JPH08142447A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a printer which can reduce the noise generating through its actuation more than ever. CONSTITUTION: Just above the printing head 20 and in the peripheries of a paper inserting port H1 and of a paper discharging port H2 of a printer 200, sound absorbing devices 100 are respectively provided. Each sound absorbing device 100 is equipped with a pair of electrode plates, which house electrosensitive type fluid composition for controlling sound absorption, and variable power source 60, which applies voltage between a pair of the electrode plates and, at the same time, makes the voltage variable.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer that reduces noise generated by the operation of the printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various types of printers such as impact dot printers and laser printers have been developed as printers. For example, an impact dot printer is a printer that drives a printing wire built in a print head to give an impact force to a printing paper via an ink ribbon to perform printing, and a laser printer is a printer that prints by an electrophotographic process. Is to do. This electrophotographic process uses a photoconductive phenomenon to form an electrostatic latent image of electrostatic charges on a photoconductor, further attaches charged toner to the electrostatic latent image by electrostatic force, and then forms a latent image on the photoconductor. The formed toner image is transferred to a printing paper, fixed, and then made into a visible image.

By the way, in recent years, in such a printer, various measures have been taken in order to reduce the noise generated by its operation. For example, in an impact dot printer, noise is generated especially when the print head collides with the print wire. Therefore, a noise absorbing material such as a urethane home is provided in the vicinity of the print head inside the printer, which is the source of the noise, and in the discharge portion and the insertion portion of the printing paper where the noise leaks to the outside to reduce the noise.

Further, the laser printer does not generate noise when the printing wire collides, unlike the impact dot printer, but includes various other noise sources. Particularly, the drum of the developing unit, the toner supply roller, and the toner stirring roller are included. The sound of gears generated by such rotations becomes noise. Therefore, a cover surrounding the gear is provided, and a muffler utilizing the principle of the Hertzholm resonator is connected to the cover so as to reduce the noise.

[0005]

Strictly speaking, the frequency of the noise generated by the operation of the printer is different for each printer, and is also influenced by the material of the installation surface of the printer. . Further, the frequency of noise generated by the operation of the printer changes during a series of printing cycles of inserting a sheet, printing on the sheet, and discharging the sheet. However, the sound deadening means such as the sound absorbing material and the silencer provided in the conventional printer has a
Can only absorb sound waves with a frequency peculiar to the material. Therefore, if the noise is a noise of a predetermined frequency,
Although it exhibits a high soundproofing effect, if the noise has a frequency other than that, there is an inconvenience that it cannot always exhibit a sufficient soundproofing effect.

In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a printer capable of further reducing the noise generated by the operation of the printer.

[0007]

A printer according to claim 1 is a printer provided with a sound absorbing device as a sound deadening means, wherein the sound absorbing device is disposed in a casing and in the casing so as to face each other with a gap therebetween. Provided between the pair of electrode plates and the pair of electrode plates and the electric field array effect (hereinafter referred to as “EA effect”. EA is an electr.
Abbreviation for ic Alignment. (Hereinafter, referred to as "ENC fluid"). An electro-sensitive sound wave absorption controlling fluid composition (hereinafter, referred to as "ENC fluid") containing solid particles (hereinafter, referred to as "EA particles" for short) in an electrically insulating medium. The composition is referred to as “composition.” ENC means Electric No.
It is an abbreviation for ise-Control. ) And a variable power supply that applies a voltage between the pair of electrode plates and makes the voltage variable.

A printer according to a second aspect of the invention is characterized in that a sound absorbing device is provided in the paper discharging portion and the paper inserting portion.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the printer is
A printer that drives a print wire built in a print head to apply an impact force to a print sheet via an ink ribbon to perform printing, wherein a sound absorbing device is provided around the print head. To do.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a printer is provided with a muffler utilizing the principle of a Hertzholm resonator, and a sound absorbing device is provided inside the muffler.

[0011]

According to the printer of the first aspect, the sound absorbing device is provided in the casing, a pair of electrode plates disposed in the casing so as to face each other with a gap, and provided between the pair of electrode plates. Since it is composed of an ENC fluid composition containing EA particles having an effect in an electrically insulating medium and a variable power source that applies a voltage between a pair of electrode plates and variably adjusts the voltage, When no voltage is applied between the electrode plates, the EA particles having the EA effect in the ENC fluid composition are randomly suspended and dispersed in the electrically insulating medium.

Next, when a voltage is applied to the pair of electrode plates by the variable power source, the EA particles are arranged and linked in a chain to form a chain (particle chain), and the chain is parallel to the electric field direction. To arrange. When a sound wave (air vibration) is applied to one of the electrode plates in this state, the electrode plate vibrates in the opposite direction, but the chain body itself has elasticity, so the chain body is stretched. When the particles are opposed to each other, they attract each other to generate an attractive force, and when they are compressed, they bend to generate a repulsive force, which causes a viscous resistance due to the movement of the chain in the electrically insulating medium, which causes a sound wave. Loss of energy (dissipation) occurs.

