Flat Heater Mounting for Fixing Belt Deviation Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fixing devices with flat heaters face issues due to low rigidity, leading to potential deviation during sheet conveying, and the use of adhesives to prevent deviation can result in the generation of volatile organic compounds at high temperatures.
Innovation Solution
A fixing device incorporating a cylindrical fixing belt, a pressing roller, a flat heater with a length wider than the belt, and mounting members that securely hold the heater between the heater holder and mounting members, preventing deviation without the need for adhesives, thus avoiding volatile organic compound generation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If adhesive is used to prevent heater deviation, then heater positioning stability is improved, but volatile organic compounds are generated at high temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and removes the adhesive from the heating assembly, replacing it with a mechanical positioning structure. The heater holder is designed with a recess that mechanically retains the heater through geometric constraints (recess depth matching heater thickness, width greater than heater width), eliminating the need for adhesive bonding and thereby preventing volatile organic compound generation at high temperatures.
Solution Approach 2:
The heater holder acts as an intermediary component between the heater and the fixing belt assembly. It provides a mechanical interface through its recess structure that positions and secures the heater without requiring chemical bonding, thus mediating the connection in a way that avoids adhesive-related harmful emissions.
2Use of energy by moving object
If flat heater is used for heating, then heating efficiency is improved, but rigidity is low leading to potential deviation
Solution Approach 1:
The invention employs a flat heater with a thin plate structure that provides efficient heating while inherently having low rigidity. This thin-film design allows for effective thermal contact with the fixing belt while the mechanical support from the heater holder compensates for the low structural rigidity.
Solution Approach 2:
The heater holder serves as a rigid intermediary structure that supports the flexible thin-film heater. The holder's recess provides mechanical constraints that prevent heater deviation during operation, allowing the thin-film heater to maintain its heating efficiency without suffering from its own low rigidity.
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 prevents heater deviation and eliminates the risk of volatile organic compound generation, ensuring stable operation and environmental safety by securely mounting the flat heater using a snap-fit mechanism and wedge-shaped protrusions.
Implementation Method 1
A fixing device which heats a fixing belt using a flat heater is known
Data Source
AI summary
A fixing device includes a fixing belt, a pressing roller, a flat heater, a heater holder and a pair of mounting members. The flat heater has a first surface coming into contact with an inner circumferential surface of the fixing belt and a second surface opposite to the first surface. The heater holder comes into contact with the second surface of the flat heater. The mounting members comes into contact with both end portions of the first surface of the flat heater in the width direction, and are mounted to the heater holder such that the flat heater is held between the mounting members and the heater holder. The mounting member includes a downstream side end surface contact part which comes into contact with a downstream side end surface of the flat heater in the conveying direction.