# US 7,209,698 B2 · Method and apparatus for image forming capable of using minuscule spherical particles of toner, a process cartridge in use for the apparatus and a toner used in the image forming for obtaining an image with a high thin line reproducibility > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 7,209,698 B2 - Document ID: US7209698B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 10/922,963 - Filed: 2004-08-23 - Published: 2005-07-14 - Granted: 2007-04-24 - Earliest claimed: 2003-08-22 - Assignees: Ricoh Company, Ltd. - Inventors: Takaaki Tawada; Shinichi Kawahara; Takeo Suda; Chohtaroh Kataoka; Keiichi Yoshida; Haruji Mizuishi - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US7209698B2 ## CPC - G03G 9/0823: {Electric parameters} - G03G 9/0804: {whereby the components are brought together in a liquid dispersing medium} - G03G 9/0827: {characterised by their shape, e.g. degree of sphericity} - G03G 9/08755: {Polyesters} - G03G 15/0258: {provided with means for the maintenance of the charging apparatus, e.g. cleaning devices, ozone removing devices G03G15/0225, G03G15/0291 takes precedence} - G03G 21/00: Arrangements not provided for by groups G03G13/00 - G03G19/00, e.g. cleaning, elimination of residual charge - G03G 21/0005: {for removing solid developer or debris from the electrographic recording medium} - G03G 2215/021: by contact, friction or induction - G03G 2221/0084: Liquid - G03G: ELECTROGRAPHY; ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHY; MAGNETOGRAPHY ## Abstract An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member configured to bear a toner image on a surface thereof. A charging mechanism is configured to uniformly charge the surface of the image bearing member. An intermediate transfer mechanism is configured to transfer the toner image from the image bearing member onto an image receiver. A cleaning mechanism is configured to clean the surface of the image bearing member after the toner image is transferred onto the image receiver. A lubricant supplying mechanism is configured to supply a lubricant contained therein onto the surface of the image bearing member and form a thin layer using a lubricating blade. The lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed between the cleaning mechanism and the charging mechanism. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An image forming apparatus, comprising: an image bearing member configured to bear a toner image on a surface thereof; a charging mechanism configured to uniformly charge the surface of the image bearing member; an intermediate transfer mechanism configured to transfer the toner image from the image bearing member to an image receiver; a cleaning mechanism configured to clean the surface of the image bearing member after the toner image is transferred to the image receiver; and a lubricant supplying mechanism configured to supply a powder lubricant contained therein to the surface of the image bearing member, the lubricant supplying mechanism comprising a lubricant housing and a lubricating blade configured to form a thin layer, the powder lubricant comprising at least one of a powder particle having a volume-based average particle diameter from greater than 0.1 mm to approximately 3.0 mm and disposed in the lubricant housing in contact with the lubricating blade prior to being supplied to the surface of the image bearing member, the lubricant supplying mechanism disposed between the cleaning mechanism and the charging mechanism. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an intermediate transfer member disposed in the intermediate transfer mechanism and configured to receive the toner image from the image bearing member before transferring the toner image onto a recording medium. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism comprises a supplying roller having a fibrous brush; and wherein the supplying roller is configured to apply the lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the image bearing member. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism comprises a supplying roller having a plurality of films; and wherein the supplying roller is configured to apply the lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the image bearing member. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the plurality of cleaning units comprises a primary cleaning unit disposed upstream in a moving direction of the image bearing member, and wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a secondary cleaning unit disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit and comprising a first cleaning blade, and wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed between the primary and secondary cleaning units. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the primary cleaning unit comprises a second cleaning blade configured to exert a first predetermined contact pressure and the secondary cleaning unit comprises the first cleaning blade configured to exert a second predetermined contact pressure, the second contact pressure less than the first contact pressure. ### Claim 9 (depends on 5) The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed in one of the plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is configured to apply at least one of a vibration and a shock. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed above a horizontal plane including a center position of the image bearing member. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is configured to apply the lubricant comprising a fatty acid metal salt having a metallic material and a fatty acid, wherein the metallic material comprises at least one of zinc, iron, calcium, aluminum, lithium, magnesium, strontium, barium, cerium, titanium, zirconium, lead, and manganese, and wherein the fatty acid comprises at least one of lauric acid, stearic acid, palmitic acid, myristatic acid, and oleic acid. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the charging mechanism comprises a charging member separated from the image bearing member by a predetermined distance and configure to apply a bias including a direct current superimposed by an alternate current to the charging member. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to use a developer having a volume-based average particle diameter equal to or less than 10 μm and a distribution from approximately 1.00 to approximately 1.40, wherein the distribution is defined by a ratio of the volume-based average particle diameter to a number-based average particle diameter. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to use a developer having an average circularity of from approximately 0.93 to approximately 1.00. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to use a developer having a first shape factor from approximately 100 to approximately 180 and a second shape factor from approximately 100 to approximately 180. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to use a developer having a spindle outer shape, and a ratio of a major axis r1 to a minor axis r2 from approximately 0.5 to approximately 1.0 and a ratio of a thickness r3 to the minor axis r2 from approximately 0.7 to approximately 1.0, and r1≧r2≧r3. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to use a developer obtained from at least one of elongation and a crosslinking reaction of developer composition comprising a polyester prepolymer having a function group including nitrogen atom, a polyester, a colorant, and a releasing agent in an aqueous medium under resin fine particles. ### Claim 19 An image forming apparatus, comprising: means for bearing a toner image; means for charging a surface of the means for bearing; means for transferring a toner image from the means for bearing to an image receiver; means for cleaning the surface of the means for bearing after the toner image is transferred to the image receiver; and means for supplying a powder lubricant to the surface of the means for bearing, the means for supplying comprising a lubricant housing and a lubricating blade configured to form a thin layer, the powder lubricant comprising at least one of a powder particle having a volume-based average particle diameter from greater than 0.1 mm to approximately 3.0 mm and disposed in the lubricant housing in contact with the lubricating blade prior to being supplied to the surface of the means for bearing, the means for supplying disposed between the means for cleaning and the means for charging. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured such that the image receiver comprises a recording medium that receives the toner image directly from the means for bearing and an intermediate transfer member receives the toner image from the means for bearing before transferring the toner image onto the recording medium, the intermediate transfer member disposed in the means for transferring. ### Claim 21 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for supplying comprises a supplying roller having a fibrous brush; and wherein the supplying roller is configured to apply the lubricant to the surface of the means for bearing before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the means for bearing. ### Claim 22 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for supplying comprises a supplying roller having a plurality of films; and wherein the supplying roller is configured to apply the lubricant to the surface of the means for bearing before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the means for bearing. ### Claim 23 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for cleaning comprises a plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 24 (depends on 23) The image forming apparatus according to claim 23, wherein the plurality of cleaning units comprises a primary cleaning unit disposed upstream in a moving direction of the image bearing member, and wherein the means for supplying is disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit. ### Claim 25 (depends on 24) The image forming apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the means for cleaning comprises a secondary cleaning unit disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit and comprising a first cleaning blade, and wherein the means for supplying is disposed between the primary and secondary cleaning units. ### Claim 26 (depends on 25) The image forming apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the primary cleaning unit comprises a second cleaning blade configured to exert a first predetermined contact pressure and the secondary cleaning unit comprises the first cleaning blade configured to exert a second predetermined contact pressure, the second contact pressure less than the first contact pressure. ### Claim 27 (depends on 23) The image forming apparatus according to claim 23, wherein the means for supplying is disposed in one of the plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 28 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for supplying is configured to apply at least one of a vibration and a shock. ### Claim 29 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for supplying is disposed above a horizontal plane including a center position of the means for bearing. ### Claim 30 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for supplying is configured to apply the lubricant comprising a metallic material and a fatty acid, wherein the metallic material comprises at least one of zinc, iron, calcium, aluminum, lithium, magnesium, strontium, barium, cerium, titanium, zirconium, lead, and manganese, and wherein the fatty acid comprises at least one of lauric acid, stearic acid, palmitic acid, myristatic acid, and oleic acid. ### Claim 31 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the means for charging comprises a charging member separated from the means for bearing by a predetermined distance and configured to apply a bias including a direct current superimposed by an alternate current to the charging member. ### Claim 32 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to be used with a developer having a volume-based average particle diameter equal to or less than 10 μm and a distribution from approximately 1.00 to approximately 1.40, wherein the distribution is defined by a ratio of the volume-based average particle diameter to a number-based average particle diameter. ### Claim 33 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to be used with a developer having an average circularity of from approximately 0.93 to approximately 1.00. ### Claim 34 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to be used with a developer having a first shape factor from approximately 100 to approximately 180 and a second shape factor from approximately 100 to approximately 180. ### Claim 35 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to be used with a developer having a spindle outer shape, and having a ratio of a major axis r1 to a minor axis r2 from approximately 0.5 to approximately 1.0 and a ratio of a thickness r3 to the minor axis r2 from approximately 0.7 to approximately 1.0, and r1≧r2≧r3. ### Claim 36 (depends on 19) The image forming apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the image forming apparatus is configured to be used with a developer obtained from at least one of an elongation and a crosslinking reaction of developer composition comprising a polyester prepolymer having a function group including nitrogen atom, a polyester, a colorant, and a releasing agent in an aqueous medium under resin fine particles. ### Claim 37 A method of image forming, comprising: providing an image bearing member in an image forming apparatus; uniformly charging a surface of the image bearing member using a charging mechanism; forming a toner image on a surface of the image bearing member; transferring the toner image using an intermediate transfer mechanism from the image bearing member to an image receiver; cleaning the surface of