That is, the ENC fluid composition containing the chain resonates with the electrode plate due to the sound wave incident on the electrode plate. The sound wave frequency that gives vibration to such a chain is determined by the characteristic frequency of the chain (which is presumed to be the so-called natural frequency, which is the balance between the elasticity of the chain and the inertia of the electrode plate). When a sound wave having a frequency matching the characteristic frequency is incident on the electrode plate, the chain resonates and absorbs the sound wave.

Since the attractive force (stress generated in the chain) acting between the particles increases as the voltage applied to the pair of electrode plates increases, the elastic modulus and viscosity of the chain itself are applied. It will increase as the voltage increases.

Therefore, by adjusting the applied voltage with the variable power source, the characteristic frequency of the chain itself can be made equal to the frequency of the sound wave (air vibration) to be removed. Then, the chain resonates with the sound wave of that frequency and consumes the energy of the sound wave. Therefore, in the printer according to the first aspect, the frequency of the sound wave removed by the sound absorbing device can be matched with the frequency of the noise generated by the operation of the printer by selecting the applied voltage by the variable power source. Can perform effective absorption.

In the printer according to the second aspect, the sound absorbing device is
Since the paper discharge unit and the paper insertion unit through which noise inside the printer leaks to the outside are provided, the noise can be absorbed more effectively.

A printer according to a third aspect of the invention is a printer for driving a print wire built in a print head to apply an impact force to a print sheet via an ink ribbon to perform printing, and the sound absorbing device is such a device. Since it is provided around the print head, which is a noise source of the printer, noise can be effectively absorbed.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the printer is driven by a gear to form an electrostatic latent image of electrostatic charges on a photoconductor by utilizing a photoconductive phenomenon, and the charged toner is electrostatically electrostatically charged. A printer equipped with a developing unit that adheres to a latent image, transfers a toner image formed on a photoconductor to a printing sheet, fixes it, and then forms a visible image, and covers a gear that is a noise generation source of such a printer. Since the muffler using the principle of the Hertzholm resonator is connected in communication with the cover, noise can be effectively absorbed by the muffler, and a sound absorbing device is provided inside the muffler. As described above, more effective sound absorption can be performed.

[0019]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of a printer of the present invention. A printer 200 includes a print head 20 and a platen 21 provided at a position facing the print head 20, and the print head 20 This is an impact dot printer that drives a printing wire (not shown) built in the printer to apply an impact force to the printing paper 30 wound around the platen 21 via the ink ribbon 22 to perform printing.

The printer 200 includes the print head 20,
A printer case 23 for accommodating the platen 21, the ink ribbon 22, etc. is provided.
The upper part and the upper part of the right side wall are open. The printer case 23 is provided with a printer cover 24 that covers the open upper portion of the printer cover 23 so as to be openable and closable.
When 4 is closed, only the opening H at the upper part of the right side wall of the printer case 23 is open. A sheet guide 25 is provided in the opening H so as to partition the opening H into upper and lower parts, a sheet insertion port H1 is formed below the sheet guide 25, and a printer cover 24 is formed above the sheet guide port H1. A sheet discharge port H2 is formed between them.

In the printer case 23, a paper insertion port H
1 is provided with a tractor 27 that conveys the printing paper 30 inserted from 1 to the platen 6 side.
0 is conveyed to the platen 6, wound around the platen 6, and ejected from the paper ejection port H2.

The printer cover 24 includes a print head 20.
A sound absorbing device 100 is provided immediately above and near the paper discharge port H2, and the sound absorbing surface 51 of each of the sound absorbing devices 100 faces downward.

Further, in the sheet guide 25, sound absorbing devices 100 similar to the above are embedded in the surface on the side of the sheet insertion port H1 and the surface on the side of the sheet discharging port H2, respectively.
The sound absorbing surface 51 faces the sheet insertion port H1 side and the sheet ejection port H2 side.

The sound absorbing device 100, as shown in FIG. 2, has a box-shaped casing 1 whose sound absorbing surface 51 side is open.
5, a pair of electrode plates 17, 18 are arranged inside the casing 15 so as to face each other with a gap in a direction orthogonal to the sound absorbing surface 51, and the electrode plate 17 on the sound absorbing surface 51 side is disposed.
, A PET (polyethylene terephthalate) film 19, which is flexible against sound waves, is evenly adhered to each. One electrode plate 17 and PET film 19
Is provided so as to close the opening of the casing 15, and the surface of each PET film 19 serves as a sound absorbing surface 51. Further, the ENC fluid composition 10 is housed in a sealed state between the pair of electrode plates 17 and 18, respectively.

In the ENC fluid composition 10, as shown in FIG. 3, EA particles (electric field array particles) 2 which are solid particles are uniformly dispersed in an electrically insulating medium 1. This E
The A particle 2 is formed by a core body 3 made of an organic polymer compound and a surface layer 5 made of a particle 4 which is an electric field aligning inorganic substance (hereinafter referred to as “EA inorganic substance”) to form an inorganic / organic composite particle. are doing. In this specific example, the electrically insulating medium 1 is colorless and transparent silicone oil, the organic polymer compound forming the core body 3 of the inorganic / organic composite particles is polyacrylic ester, and the EA inorganic substance forming the surface layer 5 is used. The particles 4 are white titanium hydroxide that is an inorganic ion exchanger and an electric semiconductor inorganic substance. The color of the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) is, for example, white. The proportion of the EA particles 2 contained in the electrically insulating medium 1 is, for example, 7.5% by weight.

