Radiant-Heat Fixing Device With Pressurized Air Floating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image forming apparatuses with fixing devices that use radiant heat and fans to float and transport recording media have complex configurations, leading to inefficiencies and temperature inconsistencies.
Innovation Solution
A fixing device with a recording medium floating device that includes a transport section, a heating part, and an air discharge part with a housing featuring surface-perforated and internal perforated plates, which supplies air at higher internal pressure through ventilation holes to stabilize and cool the recording medium during transport, simplifying the configuration and reducing temperature unevenness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If fans are used to float and transport the recording medium, then the recording medium can be transported, but the device configuration becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the floating function from the transport function by using a separate air discharge part with ventilation holes to float the recording medium, while the transport section independently grasps and transports it. This separation eliminates the need for complex fan-based floating-transport integration, simplifying the overall device configuration while maintaining ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is segmented into distinct functional modules: the air discharge part with housing and ventilation holes for floating, the transport section for movement, and the heating part for image fixation. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, reducing overall system complexity while ensuring reliable operation.
2Productivity
If multiple ventilation holes are formed in the housing, then air discharge efficiency is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The housing incorporates a surface-perforated plate portion with multiple ventilation holes, transforming the solid housing surface into a porous structure that allows efficient air discharge. This approach maintains manufacturing feasibility while significantly improving air discharge efficiency compared to single-hole or no-hole configurations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes the parameters of the ventilation holes including their diameter, distribution pattern, and total area ratio to achieve optimal air discharge efficiency. By carefully controlling these parameters, the design balances manufacturing simplicity with high productivity in air discharge.
3Temperature
If air pressure in the housing is increased, then cooling efficiency is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The air supply unit automatically maintains the internal pressure of the housing above atmospheric pressure, creating a self-regulating system where air flows through the ventilation holes and across the recording medium surface without requiring additional active cooling mechanisms. This self-service approach improves cooling efficiency while minimizing energy consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses pneumatic principles by pressurizing the air inside the housing and utilizing the pressure differential to drive air flow through the ventilation holes. This pneumatic system provides efficient cooling through controlled air circulation, achieving effective temperature control with reasonable energy input.
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 simplifies the device configuration, reduces pressure loss, and enhances cooling efficiency, particularly in areas with lower passing frequency, thereby stabilizing the recording medium's posture and temperature, ensuring uniform heating and fixing of toner images.
Implementation Method 1
an internal pressure of the housing is made higher than an atmospheric pressure by the air supplied from the air supply unit, and the air is discharged toward the transport path through the ventilation holes
Implementation Method 2
a heating part that heats, in a non-contact manner, a surface of the recording medium on which an unfixed image is formed
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
A fixing device includes a transport section that grasps a leading edge part of a recording medium and transports the recording medium, a heating part that heats, in a noncontact manner, a surface of the recording medium on which an unfixed image is formed, the recording medium being transported by the transport section, and an air discharge part that is disposed at a position facing the heating part across a transport path along which the recording medium is transported, and that discharges air toward the transport path, in which the air discharge part includes a housing that defines the air discharge part, the housing including a surface-perforated plate portion in which multiple ventilation holes for discharging air toward the transport path are formed, and an air supply unit that supplies air to an inside of the housing through an air inlet formed in the housing, and an internal pressure of the housing is made higher than an atmospheric pressure by the air supplied from the air supply unit, and the air is discharged toward the transport path through the ventilation holes of the surface-perforated plate portion.