JPH08164626A - Image formation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To form beautiful images having no distortions by enabling a thin film aperture electrode body to be secured with accuracy in no wrinkle plane. CONSTITUTION: Since the aperture electrode body 10 is applied with tension from the supports 10a, 10b, at the time when the aperture electrode body 10 Is pressed against interposers 26, 27, forces F function on the Interposers 26, 27 to press them back. The interposers 26, 27 formed in a curved shape eventually allow the tangential forces F1 of pressing back forces F to function to prevent the occurrence of wrinkles of the aperture electrode body 10. Also, when the aperture electrode body 10 is mounted on the curved interposers 26, 27, it contacts in turn from the most projected central part to the end parts, thus wrinkles become hard to occur thereon.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus for forming an image by controlling the amount of toner passing through a plurality of openings formed in a thin film aperture electrode body, and more particularly to an aperture electrode body The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that can be attached in a flat shape without a frame.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A thin film aperture electrode body in which a large number of apertures (apertures) are arranged in rows is used, and the potential applied to the electrodes provided in the apertures is controlled to pass through the apertures. Various image forming apparatuses have been proposed in which toner is attached to a recording medium to perform recording.

The applicant of the present application has proposed the above image forming apparatus in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-32121. In this image forming apparatus, as shown in FIG. 9, a large number of minute openings (apertures) 16 are oriented at minute intervals in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the recording medium 40 (indicated by C in the figure). Are formed in rows. The thin film-shaped aperture electrode body 10 in which the control electrode 14 is arranged around each of the plurality of apertures 16 is fixed to the rectangular fixed frame 20 in the support portions 10a and 10b at both ends parallel to the plurality of apertures 16. Fix each. By attaching the fixed frame 20 to the upper end portion of the toner case 31, a pair of upwardly projecting ridges (interposers) 26 and 27 integrally formed on the toner case 31 connect the aperture electrode body 10 to each other. A uniform tension is applied to the aperture electrode body 10 by supporting the plurality of apertures 16 and the supporting portions 10a and 10b, respectively. In this state, the toner carrying roller 34 of the toner supply mechanism is brought into contact with the roller from the lower side to be rotationally driven, the toner is supplied to the multiple apertures 16, and the potential applied to each control electrode 14 is individually controlled. The amount of toner that passes through the aperture 16 is controlled, and the passed toner is attached to the recording medium 40. After that, a fixing mechanism (not shown) fixes the image to form an image.

In this image forming apparatus, the fixed frame 20 for fixing the aperture electrode body 10 is fixed to the toner case 31.
Set up in the direction of the recording medium when attached to the upper end of the 1
By applying tension by the pair of first and second interposers 26 and 27, it is configured to prevent "wrinkles" from being generated in the aperture electrode body 10 and to apply uniform tension to the whole.

[0005]

However, even with the above configuration, the first and second interposers 26 and 27 are used to attach the aperture electrode body to the toner supply mechanism.
On the other hand, when the aperture electrode body 10 is placed, "wrinkles" are likely to be formed, and it is difficult to make the tension uniform over the entire aperture electrode body 10. For this reason, the contact state between the aperture electrode body 10 and the toner carrying roller 34 deteriorates, and the aperture 16 inclines in the portion with “wrinkles” or the portion where the tension is not uniform, and the amount of toner movement increases. Or the toner movement direction changes,
There is a problem that an image having uneven density or distortion is recorded.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to allow a thin film-shaped aperture electrode body to be accurately attached to a flat surface without "wrinkles". An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of forming a beautiful image without distortion.

[0007]

An image forming apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a flexible sheet-like member, and a plurality of openings are formed in a line in a direction orthogonal to a recording medium conveyance direction. At the same time, an aperture electrode body having electrodes in each of the plurality of openings, a toner supply mechanism for supplying toner to the openings of the aperture electrode body, and a potential applied to each electrode of the aperture electrode body are respectively controlled. A toner control unit that controls the amount of toner that passes through each opening, and the toner that has passed through the opening is attached to the recording medium to form an image. A pair of supporting portions, which are parallel to each other and to which both ends of the aperture electrode body are fixed, and which apply a tension to the aperture electrode body and a uniform tension to the aperture electrode body. , Multiple openings In between the support portions, a protrusion for supporting the aperture electrode from the toner supply mechanism side,
And a protrusion formed in a curved shape that is arranged substantially parallel to the arrangement direction of the openings and protrudes in the recording medium direction.

