JPH11223989A - Developer layer regulation member, one-component image forming device and image forming method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a one-component image forming device and a one- component image forming method by which fogging and image irregularity are not caused extending over a long term, an image defect such as a stripe because of toner attached and fixed to an electrifying member is prevented from occurring and stable image density is obtained and to provide a developer layer regulation member used for it. SOLUTION: The one-component image forming device is proxxxxxxxxxxvided with a latent image holding body 1 holding an electrostatic latent image, a developer carrier 3 and the developer layer regulation member 5 supplying developer to the carrier 3, forming the thin layer of the developer and imparting electric charge. Besides, it is constituted so that a visible image is formed by feeding the thin layer of the developer formed on the carrier 3 to the holding body 1 holding the electrostatic latent image and attaching the developer to the electrostatic latent image. Then, the member provided with a resin layer whose pencil hardness is >=4H on the surface is used as the regulation member 5. It is preferable that the non-magnetic toner is used as the developer in the case of this image forming device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a developer layer regulating member, a one-component image forming apparatus having the same, and a one-component image forming method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The one-component toner developing system is classified into a magnetic one-component developing system using a magnetic toner and a non-magnetic one-component developing system using a non-magnetic toner. The magnetic one-component developing method uses a developer carrier having a magnetic field generating means such as a magnet inside, and carries a magnetic toner containing a magnetic substance such as magnetite inside, and develops the layer by a layer regulating member to make the layer thinner. In recent years, many printers have been put to practical use. On the other hand, the non-magnetic one-component developing method
Since the toner does not have a magnetic force, a toner supply roll or the like is pressed against the developer carrier to supply the toner onto the developer carrier, and the toner is held by electrostatic force. It has the advantage of being compatible with colorization because it does not contain a colored magnetic material, and because it does not use a magnet for the developer carrier, it can be lighter and lower in cost, and has recently been put to practical use in small full-color printers, etc. Is starting to be.

[0003] In the one-component developing method, since there is no stable charging and conveying means such as a carrier, charging / transporting defects are likely to occur due to long-time use or high speed, and there are still many problems to be improved. It is. That is, in the one-component developing method, after the toner is conveyed onto the developer carrying member, the toner is thinned by the layer regulating member and developed, but the toner is charged by the developer carrying member and the layer regulating member. Since the chance of charging due to contact / friction with the member is very short, compared to the two-component developing method using a carrier, the amount of low-charged or reverse-polarized toner tends to increase, so that the toner has a faster charging speed and a moderate charge. It is required that a large amount of charge be provided. Further, in the one-component developing method, external stress due to repeated use causes deterioration of the toner or contamination of the charging member by the toner and the external additive, which greatly affects the charging and developability of the toner. Therefore, in order to maintain more stable charging and layer formation, a stress-resistant design combining the toner and the charging member is required.

Conventionally, as a developer carrier, a metal sleeve such as aluminum or SUS or an elastic sleeve in which a conductive agent such as carbon is dispersed in silicone rubber, NBR, EPDM, or the like has been used. For example, elastic blades such as urethane rubber and silicone rubber, and metal blades such as SUS and phosphor bronze are used. However, since the charging members such as the developer carrier and the layer regulating member have low charging ability per se, not only is it difficult to adjust the charging of the initial toner, but also due to toner deterioration and contamination of the charging member due to long use. In addition, the amount of low-charged toner and reverse-polarity toner increased, and problems such as fog and low image density were likely to occur.

[0005] In order to improve these problems, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 61-118765 and 61-1226.
No. 58 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 61-122660 propose various methods for imparting strong charge to a toner by using a material having a charge polarity opposite to that of the toner on the surface of a charging member. However, according to these methods, although the initial charging characteristics of the toner are certainly improved and good image quality is obtained, the toner and the additives of the toner are statically charged on the surface of the charging member, particularly the layer regulating member, by continuous use. There is a problem that not only the toner adheres electrically and for other reasons to hinder the charge application to the toner, but also makes it impossible to form a uniform layer, and image defects such as streaks tend to occur in the image. In particular, in the case of a non-magnetic one-component developing system using a toner containing no magnetic material, this problem has been a major obstacle.

In order to improve these problems, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-150873 proposes to use a layer treated at least with a fluorine-containing coupling agent and a nitrogen-containing coupling agent as a layer regulating member. ing. However, the throughput of the fluorine-containing coupling agent is limited, and a sufficient effect cannot be obtained. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-69173 discloses a ten-point surface roughness Rz / toner diameter: 0.05 to
A metal regulating member of 0.8 is disclosed. Certainly, a relatively large surface roughness has the effect of improving the cleaning properties of the surface, but this regulating member still cannot sufficiently suppress toner adhesion. Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-50178 proposes dispersing a substance having abrasiveness in a resin layer on the surface of a developing sleeve to remove adhered toner. However, in this case,
Although the adhered toner can be removed to some extent, since the abrasive substance is present on the surface, there is a problem that the toner is filmed on the surface due to the roughness. In addition, if filming is prevented by providing a wearable resin layer, the electrical resistance design and charging design of the resin layer are greatly restricted, and stability against repeated use cannot be obtained. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-265236 discloses that a fluorine-based compound is used for a charging member. In this case, toner adhesion can be suppressed to some extent.
However, since the fluorine-based compound contains fluorine, the mechanical strength of the coating is not so high, and the fluorine-based compound is easily worn. As a result, there is a problem that the surface is roughened by abrasion, and the roughness thereof triggers toner adhesion, or the abrasion is too large to cause a change in the linear pressure of the layer regulating member, resulting in deterioration of toner charging. The improvement is still insufficient.

[0007]

In recent years, the demand for printers has increased, and the size, speed, and cost of printers have been increasing.
The device has been required to have higher reliability and longer life, and the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has an object to solve the above-mentioned problems in the conventional technology.

That is, an object of the present invention is to stabilize toner charging and conveyance for a long period of time, to prevent fogging and density unevenness, and to produce a stable image in which an image defect such as a streak does not occur in an image due to toner adhesion / fixation to a charging member. It is an object of the present invention to provide a one-component image forming apparatus and a one-component image forming method capable of obtaining a density, and a developer layer regulating member used for the one-component image forming apparatus and method.