In addition, between the pair of electrode plates 17 and 18 of the sound absorbing device 100 shown in FIG.
A variable power supply 60 that applies a voltage between the eight and variably adjusts the voltage is connected via an electric cable 63 as shown in FIG. 1, and the variable power supply 60 turns the voltage application ON or OFF. A switch 61 and a dial 62 for variably adjusting the applied voltage are provided.

Since the printer 200 has the above-described structure, the print wire (not shown) built in the print head 20 is driven to drive the platen 21 via the ink ribbon 22.
Printing can be performed by applying an impact force to the printing paper 30 wound around the paper. At this time, the print head 2
Noise is generated due to the impact sound of the printing wire of 0 hitting the printing paper 30 wound around the platen 21 via the ink ribbon 22. In the printer 200, the noise absorbing device 100 absorbs this noise, so that the noise can be effectively reduced as described below.

First, each sound absorbing device 100 has an ENC when the switch 61 of the variable power source 60 is OFF, that is, when a voltage is not applied between the pair of electrode plates 17 and 18 as shown in FIG. The EA particles 2 having the EA effect in the fluid composition 10 are randomly suspended and dispersed in the electrically insulating medium 1. At this time, the ENC fluid composition 10
The sound absorption effect is low.

Next, the switch 61 of the variable power source 60 is turned on.
Then, when a voltage is applied to the pair of electrode plates 17 and 18, the EA particles 2 are arranged and linked in a chain form to form a chain (particle chain) 6 as shown in FIG. Arrange in parallel to the electric field direction. In this state, the electrode plate 17 on one side is
When a sound wave (air vibration) 11 is incident as shown in FIG. 7, the states of (a), (b), (c) and (d) of FIG. 7 occur sequentially, and as shown in FIG. This electrode plate 17
Vibrates in the opposite direction to the other electrode plate 18 together with the PET film 19, but since the chain 6 itself has an elastic property, when the chain 6 is pulled, (b) in FIG. ), When compressed, the chain-like body 6 bends in a V shape, for example, to generate a repulsive force, and as shown in FIG. When pulled, the EA particles 2 facing each other attract each other to generate an attractive force. This allows the chain 6 in ENC fluid composition 10 to
The movement of causes viscous resistance, resulting in loss (dissipation) of energy of the sound wave 11 shown in FIG.

That is, for the sound wave 11 incident on the electrode plate 17,
The ENC fluid composition 10 including the chain-like body 6 shown in FIG. 6 resonates with the electrode plate 17. The sound wave frequency that gives vibration to the chain 6 is estimated to be a characteristic frequency of the chain 6 (a so-called natural frequency, which is a balance between elasticity of the chain 6 and inertia of the electrode plate). ), And a sound wave with a frequency that matches the characteristic frequency of the electrode plate 1
When incident on 7, the chain 6 resonates and absorbs the sound wave 11. In addition, as shown in FIG.
Will be reflected. Therefore, at this time, EN
The sound absorbing effect of the C fluid composition 10 becomes high.

Next, when the dial 62 of the variable power source 60 shown in FIG. 1 is turned, each EA particle of the ENC fluid composition 10 shown in FIG. 5 provided inside the casing 15 of each sound absorbing device 100 shown in FIG. The attractive force (stress generated in the chain) acting between the two increases / decreases with the increase / decrease in the voltage applied to the pair of electrode plates 17 and 18, and the elastic modulus and the viscosity of the chain 6 itself change the applied voltage. Increases and decreases with increase and decrease.

The chain 6 of ENC fluid composition 10
When the elastic modulus and the viscosity of the ENC fluid are increased or decreased, the characteristic frequency is increased or decreased, so that the frequency of the sound wave absorbed by the ENC fluid composition 10 is changed.

Therefore, when the applied voltage is adjusted by the dial 62 of the variable power source 60, the characteristic frequency of the chain 6 of the ENC fluid composition 10 is the component of the incident sound wave (air vibration) 11 shown in FIG. Can be matched to the frequency of. Then, the chain 6 in FIG. 5 resonates with the sound wave having the frequency of the component to be removed, and consumes the energy of the sound wave. Then, the sound waves 12 of other components are reflected as shown in FIG.

Therefore, by selecting the applied voltage by the variable power source 60 as shown in FIG.
The sound absorbing device 100 has the frequency of the noise generated by the operation of
The frequencies of the sound waves removed by can be matched. Therefore, by matching the frequency of the sound wave removed by the sound absorbing device 100 with the frequency of the noise generated by the operation of the printer 200, the noise can be effectively reduced. That is, strictly speaking, the frequency of noise generated by the operation of the printer 200 is
It depends on the material of the installation surface of the printer 200 and the like. However, according to the printer 200 of the present invention, since the frequency of the sound wave removed by the sound absorbing device 100 can be matched with the frequency of each noise, the noise can be effectively reduced.

