Endless belt, heat-sealing device, fixing device, and article transfer device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11359041-B2
Application number	US-202016918290-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 1, 2020
Priority date	Mar 25, 2020
Publication date	Jun 14, 2022
Grant date	Jun 14, 2022

Abstract

An endless belt includes a substrate layer, and a first surface layer that is disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the substrate layer and that includes a cross-linked fluororesin layer. A layer containing a cross-linked fluororesin forms the inner circumferential surface of the belt. Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is higher than Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An endless belt comprising:
a substrate layer; and
a first surface layer that is disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the substrate layer and that consists of a cross-linked fluororesin layer,
wherein a layer containing a cross-linked fluororesin forms an inner circumferential surface of the belt,
Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is higher than Martens hardness of an outer circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C., and
Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. is lower than Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C.

2. The endless belt according to claim 1 , wherein Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is 2 N/mm 2 or higher and 10 N/mm 2 or lower, and Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is 4 N/mm 2 or higher and 12 N/mm 2 or lower.

3. The endless belt according to claim 2 , wherein a difference between Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. and Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is 2 N/mm 2 or higher and 10 N/mm 2 or lower.

4. The endless belt according to claim 3 including a cross-linked fluororesin layer on an inner circumferential surface of the substrate layer, the cross-linked fluororesin layer being the layer containing a cross-linked fluororesin.

5. The endless belt according to claim 3 , wherein a difference between Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. and Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. is 2 N/mm 2 or higher and 10 N/mm 2 or lower.

6. The endless belt according to claim 2 including a cross-linked fluororesin layer on an inner circumferential surface of the substrate layer, the cross-linked fluororesin layer being the layer containing a cross-linked fluororesin.

7. The endless belt according to claim 1 including a cross-linked fluororesin layer on an inner circumferential surface of the substrate layer, the cross-linked fluororesin layer being the layer containing a cross-linked fluororesin.

8. The endless belt according to claim 1 , wherein Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. is 15 N/mm 2 or higher and 23 N/mm 2 or lower, and Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. is 13 N/mm 2 or higher and 19 N/mm 2 or lower.

9. The endless belt according to claim 1 , wherein a cross-linked fluororesin contained in the first surface layer is perfluoroalkylvinylether-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer resin, and
the cross-linked fluororesin contained in the layer forming the inner circumferential surface of the belt is a polytetrafluoroethylene resin.

10. A heat-sealing device comprising:
a first rotating element;
a second rotating element that is disposed so as to be in contact with an outer surface of the first rotating element and that consists of the endless belt according to claim 1 ; and
a pressing member that is disposed inward of the second rotating element and that applies pressure from inward of the second rotating element to the second rotating element toward the first rotating element.

11. A fixing device comprising:
a first rotating element;
a second rotating element that is disposed so as to be in contact with an outer surface of the first rotating element and that consists of the endless belt according to claim 1 ; and
a pressing member that is disposed inward of the second rotating element and that applies pressure from inward of the second rotating element to the second rotating element toward the first rotating element.

12. An article transfer device comprising:
an article transfer belt consisting of the endless belt according to claim 1 ; and
a heat source that heats an article to be heated transferred by the article transfer belt.

13. An endless belt comprising:
a substrate layer containing cross-linked fluororesin particles; and
a first surface layer that is disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the substrate layer and that consists of a cross-linked fluororesin layer,
wherein the substrate forms an inner circumferential surface of the belt,
Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is higher than Martens hardness of an outer circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C.

14. The endless belt according to claim 13 , wherein a difference between Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. and Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 130° C. is 2 N/mm 2 or higher and 10 N/mm 2 or lower.

15. The endless belt according to claim 13 , wherein a difference between Martens hardness of the outer circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. and Martens hardness of the inner circumferential surface of the belt at 25° C. is 2 N/mm 2 or higher and 10 N/mm 2 or lower.

16. A heat-sealing device comprising:
a first rotating element;
a second rotating element that is disposed so as to be in contact with an outer surface of the first rotating element and that consists of the endless belt according to claim 13 ; and
a pressing member that is disposed inward of the second rotating element and that applies pressure from inward of the second rotating element to the second rotating element toward the first rotating element.

17. A fixing device comprising:
a first rotating element;
a second rotating element that is disposed so as to be in contact with an outer surface of the first rotating element and that consists of the endless belt according to claim 13 ; and
a pressing member that is disposed inward of the second rotating element and that applies pressure from inward of the second rotating element to the second rotating element toward the first rotating element.

18. An article transfer device comprising:
an article transfer belt consisting of the endless belt according to claim 13 ; and
a heat source that heats an article to be heated transferred by the article transfer belt.

Assignees

• Fujifilm Business Innovation Corp

Inventors

• Ohara Hideaki
• Omori Kenji
• Yamasaki Junko
• Yamakoshi Kenta

Classifications

• B65G15/32

  made of rubber or plastics · CPC title

• G03G15/162

  details of the the intermediate support, e.g. chemical composition · CPC title

• B65G15/14

  the load being conveyed between the belts {(B65G15/18, B65G15/20 take precedence)} · CPC title

• G03G15/16 Primary

  of a toner pattern, e.g. a powder pattern {, e.g. magnetic transfer} · CPC title

• C08G65/007

  containing fluorine · CPC title