Semiconductive Roller With Low-Swelling Outer Layer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional semiconductive rollers have high hardness, leading to insufficient abutment nip with photoreceptor bodies, resulting in image defects like white voids, reduced image density, and toner fogging, and are prone to softener contamination due to bleeding.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductive roller with a tubular inner layer of softener-containing elastic material and an outer layer of low-swelling elastic material, where the outer layer has a swelling percentage of not higher than 1% when immersed in softener at 100°C for 24 hours, preventing softener bleeding and contamination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a softener is added to the rubber composition to impart flexibility, then the roller body becomes more flexible and provides sufficient abutment nip, but the softener bleeds on the outer peripheral surface and contaminates the photoreceptor body
Solution Approach 1:
The roller body is divided into two distinct layers: an inner layer containing the softener for flexibility, and an outer layer that prevents softener bleeding. This segmentation allows each layer to perform its specific function without interfering with the other.
Solution Approach 2:
The outer layer acts as an intermediary barrier between the softener-containing inner layer and the photoreceptor body. It prevents the softener from migrating to the surface while still allowing the roller to maintain flexibility through the inner layer.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the roller body has high hardness, then it maintains structural stability, but it fails to provide sufficient abutment nip with photoreceptor bodies, causing image defects
Solution Approach 1:
The roller body is segmented into an inner layer for structural stability and an outer layer for image quality. The inner layer provides the necessary structural support while the outer layer ensures sufficient abutment nip with the photoreceptor body for defect-free image formation.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the roller body have different properties: the inner layer has higher hardness for structural stability, while the outer layer has lower hardness for sufficient abutment nip. This local differentiation of properties resolves the contradiction between structural stability and image quality.
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 provides flexibility to the roller, preventing image defects and contamination, ensuring proper image formation and extending the service life of the toner while maintaining the roller's semiconductivity and durability.
Implementation Method 1
the outer layer elastic material having a swelling percentage of not higher than 1% as measured when the outer layer elastic material is immersed in the softener at 100° C. for 24 hours
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductive roller is provided which includes a roller body including a tubular inner layer of an inner layer elastic material containing a softener, and an outer layer of an outer layer elastic material provided on an outer periphery of the inner layer. The outer layer elastic material has a swelling percentage of not higher than 1% as measured when the outer layer elastic material is immersed in the softener at 100° C. for 24 hours. Thus, the semiconductive roller has proper flexibility to be substantially free from imaging failures such as white voids, image density reduction and fogging, and is less liable to cause the contamination of a photoreceptor body and the like and the associated defective image formation which may otherwise occur due to the bleeding of the softener.