US 9,869,957 B2Granted

Image forming apparatus with cleaning function for intermediary transfer member

AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorRyo Nameki

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Abstract

An image forming apparatus includes an image forming portion for forming a toner image; an intermediary transfer belt for receiving the toner image; a blade for cleaning the belt by removing residual toner therefrom; an ambient condition sensor for detecting an ambient condition; a memory for storing information relating to a use amount of the belt; and a controller for executing an operation in a mode in which a toner is deposited on the belt in an area corresponding to between a preceding sheet and a succeeding sheet during execution of a continuous image forming job for continuously forming the images on the sheets to supply the toner to the blade. The controller controls a frequency of the operations in the mode, on the basis of an output of the sensor during an image formation job and the information stored in the memory.

Claims15

Dependent claims

An image forming apparatus comprising:

an image forming portion configured to form a toner image;
an intermediary transfer member configured to receive the toner image formed by said image forming portion;
a blade configured to clean said intermediary transfer member by removing residual toner therefrom;
an ambient condition sensor configured to detect an ambient condition of said apparatus;
a memory configured to store information relating to an accumulated use amount of said intermediary transfer member from a fresh state thereof;
and
a controller configured to execute an operation in a mode in which predetermined toner for cleaning said intermediary transfer member is deposited on said intermediary transfer member in an area corresponding to a region between a preceding recording material and a succeeding recording material during execution of a continuous image forming job for continuously forming the images on the recording materials to supply the predetermined toner to said blade,
wherein when the accumulated use amount is less than a first predetermined amount and the ambient condition sensed by said ambient condition sensor is a first condition, said controller sets a permissible number, which is a number of image formations from a previous execution of the operation in the mode to a next execution of the operation in the mode, to a first permissible number,
when the accumulated use amount is less than the first predetermined amount and the ambient condition sensed by said ambient condition sensor is a second condition different from the first condition, said controller sets the permissible number to a second permissible number,
when the accumulated use amount is less than a second predetermined amount which is greater than the first predetermined amount and the ambient condition sensed by said ambient condition sensor is the second condition, said controller sets the permissible number to a third permissible number,
wherein the second permissible number is less than the first permissible number and less than the third permissible number, and
wherein the accumulated use amount is calculated with calibration depending on a size of the formed image.

9 more elements

An image forming apparatus comprising:

an image forming portion configured to form a toner image;
an intermediary transfer member configured to receive the toner image formed by said image forming portion;
a blade configured to clean said intermediary transfer member by removing residual toner therefrom;
a memory configured to store information relating to an accumulated use amount of said intermediary transfer member from a fresh state thereof;
and
a controller configured to execute an operation in a mode in which predetermined toner for cleaning said intermediary transfer member is deposited on said intermediary transfer member in an area corresponding to a region between a preceding recording material and a succeeding recording material during execution of a continuous image forming job for continuously forming the images on the recording materials to supply the predetermined toner to said blade,
wherein when the accumulated use amount is less than a first predetermined amount, said controller sets a permissible number, which is a number of image formations from a previous execution of the operation in the mode to a next execution of the operation in the mode, to a first permissible number,
wherein when the accumulated use amount is less than a second predetermined amount which is greater than the first predetermined amount, said controller sets the permissible number to a second permissible number,
wherein the second permissible number is greater than the first permissible number, and
wherein the accumulated use amount is calculated with calibration depending on a size of the formed image.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/248,754Filed 26 Aug 2016
Priority: JP 2015-17150831 Aug 2015
Published: US 2017/0060037 A12 Mar 2017
Granted: 16 Jan 2018
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

G03G 15/5054
Machine control of apparatus for electrographic processes using a charge pattern, e.g. regulating differents parts of the machine, multimode…: by…
G03G 15/161
Using at least one intermediate support: with means for handling the intermediate support, e.g. heating, cleaning, coating with a transfer agent
G03G 21/20
Arrangements not provided for by groups G03G13/00 - G03G19/00, e.g. cleaning, elimination of residual charge: humidity or temperature control also…
G03G 2215/00772
Detection of physical properties: of temperature influencing copy sheet handling