[0009]

The inventors of the present invention have conducted various studies to solve the above-mentioned problems, and as a result, have found that the portion of the developer layer regulating member that contacts the developer carrier has a pencil hardness of 4H or more. It has been found that the above problems can be solved by providing a resin coating layer having a high density and using the resin coating layer in the image formation of the one-component developing system, and have completed the present invention.

That is, the developer layer regulating member of the present invention comprises:
It has a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on the surface. In the present invention, the resin layer may be formed from an ultraviolet curable resin. Further, the resin layer preferably has a pencil hardness of 5H or more. Further, the resin layer has a thickness of 0.05 to 20 μm.
m is preferred. By using the above-mentioned developer layer regulating member of the present invention in a one-component image forming system, good charge is imparted to the toner, and the toner and additives of the toner adhere and adhere to the surface of the developer layer regulating member. It is possible to stabilize the formation of the toner layer on the developer carrier for a long period of time.

In the one-component image forming apparatus of the present invention, a latent image holder, a developer carrier, and a developer are supplied to the developer carrier to form a thin layer of the developer and to apply a charge. At least a developer layer regulating member for feeding a thin layer of developer formed on the developer carrier to a latent image holding member that holds an electrostatic latent image, and causing the developer to adhere to the electrostatic latent image. Wherein the developer layer regulating member has a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on its surface.

Further, according to the one-component image forming method of the present invention, a developer is supplied to a developer carrier, and a thin layer of developer is formed on the developer carrier by a developer layer regulating member. The electrostatic charge is applied to a latent image holding member that holds an electrostatic latent image, and a developer is attached to the electrostatic latent image to form a visible image. And a developer layer regulating member having a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on its surface. In the one-component image forming method of the present invention, it is more preferable to use a non-magnetic toner as the developer.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. The one-component image forming method of the present invention includes a latent image forming step of forming a latent image on a latent image holding member, and a latent image forming member formed on a latent image holding member by using a developer thinly formed on a developer holding member. It has a developing step of developing the image, a transfer step of transferring the toner image on the latent image holding member to the transfer member, and a fixing step of thermally fixing the toner image on the transfer member. This is performed using a one-component image forming apparatus.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a one-component image forming apparatus of the present invention, and is a schematic configuration diagram of a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus. In the figure, a latent image holding member 1 is charged by a roll charger 2 and is exposed to a laser beam (not shown) to form an electrostatic latent image. The developer carrier 3 is disposed so as to face the latent image holder, and a layer regulating blade 5 is provided as a developer layer regulating member so as to come into contact therewith with a constant pressure. For example, a DC voltage and an AC voltage are applied to the developer carrier 3 and the developer supply roll 4 (or the developer supply brush). Reference numeral 6 denotes a transfer roll, 7 denotes a cleaner, 8 denotes a fixing device, 9 denotes a developer, 10 denotes a developing device, and 11 denotes a transfer member.

In the latent image forming step, a conventionally known method can be applied, and by an electrophotographic method or an electrostatic recording method,
An electrostatic latent image is formed on a latent image holding member having an electrostatic latent image holding layer such as a photosensitive layer or a dielectric layer. In the present invention,
As the photosensitive layer of the latent image holding member, a known layer such as an organic or amorphous silicon can be used. When the latent image holding member is cylindrical, the latent image holding member can be obtained by a known manufacturing method such as extruding aluminum or an aluminum alloy, followed by surface processing. It is also possible to use a belt-like latent image holding member.

In the developing step, a rotating cylinder is used as a developer carrier (developing roll), on which toner is formed in a thin layer by a developer layer regulating member and transported to a developing nip. The developing roll is arranged so as to be in contact with the latent image holding member that holds the electrostatic latent image or at a fixed gap in the developing section, and a bias voltage is applied between the developing roll and the latent image holding member. The development is performed while applying the voltage, and the electrostatic latent image is visualized by the toner. In the case of magnetic one-component development, a rotating cylinder having a magnet built therein is used as a developer carrier, and a toner containing a magnetic material is transported and held by a magnetic force. In the case of non-magnetic one-component development,
A method in which a urethane sponge, a conductive polypropylene or acrylic brush, a toner supply roll, or the like is pressed against the developer carrier to supply the toner onto the developer carrier is adopted.

In the present invention, the developer carrier may be an elastic sleeve in which a conductive agent such as carbon is dispersed in silicone rubber, NBR, EPDM, or the like, aluminum, SUS, or the like.
In order to control the transportability and chargeability of the sleeve obtained by drawing metal or ceramics such as metal and ceramics, the surface of these sleeves was subjected to surface treatment such as oxidation treatment or metal plating, polishing, blasting, etc. The surface of these sleeves is coated with a resin such as acrylic resin, phenolic resin or the like or a resin mixture in which these resins are dispersed with a charge control agent, a conductive agent, a lubricant, and the like. used.

The regulation of the toner layer is performed by bringing the developer layer regulating member into contact with the surface of the developer carrying member.
As the developer layer regulating member, a member provided with a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on a substrate surface such as an elastic blade such as silicone rubber or urethane rubber or a metal blade such as SUS or phosphor bronze is used. Further, in the present invention, the developer layer regulating member has a linear pressure of 2 to 50 g on the developer carrier.
It is preferable that the contact be performed at a pressure of / cm.

By using the developer layer regulating member having the above-mentioned structure in the present invention, not only is it possible to impart good chargeability to the toner, but also the toner and the additive of the toner can be used for a long period of time. Since it is difficult to adhere or adhere to the surface, it is possible to continuously obtain good layer formation and chargeability. The reason is presumed as follows.