In the printer 200, the sound absorbing device 100 is installed directly above the print head 20 which is a source of noise.
Since the noise is leaked to the outside, the sheet insertion port H1 and the sheet ejection port H2 are provided respectively, so that the noise can be absorbed more effectively and a high soundproof effect can be exerted.

The characteristic frequency of the sound absorbing device 100 changes depending on the size of the EA particles (solid particles), the elastic force acting between the EA particles, the natural frequency of the electrode plates and the distance between the electrode plates. In the present invention, since the spherical EA particles having a substantially uniform particle size are dispersed in the electrically insulating medium (without using irregular particles), the above-mentioned repulsive force and attractive force fluctuate under a constant voltage. In addition, the balance between the elastic force acting between the EA particles and the inertial force of the electrode plate does not easily change. In the above-mentioned embodiment, the chain body is supposed to be bent in a "V" shape, but in addition to this, for example, an S-shape as shown in FIG. 8A, or (b) in FIG. It is considered that there is a case where the wire is bent into a W shape as shown in ().

Further, in the above embodiment, the phenomenon in which the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) 2 form a row of chain-like bodies 6 and are arranged in parallel by the application of an electric field has been described. When the number of slabs exceeds several% by weight, 1
Instead of the chained bodies 6 in a row, the chained bodies 6 are joined to each other in a plurality of rows to form and arrange the column 119 as shown in FIG. In this column 119, the left and right chain-shaped EA particles 2 are staggered one by one and adjoin each other in a staggered manner.
With respect to this, the inventors of the present invention, as shown in (b) of FIG.
It is presumed that this is because it is more stable in terms of energy when the positive pole portion and the negative pole portion are alternately arranged adjacent to each other. Furthermore, although the ENC fluid composition is directly accommodated between the pair of electrode plates in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and the porous body sufficiently impregnated with the ENC fluid composition is used as the pair of electrodes. It may be housed between the plates. In this case, the porous body preferably has open cells so as not to impair the EA effect.

The electrically insulating medium 1 of FIG. 3 used in the ENC fluid composition of the present invention is, for example, diphenyl chloride, butyl sebacate, higher aromatic alcohol polycarboxylic acid ester, halophenyl alkyl ether, trans oil. , Chlorinated paraffin, fluorine-based oil, silicone-based oil, fluorosilicone-based oil, etc., as long as they have high electrical insulation and electrical breakdown strength, are chemically stable, and can stably disperse EA particles. Fluids or mixtures of these can also be used. This electrically insulating medium 1 can be colored according to the purpose.
For coloring, it is preferable to use a type and amount of an oil-soluble dye or a dispersible dye that is soluble in the selected electrically insulating medium and does not impair its electrical properties. The electrically insulating medium 1 may further contain a dispersant, a surfactant, a viscosity modifier, an antioxidant, a stabilizer and the like.

The kinematic viscosity of this electrically insulating medium 1 is 1 cS.
It is preferably in the range of t to 30,000 cSt. When the kinematic viscosity is less than 1 cSt, the storage stability of the fluid composition is insufficient, and when the kinematic viscosity is more than 30,000 cSt, it becomes difficult to uniformly disperse the EA particles, and bubbles are entrained during the adjustment, and the bubbles are It is difficult to pull out, and it is difficult to handle, which is not preferable. From this viewpoint, the kinematic viscosity is preferably in the range of 10 cSt to 1000 cSt, particularly preferably in the range of 10 cSt to 100 cSt. Of course, the kinematic viscosity of the electrically insulating medium 1 changes with temperature, and this temperature effect can be suppressed by the applied voltage.

The EA particles 2 used in the present invention may be any element, organic compound, or inorganic compound, or a mixture thereof, as long as it is an inorganic / organic composite particle having an EA effect.
Either material can be used. Examples thereof include particles of inorganic ion exchangers, metal oxides, silica gel, inorganic substances having electric semiconductors, carbon black, and particles having these as a surface layer. However, as shown in the above examples, the EA particles 2 are composed of the core body 3 made of an organic polymer compound and the EA inorganic particle 4
It is particularly preferable that the inorganic-organic composite particles are formed by the surface layer 5 consisting of. In this inorganic-organic composite particle, a surface layer 5 composed of particles 4 of EA inorganic material having a relatively high specific gravity is carried on a core body 3 which is an organic polymer compound having a relatively low specific gravity, and the specific gravity of the entire particle is changed to an electric value. It can be adjusted to approximate the insulating medium 1. Therefore, the ENC fluid composition obtained by dispersing this in the electrically insulating medium 1 has excellent storage stability.

Examples of the organic polymer compound that can be used as the core 3 of the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) 2 include poly (meth) acrylic acid ester, (meth) acrylic acid ester-styrene copolymer, Polystyrene, polyethylene, polypropylene, nitrile rubber, butyl rubber, AB
S resin, nylon, polyvinyl butyrate, ionomer, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, vinyl acetate resin,
One or a mixture of two or more such as a polycarbonate resin or a copolymer may be mentioned.

Particles 4 of EA inorganic substance forming the surface layer 5
Although various compounds can be used, preferred examples include inorganic ion exchangers, silica gel, and electrically semiconducting inorganic substances. When these particles 4 are used to form the surface layer 5 on the core 3 made of an organic polymer compound, the obtained inorganic / organic composite particles become useful EA particles 2.

