WO2001030579A1 - Procede et dispositif de formation d'images - Google Patents

Procede et dispositif de formation d'images Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2001030579A1
WO2001030579A1 PCT/JP2000/007524 JP0007524W WO0130579A1 WO 2001030579 A1 WO2001030579 A1 WO 2001030579A1 JP 0007524 W JP0007524 W JP 0007524W WO 0130579 A1 WO0130579 A1 WO 0130579A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
developer
voltage
electrode
deflection
control
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/JP2000/007524
Other languages
English (en)
Japanese (ja)
Inventor
Katsutoshi Ogawa
Yoshitaka Kitaoka
Masahiro Aizawa
Yoshihiro Teshima
Ken Morishima
Taichi Itoh
Original Assignee
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
Array Ab
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from JP30441099A external-priority patent/JP2001121735A/ja
Priority claimed from JP31278799A external-priority patent/JP2001130044A/ja
Priority claimed from JP35282099A external-priority patent/JP2001162856A/ja
Priority claimed from JP2000004207A external-priority patent/JP2001191578A/ja
Application filed by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Array Ab filed Critical Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
Priority to AU79594/00A priority Critical patent/AU7959400A/en
Publication of WO2001030579A1 publication Critical patent/WO2001030579A1/fr

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/385—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by selective supply of electric current or selective application of magnetism to a printing or impression-transfer material
    • B41J2/41—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by selective supply of electric current or selective application of magnetism to a printing or impression-transfer material for electrostatic printing
    • B41J2/415—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by selective supply of electric current or selective application of magnetism to a printing or impression-transfer material for electrostatic printing by passing charged particles through a hole or a slit
    • B41J2/4155—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by selective supply of electric current or selective application of magnetism to a printing or impression-transfer material for electrostatic printing by passing charged particles through a hole or a slit for direct electrostatic printing [DEP]
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G03—PHOTOGRAPHY; CINEMATOGRAPHY; ANALOGOUS TECHNIQUES USING WAVES OTHER THAN OPTICAL WAVES; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY
    • G03G—ELECTROGRAPHY; ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHY; MAGNETOGRAPHY
    • G03G2217/00—Details of electrographic processes using patterns other than charge patterns
    • G03G2217/0008—Process where toner image is produced by controlling which part of the toner should move to the image- carrying member
    • G03G2217/0025—Process where toner image is produced by controlling which part of the toner should move to the image- carrying member where the toner starts moving from behind the electrode array, e.g. a mask of holes

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an image forming method and an image forming apparatus applied to a copying machine, a facsimile, a printer, and the like, and particularly to a control electrode disposed around a developer passage hole of a developer passage control member in accordance with an image signal.
  • the present invention belongs to the technical field of controlling the flying of the developer from the developer carrier to the image receiving member side by applying a control voltage and landing the developer on the image receiving member to form an image.
  • a developer such as a toner is caused to fly onto an image receiving member such as a recording paper or an image carrying belt through a developer passage hole having electrodes disposed therearound.
  • an image forming technique of a printing method for forming an image is known. In this printing method, the trajectory of the developer is deflected to form a plurality of dots from one developer passage hole, or to converge a group of a plurality of flying developer particles. There is known a method in which the diameter of a dot is reduced.
  • FIG. 25 schematically illustrates an example of the image forming apparatus.
  • the image forming apparatus includes a toner carrier 102 that carries and transports a toner 101 as a negatively charged developer.
  • a counter electrode 103 disposed at a position opposite to the toner conveying position of the toner carrier 102;
  • a toner passage control member 104 disposed between the body 102 and the counter electrode 103 to control the flight of the toner 101;
  • An image receiving member 105 such as a recording paper or an image carrying belt is transported between the counter electrode 103 and the toner passage control member 104.
  • the toner passage control member 104 is made of an insulating material, and is disposed around a plurality of toner passage holes 106 through which the toner 101 passes and each toner passage hole 106. Control electrode 107.
  • the toner carrier 102 is grounded, and the counter electrode 103 is connected to a counter electrode power source 108 for applying a counter electrode voltage to the counter electrode 103.
  • a counter electrode voltage is applied to the counter electrode 103 by the power source 108, an electric field that moves the toner 101 in the direction of the counter electrode 103 between the toner carrier 102 and the counter electrode 103. Is formed.
  • the control electrode 107 is connected to a control electrode power supply 109, and the control electrode power supply 109 applies a control voltage to the control electrode 107 repeatedly according to an external image signal.
  • the control voltage has the same polarity (negative polarity) as the charging polarity of the toner 101
  • the toner carrier 101 on the toner carrier 102 has a different polarity.
  • the toner 101 does not fly from the toner carrier 102 because electrostatic adhesion acts in two directions.
  • the control voltage has the opposite polarity (positive polarity) to the charging polarity of the toner 101
  • the toner 110 1 acts on the toner carrier by the action of electrostatic adhesion toward the control electrode 107. Departs from 2 and flies.
  • the flying toner 101 is formed by the electric field formed between the toner carrier 102 and the counter electrode 103 by application of the counter electrode voltage to the counter electrode 103, and the toner passage hole 106 is formed. And then land on the image receiving member 105 to form dots.
  • two divided deflection electrodes 110a and 110b are arranged to face each other with the toner passage hole 106 as the center.
  • the two divided deflection electrodes 110a and 110b are connected to deflection electrode power supplies 111a and 111lb, respectively.
  • the deflecting electrodes 110a and 110b are arranged so as to be located on both sides of the toner receiving hole 106 in the transfer direction of the image receiving member 105, respectively. Soshi When different voltages are applied to both deflection electrodes 110a and 11 Ob by the deflection electrode power supplies 111a and 111b in synchronization with the control voltage, the electric field is applied to the through hole 106 of the electric field.
  • the toner 101 When the toner 101 passes through the toner passage hole 106, the toner 101 deflects from the center of the toner passage hole 106 and flies, thereby deflecting from the center of the toner passage hole 106 on the image receiving member 105. A dot is formed at the position.
  • the same voltage is applied to both the deflection electrodes 110 a and 11 Ob, the symmetry of the electric field around the toner passage hole 106 is maintained, and a dot is formed on the central axis of the toner passage hole 106.
  • a single toner passage hole 106 allows a plurality of dots to be arranged in a line on the image receiving member 105 in the direction in which the deflecting electrodes 110a and 110b face each other.
  • the number of toner passage holes 106 can be reduced, or an image with increased resolution can be formed without increasing the number of toner passage holes 106.
  • FIG. 26 shows an example of the voltage application control to the control electrode 107 and the deflection electrodes 110a and 110b and the flying direction of the toner 101.
  • FIG. 26 (a) is a time chart of the voltage application to the control electrode 107
  • FIG. ) Is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 110a
  • FIG. 26 (c) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 11 Ob
  • FIG. 26 (d) is a flight direction of the toner 101 in each deflection process. It shows it.
  • the control voltage is a pulse-like (pulse width Tb) voltage Vb (referred to as an accelerating voltage or a flying voltage) having a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner 101, and the charging polarity of the toner 101.
  • the voltage Vw has the same polarity (referred to as suppression voltage).
  • the promotion voltage Vb promotes the passage of the toner 1 through the toner passage hole 6, while the suppression voltage Vw prevents the passage of the toner 1 through the toner passage hole 6. Suppress.
  • FIG. 26 (d) shows the case where the voltage VL is applied to the deflection electrode 11 Ob and the voltage VH higher than the voltage VL is applied to the deflection electrode 110a.
  • the flying trajectory of the charged toner 101 is deflected to the left by an electrostatic field generated between the deflection electrodes 110a and 110b as indicated by the arrow.
  • the central part in Fig. 26 (d) corresponds to the two deflection electrodes 110a and 110b, respectively.
  • the applied voltage is VM
  • the toner 101 passes straight through the toner passage hole 106 to the toner passage hole 106 on the image receiving member 105. Reach the corresponding position.
  • FIG. 26 (d) shows the case where the voltage VL is applied to the deflection electrode 110a and the voltage VH higher than the voltage VL is applied to the deflection electrode 110b.
  • an electrostatic field is generated between the deflection electrodes 110a and 110b in a direction opposite to the above, so that the flight trajectory of the negatively charged toner 101 is deflected to the right.
  • the deflection process of the flight trajectory of the toner 101 as described above that is, the left deflection process (hereinafter referred to as left deflection process), the straight traveling process and the right deflection process (hereinafter referred to as right deflection process),
  • the toner image is formed on the image receiving member 5 by repeating continuously with the transfer of the image receiving member 105.
  • a series of deflection steps from the left deflection step to the right deflection step is referred to as a full deflection step.
  • the distance between the two dots formed on the image receiving member 105 in the left deflection step and the straight movement step is called a left deflection distance, and is formed on the image receiving member 105 in the right deflection step and the straight movement step.
  • the distance between the two dots is called the right deflection distance.
  • the first reason is that, for example, if the entire deflection process is performed in the order of a left deflection process, a straight-ahead process, and a right deflection process, and if all the deflection processes are repeated, then from the right deflection process of a certain all deflection process, the next total deflection process During the transition to the left deflection process during the deflection process, the change in the deflection voltage level becomes the largest and the transition period until the steady voltage level is reached (the deflection electrode power supply llla, 11 lb capacity, Time constant due to the resistance of the lead wire etc.
  • the toner 101 passes through the toner passage hole 106 before the electric field intensity that deflects the flight trajectory of the toner 101 to the left is not sufficiently large, and the flight trajectory is sufficiently deflected. Without reaching the image receiving member 105. There is because the results in summer shorter than the right deflection distance.
  • the second reason is that only the trailing end of the flying toner group causes a landing position error.
  • a tailing phenomenon occurs. That is, when the deflection voltage level changes, the rear end of the toner group consisting of a plurality of toner particles forming one dot in the deflection step before the change is originally affected by the electric field due to the changed deflection voltage. It is pulled in a direction different from the direction, and the landing position shifts.
  • the tailing phenomenon is likely to occur because the amount of change in the electric field strength is larger than the others when shifting from the right deflection step to the left deflection step. Become.
  • the third reason is that the dot density gradation is obtained by adjusting the flying time of the toner 101 by changing the application time Tb of the flying voltage Vb (promotion voltage) of the control voltage.
  • Vb flying voltage
  • the landing position of the toner 101 varies depending on the application time Tb. That is, the electric field strength for moving the toner 101 toward the counter electrode 103 in the toner passage hole 106 is stronger when the suppression voltage Vw is applied than when the flying voltage Vb is applied. Therefore, as the application time Tb is longer, the flying speed in the direction of the counter electrode 103 becomes slower, and the amount of deflection of the dot is increased by the influence of the electric field due to the deflection voltage.
  • the fourth reason is that, depending on the relationship between the control voltage and the deflection voltage, an electric field may be generated to move the toner 101 in the toner passage hole 106 in the opposite direction to the counter electrode 3, and the toner passage hole
  • the toner 101 passing through 106 is decelerated by such an electric field, and often collides with the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 106.
  • the landing position of the toner 101 becomes This is because the toner 101 adheres and accumulates on the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 106 along with the variation.
  • the toner passage hole 106 accumulates on the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 106 as described above, the toner 101 flying from the toner carrier 102 collides with the deposited toner 101 and lands. Position accuracy worsens more and more.
  • the present invention has been made in view of such points, and an object of the present invention is to improve the image quality as much as possible when forming an image by performing the above-described deflection and convergence. is there. Disclosure of the invention
  • a plurality of landing steps for sequentially landing the deflected developer on the image receiving member to form a plurality of dots are described.
  • the start time of each of the developer passes control step it therewith corresponding deflected steps were made different by the deflection direction.
  • the start timing of the deflection process can be individually set according to the deflection direction in consideration of the transition period, etc., so that the flight trajectory of all the developer is the regular in any deflection process.
  • the deflection field due to an electrostatic field or the like can be adjusted so as to be deflected in the direction. Therefore, the landing position of the developer does not vary depending on the deflection direction, and the image quality can be improved.
  • the start timing of the deflection step is set earlier than the start timing of the reference developer passage control step, and is formed on the image receiving member by a continuous landing step. As the distance between the two dots increases, the earlier time for starting the deflection process for the dot formed after the two dots is set to be shorter than the time for the deflection process for the dot formed earlier. Try to make it longer.
  • a deflection step for a dot to be formed later is opened. As the starting time is advanced, the period of the developer passage control step for the dot formed earlier is made longer.
  • the deflection process period can be adjusted so that the stationary period of the deflection field (hereinafter, referred to as the stationary deflection period) is equal in any of the deflection directions.
  • the deflection distance can be aimed at in any of the deflection directions.
  • a plurality of developer passage control steps for sequentially controlling the passage of the same developer passage hole; and a trajectory of the developer sequentially passing through the same developer passage hole in the plurality of developer passage control steps.
  • a plurality of deflecting steps for sequentially deflecting in a plurality of directions corresponding to a plurality of developer passage control steps, respectively, and a developer on which a flight trajectory is sequentially deflected in a plurality of directions by the plurality of deflecting steps is sequentially applied to an image receiving member.
  • the deflection intensity for deflecting the developer in each of the deflection steps is changed stepwise until a predetermined value is reached.
  • Sa Rutotomoni the number of stages of polarization direction strength causing the transfer the modified made different by the deflection direction.
  • the force for deflecting the trajectory of the developer gradually changes when switching to any of the deflection directions. A field is no longer formed. Then, by making the number of steps of the deflection intensity different depending on the deflection direction, it is possible to adjust so that the steady-state deflection period is started before the developer enters the deflection field, so that, as in the first invention, The deflection distance can be stabilized in any of the deflection directions, and the image quality can be improved.
  • the “deflection intensity” is equivalent to the electric field intensity (V / m) in the deflection field when the deflection field is formed by an electric field, and It corresponds to the magnetic field strength (A / m) in the deflection field.
  • the image forming member is formed on the image receiving member by a continuous impact step. As the distance between the two dots becomes longer, the number of deflection intensity steps to be shifted in the deflection step for the dot formed later of the two dots is changed to the number of steps for the deflection step for the dot formed earlier. Try to do more.
  • the force acting on the developer in the deflecting field can be prevented from abruptly changing even in the deflecting process having the longest transition period, so that an unstable deflecting field is not formed. Therefore, the same function and effect as those of the second invention can be obtained.
  • the developer passage control step for the dot formed earlier is performed. To make the period longer.
  • the deflection process period can be adjusted so that the steady deflection period is the same in any deflection direction. The operation and effect can be obtained.
  • the present invention is directed to an image forming method including a plurality of landing steps of landing and forming a plurality of dots respectively, wherein each of the developer passage control steps includes a promotion step of promoting the passage of the developer through a developer passage hole.
  • the prompt After the step, a step of suppressing the passage of the developer through the developer passage holes.
  • the step of suppressing the passage of the two dots formed on the image receiving member by the continuous landing step increases as the distance between the two dots increases.
  • the period of the suppression step in the developer passage control step for the dots formed earlier is lengthened.
  • the more the tailing phenomenon occurs that is, the longer the distance between the two dots formed on the image receiving member by the continuous landing process (the larger the amount of change in the deflection voltage).
  • the suppression step period of the passage control step relating to the dots formed earlier becomes longer. For this reason, before the passage control process for the dots to be formed later is started, all the developer flying before the landing lands on the image receiving member, or the flying trajectory of the developer is deviated. It will reach a position not affected by the electric field. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the landing position accuracy of the developer due to the tailing phenomenon, and it is possible to improve the image quality.
  • the method is intended for an image forming method including a plurality of landing steps of landing and forming a plurality of dots, respectively, and the distance between two dots formed on the image receiving member by the continuous landing step is increased. Therefore, to prolong the duration of the developer passes control process according to the dot Bok formed out destination of the two dots o
  • the length of each developer passage control step period is a natural number multiple of the shortest developer passage control step period.
  • the circuit configuration can be simplified, and the position of the developer can be easily adjusted when the developer is landed on the image receiving member transported at a constant speed even if the period of the developer passage control process is changed. become.
  • the light is transmitted through the same developer passage hole and deflected in different directions through a plurality of deflection steps and a landing step to land on the image receiving member.
  • the dots formed by the image agent so as to be arranged substantially in a line are sequentially shifted from one end of the line.
  • the dots DD 2 ,..., D n are repeatedly formed in this order on the image receiving member, and the dots D 2,.
  • the period of the developer passage control step is set to be longer than the period of the developer passage control step for other dots. In this way, a dot D n is formed by the last deflection step of a certain deflection step, and a dot is formed by the first deflection step of the next full deflection step. The distance between these two dots DD n is the smallest.
  • the duration of the developer passage control process according to the dot D n since long, the duration of the developer passage control process according to the dot D n, by longer than the period of the developer passage control process according to another dot, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of tailing phenomenon. Further, since dots arranged in substantially one line are formed in order from the end, only the period of the developer passage control step for the dot D n is extended, and the period of the developer passage control step for the other dots is shortened. It can be made almost the same, and the total time of all the deflection steps can be considerably shortened. Therefore, the printing speed can be improved.
  • a step of carrying the charged developer on the developer carrier and transporting the developer, and applying a reference counter electrode voltage to a counter electrode arranged to face the developer carrier Forming an electric field between the developer carrier and the counter electrode to move the developer in the direction of the counter electrode; and disposing a plurality of developer passages disposed between the developer carrier and the counter electrode.
