CLEANING DEVICE, IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, METHOD AND PROGRAM

Abstract

To prevent in advance the occurrence of vibration associated with contact of a blade with an image carrier.SOLUTION: A cleaning device comprises: a blade that is in contact with a surface of an image carrier that is rotatably pivotally supported and cleans the image carrier; a vibration generating unit that applies vibration to the blade; and a control unit that controls the vibration generating unit. The control unit has a vibration amount determination unit that determines the amount of vibration applied to the blade by the vibration generating unit based on the amount of biting of the blade into the surface of the image carrier.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a cleaning device, an image forming apparatus, a method, and a program, and more particularly to a cleaning device, an image forming apparatus, a method, and a program relating to cleaning using a blade. [Background technology]

[0002] In a conventional image forming apparatus, a configuration having a blade for cleaning an image carrier such as a photoconductor is disclosed in JP 2010-151900 A (Patent Document 1), JP 2005-338170 A (Patent Document 2), and JP 2011-237536 A (Patent Document 3). It is also known that the film of the photoconductor is scraped off by contact with the blade. For example, JP 2018-87855 A (Patent Document 4) discloses a technology for avoiding scraping of the film of the photoconductor. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2010-151900 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2005-338170 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2011-237536 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2018-87855 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The blade comes into contact with the image carrier, and friction at the contact point causes the blade to vibrate. When the vibration becomes large, noise (so-called squealing) occurs, and pitch unevenness occurs on the image. Patent documents 1 and 2 describe a method of detecting vibration and applying vibration to the blade itself to cancel the detected vibration. Patent document 3 describes a configuration that detects vibration caused by resonance of image formation process parts and sets the frequency of the process voltage to reduce the detected vibration.

[0005] Since Patent Documents 1 to 3 all have configurations that detect vibrations, that is, configurations that prevent vibrations on the premise that vibrations will be generated, it cannot be said that they provide a high degree of accuracy in preventing the occurrence of the noise and pitch unevenness in the image described above.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a cleaning device, an image forming apparatus, a method, and a program that can prevent the occurrence of vibrations caused by contact of the blade with the image carrier. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The cleaning device according to the present disclosure comprises a blade that cleans an image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier that is rotatably supported on a shaft, a vibration unit that applies vibration to the blade, and a control unit that controls the vibration unit. The control unit has a vibration amount determination unit that determines the amount of vibration applied to the blade by the vibration unit based on the amount of penetration of the blade into the surface of the image carrier.

[0008] In the above disclosure, the cleaning device further includes a temperature detection unit that detects the ambient temperature of the blade, and the control unit controls the vibration unit to apply a vibration amount based on the amount of penetration to the blade when the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0009] In the above disclosure, the predetermined conditions include a first condition that the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit is equal to or lower than a first threshold value.

[0010] In the above disclosure, the control unit controls the vibration unit to start applying a vibration amount based on the biting amount to the blade when a first condition is satisfied at the start of printing in which a toner image formed on the surface of the image carrier is transferred to paper.

[0011] In the above disclosure, the predetermined conditions include a second condition that the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit is equal to or lower than a second threshold, and the control unit starts applying a vibration amount based on the amount of penetration to the blade, and then controls the vibration unit to stop applying the vibration amount based on the amount of penetration to the blade when the second condition is satisfied.

[0012] In the above disclosure, the cleaning device is provided in association with a printer that prints a toner image formed on the surface of an image carrier onto paper, and the vibration amount determination unit further determines the amount of vibration to be applied to the blade by the vibration unit based on the amount of penetration and the coverage of the image printed on the paper by the printer.

[0013] In the above disclosure, a recording medium for readably recording data on the bite amount is further provided.

[0014] In the above disclosure, the recording medium includes a memory device that stores data on the amount of penetration.

[0015] In the above disclosure, the recording medium includes a medium on which a barcode image representing the bite amount is printed.

[0016] In the above disclosure, the vibration amount determined by the vibration amount determination unit is the vibration amount applied in a direction that suppresses vibrations generated in the blade during cleaning.

[0017] In the above disclosure, the amount of vibration applied in a direction to suppress vibration generated in the blade during cleaning has a phase opposite to the phase of the vibration generated in the blade.

[0018] Another disclosed image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus including the cleaning device described above.

[0019] Another disclosed method includes a step of acquiring an amount of penetration of a blade, which cleans a rotatably supported image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier, into the surface of the image carrier, and a step of determining an amount of vibration to be applied to the blade during cleaning based on the acquired amount of penetration.

[0020] Another disclosed program is a program for causing a processor to execute a method, the method including the steps of acquiring an amount of penetration of a blade, which cleans a rotatably supported image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier, into the surface of the image carrier, and determining an amount of vibration to be applied to the blade during cleaning based on the acquired amount of penetration. Effect of the Invention

[0021] According to the present disclosure, the amount of vibration applied to the blade by the vibration unit is determined based on the amount of penetration of the blade into the surface of the image carrier, thereby making it possible to prevent vibrations caused by contact of the blade with the image carrier. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a device configuration of an image forming apparatus 100. [Diagram 2] 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of an imaging unit 5 shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] 11 is a diagram for explaining an example of a bite amount according to the present embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic module configuration relating to control of a cleaning unit 20 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a first table according to the present embodiment. [Figure 7] It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the second table according to this embodiment. [Figure 8] It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the third table 60 according to this embodiment. [Figure 9] It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the fourth table 70 according to this embodiment. [Figure 10] It is a diagram showing an example of the flowchart according to this embodiment. [Figure 11] It is a diagram showing another example of the flowchart according to this embodiment.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0023] The image forming apparatus in the embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the embodiments described below, when referring to the number, quantity, etc., unless otherwise specified, the scope of the present disclosure is not necessarily limited to the number, quantity, etc. For the same parts and corresponding parts, the same reference numerals may be given, and duplicate explanations may not be repeated.

