KR101524250B1 - Method for measuring life time by way of confirming scratches of organic photo conductor drum - Google Patents

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a method for measuring a residual lifetime by checking an abrasion and a scratch on a surface of an OPC drum, and aims to simply and perfectly measure the scratch on the surface of the OPC drum. To this end, disclosed is a method for measuring a residual lifetime by checking the abrasion and the scratch on the surface of the OPC drum, comprising: a stack-type electrophotographic photoconductor which is sequentially equipped with a conductive tube made of aluminum, a resistance layer formed onto the conductive tube, a charge generation layer formed onto the resistance layer in a thickness of 3-5um, a charge transport layer formed onto the charge generation layer in a thickness of 20-30um, and an anti-abrasion layer formed onto the charge transport layer; a CIS developing device which forms an electrostatic latent image onto the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor; a CIS developing device which develops the electrostatic latent image environment and forms a CIS visible image; and a main controller which controls the electrophotographic photoconductor, the CIS developing device, and an operation of the developing device, scans the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor in CIS by using the CIS developing device, extracts the CIS visible image scanned and then formed by the CIS developing device, performs a refractive index compensation of the charge transport layer for the CIS visible image, and then determines the extent of the damage of the electrophotographic photoconductor in the CIS visible image compensated with the refractive index.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to a method for measuring the residual life of an OPC drum surface by scratching and scratching the surface of an OPC drum.

One embodiment of the present invention relates to a method of measuring the residual life of a surface of an OPC drum through wear and scratch confirmation.

As a laser output device, the principle of operation of a laser printer is similar to that of a copier. The printer engine responds to control signals transmitted and emits light repeatedly by turning on and off millions of times per second, and the light is reflected by a rotating mirror And is reflected on the surface of an OPC (Organic Photoconducting Cartridge or Organic Photoconductor) drum, which is a drum of the laser output device.

The OPC drum is coated with a zinc oxide composite material, which is a photosensitive material, and has a negative charge on its surface. In the surface of the OPC drum, only a portion irradiated with light is changed into a positive charge according to the charging phenomenon , The negative charge toner is buried in the portion where the positive charge is changed.

When the OPC drum with toner adheres to the paper while rotating, the toner is transferred to the surface of the paper having a strong positive charge. As the paper to which the toner is adsorbed passes under the high-temperature and high-pressure roller, the toner melts and adheres to the paper The operation proceeds.

Although the OPC drum is not consumed as toner, the charging effect is degraded when the life of the OPC drum reaches a certain life due to repeated charging, and the printing quality may be lowered due to abrasion or scratches on the surface of the OPC drum, Therefore, there is an inconvenience that it must be periodically inspected and replaced, thereby increasing the cost burden.

Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, there is an urgent need to develop a technique for measuring the remaining life of the OPC drum through more accurate and quick inspection of the surface of the OPC drum.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-2004-0065691 'A method of detecting the life of a transfer roller and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus employing the same. Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1126192 'Developing device accelerated life test device'

An embodiment of the present invention provides a method for measuring the residual life of a surface of an OPC drum through wear and scratch confirmation of an OPC drum surface which can easily and precisely measure a state of glow on the surface of the OPC drum.

A method for measuring the remaining life of a surface of an OPC drum through scratching and scratching of an OPC drum according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a conductive tube made of aluminum, a resistive layer formed on the conductive tube, The surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor having a charge generation layer and a charge transport layer having a thickness of 20 to 30 um formed on the charge generation layer in this order, and wear and scratches on the surface of the OPC drum, A first step of performing a CIS scan on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member; A second step of extracting the CIS visible image formed by the CIS scanning; A third step of compensating the refractive index of the charge transport layer with respect to the CIS visible image; A fourth step of determining a degree of damage of the electrophotographic photosensitive member in the refractive index compensated CIS visible image; And a fifth step of measuring the degree of damage of the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member and the lifetime of the electrophotographic photosensitive member by a predetermined lifetime measurement program.

The first step may include a first step of turning off the operation of the CIS developing apparatus; A first step of charging the electrophotographic photosensitive member; Measuring the current flowing through the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member; (1-4) calculating a change amount of a current value sensed by the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member; And a fifth step of determining whether a scratch has occurred on the surface of the charge transport layer using the calculated amount of change in the current value.

And a sixth step of transmitting information on damage degree of the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member and information on the lifetime of the electrophotographic photosensitive member to an external device.

