part of the liquid impregnated in the image carrier without generating wrinkles on the image carrier, and an apparatus for removing an image forming substance from the image carrier.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are known various image forming substance removing methods and devices for removing an image forming substance such as toner from a sheet as a recorded image carrier. For example, as one using a solvent, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-10
In Japanese Patent No. 1576, a sheet on which toner is attached is immersed in a soluble solvent of a toner resin and ultrasonic vibration is applied to the sheet.
A method for removing an image-forming substance is disclosed in which the toner dissolved in a solvent is released from the paper surface. In addition, JP-A-4-3003
In Japanese Patent Publication No. 95, a solvent is attached to a printed portion of waste paper by a method such as dipping, spraying or coating to dissolve the toner,
An image forming substance removing method is disclosed in which the dissolved toner is removed by a method such as washing, air suction, contact with an adsorbent, mechanical peeling or electrostatic adsorption, and then paper finishing such as drying and stretching is performed.

On the other hand, as one not using a solvent, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-255195, a heat-meltable ink or a heat-meltable ink placed on a printed material coated with a release agent on a support by an electrophotographic method or a thermal transfer method is used. A method for removing an image forming substance in which toner is adhered to the ink peeling body and removed by stacking the ink peeling body on the printed body and passing the toner between the heating roller and the pressure roller and cooling the peeled ink peeling body. Is disclosed. Further, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 4-64472, at least an endless sheet having a heat-melting resin on the surface, a heat roller and a cooling roller for supporting and rotating the endless sheet, and a paper having a release treatment on its surface (erasable paper) There is disclosed an eraser including a pressing roller that presses against a softened or melted heat-melting resin, and a drive unit that moves these in conjunction with each other. In addition, JP-A-4-829
In Japanese Patent Publication No. 83, 83, two rollers provided in parallel to rotate in pressure contact with each other to pass the paper through the pressure contact point, a heater for heating at least one of the two rollers, and a roller passing through the pressure contact point A scraper for separating the paper from the roller,
An image forming substance removing device is disclosed, which comprises a peeling device that removes the image forming substance attached to the roller from the roller.

By the way, when the above-mentioned solvent-free method and apparatus are used to remove an image-forming substance from a recorded image carrier on which an image is recorded on an ordinary paper having paper fibers exposed on the surface, for example, Since the image-forming substance is firmly fixed to the fibers on the surface of the image-holding member by fusing the image-forming substance containing a heat-meltable resin as a main component to the image-holding member in the fixing step of the electrophotographic method, When the image-forming substance is removed, the paper fibers on the surface are peeled off together with the image-forming substance and the paper quality is damaged.
In particular, in order to improve the removability of the image-forming substance, when heat or pressure is applied to the above-mentioned ink peeling body, endless sheet or roller, depending on various conditions, the space between the image-forming substance and the image carrier may be reversed. In some cases, the fixability of the above is increased, which makes removal difficult.

Therefore, the present applicant has previously proposed that the recorded image carrier contains water as a destabilizing agent, an aqueous solution containing a surfactant, an aqueous solution containing a water-soluble polymer, and a surfactant and a water-soluble polymer. Containing at least one kind of water or aqueous solution selected from the group consisting of aqueous solutions containing, and interposing a peeling member, heat-bonding or pressure-bonding the image-forming substance to the peeling member to peel it from the image carrier. An image forming substance removing method has been proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Application No. 4-255).
916). According to this, only the image-forming substance can be removed without relatively damaging the paper quality of the image carrier.

[0006]

In the configuration proposed above, when the image carrier immediately after the image-forming substance is removed is still impregnated with the liquid, for example, in image formation in an electrophotographic copying machine or the like. It causes trouble. Therefore, it is desirable to perform a post-treatment for removing the liquid from the image carrier. However, when the liquid is vaporized by applying heat to the image carrier to remove the liquid, wrinkles or waviness may occur. It should be noted that such wrinkles and waviness may occur in the finishing of the paper after the toner removal using the solvent.

