JP2010169818A - Lubricant applicator, image forming apparatus and process cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a lubricant applicator capable of uniformly and efficiently sticking a powder lubricant to an image bearing member, and an image forming apparatus and a process cartridge. <P>SOLUTION: There are used a lubricant application blade to spread a lubricant and an elastic rotational body such as a melamine roller or a sponge roller as a supply roller which is pressed on an image bearing member to apply the powder lubricant. The supply roller is preferably configured such that it swings in the axial direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a lubricant coating apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and a process cartridge used in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, and a printer, and more particularly to an improvement in a lubricant coating apparatus section applied to an image carrier.

In an image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic process, a photoconductor is provided as an image carrier, and the surface of the photoconductor is charged by being charged by discharge, and the charged photoconductor surface is exposed to form an electrostatic latent image. Then, toner is supplied to the electrostatic latent image to make it visible, and the visible image formed on the surface of the photoreceptor is transferred to the transfer paper surface, and then the visible image is fixed and discharged.
In such an electrophotographic process, untransferred toner or the like remains on the surface of the photoreceptor after the visible image is transferred in the image forming unit, so that the residual toner does not adversely affect the next image formation. In addition, the surface of the photoreceptor is cleaned by a cleaning device and prepared for the next image forming process. As a cleaning device, a cleaning blade made of an elastic material such as rubber or a cleaning brush in which synthetic resin fibers are formed in a brush shape is rubbed against the surface of the photosensitive member to remove deposits such as untransferred toner. Known.

  If the cleaning blade or the cleaning brush continues to be rubbed with the photosensitive member, the cleaning blade or the cleaning brush is worn over time, and the cleaning performance is deteriorated due to chipping or deformation. Further, since the surface of the photoconductor is also worn, the life is shortened. Therefore, in order to reduce the frictional resistance acting between the photoconductor and these cleaning members and to eliminate problems such as wear of the cleaning member and photoconductor, there is a method of applying a lubricant to the surface of the photoconductor. It has been taken. As a result, when a lubricant is applied to the surface of the photoconductor, the coefficient of friction on the surface of the photoconductor is reduced. Therefore, a fluidizing agent or a charge control agent added to the toner is applied to the surface of the photoconductor by the contact pressure with the cleaning member. The occurrence of so-called filming, which is fixed in a film shape, can be prevented, and the toner developed on the photoreceptor is also reduced in adhesion with the surface of the photoreceptor, thereby improving transferability.

As an application means for applying a lubricant to the surface of a photoreceptor, for example, a method in which a powder lubricant is attached to an image carrier and a powder lubricant is applied to the image carrier with a coating blade is widely known. (For example, Patent Document 1 to Patent Document 4). By the way, there is also a lubricant applicator equipped with a solid lubricant formed by sticking a lubricant such as a fatty acid metal salt into a rod shape and equipped with a brush roller and a subsequent application blade so as to contact both the solid lubricant and the photoreceptor. Well known.
In the case of the prior art using the former powder lubricant, since the powder lubricant is not uniformly attached to the image carrier, there is a difficulty that the lubricant is not uniformly applied to the image carrier. Since it is difficult to uniformly apply the powder lubricant to the image carrier, the portion where the lubricant is excessively adhered is stretched by the application blade, and the lubricant stays at the tip of the application blade even if it is applied. . There were inconveniences such as lubricant and residual toner staying with time suddenly slipping out and soiling the charging roller.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and is a lubricant coating apparatus in which a powder lubricant is uniformly attached to an image carrier so that the lubricant does not easily slip through the ridge line of the coating blade. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus and a process cartridge.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention according to claim 1 includes a lubricant storage member that stores a powder lubricant applied to an image carrier, and the powder lubrication that is pressed by the image carrier. A supply roller for applying an agent, and a lubricant coating blade that is pressed against the image carrier and extends the powder lubricant, and after applying the lubricant to the image carrier with the supply roller In the lubricant coating device for forming a thin layer with the coating blade, an elastic rotating body is used as a supply roller for coating the powder lubricant.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the lubricant coating apparatus according to the first aspect, the elastic rotating body is a sponge roller having at least a surface layer made of a foam.
Further, the present invention of claim 3 is the lubricant application device according to claim 2, wherein the elastic rotating body is a melamine roller made of a melamine resin foam having at least a surface layer having elasticity. To do.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the lubricant application device according to the third aspect, wherein the melamine roller swings in the axial direction.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the lubricant coating device according to the fourth aspect, an inlet seal is provided between the image carrier and the melamine roller.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the process cartridge for the image forming apparatus, at least one of an image carrier, a charging device, a developing device, and a cleaning device for image forming processing, and any one of the first to fifth aspects. The lubricant application device according to claim 1 is integrally formed.
Further, the present invention of claim 7 is characterized by including the process cartridge of claim 6.
Further, the present invention of claim 8 is provided with the lubricant applying device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 or the process cartridge according to claim 6 and using toner manufactured by a polymerization method. It is characterized by.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the eighth aspect, the polymerized toner for the image forming process has a volume average particle diameter of 3 to 8 μm and a volume average particle diameter (Dv). A polymerized toner having a ratio (Dv / Dn) to a number average particle diameter (Dn) in the range of 1.00 to 1.40 is used.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the eighth aspect, the polymerized toner has a shape factor SF-1 in the range of 100 to 180 and a shape factor SF-2 in the range of 100 to 180. It is characterized in that a polymerized toner in the range of is used.
According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the eighth aspect, the polymerized toner has a substantially spherical shape.
According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the eleventh aspect, the shape of the polymerized toner is defined by a major axis r1, a minor axis r2, and a thickness r3 (provided that r1 ≧ r2 ≧ r3). The ratio of the major axis r1 to the minor axis r2 (r2 / r1) is in the range of 0.5 to 1.0, and the ratio of the thickness r3 to the minor axis r2 (r3 / r2) is 0. It is in the range of 7 to 1.0.
According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of the ninth to twelfth aspects, the polymerized toner includes a polyester prepolymer having at least a functional group containing a nitrogen atom, a polyester, and a coloring agent. An image forming apparatus, which is a polymerized toner obtained by crosslinking and / or extending a toner material liquid in which an agent and a release agent are dispersed in an organic solvent in an aqueous medium.

  According to the present invention, since the elastic rotating body is employed as the lubricant application roller that contacts the image carrier, the contact area is larger, so that the powder lubricant can be efficiently applied to the surface of the image carrier. Play. Further, there is an effect that the image carrier is hardly damaged. At the same time, deposits such as residual toner and foreign matters on the image carrier can be removed.