[0024] In the drawings, the illustration does not follow the ratio of the actual dimensions, and there are places where the ratio is changed for easy understanding of the structure so that the structure is clear. Note that each of the embodiments and each modification described below may be selectively combined as appropriate.

[0025] Also, in the following, an image forming apparatus as a color printer will be described, but the image forming apparatus is not limited to a color printer. For example, the image forming apparatus may be a copying machine, a color or monochrome printer, a facsimile apparatus, and a composite machine (MFP: Multi - Functional Peripheral) that forms an image by an electrophotographic method or an electrostatic recording method, etc.

[0026] <A. Overall Configuration of the Image Forming Apparatus> Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a device configuration of an image forming apparatus 100. A schematic configuration and operation of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1.

[0027] Image forming apparatus 100 mainly comprises an apparatus main body 2, a storage section 9, and a control device 150. The apparatus main body 2 includes an image forming unit 2A which is a section for forming an image on paper S as a recording medium, and a paper feed unit 2B which is a section for supplying paper S to image forming unit 2A. The storage section 9 stores paper S to be supplied to image forming unit 2A, and is provided detachably in paper feed unit 2B.

[0028] A plurality of rollers 3 are installed inside the image forming apparatus 100, and a transport path 4 along which the paper S is transported in a predetermined direction is constructed across the image forming unit 2A and the paper feeding unit 2B described above. As shown in Fig. 1, the apparatus body 2 may be provided with a separate manual feed tray 9a for supplying paper S to the image forming unit 2A.

[0029] The image forming unit 2A mainly comprises an imaging unit 5 capable of forming toner images of each color, for example yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C) and black (K), an exposure unit 6 for exposing an image carrier 11 included in the imaging unit 5, an intermediate transfer belt 7a stretched over the imaging unit 5, a secondary transfer section 7 located on the conveying path 4 and on the path of the intermediate transfer belt 7a, a belt cleaning section 8, and a fixing device 1 located on the conveying path 4 downstream of the secondary transfer section 7.

[0030] The control device 150 controls the entire image forming apparatus 100. The control device 150 transmits a signal corresponding to an image to be formed on the paper S to the exposure unit 6. Based on the signal from the control device 150, the exposure unit 6 drives each of the exposure means for each color.

[0031] The imaging unit 5 includes an image carrier 11 that is rotatably supported. The imaging unit 5 receives exposure from the exposure unit 6 and forms toner images of each color of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) or a toner image consisting of only black (K) on the surface of the image carrier 11. The toner images of the above respective colors are transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7a by each primary transfer roller 12 (so-called primary transfer). As a result, a color toner image or a monochrome toner image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 7a. Details of the imaging unit 5 will be described later.

[0032] The intermediate transfer belt 7a transfers the color toner image or monochrome toner image formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 7a to the secondary transfer unit 7 and is pressed against the secondary transfer unit 7 together with the sheet S conveyed from the paper feeding unit 2B to the secondary transfer unit 7. As a result, the color toner image or monochrome toner image formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 7a is transferred to the sheet S (so-called secondary transfer).

[0033] After the color toner image or monochrome toner image is transferred to the sheet S by the secondary transfer unit 7, the intermediate transfer belt 7a from which the sheet S has been separated by curvature has the residual toner removed by the belt cleaning unit 8.

[0034] The sheet S onto which the color toner image or monochrome toner image has been transferred is then pressed and heated by the fixing device 1, and the toner image formed on the sheet S is fixed. As a result, a color image or a monochrome image is formed (printed) on the sheet S, and the sheet S on which the color image or monochrome image has been formed is then discharged from the apparatus main body 2.

[0035] <B. Configuration of Imaging Unit 5> Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the imaging unit 5 shown in Fig. 1. In Fig. 2, in order to explain the configuration of the imaging unit 5, an area II shown in Fig. 1 is enlarged and shown typically, and in particular, the periphery of the image carrier 11 is enlarged and shown. In Fig. 2, the intermediate transfer belt 7a is omitted. The rotation direction DR1 in Fig. 2 is the rotation direction of the image carrier 11.

[0036] The imaging unit 5 has a unit housing 51. Inside the housing 51, a cleaning section 20, which is an example of a "cleaning device", a charging section 15, and a developing device 13 are further included. The cleaning section 20, the charging section 15, the developing device 13, and the primary transfer roller 12 are arranged in this order along the rotation direction DR1.

[0037] The charging section 15 charges the image carrier 11. After the charging section 15 charges the image carrier 11, the exposure unit 6 emits light toward the image carrier 11, thereby forming an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the image carrier 11. Although the exposure unit 6 is provided outside the housing 51 in FIG. 2, it may be provided inside the housing 51.

[0038] The developing device 13 supplies a developer to the image carrier 11. As a result, a toner image is formed on the surface of the image carrier 11. The toner image is primarily transferred to an intermediate transfer belt 7a (not shown) by a primary transfer roller 12 disposed downstream of the developing device 13 in the rotation direction DR1. After the primary transfer, toner that has not been transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 7a (transfer residual toner) remains on the surface of the image carrier 11.

[0039] The cleaning unit 20, which is disposed downstream of the primary transfer roller 12 in the rotation direction DR1, cleans the transfer residual toner. The cleaning unit 20 cleans the surface of the image carrier 11 by coming into contact with the image carrier 11.

