Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.

Hidekazu Amamoto

Atsuna Saiki

Manabu Saito

Takaharu Abe

Hiroki Ando

Takashi Akaike

Yasuhide Saito

Naomasa Okimura

Masahiro Ishino

Toru Ozawa

Kazunori Shindo

Satoru Ishii

Yuichi Sono

Shin Honda

Yuki Terakado

Shinya Hara

Yutaka Inasaki

Yuichi Takamori

Shouji Yoshikado

Masami Kawada

Kiyoyuki Endo

Yusaku Hashimoto

Koichi Okabe

An image forming apparatus includes: a transport member that transports a medium; a storage that is disposed below the transport member in a gravitational direction, and that stores the medium which is delivered by the transport member and falls into the storage; a supporter that is provided in the storage, and that has an upper end disposed below the transport member in a gravitational direction, and that allows the medium to be stored with a front end of the medium in a discharge direction matching a lower end of the medium in a gravitational direction; and a guidance member that is disposed in the supporter with the medium interposed between the guidance member and the supporter, and that guides the medium which falls to the supporter.

Image forming apparatus

The image forming apparatus is provided with: a replaceable image forming structure body including elements for image formation; a recording medium transporting structure body including elements for transporting a recording medium to the image forming structure body; an output recording medium transporting structure body transporting, to an output port, a recording medium outputted from the image forming structure body; and a connection structure body electrically connected to structure bodies. They each form at least a part of the appearance of the image forming apparatus. The latter three bodies are adjacent to each other, and attachable in a state where the image forming structure body is not attached, the image forming structure body is in contact with at least three surfaces included in surfaces of the other bodies adjacent to each other, and the image forming structure body is attachable in a state where the other bodies have been attached.

Image forming apparatus, image forming structure body and attachment method

An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming unit forming an image on a recording medium; a first transportation route that forms a transportation route for the recording medium extending to an outside of the apparatus, and that has a transportation route length longer than a maximum length in a transportation direction of the recording medium, the transportation route length being from an image formation functional unit at a most downstream portion of the image forming unit in the transportation direction to an output position of the recording medium; and a recording medium transportation unit that, upon output of a part of the recording medium from the first transportation route, stops the transportation in a state of holding a remaining part of the recording medium in the first transportation route, and outputs the recording medium to the outside in accordance with pull out operation for the stopped recording medium.

Image forming apparatus, recording medium transportation apparatus, recording medium transportation method and computer readable medium

A sheet feeding device includes an elastic support member, a following movable member disposed so as to contact an uppermost sheet of a stack of sheets stacked on a sheet tray and can follow and move in accordance with the change in the stacking amount of the sheets, a restraining mechanism that restrains the elastic support member in accordance with the stacking amount of the sheets so that the position of the uppermost sheet is held at a substantial constant, and a release mechanism that interlocks with the movement of the following movable member to release the restrained state. The restraining mechanism includes an engagement member that moves together with the elastic support member and a restraining member that restrains the movement of the engagement member. The restraining member moves along a straight locus at least near an engaging portion to engage with and disengage from the engagement member.

Sheet feeding device and sheet processing apparatus

A recording medium supplied from any one of paper supply units is printed by an image forming section, and then, the image-formed recording medium is transported via a transport path which is formed along a vertical direction, and thereafter is ejected to an ejection unit which is provided at an upper portion of an image forming apparatus main body. While a developing apparatus of a process cartridge owns a developer storage space, a latent image writing position 'P' of an image carrier optically written by an optical writing apparatus is located lower than at least a portion of this developer storage space, and a space defined between the paper supply unitand the optical writing apparatus is made small.

Image forming apparatus and developer replenishment portion

A sheet supply cassette includes a main frame body and an auxiliary frame body slidable with respect to the main frame body. In the main frame body, there is disposed a sheet placement plate which moves up and down according to the residual quantity of sheets placed, and there is disposed a sheet residual quantity display mechanism which displays the sheet residual quantity according to the upward and downward movements of the sheet placement plate. The display mechanism includes a sheet residual quantity detect portion for detecting the residual quantity of sheets, a sheet residual quantity display portion disposed on the front surface cover portion of the auxiliary frame body, and a connecting portion for connecting together the sheet residual quantity detect portion and sheet residual quantity display portion, while the connecting portion can be expanded and contracted according to the expansion and contraction of the sheet supply cassette.

Sheet supply cassette and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus has a latent image forming unit for forming a latent image on an image carrying body and a developing unit for visualizing the latent image formed on the image carrying body by using a developer. In the image forming apparatus, for the developing unit, a developer replenishment box is communicatively connected to a developing housing in which a developer is contained, and the developer replenishment box is disposed in an upstream of a latent image writing position P on the image carrying body. The developer replenishment box is contained in a process cartridge.

Image forming apparatus and process cartridge and developing unit for the image forming apparatus with efficient toner replenishing

A sheet feeder has a sheet tray for storing sheets, a moving bottom plate being disposed on the bottom of the sheet tray for stacking the sheets, the moving bottom plate being elastically urged by an elastic member, a sheet delivery unit having a sheet delivery member being placed in contact with the sheet stored in the sheet tray for delivering the sheets in order from the top through the sheet delivery member, and an interlock mechanism for regulating a move of the moving bottom plate in response to the sheet stack amount so as to keep constant the contact relationship between the top sheet position of the sheets stored in the sheet tray and the sheet delivery member.

Sheet feeder and image formation apparatus

In an image forming apparatus, at least a part of a transporting passage for guiding a recording sheet of paper to an image forming unit is opened from the front side of an apparatus body. According to the image forming apparatus, a paper jam can be easily removed and a space necessary for maintenance/inspection such as removal of the paper jam can be minimized.

A sheet feed cassette to be installed to a sheet feed unit of an image forming apparatus. The sheet feed cassette includes a frame unit having at least a side frame and a bottom frame; a bottom plate, provided above the bottom frame of the frame unit, for placing and supporting sheets thereon, the bottom plate being capable of moving up and down; a pushing-up unit, provided at a front end portion of a sheet feed side of the bottom plate, for pushing up the bottom plate with respect to the bottom frame of the frame unit when the sheet feed cassette is installed to the sheet feed unit of the image forming apparatus; and a spring, provided at an end portion opposite to the sheet feed side of the bottom plate, for urging up the bottom plate with respect to the bottom frame of the frame unit.

Sheet feed cassette for image forming apparatus

A paper path for guiding and transporting sheets of paper in an image former such as a printer or a photocopier which forms an image on both sides of the sheet of paper. The paper path has three channels: an image forming channel, a paper discharging channel, and a paper reversing channel. At the point where all three channels merge, a paper gate is provided for both guiding sheets of paper and signaling the presence of paper at the point where the three channels merge. The top surface of a paper tray containing unused sheets of paper is part of the paper reversing channel. When paper passes over the top surface of the paper tray, a roller momentarily stops the motion of the paper to prevent skew. A claw connected to the paper tray separates paper with an image formed on one side from paper in the tray. Guides provided over the claw prevent paper jams. A clutch is connected between one of the paper rollers and a driving source, and the clutch selectively disconnects the driving source to stop the motion of the paper to prevent skew. A second claw is provided on one of the paper rollers to ensure that only one sheet of paper enters the roller at a time. The second claw prevents paper jams which occur when two sheets of paper stick together by the force of static electricity.

Growing community of inventors

Saitama, Japan

Hidekazu Amamoto