IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, IMAGE FORMING METHOD AND PROCESS CARTRIDGE INVOLVING THE USE OF A CLEANING BLADE THAT REMOVES TONER REMAINING ON A SURFACE OF AN IMAGE BEARING MEMBER

• US 20100254739A1
• Filed: 06/17/2010
• Published: 10/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hideo Nakamori
• Original Assignee: Hideo Nakamori
• Inventors: NAKAMORI, Hideo
• Granted Patent: US 7,995,950 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/350
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/0011 using a blade; Details of cleaning blades, e.g. blade shape, layer forming
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/0035 using a brush; Details of cleaning brushes, e.g. fibre density G03G21/0064 takes precedence; magnetic brushes G03G21/0047
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/105 Arrangements for conveying toner waste
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/0119 Linear arrangement adjacent plural transfer points
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/0129 horizontal medium transport path at the secondary transfer
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0539 Halogenated polymers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/142 Inert intermediate layers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/144 comprising inorganic material
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/14704 comprising inorganic material
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/14708 comprising organic material
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/14726 Halogenated polymers

Abstract

An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member having a static friction coefficient of from 0.1 to 0.3, a latent electrostatic image forming device, a developing device, and a cleaning device including a cleaning blade to remove remaining toner, in which the contact pressure of the cleaning blade to the image bearing member ranges from 1.5 to 10 g/cm, and the image bearing member and the cleaning blade satisfy the following relationships (1) and (2):

0.01 (kg)≦(T_off−T₀)/r≦_l 0.15 (kg)   Relationship (1)

1.2≦(T_on−T₀)/(T_off−T₀)≦3.8,   Relationship (2)

wherein T₀ (kgcm) represents the rotation torque of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is not in contact therewith, T_off, the rotation torque when the cleaning blade contacts the image bearing member and the toner is not thereon, T_on, the rotation torque when the cleaning blade contacts the image bearing member and the toner is thereon for development, and r represents the radius of the image bearing member.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

an image bearing member configured to bear a latent electrostatic image;

a latent electrostatic image forming device configured to form the latent electrostatic image on the image bearing member;

a developing device configured to develop and visualize the latent electrostatic image on the image bearing member with a toner;

a transfer device configured to transfer the visualized toner image to a recording medium; and

a cleaning device comprising;

a cleaning blade configured to contact a surface of the image bearing member to remove the toner remaining thereon,

wherein a static friction coefficient μ

of the image bearing member ranges from 0.1 to 0.3, a contact pressure of the cleaning blade to the image bearing member ranges from 1.5 to 10 g/cm, and the image bearing member and the cleaning blade satisfy the following relationships (1) and (2);

0.01 (kg)≦

(T_off−

T₀)/r≦

0.15 (kg)  

 

Relationship (1)

1.2≦

(T_on−

T₀)/(T_off−

T₀)≦

3.8,  

 

Relationship (2)

wherein T₀ represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is not in contact with the surface of the image bearing member, T_off represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the surface of the image bearing member and the toner is not used for development on the surface of the image bearing member, T_on represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the surface of the image bearing member and the toner is used for development on the surface of the image bearing member, and r represents a radius of the image bearing member, and

an uppermost layer of the image bearing member comprises fluorine resin particulates and the following relationship is satisfied;

0.15 (μ

m)≦

D≦

3 (μ

m),

wherein D represents an average diameter of projection images of the fluorine resin particulates surfacing on the uppermost layer, and a total area of the projection images of the fluorine resin particulates is not less than 10% based on a total surface area of the uppermost layer.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image bearing member has a drum form and a total runout of the surface of the image bearing member relative to a driving axis thereof is not greater than 0.080 mm.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a blade edge of the cleaning blade which contacts the image bearing member has a straightness of not greater than 0.1 mm.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a content of the fluorine resin particulates based on the uppermost layer ranges from 20 to 60 percent by volume.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image bearing member comprises a substrate and a photosensitive layer on the substrate.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the photosensitive layer is single-layered and forms the uppermost layer.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the photosensitive layer forms the uppermost layer and comprises a charge generating layer and a charge transport layer disposed on the charge generating layer.

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the image bearing member further comprises a protective layer, which is disposed on the photosensitive layer and forms the uppermost layer.

9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a plurality of the image bearing members, the latent electrostatic image forming devices, the developing devices, and the transfer devices.

