# US 10,372,067 B2 · Electrophotographic belt and electrophotographic image forming apparatus > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,372,067 B2 - Document ID: US10372067B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/988,180 - Filed: 2018-05-24 - Published: 2018-12-06 - Granted: 2019-08-06 - Earliest claimed: 2017-05-30 - Assignees: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Toshiyuki Yoshida - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10372067B2 ## CPC - G03G 15/162: {details of the the intermediate support, e.g. chemical composition} - B32B 27/08: of synthetic resin - C09C 1/56: Treatment of carbon black {; Purification} - G03G 15/2053: {Structural details of heat elements, e.g. structure of roller or belt, eddy current, induction heating} - H01B 1/24: the conductive material comprising carbon-silicon compounds, carbon or silicon - H01J 37/28: with scanning beams {(H01J37/268, H01J37/292, H01J37/2955 take precedence)} - G03G: ELECTROGRAPHY; ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHY; MAGNETOGRAPHY - B32B: LAYERED PRODUCTS, i.e. PRODUCTS BUILT-UP OF STRATA OF FLAT OR NON-FLAT, e.g. CELLULAR OR HONEYCOMB, FORM - C09C: TREATMENT OF INORGANIC MATERIALS, OTHER THAN FIBROUS FILLERS, TO ENHANCE THEIR PIGMENTING OR FILLING PROPERTIES (treatment of materials specially adapted to enhance their filling properties in mortars, concrete or artificial stone C04B14/00, C04B18/00, C04B20/00); PREPARATION OF CARBON BLACK {; PREPARATION OF INORGANIC MATERIALS WHICH ARE NO SINGLE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS AND WHICH ARE MAINLY USED AS PIGMENTS OR FILLERS} - H01B: CABLES; CONDUCTORS; INSULATORS; SELECTION OF MATERIALS FOR THEIR CONDUCTIVE, INSULATING OR DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES (selection for magnetic properties H01F1/00; waveguides H01P {; printed circuits H05K}) - H01J: ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS (spark-gaps H01T; electric arc lamps H05B31/00; particle accelerators H05H) ## Abstract Provided an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic belt comprising an electro-conductive base layer comprising a thermoplastic resin and carbon black, the base layer is a cylindrical extrusion product of a resin mixture comprising the thermoplastic resin and the carbon black, and when observing a cross section of the cylindrical extrusion product with a transmission electron microscope and obtaining an electron image under conditions of a resolution of 0.01 to 1 nm/pixel and a lowest gray of more than 0 and a highest gray of less than 255, and extracting from the TEM image a square region of 100 nm a side in which the carbon black occupies 50 area % or more, among pixels resulting from the carbon black and constituting 1% by frequency from the lowest gray in the square region, pixel group constituted by the pixels that are mutually adjacent, has an area of at least 10 nm2. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An endless electrophotographic belt, comprising: an electro-conductive base layer comprising a thermoplastic resin and carbon black, the base layer being a cylindrical extrusion product of a resin mixture comprising the thermoplastic resin and the carbon black, wherein when observing a cross section of the cylindrical extrusion product with a transmission electron microscope (TEM) and obtaining a TEM image with a resolution of 0.01 to 1 nm/pixel, the TEM image including a lowest gray of more than 0 and a highest gray of less than 255, and extracting from the TEM image a square region of 100 nm a side in which the carbon black occupies 50 area % or more, among pixels in the square region resulting from the carbon black and constituting 1% by frequency from the lowest gray in a frequency distribution of gray information possessed in each pixel constituting the square region of which a horizontal axis represents gray and vertical axis represents frequency, a pixel group constituted by the pixels that are mutually adjacent having an area of at least 10 nm2 is observed. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The electrophotographic belt according to claim 1, wherein the thermoplastic resin is polyether ether ketone or polyphenylene sulfide. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The electrophotographic belt according to claim 1, wherein an average thickness of the base layer is 25 to 100 μm. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The electrophotographic belt according to claim 1, wherein the carbon black has a convex portion derived by firing an organic substance attached on a surface the carbon black. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The electrophotographic belt according to claim 4, wherein the carbon black is formed by attaching an organic substance onto a surface of a raw material carbon black and firing the organic substance. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The electrophotographic belt according to claim 5, wherein the raw material carbon black is acetylene black. ### Claim 7 An electrophotographic image forming apparatus, comprising: an electrophotographic photosensitive member; an intermediate transfer belt to which a toner image formed on the electrophotographic photosensitive member is to be primarily transferred, the intermediate transfer belt being an endless electrophotographic belt comprising an electro-conductive base layer comprising a thermoplastic resin and carbon black, the base layer being a cylindrical extrusion product of a resin mixture comprising the thermoplastic resin and the carbon black; and a secondary transfer unit that secondarily transfers a toner image, transferred on the intermediate transfer belt, to a recording medium, wherein when observing a cross section of the cylindrical extrusion product with a transmission electron microscope (TEM) and obtaining a TEM image with a resolution of 0.01 to 1 nm/pixel, the TEM image including a lowest gray of more than 0 and a highest gray of less than 255, and extracting from the TEM image a square region of 100 nm a side in which the carbon black occupies 50 area % or more, among pixels in the square region resulting from the carbon black and constituting 1% by frequency from the lowest gray in a frequency distribution of gray information possessed in each pixel constituting the square region of which a horizontal axis represents gray and vertical axis represents frequency, a pixel group constituted by the pixels that are mutually adjacent having an area of at least 10 nm2 is observed.