Electric heating – Heating devices – Combined with diverse-type art device
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-06
2003-02-11
Pelham, Joseph (Department: 3742)
Electric heating
Heating devices
Combined with diverse-type art device
C399S329000, C399S333000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06518546
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a heater which will be effective if used in a fixing device for heating and fixing a toner image formed on a recording material, and an image heating apparatus using this heater.
2. Related Background Art
An image heating fixing apparatus for heat fixing of a toner image formed on a recording material is described below as an example of an image heating apparatus.
In an image forming apparatus such as a copier, printer, or facsimile, an image heating fixing apparatus is a heating apparatus for heating/fixing-processing, on a recording material surface, an unfixed toner image corresponding to image information formed on the surface of a recording material (electro fax sheet, electrostatic recording sheet, transferring material sheet, print paper, or the like) in a direct or indirect (transferring) system using toner made of a thermomeltable resin or the like by proper image forming process means such as electrophotography, electrostatic recording, magnetic recording, or the like.
Conventionally, for such an image heating fixing apparatus, a heat roller system has been widely used. The heat roller system is a system which has a basic construction comprising a metallic roller provided therein with a heater, and a pressure roller having an elasticity and pressure-contacted to said roller, and in which, by passing a recording material through a fixing nip portion formed by one pair of these rollers, an unfixed toner image bore on said recording material is heated and pressurized to fix.
However, in the above heat roller system, since the heat capacity of the roller is large, very much time was required for raising the roller surface to a desired fixing temperature. Besides, for this reason, for quickly executing an image output operation, there is a problem wherein the roller surface must be temperature-adjusted to a temperature in a certain extent even when a machine is not used.
One improved and devised on that point is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 10-293490. This is composed by an insulating layer and a heat generation layer are laminated on a surface of a metallic roller. Such a roller is difficult in manufacture, besides, since a contact point for supplying an electric power to the roller slides, problems such as generation of noise and a short duration arise, so it does not reach a practical use in practice.
So, the present applicant has proposed before a heating apparatus of a film heating system (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 63-313182, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.
2-157878
, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.
4-44075
, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.
4-204980.
This film heating system is a system in which a heater and a material to be heated are respectively put on one surface side and the other surface side of a heat-resisting film so as to give the thermal energy of the heating body to the heated material through the heat-resisting film, and a heating apparatus of an on-demand type in which members of low heat capacity can be used for the heating body and film, there is quick startability, and the power consumption in standby is considerably small, can be constructed.
FIGS. 7A
to
7
C show one example of a heating apparatus of the film heating system. This example is an image heating fixing apparatus of the film heating system.
FIG. 7A
is an enlarged cross-section model view of a principal part,
FIG. 7B
is a partially cut-off plan model view on the surface side of a heating body, and
FIG. 7C
is a plan model view on the back surface side of the heating body.
Reference numeral
7
denotes a heater, which is a slender and thin-plate-shaped member whose longitude is a vertical direction to the drawing surface of
FIG. 7A
, entirely low heat capacitive, and generates heat by being electrified.
Reference numeral
13
denotes a heater support member, whose longitude corresponds to a vertical direction to a drawing surface of
FIG. 7A
, being adiabatic and rigid. On the lower surface side of this support member
13
, along the member longitude, a seat gouged portion
13
a
elongating in the longitudinal axis and in shallow grooved shape into which the above heater
7
can be fitted is comprised, and the heater
7
is fitted into this seat gouged portion
13
a
and supported by the support member
13
.
Reference numeral
12
denotes a thin heat-resisting film and reference numeral
9
denotes an elastic pressure roller. The film
12
is put between the heater
7
supported by the support member
13
and the pressure roller
9
so that a fixing nip portion (heating nip portion) N is formed by contacting and providing a predetermined pressure force with each other.
The film
12
moves in an arrow direction with close contacting the fixing nip portion N to the surface on the downward facing side of the heater
7
and sliding by a not-shown drive member, or the pressure roller
9
being rotation-driven.
And, when a paper leaf body (recording material)
11
carrying an unfixed toner image
10
, as a heated material, is introduced between the film
12
of the above fixing nip portion N and the pressure roller
9
, the paper leaf body
11
is sandwich-conveyed in the fixing nip portion N together with the film
12
and heated by heat from the heater
7
through the film
12
, and unfixed toner
10
is heat-fixed on the paper leaf body surface. The paper leaf body
11
passed through the fixing nip portion N is separated from the surface of the film
12
and conveyed.
Generally, a ceramic heater in which a ceramic board a heating body board having electrical-insulating performance, good heat conductivity and heat-resistivity is used as the heater
7
. In this embodiment, a ceramic heater is also used as the heater
7
.
That is, numeral
1
denotes a slender and thin-plate-shaped ceramic board.
Reference numeral
2
denotes first and second parallel two-stripe narrow-band-shape electrification heat-generation resistor patterns (one is a first, the other is a second) formed and comprised along the board longitude on the surface side of this ceramic board
1
.
Reference numeral
5
denotes two conductor patterns (one is a first, the other is a second) as the first and second power supply electrodes (electrode contact points) formed and comprised with being arranged on the longitude one end portion side of the ceramic board surface. The first power supply electrode
5
is electrically conducted to one end portion of the first resistor pattern
2
through an extension pattern portion. Besides, the second power supply electrode
5
is electrically conducted to one end portion of the second resistor pattern
2
through an extension pattern portion.
Reference numeral
6
denotes a conductor pattern as a folded-back electrode formed and comprised on the ceramic board surface by electrically conducting between the other end portions of the first and second resistor patterns
2
.
Reference numeral
3
denotes a heater surface protective glass layer, which is formed and comprised to cover substantially entirely the heater surface except the portion of the first and second power supply electrodes
5
. By this protective glass layer
3
, each extension pattern portion of the first and second resistor patterns
2
and the first and second power supply electrodes
5
, and the folded-back electrode
6
are protected by being covered.
Reference numeral
4
denotes a temperature sensing element such as a thermistor or the like, which is disposed by being contacted to substantially the center portion in the longitudinal direction on the heater back surface side, that is, the back surface side of the ceramic board
1
.
The surface side having the surface protective glass layer
3
of the above ceramic heater
7
is the film sliding surface side, and the surface side of this ceramic heater
7
is exposed to the exterior and fitted in the seat gouged portion
13
a
on the lower surface side of said support member
13
and disposed.
Hirai Masahide
Murooka Ken
Otsuka Yasumasa
Soya Takashi
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Fitzpatrick ,Cella, Harper & Scinto
Pelham Joseph
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