Examples of the above inorganic ion exchanger include (1)
Hydroxide of polyvalent metal, (2) hydrotalcites,
(3) Acid salt of polyvalent metal, (4) Hydroxyapatite, (5) Nasicon type compound, (6) Clay mineral, (7)
Mention may be made of potassium titanates, (8) heteropolyacid salts, and (9) insoluble ferrocyanide.

The respective inorganic ion exchangers will be described in detail below. (1) Hydroxide of polyvalent metal. These compounds are represented by the general formula MOx (OH) y (M is a polyvalent metal, x is a number of 0 or more, and y is a positive number), and examples thereof include titanium hydroxide and zirconium hydroxide. ,
Examples include bismuth hydroxide, tin hydroxide, lead hydroxide, aluminum hydroxide, tantalum hydroxide, niobium hydroxide, molybdenum hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, manganese hydroxide, and iron hydroxide. Here, for example, titanium hydroxide refers to hydrous titanium oxide (also known as metatitanic acid or β-titanic acid, Ti
It contains both O (OH) 2) and titanium hydroxide (also known as orthotitanic acid or α-titanic acid, Ti (OH) 4), and the same applies to other compounds.

(2) Hydrotalcites. These compounds have the general formula M13Al6 (OH) 43 (C
O) 3 · 12H2O (M is a divalent metal),
For example, the divalent metal M is Mg, Ca or Ni. (3) Acid salt of polyvalent metal. These are, for example, titanium phosphate, zirconium phosphate, tin phosphate, cerium phosphate, chromium phosphate, zirconium arsenate, titanium arsenate, tin arsenate, cerium arsenate, titanium antimonate, tin antimonate, tantalum antimonate. , Niobium antimonate, zirconium tungstate, titanium vanadate, zirconium molybdate, titanium selenate, and tin molybdate.

(4) Hydroxyapatite. These are, for example, calcium apatite, lead apatite,
Examples include strontium apatite and cadmium apatite. (5) Nasicon type compound. These include, for example, (H3O) Zr2 (PO4) 3, but in the present invention, a Nasicon type compound in which H3O is replaced with Na can also be used. (6) Clay mineral. These are, for example, montmorillonite, sepiolite, bentonite and the like, with sepiolite being particularly preferred.

(7) Potassium titanates. These are represented by the general formula aK2O.bTiO2.nH2O (a is 0
<A is a positive number that satisfies a ≦ 1, b is a positive number that satisfies 1 ≦ b ≦ 6, and n is a positive number).
TiO2 · 2H2O, K2O · 2TiO2 · 2H2O, 0.
5K2O ・ TiO2 ・ 2H2O and K2O ・ 2.5TiO
2.2H2O, etc. In addition, among the above compounds, a compound in which a or b is not an integer is easily synthesized by subjecting a compound in which a or b is an appropriate integer to an acid treatment and replacing K with H.

(8) Heteropolyacid salt. These are represented by the general formula H3AE12O40.nH2O (A is phosphorus, arsenic, germanium, or silicon, E is molybdenum, tungsten, or vanadium, and n is a positive number), such as ammonium molybdophosphate and tongue. Ammonium strinate. (9) Insoluble ferrocyanide. These are compounds represented by the following general formula. Mb-pxa
A [E (CN) 6] (M is an alkali metal or hydrogen ion, A is a heavy metal ion such as zinc, copper, nickel, cobalt, manganese, cadmium, iron (III) or titanium, E is iron (II), iron (III), cobalt (II) or the like, b is 4 or 3, a is a valence of A, and p is a positive number of 0 to b / a.) These include, for example, Cs2Zn. Insoluble ferrocyanine compounds such as [Fe (CN) 6] and K2Co [Fe (CN) 6] are included.

All of the inorganic ion exchangers (1) to (6) have an OH group, and some or all of the ions present at the ion exchange sites of these inorganic ion exchangers are different ions. Those substituted with (hereinafter, referred to as a substitutional inorganic ion exchanger) are also included in the inorganic ion exchanger of the present invention. That is, when the above-mentioned inorganic ion exchanger is represented by R-M1 (M1 represents an ion species of an ion exchange site), a part or all of M1 in R-M1 is converted to M1 by the following ion exchange reaction. Substitution-type inorganic ion exchangers having different ionic species M2 are also
It is an inorganic ion exchanger in the present invention. xR-M1 + yM2 → Rx- (M2) y + xM1 (where x and y represent the valences of the ion species M2 and M1, respectively). M1 varies depending on the type of the inorganic ion exchanger having an OH group, but when the inorganic ion exchanger exhibits a cation exchange property, M1 is generally H +, and in this case, M2 is an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal. , A polyvalent typical metal, a transition metal or a rare earth metal, or any other metal ion other than H +. When the inorganic ion exchanger having an OH group exhibits anion exchange property, M1 is generally OH-
Where M2 is, for example, I, Cl, SCN, NO
2, any of general anions other than OH-, such as Br, F, CH3COO, SO4 or CrO4 and complex ions.