[0040] The cleaning unit 20 has a "blade", which is configured with an elastic portion 25, a leaf spring 24, and a holder 23. The elastic portion 25 is formed from an elastic body containing urethane resin. The elastic portion 25 has a plate-like shape. The elastic portion 25 has a tip 25a which is an end portion closer to the image carrier 11 when viewed in the axial direction of the image carrier 11. A part of the tip 25a forms a contact portion 25c which abuts against the surface of the image carrier 11. More specifically, the contact portion 25c abuts against the surface of the image carrier 11 when the tip 25a of the elastic portion 25 is bent.

[0041] The leaf spring 24 has a plate-like shape that supports the elastic portion 25. The tip of the leaf spring 24 is an end closer to the image carrier 11 when viewed in the axial direction of the image carrier 11, and the other end is joined to the holder 23 at a joining region 23a.

[0042] The position of the holder 23 is fixed. One end of the holder 23 holds the leaf spring 24, and the other end is supported by the housing 51.

[0043] (b1. Structure to suppress blade vibration) Cleaning unit 20 further includes a vibration unit that applies vibration to the blade, a recording medium 52 that readably records data 53 indicating the amount of bite, which will be described later, a control unit that controls cleaning unit 20, and a temperature detection unit that includes a temperature sensor 169, which will be described later. The temperature sensor 169 measures the internal temperature of image forming apparatus 100. This internal temperature can be regarded as the ambient temperature of the blade, and therefore in this embodiment, the temperature sensor 169 can measure the ambient temperature of the blade.

[0044] In this embodiment, the control unit of the cleaning unit 20 is configured by the CPU 101, but the control unit may be configured by a dedicated circuit different from the CPU 101. The dedicated circuit may be configured to include a processor circuit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The control unit determines the amount of vibration to be applied to the blade by the vibration applying unit based on the amount of penetration of the blade into the surface of the image carrier 11. The determined amount of vibration is the amount of vibration to be applied to the blade in a direction to suppress vibration generated in the blade during cleaning. The control unit for vibration generated in the blade also outputs a command 2a based on a frequency indicated by the determined amount of vibration. In this embodiment, the amount of vibration applied in a direction to suppress vibration generated in the blade by the command 2a indicates a frequency based on the vibration generated in the blade, an amplitude based on the vibration generated in the blade, and a vibration having a phase opposite to the phase of the vibration generated in the blade. In the following, for the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that the amount of vibration determined based on the amount of penetration mainly indicates a frequency, and the amplitude and phase are given.

[0045] The vibration unit includes a vibration unit 21 disposed on the side of the blade that does not contact the image carrier 11, and a drive unit 22 having an AC (Alternating Current) power source 22a that applies a drive signal to the vibration unit 21. The drive unit 22 controls the AC power source 22a using a command 2a output from the control unit, thereby applying an AC voltage having a phase synchronized with the vibration frequency indicated by the command 2a to the vibration unit 21 as a drive signal. The vibration unit 21 includes, for example, a piezoelectric element. The piezoelectric element expands and contracts in response to the application of the AC voltage from the drive unit 22, and vibrates at the frequency of the applied AC voltage. The blade is applied with vibration by the transmission of the vibration of the vibration unit 21 attached integrally to the blade, and vibrates at the phase and frequency of the vibration. In this embodiment, the vibration unit 21 is composed of a piezoelectric element, but it is not limited to a piezoelectric element as long as it is an element that can convert an electrical signal into mechanical movement.

[0046] During cleaning, vibrations acting in a direction to suppress the vibrations generated in the blade are applied to the blade, so that the generated vibrations can be suppressed. Further, the amount of vibration to be applied is determined based on the depth-of-penetration amount data 53 recorded on the recording medium 52, rather than the amount of vibration detected during cleaning. Therefore, the amount of vibration for vibration suppression can be determined without generating vibrations during cleaning.

[0047] <C. Initial value of depth-of-penetration amount> In the present embodiment, the amount of vibration to be applied to the blade is determined from the relationship between the depth-of-penetration amount and the amount of vibration of the blade based on the "contact state between the blade and the image carrier 11" related to the natural vibration of the blade, that is, the depth-of-penetration amount peculiar to the blade. In order to determine the amount of vibration to be applied, depth-of-penetration amount data 53 is recorded on the recording medium 52 as one of the initial parameters.

[0048] The depth-of-penetration amount data 53 is a value related to the pressing state of the blade against the image carrier 11, measured in a state where the cleaning unit 20 and the imaging unit 5 are not in use, for example, in the factory assembly process. As a value related to this pressing state, an initial pressure proportional to the depth-of-penetration amount will be described.

[0049] FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of the depth-of-penetration amount according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3(A) shows a state where the elastic portion 25 is pressed against the image carrier 11. FIG. 3(B) shows a state where the elastic portion 25 is not pressed against the image carrier 11.

[0050] 3(A), the elastic portion 25 is fixed to the leaf spring 24 at a position where it contacts the image carrier 11. Therefore, a contact force F acts on the image carrier 11 from the elastic portion 25 in a direction 530 toward the center 520 of the image carrier 11. The contact force F in the unused cleaning portion 20 corresponds to the initial pressure. This initial pressure represents the pressure of the blade against the image carrier 11 before the cleaning portion 20 of the imaging unit 5 is used in the image forming apparatus 100. Since the manufacturing precision and arrangement positions of the cleaning portion 20 and the image carrier 11 differ for each imaging unit 5, the initial pressure differs for each imaging unit 5 and each image forming apparatus 100.

[0051] The image carrier 11 has a photosensitive layer of a predetermined thickness formed on the peripheral surface of a cylindrical base material. The elastic portion 25 applies a contact force F to the image carrier 11 to appropriately scrape the surface of the photosensitive layer of the image carrier 11, thereby recovering the untransferred toner remaining on the image carrier 11.

