Image forming apparatus, adhesive cartridge, adhesive container, and process cartridge set

Abstract

To provide an image forming apparatus that can increase an adhesive strength despite an increase in the placement amount per unit area on a sheet, and in addition can prevent fogging.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus has a print image forming unit for forming a printing toner image using a printing toner, and an adhesive image forming unit for forming an image of powder adhesive using a powder adhesive. The printing toner contains wax. The powder adhesive contains wax. The content of the wax in the powder adhesive is larger than the content of the wax in the printing toner.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus that uses an electrophotographic system to develop an electrostatic latent image on a transfer material and form a toner image and an adhesive portion made of a powder adhesive that functions as an adhesive, as well as an adhesive cartridge, an adhesive container, and a process cartridge set used in the image forming apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] In the past, when creating documents that needed to be sealed due to confidentiality, such as pay slips, preprinted paper was prepared in advance, variable data was printed on each preprinted paper, and then the paper was sealed as a post-processing step. This method took time to create preprinted paper, which required printing formatting such as ruled lines and applying adhesive, and was costly and inefficient when only a small number of copies were required.

[0003] Patent Documents 1 and 2 describe an electrophotographic process using a sheet-shaped bag material with printing toner and a resin powder with adhesive properties (hereinafter referred to as a powder adhesive). This leads to the proposal of a bag-making device that outputs a bag-shaped product without the need for a preprinted paper. In these bag-making devices, the printing toner and powder adhesive are transferred to a sheet, which is then thermally fixed. The sheet is then folded and heated while being pressurized for a bonding process, creating a bag-shaped product. Furthermore, in Patent Document 3, the amount of powder adhesive per unit area in the powder image formed on the recording medium is made larger than that of the printing toner, thereby improving adhesive strength. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-036957 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-162029 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-028592 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, through investigations by the inventors, it was found that in the bag making device, if the amount of powder adhesive applied to the sheet per unit area is increased in an attempt to obtain stronger adhesive strength, sufficient adhesive strength may not be obtained. Also, when a powder adhesive is used in a developing device of a one-component development method having a developer carrier and a regulating member, if an attempt is made to increase the amount of powder adhesive applied to the recording medium by increasing the amount of powder adhesive applied per unit area on the developer carrier, fogging will occur.

[0006] The above document does not mention the decrease in adhesive strength when the amount of powder adhesive applied per unit area of ​​the sheet is increased, nor does it mention any countermeasures.Furthermore, the above document does not mention that when a powder adhesive is used in a developing device of a one-component development system having a developer carrier and a regulating member, increasing the amount of powder adhesive applied on the developer carrier makes fogging more likely to occur.

[0007] The present disclosure provides an image forming apparatus that can improve adhesive strength even when the amount of adhesive applied per unit area on a sheet is increased, and that can also suppress fogging, as well as an adhesive cartridge, adhesive container, and process cartridge set for use with the image forming apparatus. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present disclosure provides a print image forming unit for forming a toner image for printing using a toner for printing; an adhesive image forming unit for forming an image of a powder adhesive using a powder adhesive, The printing toner contains wax, The powder adhesive contains a wax, The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus characterized in that the wax content in the powder adhesive is greater than the wax content in the printing toner.

[0009] Another aspect of the present disclosure is An adhesive cartridge detachably attachable to an image forming apparatus having a print image forming unit for forming a print toner image using a print toner containing wax, the adhesive cartridge includes an adhesive image forming unit for forming an image of the powder adhesive with the powder adhesive; The powder adhesive contains a wax, The adhesive cartridge is characterized in that the content of the wax in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the wax in the printing toner.

[0010] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a print image forming unit for forming a print toner image using a print toner containing wax; an adhesive imaging section for forming an image of the powder adhesive with the powder adhesive; An adhesive container detachable from an image forming apparatus, The adhesive container includes a powder storage portion that stores a powder adhesive, The powder adhesive contained in the powder containing section contains wax, The adhesive container is characterized in that the content of the wax in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the wax in the printing toner.

[0011] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a cartridge set including a first cartridge and a second cartridge that are detachably mountable to an image forming apparatus, The first cartridge ,mark a first developer carrier that carries a printing toner; The second cartridge ,powder a second developer carrier that carries an adhesive; The printing toner contains wax, The powder adhesive contains a wax, The cartridge set is characterized in that the content of the wax in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the wax in the printing toner. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] The present disclosure makes it possible to provide an image forming apparatus that can improve adhesive strength even when the amount of toner applied per unit area on a sheet is increased, and that can also suppress fogging. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] Schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the attachment of a post-processing unit to the main body of an image forming apparatus. [Figure 3] Schematic diagram illustrating the state of a toner image transferred onto a sheet. [Figure 4] 1A and 1B are diagrams showing a sheet transport path in an image forming apparatus; [Figure 5] 1A to 1F are diagrams for explaining the details of the folding process according to Example 1. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment; [Figure 7] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating an example of a product output by the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment; [Figure 8] Schematic diagram of a process cartridge according to Example 1 [Figure 9-1] FIG. 1(a) is a diagram illustrating a tensile test method according to Example 1. [Figure 9-2] 1(b, c) are diagrams illustrating a tensile test method according to Example 1. [Figure 10] Stress-strain curve graph obtained in the tensile test according to Example 1 [Figure 11] Schematic diagram showing the position of the end of the development blade 107 [Figure 12] Graph comparing M / Stotal and adhesive strength according to Example 1 [Figure 13] Schematic diagram of an adhesive force measuring device according to Example 1 [Figure 14]Graph showing the relationship between weight-average particle size of powder adhesive and peel strength [Figure 15] Schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment [Figure 16] Schematic diagram of a booklet-shaped product according to Example 2 [Figure 17] Schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a third embodiment [Figure 18] Schematic diagram of a corner-fastened booklet-shaped product according to Example 3 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. However, unless otherwise specified, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative positions, etc. of the components described in these embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Furthermore, the materials, shapes, etc. of components that have been described once in the following description will remain the same in subsequent descriptions unless otherwise specified.

[0015] In the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, the expressions "XX or more and YY or less" or "XX to YY" representing a numerical range mean a numerical range including the lower and upper limits, which are the endpoints. When a numerical range is described in stages, the upper and lower limits of each numerical range can be combined in any way. [Example]

[0016] Example 1 (Overall device configuration) First, the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to Figures 1, 2, 6, and 8. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the cross-sectional configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 that includes an image forming apparatus main body (hereinafter referred to as apparatus main body 10) and a post-processing unit 30 connected to the apparatus main body 10. The image forming apparatus 1 is an electrophotographic image forming apparatus (electrophotographic system) that includes the apparatus main body 10 that includes an electrophotographic printing mechanism and the post-processing unit 30 that serves as a sheet processing device.

[0017] In this embodiment, the image forming apparatus 1 comprises an image forming means (image forming unit 1e) having a printing image forming section (process cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c) for forming a printing toner image using printing toner, and an adhesive image forming section (process cartridge 7n) for forming a powder adhesive image using powder adhesive, a transfer means 3 for transferring the printing toner image and the powder adhesive image to a transfer material (sheet P), and a fixing means 6 for fixing the printing toner image and the powder adhesive image transferred to the transfer material to the transfer material.

[0018] The print image forming unit (process cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c) is detachable from the main body of the apparatus. Note that at least a portion of the components (for example, the photosensitive drum and / or the developing roller) of the process cartridges (7y, 7m, 7c) that make up the print image forming unit may be fixed to the main body of the apparatus. The adhesive image forming unit (process cartridge 7n) is detachable from the main body of the apparatus. Similarly, at least a part of the components of the process cartridge (7n) constituting the adhesive image forming unit (for example, the photosensitive drum and / or the developing roller) may be fixed to the main body of the apparatus.

[0019] The print image forming unit may have a first image carrier (first photoconductor) and a first developer carrier that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the first image carrier with printing toner. The adhesive image forming unit may have a second image carrier (second photoconductor) and a second developer carrier that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the second image carrier with a powder adhesive.

[0020] 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the positioning portion when attaching the post-processing unit 30 to the apparatus main body 10. The post-processing unit 30 is detachably attachable to the apparatus main body 10. The post-processing unit 30 can be attached by aligning the connector 36 on the post-processing unit 30 with the connector 37 on the apparatus main body 10.

[0021] Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the image forming apparatus 1. Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of the process cartridge. As shown in Fig. 6, the post-processing unit 30 is attached to the top of the apparatus main body 10. The image forming apparatus 1 has a sheet cassette 8 at the bottom, an openable and closable tray 20 on the right side, and a first discharge tray 13 on the top.

[0022] First, the internal configuration of the device main body 10 will be described. As shown in Fig. 1, the device main body 10 includes a sheet cassette 8 as a sheet storage section that stores sheets P, which are transfer materials (recording media), an image forming unit 1e as image forming means, a first fuser 6 as fixing means, and a housing 19 that houses these. The device main body 10 has a printing function that forms a toner image on a sheet P fed from the sheet cassette 8 by the image forming unit 1e and then performs a fixing process by the first fuser 6 to create a printed matter.

[0023] The sheet cassette 8 is inserted into the housing 19 at the bottom of the device main body 10 so as to be removable, and stores a large number of sheets P. The sheets P stored in the sheet cassette 8 are fed from the sheet cassette 8 by a feeding member such as a feeding roller, and are separated one by one by a pair of separation rollers and then transported by a transport roller 8a. It is also possible to feed sheets set in an open tray 20 (FIG. 6) one by one.

[0024] The image forming unit 1e is a tandem electrophotographic unit equipped with four process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c, a scanner unit 2, and a transfer unit 3. A process cartridge is a replaceable unit that integrates multiple parts that are responsible for the image forming process.

[0025] The apparatus main body 10 is provided with a cartridge support portion 9 supported by a housing 19, and the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c are detachably mounted in mounting portions 9n, 9y, 9m, and 9c provided on the cartridge support portion 9. The cartridge support portion 9 may be a tray member that can be pulled out from the housing 19.

[0026] The process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c have a substantially common configuration except for the type of powder contained in the four powder containers 104n, 104y, 104m, and 104c. That is, each of the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c includes a photosensitive drum 101 as an image carrier, a charging roller 102 as a charger, powder containers 104n, 104y, 104m, and 104c that contain powder, and a developing roller 105 that performs development using the powder.