The charge is applied to the toner by mechanically rubbing the toner with the developer carrier and the developer layer regulating member in a so-called nip portion where the toner layer contacts the developer carrier and the developer carrier. Done by For this purpose, a certain pressure is applied to the developer layer regulating member toward the developer carrier. When the surface of the developer layer regulating member is covered with a resin layer, the charge imparting property of the developer layer regulating member becomes better. That is, the resin layer coating on the developer layer regulating member surface is
As the hydrophobicity is improved compared to metals, the stability of charge application,
In particular, the environmental stability is improved. However, on the other hand, the resin layer coating of the developer layer regulating member is worn by rubbing with the toner. This tendency to wear becomes greater when inorganic oxide fine powder is added to the toner surface. Adhesion and fixation of toner on the surface of the developer layer regulating member is caused by trapping of toner in a nip area, and heat generated by rubbing in a very narrow area such as a nip is involved.
It is considered that the adhered matter grows larger due to the fusion of the toner. By repeated use, the resin layer having low film hardness comes to wear. If the surface of the resin layer wears uniformly and smoothly, there will not be much problem.However, in reality, the smoothness is lost along with the abrasion. Will stay. The retained toner adheres to the surface of the developer layer regulating member due to frictional heat generated in the nip, and the adhered toner grows from this as a starting point. The grown toner adhered material disturbs the smooth flow of toner transport in the nip, and at the same time disturbs the toner charging opportunity, so that the toner layer on the developer carrier formed by the toner passing through the nip is disturbed. Would. For example, there are places where the toner is not carried in the circumferential direction of the developer carrier, toner spills due to toner not adhering to the developer carrier, or the amount of reversely charged toner increases. Each of these phenomena causes image defects such as white streaks, dirt, and fogging that occur when the toner is not carried in the process direction on the copied image.

In the present invention, since the developer layer regulating member has a very hard resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more formed on the surface thereof, the environment stability of charge application is good, and further, the repetition rate is improved. Hard to wear in use,
Since a smooth surface can be maintained, sticking of the toner is suppressed, and at the same time, the maintenance of the formation of the toner layer and the maintenance of the charge are improved. Further, when the resin layer is formed of an ultraviolet curable resin, the resin layer becomes a crosslinked resin film when irradiated with ultraviolet rays, and has an advantage that a very hard film is formed.

The developer layer regulating member of the present invention is provided with a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more at least in a portion in contact with the developer carrier.
Acrylic resin, epoxy resin, butyral resin, amino resin, for example, urea-formaldehyde resin, melamine resin, benzoguanamine resin, polyamide, urea resin,
Melamine-acrylic resin, melamine-alkyd resin,
Acrylic-epoxy resin, acrylic-urethane resin, polyacetal, modified polyphenylene ether, ultra high molecular weight polyethylene, polysulfone, polyethersulfone, polyphenylene sulfide, polyarylate, polyamideimide, polyetherimide, polyetheretherketone, polyimide, polybenzo A thermoplastic resin and a thermosetting resin containing imidazole or the like as a main component can be given.

The resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more is preferably formed of an ultraviolet curable resin. The ultraviolet curable resin basically means a coating composition containing three components of a photocurable resin (oligomer), a reactive diluent, and a sensitizer. Irradiation means forming an ultraviolet curable resin layer. In the present invention, various known photocurable resins can be used as the photocurable resin in the coating agent composition, and examples thereof include unsaturated polyesters, urethane-acrylates, epoxy-acrylates, and polyesters.
Acrylate-based, polyether-acrylate-based, and acrylate-based ones can be used.
Monomers or oligomers that absorb light having a wavelength of from 00 to 400 nm and promote the polymerization reaction are preferably used.

The reactive diluent is a diluent for improving coating suitability, and has a function as a cross-linking agent at the time of a film curing reaction. As reactive diluents, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, cyclohexyl acrylate, butoxyethyl acrylate, neopentyl glycol diacrylate, 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate, polyethylene glycol diacrylate, trimethylolpropane triacrylate, pentaerythritol triacrylate, Polyester diacrylate and the like.

Examples of the sensitizer include the following. As the carbonyl compound, for example, benzoin, benzoin methyl ether, benzoin ethyl ether,
Organic substances such as benzoin isopropyl ether, benzoin isobutyl ether, acetophenone, 2,2-diethoxyacetophenone, benzophenone, p, p-bismethylaminophenone thioxanthone, 2-chlorothioxanthone, biacetyl, benzyl, α-haloketone, and 2-chloroanthraquinone As the peroxide, for example, benzoyl peroxide, di-t-butyl peroxide, etc., as the azo compound, azobisisobutyronitrile, 2,2'-azobispropane, m, m'-azoxystyrene, etc. As halogen compounds, carbon tetrabromide, α-bromonaphthalene,
Examples of sulfur compounds such as 1-chloromethylnaphthalene and the like include diphenyl disulfide, dibenzyl disulfide, dibenzothiazolyl sulfide, and tetramethylthiuram disulfide, and inorganic ions such as Fe ³⁺ , UO ₂ ²⁺ , and tin tetrachloride. .

Among the components constituting these coating agent compositions, urethane-acrylates, epoxy-acrylates, and polyesters are used as photocurable resins in order to impart more negative charge to the toner. Acrylates and acrylates are preferred. As the sensitizer, a compound containing a nitrogen atom in the structure is preferable.

Commercially available UV-curable resins include:
For example, UVHC8552, UVHC8553, UVH
C8555, UVHC8556, UVHC8558, U
VHC8563, UVHC1101, UVHC110
3. UVHC1105 (all manufactured by Toshiba Silicone Co., Ltd.), Seika Beam Series (manufactured by Dainichi Seika), Diamond Beam Series (manufactured by Mitsubishi Rayon), Olester RA135
3, RA1458, RA1500, RA1476-7
5, RA1302, RA1319, RA1328, RA
1491S (Mitsui Chemicals), KNS5002A, KN
S5002B (manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) and Fuji Hard Series (manufactured by Fujikura Kasei Co., Ltd.).

For the purpose of enhancing the adhesiveness to the substrate and increasing the strength of the coating, if necessary, flake or fibrous fine powder of mica, talc, asbestos or the like, zinc powder, aluminum powder or the like may be used. Metal powder can be added. Further, for the purpose of assisting toner charging or controlling resistance, resin powders such as polymethyl methacrylate, melamine resin, nylon, silicone resin, metal azo dye complex,
Charge control agents such as quaternary ammonium salts, charge control resins such as styrene-acrylic and polyester, silica,
Inorganic fine powders such as titania, tin oxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, ferrite, and magnetite, conductive powders such as carbon black and graphite, and semiconductive agents such as molybdenum disulfide can be included in the coating.

A putty, a sealer, a primer, a surfacer, a primer surfacer, or the like may be applied to the substrate as necessary for the purpose of increasing the adhesion to the substrate or smoothing the coated surface.