A method for measuring the remaining life of a surface of an OPC drum according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a CIS scanning of a surface of an OPC drum using a CIS developing apparatus and a CIS scanning of a CIS developed image by a CIS developing apparatus After the refractive index compensation of the charge transport layer is performed on the CIS visible image, the degree of damage of the OPC drum in the CIS visible image with the refractive index is determined, and the degree of damage of the OPC drum The remaining service life of the OPC drum corresponding to the OPC drum can be accurately predicted.

1 is a view showing a drum assembly of a general laser output apparatus.
FIG. 2 is a view illustrating a method of measuring the residual life of the OPC drum surface through wear and scratch confirmation according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.
3 is a schematic view of a residual life measuring apparatus for carrying out a residual life measuring method through wear and scratch confirmation of the OPC drum surface of FIG.
4 is a cross-sectional view showing the OPC drum of Fig.
5 is a view showing focusing of a scan position of the CIS developing apparatus with respect to the OPC drum surface of FIG.
6 is a diagram specifically illustrating a focusing process of the scan position of FIG.
7A to 7B are views showing a CIS visible image formed by scanning by a CIS developing apparatus.

The terms used in this specification will be briefly described and the present invention will be described in detail.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Also, in certain cases, there may be a term selected arbitrarily by the applicant, in which case the meaning thereof will be described in detail in the description of the corresponding invention. Therefore, the term used in the present invention should be defined based on the meaning of the term, not on the name of a simple term, but on the entire contents of the present invention.

When an element is referred to as "including" an element throughout the specification, it is to be understood that the element may include other elements as well, without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Also, the terms "part," " module, "and the like described in the specification mean units for processing at least one function or operation, which may be implemented in hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software .

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. In order to clearly illustrate the present invention, parts not related to the description are omitted, and similar parts are denoted by like reference characters throughout the specification.

1 is a view showing a drum assembly 1 of a general laser output apparatus. Hereinafter, the operation of the laser output device will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

The operation of the laser printer, which is a kind of the laser output device, can be divided into six steps of cleaning, charging, exposure, developing, transferring, and fixing.

The main components of such a laser printer are a printer engine assembly (not shown), a drum assembly 1, a toner assembly 2, and a heating roller 3 and the like.

Here, the cleaning is a step of removing residual toner through physical or electrical cleaning to prepare a new image on the OPC drum 10.

The physical cleaning is performed by a Wiper Blade 20 and a Recover Blade 33.

The wiper blade 20 removes residual toner from the OPC drum 10 and the recovery blade 33 collects the toner removed from the wiper blade 20 and pours it into a toner storage container (not shown).

The electrical cleaning of the OPC drum 10 is carried out through a Corona wire or a PCR (Primary Charge Roller) assembly (i.e., a PCR base 21, a PCR cleaning felt 22, a felt supporting blade 23) To remove the residual images remaining on the OPC drum 10. [ If the configuration for carrying out the cleaning is worn or has a defect, a phenomenon occurs such that a line appears vertically, ghosting occurs (a phenomenon in which a double image appears), an image is blurred or an amount of toner becomes unstable . In addition, as the speed of laser printers increases, the role of the two blades responsible for cleaning becomes more important.

When the cleaning of the OPC drum 10 is completed, a light (laser beam) is emitted and an image is formed on the OPC drum 10 according to the contents read from a laser scanning unit (LSU) (not shown).

That is, in order for the toner powder to be adsorbed on the OPC drum 10, a negative charge is required. When the OPC drum 10 rotates while being in contact with the charging roller, the negative charge adheres to the surface of the OPC drum 10. At this time, the OPC drum 10 is selectively rotated by the helical gear 11 by a clutch unit (not shown) and rotated only in one direction in which the clutch unit transmits the power. A drum contact member 12 is provided between the OPC drum 10 and the helical gear 11 for contact. The drum assembly 30 includes a drum shutter 35 covering the outside of the OPC drum 10, a drum axle holding ring 34 connected to hold the drum assembly 30, A laser shutter 31 and a tension spring 32 for applying tension to the laser shutter 31 are provided.

The corona wire or the PCR assemblies 21 to 23 apply a DC voltage of -600 to -720 V to the surface of the OPC drum 10. If the voltage is not matched, the result of undesirable images .

The printer engine shoots light on a rotating mirror, and the light is reflected by a mirror and is then subjected to writing on the OPC drum 10.

The surface of the OPC drum 10 is coated with a photosensitive material such as an aluminum cylinder and zinc oxide through which electric current can pass, and normally has a negative charge like a toner. However, the portion where the laser beam is received has a charging phenomenon, So that an electrical image is formed on the OPC drum 10. Then, the portion of the surface of the OPC drum 10 that is electrically charged attracts the toner in the next step.