[0027] Of the four powder storage units, the three powder storage units 104y, 104m, and 104c on the right side in the drawing contain yellow, magenta, and cyan printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc, respectively, as toners (first powders) for forming a visible image on the sheet P. In contrast, the powder storage unit 104n on the far left in the drawing contains powder adhesive Tn, which is powder (second powder) for performing an adhesion process after printing.

[0028] The powder containers 104y, 104m, and 104c are all examples of first toner cartridges that contain printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc. The powder container 104n is an example of a second toner cartridge that contains powder adhesive. The process cartridges 7y, 7m, and 7c are all examples of first process cartridges that form toner images using printing toner, and the process cartridge 7n is an example of a second process cartridge that forms a powder adhesive image in a predetermined application pattern.

[0029] Each developing roller 105, developer supply roller 106, developing blade 107, charging roller 102 shown in FIG. 8, transfer means (transfer unit) 3 shown in FIG. 1, and secondary transfer roller 5 are stored in nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110 held by nonvolatile memory 110. Taking into account the lifespan information, an appropriate voltage is applied as instructed by a control unit (not shown).

[0030] When printing black images such as text, they are expressed using process black, which is a combination of yellow (Ty), magenta (Tm), and cyan (Tc) toners. However, for example, a fifth process cartridge using black printing toner may be added to image forming unit 1e so that black images can be expressed using black printing toner. However, this is not limited to this, and the type and number of printing toners can be changed depending on the application of image forming device 1.

[0031] The scanner unit 2 is disposed below the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c and above the sheet cassette 8. The scanner unit 2 is an exposure means that irradiates the photosensitive drum 101 of each of the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c with laser light G to write an electrostatic latent image thereon.

[0032] The transfer means 3 includes a transfer belt 3a as an intermediate transfer body (secondary image carrier). The transfer belt 3a is a belt member wound around a secondary transfer inner roller 3b and a tension roller 3c, and its outer circumferential surface faces the photosensitive drums 101 of the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c.

[0033] On the inner circumferential side of the transfer belt 3a, primary transfer rollers 4 are arranged at positions corresponding to the photosensitive drums 101. Furthermore, secondary transfer rollers 5 are arranged at positions facing the inner secondary transfer rollers 3b. A transfer nip 5n between the secondary transfer roller 5 and the transfer belt 3a is a transfer portion (secondary transfer portion) where a toner image is transferred from the transfer belt 3a to the sheet P.

[0034] The first fixing device 6 is disposed above the secondary transfer roller 5. The first fixing device 6 is a thermal fixing type fixing device having a heating roller 6a as a fixing member and a pressure roller 6b as a pressure member. The heating roller 6a is heated by a heating element such as a halogen lamp or ceramic heater or by a heating mechanism of an induction heating type. For example, the heating temperature during printing operation is set to 220°C. The pressure roller 6b is pressed against the heating roller 6a by a biasing member such as a spring, and generates a pressure to pressurize the sheet P passing through the nip portion (fixing nip 6n) between the heating roller 6a and the pressure roller 6b.

[0035] The housing 19 is provided with a discharge port 12 (first discharge port) which is an opening for discharging the sheet P from the device body 10, and a discharge unit 34 is disposed in the discharge port 12. The discharge unit 34, which is a discharge means, uses a so-called triple roller set having a first discharge roller 34a, an intermediate roller 34b, and a second discharge roller 34c.

[0036] In addition, a switching guide 33, which is a flap-shaped guide that switches the conveyance path of the sheet P, is provided between the first fixing device 6 and the discharge unit 34. The switching guide 33 is rotatable around a shaft 33a such that a tip 33b thereof reciprocates in the direction of the arrow c in the figure.

[0037] The device main body 10 is equipped with a mechanism for performing double-sided printing. A motor (not shown) is connected to the discharge unit 34, and the discharge unit 34 is configured to be able to rotate the intermediate roller 34b in the forward and reverse directions. A double-sided conveying path 1r is also provided as a conveying path connected in a loop to the main conveying path 1m. While passing through the main conveying path 1m, the sheet P with an image formed on its first side is sandwiched and conveyed between the first discharge roller 34a and the intermediate roller 34b by the switching guide 33 which has been rotated clockwise.

[0038] After the trailing edge of the sheet P in the traveling direction passes through the switching guide 33, the switching guide 33 rotates counterclockwise and the intermediate roller 34b rotates in the reverse direction, so that the sheet P is reversed and conveyed to the double-sided conveying path 1r. Then, while the sheet P passes through the main conveying path 1m again in an inverted state, an image is formed on the second side of the sheet P.

[0039] After double-side printing, the sheet P is nipped and conveyed between the intermediate roller 34b and the second discharge roller 34c by the switching guide 33 which has rotated counterclockwise, and is discharged from the apparatus main body 10. Furthermore, in the apparatus main body 10, a transport path passing through the transport roller 8a, the transfer nip 5n, and the fixing nip 6n constitutes a main transport path 1m along which an image is formed on the sheet P. When viewed from the main scanning direction during image formation (the width direction of the sheet perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet transported along the main transport path 1m), the main transport path 1m extends from below to above, passing along one side in the horizontal direction with respect to the image forming unit 1e.

[0040] In other words, the device main body 10 is a so-called vertical conveyance type (vertical path type) printer in which the main conveyance path 1m extends in a substantially vertical direction. When viewed vertically, the first discharge tray 13, the intermediate path 15, and the sheet cassette 8 overlap one another. Therefore, the horizontal direction in which the sheet P moves when the discharge unit 34 discharges the sheet P is opposite to the horizontal direction in which the sheet P moves when the sheet P is fed from the sheet cassette 8.

[0041] 1 (when viewed in the main scanning direction during image formation), it is preferable that the horizontal area occupied by the main body portion of post-processing unit 30, excluding second discharge tray 35, is within the area occupied by device main body 10. By accommodating post-processing unit 30 in the space above device main body 10 in this way, it becomes possible to install image forming device 1 with adhesive printing function in an installation space approximately the same as that of a normal vertical pass printer.

[0042] (Adhesive unit) As shown in Fig. 2, post-processing unit 30 is attached to the upper part of apparatus main body 10. Post-processing unit 30 is a post-processing unit in which folder 31 as a folding means and second fixing device 32 as an adhesive means (second fixing means) are housed and integrated in housing (second housing) 39.

[0043] The post-processing unit 30 is provided with a first discharge tray 13 that rotatably holds a tray switching guide 13a, an intermediate path 15, and a second discharge tray 35. The first discharge tray 13 is provided on the upper surface of the post-processing unit 30 and is also located on the upper surface (FIG. 1) of the entire image forming apparatus 1. The functions of each part of the post-processing unit 30 will be described later.

[0044] The post-processing unit 30 is provided with a positioning portion (for example, a convex shape that engages with a recess in the housing 19) for positioning the housing 39 relative to the housing 19 (first housing) of the device body 10. The post-processing unit 30 is also provided with a drive source and control unit (not shown) separate from the device body 10, and is electrically connected to the device body 10 by coupling a connector 36 of the post-processing unit 30 with a connector 37 of the device body 10. As a result, the post-processing unit 30 uses power supplied via the device body 10 to operate the control unit provided in the device body 10. (not shown) to operate based on commands from the

[0045] (Cartridge set) In this embodiment, the cartridge set includes first cartridges (7y, 7m, 7c) that constitute the print image forming unit and a second cartridge 7n (adhesive cartridge) that constitutes the adhesive image forming unit. In other words, in the image forming apparatus 1, the print image forming unit includes the first cartridges, and the adhesive image forming unit includes the second cartridges.

[0046] The first cartridge includes a first developer carrier that carries printing toner. The first cartridge may also include a first image carrier that carries a printing toner image formed by the printing toner carried on the first developer carrier. The first image carrier may carry an electrostatic latent image. The first cartridge may also include a toner container (powder storage section 104y, 104m, 104c) that stores printing toner, a first image carrier (first photosensitive body), and a first developer carrier (first developing roller) that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the first image carrier with the printing toner. The first image carrier is photosensitive body 101 in the first cartridge (7y, 7m, 7c). The first developing roller is developing roller 105 in the first cartridge (7y, 7m, 7c).

[0047] The second cartridge includes a second developer carrier that carries a powder adhesive. The second cartridge may also include a second image carrier that carries an adhesive image formed by the powder adhesive carried on the second developer carrier. The second image carrier may carry an electrostatic latent image. The second cartridge may also include a powder adhesive container (104n) that stores powder adhesive, a second image carrier (second photoconductor) (101), and a second developer carrier (second developing roller) (105) that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the second image carrier with the powder adhesive. The first cartridge and the second cartridge may also include a development blade 107 as a developer regulating member that regulates the layer thickness of the printing toner or powder adhesive.

[0048] (Process cartridge) As mentioned above, each of the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c has a substantially common configuration except for the type of powder contained in each of the four powder containers 104n, 104y, 104m, and 104c. Here, the process cartridge 7n will be described as a representative. Figure 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the process cartridge 7n. The process cartridge 7n is made up of a photosensitive unit CC including a photosensitive drum 101 and the like, and a developing unit DT including a developing roller 105 and the like.

[0049] A photosensitive drum 101 is rotatably mounted on the photosensitive unit CC via a bearing (not shown). The photosensitive drum 101 is an aluminum cylinder with a diameter of 24 mm, coated with an undercoat layer, an insulating layer, a photosensitive layer, and a charge transport layer, so that an electrostatic latent image can be formed on the surface. The photosensitive drum 101 receives driving force from a drive motor (not shown) as a driving means (drive source), and is driven to rotate at 300 mm / sec in a clockwise direction (arrow w) in the drawing in response to image formation operations. Furthermore, a charging roller 102 for charging the photosensitive drum 101 and a cleaning member 103 are arranged around the photosensitive drum 101 in the photosensitive unit CC.

[0050] The developing unit DT is provided with a developing roller 105 as a developer carrier that contacts the photosensitive drum 101 and rotates counterclockwise (arrow d) in the figure. The developing roller 105 has a core metal with a φ12 mm conductive rubber disposed around it. The developing roller 105 and the photosensitive drum 101 rotate so that their surfaces move in the same direction at the opposing portion (contact portion). The rotation speed of the developing roller 105 is faster than that of the photosensitive drum 101, at 450 mm / sec.

[0051] The developing unit DT is also provided with a developer supply roller 106 (hereinafter simply referred to as the "supply roller") as a developer supply member that rotates counterclockwise (arrow e) in the drawing at 320 mm / sec. The supply roller 106 has a conductive sponge with a diameter of 13 mm arranged around a core metal. The supply roller 106 and the developing roller 105 rotate so that their surfaces move in opposite directions at the opposing portion (contact portion).

