Image Bearing Member Spacing Maintainer for Lubrication Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
In conventional image forming apparatuses, the lubricant applied to the shaft portions of the photosensitive drum adheres to the frame during assembly, preventing the necessary amount of lubricant from reaching the sliding surfaces and causing image defects due to improper rotation control and adherence issues.
Innovation Solution
An image bearing member unit with a spacing maintaining portion on the frame or image bearing member, positioned outside the supported portion's radial direction, maintains a gap between the frame and the supported portion during assembly, ensuring the lubricant is applied correctly and preventing adherence to the frame, allowing for proper lubrication and rotation without image defects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the supporting member is assembled directly onto the frame without a spacing maintaining portion, then the assembly structure is simpler, but the lubricant adheres to the frame instead of reaching the sliding surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The spacing maintaining portion acts as an intermediary element between the supporting member and the frame. It maintains a specific spacing relationship that prevents direct contact while allowing the lubricant to reach the sliding surfaces effectively, thus solving the lubrication problem without complicating the overall assembly structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacing maintaining portion introduces a spatial dimension solution by maintaining a specific distance/spacing between components. This dimensional control ensures that the lubricant can reach the sliding surfaces while preventing adhesion to the frame, resolving the contradiction through spatial arrangement rather than structural complexity.
2Ease of manufacture
If the lubricant is applied directly to the shaft portions during assembly, then the lubrication process is simpler, but the lubricant adheres to the frame causing image defects
Solution Approach 1:
The spacing maintaining portion is designed to prevent the harmful effect of lubricant adhesion to the frame before it occurs. By maintaining proper spacing during the lubrication process, it preemptively stops the lubricant from reaching areas where it would cause image defects, thus eliminating the harmful effect rather than correcting it afterward.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacing maintaining portion serves as a mediator that controls the distribution of lubricant during assembly. It ensures the lubricant reaches only the intended sliding surfaces while preventing it from adhering to the frame, thus protecting against image defects without complicating the lubrication process.
3Manufacturing precision
If the supporting member contacts the frame directly during assembly, then the positioning is more precise, but the lubricant cannot reach the sliding surfaces properly
Solution Approach 1:
The spacing maintaining portion acts as an intermediary that preserves precise positioning between the supporting member and the frame while simultaneously ensuring proper lubricant delivery. It maintains the necessary spatial relationship for accurate positioning while preventing direct contact that would block lubricant access to sliding surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution moves from a direct-contact positioning model to a spaced-positioning model. By maintaining a specific spacing dimension between components, the system achieves both precise positioning and adequate lubricant access to sliding surfaces, resolving the contradiction through dimensional control.
Data Source
AI summary
An image bearing member unit includes an image bearing member having a supported portion, a supporting member for rotatably supporting the supported portion, a frame for holding the supporting member, and a spacing maintaining portion provided on the frame or the image bearing member. The spacing maintaining portion is disposed outside the supported portion in a radial direction, and is disposed inside a region where the supporting member supports the supported portion. In a state in which the supporting member is not mounted on the frame, the spacing maintaining portion maintains a spacing between the frame and the supported portion in contact with the image bearing member or the frame. In a state in which the supporting member is mounted on the frame, the supporting member is inserted into the spacing between the frame and the supported portion, from outside of the spacing maintaining portion.