  • a control voltage for controlling the passage of the developer carried by the developer carrying member through the developer carrying member is provided around the hole and each of the developer passing holes so as to face the developer carrying member.
  • the developer passage hole is made to fly from the carrier And applying a reference deflection voltage to deflection electrodes provided around the respective developer passage holes in the developer passage control member so as to be opposed to the counter electrodes. Deflecting the flight trajectory of the developer passing therethrough; and causing the developer passing through the developer passage hole to fly toward the counter electrode by the electric field, thereby causing a gap between the developer passage control member and the counter electrode.
  • the flying voltage is applied to the control electrode and has the same polarity as the polarity opposite to the polarity of the developer during application to the control electrode. In addition to changing the direction, the time from changing the flying voltage to the end of the application of the flying voltage is changed according to the image density.
  • the flying voltage is changed in the same polarity direction in the range of the polarity opposite to the charged polarity of the developer (the absolute value of the flying voltage is reduced), so that the electric field when the developer passes through the developer passage hole is obtained.
  • a decrease in strength can be suppressed.
  • the application of the flying voltage is completed and the voltage is switched to the suppression voltage that suppresses the flying of the developer, the amount of change in the potential difference between the control electrode and the deflection electrode can be suppressed to a small value.
  • the amount of change in the electric field component that causes the developer to flow from the developer carrier toward the counter electrode is reduced. Therefore, even if the time from the change of the flying voltage to the end of the application of the flying voltage is changed according to the image density, the landing position does not vary due to the change of the time. Therefore, it is possible to improve the landing position accuracy of the developer and improve the image quality while maintaining the gradation of the dot density.
  • the deflection electrode has a polarity opposite to the reference deflection voltage with respect to the polarity of the developer charged from the start of the application of the flying voltage until the set time has elapsed. Apply voltage.
  • the electric field strength for moving the developer in the direction of the counter electrode in the developer passage hole increases, so that even if the application of the flying voltage is completed and the voltage is switched to the suppression voltage for suppressing the flying of the developer, the The flying speed of the developer in the developer passage hole is not significantly affected, and the amount of dot deflection can be made even more uniform.
  • the potential difference between the deflection electrode and the control electrode is applied to the deflection electrode until the set time elapses from the start of the application of the flying voltage. Apply a voltage that is smaller than the time.
  • the counter electrode has a polarity opposite to that of the reference counter electrode voltage to the charge polarity of the developer during a period from the start of the application of the flying voltage to a lapse of a set time. Side voltage is applied.
  • a step of carrying the charged developer on the developer carrier and transporting the developer, and applying a reference counter electrode voltage to a counter electrode arranged to face the developer carrier Forming an electric field between the developer carrier and the counter electrode to move the developer in the direction of the counter electrode; and disposing a plurality of developer passages disposed between the developer carrier and the counter electrode.
  • a control voltage for controlling the passage of the developer carried by the developer carrying member through the developer carrying member is provided around the hole and each of the developer passing holes so as to face the developer carrying member.
  • the developer passage hole is made to fly from the carrier And applying a reference convergence voltage to converging electrodes provided around the respective developer passage holes in the developer passage control member so as to be opposed to the counter electrode, thereby forming the developer passage holes. Converging a developer group consisting of a plurality of developer particles passing through; and causing the developer passing through the developer passage hole to fly toward the counter electrode by the electric field, thereby causing the developer passage control member to move.
  • the flying voltage is the same as the polarity of the developer during application to the control electrode in the range of the polarity opposite to that of the developer.
  • the time from the change of the flying voltage to the end of the application of the flying voltage is changed according to the image density.
  • the same operation and effect as those of the first invention in which the deflection electrode is used to deflect the developer can be obtained.
  • the focusing electrode is provided on the side of the polarity opposite to the charge polarity of the developer with respect to the reference convergence voltage. Apply voltage.
  • the potential difference between the focusing electrode and the control electrode is equal to the reference focusing voltage until the set time elapses from the start of the application of the flying voltage. A voltage smaller than that at the time of application is applied.
  • the counter electrode has a polarity opposite to that of the reference counter electrode voltage with respect to the charge polarity of the developer until the set time elapses from the start of application of the flying voltage. Voltage is applied.
  • a developer carrier that carries and transports the developer
  • a counter electrode that faces the developer carrier via a gap, and a gap between the counter electrode and the developer carrier.
  • a developer passage control member having a plurality of developer passage holes through which the developer conveyed by the developer carrying member passes.
  • the counter electrode and the developer passage hole of the developer passage control member are provided.
  • the developer when an image is formed by deflecting or converging, as described above, the developer is liable to deposit on the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole. Landing position accuracy may deteriorate.
  • the voltage applied to the first electrode causes the development adhered to the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole.
  • the agent can be released from the inner wall surface. Therefore, the landing position accuracy of the developer can be improved, and the image quality can be improved.
  • the voltage applying step includes a step of applying to the first electrode a voltage having the same polarity as the charge polarity of the developer carried on the developer carrying member. Shall be assumed.
  • the first electrode is on the counter electrode side surface of the developer passage control member.
  • the developer adhering to the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole is separated from the inner wall surface due to repulsion against the first electrode and easily returns to the developer carrier.
  • the developer detached from the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole hardly flies to the counter electrode side and adheres to the counter electrode, and the image receiving member transported to the counter electrode is applied to the counter electrode. It is possible to prevent the developer from being stained by the attached developer.
  • the voltage applying step includes a step of applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to a charging polarity of the developer carried on the developer carrier to the first electrode. Shall be assumed.
  • the voltage applying step includes a step of applying a fluctuating voltage having a fluctuating voltage value to the first electrode.
  • the polarity of the fluctuating voltage applied to the first electrode is inverted at least once.
  • the first electrode is provided such that at least two electrodes are provided in a pair on the surface of the developer passage control member with respect to one developer passage hole.
  • the voltage application step includes a step of applying different voltages to the respective electrodes forming the electrode pair.
  • the voltage applied to each electrode forming the electrode pair is a fluctuating voltage whose voltage value fluctuates.
  • the voltage applied to each electrode forming the electrode pair is inverted at least once by an electric field direction formed between each electrode forming the electrode pair. To be changed.
  • the developer is vibrated in the developer passage hole, and the effect of removing the developer due to collision with the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole can be enhanced.
  • the developer carrying member and the developer passing control member side of the developer carrying control member during a voltage applying step after the start of voltage application to the first electrode.
  • the step of forming a predetermined electric field between the surface portion and a second electrode provided around each developer passage hole is started.
  • the developer adhering to the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole can be easily moved to the developer carrier side or the counter electrode side. be able to.
  • the developer carrier and the developer passage control member on the developer carrier side
  • An electric field for moving the developer between the developer carrier and the second electrode toward the developer carrier is formed between the surface and the second electrode provided around the developer passage hole. Start the process.
  • the developer adhering to the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole can be easily moved to the developer carrier.
  • the developer carrier and the developer passage control member side of the developer carrier during the voltage application step after the start of voltage application to the first electrode Between the developer carrying member and a second electrode provided around the developer passage hole in the surface portion; Forming an electric field for moving the developer between the first electrode and the second electrode toward the second electrode.
  • the step of applying a voltage having the same polarity as the charged polarity of the developer carried on the developer carrier to the first electrode during the non-image forming step After the start of the process, a step of applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to the charge polarity of the developer to the counter electrode is started.
  • the same voltage as in the image forming step can be applied to the counter electrode in advance, and the instability factor of the electric field when switching to the image forming step can be eliminated.
  • an electric field is formed in advance by the first electrode to suppress the developer from passing through the developer passage hole. The developer separated from the inner wall surface of the passage hole does not fly to the counter electrode side.
  • a step of applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to a charging polarity of the developer carried on the developer carrier to the first electrode during the non-image forming step Before starting the process, a step of applying a voltage having a polarity opposite to the charged polarity of the developer to the counter electrode is started.
  • the counter electrode is configured to be rotatable, and during the non-image forming step, the step of rotating the counter electrode is started before starting the voltage applying step. To do it. By doing so, the developer that has detached from the inner wall surface of the developer passage hole and has reached the counter electrode is carried by the counter electrode and conveyed. The member is not stained by the developer immediately after adhering to the counter electrode. According to a thirty-third aspect, in the thirty-second aspect, the developer attached to the surface of the counter electrode is removed during the step of rotating the counter electrode.
  • the surface of the counter electrode is constantly cleaned, so that the developer can be prevented from being deposited on the counter electrode due to long-term operation, and the image receiving member is contaminated by the developer adhered to the surface of the counter electrode. 'Can be prevented.
  • the first electrode is a deflection electrode for deflecting a flight trajectory of the developer toward the image receiving member through the developer passage hole in the image forming step. Shall be.
  • the first electrode converges a developer group consisting of a plurality of developer particles passing through the developer passage hole toward the image receiving member in the image forming step.
  • the focusing electrodes This achieves the same effect as the thirty-fourth invention.
  • the first electrode is an antistatic electrode for preventing the developer passage control member from being charged in the image forming step.
  • the second electrode is a control electrode for controlling the passage of the developer through the developer passage hole in the image forming step.
  • the same operation and effect as the thirty-fourth invention can be obtained, and the control electrode and the current Since the distance from the image carrier can be reduced, the electric field strength between the two can be increased. As a result, it is easy to control the passage of the developer through the developer passage hole in the developer carrying member in the image forming step.
  • a thirty-eighth aspect of the present invention provides a developer carrying member that carries and transports a developer, an image receiving member that is provided to face the developer carrying member, and receives a developer image, and the developer carrying member and the image receiving member.
  • a developer passage control member having a plurality of developer passage holes through which the developer carried by the developer carrier passes toward the image receiving member; and A control voltage for forming one dot on the image receiving member is applied to the control electrode provided thereon and the control electrode for a predetermined period, and the application of the control voltage is repeated.
  • Control voltage applying means for sequentially controlling the passage of the developer conveyed by the developer carrier through the developer passage holes; deflection electrodes disposed around the respective developer passage holes; A control electrode by the control voltage applying means By applying a control voltage for each dot and applying a deflection voltage corresponding to the control voltage, the flight trajectory of the developer, which sequentially passes through the same developer passage hole toward the image receiving member, is sequentially moved in a plurality of directions.
  • a deflection voltage applying means for deflecting the developer, wherein the developer whose flight trajectory is sequentially deflected in a plurality of directions by the deflection voltage applying means is sequentially landed on the image receiving member to form a plurality of dots.
  • the deflection voltage applying means corresponds to each of the control voltages when the control voltage is applied to the control electrode by the control voltage applying means, based on the control voltage application start timing. It is assumed that the timing of starting the application of the deflection voltage to the deflection electrode is made different depending on the deflection direction.
  • the deflection voltage application means sets the deflection voltage application start time earlier than the reference control voltage application start time, and the same developing agent passage. It is formed by a developer that continuously passes through the hole and is deflected in different directions by the application of a deflection voltage to the deflection electrode by the deflection voltage applying means and lands on the image receiving member. As the distance between the two dots becomes longer, the earlier time of the start of the application of the deflection voltage for the dot formed later of the two dots is increased by the application of the deflection voltage for the dot formed earlier. It is configured to be longer than the start time. Thus, the same function and effect as those of the second invention can be obtained.
  • control voltage application means is configured to apply a control voltage applied to a dot formed first as the deflection voltage application start timing for a dot formed later is advanced. It is assumed that the time is configured to be longer. By doing so, the same function and effect as the third invention can be obtained.
  • the developer carrying member for carrying and transporting the developer, an image receiving member provided to face the developer carrying member and receiving a developer image, the developer carrying member and the image receiving portion
  • a developer passage control member having a plurality of developer passage holes through which the developer carried by the developer carrier passes toward the image receiving member;
  • a control voltage for forming one dot on the image receiving member is applied to a control electrode disposed around each of the control electrodes and the control electrode for a predetermined period, and the control voltage application is repeated to form the developer.
  • Control voltage application means for sequentially controlling the passage of the developer conveyed by the carrier through the developer passage holes, deflection electrodes disposed around the respective developer passage holes, and the deflection electrodes, Control electrode by the control voltage applying means
  • a control voltage related to each dot to the dot By applying a control voltage related to each dot to the dot and applying a deflection voltage corresponding to the control voltage, the flight trajectory of the developer toward the image receiving member passing through the same developer passage hole is sequentially moved in a plurality of directions.
  • a deflection voltage applying means for deflecting the developer. The developer whose flight trajectory is sequentially deflected in a plurality of directions by the deflection voltage applying means is sequentially landed on the image receiving member to form a plurality of dots.
  • the deflection voltage applying means is configured to change the deflection voltage stepwise until it reaches a predetermined voltage level, and to make the number of steps of the deflection voltage to be changed different in the deflection direction. It is assumed that Thus, the same function and effect as the fourth invention can be obtained.
  • the deflection voltage applying means continuously passes through the same developer passage hole and applies a deflection voltage to the deflection electrode by the deflection voltage applying means.
  • the distance between two dots formed by the developer deflected in different directions and landed on the image receiving member becomes longer, when a deflection voltage is applied to a dot formed later of the two dots, It is assumed that the number of stages of the deflection voltage to be shifted is set to be larger than that at the time of applying the deflection voltage to the dot formed earlier.
  • control voltage applying means may be formed first as the number of steps of the deflection voltage to be shifted at the time of application of the deflection voltage for the dot formed later increases. It is assumed that the control voltage application time for the dots to be controlled is made longer. By doing so, the same function and effect as the sixth invention can be obtained.
  • the developer carrying member for carrying and transporting the developer, an image receiving member provided to face the developer carrying member and receiving a developer image, the developer carrying member and the image receiving portion
  • a developer passage control member having a plurality of developer passage holes through which the developer carried by the developer carrier passes toward the image receiving member;
  • a control voltage for forming one dot on the image receiving member is applied to a control electrode disposed around each of the control electrodes and the control electrode for a predetermined period, and the control voltage application is repeated to form the developer.
  • Control voltage application means for sequentially controlling the passage of the developer conveyed by the carrier through the developer passage holes, deflection electrodes disposed around the respective developer passage holes, and the deflection electrodes, Control electrode by the control voltage applying means
  • a deflection voltage in synchronism with the application of the control voltage for each dot to each dot, and changing the magnitude of the deflection voltage for each application of the control voltage to each dot, the same developer passage hole is provided.
  • Deflecting voltage applying means for sequentially deflecting the flight trajectory of the developer toward the image receiving member by sequentially passing the trajectory in a plurality of directions, wherein the trajectory is sequentially deflected in a plurality of directions by the deflection voltage applying means.
  • the control voltage for each of the dots promotes the passage of the developer through the developer passage hole.
  • the control voltage applying means is continuously applied to the deflection electrode. According to the difference of the two deflection voltage increases, the two deflection electrostatic It is assumed that the configuration is such that the application time of the suppression voltage of the control voltage applied to the control electrode is increased in accordance with the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrode first among the voltages. According to this invention, the same function and effect as those of the seventh invention can be obtained.
  • the developer carrying member for carrying and transporting the developer, an image receiving member provided to face the developer carrying member and receiving a developer image, the developer carrying member and the image receiving portion
  • a developer passage control member having a plurality of developer passage holes through which the developer carried by the developer carrier passes toward the image receiving member;
  • a control voltage for forming one dot on the image receiving member is applied to a control electrode disposed around each of the control electrodes and the control electrode for a predetermined period, and the control voltage application is repeated to form the developer.
  • Control voltage application means for sequentially controlling the passage of the developer conveyed by the carrier through the developer passage holes, deflection electrodes disposed around the respective developer passage holes, and the deflection electrodes, Control electrode by the control voltage applying means
  • the control voltage applied to each dot and the deflection voltage are applied in synchronization with the application of the control voltage, and the magnitude of the deflection voltage is changed every time the control voltage is applied to each dot, so that the same developer passage hole is formed.
  • Deflecting voltage applying means for sequentially deflecting the flight trajectory of the developer toward the image receiving member by sequentially passing the trajectory in a plurality of directions, wherein the trajectory is sequentially deflected in a plurality of directions by the deflection voltage applying means.
  • a plurality of dots are sequentially formed on the image receiving member to form a plurality of dots, and the control voltage applying unit is configured to continuously apply two deflection voltages to the deflection electrode.
  • control voltage application means is configured to set the control voltage application time for each dot to a natural number multiple of the shortest control voltage application time. And By doing so, it is possible to obtain the same effect as the ninth invention o
  • the deflection voltage applying means is provided with the same developer passage.
  • the dots formed so as to pass through the perforations and be deflected in directions different from each other by the application of a deflection voltage to the deflection electrode by the deflection voltage application means and formed substantially in a line by the developer landed on the image receiving member are formed by column turn it it D i from one end of, D 2, ..., when the D n (n is 3 or more integer), the dot D ls ⁇ 2, ⁇ , the D n, repeated in this order receiving
  • the control voltage application means is configured to sequentially change the magnitude of the deflection voltage formed on the member, and the control voltage application time for the dot D n is longer than the control voltage application time for the other dots. It is configured to be long. Thus, the same function and effect as the tenth invention can be obtained.
  • the developer carrier that carries and transports the charged developer is disposed so as to face the developer carrier, and the developer is sucked by applying a counter electrode voltage.
  • the developer is Control voltage application means for causing the developing electrode to fly from above; deflection voltage applying means for applying a reference deflection voltage to the deflection electrode to deflect the flight trajectory of the developer passing through the developer passage hole; An image receiving member that is transferred between the developer passage control member and the developer agent that has passed through the developer passage hole of the developer passage control member and is attracted and landed by the counter electrode to which the counter electrode voltage is applied.
  • the control voltage applying means changes the flying voltage in the same polarity direction within the range of the polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the developer during application to the control electrode, and changes the flying voltage. It is assumed that the time from when the flying voltage is applied until the end of the application of the flying voltage is changed according to the image density. According to this invention, the same function and effect as those of the eleventh invention can be obtained.
  • the deflection voltage applying means comprises a control voltage applying means. From the start of the application of the flying voltage to the control electrode until the set time elapses, the deflection electrode is configured to apply a voltage on the polarity opposite to the developer charging polarity to the reference deflection voltage. It is assumed that By doing so, the same operation and effect as the first and second inventions can be obtained.
  • the deflection voltage applying means comprises: a deflection electrode, provided that the control voltage application means starts to apply the flying voltage to the control electrode until a set time elapses.
  • a voltage is applied so that the potential difference between the deflection electrode and the control electrode becomes smaller than when the reference deflection voltage is applied.
  • the counter electrode voltage applied to the counter electrode is changed from when the control voltage application unit starts applying the flying voltage to the control electrode until a set time elapses. It is assumed that the voltage is set to a voltage on the side opposite to the charge polarity of the developer with respect to the reference counter electrode voltage. As a result, the same functions and effects as those of the fourteenth invention are obtained.
  • the developer carrying member that carries and transports the charged developer is provided so as to face the developer carrying member.
  • a counter electrode that is disposed and sucks the developer by applying a counter electrode voltage; and is disposed between the developer carrier and the counter electrode; and a plurality of developer passage holes and around each of the developer passage holes.
  • a developer passage having a control electrode arranged in such a way as to face the developer carrier and a collecting electrode arranged around each developer passage hole so as to face the counter electrode.
  • a control voltage is applied to a control member and a control electrode of the developer passage control member to control passage of the developer conveyed by the developer carrier through the developer passage hole, and to control the control voltage.
  • a control voltage applying means for causing the developer to fly from the developer carrier by applying for a predetermined time; and a plurality of developer particles passing through the developer passage hole by applying a reference convergence voltage to the convergence electrode.
  • a converging voltage applying means for converging a developer group consisting of: a developer, which is transferred between the counter electrode and the developer passage control member and passes through a developer passage hole of the developer passage control member; Attracted by the counter electrode to which the electrode voltage is applied
  • the control voltage applying means is configured to apply the flying voltage to the control electrode while applying the flying voltage to the control electrode in the same polarity direction as the polarity opposite to the polarity of the developer. And the time from the change of the flying voltage to the end of the application of the flying voltage is changed in accordance with the image density. According to this invention, the same function and effect as the fifteenth invention can be obtained.
  • the convergence voltage applying means comprises: a convergence electrode applying means for applying the flying voltage to the control electrode from the start of application of the flying voltage to the control electrode until a set time elapses.
  • a convergence electrode applying means for applying the flying voltage to the control electrode from the start of application of the flying voltage to the control electrode until a set time elapses.
  • the convergence voltage applying means comprises: the convergence electrode applying means for applying a flying voltage to the control electrode from the start of application of the flying voltage to the control electrode until a set time elapses.
  • the voltage is applied so that the potential difference between the focusing electrode and the control electrode becomes smaller than when the reference convergence voltage is applied.
  • the counter electrode voltage applied to the counter electrode is applied until a set time elapses after the control voltage application means starts applying the flying voltage to the control electrode. It is assumed that the voltage is set to a voltage on the side opposite to the polarity of the charged developer with respect to the reference counter electrode voltage. By doing so, the same operation and effect as the eighteenth invention can be obtained.
  • the developer carrying member for carrying and transporting the developer, an image receiving member facing the developer carrying member and receiving a developer image, and a member between the developer carrying member and the image receiving member
  • a developer passage control member having a plurality of developer passage holes through which the developer conveyed by the developer carrier passes toward the image receiving member; and a developer passage control member provided on the image receiving member side surface of the developer passage control member.
  • a first electrode disposed around each of the developer passage holes, and controlling the passage of the developer conveyed by the developer carrier through the developer passage holes so as to pass through the developer passage holes.
  • first voltage applying means for applying a predetermined voltage to the first electrode in advance is provided. According to this invention, the same function and effect as the nineteenth invention can be obtained.
  • the first electrode is a deflection electrode for deflecting a flight trajectory of the developer passing through the developer passage hole toward the image receiving member.
  • the voltage applying unit is configured to apply a deflection voltage for deflecting the trajectory of the developer passing through the developer passage hole toward the image receiving member when the control of the passage of the developer through the developer passage hole is performed. It is assumed that the voltage is applied to the deflection electrode. As a result, the same functions and effects as the thirty-fourth invention can be obtained.
  • the first electrode is a converging electrode for converging a developer group consisting of a plurality of developer particles passing through the developer passage hole toward the image receiving member.
  • the first voltage applying means is configured to apply a voltage having the same polarity as the charged polarity of the developer to the focusing electrode when the control of the passage of the developer through the developer passage hole is performed. It is assumed that By doing so, the same function and effect as the thirty-fifth invention can be obtained.
  • the first electrode is an antistatic electrode for preventing electrification of the developer passage control member, and the first voltage applying means is configured to pass the developer through the developer. When the passage of the holes is controlled, the ground potential or a voltage having the same polarity as the charged polarity of the developer is applied to the antistatic electrode. Thus, the same function and effect as the thirty-sixth invention are obtained.
  • the second electrode disposed around the developer passage hole in the surface portion of the developer passage control member on the side of the developer carrier; and a voltage is applied to the second electrode.
  • second voltage applying means for applying the voltage.
  • the second electrode is a control electrode for controlling the passage of the developer through the developer passage hole
  • the second voltage applying means is a control electrode for the developer. It is assumed that a control voltage for controlling the passage of the developer passage hole is applied to the control electrode.
  • FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
  • FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the respective surfaces of the toner passage control member on the toner carrier side and the counter electrode side in the image forming apparatus.
  • FIG. 3 is a time chart of voltage application to a control electrode and a deflection electrode showing a voltage application sequence in the first embodiment.
  • FIG. 4 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a modification of the first example of the voltage application sequence in the first embodiment.
  • FIG. 5 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 illustrating a second example of the voltage application sequence according to the first embodiment.
  • C FIG. 6 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 illustrating a third example of the voltage application sequence according to the first embodiment.
  • FIG. 4 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3, showing a modification of the third example of the voltage application sequence in the first embodiment.
  • FIG. 8 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a voltage application sequence in the second embodiment.
  • FIG. 9 is a time chart of voltage application to a control electrode and a deflection electrode showing a voltage application sequence according to the second embodiment in comparison with a conventional example.
  • FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a time chart of voltage application to electrodes and dot formation positions.
  • FIG. 11 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a modification of the voltage application sequence in the second embodiment.
  • FIG. 12 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a first example of the voltage application sequence in the third embodiment.
  • FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an electric field near the control electrode.
  • FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing a change in the electric field in the toner passage hole.
  • FIG. 15 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a second example of the voltage application sequence in the third embodiment. You.
  • FIG. 16 is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode and the counter electrode showing a third example of the voltage application sequence in the third embodiment.
  • FIG. 17 is a time chart of voltage application to a control electrode, a deflection electrode, and a counter electrode, showing a first example of a voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 18 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 17 showing a second example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 19 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 17 showing a third example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 20 is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode, the deflection electrode, the counter electrode, and the toner carrier, showing a fourth example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 21 is a configuration diagram of a toner passage control member of the image forming apparatus according to a fifth example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 22 is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode, the convergence electrode, and the counter electrode, showing a fifth example of the voltage supply sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 23 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 22 illustrating a sixth example of the voltage supply sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a second example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 25 is a diagram schematically showing a conventional image forming apparatus.
  • FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of voltage application control to a control electrode and a deflection electrode in a conventional image forming apparatus and a flying direction of toner.
  • FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
  • reference numeral 1 denotes a toner as a developer
  • the toner 1 is a polyester.
  • This is a non-magnetic toner having a volume average 50% diameter of about 8.5 / m and a binder resin as binder resin.
  • the binder resin used for the toner 1 in addition to the polyester resin, a styrene-acrylic copolymer, a styrene-butadiene-based copolymer, an epoxy resin, and a mixed resin thereof are suitable.
  • a magnetic toner containing a magnetic powder may be used.
  • examples of the magnetic powder include alloys containing elements exhibiting ferromagnetism such as iron, cobalt, and nickel such as graphite and magnetite. Compounds and the like are effective. It is appropriate that the holding power of the magnetic powder is 7900-3950 OA / m, and the content of the magnetic powder is 20 to 40% by mass relative to the toner. is there.
  • silica (S i O to control the flow of the charge control agent and toner 1, titanium oxide (T i 0 2), is added 0.1 to 5 percent of a metal salt of stearic acid in percent by mass
  • silica greatly affects the fluidity, and has an effect of suppressing the toner 1 from being clogged in the toner passage hole 6 of the toner passage control member 4 described below. Because of its high chargeability, it is strongly attracted by electric force and easily adheres to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6. However, the toner 1 adhered to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 moves when passing through the toner passage hole 6.
  • Silica has a specific surface area (according to BET method) of 100 to 30 Om 2 / g due to nitrogen adsorption. those are suitable, small diameter, such as less than 1 0 0 m 2 / g With silica, it is impossible to obtain sufficient fixability to Komu mixed to shred resin.
  • Reference numeral 2 denotes a toner carrier (developer carrier) that carries and transports the toner 1.
  • the toner carrier 2 is formed using an aluminum cylinder having an outer diameter of 20 mm and a thickness of 1 mm, and is grounded.
  • the toner carrier 2 is configured to be rotatable around its central axis, and carries the toner 1 by this rotation.
  • the material of the toner carrier 2 may be a material other than aluminum, such as a metal or alloy such as iron, or a member in which a rubber material such as silicon rubber or urethane rubber is wound around a core shaft. In addition to the shape, a belt shape or a drum shape may be used.
  • the toner 1 is provided on a toner carrier 2 with a regulating blade (not shown: mounted on a mounting member in a cantilever shape) and formed by an elastic member such as urethane or silicon. Is pressed against the toner carrier 2).
  • the free end length (length of the portion protruding from the mounting member) of the regulating blade that forms the toner layer with respect to the toner carrier 2 is 5 to 15 mm.
  • the linear pressure applied to the toner carrier 2 by the regulating blade is suitably 4.9 to 39.2 N / m, and one to three layers of toner are formed on the toner carrier 2 by pressing the regulating blade. .
  • the regulating blade is used in an electrically floating state, but may be used in a grounded state or in a state where a DC or AC voltage is applied.
  • the toner 1 is sandwiched between the regulating blade and the toner carrier 2, and receives a small amount of agitation during this time to receive and charge the toner from the toner carrier 2.
  • the toner 1 is supplied to the surface of the toner carrier 2 by a supply roller (not shown).
  • This supply roller is made of synthetic rubber such as urethane foam with a thickness of about 2 to 6 mm on a metal shaft (for example, 8 mm in diameter) such as iron.
  • the amount of biting into the toner carrier 2 is preferably in the range of 0.1 to 2 mm.
  • the supply roller is applied with a ground or a DC or AC voltage, and controls the supply amount of the toner 1 to the toner carrier 2 and assists the charging of the toner 11.
  • the polarity of the charge may be positive or negative.
  • the charge amount of the toner is about 120 / C / g, and the type and amount of the charge control agent added to the toner 1 are adjusted so as to achieve this charge amount.
  • the counter electrode 3 is a counter electrode.
  • the counter electrode 3 is made of a metal plate, but may be a film in which a conductive filler is dispersed in a resin.
  • an image receiving member 5 such as a recording paper or an image carrying belt, which receives a toner image, is transferred onto the opposing electrode 3 at a constant speed, and the toner 1 is adhered onto the image receiving member 5 so as to adhere to the toner image.
  • the counter electrode 3 may be formed by processing the film into an endless shape using the above-mentioned film, and the toner 1 may be landed on the film, and then transferred to the image receiving member 5.
  • the distance between the opposing electrode 3 and a toner passage control member 4, which will be described later, is set to 150 ⁇ m, but is preferably within a range of 50 to 100 / m.
  • Reference numeral 8 denotes a power supply for the counter electrode that applies a counter electrode voltage to the counter electrode 3.
  • the counter electrode voltage is set at +1000 V, but is preferably in the range of +500 V to 1200 V, and more preferably +800 V to It is within the range of 150 V. This is because, when the common electrode voltage is higher than the above range, the toner passage control member 4 and the common electrode 3 may be electrically short-circuited and both may be destroyed by electric discharge. This is because the force for electrostatically attracting the toner 1 to the counter electrode 3 side is weakened, and the toner 1 cannot be attracted to the image receiving member 5 in an amount sufficient to print high-density dots.
  • Reference numeral 4 denotes a toner passage control member (developer passage control member) formed of a flexible printed circuit board.
  • Reference numeral 12 denotes the insulating base material. The thickness of the insulating base material 12 is set at 50 / m, but may be within the range of 10 to 100 / m. The material is polyimide, but polyethylene terephthalate is also preferable.
  • Reference numeral 13 denotes an insulating cover film provided on the front and back surfaces of the insulating base material 12, and a polyimide film having a thickness of 10 ⁇ m is provided on both sides of the insulating base material 10 1 10 to 15 ⁇ m It is attached via a thick adhesive layer.
  • the thickness of the cover film 13 may be 5 to 30 m, and the material, dimensions, number of constituent layers, and the like of the insulating base material 12 and the cover film 13 are limited to those described above. It can be designed arbitrarily.
  • Reference numeral 6 denotes a toner passage hole (developer passage hole) formed in the toner passage control member 4 so as to pass therethrough.
  • the process for forming the toner passage hole 6 in the toner passage control member 4 can be performed by forming the hole by excimer laser or press working. Also other, after hole formation in YAG laser or C 0 2 laser or the like, may be carried out post-processing such as etching.
  • a plurality of the toner passage holes 6 are arranged along the length direction of the toner carrier 2 (a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 1) to form a toner passage hole array.
  • Reference numeral 7 denotes a control electrode disposed around the toner passage hole 6 on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the side of the toner carrier 2 so as to face the toner carrier 2.
  • the deflection electrodes 10a and 10 b are a pair of deflecting electrodes arranged in pairs around the toner passage hole 6 on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 facing the counter electrode 3 so as to face the counter electrode 3.
  • the pair of deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob are arranged to face each other with the toner passage hole 6 as a center.
  • the deflection electrodes 10a, 1Ob and the control electrode 7 are made of a copper foil, an aluminum foil, or the like having a thickness of 10 ⁇ m (only about 2 to 30 ⁇ m).
  • Reference numeral 9 denotes a control electrode power supply as control voltage applying means connected to the control electrode 7. Then, a control voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 according to an image signal supplied from the outside.
  • the control electrode power supply 9 includes a voltage generator (not shown) for generating a voltage, and a switching element (not shown) for switching the voltage.
  • One of the switching elements has about 32, 64 or 128 channels, and controls the voltage applied to the control electrode 7 respectively. For example, when recording at a recording density of 300 dots per inch (25.4 mm) (300 dpi), if a switching element of 64 channels is used, 300 toner passes. In order to apply a control voltage to the control electrode 7 corresponding to the hole 6, five switching elements having four channels are required.
  • FIG. 1 la and 1 lb are power supplies for deflection electrodes as deflection voltage application means connected to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, respectively, and are connected to the control electrode 7 by the power supply 9 for control electrodes.
  • a deflection voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b in response to the application of the control voltage.
  • FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the relationship between each electrode provided on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 and the toner passage hole 6, and FIG. 2 (a) shows the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the toner carrier 2 side.
  • the control electrode 7 provided on the toner passage control member 4 is shown together with the toner passage hole 6, and FIG. 2 (b) shows the toner passage control member 4 passing the toner through the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b provided on the surface of the counter electrode 3 side. Shown with hole 6.
  • the shape of each toner passage hole 6 is circular, but may be oval or elliptical. Although the diameter of the toner passage hole 6 is set to 90 / m, it may be about 70 to 120 zm.
  • the control electrode 7 has a ring shape having an inner diameter of 110 m and an outer diameter of 150 1m, and is concentric with the toner passage hole 6, but has a long length.
  • the shape may be circular or elliptical.
  • the control electrode 7 does not need to surround the entire periphery of the toner passage hole 6, and the side where the toner carrier 2 near the toner passage control member 4 moves by rotation with respect to the toner passage hole 6 or the opposite side. Only the control electrode 7 may be provided.
  • Reference numeral 14 denotes a lead wire provided on the toner passage control member 4 so as to connect the control electrode 7 and the power supply 9 for the control electrode, and the control voltage generated by the power supply 9 for the control electrode is a lead wire. It is applied to the control electrode 7 via 14. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
  • the pair of deflection electrodes 10 a and 10 b are arranged obliquely with respect to the transfer direction of the image receiving member 5 indicated by arrow A with the toner passage hole 6 interposed therebetween. This is because the toner 1 is sequentially scattered obliquely onto the image receiving member 5 being transferred, and the dots formed by sequentially landing on the image receiving member 5 are arranged in a line in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 5. In order to form one horizontal line.
  • N is the number of flight trajectories of toner 1 obtained in the deflection process.
  • N is the number of flight trajectories of toner 1 obtained in the deflection process.
  • three types of toner flight trajectories of left, center, and right are formed. Becomes In the first embodiment, since three types of toner trajectories are configured as in FIG. 26, 0 is set to 18.3 degrees (the same applies to later-described embodiments 2 to 4).
  • FIG. 3 shows a first example of the voltage application sequence.
  • FIG. 3 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 3 (b) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 3 (c) shows a voltage application time chart to the deflection electrode 1 Ob.
  • the Tt period indicates the time required to form one horizontal line in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 5, and corresponds to the entire deflection process period.
  • Tt is determined by the resolution of the image receiving member 5 in the transport direction A. For example, in order to form a horizontal line at a pitch of 300 dpi, dividing 1 inch (25.4 mm) by 300 dots gives a line pitch of about 84.6.m.
  • the image receiving member 5 may be moved by one pitch while forming one line. Therefore, when the speed of the image receiving member 5 is, for example, 6 Omm / s, the Tt period is about 1390 zs. In this example, the resolution is 600 dpi, and the transfer speed of the image receiving member 5 is 10 Omm / s. Therefore, the Tt period is 423 ⁇ s.
  • TL, TC, and TR are control voltage application times required to form a dot by applying a control voltage to the control electrode 7, respectively, during the developer passage control step (toner passage control step). Equivalent to.
  • TL is the control voltage application time required to form one dot by the left deflection process
  • TC is the control voltage application time required to form one dot by the straight traveling process
  • TR is This is the control voltage application time required to form one dot in the right deflection step.
  • Tb when forming low-density dots, Tb is set short, and when forming high-density dots, Tb is set long. As a result, image formation with excellent gradation can be realized. Further, by setting Tb to zero (no application of the pulse voltage Vc), the toner 1 cannot pass through the toner passage hole 6, so that a non-printing area is formed.
  • the variable range of Tb is set to 0 to 80 ⁇ s.
  • the suppression voltage Vw is applied from immediately after the end of the acceleration period Tb to the start of application of the control voltage for the next dot. In this example, the suppression voltage Vw is set to 100 V, and the pulse voltage Vc is set to 300 V.
  • the suppression voltage Vw and the pulse voltage Vc (promotion voltage Vb) superimposed on the suppression voltage Vw during the promotion period Tb are not limited to the above values, and can promote or suppress the passage of the toner 1 through the toner passage hole 6.
  • An appropriate electric field may be formed between the toner carrier 2 and the toner passage control member 4.
  • the suppression voltage Vw is applied to the control electrode 7 as a negative voltage, but the suppression voltage Vw is set to the ground level of the image forming apparatus, and a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner 1 is applied to the toner carrier 2. Is applied, it is possible to suppress the toner 1 1 from passing through the toner passing hole 6 during the suppression period Tw.
  • the deflection voltage is applied to both deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • the deflection electrode power supplies 1 la and 1 lb to be applied can output three voltage levels, VL, VM and VH, and switch each deflection voltage level according to the application of the control voltage for one dot.
  • VL —50 V
  • VM + 50 V
  • VH + 150 V.
  • the deflection electrode power supplies 11 a and l ib change abruptly when switching their voltage levels.
  • the voltage output waveforms at the time of voltage switching are shown by the two-dot chain lines in FIGS. 3 (b) and (c).
  • the deflection electrode power supplies 1 la and 11 b have a power supply capacity, and the lead wire 14 provided in the toner-passage control member 4 has an impedance component. Therefore, due to the effects of these capacitance components and resistance components, the actual voltage waveforms applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b rise and fall as shown by the solid lines in FIGS. 3 (b) and 3 (c). The waveform becomes bad.
  • a state in which each of the VL, VM, and VH voltage levels reaches an error range of ⁇ 5 V is defined as a steady state, and a phenomenon until the steady state is reached is defined as a transient phenomenon. Then, assuming that a transition period required when switching from the right deflection process to the left deflection process is T1, and a transition period required when switching from the left deflection process to the straight traveling process and when switching from the straight traveling process to the right deflection process is T2, Each transition period of T1 and T2 is obtained by the following equation.
  • T 1 — r ⁇ In (1 -Vout / Vin)
  • T 2 -rIn (1-Vout / Vin)
  • the toner carrier 2 rotates, and the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 is transported to a position facing the toner passage hole 6. Further, a counter electrode voltage (+1000 V) is applied to the counter electrode 3 in advance by a counter electrode power supply 8. At this time, a voltage of 110 V is applied to the control electrode 7. As a result, the electric field formed between the toner carrier 2 and the counter electrode 3 due to the counter electrode voltage is cut off by the application of the voltage to the control voltage 7, so that the toner 1 remains on the toner carrier 2. It is still carried on.
  • the voltage of the VM is applied to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b by the deflection electrode power supplies 11a and llb.
  • the voltage of the VM is applied, but other voltages may be applied. Further, it is not necessary to apply the same voltage to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, and different voltages may be applied.
  • a left deflection process is started prior to the toner passage control process.
  • the applied voltage level to the deflection electrode 10a is switched from VM to VH, and the applied voltage level to the deflection electrode 10b is switched from VM to VL.
  • the voltage level in the left deflection process is in a steady state.
  • the image receiving member 5 is transferred to a position facing the toner passage hole 6 (between the counter electrode 3 and the toner passage hole 6 of the toner passage control member 4), that is, a printing execution position (image forming position).
  • a printing execution position image forming position
  • the noise voltage Vc is selectively applied to the control electrode 7 by the control electrode power supply 9 according to the image signal. Is done.
  • an electric field is formed between the toner carrier 2 and the control electrode 7 to attract the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 toward the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 detached from the toner carrier 2 by this electric field is further attracted by the electric field formed between the toner carrier 2 and the counter electrode 3, and passes through the toner passage hole 6. Then, through the toner passage hole 6 The passing toner 1 enters a region of the deflection electric field formed by the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob. At this time, since the voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b is already in a steady state, a stable electric field is formed without the deflection electric field intensity changing every moment. As a result, the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is also stably deflected to the left.
  • a second toner passage control process is started.
  • the start timing of the straight traveling process with respect to the start timing of the toner passage control process is the same as the above-described left deflection process.
  • the toner 1 passing through the toner passage hole 6 reaches the deflection electric field region, and at this time, a stable deflection electric field is formed. The vehicle will go straight in a stable manner.
  • a third toner passage control process is started.
  • the start timing of the right deflection process with respect to the start timing of the toner passage control process is the same as the above two deflection processes.
  • the process is switched from the right deflection process to the left deflection process.
  • the voltages applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b are already in a steady state. If it is not possible to start immediately before 55.4 ⁇ s, a time of 55.4 ⁇ 3 or more may be set as 11 1.
  • the respective deflection steps corresponding to the fifth and sixth toner passage control steps are started at the same timings as the second and third toner passage control steps.
  • the deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b is switched to VM.
  • the timing of this switching is set before T2 when the last toner passage control step is completed.
  • a voltage of ⁇ 100 V is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 whose deflection trajectory is deflected in each of the above deflection steps is attracted to the counter electrode 3 to which a voltage is applied by the counter electrode power supply 8, and then lands on the image receiving member 5 being transferred, causing a dot. It is formed.
  • the particles passed through the same toner passage hole 6 during one entire deflection step and were deflected in different directions by the application of a deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob, and landed on the image receiving member 5.
  • the three dots (left dot, center dot, and right dot) formed by toner 1 are arranged substantially in a line in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 7 to form one horizontal line.
  • the image receiving member 5 on which the dots are formed is transported to a fixing unit (not shown), and the toner 1 on the image receiving member 5 is heated and melted and fixed by the fixing unit. After the completion of the fixing step, the image receiving member 5 is discharged out of the image forming apparatus, and a toner image fixed to the image receiving member 5 is finally obtained.
  • the start time of each toner passage control step (control voltage application start time) is set as a reference
  • the start time of the deflection step corresponding to each toner passage control step (the start time of deflection voltage application) ) Is changed depending on the direction of deflection, that is, the start timing of the deflection process is set earlier than the start timing of the reference toner passage control process, and the deflection process is performed while continuously passing through the same toner passage hole 6.
  • the start timing of the deflection process for the dot formed later of the two dots (the start timing of the second left deflection process)
  • T 1 the start timing of the deflection process for the dot formed later of the two dots
  • T 2 the deflection electric field region which is already in a steady state is made longer by making the start time of the deflection process relating to the dot formed earlier (the start timing of the first right deflection process) longer than the above-mentioned advance time (T 2). Since the toner 1 reaches the toner 1, the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is deflected stably, and as a result, a highly accurate image is formed without a change in the deflection distance of the toner 1.
  • the deflection process start timing is adjusted so that the deflection electric field becomes a steady state.
  • the state is not limited to this, and the toner 1 may be brought into a steady state before passing through the toner passage hole 6 and entering the deflection electric field.
  • the deflection electric field is in a steady state until the TX time elapses from the start of the acceleration period Tb.
  • the deflection process start timing may be adjusted so that FIG. 4 shows an example of a timing chart at this time.
  • the steady deflection period after toner 1 reaches the deflection electric field region in the right deflection process performed immediately before the second left deflection process is extended. Since it can be set to a high value, it is possible to suppress the so-called tailing phenomenon in which the landing position of the rear end of the toner group shifts.
  • the image density of dots may be slightly different between the left deflection process and the right deflection process. The reason is explained below.
  • the shift of the deflection voltage during the transition period differs between the left and right deflection steps.
  • the change in the deflection voltage during the acceleration period Tb affects the electric field between the control electrode 7 and the toner carrier 2, and varies the amount of toner detached from the toner carrier 2 in the left and right deflection processes.
  • the image density of the dot formed on the image receiving member 5 in the left and right deflection steps changes.
  • FIG. 5 shows a second example of the voltage application sequence.
  • FIG. 5 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 5 (b) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 5 (c) shows a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10b.
  • TL, TC, TR and Tt in FIG. 5 are the same as in the first example.
  • the voltage output waveforms at the time of voltage switching are shown by two-dot chain lines, and the voltage waveforms actually applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b are shown by solid lines.
  • the waveform shape when switching from the right deflection process to the left deflection process is different from the first example. That is, in the first example, the switching is performed directly from the VL level to the VH level (or vice versa), but in the present example, the switching is performed through the stage of the VM level.
  • the toner carrier 2 rotates, and the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 is transported to a position facing the toner passage hole 6.
  • a counter electrode voltage of +1000 V is applied to the counter electrode 3 in advance by the counter electrode power supply 8.
  • a voltage of ⁇ 100 V is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 remains carried on the toner carrier 2.
  • the voltage of the VM is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b by the deflection electrode power supplies 11a and lib, respectively.
  • a left deflection process is started prior to the toner passage control process. That is, similarly to the first example, the applied voltage level to the deflection electrode 10a is switched from VM to VH, and the applied voltage level to the deflection electrode 10b is switched from VM to VL.
  • Tx 30 Ts including the safety factor.
  • the distance from the toner carrier 2 to the deflection electric field region (the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the opposite electrode 3 side) is set to 120 zm, and the electric field from the toner carrier 2 to the opposite electrode 3 is set.
  • the image receiving member 5 is transferred to a position (print execution position) facing the toner passage hole 6.
  • a pulse voltage Vc is selectively applied to the control electrode 7 by the control electrode power supply 9 in accordance with the image signal, as shown in FIG. 5 (a). Is performed.
  • the toner on the toner carrier 2 is placed between the toner carrier 2 and the control electrode 7.
  • An electric field that attracts 1 toward the control electrode 7 is formed.
  • the toner 1 detached from the toner carrier 2 by this electric field is further attracted by the electric field formed between the toner carrier 1 and the counter electrode 3 and passes through the toner passage hole 6.
  • the toner 1 passing through the toner passage hole 6 enters a deflection electric field region formed by the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • a stable electric field is formed without the deflection electric field intensity changing every moment.
  • the flight trajectory of Tonner 11 is also stably deflected to the left.
  • the process is switched from the left deflection process to the straight traveling process.
  • This timing is set 15 ⁇ s (T 2 -T x) earlier than the start timing of the second toner passage control step, similarly to the above.
  • the deflection electric field strength can be brought to a steady state before the fastest toner particles arrive.
  • a third toner passage control process is started.
  • the start timing of the right deflection process for the toner passage control process is the same as the two deflection processes described above.
  • the process is switched from the right deflection process to the left deflection process.
  • the applied voltage level to the deflection electrode 10a is changed from VL to VH via VM
  • the applied voltage level to the deflection electrode 10b is changed from VH to VM to VL via VM.
  • the period during which the applied voltage level is set to VM is T2. This is because if this period is shorter than T2, the actual applied voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob will not reach VM in the first stage, and from VM to VH in the second stage.
  • the actual applied voltage waveform to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob in the left deflection process differs between the first and second scans, and the right deflection process
  • the steady-state deflection period in the first right deflection process becomes shorter, and as a result, This is because a landing position error (tailing phenomenon) at the rear end of the toner group occurs.
  • the voltage level applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is set to VM for the period T2, and then switched to VH (or VL).
  • the timing at this time is set earlier by T2-TX from the start of the fourth toner passage control process.
  • the fourth toner passage control process is started.
  • the deflection electric field is in a steady state, the toner 1 reaches the deflection electric field region, so that the flight trajectory of the toner 1 flying in the fourth toner passage control process is also stably deflected. It will be.
  • the respective deflection steps corresponding to the fifth and sixth toner passage control steps are started at the same timing as the second and third toner one-pass control steps, respectively.
  • the deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b is switched to VM.
  • the switching timing is set before T2 when the last toner passage control step is completed.
  • a voltage of ⁇ 100 V is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the image receiving member 5 on which the dots have been formed by the landing of the toner 1 after the respective deflection steps is transported to a fixing unit (not shown), and the fixing unit heats and fuses the toner 1 on the image receiving member 5 to fix the toner. .
  • the image receiving member 5 is discharged out of the image forming apparatus, and a toner image fixed to the image receiving member 5 is finally obtained.
  • a corresponding deflecting step is started for each toner passage control step, and a deflection electric field strength (deflection voltage) for deflecting the toner 1 in the deflecting step.
  • a deflection electric field strength deflecting voltage
  • a predetermined value predetermined voltage level
  • the number of steps of the deflection electric field strength to be changed is varied depending on the deflection direction, that is, continuously passes through the same toner passage hole 6.
  • the number of steps of the deflection electric field intensity to be shifted in the deflection step (second left deflection step) for the dot formed later of the two dots is changed to the deflection step for the dot formed earlier.
  • the toner 1 is kept in the deflection electric field region which is already in a steady state. As a result, the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is stably deflected.
  • the deflection distance of the toner 1 does not change, and the landing position accuracy can be improved.
  • the change of the voltage level applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b during the toner passage control process promotion period Tb is equal in both the left and right deflection processes, the voltage is applied to the image receiving member 5 in both the left and right deflection processes.
  • the image density of the formed dots is also equal.
  • the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is shifted in two stages.
  • the present invention is not limited to this, and the number of stages may be further increased and the transition may be performed in multiple stages.
  • changing the deflection voltage in two steps or in multiple steps is not limited to switching from the right deflection step to the left deflection step, and may be performed when switching to another deflection step (however, other deflection steps may be performed).
  • the number of steps at the time of process switching is smaller than that at the time of switching from the right deflection process to the left deflection process).
  • each deflection step corresponding to each toner passage control step is started before the start of each toner passage control step.
  • the period from the start of the left deflection process to the start of the corresponding toner passage control process is long.
  • the steady deflection period in the process is shortened accordingly.
  • the deflection direction is switched before the trailing end of the flying toner group passes through the deflection electric field region, and the toner particles contained in the trailing end of the toner group are shifted to the left from the normal landing position. This causes a so-called tailing phenomenon to occur easily. Therefore, in this third example, in order to eliminate the occurrence of the above-mentioned tailing phenomenon, It adjusts the toner passage control process period corresponding to the right deflection process.
  • FIG. 6 shows a third example of the voltage application sequence.
  • FIG. 6 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 6 (b) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 6 (c) shows a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10b.
  • TL and TC in FIG. 6 are the same as those in the first and second examples, TR and Tt are different. That is, in this example, TR is set longer than TL and TC.
  • the pulse voltage Vc to the control electrode 7 in this example is indicated by a solid line
  • the pulse voltage Vc shown in the first and second examples is indicated by a two-dot chain line.
  • the steady-state deflection period in the right deflection process can be set longer, so that after all the toner groups in flight have passed through the deflection electric field region, the process is switched from the right deflection process to the left deflection process. be able to. As a result, the tailing phenomenon is suppressed.
  • TR is set to be equal to TL + T1-T2.
  • the steady-state deflection period is equal in all the deflection steps of the left deflection, the straight movement, and the right deflection.
  • the present invention is not limited to this, and the TR may be set longer. By doing so, the rightward turning process can be lengthened so that all the toner groups land on the image receiving member 5, and the tailing phenomenon Can be reliably suppressed.
  • the deflection electrode power supplies 1 la and lib which apply deflection voltages to both deflection electrodes 10 a and 1 Ob respectively output three voltage levels of VL, VM and VH.
  • VL -50V
  • VC + 50V
  • VH + 150V.
  • the respective deflection steps are started earlier by the respective transition periods than the toner passage control step.