Further, the present applicant has selected an unused image carrier selected from the group consisting of an aqueous solution containing a surfactant, an aqueous solution containing a water-soluble polymer, and an aqueous solution containing a surfactant and a water-soluble polymer. It was proposed to retain at least one kind of water or an aqueous solution, and then to dry it (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application No. 4-255915). The image carrier subjected to this treatment is used for normal image formation, and thereafter, the image forming substance is removed by the above-mentioned image forming substance removing method and is reused. Wrinkles and waviness may also occur during the above-mentioned drying process for manufacturing such an image carrier.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to prevent wrinkles and waviness from being generated on an image carrier after applying a predetermined treatment liquid to the image carrier. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming substance removing device from an image holding member and an image holding member processing device capable of removing an excess liquid component.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 is an image in which at least a part is made of a liquid-impregnable material and an image-forming substance is stably attached to the surface thereof. A destabilizing liquid applying means for applying a destabilizing liquid that makes the adhesion of the surface and the image-forming substance unstable to the support, and an image-forming substance whose adhesion to the surface is unstable, From an image carrier provided with an image forming substance removing means for removing from the surface and a destabilizing liquid removing means for removing at least a part of the destabilizing liquid impregnated in the image holding body after the image forming substance is removed. In the image-forming substance removing device, the destabilizing liquid removing means is a pair of belts that are driven so as to be capable of running side by side with their surfaces holding the image carrier across a predetermined region, The belt located above in the area is made of a material with good air permeability It is characterized in that it has.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image forming substance removing device from the image carrier according to the first aspect, the curvature forming means for giving a curvature to a portion of the pair of belts in the holding region is provided. It is characterized by that.

The invention of claim 3 is the same as claim 1 or 2.
In the apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from the image carrier, the belt located below in the holding region of the pair of belts is formed of a member having good thermal conductivity, and is located below the holding region. It is characterized in that a means for promoting vaporization of the destabilizing liquid using heat is arranged in the above.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming substance removing device from the image holding member according to the first aspect, the holding region is set so that the entire image holding member can be held by the pair of belts. Based on the detection result of the image destabilizing means, the vaporization promoting means of the vapor destabilizing liquid using heat, the image carrying body detecting means arranged upstream of the holding region in the image carrying body conveying direction. Then, an operation control means of the vaporization promoting means for operating the vaporization promoting means is provided at a timing when the entire image holding member is located in the holding region.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a treatment liquid application unit for applying a predetermined treatment liquid to the image carrier made of a material at least a part of which can be impregnated with the liquid, and the treatment liquid applied by the treatment liquid application unit. In an image carrier processing apparatus including a liquid removing unit that removes an unnecessary liquid component from an applied image carrier, a state in which the liquid removing unit holds the image carrier across a predetermined area of each other. A pair of belts that are driven so as to be able to run in parallel with each other, wherein the belt located above in the holding region is formed of a member having good air permeability.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, in the image carrier processing apparatus for removing at least a part of the liquid from the liquid-impregnated image carrier, the surface of the image carrier is spread over a predetermined area. A pair of belts, which are driven so as to be able to run side by side in a state of being held, in which the belt located above in the holding area is formed of a member having good air permeability, and the pair of belts is impregnated with liquid. It is characterized in that the liquid is vaporized in a state where the image holder is held.

[0015]

In the present invention, the image carrier impregnated with the liquid is
Remove excess liquid while holding it with a pair of belts.
At this time, since the belt located above in the holding region is formed of a member having good air permeability, the vapor of the excess liquid component can be separated from the image carrier through the belt. At least partial contraction of the image carrier occurs during this liquid evaporation, but since the image carrier is in a state of being held by a pair of belts, it has a free shape, that is, a shape that partially swells in the thickness direction and causes waviness. Contraction is regulated.