As a coating method for forming the resin layer of the present invention, a known coating method such as spray coating or dip coating is used. The thickness is preferably 0.05 to 20 μm, and particularly preferably 0.1 to 20 μm.
A range of 1 to 10 μm is preferred.

The transfer step in the present invention uses a contact-type transfer method, a corotron, in which a transfer roll or a transfer belt is pressed against the latent image holding member to transfer the toner image formed on the latent image holding member to the transfer member. A non-contact transfer method in which a toner image formed on a latent image holding member is transferred to a transfer member by a primary transfer of a toner image to a belt-like or cylindrical intermediate transfer member, and then the transferred toner image is transferred to a transfer member. A known method using a known device, such as an intermediate transfer method for secondary transfer, is employed.

In the cleaning step, the toner remaining on the latent image holding member without being transferred in the transfer step is removed by a cleaner. However, when the amount of untransferred toner is small, this step is omitted and the cleaner is eliminated. Is also possible. When a cleaning step is provided, known ones such as blade cleaning, brush cleaning, and roller cleaning are employed. Blade cleaning is performed using an elastic rubber such as silicone rubber or urethane rubber.

In the fixing step, the toner image transferred to the transfer member is fixed by a fixing device. As a fuser,
A heat fixing type using a heat roll is preferably used.

The toner used in the image forming method of the present invention comprises at least a binder resin and a magnetic material when used as a magnetic toner, and comprises at least a binder resin and a colorant when used as a non-magnetic toner.

In the present invention, as the binder resin used for the toner, polystyrene, styrene-alkyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-alkyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-alkyl
Known materials such as butadiene copolymer, styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, polyurethane, epoxy resin, silicone resin, polyamide, modified rosin, and paraffin wax can be used. Copolymer,
Polyester is preferably used. Particularly, in the present invention, the effect is great when a binder resin having a low softening point of 90 to 120 ° C. is used. Binder resins having a low softening point are often used in view of the smoothness and transparency of fixed images with the recent development of color, but on the other hand, they are easily fused to a charging member by heat, and the chargeability of toner, There is a problem that layer formation is easily inhibited. However, when such a binder resin is used in the image forming method of the present invention, these problems do not occur. The softening point here means a flow tester (manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation, nozzle 1 × 1 m)
m, melt viscosity 10 ⁴ P measured by a load of 10 kg)
It refers to the temperature at a · s (10 ⁵ poise).

In the present invention, colorants used in the toner include carbon black, aniline blue, calcoil blue, chrome yellow, ultramarine blue, Dupont oil red, quinoline yellow, methylene blue chloride, copper phthalocyanine, malachite green oxalate, Lamp Black, Rose Bengal, C.I.
I. Pigment Red 48: 1, C.I. I. Pigment Red 122, C.I. I. Pigment Red 57:
1, C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 97, C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 12, C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 17, C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 180, C.I. I.
Pigment Blue 15: 1, C.I. I. Known ones such as CI Pigment Blue 15: 3 can be used.

As the magnetic material used in the case of the magnetic toner, any conventionally known magnetic materials can be used. For example, iron, cobalt,
Metals such as nickel and their alloys, Fe ₃ O ₄ , γ
Metal oxides such as Fe ₂ O ₃ and cobalt-added iron oxide;
Ferrites such as nZn ferrite and NiZn ferrite are exemplified. These magnetic materials are generally 30 to 7
It is used in an amount of 0% by weight.

In the toner used in the present invention,
A release agent may be added for the purpose of improving gross and offset. As the release agent, paraffins having 8 or more carbon atoms, polyolefins and the like are preferable, for example, paraffin wax, paraffin latex, microcrystalline wax, carnauba wax and the like, or polypropylene, polyethylene and the like, and these can be used alone or in combination. Can be used.

In the toner used in the present invention, a charge controlling agent may be added for the purpose of assisting the charging of the toner. Examples of the charge controlling agent when used as a negatively charged toner include azo complex salt dyes such as chromium and iron, complex compounds such as chromium, zinc, aluminum and boron of salicylic acid and charge control resins. And known ones such as quaternary ammonium salts.

In the present invention, fine particles of a fluidizing agent may be added for the purpose of imparting appropriate fluidity and chargeability to the developer, and conductive powder may be added for the purpose of improving charge exchangeability. In addition, additives such as lubricants and abrasives are added for the purpose of improving cleaning properties, preventing toner and external additives on the photoreceptor, and preventing black spots, white spots, white spots, comets, filming, etc. due to adhesion of talc. May be used. Examples of the fluidizing agent fine particles and additives used for these purposes include hydrophobic silica, hydrophobicized fine particles, titanium oxide, inorganic fine powders such as alumina, organic fine powders such as fatty acids or their derivatives and metal salts, and fluororesins. And fine resin powders such as acrylic resin and styrene resin, and powders such as cerium oxide and magnetite, and these can be used alone or in combination.

The toner used in the present invention preferably has a volume average particle diameter of 4 to 12 μm, more preferably 5 to 1 μm.
The range is 0 μm. When the volume average particle size is 4 μm or less,
Since the fluidity is remarkably deteriorated, a layer cannot be formed satisfactorily, which is likely to cause fogging and dart. Also 12μ
If m is more than m, not only the resolution is reduced and high image quality is not obtained, but also the charge amount per unit weight of the developer is reduced, so that the layer formation maintaining property is poor and fog and dirt are easily generated.

The toner used in the present invention can be produced by any known method. For example, a kneading and pulverizing method, that is, a method in which after preliminarily mixing a binder resin, a colorant, and a charge controlling agent, melt kneading with a kneading machine, pulverizing and classifying after cooling, and adding and mixing external additive fine particles. And a method for producing a polymerized toner by suspension polymerization, emulsion polymerization, or the like.

Next, a method for producing the developer layer regulating member of the present invention will be described. The developer layer regulating member of the present invention can be manufactured by applying a coating solution for adjusting the chargeability of the toner to the surface of the base material to form a film, and then cutting the film into a predetermined shape. As the coating, the above-mentioned heat or ultraviolet curable resin is preferably used. Further, as the substrate, a metal plate or a plastic sheet is preferable.
The thickness of the substrate is preferably about 50 to 500 μm.