Further, regarding the inorganic ion exchanger which has once lost the OH group due to the high temperature heat treatment but becomes to have the OH group again by an operation such as being immersed in water, the inorganic ion after the high temperature heat treatment is used. Exchangers and the like are also one kind of inorganic ion exchangers that can be used in the present invention, and specific examples thereof include a Nasicon type compound such as (H3O) Zr2
HZr2 (PO4) 3 obtained by heating (PO4) 3 or a high temperature heat-treated product of hydrotalcite (500 to 70)
Heat treated at 0 ° C.) and the like. These inorganic ion exchangers can be used not only in one kind but also in many kinds simultaneously as a surface layer. It is particularly preferable to use a hydroxide of a polyvalent metal and an acid salt of a polyvalent metal as the above-mentioned inorganic ion exchanger.

An example of an electrically semiconductive inorganic material that can be used as the surface layer 5 of the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) 2 is a metal oxide having an electric conductivity of 10 3 to 10 -11 Ω -1 / cm at room temperature. , Metal hydroxides, metal oxide hydroxides, inorganic ion exchangers, or metal-doped at least one of these, or at least any one of these with or without metal doping. For example, those applied as an electric semiconductor layer on a support.

Examples of preferable electrically semiconductive inorganic substances are shown below. (A) Metal oxide: For example, SnO2, amorphous titanium dioxide (manufactured by Idemitsu Petrochemical Co., Ltd.) and the like. (B) Metal hydroxide: For example, titanium hydroxide or niobium hydroxide. Here, titanium hydroxide means hydrous titanium oxide (manufactured by Ishihara Sangyo Co., Ltd.), metatitanic acid (also known as β-titanic acid,
TiO (OH) 2) and orthotitanic acid (also known as α-titanic acid, Ti (OH) 4). (C) Metal oxide hydroxide: For example, FeO
(OH) (goethite) and the like can be mentioned. (D) Hydroxide of polyvalent metal: equivalent to inorganic ion exchanger (1). (E) Hydrotalcites: Inorganic ion exchanger (2)
Equivalent to (F) Acid salt of polyvalent metal: equivalent to the inorganic ion exchanger (3). (G) Hydroxyapatite: Inorganic ion exchanger (4)
Equivalent to (H) Nashicon type compound: equivalent to the inorganic ion exchanger (5). (I) Clay mineral: equivalent to the inorganic ion exchanger (6). (J) Potassium titanate: equivalent to the inorganic ion exchanger (7). (K) Heteropolyacid salt: equivalent to the inorganic ion exchanger (8). (L) Insoluble ferrocyanide: equivalent to inorganic ion exchanger (9). (M) Metal-doped EA inorganic substance: This is obtained by doping the ER inorganic substance with a metal such as antimony (Sb) in order to increase the electrical conductivity of the above-mentioned electric semiconductor inorganic substances (A) to (L). For example, antimony (S
b) Doping tin oxide (SnO2) and the like can be mentioned. (N) EA inorganic material applied as an electric semiconductor layer on another support: for example, titanium oxide, silica as a support,
Examples thereof include inorganic particles such as alumina and silica-alumina, or organic polymer particles such as polyethylene and polypropylene, to which antimony (Sb) -doped tin oxide (SnO2) is applied as an electric semiconductor layer. The particles in which the EA inorganic substance is applied to the other support as described above can be regarded as the EA inorganic substance as a whole. These EA minerals are not only one type, but two
It is also possible to use types or more simultaneously as the surface layer.

The EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) 2 can be manufactured by various methods. For example, there is a method in which a particulate core body 3 made of an organic polymer compound and fine particulate particles 4 are transported by a jet stream and collided with each other to produce them. In this case, the fine particles of the particles 4 collide with the surface of the particulate core 3 at a high speed and are fixed to form the surface layer 5. Another example of the manufacturing method is a method in which the particulate core body 3 is suspended in a gas, and a solution of the particles 4 is atomized and sprayed on the surface. In this case, the surface layer 5 is formed by adhering the solution onto the surface of the core 3 and drying it.

A particularly preferred method for producing the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) 2 is to form the surface layer 5 simultaneously with the core body 3. In this method, for example, when emulsion-polymerizing, suspension-polymerizing, or dispersion-polymerizing a monomer of an organic polymer compound forming the core body 3 in a polymerization medium, particles 4 which are EA inorganic particles in the form of fine particles, Alternatively, it is present in the polymerization medium. Water is preferred as the polymerization medium, but a mixture of water and a water-soluble organic solvent can also be used, and an organic poor solvent can also be used. According to this method, the monomers are polymerized in the polymerization medium to form the core particles 3, and at the same time, the fine particle EA inorganic particles 4 are layered on the surface of the core 3 to cover the core particles 3. The surface layer 5 is formed.

When the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) are produced by emulsion polymerization or suspension polymerization, the EA inorganic particles 4 can be obtained by combining the hydrophobic property of the monomer and the hydrophilic property of the EA inorganic substance. Can be attached to the surface of the core body 3. According to the method of simultaneously forming the core body 3 and the surface layer 5, the EA inorganic particles 4 are densely and firmly adhered to the surface of the core body 3 made of an organic polymer compound, and the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite) Particles 2) are formed.

