Belt conveying device and image forming apparatus

Abstract

To prevent a situation in which vibration of a motor is transmitted to a roller, which vibrates a belt.SOLUTION: A belt conveying device comprises: a first roller that stretches an endless belt member; a second roller that stretches the belt member; a frame member that supports the first roller; a first steering member that supports one end of the second roller, the first steering member swingably supported by the frame member; a second steering member that supports the other end of the second roller, the second steering member supported by the frame member; and a steering driving unit that is provided on the frame member, is connected with the first steering member, and swings the first steering member. The belt conveying device causes the steering driving unit to swing the first steering member to control the inclination in an axial direction of the second roller, and thereby corrects the movement in a width direction intersecting the direction of rotation of the belt member. A vibration isolation member is provided at a connection part between the first steering member and the steering driving unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a belt conveying device that corrects movement of an endless belt member in a width direction that intersects with the rotation direction, and to an image forming apparatus having the belt driving device. [Background technology]

[0002] Image forming apparatuses have been put to practical use, which perform a second transfer of a toner image, which has been primarily transferred from an image carrier to an intermediate transfer belt, from the intermediate transfer belt to a recording material. The intermediate transfer belt is stretched around a number of rollers and driven to rotate, but during the belt rotation process, the belt tends to move toward one end or the other end in its width direction (hereinafter referred to as meandering). The meandering of the belt can cause the belt to fall off the rollers that stretch it, or the end of the belt can be damaged.

[0003] In view of this, a technique has been proposed in which the tilting operation of a steering roller that supports the belt is controlled based on the detection results of an edge sensor that detects the edge position of the belt in the width direction, thereby correcting the meandering of the belt (Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2000-034031 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which, in order to control the tilting operation of the steering roller, the tilt of a swing arm that holds the steering roller is controlled via an eccentric cam connected to a steering motor.

[0006] A stepping motor is used for the steering motor, whose rotation angle can be controlled with high precision. However, the inherent vibration of the rotor that occurs when the stepping motor is continuously rotated by step driving can cause low-speed resonance, and this vibration can become a problem. That is, in an image forming apparatus, the vibration of the stepping motor is transmitted to the steering roller via the swing arm, causing the intermediate transfer belt to vibrate, which can cause an image with pitch unevenness (hereinafter referred to as banding) with the inherent vibration period in the image forming section.

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to suppress the vibration of the belt caused by the vibration of the motor being transmitted to the roller. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A representative configuration of the present invention for achieving the above-mentioned object is a belt conveying device comprising: a first roller for tensioning an endless belt member; a second roller for tensioning the belt member; a frame member supporting the first roller; a first steering member for supporting one end of the second roller, the first steering member being swingably supported by the frame member; a second steering member for supporting the other end of the second roller, the second steering member being supported by the frame member; and a steering drive unit provided on the frame member, connected to the first steering member, and swinging the first steering member, wherein the steering drive unit swings the first steering member to control the axial tilt of the second roller and correct movement in a width direction intersecting the rotational direction of the belt member, and wherein a vibration-isolating member is provided at the connection between the first steering member and the steering drive unit. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, the vibration isolating member can suppress the vibration of the steering drive unit from being transmitted to the first steering member, thereby suppressing the vibration of the steering drive unit from being transmitted to the roller that stretches the belt member, causing the belt member to vibrate. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] Schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit of a belt conveying device including an intermediate transfer belt; [Diagram 3] (a) and (b) are diagrams for explaining the principle of meandering correction of the intermediate transfer belt. [Figure 4] (a) and (b) are diagrams for explaining the principle of meandering correction of the intermediate transfer belt. [Diagram 5] (a) and (b) are diagrams for explaining the principle of meandering correction of the intermediate transfer belt. [Figure 6] Image control block diagram [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit of a belt conveying device including an intermediate transfer belt; [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit in the first embodiment; [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit in a second embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit in a third embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit in the fourth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, and relative positions of the components described in the following embodiments may be changed as appropriate depending on the configuration of the device to which the present invention is applied and various conditions, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention to these alone.

