Photosensitive member and image forming apparatus having the same

• US 6,636,715 B2
• Filed: 05/22/2001
• Issued: 10/21/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Yamazaki, Koji, Owaki, Hironori, Kawamura, Kunimasa, Karaki, Tetsuya, Ehara, Toshiyuki, Kawada, Masaya
• Primary Examiner(s): Dote, Janis L.
• Application Number:
  US09/861,579
• Publication Number:
  US 20020034700A1
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• Field of Search: 430/66, 430/67, 430/69, 399/159, 399/150, 399/176
• US Class Current: 399/176
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/08214 Silicon-based
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/08221 comprising one or two silicon based layers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/08228 at least one with varying composition
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/08235 comprising three or four silicon-based layers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0825 comprising five or six silicon-based layers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/147 Cover layers
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/14704 comprising inorganic material

Abstract

To provide an amorphous Si photosensitive member and an image forming apparatus which form favorable images by preventing toner adhesion at a cleaning time. A photoconductive layer 102 containing amorphous Si is formed on an electrically conductive substrate 101 so that a surface of a photosensitive member has an average inclination Δa within a range of 0.12 to 1.0, more preferably 0.15 to 0.8 within a range of 10 μm×10 μm, and an electrically conductive substrate has surface roughness Ra within the range of 10 μm×10 μm is lower than 9 nm, preferably lower than 6 nm.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a photosensitive member composed by consecutively laminating at least a photoconductive layer containing amorphous Si and an abraded surface protective layer on an electrically conductive substrate;

a charger for charging said photosensitive member;

an exposing device for forming an electrostatic latent image on said photosensitive member which is charged; and

a developing device for visualizing said electrostatic latent image with a developer,

wherein an average inclination Δ

a within a range of 10 μ

m×

10 μ

m of the surface of said photosensitive member is within a range of 0.12 to 1.0 by abrading the surface of the photosensitive member,

wherein said average inclination Δ

a is calculated from three dimensional forms measured with an atomic force microscope,

wherein said developer used in said developing device contains a toner and charging acceleration particles having electrical conductivity, and

wherein said charger is an electrically conductive elastic contact charging roller comprising a medium resistance layer of rubber or foaming material on a core metal as a flexible member, and the medium resistance layer having a resistance from 1×

10⁴ to 1×

10⁷ Ω

.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said developing device of the image forming apparatus serves also as a cleaning device for removing a toner which remains on the photosensitive member after transferring a toner image to a recording medium.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said exposing device has a light source which emits rays mainly having a wavelength.

4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said light source is a LED or a laser beam.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said electrically conductive substrate has a light transmitting substrate and a light transmitting electrically conductive layer, and said exposing device for projecting rays toward the photoconductive layer through said light transmitting substrate is a LED head.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said exposing device is a LED head or a laser beam scanner.

7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said charging acceleration particles which adhere to a surface of a photosensitive member in a developing portion remain on the surface of the photosensitive member even after transferring, and said charging acceleration particles are brought and interposed at least into a nip portion between the contact charging roller and the photosensitive member.