Fixing Device With Axial Airflow For Uniform Coil Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fixing devices suffer from uneven cooling of the coil and require a complex configuration to improve cooling performance, leading to a larger size.
Innovation Solution
A fixing device with a heating unit that includes a coil, bobbin, arch core, arch core holder, and cover, featuring a gas flow passage with specific opening portions for airflow circulation that evenly cools the coil, allowing for a downsized and efficient cooling system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a conventional cooling system is used, then the coil can be cooled, but the cooling is uneven between upstream and downstream parts
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into multiple independent cooling chambers separated by partition walls. Each chamber has its own air inlet and outlet, allowing independent airflow control. This segmentation enables uniform cooling distribution across different regions of the coil without requiring a complex single-chamber design.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the cooling system are designed with locally optimized characteristics. Each cooling chamber is positioned to cool specific sections of the coil, with airflow paths and chamber dimensions tailored to local cooling requirements. This ensures uniform temperature distribution across the entire coil while maintaining a simple overall structure.
2Temperature
If cooling performance is improved, then the coil cooling efficiency increases, but the device size becomes larger
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling chambers are nested within the housing structure, with partition walls forming interconnected compartments that efficiently utilize the available space. The air circulation path is arranged to flow through these nested chambers in sequence, maximizing cooling efficiency within a compact volume without requiring additional external cooling components.
3Device complexity
If a simple configuration is used, then the device size is reduced, but the cooling performance becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system incorporates adjustable air inlet and outlet openings that can be dynamically controlled to optimize airflow patterns. This dynamic adjustment capability allows the simple chamber-based structure to adapt to different cooling requirements and maintain high cooling performance without increasing structural complexity.
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 achieves even cooling of the coil while reducing the device's size and maintaining a simple configuration, enhancing cooling efficiency and device compactness.
Implementation Method 1
The heating unit has a coil, a bobbin, an arch core, an arch core holder, and a cover. The coil is disposed at the side opposite from the fixing roller in the radial direction across the fixing belt
Implementation Method 2
The cover has a pair of first opening portions disposed in opposite end parts of it along the axial direction and a second opening portion disposed in a middle part of it along the axial direction. An airflow entering the flow passage through one of the first and the second opening portions circulates along the axial direction and is discharged through the other.
Data Source
AI summary
A fixing device includes an endless fixing belt, a fixing roller, a pressing member, and a heating unit. The heating unit includes a coil, a bobbin, an arch core, an arch core holder, and a cover. The cover covers the arch core holder from outward in the radial direction and forms an axially extending gas flow passage between the cover and the arch core holder. The cover has a pair of first opening portions disposed in opposite end parts of it along the axial direction and a second opening portion disposed in a middle part of it along the axial direction. An airflow entering the flow passage through one of the first and second opening portions circulates along the axial direction and is discharged through the other.