[0012] Example 1 [Image forming device configuration] An image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus has a belt conveying device that corrects movement of an endless belt member in a width direction intersecting with the rotation direction. Here, an image forming apparatus 100 equipped with a belt conveying device 30 including an intermediate transfer belt (endless belt member) 31 that carries a toner image will be described as an example. Note that the endless belt member is not limited to an intermediate transfer belt that carries a toner image.

[0013] The image forming apparatus 100 is a tandem type intermediate transfer type image forming apparatus in which image forming units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1K are arranged in series on a horizontal portion of an intermediate transfer belt 31. The image forming apparatus 100 forms a full-color image on a recording medium S by an electrophotographic method in response to an image signal transmitted from an external device.

[0014] The image forming units 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1K form yellow, magenta, cyan, and black toner images on the photosensitive drums 11Y, 11M, 11C, and 11K as photosensitive members, and primarily transfer the toner images to the same image positions on the intermediate transfer belt 31. The intermediate transfer belt 31 is stretched by a drive roller 33, a steering roller 34, a secondary transfer inner roller 32 for performing secondary transfer, and tension rollers 37 and 38, and rotates in a clockwise direction R1. Primary transfer rollers 35Y, 35M, 35C, and 35K for performing primary transfer are disposed on the inner peripheral surface side of the intermediate transfer belt 31 at positions facing the photosensitive drums 11Y, 11M, 11C, and 11K.

[0015] Around the photosensitive drum 11Y on which a yellow toner image is formed, there are provided a charger 12Y for uniformly charging the surface of the photosensitive drum 11Y, an exposure device 13Y for irradiating the photosensitive drum 11Y with image light to form a latent image on the surface, a developing device 14Y for transferring toner to the latent image on the photosensitive drum 11Y to form a toner image, and a cleaning device 15Y for removing toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 11Y after the primary transfer of the toner image. The configuration for forming magenta, cyan and black toner images can be understood by replacing the suffix Y in the above description with M, C and K.

[0016] Meanwhile, the recording medium S stored in the paper feed cassettes 61, 62, 63 is conveyed to a paper feed conveying path 67 by the rotation of one of the paper feed rollers 64, 65, 66, and sent to the registration rollers 21. The registration rollers 21 feed the recording medium S to a secondary transfer section formed by the pinching between the secondary transfer outer roller 22 and the secondary transfer inner roller 32 in synchronization with the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 31. The toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 31 is secondarily transferred onto the recording medium S by the secondary transfer section. Residual toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 31 after the secondary transfer is removed by a cleaning device 36.

[0017] Next, the recording medium S onto which the toner image has been transferred is transported by a transport belt 60 to a thermal fixing device 5, which heats and presses the toner image to fix it onto the surface of the recording medium S. As a result, the full-color image is fixed onto the recording medium S, and the recording medium S is sent to a paper output tray 69 via a paper output transport path 68.

[0018] [Meandering correction control configuration] 1, 2 and 7, the meandering correction control for correcting the movement of the intermediate transfer belt 31 in the width direction will be described. Fig. 2 and Fig. 7 are diagrams showing a detailed configuration of a steering unit of the belt conveying device 30 including the intermediate transfer belt 31. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the belt conveying device 30 as viewed from one side in the axial direction perpendicular to the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 31, and Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the belt conveying device 30 as viewed from the other side in the axial direction perpendicular to the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 31.

[0019] The belt drive motor 39 (see FIG. 1) rotates and drives the drive roller 33 to transport the intermediate transfer belt 31 in the direction of the arrow R1 shown in FIG. 2. The steering roller 34 is a roller for correcting the movement fluctuation (meandering) in the width direction intersecting the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 31. A belt HP sensor 51 is disposed on the downstream side of the steering roller 34 in the belt transport direction, and an edge sensor 49 is disposed on the upstream side of the steering roller 34 in the belt transport direction. Note that the relationship between the belt HP sensor 51 and the edge sensor 49 in the upstream and downstream directions in the belt transport direction with respect to the steering roller 34 does not have to be limited to this. The belt HP sensor 51 detects a home position mark 50 attached to the back surface of the intermediate transfer belt 31, and generates a reference signal (HP signal) of the belt position. In addition, the edge sensor 49 abuts against an edge (one end in the width direction) of the intermediate transfer belt 31, detects the amount of movement (displacement) of the intermediate transfer belt 31 in the width direction, and generates an output signal according to the meandering of the intermediate transfer belt 31. As will be described later, the control unit 70 (see FIG. 6) detects the positional fluctuation of the intermediate transfer belt 31 in the width direction according to the detection result of the edge sensor 49, and controls the tilt operation of the steering roller 34 based on this positional fluctuation. This makes it possible to correct the movement (meandering) of the intermediate transfer belt 31 in the width direction. Note that stepping motors whose rotational angle and rotational speed can be controlled with high precision are used for the belt drive motor 39 and the steering motor 41.

