Multifunction printers have a paper transport mechanism that uses rubber rollers. This mechanism transports paper by friction between the paper and the rubber rollers. One of the technical problems in the paper transport mechanism is poor paper feeding, which is thought to be caused by the frictional force that decreases due to the adhesion of paper dust to the rubber rollers. In recent years, the performance of rubber rollers is required to maintain good quality for a long period of time due to the influence of paperless printing. Previous studies have shown that the frictional force decreases when paper dust adheres to rubber rollers, and that the wear powder of paper dust-attached rubber rollers contains paper dust. These results suggest that there is a trade-off relationship between the wear of rubber rollers and the frictional force. This relationship suggests that there are conditions under which paper dust can maintain the performance of rubber rollers for a long period of time. In this study, we investigated the effects of paper dust on the friction and wear of rubber rollers in more detail by conducting friction experiments using paper containing paper dust. As a result, it was found that the friction force and the amount of wear were greatly affected by the particle size of the paper dust.
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