1 is a longitudinal front view schematically showing an internal structure of a copying machine as an image forming apparatus. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal front view schematically showing a process cartridge included in the copying machine (the lubricant application blade is a trailing system). FIG. 3 is a schematic top view around a melamine roller and an image carrier. It is a vertical front view which shows schematically a different process cartridge (lubricant application | coating blade: counter system). FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating the shape of a toner according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating the shape of a toner in order to explain shape factors SF-1 and SF-2.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 is a longitudinal front view schematically showing an internal structure of a copying machine as an image forming apparatus, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal front view schematically showing a process cartridge provided in the copying machine, and FIG. 3 is a schematic top view around an image carrier. FIG.
A recording medium storage unit 3 for storing a recording medium such as plain paper is provided in the lower part of the apparatus main body 2 of the copying machine 1, and an image reading unit 4 is provided in the upper part of the apparatus main body 2. A recording medium discharge unit 5 is formed below the image reading unit 4 for discharging an image-formed recording medium.
The image reading unit 4 includes a contact glass 6, a pressure plate 7 that holds a document placed on the contact glass 6, and an arrow direction at a speed ratio of 2: 1 in order to read an image of the document placed on the contact glass 6. The first and second traveling bodies 8 and 9, reciprocally traveling, the lens 10, the CCD 11, and the like. The image of the document placed on the contact glass 6 is illuminated by a lamp 8a provided on the first traveling body 8, and the reflected light is reflected on the mirror 8b and the second traveling body 9 provided on the first traveling body 8. Are sequentially reflected by the mirrors 9a and 9b provided on the lens 10 and imaged on the CCD 11 via the lens 10 to be read as an image signal. The read image signal is subjected to image processing such as digitization to become image data.
In the apparatus main body 2, a recording medium conveyance path 12 extending from the recording medium storage unit 3 to the recording medium discharge unit 5 is formed. On the recording medium conveyance path 12, a registration roller 13, an intermediate transfer belt 19, and a transfer device. 15, a fixing device 16, a discharge roller 17, and the like are provided. Furthermore, an optical writing device 18 that emits laser light in accordance with image data created from an image signal read by the CCD 11 is provided in the apparatus main body 2.

The process cartridge 14 includes a charging device 33, a developing device 20, a cleaning device 24, a lubricant application device 28, and the like disposed around a drum-shaped photoconductor 23 that is an image carrier that is rotatably held. Yes.
The process cartridge 14 will be described. The process cartridge 14 includes a charging device 33, a developing device 20, a cleaning device 24, and the like disposed around a drum-shaped photoconductor 23 that is an image carrier that is rotatably held. Such a process cartridge 14 is detachably attached to the image forming apparatus 1. Further, the process cartridge 14 is formed with a slit 22 that is elongated along the axial direction of the photoconductor 23 so that the laser beam emitted from the optical writing device 18 is irradiated toward the surface of the photoconductor 23.
In addition, by providing the photosensitive member 23, the charging device 33, and the like in the cartridge case as the process cartridge 14 (forming a process cartridge), the copying machine of the present embodiment makes the photosensitive member 23, the charging device 33, etc. independent. It is advantageous in terms of maintenance as compared to the apparatus provided with the device, and when a failure caused by parts in the process cartridge 14 occurs, it is possible to restore the current situation at an early stage by simply replacing the process cartridge 14, Service time (for example, exchange time) can be shortened. Further, the life of the process cartridge 14 can be increased by improving the cleaning property of the photosensitive member 23.
Such a process cartridge 14 is detachably attached to the apparatus main body 2. Further, the process cartridge 14 is formed with a slit 22 that is elongated along the axial direction of the photoconductor 23 so that the laser beam emitted from the optical writing device 18 is irradiated toward the surface of the photoconductor 23.

Hereinafter, a specific position, a mounting method, and the like of the device group around the image carrier including the lubricant applying device 28 adopting the present invention will be described. Around the image carrier 23, the intermediate transfer belt 19, the lubricant application device 28, the flat elastic member 27, the inlet seal 25, the charging device 33, the developing roller 21, the lubricant application blade 32, and the cleaning device 24 are disposed. (See FIG. 2).
The charging device 33 includes a charging roller 36 that is a charging member having a rubber layer 34 around a core bar 35, a charging roller pressing spring 37 that causes the charging roller 36 to contact the photoconductor 23, and the like. The charging roller 36 is pressed by a charging roller pressing spring 37 and is in contact with the photoreceptor 23. Around the charging roller 36, a charging cleaning roller 38, which is a charging cleaning member that cleans foreign matter adhering to the surface of the charging roller 36, is provided. Thereby, the lubricant adhering to the surface of the charging roller 36 can be removed, and the life of the charging roller 36 can be extended.

The charging cleaning roller 36 is a rotating body that is rotatably provided at a position in contact with the charging roller 36. As a result, the lubricant can be efficiently removed, and as a result, high image quality can be provided over a long period of time. More specifically, the charging cleaning roller 36 is disposed with an axis parallel to the axis of the charging roller 36, and the outer peripheral portion is in contact with the surface of the charging roller 36 and can be rotated in a rotational direction with respect to the rotation direction of the charging roller 36. Is provided. In addition, as the charging cleaning roller 36, a foam, a brush, or the like is used.
In this embodiment, the charging cleaning roller 38 is rotated along with the rotation of the charging roller 36. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a driving device that rotationally drives the charging cleaning roller 38 is provided, and charging is performed. The roller 36 may be rotated in the same direction or in the opposite direction.
The developing device 20 includes a developing roller 21 that is a developing member that stores toner together with a carrier and supplies the toner to the photoconductor 23. As the toner, in addition to the toner formed by the pulverization method, a fine powder toner smaller than the particle diameter of the pulverized toner can be used. By using fine powder toner, it is possible to achieve high quality (high quality) of the formed image.

The cleaning device 24 includes a lubricant application device 28, a cleaning blade 27 as an image carrier cleaning member, a waste toner screw 26 as a residual toner collecting member, and the like. The cleaning blade 27 is arranged in a trailing manner.
The configuration of the lubricant application device 28 will be described. The lubricant application device 28 puts a powder lubricant in the powder lubricant accommodating portion 41, sets the elastic rotating body 40 in the powder lubricant accommodating portion 41, and the core metal of the elastic rotating body 40 is an elastic rotating body bearing. 43, and is urged by an elastic rotating body pressing spring 44 to be pressed against the image carrier 23. The elastic rotator 40 is movable in the axial direction between the left and right elastic rotator bearings 43, 43. As the elastic rotating body 40, a melamine roller or a sponge roller is preferable. In this embodiment, the melamine roller (at least the surface layer is made of a foamed elastic body made of porous melamine resin) 40 is configured to rotate and reversely rotate with respect to the image carrier 23 (FIGS. 2 and 2). 3).
The melamine roller 40 is configured to swing in the longitudinal direction (axial direction) (reciprocate in a predetermined single section). That is, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, a gear 42 with a swing cam that meshes with the flange gear 23 a of the image carrier 23 is mounted, and the sliding surface of the swing cam is the core of the melamine roller 40. It is in contact with the gold end. The melamine roller 40 is urged to the swing cam side along with its axis by an appropriate urging means (not shown). Therefore, every time the swing cam gear 42 makes one rotation, the melamine roller 40 swings in the longitudinal direction and the outer peripheral surface slides with respect to the image carrier 23. In FIG. 3A, the melamine roller 40 is in contact with the maximum cam shift amount point of the swing cam and is located at the left end in the drawing (represented as “before swing”), and in FIG. (Expressed as after rocking).