[0020] [Belt conveyor] Here, a description will be given of the belt conveying device 30 including the intermediate transfer belt 31. The image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG.

[0021] The belt conveying device 30 includes an intermediate transfer belt 31 that carries a toner image as an endless belt member. Here, the intermediate transfer belt 31 is exemplified as an endless belt member, but is not limited thereto. For example, in an image forming apparatus that transfers a toner image to a recording medium carried on a conveying belt, the intermediate transfer belt 31 may be the conveying belt (recording medium carrier) that carries and conveys a recording medium.

[0022] The belt conveying device 30 includes a drive roller 33 as a first roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31 and drives the intermediate transfer belt 31 to rotate, and a steering roller 34 as a second roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31.

[0023] The belt conveying device 30 includes a frame 58, a first steering member 43, a second steering member 28, and a steering drive unit 40. The frame 58 is a frame member that supports the drive roller 33. Both axial ends of the drive roller 33 are supported by the frame 58. That is, one end of the drive roller 33 is supported by a frame portion on one axial side of the frame 58, and the other end of the drive roller 33 is supported by a frame portion on the other axial side of the frame 58.

[0024] The first steering member 43 is a first support member that supports one end of the steering roller 34, and is supported swingably on the frame 58. The first steering member 43 is supported by a frame portion on one axial side of the frame 58. The first steering member 43 has a steering arm 44, a cam follower 45, a tension spring 46, a steering roller bearing 47, a slide rail 48, and a tension plate 56.

[0025] One end of the steering roller 34 is supported by a steering roller bearing 47. The steering roller bearing 47 is supported by a slide rail 48 together with a tension plate 56. The slide rail 48 is supported by the steering arm 44 so as to be movable in the direction of arrow D. Therefore, the steering roller 34 is supported by the steering arm 44 so as to be movable in the direction of the arrow.

[0026] In a frame portion on one axial side of the frame 58, one end 46a of a tension spring 46 is held by the steering arm 44, and the other end 46b is held by a tension plate 56. The tension spring 46 urges the steering roller 34, the steering roller bearing 47, and the tension plate 56 in the direction of arrow F.

[0027] The steering arm 44 is supported by a frame 58 so as to be able to swing about a shaft 59. The steering arm 44 is provided with a cam follower 45. The cam follower 45 is a rotating member supported by a support portion 44a.

[0028] The second steering member 28 is a second support member that supports the other end of the steering roller 34, and is supported by the frame 58. The second steering member 28 is supported by a frame portion on the other axial side of the frame 58. The second steering member 28 has a tension spring 46, a steering roller bearing 47, a slide rail 48, and a tension plate 56.

[0029] The other end of the steering roller 34 is supported by a steering roller bearing 47. The steering roller bearing 47 is supported by a slide rail 48 together with a tension plate 56. The slide rail 48 is supported by the frame portion on the other side of the frame 58 so as to be movable in the direction of the arrow D. Therefore, the steering roller 34 is supported by the steering arm 44 so as to be movable in the direction of the arrow D. The second steering member 28 is not supported so as to be swingable, unlike the first steering member 43. Therefore, the inclination of one end side of the steering roller 34 relative to the other end side is controlled, so that the movement in the width direction of the belt is corrected. The inclination control of the steering roller 34 (principle of belt meandering correction) will be described later.

[0030] At the frame portion on the other axial side of the frame 58, one end 46a of the tension spring 46 is held by the frame 58, and the other end 46b is held by the tension plate 56. The tension spring 46 urges the steering roller 34, the steering roller bearing 47, and the tension plate 56 in the direction of arrow F.