The toner particles (powder) used in the laser printer is a collection of small polymers, and the print quality is directly affected by the toner quality. The toner is mainly composed of a polymer resin adhered to a printing paper, black carbon black, and iron oxide. The toner particles contain a wax component similar to shoe polish, which allows the toner to adhere well to the paper and provide clean output.

In the Developing step, the OPC drum 10 rotates while jamming the cartridge containing the toner, and the toner particles are adhered to the magnetic OPC drum 10 so that a latent image is formed on the surface of the OPC drum 10 .

The transferring is a process of transferring the toner adhered to the OPC drum 10 to the paper. When the paper passes under the OPC drum 10, the toner of the OPC drum 10 is transferred to the paper.

The fixation is a step in which toner adheres to the paper by high heat and pressure as the paper with toner is passed through a heating roller (not shown) and a pressure roller (not shown). The pressure roller is made of rigid silicone rubber, which is strongly pressed against the heating roller, and the heating roller coated with Teflon on the aluminum cylinder generates heat of about 180 ^° C to dissolve the toner particles on the paper with high heat to adhere to the paper .

Hereinafter, a method of measuring the remaining life of the OPC drum by inspecting the surface of the OPC drum in the laser output apparatus having the above-described structure and operation will be described.

FIG. 2 is a view illustrating a method of measuring the residual life of the OPC drum surface through wear and scratch confirmation according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.

Referring to FIG. 2, a method for measuring the remaining life of a surface of an OPC drum through wear and scratch confirmation of an OPC drum according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a conductive tube made of aluminum; a resistance layer formed on the conductive tube; A method of measuring the remaining life of the electrophotographic photoconductor by means of abrasion and scratch confirmation of the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor having a thickness of 3 to 5 mu m and a charge transport layer having a thickness of 20 to 30 mu m formed on the charge generating layer .

More specifically, the method of measuring the remaining life of the OPC drum surface through wear and scratch confirmation comprises a first step (S10) of scanning the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member with a CIS, a second step of extracting a CIS visible image A third step S30 of performing compensation of the refractive index of the charge transport layer with respect to the CIS visible image, a fourth step S40 of determining the degree of damage of the electrophotographic photosensitive member in the CIS visible image with the refractive index compensated, And a fifth step (S50) of measuring the degree of damage of the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member and the lifetime of the electrophotographic photosensitive member by a predetermined life measurement program.

The first step S10 is a step S151 for turning off the operation of the CIS developing apparatus and a step S151 for turning off the operation of the CIS developing apparatus. A first step S152 of measuring the current value flowing through the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member, a first step S153 of measuring the current value flowing through the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member, a step 1-4 of calculating the amount of change of the current value sensed by the charge- (S154) of determining whether or not scratches have occurred on the surface of the charge transport layer using the amount of change of the current value calculated in the step 1-4 (S154).

In addition, the method of measuring the remaining life of the OPC drum surface through wear and scratch confirmation includes a sixth step (S60) of transmitting information on the degree of damage of the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member and the lifetime of the electrophotographic photosensitive member to an external device .

Hereinafter, a residual life measuring device for performing the above-described residual life measuring method through wear and scratch confirmation of the OPC drum surface will be described in detail.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a residual life measuring apparatus for carrying out a residual life measuring method through wear and scratch confirmation of the OPC drum surface of FIG. 2, FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the OPC drum of FIG. 3, FIG. 6 is a view showing a focusing process of the scan position of FIG. 5 in detail, and FIGS. 7A to 7B are views showing the scanning of the scan position of the CIS developing device with respect to the OPC drum surface of FIG. Fig. 2 is a view showing a CIS visible image formed.

Referring to FIG. 3, a method 100 for measuring the remaining life of a surface of an OPC drum by scratching and scratching an OPC drum according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a stacked electrophotographic photosensitive member 10, a charging device 110, a CIS developing device 120, a current measuring device 130, and a main controller 160. [

The layered electrophotographic photoconductor 10 (hereinafter, referred to as an OPC (Organic Photoconducting Cartridge) drum) is a roller-shaped component for transferring the ink component of the toner in a laser printer. The OPC drum 10 is rotated in one direction by the drum gear 10a receiving the power from the driving motor 10b.

This OPC drum 10 includes a conductive tube 101, a resistive layer 102, a charge generation layer 103, and a charge transport layer 104, as shown in Fig.