The shape of the EA particles 2 used in the present invention is not necessarily spherical, but when the particulate core 3 is produced by the controlled emulsion / suspension polymerization method, the EA obtained is obtained. The shape of the particles 2 is almost spherical. EA
The particle size of the particles 2 is not particularly limited, but is 0.1
The thickness is preferably in the range of μm to 500 μm, particularly 5 μm to 200 μm. Fine particle EA at this time
The particle size of the inorganic particles 4 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.005 μm to 100 μm, and more preferably 0.01 μm to 10 μm.

In the EA particles (inorganic / organic composite particles) 2, the particles 4 and the core 3 which are the EA inorganic substance forming the surface layer 5 are formed.
The weight ratio of the organic polymer compound forming the is not particularly limited, but in order to obtain an ENC fluid composition having high storage stability, the EA inorganic particles 4 and the organic polymer compound core 3 are used. 1% by weight of particles 4 to 6% of the total weight
It is preferably in the range of 0% by weight, particularly preferably in the range of 4% by weight to 30% by weight. If the proportion of the core 3 is less than 1% by weight, the EA characteristics of the obtained EA particles 2 will be insufficient, and if it exceeds 60% by weight, the specific gravity of the EA2 particles will be excessive and the storage stability may be impaired. There is. Further, the ENC fluid composition of the present invention can be produced by uniformly stirring and mixing the above-mentioned EA particles 2 together with a dispersant and other components in an electrically insulating medium. As the stirrer, any stirrer normally used for dispersing solid particles in a liquid dispersion medium can be used. In an electrically insulating medium 1
The content of the EA particles 2 in is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.5 to 75% by weight, and particularly preferably 5 to 50% by weight. If the content is less than 1%, a sufficient EA effect cannot be obtained, and if the content is 75% or more, the initial viscosity of the ENC fluid composition when a voltage is not applied becomes too large, which makes it difficult to use.

The EA particles 2 produced by the above various methods, particularly the method of simultaneously forming the core 3 and the surface layer 5,
The surface layer 5 is wholly or partly covered with a thin film of an organic polymer substance, a dispersant, an emulsifier or other additive substances used in the manufacturing process, and the electric field arrangement effect as electric field arrangement particles is not sufficiently exhibited. There are cases. This thin film of inert material can be easily removed by polishing the surface of the particles. Therefore, when the core body 3 and the surface layer 5 are simultaneously formed, it is preferable to polish the surfaces thereof.

The polishing of the particle surface can be carried out by various methods. For example, EA, which is an inorganic / organic composite particle
The method can be performed by dispersing the particles 2 in a dispersion medium such as water and stirring this. At this time, a method of mixing an abrasive such as sand particles or balls into the dispersion medium and stirring with the EA particles 2, a method of stirring with a grinding wheel, or the like can be used. For example, it is also possible to dry-stir without using a dispersion medium, using the EA particles 2 and the above-mentioned abrasive or grinding stone.

A more preferable polishing method is a method in which the EA particles 2 are agitated by a jet stream or the like. This is a method of polishing particles by violently colliding with each other in a gas phase, and is a preferable method in that the polished particles can be easily separated by classification without the need for another abrasive. In the above jet stream agitation, it is necessary to select polishing conditions depending on the type of equipment used, the agitation speed, the material of the EA particles 2, etc., but generally 60
It is preferable to perform jet stream stirring at a stirring speed of 00 rpm for about 0.5 min to 15 min.

The ENC fluid composition of the present invention has the above EA
The particles 2 can be produced by uniformly stirring and mixing them in the electrically insulating medium 1 together with other components such as a dispersant, if necessary. As the stirrer, any stirrer normally used for dispersing solid particles in a liquid dispersion medium can be used.

Although the PET (polyethylene terephthalate) film 19 was used in the above-mentioned examples, various plastic films such as PVC (vinyl chloride) film, nylon film, polyethylene film, polypropylene film, acrylic film, etc. may be used instead. Etc. may be used.

FIG. 10 is a view showing a second embodiment of the printer of the present invention. The printer 300 is driven by a gear 41 and utilizes the photoconductive phenomenon to electrostatically charge the photosensitive member. Developing unit 40 that forms a visible image after transferring the toner image formed on the photoconductor to the printing paper and fixing the toner image formed on the photoconductor by applying electrostatic charge to the electrostatic latent image. It is a laser printer equipped with. Further, the gear 41, which is the noise source of the printer 300, is
A cover 42 is provided, and a muffler 43 utilizing the principle of the Hertzholm resonator is connected to the cover 42 for communication.

Further, as shown in FIG. 11, the silencer 43 is formed in a cylindrical shape on the inner wall surface with the sound absorbing surface 51 facing inward.
Sound absorbing device 100 having the same configuration as the above sound absorbing device 100
A is attached to the sound absorbing device 100A, and a variable power source 60 similar to the above which applies a voltage between the pair of electrode plates 17 and 18 and variably adjusts the voltage is connected to the electric cable 63.
Connected through. The variable power source 60 includes a switch 61 that turns on or off the application of voltage, and a dial 62 that variably adjusts the applied voltage.