The method for producing the developer layer regulating member of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 2 (A) is a plan view of a substrate before cutting, which has been coated with a coating liquid for forming a film, FIG. 2 (B) is a longitudinal sectional view thereof, FIG. 2 (C) is a plan view of a layer regulating member obtained by cutting,
(D) is a longitudinal sectional view thereof. In the figure, 20 is a substrate, 21 is a coating, 22 is a cut portion, 23 is a mounting hole, and 5 is a layer regulating blade obtained by cutting.

The coating film 21 is formed by previously applying a coating liquid for adjusting the chargeability of the toner on a substrate 20 of an appropriate size. As the material of the film, a material having a charge polarity opposite to the frictional charge polarity of the toner is used. Most laser printer toners in recent years are negatively charged. In such a case, a positively charged material is used for the film. Examples thereof include polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), PMMA and diethylaminoethyl acrylate or Thermoplastic resins such as copolymers with styrene and soluble nylon, or thermosetting resins such as epoxy resin, urethane resin and melamine resin, and ultraviolet curable resins (or electron beam curing) such as epoxy acrylate, urethane acrylate and polyester acrylate Resin). Among these, a curable resin is preferable because it has higher hardness and good abrasion resistance, and an ultraviolet curable resin is preferable because it has a high curing speed and therefore has high productivity. A polymerization initiator is added to the heat or ultraviolet curable resin as needed.

These materials can be used alone,
You may use together by mixing / dispersion. It is also effective to add and disperse molybdenum disulfide, carbon black, graphite, boron nitride, carbon fluoride, tin oxide, zinc oxide, tungsten oxide, aluminum powder, silica sol, and other additives to adjust the chargeability. is there. These may be either positively chargeable or negatively chargeable. In the case of negative chargeability, the amount of the resin must be such that the positive chargeability of the resin is not negated.

The thickness of the coating is preferably about 5 to 100 μm. Solvents and application conditions suitable for the application method are selected so that a film having a desired thickness is obtained. If the adhesion of the coating to the substrate is insufficient, the coating may peel or break at the time of cutting. In this case, it is effective to provide an adhesive layer between the two. As the material of the adhesive layer, a material such as a soluble nylon, various silane coupling agents, and metal alkoxides, which has sufficient adhesion to a substrate and does not dissolve during application of a film is selected.

The coating method includes a wire bar coating method, a blade coating method, a flow coating method, a spray coating method,
A known method such as a dip coating method can be used. It is preferable that the long substrate is wound in a coil shape because the coating operation can be performed in a large amount by a roll coater, which is efficient and has high productivity.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an example of a roll coater. The substrate 20 is sent from a supply roll 25 and wound up on a take-up roll 26. The coating liquid 24 is applied to the coating head 2
The coating is applied at 7 and dried through a dryer 28. If necessary, ultraviolet rays are irradiated by an ultraviolet lamp 29 to cure the coating. As the coating head, a gravure roll coater, a die coater, a reverse roll coater, a bar coater, or the like is used.

The substrate after the formation of the film is cut into a predetermined shape as a developer layer regulating member by a mechanical method such as a press machine or a shearing cutter or a thermal method such as a laser cutter. FIG. 2 shows one cut portion, but it is only necessary to fabricate as many developer layer regulating members as possible from the coated substrate by cutting.
A mounting hole 23 may be formed in the developer layer regulating member as needed.

As described above, according to the present invention, since the coating liquid is widely applied in advance to the entire surface of the substrate, it can be cut into a predetermined shape as a developer layer regulating member.
Unlike the conventional method, it is not necessary to apply the coating liquid one by one to the cut substrate, so that the number of processes is small, the mass productivity is high,
It is efficient.

[0052]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to embodiments. Example 1 (Preparation of Layer Control Blade (1)) An ultraviolet curable coating agent (UVHC1101; manufactured by Toshiba Silicone Co., Ltd.) was used for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus shown in FIG.
A 15 mm SUS substrate was spray-coated on the surface of a layer regulating blade in which urethane rubber having a thickness of 1 mm was adhered, and then irradiated with ultraviolet rays using an ultraviolet irradiation device to obtain a layer regulating blade (1). The ultraviolet irradiation was performed using a metal halide lamp UVL-8000M3-N1 (USHIO INC.) As a lamp at a distance of 577 mm (energy at this time: 50 mW / cm ² ) for 30 seconds. The thickness of the resin layer on the surface of the formed layer regulating blade (1) is about 5 μm.
m and its pencil hardness was 8H.

(Preparation of Non-Magnetic One-Component Toner (1)) 92 parts of polyester resin (terephthalic acid / bisphenol A ethylene oxide adduct, weight average molecular weight Mw: 12,000, Tg: 65 ° C., softening point: 100 ° C.) Copper phthalocyanine Blue pigment 5 parts Charge control agent: Bontron E84 (manufactured by Orient Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) 3 parts After premixing the above materials with a Henschel mixer,
The mixture was kneaded by a twin screw extruder at a set temperature of 140 ° C., a screw rotation speed of 300 rpm, and a supply speed of 150 kg / h. After cooling, the mixture was coarsely pulverized, then finely pulverized by a jet mill, and the obtained pulverized product was classified by an air classifier to obtain toner particles having a volume average particle diameter D50 of 7.3 μm. Further, 100 parts by weight of the toner particles were added to silica having a mean particle diameter of 12 nm treated with dimethyl silicone oil.
8 parts by weight and 1.0 part of rutile-type titanium oxide hydrophobized with decyltrimethoxysilane having an average particle diameter of 15 nm were added and mixed with a Henschel mixer to prepare a non-magnetic one-component toner (1).

The layer regulating blade (1) is attached to the non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1 at a linear pressure of 10 g / cm so as to be in contact with the developer carrying member. High temperature and high humidity environment (28 ° C, 85% RH)
In a low-temperature and low-humidity environment (10 ° C., 15% RH), 6,000 print tests were performed. In the non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus of this embodiment, the surface of aluminum is sandblasted to obtain an average surface roughness Ra.
The developer carrier 3 and the latent image holder 1 are formed using a developing device including a developer carrier 3 having a thickness of 0.3 μm and a developer supply roll 4 in which carbon black is dispersed in an acrylic resin.
And were disposed at a gap of 150 μm. The peripheral speed of the latent image carrier 1 is 80 mm / s, and the peripheral speed of the developer carrier 3 is 120 m / s.
m / s, the transfer test of the toner was performed using a transfer roll, the cleaning was performed using a blade-type cleaner, and the fixing was performed using a hot roll fixing device. As a result, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density, no background fog, and no streak on the image was continuously obtained in any environment. After the test, the layer regulating blade (1) was examined. As a result, no adhesion of toner was recognized, and there was no abrasion of the resin layer coating on the layer regulating blade.