[0016]

EXAMPLE First, the present invention removes toner which is a heat-melting toner (hereinafter referred to as toner) as an image forming substance from a transfer paper as an image carrier on which an image is formed by a transfer type electrophotographic copying machine. An example applied to a drying unit in the apparatus will be described. FIG. 1 shows an example of a toner removing device to which the present invention can be applied. In FIG. 1, the toner removing device includes a paper feeding unit 1 for separating and feeding the transfer papers 10 on which toner images are formed, which are accommodated in a stacked state, and a transfer unit 1 for transferring. A liquid application unit 2 that supplies liquid to the paper 10, a toner peeling unit 3 that removes toner from the transfer paper 10 that has been supplied with liquid, a drying unit 4 that dries the toner-free transfer paper 10, and a drying unit. 4 and a paper receiving unit 5 for receiving the transfer paper 10 discharged from the paper 4.
The toner removing device applies a destabilizing liquid (hereinafter, referred to as a processing liquid) 20 to the transfer paper 10 by the liquid applying unit 2 to destabilize the adhesion state of the transfer paper 10 and the toner, The toner is peeled from the transfer paper 10 by the peeling roller 302 of the toner peeling unit 3 in a state where the treatment liquid 20 permeates at least the interface between the transfer paper 10 and the toner to make the adhesion between the toner and the transfer paper 10 unstable. After that, the transfer paper is dried by the drying unit 4 so that it can be reused.

Here, as the treatment liquid 20, water, an aqueous solution containing a water-soluble polymer, an aqueous solution containing a surfactant,
At least one kind of water or an aqueous solution selected from the group consisting of an aqueous solution containing a water-soluble polymer and a surfactant can be used. Further, the water or the aqueous solution may contain a predetermined organic solvent. Moreover, as the processing liquid 20, only an organic solvent can be used.

Examples of the water-soluble polymer include starchy substances (branch starch, potato starch, tapioca starch, wheat starch, corn starch, etc.),
Mannan (konjac, etc.), seaweed (Funori, agar, sodium alginate, etc.), plant mucilage (troloois,
Gum tragacanth, gum arabic, etc.), mucilage by microorganisms (dextran, levan, etc.), protein (glue,
Gelatin, casein, collagen, etc.) natural polymers, cellulose-based (viscose, methylcellulose, ethylcellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, carboxymethylcellulose, etc.), starch-based (soluble starch, carboxymethyl starch, dialdehyde starch) semi-synthetic polymers, Examples thereof include synthetic polymers, but are not limited thereto.

Further, as the above-mentioned surfactant, for example,
Anionic (carboxylic acid salt, sulfonate, sulfuric acid ester salt, phosphoric acid ester salt, phosphonate, etc.), cationic (amine salt, quaternary ammonium salt, benzalkonium salt, verzethonium chloride salt, pinidinium salt, Imidazolinium salt, sulfonium salt, polyethylene polyamine, etc.), amphoteric system (amino acid, carboxybetaine, sulfobetaine, aminosulfate, aminocarboxylate, imidazoline derivative, etc.), nonionic (ether type, ether ester type, ester) Type, nitrogen-containing type, polyhydric alcohol, aminoalcohol, polyethylene glycol, etc.) and fluorochemical surfactants, but not limited thereto.

As the organic solvent contained in the water or the aqueous solution, turpentine, dipentene, butyl acetate, carbon tetrachloride, cellosolve acetate, xylene, toluene, ethyl acetate, diacetone alcohol, methyl cellosolve acetate, benzene, methyl ethyl ketone, Examples thereof include, but are not limited to, methyl acetate, methylene chloride, ethylene dichloride, cyclohexane, cellosolve, dioxane, acetone, methyl cellosolve, cyclohexanol, butanol and the like.

As the organic solvent used alone, carbon-hydrogen solvents such as hexane, heptane, octane, nonane, spirit, naphtha N01-6 (trade name of Shell Petroleum Co.), Isopar E, L, K, V (trade name of Exxon), IP Solvent (trade name of Idemitsu Oil Co., Ltd.), Shell-sol 70, 71, Solvesso 100,
150 (trade name of Shell Oil), Ascom OMS,
460 (trade name of Spirits), Vegasol 103
0,2130,3040 (trade name of Mobil Oil Co., Ltd.) and the like. Further, Fluorinert FC40, 43, 70, 77 (trade name of Sumitomo 3M), which is a fluorine-based solvent,
Aflude E10, 16, 18, etc., Shin-Etsu Silicone KF96 (trade name) which is a silicone solvent, Toray Silicone SH200, 344 (trade name), Toshiba Silicone T
SF431 (trade name) and the like are included, but the invention is not limited thereto.

