How to use a Photocopier

Modern photocopiers usually function as scanners, printers and photocopiers all-in-one, and are
very simple to use. To scan or copy, simply open the lid and place your paper on the screen.
Make sure you align the corners for a straight result. Once done, close the lid carefully without
moving the paper.

On the control panel you can choose whether to scan or copy. If you want to scan, make sure
the photocopier is connected to your computer. If you want to copy, choose how many copies
you want, paper size, color or black and white and then press start. The photocopier will
memorize your document and you have your perfect copies.

Key Principles
If you’ve ever been curious to know just how a photocopier gets ink onto all those copies, you
would be surprised to learn that it’s quite an easy operation.
The design of most photocopiers is based around giving opposing electrical static charges to
the ‘ink’ (actually a black powder called toner), and a rolling drum, to attract them to each other.
Light is also an important part of the process for producing the image on the drum. The final
process involves heat to fix the toner to a sheet of paper.

Step 1 – Creating an Image of the Original Document on the Drum

The process starts when the document is placed onto the glass. The copier scans the
surface of the glass (the bright light). The light bounces off the white parts of the original
document and through mirrors it is reflected onto the drum, which has been given a positive
electrical charge.
The drum is surrounded by a photoreceptive layer, or special coating that conducts electricity
when light falls onto it. Where the light falls (the white parts of the original document), the drum
conducts and the electrostatic charge is lost. Where there is no light (the black parts of the
document), the drum does not conduct and maintains its positive charge.
An image is produced onto the surface of the drum, but the image is made up of positively
charged static electricity. A photocopier gets its name from the process of light that produces
the copy of the image.

Step 2 – Charging the Toner Powder and Transferring It to the Drum

The toner is a black powder which is also charged by the machine. This time the charge is a
negative one. The negative toner is drawn from the cartridgeand attracted to the positive
parts of the drum, which correspond to the black parts of the original document. You now have a
drum with an image made up of black fine toner powder, which is a perfect replica of the
original document. It now needs to be transferred to the paper.

Step 3 – Transferring the Image onto a Sheet of Paper

The drum now rolls onto a heated sheet of paper. The toner powder transfers onto the sheet
with the heat and becomes fixed into place, which is appropriately called ‘fixing’. When the
sheet of paper with its photocopied image rolls out of the machine, it still feels warm from the
final part of the process.
And there you have it. Now you know exactly how a photocopier works and have a great
conversation starter for your next company event!