Example 2 (Preparation of Layer Control Blade (2)) A UV curable coating agent (Diabeam UR4000; manufactured by Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd.) was prepared for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus with a thickness of 0.15 m.
m SUS substrate, then spray-coat
After drying at 60 ° C. for 5 minutes (setting), ultraviolet rays were irradiated in the same manner as in Example 1 to obtain a layer regulating blade (2). The thickness of the resin layer on the surface of the layer regulating blade (2) was about 6 μm, and its pencil hardness was 8H.

The layer regulating blade (2) was attached to the same image forming apparatus as in Example 1, and a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 using the non-magnetic one-component toner (1). As a result, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density, no background fog, and no streak on the image was continuously obtained in any environment. After completion of the test, the layer regulating blade (2) was examined. As a result, no toner adhesion and no abrasion of the resin layer coating were observed.

Example 3 (Preparation of Layer Control Blade (3)) 100 parts by weight of UV curable coating agent (Orester RA1353, manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.) Sensitizer (Darocur 1173, 2 parts by weight Ciba Specialty Chemicals) 100 parts by weight of ethyl acetate The above materials were mixed and stirred to obtain a coating solution for coating the layer regulating blade. In the same manner as in Example 1, this coating solution was applied to a SUS substrate prepared for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus to a thickness of 1
mm urethane rubber is applied to the surface of the layer regulating blade by spraying, and then dried (setting) at 50 to 60 ° C. for 5 minutes. (3) was obtained. The thickness of the resin layer on the surface of the layer regulating blade (3) was about 9 μm, and its pencil hardness was 8H.

The layer regulating blade (3) was attached to the same image forming apparatus as in Example 1, and a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 using the non-magnetic one-component toner (1). As a result, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density, no background fog, and no streak on the image was continuously obtained in any environment. After the test was completed, the layer regulating blade (3) was examined. As a result, no toner was fixed and the resin layer film was not worn.

Example 4 (Preparation of layer regulating blade (4)) 5 parts by weight of melamine resin (Koban 20SE60, manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.), 0.05 part by weight of crosslinking catalyst (CAT-6000, manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.) and methyl 3 parts by weight of a methacrylate resin (BR80, manufactured by Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd.) were charged into 20 parts by weight of methyl ethyl ketone, and stirred for 20 hours to obtain a coating solution for coating a layer regulating blade. This coating liquid is spray-coated on the surface of a layer regulating blade in which a urethane rubber having a thickness of 1 mm is adhered to the surface of a SUS substrate having a thickness of 0.15 mm prepared for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus. The coating was dried for 3 hours at 150 ° C. and further cured for 2 hours at 150 ° C. to obtain a layer regulating blade (4). The thickness of the resin layer on the surface of the layer regulating blade (4) was about 5 μm, and its pencil hardness was 6H.

The layer regulating blade (4) was attached to the same image forming apparatus as in Example 1, and a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 using the non-magnetic one-component toner (1). As a result, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density, no background fog, and no streak on the image was continuously obtained in any environment. After completion of the test, the layer-regulating blade (4) was examined. As a result, no adhesion of the toner was recognized, and there was no abrasion of the resin layer coating.

Example 5 (Production of Layer Control Blade (5)) Methyl methacrylate-perfluoroacrylate-10 parts by weight hydroxyethyl methacrylate copolymer (weight ratio: 80/10/10) (weight average molecular weight: 50,000) Isocyanate D140N (Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.) 3 parts by weight Methyl ethyl ketone 90 parts by weight The above materials were mixed and stirred to obtain a coating solution for coating a layer-regulating blade. This coating solution is spray-coated on the surface of a SUS substrate having a thickness of 0.15 mm prepared for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus, dried and cured at 80 ° C. for 1 hour, and further heated at 100 ° C. for 2 hours. Thus, a layer regulating blade (5) was obtained. The thickness of the resin layer on the surface of the layer regulating blade (5) was about 6 μm, and its pencil hardness was 5H.

The layer regulating blade (5) was attached to the same image forming apparatus as in Example 1, and a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 using the non-magnetic one-component toner (1). As a result, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density, no background fog, and no streak on the image was continuously obtained in any environment. After completion of the test, the layer regulating blade (5) was examined. As a result, no toner was fixed and the resin layer film was not worn.

Example 6 (Production of Layer Control Blade (6)) Acrylic polyol resin 10 parts by weight (Olester Q164, manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals) Urethane polymer (Olester P49-75S, manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals) 2 parts by weight Methyl 50 parts by weight of isobutyl ketone (MIBK) The above-mentioned materials were mixed and stirred to obtain a coating solution for coating the layer-regulating blade. This coating liquid is spray-coated on the surface of a layer regulating blade in which a urethane rubber having a thickness of 1 mm is adhered to a SUS substrate prepared for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus, and then dried at 80 ° C. for 1 hour. Cured, then 100 ° C
For 2 hours to obtain a layer regulating blade (6). The thickness of the resin layer on the surface of the layer regulating blade (6) was about 6 μm, and its pencil hardness was 5H.

This layer regulating blade (6) was attached to the same image forming apparatus as in Example 1, and a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 using the non-magnetic one-component toner (1). As a result, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density, no background fog, and no streak on the image was continuously obtained in any environment. After the test was completed, the layer regulating blade (6) was examined. As a result, no toner was fixed and no abrasion of the resin layer film was observed.

Comparative Example 1 (Preparation of Layer Controlling Blade (7)) 10 parts by weight of methyl methacrylate resin (BR80, manufactured by Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd.) was added to 100 parts by weight of methyl ethyl ketone, mixed and stirred to coat the layer controlling blade (7). An application liquid was obtained. This coating liquid was applied on the surface of the same layer regulating blade as in Example 1 to a thickness of 5 μm.
m, and dried at 100 ° C. for 2 hours to obtain a layer regulating blade (7). The pencil hardness of the resin layer of this layer regulating blade was 2H. Using this layer regulating blade (7), a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1. As a result, a streak was formed on the image from about 3000 sheets under a high temperature and high humidity environment and over 1500 sheets under a low temperature and low humidity environment. Occurred, the image density decreased, and the fogging of the background gradually deteriorated. After the test, the layer regulating blade (7) was examined. As a result, a large amount of toner was found to adhere to the nip portion of the blade surface in contact with the developing sleeve. When the adhered toner was removed with methanol, abrasion was observed at the nip portion.