[0052] More specifically, the blade presses an edge (hereinafter also referred to as the "blade edge") corresponding to the contact portion 25c at the tip against the image carrier 11, and by applying a high peak pressure, the toner is blocked, thereby removing the residual toner remaining on the image carrier 11. At this time, the blade abuts on the image carrier 11 with the tangent direction of the end face that contacts the image carrier 11 at a certain angle to the tangent direction of the image carrier 11, that is, with a biting amount. This abutment creates a wedge-shaped space between the blade edge and the image carrier 11. When image formation is repeated in the imaging unit 5, a reservoir portion is formed in the wedge-shaped space where the scraped off residual toner accumulates. In this way, in the cleaning operation, the collected residual toner accumulates in the reservoir portion of the blade edge.

[0053] As described above, the initial pressure varies for each imaging unit 5. This point will be described with reference to FIG.

[0054] The image carrier 11 (center 520) is installed at a predetermined position in the cleaning unit 20. Therefore, the position of the image carrier 11 and the position of the outer circumferential surface of the image carrier 11 are known values. The bite amount Δu represents the distance 540 from the part of the elastic portion 25 that bites into the image carrier 11 the most (the left side of the upper surface of the elastic portion 25 in the example of FIG. 3(B)) to the outer circumferential surface of the image carrier 11 when the image carrier 11 is not arranged.

[0055] This biting amount Δu varies depending on the manufacturing precision and arrangement positions of the image carrier 11 and the elastic portion 25. More specifically, the length (free length) of the portion of the elastic portion 25 that is not fixed by the leaf spring 24 varies due to variation in the attachment position of the elastic portion 25 relative to the leaf spring 24. Variation in the free length results in variation in the biting amount Δu (unit: mm). The biting amount Δu also varies due to variation in the attachment position of the leaf spring 24 in the cleaning portion 20 and the attachment position of the image carrier 11 (center 520). In addition, the biting amount Δu also varies due to variation in the radius of the image carrier 11 and the thickness of the elastic portion 25.

[0056] In one embodiment, the bite amount Δu is set as bite amount data 53 relating to the pressing state of the elastic portion 25 against the image carrier 11. The bite amount Δu is measured for each cleaning unit 20 by the following method. The manufacturer of the cleaning unit 20 measures a distance 550 from a portion of the elastic portion 25 that bites into the image carrier 11 the most to a predetermined position of the center 520 of the image carrier 11 in a state where the image carrier 11 is not arranged in the cleaning unit 20. The bite amount Δu is the length obtained by subtracting the distance 550 from the radius (known value) of the image carrier 11. As an example, the manufacturer of the cleaning unit 20 measures the bite amount Δu during the manufacturing stage of the cleaning unit 20 and records the measurement result as bite amount data 53 in the recording medium 52. The bite amount Δu and the contact force F are approximately proportional. More specifically, the larger the bite amount Δu, the larger the contact force F. When the contact force F becomes large, the frictional force generated at the contact portion 25c during cleaning becomes large, and as a result, the blade vibrates more strongly, and the noise generated by the vibration also becomes larger.

[0057] In this embodiment, the unique penetration amount Δu for each imaging unit 5 is measured at the initial stage of the factory shipment and recorded as penetration amount data 53 on the recording medium 52. Since the vibration amount applied to the blade is determined based on the penetration amount data 53 during cleaning, the occurrence of blade vibration during cleaning can be suppressed regardless of the variations in the materials and configurations of the imaging unit 5 and the cleaning unit 20.

[0058] <D. Configuration of the Image Forming Apparatus> FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 according to this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 4, the image forming apparatus 100 includes a control device 150 for controlling the image forming apparatus 100, a storage unit 160 for storing programs and data, an input / output unit 170 for information, a communication I / F (abbreviation of Interface) 156 for communicating with a server or the like, a communication circuit 175 for communicating with an information processing apparatus including a personal computer, a wireless communication circuit 178 for performing short-range wireless communication with a device such as a mobile terminal, a sensor group 162 composed of various sensors included in the image forming apparatus 100, a sensor I / F (abbreviation of Interface) 161 for exchanging data and signals, a data reader / writer 174 to which an external storage medium 176 is detachably attached, and various processing units. The sensor group 162 includes a temperature sensor 169 for detecting the internal temperature of the image forming apparatus 100. Since the internal temperature of the image forming apparatus 100 is substantially equal to the ambient temperature of the blade, the temperature sensor 169 constitutes a "temperature detection unit" for detecting the ambient temperature of the blade.

[0059] The control device 150 includes a processor circuit such as a CPU 101, an ASIC, and an FPGA.

[0060] The storage unit 160 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) for storing programs and data executed by the CPU 101, a RAM (Random Access Memory) provided as a working area when the CPU 101 executes a program, and a non-volatile memory. The RAM also stores various data that are read and written when the program is executed.

[0061] The non-volatile memory of storage unit 160 stores coverage / size information 161. In this embodiment, "coverage (unit: %)" is the percentage of the area of ​​the region covered with toner on the entire surface of paper S to be printed. For example, if half of the surface of paper S is covered with toner, the coverage is 50%. Every time CPU 101 accepts a print job, it calculates coverage 61 based on the print job, extracts the size of paper S from the print job, and stores coverage / size information 161 including coverage 61 and the size of paper S in non-volatile memory of storage unit 160.

[0062] Input / output unit 170 includes display unit 171 including a display and operation unit 172 including keys, switches, etc. that a user operates to input information to image forming apparatus 100. Here, display unit 171 and operation unit 172 may be provided as an integrally configured touch panel.

