CLEANING BLADE, AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND PROCESS CARTRIDGE USING THE CLEANING BLADE

摘要

A cleaning blade includes a supporting member, and a tabular elastic member. One end portion of the elastic member is fixed to the supporting member, and the other end portion is a free end portion whose tip edge is to be contacted with a member to be cleaned while rubbing the surface to remove a residual material therefrom. The tip portion of the free end portion of the elastic member ranging in length from 0 to 500 μm from the tip surface thereof includes at least a cured material of a curable compound and an elastic material of the elastic member. The elastic member satisfies the relationship, 0.05(%)≦[(tM−tA)/tA]×100≦2%, wherein tM represents the maximum thickness of the tip portion of the elastic member, and tA represents the average thickness of the rear portion of the free end portion of the elastic member.

主权项

1. A cleaning blade comprising:
a supporting member; and a tabular elastic member including:
a first end portion fixed to the supporting member; anda second end portion, which is a free end portion not contacted with the supporting member and whose tip edge is to be contacted with a surface of a member to be cleaned while rubbing the surface of the member to be cleaned to remove a residual material from the surface of the member to be cleaned,wherein a tip portion of the second end portion of the elastic member, which is defined as a portion ranging in length in a longitudinal direction of the elastic member from 0 to 500 μm from a tip surface of the second end portion, includes at least a cured material of a curable compound and an elastic material of the elastic member, andwherein the elastic member satisfies the following relationship:
0.05(%)≦[(tM−tA)/tA]×100≦2(%),wherein tM represents a maximum thickness of the tip portion of the second end portion of the elastic member, and tA represents an average thickness of a rear portion of the second end portion of the elastic member other than the tip portion.