The conductive tube 101 has a tube shape and is made of a metal material such as aluminum.

The resistance layer 102 is a low resistance layer formed on the conductive tube 101, which is also referred to as an undercoating layer.

The carrier generation layer 103 is formed on the resistance layer 102 to have a thickness of 3 to 5 um and generates charges when the surface of the OPC drum 10 is charged from the outside. .

The carrier transport layer 104 is a layer formed on the charge generation layer 103 to have a thickness of 20 to 30 um to transport charges generated in the charge generation layer 103 to form a charging potential, Layer. If the thickness of the charge transport layer 104 is less than 20 占 퐉, the thickness is too thin, resulting in insufficient durability and poor charging characteristics. If the thickness exceeds 30 占 퐉, the durability is increased but the response speed and image quality tend to decrease . The total thickness of the charge generating layer 103 and the charge transporting layer 104 may be set within a range of usually 23 mu m to 35 mu m.

This charge transport layer 104 may cause gas or contamination on the surface depending on the rotational operation of the OPC drum 10 or the maintenance of the OPC drum 10 and may cause the surface of the OPC drum 10 on which the gas is generated to be scanned using a CIS light source An abnormal image may be generated. In the present invention, an abnormal image portion of the OPC drum 10 is measured through the charging device 110, the CIS developing device 120, the current measuring device 130 and the main controller 160, The life of the OPC drum can be predicted.

On the other hand, an abrasion-resistant layer made of Teflon may be formed on the charge transport layer 104 as needed.

The charging device 110 is a device for charging the surface of the OPC drum 10. This charging device 110 has a charging capacity of 1 W and is composed of a corona wire 111 for supplying a high voltage and a plurality of uniformly spaced corona wires 111 spaced apart by 1 to 2 mm and restricting the high voltage supplied from the corona wire 111 And a grid 112 for applying a voltage to the electrophotographic photosensitive member to charge the electrophotographic photosensitive member. For example, the charging device 110 can be supplied with a current of up to 500 uA when 2 KV is applied. Between the corona wire 111 and the grid 112, a discharge is generated by a potential supplied to the corona wire 111, which is also referred to as a corona discharge.

The charging device 110 may apply a constant voltage of 1.7 KV to 2.2 KV in order to measure the thickness of the charge transport layer 104 of the OPC drum 10, In order to measure the scratch or gas state of the surface of the charge transport layer 104 of the OPC drum 10, the charging device 110 applies a constant current of 250 uA and a voltage of 700 V to the grid 112, Can be confirmed. The charging device 110 applies a constant voltage of 4.1 KV and a constant current of 250 uA and a grid voltage of 750 V to measure the scratch or gas state of the surface of the charge transport layer 104 of the OPC drum 10, You can have the change checked.

The CIS developing apparatus 120 is an apparatus for forming an electrostatic latent image on the surface of an electrophotographic photosensitive member, and may be a CIS image processing apparatus. That is, the CIS developing apparatus 120 may scan the surface of the OPC drum 10 and transmit the scanned image to the main controller 160. 7A and 7B, the CIS developing apparatus 120 scans the surface of the drum 10 and transmits the scanned image to the main controller 160. The main controller 160 controls the main controller 160 to scan the surface of the drum 10, It is possible to check an image such as an image in which gas or contamination has occurred. At this time, the CIS developing apparatus 120 can use only the RED signal of the color CIS using the 600 DPI CIS apparatus, and can adjust the scan data level (scan data level) as needed at any time.

The current measuring device 130 is a device for measuring the current flowing on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member. That is, the current measuring device 130 senses a current flowing in the charge transport layer 104 by a constant voltage, a constant current, a grid voltage, etc. applied to the OPC drum 10 through the charging device 110, To the controller (160).

The charging device 110, the CIS developing device 120, and the current measuring device 130 correspond to the configurations commonly used in the related art in order to understand the characteristics of the surface of the OPC drum 10, Detailed description of each configuration will be omitted.

The main controller 160 checks the OPC drum 10 surface and the contamination of the surface of the OPC drum 10 to measure the lifetime of the OPC drum 10. The OPC drum 10, the charging device 110, the CIS developing device 120, 130, respectively.

That is, the main controller 160 performs CIS scanning of the surface of the OPC drum 10 using the CIS developing device 120, extracts a CIS visible image formed by scanning by the CIS developing device 120, It is possible to determine the degree of damage of the OPC drum 10 in the compensated CIS visible image after performing the refractive index compensation of the charge transport layer 104 with respect to the image. At this time, the degree of damage of the OPC drum 10 can be determined or inputted by a predetermined level by the administrator. The main controller 160 can predict the degree of damage of the charge transport layer 104 of the OPC drum 10 and the lifetime of the OPC drum 10 by a predetermined lifetime measurement program.