  • FIGS. 6 (b) and 6 (c) the voltage output waveforms at the time of voltage switching are shown by two-dot chain lines, and the voltage waveforms actually applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b are shown by solid lines.
  • the toner carrier 2 rotates and the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 is conveyed to a position facing the toner passage hole 6, and +1 000 V is opposed to the opposite electrode 3 by the opposite electrode power supply 8.
  • An electrode voltage is applied in advance.
  • a voltage of -100 V is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the voltage of the VM is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b by the deflection electrode power supplies 11a and lib, and thereafter, the VL voltage is applied to the deflection electrode 10a and the deflection electrode 10b Is applied with VH voltage.
  • the voltage level applied to the deflection electrode 10a is switched from VL to VH, and the voltage level applied to the deflection electrode 10b is switched from VH to VL.
  • the timing of starting the application of the deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b and the control to the control electrode 7 are set so that the left deflection process is started earlier by T1. Adjust the voltage application start time. This T1 is the same as that shown in the first example.
  • the image receiving member 5 is transferred to a position (print execution position) facing the toner passage hole 6.
  • a pulse voltage Vc is selectively applied to the control electrode 7 by the control electrode power supply 9 according to the image signal, as shown in FIG. Is performed.
  • an electric field is formed between the toner carrier 1 and the control electrode 7 to attract the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 toward the control electrode 7, and the toner 1 detached from the toner carrier 2 by this electric field Further, it is attracted by the electric field formed between the toner carrier 1 and the counter electrode 3 and passes through the toner passage hole 6.
  • the toner 1 passing through the toner passage hole 6 enters a deflection electric field region formed by the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob.
  • a stable electric field is formed without the deflection electric field intensity changing every moment.
  • the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is also stably deflected to the left.
  • a second toner passage control step is started, and the toner 11 that has passed through the toner passage hole 6 eventually reaches the deflection electric field region.
  • a stable deflecting electric field is formed, so that the flying trajectory of the toner 1 also goes straight and stably.
  • a third toner passage control process is started.
  • the voltage levels applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b are switched to VH and VL, respectively.
  • the timing of this switching is set before T1 when the last toner passage control step is completed.
  • the voltage level applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b is switched to VM.
  • a voltage of ⁇ 100 V is applied to the control electrode 7. That Thereafter, all the voltage applications by the control electrode power supply 9 and the deflection electrode power supplies 10a and 10b are stopped.
  • the image receiving member 5 on which a dot has been formed by the landing of the toner 1 that has undergone each of the above deflection steps is transported to a fixing unit (not shown), and the fixing unit heats and fuses the toner 1 on the image receiving member 5 to fix the toner. I do.
  • the image receiving member 5 is discharged out of the image forming apparatus, and a toner image fixed to the image receiving member 5 is finally obtained.
  • the start time of the deflection process is set earlier than the start time of the reference toner passage control process, and the same toner passage hole 6 is continuously formed.
  • the distance between two dots formed by the toner 1 that passes through and is deflected in different directions by the deflection process and lands on the image receiving member 5 becomes longer, the dot formed later of the two dots
  • the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is stably deflected, and as a result, the deflection distance of the toner does not change.
  • the period of the toner passage control process (control voltage application time) for the dots formed earlier becomes longer.
  • the TR period is adjusted so that the steady-state deflection period in the toner one-pass control process corresponding to all the deflection processes is equal, so it is easy to occur when switching from the right deflection process to the left deflection process. The tailing phenomenon can be suppressed.
  • the deflection process start timing is adjusted so that the deflection electric field is in a steady state.
  • the present invention is not limited to this, and a steady state may be used before the toner 1 passes through the toner passage hole 6 and enters the deflection electric field.
  • Embodiment 1 described above there are three types of deflection directions, but deflection may be performed in three or more types of directions.
  • the deflection process described in the first embodiment controls the flight trajectory of the toner 1 so that a plurality of dots are formed in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction A of the image receiving member 5. For example, in order to improve the resolution in the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 5, a plurality of dots formed by one entire deflection process are formed along the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 5. Thus, the flight trajectory of the toner 1 may be controlled.
  • the deflection method described in the first embodiment is a method of deflecting the flight trajectory of the toner 1 using an electric field, but using a magnetic toner containing magnetic powder, a deflection magnetic field is used instead of the deflection electric field. May be provided to control the deflection of the flight trajectory of the toner 1 by a magnetic force, or another force may be used.
  • the value of the impedance component of the insulating member 12 constituting the toner passage control member 4 may change due to moisture absorption or deterioration of the material.
  • a humidity sensor may be provided in the image forming apparatus, and the start timing of each deflection process may be controlled according to a signal transmitted from the humidity sensor.
  • a means for directly detecting the impedance component of the insulating member 12 may be provided, and the start time of each deflection step may be adjusted according to the detection result of this detecting means.
  • FIGS. 8 to 11 show Embodiment 2 of the present invention, in which the deflection process start timing is set to be the same as the toner passage control process start timing (the deflection process is synchronized with the toner passage control process).
  • the deflection process is synchronized with the toner passage control process.
  • FIG. 8 shows a voltage application sequence in the second embodiment
  • FIG. 8 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 8 (b) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a
  • FIG. 8 (c) shows a time chart of the voltage application to the deflection electrode 1 Ob (note that in the following embodiments 2 to 4, the transient period at the time of deflection voltage switching is not considered). .
  • the period TR of the toner passage control process corresponding to the right deflection process is set longer than the periods TL and TC of the other toner passage control processes.
  • the promotion period Tb is variable from 0 ⁇ s to 80 ⁇ s as in the first embodiment.
  • the suppression voltage Vw is set to 100 V
  • the pulse voltage Vc is set to 300 V.
  • the suppression period of the toner passage control process corresponding to the right deflection process is set to be longer than the suppression period of the other toner passage control processes (the toner corresponding to the right deflection process).
  • the acceleration period Tb is the same between the passage control step and another toner passage control step).
  • the toner carrier 2 rotates and the toner 1 is transported to a position facing the toner passage hole 6. Further, a counter electrode voltage (+1000 V) is applied to the counter electrode 3 in advance by a counter electrode power supply 8. At this time, a voltage of 100 V is applied to the control electrode 7. Subsequently, the image receiving member 5 is transferred to a position (printing position) facing the toner passage hole 6. When the image receiving member 5 is transferred to the print execution position, as shown in FIG. 8A, a pulse voltage Vc is selectively applied to the control electrode 7 by the control electrode power supply 9 in accordance with the image signal. Is done.
  • the deflection voltages VH and VL are applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob by the deflection electrode power supplies 11a and 1lb, respectively.
  • the trajectory of the toner 1 that has passed through the toner passage hole 6 is deflected to the left, and the deflected toner 1 is electrostatically attracted to the counter electrode 3 and lands on the image receiving member 5 being transferred. To form dots.
  • the deflection operation of the flight trajectory of the toner 1 will be described in detail.
  • the toner 1 is detached from the toner carrier 2 by applying the pulse voltage Vc to the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 thus collected passes through the toner passage hole 6 in a group of columns.
  • the deflection voltage VH is applied to the deflection electrode 10a
  • the deflection voltage VL is applied to the deflection electrode 10b.
  • the toner 1 after passing through the toner passage hole 6 receives the electrostatic force FLa attracted to the deflection electrode 10a side and the electrostatic force FLb repelled to the deflection electrode 1 Ob.
  • the toner 1 receives the electrostatic force FB attracted to the counter electrode 3 by the counter electrode voltage applied to the counter electrode 3. Due to the resultant force of these electrostatic forces FLa, FLb, and FB, the trajectory of the toner 1 is deflected, and the toner 1 flies to the left.
  • the process proceeds to a toner passage control process corresponding to the straight traveling process. That is, the voltage level applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b is switched to VM. At this time, the rear end of the toner group flying in the previous toner passage control step has not landed on the image receiving member 5 yet. On the other hand, due to the switching of the deflection voltage, an electrostatic force FCa attracted to the deflection electrode 10a and an electrostatic force FCb attracted to the deflection electrode 10b are formed at the rear end of the flying toner group. To use. Further, since the common electrode voltage similar to that in the previous step is continuously applied to the common electrode 3, the toner 1 receives the electrostatic force FB attracted to the common electrode 3.
  • the resultant force of the electrostatic forces FCa, FCb, and FB acts on the rear end of the group of untoned toners in the process.
  • the amount of change in the electrostatic forces FCa and FCb with respect to the previous process (the amount of change in the deflection voltage) is not so large, the trailing end of the toner group that has not landed has little effect on the electrostatic forces FCa and FCb. Without being received, the light is deflected to the left and landed on the image receiving member 5.
  • the pulse voltage Vc is again applied to the control electrode 7, whereby the toner 1 is detached from the toner carrier 2 again, forms the next toner group, and passes through the toner passage hole 6.
  • the toner 1 travels straight toward the image receiving member 5 and lands on the image receiving member 5.
  • the process proceeds to a toner passage control process corresponding to the right deflection process. That is, the voltage level applied to the deflection electrode 10a is switched to VL, and the voltage level applied to the deflection electrode 10b is switched to VH.
  • the rear end of the toner group detached from the toner carrier 2 in the previous toner passage control step has not landed on the image receiving member 5 yet. Therefore, the rear end of the toner group receives the electrostatic force FRb attracted to the deflection electrode 1 Ob side and the electrostatic force FRa repelling the deflection electrode 10a. Further, since the opposite electrode voltage similar to that in the previous step is continuously applied to the opposite electrode 3, the toner 1 receives the electrostatic force FB attracted to the opposite electrode 3.
  • the resultant force of the electrostatic forces FRa, FRb, and FB acts on the rear end of the unlanded toner group.
  • the amount of change in the electrostatic force FRa, FRb with respect to the previous step is not so large, the rear end of the toner group that has not landed is hardly affected by the electrostatic force FRa, FRb, and Go straight and land on the image receiving member 5.
  • the pulse voltage Vc is again applied to the control electrode 7, whereby the toner 1 is detached from the toner carrier 2 again, forms the next toner group, and passes through the toner passage hole 6.
  • the process shifts again to the toner passage control process corresponding to the left deflection process, and the deflection electrode 10 a
  • the deflection voltage VH is applied to the deflection electrode 1 Ob
  • the deflection voltage VL is applied to the deflection electrode 1 Ob.
  • the rear end of the toner group whose flight trajectory is deflected in the previous toner passage control step is the toner passage.
  • the toner group is located between the control member 4 and the counter electrode 3 and does not reach the image receiving member 5
  • the rear end of this toner group is applied to the electrostatic force F La attracted to the deflection electrode 10a and the deflection electrode 1 Ob. And receives the repulsive electrostatic force F Lb.
  • the amount of change in the electrostatic forces F La and FLb with respect to the previous process is considerably large.
  • the electrostatic repulsion force FLb greatly acts on the rear end of the toner group, and as a result, the flight trajectory of the rear end of the toner group Is deflected to the left side instead of the original right side and lands on the image receiving member 5, and a tailing phenomenon occurs.
  • the process period is extended so that all the toner 1 lands on the image receiving member 5 in the previous toner passage control process, the occurrence of the tailing phenomenon is prevented.
  • the Rukoto since the process period is extended so that all the toner 1 lands on the image receiving member 5 in the previous toner passage control process, the occurrence of the tailing phenomenon is prevented. The Rukoto.
  • FIGS. 9 (a) to 9 (c) show the voltage application sequence in the second embodiment
  • FIGS. 9 (d) to 9 (f) show the voltage application sequence of the conventional example.
  • FIGS. 9 (b) and (e) are time charts of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a
  • FIGS. 9 (c) and (f) are deflection time charts.
  • the time chart of voltage application to pole 10b is shown below.
  • Ttl and Tt2 indicate the time required for forming one horizontal line (the entire deflection process period).
  • the former is that of the second embodiment, and the latter is that of the conventional example. It shows.
  • TL1, TC1, and TR1 are control voltage application times required for forming one dot by the left deflection process, the straight travel process, and the right deflection process in the second embodiment (toner passing control process period).
  • TL2, 02 and ⁇ 12 indicate the control voltage application time required to form each dot by the left deflection process, straight travel process and right deflection process in the conventional example.
  • TR2 indicates a limit time at which the tailing phenomenon does not occur. C That is, if the control voltage application time corresponding to the right deflection process is shorter than TR2, the tailing phenomenon occurs.
  • the trailing phenomenon of the toner 1 hardly occurs in the dots formed through the left deflection process and the straight traveling process. Therefore, the left deflection process and the straight
  • the control voltage application time TL 1, TCI corresponding to each process can be shortened compared to the conventional example.
  • the values of TL1 and TC1 are set to half of TL2 and TC2 respectively.
  • TR1 is set equal to the period TR2 of the conventional example.
  • the time Tt1 required to form one horizontal line can be shortened to 2/3 of Tt2 according to the conventional example.
  • the values of TL 1 and TC 1 are set to half of TL 2 and TC 2 respectively, but may be further reduced as long as the tailing phenomenon does not occur.
  • the allowable range of the pulse voltage width applied to the control electrode 7 is also shortened at the same time, the gradation of the dots formed on the image receiving member 5 may be inferior.
  • TR 1 is preferably set to be a natural number multiple of TL 1 and TC 1 (the shortest developer passage control step period). This is because a pulse voltage is generated periodically in the period of the shortest developer passage control process period, and the pulse voltage is not applied to the control electrode 7 as shown by a broken line in FIG. 9 (a). It is only necessary not to apply the pulse voltage at the timing, and as a result, there is an advantage that the configuration of the pulse voltage generation circuit is simplified.
  • FIG. 10 shows the case where the control voltage application time for the dot formed last is set to be long and the control voltage application time for the dot formed first is set long in one of the deflection steps.
  • Fig. 10 (a) and (b) show the voltage applied to the control electrode 7 when the control voltage application time for the last dot was set longer.
  • the application time chart and the dot formation position are shown in Figs. 10 (c) and 10 (d).
  • the voltage application time to the control electrode 7 when the control voltage application time for the initially formed dots is set long is shown.
  • the chart and the dot formation position are shown.
  • the toner 1 starts to fly from the toner carrier 2 due to the pulse voltage, and after the process of deflecting the flight trajectory of the toner 1 to the left by the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, the dot is moved to the position of L1. It is formed. Subsequently, the toner 1 starts flying by the pulse voltage during the next control voltage application time TC, and the flight trajectory of the toner 1 goes straight through the application of the deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob. Later, a dot is formed at the position of C2.
  • the dot formed at the position L1 is transferred together with the image receiving member 7 in the transfer direction A at a constant speed, and moves to the position L2. Therefore, the position of C2 is immediately beside the position of L2 in the direction perpendicular to the transport direction A of the image receiving member ⁇ .
  • the toner 1 starts flying by the pulse voltage during the last control voltage application time TR, and the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is deflected rightward by the application of the deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob. After the process, a dot is formed at the position of R3.
  • each dot formed at the position of L2 and C2 is transferred together with the image receiving member 7 in the transfer direction A, and L3 and D3 are respectively formed. It has moved to the position of C3.
  • the next horizontal deflection step causes the horizontal line to deviate from the horizontal direction in the direction opposite to the transport direction A of the image receiving member 7 (the transport distance corresponding to TR).
  • a second horizontal line is formed.
  • the toner 1 passes through the same toner passage hole 6 and is deflected in different directions by the application of a deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, and is formed by the toner 1 landed on the image receiving member 5.
  • These three dots can be arranged substantially in a line in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 7, and a smooth horizontal line is formed.
  • the deflection directions are three types. However, the deflection directions may be three or more.
  • the toner 1 passes through the same toner passage hole 6 and is deflected in different directions by the application of a deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, and is arranged substantially in a line by the toner 1 that has landed on the image receiving member 5.
  • dots of n which is formed to (n is an integer of 3 or more), in order that it DD 2 from one end of said column, ..., when the D n, as in embodiment 2, the dot D l 5 D 2 ,..., D n are sequentially changed in order to form the deflection voltage on the image receiving member 5 in this order, and the control voltage application time for the dot D n is changed to another dot.
  • the control voltage application time may be longer than the control voltage application time. By doing so, it is possible to lengthen only the period of the developer passage control step for the dot Dn and make the period of the developer passage control step for the other dots substantially the same, and the total time of all the deflection steps Can be considerably shortened.
  • the control voltage application times for the other dots may be different from each other, but are desirably equal from the viewpoint of forming a smooth horizontal line as described above.
  • the toner 1 flies so that the dots formed by the deflection process within the entire deflection process cycle form a plurality of dots in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 5.
  • the trajectory is controlled, but the present invention is not limited to this.For example, in order to improve the resolution in the transfer direction A of the image receiving member 5, the dot formed by one full deflection process
  • the flight trajectory of the toner 1 may be controlled so that a plurality of the trajectories are formed along the transfer direction A.
  • the flight trajectory of the toner 1 is deflected by forming a deflection electric field by applying a deflection voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob.
  • the present invention is not limited to this.
  • a deflection magnetic pole may be provided so as to form a deflection magnetic field instead of a deflection electric field, and the deflection of the flight trajectory of the toner 1 may be controlled by a magnetic force. You may.
  • the deflection voltage level is changed from VL to VH for the deflection electrode 10a and from VH to VL for the deflection electrode 10b.
  • the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob is temporarily changed to VM at substantially the center of the toner passage control process corresponding to the right deflection process, as shown in FIG.