In addition, an entrance seal 25 is provided between the melamine roller 40 and the image carrier 23 (see FIG. 2). The inlet seal 25 contacts the melamine roller 40 and removes the excessively adhered powder lubricant. Or you may make it remove | exclude the powder lubricant adhering excessively by defining between the melamine roller 40 and the inlet seal 25 to 1-2 mm. A sponge roller may be used instead of the melamine roller.
The cleaning blade 27 is a member formed in a flat plate shape by an elastic material such as rubber or urethane, and one end edge thereof is in contact with the surface of the photoconductor 23 in the entire region along the axial direction of the photoconductor 23 (see FIG. 2 is a trailing method). By rotating the photoconductor 23 with one end edge of the cleaning blade 27 in contact with the surface of the photoconductor 23, residual toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 23 after the transfer of the toner image is removed.
The waste toner screw 26 conveys the residual toner carried to the vicinity thereof toward a residual toner collecting member (not shown). The transfer device 15 is a device that transfers a toner image formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 23 to a recording medium, and the fixing device 16 is a device that fixes the toner image transferred to the recording medium to the recording medium.

An outline of the image forming operation in the copying machine 1 will be described. When a document is set on the contact glass 6 and the start key is turned on, the image of the document is read by the image reading unit 4 and laser light is emitted from the optical writing device 18 based on the image data obtained by the reading. Then, the laser light is irradiated onto the surface of the photoreceptor 23 uniformly charged by the charging device 33. By this laser light irradiation, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photoconductor 23, and the toner supplied from the developing device 20 adheres to the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image on the surface of the photoconductor 23. Is done.
That is, a toner bottle (not shown) containing a polymerized toner (not shown) manufactured by a polymerization method is mounted on the main body device, and the developing toner 20 is supplied with the polymerized toner. The developing toner in the developing device and the supplied polymerized toner are agitated, and the toner is attached to the surface of the image carrier 23 on which the electrostatic latent image is formed by exposure to form a toner image (monochrome). .
This toner image is transferred by a transfer device 15 onto a recording medium conveyed at a timing by the registration roller 13. The toner image transferred onto the recording medium is fixed by the fixing device 16, and the recording medium after the toner image fixing processing is discharged to the recording medium discharge unit 5 by the discharge roller 17.

In such an image forming operation, the residual toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 23 after the transfer process by the transfer device 15 is completed is removed by a cleaning device. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the residual toner is scraped off by the cleaning blade 27 arranged in a trailing manner. A powder lubricant is applied to the surface of the photoreceptor 23 by a lubricant application device 28. As a result, the releasability of the toner from the photoconductor 23 is increased, so that the cleaning performance for removing residual toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor 23 after transfer is improved, and the coefficient of friction on the surface of the photoconductor 23 is further reduced. Therefore, wear of the photoconductor 23 and the cleaning blade 27 can be suppressed.
In particular, due to the use of the melamine roller 40 as the elastic rotating body, the area contacting the image carrier 23 is larger, so that the lubricant can be efficiently applied and the image carrier 23 is hardly damaged. At the same time, it is possible to more strongly remove deposits such as residual toner and foreign matters on the image carrier. Further, by swinging the melamine roller 40 in the longitudinal direction, it is possible to effectively use the lubricant without applying it excessively, and the ability to forcibly remove difficult foreign matter on the image carrier is also increased. Such an effect can be similarly obtained even when a sponge roller is employed.
In the above description, as shown in FIG. 2, in the cleaning device 24, the cleaning blade 27 is arranged in a trailing manner, but as shown in FIG. 4, the cleaning blade 27 is arranged in a counter manner. By providing the elastic rotating body, it is possible to obtain exactly the same operational effects as already described with respect to the lubricant application treatment. FIG. 4 has the same configuration as that of FIG. 2 except that the cleaning blade 27 and its mounting portion are different, and the corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is repeated here. Absent.

Subsequently, a preferred toner in combination with the present invention will be described. The shape of the toner suitable for use in the image forming process according to the present invention is a substantially spherical shape, and can be represented by the following shape rule.
FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing the shape of the toner according to the present invention. In FIG. 5, when a substantially spherical toner is defined by a major axis r ¹ , a minor axis r ² , and a thickness r ³ (where r ¹ ≧ r ² ≧ r ³ ), the toner of the present invention is The ratio between the major axis and the minor axis (r ² / r ¹ ) (see FIG. 5B) is 0.5 to 1.0, and the ratio between the thickness and the minor axis (r ³ / r ² ) (FIG. 5). (See (c)) is preferably in the range of 0.7 to 1.0. If the ratio of the major axis to the minor axis (r ² / r ¹ ) is less than 0.5, the dot reproducibility and transfer efficiency are inferior because of the separation from the true spherical shape, and high quality image quality cannot be obtained. On the other hand, when the ratio (r ³ / r ² ) between the thickness and the short axis is less than 0.7, it becomes close to a flat shape and a high transfer rate like a spherical toner cannot be obtained. In particular, when the ratio of the thickness to the short axis (r ³ / r ² ) is 1.0, the rotating body has the long axis as the rotation axis, and the fluidity of the toner can be improved. Note that r ¹ , r ² , and r ³ were measured with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) while changing the angle of field of view and taking pictures.

In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, a toner preferably used in the developing device 20 has a volume average particle diameter of 3 to 8 μm, and a ratio of the volume average particle diameter (Dv) to the number average particle diameter (Dn) ( Dv / Dn) is preferably in the range of 1.00 to 1.40. Since the contact area of the polymerized toner with the image carrier is small and makes point contact, the transfer rate is improved, and the adhesion force to the image carrier is smaller than that of the pulverized toner, so that it easily rolls and is easily removed when passing through the flat elastic member. Easy to be.
Usually, by using a toner having a small particle diameter, the toner can be densely attached to the latent image. However, when the volume average particle size is smaller than the above range, in the case of the two-component developer, the toner is fused to the surface of the magnetic carrier by long-term stirring in the developing device 22, and the charging ability of the magnetic carrier is reduced. When used as a developer, toner filming on the developing roller and toner fusion to a member such as a blade for thinning the toner are likely to occur. On the contrary, when the volume average particle diameter of the toner is larger than the range of the present invention, it becomes difficult to obtain a high-resolution and high-quality image, and when the balance of the toner in the developer is performed. In many cases, the variation in toner particle size becomes large.
Further, by narrowing the particle size distribution, the toner charge amount distribution becomes uniform, a high-quality image with little background fogging can be obtained, and the transfer rate can be increased. However, it is not preferable that Dv / Dn exceeds 1.40 because the charge amount distribution becomes wide and the resolving power decreases.

In the toner as described above, the ratio of the wax added to the toner to improve the releasability or the inorganic fine particles to improve the fluidity is small in the particle size. As a result, it is higher than the conventional toner. These additives are the cause of the adhered substances generated on the photoconductor 23. Therefore, by mounting the lubricant application device 28 as in the embodiment, a uniform thin film of lubricant is formed over the entire surface of the image carrier 23, and the adhesion force of these adhering substances to the surface of the image carrier 23 is reduced. Can be made. Further, it is possible to reduce the frictional force acting between the surface of the image carrier 23 and the flat elastic member 27 of the cleaning device 24 and the melamine roller 40 to perform the cleaning well.
The image forming apparatus that can achieve the effect of mounting the cleaning device 24 of the present invention is a case where the toner used in the developing means is a toner having a high degree of circularity with an average circularity of 0.93 or more. The average particle size and particle size distribution of the toner can be measured using a Coulter Counter TA-II and Coulter Multisizer II (both manufactured by Coulter). Here, a Coulter counter TA-II type was used and connected to an interface (manufactured by Nikka Giken Co., Ltd.) for outputting the number distribution and volume distribution and a personal computer (PC9801: manufactured by NEC) and measured.

