CONDUCTIVE ROLLER

• US 20090233776A1
• Filed: 03/13/2009
• Published: 09/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Original Assignee: Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Inventors: Murakami, Hirotoshi, Hitomi, Noriaki, Zhang, Yajun, Mizumoto, Yoshihisa
• Application Number:
  US12/403,814
• Publication Number:
  US 20090233776A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 492/18
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0233 Structure, details of the charging member, e.g. chemical composition, surface properties
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0818 characterised by the structure of the donor member, e.g. surface properties
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/1685 Structure, details of the transfer member, e.g. chemical composition
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/0058 using a roller or a polygonal rotating cleaning member; Details thereof, e.g. surface structure G03G21/0064 takes precedence

Abstract

A conductive roller comprising a toner-transporting portion, made of a vulcanized rubber composition, which is disposed at least on an outermost layer thereof. The vulcanized rubber composition contains a rubber component (A) mixed with a weakly conductive carbon black (B) having a large particle diameter not less than 80 nm nor more than 500 nm, a highly conductive carbon black (C) having a small particle diameter not less than 18 nm nor more than 80 nm, and an inorganic filler (D) consisting of not less than one kind of a metal oxide selected from among a group of titanium oxide, alumina, and silica. The total of a mixing amount of the weakly conductive carbon black (B), that of the highly conductive carbon black (C), and that of the inorganic filler (D) for 100 parts by mass of the rubber component (A) is not less than 15 parts by mass nor more than 60 parts by mass.

Claims

1. A conductive roller comprising a toner-transporting portion, made of a vulcanized rubber composition, which is disposed at least on an outermost layer thereof,

wherein said vulcanized rubber composition contains a rubber component (A) mixed with a weakly conductive carbon black (B) having a large particle diameter not less than 80 nm nor more than 500 nm, a highly conductive carbon black (C) having a small particle diameter not less than 18 nm nor more than 80 nm, and an inorganic filler (D) consisting of not less than one kind of a metal oxide selected from among a group of titanium oxide, alumina, and silica, and

a total of a mixing amount of said weakly conductive carbon black (B), that of said highly conductive carbon black (C), and that of said inorganic filler (D) for 100 parts by mass of said rubber component (A) is not less than 15 parts by mass nor more than 60 parts by mass.

2. The conductive roller according to claim 1, wherein 100 parts by mass of said rubber component (A) is mixed with not less than 1 nor more than 40 parts by mass of said weakly conductive carbon black (B), not less than 1 nor more than 40 parts by mass of said highly conductive carbon black (C), and not less than 1 nor more than 40 parts by mass of said inorganic filler (D).

3. The conductive roller according to claim 2, wherein 100 parts by mass of said rubber component (A) is mixed with not less than 1 nor more than 20 parts by mass of said weakly conductive carbon black (B), not less than 5 nor more than 30 parts by mass of said highly conductive carbon black (C), and not less than 1 nor more than 20 parts by mass of said inorganic filler (D), and

said total of said mixing amount of said weakly conductive carbon black (B), that of said highly conductive carbon black (C), and that of said inorganic filler (D) for 100 parts by mass of said rubber component (A) is not less than 15 parts by mass nor more than 40 parts by mass.

4. The conductive roller according to claim 1, wherein a mixing amount of said highly conductive carbon black (C) is set larger than that of said weakly conductive carbon black (B) and not less than that of said inorganic filler (D) consisting of said metal oxide.

5. The conductive roller according to claim 1, wherein said rubber component (A) contains a rubber having chlorine atoms or/and a rubber whose solubility parameter is not less than 18.0 (MPa)^1/2.

6. The conductive roller according to claim 1, wherein an ionic conductive rubber is used as said rubber component (A) of said vulcanized rubber composition or an ionic-conductive agent is added to said rubber component (A) to impart ionic conductivity to said rubber component (A).

7. The conductive roller according to claim 1, wherein said inorganic filler (D) is titanium oxide.

8. The conductive roller according to claim 1, which is used as a developing roller for use in a developing device, of an image-forming mechanism of an electrophotographic apparatus, in which an unmagnetic one-component toner is used.

9. The conductive roller according to claim 1, which comprises a toner-transporting portion and a cylindrical core inserted into a hollow portion of said toner-transporting portion by press fit, wherein an oxide film is formed on a surface of said toner-transporting portion by irradiating said surface with ultraviolet rays.