Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Hirotaka Hatta

Yusuke Ishizuka

Akira Asaoka

Takeshi Kojima

Hiroyuki Uenishi

Shigemi Kanda

Toshiya Satoh

Hiroshi Saitoh

Toshiya Sato

Yozo Matsuura

Masahiko Kamijo

Hiroshi Kikuchi

Hiroshi Hosokawa

Hiroyuki Nagashima

Hideki Kimura

Seiichi Kogure

Nobuo Kuwabara

Takuya Akiyama

Yuuki Aoki

Yuji Arai

Kenji Sugiura

Kazuki Yogosawa

Katsuhiro Kosuge

Kenji Honjoh

Norio Kudo

Hideyuki Takemoto

Takeshi Motohashi

Yutaka Goto

Masashi Tachi

Masashi Takiguchi

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearer, a cleaning blade having an elastic member contacting a surface of the image bearer, the cleaning blade removing a residue on the surface of the image bearer, and a controller. In the image forming apparatus, the cleaning blade has a coating film of a lubricant formed on an edge contacting, at least, the image bearer, and the controller performs an initial coating film adjustment before an image is initially formed. In the image forming apparatus, the initial coating film adjustment includes driving the image bearer to rotate, sliding the image bearer and the cleaning blade, removing a portion of the coating film of the lubricant, which is formed on the cleaning blade, and exposing the edge of the cleaning blade.

Image forming apparatus and coating-film adjusting method

An image forming apparatus includes a toner image bearer, a transfer device, a cleaner, a bias power source, and circuitry. The toner image bearer bears a toner image. The transfer device performs a transfer process. The cleaner contacts the toner image bearer to remove transfer residual toner that is subject to the transfer process and remove untransferred toner that is not subject to the transfer process. The bias power source applies one of a first bias and a second bias different from the first bias to the cleaner. The circuitry controls the bias power source to output the first bias to the cleaner in response to a start of an image forming operation to remove the untransferred toner from the toner image bearer and control the bias power source to switch an output from the first bias to the second bias.

Image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a first image forming device, a plurality of second image forming devices, a first bias voltage supply device, and a second bias voltage supply device. The first image forming device and the second image forming device form a toner image. The first bias voltage supply device applies a bias voltage to a first component of the first image forming device. The second bias voltage supply device applies a bias voltage to a second component of each of the plurality of second image forming devices.

Image forming apparatus including first and second bias voltage supply devices

A cleaning unit, which is included in a process cartridge or an image forming apparatus, includes a brush rotary body to remove toner, a toner collecting rotary body to collect the toner, a toner collecting blade to scrape the toner, and a cleaning blade to scrape the toner falling from the brush rotary body. The image carrier, the brush rotary body, and the toner collecting rotary body rotate in the same direction. The cleaning blade, the brush rotary body, and the toner collecting rotary body are located to cause a tangential line passing through a contact area of the brush rotary body and the toner collecting rotary body on an outer peripheral circle around a shaft of the brush rotary body to have an intersection point intersecting a non-contact surface of the cleaning blade disposed opposite to a contact portion of the cleaning blade with the image carrier.

Cleaning unit, process cartridge incorporating same, and image forming apparatus incorporating same

An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a toner-image forming unit, a transfer unit, a cleaner, a plurality of cylindrical transport path forming members, a falling transport path forming member, and a discharge port. The falling transport path forming member has through holes in a side wall thereof. A second end of each of the transport path forming members is inserted into a corresponding one of the through holes. The falling transport path forming member forms a falling transport path that causes toner ejected from an ejection port disposed in the second end to fall. The discharge port is disposed in a lower part of the falling transport path forming member to discharge the toner to a discharge destination. The second ends of the transport path forming members are disposed offset from each other in a horizontal direction on the side wall of the falling transport path forming member.

A cleaning device includes a brush to contact a photoconductive member, a roller to contact the brush, and a blade. The blade is located along the roller in a longitudinal direction. The blade has a first portion, a second portion, and a bent portion between the first portion and the second portion. A contact surface or edge of the first portion contacts a surface of the roller to remove toner therefrom.

Cleaning device, process cartridge, and image forming apparatus

A charger positioning adjuster, which is included in an image forming apparatus and disposed facing a charger uniformly charging a surface of an image carrier using corona discharging, includes a mounting part provided at a position on which the charger is detachably attached, a positioning member attached to the mounting part and positioning the charger by contacting thereto, and a spacer disposed between the mounting part and the positioning member and adjusting a distance between the surface of the image carrier and the charger.