[0052] The supply roller 106 supplies powder adhesive (printing toner Ty, Tm, Tc in the case of process cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c) onto the developing roller 105, and also acts to peel off any powder adhesive (printing toner Ty, Tm, Tc in the case of process cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c) remaining on the developing roller 105 from the developing roller 105.

[0053] In addition, the developing unit DT is provided with a developing blade 107 as a developer regulating member that regulates the layer thickness of the powder adhesive (printing toner Ty, Tm, Tc in the case of process cartridges 7y, 7m, 7c) supplied onto the developing roller 105 by the supply roller 106. The rotation direction of the supply roller 106 is not important as long as it can scrape off the toner on the developing roller 105 and supply it onto the developing roller 105 .

[0054] The powder container 104n contains a powder adhesive (printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc in the case of the process cartridges 7y, 7m, and 7c). A rotatably supported stirring member 108 is provided within the powder container 104n. The stirring member 108 rotates clockwise (indicated by arrow f) in the drawing to stir the powder contained within the powder container 104n and transport the powder to a developing chamber 109 in which the developing roller 105 and supply roller 106 are provided.

[0055] Here, the photosensitive unit CC and the developing unit DT may be separated into a photosensitive unit cartridge and a developing unit cartridge, respectively, and configured to be detachable from the main body of the image forming apparatus. Alternatively, the photosensitive unit CC and the developing unit DT may be configured as a toner cartridge that is detachable from the main body of the apparatus and has only the powder container 104 and the conveying member 108.

[0056] For example, the development unit cartridge set may include a first development unit cartridge and a second development unit cartridge that are detachably attached to the image forming apparatus 1. The first development unit cartridge includes a toner container that contains printing toner, a first development roller that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive member with the printing toner, and a development blade that serves as a developer regulating member that regulates the layer thickness of the printing toner on the first development roller. The second development unit cartridge includes a powder adhesive container that contains powder adhesive, a second development roller that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a photosensitive member with the powder adhesive, and a development blade that serves as a developer regulating member that regulates the layer thickness of the powder adhesive on the second development roller.

[0057] For example, it may be a toner cartridge set having a first toner cartridge and a second toner cartridge that are detachable from the image forming apparatus 1. The first toner cartridge is detachably provided in the print image forming unit and contains printing toner, while the second toner cartridge is provided in the adhesive image forming unit and contains powder adhesive.

[0058] Another aspect of the present disclosure provides an adhesive cartridge as a cartridge 7n containing a powder adhesive. The adhesive cartridge includes a print image forming unit that forms a printing toner image using a printing toner containing wax, and an adhesive that forms a powder adhesive image using the powder adhesive. In an image forming apparatus having an image forming unit, the adhesive cartridge is detachably attached to the adhesive image forming unit. The adhesive cartridge forms a powder adhesive image using a powder adhesive as the adhesive image forming unit. The powder adhesive contains wax, and the wax content in the powder adhesive is greater than the wax content in the printing toner. The adhesive cartridge has a second developer carrier that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a second image carrier (second photosensitive member) with the powder adhesive. The second image carrier may be provided at a position other than the adhesive cartridge in the image forming apparatus, or may be contained in the adhesive cartridge. The adhesive cartridge may have a second image carrier (second photosensitive member), a second developing roller that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on the second image carrier (second photosensitive member) with the powder adhesive, and a developing blade as a developer regulating member that regulates the layer thickness of the powder adhesive on the second developing roller.

[0059] The present disclosure also provides an adhesive container as the powder container 104n. The adhesive container is detachable from an image forming apparatus including a print image forming unit for forming a toner image for printing using a printing toner containing wax, and an adhesive image forming unit for forming a powder adhesive image using a powder adhesive. The adhesive container includes a powder container 104n for storing a powder adhesive. The powder adhesive stored in the powder container contains wax, and the wax content in the powder adhesive is greater than the wax content in the printing toner.

[0060] (Image formation operation) Next, the image forming operation performed by the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 8. Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining the state of a toner image transferred to a sheet P. Figs. 4(a) and 4(b) are diagrams showing the sheet transport path in the image forming apparatus 1. Figs. 5(a) to 5(f) are diagrams for explaining the contents of the folding process. Figs. 7(a) and 7(b) are diagrams illustrating the results output by the image forming apparatus 1.

[0061] When data of an image to be printed and a command to execute printing are input to the image forming apparatus 1, a control unit (not shown) of the image forming apparatus 1 starts a series of operations (image forming operation) in which the sheet P is conveyed to form an image thereon and, if necessary, post-processing is performed by the post-processing unit 30. In the image forming operation, first, as shown in FIG. 1, the sheets P are fed one by one from the sheet cassette 8 and conveyed toward the transfer nip 5n via the conveying roller 8a.

[0062] In parallel with the feeding of the sheet P, the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c are sequentially driven, and the photosensitive drum 101 is rotated in the clockwise direction (arrow w) in the drawing. At this time, the photosensitive drum 101 has a uniform charge applied to its surface by the charging roller 102.

[0063] Furthermore, the scanner unit 2 irradiates the photosensitive drum 101 of each of the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c with laser light G modulated based on image data, thereby forming an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 101. Next, the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 101 is developed into a powder image by powder carried on the developing roller 105 of each of the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c.

[0064] The powder adhesive layer formed on the photosensitive drum 101 by development with the powder adhesive Tn differs from toner images (normal toner images) of printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc used to record images such as figures and text on the sheet P in that it is not intended to transmit visual information. However, in the following description, the layer of powder adhesive Tn developed in a shape corresponding to the application pattern by an electrophotographic process in order to apply the powder adhesive Tn to the sheet P in a predetermined application pattern will also be treated as one of the "toner images."

[0065] The transfer belt 3a rotates counterclockwise in the drawing (indicated by an arrow v). The toner images formed in the process cartridges 7n, 7y, 7m, and 7c are transferred onto the photosensitive drum 101 via the primary transfer roller 102. An electric field formed between the roller 4 causes primary transfer from the photosensitive drum 101 to the transfer belt 3a.

[0066] As shown in Fig. 1, process cartridge 7n, which uses powder adhesive Tn, is located most upstream of the four process cartridges in the direction of rotation of transfer belt 3a. Yellow, magenta, and cyan process cartridges 7y, 7m, and 7c are arranged in this order downstream from process cartridge 7n in the direction of rotation of transfer belt 3a. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 3, when the four toner images are superimposed on transfer belt 3a, powder adhesive Tn becomes the bottom layer (the layer in contact with transfer belt 3a), and yellow (Ty), magenta (Tm), and cyan (Tc) printing toners are superimposed on top of it in this order.

[0067] The toner image carried by the transfer belt 3a and reaching the transfer nip 5n is secondarily transferred onto the sheet P transported along the main transport path 1m by the electric field formed between the secondary transfer roller 5 and the inner secondary transfer roller 3b. At this time, the toner layer is turned upside down. That is, on the sheet P that has passed through the transfer nip 5n, printing toners of cyan (Tc), magenta (Tm), and yellow (Ty) are layered from the bottom (the layer in contact with the sheet P), and a layer of powder adhesive Tn is formed on top of that. Therefore, in the toner image transferred to the sheet P, the layer of powder adhesive Tn becomes the outermost surface.

[0068] 1, the sheet P is transported to the first fixing device 6 and subjected to a thermal fixing process. That is, when the sheet P passes through the fixing nip 6n, the toner image on the sheet P is heated and pressurized, causing the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc and the powder adhesive Tn to melt and then solidify, resulting in a fixed image on the sheet P.

[0069] Regardless of whether single-sided printing or double-sided printing is performed, the sheet P discharged from the device main body 10 is sandwiched between the intermediate roller 34b and the second discharge roller 34c, as shown in Figures 4(a) and 4(b), and is transported to the first path R1 or the second path R2 by the tray switching guide 13a.

[0070] The first path R1 shown in FIG. 4(a) is a path along which the sheet P that has passed through the first fixing device 6 is discharged onto the first discharge tray 13 by the discharge unit 34 in a normal printing mode that does not use the post-processing unit 30. The second path R2 shown in Figure 4(b) is a path along which, in adhesive printing mode, the sheet P that has passed through the first fixing device 6 is discharged to the second discharge tray 35 via the discharge unit 34, the folder 31 and the second fixing device 32.

[0071] An intermediate path 15 is provided between the first fixing unit 6 and the folder 31 on the second route R2. The intermediate path 15 is a sheet transport path that passes through the upper surface (top surface) of the image forming apparatus 1 and extends below the first discharge tray 13 and substantially parallel to the first discharge tray 13. The intermediate path 15 and the first discharge tray 13 are inclined vertically upward toward the folder 31 with respect to the horizontal direction. Therefore, the entrance of the folder 31 (the guide roller pair (31c, 31d) described below) is located vertically higher than the exit of the device main body 10 (the nip between the intermediate roller 34b and the second discharge roller 34c).

[0072] The folder 31 has four rollers, namely, a first guide roller 31c, a second guide roller 31d, a first folding roller 31a, and a second folding roller 31b, and a lead-in portion 31e. The first guide roller 31c and the second guide roller 31d are a pair of guide rollers that sandwich and transport the sheet P received from a transport path (intermediate path 15 in this embodiment) on the upstream side of the folder 31. The first folding roller 31a and the second folding roller 31b are a pair of folding rollers that feed the sheet P while folding it.

[0073] The distance M (FIG. 1) between the second discharge roller 34c and the first guide roller 31c in the sheet transport direction along the second path R2 is configured to be shorter than the overall length L (FIG. 5(a)) of the sheet P in the transport direction before folding. In other words, the distance M between the second discharge roller 34c and the first guide roller 31c determines the lower limit of the length of the sheet in the transport direction that can be processed by the post-processing unit 30. With this configuration, the sheet P is smoothly delivered from the discharge unit 34 to the pair of guide rollers.

[0074] The folding process by folder 31 will be described with reference to Figures 5(a) to 5(f). When performing the folding process, first guide roller 31c and first folding roller 31a rotate clockwise in the figure, and second guide roller 31d and second folding roller 31b rotate counterclockwise in the figure.

[0075] First, the leading edge q of the sheet P sent out from the discharge unit 34 is pulled into the pair of guide rollers (31c, 31d) as shown in Fig. 5(a). As shown in Fig. 5(b), the leading edge q of the sheet P is guided downward by the guide wall 31f, contacts the first folding roller 31a, is pulled into the opposing first folding roller 31a and second guide roller 31d, and abuts against the wall 31g of the pull-in portion 31e.

[0076] As the guide roller pair (31c, 31d) pulls in the sheet P, the leading edge q slides against the wall 31g and advances deeper into the pull-in section 31e. Eventually, the leading edge q hits the end 31h of the pull-in section 31e, as shown in FIG. 5(c). The pull-in section 31e forms a space below the intermediate path 15 that extends substantially parallel to the intermediate path 15, and at the stage shown in FIG. 5(c), the sheet P wraps around the second guide roller 31d and is bent into a U-shape.

[0077] When the guide roller pair (31c, 31d) further pulls the sheet P from the state shown in FIG. 5(c), bending begins to occur at the middle portion r as shown in FIG. 5(d). Eventually, as shown in FIG. 5(e), the middle portion r comes into contact with the second folding roller 31b, and the sheet is pulled into the nip portion of the folding roller pair (31a, 31b) by the frictional force received from the second folding roller 31b. Then, as shown in FIG. 5(f), the sheet P is folded with the middle portion r as the crease, and is discharged by the folding roller pair (31a, 31b) with the middle portion r leading.

[0078] Here, the depth N of the retraction portion 31e (FIG. 5(e)), i.e., the distance from the nip portion of the pair of folding rollers (31a, 31b) to the end portion 31h of the retraction portion 31e, is set to half the total length L of the sheet P. This allows the folder 31 to fold the sheet P in half (center folding). Note that by changing the depth N of the retraction portion 31e, the position of the fold can be changed as desired.

[0079] The folder 31 described above is an example of a folding means, and a folding mechanism may be used, for example, by pressing a blade against the sheet P and forcing it into the nip between a pair of rollers to form a crease. Furthermore, the folding process is not limited to folding in half, and a folding mechanism that performs, for example, a Z-fold or a three-fold may be used.

[0080] Since folder 31 is composed of rotating rollers and fixed retraction section 31e, the drive mechanism can be simplified compared to a folding mechanism that uses a reciprocating blade. Furthermore, folder 31 only needs to be provided with retraction section 31e, which has a depth N that is half the sheet length, in addition to the four rollers, so post-processing unit 30 can be made smaller.

[0081] The sheet P that has passed through the folding device 31 is conveyed to the second fixing device 32 as shown in FIG. 4(b). The second fixing device 32 has a thermal fixing system configuration similar to the first fixing device 6. That is, the second fixing device 32 has a heating roller 32b as a heating member and a pressure roller 32a as a pressure member. The heating roller 32b is a heating element such as a halogen lamp or a ceramic heater, It is heated by an induction heating mechanism.

[0082] The pressure roller 32a is pressed against the heating roller 32b by a biasing member such as a spring, and generates a pressure force for pressing the sheet P passing through the nip portion (adhesion nip) between the heating roller 32b and the pressure roller 32a.

[0083] The sheet P folded by the folder 31 is subjected to a bonding process (a second thermal fixation of the image surface on which the powder adhesive Tn has been applied) by the second fixator 32, whereby the sheet P is bonded while remaining in the folded state. That is, when the sheet P passes through the bonding nip, the powder adhesive Tn on the sheet P is heated and remelted, and is then pressurized, so that it adheres to the opposing surface (the surface facing the image surface of the sheet P on which the toner image of the powder adhesive Tn has been transferred in the folded state). Then, the powder adhesive Tn cools and hardens, so that the image surface and the opposing surface of the sheet P are bonded (bonded) together using the powder adhesive Tn as an adhesive.

[0084] As shown in FIG. 4(b), the sheet P that has been subjected to the adhesion process by the second fixing device 32 is discharged to the left side in the drawing from a discharge port 32c (second discharge port) provided in the housing 39 of the post-processing unit 30. Then, the sheet P is stored in a second discharge tray 35 (see FIG. 1) provided on the left side surface of the apparatus main body 10. This completes the image formation operation when the sheet P is transported along the second path R2.

[0085] It is possible to change the bonding locations of the folded sheet P by changing the application pattern of the powder adhesive Tn on the sheet P. Figures 7(a) and 7(b) show examples of deliverables (output products of the image forming apparatus) with different application patterns of the powder adhesive Tn.

[0086] Figure 7(a) is an example of a deliverable (semi-adhesive deliverable) intended to be opened by the recipient. In the case of the pay slip 52 shown in Figure 7(a), powder adhesive Tn is applied to the entire outer periphery 52a of one side of the sheet P, and the sheet is folded and adhered at the central crease 52b.

[0087] 7(b) shows a bag (medicine bag) as an example of a product (fully adhered product) intended for use without being opened. In this case, powder adhesive Tn is applied to a U-shaped region 53a of the folded sheet P so that three sides, including fold 53b, of the folded sheet P are joined together.

[0088] 7(a) and 7(b), the image forming apparatus 1 can output any of the products exemplified in Fig. 7(a) and Fig. 7(b) in one stop without preparing preprinted paper. That is, in parallel with the operation of recording an image on one or both sides of the sheet P using printing toner, it is possible to apply the powder adhesive Tn in a predetermined application pattern and output a product in a state where the product has been subjected to folding and adhesive processing.

[0089] 7(a) and 7(b), one side of the sheet P used as the base paper becomes the outside of the product, and the other side becomes the inside of the product. Therefore, in double-sided printing, an image for the outside surface is formed with printing toner as the image forming operation for the first side, and an image for the inside surface is formed with printing toner as the image forming operation for the second side, and powder adhesive Tn is applied in a predetermined application pattern.

[0090] The image recorded by the image forming device 1 using printing toner can include both the format (invariant portion) when using preprinted paper and variable portions such as personal information. Therefore, as described above, it is possible to output a product that has been glued together using a gluing process from base paper such as blank paper that is not preprinted paper. However, the image forming device 1 can also be used to perform printing and gluing processes on variable portions using preprinted paper as a recording medium.

[0091] (printing toner) Known printing toners can be used for the printing toner. Among them, printing toners using a thermoplastic resin as a binder resin are preferred. There are no particular limitations on the resins that can be used for the thermoplastic resin, and resins that are used in conventional printing toners, such as polyester resins, vinyl resins, acrylic resins, and styrene-acrylic resins, can be used. A plurality of these resins may be contained. Among these, a printing toner containing a styrene-acrylic resin as a binder resin is more preferred. The printing toner may contain a colorant, a magnetic material, a charge control agent, and an external additive as needed. The printing toner may contain a polar resin such as a polyester resin in addition to the binder resin.

[0092] The printing toner contains wax, and examples of the wax that can be used include known waxes such as ester waxes, which are esters of alcohol and acid; hydrocarbon waxes such as low-molecular-weight polyethylene, low-molecular-weight polypropylene, alkylene copolymers, microcrystalline wax, paraffin wax, and Fischer-Tropsch wax; polyester waxes such as crystalline polyester; higher fatty acids; and higher aliphatic alcohols.

[0093] Wax is expected to have an effect mainly as a plasticizer that improves the plasticity of binder resins such as thermoplastic resins, or as a release agent during fixing. Examples of plasticizers include ester wax, crystalline polyester, higher fatty acid, and higher aliphatic alcohol, with ester wax being more preferred. Hydrocarbon wax is preferred as a release agent.

[0094] The content of wax in the printing toner is not particularly limited, but is preferably 1.0 to 25.0 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin. The wax contained in the printing toner preferably contains a plasticizer, more preferably contains an ester wax, and even more preferably contains an ester wax and a hydrocarbon wax. Ester wax will be described later.

[0095] The content of the release agent (e.g., hydrocarbon wax) in the printing toner is preferably 0.5 to 10.0 parts by mass relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin. The content of the plasticizer (e.g., ester wax) in the printing toner is preferably 1.0 to 20.0 parts by mass, more preferably 3.0 to 15.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin.

[0096] The weight average particle diameter of the printing toner is preferably 3.0 μm to 12.0 μm, more preferably 4.0 μm to 8.0 μm, and even more preferably 6.0 μm to 7.5 μm.

[0097] (powder adhesive) As the powder adhesive, a powder adhesive containing a thermoplastic resin can be used. Resins that can be used as the thermoplastic resin are not particularly limited. Known thermoplastic resins such as polyester resin, vinyl resin, acrylic resin, styrene-acrylic resin, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyolefin, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer resin, and ethylene-acrylic acid copolymer resin can be used. A plurality of these resins may be contained.

[0098] The powder adhesive contains wax. Examples of wax include ester waxes, which are esters of alcohol and acid; hydrocarbon waxes such as low-molecular-weight polyethylene, low-molecular-weight polypropylene, alkylene copolymers, microcrystalline wax, paraffin wax, and Fischer-Tropsch wax; and polyester waxes such as crystalline polyester. Known waxes such as waxes, higher fatty acids, and higher fatty alcohols can be used.

[0099] The wax is expected to have an effect mainly as a plasticizer that improves the plasticity of the thermoplastic resin or as a release agent during fixing. As the plasticizer, for example, ester wax, crystalline polyester, higher fatty acid, and higher aliphatic alcohol are preferable, and ester wax is more preferable. As the release agent, hydrocarbon wax is preferable.

[0100] The wax content in the powder adhesive is not particularly limited, but is preferably 5.0 to 40.0 parts by mass, and more preferably 8.0 to 25.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin. The wax contained in the powder adhesive preferably contains a plasticizer, more preferably contains an ester wax, and even more preferably contains an ester wax and a hydrocarbon wax. Ester wax will be described later.

[0101] The content of the release agent (e.g., hydrocarbon wax) in the powder adhesive is preferably 2.0 to 10.0 parts by mass, more preferably 2.0 to 7.0 parts by mass, and even more preferably 2.0 to 5.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin. The content of the plasticizer (e.g., ester wax) in the powder adhesive is preferably 10.0 to 30.0 parts by mass relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin.

[0102] It is necessary that the wax content in the powder adhesive is greater than the wax content in the printing toner, which suppresses offset of the printing toner while improving sharp melting properties, making it easier for the powder adhesive to melt and spread, increasing the contact area with the transfer material, and improving adhesive strength. It is preferable that the content of the ester wax in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the ester wax in the printing toner. This wax content relationship allows the wax component of the adhesive particles to dissolve faster than the thermoplastic resin, such as a styrene-acrylic resin, that is its base material during the fixing process. Therefore, the wax component also functions as a solvent for dissolving the base material of the adhesive particles, improving adhesion.

