JPH07168509A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide an image forming apparatus having a beautiful process unit that is easy to maintain. [Structure] The present image forming apparatus is provided with a plurality of supply units 22 that are coated with a color corresponding to the color of the toner 27.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus which can be used in copying machines, printers, plotters, facsimiles and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as one of image forming apparatuses, an electrode having a plurality of openings (hereinafter referred to as apertures) is used, and a voltage is applied to the electrode based on image data. U.S. Pat. No. 3,689,935 discloses controlling toner particles so that they can pass through the aperture and forming an image on a support by the toner particles that have passed.

This image forming apparatus comprises a flat plate made of an insulating material, a continuous reference electrode formed on one surface of the flat plate, and a plurality of control electrodes insulated from each other formed on the other surface. , An aperture electrode body having at least one row of apertures formed through each of the control electrodes, and a means for selectively applying a potential between the reference electrode and the control electrode. A means for supplying the charged toner particles so that the flow of the toner particles passing through the aperture is modulated by the electric potential, and a means for relatively moving the support and the aperture electrode body to position the support in the particle flow path. It consists of and.

Also, for example, US Pat. No. 4,743,926.
Nos. 4,755,837, 4,780,733, and 4,847,796 disclose an image forming apparatus in which an aperture electrode body is arranged with a control electrode on the support side and a reference electrode on the toner supply side. There is.

In the image forming apparatus constructed as above,
Since a simple printing unit that supports high-speed, high-resolution and plain paper can be formed, and good gradation can be obtained,
It had excellent characteristics as an image forming apparatus for outputting a color image.

[0006]

However, in the conventional image forming apparatus as described above, since a plurality of recording units including the aperture electrode body are arranged in the apparatus,
When a user replenishes toner or replaces a recording unit, it is very difficult to know which unit should be processed. In particular, when the toner is replaced, if the color is wrong, the unit itself cannot be used, which is a serious problem. In addition, there has been a growing demand from users for at least visual aesthetic appeal when the device is opened.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus equipped with a recording means that is easy to handle and has a beautiful appearance.

[0008]

In order to achieve this object, an image forming apparatus of the present invention is an image forming apparatus having a printing mechanism capable of recording a plurality of colors, and at least a part of the recording mechanism is used for printing. It is characterized in that a display portion showing a color to be displayed is provided.

[0009]

In the image forming apparatus of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, since the plurality of recording units classified by color are arranged inside the apparatus, the user does not make a mistake in the color at the time of maintenance. You can also enjoy the design when you open the inside of the device.

[0010]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an image recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The image recording apparatus 10 is roughly composed of a process unit 20, a recording electrode 30, a fixing device 40, a paper transport unit 50, a counter electrode 60, and a power supply unit 70. In the process unit 20 of this apparatus, after the recording electrode 30 forms a full-color toner image on the paper 51, the fixing device 40 performs heat fixing and discharge.

The exterior 11 of the recording apparatus is provided with an output paper outlet 12 and a tray 13 on its left side surface.

A process unit 2 installed in the center of the machine
0 has the following configuration. That is, the process unit 20 includes a recording unit 21 and a toner supply unit 22, and the recording unit 21
Is a mechanism for recording each color of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black, and is integrally configured. Then, inside the carrier roller 2 rotatable in the direction of the arrow in the figure.
3 etc. are arranged. The carrying roller 23 is a rigid roller having a surface of an insulator such as metal or resin,
It is provided in close contact with a recording electrode 30 described later via a toner layer.

The toner supply unit 22 is filled with the above-described four color toners 27, and is mounted by the user when replenishing the toner. The toner 27 is preferably a so-called small particle size toner having a particle size of about 7 μm in terms of image quality, and both pulverized toner and polymerized toner can be used. The exterior of the supply unit 22 is painted or resin of the same color according to the color of the toner contained therein, such as black painting for black and yellow painting for yellow. When installed in this machine, the toner 27 is discharged to the recording unit 21.

Below the process unit 20, a recording electrode unit 30 as an electric field control means is arranged.
The recording electrode unit 30 is provided with a recording electrode 34 corresponding to each color. Now using Figure 2,
The recording electrode will be described. The recording electrode 34 is shown in FIG.
25 μm thick polyimide insulation sheet 3
1, a plurality of apertures 32 having a diameter of 100 μm as a toner flow control unit are formed in a line, and a control electrode 33 is formed above each aperture 32 with a thickness of 1 μm. The recording electrode 34 is arranged such that the control electrode 33 faces the paper 51 side and the insulating sheet 31 contacts the toner on the carrying roller at the aperture position.