[0031] The steering roller 34, which is the second roller, is biased by tension springs 46 on both sides, and the biasing force applies tension to the intermediate transfer belt 31. In other words, the steering roller 34, which is the second roller, also serves as a tension roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31 and applies tension to the intermediate transfer belt 31.

[0032] The steering drive unit 40 is provided on the frame 58, and is connected to the first steering member 43 to swing the first steering member 43. The steering drive unit 40 has a steering motor 41 as a drive source, and a steering cam 42. The steering motor 41 is supported by the frame 58. The steering cam 42 is connected to the steering motor 41 and is rotationally driven by the steering motor 41. The steering cam 42 is supported by a motor shaft 41a, which serves as a support unit.

[0033] The cam follower 45 is held at one end by the steering arm 44 and at the other end by a return spring 57 held by a frame 58, and is brought into contact with the steering cam 42. Then, in accordance with the amount of eccentricity of the steering cam 42 rotated by the steering motor 41, the steering arm 44 is caused to swing about an axis 59 via the cam follower 45, thereby controlling the inclination of the steering roller 34.

[0034] [Belt meandering correction principle] In this way, in the belt conveying device 30, the axial tilt of the steering roller 34 is controlled by swinging the first steering member 43 by the steering drive unit 40, and the movement in the width direction intersecting the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 31 is corrected. A detailed description will be given with reference to Figs. 3 to 5.

[0035] 3 to 5 are diagrams for explaining the principle of meandering correction of the intermediate transfer belt 31. Fig. 3(a), Fig. 4(a), and Fig. 5(a) are front views of the steering cam 42 and the steering roller 34 relative to the image forming apparatus, and Fig. 3(b), Fig. 4(b), and Fig. 5(b) are right side views of the steering roller 34 relative to the image forming apparatus.

[0036] Figures 3(a) and 3(b) show the state where the steering roller is held in a horizontal position. Figures 4(a) and 4(b) show the state where the steering roller is tilted in the θ1 direction from the horizontal position. Figures 5(a) and 5(b) show the state where the steering roller is tilted in the θ2 direction from the horizontal position.

[0037] As shown in Figures 3(a) and 3(b), the steering cam 42 stops at a predetermined angle, and the steering roller 34 is held almost horizontal (with almost zero inclination) in accordance with the stop angle. The states shown in Figures 3(a) and 3(b) are ideal states in which there is no tolerance for the front-rear peripheral length difference (the difference between the peripheral length of one end of the belt in the width direction and the peripheral length of the other end), friction distribution, tension distribution, etc. of the intermediate transfer belt 31. Furthermore, if all the tension rollers are parallel in the states shown in Figures 3(a) and 3(b), the intermediate transfer belt 31 will not move (wander) in the width direction.

[0038] 3(a), the steering cam 42 stops at a predetermined angle and abuts against the cam follower 45 with an eccentricity a. Here, the eccentricity a of the steering cam 42 corresponds to the distance from the rotation center of the steering cam 42 to the outer circumferential surface that abuts against the cam follower 45.

[0039] The position of the steering cam 42 shown in Fig. 3(a) is set as the neutral position, and the tilt of the steering roller 34 is controlled based on this state. The position of the steering cam 42 shown in Fig. 3(a) is a position where the deviation of the intermediate transfer belt is stable and where the fluctuation of the edge sensor 49 is equal to or smaller than a specified value.

[0040] When the steering cam 42 is rotated by driving the steering motor 41 from the state shown in FIG. 3(a) and FIG. 3(b) as shown in FIG. 4(a) and FIG. 4(b), the steering arm 44 swings in the θ1 direction according to the eccentricity of the steering cam 42. In the state shown in FIG. 4(a), the steering cam 42 abuts against the cam follower 45 at an eccentricity b that is larger than the eccentricity a shown in FIG. 3(a). As a result, one end of the steering roller 34 is lifted upward from the position shown in FIG. 3(a) by the steering arm 44, and the steering roller 34 is tilted according to the lifting amount (swing amount). At this time, the intermediate transfer belt 31 wound around the steering roller 34 moves toward the roller end side lifted by the steering arm 44 (in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 4(b)).

