Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Atsushi Shinozaki

Kazumi Suzuki

Satoshi Muramatsu

Nobutaka Takeuchi

Nekka Matsuura

Ichiro Kadota

Hisashi Shoji

Toshio Kaneko

Chikara Imai

Hiroyuki Matsushiro

Yukio Tabata

Fuchio Takeda

Junko Tomita

Yoshihiro Ogata

Toshihiko Takaya

Motohiro Usami

Yoshiharu Manabe

An image formation apparatus and process cartridge exhibiting high durability, in which such disadvantages as irregular recovery of untransferred toner and the advance of carrier degradation are not produced even when jointly using a trickle development system and a cleanerless system, comprising an image support member on which a latent image is formed; a developing unit that houses developer having carrier and toner, develops the latent image formed on the image support member, and recovers untransferred toner remaining on the image support member; a carrier supply unit that supplies carrier to the developing unit; carrier discharge means that discharges carrier housed in the developing unit to outside of the developing unit; and lubricant supply means that supplies lubricant onto the image support member.

Image formation apparatus and process cartridge including a trickle development system and a cleanerless system

An image forming apparatus includes a plurality of color toner development devices, a recycled toner development device, at least one cleaning device, a toner collecting and supplying device, and an image pattern generation device. The plurality of color toner development devices store separate color toners, and the recycled toner development device stores recycled toner. The at least one cleaning device removes toner remaining on at least one image carrying member after a transfer operation. The toner collecting and supplying device stores and supplies the removed toner to the recycled toner development device. The image pattern generation device generates image patterns developed by the plurality of color toner development devices and the recycled toner development device based on a characteristic of developer and a color of the recycled toner stored in the recycled toner development device.

Method and apparatus for image forming capable of effectively recycling toner

A multi color image forming apparatus includes a plurality of stations arranged side by side for forming unique mono-color toner images using mono-color developers each having a different mono-color toner. Each of the plurality of stations includes an image bearing member for bearing a latent image, and a developing device for visualizing the latent image into the mono-color toner image. A conveying device is provided to convey a transfer medium. A transfer device is provided to transfer the mono-color toner images from the image bearing members to the transfer medium. Charge ability of prescribed mono-color toner included in the mono-color developer used in the upstream station is smaller than that used in the downstream station.

Toner transfer back suppressing color image forming apparatus

An image recorder capable of recording an image by a predetermined line width with no regard to the operating conditions and ambient conditions by causing the line width of an image into coincidence with a predetermined referece line width. A driver controllably drives an exposing device in response to optical data. A line width sensor means the line width of a visible image developed by a developing device. Control means controls, in response to the line width sensed by the sensor, the driver such that the line width coincides with a predetermined reference line width, and corrects the controllable drive of the exposing device by the driver.

Image recorder

An electrostatic latent image developing apparatus supplies toner to a latent image carrier such as a drum-shaped photosensitive body to visualize a latent image formed thereon. The toner is supplied by a rotating drum-shaped toner carrier having a portion confronting the photosensitive body adjacent thereto and another portion held in contact with toner contained in a toner container. The toner is electrostatically attracted to the toner carrier and transferred therefrom to the photosensitive body. The toner on the toner carrier is regulated into a thin toner layer by a toner layer regulating member that is resiliently held in sliding contact with the toner carrier. To prevent toner deposits from being attached to the toner layer regulating member, the toner layer regulating member is made of a material adapted to wear with the attached toner. In order to provide the toner layer regulating member with an ability to triboelectrically charge toner, whether chargeable to a polarity (-) or (+), or to control the amount of electricity on toner chargeable to a polarity (-) or (+) and prevent toner deposits from being attached to the toner layer regulating member, another material to control the amount of electricity on toner is mixed in the material which can be worn with the attached toner.

Electrostatic latent image developing apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Chiba-ken, Japan

Atsushi Shinozaki