Next, the units 1, 2, 3 of the illustrated example
4, 5 will be described. The sheet feeding unit 1 feeds the transfer sheets 10 stacked on the bottom plate 101 from the uppermost one by the sheet feeding roller 102, separates the double feeding by a separating mechanism (not shown), and forms one sheet of the transfer sheet 10. Only the registration roller pair 104 for timing adjustment and skew correction is sent out. The specific configuration and operation are the same as those of the paper feeding mechanism in the electrophotographic copying machine, and therefore detailed description will be omitted.

The liquid applying unit 2 contacts the liquid container 201 filled with a predetermined amount of the processing liquid 20 and one surface (the upper surface in the drawing) of the transfer paper 10 while the processing liquid 20 in the liquid container 201 is being contacted.
The submerged conveying roller 202 that conveys the medium to guide the inside, the driving unit (not shown) of the submerged conveying roller 202, and the other surface (the lower surface in the drawing) of the transfer paper 10 into the processing liquid 20 of the liquid container 201. A submerged guide plate 203 for guiding, a pair of squeezing rollers 204 also functioning as a holding and conveying means, a squeezing rod 205 that is arranged to bite into the lower squeezing roller 204, and the like are provided.
In this unit 2, the transfer paper 10 fed from the paper feeding unit 1 is guided into the treatment liquid 20 in the liquid container 201 by the submerged conveying roller 202 and the submerged guide plate 203, and immersed in the treatment liquid 20. After being squeezed, the squeezing roller pair 204
The excess processing liquid 20 is removed by the above and is conveyed to the next toner peeling unit 3. Instead of directly passing the transfer paper 10 through the treatment liquid to apply the treatment liquid to the transfer paper 10 as in this example, the treatment liquid is applied to the surface of the transfer paper 10 by an application roller or transferred by a sprayer. The atomized treatment liquid may be attached or applied to the surface of the paper 10. Any other method can be used.

The toner peeling unit 3 includes a heating lamp 301 as a means for softening the toner T, and a pair of peeling rollers 302 as a pair of peeling members arranged in pressure contact with each other, in the vicinity of the pressure contact portion on the transfer paper discharge side. Separation claw 30 arranged so as to contact the surface of the peeling roller 302 of
3, a cleaning device 304 for cleaning the surface of the peeling roller 302, a drive unit (not shown), and the like.

The surface of the peeling roller 302 is made of a material having an adhesive force greater than that of the transfer paper 10 and the toner to at least the softened toner. Specifically, the same or similar toner component resin as the above toner, component resin of an adhesive, or the like can be used,
In addition, aluminum-based, copper-based, nickel-based, and other metal materials can be used, but are not limited thereto. The resin may be water-soluble or water-insoluble.

Examples of the toner component resin include, but are not limited to, polystyrene resin, acrylic resin, methacrylic resin, styrene-butyl acrylic copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, polyester resin, and epoxy resin. Not a thing.

As the component resin of the adhesive, protein adhesives such as glue, gelatin, albumin, and casein, and carbohydrate-based adhesives such as starch-based, cellulose-based, complex polysaccharide-based (arabic gum, tragacanth gum, etc.) Agents, vinyl acetate polymers and copolymers, acrylics,
Heat-soluble adhesives such as ethylene copolymers, polyamides, polyesters, polyurethanes, polychloroprene-based, nitrile rubber-based, recycled rubber-based, SBR-based, rubber-based adhesives such as natural rubber-based, rubber-based, acrylic-based, etc. Polyethylene terephthalate (PE) with pressure-sensitive adhesive and titanium oxide dispersed
T), etc., but not limited thereto.

When the above resin is used, it is desirable to have a multi-layer structure of at least two layers of a support and a surface layer from the viewpoints of preventing elongation due to tension and heat and durability. That is, when the peeling body is formed into a roller shape as in the illustrated example, it is desirable to form a peeling body by forming a surface layer made of the above resin on a roller-shaped base, for example, a rubber roller. In addition, the peeling body may be configured in a belt shape or a cut sheet shape. In any case, as a support for directly supporting the resin, a tape such as cellophane tape, kraft paper adhesive tape, polyvinyl chloride tape, acetone tape, or filament reinforcing tape can be used.

