Cleaning Unit Acceleration Profile for Toner Transport
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing waste toner transport mechanisms in image forming apparatuses face issues with space efficiency and stable operation, as increased transport ability leads to insufficient lubricity between the cleaning blade and photosensitive drum, causing tuck-up and inadequate waste toner accumulation.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning unit with a frame, blade member, transport sheet, and driving unit, where the transport sheet's maximum acceleration is lower when moving towards the deep side than when moving towards the opening side, and its width is narrower than the blade member, ensuring efficient waste toner transport with reduced tuck-up and maintained lubricity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the transport member is imparted with larger acceleration in the opposing direction of waste toner transport direction, then waste toner transport ability is improved, but lubricity between the cleaning blade and photosensitive drum deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the acceleration parameters of the transport member by making the absolute value of maximum acceleration in the waste toner transport direction smaller than that in the opposing direction. This parameter adjustment resolves the contradiction by optimizing the acceleration profile to maintain both transport ability and lubricity.
2Volume of moving object
If the width of the transport sheet is smaller than the abutting width of the blade member, then space efficiency is improved, but waste toner accumulation in the vicinity of the cleaning blade may be insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies local quality by making the transport sheet width smaller than the blade member abutting width only in specific regions, while maintaining adequate waste toner accumulation in the vicinity of the cleaning blade through the optimized acceleration profile and positional relationship between the transport sheet and blade member.
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 configuration allows for efficient waste toner transport with greater space savings and stable operation, preventing tuck-up of the cleaning blade while ensuring adequate lubricity between the cleaning blade and photosensitive drum.
Implementation Method 1
the transport sheet... transports the developer scraped by the blade member
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a cleaning member that scrapes developer from a photosensitive drum attached to an opening of a cleaning frame, and a transport member that transports scraped developer from an opening side of the frame towards an opposing deep side. The transport member is driven such that an absolute value of maximum acceleration at the time of movement of the transport sheet in a direction from the opening side towards the deep side is smaller than an absolute value of maximum acceleration at the time of movement in a reverse direction of the former direction. In the longitudinal direction of the photosensitive drum, the width of the transport member is smaller than an abutting width of an abutting portion of the cleaning member with the photosensitive drum, and ends of the transport member in the longitudinal direction are positioned inward of ends of the abutting portion.