Cleaning Blade Coating Resolves Torque and Cleaning Trade-off
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cleaning blades for image forming apparatuses face challenges in reducing torque increase and maintaining effective cleaning performance, as they often experience friction-related issues and particle detachment, leading to defective cleaning and increased torque.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning blade with a coating layer containing a first and second fluorine-based resin, incompatible with each other, applied on the edge layer, providing a Martens hardness of 0.5 to 3 N/mm2 at 20 μm from the tip edge, which enhances sliding effect and prevents particle detachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a cleaning blade coated with a lubricant containing a fluorine-based compound is used to reduce frictional force, then slidability is improved, but the blade experiences particle detachment and defective cleaning
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning blade uses a composite coating layer comprising multiple fluorine-based resins (e.g., PTFE particles and vinylidene fluoride copolymer) combined with specific additives. This composite structure provides both low friction for slidability and sufficient adhesion to prevent particle detachment, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The invention specifies precise parameter ranges including Martens hardness of 1.0 to 15.0 N/mm² at 20 μm from the tip edge, and controlled thickness of the coating layer. These parameter optimizations ensure the blade maintains appropriate flexibility and hardness to prevent curling and gouging wear while preserving cleaning effectiveness
2Strength
If the cleaning blade is made with higher hardness to prevent wear, then durability is improved, but torque increase and blade turning up occur
Solution Approach 1:
The invention optimizes the Martens hardness parameter to a specific range of 1.0 to 15.0 N/mm² at 20 μm from the tip edge portion. This controlled hardness level provides sufficient wear resistance while maintaining blade flexibility to prevent turning up and excessive torque increase during operation
3Ease of operation
If a coating layer is applied to improve lubricity, then friction is reduced, but the coating particles detach from the substrate
Solution Approach 1:
The coating layer uses a composite formulation combining multiple fluorine-based resins with specific additives that enhance adhesion. This composite structure maintains low friction for lubricity while the chemical composition ensures strong bonding to the substrate, preventing particle detachment
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces specific additives and resin combinations that act as intermediaries between the fluorine-based lubricant particles and the substrate. These intermediaries enhance the adhesive force, ensuring the coating remains firmly attached while maintaining its lubricating properties
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces torque increase and maintains excellent cleaning performance by ensuring the cleaning blade does not turn up or experience excessive torque, thereby preventing toner slippage and improving image quality.
Implementation Method 1
The cleaning blade and the lubricant leveling blade are required to have lubricity for preventing an increase in torque, which is a force necessary for rotating the image bearer, and reducing a frictional force with the image bearer
Implementation Method 2
a cleaning blade composed of an elastic body made of polyurethane rubber and a support supporting the elastic body is widely used
Data Source
AI summary
A cleaning blade for cleaning a rotating body is provided. The cleaning blade includes: an edge layer having a tip portion that comes into contact with the rotating body; and a coating layer on the tip portion of the edge layer. The coating layer contains a first fluorine-based resin and a second fluorine-based resin incompatible with the first fluorine-based resin. The cleaning blade has a Martens hardness of from 0.5 to 3 N/mm2 at a position 20 μm distant from a tip edge portion of the edge layer.