[0063] The communication I / F 156 includes a circuit such as a network interface card (NIC) for communicating with an external network.

[0064] The communication circuit 175 includes a communication circuit such as a LAN (Local Area Network) or NFC (Near Field Communication) for communicating with an information processing device such as a user's personal computer. The wireless communication circuit 178 includes a communication circuit such as NFC or Bluetooth (registered trademark). For example, the wireless communication circuit 178 performs communication with other devices including the user's mobile terminal, for example, by beacon signals, according to Bluetooth.

[0065] Each of the above various processing units includes an image processing unit 151, an image forming unit 152, a storage unit 153 including a hard disk or the like for storing and processing various data including image data, an image output unit 154 for controlling a printer 157, a facsimile control unit 155 for controlling a facsimile circuit (not shown), and an image reading unit 173 for optically reading a document to obtain image data. The CPU 101 executes the job indicated by the job information and outputs a control command according to the execution result to these processing units. Thereby, each processing unit is controlled according to the job information, and the image forming apparatus 100 executes processing (such as printing, facsimile, and image reading) according to the job information.

[0066] The printer 157 included in the image output unit 154 includes the imaging unit 5 shown in FIG. 2, and prints an image on a sheet S using, for example, data based on job information. The data reader / writer 174 has a circuit for reading a program or data from the attached external storage medium 176 and a circuit for writing data to the external storage medium 176. The external storage medium 176 includes, but is not limited to, an SD card or the like. The external storage medium 176 is a medium that stores information such as programs recorded in a computer or other devices, machines, etc., and can read the information such as programs by means of electrical, magnetic, optical, mechanical, or chemical actions.

[0067] The storage unit 153 can store an OS (Operating System) 1531 and various application programs 1532, a first table 40 which is information that can be searched to determine the amount of vibration applied to the blade, a second table 50, a third table 60, and a fourth table 70. The storage medium storing the first table 40, the second table 50, the third table 60, and the fourth table 70 is not limited to the storage unit 153, and may be stored in the storage unit 160, for example.

[0068] <E. Module Configuration> Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a schematic module configuration relating to the control of cleaning unit 20 according to this embodiment. The area enclosed by the dashed line in Fig. 5 indicates a plurality of modules for implementing cleaning unit 20, and these modules are implemented, for example, by CPU 101 reading application program 1532 from storage unit 153, expanding the program in RAM, and executing the program. In this embodiment, these modules are implemented by application program 1532, but they may be implemented by a combination of application program 1532 and a circuit such as an ASIC or FPGA, or may be implemented using only a circuit.

[0069] 4, cleaning unit 20 includes bite amount acquisition unit 31 which acquires bite amount data 53, temperature acquisition unit 33 which acquires ambient temperature 3a of the blade by converting the output of temperature sensor 169 into digital data or the like, vibration amount determination unit 30 which determines the amount of vibration to be applied to the blade, and coverage acquisition unit 32 which acquires coverage size information 161 from a print job and stores it in memory unit 160, and also reads coverage size information 161 from memory unit 160 and outputs it to vibration amount determination unit 30. Temperature acquisition unit 33 may be configured to include a temperature sensor 169.

[0070] (e1. An example of a table) The vibration amount determination unit 30 determines the vibration amount to be applied to the blade by searching the first table 40, the second table 50, the third table 60, and the fourth table 70. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the first table according to this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 6, the first table 40 has a so-called look-up table configuration in which the horizontal axis indicates the amount of penetration and the vertical axis indicates the vibration frequency (unit: Hz) as the amount of vibration. The CPU 101, as the vibration amount determination unit 30, searches the first table 40 for the vibration frequency 4a specific to the blade corresponding to the amount of penetration based on the penetration amount data 53.

[0071] Fig. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the second table according to the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 7, the second table 50 has a so-called look-up table configuration in which the vertical axis indicates the value (unit: Hz) that the blade can take as the vibration frequency, and the horizontal axis indicates the applied AC frequency (unit: Hz) as the frequency of the AC voltage output from the AC power source 22a. The CPU 101, as the vibration amount determination unit 30, can search the second table 50 for the applied AC frequency 5a corresponding to the vibration frequency 4a based on the vibration frequency 4a.

[0072] 8 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a third table 60 according to the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 8, the third table 60 shows the relationship between coverage 61 and the amount of blade edge toner 62 accumulated on the blade edge. Here, it is known that in a cleaning operation, the amount of toner supplied to the blade edge and accumulated in the biting portion acts in a direction to stop the movement (vibration) of the blade.

[0073] In relation to coverage, if the penetration amount is the same, the higher the coverage, the greater the amount of toner that accumulates and the greater the effect of stopping the blade vibration. Therefore, the amount of vibration applied to the blade can be smaller. On the other hand, the greater the penetration amount, the narrower the space for the accumulation portion that can be formed on the blade edge, so if the coverage is the same, the greater the penetration amount, the less the amount of toner that accumulates and the smaller the effect of stopping the blade vibration. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the amount of vibration applied to the blade.

[0074] The third table 60 in FIG. 8 has a so-called lookup table configuration that can be searched based on the relationship between the combination of coverage 61 and size 63 of paper S and blade edge toner amount 62 indicating the amount of toner accumulated on the blade edge. The size 63 of paper S indicates sizes A3 and A4, but is not limited to these sizes. According to FIG. 8, it is shown that the blade edge toner amount 62 increases as the coverage 61 increases and as the size of paper S increases. As the blade edge toner amount 62, eight types, for example, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, 160, and 200, are illustrated, but are not limited to these toner amounts. The CPU 101, as the vibration amount determination unit 30, can search the blade edge toner amount 62 corresponding to the coverage size information 161 (coverage 61 and size of paper S) from the third table 60 based on the coverage size information 161 read from the storage unit 160 by the coverage acquisition unit 32.