An image forming apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the end portion side of the protrusion in the arrangement direction of the plurality of openings is formed in a curved shape so as to be close to the support portion. Consists of

An image forming apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein the abutting portion of the ridge with the aperture electrode body is formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the abutting portion of the ridge with the aperture electrode body is formed to have a substantially circular cross section.

[0011]

In the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, since tension is applied to the aperture electrode body from the supporting portion, when the aperture electrode body is pressed against the ridge, the ridge is formed. The force to push back works. At the contact portion between the sheet-shaped member and the ridge, since the ridge is formed in a curved shape, the force for pushing back is decomposed into the force in the normal direction of the curved surface of the ridge and the force in the tangential direction. To be done. This tangential component force acts in a direction to prevent wrinkles in the aperture electrode body. Further, in order to attach the aperture electrode body to the toner supply mechanism, when the aperture electrode body is placed on the protrusion formed in a curved shape, it is in contact with the most protruding central portion to the end portion in order. Difficult to wrinkle. Therefore, a uniform tension can be applied to the entire aperture electrode body, the toner can be uniformly supplied to each opening, and a beautiful image without density unevenness and distortion can be formed.

Here, the image forming apparatus according to claim 2 is
Since the side ends of the ridges are curved so as to be close to the support part, when the aperture electrode body is fixed, the tension on the end side in the arrangement direction of the aperture electrode body, which tends to loosen, is large. Therefore, uniform tension can be applied to the entire aperture electrode body. For this reason, the toner can be evenly supplied to each opening, and the distortion of the image on the end side of the opening can be prevented.

In the image forming apparatus according to claim 3,
Since the contact portion of the ridge with the aperture electrode body is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in cross section, once the aperture electrode body is fixed, it will not slip, and the uniform tension when attached will be permanent. Can be kept.

In the image forming apparatus according to claim 4,
Since the contact portion of the ridge with the aperture electrode body is formed to have a substantially circular cross section, the aperture electrode body is slid over the ridge to clean the opening of the aperture electrode body. Even when the unit is moved to the cleaning device, it can be moved smoothly.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The image forming apparatus is provided with a toner supply device 30 on the right side thereof, and an aperture electrode body 10 for controlling the toner flow on the left side of the toner supply device 30. A back electrode plate 42 is arranged on the left side of the aperture electrode body 10 with a distance of 1 mm from the aperture electrode body 10. In the gap between the aperture electrode body 10 and the back electrode plate 42, the image recording medium 40 is transported in the direction of arrow C by the rotation of the transport roller 69 in the direction of arrow D. An image is formed on the image recording medium 40 by the toner 36 as described later. Further, the image recording medium 40
A fixing device 46 that fixes an image on the image recording medium 40 is disposed in the conveying direction of the. The fixing device 46 is of a heat fixing type and is composed of a pressure roller 46a having a surface layer of silicon rubber and a heat roller 46b having a halogen heater therein.

Next, details of each part of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. The toner supply device 30 includes
A toner case 31 which also serves as a housing of the entire toner supply device 30 is provided, and toner 36 is stored in the toner case 31, and the toner 36 is agitated by a toner agitating rod 37. A cylindrical toner carrying roller 34, which carries the toner 36 and conveys it to the aperture electrode body 10, is rotatably supported in the toner case 31 in the direction of arrow B. In FIG. 1, the toner 36 accumulated in the toner case 31 is provided on the lower right portion of the toner carrying roller 34.
4 is provided with a cylindrical supply roller 32, and the supply roller 32 and the toner carrying roller 34 are arranged in parallel with each other, and the generatrix of the cylindrical surface thereof is in contact with each other.