Comparative Example 2 (Preparation of Layer Control Blade (8)) Nylon resin (CM8
000, manufactured by Toray Industries, Inc.) was dissolved in a mixed solution of methanol and butanol to obtain a coating solution for coating the layer-regulating blade. This coating solution was applied to the same layer regulating blade as in Example 1 to a thickness of 5 μm.
And dried at 100 ° C. for 1 hour to obtain a layer regulating blade (8). The pencil hardness of the resin layer of this layer regulating blade was B. When a print test was performed using this layer regulating blade (8) in the same manner as in Example 1, a streak was formed on the image from about 2,000 sheets under a high-temperature and high-humidity environment and over 1,000 sheets under a low-temperature and low-humidity environment. Occurred, the image density decreased, and the fogging of the background gradually deteriorated. After completion of the test, the layer regulating blade was examined. As a result, a large amount of toner was found to adhere to the nip portion in contact with the sleeve. When the adhered toner was removed with methanol, abrasion was observed in the nip portion, and a small groove like a scratch was formed in a part.

Comparative Example 3 (Layer Controlling Blade (9)) A SUS substrate having the same thickness as that of Example 2 having a non-coated surface and having a thickness of 0.15 mm was prepared as a layering controlling blade (9). When a print test was performed using this layer regulating blade (9) in the same manner as in Example 1, the fogging of the background portion deteriorated after about 3000 sheets under a high temperature and high humidity environment. The upper streaks did not develop. In a low-temperature and low-humidity environment, background fogging occurred from the beginning, and when the number of sheets exceeded 1,000, dirt was severe and the test was stopped. After the test was completed, the layer regulating blade was examined. As a result, the adhesion of the toner was small.

Comparative Example 4 (Preparation of Layer Control Blade (10)) Silicone resin (S
R2411, manufactured by Dow Corning Toray Co., Ltd.) was applied to the same layer regulating blade as in Example 1 by dip coating so as to have a thickness of 5 μm, and cured at 150 ° C. for 3 hours to obtain a layer regulating blade (10). The pencil hardness of the resin layer of this layer regulating blade was H. Using this layer regulating blade (10),
When a print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1,
3000 sheets under high temperature and high humidity environment, 150 sheets under low temperature and low humidity environment
From around zero, streaks appeared on the image, the image density decreased, and the fogging of the background gradually deteriorated. After completion of the test, the layer regulating blade was examined. As a result, a large amount of toner was found to adhere to the nip portion in contact with the sleeve. When the adhered toner was removed with methanol, abrasion was observed at the nip portion.

Comparative Example 5 (Preparation of Layer Control Blade (11)) 100 parts by weight of silicone hard coating agent (Tosgard 510, manufactured by Toshiba Silicone) 2 parts by weight of silica (R972, manufactured by Nippon Aerosil Co., Ltd.) Thus, a coating solution for coating the layer regulating blade was obtained. This coating solution was dip-coated on the surface of a SUS substrate prepared for a non-magnetic one-component image forming apparatus, air-dried for 30 minutes, and then heat-cured at 120 ° C. for 2 hours to obtain a layer regulating blade (11). The resin layer of the layer regulating blade had a thickness of 6 μm and a pencil hardness of H. A print test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1.
Streaks appeared on the image around the time when the number exceeded 000 sheets, and the fogging of the background gradually deteriorated. After the test was completed, the layer regulation blade was examined, and in operation at high temperature and high humidity,
A large amount of toner sticking was observed at the nip portion in contact with the sleeve. When the fixed toner was removed with methanol, formation of a large groove due to abrasion was observed. On the other hand, when the blade was examined in the operation at low temperature and low humidity, the toner adhesion was weak, but formation of a groove due to abrasion was recognized.

The results of the tests of Examples 1 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 5 are summarized in Table 1. The image quality evaluation method and evaluation criteria are as follows. <Image density> Densitometer manufactured by X-rite, X-ri
Measured by te404A. <Fogging> The background was observed with a 50-fold loupe, and the sensory evaluation was performed. The evaluation criteria are as follows. ○: None, △:
Some, ×: quite. <Streaks on Image> The number of streaks generated was evaluated for an image obtained by developing the entire surface of the toner on A4 paper. The evaluation criteria are as follows. ○: 5 or less, Δ: 6 to 10, ×: 11
More than a book. <Comprehensive evaluation> ：: Good in all items, ×: Practical problem occurs.

[0071]

[Table 1]

Example 7 A substrate having a size of 30 × 30 cm and a thickness of 0.1 m was used.
m SUS substrates were prepared. An ultraviolet curable resin (trade name: UV3700, manufactured by Toa Gosei Chemical Co., Ltd.), which is a polyester acrylate, was prepared as a coating liquid for chargeability adjustment, and diluted to 50% with 2-butanone. This is the SU
It was applied to the surface of the S plate with a wire bar to a thickness of 8 μm, dried at 80 ° C. for 5 minutes, and then cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays using a high-pressure mercury lamp of 80 W / cm. The surface hardness was 5H in pencil hardness.

On the other hand, a one-component non-magnetic toner prepared from the following materials was prepared. Polyester resin (terephthalic acid-bisphenol A 92 parts, ethylene oxide adduct, Mw: 12,000, Tg = 85 ° C, softening point: 100 ° C) Copper phthalocyanine blue pigment 5 parts Charge control agent (Bontron E84, manufactured by Orient Chemical Industries) 3 parts After these components were premixed by a Henschel mixer, the temperature was set at 140 ° C., the number of rotations of the screw was 300 rpm, and the supply speed was 150 kg / h by a twin screw extruder.
And kneaded. After the coarse pulverization, the mixture was finely pulverized by a jet mill, and further, particles having a volume average particle diameter D50 = 7.3 μm were obtained by an air classifier. To 100 parts of the particles, 0.8 part of silica treated with dimethyl silicone oil having a D50 of 12 nm and D50 = 1
One part of rutile titanium oxide treated with 5 nm of decyltrimethoxysilane was mixed with a Henschel mixer to obtain a toner.

