Irregular Inorganic Toner Particles for Uniform Wear
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Solution Overview
Problem
In the electrophotographic process, irregularly shaped inorganic particles fail to distribute uniformly during the cleaning process, leading to uneven wear on image holding members due to localized polishing and potential scratches, especially when spherical abrasives like titanate compounds are used.
Innovation Solution
Inorganic particles with specific irregular shapes, characterized by a distance between the center of a circumscribed rectangle and the center of gravity within a range of 1/17 to 1/13 of the absolute maximum length and a long side to short side ratio of 1.2 to 1.5, are used as external additives in toners to prevent uneven wear by ensuring non-localized polishing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If irregularly shaped inorganic particles are used as external additives, then polishing capability is improved, but uniform distribution during cleaning is worsened, leading to localized polishing and scratches
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by precisely controlling the shape parameters of inorganic particles - specifically the ratio of the distance between the center of the circumscribed rectangle and center of gravity to the absolute maximum length (0.05-0.20), and the ratio of long side to short side (1.2-1.5). This optimization resolves the contradiction by finding the ideal parameter range that provides both polishing effectiveness and uniform distribution during cleaning processes.
2Ease of manufacture
If spherical abrasives like titanate compounds are used, then ease of manufacture is improved, but reliability is worsened due to potential scratches and uneven wear on image holding members
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by using irregularly shaped inorganic particles instead of spherical ones. The asymmetric shape characteristics - with a center of gravity offset from the geometric center and specific aspect ratios - enable the particles to roll and distribute more uniformly during cleaning, preventing localized scratching while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through controlled particle formation processes.
Data Source
AI summary
An irregular shape inorganic particle satisfies the following formulas (1) and (2), 1/17≦A/B≦ 1/13 (1)1.2≦C/D≦1.5 (2)wherein A represents a distance between the center of a circumscribed rectangle, in which lines sandwiching a projected image and being parallel to an absolute maximum length of the projected image of inorganic fine particles are long sides and lines sandwiching the projected image and being perpendicular to the absolute maximum length are short sides, and the center of gravity of the projected image, B represents the absolute maximum length, C represents a length of a long side of the circumscribed rectangle, and D represents a length of a short side of the circumscribed rectangle.