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Patent EP0639803A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
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EP0639803A2 Expired / Lapsed EP ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Apparatus for removing image forming substance from a sheet and sheet processing apparatus

Assignee: Ricoh Co Ltd
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Filing: 1994-07-21
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2014-07-21
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Abstract

Abstract An apparatus capable of surely removing a toner or similar image forming substance stably cohered to a sheet (10), and an apparatus for processing a sheet are disclosed. A liquid supply unit (30) uniformly supplies a liquid (34) to a toner carried on the sheet (10). The sheet infiltrated with the liquid is heated by a toner removing unit (40) to have to the toner thereof softened. As a result, the toner adheres to the surface of an offset member (44) implemented as a belt or a drum. The sheet containing the liquid therein is conveyed to the toner removing unit without creasing, breaking or folding.

Inventors

  • 👤 Tooru Maruyama
  • 👤 Iwao Takahashi
  • 👤 Masatoshi Saito
  • 👤 Shigeru Fujita
  • 👤 Hisso Watanabe
  • 👤 Taro Terashi
  • 👤 Tomoaki Sugawara
  • 👤 Masaru Shinkai
  • 👤 Toshiyuki Kawanishi
  • 👤 Masato Igarashi

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction EP
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-08 19:15
CPC Classifications
G; G03; G03G; G03G21/00

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 35
Claim 1
Independent Claim 79 words
An apparatus for removing an image forming substance stably cohered to a surface of a sheet, comprising: liquid supplying means for supplying a predetermined amount of a liquid to the sheet carrying the image forming substance; conveying means for conveying the sheet supplied with the liquid along a transport path by nipping said sheet in a thicknesswise direction of said sheet; and removing means for removing the image forming substance from the sheet being conveyed by said conveying means.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 26 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said liquid supplying means comprises a liquid supply member movable while retaining the liquid on a surface thereof.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 17 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said liquid supply member comprises a rotatable applicator roller.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 47 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said liquid supply means further comprises a vessel storing the liquid, and a sheet regulator roller facing said applicator roller with the intermediary of said transport path, said applicator roller being partly immersed in said liquid in said vessel.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 21 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein said applicator roller is made of a material capable of retaining a liquid.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 31 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein said applicator roller and said sheet regulator roller are pressed against each other or spaced apart from each other by a predetermined gap.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 29 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein said predetermined gap is greater than a thickness of the sheet which has been increased due to infiltration of the liquid.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 46 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said liquid supplying means further comprises pressing means for pressing the sheet supplied with the liquid in the thicknesswise direction to thereby cause the liquid to infiltrate into an interface between said sheet and said image forming substance.
Claim 9
Independent Claim 12 words
An apparatus as claimed in claims 1-8, wherein the liquid comprises water.
Claim 10
Independent Claim 19 words
An apparatus as claimed in claims 1-8, wherein the liquid comprises an aqueous solution containing a surface active agent.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim 28 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said conveying means comprises a first and a second conveyor member respectively positioned upstream and downstream of said applicator roller.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim 43 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein said first conveyor member and said second conveyor member are spaced apart from each other over a distance shorter than a length of the sheet as measured in a direction of transport of said sheet.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim 42 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein until a trailing edge of the sheet moves away from said first conveyor member, a conveying speed of said second conveyor member is maintained higher than a conveying speed of said first conveyor member.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim 63 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein said liquid supplying means further comprises control means for controllably driving said applicator roller such that after the sheet has faced said applicator roller and a trailing edge of said sheet has moved away from said first conveyor member, said applicator is rotated in a direction opposite to the direction of transport of said sheet.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim 55 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said removing means comprises: offset means for transferring the image forming substance from the sheet, having been supplied with the liquid, to a surface of said offset means; and heating means for pressing said offset means against the sheet while heating and softening the image forming substance.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim 23 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 15, wherein said heating means comprises a heat lamp and a roller accommodating said heat lamp therein.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim 32 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 16, wherein said heat lamp heats said offset means to a first temperature while heating said roller to a second temperature higher than said first temperature.
Claim 18
Independent Claim 28 words
An apparatus as claimed in claims 1-17, further comprising drying means for drying the sheet from which the image forming substance has been removed by said removing means.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim 34 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 18, wherein said drying means comprises heating means for heating the sheet, and a pressing member for pressing the sheet against said heating means and moving said sheet.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim 14 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein said pressing means comprises a belt.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim 29 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 20, wherein said belt moves at a speed lower than a speed at which the sheet is driven out of said removing means.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim 43 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 20, wherein said belt comprises annular ridges formed at opposite widthwise side edges of an inner periphery thereof, said belt being passed over support rollers each being formed with circumferential grooves capable of receiving said annular ridges.
Claim 23
Independent Claim 27 words
An apparatus as claimed in claims 1-22, further comprising pulling means for spreading the sheet toward opposite widthwise side edges of said sheet while conveying said sheet.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim 21 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 23, wherein said pulling means is positioned just before or just after said removing means.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim 24 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 24, wherein said pulling means comprises a plurality of rollers slightly inclined toward the opposite widthwise side edges.
Claim 26
Independent Claim 22 words
An apparatus as claimed in claims 1-25, wherein said liquid supplying means and said removing means are constructed into a single unit.
Claim 27
Independent Claim 36 words
An apparatus as claimed in claims 1-26, further comprising first guide means for guiding the sheet to said liquid supplying means, and second guide for guiding said sheet supplied with the liquid to said removing means.
Claim 28
Independent Claim 66 words
An apparatus for executing predetermined processing with a sheet by supplying a liquid to said sheet, comprising: liquid supplying means movable while retaining the liquid on a surface thereof to thereby supply said liquid to a surface of the sheet; and conveying means for conveying the sheet supplied with the liquid along a transport path by nipping said sheet in a thicknesswise direction of said sheet.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim 27 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 28, further comprising pulling means for conveying the sheet while spreading said sheet toward opposite widthwise side edges of said sheet.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim 39 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 28, further comprising first guide means for guiding the sheet to said liquid supplying means, and second guide means for guiding said sheet supplied with the liquid to an outlet of said apparatus.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim 17 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 28, wherein said liquid supplying means comprises a rotatable applicator roller.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim 28 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 31, wherein said conveying means comprises a first and a second conveyor member respectively positioned upstream and downstream of said applicator roller.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim 64 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 32, further comprising said liquid supplying means further comprises control means for controllably driving said applicator roller such that after the sheet has faced said applicator roller and a trailing edge of said sheet has moved away from said first conveyor member, said applicator is rotated in a direction opposite to the direction of transport of said sheet.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim 42 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 32, wherein until a trailing edge of the sheet moves away from said first conveyor member, a conveying speed of said second conveyor member is maintained higher than a conveying speed of said first conveyor member.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim 46 words
An apparatus as claimed in claim 32, wherein said liquid supplying means further comprises pressing means for pressing the sheet supplied with the liquid in the thicknesswise direction to thereby cause the liquid to infiltrate into an interface between said sheet and said image forming substance.

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