Fixing Device Reflective Member Heat Loss Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fixing devices experience heat loss in the fixing belt after it leaves the heating roller, leading to inefficient heat transfer to the printing medium due to radiation and convection losses.
Innovation Solution
A fixing device design featuring a reflector positioned to reflect radiation heat back onto the fixing belt, combined with a rib to prevent air flow and an external cover to retain warm air, reducing heat loss by maintaining the temperature of the fixing belt.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the fixing belt is heated only in the heating section by the heating roller, then the heating structure is simple, but heat loss occurs through radiation and convection in the non-heating sections, reducing heating efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful radiated heat that would otherwise be lost into a beneficial resource by using reflective members to redirect it back onto the fixing belt. The radiated heat from the heating roller and fixing belt is reflected by mirrors positioned in the non-heating sections, transforming waste heat radiation into useful heating, thereby reducing overall heat loss without adding significant structural complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The reflective members are pre-positioned in the non-heating sections to capture and redirect heat radiation before it can be lost to the environment. This preliminary action of reflecting heat back onto the fixing belt ensures that heat is retained in the system throughout the entire rotation cycle, not just in the heating section
2Temperature
If the fixing belt rotates through non-heating sections, then the continuous rotation enables uninterrupted printing medium processing, but the fixing belt temperature decreases due to heat radiation and air convection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent addresses temperature decrease in non-heating sections by converting harmful convective and radiative heat loss into beneficial heating. Reflective members are strategically positioned to redirect radiated heat back onto the fixing belt during its rotation through non-heating sections, counteracting temperature decrease and maintaining consistent heating for continuous processing
Solution Approach 2:
The reflective members act as intermediaries that facilitate heat transfer from the heating roller and fixing belt back onto the fixing belt surface in non-heating sections. These mirrors mediate the heat distribution, ensuring that even portions of the fixing belt passing through non-heating sections receive sufficient thermal energy to maintain processing temperature
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 heat loss by reflecting radiation heat back onto the fixing belt and retaining warm air, ensuring consistent heat transfer to the printing medium, thereby improving the efficiency of the image fixing process.
Implementation Method 1
a first reflective member facing at least a part of a portion of the first rotating member that is located on a downstream side in the first rotational direction relative to the heating section but on an upstream side in the first rotational direction relative to the nip, the first reflective member having a reflection surface on the side facing the first rotating member
Data Source
AI summary
A fixing device having: a first rotating member rotating in a first rotational direction; a second rotating member contacting the first rotating member and thereby forming a nip through which a printing medium passes, wherein the second rotating member rotates in a second rotational direction opposite to the first rotational direction; a heating unit heating the first rotating member in a heating section not overlapping with the nip when viewed in a plan view in the predetermined direction; and a first reflective member facing at least a part of a portion of the first rotating member that is located on a downstream side in the first rotational direction relative to the heating section but on an upstream side in the first rotational direction relative to the nip, the first reflective member having a reflection surface on the side facing the first rotating member.