[0075] 9 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the fourth table 70 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 9, the fourth table 70 has a so-called look-up table configuration in which the horizontal axis indicates the amount of intrusion and the vertical axis indicates the vibration frequency (unit: Hz) as the amount of vibration for each of the eight types of blade-edge toner amounts 62. The CPU 101, as the vibration amount determination unit 30, searches the fourth table 70 for the vibration frequency 4a corresponding to the blade-edge toner amount 62 and the intrusion amount data 53 based on the blade-edge toner amount 62 and the intrusion amount data 53. The CPU 101 searches the third table 60 of FIG. 6 for the applied AC frequency 5a, which is the frequency of the AC voltage applied to the vibration unit 21, based on the searched vibration frequency 4a.

[0076] The data for the first table 40, the second table 50, the third table 60 and the fourth table 70 is obtained by conducting experiments under the conditions for vibrating the blade (information on the amount of penetration, ambient temperature of the blade, blade size, etc.) when the image forming apparatus 100 is shipped from the factory, and each table is stored in the image forming apparatus 100.

[0077] <F.フローチャート> Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart according to the present embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 10 is realized by CPU 101 executing application program 1532 under OS 1531. In the present embodiment, image forming apparatus 100 has, as operation modes, a vibration mode in which vibration is applied to the blade by a vibration unit during printing, and a non-vibration mode in which vibration is not applied to the blade. Image forming apparatus 100 sets either the vibration mode or the non-vibration mode as the operation mode according to a user operation received from operation unit 172, for example.

[0078] 10, CPU 101 determines whether to accept a power-on command or a print command for image forming apparatus 100 (step S1). More specifically, CPU 101 accepts a power-on command as a user operation from operation unit 172, for example. CPU 101 can be driven by an auxiliary power source, so it can accept a power-on command even in a power-off state. The print command is based on a print job execution start command based on a user operation from operation unit 172, or a print job execution start command received from an external device together with a print job. PU 101 can receive a print job and a print job execution start command from an external device through communication I / F 156, communication circuit 175, and wireless communication circuit 178. CPU 101 can accept a print job and a print command together with a power-on command.

[0079] If CPU 101 determines that it has not received a power-on command or a print command (NO in step S1), it repeats step S1. If CPU 101 determines that it has received a power-on command or a print command (YES in step S1), CPU 101 detects temperature data based on the output from temperature sensor 169 (step S3). The detected temperature is approximately equal to the ambient temperature of the blade.

[0080] CPU 101 compares the detected temperature data with threshold TH1, and determines whether the condition (detected temperature≦TH1) is met based on the comparison result (step S5). Threshold TH1 indicates a relatively low temperature, for example, 10° C., but threshold TH1 is not limited to 10° C. If CPU 101 determines that the condition is not met (NO in step S5), it executes a print job using printer 157 without executing a vibration process described below (step S6). Then, it returns to step S1. On the other hand, if CPU 101 determines that the condition is met (YES in step S5), it executes a vibration process in steps S7 and after in which the vibration unit applies vibration to the blade.

[0081] In step S7, CPU 101 determines whether the operation mode is the vibration mode (step S7). If CPU 101 determines that the operation mode is not the vibration mode (NO in step S7), that is, if it determines that the operation mode is the non-vibration mode, it does not execute the vibration process described below, but executes a print job using printer 157 (step S8). Then, it returns to step S1.

[0082] When the CPU 101 determines that the operation mode is the vibration mode (YES in step S7), it executes the vibration process (step S9). In step S9, the CPU 101 searches the first table 40 for the vibration frequency 4a based on the bite amount data 53, and searches the second table 50 for the applied AC frequency based on the searched vibration frequency 4a, thereby determining the applied AC frequency 5a (step S91). Also in step S9, the CPU 101 generates a command 2a based on the determined applied AC frequency 5a, and outputs it to the driving unit 22 of the cleaning unit 20 (step S92). The driving unit 22 drives the AC power source 22a according to the command 2a, so that the vibration unit 21 vibrates according to the AC voltage signal from the AC power source 22a. Also, together with the output of the command 2a, the CPU 101 starts executing a print job using the printer 157 (step S10).

[0083] Here, at low temperatures, as the hardness of the blade material formed of an elastic body such as resin increases, the amount of vibration at the contact portion 25c between the image carrier 11 and the blade tends to become significant. Even with such a tendency, in the above process, at the start of execution of a print job, the vibration unit 21 vibrates with an amount of vibration having the frequency and phase specified by the command 2a. Therefore, the vibration of the blade caused by the hardness of the blade at low temperatures can be suppressed by the amount of vibration applied by the vibration unit 21.

[0084] The CPU 101 determines whether to stop the execution of the print job (step S10). This execution stop is based on, for example, a command based on a user operation or a command received via the communication I / F 156, the communication circuit 175, and the wireless communication circuit 178.

[0085] When the CPU 101 determines to stop the execution of the print job, that is, to stop the rotation of the image carrier 11 (YES in step S11), it stops the execution of the print job and outputs a vibration stop command to the drive unit 22 (step S17). The drive unit 22 outputs a signal for stopping the vibration to the vibration unit 21 based on the vibration stop command. Then, it returns to step S1.

[0086] When the CPU 101 determines not to stop the execution of the print job (NO in step S11), it detects the ambient temperature of the blade from the output of the temperature sensor 169 (step S13) and determines whether the condition (ambient temperature ≥ TH2), where the detected ambient temperature 3a and the threshold value TH2 (where TH1 < TH2) are satisfied (step S15). The threshold value TH2 is, for example, 11°C, but is not limited to this temperature.