Next, a layer regulating blade was punched out of the above-prepared substrate to a size of 15 × 230 mm by a press machine, and an electrophotographic apparatus shown in FIG. 1 (a laser printer having a printing speed of 5 sheets per minute) was used. It was machined into a shape that could be attached to a car. When the above toner was put into a developing device and a printing test was performed, a high-quality image having a sufficient image density and no other defects was obtained. Even after a continuous output test of 3000 sheets, there was no deterioration in image quality.

Example 8 Instead of the polyester acrylate in Example 7, epoxy acrylate (V5502, manufactured by Dainippon Ink and Chemicals, Inc.) was used, and a polymerization initiator containing 2% by weight of 2-ethylanthraquinone was applied. When cured by irradiation to form an 8 μm thick film, SUS
Because of low adhesion to the substrate, the coating peeled off during cutting.
Therefore, first, a methanol solution of a type 8 nylon resin (Lacamide 5003, manufactured by Dainippon Ink and Chemicals, Inc.) was applied to the surface of the SUS substrate to form an adhesive layer having a thickness of 0.5 μm. Was formed. As a result, the coating did not peel off. The surface hardness was 5H. Except for this, a layer regulating blade was prepared in the same manner. As a result, a layer regulating blade having higher toner chargeability than that of Example 7 was obtained.

Example 9 A substrate having a thickness of 0.1 mm, a width of 250 mm, and a length of 10
A 0 m SUS coil was prepared. This substrate was coated with a roll coater shown in FIG. The substrate 20
It was sent from the supply roll 25 and was taken up on the take-up roll 26 at a speed of 4 m / min. The coating liquid 24 made of the same material as in Example 7 was applied by a coating head 27 having a gravure roll having a width of 200 mm, and was set at a temperature of 80 ° C. and a length of 8 m.
For 2 minutes to dry. Then, the coating film was irradiated with ultraviolet rays from a high-pressure mercury lamp 29 of 160 W / cm and cured to form a coating film having a thickness of 8 μm. Actual application is 80m excluding the invalid area before and after the roll
Over the length of

The wound substrate was cut into a length of 280 mm. Next, one of the sheets was punched out into a size of 15 × 230 mm by 10 pieces by a press machine to produce a layer regulating blade. In this way, 2850 layer-regulating blades could be manufactured from one roll, and the coating process could be made much more efficient.

[0078]

Since the developer layer regulating member of the present invention has the above-described structure, a one-component image forming apparatus using the same can be used.
Because the toner hardly adheres to the developer layer regulating member, toner charging, layer formation is stable, and the environment dependence of charging is small, so that a long-term, high image density image is produced,
There are no problems such as low developability, background fog, and image streaks. Therefore, according to the one-component image forming method of the present invention, it is possible to obtain an image with excellent image quality over a long period of time. In addition, by producing the developer layer regulating member by the production method of the present invention, a film can be uniformly and stably formed without increasing the number of steps, and is inexpensive and of high quality as compared with the conventional method. Can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an example of a one-component image forming apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view illustrating a method for manufacturing a developer layer regulating member of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a coating apparatus for manufacturing a developer layer regulating member.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Latent image holding body, 2 ... Roll charger, 3 ... Developer carrier, 4 ... Developer supply roll, 5 ... Layer regulating blade, 6 ...
Transfer roll, 7: Cleaner, 8: Fixing device, 20: Substrate, 21: Coating, 22: Cut part, 24: Coating liquid, 25
... supply roll, 26 ... take-up roll, 27 ... application head, 28 ... dryer, 29 ... ultraviolet lamp.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Kotaro Yoshihara Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd., 1600 Takematsu, Minami Ashigara, Kanagawa Prefecture Inventor Yuichi Yashiki 1600 Takematsu, Minamiashigara-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Fumio 1600 1600 Takematsu, Minamiashigara-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.

Claims (15)

[Claims] 1. A developer layer regulating member for forming a developer layer on a developer carrying member, having a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on the surface. 2. The developer layer regulating member according to claim 1, wherein the resin layer has a pencil hardness of 5H or more. 3. The developer layer regulating member according to claim 1, wherein the resin layer is formed of an ultraviolet curable resin. 4. The developer layer regulating member according to claim 1, wherein the resin layer has a thickness of 0.05 to 20 μm. 5. The developer layer regulating member according to claim 1, further comprising a substrate made of an elastic body. 6. The developer layer regulating member according to claim 5, wherein the elastic body is made of a resin. 7. A method for producing a developer layer regulating member, comprising: applying a coating solution for forming a resin layer to a substrate to form a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more, and cutting the resin layer into a predetermined size. . 8. A latent image holding member, a developer carrying member, and a developer layer regulating member for supplying a developer to the developer carrying member to form a thin layer of the developer and to provide a charge. At least, a thin layer of developer formed on the developer carrier is sent to a latent image holding member that holds an electrostatic latent image, and a developer is attached to the electrostatic latent image to form a visible image. In the one-component image forming apparatus, the developer layer regulating member has a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on the surface thereof. 9. The one-component image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the developer carrier is formed of metal, ceramics or plastics. 10. The resin layer in the developer layer regulating member,
9. The one-component image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the pencil hardness is 5H or more. 11. The resin layer in the developer layer regulating member,
9. The one-component image forming apparatus according to claim 8, comprising an ultraviolet curable resin. 12. A developer is supplied to a developer carrying member, and a developer layer regulating member forms a thin layer of the developer on the developer carrying member and gives an electric charge to the electrostatic latent image. In a one-component image forming method of forming a visible image by applying a developer on the electrostatic latent image,
A one-component image forming method, wherein a developer layer regulating member having a resin layer having a pencil hardness of 4H or more on its surface is used as the developer layer regulating member. 13. The one-component image forming method according to claim 12, wherein a non-magnetic toner is used as the developer. 14. The one-component image forming method according to claim 12, wherein the resin layer in the developer layer regulating member has a pencil hardness of 5H or more. 15. The one-component image forming method according to claim 12, wherein the resin layer in the developer layer regulating member is made of an ultraviolet curable resin.