Further, the heating lamp 301 of the upper and lower peeling rollers 302 closely adheres to the front and back of the transfer paper 10 to heat and soften the toner adhered to the transfer paper 10, whereby the toner is softened.
The toner is easily separated from the fibers of the transfer paper 10. It is desirable to perform this heating to such an extent that the toner on the transfer paper 10 does not melt at the pressure contact portion. This is because if the toner melts, it will be difficult to transfer the toner on the transfer paper 10 to the peeling roller 302 side without dividing the toner between the paper side and the peeling roller 302 side. If it is heated too much, the transfer paper 1 is transferred while passing through the pressure contact portion of the pair of peeling rollers 302.
0 is too dry, and the fixing force of the toner to the transfer paper 10 is stronger than that when the transfer paper 10 is wet, and the transfer paper 10 is attached to the roller 302 through the toner and is separated by the separation claw 303. There is a risk that they will not be separated. Therefore,
It is desirable to heat the transfer paper 10 after passing through the heating unit to such an extent that a little damp air remains and the re-adhesion of the toner can be prevented.

The cleaning device 304 removes the toner T on the surface of the peeling roller 302, the scraper blade 306 that scrapes off the toner T on the cleaning roller 305, and the toner T scraped off by the scraper blade 306. A toner receiver (toner container) 307 for containing the toner is provided. (Hereafter, margin)

At least the surface of the cleaning roller 305 has the toner T adhering to the peeling roller 302.
Of the peeling roller 302 is inferior in releasability to the toner. Specific examples of the material include, but are not limited to, aluminum-based, copper-based, nickel-based metal materials, and polymer materials such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in which titanium oxide is dispersed. is not.

The drying unit 4 is for drying the transfer paper 10, and is composed of an upper drying roller 402 made of, for example, aluminum and having a heating lamp 401, and a lower drying roller 404 pressed against the upper drying roller 402. . The lower drying roller 404 is provided with a surface layer made of a liquid-supplying member, and a diaphragm blade 405 for squeezing the liquid on the surface layer is in contact therewith. In the drying unit 4 including the pair of drying rollers 402 and 404 as described above, wrinkles and corrugations are likely to occur on the transfer paper that has been dried by passing through the pressure contact portion of the pair of rollers 402 and 404. The drying unit 4 according to the present embodiment for solving such a problem will be described in detail later.

The paper receiving unit 5 has a paper discharge tray 501 for receiving the transfer paper discharged from the drying unit 4.

In the above-mentioned structure, the transfer paper 10 sent from the paper feeding unit 1 is uniformly supplied with the liquid on the toner image surface by the liquid applying unit 2, and is sent to the toner peeling unit 3. In the toner peeling unit 3, the toner adhered to the paper is softened by heating from the peeling roller 302 and adheres to the surface of the peeling roller 302. When the paper is separated from the peeling roller 302 around the small-diameter roller 43, the toner adhering to the surface of the peeling roller 302 is peeled from the paper, whereby the toner is removed from the paper. The paper from which the toner has been removed is dried by the drying unit 4 and discharged to the paper receiving unit 5.

As described above, according to this toner removing device, since the liquid is supplied to the paper on which the toner adheres and the liquid is permeated into the interface between the paper and the toner, the toner is peeled off, so that the paper fiber is damaged. Without, the toner can be removed.

Further, the surface of the peeling roller 302 is contacted with the peeling roller 302 while the surface of the paper is wet and heated to such an extent that the paper can be kept wet even when the paper is separated from the peeling roller 302. Even when it is made of an adhesive material, it is possible to prevent the paper surface itself from adhering to the surface of the peeling roller 302 to cause separation failure, and the separated paper portion re-contacts with the peeling roller 302 to re-use the toner. Can prevent metastasis.

In this toner removing device, the transfer paper 10 is held by the two peeling rollers 302 to remove the toner from both sides of the transfer paper 10. Therefore, the toner is removed from the bottom plate 101 of the paper feeding unit 1. It is not necessary to consider the front and back sides when setting the transfer paper 10 to be removed. Further, when it is desired to remove the toner on both sides of the transfer paper used on both sides, it is only necessary to pass the inside of the apparatus once.

