Cleaning Blade Contact Pressure Fluctuation Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional contacting devices, such as cleaning blades in image forming apparatuses, experience significant fluctuations in contact pressure due to material deterioration and environmental changes, leading to increased torque requirements and reduced lifespan of rotating components.
Innovation Solution
A contacting device design featuring a supporting unit with a protruding part that abuts a rotating body, where the holding unit fixes the supporting unit in a manner that maintains a consistent fulcrum point, reducing the fluctuation of contact pressure by stabilizing the free length of the supporting member.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the contact pressure of the cleaning blade is set high to compensate for deterioration, then the cleaning performance is maintained, but the torque required to rotate the image carrying member increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning blade is designed with a blade spring that allows dynamic adjustment of contact pressure. The blade spring can deform elastically to maintain optimal contact pressure with the image carrying member throughout its service life, rather than requiring a fixed high contact pressure setting that would increase torque requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The contact pressure parameter is made variable through the elastic deformation of the blade spring. As the polyurethane elastomer deteriorates over time, the blade spring's elastic properties change, automatically adjusting the contact pressure to maintain cleaning effectiveness without requiring manual intervention or excessive initial pressure.
2Reliability
If the contact pressure is increased to ensure cleaning performance under low temperature environments, then the cleaning performance is maintained, but the torque required to rotate the image carrying member increases
Solution Approach 1:
The blade spring's elastic modulus changes with temperature, automatically compensating for environmental variations. Under low temperature conditions, the material properties of the blade spring and polyurethane elastomer change in a way that maintains appropriate contact pressure without requiring excessively high pressure settings that would increase torque.
Solution Approach 2:
The contacting device is designed with specific local properties - the blade spring has particular elastic characteristics that are optimized for the operating conditions. This localized elastic design allows the system to adapt to temperature variations without requiring system-wide parameter adjustments or excessive contact pressure.
3Reliability
If the cleaning blade is made of polyurethane elastomer for good cleaning property, then the cleaning performance is improved, but permanent distortion occurs over time causing contact pressure to decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the dynamic elastic properties of the blade spring to compensate for the permanent distortion of the polyurethane elastomer. As the elastomer deteriorates and undergoes permanent set, the blade spring's elastic deformation capacity allows it to maintain the necessary contact pressure by adjusting its own deformation state.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade spring is designed with sufficient elastic capacity to cushion the effects of polyurethane elastomer deterioration. This pre-designed elastic buffer compensates for future permanent distortion, ensuring that contact pressure remains within acceptable ranges throughout the service life of the cleaning blade.
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
This design effectively reduces the fluctuation of contact pressure, minimizing the torque required to rotate the image carrying member and extending its lifespan by maintaining consistent contact pressure across varying environmental conditions.
Implementation Method 1
The blade spring is deformed by the force received from the image carrying member via the elastic body. In this deformation, the fulcrum is the part located at the tip of the holding plate in the blade spring
Data Source
AI summary
A cleaning blade is a contacting device abutting a photoconductor which is a rotating body. The cleaning blade includes a contacting member that abuts the photoconductor, a supporting member that supports the contacting member, and a holding member that holds the supporting member. The supporting member supports the contacting member in a part protruding from the holding member. The holding member includes an upper surface on the side where the contacting member abuts the photoconductor and a lower surface on the opposite side of the upper surface. The holding member holds the supporting member with a supporting region away from the tip portion to the read end side. It is possible to reduce the fluctuation of the contact pressure abutting the rotating body.