Toner with a high degree of circularity enters the gap between the photosensitive member 23 and the flat elastic member 27 in the blade type cleaning, and is easily slipped through. When the contact pressure of the flat elastic member 27 against the image carrier 23 is increased, the damage to the photoconductor 23 increases. Also, in the method of electrostatically collecting toner by applying a bias reverse to the charging polarity of the toner to the brush roller, it is difficult to remove the toner from the brush roller. There is a tendency that the toner removing ability is lowered.
However, according to the cleaning device 24 to which the present invention is applied, the surface of the image carrier 23 can be efficiently cleaned as follows even when the toner having a high average circularity as described above is used. it can. That is, the residual toner on the image carrier 23 is first electrostatically recovered by a belt as an electrostatic cleaning member, and then the residual toner is finally scraped off and removed by the flat elastic member 27. Cleaning can be performed efficiently without damaging the surface of the image carrier 23.
The average circularity of the toner is a value obtained by optically detecting particles and dividing by the circumference of an equivalent circle having the same projected area. Specifically, the measurement is performed using a flow type particle image analyzer (FPIA-2000; manufactured by Sysmex Corporation). In a predetermined container, 100 to 150 mL of water from which impure solids are removed in advance is added, 0.1 to 0.5 mL of a surfactant is added as a dispersant, and about 0.1 to 9.5 g of a measurement sample is further added. The suspension in which the sample is dispersed is subjected to dispersion treatment with an ultrasonic disperser for about 1 to 3 minutes, and the concentration and dispersion of the dispersion are set to 3,000 to 10,000 / μL, and the shape and distribution of the toner are measured.

FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically showing the shape of the toner in order to explain the shape factor SF-1 and the shape factor SF-2. The shape factor SF-1 indicates the ratio of the roundness of the toner shape and is represented by the following formula (1). This is a value obtained by dividing the square of the maximum length MXLNG of the shape formed by projecting toner on a two-dimensional plane by the figure area AREA and multiplying by 100π / 4.
SF-1 = {(MXLNG) ² / AREA} × (100π / 4) (1)
When the value of SF-1 is 100, the shape of the toner becomes a true sphere, and becomes larger as the value of SF-1 increases.
The shape factor SF-2 indicates the ratio of the unevenness of the toner shape, and is represented by the following formula (2). A value obtained by dividing the square of the perimeter PERI of the figure formed by projecting the toner onto the two-dimensional plane by the figure area AREA and multiplying by 100 / 4π.
SF-2 = {(PERI) ² / AREA} × (100 / 4π) (2)
When the value of SF-2 is 100, unevenness does not exist on the toner surface, and as the value of SF-2 increases, the unevenness of the toner surface becomes more prominent.
When the shape of the toner is close to a spherical shape, the contact between the toner and the toner or the toner and the image carrier 23 is close to a point contact, so that the adsorbing force between the toners is weakened and the fluidity is increased. The attracting force with the image carrier 23 is also weakened, and the transfer rate is increased. On the other hand, since the spherical toner easily enters the gap between the flat elastic member 27 and the image carrier 23, the toner shape factor SF-1 or SF-2 is preferably large to some extent. Further, when SF-1 and SF-2 are increased, toner is scattered on the image and the image quality is lowered. For this reason, it is preferable that SF-1 and SF-2 do not exceed 180.
Specifically, the shape factor is measured by taking a photograph of the toner with a scanning electron microscope (S-800: manufactured by Hitachi, Ltd.) and introducing it into an image analyzer (LUSEX 3: manufactured by Nireco) for analysis. And calculated.

  Examples of the polymerized toner suitably used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention include the following. A toner obtained by cross-linking and / or extending in a water-based solvent a toner material liquid in which at least a polyester prepolymer having a functional group containing a nitrogen atom, polyester, a colorant, and a release agent are dispersed in an organic solvent. It is. Hereinafter, examples of the constituent material and the manufacturing method of the toner will be described.

(Modified polyester)
The toner used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention contains a modified polyester (i) as a binder resin. The modified polyester (i) refers to a state in which a bonding group other than an ester bond is present in the polyester resin, or resin components having different configurations are bonded to the polyester resin by a covalent bond, an ionic bond, or the like. .
Specifically, the polyester terminal is modified by introducing a functional group such as a carboxylic acid group or an isocyanate group that reacts with a hydroxyl group into the polyester terminal and further reacting with an active hydrogen-containing compound.
Examples of the modified polyester (i) include urea-modified polyester obtained by a reaction between a polyester prepolymer (A) having an isocyanate group and amines (B). As the polyester prepolymer (A) having an isocyanate group, a polyester having a polycondensate of a polyhydric alcohol (PO) and a polyvalent carboxylic acid (PC) and having an active hydrogen group is further added to a polyvalent isocyanate compound (PIC). And those reacted with.

Examples of the active hydrogen group possessed by the polyester include hydroxyl groups (alcoholic hydroxyl groups and phenolic hydroxyl groups), amino groups, carboxyl groups, mercapto groups, and the like. Among these, alcoholic hydroxyl groups are preferred.
The urea-modified polyester is produced as follows.
Examples of the polyhydric alcohol compound (PO) include dihydric alcohol (DIO) and trihydric or higher polyhydric alcohol (TO). (DIO) alone or a mixture of (DIO) and a small amount of (TO) preferable.
Examples of the dihydric alcohol (DIO) include alkylene glycol (ethylene glycol, 1,2-propylene glycol, 1,3-propylene glycol, 1,4-butanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, etc.); alkylene ether glycol (diethylene glycol) , Triethylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, polytetramethylene ether glycol, etc.); alicyclic diols (1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol, hydrogenated bisphenol A, etc.); bisphenols (bisphenol A, bisphenol) F, bisphenol S, etc.); alkylene oxide (ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, butylene oxide, etc.) adduct of the above alicyclic diol; Alkylene oxide bisphenol (ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, butylene oxide, etc.), etc. adducts. Among them, preferred are alkylene glycols having 2 to 12 carbon atoms and alkylene oxide adducts of bisphenols, and particularly preferred are alkylene oxide adducts of bisphenols and alkylene glycols having 2 to 12 carbon atoms. It is a combined use.
The trihydric or higher polyhydric alcohol (TO) includes 3 to 8 or higher polyhydric aliphatic alcohols (glycerin, trimethylolethane, trimethylolpropane, pentaerythritol, sorbitol, etc.); trihydric or higher phenols (Trisphenol PA, phenol novolak, cresol novolak, etc.); Examples include the above-mentioned alkylene oxide adducts of polyphenols having three or more valences.