[0103] The mass ratio of the wax content in the powder adhesive to the wax content in the printing toner (powder adhesive / printing toner) is preferably 1.1 to 5.0, and more preferably 1.2 to 3.5. The mass ratio (powder adhesive / printing toner) of the content of plasticizer (e.g., ester wax) in the powder adhesive to the content of plasticizer (e.g., ester wax) in the printing toner is preferably 1.1 to 5.0, and more preferably 1.2 to 3.0.

[0104] The powder adhesive may contain a colorant. Known colorants such as black colorants, yellow colorants, magenta colorants, and cyan colorants can be used as the colorant. The content of the colorant in the powder adhesive is preferably 1.0% by mass or less, and more preferably 0.1% by mass or less. The powder adhesive may contain a magnetic material, a charge control agent, or an external additive, as needed. The powder adhesive may contain a polar resin such as a polyester resin in addition to the binder resin.

[0105] The weight average particle diameter of the powder adhesive is preferably 5.0 μm to 20.0 μm, and more preferably 5.0 μm to 10.0 μm. In addition to improving adhesive strength and suppressing fogging, the above range also makes it easier to suppress scattering of the powder adhesive. Furthermore, printing toner may be used as the powder adhesive as long as it satisfies the adhesive properties.

[0106] (plasticizer) The wax in the powder adhesive Tn and the printing toner preferably contains a crystalline plasticizer to improve sharp melting properties, and more preferably contains an ester wax. The ester wax is not particularly limited, and known waxes used in general toners such as those listed below can be used.

[0107] Specifically, esters of monohydric alcohols and aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as behenyl behenate, stearyl stearate, and palmityl palmitate, or esters of monohydric carboxylic acids and aliphatic alcohols; esters of dihydric alcohols and aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as ethylene glycol distearate, dibehenyl sebacate, and hexanediol dibehenate, or esters of dihydric carboxylic acids and aliphatic alcohols; esters of trihydric alcohols and aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as glycerin tribehenate, or esters of trihydric carboxylic acids and aliphatic alcohols; pentaerythritol tetrastearate Examples of suitable esters include esters of tetrahydric alcohols and aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as pentaerythritol tetrapalmitate, or esters of tetrahydric carboxylic acids and aliphatic alcohols; esters of hexahydric alcohols and aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as dipentaerythritol hexastearate and dipentaerythritol hexapalmitate, or esters of hexahydric carboxylic acids and aliphatic alcohols; esters of polyhydric alcohols and aliphatic carboxylic acids, such as polyglycerol behenate, or esters of polyhydric carboxylic acids and aliphatic alcohols; and natural ester waxes, such as carnauba wax and rice wax. These may be used alone or in combination.

[0108] Among these, it is preferable that the ester wax contains at least one selected from the group consisting of ester waxes represented by the following formula (1) and ester waxes represented by the following formula (2). [ka]

[0109] In formula (1) and formula (2), l and p each represent a positive integer of 1 or more and 12 or less (preferably 2 or more and 6 or less), and n, m, r, and q each independently represent a positive integer of 11 or more and 25 or less (preferably 16 or more and 22 or less).

[0110] The ester wax is more preferably a compound represented by the following formula (3): The wax contained in the powder adhesive more preferably contains the ester wax represented by the following formula (3): The ester wax particularly preferably contains ethylene glycol distearate. [ka] In formula (3), n and m each independently represent a positive integer of 16 or more and 22 or less.

[0111] (Example of powder adhesive manufacturing) Styrene 75.0 parts n-Butyl acrylate 25.0 parts Polyester resin 4.0 parts (Polyester resin with a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 20,000, a glass transition temperature (Tg) of 75°C, and an acid value of 8.2 mgKOH / g, and a condensation product of terephthalic acid, bisphenol A propylene oxide (2 moles), and ethylene glycol in a molar ratio of 50:40:10) Ethylene glycol distearate 15.0 parts (Ester wax made by esterifying ethylene glycol and stearic acid) Hydrocarbon wax (HNP-9, manufactured by Nippon Seiro) 2.0 parts Divinylbenzene 0.5 parts The mixture of the above materials was kept at 60° C. and stirred at 500 rpm using a TK homomixer (manufactured by Tokushu Kika Kogyo Co., Ltd.) to dissolve uniformly, thereby preparing a polymerizable monomer composition. Meanwhile, 850.0 parts of 0.10 mol / L Na3PO4 aqueous solution and 8.0 parts of 10% hydrochloric acid were added to a vessel equipped with a high-speed stirring device, Clearmix (M Technique), and the rotation speed was adjusted to 15,000 rpm and the mixture was heated to 70°C. 127.5 parts of 1.0 mol / L CaCl2 aqueous solution were added to prepare an aqueous medium containing a calcium phosphate compound.

[0112] After the polymerizable monomer composition was charged into the aqueous medium, 7.0 parts of a polymerization initiator, t-butyl peroxypivalate, was added, and the mixture was granulated for 10 minutes while maintaining a rotation speed of 15,000 rpm. After that, the high-speed agitator was replaced with a propeller agitator, and the mixture was reacted at 70°C for 5 hours under reflux, and then the liquid temperature was increased to 85°C, and the mixture was reacted for another 2 hours.

[0113] After the polymerization reaction was completed, the resulting slurry was cooled, and then hydrochloric acid was added to the slurry to adjust the pH to 1.4. The slurry was then stirred for 1 hour to dissolve the calcium phosphate salt. The slurry was then washed with three times the amount of water, filtered, dried, and classified to obtain powder adhesive particles. Thereafter, 100.0 parts of powder adhesive particles were treated with dimethyl silicone oil (20% by mass) to give hydrophobic silica fine particles (number average particle size of primary particles: 10 nm, BET specific surface area: 170 m) as an external additive. 2 2.0 parts of PEG-100 / g was added and mixed at 3000 rpm for 15 minutes using a Mitsui Henschel mixer (manufactured by Mitsui Miike Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd.) to obtain a powder adhesive. The weight average particle diameter of the obtained powder adhesive was 8.0 μm.

[0114] (Example of manufacturing printing toner) Styrene 60.0 parts Colorant 6.5 parts (CI Pigment Blue 15:3, Dainichi Seika Chemicals Co., Ltd.) The above materials were placed in an attritor (manufactured by Mitsui Miike Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd.), and further dispersed using zirconia particles with a diameter of 1.7 mm at 220 rpm for 5 hours to obtain a pigment dispersion.

[0115] Styrene 15.0 parts n-Butyl acrylate 25.0 parts Polyester resin 4.0 parts (Polyester resin with a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 20,000, a glass transition temperature (Tg) of 75°C, and an acid value of 8.2 mgKOH / g, and a condensation product of terephthalic acid, bisphenol A propylene oxide (2 moles), and ethylene glycol in a molar ratio of 50:40:10) Ethylene glycol distearate 10.0 parts (Ester wax made by esterifying ethylene glycol and stearic acid) Hydrocarbon wax (HNP-9, manufactured by Nippon Seiro) 2.0 parts Divinylbenzene 0.5 parts The above materials were mixed and added to the pigment dispersion liquid. The resulting mixture was kept at 60°C and stirred at 500 rpm using a TK Homomixer (manufactured by Tokushu Kika Kogyo Co., Ltd.) to dissolve and disperse the materials uniformly, thereby preparing a polymerizable monomer composition. Meanwhile, 850.0 parts of 0.10 mol / L Na3PO4 aqueous solution and 8.0 parts of 10% hydrochloric acid were added to a vessel equipped with a high-speed stirring device, Clearmix (M Technique), and the rotation speed was adjusted to 15,000 rpm and the mixture was heated to 70°C. 127.5 parts of 1.0 mol / L CaCl2 aqueous solution were added to prepare an aqueous medium containing a calcium phosphate compound.

[0116] After the polymerizable monomer composition was charged into the aqueous medium, 7.0 parts of a polymerization initiator, t-butyl peroxypivalate, was added, and the mixture was granulated for 10 minutes while maintaining a rotation speed of 15,000 rpm. After that, the high-speed agitator was replaced with a propeller agitator, and the mixture was reacted at 70°C for 5 hours under reflux, and then the liquid temperature was increased to 85°C, and the mixture was reacted for another 2 hours.

[0117] After the polymerization reaction was completed, the resulting slurry was cooled, and then hydrochloric acid was added to the slurry to adjust the pH to 1.4 and stirred for 1 hour to dissolve the calcium phosphate salt.The slurry was then washed with water in an amount three times the volume of the slurry, filtered, dried, and classified to obtain toner particles.

[0118] Thereafter, silica fine particles (number average particle diameter of primary particles: 10 nm, BET specific surface area: 170 m) that had been hydrophobized using dimethyl silicone oil (20% by mass) were added to 100.0 parts of the toner particles as an external additive. 2 2.0 parts of ethanol (1 / g) was added and mixed at 3000 rpm for 15 minutes using a Mitsui Henschel mixer (manufactured by Mitsui Miike Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd.) to obtain a toner. The weight average particle diameter of the obtained toner was 6.5 μm.

[0119] (Method for measuring weight average particle size) The weight average particle diameter of the printing toner and powder adhesive (measurement sample) is calculated as follows. The measurement device used is the "Coulter Counter Multisizer 3" (registered trademark, manufactured by Beckman Coulter, Inc.), a precision particle size distribution measurement device using the pore electrical resistance method with a 100 μm aperture tube. The measurement conditions are set and the measurement data is analyzed using the accompanying dedicated software "Beckman Coulter Multisizer 3 Version 3.51" (manufactured by Beckman Coulter, Inc.). The measurement is performed with an effective number of measurement channels of 25,000. The aqueous electrolyte solution used for the measurement is prepared by dissolving special grade sodium chloride in ion-exchanged water to a concentration of 1% by mass, such as "ISOTON II" (manufactured by Beckman Coulter).

[0120] Before performing measurements and analysis, set the dedicated software as follows. On the "Change Standard Measurement Method (SOM)" screen of the dedicated software, set the total count number in control mode to 50,000 particles, the number of measurements to 1, and the Kd value to the value obtained using "Standard Particles 10.0 μm" (manufactured by Beckman Coulter). Press the "Threshold / Noise Level Measurement Button" to change the setting. Press "Auto Set" to automatically set the threshold and noise level. Also, set the current to 1600 μA, the gain to 2, the electrolyte to ISOTON II, and check "Flush aperture tube after measurement." On the "Pulse to particle size conversion setting" screen of the dedicated software, set the bin interval to logarithmic particle size, the particle size bin to 256 particle size bins, and the particle size range from 2 μm to 60 μm.

