Fuser Unit Belt Guide for Endless Belt Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fuser units for electrophotographic image forming apparatuses face challenges in stabilizing the circulation of endless belts, particularly due to deflection and misalignment issues that lead to uneven load distribution and potential belt catching at worn parts, resulting in instability and reduced performance.
Innovation Solution
The fuser unit design incorporates a belt guide system with a restraining part, inner surface guide, and protrusion that allows the belt guide to swing at a support point, ensuring continuous contact with the endless belt's inner surface and reducing load on the belt's end portion, while also using urging members to maintain tension and prevent deflection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the pressing belt is deflected by circulating movement, then the belt guide needs to accommodate the deflection, but the end surface of the pressing belt contacts the end-surface restraining part causing uneven load distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The belt guide is designed to swing dynamically around a protrusion serving as a support point, allowing it to adapt to the deflection of the pressing belt during circulation. This dynamic adjustment prevents the end surface of the pressing belt from contacting the end-surface restraining part, thereby distributing the force more evenly and stabilizing the circulation of the endless belt.
2Reliability
If the belt guide is fixed, then the structure is simple, but the endless belt may be caught at worn parts reducing reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The belt guide is designed to swing dynamically around a protrusion serving as a support point, allowing it to adapt to the deflection of the pressing belt during circulation. This dynamic adjustment prevents the end surface of the pressing belt from contacting the end-surface restraining part, thereby distributing the force more evenly and stabilizing the circulation of the endless belt.
3Force
If the belt guide swings at the protrusion support point, then the force is dispersed and circulation is stabilized, but the structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The belt guide structure incorporates a localized swinging mechanism centered on a protrusion support point. This localized quality allows the belt guide to swing and disperse forces at the critical contact region with the pressing belt, while the rest of the structure remains relatively simple. The swinging capability is concentrated where needed to achieve force distribution without unnecessarily complicating the entire structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A fuser unit of this disclosure includes: an endless belt, a nip member; a belt guide; a first member, which has a contact surface configured to be in contact with the belt guide; and a second member, which includes a guide portion to guide the belt guide in a guide direction, wherein the belt guide comprises: a restraining part, which is arranged to be in contact with an end surface of the endless belt and which is spaced apart from the first member, an inner surface guide, which guides the inner circumferential surface of the endless belt, and a protrusion, which protrudes from the restraining part towards the contact surface of the first member and is arranged to be in contact with the contact surface of the first member.