the image bearing member using a cleaning mechanism after the toner image is transferred onto the image receiver; supplying a powder lubricant contained in a lubricant supplying mechanism onto the surface of the image bearing member, the lubricant supplying mechanism comprising a lubricant housing and a lubricating blade configured to form a thin layer, the powder lubricant comprising at least one of a powder particle having a volume-based average particle diameter from greater than 0.1 mm to approximately 3.0 mm and disposed in the lubricant housing in contact with the lubricating blade prior to being supplied to the surface of the image bearing member; and forming a thin layer using a lubricating blade. ### Claim 38 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the image receiver comprises a recording medium receiving the toner image directly from the image bearing member, and wherein an intermediate transfer member, which is disposed in the intermediate transfer mechanism, receives the toner image from the image bearing member before transferring the toner image onto the recording medium. ### Claim 39 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism comprises a supplying roller having a fibrous brush; and wherein the supplying roller applies the lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the image bearing member. ### Claim 40 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism comprises a supplying roller with a plurality of films; and wherein the supplying roller applies the lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the image bearing member. ### Claim 41 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 42 (depends on 41) The method according to claim 41, wherein the plurality of cleaning units comprises a primary cleaning unit disposed upstream in a moving direction of the image bearing member, and wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit. ### Claim 43 (depends on 42) The method according to claim 42, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a secondary cleaning unit disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit and comprising a first cleaning blade, and wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed between the primary and secondary cleaning units. ### Claim 44 (depends on 43) The method according to claim 43, wherein the primary cleaning unit comprises a second cleaning blade configured to exert a first predetermined contact pressure and the secondary cleaning unit comprises the first cleaning blade configured to exert a second predetermined contact pressure, the second contact pressure less than the first contact pressure. ### Claim 45 (depends on 41) The method according to claim 41, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed in one of the plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 46 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is configured to apply at least one of a vibration and a shock. ### Claim 47 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed above a horizontal plane including a center position of the image bearing member. ### Claim 48 (depends on 37) The method according to claim 37, wherein the charging mechanism comprises a charging member separated from the image bearing member by a predetermined distance and configured to apply a bias including a direct current superimposed by an alternate current to the charging member. ### Claim 49 A process cartridge configured to be used in an image forming apparatus, comprising: an image bearing member configured to bear a toner image on a surface thereof; at least one image forming component integrally mounted adjacent the image bearing member; and a lubricant supplying mechanism configured to supply a powder lubricant contained therein onto the surface of the image bearing member, the lubricant supplying mechanism comprising a lubricant housing and a lubricating blade configured to form a thin layer, the powder lubricant comprising at least one of a powder particle having a volume-based average particle diameter from greater than 0.1 mm to approximately 3.0 mm and disposed in the lubricant housing in contact with the lubricating blade prior to being supplied to the surface of the image bearing member, wherein the at least one image forming component comprises at least one of a charging unit, a developing unit and a cleaning unit, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed between the cleaning unit and the charging unit, and wherein the process cartridge is configured to be detached from the image forming apparatus. ### Claim 50 (depends on 49) The process cartridge according to claim 49, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism comprises a supplying roller having a fibrous brush; and wherein the supplying roller is configured to apply the lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the image bearing member. ### Claim 51 (depends on 49) The process cartridge according to claim 49, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism comprises a supplying roller having a plurality of films; and wherein the supplying roller is configured to apply the lubricant to the surface of the image bearing member before the lubricating blade forms the thin layer of the lubricant on the surface of the image bearing member. ### Claim 52 (depends on 49) The process cartridge according to claim 49, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 53 (depends on 52) The process cartridge according to claim 52, wherein the plurality of cleaning units comprises a primary cleaning unit disposed upstream in a moving direction of the image bearing member, and wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit. ### Claim 54 (depends on 53) The process cartridge according to claim 53, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a secondary cleaning unit disposed downstream of the primary cleaning unit and including a first cleaning blade, and wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed between the primary and secondary cleaning units. ### Claim 55 (depends on 54) The process cartridge according to claim 54, wherein the primary cleaning unit comprises a second cleaning blade configured to exert a first predetermined contact pressure and the secondary cleaning unit comprises the first cleaning blade configured to exert a second predetermined contact pressure, the second contact pressure less than the first contact pressure. ### Claim 56 (depends on 52) The process cartridge according to claim 52, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed in one of the plurality of cleaning units. ### Claim 57 (depends on 49) The process cartridge according to claim 49, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is configured to apply one of a vibration and a shock. ### Claim 58 (depends on 49) The process cartridge according to claim 49, wherein the lubricant supplying mechanism is disposed above a horizontal plane including a center position of the image bearing member.