[0121] The specific measurement method is as follows. (1) Pour 200 mL of electrolyte solution into a 250 mL round-bottom glass beaker made specifically for the Multisizer 3, set it on the sample stand, and stir the stirrer rod counterclockwise at 24 rps. Then, use the "Aperture Tube Flush" function of the dedicated software to remove any dirt and air bubbles from inside the aperture tube. (2) 30 mL of the electrolyte solution is placed in a 100 mL flat-bottom glass beaker. 0.3 mL of a solution prepared by diluting "Contaminon N" (a 10% aqueous solution of a pH 7 neutral detergent for cleaning precision measuring instruments, consisting of a nonionic surfactant, anionic surfactant, and organic builder, manufactured by Wako Pure Chemical Industries, Ltd.) three times by mass with ion-exchanged water is added as a dispersant. (3) Prepare an ultrasonic disperser "Ultrasonic Dispersion System Tetora150" (manufactured by Nikkaki Bios Co., Ltd.) with an electrical output of 120 W and two built-in oscillators with an oscillation frequency of 50 kHz and a phase difference of 180 degrees. 3.3 L of ion-exchanged water is placed in the ultrasonic disperser's water tank, and 2 mL of Contaminon N is added to the water tank. (4) Place the beaker from (2) above into the beaker fixing hole of the ultrasonic disperser, and operate the ultrasonic disperser. Then, adjust the height of the beaker so that the resonance state of the electrolyte solution surface in the beaker is maximized. (5) While the electrolyte solution in the beaker in (4) is being irradiated with ultrasonic waves, 10 mg of the measurement sample is added little by little to the electrolyte solution and dispersed. The ultrasonic dispersion treatment is then continued for another 60 seconds. During the ultrasonic dispersion, the water temperature in the water tank is appropriately adjusted to be between 10°C and 40°C. (6) Using a pipette, add dropwise the electrolytic solution (5) in which the toner or powder adhesive has been dispersed into the round-bottom beaker (1) placed in the sample stand, and adjust the measurement concentration to 5%. Then, measure until the number of particles measured reaches 50,000. (7) The measurement data is analyzed using the dedicated software provided with the device to calculate the weight-average particle diameter (D4). Note that when the dedicated software is set to Graph / Volume%, the "Average diameter" on the "Analysis / Volume Statistics (Arithmetic Mean)" screen is the weight-average particle diameter (D4). Hereinafter, the weight-average particle diameter will be referred to as the particle diameter.

[0122] (Adhesion strength control using powder adhesive) When the powder adhesive is adhered by the adhesive means 32 to obtain a bag-shaped product, for example, the strength of the adhesive joint, that is, the adhesive force, is measured as follows. Figure 9-1(a) shows the specifications of the sample used for adhesive strength measurement, Figure 9-2(b) shows the completed sample, and Figure 9-2(c) shows the adhesive strength measurement method. From Figure 9-1(a), the sample is obtained as follows. Sheet P is GF-C081 sold by Canon Marketing Japan Inc. Powder adhesive Tn is printed in a 3 cm width in the longitudinal center starting from a position 2 cm from the leading edge in the paper feed direction, forming a 4 cm wide adhesive area S1 shown by diagonal lines. Next, powder adhesive Tn is printed in a 3 cm width in the longitudinal center starting from a position 2 cm from the trailing edge in the paper feed direction, forming a 4 cm wide adhesive area S2 shown by diagonal lines. This is folded using the folding means 31 shown in Figure 1 and bonded using the bonding means 32. As shown in Figure 9-2(b), it is trimmed to a width of 3 cm and a total length of 14 cm from the leading edge in the paper feed direction.

[0123] As shown in Figure 9-2(c), the paper edge Q of the long non-adhesive part of the sample is supported by a chuck. This is done with an RTG-1225 Tensilon universal testing machine manufactured by A&D Co., Ltd. (not shown). A tensile test is carried out at a tensile speed of 50 mm / min to obtain a stress-strain curve.

[0124] Figure 10 is an example of a stress-strain curve. The horizontal axis represents the amount of zipper movement, and the vertical axis represents the tensile stress per unit sample width. The section from 0 mm of movement to the upper yield point is called Section A, and the section thereafter is called Section B. Section A is the elastic deformation region, and no peeling of the adhesive region occurs. Therefore, when pulling is stopped, the sample can maintain its original shape. On the other hand, Section B is the plastic deformation region, and peeling of the adhesive region or paper tearing, as described below, occurs. Hereinafter, in this disclosure, the stress at the upper yield point per unit width is defined as the adhesive strength. This is because continuing to pull past the upper yield point will cause peeling of the adhesive. In other words, this means that the bottom of the resulting bag will begin to come loose.

[0125] (Method for setting the amount of powder applied per unit area on sheet P) Here, we will explain how to set the amount of powder applied per unit area (hereinafter referred to as M / S) on the sheet P. M / S is determined by the amount of powder applied per unit area on the developing roller 105 (hereinafter referred to as M / Sd), the peripheral speed ratio between the photosensitive drum 101 and the developing roller 105, the transfer efficiency (1) from the photosensitive drum 101 to the transfer unit 3, and the transfer efficiency (2) from the transfer unit 3 to the sheet P.

[0126] First, using Figure 11, we will explain how to determine M / Sd. M / Sd was set based on the positional relationship between the developing blade 107 and the developing roller 105. Figure 11 is a diagram showing the position of the end of the developing blade 107 relative to the center of rotation of the developing roller 105. The X axis mainly controls the pressure with which the developing blade 107 contacts the developing roller 105. The Y axis controls the amount of powder Tn, Ty, Tm, and Tc absorbed. M / Sd is determined by the X and Y (hereinafter referred to as the X value and Y value) at which the tip position of the developing blade 107 is set. Table 1 shows the relationship between the developing blade 107 settings (X value, Y value) and M / Sd for each developing device. At this time, the contact pressure of the developing blade 107 against the developing roller 105 was 30 N / cm. [Table 1]

[0127] The adhesive image forming unit using powder adhesive Tn has a larger M / Sd by reducing the Y value and increasing the intake compared to the print image forming unit using printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc. This is because the M / Stotal (the amount of powder adhesive present in the adhesive area between recording media) required to obtain sufficient adhesive strength from the powder adhesive is greater than the amount of printing toner per unit area on the sheet P required to make the image visible (hereinafter referred to as M / Sp). Specifically, visibility was sufficiently ensured when the M / Sp of the printing toner was 0.45. The M / Stotal required to obtain sufficient adhesive strength will be discussed later.

[0128] In addition, the peripheral speed ratio between the photosensitive drum 101 and the developing roller 105 (developing roller 105 / photosensitive drum 101) was 150%, the transfer efficiency (1) from the photosensitive drum 101 to the transfer unit 3 was 97%, and the transfer efficiency (2) from the transfer unit 3 to the sheet P was 95%.

[0129] (Method for evaluating fogging) The method for evaluating fogging will be explained. Since the powder adhesive Tn used in this example is transparent, quantification using a conventional reflection densitometer cannot be adopted. Specifically, the image forming apparatus 1 is stopped during printing of a solid white image, and a photograph of the solid white image formed on the photosensitive drum 101 is taken in the area after passing the developing roller 105 and before contacting the transfer unit 3. The KEYENCE VK-X200 shape measurement laser microscope was used to take the images at 20x magnification. The captured images were analyzed using imageJ, a software from Wayne Rasband. The photos were imported, binarized, and a histogram displayed. The percentage (%) of the powder adhesive area to the total area at this time is defined as the powder adhesive area ratio (%). Therefore, when fogging occurs, the powder adhesive area ratio increases.

[0130] The criteria for determining fogging were ranked based on the powder adhesive area ratio as shown in Table 2. Fogging Determination Criteria. [Table 2]

[0131] (Comparative Example) The main configuration is the same as in Example 1. In Comparative Example 1, M / Sd was changed for printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc. In Comparative Examples 2 to 5, particle diameters (weight average particle diameters) were changed for printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc. Furthermore, in Comparative Examples 4 and 5, the external additive formulations were changed. The contents of ester wax and hydrocarbon wax in Comparative Examples 1 to 5 are the same as those in the printing toners. From the viewpoint of ensuring fluidity, external silica was added in Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 to 5. Furthermore, from the viewpoint of improving transferability, large silica having an outer diameter several times larger than that of the silica used in Example 1 was added externally in Comparative Examples 4 and 5. The particle size of the silica (number average particle size of primary particles) was 10 nm, and the particle size of the large silica was 40 nm. The amount of externally added silica and large silica was 1.5 parts per 100 parts of toner particles.

[0132] Table 3. Physical properties of each powder shows the amount of plasticizer, particle size, M / Sd, and whether or not external silica is added for printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc, powder adhesive Tn, and each comparative example. The Y value of the comparative examples was adjusted to achieve the listed M / Sd. [Table 3]

[0133] (Comparison between Example 1 and Comparative Example) The adhesive strength, fogging, and scattering were compared using the above-mentioned method for the configurations of Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 to 5. Table 4. Comparison results between Example 1 and Comparative Examples shows the comparison results between Example 1 and Comparative Examples. The adhesive strength Max listed in Table 4 is the maximum value when M / Stotal was changed. [Table 4]

[0134] <About adhesive strength> The adhesive strength was higher in Example 1 than in Comparative Examples 1 to 5. Figure 12 shows a comparison of M / Stotal and adhesive strength. The vertical axis represents adhesive strength per unit length in the longitudinal direction [N / cm], and the horizontal axis represents M / Stotal [mg / cm 2 The broken line shows the adhesive strength of Example 1, and the solid line shows the adhesive strength of Comparative Examples 1 to 5. The adhesive strength increases as the contact area between the adhesive and sheet P increases. To increase the contact area, the M / S may be increased, but even with the same M / S, the contact area can be increased by, for example, melting the powder adhesive Tn more and spreading it out. However, if too much heat is applied in an attempt to melt the toners well, the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc will offset. Furthermore, since the M / S of the powder adhesive Tn is larger than that of the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc, simply applying enough heat to melt and spread the powder adhesive Tn well will cause the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc to offset. The fixing temperature during secondary fixing by the adhesive means 32 was set to 200°C from the viewpoint of suppressing offset of the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc. .