Next, the drying unit 4 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The drying unit of this embodiment shown in FIG. 2A is provided with a pair of belts 438 and 424 which are provided so as to run in parallel over a predetermined area in a state where the transfer sheets are held by their surfaces. Specifically, the belt 424 located below is stretched over the discharge side support roller 422 (which is a drive roller) and the carry-in side support roller 423 provided at substantially the same height, and in the middle of the upward movement part. Are backed up by the backup roller 439. On the other hand, the belt 438 located above is a discharge side support roller 435 facing the discharge side support roller 422 of the lower belt 424 and the backup roller 43.
9 is wound around the carrying-in side supporting roller 436 and the pulling-up supporting roller 437 located upstream of the carrying-in side supporting roller in the transfer paper entrance direction and above the supporting rollers 435 and 436.

Supporting roller 43 for loading side of upper belt 438
6 and the backup roller 439 from the facing portion, the discharge side support roller pair 422, 435 of both belts 424, 438.
The area up to the facing portion is a holding area where the belts 424 and 438 run side by side in a contact state and the transfer paper can be held and conveyed between the belt surfaces. The lower belt 424 of the belt 438 is made of a material having good thermal conductivity, for example, a metal material, and heats the lower belt 424 portion in the holding area in the space surrounded by the lower belt 424. The planar heater 425 is disposed at a position where it can be moved.
On the other hand, the upper belt 438 is made of a breathable material, for example, a non-woven fabric, a cloth, a net-structured material, or the like, and the suction fan 441 is used so that the inner space surrounded by the upper belt 438 can be a negative pressure space.
Are connected. Further, the upper air is prevented from flowing into the upper belt enclosing space through the upper moving portion of the upper belt, and the suction force of the suction fan 441 prevents the vapor from the transfer paper in the holding area. A cover 442 is provided to cover an upper moving portion of the upper belt 438 so that the upper belt 438 can be efficiently used for suction. The arrow in the figure shows the air flow by the suction of the suction fan 441.

Then, for example, an infrared heater 440 for preheating the transfer paper is provided in the wedge-shaped facing space on the carry-in side of both belts 424 and 438, and the surrounding space of the upper belt 438 is used to detect the dryness of the transfer paper. A temperature / humidity sensor 434 is provided. Also, the belt is 42
Discharge side support rollers 435 and 422 of the respective 4,439
A separation claw 430.431 that is spung-biased is provided so as to come into contact with the winding portion of the. In addition, a paper detection sensor 950 that detects, for example, the trailing edge of the transfer paper is provided at a predetermined position on the upstream side in the transfer conveyance direction with respect to the nipping area of the belts 438 and 424, and a signal from this is provided to the drive motor of the belt 424. It is input to the control unit 953 that controls the 951 driving circuit 952.

In the above structure, when the sheet heater 435 is operated, the transfer paper in the sandwiched area is heated via the heat conductive lower belt 424, and the liquid content of the processing liquid contained therein is evaporated. To do. This steam is a suction fan 441.
Rises through the breathable belt 443 with suction by
It is discharged to the outside. Further, if the suction fan 441 is operated, the suction fan 441 is heated by the heater 440 for preheating the transfer paper, which is disposed in the wedge-shaped facing space on the carry-in side of both the belts 424 and 438, as shown in the drawing, and is in front of the holding area. The vapor evaporated from the transfer paper is also sucked into the upper belt surrounding space through the upper belt 438 portion between the carry-in side support roller 436 and the pull-up support roller 437, and is discharged to the outside. As a result, the processing liquid is evaporated from the transfer paper conveyed to the holding area by the sheet heater 425 or the like, and the transfer paper is dried to a desired humidity.

The planar heater 425 can be controlled so as to start its operation at the timing when it reaches the holding area, based on the signal from the paper detection sensor 950. Of course, the heater 440 for preheating is started to operate at a timing before this. In addition, the sheet heater 4
25 and the area of the gripping area corresponding to the maximum size of the transfer paper to be dried, and preferably set to a size larger than the maximum size, when the entire transfer paper enters the gripping area. Then, the operation of the sheet heater 425 may be started, or the preheating state of relatively weak heat generation until then may be switched to the required amount of heat generation state. According to this, since the entire surface of the transfer paper receives a uniform amount of heat, it is possible to prevent generation of wrinkles due to uneven heating. in this case,
It is more desirable to stop the driving of both belts 424 and perform the drying in a state where the transfer paper is stopped in the holding area.
The detection at the time when the entire transfer paper enters the holding area is obtained in advance by, for example, the time required from the trailing edge of the transfer paper passing through the paper detection sensor installation position until the entire transfer paper is inside the holding area. In advance, it can be detected depending on whether or not the required time has elapsed from the paper trailing edge detection of the sensor 950.