[0087] When the CPU 101 determines that the condition (ambient temperature ≥ TH2) is not satisfied (NO in step S15), it returns to step S11. However, when it determines that the condition (ambient temperature ≥ TH2) is satisfied (YES in step S15), it proceeds to step S17 and stops the vibration of the vibration unit 21.

[0088] The above-described threshold values TH1 and TH2 are preferably set according to conditions such as the size and material of the blade.

[0089] Also in steps S6 and S8, with the execution of the printing job, normal cleaning using the blade in the non-vibration mode is performed. Further, in the execution of the printing job in step S10, cleaning by the blade is performed while the blade is being vibrated according to the vibration mode. In the execution of the printing job, for example, cleaning is performed every time a predetermined number of pages (sheets) are printed.

[0090] In FIG. 10, when starting to execute the printing job, if the ambient temperature of the blade satisfies a predetermined first condition (the ambient temperature is equal to or lower than the threshold value TH1, or less than TH1), the vibration amount based on the amount of penetration of the blade into the surface of the image carrier 11 is applied to the blade by the vibration unit, and the execution of the printing job is started. Thereafter, when the ambient temperature of the blade rises during the execution of the printing job and a predetermined second condition (the ambient temperature is equal to or higher than the threshold value TH2, or greater than TH2) is satisfied, the vibration unit 21 stops. That is, the blade hardness decreases due to the rise in the ambient temperature, and the vibration of the vibration unit 21 is stopped at the timing when the vibration amount caused by the hardness of the blade material is less likely to occur, thereby preventing the generation of noise caused by the vibration applied to the blade by the vibration unit 21.

[0091] <f1. Another example of the flowchart> FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the flowchart according to the present embodiment. The flowchart of FIG. 11 is a modified example of the flowchart of FIG. 10. In the flowchart of FIG. 11, the process of step S19 is added to the process of FIG. 10, and the process of step S9 in FIG. 10 is changed to the process of step S9a. Since the other processes in FIG. 11 are the same as those in FIG. 10, detailed description will not be repeated here. Here, mainly, steps S9a and S19 will be described.

[0092] After executing the print job processing (steps S6, S8, and S10), CPU 101 acquires coverage size information 161 from the print job and stores it in storage unit 160 (step S19). Then, the process returns to step S1.

[0093] Also, the CPU 101 executes the vibration process of step S9a. In step S9a, the CPU 101 searches the blade edge toner amount 62 from the third table 60 based on the coverage size information 161 in the storage unit 160, searches the vibration frequency 4a from the fourth table 70 based on the searched blade edge toner amount 62 and the bite amount data 53, and searches the second table 50 for the applied AC frequency 5a based on the searched vibration frequency 4a (step S91a). This determines the applied AC frequency 5a. Also, in step S9a, the CPU 101 generates a command 2a based on the applied AC frequency 5a determined in step S91a, and outputs it to the driving unit 22 of the cleaning unit 20 (step S92). The driving unit 22 drives the AC power source 22a according to the command 2a, so that the vibration unit 21 vibrates according to the AC voltage signal from the AC power source 22a. In addition, together with outputting command 2a, CPU 101 starts executing a print job using printer 157 (step S10).

[0094] As a result, when printing at low temperatures, the amount of vibration (i.e., applied AC frequency 5a) applied to the blade to suppress vibration caused by the increased hardness of the blade at low temperatures can be determined taking into account the magnitude of the effect of reducing the vibration of the blade caused by the amount of toner accumulated on the blade edge, and can be applied to the blade.

[0095] <G.プログラム> The program for the processes shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 10 and 11 is mainly provided as application program 1532. This program can also be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a flexible disk, a CD-ROM (Compact Disk-Read Only Memory), a ROM, a RAM, and a memory card attached to the computer of the image forming apparatus 100, and provided as a program product. Alternatively, it can be recorded on a recording medium such as a hard disk built into the computer to provide the program. Also, the program can be provided by downloading via a network.

[0096] Note that the program may be one that calls necessary modules from among the program modules provided as part of the computer's OS 1531 in a predetermined array at a predetermined timing to execute processing. In that case, the program itself does not include the above modules and the processing is executed in cooperation with the OS. A program that does not include such modules can also be included in the program of the embodiment.

[0097] Also, the program according to the embodiment may be provided by being incorporated into a part of another program. In that case as well, the program itself does not include the modules included in the above other program, and the processing is executed in cooperation with the other program. A program incorporated into such another program can also be included in the program according to this embodiment.

[0098] The provided program is installed in the program storage section of the storage section 153 such as a hard disk and executed. Note that the program includes the program itself and a recording medium on which various data for executing the program are recorded.

[0099] <H. Modification Example> In the flowcharts of FIGS. 10 and 11, the determination of the vibration mode (step S7) was performed after the determination of the temperature (steps S3 and S5), but it may be performed before the determination of the temperature (steps S3 and S5). Also, in the vibration processing (steps S9 and S9a), although the configuration is such that the penetration amount data 53 is read from the recording medium 52 every time a printing job is executed, it may be configured differently. More specifically, when the penetration amount data 53 read from the recording medium 52 is read, it may be stored in a recording medium that can be read faster than the recording medium 52, for example, the non-volatile memory of the storage unit 160. After storage, the penetration amount data 53 may be read from the non-volatile memory instead of the recording medium 52.

[0100] In the present embodiment, the recording medium 52 for recording the penetration amount data 53 can be configured by a memory device such as a flash memory. Alternatively, the recording medium 52 may be configured by a medium on which a barcode image representing the penetration amount is printed so that the CPU 101 can optically read it.