[0041] On the other hand, when the steering cam 42 is rotated by driving the steering motor 41 from the state shown in FIG. 3(a) and FIG. 3(b) as shown in FIG. 5(a) and FIG. 5(b), the steering arm 44 swings in the θ2 direction, which is the opposite direction to the θ1 direction, according to the eccentricity of the steering cam 42. In the state shown in FIG. 5(a), the steering cam 42 abuts against the cam follower 45 at an eccentricity c smaller than the eccentricity a shown in FIG. 3(a). As a result, one end of the steering roller 34 is pushed down by the steering arm 44 from the position shown in FIG. 3(a), so that the steering roller 34 is tilted according to the amount of pushing down (amount of swing). At this time, the intermediate transfer belt 31 wound around the steering roller 34 moves in the opposite direction (arrow direction shown in FIG. 5(b)) to the roller end side pushed down by the steering arm 44.

[0042] For this reason, it is possible to correct the meandering of the intermediate transfer belt 31 by continuously detecting the positional fluctuation of the intermediate transfer belt 31 in the width direction using the edge sensor 49 and controlling the tilting operation of the steering roller 34 based on the detection results.

[0043] In reality, the intermediate transfer belt 31 has front-rear peripheral differences, friction distribution, and front-rear differences in tension distribution. In addition, it is difficult to arrange all tension rollers in parallel, and an ideal state in which the intermediate transfer belt 31 does not meander does not actually exist. For this reason, in order to keep the belt position in the meandering direction constant, the inclination of the steering roller 34 must be continuously adjusted.

[0044] [Control Unit] The control system of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a control block diagram of the image forming apparatus. The control unit 70 has a CPU 71, a ROM 72, and a RAM 73. The CPU 71 is a control circuit that controls the entire image forming apparatus 100. The ROM 72 stores control programs for controlling various processes executed by the image forming apparatus 100. The RAM 73 is a system work memory for the operation of the CPU 71, and also functions as an image memory for temporarily storing image data.

[0045] A hard disk drive (hereinafter, referred to as HDD) 74 stores data such as system software and image data. Edge profile data P unique to the intermediate transfer belt 31 is stored in advance in the HDD 74 in order based on the position of the home position mark 50. The edge profile data P indicates shape data of the end of the intermediate transfer belt 31 on the side with which the edge sensor 49 abuts. In the control unit 71, the CPU 72 accesses the HDD 74 and reads out the edge profile data P based on the HP signal input from the belt HP sensor 51. The edge profile data P is profile data (position data of the belt end) of one revolution of the belt end of the intermediate transfer belt 31 on the side with which the edge sensor 49 abuts. The edge profile data P is read out sequentially at predetermined intervals.

[0046] Furthermore, the CPU 71 captures edge data E from the edge sensor 49 at the same intervals as the edge profile data P, based on the HP signal input from the belt HP sensor 51 while the intermediate transfer belt 31 is rotating. The edge data E is position data of the belt end read from the edge sensor 49. The CPU 71 then calculates a position change amount (hereinafter referred to as displacement) equivalent to the amount of meandering of the intermediate transfer belt 31, based on the edge profile data P read sequentially and the captured edge data E. Furthermore, the CPU 71 outputs a steering control signal consisting of a drive direction and drive amount to the steering motor 41 so as to reduce meandering in accordance with the calculated displacement of the intermediate transfer belt 31, thereby driving the steering motor 41.

[0047] [Vibration-proofing material] A connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the first embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing the configuration of the connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the first embodiment.

[0048] 8, the first steering member 43 has an abutment member that abuts against the steering drive unit 40 as a connection portion with the steering drive unit 40. The abutment member is a cam follower 45 as a rotating member supported by a support portion 44a.

[0049] The steering drive unit 40 also has a contact member that contacts the first steering member 43 as a connection portion with the first steering member 43. The contact member is a steering cam 42 that is connected to a steering motor 41 and is driven to rotate by the steering motor 41.