As described above, according to the drying unit of this embodiment,
Since the transfer paper is dried while being sandwiched between the belts 424 and 438, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of wrinkles during the drying. Further, since the upper belt 438 is formed of a breathable material, the vapor from the transfer paper rises through this,
You can move away from the transfer paper smoothly. Since the lower belt 424 is made of a heat conductive material, the heat from the heat source can be satisfactorily transferred to the transfer paper. In particular, when the heat source is arranged below the portion of the lower belt 424 in the holding region, the transfer paper can be efficiently heated via the lower belt 424. In addition, since the breathable belt is located above in the sandwiching area, even when a non-breathable belt is used as the heat conductive belt, the belt can prevent vapor from escaping upward from the transfer paper in the sandwiching area. There is no hindrance. Further, the output of the temperature / humidity sensor 434 may be used to control the driving linear velocity of both belts 424 and 438, or to display a warning or stop the apparatus when the drying is insufficient.

Then, as shown in FIG. 2 (b), if the sheet heater 425 is formed in a curved shape such that both belt portions in the holding region are pushed to one side, the transfer paper between the two belts has a curved shape. By pressing the transfer paper against the heater 425, it is possible to more effectively prevent the transfer paper from wavy after drying. Note that in FIG. 2B, a so-called curvature separation is performed, in which of the support rollers 442, 443, 423 of the lower belt 424, the discharge-side support roller 442 is separated from the belt 424 by the waist of the dried transfer paper. The diameter is set as small as possible. For this reason, the separation claw is unnecessary. 2A and 2B, the lower belt 424 is extended to, for example, the peeling unit 3 in the toner removing apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and the lower belt 424 holds the transfer paper. You may make it contact with the peeling roller 302 by. Also in this case, if the surface of the belt 424 itself is formed of a material that is more likely to adhere to the softened toner than the surface of the transfer paper as in the case of the peeling roller 302, the belt 424 itself can be used as a peeling body to transfer the transfer paper. The toner on both sides can be peeled off at the same time. Further, the drying unit according to the present embodiment is incorporated as a unit in the toner removing device, but the present invention is a toner removing device in which the drying unit is omitted or only the drying unit having insufficient drying performance is provided. It is also possible to apply the present invention to a single drying device for drying a transfer paper which is not usable in a transfer type electrophotographic copying machine or the like because the toner is removed by using the above method, and excessive wetness still remains. Further, it can be used not only in a toner removing device but also in a drying unit that is incorporated in a device that applies a predetermined treatment liquid to a transfer paper, or in a single drying device that dries the transfer paper that has excessive wetness discharged from such a device. ,
It can also be applied.

[0045]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, an image holding member impregnated with a liquid is vaporized with excess liquid in a state of being held by a pair of belts and allowed to escape through the belt above in the holding region. Therefore, there is an excellent effect that it is possible to provide an apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier, which can remove an excess liquid content without generating waviness and wrinkles of the image carrier.

In particular, according to the second aspect of the present invention, since the curvature forming means is provided and the portions of the pair of belts within the holding region have a curvature, it is possible to suppress wrinkles and waviness better.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, of the pair of belts, the belt located below the sandwiching region is formed of a member having good thermal conductivity, and is located below the sandwiching region. Since the means for promoting vaporization of the destabilizing liquid using heat is arranged, the heat from the vaporization promoting means is supplied to the image carrier in the holding area via the thermally conductive belt, and the excess liquid is efficiently added. Can be removed.