A control voltage application circuit (not shown) is connected between the control electrode 33 and the toner carrying roller 23. The control voltage application circuit is configured to apply a voltage of 0V or + 40V to the control electrode 32 based on the image signal.

A counter electrode 60 is provided between the process unit 20 and the paper 51. The counter electrode 60 is
It is composed of an electrode portion 62 to which a voltage of 1 kilovolt is applied and a support portion 61 for holding and insulating the electrode portion.

Further, a paper transport unit 50 is provided below the apparatus. The paper transport unit 50 includes a paper cassette 52 that stores paper 51 and an eject roller 5.
3, a sheet reversing roller 54, a conveyance guide 55, a delivery roller 56, and a conveyance roller 57. Each roller can rotate in the direction of the arrow in the figure and can carry the paper.

Further, the fixing unit 4 is provided downstream in the paper conveying direction.
0 is arranged. The fixing unit 40 includes the heater 4
It is composed of a heat roller 43 containing 2 and a pressure roller 41.

Above the apparatus, there are provided a controller section 71 for performing data processing required for recording and a power source section 70 for controlling driving and voltage control.

Next, the operation of this apparatus will be described.

When data is sent from an external computer, this device starts operation. First, in the process unit 20, the stored toner 27 is given a negative charging property, is placed on the carrying roller 23, and is carried to a position in contact with the recording electrode 34.

In addition, in the recording electrode, the signal from the data output circuit is transmitted to the drive circuit through the conductor portion.
As a result, the drive circuit selectively applies 0 volt and 40 volt to the opening electrode portion 33. At this time, an electric field is generated between the carrying roller 23 and the opening electrode 33 which are grounded, and the toner sandwiched between the recording electrode 30 and the carrying roller 23 receives an electrostatic force, and recording control can be performed. That is, 0
When the voltage is applied, the toner remains stationary without moving to the aperture, but when 40 V is applied, the negatively charged toner passes through the aperture and then the counter electrode 6
It flies by the electric field formed by 0.

At the same time when the apparatus is started, the paper transport unit 50
From, the paper 51 is sent out. That is, the semi-circular kicking-out roller 53 causes the sheet cassette 52 to move the sheet 5
1 is sent out, the carrying direction is changed by the paper reversing roller 54, and then held and sent by the carrying guide 55 and the carrying roller 57. When the sheet 51 comes directly under the aperture 33 of the recording electrode 30, the toner 27 flies and adheres.

After that, the sheet 51 on which the toner image is formed is conveyed to the fixing device 40. Then, here, the image on the sheet is fixed by being brought into pressure contact with the heat roller 43 and the pressure roller 41. Since this fixing method is a general method, detailed description is omitted. The image-formed sheet is conveyed to the discharge port 12 via the conveyance guide 55 and output.

Although printing is performed by the above-described process, it may be necessary to perform maintenance due to consumption of toner or the like. The user removes the cover of this machine and replaces the toner supply unit 22 inside. At this time, since the unit of this embodiment has the same exterior color as the built-in toner, it is easy for the user to identify and there is no error. Furthermore, since the inside of the device is colored by so-called three primary colors, it is beautiful in appearance and excellent in design.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described in detail above, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, although the control voltage of the aperture corresponding to the non-image portion is set to 0V in the above embodiment, it may be a negative voltage. In this case, an image with less fogging can be obtained. Further, in the above embodiment, the aperture electrode body is used as the toner flow control means, but it is also possible to use, for example, a knitted electrode body as described in the specification of US Pat. No. 5,036,341.

Further, in the present embodiment, the so-called full-color recording apparatus has been described, but it may be applied to a multi-color recording apparatus of, for example, two colors or three colors. In this embodiment, only the toner supply mechanism is color-coded, but if the recording mechanism is separated, the recording mechanism may be colored so that it can be identified.

Further, although the present embodiment has been described with respect to a recording apparatus of a so-called direct recording system, it can be applied to a recording apparatus using various recording systems such as an electrophotographic system, an inkjet system and an electrostatic recording system. It is possible to use.

[0031]

As is apparent from the above description, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of recording units classified by color are arranged inside the apparatus. This makes it possible for the user to prevent color mistakes during maintenance and to enjoy the design when the inside of the device is opened.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment embodying the configuration of an image forming apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an aperture electrode body used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 20 Process Unit 21 Recording Unit 22 Toner Supply Unit 27 Toner 32 Aperture 33 Control Electrode 34 Aperture Electrode Body

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code Internal reference number FI Technical indication G03G 15/00 115

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An image forming apparatus having a printing mechanism capable of recording a plurality of colors, wherein at least a part of the recording mechanism is provided with a display section for indicating a printing color.