Finally, the main controller 160 can measure the degree of damage of the charge transport layer 104 of the OPC drum 10 and the lifetime of the OPC drum 10 by a predetermined lifetime measurement program.

5, the main controller 160 controls the CIS developing apparatus 120 to perform a scanning focusing operation. In this case, the CIS developing apparatus 120 may control a predetermined glass thickness . However, in the present invention, since the glass is not used on the jig in order to realize an accurate scan image, the main controller 160 is compensated for the refractive index of the glass included in the scan focusing operation of the CIS developing apparatus 120 .

Generally, the refractive index is divided into an absolute refractive index and a relative refractive index. The absolute refractive index is a refractive index of light when moving from a vacuum to a medium (for example, the absolute refractive index of air is 1.00027, the absolute refractive index of glass is 1.5 to 1.9, and the absolute refractive index of water is 1.33) To the other medium.

In the present invention, the main controller 160 is designed to have a thickness (for example, 2.85 mm (glass thickness)) smaller than the glass thickness included in the CIS image processing apparatus 120 as shown in FIG. 6 The incident angle alpha and the refraction angle? Are changed, and the refractive index is compensated through the incident angle alpha and the refraction angle so that accurate scan focusing on the scanned image can be performed.

The main controller 160 determines whether or not the current flowing through the corona wire 111 (Corona Wire), which is a total current, is different from the current flowing through the corona wire 111 even if the current flowing to the OPC drum 10 is constant, May be programmed to distinguish between the degree of use of the OPC drum 10 and the degree of generation of gas.

The main controller 160 controls the operation of the charge transport layer 104 using the current value sensed by the charge transport layer 104 of the driving OPC drum 10 while the operation of the CIS developing apparatus 120 is off. It is possible to judge whether or not a scratch has occurred on the surface. That is, the main controller 160 blocks the light source that can be exposed on the surface of the OPC drum 10, drives the OPC drum 10 to apply a high voltage, ). If a constant current flows through a certain portion of the surface of the drum, it is determined that there is a scratch. It is assumed that the charge transport layer 104 of the OPC drum 10 is damaged or fragile when a scratch is generated on the surface of the OPC drum 10 and the main controller 160 applies a voltage to the surface of the OPC drum 10 through the grid 112 Apply a high voltage to cause a high-pressure discharge to occur at the scratch point, and measure the current value that is increased when high-pressure discharge occurs to check whether scratches have occurred.

The main controller 160 may further include a driving controller 140 for controlling the operation of the driving motor 10a of the OPC drum 10.

Also, the main controller 160 is designed to be able to download the firmware, control program, and related data of the present residual life measuring apparatus 100 through the Internet.

In order to implement the above-described functions, the main controller 160 may embody a plurality of electronic elements in one printed circuit board or a separate printed circuit board. At this time, in order to protect each electronic device from external environment, the printed circuit board may be designed to be provided inside a case of a rigid material. At this time, a wear-resistant coating layer (not shown) is formed on the outer surface of the case to prevent the outer surface of the case from being worn or oxidized, and the service life of the product can be extended. Here, the wear-resistant coating layer is formed by spraying a powder of a mixture of 96 to 98% by weight of chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) and ₂ to 4% by weight of titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ) And the hardness is plasma-coated to maintain 900 to 1000 HV. The wear-resistant coating layer is formed by spraying powder composed of 96 to 98% by weight of chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) and ₂ to 4% by weight of titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ). The reason why the ceramic coating is applied to the outer surface of the case is to prevent abrasion and corrosion. At this time, the ceramic coating is excellent in corrosion resistance, scratch resistance, abrasion resistance, impact resistance and durability as compared with chromium plating or nickel chromium plating. The chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) acts as a passivity layer for blocking oxygen penetrating into the metal, thereby preventing rusting. The titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ) is widely used as a white pigment because it is physically and chemically stable and has a high hiding power, and has high refractive index and is widely used in ceramics having a high refractive index. Such titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ) ensures that the wear-resistant coating layer is coated on the outer surface of the case, and the foreign matter adhering to the wear-resistant coating layer is decomposed and removed to prevent the wear-resistant coating layer from being damaged. Here, chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃₎ and when using hayeoseo mixing titanium dioxide (TiO _2), the mixing ratio of these, chrome oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃₎ Titanium dioxide (TiO ₂₎ in 96-98% by weight 2 By weight to 4% by weight. At this time, when the mixing ratio of chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) is less than 96 to 98%, the coating of chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) is often broken in a high temperature environment, The rust prevention effect of the outer surface was lowered suddenly. Further, when the mixing ratio of titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ) is less than 2 to 4 wt%, the effect of titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ) is insignificant so that the purpose of mixing it with chromium oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) is discolored. That is, titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ) dissolves and removes foreign matter adhering to the outer surface of the case to prevent the outer surface of the case from being corroded or damaged. When the mixing ratio is less than 2 to 4 wt% There is a problem that it takes much time to decompose the foreign matter.