Charger positioning adjuster and image forming apparatus incorporating same

An image forming apparatus including an image carrier; a charger to charge a surface of the image carrier; an irradiating device to form a latent image; a developing device to form a toner image; a transfer device to transfer the toner image onto a recording medium; a cleaning device to remove residual toner from the surface of the image carrier; a temperature and humidity detector to measure temperature and humidity within the image forming apparatus; a stop time clock to measure a period of time for which the image carrier is not driven; a removal unit to remove discharge products adhering to the surface of the image carrier; and a control unit to drive the removal unit to remove the discharge products for a period of time determined by the control unit based on measurements obtained by the temperature and humidity detector and the stop time clock.

Image forming apparatus and process cartridge

An image forming apparatus includes a photoconductor and a lubricant applicator. The photoconductor carries a toner image formed by developing an electrostatic latent image with a toner. The lubricant applicator applies a solid lubricant to a surface of the photoconductor, and includes a brush roller, a holder, a pressing member, and a protrusion. The holder holds the solid lubricant. The brush roller scrapes off the solid lubricant from the holder and applies the scraped solid lubricant to the surface of the photoconductor. The pressing member has an ellipse shape and presses the solid lubricant toward the brush roller via the holder. The protrusion is disposed on the holder and contacts an inner circumferential surface of the pressing member at two positions provided in both end portions of the pressing member in a direction of a minor axis of the ellipse formed by the pressing member to support the pressing member.

Image forming apparatus, process cartridge, and lubricant applicator

A development device that has communication port sealing means for sealing a communication port communicating a developer supporter container with a developer container. The development device is advantageous in cost reduction, easy manufacturing, and formation of high-quality images. In the development device which has a developing roller container for containing a developing roller, a developer container for containing a developer, a base member for forming a communication port communicating the developer roller container with the developer container, and a seal member that is adhered to the base member so as to cover the communication port, and which cancels sealing of the communication port by peeling off the seal member from the base member by pulling out the seal member in a direction parallel to an opened surface of the communication port, the base member is composed of a polypropylene resin having a bent section, and the seal member is adhered to the base member by thermal compression bonding.

An image forming apparatus includes a first sheet path, a first sheet transfer mechanism, an ejection mechanism, a second sheet path, and a sheet flipping mechanism. The first sheet path is in a first side of the image forming apparatus. The first sheet transfer mechanism sends recording sheets from a sheet cassette through the first sheet path. The ejection mechanism switches between an ejection process and a duplex recording process. The second sheet path receives the recording sheet from the ejection mechanism and returns it to the image recording mechanism. The second sheet path is on the other side of the apparatus than the first side in which the first sheet path is arranged. The sheet flipping mechanism flips the recording sheet and has a flipping space in which the recording sheet is flipped without coming outside of the image forming apparatus. The ejection mechanism, the second sheet path, and the sheet flipping mechanism are located in a separate add-on unit. The second sheet path has openable/closable side guides for operator access.

Image forming apparatus conveniently upgradable to a duplex image forming apparatus

In a cleaning device and a eveloping device installed in an electrophotographic device, a cleaner and toner magazine (CTM) has a cleaning unit including a cleaning blade for removing a toner left on a photoconductive element after image transfer and a waste toner tank for collecting it, and a developing unit accommodating a fresh toner tank storing a fresh toner. The waste toner tank and fresh toner tank are connected together such that the fresh toner tank is movable relative to the developing device independently of the waste toner tank.

Cleaner and toner magazine for electrophotographic apparatus

A toner magazine for feeding a developing device including in an electrophotographic apparatus, and a cleaner and toner magazine (CTM) including a cleaning unit and a developing unit are disclosed. The cleaning unit has a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on a photoconductive element and collecting it as waste toner. The developing unit has a fresh toner tank for storing fresh toner. The toner magazine and CTM are easy to handle and facilitate replacement and maintenance. The fresh toner tank is capable of storing a great amount of toner therein without increasing the overall size of the toner magazine and CTM. The toner magazine and CTM can be recycled by a simple procedure and reduce the amount of a seal material used to prevent the toner from leaking.

Toner magazine and cleaner for an electrophotographic apparatus

In a cleaning device and a developing device installed in an electrophotographic device, a cleaner and toner magazine (CTM) has a cleaning unit including a cleaning blade for removing a toner left on a photoconductive element after image transfer and a waste toner tank for collecting it, and a developing unit accommodating a fresh toner tank storing a fresh toner. The waste toner tank and fresh toner tank are constructed integrally with each other and connected together such that the fresh toner tank is movable to the developing device.

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Kawasaki, Japan

Hirotaka Hatta