  • the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrode 10a may be changed from VM to VH
  • the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrode 1 Ob may be changed from VM to VL.
  • the amount of change in the deflection voltage at substantially the center of the toner passage control process corresponding to the right deflection process is changed when the process shifts from the left deflection process to the straight process, or shifts from the straight process to the right deflection process. Since the timing for changing the deflection voltage (the time from the start of the application of the pulse voltage Vc) is almost the same as that at the time, the tailing phenomenon hardly occurs. In addition, the deflection voltage that changes in this manner can be easily output from the AC voltage transmission circuit, so that an inexpensive and highly reliable circuit can be obtained.
  • the flying voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 (during the promotion period Tb). It changes in the same polarity direction (negative direction: decreasing direction) (changes from Vb to Vg) in the range of the polarity (positive) opposite to the charging polarity of the toner, and the flying voltage after changing this flying voltage
  • the time (Tg) until the application of the voltage is completed is changed according to the image density (the time Tr during which the voltage Vb is applied before changing the flying voltage is not changed according to the image density). It was made.
  • FIG. 12 shows a first example of a voltage application sequence according to the third embodiment.
  • FIG. 12 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7, and
  • FIG. 12 (b) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 12 (c) shows a short circuit chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 1 Ob.
  • the control electrode power supply 9 first applies a voltage Vb (having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner 1 electrode, for example, +300 V) to the control electrode 7. Also, a deflection voltage VH (for example, +150 V) is applied to the deflection electrode 10 a by the deflection electrode power supply 11 a, and a deflection voltage VL (for example, ⁇ 50 V) is applied to the deflection electrode 1 Ob by the deflection electrode power supply 11 b. . Then, by the electric field formed by the control electrode 7, the toner was transported by the toner carrier 2. The toner 1 separates from the toner carrier 2 and flies in the direction of the one-toner passage control member 4.
  • Vb having a polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner 1 electrode, for example, +300 V
  • VH for example, +150 V
  • VL for example, ⁇ 50 V
  • a common electrode voltage of a constant value Vde is applied to the common electrode 3 by the common electrode power supply 8, and in the third embodiment, the common electrode voltage Vde is referred to as a reference common electrode voltage. Then, after a Tr time (for example, 20 / sec) has elapsed from the start of the application of the voltage Vb to the control electrode 7, a voltage Vg lower than the voltage Vb (a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner 1: for example, +100 V) is applied to the control electrode 7 for Tg.
  • Tr time for example, 20 / sec
  • Tb time (for example, 40 ⁇ sec or less)
  • suppression voltage Vw (for example, -50 V) is applied for Tw time (for example, 160 ⁇ sec) .
  • the toner 1 separates from the toner carrier 2 when the voltage Vb is applied, and a part of the toner 1 enters the toner passage hole 6 when the voltage Vg is applied. Then, by applying the suppression voltage Vw after a lapse of Tg from the start of application of the voltage Vg, the toner 1 that has separated from the toner carrier 2 and has not entered the toner passage hole 4 returns to the toner carrier 2. As a result, the passage of the toner 1 through the toner passage hole 6 is suppressed. Also, by changing the Tg time, the amount of the toner 1 passing through the toner passage hole 6 is controlled to perform gradation control.
  • the voltages Vb and Vg are the flying voltages that cause the toner 1 to fly from the toner carrier 2 and pass through the toner passage hole 6, and this flying voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • FIG. 13 shows the electric field vector near the control electrode 7, but as shown in FIG. 13 (a), when the flying voltage is as high as about 300 V, the toner 1 On the other hand, while a strong force is applied to move toward the inner wall surface away from the center of the toner passage hole 6, as shown in FIG.
  • toner 1 when the flying voltage is as low as about 100 V, toner 1 is Since the force for directing toward the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is weakened, the toner 1 flies along the central axis of the toner passage hole 6 by lowering the flying voltage during application of the voltage to the control electrode 7. The amount of the toner 1 that collides with or adheres to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 decreases.
  • the toner 1 passing through the toner passage hole 6 is deflected to the left by the application of the deflection voltages VH and VL to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, and on the image receiving member 5 from the center axis of the toner passage hole 6 to the left.
  • a dot (left dot) is formed at the shifted position.
  • a dot (center dot) is formed on the central axis of the toner passage hole 6 of the image receiving member 5.
  • the control electrode power supply 9 applies the voltage Vb to the control electrode 7 for Tr time, then applies the voltage Vg for Tg time, and then applies the suppression voltage Vw, while using the deflection electrode power supply l la, 1 lb.
  • the same deflection voltage VC is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • the toner 1 that has entered the toner passage hole 6 flies straight without being deflected, and a dot is formed on the central axis portion of the toner passage hole 6 of the image receiving member 5.
  • the application time T of the voltage Vg when forming the center dot is set longer than when forming the left and right dots.
  • the dot (Right dot) is formed.
  • the deflection voltages VL, VH, VC are referred to as reference deflection voltages in the third embodiment.
  • the amount of change in the potential difference from 1 Ob is smaller than when the flying voltage is constant at Vb. That is, FIG. 14 shows a change in the electric field vector in the toner passage hole 6 (see the arrow in the toner passage hole 6). An electric field component that causes 1 to move toward the counter electrode 3 hardly occurs.
  • the suppression voltage Vw is applied, the electric field component that causes the toner 1 to move toward the counter electrode 3 becomes considerably large.
  • the flying voltage is kept constant at Vb and the voltage Vb is switched to the suppression voltage Vw, the electric potential difference between the control electrode 7 and the deflecting electrodes 10a and 1 Ob is large. If the flying voltage application time Tb is changed in order to obtain the dot density gradation, the landing position of the toner 1 changes due to the time change, and the landing position shift occurs.
  • an electric field component that causes the toner 1 to move toward the counter electrode 3 is generated by lowering the flying voltage. Therefore, when the reduced flying voltage is switched to the suppression voltage Vw, the toner passage hole In Fig. 6, the amount of change in the electric field component that directs toner 1 from toner carrier 2 to counter electrode 3 in the direction of counter electrode 3 becomes smaller.
  • the dot displacement due to the change is reduced. Also, by lowering the flying voltage, an electric field component that causes the toner 1 to move in the direction of the counter electrode 3 is generated, so that the collision of the toner 1 with the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 can be suppressed, and the toner 1 The clogging of the toner passage hole 6 can be prevented.
  • the flying voltage is changed in two steps.
  • the flying voltage may be changed in three or more steps or continuously.
  • FIG. 15 shows a second example of the voltage application sequence in the third embodiment.
  • FIG. 15 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7, and
  • FIG. 15 (b) is a time chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 15 (c) shows a short circuit chart of voltage application to the deflection electrode 1 Ob.
  • the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is changed. That is, the deflection is performed until the set time T dp (the same time as the flight voltage application time Tb when forming the center dot) elapses from the start of the flight voltage application.
  • T dp the same time as the flight voltage application time Tb when forming the center dot
  • Vdp the charge of the toner 1 is higher than the reference deflection voltage.
  • a voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b such that the potential difference between the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b and the control electrode 7 is smaller than when the reference deflection voltage is applied.
  • the reference deflection voltage is applied.
  • the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 is discharged. Since the electric field to be transmitted becomes stronger, the effect on the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 by switching from the reduced voltage Vg to the suppression voltage Vw is relatively weakened, and the voltage Vg is used to obtain the dot density gradation. Even if the application time Tg is changed, the amount of dot displacement can be further reduced.
  • the control voltages Vb, Vg, Vw applied to the control electrode 7, the flight voltage application time Tb (Tr, Tg), the reference deflection voltages VL, VH, VC, the amount Vdp higher than the reference deflection voltage, and the amount Vdp were increased.
  • the uniformity of dot density and dot position can be adjusted by the voltage application time T dp.
  • the time Tdp during which a voltage higher than the reference deflection voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob is made to coincide with the flight voltage application time Tb when forming the central dot.
  • an appropriate value may be set according to the dot density and the uniformity of the dot position.
  • the deflection voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob is changed in a pulse shape, but is not limited to this, and may be changed continuously.
  • FIG. 16 shows a third example of the voltage application sequence according to the third embodiment.
  • FIG. 16 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7, and
  • FIG. 16 (b) is a voltage application time to the counter electrode 3. Time charts are shown.
  • the counter electrode voltage applied to the counter electrode 3 is changed. It is.
  • the counter electrode voltage is changed from the first example described above to the reference time (the same time as the flight voltage application time Tb when forming the center dot) from the start of the flight voltage application.
  • the voltage is set to a voltage higher than the reference counter electrode voltage V be in the second example (a voltage on the polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner 1 than the reference counter electrode voltage V be). Set to be. This allows the toner 1 to pass through the toner passage hole 6 in the same manner as when the voltage higher than the reference deflection voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 1 Oa and 1 Ob in the second example.
  • the electric field is strengthened, and the same operation and effect as in the second example are obtained.
  • the counter electrode voltage is changed in a pulse shape.
  • the counter electrode voltage may be changed in synchronization with the application of the control voltage (flying voltage) to the control electrode 7, and may be changed continuously. Is also good.
  • the control voltage flying voltage
  • the present invention can be applied to the case where a toner group including a plurality of toner particles is converged. In this case, instead of providing a pair of deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, a focusing electrode 19 (see FIG. 21) similar to that of Embodiment 4 described later is provided.
  • the toner group that has passed through the toner passage hole 6 may be converged.
  • the dot diameter can be reduced, the amount of toner 1 adhering to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 can be reduced, and the dot density gradation can be improved.
  • the focusing electrode 19 has a higher voltage than the reference focusing voltage during the period from the start of the application of the flying voltage to the elapse of the set time. If a voltage on the opposite polarity side to the charging polarity of the toner 11 is applied, the same operation and effect as in the second example can be obtained.
  • FIG. 17 to FIG. 24 show Embodiment 4 of the present invention. While the image receiving member 5 is located, the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 is controlled to pass through the toner passing hole 6 to form a toner image on the image receiving member 5. During the process, the deflection electrodes provided around the toner passage holes 6 on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the counter electrode 3 side A predetermined voltage is applied to the poles 10a and 10b.
  • FIG. 17 shows a first example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 17 (a) is a time chart of the voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 17 (b) is the voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 17 (c) shows a time chart for applying a voltage to the deflection electrode 10b
  • FIG. 17 (d) shows a time chart for applying a voltage to the counter electrode 3.
  • the voltage application sequence shown in FIG. 17 is for the case where an image is continuously printed on two sheets of recording paper as the image receiving member 5, and from the start of the image forming operation to the end thereof, the image forming pre-process is performed.
  • the image forming step (1), the pause step, the image forming step (2), and the post-image forming step are roughly divided into five steps (the same applies to the following second to sixth examples). These five steps are described in order.
  • the pre-image forming step, the pause step, and the post-image forming step correspond to the non-image forming step.
  • the pre-image forming process is started.
  • a negative voltage (a voltage having the same polarity as the charging polarity of the toner 1) is applied to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob.
  • the same voltage (-50 V) as the deflection voltage VL in the image forming process is applied.
  • electrostatic repulsion acts on the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob on the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6, and the toner 1 is separated from the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the same voltage ( ⁇ 50 V) as the suppression voltage Vw in the image forming process is applied.
  • an electrostatic repulsion acts on the control electrode 7 on the toner 1 carried on the toner carrier 2. This causes the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 to fly toward the control electrode 7.
  • the toner remains on the toner carrier 2 without jumping.
  • the control electrode 7 and the deflecting electrodes 10a and 10b have the same potential, an electric field in which the toner 1 moves is not formed between the two electrodes. Therefore, the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 remains stopped on the inner wall surface.
  • control electrode 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b are set to the same potential as described above, but it is preferable to apply a voltage lower than the control electrode 7 to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob. Good.
  • a voltage lower than the control electrode 7 For example, if ⁇ 100 V is applied to the deflection electrodes 10 a and 1 Ob and 150 V is applied to the control electrode 7, the toner 1 adhering to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is applied to the deflection electrodes 10 a and 1 Ob from the deflection electrodes 10 a and 1 Ob.
  • the electrostatic force moving to the control electrode 7 acts to suppress the movement of the toner 1 from the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 to the counter electrode 3 side, and a lower voltage can be applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 can be returned to the toner carrier 2.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3.
  • the reason is described below. That is, since the common electrode voltage Vbe applied to the common electrode 3 is considerably larger than the voltage applied to the control electrode 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, the power capacity of the common electrode power supply 8 is also different from the other power supplies 9 and Larger than 1 la, 1 lb. Therefore, even if the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe by the common electrode power supply 8 is started, it takes time to increase the voltage to the Vbe voltage level.
  • the counter electrode 3 is turned on before the image forming step (1) is started so that the voltage of the counter electrode 3 is increased to the counter electrode voltage Vbe at the time the image forming step (1) is started.
  • the pole voltage Vbe is applied.
  • the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe is preferably performed after a negative voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. In this case, an electric field for suppressing the toner 1 from passing through the toner passage hole 6 is formed in advance by the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. The toner 1 detached from the inner wall does not fly to the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the pre-image forming process period is set to 10 seconds, and a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 second after the pre-image forming process is started, and a counter electrode voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3 3 seconds later.
  • the transfer of the image receiving member 5 is started in the pre-image forming step.
  • the image forming step (1) is started.
  • the image receiving member 5 is located at a position facing the toner passage hole 6 in contact with the counter electrode 3.
  • a control voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 according to an image signal supplied from the outside. Further, the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is continued.
  • a pause step is performed until the next image forming step (2) is started.
  • the control electrode is used. 50V is applied to each of 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a, 1 Ob. Further, the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is continued. Applying a voltage of 50 V to the control electrode 7 causes the toner 1 to separate from the toner carrier 2 and fly toward the control electrode 7 There is no.
  • the electric field that causes toner 1 to fly from control electrode 7 to counter electrode 3 in toner passage hole 6 is weakened by deflection electrodes 10a and 10b to which the same voltage as control electrode 7 is applied.
  • the toner 1 adhered to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 in 1) cannot fly to the counter electrode 3 side, but stays in the toner passage hole 6 as it is.
  • the pause step period is set to 0.5 seconds. Then, during the pause step, the first image receiving member 5 is transferred to the fixing unit, while the second image receiving member 5 is transferred.
  • the next image forming step (2) is started.
  • the second image receiving member 5 is located at a position facing the toner passage hole 6 in a state of being in contact with the counter electrode 3.
  • the toner 1 flies from the toner carrier 2 toward the counter electrode 3, and a toner image is formed on the second image receiving member 5.
  • a post-image forming step is started.
  • the post-image formation process period is set to 10 seconds, and voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3 0.5 seconds before the completion of the image formation process, and to the control electrode 7 0.1 seconds before the completion. Stop the voltage application.
  • the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is separated from the inner wall surface.
  • the landing position accuracy of toner 1 is The image quality can be improved without being degraded by the image quality.
  • the toner 1 detached from the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 does not fly to the counter electrode 3 side, so that the back contamination of the image receiving member 5 due to the adhesion of the toner 1 on the counter electrode 3 is prevented.
  • a second example of the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
  • the sequence in which a voltage having the same polarity as the charging polarity of the toner 1 is applied to the deflection electrodes 10 a and 1 Ob during the pre-image forming process, the pause process, and the post-image forming process has been described.
  • a voltage having a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner 1 is also applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob.
  • FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a second example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • the counter electrode 3 is formed in a roller shape and is rotatable by a driving motor (not shown) in the direction of the arrow in the figure.
  • the counter electrode 3 may have a drum shape, a belt shape, or the like in addition to the above-described roller shape.
  • a toner image is formed on the counter electrode 3, and at a position distant from the position facing the toner passage control member 4, the toner image is transferred onto the image receiving member 6 that has been transferred so as to contact the counter electrode 3.
  • a configuration in which a toner image is transferred may be adopted.
  • a container 22 is provided.
  • a scraper member or a brush member made of a metal plate may be used.
  • the toner 1 collected in the toner container 22 may be supplied again to the toner carrier 2 to recycle the toner 1.
  • FIG. 18 shows a second example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 18 (a) is a time chart of the voltage application to the control electrode 7, and
  • FIG. 18 (b) is the voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • FIG. 18 (c) shows a time chart for applying a voltage to the deflection electrode 1 Ob, and
  • FIG. 18 (d) shows a time chart for applying a voltage to the counter electrode 3.
  • the pre-image formation step is divided into a movement suppression step of suppressing movement of the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 to the counter electrode 3 side and a movement promotion step of promoting movement to the counter electrode 3 side. Each of these steps is performed in the order of a first movement suppression step, a movement promotion step, and a second movement suppression step in the pre-image formation step.
  • a negative voltage is applied to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • driving of the drive motor for rotating the counter electrode 3 is also started. It is not necessary to start the driving of the driving mode at the same time as the start of the first movement suppression step, and it is started before the next movement promotion step is started and a stable rotation speed is obtained by the movement promotion step. What should I do?
  • control electrode 7 a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • Vw —50 V is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the control electrode 7 and the deflecting electrodes 10a and 1Ob have the same potential.
  • the deflecting electrodes 10a and 10b are connected to the control electrodes. It is preferable to apply a voltage lower than 7.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3.
  • the common electrode voltage Vbe is applied. This application of the common electrode voltage Vbe is preferably performed before the start of the next movement promotion step.
