Abstract A fixing unit for picture image forming equipment including a heating roller and a pressure roller, fixes unfixed picture images formed on paper by applying heat thereto. The fixing unit for a picture image forming equipment includes a pressure roller having a structure consisting of three layers, namely, a silicone sponge layer, a silicone rubber layer, and a relatively hard tubular layer, which are arranged in the stated order outwards from the central part to the outermost shell. The tubular layer is a tetrafluoroethylene fluorocarbon polymer layer having a thickness in the range from 30 μm to 70 μm. The silicone sponge layer has a thickness in the range of 50% to 60% of the outside diameter of the pressure roller.
A fixing unit for picture image forming equipment, comprising: a heating roller; a pressure roller contacting said heating roller along a pressure line, said pressure roller having at least three layers including an innermost silicone sponge layer, an intermediate silicone rubber layer and an outer polytetrafluoroethylene layer; means for creating pressure between the rollers along the pressure line, wherein said innermost silicone sponge layer has a thickness in the range of 50 to 60 percent of the outside diameter of the pressure roller.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
83 words
A fixing unit for picture image forming equipment, comprising: a heating roller; a pressure roller contacting said heating roller along a pressure line, said pressure roller having at least three layers including an innermost silicone sponge layer, an intermediate silicone rubber layer and an outer polytetrafluoroethylene layer; means for creating pressure between the rollers along the pressure line, wherein said innermost silicone sponge layer has a thickness in the range of 50 to 60 percent of the outside diameter of the pressure roller.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
31 words
The fixing unit of claim 1, wherein the intermediate silicone rubber layer has a thickness in the range of 5 to 30 percent of the outside diameter of the pressure roller.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
23 words
The fixing unit of claim 1, wherein the outer polytetrafluoroethylene layer has a thickness in the range of 30 μm to 70 μm.