Image forming device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9575438-B2
Application number	US-201514808044-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 24, 2015
Priority date	Jul 28, 2014
Publication date	Feb 21, 2017
Grant date	Feb 21, 2017

Abstract

An image forming device includes: an image carrier on which a toner image is formed; and a cleaning blade which removes a residual material on the image carrier after the toner image is transferred to a transferred body, wherein the image carrier includes an elastic layer, the cleaning blade is a metallic plate spring, and a tip end of the cleaning blade is pressed against the image carrier by restoring force of the plate spring.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image forming device comprising:
an image carrier on which a toner image is formed; and a cleaning blade which removes a residual material on the image carrier after the toner image is transferred to a transferred body, wherein
the image carrier includes an elastic layer,
the cleaning blade is made of metal, and
a tip end of the cleaning blade is made of metal and is pressed against the image carrier by restoring force of the cleaning blade.

2. The image forming device according to claim 1 , comprising a supporting member which supports the cleaning blade with play with respect to the image carrier.

3. The image forming device according to claim 2 , further comprising an energizing member which applies force in a direction to press the cleaning blade against the image carrier to the supporting member.

4. The image forming device according to claim 1 , wherein abutting pressure of the cleaning blade to the image carrier is set such that a biting amount of a tip end of the cleaning blade into a surface of the image carrier becomes a predetermined value.

5. The image forming device according to claim 4 , wherein the predetermined value is a value determined in advance as a value not smaller than surface roughness of the image carrier.

6. The image forming device according to claim 1 , wherein
the cleaning blade is arranged such that the tip end is in a counter direction relative to a moving direction of the image carrier, an end face of the tip end is a flat surface, and an angle between the end face of the tip end of the cleaning blade and a surface portion of the image carrier is a right angle or an angle within an allowable range from the right angle.

7. The image forming device according to claim 1 , wherein
the cleaning blade is elongated in a width direction orthogonal to a moving direction of the image carrier, and
corner portions on both ends in the width direction on the tip end are formed to have an R shape.

8. The image forming device according to claim 1 , wherein
the image carrier further includes a base layer and a surface layer which the cleaning blade abuts arranged on a side opposite to the base layer across the elastic layer, and
the surface layer is formed of a material with higher hardness than the hardness of the elastic layer.

9. The image forming device according to claim 1 , comprising:
an image forming unit which forms toner images of different colors on each of a plurality of photoreceptors; and
an intermediate transfer body to which the toner images of respective colors formed on the plurality of photoreceptors are multi-transferred, wherein
the image carrier is the intermediate transfer body, and
the transferred body is a recording sheet to which the toner images of respective colors multi-transferred to the intermediate transfer body are transferred.

10. The image forming device according to claim 1 , wherein the elastic layer has rubber elasticity.

11. The image forming device according to claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the elastic layer is within a range of 100 to 500 μm.

Assignees

• Konica Minolta Inc

Inventors

• Takai Takayuki
• Okada Takuya
• Kawanago Takashi

Classifications

• G03G2215/0132

  vertical medium transport path at the secondary transfer · CPC title

• G03G21/0076

  Plural or sequential cleaning devices · CPC title

• G03G15/161 Primary

  with means for handling the intermediate support, e.g. heating, cleaning, coating with a transfer agent · CPC title

• G03G21/0029

  Details relating to the blade support · CPC title