Synztec Co., Ltd.

Nok Corporation

Wataru Nemoto

Atsushi Ikeda

Masaya Suzuki

Kenji Sasaki

Jun Ogawa

Kazuya Takato

Asuka Koyanagi

Hidetomo Mukai

Junichi Nakayama

Tadashi Hasegawa

Shingo Sugiyama

Tomohiro Kondo

Masayuki Goto

A tubular fuser device rotates and is in contact with a sheet on which a positively charged toner image is formed to fix the toner image to the sheet. The fuser device includes a tubular substrate made of a metal, a rubber layer covering the outer periphery of the substrate, an adhesion layer covering the outer periphery of the rubber layer, and a surface layer made of a resin covering the outer periphery of the adhesion layer. The adhesion layer has a first adhesion layer that is in contact with the rubber layer and a second adhesion layer interposed between the first adhesion layer and the surface layer. The first adhesion layer is made of a fluororesin-based adhesive, and the second adhesion layer is made of a silicone rubber-based adhesive containing an ionic conductor.

Fixing device

A tubular fuser device rotates and is in contact with a sheet on which a positively charged toner image is formed to fix the toner image to the sheet. The fuser device includes a tubular substrate made of a metal, a rubber layer covering the outer periphery of the substrate, an adhesion layer covering the outer periphery of the rubber layer, and a surface layer made of a resin covering the outer periphery of the adhesion layer. In the fuser device, a charge decay &#x394;V at a moment 120 seconds after end of charging a surface of the surface layer to &#x2212;1 kV is zero, and an electrostatic capacity per unit area C in a thickness direction of the fuser device is equal to or less than 3.30 pF/cm.

Fuser device having reduced electrostatic offset

A tubular fuser device rotates and is in contact with a sheet on which a positively charged toner image is formed to fix the toner image to the sheet. The fuser device includes a tubular substrate made of a metal, a rubber layer covering the outer periphery of the substrate, an adhesion layer covering the outer periphery of the rubber layer, and a surface layer made of a resin covering the outer periphery of the adhesion layer. In the fuser device, C&#xb7;R/Ais less than 1.1&#xd7;10F&#x3a9;/cmin which C&#xb7;R/Ais a product of an electrostatic capacity per unit area C/A in a thickness direction of the fuser device and an electrical resistance per unit area R/A in the thickness direction of the fuser device.

Fuser device

The invention provides a fixation member having a fluororesin tube serving as a release layer which attains both suitable electrical conductivity and high releasability. The fixation member (fixation tube) has a release layer on the surface thereof. The release layer is formed of a fluororesin tube containing carbon. The fluororesin tube has a percent dielectric relaxation of 1.0% to 5.0% or an optical transmission density of 1 to 4. The fluororesin tube preferably has a dielectric constant of 2.15 to 2.5.

Fixing member having releasing layer on the surface

The invention provides a fixing pressure roller having an elastic layer formed of a porous material produced from an emulsion, the roller having improved durability. The fixing pressure roller has a core, a rubber layer which has a thickness of 1.0 mm or less and which is provided around the core, and an elastic layer which is formed of a porous elastomer produced from an emulsion composition and which is provided around the rubber layer, the emulsion composition having a continuous phase of a liquid rubber material which forms an elastomer through curing.

Fixing pressure roller

In the elastomer porous material of the invention, when cells in a first observation region of a first cross section are observed at a certain magnification, cells having an aspect ratio a/b, wherein a represents the maximum diameter of each cell and b represents the length of the minor axis of that cell as measured in a direction orthogonal thereto, of 1.3 or less account for 70% or more of all cells in the first observation region, and, when cells in a second observation region of a second cross section orthogonal to the first cross section are observed at a certain magnification, cells having an aspect ratio a/b, wherein a represents the maximum diameter of each cell and b represents the length of the minor axis of that cell as measured in a direction orthogonal thereto, of 1.3 or less account for 70% or more of all cells in the second observation region.

Elastomer porous material and method of producing the same

In the elastomer porous material of the invention, when cells in a first observation region of a first cross section are observed at a certain magnification, cells having a shape factor SF1, which indicates the roundness of a circle and is represented by the following formula: (wherein a represents the length of major axis of each cell, and A represents the area thereof), of 150 or less account for 80% or more of all cells in the first observation region, and, when cells in a second observation region of a second cross section orthogonal to the first cross section are observed at a certain magnification, cells having a shape factor SF1, which indicates the roundness of a circle and is represented by the same formula (wherein a represents the length of major axis of each cell, and A represents the area thereof), of 150 or less account for 80% or more of all cells in the second observation region.

In the elastomer porous material of the invention, when cells in a first observation region of a first cross section are observed at a certain magnification, cells having a shape factor SF, which indicates the remoteness from complete roundness and is represented by the following formula: (wherein A represents the area of each cell, and P represents the perimeter length thereof), of 130 or less account for 80% or more of all cells in the first observation region, and, when cells in a second observation region of a second cross section orthogonal to the first cross section are observed at a certain magnification, cells having a shape factor SF, which indicates the remoteness from complete roundness and is represented by the same formula (wherein A represents the area of each cell, and P represents the perimeter length thereof), of 130 or less account for 80% or more of all cells in the second observation region.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Wataru Nemoto