Examples of the polyvalent carboxylic acid (PC) include divalent carboxylic acid (DIC) and trivalent or higher polyvalent carboxylic acid (TC). (DIC) alone and (DIC) with a small amount of (TC) Mixtures are preferred.
Divalent carboxylic acids (DIC) include alkylene dicarboxylic acids (succinic acid, adipic acid, sebacic acid, etc.); alkenylene dicarboxylic acids (maleic acid, fumaric acid, etc.); aromatic dicarboxylic acids (phthalic acid, isophthalic acid, terephthalic acid) And naphthalenedicarboxylic acid). Of these, preferred are alkenylene dicarboxylic acids having 4 to 20 carbon atoms and aromatic dicarboxylic acids having 8 to 20 carbon atoms.
Examples of the trivalent or higher polyvalent carboxylic acid (TC) include aromatic polycarboxylic acids having 9 to 20 carbon atoms (such as trimellitic acid and pyromellitic acid). In addition, as polyhydric carboxylic acid (PC), you may make it react with polyhydric alcohol (PO) using the above-mentioned acid anhydride or lower alkyl ester (Methyl ester, ethyl ester, isopropyl ester, etc.).
The ratio of the polyhydric alcohol (PO) to the polycarboxylic acid (PC) is usually 2/1 to 1/1, preferably as the equivalent ratio [OH] / [COOH] of the hydroxyl group [OH] and the carboxyl group [COOH]. Is 1.5 / 1 to 1/1, more preferably 1.3 / 1 to 1.02 / 1.

Examples of the polyvalent isocyanate compound (PIC) include aliphatic polyisocyanates (tetramethylene diisocyanate, hexamethylene diisocyanate, 2,6-diisocyanatomethylcaproate, etc.); alicyclic polyisocyanates (isophorone diisocyanate, cyclohexylmethane diisocyanate, etc.) ); Aromatic diisocyanates (tolylene diisocyanate, diphenylmethane diisocyanate, etc.); araliphatic diisocyanates (a, a, a ′, a′-tetramethylxylylene diisocyanate, etc.); isocyanates; phenol derivatives, oximes, polyisocyanates; Those blocked with caprolactam or the like; and combinations of two or more of these.
The ratio of the polyvalent isocyanate compound (PIC) is usually 5/1 to 1/1, preferably as an equivalent ratio [NCO] / [OH] of the isocyanate group [NCO] and the hydroxyl group [OH] of the polyester having a hydroxyl group. 4/1 to 1.2 / 1, more preferably 2.5 / 1 to 1.5 / 1.
When [NCO] / [OH] exceeds 5, low-temperature fixability deteriorates. When the molar ratio of [NCO] is less than 1, when a urea-modified polyester is used, the urea content in the ester is lowered and hot offset resistance is deteriorated.

The content of the polyisocyanate compound (PIC) component in the polyester prepolymer (A) having an isocyanate group is usually 0.5 to 40 [wt%], preferably 1 to 30 [wt%], more preferably 2 to 20 [wt%]. If it is less than 0.5 [wt%], the hot offset resistance is deteriorated, and it is disadvantageous in terms of both heat-resistant storage stability and low-temperature fixability. On the other hand, if it exceeds 40 [wt%], the low-temperature fixability deteriorates.
The number of isocyanate groups contained per molecule in the polyester prepolymer (A) having an isocyanate group is usually 1 or more, preferably 1.5 to 3 on average, more preferably 1.8 to 2 on average. Five. If it is less than 1 per molecule, the molecular weight of the urea-modified polyester will be low, and the hot offset resistance will deteriorate.

Next, as amines (B) to be reacted with the polyester prepolymer (A), a divalent amine compound (B1), a trivalent or higher polyvalent amine compound (B2), an amino alcohol (B3), an amino mercaptan (B4) ), Amino acid (B5), and amino acid block of B1 to B5 (B6).
Examples of the divalent amine compound (B1) include aromatic diamines (phenylenediamine, diethyltoluenediamine, 4,4′-diaminodiphenylmethane, etc.); alicyclic diamines (4,4′-diamino-3,3′-dimethyldicyclohexyl). Methane, diamine cyclohexane, isophorone diamine, etc.); and aliphatic diamines (ethylene diamine, tetramethylene diamine, hexamethylene diamine, etc.) and the like.
Examples of the trivalent or higher polyvalent amine compound (B2) include diethylenetriamine and triethylenetetramine. Examples of amino alcohol (B3) include ethanolamine and hydroxyethylaniline.
Examples of amino mercaptan (B4) include aminoethyl mercaptan and aminopropyl mercaptan.

Examples of the amino acid (B5) include aminopropionic acid and aminocaproic acid. Examples of B1 to B5 blocked amino groups (B6) include ketimine compounds and oxazolidine compounds obtained from the aforementioned amines of B1 to B5 and ketones (acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, etc.). Among these amines (B), preferred are B1 and a mixture of B1 and a small amount of B2.
The ratio of amines (B) is equivalent to the equivalent ratio [NCO] / [NHx] of isocyanate groups [NCO] in the polyester prepolymer (A) having isocyanate groups and amino groups [NHx] in amines (B). Is usually 1/2 to 2/1, preferably 1.5 / 1 to 1 / 1.5, more preferably 1.2 / 1 to 1 / 1.2.
When [NCO] / [NHx] is more than 2 or less than 1/2, the molecular weight of the urea-modified polyester is lowered, and the hot offset resistance is deteriorated.
The urea-modified polyester may contain a urethane bond together with a urea bond. The molar ratio of the urea bond content to the urethane bond content is usually 100/0 to 10/90, preferably 80/20 to 20/80, and more preferably 60/40 to 30/70. When the molar ratio of the urea bond is less than 10%, the hot offset resistance is deteriorated.

The modified polyester (i) contained in the toner used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention is produced by a one-shot method or a prepolymer method. The weight average molecular weight of the modified polyester (i) is usually 10,000 or more, preferably 20,000 to 10,000,000, more preferably 30,000 to 1,000,000. The peak molecular weight at this time is preferably in the range of 1000 to 10,000. When the peak molecular weight is less than 1000, the elongation reaction is difficult and the elasticity of the toner is small, and as a result, the hot offset resistance is deteriorated. On the other hand, when the peak molecular weight exceeds 10,000, problems in production increase in the fixing property reduction, particle formation, and pulverization.
The number average molecular weight of the modified polyester (i) is not particularly limited when the unmodified polyester (ii) described later is used, and may be a number average molecular weight that can be easily obtained to obtain the above-described weight average molecular weight. In the case of the modified polyester (i) alone, the number average molecular weight is usually 20000 or less, preferably 1000 to 10000, more preferably 2000 to 8000. When it exceeds 20000, the low-temperature fixability and the glossiness when used in a full-color device are deteriorated.
In the crosslinking and / or extension reaction between the polyester prepolymer (A) and the amines (B) to obtain the modified polyester (i), a reaction terminator is used as necessary to adjust the molecular weight of the resulting urea-modified polyester. be able to. Examples of the reaction terminator include monoamines (diethylamine, dibutylamine, butylamine, laurylamine, etc.), and those obtained by blocking them (ketimine compounds). In addition, the molecular weight of the produced | generated polymer can be measured using THF as a solvent using gel permeation chromatography (GPC).

(Unmodified polyester)
In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, not only the above-mentioned modified polyester (i) is used alone, but also the unmodified polyester (ii) can be contained as a binder resin component together with the modified polyester (i). . By using unmodified polyester (ii) in combination, the low-temperature fixability and the gloss when used in a full-color apparatus are improved, which is preferable to single use.
Examples of the unmodified polyester (ii) include polycondensates of a polyhydric alcohol (PO) and a polycarboxylic acid (PC) similar to the polyester component of the modified polyester (i) described above. Is the same as modified polyester (i).