[0135] After careful consideration, it was found that by increasing the amount of plasticizer in the powder adhesive Tn compared to the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc, it was possible to improve the sharp melting properties of the powder adhesive Tn compared to the printing toner, suppress offset of the printing toner, increase the contact area of ​​the powder adhesive Tn with the sheet P, and improve adhesive strength.

[0136] Example 1 has a larger amount of wax than printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc and Comparative Examples 1 to 5. As a result, as shown in Figure 12, the adhesive strength is improved compared to Comparative Examples 1 to 5 with respect to changes in M / Stotal. This is thought to be because the increased amount of wax allows the powder adhesive Tn to dissolve more quickly, thereby efficiently increasing the contact area at the interface between Region 1 and Region 2 shown in Figure 9-2(c). The adhesive strength remains constant in the region where M / Stotal≧X because the sheet P will break. The adhesive strength increases with M / Stotal, but the upper yield point shown in Figure 10 depends on the strength of the sheet P, so the adhesive strength remains constant.

[0137] On the other hand, in Comparative Examples 1 to 5, the amount of wax was the same as that of the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc, so the contact area could not be expanded sufficiently, and the adhesive strength was not as sufficient as in Example 1. Furthermore, in the region where M / Stotal>X', the amount of heat obtained from the adhesive means 32 was not sufficient to melt the powder adhesive Tn, so the increase in contact area was small and the adhesive strength hardly increased at all.

[0138] <About fogging> Fog is a phenomenon in which toner with low triboelectricity (charge amount) migrates to dark potential areas on the photosensitive drum 101. Generally, in a single-component development system, for example, toner acquires triboelectricity due to frictional charging from the developing roller 105 or the developing blade 107. Therefore, the magnitude of triboelectricity is affected by the frequency of friction with the developing roller 105 or the developing blade 107. In the case of printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc in this embodiment, when the particle diameter is 6.5 μm and the M / Sd is about 0.35, the number of toner layers in the regulating section is about 1.5 layers (a layer about 1.5 times the thickness of the toner particle diameter). This allows for good rubbing with the developing roller 105 or developing blade 107, maintaining high triboelectricity. As a result, fogging is easily suppressed. On the other hand, in Comparative Example 1, the particle size is the same as that of the printing toner Ty, Tm, and Tc, and in order to obtain adhesive strength, M / Sd is set to a high value by, for example, adjusting the Y value of the developing blade 107. This increases the number of powder layers in the restricting portion of the developing blade 107, resulting in the generation of intermediate layer toner that cannot rub against the developing roller 105 or the developing blade 107. This prevents sufficient triboelectricity from being imparted, leading to the occurrence of fogging.

[0139] The inventors discovered that by increasing the particle size of the powder adhesive, fogging can be suppressed even with a high M / Sd. Increasing the particle size reduces the number of powder layers at the same M / Sd, making it easier to impart triboelectricity. As a result, even if the M / Sd is increased, if the effect of reducing the number of layers is greater, the opportunity for friction with the developing roller 105 or developing blade 107 can be maintained, and sufficient triboelectricity can be imparted. Therefore, fogging can be suppressed.

[0140] Specifically, when the M / Sd of the printing toner is M / SdA, the M / Sd of the powder adhesive is M / SdB, the volume of one particle calculated from the weight average particle diameter of the printing toner is Wt, and the volume of one particle calculated from the weight average particle diameter of the powder adhesive is Wn, by satisfying the following formula (4), it is possible to obtain M / Stotal, which provides sufficient adhesive strength, while also suppressing fogging. (M / SdB) / (M / SdA) < Wn / Wt…Equation (4) The reason is that by increasing the volume to increase M / Sd, the number of powder layers in the restricting section is reduced, and the sliding This is because sufficient rubbing opportunity can be secured and fogging can be suppressed.

[0141] As described above, Example 1 exhibited good fogging. On the other hand, Comparative Example 1 had the same particle size as the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc, so the number of powder layers in the regulating portion of the developing blade 107 increased, the friction opportunity decreased, and fogging occurred.

[0142] The amount of powder adhesive applied per unit area (M / SdB) [mg / cm2] on the second developer carrier (on the second developing roller) that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the second image carrier (second photosensitive member) in the adhesive image forming section. 2 ] is the amount of printing toner per unit area (M / SdA) [mg / cm 2 ] on the first developer carrier (on the first developing roller) that develops the electrostatic latent image formed on the first image carrier (first photosensitive member) in the print image forming unit. 2 ] is preferably more than .

[0143] The ratio ((M / SdB) / (M / SdA)) of the amount of powder adhesive applied per unit area on the second developing roller (M / SdB) to the amount of printing toner applied per unit area on the first developing roller (M / SdA) is preferably 1.05 to 3.00, and more preferably 1.09 to 2.70.

[0144] Amount of powder adhesive per unit area on the second developing roller (M / SdB) [mg / cm 2 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.55 to 0.80, and more preferably 0.60 to 0.80. Amount of printing toner per unit area on the first developing roller (M / SdA) [mg / cm 2 ] is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.30 to 0.55.

[0145] <About scattering> Scattering occurs when there is a force that adheres the powder to, for example, the photosensitive drum 101 or the transfer unit 3 (hereinafter referred to as adhesive force) and a force that peels it off (hereinafter referred to as peeling force), and the peeling force is greater. Peeling forces include, for example, centrifugal force exerted during operation and air resistance due to airflow. Adhesion forces include, for example, van der Waals force and reflective force. Reducing the weight-average particle diameter of the powder adhesive Tn reduces both centrifugal force and air resistance, making it easier to suppress scattering. The evaluation of scattering in Table 4 was made based on whether or not scattering occurred inside the image forming device or on the outer surface of the process cartridge when 10,000 sheets of 5 mm wide vertical band images were printed continuously in an environment of 23°C / 50%RH.

[0146] Furthermore, from the viewpoint of improving adhesive strength, large silica may be externally added to increase M / Stotal and improve transfer efficiency. The large silica reduces the contact area between the powder adhesive Tn and the photosensitive drum 101 or the transfer unit 3, thereby reducing adhesion and improving transfer efficiency. However, reducing the contact area reduces the van der Waals force, which may lead to scattering. Therefore, from the viewpoint of suppressing scattering, when large silica is externally added, it is preferable that the weight average particle diameter of the powder adhesive Tn be approximately 5 to 10 μm. Alternatively, it is preferable not to externally add large silica.

[0147] The silica preferably has a number average particle size of 5 nm or more and less than 30 nm, more preferably 7 to 20 nm, and even more preferably 7 to 15 nm. The content of silica is preferably 0.1 to 10.0 parts by mass, more preferably 0.5 to 5.0 parts by mass, and even more preferably 1.0 to 3.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of toner particles. The large silica has, for example, a number average particle size of primary particles of preferably 30 nm to 200 nm, more preferably 35 to 100 nm, and even more preferably 35 to 50 nm. The content of large silica is preferably 1.0 to 2.0 parts by mass, more preferably 1.0 to 1.5 parts by mass, per 100 parts by mass of toner particles. When the content is 1.0 part by mass or more, dripping due to insufficient triboelectricity can be suppressed. When the content is 1.5 parts by mass or less, poor fixing can be suppressed.

[0148] The method for measuring adhesive force will be explained using Figure 13. Figure 13 shows a schematic diagram of an adhesive force measuring device. First, powder is attached to the tip of horn 81, and after neutralization with an ionizer, it is placed on acceleration applying device 80. As shown by the arrow indicating the vibration direction, acceleration applying device 80 applies acceleration to horn 81 in the vertical direction in the figure, while suction device 82 sucks up the scattered powder. Observation images of the toner attached to horn 81 before and after acceleration application are obtained by observation device 83, and the number and particle size of the scattered toner particles are calculated by an analysis device (not shown). The adhesive force is calculated from the applied acceleration and the particle size of the scattered powder. Specifically, the adhesive force is calculated using the following formula: Adhesion force F[nN]=a×m a: acceleration when toner is scattered, m: mass of toner (volume calculated from particle size multiplied by specific gravity (set to 1.0 in this example))

[0149] Figure 14 shows the relationship between the weight-average particle diameter of the powder adhesive Tn and the peeling force. The vertical axis represents the force applied to the toner [nN], and the horizontal axis represents the weight-average particle diameter [μm]. The thick solid curve represents the peeling force obtained from the scattering occurrence situation in this example. The horizontal solid line represents the threshold for scattering when external silica is added, and the thick horizontal dashed line represents the threshold for scattering when large external silica is added. When the peeling force exceeds the scattering threshold, scattering occurs. The scattering threshold is determined by the strength of the adhesive force of the powder adhesive. The threshold is low when large silica is added externally because the adhesive force is weaker, as described above. As can be seen from Figure 14, scattering occurred in Comparative Examples 2 and 4 because the peeling force exceeded the scattering threshold. From the viewpoint of scattering, and taking into consideration the adhesive strength of Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3, it is desirable that the weight average particle size of the powder adhesive Tn be in the range of 5 μm to 20 μm.

[0150] Even more preferably, by adding large silica externally from the viewpoint of improving transferability, the weight average particle diameter of the powder adhesive Tn is more preferably 5 μm to 10 μm in order to suppress scattering even when the adhesive strength is reduced.

[0151] From the above, scattering was suppressed in Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 and 3 due to the external addition formulation and weight average particle diameter of 5 to 20 μm. In Comparative Example 5, large silica was externally added, but scattering was suppressed because the weight average particle diameter was 5 to 10 μm. On the other hand, scattering occurred in Comparative Examples 2 and 4 because the adhesive strength was smaller than the peeling force.

[0152] From the above, by increasing the amount of wax contained in the powder adhesive to be greater than the amount of wax in the printing toner, it is possible to suppress offset of the printing toners Ty, Tm, and Tc while improving adhesive strength.

[0153] More preferably, the content of the plasticizer (e.g., ester wax) contained in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the plasticizer (e.g., ester wax) in the printing toner. Also, more preferably, the weight-average particle diameter of the powder adhesive is 5 to 20 μm. Also, more preferably, the weight-average particle diameter of the powder adhesive is greater than the weight-average particle diameter of the printing toner. This makes it possible to further improve adhesive strength while further suppressing fogging and scattering.