Further, in the toner case 31, above the carrying roller 34, the amount of the toner 36 carried by the toner carrying roller 34 is adjusted so as to be uniform on the roller surface of the toner carrying roller 34. A toner layer regulating blade 38 for uniformly charging the toner 36 is provided, and one end of the toner layer regulating blade 38 is pressed against the toner carrying roller 34.

Next, the aperture electrode body 10 will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The aperture electrode body 10 is
As shown in FIG. 2, the insulating sheet 12 is made of a polyimide having a thickness of 25 μm, and a plurality of apertures 16 having a diameter of 60 μm are printed on the insulating sheet 12 at intervals of about 127 μm, for example, on A4 paper. , About 1700
The aperture electrode bodies 10 are formed in a row in the longitudinal direction. In addition, a thickness of 8 μm is provided around the aperture 16.
Each of the apertures 16 has an annular control electrode 14 made of copper foil of m.
Conductive wires 13 that are formed in each case and extend from the control electrode 14 are formed on the insulating sheet 12, respectively. These conducting wires 13 are connected to the control voltage applying circuit 68 side shown in FIG.

Here, the support structure of the aperture electrode body 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the aperture electrode body 10 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG.
It is a F arrow line view of FIG. The rear end support portion 10 formed on the downstream side of the aperture electrode body 10 in the image recording medium transport direction.
a is fixed to the rear end of the rectangular fixed frame 20, and the front end support portion 10b formed on the upstream side is fixed to the front end of the rectangular fixed frame 20. Before attaching the fixed frame 20 to the toner case 31, that is, when the aperture electrode body 10 is hung on the fixed frame 20, the fixed frame 20 applies a predetermined amount of tension to the aperture electrode body 10 by the support portions 10a and 10b. It is supported in the added state.

On the other hand, at the left end portion of the toner case 31 corresponding to the plurality of apertures 16 of the aperture electrode body 10 and the rear end support portion 10a, the aperture electrode body 10 is supported from the toner supply device 30 side. The 1 interposer 26 is formed to project laterally. A second interposer 27 that supports the aperture electrode body 10 from the toner supply device 30 side is provided at the left end portion of the toner case 31, which corresponds to between the plurality of apertures 16 of the aperture electrode body 10 and the front end support portion 10b. It is formed so as to project laterally. FIG. 5 is a view of the first interposer 26 of FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the first and second interposers 2
Reference numerals 6 and 27 are curved so as to project in the direction of the image recording medium, and have a radius of curvature of about 1,000 mm.

Here, the assembling of the aperture electrode body 10 to the toner supply device 30 will be described. Fixed frame 20
Is attached from the left side to a predetermined position on the left end of the toner case 31. At this time, the central portion of the aperture electrode body 10 is brought into contact with the toner carrying roller 34, the upper portion of the aperture electrode body 10 is brought into contact with the first interposer 26, and the lower portion of the aperture electrode body 10 is brought into contact with the second interposer 2.
Contact 7 Curved interposer 2
When the aperture electrode body 10 is brought into contact with 6 and 27, the central portion 26a that is most protruded as shown in FIG.
"Wrinkles" are difficult to come close to because the contact is made from the end to the end 26b in order. The upper part of the aperture electrode body 10 is pressed by the first interposer 26 and moved to the left side as shown in FIG. 3, and the lower part of the aperture electrode body 10 is pressed to the second interposer 27 and similarly moved to the left side. To be done.

At this time, since the tension from the supporting portions 10a and 10b is applied to the aperture electrode body 10, the first interposer 26 is pushed back at the contact portion P as shown in FIG. Force F to work works. At the contact portion P between the aperture electrode body 10 and the first interposer 26, since the aperture electrode body 10 is formed in a curved shape, this force F is tangential to the force F2 in the normal direction of the curved surface of the interposer 26. It is decomposed into force F1. This tangential component F1 acts in a direction to prevent "wrinkling" of the aperture electrode body 10.