  • a voltage for attracting the toner 1 is applied to the counter electrode 3 in advance, it is assumed that positive voltages are applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b in the movement promoting step. At this time, the developer adhering to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is accelerated toward the counter electrode, and the effect of promoting the movement of the toner 1 can be enhanced.
  • the movement promotion step is started.
  • a positive voltage is applied to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob.
  • the same voltage (+120 V) as the deflection voltage VH in the image forming process is applied.
  • the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 moves toward the counter electrode 3 due to electrostatic attraction toward the counter electrode 3.
  • the amount of the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 decreases.
  • the same pulse voltage as in the image forming step is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 flies toward the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 flying from the toner carrier 2 passes through the toner passage hole 6 at a predetermined flying speed, and collides with the low-charged toner 1 remaining in the toner passage hole 6.
  • the toner 1 having the opposite polarity is adsorbed.
  • the remaining toner 1 is discharged from the toner passage hole 6 together with the toner 1 flying from the toner carrier 2 and moves to the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the toner 1 remaining in the toner passage hole 6 is removed before the image forming process, so that white streaks on a printed image due to clogging of the toner passage hole 6 are prevented immediately after the start of image formation.
  • the landing position accuracy of the toner 1 can be maintained in a good condition, and the image quality can be improved.
  • the movement promotion step it is desirable to apply a positive voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b first, and then apply a pulse voltage to the control electrode 7.
  • a positive voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob in advance
  • the voltage level of the deflection voltage is increased to the maximum level when a pulse voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the passage of the toner 1 through the toner passage hole 6 is accelerated.
  • a second movement suppression step is started.
  • the same voltage as in the first movement suppression step is applied to the control electrode 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a, 10Ob until the image forming step (1) is started. Is applied to
  • the pre-image formation process is completed.
  • the pre-image forming process period was set to 10 seconds, and a negative voltage was applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 second later, and a counter electrode voltage was applied to the counter electrode 9.3 seconds later.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b 0.2 seconds after the start of the application of the counter electrode voltage, and a pulse voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 seconds later. Further, after applying this pulse voltage for 0.1 second, the polarity of the voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b is switched 0.1 second later.
  • the image receiving member is transferred to the counter electrode 3 on which the toner 1 moved in the movement promoting step is deposited. 5 comes into contact, the tip of the image receiving member 5 is contaminated with the accumulated toner 1, and even when an intermediate transfer member is used as the counter electrode 3, the end of the image receiving member 5 remains in the printing area on the intermediate transfer member. This is because the toner 1 that has moved in the movement promoting step enters.
  • the image forming step (1) similar to the first example is started.
  • a pause step is performed until the image forming step (2) starts.
  • This pause step is also divided into a movement promotion step and a movement suppression step similar to the pre-image formation step, and each of these steps is performed in the pause step in the order of the movement promotion step and the movement suppression step (the movement promotion step). There is no previous movement suppression step).
  • the actions performed by the movement promoting step and the movement suppressing step, the applied voltage level, and the like are the same as those in the above-described pre-image forming step.
  • the toner 1 is removed during the pause step, so immediately after the start of image formation on the second image receiving member 5 White streaks on the printed image due to clogging of the through hole 6 are prevented. At the same time, the landing position accuracy of the toner 1 can be maintained favorably.
  • the pause step period is set to 0.5 seconds, and the application of the pulse voltage to the control electrode 7 is started 0.1 seconds after the start of the pause step. 0.1 seconds after the application of this pulse voltage, the polarity of the voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is switched.
  • an image forming step (2) similar to the first example is started.
  • the post-image forming step is started.
  • This post-image formation step is divided into a movement promotion step and a movement suppression step, similarly to the above-mentioned pause step, and each of these steps is performed in the post-image formation step in the order of the movement promotion step and the movement suppression step.
  • a voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 and the deflecting electrodes 10a and 10b in accordance with the same voltage level and voltage application procedure as in the above-described pause step.
  • the effect of the movement promotion step at this time is the same as that of the above-mentioned pause step.
  • the movement suppression step is started. Also in this movement suppression step, the same voltage as in the above-mentioned pause step is applied to the control electrode 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. Then, after a lapse of a predetermined time, application of the counter electrode voltage V be to the counter electrode 3 is stopped, next, application of the negative voltage to the control electrode 7 is stopped, and finally, the deflection electrodes 10a, 10 O The application of the negative voltage to b is stopped, and the driving of the driving mode is stopped.
  • the toner 1 deposited near the control electrode 7 and the toner 1 adhering to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 are removed.
  • the post-image formation process is completed without moving to the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the post-image forming process period is set to 10 seconds, and a pulse voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 for 0.1 second 0.2 seconds after the start of the post-image forming process. Then, after 0.1 seconds, the polarity of the voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is switched, and after 0.3 seconds, the application of the counter electrode voltage to the counter electrode 3 is stopped. 0.1 seconds before the control Stop applying negative voltage to pole 7.
  • the image quality can be improved, and even when the toner 1 on the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is moved to the counter electrode 3, the counter electrode 3 is moved. Since the toner 1 adhered to the surface of the counter electrode 3 is removed by rotating the rubber blade 21 and rotating the rubber blade 21, it is possible to prevent the image receiving member 5 from being stained on the back.
  • FIG. 19 shows a third example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 19 (a) is a time chart of the voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 19 (b) is the voltage application to the deflection electrode 10a.
  • 19 (c) shows a voltage application time chart to the deflection electrode 10b
  • FIG. 19 (d) shows a voltage application time chart to the counter electrode 3 respectively.
  • the image forming apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 24 is used.
  • This pre-image formation step is divided into a movement suppression step and a movement promotion step, as in the second example. Each of these steps is a first movement suppression step and a movement promotion step in the image formation pre-process.
  • the second movement suppression step is performed in this order.
  • a negative voltage is applied to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • VL —50 V was set as a negative voltage
  • both deflection electrodes 10 a, 1 Apply to Ob.
  • the driving of the driving mode for rotating the counter electrode 3 is also started. Thereby, the same operation and effect as those of the second example can be obtained.
  • the driving in the driving mode is continued until the post-image formation process is substantially completed.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the control electrode 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b are set to the same potential. However, as described in the first example, a voltage lower than the control electrode 7 is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. It is preferable to apply.
  • the movement promotion step is started.
  • a variable voltage consisting of the same deflection voltage as in the image forming step is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. That is, while the fluctuating voltage is applied to the deflection electrode 10a in the order of VH, VM, and VL, the fluctuating voltage is applied to the deflection electrode 10b in the order of VL, VM, and VH, as opposed to the deflection electrode 10a. Is applied.
  • different fluctuating voltages are applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, so that a fluctuating electric field is formed between the two electrodes 10a and 1 Ob.
  • the same pulse voltage as that at the time of image formation is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 flies toward the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 flying from the toner carrier 2 passes through the toner passage hole 6 at a predetermined flying speed, and collides with the toner 1 remaining in the toner passage hole 6. Due to this collision, the toner 1 which has been easily separated from the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 in advance is discharged from the toner passage hole 6 together with the toner 1 flying from the toner carrier 2 and moves to the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the toner 1 remaining in the toner passage hole 6 before the image forming step (1) is removed.
  • the fluctuating voltage is first applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. It is desirable to apply a pulse voltage to the control electrode 7 after that.
  • a fluctuating voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob in advance, the toner 1 adhering to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 can be loosened, and a pulse voltage is applied. Due to the collision with the toner 1 that has flew, the departure from the inner wall surface of the one-toner passage hole 6 is further facilitated.
  • the polarity of the fluctuation voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10Ob during the movement promoting step is inverted at least once. This is because the effect of loosening the toner 1 is enhanced, and even if the toner 1 of the opposite polarity exists in the toner passage hole 6, vibration can be applied to the toner 1 of the opposite polarity.
  • a second movement suppression step is started.
  • the same voltage as in the first movement suppressing step is applied to the control electrode 7 until the image forming step (1) is started. Further, the fluctuating voltage applied in the movement promoting step is continued to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. At this time, since the toner 1 has already been removed from the inside of the toner passage hole 6 in the previous movement promotion step, the toner 1 does not move to the counter electrode 3 from the toner passage control member 4. Thus, the pre-image formation process is completed.
  • the pre-image forming process period was set to 10 seconds, a negative voltage was applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 seconds after the start, and a counter electrode was applied to the counter electrode 3 9.3 seconds later. Start applying the voltage. Further, a fluctuation voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b 0.2 seconds after the start of the application of the counter electrode voltage, and a pulse voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 for 0.1 seconds 0.1 seconds after that.
  • the image forming step (1) similar to the first example is started.
  • a pause step is performed until the image forming step (2) starts.
  • This pause step is also divided into a movement promotion step and a movement suppression step in the same manner as the above-described pre-image formation step.
  • the process and the movement suppression process are performed in this order.
  • the operations performed by the movement promoting step and the movement suppressing step, the applied voltage level, and the like are the same as those in the above-described pre-image forming step.
  • the pause step period is set to 0.5 seconds
  • the application of a pulse voltage to the control electrode 7 is started 0.1 seconds after the start of the pause step
  • the pulse voltage is applied for 0.1 seconds.
  • an image forming step (2) similar to the first example is started.
  • the post-image forming step is started.
  • This post-image formation step is divided into a movement promotion step and a movement suppression step, similarly to the above-mentioned pause step, and each of these steps is performed in the post-image formation step in the order of the movement promotion step and the movement suppression step. .
  • a voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 and the deflecting electrodes 10a and 10Ob according to the same voltage level and voltage application procedure as in the above-mentioned pause step.
  • the effect of the movement promoting step at this time is the same as that of the above-described pause step.
  • the toner 1 remains in the toner passage hole 6 in the image forming step (2), the toner 1 remains in the post-image forming step. Removed. As a result, even when the time until the next image forming operation is started is long, the toner 11 does not adhere to the inner wall surface of the toner-passing hole 6.
  • the movement suppression step is started. Also in this movement suppression step, the same voltage as in the above-mentioned pause step is applied to the control electrode 7 and the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. After a lapse of a predetermined time, the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is stopped, the application of a negative voltage to the control electrode 7 is stopped, and finally, the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob The application of the negative voltage to is stopped, and the driving of the driving mode is stopped. Thus, the post-image formation process is completed.
  • the post-image formation process period is set to 10 seconds, and a pulse voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 for 0.1 second 0.2 seconds after the start of the post-image formation process. Then, after 0.1 seconds, the applied voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is switched to a negative voltage, and after 0.3 seconds, the application of the counter electrode voltage to the counter electrode 3 is stopped. 0.1 seconds before completion of the post-process, application of the negative voltage to the control electrode 7 is stopped.
  • the toner firmly adhered to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 Even if 1 exists, a fluctuating electric field perpendicular to the inner wall surface is formed in the movement promoting step, so that the toner 1 can be easily removed from the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6.
  • the deflection voltage and the counter electrode voltage can be applied from the start to the completion of the image forming operation regardless of the start timing of the image forming process, so that the third example is suitable for use in a color image forming apparatus. .
  • a plurality of toner passage control members 4 corresponding to the toner carrying members 2 each carrying the toner 1 of a plurality of colors are required, and the plurality of toner passage control members 4
  • the deflecting electrodes 10a and 10b and the counter electrode 3 facing the toner carrier 2 of each color are connected in common. Thereby, the same voltage can be simultaneously applied to the electrodes other than the control electrode 7 of each color, so that the voltage application control becomes easy.
  • FIG. 20 shows a fourth example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 20 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7, and
  • FIG. 20 (b) is a deflection electrode 10a.
  • 20 (c) is a voltage application time chart to the deflection electrode 1 Ob
  • FIG. 20 (d) is a voltage application time chart to the counter electrode 3.
  • FIG. 20 (e) shows a time chart of voltage application to the toner carrier 2.
  • the image forming apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 24 is used, but the toner carrier 2 is not always grounded but is not shown.
  • a predetermined voltage can be applied by the power supply.
  • the toner carrier 2 is at the same potential (0 V) as the ground potential of the image forming apparatus.
  • the pre-image forming process is started.
  • a negative voltage is applied to both the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b.
  • VL ⁇ 50 V is applied.
  • the driving of the driving mode for rotating the counter electrode 3 is also started.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the toner carrier 2.
  • +50 V is applied as the positive voltage.
  • the ground potential is still applied to the control electrode 7. Accordingly, the electrostatic attraction to the toner carrier 2 acts on the toner 1 carried on the toner carrier 2. As a result, even if the ground potential is applied to the control electrode 7, the toner 1 on the toner carrier 2 does not fly toward the control electrode 7, and remains on the toner carrier 2.
  • a variable voltage consisting of the same deflection voltage as in the image forming step is applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b. That is, while the fluctuating voltage is applied to the deflection electrode 10a in the order of VH, VM, and VL, the fluctuating voltage is applied to the deflection electrode 10b in the order of VL, VM, and VH, as opposed to the deflection electrode 10a. Is applied.
  • the van der Waals force between the toner 1 and the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is weakened, and the toner 1 is easily detached from the inner wall surface.
  • the polarity of the fluctuation voltage applied to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1 Ob during the pre-image forming process is preferably inverted at least once for the reason described in the third example.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3.
  • the same counter electrode voltage Vbe is applied as in the image forming step.
  • the reason is as described in the first example. It is.
  • the driving of the drive motor is started before the application of the common electrode voltage is started. This is because when the fluctuating voltage is applied, all the toners 1 in the toner passage 1 may not be collected on the toner carrier 2 side. That is, since the positive voltage applied to the toner carrier 2 is smaller than the counter electrode voltage, the electrostatic attraction for collecting the toner 1 is weak, and therefore, the toner 1 still remains in the toner passage hole 6. there's a possibility that. When the counter electrode voltage is applied in such a state, the remaining toner 1 flies to the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the amount of the toner 1 flying to the counter electrode 3 side is not large enough to cause back contamination of the image receiving member 5 because most of the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 is recovered in advance to the toner carrier 2 side. Absent. However, if the operation is performed for a long time, the amount of the toner 1 adhering to the opposing electrode 3 is increased by rotating the opposing electrode 3 by driving the driving motor and removing the toner 1 adhering to the opposing electrode 3 by the rubber blade 21. preferable.
  • the pre-image forming process period is set to 10 seconds, a positive voltage is applied to the toner carrier 2 three seconds after the start of the pre-image forming process, and the deflecting electrode 10 , 1 Ob, and the application of the counter electrode voltage is started 0.3 seconds before the start of the image forming process.
  • the same image forming process (1) as the first example is started.
  • the positive voltage applied in the image forming pre-process is continuously applied to the toner carrier 2, and the suppression voltage Vw applied to the control electrode 7 is set to the ground potential (0 V). This is because, since a positive voltage is applied to the toner carrier 2, an operation equivalent to applying a negative voltage as the suppression voltage Vw as in the first to third examples is obtained.
  • a pause step is performed until the image forming step (2) is started.
  • the counter electrode 3 It is preferable to stop the application of the electrode voltage. This is to prevent the toner 1 from flying toward the counter electrode 3 in the pause step.
  • the fluctuating voltage is applied to the deflecting electrodes 10a and 1Ob, and the positive voltage is continuously applied to the toner carrier 2, as in the pre-image forming step, and the control electrode is The ground potential is applied to 7. Therefore, even if the toner 1 remains in the toner passage hole 6 in the image forming step (1), the toner 1 is removed during the pause step. Then, the counter electrode voltage application to the counter electrode 3 is started before the image forming step (2) is started. The reason is as described above in the pre-image formation step. In this example, the pause step is set to 0.5 seconds, and the application of the counter electrode voltage to the counter electrode 3 is stopped for 0.2 seconds after the completion of the image forming step (1).
  • an image forming step (2) similar to the first example is started.
  • the post-image forming step is started. It is preferable that the application of the common electrode voltage to the common electrode 3 is stopped almost simultaneously with the completion of the image forming step (2). This is to prevent the toner 1 from flying toward the counter electrode 3 in the post-image formation process.
  • the toner 1 In the post-image formation step, as in the pause step, a fluctuating voltage is applied to the deflection electrodes 10 a and 10 b, the positive voltage is continuously applied to the toner carrier 2, and the control electrode 7 is Is applied with a ground potential. Therefore, even if the toner 1 remains in the toner passage hole 6 in the image forming step (2), the toner 1 is removed in a period after image formation. Accordingly, even if the period until the next image forming operation is started is long, the toner 1 does not adhere to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6.
  • the application of the fluctuating voltage to the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob is stopped, and the voltage is switched to a negative voltage.
  • the application of the positive voltage to the toner carrier 2 is stopped.
  • the driving of the driving mode is stopped.
  • the post-image forming process is set to 10 seconds, the deflection electrodes 10a and 1Ob are switched to a negative voltage 9 seconds before the completion of the image forming process, and the toner is loaded 0.1 seconds before. Stop applying positive voltage to body 2.
  • each of the first to fourth examples described above may be implemented alone, or a combination of the examples may be implemented.
  • the pause step and the post-image formation step of the first example may be replaced with the second example and the third example, and vice versa.
  • the above-described first to fourth examples may be switched and executed every time the time elapses.
  • the first example may be performed, and the second example and the third example may be periodically performed every time a predetermined number of images are formed. This makes it possible to reliably remove the toner 1 remaining in the toner passage hole 6 periodically while suppressing the consumption of the toner 1.