[0050] Note that, here, an abutment member that abuts against the steering drive unit 40 is exemplified as the connecting portion of the first steering member 43 with the steering drive unit 40, but is not limited to the abutment member and may be another connecting member. In addition, the abutment member is not limited to the cam follower 45 as a rotating member supported by the support portion 44a.

[0051] Although an abutting member that abuts against the first steering member 43 is exemplified as a connecting portion of the steering drive unit 40 with the first steering member 43, this is not limited to the abutting member and may be another connecting member. Furthermore, the abutting member is not limited to a cam connected to a drive source.

[0052] 8, in this embodiment, a vibration-isolating member 52 is provided on the outer diameter (outer periphery) of a cam follower 45 which is a connecting portion (contact member) with the steering drive unit 40 and which the first steering member 43 has. The steering cam 42 of the steering drive unit 40 contacts the cam follower 45 via the vibration-isolating member 52. In this embodiment, the vibration-isolating member 52 uses vibration-isolating rubber having vibration damping properties.

[0053] The vibration isolating member 52 provided at the connection between the first steering member 43 and the steering drive unit 40 can suppress the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the cam follower 45. This suppresses the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31, causing the intermediate transfer belt 31 to vibrate. This makes it possible to suppress the occurrence of banding due to the vibration of the steering motor 41.

[0054] Example 2 A connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the second embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the configuration of the connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the second embodiment.

[0055] In this embodiment, the arrangement of the vibration-isolating members in the connecting portion is different from that of the above-mentioned embodiment, but the other configurations are the same as those of the above-mentioned embodiment, so a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0056] 9, in this embodiment, a vibration-isolating member 53 is provided on the outer diameter (outer periphery) of the steering cam 42, which is a connecting portion (contact member) with the first steering member 43 of the steering drive unit 40. The cam follower 45 of the first steering member 43 abuts against the steering cam 42 via the vibration-isolating member 53. In this embodiment, the vibration-isolating member 53 uses vibration-isolating rubber having vibration damping properties.

[0057] The vibration isolating member 53 provided at the connection between the first steering member 43 and the steering drive unit 40 can suppress the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the cam follower 45. This suppresses the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31, causing the intermediate transfer belt 31 to vibrate. This makes it possible to suppress the occurrence of banding due to the vibration of the steering motor 41.

[0058] Example 3 A connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the third embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of the connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the third embodiment.

[0059] In this embodiment, the arrangement of the vibration-isolating members in the connecting portion is different from that of the above-mentioned embodiment, but the other configurations are the same as those of the above-mentioned embodiment, so a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0060] As shown in Fig. 10, in this embodiment, a vibration-proof member 54 is provided on the inner diameter of the cam follower 45, which is a connecting portion (contact member) with the steering drive unit 40 and which the first steering member 43 has. In other words, the cam follower 45 is a rotating member supported by a support portion 44a, and the vibration-proof member 54 is provided between the support portion 44a and the cam follower 45. The cam follower 45, which contacts the steering drive unit 40, is supported by the support portion 44a via the vibration-proof member 54. The vibration-proof member 54 suppresses the transmission of vibration from the cam follower 45 to the steering arm 44. In this embodiment, the vibration-proof member 54 uses vibration-proof rubber having vibration damping properties.

[0061] The vibration isolating member 54 provided at the connection between the first steering member 43 and the steering drive unit 40 can suppress the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted from the cam follower 45 to the steering arm 44. This suppresses the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31, causing the intermediate transfer belt 31 to vibrate. This makes it possible to suppress the occurrence of banding due to the vibration of the steering motor 41.

[0062] Example 4 A connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 11. Fig. 11 is a diagram showing the configuration of the connection portion between the steering drive unit 40 and the first steering member 43 in the fourth embodiment.

[0063] In this embodiment, the arrangement of the vibration-isolating members in the connecting portion is different from that of the above-mentioned embodiment, but the other configurations are the same as those of the above-mentioned embodiment, so a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0064] As shown in Fig. 11, in this embodiment, a vibration-proof member 55 is provided on the inner diameter of the steering cam 42, which is a connecting portion (contact member) with the first steering member 43 of the steering drive unit 40. In other words, the steering cam 42 is a cam connected to the steering motor 41 and supported by the motor shaft 41a as a support portion, and the vibration-proof member 55 is provided between the motor shaft 41a and the steering cam 42. The steering cam 42, which contacts the first steering member 43, is supported by the motor shaft 41a via the vibration-proof member 55. The vibration-proof member 55 prevents the transmission of vibration from the steering motor 41 to the steering cam 42. In this embodiment, the vibration-proof member 55 uses vibration-proof rubber having vibration damping properties.