As shown in FIG. 3, the left end portion of the toner carrying roller 34 has the first and second interposers 26, 27.
Since it is located further to the left than the left end of, the central portion of the aperture electrode body 10 in which the plurality of apertures 16 are arranged is moved to the leftmost. At this time, as described above, the first and second interposers 26 and 27 fix the aperture electrode body 10 in a plane shape without wrinkles, and therefore, the toner is attached to each of the plurality of apertures 16 formed in the aperture electrode body 10. The toner 36 from the carrying roller 34 can be evenly supplied. Further, the tip portions 26c, 2 of the first and second interposers 26, 27 that come into contact with the aperture electrode body 10 are
Since 7c is formed in a substantially rectangular cross section, once the aperture electrode body 10 is fixed, it will not slip,
A uniform tension when attached can be maintained permanently.

The positional relationship between the aperture 16 of the aperture electrode body 10 and the toner carrying roller 34 will now be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 3, the center line 77 of each aperture 16 is the toner carrying roller. It is arranged so as to pass through the leftmost portion of the peripheral surface of 34 and the central shaft 78 of the toner carrying roller 34. In this positional relationship, the respective apertures 16 are evenly arranged vertically with respect to the leftmost portion of the peripheral surface of the toner carrying roller 34, so that the distribution of the toner 36 passing through each aperture 16 is distributed over the entire aperture. Can be made uniform. Further, since the wall surface of the aperture 16 and the flying direction of the toner 36 are parallel to each other, the toner can be stably jetted.

Further, the aperture electrode body itself is attached to the toner carrying roller 34 with respect to the aperture 16 as shown in FIG.
It is pressed so that it bends to the left and right about the same angle. As a result, the contact area between the aperture electrode body 10 and the toner carrying roller 34 can be increased, and the periphery of the right portion of the aperture 16 can be pressed uniformly in the upper and lower directions, so that uneven toner concentration can occur. It can be suppressed as much as possible.

Next, the control device for the control electrode 14 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, a control voltage applying circuit 68 is connected between the control electrode 14 and the toner carrying roller 34. The control voltage application circuit 68 is configured to apply a voltage of -30 V or +30 V to the control electrode 14 based on an image signal sent from an image signal receiving unit (not shown). The image signal receiving means (not shown) is connected to an external computer, an image reading device, an image communication device, or the like.

Further, a backside voltage applying circuit 74 is connected between the backside electrode plate 42 and the toner carrying roller 34. The backside voltage applying circuit 74 is connected to the backside electrode plate 4.
A voltage of +1 kV can be applied to 2.

Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. When the image signal receiving means (not shown) receives an image signal from an external device, the supply roller 32 is rotated in the direction of arrow A by a control device (not shown), and the toner 3 stored in the toner case 31 is stored.
6 is conveyed toward the toner carrying roller 34. Then, the transported toner 36 is transferred to the toner carrying roller 34.
The toner is rubbed on the toner carrying roller 34 and is negatively charged to be carried on the toner carrying roller 34. The toner 36 carried on the toner carrying roller 34 is conveyed while being carried on the cylindrical roller surface of the toner carrying roller 34 as the toner carrying roller 34 rotates in the direction of the arrow B, and the toner layer regulating blade 3
After being made thin by 8 and the charging is made uniform, the toner carrying roller 34 is conveyed in the direction of the arrow B toward the aperture electrode body 10. The toner 36 on the toner carrying roller 34 is the same as the aperture electrode body 1
It is supplied to the side of the aperture 16 while being rubbed by the insulating sheet 12 of 0. At this time, the first and second interposers 26,
Since the aperture electrode body 10 is applied with a uniform tension by 27, the aperture electrode body 10 is
Contact the surface of the toner carrying roller 34 uniformly, and the toner 36 is evenly supplied to each aperture 16.