[0154] Example 2 Unless otherwise specified, the configuration is the same as in the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, the resulting product and the configuration of the bonding process are different. This will be explained using Figures 15 and 16. Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus in the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, a booklet can be produced in the post-processing process. The arrow R3 indicated by a dotted line indicates the transport path of the sheet P. After being discharged from the image forming apparatus 1, the sheet P is sent to intermediate transport means 60. Once inside the intermediate transport means 60, the sheet P is transported to the post-processing device 62 by intermediate transport rollers 61. Below the post-processing device 62, there is a paper discharge tray 63, on which the sheet P is stacked. A secondary fixing device 64 is installed above the stacked sheets P. When producing a booklet, the secondary fixing device 64 descends in the direction of the black arrow P1 when the sheets P are stacked on the paper output tray 63 to perform the bonding process. FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a booklet-shaped product obtained from the configuration of Example 2. When producing a booklet, powder is printed in the powder adhesive Tn printing area 65. The powder adhesive Tn printing area 65 is bonded by the secondary fixing device 64 to obtain a booklet-shaped product.

[0155] In the comparative experiment conducted in Example 1, the fixing state in the secondary fixing device 64 was as good as in Example 1, so the results were unchanged. Therefore, by adopting the configuration of Example 2, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that can produce good booklets.

[0156] Example 3 Unless otherwise specified, the configuration is the same as in the first embodiment. The third embodiment differs in the resulting product and the configuration of the bonding process. This will be explained using Figs. 17 and 18. Fig. 17 is a schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus according to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, a corner-fastened booklet can be produced in the post-processing process. The sheet P discharged from the image forming apparatus 1 is The sheet P passes through the path indicated by the arrow R4 in the line. That is, after being transported to the post-processing device 66, it is transported to the paper discharge tray 68 by the transport rollers 67. Above the paper discharge tray, there is a secondary fixing device 69, which performs adhesive processing on the corners of the discharged sheet P.

[0157] 18 is a schematic diagram of a corner-fastened booklet-shaped product obtained from the configuration of Example 3. When producing a corner-fastened booklet, powder is printed in the powder adhesive Tn printing area 70. The powder adhesive Tn printing area 70 is adhered by a secondary fixing device 69, thereby obtaining a corner-fastened booklet product.

[0158] In the comparative experiment conducted in Example 1, the fixing state in the secondary fixing device 69 was as good as in Example 1, so the results were unchanged. Therefore, by adopting the configuration of Example 3, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that can obtain good corner-fastened booklets. [Explanation of symbols]

[0159] 1...image forming apparatus, 1e...image forming means (image forming unit), 1m...main transport path, 2...scanner unit, 3...transfer means (transfer unit), 3a...transfer belt, 3b...secondary transfer inner roller, 3c...tension roller, 4...primary transfer roller, 5...secondary transfer roller, 5n...transfer nip, 6...fixing means (first fixer), 6a...heating roller, 6b...pressure roller, 6n...fixing nip, 7n...second process unit (second process cartridge), 7y, 7m, 7c...first process unit (first process cartridge), 8...sheet cassette, 8a...transport roller, 9...cartridge support section, 10...apparatus main body, 12...discharge outlet (first discharge outlet), 13...guide member (first discharge tray), 13...a tray switching guide, 15...intermediate path, 19...first housing, 20...openable tray, 30...sheet processing device (post-processing unit), 31...folding means (folder), 31a...first folding roller, 31b...second folding roller, 31c...first guide roller, 31d...second guide roller, 31e...pulling section, 31f...guide wall, 31g...wall, 31h...end, 32...adhesion means (second fixing device), 33...switching guide, 33a...switching guide shaft section, 33b...switching guide tip, 34...discharge unit, 34a...first discharge roller, 34b...intermediate roller, 34c...second discharge roller, 35...second discharge tray, 36, 37...connector, 39...second housing, 51... adhesive postcard, 51a... entire surface of one side of the sheet, 51b, 52b, 53b... central fold, 52a... entire periphery of the outer periphery, 53a... U-shaped area, 60... intermediate conveying means, 61... intermediate conveying roller, 62... post-processing device, 63... second paper discharge tray, 64... secondary fixing device, 65... powder adhesive Tn printing area, 66... ​​post-processing device, 67... conveying roller, 68... paper discharge tray, 69... secondary fixing device, 70... powder adhesive Tn printing area, 80...acceleration application device, 81...horn, 82...suction device, 83...observation device, 101...photosensitive drum, 102...charging roller, 103...cleaning member, 104n, 104y, 104m, 104c...powder containing section, 105...developing roller, 106...developer supply roller, 107...developing blade, 108...stirring member, 109...developing chamber, P...sheet, R1...first path, R2...second path, R3...sheet P transport in post-processing device 62 Path, R4...sheet P transport path in post-processing device 66, Tn...powder adhesive, Ty, Tm, T c...printing toner, CC...photosensitive unit, DT...developing unit, q...leading edge of sheet P, r...middle, L...total length of sheet P, M...spacing, N...depth of pull-in part, P1...operating direction of secondary fixing device 64 during adhesion operation, P2...operating direction of secondary fixing device 69 during adhesion operation

Claims

1. a print image forming unit for forming a print toner image using print toner; an adhesive image forming unit for forming an image of a powder adhesive using a powder adhesive, The printing toner contains a binder resin for printing toner and a wax for printing toner, The wax for the printing toner contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the printing toner is 0.5 to 10.0 parts by mass, and the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.0 to 20.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the printing toner; The powder adhesive contains a binder resin for powder adhesives and a wax for powder adhesives, The wax for powder adhesive contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the powder adhesive is 2.0 to 10.0 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the powder adhesive; the mass ratio of the content of the ester wax in the powder adhesive to the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.1 to 5.0; An image forming apparatus characterized in that the content of wax for powder adhesive in said powder adhesive is greater than the content of wax for printing toner in said printing toner.

2. An image forming apparatus as described in Claim 1, wherein the ester wax in the printing toner and the powder adhesive is both ethylene glycol distearate.

3. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the powder adhesive has a weight average particle diameter of 5 μm to 20 μm.

4. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the weight average particle diameter of the powder adhesive is larger than the weight average particle diameter of the printing toner.

5. the print image forming unit has a first image carrier and a first developer carrier that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on the first image carrier with the printing toner; the adhesive image forming unit includes a second image carrier and a second developer carrier that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on the second image carrier with the powder adhesive; The amount of the powder adhesive applied per unit area on the second developer carrier is greater than the amount of the printing toner applied per unit area on the first developer carrier. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. An adhesive cartridge that is detachable from an image forming device having a print image forming unit for forming a print toner image using a print toner containing a binder resin for print toner and a wax for print toner, the adhesive cartridge includes an adhesive image forming unit for forming an image of the powder adhesive with the powder adhesive; The wax for the printing toner contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the printing toner is 0.5 to 10.0 parts by mass, and the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.0 to 20.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the printing toner; The powder adhesive contains a binder resin for powder adhesives and a wax for powder adhesives, The wax for powder adhesive contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the powder adhesive is 2.0 to 10.0 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the powder adhesive; the mass ratio of the content of the ester wax in the powder adhesive to the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.1 to 5.0; The adhesive cartridge is characterized in that the content of the wax for the powder adhesive in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the wax for the printing toner in the printing toner.

7. An adhesive cartridge as described in Claim 6, wherein the ester wax in the printing toner and the powder adhesive is both ethylene glycol distearate.

8. 8. The adhesive cartridge according to claim 6, wherein the powder adhesive has a weight average particle diameter of 5 μm to 20 μm.

9. 9. The adhesive cartridge according to claim 6, wherein the weight average particle diameter of the powder adhesive is larger than the weight average particle diameter of the printing toner.

10. the print image forming unit has a first developer carrier that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a first image carrier with the printing toner; the adhesive image forming unit has a second developer carrier that develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a second image carrier with the powder adhesive; The amount of the powder adhesive applied per unit area on the second developer carrier is greater than the amount of the printing toner applied per unit area on the first developer carrier. The adhesive cartridge according to any one of claims 6 to 9.

11. the adhesive image forming unit has the second image carrier; The adhesive cartridge of claim 10.

12. the print image forming unit is detachable from the image forming apparatus; 12. The adhesive cartridge according to claim 10 or 11.

13. the print image forming unit has the first image carrier; The adhesive cartridge of claim 12.

14. A print image forming unit for forming a print toner image using a print toner containing a binder resin for print toner and a wax for print toner; and an adhesive imaging section for forming an image of the powder adhesive with the powder adhesive; An adhesive container detachable from an image forming apparatus, The adhesive container includes a powder storage portion that stores a powder adhesive, The wax for the printing toner contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the printing toner is 0.5 to 10.0 parts by mass, and the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.0 to 20.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the printing toner; the powder adhesive contained in the powder containing section contains a binder resin for powder adhesive and a wax for powder adhesive; The wax for powder adhesive contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the powder adhesive is 2.0 to 10.0 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the powder adhesive; the mass ratio of the content of the ester wax in the powder adhesive to the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.1 to 5.0; The adhesive container is characterized in that the content of the wax for the powder adhesive in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the wax for the printing toner in the printing toner.

15. The adhesive container according to claim 14, wherein the ester wax in the printing toner and the powder adhesive is ethylene glycol distearate.

16. 16. The adhesive container according to claim 14, wherein the powder adhesive has a weight average particle diameter of 5 μm to 20 μm.

17. 17. The adhesive container according to claim 14, wherein the powder adhesive has a weight average particle size larger than the weight average particle size of the printing toner.

18. A cartridge set having a first cartridge and a second cartridge that are detachably mountable to an image forming apparatus, the first cartridge includes a first developer carrier that carries toner for printing; the second cartridge includes a second developer carrier that carries a powder adhesive; The printing toner contains a binder resin for printing toner and a wax for printing toner, The wax for the printing toner contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the printing toner is 0.5 to 10.0 parts by mass, and the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.0 to 20.0 parts by mass, relative to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the printing toner; The powder adhesive contains a binder resin for powder adhesives and a wax for powder adhesives, The wax for powder adhesive contains a hydrocarbon wax and an ester wax, the content of the hydrocarbon wax in the powder adhesive is 2.0 to 10.0 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin for the powder adhesive; the mass ratio of the content of the ester wax in the powder adhesive to the content of the ester wax in the printing toner is 1.1 to 5.0; The cartridge set is characterized in that the content of the wax for the powder adhesive in the powder adhesive is greater than the content of the wax for the printing toner in the printing toner.

Images