Further, according to the invention of claim 4, the holding region is set so that the entire image holding member can be held by the pair of belts, and based on the detection result of the predetermined image holding member detecting means. The vaporization promoting means of the vapor destabilizing liquid using heat is actuated at the timing when the entire image carrier is located in the holding region, and thereby uniform heat is applied to the entire image carrier in the belt surface direction. be able to. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the generation of wrinkles due to the partial variation in the heat amount.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the image holding member impregnated with the liquid can be vaporized with excess liquid in a state of being held by the pair of belts and allowed to escape through the belt above in the holding region. Therefore, there is an excellent effect that it is possible to provide an image carrier processing apparatus capable of removing an excessive liquid content without generating waviness and wrinkles of the image carrier.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, since the excess liquid can be vaporized while being held by the pair of belts and allowed to escape through the upper belts in the holding area, the waviness of the image carrier and It is possible to provide an image carrier processing apparatus for removing at least a part of a liquid from an image carrier impregnated with a liquid, which can remove an excess liquid content without generating wrinkles.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a toner removing device from a transfer paper to which the present invention is applicable.

FIG. 2A is a schematic configuration diagram of a drying unit according to an embodiment. (B) is a schematic block diagram of the drying unit which concerns on a modification.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Paper Feeding Unit 2 Liquid Applying Unit 3 Toner Peeling Unit 4 Drying Unit 5 Paper Receiving Unit 10 Transfer Paper 424 Thermal Conductive Belt 438 Breathable Belt 425 Sheet Heater 441 Suction Fan 445 Curved Heater 950 Paper Detection Sensor 951 Belt Drive Motor 952 motor drive circuit 953 control unit

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yoshiaki Miyashita 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Within Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Satoshi Shingu 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo In stock company Ricoh (72) Inventor Shinichi Kuramoto 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh stock company (72) Inventor Sadao Takahashi 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kazuhiro Ando 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Ricoh Company (72) Inventor Tadashi Saito 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Tokyo Ota-ku, Ricoh Company

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An instability that destabilizes the adhesion between the surface and an image forming substance on an image carrier having an image forming substance that is stably adhered to the surface, at least a part of which is made of a liquid-impregnable material. Destabilizing liquid applying means for applying the solubilizing liquid, image forming substance removing means for removing the image forming substance whose adhesion to the surface is unstable, and an image carrier after the image forming substance is removed And a destabilizing liquid removing unit for removing at least a part of the destabilizing liquid impregnated in the image forming member, the destabilizing liquid removing unit removing the destabilizing liquid from each other. Is a pair of belts that are driven so as to be able to run in parallel while holding the image carrier across a predetermined area, the belt located above in the holding area being formed of a member having good air permeability. An apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier, which comprises: 2. The apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier according to claim 1, further comprising curvature forming means for giving a curvature to a portion of the pair of belts in the holding region. 3. A belt located below in the holding region of the pair of belts is formed of a member having good thermal conductivity,
An apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that vaporization promoting means for the destabilizing liquid using heat is arranged below the holding region. 4. The holding region is set so that the whole of the image holding member can be held by the pair of belts, and vaporization promoting means of vapor destabilizing liquid using heat, and the image holding member more than the holding region. Based on the detection result of the image carrier detection means arranged on the upstream side in the transport direction, and the detection result of the image carrier detection means, the vaporization promoting means is operated at the timing when the entire image carrier is located in the holding area. 2. An apparatus for removing an image-forming substance from an image carrier according to claim 1, further comprising an operation control means of the vaporization promoting means. 5. A processing liquid applying unit for applying a predetermined processing liquid to an image holding member which is at least partially made of a liquid impregnable material, and an image holding member to which the processing liquid is applied by the processing liquid applying unit. In an image holding member processing apparatus provided with a liquid removing means for removing an unnecessary liquid component, the liquid removing means are driven so as to be able to run side by side with each other holding the image holding member across a predetermined region. An image carrier processing apparatus comprising: a pair of belts, which are located above in the holding region, formed of a member having good air permeability. 6. An image carrier processing apparatus for removing at least a part of a liquid from an image carrier impregnated with a liquid, the surfaces of which can run side by side while holding the image carrier across a predetermined region. A pair of belts that are driven in a manner that the upper belt in the holding region is formed of a member having good air permeability, and the pair of belts holds the image-holding body impregnated with the liquid. An image carrier processing apparatus characterized by vaporizing a liquid in a state.