[0065] The vibration isolating member 55 provided at the connection between the first steering member 43 and the steering drive unit 40 can suppress the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the steering cam 42. This suppresses the vibration of the steering motor 41 from being transmitted to the roller that stretches the intermediate transfer belt 31, causing the intermediate transfer belt 31 to vibrate. This makes it possible to suppress the occurrence of banding due to the vibration of the steering motor 41. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] S...Recording medium 30...Belt conveyor 31 ... intermediate transfer belt (belt member) 33 ... Drive roller (first roller) 34 ... Steering roller (second roller) 39 ...Belt drive motor 40 ... Steering drive unit 41 ... Steering motor (drive source) 41a …Motor shaft (support part) 42 ... Steering cam (connection part, contact part) 43 ... First steering member 44 ... Steering arm 44a...Support part 45 ... Cam follower (connection part, contact member, rotating member) 46 ... tension spring 47 ... Steering roller bearing 48 ... Slide rail 49 ... Edge sensor 50 ... Home position mark 51 ... Belt HP sensor 52, 53, 54, 55 ... Vibration-proof members 56 ... tension plate 57 ...Return spring 58...Frame 59 ... Axis 70 ...Control section 71...CPU 72...ROM 73...RAM 100 ... Image forming device

Claims

1. A first roller around which an endless belt member is stretched; A second roller that stretches the belt member; a frame member supporting the first roller; a first steering member supporting one end of the second roller, the first steering member being swingably supported by the frame member; a second steering member supporting the other end of the second roller, the second steering member being supported by the frame member; a steering drive unit provided on the frame member, connected to the first steering member, and configured to swing the first steering member; a steering drive unit that swings the first steering member to control an inclination of the second roller in an axial direction, thereby correcting a movement of the belt member in a width direction that intersects with a rotation direction of the belt member, A belt conveying device comprising: a vibration isolating member provided at a connection portion between said first steering member and said steering drive portion.

2. 2. The belt conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the first steering member has a contact member that contacts the steering drive portion as a connection portion with the steering drive portion, and the vibration isolating member is provided on the contact member.

3. 3. The belt conveying device according to claim 2, wherein the contact member is a rotating member supported by a support portion, the vibration-damping member is provided on an outer periphery of the rotating member, and the steering drive portion contacts the rotating member via the vibration-damping member.

4. 3. The belt conveying device according to claim 2, wherein the contact member is a rotating member supported by a support portion, the vibration-isolating member is provided between the support portion and the rotating member, and the rotating member that contacts the steering drive portion is supported by the support portion via the vibration-isolating member.

5. 2. The belt conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the steering drive portion has an abutment member that abuts against the first steering member as a connection portion with the first steering member, and the vibration-proof member is provided on the abutment member.

6. 6. The belt conveying device according to claim 5, wherein the contact member is a cam connected to a drive source and rotated by the drive source, the vibration-proof member is provided on an outer periphery of the cam, and the first steering member contacts the cam via the vibration-proof member.

7. 7. The belt conveying device according to claim 6, wherein the contact member is a cam connected to a drive source and supported by a support portion, the vibration-isolating member is provided between the support portion and the cam, and the cam that contacts the first steering member is supported by the support portion via the vibration-isolating member.

8. 2. The belt conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration-isolating member is a vibration-isolating rubber having vibration-damping properties.

9. 2. The belt transport device according to claim 1, wherein the endless belt member is an intermediate transfer belt that carries a toner image.

10. 2. The belt conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the first roller is a drive roller that stretches the belt member and drives the belt member to rotate.

11. 2. The belt conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the second roller is a tension roller that stretches the belt member and applies tension to the belt member.

12. An image forming apparatus comprising: a photoconductor; and the belt transport device according to claim 1 .

Images