The unmodified polyester (ii) is not limited to unmodified polyester, but may be modified with a chemical bond other than a urea bond, such as a urethane bond. It is preferable that (i) and (ii) are at least partially compatible with each other in terms of low-temperature fixability and hot offset resistance. Therefore, the polyester component (i) and (ii) preferably have similar compositions. When (ii) is contained, the weight ratio of (i) to (ii) is usually 5/95 to 80/20, preferably 5/95 to 30/70, more preferably 5/95 to 25/75, Particularly preferred is 7/93 to 20/80.
If the weight ratio of the modified polyester (i) is less than 5%, the hot offset resistance is deteriorated, and it is disadvantageous in terms of both heat-resistant storage stability and low-temperature fixability.
The peak molecular weight of unmodified polyester (ii) is usually 1000 to 10000, preferably 2000 to 8000, and more preferably 2000 to 5000. If it is less than 1000, heat-resistant storage stability will deteriorate, and if it exceeds 10,000, low-temperature fixability will deteriorate. The hydroxyl value of the unmodified polyester (ii) is preferably 5 or more, more preferably 10 to 120, and particularly preferably 20 to 80. If it is less than 5, it is disadvantageous in terms of both heat-resistant storage stability and low-temperature fixability.
As for the acid value of unmodified polyester (ii), 1-5 are preferable, More preferably, it is 2-4. Since a high acid value wax is used as the wax, the low acid value binder leads to electrification and high volume resistance, so that it is easy to match the toner used for the two-component developer. The glass transition point (Tg) of the binder resin is usually 35 to 70 [° C.], preferably 55 to 65 [° C.]. If it is less than 35 [° C.], the heat-resistant storage stability of the toner is deteriorated, and if it exceeds 70 [° C.], the low-temperature fixability becomes insufficient. Since the urea-modified polyester is likely to be present on the surface of the obtained toner base particles, the toner of the image forming apparatus of the present invention has heat-resistant storage stability even when the glass transition point is low as compared with known polyester-based toners. Shows good trend. The glass transition point (Tg) can be measured with a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC).

(Coloring agent)
As the colorant contained in the toner, all known dyes and pigments can be used. Examples of the colorant for black toner include carbon black, nigrosine dye, iron black and the like, and a mixture thereof can be used. As a colorant for yellow toner, naphthol yellow S, Hansa yellow (10G, 5G, G), cadmium yellow, yellow iron oxide, ocher, chrome lead, titanium yellow, polyazo yellow, oil yellow, Hansa yellow (GR , A, RN, R), Pigment Yellow L, Benzidine Yellow (G, GR), Permanent Yellow (NCG), Vulcan Fast Yellow (5G, R), Tartrazine Lake, Quinoline Yellow Lake, Anthrazan Yellow BGL, IsoIndia For example, Linon Yellow can be used, and a mixture of these can be used.
Magenta toner colorants include bengara, red lead, lead vermilion, cadmium red, cadmium mercurial red, antimony vermilion, permanent red 4R, para red, phise red, parachlor ortho nitroaniline red, risor fast scarlet. G, Brilliant Fast Scarlet, Brilliant Carnmin BS, Permanent Red (F2R, F4R, FRL, FRLL, F4RH), Fast Scarlet VD, Belkan Fast Rubin B, Brilliant Scarlet G, Resol Rubin GX, Permanent Red F5R, Brilliant Carmine 6B, Pigment Scarlet 3B, Bordeaux 5B, Toluidine Maroon, Permanent Bordeaux F2K, Helio Bordeaux BL, Bordeaux 10B, Bon Maroon Light Bon Maroon Medium, Eosin Lake, Rhodamine Lake B, Rhodamine Lake Y, Alizarin Lake, Thioindigo Red B, Thioindigo Maroon, Oil Red, Quinacridone Red, Pyrazolone Red, Polyazo Red, Chrome Vermilion, Benzidine Orange, Perinone Orange, There are oil oranges and the like, and a mixture of these can be used.

Examples of cyan toner colorants include cobalt blue, cerulean blue, alkali blue rake, peacock blue rake, Victoria blue rake, metal-free phthalocyanine blue, phthalocyanine blue, fast sky blue, indanthrene blue (RS, BC), indigo, Ultramarine blue, bitumen, anthraquinone blue, fast violet B, methyl violet lake, cobalt purple, manganese purple, dioxane violet, anthraquinone violet, chrome green, zinc green, chromium oxide, pyridian, emerald green, pigment green B, naphthol green B, green Gold, acid green lake, malachite green lake, phthalocyanine green, anthraquinone green, titanium oxide, zinc white There are lithopone and the like, may be further a mixture thereof.
The content of the colorant is usually 1 to 15 [wt%], preferably 3 to 10 [wt%] based on the toner. The colorant can also be used as a master batch combined with a resin. As a binder resin to be kneaded with the production of the master batch or the master batch, a polymer of styrene such as polystyrene, poly-p-chlorostyrene, polyvinyl toluene or the like, or a copolymer of these and a vinyl compound, Polymethyl methacrylate, polybutyl methacrylate, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl acetate, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, epoxy resin, epoxy polyol resin, polyurethane, polyamide, polyvinyl butyral, polyacrylic acid resin, rosin, modified rosin, terpene resin, fat Aromatic or alicyclic hydrocarbon resins, aromatic petroleum resins, chlorinated paraffins, paraffin waxes and the like can be mentioned, and these can be used alone or in combination.

(Charge control agent)
As the charge control agent contained in the toner, known ones can be used. For example, nigrosine dye, triphenylmethane dye, chromium-containing metal complex dye, molybdate chelate pigment, rhodamine dye, alkoxy amine, quaternary ammonium salt (Including fluorine-modified quaternary ammonium salts), alkylamides, phosphorus simple substances or compounds, tungsten simple substances or compounds, fluorine-based activators, salicylic acid metal salts, and metal salts of salicylic acid derivatives.
Specifically, Bontron 03 of a nigrosine dye, Bontron P-51 of a quaternary ammonium salt, Bontron S-34 of a metal-containing azo dye, E-82 of an oxynaphthoic acid metal complex, E-84 of a salicylic acid metal complex , Phenol-condensate E-89 (above, manufactured by Orient Chemical Co., Ltd.), quaternary ammonium salt molybdenum complex TP-302, TP-415 (above, manufactured by Hodogaya Chemical Co., Ltd.), quaternary ammonium salt copy Charge PSYVP2038, copy blue PR of triphenylmethane derivative, copy charge NEG VP2036 of quaternary ammonium salt, copy charge NX VP434 (manufactured by Hoechst), LRA-901, LR-147 which is a boron complex (manufactured by Nippon Carlit) ), Copper phthalocyanine, perylene, quinacridone, azo face , Sulfonate group, carboxyl group, and polymer compounds having a functional group such as quaternary ammonium salts. Of these, substances that control the negative polarity of the toner are particularly preferably used.
The amount of the charge control agent used is determined by the type of binder resin, the presence or absence of additives used as necessary, and the toner production method including the dispersion method, and is not uniquely limited. Preferably, it is used in the range of 0.1 to 10 [parts by weight] with respect to 100 [parts by weight] of the binder resin. Preferably, the range of 0.2-5 [weight part] is good. When the amount exceeds 10 [parts by weight], the chargeability of the toner is too high, the effect of the charge control agent is reduced, the electrostatic attraction with the developing roller is increased, the flowability of the developer is reduced, and the image density is reduced. Incurs a decline.