Next, the image forming operation will be described with reference to FIGS.
Refer to to continue the explanation. In response to the image signal sent from the image signal receiving means (not shown), the control voltage applying circuit 68 adds +30 to the control electrode 14 corresponding to the image portion.
A voltage of V is applied. As a result, in the aperture 16 in the control electrode 14 to which the voltage is applied, an electric force line from the control electrode 14 toward the toner carrying roller 34 is formed due to the potential difference between the control electrode 14 and the toner carrying roller 34.
As a result, the negatively charged toner receives an electrostatic force in the direction of higher electric potential, passes through the aperture 16 from the toner carrying roller 34, and is drawn out to the control electrode 14 side. The toner 36 that has been pulled out is transferred to the image recording medium 40 by the electric field formed between the image recording medium 40 and the aperture electrode body 10 by the voltage of +1 kV applied to the back electrode plate 42 by the back voltage applying circuit 74. It flies toward and accumulates on the image recording medium 40 to form pixels. At this time,
Since the first and second interposers 26 and 27 apply uniform tension to the entire aperture electrode body 10 and the toner 36 is evenly supplied to the aperture 16,
Pixels of uniform density are formed in each aperture 16. Further, uniform tension is applied to the aperture electrode body 10 so that the image recording medium 40 is not tilted.
The pixel is formed at an appropriate position on the image recording medium 40 because it is maintained at a right angle with respect to.

On the other hand, the control electrode 14 corresponding to the non-image part
Since a voltage of -30 V is applied from the control voltage applying circuit 68 to the toner carrying roller 34, an electric field is not formed between the toner carrying roller 34 and the control electrode 14, and the toner 36 on the toner carrying roller 34 receives electrostatic force. Therefore, no pixel is formed in the portion of the image recording medium 40 facing the control electrode 14.

Here, when one row of pixels is formed on the surface of the image recording medium 40 by the toner 36, the conveying roller 69 then conveys one pixel in the direction perpendicular to the aperture row. Then, the toner image is formed on the entire surface of the image recording medium 40 by repeating the above-described image forming process. After that, the formed toner image is conveyed to the fixing device 46 by the conveying roller 69, and is fixed on the image recording medium 40 by the fixing device 46.

In the image forming apparatus of the first embodiment, since the insulating sheet 12 of the aperture electrode body 10 is directed to the toner carrying roller 34 side, the toner 36 is present on the toner carrying roller 34 due to the trouble of the toner supply system. Even if not
The control electrode 14 and the toner carrying roller 34 are not in contact with each other and electrically short-circuited, so that the control voltage applying circuit 68 is not destroyed.

Next, an image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. Regarding the configuration for image formation of the image forming apparatus of the second embodiment, the first embodiment described above with reference to FIGS.
Since it is similar to the embodiment, the same reference numerals are used for the same members, and illustration and description thereof are omitted.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view of the aperture electrode body 10, and FIG. 7 is a view taken in the direction of arrow G in FIG. First mentioned above
In the embodiment, the first and second interposers 26 and 27 are formed parallel to the arrangement direction of the apertures 16 as shown in FIG. 4, but in the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. The end portions 126b and 127b of the first and second interposers 126 and 127 are formed in a curved shape that is close to the support portions 10a and 10b. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the first and second interposers 26 and 27 of the first embodiment.
The tip portions 26c and 27c of the first embodiment are formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section, but in the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the tip portions 126 of the first and second interposers 126 and 127 are formed.
c and 127c are formed to have a substantially circular cross section.

In the second embodiment, as described above, the ends 12 of the first and second interposers 126 and 127 are used.
Since 6b and 127b are formed in a curved shape so as to be close to the supporting portions 10a and 10b, when the aperture electrode body 10 is fixed to the toner case 31, the arrangement direction of the aperture electrode body 10 tends to be particularly slack. The tension on the side of the edge becomes large, and uniform tension can be applied to the entire aperture electrode body 10. Therefore, the toner 36 can be evenly supplied to each aperture 16, and the image distortion and “blurring” on the end portion side of the aperture 16 can be prevented.

Also, in the second embodiment, the tip portions 126c, 1 of the first and second interposers 126, 127 are provided.
Since the aperture 27c is formed in a substantially circular shape, the aperture 16
When removing the dirt of the first and second interposers 12
Even when the aperture electrode body 10 is slid over 6, 6 and 127 and the aperture 16 is moved to a cleaning device (not shown), the aperture electrode body 10 can be moved smoothly.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described in detail above, and within the scope not departing from the gist thereof,
Various changes can be made. For example, in the first embodiment, the tip portions 26c and 27c of the first and second interposers 26 and 27 are formed in a substantially rectangular shape, and in the second embodiment, the tip portions of the first and second interposers 126 and 127. Although 126c and 127c are formed in a substantially circular shape,
Various shapes of the tip of the interposer can be adopted.
For example, it can be formed into a trapezoidal shape as shown in FIG. 8A or can be formed into a triangular shape as shown in FIG. 8B.

