Fixing Roller Oscillation for Wear Dispersion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image forming apparatuses face challenges with local wavy abrasion on fixing rollers and heat distribution imbalance, leading to issues like image streaks, wrinkles, and fixing unevenness, particularly due to complex and costly mechanisms required to disperse sheet edge contact positions and stabilize heat supply.
Innovation Solution
An image forming apparatus with a fixing device that oscillates and inclines fixing members in the width direction, using a control system to synchronize the oscillation and inclination shifts, ensuring opposite directions for one-sided shifts, thereby dispersing abrasion and maintaining heat balance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the fixing device is oscillated to disperse contact positions of sheet edge portions, then local wavy abrasion of the fixing roller is avoided, but sheet wrinkles and fixing unevenness may occur due to heat supply imbalance
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing device is oscillated in the width direction during sheet conveyance, dynamically changing the contact positions of sheet edge portions with the fixing roller. This dynamic oscillation disperses localized wear across the roller surface, extending fixing roller service life while maintaining fixing quality through controlled motion.
2Reliability
If complex position changing mechanisms are employed to disperse sheet contact positions, then fixing roller abrasion is reduced, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The oscillation function is integrated into the fixing device itself, merging the wear-prevention mechanism with the existing fixing structure. This eliminates the need for separate complex position-changing mechanisms, reducing overall device complexity while achieving the goal of dispersing contact positions.
Solution Approach 2:
The fixing device incorporates an oscillation mechanism that dynamically adjusts the position of the fixing roller during operation. This dynamic approach achieves wear distribution without requiring complex static structural modifications or additional positioning systems.
3Reliability
If the sheet is shifted in inclined direction to disperse contact positions, then local wavy abrasion is avoided, but apparatus size and cost increase due to complex conveying mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of physically shifting the sheet through complex inclined conveying mechanisms, the fixing device itself is oscillated in the width direction. This dynamic approach achieves the same effect of dispersing contact positions without requiring additional space for inclined conveyance paths or complex sheet shifting mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
Rather than moving the sheet to achieve position dispersion, the invention inverts the approach by moving the fixing device relative to the sheet. This inversion eliminates the need for complex inclined conveying mechanisms while achieving the same wear-prevention effect.
Data Source
AI summary
An image forming apparatus, comprises an image forming section; a pair of fixing members coming in pressure contact with each other so as to form a nip portion and to fix a toner image on a sheet conveyed from the image forming section with the nip portion; an oscillating section to oscillate the fixing members in a width direction perpendicular to a sheet conveying direction; an inclining section to incline the fixing members to the width direction in parallel to a conveyance surface; and a control section to control the oscillating section and the inclining section such that when a sheet is passing through the nip portion, a direction of a one-sided oscillation shift of the sheet due to the oscillation of the fixing members is made opposite to that of a one-sided inclination shift of the sheet due to the inclination of the fixing members.