  • the first movement suppressing step in the pre-image formation step may be omitted.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • a negative voltage is not applied to the control electrode 7, but instead of being applied to the toner carrier 2.
  • a positive voltage may be applied.
  • FIG. 21 is a configuration diagram of the toner passage control member 4 of the image forming apparatus according to a fifth example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment
  • FIG. 21A is a diagram viewed from the toner carrier 2 side.
  • FIG. 21 (b) is a cross-sectional view
  • FIG. 21 (c) is a view from the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the counter electrode 3 side of the toner passage control member 4 is used.
  • the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b were used as the electrodes arranged on the surface, in the fifth example, instead of the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b, a plurality of electrodes passing through the toner passage hole 6 were used.
  • the focusing electrode 19 that focuses a group of toners composed of toner particles.
  • the focusing electrode 19 is provided around each developer passage hole 6 on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the focus electrode 19 is provided around the periphery of each developer passage hole 6. They are all connected and integrated.
  • a convergence voltage having the same polarity as the charging polarity of the toner 1 is applied to the convergence electrode 19 by a convergence electrode power supply (not shown) during the image forming process.
  • a convergence electrode power supply not shown
  • an electrostatic repulsive force acting on the focusing electrode 19 acts on the toner group consisting of a plurality of toner particles passing through the toner passage hole 6, so that the toner moves toward the center of the passage hole 6. Acts.
  • the toner group converges in the flying process until it reaches the image receiving member 5, and lands on the image receiving member 5 as small-diameter dots.
  • high-density and small-diameter dots are formed on the image receiving member 5, so that a toner image with high sharpness can be obtained.
  • the focusing electrode 19 is made of a copper foil having a thickness of 10 ⁇ m in this example, it may be made of a copper foil or an aluminum foil having a thickness of about 2 to 30 ⁇ m.
  • the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 is preferably from 150 to 0 V, and more preferably from ⁇ 100 to 150 V. This is because, if it is smaller than the above range, the toner passage hole 6 is electrostatically closed and the toner 1 cannot pass through the toner passage hole 6, whereas if it is larger than the above range, the toner 1 is attracted to the focusing electrode 19. As a result, the toner 1 leaks out from the toner passage hole 6 corresponding to the non-print portion.
  • reference numeral 20 denotes a protective layer (similar to cover film 13) covering the surface of focusing electrode 19.
  • a protective layer 20 is provided to prevent this abrasion.
  • An appropriate thickness of the protective layer 20 is 5 to 30 m.
  • a polyimide film having a thickness of 10 ⁇ m is formed on the surface of the insulating substrate 12 on the side of the counter electrode 3 by 10 to
  • the protective layer 20 is formed by adhering through an adhesive layer having a thickness of about 15 / m.c In this example, the same applies to the surface of the insulating base material 12 on the toner carrier 2 side.
  • a protective layer 20 is provided. The voltage application sequence when the above converging electrode 19 is used will be described with reference to FIG.
  • FIG. 22 shows a fifth example of the voltage application sequence in the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. 22 (a) is a time chart of voltage application to the control electrode 7
  • FIG. 22 (b) is a time chart of the voltage application to the focusing electrode 19.
  • the voltage application time chart, and FIG. 22 (c) shows the voltage application time chart to the counter electrode 3, respectively.
  • a pre-image forming process is started.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the focusing electrode 19.
  • ⁇ 200 V is applied.
  • an electrostatic repulsion acts on the focusing electrode 19 on the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3.
  • the same counter electrode voltage Vbe as in the image forming step is applied.
  • the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is started before the image forming step (1) is started.
  • a voltage higher than the negative voltage ( ⁇ 200 V) is applied to the focusing electrode 19.
  • the same as the convergence voltage Set the same as the convergence voltage Set.
  • the toner passage hole 6 is electrostatically closed, so that the toner 1 hardly passes through the toner passage hole 6, and as a result, no printing or low printing is performed. Only density printing can be realized. Also, the image forming process
  • the pre-image forming process period is set to 10 seconds, a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 seconds after the image forming pre-process is started, and the negative electrode 3 is applied to the counter electrode 3 0.3 seconds later.
  • the counter electrode voltage is applied. Further, the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 is switched 0.3 seconds before the start of the image forming process.
  • the image forming step (1) similar to the first example is started.
  • the toner 1 detached from the toner carrier 2 by applying a pulse voltage to the control electrode 7 passes through the toner passage hole 6 and is applied by applying a convergence voltage ( ⁇ 50 V) to the convergence electrode 19.
  • the toner group including a plurality of toner particles passing through the toner passage hole 6 reaches the image receiving member 5 while being converged at the center of the toner passage hole 6.
  • a pause step is performed until the image forming step (2) is started.
  • the control electrode 7 is applied with the suppression voltage ( ⁇ 50 V), and the convergence electrode 19 is continuously applied with the convergence voltage ( ⁇ 50 V).
  • the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is continued. Therefore, the toner 11 does not separate from the toner carrier 2 and fly toward the control electrode 7.
  • the electric field for moving the toner 1 from the control electrode 7 to the counter electrode 3 in the toner passage hole 6 is weakened by the application of the convergence voltage to the convergence electrode 19, so that the inner wall of the toner passage hole 6 is formed in the image forming step (1).
  • the toner 1 adhered to the surface cannot fly to the counter electrode 3 side, but stops on the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 as it is.
  • the pause step period is set to 0.5 seconds.
  • an image forming step (2) similar to that of the first example is started.
  • the post-image forming step is started.
  • the application of the suppression voltage to the control electrode 7 is continued, similarly to the pause step. Soshi After a lapse of a predetermined time, the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 switches from ⁇ 50 to ⁇ 200. As described above, the voltage is switched after the lapse of the predetermined time because if the voltage is changed during the image forming process (2) while the toner 1 is passing through the toner passage hole 6, the toner passage hole 6 is electrostatically blocked.
  • the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is stopped, the application of the voltage to the control electrode is stopped, and finally, the application of the voltage to the converging electrode 19 is stopped.
  • the toner 1 deposited near the control electrode 7 and the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 move to the counter electrode 3 side. Without this, the post-image formation process is completed.
  • the post-image formation process period is set to 10 seconds
  • the counter electrode voltage is applied 0.5 seconds before the completion of the image formation process
  • the control electrode 7 is suppressed 0.1 seconds before the completion. Stop the voltage application.
  • the applied voltage level to the focusing electrode 19 is switched.
  • the toner 1 adhered to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 during the pre-image forming step, the pause step, and the post-image forming step is the same.
  • the image quality can be improved without the toner 1 being detached from the wall surface and the landing position accuracy of the toner 1 being degraded by the attached toner 1 in the image forming process.
  • the toner 1 detached from the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 does not fly to the counter electrode 3 side, so that the back contamination of the image receiving member 5 due to the adhesion of the toner 1 on the counter electrode 3 can be prevented.
  • FIG. 23 shows a sixth example of the voltage application sequence according to the fourth embodiment.
  • FIG. FIG. 23 (c) shows the time chart of voltage application to the counter electrode 3, respectively.
  • an image forming apparatus having the same configuration as that of the second example is used. I have.
  • the difference from the fifth example is that a positive voltage is also applied in each of the pre-image forming step, the pause step, and the post-image forming step.
  • the toner on the toner carrier 2 is absorbed by the converging electrode 19, passes through the toner passage hole 6 by the counter electrode voltage Vbe, and reaches the counter electrode 3.
  • the same operation and effect as those of the movement promoting step as shown in the second and third examples can be obtained.
  • the pre-image forming process is started.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the focusing electrode 19.
  • ⁇ 200 V is applied as in the fifth example.
  • an electrostatic repulsive force acts on the focusing electrode 19 on the toner 1 attached to the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6.
  • the driving of the driving mode for rotating the counter electrode 3 is started.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7.
  • the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 does not move to the counter electrode 3 side.
  • the driving of the driving motor is continued until the post-image forming process is substantially completed.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the counter electrode 3.
  • the same counter electrode voltage Vbe is applied as in the image forming step.
  • the application of the common electrode voltage Vbe to the common electrode 3 is started before the image forming step (1) is started.
  • a positive voltage is applied to the focusing electrode 19.
  • +100 V is applied.
  • the voltage is switched to ⁇ 50 V.
  • the tip of the image receiving member 5 is prevented from being stained, and the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 is approximately 150 V when the image forming process is started.
  • High density printing is possible.
  • the pre-image forming process period is set to 10 seconds, a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 second after the image forming pre-process is started, and the counter electrode 3 is countered 0.3 seconds after the pre-image forming process is started. Electrode voltage Vbe is applied respectively.
  • the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 is switched to a positive voltage 0.4 seconds before the start of the image forming process, and is switched to ⁇ 50 V after a lapse of 0.1 seconds.
  • an image forming step (1) similar to the first example is started.
  • a pause step is performed until the image forming step (2) starts.
  • the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 is switched from -50 V to +100 V in the same way as in the above-described pre-image formation step.
  • the suppression voltage ( ⁇ 50 V) is applied to the control electrode 7, and the application of the counter electrode voltage Vbe to the counter electrode 3 is continued.
  • the pause step period is set to 0.5 second, and a positive voltage is applied to the converging electrode 19 for 0.1 second 0.1 second after the completion of the image forming step (1).
  • the image forming step (2) similar to the first example is started.
  • the post-image forming step is started.
  • the application of the suppression voltage to the control electrode 7 is continued as in the pause step.
  • the voltage applied to the focusing electrode 19 is switched from -50V to + 100V. The reason why the voltage is switched after the elapse of the predetermined time is as described in the fifth example.
  • the applied voltage to the converging electrode 19 is switched from +100 V to -200 V, then the application of the opposing electrode voltage Vbe to the opposing electrode 3 is stopped, and finally, the application of the voltage to the converging electrode 19 and The driving of the driving motor is stopped.
  • the post-image formation process period is set to 10 seconds
  • the counter electrode voltage is applied 0.5 seconds before the completion of the image formation process
  • the suppression voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 0.1 seconds before. Stop the application.
  • the applied voltage level of the focusing electrode 19 is switched.
  • the image quality can be improved, and even if the toner 1 on the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6 is moved to the counter electrode 3, Since the counter electrode 3 is rotated and the toner 1 adhering to the surface of the counter electrode 3 is removed by the rubber blade 21, back contamination of the image receiving member 5 can be prevented.
  • a positive constant voltage is applied to the focusing electrode 19, but as in the third example, a fluctuating voltage whose voltage level fluctuates with time may be applied.
  • a fluctuating voltage whose voltage level fluctuates with time may be applied.
  • an electrostatic field is generated in the toner passage hole 6 such that the toner 1 vibrates along the inner wall surface of the toner passage hole 6, so that the toner 1 in the toner passage hole 6 can be loosened.
  • the fluctuating voltage is preferably a voltage whose polarity is inverted at least once. Thereby, the effect of loosening toner 1 is increased.
  • the fifth example and the sixth example may be combined.
  • the post-image forming process of the fifth example may be replaced with the sixth example, and vice versa.
  • the fifth example and the sixth example may be switched every time the time elapses.
  • the fifth example may be performed, and the sixth example may be performed periodically every time a predetermined number of images are formed.
  • the step of first applying ⁇ 200 V to the focusing electrode 19 during the image forming pre-process may be omitted.
  • a negative voltage is applied to the control electrode 7 in the pre-image forming step, the pause step, and the post-image forming step.
  • a positive voltage may be applied to the toner carrier 2.
  • the deflection electrodes 10a and 10b and the focusing electrode 19 are used as the electrodes disposed on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the side of the counter electrode 3, but the antistatic electrode is used. You may. That is, when the image receiving member 5 comes into contact with the toner passage control member 4, electric charge flows from the counter electrode 3 to the toner passage control member 4 via the image receiving member 5, and as a result, the polarity of the voltage applied to the counter electrode 3 is changed. The toner passage control member 4 may be charged to the same polarity, and when the toner passage control member 4 is charged in this way, the electric field formed between the counter electrode 3 and the toner passage control member 4 becomes unstable.
  • the flying of the toner 1 toward the opposite electrode 3 becomes unstable. Therefore, in order to prevent this charging, it is effective to provide an antistatic electrode on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the side of the counter electrode 3.
  • the antistatic electrode is provided so as to be exposed on the surface of the toner passage control member 4 on the side of the counter electrode 3. Is desirable. Then, by applying a predetermined voltage (preferably a ground potential or a voltage having the same polarity as the charging polarity of the toner 1) to the antistatic electrode, the surface potential of the toner passage control member 4 becomes constant. Even when the member 5 comes into contact with the toner passage control member 4, the electric field between the counter electrode 3 and the toner passage control member 4 is kept constant.
  • the material of the antistatic electrode is preferably a hard material such as conductive amorphous carbon. This is to prevent abrasion due to direct contact with the image receiving member 5. Further, during the surface resistance is preferably about 1 0 8 ⁇ 1 0 " ⁇ , exceeds this range, while the effect of removing the electric charge is decreased and less than the above range, the counter electrode 3
  • the voltage may be applied to the antistatic electrode in the manner described in the fifth example or the sixth example. It can also be used as the converging electrode 19. In this case, the protective layer 20 provided on the converging electrode 19 may be omitted.
  • a first electrode is provided separately from the deflection electrodes 10a, 10b, the focusing electrode 19, or the antistatic electrode, and the first electrode is provided in the pre-image forming step, the pause step, and the post-image forming step.
  • a voltage such as that applied to the deflection electrodes 10a, 10b, the converging electrode 19, or the antistatic electrode in the above embodiments may be applied to the electrode.
  • a second electrode is provided separately from the control electrode 7, and in the pre-image forming step, the pause step, and the post-image forming step, the second electrode is provided with the control electrode 7 in each of the above embodiments. A voltage such as that applied to the device may be applied.
  • the image forming method and the image forming apparatus of the present invention are useful when applied to a copying machine, a facsimile, a printer, and the like. Its industrial applicability is high because it can be improved in terms of quality.

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  • Printers Or Recording Devices Using Electromagnetic And Radiation Means (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un procédé visant à améliorer -autant que faire se peut- la qualité d'une image, lors de la formation de celle-ci par déviation et focalisation. Ce procédé est caractérisé en ce que le temps de départ d'une étape de déviation, correspondant à chaque étape de commande de passage de colorant, diffère selon chaque sens de déviation, du temps de départ de chaque étape de commande de passage de colorants. Plus précisément, le temps de départ de l'étape de déviation se situe plus tôt que le temps de départ de référence de l'étape de commande de passage de colorant. Lorsque la distance augmente entre deux points formés, par étapes successives, sur un élément récepteur (5) d'image, le temps de départ de l'étape de déviation se rapportant au second point, formé en second, se situe plus tôt que celui de l'étape de déviation se rapportant au premier point formé en premier.
PCT/JP2000/007524 1999-10-26 2000-10-26 Procede et dispositif de formation d'images WO2001030579A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU79594/00A AU7959400A (en) 1999-10-26 2000-10-26 Image forming method and image forming device

Applications Claiming Priority (8)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP11/304410 1999-10-26
JP30441099A JP2001121735A (ja) 1999-10-26 1999-10-26 画像形成方法および画像形成装置
JP31278799A JP2001130044A (ja) 1999-11-02 1999-11-02 画像形成方法及び画像形成装置
JP11/312787 1999-11-02
JP11/352820 1999-12-13
JP35282099A JP2001162856A (ja) 1999-12-13 1999-12-13 画像形成方法及び画像形成装置
JP2000/4207 2000-01-13
JP2000004207A JP2001191578A (ja) 2000-01-13 2000-01-13 画像形成方法及び画像形成装置

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2001030579A1 true WO2001030579A1 (fr) 2001-05-03

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ID=27479875

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Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/JP2000/007524 WO2001030579A1 (fr) 1999-10-26 2000-10-26 Procede et dispositif de formation d'images

Country Status (2)

Country Link
AU (1) AU7959400A (fr)
WO (1) WO2001030579A1 (fr)

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPS63136058A (ja) * 1986-11-28 1988-06-08 Fuji Xerox Co Ltd 粉体画像記録装置
JPH04286662A (ja) * 1991-03-15 1992-10-12 Brother Ind Ltd 静電記録装置
JPH10235923A (ja) * 1997-02-21 1998-09-08 Sharp Corp 画像形成装置
EP0884190A2 (fr) * 1997-06-09 1998-12-16 Array Printers Ab Méthode d'impression directe avec fonction de commande améliorée
JPH1142808A (ja) * 1997-07-28 1999-02-16 Sharp Corp 画像形成装置
JPH11208011A (ja) * 1998-01-27 1999-08-03 Ricoh Co Ltd 画像形成方法及びその装置

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPS63136058A (ja) * 1986-11-28 1988-06-08 Fuji Xerox Co Ltd 粉体画像記録装置
JPH04286662A (ja) * 1991-03-15 1992-10-12 Brother Ind Ltd 静電記録装置
JPH10235923A (ja) * 1997-02-21 1998-09-08 Sharp Corp 画像形成装置
EP0884190A2 (fr) * 1997-06-09 1998-12-16 Array Printers Ab Méthode d'impression directe avec fonction de commande améliorée
JPH1142808A (ja) * 1997-07-28 1999-02-16 Sharp Corp 画像形成装置
JPH11208011A (ja) * 1998-01-27 1999-08-03 Ricoh Co Ltd 画像形成方法及びその装置

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