The coating layer made of the above materials is plasma-coated to have a thickness of 50 to 600 mu m around the outer surface of the case, a hardness of 900 to 1000 HV, and a surface roughness of 0.1 to 0.3 mu m. The abrasion resistant coating layer is sprayed with the powder powder and the gas at 1400 DEG C at a Mach 2 speed around the outer surface of the case and sprayed at 50 to 600 mu m. If the thickness of the wear-resistant coating layer is less than 50 탆, the effect of the ceramic coating layer can not be guaranteed. If the thickness of the wear-resistant coating layer exceeds 600 탆, the increase in the above- There is a problem that the working time and material cost are wasted.

In the present invention, a USB / parallel cable, that is, a parallel cable and a USB port 140 are connected to the manager PC device 200 that monitors information measured by the main controller 160. Accordingly, the administrator can remotely check the remaining life of the OPC drum 10, and can control the present residual life measuring apparatus 100 by changing set voltage data for each model or each part.

The apparatus 100 for measuring the remaining life of the OPC drum 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention performs a CIS scan of the surface of the OPC drum 10 using the CIS developing apparatus 120, The CIS visible image formed by scanning is scanned by the CCD 120 to compensate the refractive index of the charge transport layer 104 with respect to the CIS visible image and then the degree of damage of the OPC drum 10 in the compensated CIS visible image is determined And the life of the OPC drum 10 can be predicted by the degree of damage and the predetermined life measurement program.

The apparatus 100 for determining the remaining life of the OPC drum 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention exposes the surface of the OPC drum 10 with a CIS light source and applies a high voltage to the surface of the OPC drum 10, The state of the OPC drum 10 is measured and the relationship between the thickness of the surface of the OPC drum 10 and the amount of current flowing through the OPC drum 10 is converted into a measurement value to predict the remaining life of the OPC drum 10. [ It is possible.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but may be applied to other types of apparatuses, such as a method of measuring the residual life of the OPC drum, It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

10: electrophotographic photosensitive member 10a: drum gear
10b: drive motor 100: residual life measuring device
101: conductive tube 102: resistive layer
103: charge generating layer 104: charge generating layer
105: wear resistant layer 110: charging device
111: corona wire 112: grid
120: CIS developing device 121: Glass
130: current measuring device 140: drive controller
150: USB port 160: Main controller
200: remote control unit

Claims (3)

A resistive layer formed on the conductive tube, a charge generating layer having a thickness of 3 to 5 um formed on the resistive layer, and a charge transporting layer having a thickness of 20 to 30 um formed on the charge generating layer, The present invention relates to a method for measuring the residual life of a surface of an OPC drum, which is a stacked electrophotographic photoconductor,
A first step of scanning a surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member with a contact image sensor (CIS);
A second step of extracting the CIS visible image formed by the CIS scanning;
A third step of compensating the refractive index of the charge transport layer with respect to the CIS visible image;
A fourth step of determining a degree of damage of the electrophotographic photosensitive member in the refractive index compensated CIS visible image; And
And a fifth step of measuring a damage degree of the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member and a lifetime of the electrophotographic photosensitive member by a predetermined life measurement program. Way.
The method according to claim 1,
The first step
A first step of turning off the operation of the CIS developing apparatus;
A first step of charging the electrophotographic photosensitive member;
Measuring the current flowing through the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member;
(1-4) calculating a change amount of a current value sensed by the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member; And
And determining whether or not scratches have occurred on the surface of the charge transport layer using the calculated amount of change in the current value. The method according to claim 1, .
The method according to claim 1,
And a sixth step of transferring information on the degree of damage of the charge transport layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member and the life of the measured electrophotographic photosensitive member to an external device. Lifetime measurement method.

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