HP 3150, 3100 manual Primary charging, Scanning exposure, Developing

CAUTION The printer's toner cartridge does not include a light-blocking shutter. Be careful to avoid exposing the drum to light, which can permanently damage the drum. Protect the cartridge whenever removing it from the printer.

Step 1: Primary charging

This process consists of applying a uniform negative charge to the surface of the drum with the primary charging roller, located in the toner cartridge. The primary charging roller is coated with conductive rubber. An AC bias is applied to the roller to erase any residual charges from any previous image. In addition, a negative DC bias is applied by the charging roller to create a uniform negative potential on the drum surface. The amount of DC voltage is modified by the print density setting.

Step 2: Scanning exposure

During this process, a modulated laser diode projects the beam onto a rotating scanning mirror. As the mirror rotates, the beam reflects off the mirror, first through a set of focusing lenses, then off a mirror, and finally through a slot in the top of the toner cartridge, and onto the photosensitive drum. The beam sweeps the drum from left to right, discharging the negative potential wherever the beam strikes the surface. This creates a latent electrostatic image, which later is developed into a visible image.

Because the beam is sweeping the entire length of the drum and the drum is rotating, the entire surface area of the drum can be covered. At the end of each sweep, the beam strikes the beam detect lens, generating the beam detect signal (BD signal). The BD signal is sent to the ECU, where it is converted to an electrical signal used to synchronize the output of the next scan line of data.

Step 3: Developing

At this stage of the process, the latent electrostatic image is present on the drum. The toner particles obtain a negative surface charge by rubbing against the developing cylinder which is connected to a negative DC supply. The negatively charged toner is attracted to the discharged (exposed, grounded) areas of the drum, and repelled from the negatively charged (unexposed) areas.

EN Image formation system 75