(Release agent)
As a release agent, a low melting point wax having a melting point of 50 to 120 [° C.] works more effectively as a release agent in the dispersion with the binder resin between the fixing roller and the toner interface. Effective against high temperature offset without applying a release agent such as oil to the fixing roller. Examples of such a wax component include the following.
Examples of waxes and waxes include plant waxes such as carnauba wax, cotton wax, wood wax, rice wax, animal waxes such as beeswax and lanolin, mineral waxes such as ozokerite and cercin, and paraffin, microcrystalline, And petroleum waxes such as petrolatum. In addition to these natural waxes, synthetic hydrocarbon waxes such as Fischer-Tropsch wax and polyethylene wax, and synthetic waxes such as esters, ketones, and ethers can be used.

Furthermore, fatty acid amides such as 12-hydroxystearic acid amide, stearic acid amide, phthalic anhydride imide, chlorinated hydrocarbon, and low molecular weight crystalline polymer resin, poly-n-stearyl methacrylate, poly-n- A crystalline polymer having a long alkyl group in the side chain such as a homopolymer or copolymer of polyacrylate such as lauryl methacrylate (for example, a copolymer of n-stearyl acrylate-ethyl methacrylate, etc.) can also be used. .
The charge control agent and the release agent can be melt-kneaded together with the master batch and the binder resin, and of course, they may be added when dissolved and dispersed in the organic solvent.

(External additive)
Inorganic fine particles are preferably used as an external additive for assisting the fluidity, developability and chargeability of the toner particles. The primary particle diameter of the inorganic fine particles is preferably 5 × 10 −3 to 2 [μm], and particularly preferably 5 × 10 −3 to 0.5 [μm]. Moreover, it is preferable that the specific surface area by BET method is 20-500 [m2 / g]. The use ratio of the inorganic fine particles is preferably 0.01 to 5.0 [wt%] of the toner, and particularly preferably 0.01 to 2.0 [wt%].
Specific examples of the inorganic fine particles include, for example, silica, alumina, titanium oxide, barium titanate, magnesium titanate, calcium titanate, strontium titanate, zinc oxide, tin oxide, quartz sand, clay, mica, wollastonite, diatomaceous earth. Examples include soil, chromium oxide, cerium oxide, bengara, antimony trioxide, magnesium oxide, zirconium oxide, barium sulfate, barium carbonate, calcium carbonate, silicon carbide, and silicon nitride. Among these, as the fluidity imparting agent, it is preferable to use hydrophobic silica fine particles and hydrophobic titanium oxide fine particles in combination. Particularly when both the fine particles have an average particle size of 5 × 10 −2 [μm] or less and are stirred and mixed, the electrostatic force and van der Waals force with the toner are remarkably improved. Even by stirring and mixing inside the developing device to obtain a desired charge level, the fluidity-imparting agent is not detached from the toner, and good image quality free from fireflies can be obtained. Further, transfer residual toner can be reduced.

  Titanium oxide fine particles are excellent in environmental stability and image density stability, but have a tendency to deteriorate the charge rise characteristics. Therefore, if the amount of titanium oxide fine particles added is larger than the amount of silica fine particles added, this side effect is affected. It can be considered large. However, when the addition amount of the hydrophobic silica fine particles and the hydrophobic titanium oxide fine particles is in the range of 0.3 to 1.5 [wt%], the charge rising characteristics are not greatly impaired, and the desired charge rising characteristics can be obtained. Stable image quality can be obtained even when copying is repeated.

<Example of toner production>
(Production example of polyester) In a reaction vessel equipped with a cooling pipe, a stirrer and a nitrogen introduction pipe, 690 parts of bisphenol A ethylene oxide 2-mol adduct and 256 parts of terephthalic acid were polycondensed at 230 ° C. for 8 hours under normal pressure. Next, the mixture was reacted at a reduced pressure of 10 to 15 mmHg for 5 hours and then cooled to 160 ° C., and 18 parts of phthalic anhydride was added thereto and reacted for 2 hours to obtain unmodified polyester (a).
(Prepolymer production example) 800 parts of bisphenol A ethylene oxide 2-mole adduct, 180 parts of isophthalic acid, 60 parts of terephthalic acid, and 2 parts of dibutyltin oxide in a reaction vessel equipped with a cooling pipe, a stirrer and a nitrogen introduction pipe The reaction was carried out at 230 ° C. for 8 hours at normal pressure, and further for 5 hours while dehydrating at a reduced pressure of 10 to 15 mmHg, then cooled to 160 ° C., and 32 parts of phthalic anhydride was added thereto for 2 hours. Reacted. Subsequently, it cooled to 80 degreeC and made it react with 170 parts of isophorone diisocyanate in ethyl acetate for 2 hours, and the isocyanate group containing prepolymer (1) was obtained.

(Production Example of Ketimine Compound) 30 parts of isophoronediamine and 70 parts of methyl ethyl ketone were charged in a reaction vessel equipped with a stirrer and a thermometer, and reacted at 50 ° C. for 5 hours to obtain a ketimine compound (1).
(Toner Production Example) 15.4 parts of the above prepolymer (1), 60 parts of polyester (a) and 78.6 parts of ethyl acetate were placed in a beaker and dissolved by stirring. Next, 10 parts of rice WAX (melting point 83 ° C.) as a release agent and 4 parts of copper phthalocyanine blue pigment (cyan pigment) are added and stirred at 12,000 rpm with a TK homomixer at 60 ° C. to uniformly dissolve and disperse. It was. Finally, 2.7 parts of ketimine compound (1) was added and dissolved. This is designated as toner material solution (1). In a beaker, 306 parts of ion-exchanged water, 265 parts of a 10% calcium phosphate suspension, 0.2 part of sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate, and styrene / acrylic resin fine particles having an average particle diameter of 0.20 μm were uniformly dissolved. Next, the temperature was raised to 60 ° C., and the toner material solution (1) was added while stirring at 12000 rpm with a TK homomixer and stirred for 10 minutes. Next, 500 g of this mixed solution was weighed and transferred to a Kolben equipped with a stirrer and a thermometer in the same manner as in Example 1, and the temperature was raised to 45 ° C., and the solvent was removed over 0.5 hours while performing a urea reaction under reduced pressure. After filtering, washing and drying, air classification was performed to obtain base particles.

Base part 100 parts Charge control agent (Orient Chemical Co., Ltd. Bontron E-84) 0.25 part was charged into a Q-type mixer (Mitsui Mining Co., Ltd.), and the peripheral speed of the turbine type blade was set to 50 m / sec. The operation and rest for 1 minute were performed 5 cycles, and the total processing time was 10 minutes.
Further, 0.5 part of hydrophobic silica (H2000, manufactured by Clariant Japan Co., Ltd.) was added, the peripheral speed was 15 m / sec, mixing was performed for 30 seconds and suspended for 1 minute for 5 cycles to obtain a cyan toner. Subsequently, 100 parts of toner particles were mixed with 0.5 part of hydrophobic silica and 0.5 part of hydrophobic titanium oxide using a Henschel mixer to obtain toner (1) of the present invention.
* Change only the "copper phthalocyanine blue pigment (cyan pigment) 4 parts" to make other color toners.
6 parts for benzidine yellow pigment for yellow toner preparation 6 parts for rhodamine lake pigment for magenta toner 10 parts for carbon black for black toner

The toner produced under the above conditions can also be used as a one-component magnetic toner that does not use a magnetic carrier or a non-magnetic toner. When used in a two-component developer, it may be used by mixing with a magnetic carrier, and the magnetic carrier is a ferrite containing a divalent metal such as iron, magnetite, Mn, Zn, Cu, A volume average particle size of 20 to 100 μm is preferred. If the average particle size is less than 20 μm, carrier adhesion is likely to occur on the photoreceptor 1 during development, and if it exceeds 100 μm, the miscibility with the toner is low and the charge amount of the toner is insufficient, resulting in poor charging during continuous use. Cheap. Further, Cu ferrite containing Zn is preferable because of high saturation magnetization, but can be appropriately selected according to the process of the image forming apparatus 100. The resin for coating the magnetic carrier is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include silicone resin, styrene-acrylic resin, fluorine-containing resin, and olefin resin. In the manufacturing method, the coating resin may be dissolved in a solvent, sprayed into a fluidized bed and coated on the core, or the resin particles are electrostatically attached to the core particles and then thermally melted for coating. It may be a thing. The resin to be coated has a thickness of 0.05 to 10 μm, preferably 0.3 to 4 μm. By using the polymerized toner as described above, it is possible to provide a high-quality image even in the image forming apparatus of the embodiment. As for the residual toner, since the lubricant application device and the cleaning means described above are employed, the transfer rate of the polymerized toner is increased, the residual toner on the image carrier is reduced, and it is appropriately removed from the image carrier. The
When toner produced by the polymerization method is used, cleaning is difficult because the remaining toner slips through the flat elastic member. However, the coefficient of friction by applying lubricant to the surface of the image carrier is reduced, and the transfer rate of the image on the image carrier to the intermediate transfer member is improved. Can be provided.

As described above, in the embodiment, by applying a powder lubricant to the elastic rotating body and pressing the image bearing member to apply the lubricant, the contact area is larger than the conventional one, so that it is uniform. The surface of the image bearing member can be stabilized at a low μ from the initial stage to the passage of time. In particular, it is possible to use a polymer toner having a small particle size, and it is possible to realize an image forming apparatus capable of obtaining a good image over a long period of time. It is also possible to remove dirt and foreign matter from the image carrier.
In particular, since the sponge roller and the melamine roller are configured to swing in the longitudinal direction, excessively adhered powder lubricant can be dropped downward. It is also possible to remove difficult-to-remove foreign substances adhering to the image carrier while rubbing.
By providing an inlet seal between the sponge roller and melamine roller and the image carrier, if the excessively adhered lubricant cannot be removed even if the sponge roller or melamine roller swings in the longitudinal direction, it will contact the inlet seal. It is possible to remove the excessively adhered lubricant.

  Since the cleaning means is configured as a so-called process cartridge, the replacement work is easy and the maintenance time is shortened. In accordance with the spirit of the present invention, the process cartridge may not necessarily be used. However, if each component other than the image carrier and the developing device is independent, the number of components is large, the structure is complicated, and operation time is inconvenient. In addition, since the life of each part is different, the number of parts replacement is increased. Although not necessarily the same as the embodiment, if parts other than the image carrier and the developing device are configured as a process cartridge integrally with the cleaning device or the charging device, it is easy to replace the device that requires maintenance, Since the number of parts exchanges is reduced, the operation time can be shortened.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Copy machine, 2 apparatus main body, 3 recording medium accommodating part, 4 image reading part, 5 recording medium discharge | emission part, 6 contact glass, 7 pressure plate, 8 1st traveling body, 8a mirror, 8b mirror, 9 2nd traveling body, 9a mirror, 9b mirror, 10 lens, 11 CCD, 12 recording medium conveyance path, 13 registration roller, 14 process cartridge, 15 transfer device, 16 fixing device, 17 discharge roller, 18 optical writing device, 19 intermediate belt, 20 Developing device, 21 Developing roller, 22 Slit, 23 Image carrier (photosensitive member), 23a Flange gear, 24 Cleaning device, 25 Entrance seal, 26 Waste toner screw, 27 Flat elastic member (cleaning blade), 28 Lubricant application Device, 29 Application brush, 30 Solid lubricant, 31 Lubricant pressing spring , 32 Lubricant application blade, 33 Charging device, 34 Rubber layer, 35 Metal core, 36 Charging roller, 37 Charging roller pressing spring, 38 Charging cleaning member, 39 Charging cleaning member pressing spring, 40 Melamine roller (sponge roller), 41 Powder lubricant housing member, 42 oscillating cam, 43 melamine roller bearing (sponge roller bearing, elastic rotator bearing), 44 melamine roller pressing spring (sponge roller pressing spring, elastic rotator pressing spring)

JP 09-101733 A JP-A-2005-070276 JP 2005-250185 A JP 2005-284219 A

Claims (13)

A lubricant storage member for storing a powder lubricant applied to the image carrier;
A supply roller that is pressed against the image carrier to apply the powder lubricant;
A lubricant coating blade that is pressed against the image carrier and extends the powder lubricant;
Comprising
In the lubricant application apparatus for forming a thin layer with the lubricant application blade after applying the powder lubricant to the image carrier with the supply roller,
A lubricant application device using an elastic rotating body as the supply roller for applying the powder lubricant.   The lubricant applying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the elastic rotating body is a sponge roller having at least a surface layer made of a foam.   The lubricant applying device according to claim 2, wherein the elastic rotating body is a melamine roller made of a melamine resin foam having at least a surface layer having elasticity.   The lubricant application device according to claim 3, wherein the melamine roller swings in an axial direction.   The lubricant application device according to claim 4, wherein an inlet seal is provided between the image carrier and the melamine roller. In a process cartridge for an image forming apparatus,
The image carrier, at least one of a charging device, a developing device, and a cleaning device for image forming processing, and the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 are integrally configured. A process cartridge characterized by that.   An image forming apparatus comprising the process cartridge according to claim 6.   An image forming apparatus comprising the lubricant application device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 or the process cartridge according to claim 6 and using a toner manufactured by a polymerization method. .   The polymerized toner has a volume average particle diameter of 3 to 8 μm and a ratio (Dv / Dn) of volume average particle diameter (Dv) to number average particle diameter (Dn) in the range of 1.00 to 1.40. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a polymerized toner is used.   9. The image according to claim 8, wherein a polymerized toner having a shape factor SF-1 in the range of 100 to 180 and a shape factor SF-2 in the range of 100 to 180 is used as the polymerized toner. Forming equipment.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the polymerization toner has a substantially spherical shape.   The shape of the polymerized toner is defined by a major axis r1, a minor axis r2, and a thickness r3 (where r1 ≧ r2 ≧ r3), and the ratio (r2 / r1) between the major axis r1 and the minor axis r2 is 0. 12. The image according to claim 11, wherein the ratio of the thickness r3 to the minor axis r2 (r3 / r2) is in the range of 0.7 to 1.0. Forming equipment.   In the polymerized toner, at least a polyester prepolymer having a functional group containing a nitrogen atom, a polyester, a colorant, and a release agent are dispersed in an organic solvent, and a crosslinking and / or elongation reaction is performed in an aqueous medium. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein the image forming apparatus is a polymerized toner obtained by the above-described process.

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