In the first and second embodiments described above, the interposers 26 and 27 are formed integrally with the toner case 31, but the interposers can be provided separately. In this case, after the fixed frame 20 on which the aperture electrode body 10 is stretched is attached to the toner case 31, the interposer is moved in parallel in the thickness direction of the aperture electrode body 10 (leftward in FIG. 1). Tension is applied to the body 10. At this time, since the convex tip portion of the interposer comes into contact with the end portion in order, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of “wrinkles” also by this method.

Further, in the above embodiment, the aperture electrode body was used as the toner flow control means, but it is also possible to use a mesh-shaped electrode body as described in the specification of US Pat. No. 5,036,341, for example. Is.

[0040]

As is apparent from the above description,
According to another aspect of the image forming apparatus of the present invention, at the contact portion between the aperture electrode body and the protruding shape, the protruding shape is formed in a curved shape protruding toward the recording medium direction. Force acting on the sheet-like member acts in a direction to prevent wrinkling of the sheet-shaped member. Further, in order to attach the aperture electrode body to the toner supply mechanism, when the aperture electrode body is placed on the protrusion formed in the curved shape, it is in contact with the most protruding central portion to the end portion in order. Wrinkles are hard to come by. For this reason,
Since the aperture electrode body can be attached accurately to a flat surface without "wrinkles" and uniform tension can be applied to the entire surface, toner can be evenly supplied to each opening, and a clear image without density unevenness or distortion can be obtained. Can be formed.

Further, in the image forming apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, since the projecting side end portion is curved so as to come close to the support portion, especially when the aperture electrode body is fixed, the slack is particularly reduced. The tension on the end side in the arrangement direction of the aperture electrode body is increased, and uniform tension can be applied to the entire aperture electrode body. For this reason, the toner can be uniformly supplied to each opening, and it becomes possible to prevent the image from being distorted particularly on the end side of the opening.

Further, in the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect,
Since the contact portion with the projecting aperture electrode body is formed in a substantially rectangular cross section, it is possible to prevent the aperture electrode body from slipping from the projecting shape. Further, in the image forming apparatus according to the fourth aspect, since the contact portion with the projecting aperture electrode body is formed in a substantially circular cross section, it is possible to slide the aperture electrode body on the projecting shape. Become.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an aperture electrode body according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the aperture electrode body shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a view on arrow F of FIG.

5 is a view on arrow E of FIG. 3. FIG.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view of an aperture electrode body according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a view on arrow G in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a modified example of the tip shape of the interposer of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of an aperture electrode body according to a conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Aperture Electrode Body 12 Insulating Sheet 14 Control Electrode 16 Aperture 20 Fixing Frame 26 Interposer 27 Interposer 30 Toner Supply Device

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A flexible sheet-shaped member,
A plurality of openings are formed in a row in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the recording medium, and an aperture electrode body having electrodes in each of the plurality of openings, and toner is supplied to the openings of the aperture electrode body. A toner supply mechanism and a toner control unit that controls the potential applied to each electrode of the aperture electrode body to control the amount of toner that passes through each opening, and the toner that passes through the opening in the recording medium. In the image forming apparatus configured to adhere to form an image, a pair of supporting portions parallel to the arrangement direction of the plurality of openings, to which both ends of the aperture electrode body are fixed,
A support portion that applies tension to the aperture electrode body, and supports the aperture electrode body from the toner supply mechanism side between the plurality of openings and each support portion in order to apply uniform tension to the aperture electrode body. An image forming method, comprising: a ridge that is arranged substantially parallel to a direction in which the openings are arranged and that is formed in a curved shape that protrudes toward the recording medium direction. apparatus. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an end portion side of the ridge in the arrangement direction of the plurality of openings is formed in a curved shape so as to be close to the support portion. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a contact portion of the ridge with the aperture electrode body is formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a contact portion of the protrusion with the aperture electrode body is formed to have a substantially circular cross section.