[0101] In the present embodiment, the vibration amount determined by the vibration amount determination unit 30 mainly indicates the frequency of vibration, but is not limited to the frequency. For example, the vibration amount may also include the amplitude, phase, and the like.

[0102] <I. Effects of the Embodiment> According to the present embodiment, in order to cancel the vibration of the blade during cleaning, regarding the conventional method of detecting the vibration of the blade and applying a vibration that cancels the vibration to the blade itself, a device for directly detecting the vibration of the blade is required. With such a detection device, the detection accuracy decreases because the detection device continues to receive vibrations. In contrast, in the present embodiment, since the vibration amount to be applied to the blade is determined from the relationship between the penetration amount data 53 unique to the blade and the vibration frequency 4a, the problems such as the decrease in the accuracy of detecting vibrations, which remained in the conventional method, can be solved. Also, in the present embodiment, the space and cost for installing the detection device of the conventional method can be reduced.

[0103] In addition, with regard to the vibration mechanism that applies the canceling vibration to the blade, the load on the vibration mechanism or the cost of maintaining the accuracy tends to increase depending on the magnitude and duration of the vibration applied to the blade. In other words, since the vibration generated by the vibration mechanism affects parts other than the blade, it is desirable to optimize the amount of vibration applied as much as possible and to shorten the period of application. In this regard, in the present embodiment, vibration is applied to the blade when the temperature around the blade is low enough that the blade becomes hard and the vibration amount increases, so that the above demand can be met.

[0104] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not the above description, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0105] 1 fixing device, 2 device body, 2A image forming unit, 2B paper feed unit, 2a command, 3a ambient temperature, 4 transport path, 4a vibration frequency, 5 imaging unit, 5a AC frequency, 6 exposure unit, 7 secondary transfer unit, 7a intermediate transfer belt, 8 belt cleaning unit, 9 storage unit, 9a manual feed tray, 11 image carrier, 12 primary transfer roller, 13 developing device, 15 charging unit, 20 cleaning unit, 21 vibration unit, 22 drive unit, 22a AC power source, 23 holder, 23a bonding area, 24 leaf spring, 25 elastic unit, 25a tip, 25c contact unit, 30 vibration amount determination unit, 31 bite amount acquisition unit, 32 coverage acquisition unit, 33 temperature acquisition unit, 40 first table, 50 second table, 51 housing, 52 recording medium, 53 Biting amount data, 60 third table, 61 coverage, 62 blade edge toner amount, 63 size, 70 fourth table, 100 image forming apparatus, 150 control device, 151 image processing unit, 152 image forming unit, 153, 160 storage unit, 154 image output unit, 155 facsimile control unit, 157 printer, 161 coverage size information, 162 sensor group, 169 temperature sensor, 170 input / output unit, 171 display unit, 172 operation unit, 173 image reading unit, 174 data reader / writer, 175 communication circuit, 176 external storage medium, 178 wireless communication circuit, 520 center, 530 direction, 540, 550 distance, 1532 application program, DR1 rotation direction, F contact force, S Paper, S1, S3, S5, S6, S7, S8, S9a, S9, S10, S11, S13, S15, S17, S19, S91a, S91, S92 steps, TH1, TH2 thresholds.

Claims

1. a blade that cleans the image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier that is rotatably supported by a shaft; A vibration unit that applies vibration to the blade; A control unit that controls the vibration unit, The control unit is a determining unit that determines a frequency of vibration applied to the blade by the vibration applying unit based on an amount of penetration of the blade into the surface of the image carrier;

2. A temperature detector that detects an ambient temperature of the blade is further provided. The control unit is 2. The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein when the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit satisfies a predetermined condition, the vibration applying unit is controlled so as to apply vibration of a frequency determined by the determination unit to the blade.

3. The cleaning device according to claim 2 , wherein the predetermined conditions include a first condition that the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit is equal to or lower than a first threshold value.

4. The control unit is 4. The cleaning device according to claim 3, wherein when the first condition is satisfied at the start of printing to transfer a toner image formed on the surface of the image carrier to paper, the vibration unit is controlled to start applying vibration of a frequency determined by the determination unit to the blade.

5. the predetermined condition includes a second condition that the temperature detected by the temperature detection unit is equal to or lower than a second threshold; The control unit is The cleaning device according to claim 4 , further comprising: a vibration applying unit that starts applying vibration of a frequency determined by the determination unit to the blade; and then, when the second condition is satisfied, the vibration applying unit stops applying vibration of the frequency determined by the determination unit to the blade.

6. the cleaning device is provided in association with a printer that prints a toner image formed on the surface of the image carrier onto paper, The determination unit further The cleaning device according to claim 1 , wherein a frequency of the vibration applied to the blade by the vibration unit is determined based on the bite amount and a coverage of an image printed on the paper by the printer.

7. 7. The cleaning device according to claim 1, further comprising a recording medium for readably recording said data on said bite amount.

8. 8. The cleaning device according to claim 7, wherein the recording medium includes a memory device that stores data on the amount of penetration.

9. The cleaning device according to claim 7 , wherein the recording medium includes a medium on which a barcode image representing the bite amount is printed.

10. An image forming apparatus comprising the cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. acquiring an amount of penetration of a blade into a surface of a rotatably supported image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier to clean the image carrier; and determining a frequency of vibration to be applied to the blade during cleaning based on the acquired amount of penetration.

12. A program for causing a processor to execute a method, The method comprises: acquiring an amount of penetration of a blade into a surface of a rotatably supported image carrier by contacting the surface of the image carrier to clean the image carrier; and determining a frequency of vibration to be applied to the blade during cleaning based on the acquired amount of bite.

Images