Therefore, according to the printer 300, first,
Noise can be absorbed by the muffler 43. Further, in this printer 300, since the muffler 43 has a built-in sound absorbing device 100A similar to the printer 200 described above, and the variable power source 60 is connected to the sound absorbing device 100A, application is made by the dial 62 of the variable power source 60. By adjusting the voltage, it is possible to match the frequency of the sound wave removed by the sound absorbing device 100A with the frequency of the noise generated by the gear 41 or the like. Therefore, it is possible to effectively reduce noise.

Further, in the second embodiment, the cover 4
1 is provided with a silencer 43, and the silencer 43 is provided with the sound absorbing device 10
Although 0A is built in, as shown in FIG. 12, a sound absorbing device 100B having the same configuration as the sound absorbing device 100 may be directly provided so as to form a side plate of the cover 41.

Further, in any of the printers 200, 300, and 300A of the first, second, and third embodiments, the following voltage control circuit is provided in the variable power source 60 to further reduce noise. Can be planned. That is, the voltage control circuit receives the print signals of the printers 200, 300, and 300A, and the frequency of noise generated during a series of printing cycles of inserting the paper 30, printing on the paper 30, and discharging the paper 30. The variable power source 60 is controlled by a voltage fluctuation pattern according to the fluctuation pattern of the noise absorption frequency. By this control, the frequency of the sound wave removed by the sound absorbing devices 100, 100A, and 100B is changed to the frequency of the noise generated in a series of printing cycles. It can be changed to match the fluctuation pattern. Therefore, it is possible to further reduce noise.

[0068]

According to the printer of the first aspect, by selecting the applied voltage by the variable power source, the frequency of the sound wave removed by the sound absorbing device can be matched with the frequency of the noise generated by the operation of the printer. Strictly speaking, for each individual printer with a different noise frequency,
The noise can be effectively reduced according to the material of the installation surface of the printer that further influences the frequency.

According to the printer of the second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the sound absorbing device is provided in the paper discharging portion and the paper inserting portion through which noise inside the printer leaks to the outside, which is more effective. It is possible to reduce noise.

According to the printer of the third aspect, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, by providing the sound absorbing device around the print head which is the noise source of the printer, the noise can be more effectively generated. It can be reduced.

According to the printer of the fourth aspect, noise can be absorbed by the muffler, and the sound absorbing device is provided inside the muffler. I can.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of a printer of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a sound absorbing device of the printer of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the ENC fluid composition according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an aspect of the ENC fluid composition according to the present invention when the power is turned off.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing an aspect of the ENC fluid composition according to the present invention when the power is turned on.

6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a sound wave is incident and the chain and one of the electrode plates resonate in the sound absorbing device of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a sound wave is incident on the sound absorbing device of FIG. 2 and one of the electrode plates vibrates.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing another example of the bending state of the chain in the sound absorbing device of FIG.

FIG. 9 is a view showing a column in which a plurality of chains are joined to each other in the sound absorbing device of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the printer of the present invention.

11 is a diagram showing the inside of the muffler 43 of the printer of FIG.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the printer of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Electrically insulating medium, 2 ... EA particles (solid particles), 10
... Electrosensitive acoustic wave absorption control fluid composition, 15 ... Casing, 17 ... Electrode plate, 18 ... Electrode plate, 20 ... Print head, 22 ... Ink ribbon, 30 ... Printing paper, 43 ... Silencer, 60 ... Variable power source , 100, 100A, 100B ... Sound absorbing device, 200, 300, 300A ... Printer, H1 ...
Paper insertion port (paper insertion part), H2 ... Paper ejection port (paper ejection part).

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Moritaka Goto 1-5-1, Kiba, Koto-ku, Tokyo Fujikura Ltd. (72) Inventor Kenji Furuichi 1-1-5, Kiba, Koto-ku, Tokyo Shareholders Company Fujikura (72) Inventor Yasufumi Otsubo 9-21-1 Konakadai, Inage-ku, Chiba-shi, Chiba 206

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A printer comprising a sound absorbing device as a sound deadening means, wherein the sound absorbing device (100, 100A, 100B) is opposed to each other with a casing (15) and a gap in the casing (15). A pair of arranged electrode plates (17, 1)
8) and the pair of electrode plates (17, 18), the electro-sensitive acoustic wave absorption control comprising solid particles (2) having an electric field arranging effect in an electrically insulating medium (1). The fluid composition (10) and the pair of electrode plates (17, 1)
8) A printer characterized by comprising a variable power source (60) for applying a voltage between them and varying the voltage. 2. A paper discharging unit (H1) and a paper inserting unit (H)
2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the sound absorbing device (100) is provided in 2). 3. The printer drives a print wire built into a print head (20) to drive an ink ribbon (22).
A printer (200) for performing printing by applying an impact force to a printing paper (30) via a printer, characterized in that the sound absorbing device (100) is provided around the print head (20). Claim 1 or 2
The listed printer. 4. A silencer (43) utilizing the principle of a Hertzholm resonator, wherein the sound absorber (100) is provided inside the silencer (43).
The printer according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that (A) is provided.