10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transfer device comprises an intermediate transfer body to which the visualized toner image formed on the image bearing member is primarily transferred and a secondary transfer device configured to secondarily transfer the visualized image borne on the intermediate transfer body to the recording medium.

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the toner is a polymerized toner.

12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the toner has a volume average particle diameter that ranges from 3 to 8 μ

m, and an average circularity not less than 0.95.

13. The image forming apparatus of claim 1, wherein the following relationship is satisfied:

0.3 (μ

m)≦

D≦

1.5 (μ

m).

14. The image forming apparatus of claim 1, wherein the following relationship is satisfied:

0.3 (μ

m)≦

D≦

4 (μ

m).

15. The image forming apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fluorine resin particulates include at least one of tetrafluoetylene resin particulates, perfluoroalkoxy resin particulates, trifluorochloroethylene resin particulates, hexafluoro ethylene propylene resin particulates, vinyl fluoride resin particulates, vinylidene fluoride resin particulates, fluorodichloro etylene resin particulates, and copolymers thereof

16. An image forming method comprising:

forming a latent electrostatic image on an image bearing member;

developing the latent electrostatic image with a toner to form a visualized image;

transferring the visualized image to a recording medium; and

removing the toner remaining on a surface of the image bearing member by contacting a cleaning blade therewith,

wherein a static friction coefficient μ

of the image bearing member ranges from 0.1 to 0.3, a contact pressure of the cleaning blade to the image bearing member ranges from 1.5 to 10 g/cm, and the image bearing member and the cleaning blade satisfy the following relationships (1) and (2);

0.01 (kg)≦

(T_off−

T₀)/r≦

0.15 (kg)  

 

Relationship (1)

1.2≦

(T_on−

T₀)/(T_off−

T₀)≦

3.8,  

 

Relationship (2)

wherein T₀ represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is not in contact with the surface of the image bearing member, T_off represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the surface of the image bearing member and the toner is not used for development on the surface of the image bearing member, T_on represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the surface of the image bearing member and the toner is used for development on the surface of the image bearing member, and r represents a radius of the image bearing member, and

an uppermost layer of the image bearing member comprises fluorine resin particulates and the following relationship is satisfied;

0.15 (μ

m)≦

D≦

3 (μ

m),

wherein D represents an average diameter of projection images of the fluorine resin particulates surfacing on the uppermost layer, and a total area of the projection images of the fluorine resin particulates is not less than 10% based on a total surface area of the uppermost layer.

17. The image forming method according to claim 16, wherein a content of the fluorine resin particulates based on the uppermost layer ranges from 20 to 60 percent by volume.

18. A process cartridge comprising:

an image bearing member configured to bear a latent electrostatic image;

at least one device selected from a group including a charging device configured to charge the image bearing member, a developing device configured to develop the latent electrostatic image with a toner, a transfer device configured to transfer the developed image to a recording medium and a discharging device; and

a cleaning device comprising a cleaning blade, configured to remove a toner remaining on a surface of the image bearing member by contacting the cleaning blade therewith,

wherein the process cartridge is configured to be detachably attached to an image forming apparatus and a static friction coefficient μ

of the image bearing member ranges from 0.1 to 0.3, a contact pressure of the cleaning blade to the image bearing member ranges from 1.5 to 10 g/cm, and the image bearing member and the cleaning blade satisfy the following relationships (1) and (2);

0.01 (kg)≦

(T_off−

T₀)/r≦

0.15 (kg)  

 

Relationship (1)

1.2≦

(T_on−

T₀)/(T_off−

T₀)≦

3.8,  

 

Relationship (2)

wherein T₀ represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is not in contact with the surface of the image bearing member, T_off represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the surface of the image bearing member and the toner is not used for development on the surface of the image bearing member, T_on represents a rotation torque (kgcm) of the image bearing member when the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the surface of the image bearing member and the toner is used for development on the surface of the image bearing member, and r represents a radius of the image bearing member, and

an uppermost layer of the image bearing member comprises fluorine resin particulates and the following relationship is satisfied;

0.15 (μ

m)≦

D≦

3 (μ

m),

wherein D represents an average diameter of projection images of the fluorine resin particulates surfacing on the uppermost layer, and a total area of the projection images of the fluorine resin particulates is not less than 10% based on a total surface area of the uppermost layer.

19. The image forming apparatus according to claim 18, wherein a content of the fluorine resin particulates based on the uppermost layer ranges from 20 to 60 percent by volume.