1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wet type image forming apparatus which is employed in an electrophotographic printing apparatus or a like apparatus and converts an electrostatic latent image formed on a belt type photosensitive member into a visible image, and more particularly to a construction of a cleaning apparatus for a belt type photosensitive member of an image forming apparatus of the type mentioned.
2. Description of the Related Art
A development station of a wet type image forming apparatus which employs a belt type photosensitive member generally has such a construction as shown in FIG. 8. Referring to FIG. 8, a bell type photosensitive member (hereinafter referred to simply as photosensitive member) B on which an electrostatic latent image is formed is fed in a direction indicated by an arrow mark a to a position between a development roller 1 and an upper roller (not shown) located above the development roller 1. Then, liquid developer T1 is supplied from a liquid developer supply port (not shown) to a very small gap between the development roller 1 and the photosensitive member B to develop the photosensitive member B when the photosensitive member B passes the gap.
Then, the photosensitive member B passes between a first pressing out roller 4 and an upper roller (not shown) located above the first pressing out roller 4, whereupon the liquid developer is pressed out from the photosensitive member B by a contacting pressure between the two rollers. The photosensitive member B is further pressed by a pair of second pressing out rollers 5, which are provided in the following stage and rotate in a direction opposite to the direction of the arrow mark, so that the remaining liquid developer is removed from the photosensitive member B. By the processing, the image on the photosensitive member B is converted into a film-like image. Then, the image is dried and transferred to paper.
The wet type image forming apparatus described above, however, has a problem in that, when the second pressing out rollers 5 remove remaining liquid developer from the photosensitive member B, they press out part of liquid developer T2 as seen in FIG. 8, and the thus pressed out liquid developer T2 sometimes soils a window of a sensor (not shown) provided in the proximity of an end portion of the photosensitive member B or soils an end portion of transfer paper.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds